Reduction of byproduct particle size using low-pressure plasmas generated by a cylindrical-shaped electrode

In the case of a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition, large amounts of byproduct particles arrive at a vacuum pump in spite of the use of cleaning process. As these particles are accumulated on internal components of a vacuum pump, its performance is reduced. A plasma reactor located right before a vacuum pump is proposed with an aim to reduce the size and quantity of byproduct particles, thereby to improve the durability of a vacuum pump. The plasma reactor and electrode all have a concentric cylindrical shape, which allows the device to be easily connected to pre-existing vacuum pipelines without any disturbance to the exhaust stream. The sizes of byproduct particles before the vacuum pump are quite diverse in the range of tens of nanometers to tens of micrometers. The plasma reactor makes the size and quantity of byproduct particles much smaller, and the particles larger than 1 μm are not observed anymore. This result indicates that the vacuum pump durability can be significantly improved by using plasmas.     

Effect of dust-neutral collisions on the dust characteristics in a magnetized plasma sheath

The characteristics of dust in a plasma sheath are investigated in the presence of an external magnetic field and taking into account the dust-neutral collision force. The continuity and momentum equations of ions and dust particles are solved numerically with various magnitudes of collision force by using the fluid model. The numerical results have revealed that the collision force reduces the dust gyro radius, changes the positions of the extrema of the dust density and the velocity in the depth direction. It is shown that the collision force reduces the dust kinetic energy which has no fluctuation even in a strong external magnetic field.     

An application of bootstrap method for analysis of particle size distribution

The Bootstrap method, which is used widely in statistics, is a very powerful method that can be applied to the analysis of particle size distribution. For a number based measurement, this method can estimate the statistic uncertainty or confidence interval for any statistical quantities of interest from the distribution, with very simple protocol and without any parametric assumptions. This paper gives a demonstration to introduce the method to the community of particle size analysis.     

Towards realistic characterisation of chemical reactors: An in-depth analysis of catalytic particle beds produced by sieving

Optimization of large-scale fixed particle bed catalytic reactors requires extensive insight into the multi-scale bed structure, even down to the micrometre scale. Theoretical studies of chemical reactors provide a time- and cost-effective means to supporting the optimisation process. However, they rely on simplified assumptions for the particles, e.g. homogeneous perfect spheres. In practise, the preparation of catalytic particles cannot attain this level of uniformity. Typical preparation techniques, such as sieving, are conducted with the aim of obtaining particle size distributions within a pre-defined range, governed by the sizes of the sieves. However, such methods offer limited control in the actual particle sizes and shapes. This paper evaluates the impact of sieving on the resulting particles and overall structural morphology of catalytic beds. The bed structure is quantified using micro-focus computed tomography (µ-CT), enabling the non-destructive examination and analysis of over 150 thousand particles, in terms of particle size, shape, uniformity, and interparticle porosity. Furthermore, the chemical performance of the resulting beds is compared. The detailed characterisation achieved paves the way for the evolution of more rigorous computational models coupling intricate, localised hydrodynamics with realistic chemical processes. Validation of such models at the lab-scale will accelerate the development of more accurate large-scale models.     

Inline method of droplet and particle size distribution analysis in dilute disperse systems

In the present article a measurement method of particle size distributions (PSD) in industrial installations which use a dispersed phase of low concentration (like spray dryers or spray scrubbers) is introduced. A new type of inline-measurement system has been developed and designed to work in spray drying conditions. A standard digital camera is used to record shadows of flowing particles inside the spray drying chamber. Collected images were analyzed by a newly developed software which recognizes particles only in the focus area and eliminates several types of artifacts. The constructed prototype of the PSD inline-analyzer was installed and used to monitor large laboratory scale spray dryer. All data collected by the designed system during the spray drying experiments were compared with data measured with an offline reference system to show accuracy of the new measurement technique.     

Investigation of particle reduction and its transport mechanism in UHF-ECR dielectric etching system

Control of particle transport was investigated by using a UHF-ECR etching apparatus with a laser particle monitor. The particles, which float at a plasma-sheath boundary, fall on a wafer when the plasma is turned off. These floating particles can be removed from the region above the wafer by changing the plasma distribution. We measured the distribution of the rotational temperature of nitrogen molecules across the wafer to investigate the effect of the thermophoretic force. We found that mechanisms of particle transport in directions parallel to the wafer surface can be explained by the balance between thermophoretic and gas viscous forces.     

