Using exergy for performance evaluation of a conceptual ramjet engine burning hydrogen fuel

Ramjet engines are widely-used devices in the defence industry and have military applications. These engine types, preferred in many fields, are known to act according to the laws of thermodynamics. For this reason, exergy analysis methodology is a beneficial tool for assessing the performance of a ramjet engine, as well as other energy conversion systems. The present study aims to introduce a performance analysis of a hydrogen fueled ramjet engine within the framework of the first and second laws of thermodynamics. At the end of the study, the exergy efficiencies of inlet, combustion zone and nozzle are found to be 3.88%, 7.62%, and 0.03%, respectively, whereas the exergy efficiency of a ramjet engine is 8.85%. The introduced methodology and the results obtained from the current study may be useful for anybody who is interested in thermal sciences and aero-propulsion technologies.     

Mathematical modeling of heat recovery from a rotary kiln

In this study, heat recovery from rotary kiln was examined for a cement plant in Turkey. At first, an exergy analysis was carried out on the operational data of the plant. Results indicated the presence of 217.31 GJ of waste heat, which is 51% of the overall heat of the process. Then a mathematical model was developed for a new heat recovery exchanger for the plant. It was determined that 5% of the waste heat can be utilized with the heat recovery exchanger. The useful heat obtained is expected to partially satisfy the thermal loads of 678 dwellings in the vicinity through a new district heating system. This system is expected to decrease domestic-coal and natural gas consumption by 51.55% and 62.62% respectively. CO₂ emissions may also be reduced by 5901.94 kg/h and 1816.90 kg/h when waste heat is used instead of coal and natural gas.     

Energy and exergy analysis of a ground-coupled heat pump system with two horizontal ground heat exchangers

In this paper we investigate of energetic and exergetic efficiencies of ground-coupled heat pump (GCHP) system as a function of depth trenches for heating season. The horizontal ground heat exchangers (HGHEs) were used and it were buried with in 1 m (HGHE1) and 2 m (HGHE2) depth trenches. The energy efficiency of GCHP systems are obtained to 2.5 and 2.8, respectively, while the exergetic efficiencies of the overall system are found to be 53.1% and 56.3%, respectively, for HGHE1 and HGHE2. The irreversibility of HGHE2 is less than of the HGHE1 as about 2.0%. The results show that the energetic and exergetic efficiencies of the system increase when increasing the heat source (ground) temperature for heating season. And the end of this study, we deal with the effects of varying reference environment temperature on the exergy efficiencies of HGHE1 and HGHE2. The results show that increasing reference environment temperature decreases the exergy efficiency in both HGHE1 and HGHE2.     

Optical response of Ag-Au bimetallic nanoparticles to electron storage in aqueous medium

Composition and structure dependence of the shift in the position of the surface plasmon resonance band upon introduction of NaBH4 to aqueous solutions of gold and silver nanoparticles are presented. Silver and gold nanoalloys in different compositions were prepared by co-reduction of the corresponding salt mixtures using sodium citrate as the reducing agent. After addition of NaBH4 to the resultant nanoalloys, the maximum of their surface plasmon resonance band, ranging between that of pure silver (ca. 400 nm) and of pure gold (ca. 530 nm), is blue-shifted as a result of electron storage on the particles. The extent of this blue shift increases non-linearly with the mole fraction of silver in the nanoparticle, parallel to the trends reported previously for both the frequency and the extinction coefficient of the plasmon band shifts. Gold(core)@silver(shell) nanoparticles were prepared by sequential reduction of gold and silver, where addition of NaBH4 results in relatively large spectral shift in the plasmon resonance band when compared with the nanoalloys having a similar overall composition. The origin of the large plasmon band shift in the core-shell is related with a higher silver surface concentration on these particles. Hence, the chemical nature of the nanoparticle emerges as the dominating factor contributing to the extent of the spectral shift as a result of electron storage in bimetallic systems.     

UV-Light Absorption Properties of Cr-Doped Polyethyleneglycol (PEG)/γ-Glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS)/Chelated-Titanium Coating Materials Prepared by the Sol–Gel Process

New hybrid inorganic–organic glass coating materials, which contain polyethyleneglycol/γ-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane/titanium(IV)-n-propoxide(2-methoxyethylacetoacetate)/chromium(III)nitrate [PEG/GPTMS/Ti(OR)(2-MEAA)/Cr³⁺] have been developed for UV-light absorption by using the sol–gel process. The effect of agitation time and temperature on UV-light absorption was investigated. The titanium complex was characterized by ¹H-NMR and FTIR spectroscopies. UV–Vis spectroscopy was used to investigate the optical properties of the coating materials. The results show that the coated glass has very low transmission in the UV region (300–400 nm) compared to the uncoated glass, especially at 150, 200, 250 and 300°C treatment temperatures after 1- and 18-hour agitation times. The UV-light transmission of the coated glass was not different from the uncoated glass between 80–100°C and 350–500°C.     

