NiFe layered double hydroxide as an efficient bifunctional catalyst for electrosynthesis of hydrogen peroxide and oxygen

Two electron oxygen reduction reaction to produce hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) is a promising alternative technique to the multistep and high energy consumption anthraquinone process. Herein, Ni–Fe layered double hydroxide (NiFe-LDH) has been firstly demonstrated as an efficient bifunctional catalyst to prepare H₂O₂ by electrochemical oxygen reduction (2e^? ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Significantly, the NiFe-LDH catalyst possesses a high faraday efficiency of 88.75% for H₂O₂ preparation in alkaline media. Moreover, the NiFe-LDH catalyst exhibits excellent OER electrocatalytic property with small overpotential of 210 mV at 10 mA cm^?2 and high stability in 1 M KOH solution. On this basis, a new reactor has been designed to electrolyze oxygen and generate hydrogen peroxide. Under the ultra-low cell voltage of 1 V, the H₂O₂ yield reaches to 47.62 mmol g_cat^?1 h^?1. In order to evaluate the application potential of the bifunctional NiFe-LDH catalyst for H₂O₂ preparation, a 1.5 V dry battery has been used as the power supply, and the output of H₂O₂ reaches to 83.90 mmol g_cat^?1 h^?1. The excellent electrocatalytic properties of 2e^? ORR and OER make NiFe-LDH a promising bifunctional electrocatalyst for future commercialization. Moreover, the well-designed 2e^? ORR-OER reactor provides a new strategy for portable production of H₂O₂.     

Industrial sugar beets to biofuel: Field to fuel production system and cost estimates

Specialized varieties of sugar beets (Beta vulgaris L.) may be an eligible feedstock for advanced biofuel designation under the USA Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. These non-food industrial beets could double ethanol production per hectare compared to alternative feedstocks. A mixed-integer mathematical programming model was constructed to determine the breakeven price of ethanol produced from industrial beets, and to determine the optimal size and biorefinery location. The model, based on limited field data, evaluates Southern Plains beet production in a 3-year crop rotation, and beet harvest, transportation, and processing. The optimal strategy depends critically on several assumptions including a just-in-time harvest and delivery system that remains to be tested in field trials. Based on a wet beet to ethanol conversion rate of 110 dm³ Mg⁻¹ and capital cost of 128 M$ for a 152 dam³ y⁻¹ biorefinery, the estimated breakeven ethanol price was 507 $ m⁻³. The average breakeven production cost of corn (Zea mays L.) grain ethanol ranged from 430 to 552 $ m⁻³ based on average net corn feedstock cost of 254 and 396 $ m⁻³ in 2014 and 2013, respectively. The estimated net beet ethanol delivered cost of 207 $ m⁻³ was lower than the average net corn feedstock cost of 254–396$ m⁻³ in 2013 and 2014. If for a mature industry, the cost to process beets was equal to the cost to process corn, the beet breakeven ethanol price would be $387 m^-3 (587 $ m⁻³ gasoline equivalent).     

Synthesis and characterization of nanostructured magnetoresistive Ni doped ZnO films

We report a method to produce magnetic nanostructured semiconductor films based in ZnO doped with Nickel to control their magnetic properties. The method is based on a combined diffusion–oxidation process within a controlled atmosphere chamber to produce a uniform distribution of Ni ions in the ZnO films (ZnO:Ni). The synthesis of ZnO:Ni films is reported as well as the magnetoresistive characteristics, the used method yields films with reproducible and homogeneous properties. The films were also characterized structurally by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy, and by Hall–van der Pauw measurements. The XRD measurements confirm the nanocrystalline films character. The films resulted of n-type conductivity with electron concentrations of ~10²⁰ cm⁻³ in average and carrier mobilities of 5 cm²/V s. The Magnetoresistance (MR) behavior of the films at 300 K shows negative changes of ΔR~0.5% in accordance with the usual literature reports on samples produced by other methods.     

The electrochemistry of zirconium in aqueous solutions at elevated temperatures and pressures

The electrochemistry of zirconium has been explored in borate buffer solution of pH = 6.94 at 250 °C with and without hydrogen by measuring the current, impedance, and capacitance as a function of potential. Data are interpreted in terms of modified point defect models (PDM) that recognize the existence of a thick oxide outer layer over a thin barrier layer. From thermodynamic analysis, it is postulated that a hydride barrier layer forms under PWR coolant conditions whereas an oxide barrier layer forms under BWR primary coolant conditions. Thus, the introduction of hydrogen into the solution lowers the corrosion potential of zirconium to the extent that the formation of ZrH₂ is predicted to be spontaneous rather than the ZrO₂. Mott–Schottky analysis shows that the passive film formed on zirconium is n-type, which is consistent with the PDM, corresponding to a preponderance of oxygen/hydrogen vacancies and/or zirconium interstitials in the barrier layer.     

A study on the thermal contact conductance in fin–tube heat exchangers with 7 mm tube

The thermal contact resistance has been frequently neglected in the process of design of heat exchangers because of the difficulty of measurement and the lack of accurate data. However, the thermal contact resistance is one of principal parameters in heat transfer mechanism of fin–tube heat exchangers. The objective of the present study is to investigate new factors such as fin types and manufacturing types of the tube affecting the thermal contact conductance and to find a correlation between the thermal contact conductance and the effective factors in fin–tube heat exchangers with 7 mm tube. The thermal contact conductances in the 22 heat exchangers with 7 mm tube have been investigated through the experimental–numerical method. A numerical scheme has been employed to calculate the thermal contact conductance and the portion of thermal resistances using the experimental data. As a result, the thermal contact conductance has been evaluated quantitatively, and a new correlation including the influence of new factors such as fin types and manufacturing types of the tube has been developed in the fin–tube heat exchanger with 7 mm tube. Also, the portion of each thermal resistance has been evaluated in each case.     

