Porous nitrogen-enriched hollow carbon nanofibers as freestanding electrode for enhanced lithium storage

One-dimensional porous carbons bearing high surface areas and sufficient heteroatom doped functional-ities are essential for advanced electrochemical energy storage devices, especially for developing free-standing film electrodes. Here we develop a porous, nitrogen-enriched, freestanding hollow carbon nanofiber (PN-FHCF) electrode material via filtration of polypyrrole (PPy) hollow nanofibers formed by in situ self-degraded template-assisted strategy, followed by NH3-assisted carbonization. The PN-FHCF retains the freestanding film morphology that is composed of three-dimensional networks from the entanglement of 1D nanofiber and delivers 3.7-fold increase in specific surface area (592 m2·g-1) com-pared to the carbon without NH3 treatment (FHCF). In spite of the enhanced specific surface area, PN-FHCF still exhibits comparable high content of surface N functionalities (8.8％, atom fraction) to FHCF. Such developed hierarchical porous structure without sacrificing N doping functionalities together enables the achievement of high capacity, high-rate property and good cycling stability when applied as self-supporting anode in lithium-ion batteries, superior to those of FHCF without NH3 treatment.     

Experimental and computational study on the separation performance of an electrostatic precipitator with curved transvers collecting plates

Aiming at the problems of low collection efficiency of fine particulate matter and large area occupied by existing electrostatic precipitators (ESP), a new type of horizontal electrode ESP is proposed. It has the advantages of accelerating turbulent coalescence, increasing the effective dust collecting area and increasing the particle driving speed. The performance of the new type of ESP is systematic studied through simulation and experiment at the same time, and the results matches well. By comparing the dust removal effect of the horizontal electrode ESP and the conventional ESP, it can be concluded that the horizontal electrode ESP has a better dust removal efficiency, and can still maintain a better dust removal effect under high air velocity. The dust removal efficiency of new ESP can reach above 98% under the experimental conditions.     

Controllable electrodeposition synthesis of Pd/TMxOy-rGO/CFP composite electrode for highly efficient methanol electro-oxidation

A novel and high-efficiency Pd/TM_xO_y-rGO/CFP (TM_xO_y = Co₃O₄, Mn₃O₄, Ni(OH)₂) electrocatalyst for directly integrated membrane electrode was synthesized by controllable cyclic voltammetry electrodeposition combined with hydrothermal process. The results showed excellent performance towards methanol oxidation reduction. The Pd/Co₃O₄-rGO/CFP as-prepared catalyst has the best electrocatalytic activity, and mass activity is 5181 mA·mg⁻¹_Pd, which is about 40 times and 4.3 times that of the commercial Pd/C and Pt/C catalyst (JM). It can be attributed that the small size of Pd nanoparticle, uniformity of distribution, and the synergistic interaction between transition metal oxide on the support surface and Pd nanoparticles. The prepared Pd/TM_xO_y-rGO/CFP composite electrode is a promising catalyst for integrated membrane electrode assembly of proton exchange membrane fuel cells in the future.     

镍基MOF电极材料物理超声改性及电化学性能

采用水热法合成了以4,4′-联苯二甲酸(BPDC)为配体的Ni-金属有机框架(MOF),利用低成本、无污染的物理超声法在不改变Ni-MOF晶体结构的前提下对其进行改性,使块状Ni-MOF表面产生孔隙,改善Ni-MOF表面微/纳米结构,提高其电化学性能。通过扫描电子显微镜(SEM)图、X射线衍射(XRD)谱、循环伏安(CV)曲线和恒电流充放电(GCD)曲线分析了改性前后Ni-MOF的微结构形貌和电化学性能。结果表明,经过超声处理后,Ni-MOF的比表面积从40.6 m^2·g^-1增加到65.8 m^2·g^-1,平均孔径从12 nm增加到22 nm。在0.5 A·g^-1电流密度下,超声处理后Ni-MOF电极比电容从420 F·g^-1增加到515 F·g^-1,提高了22.6%,电荷转移电阻明显降低,从25.11Ω降低到15.51Ω。因此,物理超声法可有效改善Ni-MOF表面微/纳米结构,提高其电化学性能。     

Corrosion behaviour and mechanism of 6082 aluminium alloy in NaCl and Na2SO4 etchants

The corrosion behaviour of 6082 aluminium alloy was studied by measuring the electrochemical impedance spectra and electrode polarization curves. After the electrochemical tests, a microstructural analysis of the samples was conducted by using optical microscopy and electron scanning microscopy techniques to determine the corrosion mechanism. The results show that the Nyquist plot of the electrochemical impedance data in the NaCl solution consists of high- and low-frequency capacitive impedance loops. When ions are added to the NaCl etchant, the Nyquist plots of the electrochemical impedance data are composed of two different curves: a high-frequency capacitive impedance loop and a low-frequency inductive impedance loop. The corrosion current density increases with increasing concentration, and as a result, the corrosion resistance of the aluminium alloy decreases. The microstructures of 6082 aluminium alloy consist of Mg₂Si secondary particles in a large α-Al matrix. Pitting corrosion initially occurs at the boundary between the matrix and secondary particles because the electrode potentials of the matrix and secondary particles are different. Then, corrosion paths develop along the network-like grain boundaries, and finally, massive network-like corrosion occurs throughout the entire alloy.     

