Enhanced properties of SPEEK with incorporating of PFSA and barium strontium titanate nanoparticles for application in DMFCs

Novel blend nanocomposite proton‐exchange membranes were prepared using sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK), perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA), and Ba_0.9Sr_0.1TiO₃ (BST) doped‐perovskite nanoparticles. The membranes were evaluated by attenuated total reflection, X‐ray diffraction spectroscopy, water uptake, proton conductivity, methanol permeability, and direct methanol fuel cell test. The effect of two additives, PFSA and BST, were investigated. Results indicated that both proton conductivity and methanol barrier of the blend nanocomposite membranes improved compared with pristine SPEEK and the as‐prepared blend membranes. The methanol permeability and the proton conductivity of the blend membrane containing 6 wt% BST obtained 3.56 × 10^?7 cm² s^?1 (at 25 °C) and 0.110 S cm^?1 (at 80 °C), respectively. The power density value for the optimum blend nanocomposite membrane (15 wt% PFSA and 6 wt% BST) (54.89 mW cm^‐2) was higher than that of pristine SPEEK (31.34 mW cm^‐2) and SPF15 blend membrane (36.12 mW cm^‐2).     

A novel dynamic membrane reactor concept with radial‐flow pattern for reacting material and axial‐flow pattern for sweeping gas in catalytic naphtha reformers

Naphtha reforming units are of high interest for hydrogen production in refineries. In this regard, the application of membrane concept in radial‐flow tubular naphtha reactors for hydrogen production is proposed. Because of the importance of the pressure drop problem in catalytic naphtha reforming units, the radial‐flow reactors are proposed. A radial‐flow tubular membrane reactor (RF‐TMR) with the radial‐flow pattern of the naphtha feed and the axial‐flow pattern of the sweeping gas is proposed as an alternative configuration for conventional axial‐flow tubular reactors (AF‐TR). The cross‐sectional area of the tubular reactor is divided into some subsections in which walls of the gaps between subsections are coated with the Pd‐Ag membrane layer. A dynamic mathematical model considering radial and axial coordinates ((r, z)‐coordinates) has been developed to investigate the performance of the new configuration. Results show ～300 and 11 kg/h increase in aromatic and hydrogen production rates in RF‐TMR compared with AF‐TR, respectively. Furthermore, smaller catalyst particles with higher efficiency can be used in RF‐TMR due to a slight pressure drop. The enhancement in aromatics (octane number) and hydrogen productions owing to applying simultaneously the membrane concept and radial‐flow pattern in naphtha reactors motivates the application of RF‐TMR in refineries. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2012     

Synthesis and characterization of triazine‐based dendrimers and their application in metal ion adsorption

This article described the synthesis of triazine‐based dendrimers with poly(ethylene glycol) core by convergent method. Compound 1 was prepared by coupling of amino group of diethanolamine with cyanuric chloride in dry THF (tetrahydrofuran). Reaction of compound 1 with p‐aminobenzylamine resulted in compound 2 . Compound 4 was synthesized using coupling reaction of amino group of compound 2 with cyanuric chloride, then coupling of amine groups of p‐aminobenzylamine with compound 3 in the hybrid solvents. The final dendrimer (den‐OH) were synthesized using reaction of dendron 4 with compound 5. Ethylene diaminetetraacetic acid modified final dendrimer were successfully prepared via coupling ethylene diaminetetraacetic acid dianhydride and den‐OH. The growth of dendrons and their structures were investigated by using usual spectroscopy methods and elemental analysis. The chelating behavior and sorption capacities of triazine dendrimers were determined in relation to pH dependency for some metal ions such as Cu⁺², Ni⁺², and Zn⁺² using atomic absorption methods. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Phase Controlled Monodispersed CdS Nanocrystals Synthesized in Polymer Solution Using Microwave Irradiation

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanocrystals were synthesized in aqueous solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) via the simple and rapid microwave irradiation method. It is revealed that sulfur source is a key factor in controlling the phase formation of the resulting nanocrystals. The hexagonal and cubic structure of CdS nanocrystals could be obtained with varying sulfur sources of thioacetamide and sodium sulphide respectively. The interaction mechanism of PVP with precursor ions of cadmium and sulfur sources in the preparation process was proposed. It is found that PVP compounded the CdS nanoparticles and protected them from agglomerating. With increasing of PVP concentration, the average particle size of CdS nanocrystals increased and subsequently their optical band gap decreased. At the appropriate dosage of PVP, well isolated nanoparticles with relatively narrow size distribution were obtained for both sulfur sources. Moreover the stability of CdS nanoparticles enhanced after coating with polymer.     

Thermal and Fluorescence Properties of New Nanostructured Hg(ll) -2,2′-Bipyridine Derivative Complexes

Two new nano-structured Hg(II) supramolecular complexes, [Hg(5,5′-di-t-but-bpy)(μ-Br)Br]₂[Hg(5,5′-di-t-but-bpy)Br₂](1) and [Hg(5,5′-di-t-but-bpy)I₂] (2) were synthesized by the sonochemical method. The structures of 1 and 2 were characterized by elemental analysis, IR, ¹H-NMR, and ¹³C-NMR spectroscopy and single crystal X-ray diffraction. Their thermal stabilities were studied by thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyses. Solid-state luminescent spectra of 1 and 2 indicate a fluorescent broad emission band between 304 and 404 nm with excitation at 284 nm. These nanostructured coordination polymers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, elemental analysis, and IR spectroscopy.     

