Chemical Engineering Commons^™

Bodipy Based Photodynamic Therapy And Potassium Probes, Xiangshan Liu

Dissertations

Boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) has become more and more popular in photophysical and biological applications. BODIPY based fluorescence compounds have numerous advantage properties including low toxicity, high absorption extinction coefficients, high fluorescence quantum yields, sharp fluorescence emissions, and resistance to photobleaching. All the good properties lead to the wide applications of BODIPY based compounds. In this research, two different kinds of BODIPY are synthesized. Firstly, BDBrC containing carbazole and BODIPY core is synthesized. Cellular uptake research shows BDBrC can target on lysosome and singlet oxygen generation research result indicates that BDBrC can be used in photodynamic therapy. BDBrC also shows pH-sensitive …

Scale Model Equations And Optimization For Annular Flow Of Non-Newtonian Fluids Between Eccentric And Rotating Cylinders, Wei Zhang, Pooya Khodaparast, Amin Mehrabian Dr., Amir Shojaei

Progress in Scale Modeling, an International Journal

A broad range of engineering applications involves helical flow of non-Newtonian fluids between two eccentric cylinders. These applications often require estimation of the frictional pressure losses along the axes of the cylinders. Laboratory flow loops are commonly used to study the flow characteristics at smaller scales of investigation. This study uses the laws of similarity and dimensional analysis to obtain a set of scaling equations between the laboratory and prototype scales of the described annular flow. These equations are derived for four types of fluid rheology including Newtonian, power-law, Bingham-plastic, and yield power-law.

Results are expressed through a set of …

Numerical Investigation On The Effect Of Spectral Radiative Heat Transfer Within An Ablative Material, Raghava S. C. Davuluri, Rui Fu, Kaveh A. Tagavi, Alexandre Martin

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

The spectral radiative heat flux could impact the material response. In order to evaluate it, a coupling scheme between KATS - MR and P1 approximation model of radiation transfer equation (RTE) is constructed and used. A Band model is developed that divides the spectral domain into small bands of unequal widths. Two verification studies are conducted: one by comparing the simulation computed by the Band model with pure conduction results and the other by comparing with similar models of RTE. The comparative results from the verification studies indicate that the Band model is computationally efficient and can be used to …

Effect Of Glycol Based Coolant Pollution On Pem Fuel Cells Stack And Recovery Measures, Cong-Yi Zhu, Xiao-Hui Li, Quan-Quan Gan

Journal of Electrochemistry

As the heat conduction medium of fuel cell cooling system, coolant is very important for the thermal management of fuel cell stack. In practical application, coolant leakage into the stack often occurs. Due to the randomness of fault location of components, the location of coolant leakage is uncertain, which may occur on the cathode side or anode side of some or all single cells. The main effects of coolant pollution on fuel cell stack are as follows: the output of open circuit voltage decreases sharply, the consistency of single cells voltage decreases and so on, which seriously affects the normal …

Copper Nanoparticles In-Situ Anchored On Nitrogen-Doped Carbon For High-Efficiency Oxygen Reduction Reaction Electrocatalyst, Hui-Fang Yuan, Yue Zhang, Xing-Wu Zhai, Li-Bing Hu, Gui-Xian Ge, Gang Wang, Feng Yu, Bin Dai

Journal of Electrochemistry

Compared with noble metal platinum (Pt)-based catalysts, inexpensive non-noble metal electrocatalysts have attracted extensive attention for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Herein, chitosan as a kind of biomass resource rich in nitrogen and carbon was used to prepare nitrogen-doped carbon (N-C) and N-C in-situ anchored by copper nanoparticles (Cu/N-C). The as-obtained N-C and Cu/N-C nanoparticles were successfully used as non-noble eletrocatalysts tested for ORR. Compared with the N-C, the Cu/N-C showed the high surface area of 607.3 m ²·g^-1 with the mean pore size of 2.5 nm and the pore volume of 0.40 cm³·g^{-1 …}

