Improvement in thermal endurance of D-mannitol as phase-change material by impregnation into nanosized pores

This paper describes the control of the melting point and improvement of the thermal endurance of D-mannitol (melting point T_m = 440 K) as a phase-change material (PCM) by vacuum impregnation of the PCM into nanosized pores of porous SiO₂ grains. First, we examined the effects of the average pore size (D_P) of porous SiO₂ on T_m and latent heat (L) of PCM/SiO₂ composites. Second, we investigated the thermal endurance of the composites using constant temperature kinetics based on L of the PCM and composites. Third, we performed cyclic tests of melting and freezing on the composite to evaluate leakage of the PCM. Thermophysical properties of the samples were measured by differential scanning calorimetry, and the following results were obtained: (1) The impregnation ratio of the composites was 0.91–0.99; therefore, almost all pores were completely filled with the PCM. (2) T_m shifted to lower temperature with smaller D_P, reaching 413 K in case of the PCM/SiO₂ composite with a D_P of 11.6 nm (3) T_m was derived as a function of D_P from the Gibbs–Thomson equation taking into account the existence of a nonfreezing layer on the surface of the pore wall. (4) The duration of thermal degradation of the PCM/SiO₂ composite with D_P = 11.6 nm was three times longer than that of the pure PCM at a temperature that is 10 K more than each melting point. (5) The PCM/SiO₂ composite with D_P = 11.6 nm can use as a shape-stable PCM composite without leakage of PCM.     

Polypropylene plasticization and photodegradation with a TiO2/poly(ethylene oxide)/methyl linoleate paint photocatalyst system

The photodegradation of polypropylene (PP) film was performed by a TiO₂/polyethylene oxide (PEO)/plant oil paint photocatalyst system. The photodegradation underwent two stages of development as follows: Initially PP reacted with linoleic acid radical originated from the photoreaction of plant oil component. Second, the linoleic acid graft‐polymer was decomposed, and then PP chain scission was caused. The process was studied using methyl linoleate (ML) in detail. The melting point of the 24 h‐photodegraded PP slightly decreased, and those of the 48 h‐ and 96 h‐ones drastically did as compared with the pristine PP. The crystallinity (χ_c) decreased at the 48 h photodegradation time and drastically increased at the 96 h one. The 24 h‐photodegraded PP showed the 77% Young's modulus, 88% tensile strength, and 103% strain at break values to those of the pristine PP. The ML graft‐polymerization and decomposition brought about the PP plasticizing and chemi‐crystallization, causing the PP degradation. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 39909.     

Experimental analysis of 2D-unsteady temperature field by using Mach-Zehnder interferogram images

A measurement method for an unsteady temperature field by using a Mach-Zehnder interferometer and image processing technique is presented. In this study, the results measured by this method were compared with the calculated results under Reynolds numbers (Re = UL/v) ranging to less than 350 in the steady-state. The unsteady characteristics of the local Nusselt numbers (Nu_x = α_xL/λ) around an elastically vibrating plate were investigated under the conditions that the reduced frequency (N = 1/Ro) ranged from 4.8 to 8.6 and the amplitude of vibration was kept small relative to the plate length. In this study it was clarified that the distributions of the Local Nusselt numbers were observed flutteringly, and that the phase of the time-averaged Nusselt number is delayed compared to the phase of the velocity at the trailing edge. These results indicate that the enhancement of the time-averaged heat transfer coefficient around the vibrating plate depended on the Rossby number. © 1997 Scripta Technica. Inc. Heat Trans Jpn Res. 25 (2): 88–102, 1996     

Hemicellulose Composition in Different Cell Wall Fractions Obtained using a DMSO/LiCl Wood Solvent System and Enzyme Hydrolysis

