A Gas-Recirculation Control System in a Battery of Fuel Cells

Currently, power plants based on hydrogen—oxygen fuel cells are widely used. The advantages of such electrochemical generators are environmental friendliness, efficiency, and a wide power-output range. Some components of such engines are still being developed. One of these components is the working gasrecirculation system, which increases the efficiency of an installation. In addition, this system helps support the water balance in a fuel-cell stack by removing the water that occurs in the cavities of the membrane—electrode block as a result of the electrochemical reaction. With consideration of the complexity of the reactions that occur in an installation, an automatic control system (ACS) is necessary for the gas recirculation system. This article deals with the organization of an automatic control system based on a microprocessor controller, sensors, and actuators, which implements control algorithms for the components of the gas recirculation system.     

Sensitive magnetic field sensor using 2D magnetic photonic crystal slab waveguide based on BIG/GGG structure

A kind of magnetic field sensor (MFS) using a two-dimensional (2D) magnetic photonic crystal (MPC) slab waveguide as the sensing structure is proposed and investigated numerically. The slab structure is based on bismuth iron garnet (BIG), a well-known magnetic material with effective magnetooptical (MO) properties, sandwiched with gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) as substrate. The complete photonic bandgap (PBG) of the 2D MPC is simulated and optimized for realization of polarization-independent waveguides. The simulation results show that the width and position of the complete PBG depend on the thickness of the BIG slab and the radius of the air holes used in the design. By reducing the lightwave propagation losses and enhancing the mode conversion ratio, increased sensitivity is obtained. Based on the Faraday effect, a good linear relationship is observed between the normalized output light intensity and the magnetic field strength as the gyrotropy parameter g is varied from 0.13 to 0.19, a g-range used as the sensor dynamic range. The remarkable enhancement in sensing performance due to the MO effect makes the designed device suitable for magnetic field sensing. The results are discussed to provide a basis for investigation of 2D MPC slab waveguides based on the same structure, which are of particular interest for development of highly sensitive MFSs.     

Peat swamps at Giral lignite field of Barmer basin,Rajasthan, Western India: understanding the evolution through petrological modelling

International Journal of Coal Science & Technology - The lignite samples collected from Giral lignite field of Barmer basin have been subjected to petrological investigation. The data generated...     

Distribution of mineral species in different coal seams of Talcher coalfield and its transformation behavior at varying temperatures

International Journal of Coal Science & Technology - Mineral phase characterization and thorough understanding of its transformation behavior during combustion are imperative to know the...     

High Temperature Oxidation Behavior of Conventional and Nb-Modified MAR-M246 Ni-Based Superalloy

The present investigations focused on the thermal oxidation of two variants of MAR-M246 alloy having the same contents of Ta and Nb in at. pct, considering the effects of total replacement of Ta by Nb. The alloys were produced by investment casting using high purity elements in induction furnace under vacuum atmosphere. The alloys were oxidized pseudo-isothermally at 800 °C, 900 °C and 1000 °C up to 1000 hours under lab air. Protective oxidation products growing on the surface of the oxidized samples were mainly Al₂O₃, Cr₂O₃. Other less protective oxide such as spinels (NiCr₂O₄ and CoCr₂O₄) and TiO₂ were also detected as oxidation products. The conventional alloy exhibited slight internal oxidation at 800 °C and an enhanced resistance at 900 °C and 1000 °C. The Nb-modified alloy presented an exacerbated internal oxidation and nitridation at 900 °C and 1000 °C and an enhanced resistance at 800 °C. At 1000 °C, Nb-modified alloy was particularly affected by excessive spalling as the main damage mechanisms. From a kinetic point of view, both alloys exhibit the same behavior at 800 °C and 900 °C, with k_p values typical of alumina forming alloys (2 × 10⁻¹⁴ to 3.6 × 10⁻¹³ g² cm⁻⁴ s⁻¹). However, Ta modified alloys exhibited superior oxidation resistance at 1000 °C when compared to the Nb modified alloy due to better adherence of the protective oxide scale.

     

Substrate Stimulated Orientation for Pure Aluminum

Oriented materials are of great importance, but their formation is rarely described. Here, nine Al/Al₂O₃ systems were designed to identify the dominant factors. Electron back-scattered diffraction indicates that the new Al crystal(s) with one or multiple orientation(s) can be stimulated by one single-crystal Al₂O₃ substrates. Synchrotron radiation diffraction shows that the preferred orientation(s) is/are determined based on the initial stage of the liquid–solid transition. The nonpreferred orientation can be suppressed through competition.

     

Microstructural Features of Low-Alloy Pipeline Steels that Determine Impact Strength of Welded Joint Heat-Affected Zone

Metallurgist - Microstructural mechanisms reducing the impact strength values of a coarse grained heat-affected zone are studied for two K60 microalloyed steels. Research is conducted on specimens...     

Cerium Effect on the Phase Composition and Crystallization Behavior of Aluminum Casting Alloys Based on the Al–Mg–Si System

Russian Journal of Non-Ferrous Metals - Using a Thermo-Calc software package (TCAl4.0 database), unexplored data concerning the phase composition and crystallization behavior of...     

Ensuring Strength in Laser Welds Made Using the Dispersion-Hardened EP693 Nickel Alloy

Russian Journal of Non-Ferrous Metals - The process of making a weld using the heat-resistant EP693 alloy (Ni–Cr–W–Co–Co–Mo system) to make assemblies and components...     

Grain Refinement of Casting Aluminum Alloys of the Al–Mg–Si System by Processing the Liquid Phase Using Nanosecond Electromagnetic Pulses

Russian Journal of Non-Ferrous Metals - In this paper, using the AA 511 alloy of the Al–Mg–Si system as an example, it is shown that the irradiation of aluminum melts with nanosecond...