Structure Analysis Of Pemfc Cathode Catalyst Layer, Rui-Qing Wang, Sheng Sui

Journal of Electrochemistry

The sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) on the cathode of the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has always been one of the key factors limiting its commercialization. The optimization of the cathode catalytic layer structure plays an important role in improving fuel cell performance and reducing production costs. In this paper, two different catalysts (platinum nanoparticles (Pt-NPs) and platinum nanowires (Pt-NWs)) were prepared by using catalyst coated substrate (CCS) method. By constructing a double-layer catalytic layer structure, we analyzed the effect of different catalytic layer structures by performing a single cell test. The results showed that the dense platinum …

Formation And Morphological Evolution Of Nanoporous Anodized Iron Oxide Films, Jin-Wei Cao, Nan Gao, Zhao-Qing Gao, Chen Wang, Sheng-Yan Shang, Yun-Peng Wang, Hai-Tao Ma

Journal of Electrochemistry

The preparation of iron oxide films with nanoporous structure by anodization has attracted much attention for its potential applications. However, the formation mechanism of porous structure during anodization is still unclear. In this paper, the composition of anodic current during the formation of nanoporous anodized iron oxide film was analyzed in combination with the current density-potential response (I-V curve) and the derivation of Faraday’s law. The results showed that the anodic current consisted of an ionic current (leading to the migration of ions to form oxide) and an electronic current (leading to the oxygen evolution), and the …

Algorithm For Calculating The Parameters Of A Multi-Position Electromagnetic Linear Mechatronic Module, Nazarov Khayriddin Nuritdinovich, Matyokubov Nurbek Rustamovich, Temurbek Omonboyevich Rakhimov

Chemical Technology, Control and Management

Currently, in the world in the field of science, engineering and technology, including in mechatronics and robotics, the creation of multi-coordinate mechatronic systems that perform power and control functions is becoming of paramount importance, this is due to a number of important positive qualities of the systems, such as simplicity and compactness of the design, the possibility of obtaining significant efforts, high accuracy and stability of the establishment of fixed positions, ease of control and high reliability. This article presents the calculation of the parameters of multi-position mechatronic modules based on linear execution elements. In the construction of this model, …

Interfacial Engineering And Photoelectrochemistry Of Patterned Metal/Semiconductor Heterostructures, Che Tan

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells enable the conversion of solar energy into storable fuels, which is critical in overcoming the intermittent nature of this largest renewable source. However, the majority of semiconductors used as photoelectrodes in these cells have low conversion efficiencies and/or stabilities. Silicon (Si) is an attractive semiconductor material for photoelectrodes, but the development of efficient Si-based photoanodes is challenging due to their instability in alkaline solutions. Thus, one focus of this dissertation is the design and fabrication of highly stable nickel (Ni)-patterned Si photoanodes through interfacial engineering of the barrier heights. Recently, hot carriers in plasmonic metal nanostructures have …

Supercritical Co2 Recompression Closed Brayton Cycle Analysis, Andres Eduardo Gutierrez Hernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

On this research, the results of an analysis made of a Supercritical Carbon Dioxide (sCO2) Recuperated Closed Brayton Cycle (RCBC) done by performing theorical calculations and comparing it to the results obtained with the use of the software ASPEN Plus will be presented. To demonstrate and determine that this software is a useful tool for modeling the proposed type of cycle, a preliminary comparison was made to verify with previous studies found in literature. A comparison and analysis between the possible working fluids and thermal energy sources was also performed to emphasize the decision of using CO2 as the cycle …

Synthesis, Crystal Structure And Ionic Conductivity Of Ruddlesden-Popper Oxide Materials: Effects Of Ionic Radii And Defects On Lithium-Ionic Conductivity., Selorm Joy Fanah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Layered perovskite oxides of the Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) type structure can be good lithium-ion conductors for solid electrolyte applications in all-solid-state batteries, due to the large gap separating octahedral layers which can be useful pathways for Li-ion conduction. However, little work has been done on their lithium-ion transport properties in these materials despite their interesting structural properties. This work highlights the synthesis and study of the ionic conductivities in a series of n = 2 and 3 Ruddlesden-Popper oxides, as part of an ongoing investigation in search of alternative solid electrolyte materials. Several different strategies were employed for the enhancement of …

