Recent progress on low-cost ceramic membrane for water and wastewater treatment

Great progress in the development of low-cost ceramic membranes from alternative materials have been achieved recently towards various application especially water and wastewater treatment. However, their significance has not been fully recognized and understood especially in term of their microstructural analysis such as formation of grain growth and microcracks. This review paper summarizes fabrication method, alternative materials, microstructure, wettability, mechanical properties and application of low-cost ceramic membrane. The fabrication method including slip casting, tape casting, extrusion, pressing method and phase inversion technique are described. Alternative materials used in low-cost ceramic membrane fabrication are discussed and categorized into clays, agricultural waste, industrial waste and animal bone waste. The mechanisms of morphology formation, microstructure and wettability properties are analysed. Modification strategies for the surface of low-cost ceramic membrane are discussed, and classified into modification for separation application, modification for photocatalytic application and modification for membrane distillation and membrane contactor system. Modification improves the membrane structure by changing the pore size, porosity and wettability properties of low-cost ceramic membranes. Mechanical properties of low-cost ceramic membranes are also discussed in detail towards several mechanism, like grain growth phenomenon and formation of microcracks which also considered as membrane defects. Grain growth phenomenon can be divided into normal and abnormal grain growth. Meanwhile, formation of microcracks could be occurred in single-phase polycrystalline ceramics that have anisotropic grains or biphasic polycrystalline grains. The application of low-cost ceramic membrane in seawater desalination, oily wastewater treatment, heavy metal adsorption, textile separation and photocatalytic application are reviewed. Finally, some possible opportunities and challenges for further development of low-cost ceramic membrane are pointed out.     

FeCo alloys in-situ formed in Co/Co2P/N-doped carbon as a durable catalyst for boosting bio-electrons-driven oxygen reduction in microbial fuel cells

Non-noble metal catalyst with high catalytic activity and stability towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is critical for durable bioelectricity generation in air-cathode microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Herein, nitrogen-doped (iron-cobalt alloy)/cobalt/cobalt phosphide/partly-graphitized carbon ((FeCo)/Co/Co₂P/NPGC) catalysts are prepared by using cornstalks via a facile method. Carbonization temperature exerts a great effect on catalyst structure and ORR activity. FeCo alloys are in-situ formed in the catalysts above 900 °C, which are considered as the highly-active component in catalyzing ORR. AC-MFC with FeCo/Co/Co₂P/NPGC (950 °C) cathode shows the highest power density of 997.74 ± 5 mW m^?2, which only declines 8.65% after 90 d operation. The highest Coulombic efficiency (23.3%) and the lowest charge transfer resistance (22.89 Ω) are obtained by FeCo/Co/Co₂P/NPGC (950 °C) cathode, indicating that it has a high bio-electrons recycling rate. Highly porous structure (539.50 m² g^?1) can provide the interconnected channels to facilitate the transport of O₂. FeCo alloys promote charge transfer and catalytic decomposition of H₂O₂ to ?OH and ?O₂^?, which inhibits cathodic biofilm growth to improve ORR durability. Synergies between metallic components (FeCo/Co/Co₂P) and N-doped carbon energetically improve the ORR catalytic activity of (FeCo)/Co/Co₂P/NPGC catalysts, which have the potential to be widely used as catalysts in MFCs.     

用于电弧检测的电力专用SoC设计

针对传统的电弧电路故障检测结果不准确的问题,设计用于电弧检测的SoC系统,并且在55nm工艺下进行流片验证。采用包含两种结构的模数转换器的片上电压源,设计了锁相环以及复位电路,精度最高可达8.67 bit。验证结果表明,本设计可提高电弧检测的准确性。     

挤出型3D打印混凝土力学性能研究进展

介绍了3D打印混凝土的特点与前景,综述了挤出型工艺的3D打印混凝土的压、拉、折、剪基本力学性能以及增强措施。研究表明:打印层在喷嘴的挤压作用下密实度有所提高,但同时层间易形成薄弱界面,造成性能的各向异性,通过调整胶凝材料、掺入纤维、优化工艺、水浴养护、布筋等措施能有效改善。此外,提出了还需进一步研究的问题。     

Sizing of multi-stage Op Amps by combining design equations with the gm/ID method

