GO-nafion composite membrane development for enabling intermediate temperature operation of polymer electrolyte fuel cell

Increasing Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells’ (PEFCs) operating temperature has benefits on the performance and the ease of utilisation of the heat generated; however, efforts for high temperature PEFCs have resulted in high degradation and reduced life time. In the literature, conventional low temperature (T < 80 °C) and high temperature (140–200 °C) regimes have been extensively studied, while the gap of operating at intermediate temperature (IT) (100–120 °C) has been scarcely explored.The main bottleneck for operating at IT conditions is the development of a suitable proton exchange membrane with comparable performance and lifetime to the commercially used Nafion operating at conventional conditions. In this work, composite membranes of Graphene Oxide (GO) and Nafion of varied thickness were fabricated, characterised and assessed for in-situ single cell performance under automotive operating conditions at conventional and intermediate temperatures.The material characterisation confirmed that a composite GO-Nafion structure was achieved. The composite membrane demonstrated higher mechanical strength, enhanced water uptake, and higher performance. It was demonstrated that by utilising GO-Nafion composite membranes, an up to 20% increase in the maximum power density at all operating temperatures can be achieved, with the optimum performance is obtained at 100 °C. Moreover, the GO-Nafion membrane was able to maintain its open circuit voltage values at increased temperature and reduced thickness, indicating better durability and potentially higher lifetime.     

Structural,electrical, optical and dielectric properties of yttrium substituted cadmium ferrites prepared by Co-Precipitation method

The yttrium substituted cadmium ferrites having composition Cd_1-xY_xFe₂O₄ (X = 0.00, 0.125, 0.250, 0.375, 0.500) were synthesized by the co-precipitation method and sintered at 1100 °C for 6 h. Structural, morphological, electrical, optical and dielectric characteristics were explored by XRD, SEM, EDS, FTIR, I–V two probes, UV–Vis and LCR techniques.XRD results confirmed the cubic structure of spinel ferrites. A decrease in lattice constants of the prepared samples was observed with the substitution of Y ions and was attributed to the difference in ionic radii of Y³⁺ (0.95 Å) and Cd²⁺ (0.97 Å) ions. Cationic distributions, ionic radii of both tetrahedral and octahedral sites, tolerance factor, oxygen positional parameters, bond lengths, interatomic distances, positional parameters and bond length angles were calculated from XRD data. The morphology of the prepared ferrites was studied using SEM and results ratified the XRD results. EDS confirmed the presence of all inserted elements in Cd_1-xY_xFe₂O₄ composition. DC resistivity and drift mobility of soft-ferrites were found to be increased from 1.047 × 10⁸–4.822 × 10¹⁰ Ω-cm and 5.87 × 10⁻¹² – 1.045 × 10⁻¹⁴ cm²V⁻¹s⁻¹, respectively, at 523 K with yttrium content confirming the behavior of semiconductor materials. The optical band gap energy calculated from the UV–Vis pattern of the Cd_1-xY_xFe₂O₄ system was decreased from 3.6011 to 2.8153 eV. DC resistivity and optical band gaps exposed inverse relation. FTIR results revealed lower and upper-frequency absorption bands in the ranges of 419.31–417.01 cm⁻¹ and 540.95–565.70 cm⁻¹, respectively. Dielectric constant and dielectric losses were in decreasing order, while ac conductivity revealed rising behavior with increasing frequency. Results showed the potential of yttrium doped Cd nanoferrites for applications in high-frequency microwave absorbing devices.     