Towards Long Term Colloid Suspension In A Vertically Rotated System., Md Mahmudur Rahman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Within a colloidal suspension gravity may compromise the observation of governing physical interactions, especially those that are weak and/or take significant time to develop. Conducting the experiment in a long-term microgravity environment is a viable option to negate gravitational effects, though significant resources are required to do so. While it may not be possible to simulate long-term microgravity terrestrially, particles can resist quick sedimentation in a confined suspension system rotating vertically with appropriate rotation speed. The goal of the investigation is to demonstrate the existence of long-term particle suspension regime for a certain colloidal suspension while characterizing colloidal behavior due …

Effect Of Alkyl Chain Length Of Symmetrical Quaternary Ammonium Hydroxide On Oxalic Acid Electroreduction Reaction, Bo Huang, Xin-Sheng Zhang, Dong-Fang Niu, Shuo-Zhen Hu

Journal of Electrochemistry

Glyoxylic acid with the dual characteristics of acid and aldehyde is an important chemical raw material and organic synthesis intermediate, which is extensively used in the perfumery, pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries. A family of symmetric quaternary ammonium hydroxides (QAHs) with different alkyl chain lengths was used as the additives in generating glyoxylic acid from oxalic acid electroreduction reaction (OAER). The effects of alkyl chain length on OAER and the corresponding side reaction, i.e., hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), were investigated. Linear sweep voltammetric (LSV) results showed that the adsorption of the additives suppressed more on the HER than that on …

Performance And Mechanism Of PtXCuY/C Electrocatalyst For Methanol Oxidation, Jia Tang, Xiao-Ming Zhang, Shan-Sheng Yu, Su-Li Wang, Gong-Quan Sun

Journal of Electrochemistry

Direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), which directly converts the chemical energy of methanol fuel into electrical energy, has the advantages of high energy conversion efficiency, environmental friendliness, and abundance of fuel sources. DMFC is considered as the promising substitutes in the field of portable devices, military applications, and stationary power stations, while the broad application is severely hindered by the sluggish kinetic of methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) in the anode and the high cost of platinum (Pt)-based anodic electrocatalysts. Herein, a series of carbon supported Pt_xCu_y (Pt_xCu_y/C) binary metal electrocatalysts, featured with high …

Electrochemical Synthesis Of P-(Β-Hydroxyethyl Sulfone) Aniline, Hao Guo, Dong-Fang Niu, Shuo-Zhen Hu, Xin-Sheng Zhang

Journal of Electrochemistry

Para-ester is the most important intermediate for the preparation of ethylene sulfone type reactive dyes, which is usually used in the dyeing of cellulose fibers and synthetic fibers. P-(β-hydroxyethyl sulfone) aniline is an important intermediate for the synthesis of para-ester. In this paper, p-(β-hydroxyethyl sulfone) aniline was prepared by electrochemical method, having the advantages of simple process, mild reaction condition, less environmental pollution, easy reaction control and so on. It has strong development potential and industrial application prospect. The electrochemical reduction of p-nitrophenyl-β-hydroxyethyl sulfone on a lead plate electrode to prepare p-(β-hydroxyethyl …

Synthesis Of Nickel Phosphide/Nitrogen Phosphorus Co-Doped Carbon And Its Application In Lithium Ion Batteries, Jian Hu, Yan-Shuang Meng, Qian-Ru Hu

