Study of Pb-based and Pb-free perovskite solar cells using Cu-doped Ni1-xO thin films as hole transport material

SCAPS solar cell simulation program was applied to model an inverted structure of perovskite solar cells using Cu-doped Ni_1-xO thin films as hole transport layer. The Cu-doped Ni_1-xO film were made by co-sputtering deposition under different deposition conditions. By increasing the amount of the Cu-dopant, the film crystallinity enhanced whereas the bandgap energy decreased. The transmittance of the thin films decreased significantly by increasing the sputtering power of copper. High quality, uniform, compact, and pin-hole free films with low surface roughness were achieved. The structural, chemical, surface morphology, optical, electrical, and electronic properties of the Cu doped Ni_1-xO films were used as input parameters in the simulation of Pb-based (MAPbI_3-xCl_x) and Pb-free (MAGeI₃) perovskite solar cells. Simulation results showed that the performance of both Pb-based and Pb-free perovskite solar cell devices significantly enhanced with Cu-doped Ni_1-xO film. The highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) for the Pb-free perovskite solar cell is 8.9% which is lower than the highest PCE of 17.5% for the Pb-based perovskite solar cell.     

Comprehensive numerical investigations on the thermal performance of heat recirculating micro combustor with pin fins for micro-thermal voltaic system applications

Aiming at improving the relatively low energy output and energy conversion efficiency of the micro-thermal voltaic (MTPV) system, an innovative heat recirculating micro combustor with pin fins is designed. The effects of pin fins arrangement, hydrogen/air equivalent ratio on the energy output and performance of CHMC, HMCP and HMCI are compared and investigated. The result shows that when the V_in is 6 m/s and Φ is 1.0, the emitter power of CHMC is 72.76W, and that of HCMP and HCMI micro combustor are 75.99W and 76.35W. and the emitter efficiency of CHMC, HCMP and HCMI is 41.93%, 43.26% and 44.01%. HMCI has better energy output capability compared with CHMC and HMCP. Even though, HMCI brings a higher pressure drop, it is within the acceptable range. When the V_in is 6 m/s, the pressure drop from the pin fins only accounts for 26.4% of the total pressure drop for HMCI. Through the study of equivalent ratio, it is found that HMCI has good adaptability in different equivalent ratio range. This work provides new ideas for the development of MTPV system in the future.     

Investigation of stress fields for non-standard sized glass plates loaded by ring-on-ring

A ring-on-ring (ROR) test is a prevailing test method for evaluating the equi-biaxial strength of glass materials. However, current ROR test standards limit the strength and size of glass to prevent a nonlinear behavior. In this study, the feasibility of ROR testing for non-standard, high-strength glass, such as tempered or ion-exchanged rectangular glass is investigated. To this end, ROR simulation based on theory and experiment is conducted for thirty non-standard glasses with widths of 100–300 mm and aspect ratios of 1.0–2.0. As a result, the maximum measurable stress was about 215.6 MPa for 100 × 200 mm glass and 481.3 MPa for 300 × 600 mm glass with a 3% deviation, which is well above the strength of regular tempered glass. The main purpose of this work is to understand the range of aspect ratio of horizontal and vertical widths of a glass plate that can be evaluated by the standard ROR test.     

A Role for Human Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells in Direct Allo-Recognition by CD4+ T-Cells and the Effect of Ischemia-Reperfusion

Direct allorecognition is the earliest and most potent immune response against a kidney allograft. Currently, it is thought that passenger donor professional antigen-presenting cells (APCs) are responsible. Further, many studies support that graft ischemia-reperfusion injury increases the probability of acute rejection. We evaluated the possible role of primary human proximal renal tubular epithelial cells (RPTECs) in direct allorecognition by CD4+ T-cells and the effect of anoxia-reoxygenation. In cell culture, we detected that RPTECs express all the required molecules for CD4+ T-cell activation (HLA-DR, CD80, and ICAM-1). Anoxia-reoxygenation decreased HLA-DR and CD80 but increased ICAM-1. Following this, RPTECs were co-cultured with alloreactive CD4+ T-cells. In T-cells, zeta chain phosphorylation and c-Myc increased, indicating activation of T-cell receptor and co-stimulation signal transduction pathways, respectively. T-cell proliferation assessed with bromodeoxyuridine assay and with the marker Ki-67 increased. Previous culture of RPTECs under anoxia raised all the above parameters in T-cells. FOXP3 remained unaffected in all cases, signifying that proliferating T-cells were not differentiated towards a regulatory phenotype. Our results support that direct allorecognition may be mediated by RPTECs even in the absence of donor-derived professional APCs. Also, ischemia-reperfusion injury of the graft may enhance the above capacity of RPTECs, increasing the possibility of acute rejection.     

