Process parameters influence on zone refining and thermodynamics analysis of 1,2-diphenylethane

Effective distribution coefficients of 9 impurities in 1,2-diphenylethane have been calculated by directional crystallization under different ambient frozen temperature. The effect of varied zone size, temperature difference between the melt and ambient frozen environment, number of zone on purity of 1,2-diphenylethane have been also investigated during the process of zone refining. The results indicate that the product purity in the intermediate purified region with varied zone size is higher 0.04%-0.2% than that with constant zone size. The product purity increases with temperature difference between the melt and ambient frozen environment. The appropriate temperature difference is adopted 50℃. The product purity in the intermediate region of sample bar with 2 molten zones is higher 0.05%-0.43% than that with 1 molten zone. In addition, the change of enthalpy and entropy between impurities and 1,2-diphenylethane have been determined.     

Modeling the viscosity of silicate melts containing Fe oxide: FeO/Fe2O3 containing system

In the present study, the viscosity experimental data for the Fe_tO-containing silicate melts under oxidation atmosphere, which Fe³⁺ and Fe²⁺ co-exist were critically evaluated and model parameters related to Fe₂O₃ were optimized to best reproduce all reliable experimental viscosity data. The charge compensation effect on the viscosity for the systems containing Fe₂O₃ was modeled with the Gibbs energies for LiFe, NaFe, KFe and CaFe₂ “associate species” formation. The viscosities of a wide compositional and temperature range of binary, ternary and multicomponent melts containing Fe₂O₃–FeO–SiO₂–Al₂O₃–CaO–MgO–Li₂O–Na₂O–K₂O–MnO–Ti₂O₃–TiO₂ were well reproduced by the present model within the scatter of experimental data.     

Thermodynamic assessment of iron and the expansion behavior of porous ceramsite in pure mineral systems relating to solid waste components

Herein, Factsage software and sintering experiment were conducted to predict and correlate thermodynamic calculations of Fe in a synthetic solid waste and the expansion behavior of ceramsite. With the increase of Fe₂O₃ content, the liquid phase content and viscosity in the multi-component system gradually decreased and the melting temperature range became wider. This can match with the generation of the liquid phase with proper viscosity in the ceramsite and the full expansion properties. At 400–1000 °C, iron as a network former was tetrahedrally coordinated with oxygen to form Hercynite (Al₂FeO₄) phase; at 1180–1200 °C, iron as a network modifier dissolved into the silicate mineral structure to form the eutectic composition of Diopside (Ca₄Mg_3.62Fe_0.78Si_7.6O₂₄) and Ferrosolite (Si₁₆Mg_5.09Fe_10.66Ca_0.26O₄₈). The formation of iron-bearing silicate facilitated the generation of the viscous layer, so that the outer layer of the ceramsite exhibited sealing performance. Finally, a preferable porous ceramsite with compressive strength of 10.7 MPa and an apparent density of 708 kg/m³ was obtained. This study analyzes the effect of Fe₂O₃ on the expansion behavior of porous ceramsite and provides new insight into how to analyze different solid wastes to produce ceramsite in a predictable way.     

Decomposition process of bastnaesite concentrate in NaOH-CaO-H_2O system

A novel process of calcification-leaching for bastnaesite concentrate(REFCO_3) was proposed. The prior calcification was carried out in the system of NaOH-CaO-H_2O and the lgC-pH pattern for Ce-F-Ca-C-H_2O system was drawn. The thermodynamics result indicates that decomposition for bastnaesite requires certain alkaline condition, but excessive alkalinity also causes decomposition of CaF_2. XRD and SEM-EDS analyses on the calcification-leaching process reveal that bastnaesite first decomposes into RE(OH)_3 and CaF_2. Then, by HCl leaching rare earths were extracted,while CaF_2 was left in the leaching residue. In addition, effects of temperature, time, NaOH and CaO on the calcification were investigated. The results show that the leaching rate of rare earths(REs)reaches 72.5 wt%, at the same time 99.2 wt% of F is left in leaching residue with 20 wt% NaOH and 38 wt% CaO at 493 K for 180 min.     

