Characterization of fibril reinforced membranes for fuel cells

Characteristics of fibril reinforced membranes developed by Asahi Glass Company are reviewed. PTFE-fibrils <1 μm in diameter are dispersed in ion-exchange membranes uniformly. Mechanical properties, such as tensile strength, tear strength, creep property and compressive property were examined and compared with non-reinforced membranes. Fibril reinforced membranes, even by the addition of a small amount of PTFE-fibrils (2.7 wt.%), show excellent mechanical strength, especially in creep and tear strength. Cell performance is nearly equal to the one using a non-reinforced membrane and cell voltage stays about the same during the cell operation at 80 °C for 3000 h.     

Application of ammonia intermittent temperature-programmed desorption to evaluate surface acidity of tungsten oxide supported on activated carbon

Intermittent temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia was used to study the strength and population of surface acid sites of tungsten oxide supported on activated carbon pretreated at 350 and 700 degrees C. Catalysts pretreated at 350 degrees C showed two types of surface acid sites and desorption occurred with free readsorption until a temperature of around 300 degrees C was reached. Pretreatment at 700 degrees C produced three different states of ammonia adsorbed on the catalysts and desorption occurred with free readsorption.     

Effect of ionic interactions on the oxidation of Fe(II) with H2O2 in aqueous solutions

The oxidation of Fe(II) with H₂O₂ has been measured in NaCl and NaClO₄ solutions as a function of pH, temperature T (K) and ionic strength (M, mol-L^–1). The rate constants, k (M^–1-sec^–1), d[Fe(II)]/DT=-k[Fe(II)][₂O₂]at pH=6.5 have been fitted to equations of the formlog k = log k₀+ AI ^1/2+BI+CI ^1/2/T Where log k₀=15.53-3425/T in water; A=–2.3, –1.35; B=0.334, 0.180; and C=391, 235, respectively, for NaCl (=0.09) and NaClO₄ ( =0.08). Measurements made in NaCl solutions with added anions yield rates in the order B(OH) ₄ ^– >HCO ₃ ^– >ClO ₄ ^– >Cl^–>NO ₃ ^– >SO ₄ ^2– and are attributed to the relative strength of the interactions of Fe²⁺ or FeOH⁺ with these anions. The FeB(OH) ₄ ⁺ species is more reactive while the FeCO ₃ ⁰ , FeCl⁺, FeNO ₃ ⁺ and FeSO ₄ ⁰ species are less reactive than the FeOH⁺ ion pair. The general trend is similar to our earlier studies of the oxidation of Fe(II) with O₂ except for B(OH) ₄ ^– . The effect of pH on the logk was found to be a quadratic function of the concentration of H⁺ or OH^– from pH=4 to 8. These results have been attributed to the different rate constants for Fe²⁺ (k₀) and FeOH⁺ (k₁) which are related to the measured k by, k=k_0Fe + k_1FeOH, where _i is the molar fraction of species i. The rates increase due to the greater reactivity of FeOH⁺ compared to Fe²⁺. k₀ is independent of composition and ionic strength but k₁ is a function of ionic strength and composition due to the interactions of FeOH⁺ with various anions.     

Degree of hydration in cement paste and C<Subscript>3</Subscript>A-sodium carbonate-water systems

This research provides a fundamental understanding of the early stage hydration of Portland cement paste, tricalcium aluminate (C₃A) paste at water to cement ratio of 0.5 and C₃A suspension at water to cement ratio of 5.0 modified by 2 or 4 mass% of sodium carbonate. A high conversion of unreacted clinker minerals to gel-like hydration products in the cement-Na₂CO₃ pastes takes place rapidly between 1^st to 24^th h. Contrary the Ca(OH)₂ formation within the same time interval is retarded in the excess of CO₃²⁻ ions due to intensive rise and growth of CaCO₃ crystals in hydrated cement. Later, the conversion of clinker minerals to the hydrate phase is reduced and higher contents of calcite and vaterite relative to that of Ca(OH)₂ in comparison with those found in the Portland cement paste are observed. As a consequence a decrease in strength and an increase in porosity between hardened Portland cement paste without sodium carbonate and those modified by Na₂CO₃ are observed. C₃A hydrates very quickly with sodium carbonate between 1^st and 24^th h forming hydration products rich in bound water and characterized also by complex salts of (x)C₃A·(y)CO₂·(zH₂O type, whereas C₃A-H₂O system offers C₃AH₆ as the main hydration product. Higher content of the formed calcium aluminate hydrates in C₃A-Na₂CO₃-H₂O system also contributes to early strength increase of Portland cement paste.     

Optical spectroscopy of chromium doped (CH3)2NH2X(SO4)2·6H2O (X=Al, Ga) single crystals

Chromium doped (CH₃)₂NH₂Al(SO₄)₂·6H₂O (DMAAlS) and (CH₃)₂NH₂Ga(SO₄)₂·6H₂O (DMAGaS) single crystals were grown and investigated using the methods of optical spectroscopy. It was found that the Cr³⁺ ions in the two crystals are situated in a strong crystal field in which the ²E state is the lowest. The single narrow R-line associated with the ²E–⁴A₂ phosphorescence of Cr³⁺ in DMAAlS in a ferroelectric phase indicates an undistorted octahedral site, whereas important distortion of O_h symmetry and structural disorder was inferred from spectral data obtained with DMAGaS:Cr³⁺ in a low temperature phase. Results of optical investigation are discussed taking into account the structural data.     

