Experimental investigation on explosion characteristics of nano-aluminum powder—air mixtures

Explosion characteristics of nano-aluminum powders with particle sizes of 35, 75, and 100 nm are investigated in a 20-liters spherical explosion chamber. Results show that the maximum explosion pressure and the maximum rate of pressure rise mainly depend on the dust concentration. For dust concentrations below 1000 g/m³, the maximum explosion pressure increases gradually to a maximum value with increasing dust concentration. After the dust concentration increases above 1250 g/m³, the maximum explosion pressure starts to decrease. The trends of the maximum rate of pressure rise follow the same pattern with increasing dust concentration. The lower explosion concentration limits of nano-aluminum powders with sizes of 35, 75, and 100 nm are found to be 5, 10, and 10 g/m³, respectively, while the lower explosion concentration limit of ordinary aluminum powders is about 50 g/m³.     

Experimental investigation on the bending behaviour of hybrid and steel thin walled box beams—The role of adhesive joints

In the automotive design, nowadays there are two fundamental drivers. On one hand there are the environmental problems, on the other hand there are the safety matters. Within this contest, the weight reduction has become a key driver in the design of vehicles and it is necessary to consider and to study the use of nonconventional materials taking advantage from their high potential of weight reduction and energy absorption capability.In this perspective, the aim of this work is the study of the structural behaviour of box beams by means of a series of three points bending tests. The examined cross sections are those typically used in automotive construction. Different type of materials (steel, composite) and joining technologies (adhesive, spot weld) have been examined, considering different configurations. The work put in evidence the advantages coming from the use of adhesive, which allows structures with important weight reduction and better mechanical properties than traditional joining solutions.     

Theory of dissolution and precipitation waves—redux

We present a local equilibrium theory for the reactive transport of two salts that share an anion in an ideal solution. We revisit this classic problem using the theory of hyperbolic partial differential equations accounting for the volume of precipitates. We construct analytical solutions for the 2 × 2 system of conservation laws in the absence of hydrodynamic dispersion. The character of the system depends on the saturation of the salts, that is, whether the fluid is saturated with both, either of the two or none of the salts. We provide a comprehensive analysis of the system and its solution. Each primitive variable, the amount of precipitate and the concentration of ions, remains constant along one class of waves that propagate in the system. The analysis of the system allows identification of seven bifurcations with respect to the intermediate state.     

Experimental and numerical investigation on mixing and axial dispersion in Taylor–Couette flow patterns

Taylor–Couette flows between two concentric cylinders have great potential applications in chemical engineering. They are particularly convenient for two-phase small scale devices enabling solvent extraction operations. An experimental device was designed with this idea in mind. It consists of two concentric cylinders with the inner one rotating and the outer one fixed. Moreover, a pressure driven axial flow can be superimposed. Taylor–Couette flow is known to evolve towards turbulence through a sequence of successive hydrodynamic instabilities. Mixing characterized by an axial dispersion coefficient is extremely sensitive to these flow bifurcations, which may lead to flawed modelling of the coupling between flow and mass transfer. This particular point has been studied using experimental and numerical approaches. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of the flow have been carried out. The effective diffusion coefficient was estimated using particles tracking in the different Taylor–Couette regimes. Simulation results have been compared with literature data and also with our own experimental results. The experimental study first consists in visualizing the vortices with a small amount of particles (Kalliroscope) added to the fluid. Tracer residence time distribution (RTD) is used to determine dispersion coefficients. Both numerical and experimental results show a significant effect of the flow structure on the axial dispersion.     

Influence of Impingement Temperature and Nozzle Geometry on Heat Transfer—Experimental and Theoretical Analysis

Abstract

Based on the earlier studies the most common empirical correlations in the literature predict the impingement heat transfer coefficients rather well at low (close to 100°C) temperatures, but get inaccurate at higher temperatures. Impingement temperatures used in paper drying applications are typically 300 to 700°C, and there has been a need to improve the existing heat transfer correlations at high temperature area. This study presents experimental results of impingement heat transfer measurements with a laboratory-scale heat transfer test rig. Five nozzle configurations were measured. The parameters varied in the investigation were nozzle-to-plate distance, nozzle open area, nozzle diameter, impingement velocity and impingement air temperature. Regression model of heat transfer was developed based on the measurement data. A correction factor including the impingement and heat receiving surface temperatures is proposed. The correction factor can be used to improve the existing correlations at large jet to heat receiving surface temperature differences.     

