Grain orientation evolution and multi-scale interfaces enhanced thermoelectric properties of textured Sr0.9La0.1TiO3 based ceramics

Sr_0.9La_0.1TiO₃ based textured ceramics (SLTT-S3T) with a texture fraction of 0.81 are successfully fabricated by the reactive template grain growth method, in which Sr_0.9La_0.1TiO₃/20 wt%Ti was used as matrix and 10 wt% plate-like Sr₃Ti₂O₇ template seeds were used as templates. The phase transition, microstructure evolution, and the anisotropic thermoelectric properties of SLTT-S3T ceramics were investigated. The results show that the ceramics are mainly composed of Sr_0.9La_0.1TiO₃ and rutile TiO₂ phases. Grains grow with a preferred orientation along (h00). A maximum ZT of 0.26 at 1073 K was achieved in the direction perpendicular to the tape casting direction. The low lattice thermal conductivity of 1.9 W/(m K) at 1073 K was obtained decreased by 34%, 40%, and 38% compared with non-textured, SrTiO₃ and Sr_0.9La_0.1TiO₃ ceramics prepared by the same process, can be attributed to the enhanced phonon scattering by the complex multi-scale boundaries and interfaces. This work provides a strategy of microstructural design for thermoelectric oxides to decrease intrinsic lattice thermal conductivity and further regulate thermoelectric properties via texture engineering.     

Rapid preparation of Palygorskite/Al2O3 composite aerogels with superhydrophobicity,high-temperature thermal insulation and improved mechanical properties

Al₂O₃ aerogels are widely employed in heat insulation and flame retardancy because of their unique combination of low thermal conductivity and exceptional high-temperature stability. However, the mechanical properties of Al₂O₃ aerogel are poor, and the preparation time is considerably long. In this study, we present a simple and scalable approach to construct monolithic Pal/Al₂O₃ composite aerogels using solvothermal treatment instead of traditional solvent replacement, which remarkably shortened the preparation time. Subsequently, to obtain stable superhydrophobicity (θ > 152°), the Pal/Al₂O₃ aerogel was modified by gas-phase modification method. The obtained Pal/Al₂O₃ composite aerogels demonstrate the integrated properties of low density (0.078–0.106 g/cm³), low thermal conductivity (1000 °C, 0.143 W/(m·K)), good mechanical properties (Young's modulus, 1.6 MPa), and good heat resistance. The monolithic Pal/Al₂O₃ composite aerogels with improved mechanical performance and improved thermal stability can show great potential in the field of thermal insulation.     

A comprehensive review of image analysis methods for microorganism counting: from classical image processing to deep learning approaches

Microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi play essential roles in many application fields, like biotechnique, medical technique and industrial domain. Microorganism counting techniques are crucial in microorganism analysis, helping biologists and related researchers quantitatively analyze the microorganisms and calculate their characteristics, such as biomass concentration and biological activity. However, traditional microorganism manual counting methods, such as plate counting method, hemocytometry and turbidimetry, are time-consuming, subjective and need complex operations, which are difficult to be applied in large-scale applications. In order to improve this situation, image analysis is applied for microorganism counting since the 1980s, which consists of digital image processing, image segmentation, image classification and suchlike. Image analysis-based microorganism counting methods are efficient comparing with traditional plate counting methods. In this article, we have studied the development of microorganism counting methods using digital image analysis. Firstly, the microorganisms are grouped as bacteria and other microorganisms. Then, the related articles are summarized based on image segmentation methods. Each part of the article is reviewed by methodologies. Moreover, commonly used image processing methods for microorganism counting are summarized and analyzed to find common technological points. More than 144 papers are outlined in this article. In conclusion, this paper provides new ideas for the future development trend of microorganism counting, and provides systematic suggestions for implementing integrated microorganism counting systems in the future. Researchers in other fields can refer to the techniques analyzed in this paper.

     

Efficient hydrogen production for industry and electricity storage via high-temperature electrolysis

The paper describes the development status of Sunfire's reversible solid oxide cell (RSOC) technology. Here, Sunfire is a pioneer in the field of high-temperature electrolysers (HTE) for renewable hydrogen production which can be operated as a fuel cell for power generation in a reverse mode. The maturity of the technology is improved stepwise so that first applications in the field of hydrogen production for industry and electricity storage can be tackled. Three application examples where larger scale prototype has been installed will be discussed: 1) A power-to-power electricity storage based on hydrogen, 2) a RSOC unit that is installed in an iron and steel works, and 3) a pressurized SOEC prototype which will be integrated with a methanation unit. Results show the potentials of the technology in connection with fluctuating renewable energy sources.     

Modeling online user behaviors with competitive interactions

Online user behaviors are increasingly modulated by social media. Extant literature mainly focuses on investigating how network structures affect user behaviors. However, recent empirical results demonstrate that user behaviors and network structures usually coevolve dynamically, and topological patterns turn out to be inadequate for characterizing real-world user behaviors. In this paper, we present a dynamic model to deal with this challenge. This proposed model is mainly governed by two competing principles: homophily and homeostasis. Empirical evaluations of three online real-world datasets suggest that the proposed dynamic model can well predict long-range online user behaviors.     