Flow control with electrode bank arrangements by electrohydrodynamics force for heat transfer enhancement in a porous medium

Active flow control with electrohydrodynamics (EHD) force in the channel flow has been numerically investigated for enhancing heat transfer. This study focuses on the effect of electrode bank arrangements and the number of electrodes on corona wind and fluid flow for heat transfer onto a porous medium. Aligned and staggered configurations of electrode banks are compared. The numerical results show that electric field intensity depends on electrical voltage and the number of electrodes. Shear flow is increased with larger numbers of electrodes and in the aligned configuration, resulting in the enhancement of vortex strength. The swirling flow from staggered configurations spread wider than that of aligned configurations, but the aligned configuration produced more turbulence. In addition, the temperature distribution in the channel flow is increased with increasing numbers of electrodes. With the effect of swirling flow, airflow above the porous sample surface is faster leads the heat to more transfer to the porous sample surface. This causes the temperature of porous medium to increase rapidly so the convective heat transfer coefficient on porous medium surface is increased. Finally, the modified case of the numerical results is validated against the experimental results. The experimental flow visualization is based on the incense smoke technique, in order to verify the accuracy of the swirling flow pattern subjected to the electric field. It is shown that the comparison results in both techniques are in good agreement.     

Fabrication of TiO2 photocatalytic electrode and contamination control with atmospheric pressure O2 plasma jet

In this study, we demonstrate the fabrication of TiO₂ photocatalytic electrode by sol-gel and electrospinning technique. The anatase TiO₂ nanofiber is successfully formed after thermal annealing at 260°C. As-prepared TiO₂ photocatalytic electrode contains surface contamination, which includes a polymer binder such as ethyl cellulose, carbon by carbonization of polyvinylpyrrolidone, and residue polyvinylpyrrolidone. To efficiently remove the surface contaminants from the TiO₂ photocatalytic electrode, we employ an atmospheric-pressure O₂ plasma jet and the exposure time is controlled by the scanning rate. As the results, photodegradation efficiency of methylene blue is significantly enhanced with a scanning rate in the range of 100-500 μm/s and was saturated with a scanning rate in the range of 10-100 μm/s.     

Self-Adaptive Control System for Additive Manufacturing Using Double Electrode Micro Plasma Arc Welding

Wire arc additive manufacturing(WAAM)has been investigated to deposit large-scale metal parts due to its high deposition efficiency and low material cost.However,in the process of automatically manufacturing the high-quality metal parts by WAAM,several problems about the heat build-up,the deposit-path optimization,and the stability of the process parameters need to be well addressed.To overcome these issues,a new WAAM method based on the double electrode micro plasma arc welding(DE-MPAW)was designed.The circuit principles of different metal-transfer models in the DE-MPAW deposition process were analyzed theoretically.The effects between the parameters,wire feed rate and torch stand-off distance,in the process of WAAM were investigated experimentally.In addition,a real-time DE-MPAW control system was developed to optimize and stabilize the deposition process by self-adaptively changing the wire feed rate and torch stand-off distance.Finally,a series of tests were performed to evaluate the con-trol system's performance.The results show that the capability against interferences in the process of WAAM has been enhanced by this self-adaptive adjustment system.Further,the deposition paths about the metal part's layer heights in WAAM are simplified.Finally,the appearance of the WAAM-deposited metal layers is also improved with the use of the control system.     

Crystal structure and functional properties of Nd1.6Ca0.4Ni1-yCuyO4+δ as prospective cathode materials for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells

Complex oxides Nd_1.6Ca_0.4Ni_1-yCu_yO_4+δ (y = 0.0–0.4) have been prepared by a pyrolysis of glycerol-nitrate compositions. According to the X-ray diffraction analysis, the materials are single-phase up to y = 0.3 and crystallize in an orthorhombic structure (Bmab) at room temperature. High-temperature studies assert that they all undergo a phase transition from orthorhombic to tetragonal (I4/mmm) structure in a range of 300–400 °C. With Cu doping, the over-stoichiometric oxygen content δ decreases from 0.07 (y = 0.0) down to 0.00 (y = 0.3). The studies on the compact samples reveal the maximum value of total conductivity (165 S cm^?1 at 420 °C) and the minimum value of the linear coefficient of thermal expansion (11.9·10^?6 K^?1 in a range of 400–1000 °C in air) at y = 0.2. Chemical compatibility of the Nd_1.6Cа_0.4Ni_1-yCu_yO_4+δ (y = 0.0, 0.2) oxides with oxygen- and proton conducting electrolytes (Ce_0.9Gd_0.1O_1.95, Ce_0.8Sm_0.2O_1.9 and BaCe_0.5Zr_0.3Y_0.1Yb_0.1O_3-δ) up to a temperature of 1100 °C is demonstrated.     

Tailoring the hydrophilic and hydrophobic reaction fields of the electrode interface on single crystal Pt electrodes for hydrogen evolution/oxidation reactions

Interfacial hydrophobic/hydrophilic reaction fields significantly affect various reactions at the electrode surface. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) have been investigated on single crystal Pt electrodes modified with hydrophobic/hydrophilic cations and anion-exchange copolymers in alkaline solutions. In alkali metal hydroxide solutions, Pt (110) exhibits the highest HER/HOR activity in the low-index planes of Pt. On the low-index planes of Pt, the hydrophilicity of the alkali metal cation in the supporting electrolyte activates the HER/HOR depending on its hydration energy. Hydrophilic cations at the interface facilitate the extraction of hydrogen from the hydrated water. The modification of anion-exchange copolymers with a hydrophobic skeleton on Pt (110) further enhanced the HER/HOR activity. The hydrogen bonding network formed around the hydrophobic species facilitated the mobility of water molecules and the OH⁻ as the reactant/product of the HER/HOR. Appropriately forming hydrophilic and hydrophobic reaction fields at the interface improved the HER/HOR activity.