Effects of ultrasound on adsorption and desorption of chromium(Ⅵ) on activated carbon

研究了超声波对活性炭吸附/脱附Cr(Ⅵ)的影响,结果表明：有无超声波作用下,活性炭对Cr(Ⅵ)的吸附率均随pH值的升高而减小,相对于无超声作用体系,超声作用下的相平衡向吸附量减小的方向移动,且pH值越大,其减小的幅度越大;当Cr(Ⅵ)初始浓度由20 mg·L^-1增至110 mg·L^-1时,超声波作用下的Cr(Ⅵ)去除率由99.9%降至79.8%,平衡吸附量则由3.3 mg·g^-1增至15.0 mg·g^-1,与无超声波作用下的效果接近,但无超声波作用时的吸附率持续上升至平衡,而超声波作用下的吸附率先快速增加至近平衡,再出现小幅下降后又缓慢增至平衡。脱附实验发现,无论有无超声作用,活性炭表面Cr(Ⅵ)在蒸馏水中的脱附率均很小;添加NaOH可显著改善脱附效果,脱附率随NaOH用量的增加而增加,且超声场中NaOH对脱附的促进作用显著高于非超声场中的效果。     

Experimental investigation and modeling of steam cracking of Fischer–Tropsch naphtha for light olefins

The characteristics of product distribution and the kinetic model for predicting the yields of the major products from steam cracking of Fischer–Tropsch (F–T) naphtha have been investigated in a pilot plant under various conditions. An analysis of the experimental data suggests that the naphtha produced via the low-temperature slurry-phase F–T process is an excellent feedstock for the production of light olefins, especially ethylene. For steam cracking of two F–T naphthas studied, ethylene is the primary product varying from 36.89 to 41.83 wt%, and the total yield of valuable light olefins (C₂H₄, C₃H₆ and 1,3-C₄H₆) is not less than 60.34 wt% under the conditions estimated. The experimental product distributions could be satisfactorily predicted by use of a detailed molecular reaction scheme which consists of a first-order primary reaction and 37 secondary reactions.     

Experimental investigation on the mechanical,structural and thermal properties of Cu–ZrO2 nanocomposites hybridized by graphene nanoplatelets

Hybrid Cu–ZrO₂/GNPs nanocomposites were successfully produced using powder metallurgy technique. The effect of GNPs mass fraction, 0, 0.5, 1 and 1.5%, on the mechanical and electrical properties of the produced hybrid nanocomposite was investigated while maintaining ZrO₂ mass fraction constant at 5%. High-energy ball milling was applied for mixing powders followed by compaction and sintering. The morphological analysis of the produced powder showed acceleration of Cu particles fracture during ball milling with the addition of GNPs up to 0.5% with noticeable reduction of agglomeration size. Moreover, the crystallite size of Cu–5%ZrO₂/0.5%GNPs hybrid nanocomposites revealed smaller crystallite size, 142 nm, compared to 300 nm for Cu–5%ZrO₂ nanocomposite. Additionally, the hybrid nanocomposite with 0.5% GNPs shows homogeneous distribution of both reinforcement phases in the sintered samples. The compressive strength increased with the GNPs content and reached 504.6 MPa at 0.5%, 31% higher than the Cu-5%ZO₂. The thermal conductivity had the maximum value at 0.5 wt%GNPs and reached 345 W/m k. The results provide efficient manufacturing process for high strength and good conductivity hybrid nanocomposites, which is applicable in many structural applications such as heat exchange purposes.     

A one-dimensional assembly of copper(II) polyhedra via dual use of hydrogen-bonding and π–π interaction

A copper(II) complex [Cu(Hpadh)Cl₂] with pyridine-N, imine-N and amide-O coordinating 2-pyridine-carboxaldehyde 4-dimethylaminobenzoylhydrazone (Hpadh) has been synthesized and structurally characterized. In the solid state, each square–pyramidal Cu(Hpadh)Cl₂ unit is connected to one neighbour by a pair of hydrogen bonds between the amide-H and the apical chloride and to the other by a couple of π–π interactions between the aromatic rings of the coordinated ligands forming a novel chain-like arrangement of copper(II) centres with successive long and short Cu···Cu distances. Variable temperature (300–18 K) magnetic susceptibility measurements showed that the complex is essentially Curie paramagnetic.     