Journal of Electrochemistry

In recent years, the nickel-based phosphide has drawn great attention because of its low intercalation/deintercalation platform and lower polarization compared to sulfides and oxides as anodes for next-generation high-energy lithium-ion batteries. The Ni₂P anode can deliver high theoretical specific capacity of 542 mAh·g^-1, but it subject to a conversion reaction mechanism, which make them unsuitable for commercial applications. The agglomeration of Ni₂P nanoparticles during material fabrication and the structural deterioration of electrode associated with large volume change during charge-discharge process lead to poor cycle stability and low utilization of active materials. Meanwhile, the low …

Systematic Evaluation Of A Novel Self-Healing Poly(Acrylamide-Co-Vinyl Acetate)/Alginate Polymer Gel For Fluid Flow Control In High Temperature And High Salinity Reservoirs, Jingyang Pu, Baojun Bai, Thomas P. Schuman

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Preferential fluid flow often occurs when water and CO₂ is injected into mature oilfields, sig-nificantly reducing their injection efficiency. Particle gels have been evaluated and applied to control the short circulation problems. This study systematically investigated a novel poly(acrylamide-co-vinyl acetate)/alginate-based interpenetrated gel system (Alg-IPNG) which is designed to control the preferential fluid flow problems in high-temperature reservoirs. Chromium acetate was incorporated into the gel system to provide the delayed crosslinking feature of the particle gels. The alginate polymer system can also take advantage of the Ca²⁺ ions in the formation water, which exist in most reservoirs, to reinforce …

Raman Investigations Of The Radiation-Induced Modifications In Ipp-Vgcnf Nanocomposites: The Nanofillers’ Tale, Dorina M. Chipara, Mihail Secu, Karen Lozano, Corina Secu, Mircea Chipara

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Nanocomposites of isotactic polypropylene loaded by various amounts of vapor-grown carbon nanotubes ranging from 0 to 20% wt. were obtained by extrusion. Raman investigations on these nanocomposites are reported. The nanocomposites were irradiated using a 60Co, with an integral dose of 1 kGy/h up to integral doses of 9 kGy, 18 kGy, and 27 kGy, in air, at room temperature. Raman measurements were performed by using a Bruker Senterra confocal Raman spectrometer operating at 785 nm. The research is focused on the information contained within the D and G Raman lines of these nanocomposites as a function of nanotube loading …

Experimental Data On Water Soluble Polymers Thermal And Hydrolytic Stability, Reactivity Ratios Of Monomers And Frr Calculation For Thermally Stable Preformed Particle Gels Therefrom, Buddhabhushan Salunkhe, Thomas P. Schuman, Ali Al Brahim, Baojun Bai

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Experimental data on water soluble polymer thermal and hydrolytic stability in acidic, neutral and basic pH conditions in aqueous solution is presented. Thermal and hydrolytic stability of polymer aqueous solutions were monitored in variable pH medium by aging at 130 °C temperature for different aging time. Polymer viscosity measurements were performed periodically for 3 months. Furthermore, this data can serve as a basis of monomer selection for thermally stable hydrogels for applications like oil recovery, hydrogel coatings for steam sterilized medical devices and other applications. Reactivity ratios were determined for monomers associated to the most stable polymers using ¹H …

Understanding The Plugging Performance Of Hpam-Cr (Iii) Polymer Gel For Co2 Conformance Control, Xindi Sun, Baojun Bai, Ali Khayoon Alhuraishawy, Daoyi Zhu

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

With the demand for conformance control in carbon dioxide (CO₂) flooding fields, hydrolyzed polyacrylamide-chromium [HPAM-Cr (III)] polymer gel has been applied in fields for CO₂ conformance control. However, the field application results are mixed with success and failure. This paper is intended to understand the HPAM-Cr (III) polymer gel plugging performance in CO₂ flooding reservoirs through laboratory experiments and numerical analysis. We conducted core flooding tests to understand how the cycles of CO₂ and water affect the HPAM-Cr (III) polymer gel plugging efficiency to CO₂ and water during a water-alternating-gas (WAG) process. Berea Sandstone …

