High-entropy ferroelastic rare-earth tantalite ceramic: (Y0.2Ce0.2Sm0.2Gd0.2Dy0.2)TaO4

In this study, high-entropy rare-earth tantalate ceramics (Y_0.2Ce_0.2Sm_0.2Gd_0.2Dy_0.2)TaO₄ ((5RE_0.2)TaO₄) have been successfully fabricated. The possibility of formation of (5RE_0.2)TaO₄ was verified via first-principles calculations. In addition, the phase structure, ferroelastic toughening mechanism, thermophysical, and mechanical properties were systematically investigated. The (5RE_0.2)TaO₄ ceramics have lower phonon thermal conductivity (1.2–2.6 W·m^–1·K^–1) in the entire temperature range than that of RETaO₄ and YSZ. (5RE_0.2)TaO₄ has a higher fracture toughness and lower brittleness index than YSZ. The thermal expansion coefficients of (5RE_0.2)TaO₄ are as high as 10.3 × 10^-6 K^–1 at 1200°C and Young's modulus is 66–189 GPa, and thus, (5RE_0.2)TaO₄ possesses great potential for application in thermal barrier coatings (TBCs).     

Interactions of Li2O volatilized from ternary lithium-ion battery cathode materials with mullite saggar materials during calcination

In recent years, the rapid development of Li(Ni_xCo_yMn_1-x-y)O₂ (LNCM) materials for application in ternary lithium-ion batteries has led to an increased demand for refractory kiln saggars in industries. However, saggars used for firing ternary Li-ion battery cathode materials are often subjected to severe corrosion and spalling. To investigate the damage mechanism of the saggar materials, non-contact corrosion experiments were designed to study the effects of the precursor additions, calcination temperature, and number of calcinations during the interaction between mullite saggar and LNCM materials. The phase composition and microstructure of the mullite saggar specimens before and after corrosion were characterized using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, respectively, to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the causes of the deterioration of mullite saggar materials during corrosion.     

A review on direct synthesis of dimethoxymethane

Polyoxymethylene dimethyl ethers are recognized as the prospective diesel additive to decrease the pollutant emission from the light-duty vehicles, which can be polymerize form the monomer of dimethoxymethane (DMM). The industrial synthesis of DMM is mainly involved two-step process: methanol is oxidized to form the formaldehyde in fixed bed reactor and then reacted with the generated formaldehyde through acetalization in continuous stirred-tank reactor. Due to huge energy consumption, this typical synthesis route of DMM needs to be upgraded and more green routes should be determined. In this review, four state-of-the-art one-step direct synthetic routes, including two upgrading routes (methanol direct oxidation and direct dehydrogenation) and two green routes (methanol diethyl ether direct oxidation and carbon oxides direct hydrogenation), have been summarized and compared. Combination with the reaction mechanism and catalytic performance on the different catalysts, the challenges and opportunities for every synthetic route are proposed. The relationships between catalyst structure and property in different synthesis strategy are also investigated and then the suggestions of the design of catalyst are given about future research directions that efforts should be made in. Hopefully, this review can bridge the gap between newly developed catalysts and synthesis technology to realize their commercial applications in the near future.     

基于VMD和改进TCN的短期光伏发电功率预测

光伏发电功率存在波动性,且光伏出力易受各种气象特征影响,传统TCN网络容易过度强化空间特性而弱化个体特性。针对上述问题,文中提出一种基于VMD和改进TCN的短期光伏发电功率预测模型。通过VMD将原始光伏发电功率时间序列分解为若干不同频率的模态分量,将各个模态分量以及相对应的气象数据输入至改进TCN网络进行建模学习。利用中心频率法确定VMD的最优分解模态分解个数。在传统TCN预测模型的基础上,使用DropBlock正则化取代Dropout正则化以达到抑制卷积层中信息协同的效果,并引入注意力机制自主挖掘并突出关键气象输入特征的影响,量化各气象因素对光伏发电的影响,从而提高预测精度。以江苏省某光伏电站真实数据为例进行仿真实验,结果表明所提预测方法的RMSE为0.62 MW,MAPE为2.03%。     

Experimental study on the deformation and failure mechanism of overburden rock during coal mining using a comprehensive intelligent sensing method

Understanding the spatiotemporal evolution of overburden deformation during coal mining is still a challenge in engineering practice due to the limitation of monitoring techniques. Taking the Yangliu Coal Mine as an example, a similarity model test was designed and conducted to investigate the deformation and failure mechanism of overlying rocks in this study. Distributed fiber optic sensing (DFOS), high-density electrical resistivity tomography (HD-ERT) and close-range photogrammetry (CRP) technologies were used in the test for comprehensive analyses. The combined use of the three methods facilitates the investigation of the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of overburden deformation, showing that the mining-induced deformation of overburden strata was a dynamic evolution process. This process was accompanied by the formation, propagation, closure and redevelopment of separation cracks. Moreover, the key rock stratum with high strength and high-quality lithology played a crucial role in the whole process of overburden deformation. There were generally three failure modes of overburden rock layers, including bending and tension, overall shearing, and shearing and sliding. Shear failure often leads to overburden falling off in blocks, which poses a serious threat to mining safety. Therefore, real-time and accurate monitoring of overburden deformation is of great significance for the safe mining of underground coal seams.     

