Analytical studies on the temperature distribution in spiral plate heat exchangers: Straightforward design formulae for efficiency and mean temperature difference

The temperature distribution in spiral plate heat exchangers has been calculated numerically to obtain the efficiency and the logarithmic mean temperature difference (LMTD) correction factors F as a function of the number of transfer units N, the number of turns n, and the heat capacity rate ratio C. It has been found that the LMTD correction factors, when plotted against the number of transfer units per turn N/n, fall approximately on a single curve. That curve for balanced countercurrent operation (C = −1) can be very closely represented by the simple formula F = (n/N)tanh(N/n). From that simple analytic representation of our numerical results it was concluded that a simpler physical model might exist to represent the overall behaviour of a spiral plate heat exchanger equally well. In fact, a countercurrent cascade of n cocurrent heat exchangers does result exactly in the above-mentioned formula for the LMTD correction factor. From that model the F-factors for other heat capacity rate ratios C (−1 < C 0) can also be calculated and they are in sufficient agreement with the numerical results.     

The oxidation and self-heating of metal sulphides as an electrochemical corrosion phenomenon

Experiments with a representative number of technically interesting metal sulphides trace out hydrogen peroxide as the reactive intermediate of sulphide oxidation. It is formed through an electrochemical reduction of molecular oxygen. The formation of sulphur or sulphate as the final state of oxidation is determined by consecutive reactions which are critically dependent on the catalytical properties of the surface and the solution for hydrogen peroxide decomposition. The individual steps of the reaction are discussed in some detail. Conclusions with respect to a possible control of the autogeneous heating are drawn.     

Influence of different process and material parameters on chemical foaming of fluorinated ethylene propylene copolymers

In this article, the chemical foaming of fluorinated ethylene propylene copolymers (FEP) is investigated. For the laboratory scale foam extrusion process, a chemical blowing agent adapted to the high melting temperature of FEP had to be found. Foaming experiments were carried out varying process and material parameters. Foam densities as well as cellular structures were analyzed to characterize how the parameters influence the foaming behavior of the FEP melt. An increasing rate of the foam extrusion caused an augmentation of cell numbers at a simultaneous decrease of their diameters. Moreover, a pronounced reduction of the foam density with increasing output rate could be observed. Changing the temperature of the foam extrusion, an optimum in density reduction and homogeneity of the cell size was found. Furthermore, the influence of an appropriate nucleation agent on the resulting geometry and amount of cells was investigated. Though the chemical blowing agent itself can act as an implement for nucleating cell growth, an addition of 10 wt% of calcium fluoride particles showed a significant augmentation in cell quantity. For the chemical foam extrusion process, three FEP with different viscosities were characterized. With decreasing viscosity, a reduction in foam density could be observed for all temperatures. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:1740–1749, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Scandinavian Thins on Top of Cake: New and Improved Algorithms for Stacking and Packing

We show how to compute the smallest rectangle that can enclose any polygon, from a given set of polygons, in nearly linear time; we also present a PTAS for the problem, as well as a linear-time algorithm for the case when the polygons are rectangles themselves. We prove that finding a smallest convex polygon that encloses any of the given polygons is NP-hard, and give a PTAS for minimizing the perimeter of the convex enclosure. We also give efficient algorithms to find the smallest rectangle simultaneously enclosing a given pair of convex polygons.     

Iron(II)‐based catalysts for ethene oligomerization

The synthesis of iron(II) complexes with various tridentate di(imino)pyridine ligands and their potential as ethene oligomerization catalysts are described. The ligands are characterized by ¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR spectroscopy and the complexes only by mass spectrometry due to their paramagnetism. After activation either with methylalumoxane (MAO) or with a heterogeneous cocatalyst consisting of partially hydrolyzed trimethylaluminum and silica gel, the prepared complexes proved to be good catalysts for the oligomerization of ethene. 1‐Octene, 1‐hexene, and 1‐decene were the major products, formed in very high isomeric purity (99.9 %). © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 476–482, 2003     

Toward a toolbox of functional block copolymers via free-radical addition of mercaptans

This work demonstrates the applicability of the free-radical addition of ω-functional mercaptans onto 1,2-polybutadienes as a modular synthetic pathway toward a toolbox of diverse functional block copolymers. Functional groups included, for instance electrolytes (carboxylic acid and amine), l-amino acid, and fluorocarbon. The number of functional groups attached to the polymer was lower than that of double bonds reacted (degree of functionalization=50–85%, typically 70–80%) due to cyclization of two neighboring units, but the narrow molecular-weight distribution of the parent (co)polymer was always maintained.     

Application of K2CO3 catalysts in the coal gasification process using nuclear heat

Conventional gasification processes use coal not only as feedstock to be gasified but also for supply of energy for reaction heat, steam production, and other purposes. With a nuclear high temperature reactor (HTR) as a source for process heat, it is possible to transform the whole of the coal feed into gas. This concept offers advantages over existing gasification processes: saving of coal, as more gas can be produced from coal; less emission of pollutants, as the HTR is used for the production of steam and electricity instead of a coal-fired boiler; and a lower production cost for the gas. However, the process has the disadvantage that the temperature is limited to the outlet temperature (950 °C max) of the helium cooling gas of the HTR. Therefore the possibility of catalytic steam gasification was examined. Model calculations based on experimental results show that use of 3–4 wt% relative to coal of K²CO³ catalyst increases the throughput of a large scale nuclear gasification plant by ≈65%, while gas production costs decrease by ≈15%. Corrosion by catalysts is not significant at low concentration (< 5 wt%) and low temperature (< 900 °C).