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Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Generation Of Biomarkers From Anthrax Spores By Catalysis And Analytical Pyrolysis, Phillip R. Smith
Generation Of Biomarkers From Anthrax Spores By Catalysis And Analytical Pyrolysis, Phillip R. Smith
Theses and Dissertations
Anthrax spores, in weaponized form, are dangerous biological warfare agents. Handheld technology for the rapid detection of anthrax is greatly needed to improve national security. Methods to detect anthrax spores are diverse, with most taking at least an hour for positive identification. A viable option for rapid detection is analytical pyrolysis (AP), which produces chemicals containing taxonomical information (biomarkers). AP methods are reviewed and critically analyzed to show that reproducible detection of anthrax spores in a rapid manner (< 5 min) with a handheld device is not currently possible. A promising alternative to AP is the use of a catalyst to produce biomarkers from anthrax spores with improved selectivity and reproducibility. Catalytic materials having promise for this include platinum, nickel, and superacids. Experiments evaluating several of these materials are described. A biomarker mass spectral library was created, based on information available in the scientific literature, to facilitate analysis and identification of the biomarkers produced experimentally. The RAMFAC algorithm was used to deconvolute chromatographic peaks to produce clean mass spectra and match them against entries in the biomarker library. While the library is not complete, its use with the RAMFAC algorithm enabled detection of many important biomarkers in experiments involving catalytic breakdown of anthrax spores. Experimental results from preliminary tests of several catalysts are presented and discussed. Addition of catalysts in the form of platinum nanoclusters and superacids to bacterial spores in a commercial pyrolyzer effected an increase in the amount of biomarkers produced at mild conditions over traditional pyrolysis methods. Electroformed nickel mesh, on the other hand, demonstrated low catalytic activity for the production of biomarkers, likely due to poor contact of the spores with the mesh. Biomarkers similar to those published in the literature were observed, including dipicolinic acid, picolinic acid, propionamide, acetamide, diketopiperazines, fatty acids, furfuryl alcohol, and DNA bases. A statistically designed factorial study was used to determine the importance of temperature, spore loading, and nanocluster loading on the production of three important biomarkers. The relative importance of these variables differs for each of the three important biomarkers, suggesting they are produced by different reaction mechanisms.
Ethane Oxidation And Pyrolysis From 5 Bar To 1000 Bar: Experiments And Simulation, Abdul Aziz Abdul Raman
Ethane Oxidation And Pyrolysis From 5 Bar To 1000 Bar: Experiments And Simulation, Abdul Aziz Abdul Raman
Abdul Aziz Abdul Raman
An extensive experimental study of ethane oxidation and pyrolysis has been conducted in the high pressure shock tube at UIC covering reflected shock pressures from 5-1000 bar, reaction temperatures up to 1550 K and stoichiometric (Φ = 1 ), fuel rich (Φ = 5), and pyrolytic mixtures. The experimental data has been used to develop a single model that can simulate the whole dataset very well and is the first ethane model capable of simulating experimental results over such an extensive range of pressure, temperature, and stoichiometry. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Nano-Structured Sno2-Carbon Composites Obtained By In Situ Spray Pyrolysis Method As Anodes In Lithium Batteries, Ling Yuan, Konstantin Konstantinov, Guoxiu Wang, Hua-Kun Liu, S X. Dou
Nano-Structured Sno2-Carbon Composites Obtained By In Situ Spray Pyrolysis Method As Anodes In Lithium Batteries, Ling Yuan, Konstantin Konstantinov, Guoxiu Wang, Hua-Kun Liu, S X. Dou
Australian Institute for Innovative Materials - Papers
In this paper, we report on a series of SnO2-carbon nano-composites synthesized by in situ spray pyrolysis of a solution of SnCl2·2H2O and sucrose at 700 °C. The process results in super fine nanocrystalline SnO2, which is homogeneously distributed inside the amorphous carbon matrix. The SnO2 was revealed as a structure of broken hollow spheres with porosity on both the inside and outside particle surfaces. This structure promises a highly developed specific surface area. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns and transmission electron microscope (TEM) images revealed the SnO2 crystal size is …
Effects Of Pressure On Coal Pyrolysis And Char Morphology, Dong Zeng, Thomas H. Fletcher
Effects Of Pressure On Coal Pyrolysis And Char Morphology, Dong Zeng, Thomas H. Fletcher
Faculty Publications
A better understanding of high-pressure coal pyrolysis is needed to design advanced coal gasification combined-cycle systems. High-temperature, high-heating-rate, and high-pressure pyrolysis experiments were conducted on three bituminous coals and a lignite, to more fully understand the effects of pressure on resultant char properties. A flat-flame burner was designed and used inside a high-pressure drop-tube reactor to provide a high-temperature, high-heatingrate environment that is representative of industrial processes. Chars were prepared at four different pressures, ranging from 0.85 atm to 15 atm. The measured total volatiles yields compared well with predictions of the Chemical Percolation Devolatilization (CPD) model. The physical properties …