Effect of particle size on densification of pure magnesium during spark plasma sintering

The effect of particles size ranges (<38 μm, 75–150 μm, 270–550 μm) of atomized magnesium powders on densification mechanisms during spark plasma sintering (SPS) process was investigated. The intrinsic driving force, local pressure and current of Mg powders with different particle sizes were analyzed by theoretical calculation. The results obviously indicate that the densification of pure magnesium can be improved by the reduction of particle size, suggesting the intrinsic driving force, local pressure and current intensity are enhanced significantly by a decrease in the particle size at the same sintering conditions, which can promote shrinkage of pores, formation of the sintering neck and mass transportation in the SPS process. Not only that, rapid densification is also interpreted in term of mechanical movement of particles, Joule heating effect and plastic deformation. However, the mechanical movement of the large particles is higher than that of small particles due to high punch displacement, and plastic deformation, detected by scanning electron microscopy, plays a main role in densification for large particles in the case during the sintering. Joule heating effect is the key factor for densification of small Mg particles, and high densification degree can be obtained by sintering small particles.     

The importance of modelling ballast particle shape in the discrete element method

The discrete element method has been used to model railway ballast. Particles have been modelled using both spheres and clumps of spheres. A simple procedure has been developed to generate clumps which resemble real ballast particles much more so than spheres. The influence of clump shape on the heterogeneous stresses within an aggregate has been investigated, and it has been found that more angular clumps lead to a greater degree of homogeneity. A box test consisting of one cycle of sleeper load after compaction has been performed on an aggregate of spheres and also on an alternative aggregate of clumps. The interlocking provided by the clumps provides a much more realistic load- deformation response than the spheres and the clumps will be the basis for future work on ballast degradation under cyclic loading.     

Particle size tuning in scalable synthesis of anti-oxidized copper fine particles by polypeptide molecular weights

Size tuning of metallic copper fine particles is highly important for their application to conductive pastes. Uniformly sized metallic copper fine particles could be successfully obtained by a chemical reduction of CuO micro powders using hydrazine in the presence of polypeptides as the stabilizing regent. Easy tuning of their particle sizes was successfully achieved via controlling the molecular weight of polypeptides. The obtained particles were covered by polypeptide capsules which were approximately 2 wt% of total mass. They are highly stable even under ambient conditions.     

测量范围设定对激光粒度检测结果的影响

激光粒度测试仪在微粉行业得到广泛的应用，正确的使用，结合扫描电镜可以给出粉体颗粒大小的准确量度。引起粒度测量的误差原因很多，本文中讨论激光粒度仪测量范围的设定对粒度测量结果的影响。     

基于LabVIEW的纳米颗粒动态散射光模拟

采用实验室虚拟仪器工程平台LabVIEW实现了纳米颗粒动态光散射信号的计算机模拟。用G语言(图形语言)设计了信号模拟的框图程序,给出了5nm, 15 nm两种粒径颗粒的模拟动态散射光信号及自相关函数。对模拟信号的粒度分析表明,这两种模拟信号产生的测量偏差分别为0.4nm和-0.6nm。     

A regression study on the solid particle erosion of copper and copper alloys by angular and spherical particles at normal incidence

A regression analysis is presented on the solid particle erosion results of copper and copper alloys impacted by angular and spherical silica particles at normal incidence. Particle shape, particle size, and zinc content of materials were selected as factors. Also, three levels were assigned to each factor. Experiments were performed under 50 mTorr vacuum utilizing an electrostatic accelerator erosion tester. A total of 10 g particles were sent to each substrate material in 10 increments. At the end of the experiments, the extent of erosion was calculated by dividing weight loss to the amount of particles sent. A regression analysis was conducted on the erosion data to see the individual and interaction effects of factors chosen.

Results indicate that quadratic components of zinc content, particle shape, and particle size and linear interaction between particle size and zinc content were effective in defining erosion in this study.     

Development of density-inclination plasmas for analysis of plasma nano-processes via combinatorial method

We have developed a plasma-process analyzer based on the “combinatorial method”, in which process examinations with a continuous variation of sample-preparation conditions can be carried out in one execution of experiment via placing substrates on a substrate holder with an inclined distribution of process parameters (ion flux and radical flux) and the distributions of particle fluxes are finely controlled and characterized via particle diagnostics. In the present study, plasma-fluid simulations have been performed to show the feasibility of the combinatorial plasma-process analyzer, in which density inclinations of the plasma parameters (ion density, radical density) are obtained via sustaining plasmas by localized deposition of discharge power using low-inductance antenna modules. The simulation results showed that density-inclination plasmas were feasible by localized power deposition for sustaining plasmas, indicating that a variety of process conditions can be efficiently analyzed via placing substrates on a substrate holder, along which process parameters are inclined.     