Evolution of nonlinear waves on vertically falling films—a normal form analysis

The evolution of well-developed, finite-amplitude waves on a vertically falling film is investigated beyond the linear inception region. Solitary and spatially-periodic travelling wave solutions to the long-wave equation derived by Benney, Lin and Nakaya are analytically constructed. General correlations among universally renormalized variables which relate the celerity, amplitude and wavelength of these waves are then derived. These correlations are favourably compared to literature data. Our analysis explains the lower bound on wavelength, or the upper bound on the forcing frequency, of naturally and artificially excited interfacial patterns. It also quantifies the growth of doubly-periodic waves with long modulation periods and front-running ripples. The nonlinear analysis is based on the normal form technique of dynamic singularity theory which constructs solutions, such as limit-cycles, tori, homoclinic and heteroclinic orbits, to the pertinent dynamic equations.     

Experimental investigation on the indentation hardness of precursor derived Si–B–C–N ceramics

The elasto-plastic response of the precursor derived Si–B–C–N ceramics upon contact loading was determined by depth sensing nanoindentation technique. The indentation response of as-thermolyzed Si–B–C–N ceramic was compared with the heat-treated counterpart. The as-thermolyzed ceramic was X-ray amorphous and the heat-treated ceramic was phase separated and crystallized. The hardness and reduced elastic modulus values of the as-thermolyzed ceramic were ～16 GPa and ～172 GPa, respectively. The reduction in hardness to ～9 GPa in the heat-treated ceramic was attributed to phase separation and crystallization of SiC and Si₃N₄. Furthermore, high elastic recovery with a plastic work ratio of ～0.3 was observed and ascribed to volume controlled deformation mechanism.     

Experimental investigation and CFD simulation of liquid–solid–solid dispersion in a stirred reactor

For understanding the monosodium aluminate hydrate crystallization from the supersaturated aluminate solution containing red mud as the leaching liquor of bauxite, the liquid–solid–solid dispersion of a simulant system, i.e. glycerite, red mud and sand, in a stirred reactor has been experimentally investigated as well as simulated using computational fluid dynamics model (CFD) for the first time. The computational model is based on the Eulerian multi-fluid model along with RNG k–ε turbulence model, where Syamlal–obrien-symmetric drag force model (Syamlal, 1987) of the inter-phase momentum transfer between two dispersed solid phases is taken into account. A good agreement is obtained between the experimental data of solid distributions and the simulation results in the flow fields of liquid–solid–solid as well as liquid–solid systems. The solid suspension qualities of both liquid–solid and liquid–solid–solid systems in the stirred reactors with and without draft tube were also studied in detail based on mixing time, the standard deviation of solid concentration proposed by Bohnet and Niesmak (1980), the flow pattern and power number. The influence of the interaction between two dispersed solid phases on the suspension of red mud is found significantly greater than that of sand. The holdup of sand below the impeller is considerably larger than that above the impeller and the red mud dispersion approaches homogeneous in the reactor. The mixing time of liquid–solid–solid suspension is longer than that of liquid–solid suspension under the same conditions, and the mixing times of both systems in the stirred reactor with draft tube are longer than that in the reactor without draft tube. Furthermore, the distributions of sand and red mud in the reactor with draft tube were found less homogeneous than those without draft tube in most cases.     

Experimental investigation of effects of the feed flow rate and “tail scoop-wall” clearance on the performance of a gas centrifuge by feeding a Freon mixture

Experimental study of the performance of a gas centrifuge can be appreciably simplified if instead of isotopic mixtures, a binary mixture of gases with large molecular weight difference is used. The current study undertook this approach by injecting a 53%–47% (w/w) mixture of “Freon12-Freon22” into a gas centrifuge. The two parameters, whose investigation was the objective of the current study were: the feed flow rate (F), and the clearance between tail scoop and the rotor wall (d). The results demonstrated that changing the scoop-wall clearance has the most significant effect on the cut (θ), so that by fixing “d”, “θ” becomes nearly invariant. The head separation factor (α) exhibited the same dependency, but it was more influenced by the “F” than the “d”. Apparently the following regression exists between the inspected parameters:

Decreasing “d” → Decreasing “θ” → Increasing “α”.

Variations of the tail separation factor (β) with “F” or “d” was quite slight, even though similar to “α”, it was lowered with increasing of the “F”. The separation capacity (δU) as the most significant parameter of a centrifuge was optimised at the highest value of “F = 40.5 g/h”, and lowest value of “d = 3 mm”. The study achieved a separation capacity and an overall separation factor equal to 195.53 kg Freon/y and 16.87, respectively. These values are several times larger than those of the isotopic mixtures, demonstrating that application of Freons is a useful mean for magnifying the features of a gas centrifuge.     

