Neutronic study on the effect of first wall material thickness on tritium production and material damage in a fusion reactor

In this study, the effects of changing first wall materials and their thicknesses on a reactor were investigated to determine the displacement per atom（DPA） and gas production（helium and hydrogen） in the first wall, as well as the tritium breeding ratio（TBR） in the coolant and tritium breeding zones. Therefore, the modeling of the magnetic fusion reactor was determined based on the blanket parameters of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor（ITER）. Stainless steel（SS 316 LNIG）, Oxi...     

Microstructure and mechanical behavior of laser aided additive manufactured low carbon interstitial Fe49.5Mn30Co10Cr10C0.5 multicomponent alloy

Laser aided additive manufacturing(LAAM)was used to fabricate bulk Fe49.5Mn30Co10Cr10C0.5 interstitial multicomponent alloy using pre-alloyed powder.The room temperature yield strength(σy),ultimate tensile strength(σUTS)and elongation(εUST)were 645 MPa,917 MPa and 27.0％respectively.The as-built sample consisted of equiaxed and dendritic cellular structures formed by elemental segregation.These cellular structures together with oxide particle inclusions were deemed to strengthen the material.The other contributing components include dislocation strengthening,friction stress and grain bound-ary strengthening.The high εUTS was attributed to dislocation motion and activation of both twinning and transformation-induced plasticity(TWIP and TRIP).Tensile tests performed at-40℃and-130℃demonstrated superior tensile strength of 1041 MPa and 1267 MPa respectively.However,almost no twinning was observed in the fractured sample tested at-40℃and-130℃.Instead,higher fraction of strain-induced hexagonal close-packed(HCP)ε phase transformation of 21.2％were observed for fractured sample tested at-40℃,compared with 6.3％in fractured room temperature sample.     

ZrCuAlNi系大块金属玻璃的非晶形成能力、热学和力学性能（英文）

分析ZrCuAlNi系大块金属玻璃的非晶形成能力、热学和力学性能。运用密实堆积和动态脆性指数模型从理论上确定合金的成分。采用铜模吸铸法在氩气保护下制备圆柱形和圆锥形铸锭。用X射线衍射表征圆锥形铸锭以便确定非晶结构。结果表明:两种合金的临界非晶直径为3 mm。用差示扫描量热法(DSC)分析其热行为,加热速率分别为0.5、0.67和0.83 K/s。γ参数、过冷液相区ΔT_x和约化玻璃转变温度T_(rg)等这些实验所得的参数均表明其具有高的非晶形成能力。非晶成分显示其脆性指数为40。合金的压缩试验采用的应变速率为0.016 s~(-1),得到弹性模量约为83 GPa,总应变约为5%,屈服强度为1.6 GPa,硬度为4 GPa。运用密实堆积和动态脆性指数模拟可以预测ZrCuAlNi系合金的非晶形成成分。     

Catalytic performance of Cu- and Zr-modified beta zeolite catalysts in the methylation of 2-methylnaphthalene

2,6-Dimethylnaphthalene(2,6-DMN) is a commercially important chemical for the production of polyethylenenaphthalate and polybutylene naphthalate. However, its complex synthesis procedure and high production cost significantly reduce the use of 2,6-DMN. In this study, the synthesis of 2,6-DMN was investigated with methylation of 2-methylnaphthalene(2-MN) over metal-loaded beta zeolite catalysts including beta zeolite, Cu-impregnated beta zeolite and Zr-impregnated beta zeolite. The experiments were performed in a fixed-bed reactor at atmospheric pressure under a nitrogen atmosphere. The reactor was operated at a temperature range of 400–500 °C and varying weight hourly space velocity between 1 and 3 h~(-1).The results demonstrated that 2,6-DMN can be synthesized by methylation of 2-MN over beta type zeolite catalysts.Besides 2,6-DMN, the product stream also contained other DMN isomers such as 2,7-DMN, 1,3-DMN, 1,2-DMN and 2,3-DMN. The activity and selectivity of beta zeolite catalyst were remarkably enhanced by Zr impregnation, whereas Cu modification of beta zeolite catalyst had an insignificant effect on its selectivity. The highest conversion of 2-MN reached81%, the highest ratio of 2,6-DMN/2,7-DMN reached 2.6 and the highest selectivity of 2,6-DMN was found to be 20% by using Zr-modified beta zeolite catalyst.     

