Thermomechanical stability and inelastic energy dissipation as durability criteria for fuel cell gas diffusion media with pre-assembly effects

In this article, pre-assembly hot-press pressure and thermal expansion effects in gas-diffusion layers (GDLs) are addressed to explore the practicalities of the constitutive model reported in the companion article. A facile technique is proposed to include deformation history dependent residual strain effects. The model is implemented in the numerical environment and compared with widely followed conventional models such as isotropic and orthotropic material models. With the normal and accelerated thermal expansion effects no significant variation in stresses or strains is reported with the compressible GDL model in contrast to the conventional incompressible form of the GDL model. The present work identifies the critical differences with advanced and extended variants of the model along with conventional GDL material models in terms of planar stress/strain distribution and the membrane response. Finally, the model is simulated for micro-cyclic stress loads of varying amplitudes that imitate the real working conditions of fuel cell. The inelastic energy dissipation in GDLs is predicted using the proposed model, which is utilized further to distinguish the safe (elastic) and unsafe (inelastic shakedown) operating limits. The inelastic collapse of GDLs is shown to be a active function of high amplitude micro-cyclic load with high initial clamping load.     

Analysis of suitability of TPP ash-slag waste as materials for hydrogen fuel storage

The current trends in energy were described, the main of which is the use of alternative energy sources, especially hydrogen. The most common methods of hydrogen accumulation were proposed: accumulation of compressed gaseous hydrogen in high-pressure tanks; accumulation of liquid hydrogen in cryogenic tanks; storing hydrogen in a chemically bound state; accumulation of gaseous hydrogen in carriers with a high specific surface area. Based on the combination of advantages and disadvantages, the most promising methods of accumulation were selected: storage of liquid hydrogen and storage of hydrogen in carriers with a high specific surface area. The main requirement for materials for hydrogen storage by these methods was revealed – a high specific surface area. Prospects for the development of waste-free low-emission technologies due to the recycling of secondary raw materials and the development of low-temperature technologies for the synthesis of functional and structural materials were substantiated. The applicability of large-scale ash and slag waste from coal-fired thermal power plants as a raw material for obtaining materials by low-temperature technologies was shown. The traditional ways of using ash and slag waste as a raw material, active additive and filler in the production of cements were described. Modern technologies for the production of innovative materials with a unique set of properties were presented, namely carbon nanotubes, silica aerogel and geopolymer materials. The prospect of using geopolymer matrices as a precursor for the synthesis of a number of materials was described; the most promising type of materials was selected – geopolymer foams, which are mainly used as sorbents for purifying liquids and gases or accumulating target products, as well as heat-insulating materials. The possibility of obtaining products of any shape and size on the basis of geopolymer matrices without high-temperature processing was shown. The special efficiency of the development of the technology of porous granules and powders obtained from a geopolymer precursor using various methods was substantiated. The obtained granules can be used in the following hydrogen storage technologies: direct accumulation of hydrogen in porous granules; creation of insulating layers for liquid hydrogen storage units.     

Catalytic combustion synthesis of CNTs/MgO composite powders and the influences on the thermal shock resistance of low-carbon Al2O3–C refractories

Using MgC₂O₄, Mg powders as raw materials and Ni(NO₃)₂?6H₂O as a catalyst, CNTs/MgO composite powders were prepared by a catalytic combustion synthesis method. The CNTs/MgO composite powders were characterized by XRD, Raman spectroscopy, FESEM/EDS and HRTEM. The effects of catalyst content on the degree of graphitization and aspect ratio of the CNTs in composite powders were investigated. Moreover, the thermal shock resistance of low-carbon Al₂O₃–C refractories after adding the composite powder was investigated. The results indicated that the CNTs prepared with 1 wt% Ni(NO₃)₂?6H₂O addition had a higher degree of graphitization and aspect ratio. In particular, the aspect ratio could reach approximately 200. The growth mechanism of hollow bamboo-like CNTs in the composite powders was proven to be a V-L-S mechanism. The thermal shock resistance of Al₂O₃–C samples could be improved significantly after adding CNTs/MgO composite powders. In particular, compared with CM0, the residual strength ratio of Al₂O₃–C samples with added 2.5 wt% composite powders could be increased 63.9%.     

Investigation of the changes in physical properties of PES/PVC fabrics after aging

The aim of this work was to investigate the physical and mechanical performance of architectural polyester (PES)–poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membranes exposed to different artificial aging conditions. Two commercially available architectural membranes were chosen as research objects. The durability of the PES/PVC fabrics was evaluated by the loss in mechanical performance, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction analysis in order to understand the effect of the degradation agents on the surface of the membranes. The mechanical performance of the PES/PVC membranes was unchanged. Scanning electron microscopy images of the tested materials showed initial cracks after aging. The X-ray fluorescence analysis showed that at the time of aging, the amount of Cl and Si decreased slightly, while Ti decreased by half, and Ca by volume increased twice. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47523.     

