Performance evaluation of basalt fiber-reinforced geopolymer composites with various contents of nano CaCO3

High carbon footprint of cement production is the major drawback of plain cement concrete resulting in environmental pollution. Geopolymer composites paste can be effectively used as an alternative to Portland cement in the construction industry for a sustainable environment. The demand for high-performance composites and sustainable construction is increasing day by day. Therefore, the present experimental program has endeavored to investigate the mechanical performance of basalt fiber-reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer pastes with various contents of nano CaCO₃. The content of basalt fibers was fixed at 2% by weight for all specimens while the studied contents of nano CaCO₃ were 0%, 1%, 2%, and 3%, respectively. The compressive strength, compressive stress-strain response, flexural strength, bending stress-strain response, elastic modulus, toughness modulus, toughness indices, fracture toughness, impact strength, hardness, and microstructural analysis of all four geopolymer composite pastes with varying contents of nano CaCO₃ using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were evaluated. The results revealed that the use of 3% nano CaCO₃ in basalt fiber-reinforced geopolymer paste presented the highest values of compressive strength and hardness while the use of 2% nano CaCO₃ showed the highest values of flexural strength, impact strength, and fracture toughness of composite paste. The SEM results indicated that the addition of nano CaCO₃ improved the microstructure and provided a denser geopolymer paste by refining the interfacial zones and accelerating the geopolymerization reaction.     

Stem Photosynthesis—A Key Element of Grass Pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) Acclimatisation to Salinity

Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus) is a leguminous plant of outstanding tolerance to abiotic stress. The aim of the presented study was to describe the mechanism of grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) photosynthetic apparatus acclimatisation strategies to salinity stress. The seedlings were cultivated in a hydroponic system in media containing various concentrations of NaCl (0, 50, and 100 mM), imitating none, moderate, and severe salinity, respectively, for three weeks. In order to characterise the function and structure of the photosynthetic apparatus, Chl a fluorescence, gas exchange measurements, proteome analysis, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis were done inter alia. Significant differences in the response of the leaf and stem photosynthetic apparatus to severe salt stress were observed. Leaves became the place of harmful ion (Na⁺) accumulation, and the efficiency of their carboxylation decreased sharply. In turn, in stems, the reconstruction of the photosynthetic apparatus (antenna and photosystem complexes) activated alternative electron transport pathways, leading to effective ATP synthesis, which is required for the efficient translocation of Na⁺ to leaves. These changes enabled efficient stem carboxylation and made them the main source of assimilates. The observed changes indicate the high plasticity of grass pea photosynthetic apparatus, providing an effective mechanism of tolerance to salinity stress.     

致密砂岩油藏能量补充方式评价及优化

针对致密砂岩油藏大规模体积压裂开发后能量补充困难的问题,利用自主设计制作的大型人造三维岩心物理模型和物理模拟实验舱,开展致密砂岩油藏能量补充方式优化研究。实验结果表明:致密砂岩油藏压裂开发过程中,地层能量损耗严重,采取注水或注气的方式可有效进行能量补充;地层中裂缝规模越大,越有利于原油渗流,后续补充能量的传播范围越广,有助于进一步提高原油采收率;从提高驱油效率和扩大波及系数方面优选吞吐渗吸介质,CO₂均优于活性水,CO₂吞吐开发在矿场试验中取得了显著的增油效果,因此,CO₂吞吐作为一种有效的能量补充方式在致密油开发中展现了良好的应用前景。该文分析了致密砂岩储层水平井压裂开发的渗流规律,优选出致密砂岩储层大规模压裂开发后最佳渗吸介质,可为致密砂岩油藏开发设计提供重要的理论依据。     

On the Catalytic Activity of Sn Monomers and Dimers at Graphene Edges and the Synchronized Edge Dependence of Diffusing Atoms in Sn Dimers

In this study, in situ transmission electron microscopy is performed to study the interaction between single (monomer) and paired (dimer) Sn atoms at graphene edges. The results reveal that a single Sn atom can catalyze both the growth and etching of graphene by the addition and removal of C atoms respectively. Additionally, the frequencies of the energetically favorable configurations of an Sn atom at a graphene edge, calculated using density functional theory calculations, are compared with experimental observations and are found to be in good agreement. The remarkable dynamic processes of binary atoms (dimers) are also investigated and is the first such study to the best of the knowledge. Dimer diffusion along the graphene edges depends on the graphene edge termination. Atom pairs (dimers) involving an armchair configuration tend to diffuse with a synchronized shuffling (step-wise shift) action, while dimer diffusion at zigzag edge terminations show a strong propensity to collapse the dimer with each atom diffusing in opposite directions (monomer formation). Moreover, the data reveals the role of C feedstock availability on the choice a single Sn atom makes in terms of graphene growth or etching. This study advances the understanding single atom catalytic activity at graphene edges.     

Dynamic energy and mass balance model for an industrial alkaline water electrolyzer plant process

This paper proposes a parameter adjustable dynamic mass and energy balance simulation model for an industrial alkaline water electrolyzer plant that enables cost and energy efficiency optimization by means of system dimensioning and control. Thus, the simulation model is based on mathematical models and white box coding, and it uses a practicable number of fixed parameters. Zero-dimensional energy and mass balances of each unit operation of a 3 MW, and 16 bar plant process were solved in MATLAB functions connected via a Simulink environment. Verification of the model was accomplished using an analogous industrial plant of the same power and pressure range having the same operational systems design. The electrochemical, mass flow and thermal behavior of the simulation and the industrial plant were compared to ascertain the accuracy of the model and to enable modification and detailed representation of real case scenarios so that the model is suitable for use in future plant optimization studies. The thermal model dynamically predicted the real case with 98.7 % accuracy. Shunt currents were the main contributor to relative low Faraday efficiency of 86 % at nominal load and steady-state operation and heat loss to ambient from stack was only 2.6 % of the total power loss.     