Hydrocracking Of Octacosane And Cobalt Fischer–Tropsch Wax Over Nonsulfided Nimo And Pt-Based Catalysts, Wenping Ma, Jungshik Kang, Gary Jacobs, Shelley D. Hopps, Burtron H. Davis

Center for Applied Energy Research Faculty and Staff Publications

The effect of activation environment (N₂, H₂ and H₂S/H₂) on the hydrocracking performance of a NiMo/Al catalyst was studied at 380 °C and 3.5 MPa using octacosane (C₂₈). The catalyst physical structure and acidity were characterized by BET, XRD, SEM-EDX and FTIR techniques. The N₂ activation generated more active nonsulfided NiMo/Al catalyst relative to the H₂ or H₂S activation (X_C28, 70–80% versus 6–10%). For a comparison, a NiMo/Si-Al catalyst was also tested after normal H₂ activation and showed higher activity at the same process …

Vermiculations In Painted Caves: New Inputs From Laboratory Experiments And Field Observations, Perrine Freydier, Eric Weber, Jérôme Martin, Pierre-Yves Jeannin, Béatrice Guerrier, Frédéric Doumenc

International Journal of Speleology

Vermiculations are aggregates of small particles commonly found on cave walls. They are a major concern for the conservation of painted caves, as they can potentially alter valuable prehistoric cave paintings. A previous rheological study of fine sediment deposits on cave walls revealed that this material can undergo a solid-to-liquid transition triggered by variations in the chemical composition of the water film on the wall. Such a transition could occur at the origin of vermiculations by allowing the sediment to flow under low mechanical stress. In this work, we provide quantitative information on the conditions leading to this transition and …

Emergence Of Non-Hexagonal Crystal Packing Of Deswollen And Deformed Ultra-Soft Microgels Under Osmotic Pressure Control, Molla R. Islam, Rachel Nguyen, L. Andrew Lyon

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Highly solvent swollen poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid) microgels are synthesized without exogenous crosslinker, making them extremely soft and deformable. These ultralow crosslinked microgels (ULC) are incubated under controlled osmotic pressure to provide a slow (and presumably thermodynamically controlled) approach to higher packing densities. It is found that ULC microgels show stable colloidal packing over a very wide range of osmotic pressures and thus packing densities. Surprising observation of co-existence between hexagonal and square lattices is also made over the lower range of studied osmotic pressures, with microgels apparently changing shape from spheres to cubes in defects or grain boundaries. It is proposed …

Tools And Strategies For The Patterning Of Bioactive Molecules And Macromolecules, Daniel J. Valles

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Hypersurface Photolithography (HP) is a printing method for fabricating structures and patterns composed of soft materials bound to solid surfaces and with ~1 micrometer resolution in the x, y, and z dimensions. This platform leverages benign, low intensity light to perform photochemical surface reactions with spatial and temporal control of irradiation, and, as a result, is particularly useful for patterning delicate organic and biological material. In particular, surface- initiated controlled radical polymerizations can be leveraged to create arbitrary polymer and block- copolymer brush patterns. Chapter 1 will review the advances in instrumentation architectures from our group that have made these …

Advances In Modeling Gas Adsorption In Porous Materials For The Characterization Applications, Max A. Maximov

Dissertations

The dissertation studies methods for mesoporous materials characterization using adsorption at various levels of scale and complexity. It starts with the topic introduction, necessary notations and definitions, recognized standards, and a literature review.

Synthesis of novel materials requires tailoring of the characterization methods and their thorough testing. The second chapter presents a nitrogen adsorption characterization study for silica colloidal crystals (synthetic opals). These materials have cage-like pores in the range of tens of nanometers. The adsorption model can be described within a macroscopic approach, based on the Derjaguin-Broekhoff-de Boer (DBdB) theory of capillary condensation. A kernel of theoretical isotherms is …

Shale Softening Based On Pore Network And Laboratory Investigations, Di Zhang

Dissertations

This dissertation consists of two major parts: Firstly, experimental investigation of four major shale softening mechanisms and quantifications of structural parameters. Secondly, numerical simulations of nano-scale flow behaviors using the previous experiments determined parameters based on modified pore network modeling.