The effect of alkali metal oxide on the properties of borosilicate fireproof glass: Structure,thermal properties,viscosity, chemical stability

The purpose of the current work was to research the effect of alkali metal oxide on the structure, thermal properties, viscosity and chemical stability in the glass system (R₂O–CaO–B₂O₃–SiO₂) systematically. Because the glass would emulsify when Li₂O was added to the glass batch, this article did not discuss Li₂O. The results showed that when the amount of Na₂O was less than 4 mol.%, there was a higher interconnectivity of borate and silicate sub-networks in glass, as more mixed Si–O–B bonds were present in glass. The glass samples exhibited excellent thermal properties and chemical stabilities. As the amount of Na₂O exceeded 4 mol.%, the interconnectivity of borate and silicate sub-networks was weakened. The thermal properties and chemical stabilities of the glass samples were reduced. The connectivity of the silicate sub-network was weakened slightly as the Na/K ratio varied, and the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the glass samples gradually increased, and the resistance to thermal shock (RTS) value gradually decreased. Moreover, the viscosity of the glass samples decreased with the ratio of Na/Si and Na/K increased.     

Learning shape and texture progression for young child face aging

Face aging (FA) for young faces refers to rendering the aging faces at target age for an individual, generally under 20s, which is an important topic of facial age analysis. Unlike traditional FA for adults, it is challenging to age children with one deep learning-based FA network, since there are deformations of facial shapes and variations of textural details. To alleviate the deficiency, a unified FA framework for young faces is proposed, which consists of two decoupled networks to apply aging image translation. It explicitly models transformations of geometry and appearance using two components: GD-GAN, which simulates the Geometric Deformation using Generative Adversarial Network; TV-GAN, which simulates the Textural Variations guided by the age-related saliency map. Extensive experiments demonstrate that our method has advantages over the state-of-the-art methods in terms of synthesizing visually plausible images for young faces, as well as preserving the personalized features.     

Structural silicone sealants after exposure to laboratory test for durability assessment

During the service life of structural sealant glazing (SSG) facades, the load-bearing capacity of the silicone bonds needs to be guaranteed. Laboratory tests can assess the durability of SSG-systems based on mechanical characteristics of the bond after simultaneous exposure to both climatic and mechanical loads. This article studies how the material characteristics of two common structural sealants are affected by laboratory and field exposure. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) confirms a reduction in the dynamic modulus of exposed silicone samples. Results from thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and small-angle X-ray scattering/wide-angle X-ray scattering show differences between the two sealants and indicate no/minor changes in the composition and morphology of the laboratory and field exposed sealants. Mechanical characterization methods, such as DMA, and tensile and shear testing of the structural bond, are shown to be sensitive toward the combined climatic and mechanical loadings, and are hence suitable for studying degradation mechanisms of structural sealants.     

The Age-Sensitive Efficacy of Calorie Restriction on Mitochondrial Biogenesis and mtDNA Damage in Rat Liver

Calorie restriction (CR) is the most efficacious treatment to delay the onset of age-related changes such as mitochondrial dysfunction. However, the sensitivity of mitochondrial markers to CR and the age-related boundaries of CR efficacy are not fully elucidated. We used liver samples from ad libitum-fed (AL) rats divided in: 18-month-old (AL-18), 28-month-old (AL-28), and 32-month-old (AL-32) groups, and from CR-treated (CR) 28-month-old (CR-28) and 32-month-old (CR-32) counterparts to assay the effect of CR on several mitochondrial markers. The age-related decreases in citrate synthase activity, in TFAM, MFN2, and DRP1 protein amounts and in the mtDNA content in the AL-28 group were prevented in CR-28 counterparts. Accordingly, CR reduced oxidative mtDNA damage assessed through the incidence of oxidized purines at specific mtDNA regions in CR-28 animals. These findings support the anti-aging effect of CR up to 28 months. Conversely, the protein amounts of LonP1, Cyt c, OGG1, and APE1 and the 4.8 Kb mtDNA deletion content were not affected in CR-28 rats. The absence of significant differences between the AL-32 values and the CR-32 counterparts suggests an age-related boundary of CR efficacy at this age. However, this only partially curtails the CR benefits in counteracting the generalized aging decline and the related mitochondrial involvement.     

Use of La2O3 with 8YSZ as thermal barrier coating and its effect on thermal cycle behavior,microstructure, mechanical properties and performance of diesel engine operated by hydrogen-algae biodiesel blend

In this present work, the effect of lanthanum oxides (La₂O₃) on the thermal cycle behavior of TBC coatings and mechanical properties such as adhesion strength and microhardness of 8% Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (8YSZ) TBCs were investigated. CoNiCrAlY and aluminium alloy (Al–13%Si) were used as bond coat and substrate materials. 8YSZ and different wt % of La₂O₃ (10, 20, and 30%) top coatings were applied using the atmospheric plasma spray (APS) method. The thermal cycling test for TBC coated samples were conducted at 800 °C in the electric furnace. The XRD pattern shows that the La₂O₃ doped 8YSZ material transformed to cubic pyrochloric structured La₂Zr₂O₇ during thermal cycling. Further, the Taguchi-based grey relation analysis (GRA) method was applied to optimize the TBC coating parameters to achieve better mechanical properties such as adhesion strength and microhardness. And the optimized La₂O₃/8YSZ TBC coating was coated on CRDI engine combustion chamber components. The engine was tested with microalgae biodiesel and hydrogen, and the results were promising for the TBC-coated engine. The engine performance increased while using La₂O₃/8YSZ coated components, and the emissions from engine exhaust gas such as CO, HC, and smoke reduced considerably. It was found that there was no separation crack and spallation of the coating layer in the microstructure. Ultimately, the microstructural analysis of the optimized TBC coated piston sample after 50 h of running in the diesel engine confirmed that the developed coating had a superior thermal insulation effect and longer life.