Microstructure and hydrogen absorption/desorption properties of Mg24Y3M (M = Ni,Co, Cu,Al) alloys

Ternary alloys with the nominal composition of Mg₂₄Y₃M (M = Ni, Co, Cu, Al) have been fabricated by using vacuum induction melting method. Their microstructure and phase composition are characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The isothermal hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics are measured by a Sievert's-type apparatus. The dehydrogenation behaviors of the full hydrogenated alloys are also analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) method. Results show that each and every alloy has a distinct multiphase structure containing the main phase Mg₂₄Y₅ and some amount of Mg. Intermetallic compounds of YCo₂ and Al₂Y are detected in the M = Co and M = Al alloy, while long-period stacking ordered (LPSO) phase can be also observed in M = Ni and M = Cu alloy. The hydrogen absorption and desorption kinetics shows a decreased trend in the following order: (M = Ni) > (M = Al) > (M = Co) > (M = Cu). The M = Ni alloy has the best hydrogen storage performance among the investigated alloys. The dehydrogenation activation energy (E_a) of the M = Ni alloy decreases to 66 kJ/mol, and its decomposition peak temperature is also reduced to 313 °C. Moreover, the p–c–T (pressure-composition isotherms) curves of the studied alloys are also discussed.     

Evaluation of thermodynamic simulation (FactSage) for the interpretation of the presence of phases and the firing behavior of triaxial ceramics

The present work provides an evaluation of the thermodynamic calculation, using the FactSage software, which allows the study of the interaction of a system of various oxides. It started with the examination of the crystalline phases present in the raw materials indicated by the FactSage and compared with the analysis by XRD. Subsequently, the crystalline phases and the amount of liquid phase predicted by the software at different firing temperatures were analyzed. These results were compared with experimental data and records from the literature. The FactSage showed consistent results, managing to indicate the presence of the main phases in the raw materials; however, the actual and predicted secondary phases did not always coincide. The type of phase in the firing was correctly indicated, tridymite (stable phase above 867 °C), mullite and liquid phase, but their quantity in relation to the firing temperature was quite different from the experimental data.     

Predicting the density of molten alloys using computational thermodynamics

The density of a molten alloy can be calculated from the quotient of its molar mass divided by its molar volume. The molar volume of a molten alloy, however, often deviates from the average of the molar volumes of its constituents. The deviation is caused mainly by the affinity (or lack of it) between dissimilar atoms, which can be quantified by the enthalpy of mixing. Up to now, the link between the enthalpy of mixing and the volume change has been determined empirically through the regression of experimental measurements of alloy densities. In the present study, the derivative of molar volume with respect to enthalpy was deduced and the molar volumes of molten alloys were computed entirely based on the properties of pure elements and the enthalpy of mixing of the alloys. The very slight increase in the packing density due to the size difference of different atoms was also considered. The effect of cluster formation due to short range ordering was also addressed. Over six hundred data points were used in validations. Excellent agreements were achieved between the calculated values and the experimental measurements.     

Solar driven MgO/Mg based methane reforming and water splitting process: A thermodynamic inspection

The thermodynamic efficiency analysis of the MgO/Mg based CH₄ reforming and H₂O splitting process is performed in this paper. The study is conducted by considering two process configurations, namely, a) MgO/Mg based open process where Mg and syngas is produced (MS process), and b) MgO/Mg based semi-open process where syngas and H₂ is generated (MSH process). The thermodynamic equilibrium analysis indicate that the best possible thermal reduction temperature for both processes is 2100 K and, in case of the MSH process, the water splitting step is feasible in the range of 500–900 K. As per the findings, for the MS process, the solar energy required to drive the process increases by 958.2 kW as the CH₄/MgO ratio upsurges from 0.1 to 1. For the MSH process, the minimum amount of solar energy needed to run the process i.e., 1203.1 kW can be accomplished at water splitting temperature of 900 K and CH₄/MgO molar ratio = 1. Based on the solar-to-fuel energy conversion efficiency, the MSH process appears to be more advantageous (54.5%) than the MS process (41.3%). The solar-to-fuel energy conversion efficiency of the MSH process can be further enhanced up to 65.6% by reclaiming 50% of the heat dissipated by the coolers and WS reactor.     

Experiments and Correlations of the Solubility of γ-DL-Methionine in Binary Solvent Mixtures

Antisolvents increase the supersaturation in the crystallization process which can enhance the product yield. The effect of an antisolvent on the solubility of γ-DL-methionine (γ-DL-met) in aqueous solution was investigated. The solubility of γ-DL-met was measured with various binary solvent mixtures. It improved with higher temperature but decreased with increasing the antisolvent mass fraction. Acetone showed the highest efficiency to reduce the solubility. The solubilities were correlated with the van't Hoff-Jouyban-Acree model and the modified Apelblat-Jouyban-Acree model. Both models fitted to the experimental results with high accuracy. Enthalpy, entropy, and Gibbs free energy of dissolution were determined by van't Hoff analysis. The thermodynamic properties indicated that the dissolution process is endothermic and entropy-driven.