Hydraulic fracturing is widely applied to economical gas production from shale reservoirs. Still, the gradual swelling of the clay micro/nano-pores due to retained fluid from hydraulic fracturing causes a gradual reduction of gas production. Four different gas-bearing shale samples are investigated to quantify the expected shale swelling due to hydraulic fracturing. These shale samples are subject to heated deionized (DI) …

One-Pot Synthesis Of Fe2O3@Fe-N-C Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalyst And Its Performance For Zinc-Air Battery, Hua Lin, Yi-Jin Wu, Jun-Tao Li, Yao Zhou

Journal of Electrochemistry

Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) plays a profound role in determining cathode performance in metal-air batteries and fuel cells. Owing to its inherently sluggish kinetics, high-performance ORR catalysts which favors the scissoring of O-O bond and formation of O-H bond are a requisite. In this regard, Pt has been explored as the most efficient ORR electrocatalysts. Nevertheless, due to its expensiveness, the usage of Pt catalysts represents one of the major sources of cost in those energy conversion devices. Thus, the development of alternative ORR electrocatalysts with minimized Pt utilization has been widely pursued over the past few decades. Metal-nitrogen-carbon catalysts …

Dft Study Of NiM@Pt1AuN-M-1 (N=19, 38, 55, 79; M = 1, 6, 13, 19) Core-Shell Orr Catalyst, Wen-Jie Li, Dong-Xu Tian, Hong Du, Xi-Qiang Yan

Journal of Electrochemistry

The slow kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) limits the performance of low temperature fuel cells. Thus, it needs to design effective catalysts with low cost. Core-shell clusters (CSNCs) show promising activity because of their size-dependent geometric and electronic effects. The ORR activity trend of Ni_m@Pt₁Au_n-m-1(n = 19, 38, 55, 79; m = 1, 6, 13, 19) was studied using the GGA-PBE-PAW methods. The adsorption configurations of *O, *OH and *OOH were optimized and the reaction free energies of four proton electron (H⁺ + e^-) transfer steps …

Preparation And Electrochemical Evaluation Of Mos2/Graphene Quantum Dots As A Catalyst For Hydrogen Evolution In Microbial Electrolysis Cell, Hong-Yan Dai, Hui-Min Yang, Xian Liu, Xiu-Li Song, Zhen-Hai Liang

Journal of Electrochemistry

Microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) is a relatively new bioelectrochemical technology that produces H₂ and meanwhile treats organic wastewater. Cathode hydrogen evolution catalyst plays a key role in MEC. The doping of Graphene Quantum Dots (GQDs) into MoS₂ nanosheets can improve the catalytic activity of MoS₂ by creating abundant defect sites both in the edge plane and the basal plane, as well as enhancing the electrical conductivity. In this paper, using Na₂MoO₄ , cysteine and GQDs as raw materials, a series of MoS₂/GQDs composites were firstly synthesized via hydrothermal method, and then loaded …

Preparation Of Coo/Rgo@Ni Foam Electrode And Its Electrocatalytic Reduction Of Co2, Qian Guo, Jia-Long Fu, Cheng-Yan Zhang, Chao-Yue Cai, Cheng Wang, Li-Hua Zhou, Rui-Bo Xu, Ming-Yan Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The worldwide extensive release of carbon dioxide (CO₂) has caused serious environmental pollution and unprecedented climate change problems. Thus, for the sustainable development of human society, it is very necessary to convert CO₂ to renewable fuels through clean and economical processes. The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) is regarded as a promising approach for the recycling of carbon resource and the generation of sustainable fuels. However, the slow kinetics and formation of multiple products in CO₂RR hinder its large-scale application. Hence, great research efforts are made to develop electrocatalysts with high product …