Activation mechanisms on potassium hydroxide enhanced microstructures development of coke powder

Coke powder is expected to be an excellent raw material to produce activated carbon because of its high carbon content. Potassium hydroxide (KOH), as an effective activation agent, was reported to be effective in activating coke powder. However, the microstructures development in the coke powder and its mechanisms when KOH was applied were still unclear. In this study, effects of KOH on the microstructure activation of coke powder were investigated using the surface area and pore structure analyzer, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry-mass spectrometry (TG-DSC-MS), etc. Results revealed that the addition KOH at its lower ratio (mass ratios of KOH and coke powder in a range of 0.5 and 1) decreased the specific surface area and average lateral sizes, but sharply increased of the specific surface area to 132 m²·g^-1 and 355 m²·g^-1 and decreased of the space size of aromatic crystallites upon the further increase of the KOH addition amounts (ratios of KOH and coke powder in a range of 3 and 7), generating a number of new micropores and mesopores. The mechanisms study implied surface reactions between KOH and aliphatic hydrocarbon side chain and other carbon functional groups of the coke powder to destruct aromatic crystallites in one dimension and broaden pores at lower KOH addition. In the activation process, KOH was decomposed to be more active components, which can be rapidly destruct the aromatic layers in spatial scope to form developed porous carbon structures within coke powder at higher KOH addition.     

Influence of dispersants on coal-water slurry prepared from the solid residue of plasma pyrolysis of coal

This work presents the influence of dispersants on coal-water slurry (CWS), which was prepared from the solid residue of plasma pyrolysis of coal. The effects of dispersant type, solid concentration, dispersant content, and temperature on the rheological properties of CWS are examined. A suitable empirical model regarding the relation between viscosity and temperature is proposed. Through the sedimentation experiment of CWS, dispersants are found to significantly promote the stability of CWS.     

Hollow MnO2/GNPs serving as a multiresponsive nanocarrier for controlled drug release

In this work, hollow manganese dioxide/gold nanoparticle (MnO₂/GNPs) hybrid drug nanocarriers were prepared by coupling the gold nanoparticles (GNPs) with hollow structure manganese dioxide (MnO₂). Among them, GNPs have been used as near-infrared (NIR)-responsive element for photothermal effect under NIR laser irradiation. The glutathione (GSH)-responsive and pH-responsive performances of drug release were derived from hollow MnO₂. Particularly, Doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) can be loaded into hollow MnO₂/GNPs with the drug loading efficiency up to 82.0%. Moreover, the photothermal effect and GSH-/pH-responsive properties of hollow MnO₂/GNPs were investigated. The hollow MnO₂/GNPs possessed satisfactory drug release efficiency (ca. 87.4% of loaded drug released in 12 h) and have high photothermal conversion efficiency, multiresponsive properties, and degradability. Finally, the kinetics of drug release was discussed in detail. Thus, our finding highlights that the multiresponsive nanocarriers are of great potential in the field of drug controlled release.     

Research on thermal risk and decomposition behavior of methyl nitrite

The thermal hazards of methyl nitrite(MN) were investigated in the present study. The determination and evaluation of MN decomposition were conducted using a C600 micro thermometer. The thermal runaway reaction characteristics of the compound under different initial pressures were obtained using a VSP2 calorimeter. The kinetic parameters of MN were obtained by regression fitting and calculation of the microthermal experimental data. The experimental and calculated results demonstrated that the potential explosion risk of MN is very high.In addition, there was a high energy barrier in the early stage of the uncontrolled decomposition of MN; however,once the decomposition reaction was initiated, the subsequent decomposition was easily conducted. Under the conditions of adiabatic simulation, the possibility that the reaction was uncontrolled increases with the initial temperature and pressure of the system, and there is a great potential safety risk.     

Phenol hydrogenation to cyclohexanone over palladium nanoparticles loaded on charming activated carbon adjusted by facile heat treatment

Selective phenol hydrogenation is a green approach to produce cyclohexanone. It still remains a big challenge to prepare efficient supports of the catalysts for the phenol hydrogenation via a simple and cost-effective approach. Herein, a facile approach was developed, i.e., direct calcination of activated carbon (AC) under argon at high temperature, to improve its structure and surface properties. The modified AC materials were supported with Pd nanoparticles (NPs) to fabricate the Pd/C catalysts. The as-prepared Pd/C600 catalyst exhibits superior catalytic performance in the phenol hydrogenation, and its turnover frequency (TOF) value is 199.2 h⁻¹, 1.31 times to that of Pd/C-raw. The Pd/C600 catalyst presents both better hydrophobicity and more structural defects, contributing to the improved dispersibility in the reaction solution (phenol-cyclohexane), the better Pd dispersion and the smaller Pd size, which result in the enhancement of the catalytic performance. Furthermore, the as-prepared Pd/C600 catalyst shows a good recyclability.     