Sustainable Production of Surfactants from Renewable Resources(Online First, Recommended Article)

Surfactants are important chemical products, serving as emulsifiers and interfacial modifiers in the household detergents, personal care products, paints and coatings, foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals industries. This review focuses upon recent advances in research and development to improve the ecological sustainability of surfactants throughout their life cycle, including derivation from renewable resources, production using green manufacturing principles, and improved biocompatibility and biodegradability during their consumer use and disposal stages. Biobased surfactants, derived from vegetable oils, polysaccharides, proteins, phospholipids, and other renewable resources, currently comprise approximately 24% of the surfactant market, and this percentage is expected to increase, especially in Asia. The use of renewables is attractive to consumers because of reduced production of CO2, a greenhouse gas associated with climate change. Enzymes can greatly increase process sustainability, through reduced use of organic solvent, water, and energy, and reduced formation of by-products and waste products. Among the enzymes being investigated for surfactant synthesis, lipases are the most robust, due to their relatively high biocatalytic activity, operational stability and their ability to form or cleave ester, amide, and thioester bonds. For enzymes to be robust catalysts of surfactants, further research and development is needed to improve catalytic productivity, stability and reduce their purchase cost.     

Effect of the addition of rare earths on the activity of alumina supported copper cobaltite in CO oxidation,CH4 oxidationand NO decomposition

The effect of the addition of small amounts of rare earths(Ln=La, Ce, Nd and Gd) to alumina supported copper-cobalt spinel oxide on the catalysts efficiency in CO and CH4 oxidation and in NO decomposition was investigated. Samples of Ln/Cu Co/Al catalyst were prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS), atomic absorption spectroscopy(AAS), scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy(SEM-EDS), H2-temperature-programmed reduction(H2-TPR), electron paramagnetic resonance(EPR) spectroscopy and low temperature nitrogen adsorption. The results showed that the addition of rare earths changed the surface state of the alumina supported copper-cobalt spinel catalyst. As a result, partial reduction of copper species was observed as well as migration of these species between the surface and the bulk. The Ln/Cu Co/Al catalysts behaved differently in oxidation and reduction processes. In oxidation processes where oxide structure was important, Ce/Cu Co/Al and Nd/Cu Co/Al were the most active catalysts. The catalyst Ce/Cu Co/Al was the most active in the oxidation reactions because of the availability and favorable surface distribution of the redox couples Cu+/Cu2+ and Ce3+/Ce4+. In NO decompostion, Ln-modified catalysts significantly improved the selectivity of the process to N2.     

3D printed millireactors for process intensification

The scope of the present research aims at demonstrating the 3D printing use in the manufacturing of microchannels for chemical process applications. A comparison among digital model processing applications for 3D print(slicers) and a print layer thickness analysis were performed. The 3D print fidelity was verified in several devices, including the microchannels' printing with and without micromixer zones. In order to highlight the 3D print potential in Chemical Engineering, the biodiesel synthesis was also carried out in a millireactor manufactured by 3D printing. The millireactor operated under laminar flow regime with a total flow rate of 75.25 ml ? min~(-1)(increment of about 130 times over traditional microdevices used for biodiesel production).The printed millireactor provided a maximum yield of Ethyl Esters of 73.51% at 40 °C, ethanol:oil molar ratio of7 and catalyst concentration of 1.25 wt% and residence time about 10 s. As a result of flow rate increment attained in the millireactor, the number of required units for scaling-up the chemical processes is reduced. Using the approach described in the present research, anyone could produce their own millireactor for chemical process in a simple way with the aid of a 3D printer.     

Synthesis and characterization of hybrid graphene nanocoolant for heat transfer dissipation in microchannel heat sinks

An attempt is made to examine the effect of hybrid nanocoolant in microchannel heat sink for computer cooling.Two-hybrid coolants with graphene as one of the prime components are synthesized and images of the particles are shown using scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). Heat transfer properties like thermal conductivity of the hybrid fluid, specific heat, density, and viscosity are evaluated experimentally and theoretically. The heat transfer characteristics are also studied in heat sink channels of micro level in the processors of personal computers. The parameters like internal heat transfer coefficient, thermal resistances and base temperature representing the processor temperature are examined for the applied heater power of 325 W. The coolant dilution was varied in the range of 0.05 vol%, 0.075 vol% and 0.1 vol% and the base temperature is noted. The recorded lowest base temperature is 310.01 K for the concentration of 0.1 vol%graphene-iron oxide(GFO) system for 0.5 mm fin spacing for the graphene-iron oxide hybrid coolant and for graphene oxide–iron oxide(GOFO) hybrid coolant it is 311.24 K for the same operating conditions.