A subtle review on the challenges of photocatalytic fuel cell for sustainable power production

The revolution in the arena of functional materials for the development of well advanced engineered photocatalyst can efficiently harness photon energy from a wide spectrum of electromagnetic radiation. These next-generation smart materials would be a spectacular approach in designing devices such as photovoltaic cells, photoelectrochemical cells, and photocatalytic fuel cells. Photocatalytic oxidation of water or wastewater for concurrent production of hydrogen and electric current has turned out as a principal concept for the construction of modern photocatalytic fuel cells (PFCs). Such PFCs mimics reverse photosynthesis process where electrical energy is generated from organic pollutants. In recent years many reviews on focusing the design, fabrication, and theoretical efficiency of the PFCs have been published. Hence the present review is aimed to unveil the wall-to-wall information starting from fundamentals spanning to working principles, structural configuration, electrochemical degradation of pollutants and photoelectrochemical properties, electron transport, thermodynamic behavior and columbic efficiency of studied PFCs.     

Energy productivity and Chinese local officials’ promotions: Evidence from provincial governors

Improving energy productivity is one of the most cost-effective ways to achieve a sustainable development target. The existing literature has shown some factors that have driven the improvement in China’s energy productivity. However, these studies do little to tackle the role of Chinese local officials. Political promotions can be seen as the most important career incentive for Chinese local officials. Hence, we intend to study whether energy productivity affects Chinese local officials’ promotions in this paper. The data of position changes for the 31 provincial governors during 1978‐2012 are utilized. We adopted probit models to empirically examine the correlation between provincial governors’ political promotions and energy productivity. The empirical results demonstrate that (1) energy productivity has a significantly positive impact on provincial governors’ political promotions in China, meaning that the provincial governors have the momentum to improve energy productivity; and (2) the effect of energy productivity on provincial governors’ political promotions has evolved, dynamically changing along with the transformation of the economic growth mode and the adjustment of the local officials’ promotion mechanism. The results are helpful in understanding the drivers of the improvement in China’s energy productivity and provide insightful implications for conducting energy policy in China.     

Comparative study of commercial building energy-efficiency retrofit policies in four pilot cities in China

The energy efficiency of existing commercial buildings is more challenging to regulate and improve than the energy efficiency of new constructions. In 2011 and 2012, the Chinese Government selected four cities- Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenzhen, and Chongqing- to implement pilot commercial building energy efficiency retrofit program. Based on site surveys and expert interviews in these pilot cities, this research conducted a comparative analysis on incentive policies of local city level. The analysis results show that policy designs of existing commercial buildings should be further improved. The aspects that influence the implementation effect in the future, such as subsidy level, installments, and business model promotion, should be specified in the policy clauses. Referring to the technical solution and cost-benefit in Chongqing, we found that lighting system is the most common retrofit objects while envelope system is the least common one. And the subsidy incentive is greatest for educational buildings, followed by office buildings. In the end, we further discussed the problems and obstacles in commercial building retrofit market, and provided a series of recommendations.     

Amide–induced monodispersed Pt(100) nanoparticles loaded on graphene surface for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Using free and sustainable solar energy to produce hydrogen is the most promising strategy to resolve the environmental pollution and global energy crisis. The properties of sensitized matrix and co–catalyst, including the dispersibility, lattice structure and electrical performance, are usually two the decisive factors for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. This paper reports a facile synthetic process of surface–clean monodisperse Pt(100) nanocubes supported on graphene surface using amide functional groups as induction sites. The prepared catalyst (AG/Pt(100)) not only incorporate plentiful amide functional groups that act as the dispersant and stabilizer into surface and edge of graphene, but also significantly dislodge the oxygen–containing functional groups, which hold strong promise for improving conductivity, carrier concentration and mobility of sensitized matrix. Simultaneously, the monodisperse Pt(100) nanocubes supported on graphene surface exposure more active sites. These results provide the necessary conditions for efficient catalysts. Without any pre–treatment, it exhibits high H₂ generation activity (553.7 μmol for 2 h) and apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) (33.9% at 430 nm) under visible light irradiation when Eosin Y is used as photosensitizer. These superior production H₂ activities can attribute to enhance the dispersion and conductivity of sensitized matrix, construct special geometry of Pt(100) nanocubes and prolong the lifetime of photogenerated electron.     

1 000 MW高效宽负荷率的超超临界锅炉开发

根据反平衡法对电站锅炉各项效率损失进行分析，潜力较大的是排烟损失和未完全燃烧损失，主要影响因素有过量空气系数、排烟温度、燃烧效率；1 000 MW高效宽负荷率超超临界煤粉锅炉的开发采用低过量空气系数设计理念，在炉膛选型、受热面布置、燃烧系统设计、降低锅炉漏风等方面采取措施。与传统设计相比，50% THA负荷下锅炉效率提升了0.96%。     

The influence of operating and device parameters on the maximum efficiency and the maximum output power of thermoelectric generator

Thermoelectric power generators are one of the promising green energy sources. The operating and the generator parameters influence the generator output performance. In the present study, the influence of the operating and the generator parameters on the maximum output power and the efficiency of the thermoelectric power generator are examined. The output power corresponding to the maximum efficiency and the maximum attainable output power of the generator are compared. It is found that the maximum power of the thermoelectric generator corresponding to the high Figure of Merit is very sensitive to the operating temperature. The maximum power attainable is larger than that its counterpart corresponding to the maximum generator efficiency. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Separation performance of an 8 mm mini-hydrocyclone and its application to the treatment of rice starch wastewater

ABSTRACT

The rice starch particles are difficult to separate from starch suspensions for its fine diameter. In this work, an 8 mm mini-hydrocyclone is designed, and its separation performance and potential for the treatment of rice starch wastewater is investigated. The capacities, total separation efficiencies of an 8 mm mini-hydrocyclone and a 10 mm mini-hydrocyclone are compared. The experimental results reveal that the total separation efficiency of the 8 mm mini-hydrocyclone is approximately 13% higher than that of the 10 mm mini-hydrocyclone. A total separation efficiency of 92.1% was obtained using a two-stage hydrocyclone separation process comprising two 8 mm mini-hydrocyclones connected in series. The research findings can be utilized to efficiently treat the rice starch wastewater.     

基于统计视角的安徽省外资利用效率分析

针对近年安徽省所属各市外资利用效率不均衡的现状,借助数据包络分析法,对安徽省各市在利用外商直接投资的效率进行测算,并在定性分析的基础上,利用多元统计分析方法对影响技术效率的基本因素进行定量分析,从而提出了提高外资利用效率的政策措施。     

能量回收多级液力透平机组性能测试与评定

结合生产工艺流程与现场实际要求,研制了年产120万吨加氢裂化装置能量回收多级液力透平机组,入口额定压力13.43MPa,出口额定压力0.60MPa。单级回收功率不低于6.3k W,总回收功率不低于56.7k W。现场运行试验结果表明:该装置各项性能基本满足设计要求,由于处于小流量工况下运行,在额定点的性能和回收效率与要求存在一些偏差。     

创新式三工位钢丝圈包布机的研究与设计

截止目前,在市面上常见的对轮胎用钢丝圈进行包布缠绕的设备一般都是采用一台包布机对应一个钢丝圈进行包布缠绕,当需要同时进行多个钢丝圈缠绕时则需要多台包布机,且由于单个包布机之间需要保留一定的安全距离,使得整体所需的工厂占地面积较大;此外,通常情况下是一个操作员操作一台包布机,如果需要多台包布机同时工作则需要多个操作员进行操作,这样会导致生产人力成本上升,且人工操作生产效率较低。