Spin‐Gapless Semiconductors

The spin‐gapless semiconductors (SGSs) are a new class of zero‐gap materials which have fully spin polarized electrons and holes. They bridge the zero‐gap materials and the half‐metals. The band structures of the SGSs can have two types of energy dispersion: Dirac linear dispersion and parabolic dispersion. The Dirac‐type SGSs exhibit fully spin polarized Dirac cones, and offer a platform for massless and fully spin polarized spintronics as well as dissipationless edge states via the quantum anomalous Hall effect. With fascinating spin and charge states, they hold great potential for spintronics. There have been tremendous efforts worldwide to find suitable candidates for SGSs. In particular, there is an increasing interest in searching for Dirac type SGSs. In the past decade, a large number of Dirac or parabolic type SGSs have been predicted by density functional theory, and some parabolic SGSs have been experimentally demonstrated. The SGSs hold great potential for spintronics, electronics, and optoelectronics with high speed and low‐energy consumption. Here, both the Dirac and the parabolic types of SGSs in different material systems are reviewed and the concepts of the SGS, novel spin and charge states, and the potential applications of SGSs in next‐generation spintronic devices are outlined.     

Review of composite cathodes for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell applications

A composite cathode exhibits low activation polarisation by spreading its electrochemically active area within its volume. Composite cathodes enable the development of high-performance electrodes for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) at intermediate temperatures (600 °C – 800 °C) because of their significant role in determining the kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Few anions O²⁻ are transferred through the electrolyte component when the ORR is low, thereby lowering the reaction with cation H⁺ from an anode side to transfer electrons along the outer circuit to the cathode side to participate in ORR. The resistance to the ORR at the cathode is minimised, thereby contributing to performance degradation and efficiency loss in existing SOFCs, especially at intermediate temperatures. The suitability and compatibility of the cathode and electrolyte are crucial in the development of cathodes and electrochemical reactions. The intercomponent compatibility is important to ensure the robustness and durability of SOFCs, especially at an operating temperature around 800 °C, at which the components experience extreme thermal and mechanical stresses. Composite cathodes are used to improve cathode performance. These composite cathodes help enhance the properties of mixed electronic–ionic conductors and the intercomponent compatibility. Herein, we reviewed historical data of composite-cathode development for SOFCs, including its basic principle and criteria. The overall performance of as-synthesised composite cathodes in terms of microstructure, electrochemical reaction and intercomponent compatibility is briefly discussed.     

Study on the basic capacitance–voltage characteristics of organic molecular semiconductors

Capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics of organic molecular semiconductors attracted much research interest recently, but no convincing physical mechanism has been established so far. In this work, the C–V characteristics of pentacene-based devices have been systematically investigated at various frequencies. Only one peak occurs when the measuring frequency is less than 3 kHz or greater than 8 kHz. While within the frequency range between the two, two C–V peaks are observed with quite different dependence on temperature, which suggests that the origins of these two C–V peaks are respectively mobile holes and trapped carriers. This conclusion is also experimentally validated with the C–V characteristics of intentionally doped devices.     

MIMO-GFDM系统中低复杂度动态禁忌搜索检测算法的改进

针对多输入多输出的广义频分复用（MIMO-GFDM）系统的等效信道矩阵维度极大，传统的MIMO检测算法复杂度高且性能不佳的问题，将大规模MIMO系统中的动态禁忌搜索（RTS）检测算法运用到MIMO-GFDM系统中，并解决了RTS算法初始值的求解复杂度高的问题。首先利用最小均方误差（MMSE）检测算法所用到矩阵的正定对称性将矩阵Cholesky分解，并结合Sherman-Morrison公式迭代计算初始值，降低了初始值求逆的高复杂度；然后以改进的MMSE检测结果作为RTS算法的初始值，从初始值逐步全局搜索最优解；最后通过仿真，对不同算法的迭代次数和误码率（BER）性能进行了研究。理论分析与仿真结果表明：在MIMO-GFDM中，所提改进RTS信号检测算法误码率远低于传统信号检测算法。在4QAM时，RTS算法大约有低于MMSE检测6 dB的信噪比性能增益（误码率在10^-3时）；在16QAM时，RTS算法大约有低于MMSE检测4 dB的信噪比性能增益（误码率在10^-2时）。与传统RTS算法性相比，所提改进算法在不影响误码率性能的同时降低了算法复杂度。     

Generation-expansion planning with linearized primary frequency response constraints