Renewable hydrogen production from steam reforming of glycerol (SRG) over ceria-modified γ-alumina supported Ni catalyst

Excess crude glycerol derived as a by-product from biodiesel industry prompts the need to valorise glycerol to value-added chemicals. In this context, catalytic steam reforming of glycerol (SRG) was proposed as a promising and sustainable alternative for producing renewable hydrogen (H₂). Herein, the development of nickel (Ni) supported on ceria-modified mesoporous γ-alumina (γ-Al₂O₃) catalysts and their applications in catalytic SRG (at 550–750 °C, atmospheric pressure and weight hourly space velocity, WHSV, of 44,122 ml·g⁻¹·h⁻¹ (STP)) is presented. Properties of the developed catalysts were characterised using many techniques. The findings show that ceria modification improved Ni dispersion on γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst support with highly active small Ni particles, which led to a remarkable catalytic performance with the total glycerol conversion (ca. 99%), glycerol conversion into gaseous products (ca. 77%) and H₂ yield (ca. 62%). The formation rate for H₂ production (14.4 × 10⁻⁵ mol·s⁻¹·g⁻¹, TOF (H₂) = 3412 s⁻¹) was significantly improved with the Ni@12Ce-Al₂O₃ catalyst, representing nearly a 2-fold increase compared with that of the conventional Ni@Al₂O₃ catalyst. In addition, the developed catalyst also exhibited comparatively high stability (for 12 h) and coke resistance ability.     

Liquid-solid mass transfer in a rotating packed bed reactor with structured foam packing

A rotating packed bed (RPB) reactor has substantially potential for the process intensification of heterogeneous catalytic reactions. However, the scarce knowledge of the liquid–solid mass transfer in the RPB reactor is a barrier for its design and scale-up. In this work, the liquid–solid mass transfer in a RPB reactor installed with structured foam packing was experimentally studied using copper dissolution by potassium dichromate. Effects of rotational speed, liquid and gas volumetric flow rate on the liquid–solid mass transfer coefficient (k_LS) have been investigated. The correlation for predicting k_LS was proposed, and the deviation between the experimental and predicted values was within ± 12%. The liquid–solid volumetric mass transfer coefficient (k_LSa_LS) ranged from 0.04–0.14 1⁻¹, which was approximately 5 times larger than that in the packed bed reactor. This work lays the foundation for modeling of the RPB reactor packed with structured foam packing for heterogeneous catalytic reaction.     

Promoted hydrolysis performances and mechanism of Si-NaBH4-AlCl3 in deionized water

Si-based hydrolysis material system can be used in mobile/portable hydrogen source applications connected to fuel cells but is limited by alkaline solutions. In the present research, we reported an acid/alkaline free hydrolysis system combining silicon with NaBH₄. Samples with different ratios between Si and NaBH₄ are prepared via high energy ball milling and hydrolyzed in deionized water at different temperatures. Synergetic effect between silicon and NaBH₄ was found in the hydrolysis process. 2Si-NaBH₄ sample displays the best hydrolysis performances with the hydrogen yield of 1594 ml⋅g⁻¹ in deionized water at 70 °C. Thereafter, AlCl₃ is added into the 2Si-NaBH₄ sample to further improve its comprehensive properties. The effect of AlCl₃ content and promotion mechanism of the reaction are explored. 2Si-NaBH₄–5 wt% AlCl₃ sample shows a significant improvement with a high hydrogen yield of 1689 ml·g⁻¹ in deionized water at 70 °C and a corresponding conversion rate of 95.8%, indicating that the Si-NaBH₄-AlCl₃ composite is promising to be a hydrogen source in applications of mobile/portable fuel-cell-powered facilities.     

Feasibility of CANON process for treating nitrogenous wastewater containing heavy metals

The appearance of heavy metals in wastewater brings a major burden to wastewater treatment plants, due to the high toxicity to microorganisms. Several commonly used heavy metals, including Zn(II), Cd(II), Hg(II), and Pb(II) were adopted to clear the individual and joint toxicity to the completely autotrophic nitrogen removal over nitrite (CANON) process in six sequencing batch reactors. The obtained results suggested that the nitrogen removal performances were transiently inhibited, but rapidly recovered. The restoration period under the stress of Hg(II) and Pb(II) was shorter than that under Zn(II), Cd(II), and the joint heavy metals. During the long-term exposure, Cd(II) in 1mg L⁻¹ slightly inhibited the nitrogen removal, while Zn(II), Hg(II), Pb(II), and mixture showed a negligible impact on CANON process. The defense of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), the good adaptability of functional bacteria, and the inducement of resistant genera by heavy metals all contributed to the robustness and stability of CANON process. Therefore, it is feasible to treat nitrogenous wastewater containing low heavy metals using CANON process. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry     

基于Druck-Prager和MISO模型的混凝土 三轴压缩行为有限元模拟

本文采用有限元分析软件ANSYS模拟了不同围压(0,25.5,51.2 MPa)条件下素混凝土圆柱试样压缩响应特征。首先,综合对比分析了Druck-Prager模型及多线性强化(MISO)模型的模拟效果。此外,进一步基于MISO模型分析了混凝土试件端部约束条件对模拟结果的影响。最终得到的主要结论包括:(1)单轴压缩条件下,有限元模拟结果与试验结果一致性较好,且Druck-Prager模型更适宜模拟混凝土体应变特征;(2)施加围压时,MISO模型所得抗压强度较保守,而Druck-Prager模型高估了混凝土抗压强度;(3)就MISO模型而言,端部摩擦约束对混凝土应力—应变曲线无显著影响,但会加剧混凝土体积膨胀(剪胀)。