Zirconium tetra-n-butylate modified with different organic acids: Hydrolysis and polymerization of the products

In this work; (a) complexation reaction of zirconium tetra-n-butylate, Zr(OBu ⁿ )₄, with MAc and different organic acids. (b) the hydrolysis reaction of modified Zr species, and (c) the polymerization reaction of complex products are studied. Zr(OBu ⁿ )₄ was reacted with different mole ratios of methacrylic acid (MAc) at room temperature and the maximum combination ratio was found to be 12 [Zr(OBu ⁿ )₄MAc] by FT IR. The modification of zirconium tetra-n-butylate with the acid mixtures [methacrylic acid-acetic acid (MeCOOH), methacrylic acid-propionic acid (EtCOOH), methacrylic acidbutyric acid (PrCOOH)] was made for a combination ratio of 111 [MAcRCOOHZr(OBu ⁿ )₄RMe. Et, Pr] and the products were characterized by¹H-NMR, FT-IR, and UV-spectroscopies. Following their synthesis, hydrolysis of the complexes with various amounts of water and polymerization with benzoyl peroxide were realized. The hydrolysis and polymerization products of the complexes were studied by Karl-Fischer Coulometric titration and thermal analysis respectively. Methyl-ethyl-ketone (MEK) and chloroform were chosen as solvents.     

Effect of particle size on microstructural and mechanical properties of UHMWPE–TiO2 composites produced by gelation and crystallization method

In this study, Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) in 0.5 wt % concentration—0.5, 1, and 2 wt % nanosized and micron-sized TiO₂ composites were produced via gelation/crystallization method in decalin + antioxidant solution at 150 °C for 45 min by using magnetic stirrer. The gel composites were cooled in an aluminum tray embedded in iced water under ambient conditions and dried in an oven at 130 °C for 90 min to remove any residual trace of decalin and to strengthen the UHWMPE matrix. Scanning electron microscopy–EDS images indicate that TiO₂ particles were integrated well with the polymer matrix. differential scanning calorimetry studies revealed that the crystallinity of pure UHMWPE was calculated as 56% and an increase of 13.32% for micron sized and 19.25% for nano sized TiO₂. Crystalline and amorphous phases of UHMWPE–TiO₂ composites confirmed by Raman are in good agreement with the literature. The elastic modulus of test materials ranged from 610 to 791 MPa for micron sized and raised from 675 to 1085 for nano sized reinforcing agents. Ultimate tensile stress increased about 35% for micron sized and 60% for nano sized weight 1% TiO₂ reinforced composites. Biomineralization tests (performed in stimulated body fluid, at 37 °C and 6.5 pH during 1 month) have shown that produced composites are compatible as acetabular liner replacement for hipjoints due to no accumulation (Ca, P, Na, etc.) on UHMWPE–TiO₂ composites. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47402.     

A Review of Thermal Conductivity Models for Nanofluids

Nanofluids, as new heat transfer fluids, are at the center of attention of researchers, while their measured thermal conductivities are more than for conventional heat transfer fluids. Unfortunately, conventional theoretical and empirical models cannot explain the enhancement of the thermal conductivity of nanofluids. Therefore, it is important to understand the fundamental mechanisms as well as the important parameters that influence the heat transfer in nanofluids. Nanofluids’ thermal conductivity enhancement consists of four major mechanisms: Brownian motion of the nanoparticle, nanolayer, clustering, and the nature of heat transport in the nanoparticles. Important factors that affect the thermal conductivity modeling of nanofluids are particle volume fraction, temperature, particles size, pH, and the size and property of nanolayer. In this paper, each mechanism is explained and proposed models are critically reviewed. It is concluded that there is a lack of a reliable hybrid model that includes all mechanisms and influenced parameters for thermal conductivity of nanofluids. Furthermore, more work needs to be conducted on the nature of heat transfer in nanofluids. A reliable database and experimental data are also needed on the properties of nanoparticles.     

Adsorption characteristics of ionic and nonionic surfactants on hydrophobic pigment in aqueous medium

The current study is based on the investigation of the adsorption properties of ionic and nonionic surfactants on an organic hydrophobic pigment powder, namely, β‐copper phthalocyanine, in aqueous medium. The nonionic surfactants, selected systematically to represent varying degrees of ethoxylation, are nonylphenol ethoxylates, whereas the ionic surfactant is sodium oleate, a carboxylate‐type anionic reagent. The adsorption of surfactants was assessed qualitatively by surface analysis of powders, before and after the adsorption of the surfactants. The experimental results were explained by the structural and other properties of the surfactants and the surface properties of the pigment. The specific adsorption of surfactants on pigments was verified by zeta potential measurements, as they altered the zeta potential values to a great extent. Nonionic surfactants decreased the absolute value of the zeta potential of the powder; whereas anionic surfactant sodium oleate shifted the zeta potential to more negative values. On the one hand, Fourier Transform–infrared and X‐ray diffraction examinations of the pigments did not show any noticeable evidence for surfactant untreated or treated copper phthalocyanine. On the other hand, thermal analysis (both thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis) showed clear evidence of the surfactants on both pigments, as substantial changes in thermogravimetric curves were assessed.