LBM investigation of a Cu-water nanofluid over various configurations of pipes in the mixed convection flow

Increasing the heat capacity of heat exchangers is a crucial need for modern devices. The thermal conductivity of the usual fluids and the Nusselt (Nu) number of flows containing such fluids are two bottlenecks in the way of increasing heat delivery in the heat exchangers. For this reason, nanofluids have been introduced. The effect of utilizing a Cu-water nanofluid as a coolant of two hot pipes in a square cavity is investigated numerically with a two-component lattice Boltzmann method. The volume fraction of nanoparticles is assumed to be constant (0.03) while the Richardson (Ri) number varies from 0.02 to 20. Results show that the effectiveness of nanoparticles is better observed in the natural convection mode. However, sedimentation is also very probable at high Ri numbers, which significantly reduces the effectiveness of the nanoparticles. Configurations which produce a natural convection stream similar to the forced convection one as well as the configurations with high spacing and hence, low heat stream interactions, are the best choices for a uniform heat rate from the pipes.     

建筑工业化发展的多群体演化博弈与仿真研究

新型建筑工业化具有高质量、低消耗、可循环发展等特征，其推广已上升到国家战略层面。利用演化博弈方法，建立“政府-开发商-银行” 的三方动态演化博弈模型，进行各博弈主体策略的演化稳定性分析，并针对初始状态、奖惩力度、借贷风险和开发成本等对演化结果的影响进行动态仿真。在此基础上， 考虑开发商群体的网络拓扑特征对演化真实性的影响，引入复杂网络理论， 以无标度网络为载体描述开发商个体的连接偏好和决策机制，构建政府监管下的建筑工业化扩散模型，并通过仿真深入研究相关因素对扩散深度的影响作用，最后结合仿真结果给出相应对策建议。     

Operation principles for hydrogen spark ignited direct injection engines for passenger car applications

The sustainable reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from road transport requires solutions to achieve net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. Therefore, in addition to vehicles with electrified powertrains, such as those implemented in battery electric of fuel cell vehicles, internal combustion engines fueled with e-fuels or biofuels are also under discussion. An e-fuel that has come into focus recently, is hydrogen due to its potential to achieve zero tank-to-wheel and well-to-wheel carbon dioxide emissions when the electrolysis is powered by electricity from renewable sources. Due to the high laminar burning velocity, hydrogen has the potential for engine operation with high cylinder charge dilution by e.g. external exhaust gas recirculation or enleanment, resulting in increased efficiency. On the other hand, the high burning velocity and high adiabatic flame temperatures pose a challenge for engine cooling due to increased heat losses compared to conventional fuels. To further evaluate the use of hydrogen for small passenger car engines, a series production 1 L 3 cylinder gasoline engine provided by Ford Werke GmbH was modified for hydrogen direct injection. The engine was equipped with a high pressure external exhaust gas recirculation system to investigate charge dilution at stoichiometric operation. Due to limitations of the turbocharging system, very lean operation, which can achieve nitrogen oxides raw emissions below 10 ppm, was limited to part load operation below BMEP = 8 bar. Thus, a reduction of the nitrogen oxides emission level at high loads compared to stoichiometric operation was not possible. At stoichiometric operation with external exhaust gas recirculation engine efficiency can be increased significantly. The comparison of stoichiometric hydrogen and gasoline operation shows a reduced indicated efficiency with hydrogen with significant faster combustion of hydrogen at comparable centers of combustion. However, higher boost pressures would allow to achieve even higher indicated efficiencies by charge dilution compared to gasoline engine operation.