空调系统新风机组组合方式的研究

对目前我国存在的新风机组进行了大致分类,分别介绍了净化空调系统新风机组、半集中式空调系统新风机组和蒸发冷却与机械制冷相结合的新风机组,着重介绍了目前干燥地区半集中式空调系统中使用的蒸发冷却空调新风机组,最后针对蒸发冷却空调新风机组存在的不足提出了蒸发冷却与机械制冷相结合的三级复合式新风机组,从热湿交换角度和h-d图上对该机组的组合方式进行了分析,总结出了一种不仅能在干燥地区使用,同时能在中、高湿度地区使用的全年性蒸发冷却空调新风机组。     

Analysis of particle rotation in fluidized bed by use of discrete particle model

The particle rotation was found important in the fluidized bed when the heterogeneous structures appeared. Some researches show that Magnus lift force might play an pivotal role in fluid-solid system, especially when the particles have fast rotation speed. As the Magnus lift force is acted at the single particle level, a pseudo two-dimensional discrete particle model (DPM) was used to investigate the influence of Magnus lift force in fluidized bed. The rotational Reynolds number (Re_r) bases on the angular velocity and the diameter of the spheres is used to characterize the rotational movement of particles. We studied the influence of Magnus lift force for particles with rotational Reynolds number in the range of 1–100. Our results show that the influence of Magnus lift force is enhanced with a higher Re_r. Magnus lift force affects the movement of particles in both radial and axial directions while Re_r is high. However, in low Re_r case it can be neglected in computational simulation model. This indicates the introduction of Magnus lift force may improve the discrete particle model only in high Re_r case and Magnus effect should be considered in real gas-solid two phase system when the particle rotational speed is high.     

Decomposition mechanism of organic compounds by DC water plasmas at atmospheric pressure

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the decomposition mechanism of organic compounds by water plasmas. The plasma torch can generate 100%-steam by DC discharge without a commercially available steam generator. Methanol or ethanol used as a model substance of water-soluble organic compounds was mixed with water for plasma supporting gas. The main gases after the decomposition were H₂, CO, and CO₂. The 50 wt.% of carbon was transformed into solid carbon in 5 mol%-ethanol decomposition, while the solid-carbon formation from 5 mol%-methanol was negligible. Larger amount of solid-carbon formation from ethanol decomposition indicates the different mechanism between methanol and ethanol decomposition.     

Feasibility study of material surface modification by millimeter size plasmas produced in a pin to plane electrode configuration

A few millimeter size plasma was generated in a pin to plane electrode configuration with either Aluminum or Indium Tin Oxide glass. Depending on the plane electrode material, the plasma showed either corona or corona-dielectric barrier discharge hybrid discharge characteristics. From electrical and optical diagnostics, it was found that the hybrid discharge was more electrically stable and had lower rotational temperature. A feasibility study of material surface modification was performed with the hybrid discharge. All samples such as polyethylene and polypropylene films became more hydrophilic, and the surface property was changed only within the radius of less than about 12 mm. In addition, several effects of gas temperature and treatment time on the surface modification were studied besides the durability.     

Formation mechanism of silicide nanoparticles by induction thermal plasmas

The condensation mechanism of metal mixture in thermal plasmas was investigated experimentally and numerically to prepare nanoparticles of silicon base intermetallic compounds. Silicon powder premixed with metal powder (Mo, Ti, Co, Fe, Cr, or Mn) was introduced into the plasma. The nanoparticles were prepared on condition that metal vapor was quickly quenched by the water-cooled copper coil. The nucleation rate expression was used for the estimation of critical saturation ratio. The nucleation temperature of the metal almost corresponds to the melting temperature, while silicon has wide liquid range between the nucleation and melting temperature, resulting in better preparation of silicide. For Mo–Si system, nucleation position of Mo is different from that of Si. Therefore, quenching position has strong effect on the particle composition of molybdenum silicide nanoparticles.     

空调系统新风处理的进展

对空调系统新风处理的相关问题进行了简要的阐述,内容包括了目前新风处理的现状及存在的问题,新风处理的方法和新风供给的方式等;还对最新涉及新风的相关标准和规范进行了介绍。     

Identification and Handling of Discrepant Measurements in Key Comparisons

In a key comparison one or several measurement objects are circulated among a number of laboratories, each of which measures the quantities represented by the objects. In order to compare the measurement results obtained by the participating laboratories, the values represented by the circulated objects have to be established. These values, known as the key comparison reference values, and their associated uncertainties can easily be calculated by the method of least squares from the measurement results provided by the participating laboratories. Since this method requires that the measurement results be mutually consistent, a hypothesis that sometimes has to be rejected at a reasonable level of significance, a procedure for identification and handling of discrepant measurements is needed. In this paper such a procedure is suggested. It is demonstrated that although a key comparison reference value is attracted to a discrepant measurement result that has an uncertainty much smaller than the remaining results, the suggested procedure is able to identify this discrepant result. It is also demonstrated that the exclusion of a discrepant measurement result from the calculation of the reference values does not amplify the discrepancy of that result. As the discrepant result is not excluded from the comparison itself, the exclusion of the result in the calculation of the reference values should therefore be uncontroversial.