Analog integrated circuit design has as integral parts both analytical reasoning and numerical validation in the process from topology construction to sizing. Given a circuit topology, different circuit sizing results can be obtained from different processes of sizing inference. Sizing methods by simulation-based numerical searching have been a continuously studied subject. However, almost all approaches in this category require an overwhelming number of circuit simulations to arrive at an optimized sizing result. On the other hand, many published manual sizing methods by using the conventional device equations also require repeated SPICE simulations to correct the equation-based sizing results. This paper proposes a systematic gm/ID-based initial sizing method specifically customized for designing multiple-stage operational amplifiers (Op Amps). A main feature of the proposal is to use circuit-level design equations as constraints on the gm/ID table lookup method to substantially reduce the uncertainty in the sizing calculations. As a result, a significant amount of SPICE based correction work can be reduced to complete an initial sizing. The proposed sizing procedure includes a few regular sizing rules customized to the configuration of multi-stage Op Amps. We validate the proposed sizing method by application to several multi-stage Op Amp examples with a capacitive load or Miller compensation. Simulations have justified that the produced initial sizing results can achieve most of the prespecified design targets.     

Powder sintering and gel casting methods in making glass foam using waste glass: A review on parameters,performance, and challenges

The application of insulation materials in buildings and energy storage facilities is gaining global attention to reduce energy consumption, heat loss, and CO₂ emissions. Given the high insulation performance, glass foam is gaining popularity replacing combustible, high energy-consuming, and costly conventional insulation materials. The industrial process of glass foam manufacturing is an energy-consuming and non-ecofriendly process which requires the annealing of glass around its melting temperature. Therefore, researchers have developed powder sintering and gel casting methods to sinter glass foam mix at a temperature slightly above its glass transition point. However, research findings on these two methods are scattered because of the different parameters being used by researchers. The properties and performances of glass foam depend on the processing parameters, especially on the materials design and sintering conditions. Therefore, this study aimed to provide a comprehensive review on the key parameters for material selection and sintering of glass foams and provide necessary guidelines for the best practice and a direction for future research. Moreover, this review covers the current strategies and challenges associated with the powder sintering and gel casting methods including their sustainability and environmental performance.     

计及RSC控制的DFIG短路电流直流分量解析表达

现有文献针对计及转子变流器(RSC)控制的双馈感应风电机组(DFIG)定子短路电流解析表达,将定子磁链当作一阶直流衰减分量或忽略功率外环控制。基于DFIG电压、磁链和RSC控制方程,得到定子电流关于定子电压和定子功率的传递函数,提出定子电流的精确解析表达式。基于RSC内、外环PI参数关系,推导直流分量衰减时间常数和角频率关于PI参数的表达式。分析了RSC内外环PI参数对定子电流直流衰减分量的影响。仿真结果验证了解析表达式的准确性,为PI参数选取和保护装置测量、整定提供依据。     

基于单片机C8051F500的无刷直流电机控制研究

永磁无刷直流电机是近些年发展起来的一种新型电机,具有效率高、调速性能好、启动转矩大等诸多优点,在运动控制领域中的应用日趋广泛。基于电机专用控制芯片MC33035,采用单片机C8051F500为主控芯片,设计一款无刷直流电机智能控制器,实现对无刷直流电机启动停止、正反转、调速、转速显示等控制。通过简要介绍无刷直流电机工作原理,使用MATLAB/Simulink对控制系统进行建模仿真,对无刷直流电机控制系统进行软、硬件设计。实验结果表明,该控制系统运行稳定,抗干扰性强,具有良好的市场应用价值。     

Modeling and design of 3-D MPPT for ultra low power RF energy harvesters

Radio-Frequency (RF) energy harvesting must cope with the limited availability and high variability of the energy source. In this paper, the modeling of an RF harvester for ultra low power environments is presented. A mathematical model based on theoretical analysis is developed. The model demonstrates that the maximum transferred power point is located in a three-dimensional space defined by the input capacitance, the output voltage, and the load resistance of the rectifier circuit. Moreover, the mathematical model returns results in substantial agreement with the SPICE simulation results, while guaranteeing a remarkable reduction of the required computation time. Furthermore, the paper reports the implementation of a mixed signal system for the 3-D MPPT, to be embedded in an RF harvester, in a 65 nm CMOS technology. The circuit exhibits a simulated power consumption lower than 100 nW, making this solution suitable for ultra low power harvesting.