Experimental investigation on solid dispersion,power consumption and scale-up in moderate to dense solid–liquid suspensions

Detailed particle concentration distribution in dense solid–liquid suspension was measured by means of fiber optic probes. The effect of solid loading, impeller speed, and impeller type and clearance was investigated. Results were compared with modeling approaches to show the accuracy of sedimentation–dispersion model and its capability to describe complex phenomena taking place in dense liquid–solid mixing systems. Variation of power numbers by changing impeller clearance and solid loading were also investigated. It was shown that the impeller power number for a slurry system exhibited different trends in a moderate or dense liquid–solid system. In addition, scale-up rules to achieve the same level of homogeneity on a large scale as the laboratory scale were evaluated.     

Fabrication of NiFe layered double hydroxides using urea hydrolysis—Control of interlayer anion and investigation on their catalytic performance

NiFe layered double hydroxides (NiFe-LDHs) intercalated with nitrate and carbonate anion were synthesized by urea hydrolysis. The aging time and the molar ratio of NO₃⁻/urea were varied in order to identify suitable parameters, which control the interlayer anion (nitrate or carbonate) and crystal structure of the final products. The prepared samples were applied to the one-pot synthesis of benzoin ethyl ether from benzaldehyde and ethanol. NiFe–NO₃-LDH presented excellent catalytic activity, different from NiFe–CO₃-LDH which showed none catalytic activity at all.     

Experimental investigation on gas–liquid flow,heat and mass transfer characteristics in a dual-contact-flow absorption tower

As a kind of chemical reactor, the dual-contact-flow absorption tower has been widely used for SO₂ absorption in recent years. However, studies on heat transfer characteristics of the absorber have been rarely carried out. There is also lack of an integrated partition map of flow pattern in the dual-contact-flow absorption tower. In this paper, the gas–liquid flow, heat and mass transfer characteristics in the dual-contact-flow absorption tower have been experimentally investigated. Direct observation, probability density function (PDF) and power spectral density function (PSD) methods are comparatively adopted in the flow pattern analysis. The partition map of flow pattern in the dual-contact-flow absorption tower is obtained through integrating a large quantity of experimental data. In addition, empirical formulas of both heat and mass transfer performances have been developed. Application of empirical formulas has also been stated. The research results obtained in the present study can provide guidance for estimating the practical application performance.     

Effects of ultrasound on the conformation and crystallization behavior of isotactic polypropylene and β-isotactic polypropylene

The effects of ultrasonic irradiation on conformation and crystalline structure of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) and β-isotactic polypropylene (β-iPP) were studied by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). The results demonstrate that ultrasonic irradiation decreases the helical conformation order and changes the crystalline structures: for iPP, T_m and T_onset decrease, T_m − T_onset becomes larger; for β-iPP, the β_c, (1 − λ)_β and k_β increase, the intensities of α(040) plane and α(130) plane in WAXD profiles decrease evidently. For both iPP and β-iPP, the crystallinity decreases, d-spacing increases, the crystallite size L decreases and ultrasound shows a selective effect on the growth of β-crystal. Furthermore, DSC and WAXD were employed to observe the effect of ultrasound on the “melting memory effect” of β-iPP. The results indicate that ultrasonic irradiation destructs the existing “locally ordered structure” in β-iPP melt, as a result greatly inhibits the βα-recrystallization of β-iPP samples during heating.     

Effects of duty cycle and pulse frequency on microstructures and properties of electrodeposited Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings

In this study, Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings were fabricated using pulse current electrodeposition (PCE) method. Effects of duty cycle and pulse frequency on surface appearance, microstructure, phase structure, wear behavior, and corrosion resistance of as-deposited Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, nanoindentation, and both wear and corrosion tests. Results indicate that numerous small-sized grains formed on Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings at 20% duty cycle to provide smooth, uniform, and fine microstructures. The content of SiC nanoparticles in Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings decreased from 11.2 wt% to 7.4 wt% as duty cycle increased from 20% to 60%. However, the content of SiC nanoparticles in Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings increased from 6.3 wt% to 9.7 wt% as pulse frequency increased from 100 Hz to 300 Hz. Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings prepared at pulse frequency of 300 Hz and duty cycle of 20% exhibited average microhardness of 934.4 Hv and average thickness of 43.2 μm. Weight loss of Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings at 300 Hz was only 17.2 mg, indicating significant wear resistance. In addition, Ni–Co–SiC nanocoatings produced at duty cycle of 20% and pulse frequency of 300 Hz exhibited the maximum impedance, indicating optimal corrosion resistance.