In our previous studies on the relationships between lignin structure and hemicellulose composition in a wide range of hardwood species, we showed that the higher the syringyl ratio, the higher the xylan/mannan ratio. In this study, the relationship of the syringyl ratio and xylan/mannan ratio was further studied using fractions obtained by stepwise extraction of finely milled beech wood by use of aqueous dioxane and subsequent dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)/LiCl solvents with increasing LiCl concentration. Each soluble fraction obtained with a different LiCl concentration was compared with the corresponding insoluble residue, and it was shown that both the syringyl ratio and xylan/mannan ratio were always higher in the insoluble fraction. To analyze polysaccharides closely located with lignin, milled wood lignin (MWL), and cellulolytic enzyme lignin (CEL) obtained by enzyme treatment after DMSO/LiCl swelling were investigated. Although the xylan/mannan ratio of MWL was higher, that of CEL with more than 80% lignin yield was lower.     

Kinetic Study of the Prooxidant Effect of α-Tocopherol. Hydrogen Abstraction from Lipids by α-Tocopheroxyl Radical

A kinetic study of the prooxidant effect of α-tocopherol was performed. The rates of allylic hydrogen abstraction from various unsaturated fatty acid esters (ethyl stearate 1, ethyl oleate 2, ethyl linoleate 3, ethyl linolenate 4, and ethyl arachidonate 5) by α-tocopheroxyl radical in toluene were determined, using a double-mixing stopped-flow spectrophotometer. The second-order rate constants (k _p) obtained are <1 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 1, 1.90 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 2, 8.33 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 3, 1.92 × 10⁻¹ M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 4, and 2.43 × 10⁻¹ M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 5 at 25.0 °C. Fatty acid esters 3, 4, and 5 contain two, four, and six –CH₂– hydrogen atoms activated by two π-electron systems (–C=C–CH₂–C=C–). On the other hand, fatty acid ester 2 has four –CH₂– hydrogen atoms activated by a single π-electron system (–CH₂–C=C–CH₂–). Thus, the rate constants, k _abstr/H, given on an available hydrogen basis are k _p/4 = 4.75 × 10⁻³ M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 2, k _p/2 = 4.16 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 3, k _p/4 = 4.79 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 4, and k _p/6 = 4.05 × 10⁻² M⁻¹ s⁻¹ for 5. The k _abstr/H values obtained for 3, 4, and 5 are similar to each other, and are by about one order of magnitude higher than that for 2. From these results, it is suggested that the prooxidant effect of α-tocopherol in edible oils, fats, and low-density lipoproteins may be induced by the above hydrogen abstraction reaction.     

Three-dimensional simulating of concentrator photovoltaic modules using ray trace and equivalent circuit simulators

A 3-dimensional (3D) simulation for a concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) module using a triple-junction solar cell was developed. By connecting ray-trace simulation for an optics model and 3D equivalent circuit simulation for a triple-junction solar cell, the operating characteristics of a CPV module were calculated. By using the 3D simulation, we considered the influence of tracking error on the CPV module. It was found that maximum output power was not correlated with optical efficiency of the optics system and was strongly dependent on fill factor. We can use this total 3D simulation for the evaluation and optimization of CPV modules.     

The result of a wall failure in-pile experiment under the EAGLE project

The WF (wall failure) test of the EAGLE program, in which 2 kg of uranium dioxide fuel-pins were melted by nuclear heating, was successfully conducted in the IGR (Impulse Graphite Reactor) of NNC/Kazakhstan. In this test, a 3 mm-thick stainless steel (SS) wall structure was placed between fuel pins and a 10 mm-thick sodium-filled channel (sodium gap). During the transient, fuel pins were heated, which led to the formation of a fuel-steel mixture pool. Under the transient nuclear heating condition, the SS wall was strongly heated by the molten pool, leading to wall failure. The time needed for fuel penetration into the sodium-filled gap was very short (less than 1 s after the pool formation). The result suggests that molten core materials formed in hypothetical LMFBR core disruptive accidents have a certain potential to destroy SS-wall boundaries early in the accident phase, thereby providing fuel escape paths from the core region. The early establishment of such fuel escape paths is regarded as a favorable characteristic in eliminating the possibility of severe re-criticality events. A preliminary interpretation on the WF test results is presented in this paper.     