磨矿动力学研究现状及应用

磨矿动力学是描述被磨物料的磨碎速率与磨矿时间之间关系规律的一种数学模型，对分析物料在磨矿过程中的粒级及能量变化具有重要作用。为充分发挥磨矿动力学在磨矿过程中的作用，论文在分析国内外研究现状的基础上，系统介绍了两种典型的磨矿动力学模型：m阶磨矿动力学模型和磨矿总体平衡动力学模型，分析了模型中各参数的含义；以磨矿总体平衡动力学模型为重点，分析了破碎速率函数和破碎分布函数的求解方式，包括零阶产出率法、奥-勒理论简算法、卡普尔G-H算法以及经验公式法等；从物料性质、磨矿介质及配比、磨矿方式及参数、化学添加剂等几个方面分析了影响磨矿动力学模型的因素；指出了磨矿动力学模型在矿物加工工程领域的应用现状并对其未来的研究方向提出展望。研究表明磨矿动力学在矿物加工领域具有广泛而重要的应用，为进一步改善磨矿工艺提供了理论依据。     

Statistical optimization of operating parameters of microbial electrolysis cell treating dairy industry wastewater using quadratic model to enhance energy generation

The performance of Microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) is affected by several operating conditions. Therefore, in the present study, an optimization study was done to determine the working efficiency of MEC in terms of COD (chemical oxygen demand) removal, hydrogen and current generation. Optimization was carried out using a quadratic mathematical model of response surface methodology (RSM). Thirteen sets of experimental runs were performed to optimize the applied voltage and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of single chambered batch fed MEC operated with dairy industry wastewater. The operating conditions (i.e) an applied voltage of 0.8 V and HRT of 2 days that showed a maximum COD removal response was chosen for further studies. The MEC operated at optimized condition (HRT- 2 days and applied voltage- 0.8 V) showed a COD removal efficiency of 95 ± 2%, hydrogen generation of 32 ± 5 mL/L/d, Power density of 152 mW/cm² and current generation of 19 mA. The results of the study implied that RSM, with its high degree of accuracy can be a reliable tool for optimizing the process of wastewater treatment. Also, dairy industry wastewater can be considered to be a potential source to generate hydrogen and energy through MEC at short HRT.     

Optimization of PEMFC system operating conditions based on neural network and PSO to achieve the best system performance

PEMFC system is a complex new clean power system. Based on MATLAB/Simulink, this paper develops a system-level dynamic model of PEMFC, including the gas supply system, hydrogen supply system, hydrothermal management system, and electric stack. The neural network fits the electric stack model to the simulation data. The effects of different operating conditions on the PEMFC stack power and system efficiency are analyzed. Combining the power of the reactor and the system efficiency to define the integrated performance index, the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is introduced to optimize the power density and system efficiency of the PEMFC with multiple objectives. The final optimal operating point increases the power density and system efficiency by 1.33% and 12.8%, respectively, which maximizes the output performance and reduces the parasitic power.     

Hydrogen-rich gas generation via the exhaust gas-fuel reformer for the marine LNG engine

Reformed exhaust gas recirculation technology has attracted great attention in internal combustion engines. A platform of an exhaust gas-fuel reformer connected with the marine LNG engine was set up for generating on-board hydrogen. Based on the platform, effects of the methane to oxygen ratio (M/O) and reformed exhaust gas ratio (R_EG) from the reformer and excess air ratio (λ) from the engine on the components, hydrogen yield, thermal efficiency and reforming process of the reformer were experimentally investigated. Results shown that hydrogen-rich gases (reformate) can be generated by reforming the mixture of engine exhaust gas (about 400 °C) and methane supplied via the reformer with Ni/Al₂O₃ catalyst, and the hydrogen concentration of reformate was between 6.2% and 12.6% by volume. The methane supplied rate and λ affected the components and temperature of the reactant in the reformer, while R_EG changed the gas hour space velocity during the exhaust gas-fuel reforming processes, resulting in the difference in the components of the reformate and thermal efficiency. At the present experimental condition, the highest H₂ concentration reformate was generated under the M/O of 2.0, λ of 1.55 and R_EG of 6%.     

A novel design for humidifying an open-cathode proton exchange membrane fuel cell using anode purge

The low performance of open-cathode proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells (OCPEMFCs) is attributed to the low-humidity ambient air supplied to the cathode using electric fans. To improve the OCPEMFC performance, this paper proposes a novel humidification method by collecting water purged from the anode and supplying it to the open cathode. The OCPEMFC performance is evaluated at various humidifier distances from the cathode inlet, and it is compared with that where no humidifier is used when the OCPEMFC operates under three different current levels of 1, 5, and 8 A. The results show that the novel design improves the stack power, and optimal performance is achieved at a humidifier distance of 2 cm. The energy efficiency achieves an improvement between 1.4% and 1.8% when a humidifier is used.