Effects of andalusite and kyanite addition on the microstructure,thermo-mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of ultralow-cement bauxite-corundum castables

Ultralow-cement bauxite-corundum refractory castables are increasingly attracting attention because of the advantages in performance and cost. To improve its volume stability and high-temperature performance, andalusite and kyanite were incorporated into this type of refractory, respectively, and a comparative investigation of their effects on microstructure, thermo-mechanical properties, and slag corrosion resistance was carried out in this work. The expansion effects induced by the mullitization of these additives not only suppressed the sintering shrinkage but also made the matrix structure more compact and uniform, mainly owing to the generation of many new and strong mullite bonds. This improvement resulted in a significant increase in the refractoriness under load and creep resistance. This effect was far more pronounced for the andalusite-added castables, for which the RUL increased by 62 °C and the creep rate at the stationary stage decreased by 26%. Besides, adverse effects on microstructure and properties appeared when adding a higher amount of kyanite due to the excessive expansion. Moreover, the corrosion mechanisms of these refractory castables by refining slag were discussed, and the active role of andalusite addition in the corrosion resistance was also proposed.     

Microstructure and hydrogen storage properties of Ti–V–Cr based BCC-type high entropy alloys

In this work, the crystal structure and hydrogen storage properties of V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Fe₁₀, V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Mn₁₀, V₃₀Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Fe₁₀Nb₅ and V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Fe₅Mn₅ BCC-type high entropy alloys have been investigated. It was found that high entropy promotes the formation of BCC phase while large atomic difference (δ) has the opposite effect. Among the four alloys, the V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Mn₁₀ alloy shows the highest hydrogen absorption capacity while the V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₆Fe₅Mn₅ alloy exhibits the highest reversible capacity. The cause of the loss of desorption capacity is mainly due to the high stability of the hydrides. The higher room-temperature desorption capacity of the V₃₅Ti₃₀Cr₂₅Fe₅Mn₅ alloy is due to higher hydrogen desorption pressure. After pumping at 400 °C, the hydrides can return to the original BCC structure with only a small expansion in the cell volume.     

Hydrogen production from thermal decomposition of ammonia-contaminated acid gas using a detailed reaction mechanism

The increase in the production of acid gas consisting of H₂S, CO₂, and associated impurities such as ammonia and hydrocarbons from oil and gas plants and gasification facilities has stimulated the interest in the development of alternative means of acid gas utilization to produce hydrogen and sulfur, simultaneously. The present literature lacks a detailed reaction mechanism that can reliably predict the thermal destruction of NH₃ and its blend with H₂S and CO₂ to facilitate process optimization and commercialization. In this paper, a detailed mechanism of NH₃ pyrolysis is developed and is merged with the reactions of NH₃ oxidation and H₂S/CO₂ thermal decomposition from our previous works. The mechanism is validated successfully using different sets of experimental data on the pyrolysis and oxidation of NH₃, H₂S, and CO₂. The proposed mechanism predicts the experimental data on NH₃ pyrolysis remarkably better than the existing mechanisms in the literature. The mechanism is used to investigate the effects of NH₃ concentration (0–20%) and reactor temperature (1000–1800 K) on the thermal decomposition of H₂S and CO₂. A synergistic effect is observed in the simultaneous decomposition of NH₃ and CO₂, i.e., NH₃ conversion is improved in the presence of CO₂ and the decomposition CO₂ to CO is enhanced in the presence of NH₃. The presence of H₂S suppressed NH₃ conversion, while the conversion of H₂S remained unchanged with increasing NH₃ concentration at temperature below 1400 K due to the low conversion of NH₃ (up to 18%). At temperature above 1400 K, NH₃ conversion increased rapidly and it triggered a decrease in H₂S conversion as well as the yields of H₂ and S₂. The major reactions involved in the decomposition of H₂S, CO₂, and NH₃ and the production of major products such as H₂, S₂, and CO are identified. The detailed reaction mechanism can facilitate the design and optimization of acid gas thermal decomposition to produce hydrogen and sulfur, simultaneously.     

Modification of pork-skin jelly by enzymatic cross-linking: melting resistance and quality improvement

Improvements of melting resistance and quality by modification of pork-skin jelly through enzymatic cross-linking were studied, and the mechanism of quality improvement was discussed in this work. Gel strength, springiness and chewiness of modified gel increased significantly (P < 0.05). Transglutaminase (TGase) also improved the viscoelasticity, stability and melting resistance of gel system, as proved by rheological analysis. Sensory evaluation showed that increase in texture need to be moderate and the utilisation of 0.6% TGase was the most appropriate for pork-skin jelly. Significant effects of TGase on inducing protein cross-link and aggregation were confirmed by determining rheology during enzyme treatment and cross-linking extent of pork-skin soup. Correlation analysis showed TGase could improve melting temperature and texture by facilitating cross-linking. Covalent interaction based on ε-(γ-glutamyl)-lysine induced by TGase could play the main role in these improvements. This study suggested that TGase could be applied to design gelatin-based food for tailored quality properties through enzymatic cross-linking.     

牦牛绒过氧化氢/过硫酸铵脱色体系工艺优化及其机制

针对现有商业化牦牛绒脱色过程复杂、脱色时间长等问题,提出新型过氧化氢/过硫酸铵体系牦牛绒脱色工艺。在尽可能提高纤维白度的前提下尽量减少纤维损伤,通过单因素试验确定了脱色时间、过硫酸铵用量和试剂pH值,对脱色工艺进行探讨并与商业化脱色牦牛绒进行比较。结果表明:采用过硫酸铵质量浓度为400 g/L,试剂pH值为9,在室温下脱色为180 min可达到商业脱色牦牛绒的效果,脱色时间节省至原来的1/8;脱色机制分析发现,脱色过程中硫酸根自由基起主要作用,羟基自由基起次要作用。该脱色工艺简单,为牦牛绒高值化利用提供了新的解决方案。