Development of a small DMFC bipolar plate stack for portable applications

The direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) is regarded as a promising candidate in portable electronic power applications. Bipolar plate stacks were systematically studied by controlling the operating conditions, and by adjusting the stack structure design parameters, to develop more commercial DMFCs. The findings indicate that the peak power of the stack is influenced more strongly by the flow rate of air than by that of the methanol solution. Notably, the stack performance remains constant even as the channel depth is decreased from 1.0 to 0.6 mm, without loss of the performance in each cell. Furthermore, the specific power density of the stack was increased greatly from ∼60 to ∼100 W l⁻¹ for stacks of 10 and 18 cells, respectively. The current status of the work indicates that the power output of an 18-cell short stack reaches 33 W in air at 70 °C. The outer dimensions of this 18-cell short stack are only 80 mm × 80 mm × 51 mm, which are suitable for practical applications in 10–20 W DMFC portable systems.     

Molecular imprinting strategy for solvent molecules and its application for QCM-based VOC vapor sensing

Cross-linked polymers made of methyl methacrylate (MMA) as a monomer and divinylbenzene (DVB) as a cross-linking agent were prepared in the presence of toluene or p-xylene as a solvent. The cross-linked polymer prepared in toluene tended to sorb toluene vapor preferably, while the cross-linked polymer prepared in p-xylene sorbed p-xylene vapor preferably. The observed molecular recognition ability can be explained on the bases of an imprinting effect by solvent molecules. Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) powders were blended with PMMA, and the blended films were coated on a piezoelectric quartz crystal with a view to preparing QCM-based VOC sensors. The imprint effect was clearly observed, even in these blended films. The response of the sensor towards toluene or p-xylene vapor was reversible; however, the response time was slow due to the existence of the matrix polymer around the MIP particles.     

Correlating microstructural features with wear resistance of dual phase steel

In order to explore the tribological potential of the dual phase (DP) steel as a wear resistant material, the wear characteristics of the dual phase (DP) steel have been investigated with varying amounts of martensite from 43 to 81 vol pct, developed by varying holding time at the intercritical annealing temperature of 780 °C. Dry sliding wear tests have been conducted on DP steels using a pin-on-disk machine under different normal loads of 61.3, 68.5, 75.7 and 82.6 N and at a constant sliding speed of 1.20 m/s. At these loads, the mechanism of wear is mainly delamination, which has been confirmed by SEM micrographs of the subsurface and wear debris of the samples. Wear and friction properties have been found to be improved with increasing martensite volume fraction in dual phase steels.     

600 MW机组煤粉混燃生物质气锅炉燃烧特性研究

为研究不同生物质气喷口位置对锅炉燃烧特性影响,针对600 MW机组煤粉混燃生物质气锅炉,基于ANSYS软件数值研究了生物质气喷口位置变化对炉内温度分布、组分分布以及NOx质量浓度分布的影响,得到了生物质气喷口位置对炉内燃烧及NOx生成影响规律。结果表明:燃煤锅炉混燃生物质气对煤粉燃尽率影响不大,相比于纯煤燃烧工况,炉膛出口烟温和NOx质量浓度降低;在研究的工况范围内,随着生物质气喷口位置的升高,炉膛出口烟温上升,NOx质量浓度先降后升,燃烧器区域O2和CO质量分数降低,CO2质量分数上升;当生物质气喷口位于第2层一次风喷口处时,炉内混燃状况最好,炉膛出口NOx质量浓度最低。     

Layered Mg-Al spinel supported Ce-Fe-Zr-O oxygen carriers for chemical looping reforming

A series of layered Mg-Al spinel supported Ce-Fe-Zr-O oxygen carriers were prepared for co-production of syngas and pure hydrogen via chemical looping steam reforming (CLSR). The presence of magnesium-aluminum layered double oxides (MgAl-LDO) significantly increases the specific surface area of the mixed oxides, reduces the particle size of CeO₂-based solid solution and promotes the dispersion of free Fe₂O₃. When reacting with methane, MgAl-LDO supported oxygen carrier shows much lower temperature for methane oxidation than the pure CeFe-Zr-O sample, indicating enhanced low-temperature reactivity. Among different Ce-Fe-Zr-O(x)/MgAl-LDO samples, the Ce-Fe-Zr-O(40 wt%)/MgAl-LDO sample shows the best performance for the selective oxidation of methane to syngas and the H₂ production by water splitting. After a long period of high temperature redox experiment, the Ce-Fe-Zr-O(40 wt%)/MgAl-LDO oxygen carrier still shows high activity for syngas generation. The comparison on the morphology of the fresh and cycled oxygen carriers indicates that the Mg-Al spinel support still forms a stable skeleton structure with high dispersion of active components on the surface after the long-term cycling, which contributes to excellent redox stability of the Ce-Fe-Zr-O(40 wt%)/MgAl-LDO oxygen carrier.