Fretting fatigue behaviour of Ni-free high-nitrogen stainless steel in a simulated body fluid

Abstract

Fretting fatigue behaviour of Ni-free high-nitrogen steel (HNS) with a yield strength of about 800 MPa, which was prepared by nitrogen gas pressurized electroslag remelting, was studied in air and in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS(-)). For comparison, fretting fatigue behaviour of cold-rolled SUS316L steel (SUS316L(CR)) with similar yield strength was examined. The plain fatigue limit of HNS was slightly lower than that of SUS316L(CR) although the former had a higher tensile strength than the latter. The fretting fatigue limit of HNS was higher than that of SUS316L(CR) both in air and in PBS(-). A decrease in fatigue limit of HNS by fretting was significantly smaller than that of SUS316L(CR) in both environments, indicating that HNS has better fretting fatigue resistance than SUS316L(CR). The decrease in fatigue limit by fretting is discussed taking into account the effect of friction stress due to fretting and the additional influences of wear, tribocorrosion and plastic deformation in the fretted area.     

Comparison of soyasaponin and isoflavone contents between genetically modified (GM) and non-GM soybeans

Soyasaponins and isoflavones are main secondary metabolites in soybeans. In this report we compared the content of secondary metabolites between genetically modified (GM) and non-GM soybeans. Six cultivars/lines of GM and six cultivars/lines of non-GM soybeans were extracted with methanol. Each extract was partitioned with aqueous methanol and hexane and the aqueous methanol fraction was partially purified by HP-20 and LH-20 column chromatography to afford crude soyasaponin and isoflavone fractions. The main A-type soyasaponin, acetylsoyasaponin A1 (AcA1), and the main B-type soyasaponins, soyasaponins I and II (I and II), in the crude fractions were identified by LC/MS analyses with authentic samples. The main isoflavones, daidzin, genistin, daidzein and genistein (DI, GI, DE and GE), in the crude fractions were identified by LC photo-diode array analyses with authentic samples. The contents of AcA1, I and II in the crude soyasaponin fractions and those of DI, GI, DE and GE in the crude isoflavone fractions were analyzed by reversed-phase HPLC. The average contents (mg/100 g) of AcA1, I, II and total of B-type soyasaponins in GM soybeans were 36.4 +/- 24.2, 51.2 +/- 11.8, 26.4 +/- 7.6 and 77.7 +/- 18.5, respectively, and those in non-GM ones were 22.3 +/- 14.7, 46.3 +/- 17.8, 19.8 +/- 9.1 and 65.9 +/- 26.9, respectively. The average contents (mg/100 g) of DI, GI, DE, GE and total isoflavones in GM soybeans were 93.1 +/- 15.5, 121.8 +/- 19.4, 0.073 +/- 0.178, 0.320 +/- 0.082 and 215.3 +/- 33.3, respectively, and those in non-GM ones were 78.8 +/- 34.6, 106.7 +/- 28.3, 2.206 +/- 4.468, 0.822 +/- 0.754 and 188.5 +/- 26.7, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in soyasaponin and isoflavone contents between GM and non-GM soybeans. Therefore, it was estimated that the GM soybeans are equivalent to the non-GM ones in terms of the composition of the main secondary metabolites.     

Arithmetic Meyer sets and finite automata

Non-standard number representation has proved to be useful in the speed-up of some algorithms, and in the modelization of solids called quasicrystals. Using tools from automata theory we study the set of β-integers, that is, the set of real numbers which have a zero fractional part when expanded in a real base β, for a given β > 1. In particular, when β is a Pisot number — like the golden mean —, the set is a Meyer set, which implies that there exists a finite set F (which depends only on β) such that . Such a finite set F, even of minimal size, is not uniquely determined.In this paper we give a method to construct the sets F and an algorithm, whose complexity is exponential in time and space, to minimize their size. We also give a finite transducer that performs the decomposition of the elements of as a sum belonging to .