基于动态距离的模糊社区识别算法

社区识别技术是公共安全领域潜在危害行为预警预测和已发生危害行为追踪溯源的基础，针对传统社区识别算法将社区视作单一集合而无法描述社区主次成员的问题，提出一种基于动态距离的模糊社区识别算法。该算法将传统的单一社区结构划分为核心区域和边际区域，以边际区域来描述社区的模糊区间。该算法首先将网络设想为动态演变模型，网络中的任意节点均会与其他节点产生互动，互动将改变各节点间距离，距离也反过来影响互动。在阈值的界定下，受到多个社区吸引的节点被划分到边际区域，最终距离分布趋于稳定，各个社区结构得以显现。通过对比实验验证了CDFDD算法在社区识别上的有效性。     

Ultrathin MoSe2 three-dimensional nanospheres as high carriers transmission channel and full spectrum harvester toward excellent photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical performance

MoSe₂ ultrathin nanospheres with three-dimensional network structure (MSS) were prepared by improved solvothermal method. These MoSe₂ nanospheres are only 10 nm in size and actually composed of ultra-thin MoSe₂ nanosheets with a thickness of only 2–3 molecular layers. Compared with the MoSe₂ nanosheets (6–8 molecular layer thicknesses) of the three-dimensional flower structure (MSF) prepared by ordinary hydrothermal method, the MSS are thinner resulting in higher specific surface area of 5 times than that of MSF, and the light absorption ability at all UV–vis spectrum is stronger. The photocatalytic and photoelectrochemistry results show that the photocatalytic activity of MSS is 17 times that of the MSF, and the photoelectrochemical performance is twice. The results of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy confirmed that the MoSe₂ ultra-thin nanospheres with three-dimensional network structure have lower internal resistance and higher carrier transport and separation efficiency. In the most important three aspects that determine the photoelectrochemical performance of photocatalyst: specific surface area, light absorption capacity, carrier transport and separation efficiency, MSS exceed MSF. This three-dimensional network nanospheres structure can improve the performance of MoSe₂. This research successfully demonstrates the enhancement of the properties of MoSe₂ two-dimensional materials through structural regulation.     

Two-dimensional temperature distribution estimation for a cross-flow planar solid oxide fuel cell stack

The uniform temperature distribution of a cross-flow planar solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack plays an essential role in stack thermal safety and electrical property. However, because of the strict requirements in stack sealing struture, it is hard to acquire the temperature inside the stack using thermal detection devices within an acceptable cost. Therefore, accurately estimating the two-dimensional (2-D) temperature distribution of the cross-flow stack is crucial for its thermal management. In this paper, Firstly, a 2-D mechanism model of a cross-flow planar SOFC stack is established. The stack is divided into 5*5 nodes along the gas flow directions, which can reflect the stack states with moderate computational burden. Then, experimental test data is utilized to modify and validate the stack model, guaranteeing the model accuracy as well as the reliability of model-based state estimator design. Finally, easily-measured stack inputs and outputs are selected, and a temperature distribution estimator combined with unscented kalman filter (UFK) approach is developed to achieve accurate and fast temperature distribution estimation of a cross-flow SOFC stack. Simulation results demonstrate that the UKF-based temperature distribution estimator can precisely and quickly achieve the temperature distribution estimation of the cross-flow stack under both static state and dynamic state changes and is applicable to cross-flow stacks with different size or cell number as well, the maximum estimated absolute error is less than 0.15 K with an absolute error rate of 0.015%, which indicates the developed estimator has good estimation performances.     

Asynchronous adaptive output feedback sliding mode control for Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy Markovian jump systems with actuator faults

In this article, the problem of asynchronous adaptive dynamic output feedback sliding mode control (SMC) for a class of Takagi-Sugeno (T-S) fuzzy Markovian jump systems (MJSs) with actuator faults is investigated. The asynchronous dynamic output feedback control strategy is employed, as the nonsynchronization phenomenon of jump modes exists between the plant and the controller. A novel asynchronous adaptive SMC approach is proposed to solve the synthesis problem for T-S fuzzy MJSs with actuator faults. Sufficient conditions for stochastic asymptotic stability of T-S fuzzy MJSs are given. Under the designed asynchronous adaptive SMC scheme, the effects of actuator faults and external disturbance can be completely compensated and the reachability of sliding surface is ensured. Finally, an example is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed design techniques.     

Concept design of a novel reformer producing hydrogen for internal combustion engines using fuel decomposition method: Performance evaluation of coated monolith suitable for on-board applications

Hydrogen addition effectively reduces the fuel consumption of spark ignition engines. We propose a new on-board reformer that produces hydrogen at high concentrations and enables multi-mode operations. For the proposed reformer, we employ a catalytic fuel decomposition reaction via a commercial NiO–CaAl₂O₄ catalyst. We explore the physical and chemical aspects of the reforming process using a fixed bed micro-reactor operating at temperatures of 550–700 °C. During reduction, methane is decomposed to form hydrogen and carbon. Carbon formation is critical to hydrogen production, and free space for carbon growth is essential at low temperatures (≤600 °C). We define a new accumulated conversion ratio that quantitatively measures highly transient catalytic decomposition. The free space of the coated monolith clearly aided low-temperature decomposition with negligible pressure drop. The coated substrate is therefore suitable for on-board applications considering that our reformer concept also utilizes the catalytic fuel decomposition reaction.