Production of hydrogen and methanol enhancement via a novel optimized thermally coupled two‐membrane reactor

This study focuses on optimum operating conditions for thermally coupled two‐membrane reactor (TCTMR) to maximize ultrapure hydrogen and methanol production as alternative environmentally friendly fuels. Hydrogen is used in chemical and petrochemical industries especially applicable in fuel cell technologies, with zero CO₂ emission. In the proposed configuration, methanol synthesis is carried out in the exothermic side by hydroxy sodalite membrane and supplies the necessary heat for the endothermic side. Dehydrogenation of cyclohexane is carried out in the endothermic side with hydrogen‐permselective Pd/Ag membrane wall. A one‐dimensional, steady‐state heterogeneous model and the differential evolution method, as a strong and powerful optimization method, are applied to simulate and optimize the proposed reactor configuration. The simulation results have been shown that there are optimal values of the initial molar flow rate of endothermic, outer and the inner permeation stream, inlet temperature of exothermic, endothermic, outer and inner permeation sides and inlet pressure of inner permeation side to maximize the objective function. The optimization results show 5.87 and 10.51% increase in the methanol production in optimized TCTMR compared with TCTMR and a conventional reactor, respectively. Moreover, this novel configuration with optimal conditions raises the hydrogen production rate about 1.1847 ton/day. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Grafting of water‐soluble sulfonated monomers onto functionalized fumed silica nanoparticles via surface‐initiated redox polymerization in aqueous medium

Sulfonated polymer/fumed silica hybrid nanoparticles were prepared via surface‐initiated free radical polymerization of 2‐acrylamido‐2‐methyl‐1‐propane sulfonic acid (PAMPS‐g‐FSN), styrene sulfonic acid sodium salt (PSSA‐g‐FSN) and vinyl sulfonic acid sodium salt (PVSA‐g‐FSN) from the surface of aminopropyl‐functionalized fumed silica nanoparticles (AFSNs) dispersed in aqueous medium. Cerium(IV) ammonium nitrate/nitric acid and sodium dodecyl sulfate were used as redox initiator and stabilizer respectively. AFSNs were prepared by covalently attaching 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane onto the surface of fumed silica nanoparticles. Sulfonated monomers (AMPS, SSA or VSA) were then grafted onto the AFSNs ultrasonically dispersed in water via redox initiation at 40 °C. Structure, thermal properties, particle size and morphology of the AFSNs and PAMPS‐g‐FSN, PSSA‐g‐FSN and PVSA‐g‐FSN hybrid nanoparticles were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, TGA, SEM, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The results indicated that the sulfonated monomers were successfully grafted onto the fumed silica nanoparticles. Grafting amounts of the sulfonated polymers onto the fumed silica nanoparticle surface were estimated from TGA thermograms to be 59%, 13% and 29% for the PAMPS, PSSA and PVSA, respectively. From SEM, TEM and DLS analysis, polymer‐grafted fumed silica nanoparticles with an average diameter smaller than 70 nm and a (semi‐) spherical shape were observed. A significant bimodal particle size distribution was observed only for the PAMPS‐g‐FSN with average diameters of 39.6 nm (84.1% per number) and 106 nm (15.9% per number). The hydrophilic sulfonated polymer/grafted fumed silica obtained from the redox graft polymerization gave a stable colloidal dispersion in acidic aqueous medium. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

A micromechanics based analysis of hollow fiber composites using DQEM

In this study, a generalized plane strain micromechanical model is presented to obtain micro-stress/strain fields within the unidirectional (UD) hollow fiber reinforced composites. In addition, the thermally induced residual stresses during cooling down process, overall elastic properties and energy absorption capability of hollow reinforced composite are studied. The representative volume element (RVE) of the composite consists of a quarter of the fiber surrounded by matrix to represent the real composite with repeating square array of fibers. Fully bonded fiber–matrix interface condition is considered and the displacement continuity and traction reciprocity are properly imposed to the interface. The cubic serendipity shape functions are used to convert the solution domain to a proper rectangular domain. A Least-squares based differential quadrature element method (DQEM) is used to obtain solutions for the governing partial differential equations of the problem. Results of the presented method for various stress and displacement components and thermal residual stresses show excellent agreement with finite element analysis. Furthermore, predicted overall properties also show good agreement with other available analytical and finite element results. Moreover, results also revealed that the presented model can provide highly accurate predictions with a few number of elements and grid points within each element.     

Effect of blend granulometry on calciothermic reduction of TiO2

Investigated was the effect of particle size of starting powder material on the calciothermic reduction of TiO₂ in the TiO₂-Ca system. According to XRD results, TiO₂ did not react with Ca after 40 h of ball milling. DTA data indicated that a decrease in the particle size of starting material resulted in lower reaction temperatures between molten Ca and TiO₂ (decrease from 1073 to 1044°C). The XRD results showed that titanium metal can be produced from nanosized starting material, and the reduction reaction progressed at lower temperatures upon a decrease in the particle size of TiO₂. Also, the particle size of the products decreased with decreasing particle size of starting TiO₂. The concentration of residual oxygen depended on the particle size of TiO₂ due to increasing surface of contact with deoxidizer (Ca).     

Antielectrostatic agent addition in low-dielectric-constant polymerization media

In the coordinative polymerization of α-olefin by a slurry process, a low-dielectric-constant suspending agent, such as hexane or heptane, must be used. As a result of solvent movement and its friction between system components, electrostatic charges are generated. Because of low electrical conduction of these solvents, the generated charges accumulate in the polymerization medium. Consequently, a repulsive force between same charges effects the growth of the polymer particles and causes them to form fine particles. In this article, we present research results on the effects of antielectrostatic agents on the increase of the electrical conduction of the polymerization medium, particle size distribution, and also the quantity of fine particles in the final polymer. Techniques gained from the fuel industry were applied to modify the subjected polymerization medium. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Evaluation of the effects of Canadian climate conditions on the MEPDG predictions for flexible pavement performance

This study aims to investigate the quality of the recently developed Canadian climatic database and the effect of climatic factors on flexible pavement performance using the mechanistic-empirical pavement design guide (MEPDG). Two hundred and six Canadian climatic files were used to carry out the analysis. Freezing index and frost depth from the MEPDG were compared with the data available in Canadian databases. The sensitivity of pavement performance to climate conditions, predicted using the MEPDG, was also studied. The pavement performance predicted using the virtual weather station and existing weather station data was compared. From the pavement performance sensitivity study, it was found that the asphalt concrete, total pavement rutting and international roughness index show sensitivity to climate changes. It was also found that differences in the quality and duration of data for close-by stations can result in variation in the predicted performance. Overall, the study assists with facilitating the implementation of the MEPDG in Canada.