As renewable energy resources increasingly penetrate the electric grid, the inertia capability of power systems has become a developmental bottleneck. Nevertheless, the importance of primary frequency response (PFR) when making generation-expansion plans has been largely ignored. In this paper, we propose an optimal generation-expansion planning framework for wind and thermal power plants that takes PFR into account. The model is based on the frequency equivalent model. It includes investment, startup/shutdown, and typical operating costs for both thermal and renewable generators. The linearization constraints of PFR are derived theoretically. Case studies based on the modified IEEE 39-bus system demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed method. Compared with methods that ignore PFR, the method proposed in this paper can effectively reduce the cost of the entire planning and operation cycle, improving the accommodation rate of renewable energy.     

频率域电磁法在采空区探测中的应用

隐伏采空区的探测已成为近年来研究课题,采用无人机搭载发射装置,高空平面布置探测线和测点,克服在陡峭的山坡难以布置探测工作,消除地形地貌及其它条件对探测工作带的误差。对已知空区的探测和分析,验证了该方法的有效性和精确程度,为后续其它探测提供了频率域区间和参数校正。研究表明:此方法具有适用性强、工作效率高和精确度高优点,是一种可用于隐伏空区的探测方法,分析过程中可以辨别采空区变形情况。     

Self-assembled cubic-hexagonal perovskite nanocomposite as intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell cathode

Self-assembly is an emerging strategy for preparing composite cathodes with good oxygen electrochemical reduction activity and congenital chemical compatibility for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell (IT-SOFC). Here we report that a self-assembled BaCo_0.6Zr_0.4O_3-δ (BZC-BC) nanocomposite is prepared through one-pot glycine-nitrate process and exhibits high cathode performance. The BZC-BC nanocomposite is composed of 62 mol% cubic perovskite BaZr_0.82Co_0.18O_3-δ (BZC) as an ionic conductor and 38 mol% hexagonal perovskite BaCo_0.96Zr_0.04O_2.6+δ (12H-BC) as a mixed ionic and electronic conductor. The BZC-BC nanocomposite has the pomegranate-like particles aggregated with a larger number of nanoparticles (50-100 nm) which greatly enlarge the three-phase boundary sites. The BZC-BC nanocomposite exhibits a thermal expansion coefficient of 12.89 × 10⁻⁶ K⁻¹ well-matched with that of Ce_0.8Gd_0.2O_3-δ (12.84 × 10⁻⁶ K⁻¹) electrolyte. The high electro-catalytic activity of BZC-BC nanocomposite cathode for oxygen reduction is reflected by the low polarization resistances of oxygen ions incorporation at cathode/electrolyte interface (0.02823 Ω cm²), oxygen species diffusion (0.03702 Ω cm²) and oxygen adsorptive dissociation (0.07609 Ω cm²) at 700 °C. The single cell with BZC-BC nanocomposite cathode achieves the maximum power density of 1094 mW cm⁻² at 650 °C and shows good stability under 25 h run.     

基于RFID标签阵列的睡眠期间呼吸量连续监测系统

睡眠期间连续且准确的呼吸量监测有助于推断用户的睡眠阶段以及提供一些慢性疾病的线索。现有工作主要针对呼吸频率进行感知和监测,缺乏对呼吸量进行连续监测的手段。针对上述问题提出了一种基于商用无线射频识别(RFID)标签的无线感知用户睡眠期间呼吸量的系统——RF-SLEEP。RF-SLEEP通过阅读器连续收集附着在胸部表面的标签阵列返回的相位值及时间戳数据,计算出呼吸引起的胸部不同点的位移量,基于广义回归神经网络(GRNN)构建胸部不同点的位移量与呼吸量之间的关系模型,从而实现对用户睡眠期间呼吸量的评估。RF-SLEEP通过在用户肩膀处附着双参考标签,消除用户睡眠期间翻转身体对胸部位移计算造成的误差。实验结果表明,RFSLEEP对不同用户睡眠期间的呼吸量连续监测的平均精确度为92.49%。