Performance Assessment of Some Isomers of Saturated Polycyclic Hydrocarbons for Use as Jet Fuels

The performance of jet fuel depends on the density (ρ), condensed phase heat of formation (▵_fH°(c)), and specific impulse (I_SP). Exo‐tricyclo[5.2.1.0(2,6)]decane (C₁₀H₁₆) or JP‐10 is now used as a suitable synthetic liquid jet fuel because it has the approximated values of ρ=1.1 g cm⁻³ and ▵_fH°(c)=− 123 kJ mol⁻¹ and a broad range between the melting and boiling points, i.e. T_bp–T_mp=196.2 K. This work introduces a suitable pathway for calculation of the values of ρ, ▵_fH°(c), and I_SP of 13 well‐known isomers of JP‐10 and a series of saturated polycyclic hydrocarbons with general formula of C_nH_n′ (5≤n≤12) in order to specify high performance jet fuels. Although 13 compounds have larger values of I_SP*ρ than JP‐10, only two compounds, tetraspiro[2.0.0.0.2.1.1.1]undecane and tetracyclo[3.2.0.0(2,7).0(4,6)]heptane, are suitable as jet fuels.     

An efficient synthesis of 2,4,6-triarylpyridines catalyzed by heteropolyacid under solvent-free conditions

Preyssler type heteropolyacid is found to be an efficient catalyst for the synthesis of 2,4,6-triarylpyridines in good yields. The catalyst is recycled and reused several times.     

The effect of distillation methods and stage of plant growth on the essential oil content and composition of Satureja rechingeri Jamzad

The aerial parts of Satureja rechingeri were collected in two stages of plant growth (at the beginning of and full flowering stage) from Ilam province in the west of Iran. The essential oils were isolated by steam, hydro- and water-steam-distillation from the aerial parts at complete flowering stage. In addition, the essential oil of plant material at the beginning of flowering was obtained by the hydro-distillation. The oils were analyzed by capillary GC and GC–MS. The highest oil yield was obtained by hydro-distillation method and the lowest by steam-distillation. The highest oil yield was obtained at the beginning of flowering (4.72% w/w). The oil yields at full flowering stage were 2.46–4.24% (the highest for hydro-distillation and the lowest for steam-distillation).     

The aromatic enhancement in the axial‐flow spherical packed‐bed membrane naphtha reformers in the presence of catalyst deactivation

Because of some disadvantages of conventional tubular reactors (CTRs), the concept of spherical membrane reactors is proposed as an alternative. In this study, it is suggested to apply hydrogen perm‐selective membrane in the axial‐flow spherical packed‐bed naphtha reformers. The axial flow spherical packed‐bed membrane reactor (AF‐SPBMR) consists of two concentric spheres. The inner sphere is supposed to be a composite wall coated by a thin Pd‐Ag membrane layer. Set of coupled partial differential equations are developed for the AF‐SPBMR model considering the catalyst deactivation, which are solved by using orthogonal collocation method. Differential evolution optimization technique identifies some decision variables which can manipulate the input parameters to obtain the desired results. In addition to lower pressure drop, the enhancement of aromatics yield by the membrane layer in AF‐SPBMR adds additional superiority to the spherical reactor performance in comparison with CTR. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011     

Novel nanocomposite membranes based on PBI and doped-perovskite nanoparticles as a strategy for improving PEMFC performance at high temperatures

In this work, Sr²⁺ dopant effects of Ba_0.9Sr_0.1TiO₃ and La_0.9Sr_0.1CrO_3-δ doped-perovskite nanoparticles on increasing proton conductivity, fuel cell performance, and mechanical and thermal stability of polybenzimidazole-based nanocomposite membranes were studied. The Sr²⁺ dopant creates cation vacancies in Ba_0.9Sr_0.1TiO₃ doped-perovskite nanoparticles and oxygen vacancies in La_0.9Sr_0.1CrO_3-δ doped-perovskite nanoparticles. The oxygen vacancies, which decrease columbic repulsion between protons and positive ions, have a more important role than the cation vacancies. They provide high surface area and high interfacial interaction between La_0.9Sr_0.1CrO_3-δ doped-perovskite nanoparticles, phosphoric acid, and polybenzimidazole for proton transfer and increase the proton conductivity of the nanocomposite membranes. In addition, the results of relative humidity effects showed that the ordered arrangement of oxygen vacancies of the La_0.9Sr_0.1CrO_3-δ doped-perovskite nanoparticles creates a specific pathway in the nanocomposite membranes for increasing proton transfer in the presence of relative humidity. Furtheremore, at phosphoric acid doping level of 13 mol phosphoric acid per monomer unit, proton conductivity of the nanocomposite membranes containing 8 wt.% La_0.9Sr_0.1CrO_3-δ doped-perovskite nanoparticles was obtained as 126 mS cm^-1 at 180°C and 6% relative humidity. The nanocomposite membrane showed the best performance and the power density of 0.62 W cm^-2 at 180°C and 0.5 V.