The dissociation quotients of formic acid in sodium chloride solutions to 200°C

The dissociation quotients of formic acid were measured potentiometrically from 25 to 200°C in NaCl solutions at ionic strengths of 0.1, 0.3 1.0, 3.0, and 5.0 mol-kg^–1. The experiments were carried out in a concentration cell with hydrogen electrodes. The resulting molal acid dissociation quotients for formic acid, as well as a set of infinite dilution literature values and a calorimetrically-determined enthalpy of reaction, were fitted by an empirical equation involving an extended Debye Hückel term and seven adjustable parameters involving functions of temperature and ionic strength. This regressional analysis yielded the following thermodynamic quantities for 25°C: logK=–3.755±0.002, H^o=–0.09±0.15 kJ-mol^–1, S^o=–72.2±0.5 J-K^–1-mol^–1, and C _p ^o =–147±4 J-K^–1-mol^–1. The isocoulombic form of the equilibrium constant is recommended for extrapolation to higher temperatures.     

μs级负充电时不同体积分数去离子水与乙二醇混合液电性能的实验研究

 以去离子水与乙二醇的混合液（体积分数分别为36.5%,48.7%,59.0%及71.2%，以下简称混合液）作为同轴传输线的绝缘介质，进行了μs级高电压负充电条件下的正电极击穿实验，研究了混合液的击穿电压、击穿时间、相对介电常数及电阻率与体积分数的关系。实验结果表明：在充电电压为20kV时，71.2%的混合液比36.5%的混合液的平均击穿电压提高25.1%，平均击穿时间延长10.49%，而相对介电常数减小868%。同时，随着充电时间的缩短，混合液的击穿电压提高。     

Nonlinear vertical accelerations of a floating torus in regular waves

The longitudinal motions and vertical accelerations of a floating torus as well as wave motion inside the torus are studied by model tests in regular deep-water waves. Comparisons are made with linear and partly with second-order potential-flow theory for the smallest examined experimental wave height-to-wave length ratio 1/120. Reasonable agreement is obtained, in particular for the linear problem. The importance of 3D flow, hydroelasticity and strong hydrodynamic frequency dependency is documented. Experimental precision errors and bias errors, for instance, due to tank-wall interference are discussed. Numerical errors due to viscous effects are found to be secondary. Experiments show that the third and fourth harmonic accelerations of the torus matter and cannot be explained by a perturbation method with the wave steepness as a small parameter.     

Electric field‐induced birefringence,optical rotatory power and conoscopic measurements of a chiral antiferroelectric smectic liquid crystal

Using a photoelastic modulator‐based novel set‐up, the electric field‐induced in‐plane birefringence and the optical rotatory power (ORP) were measured of an antiferroelectric liquid crystalline compound (12OF1M7) in its various phases using 30 µm homeotropic cells. Some specific signatures of the in‐plane birefringence and of the ORP for the various phases are being established. A relatively small threshold field is needed for the unwinding process of the antiferroelectric phase with a unit cell of four layers [SmC_A*(1/2)] compared with that for two layers [SmC_A*(0)]. On application of the electric field on the high temperature side of the SmC_A*(1/2) phase (80.1–81.5°C), a field‐induced phase transition is shown to occur directly to the SmC* phase, whereas on the lower temperature side (79.4–80.1°C) the transition takes place to SmC* via the SmC_A*(1/3) phase. The in‐plane birefringence exhibits a critical power law dependence for the SmC*–SmA transition. The ORP changes sign within the temperature range of the phase with a unit cell of three layers, reflecting a change in the handedness during this phase. Using tilted conoscopy, the results for the biaxiality and the apparent tilt angle for a smectic liquid crystal with a tilt angle greater than 18° in the ferroelectric phase are reported. The biaxiality implies the difference in the refractive indices between the two minor axes of the refractive index ellipsoid. The optical transmittance at visible and IR wavelengths for free‐standing films reveal characteristic reflection bands for these phases. The modulated structures of the reflected bands appear just above the SmC_A* phase and below SmC_A*(1/3); these are possibly due to an easy deformation of the phase by the surfaces.     

Photosensitivity,substituent and solvent-induced shifts in UV-visible absorption bands of naphthyl-ester liquid crystals: a comparative theoretical approach

The substituent- and solvent-induced shifts in UV-visible absorption bands of naphthyl-ester nematic liquid crystals, viz., 4-octylphenyl-6-octyloxy-2-naphthoate (NAPHE1) and 6-octyloxy-2-naphthylyl-4-octyloxybenzoate (NAPHE2), have been investigated using the DFT, CNDO/S and INDO/S methods. A correlation has been made between molecular charge distribution and phase stability based on Mulliken, Loewdin, AM1, PM3, MNDO, CNDO/S and INDO/S methods. The observed π→π* and n→π* electronic transitions have been reported. The substituent- and solvent-induced shifts in absorption bands, transition energies and energy gaps have been discussed. The photosensitivity of the molecules has been analysed based on these shifts. It has been observed that the substituent has a dominant role on both absorption maxima and energy band gap, whereas the solvent has a dominant role only on absorption maxima, and no effect has been observed on the energy gap. These shifts may provide beneficial consequences in determining the end use of compounds.