Hybrid reactor based on combined cavitation and ozonation: From concept to practical reality

The present work gives an in depth discussion related to the development of a hybrid advanced oxidation reactor, which can be effectively used for the treatment of various types of water. The reactor is based on the principle of intensifying degradation/disinfection using a combination of hydrodynamic cavitation, acoustic cavitation, ozone injection and electrochemical oxidation/precipitation. Theoretical studies have been presented to highlight the uniform distribution of the cavitational activity and enhanced generation of hydroxyl radicals in the cavitation zone, as well as higher turbulence in the main reactor zone. The combination of these different oxidation technologies have been shown to result in enhanced water treatment ability, which can be attributed to the enhanced generation of hydroxyl radicals, enhanced contact of ozone and contaminants, and the elimination of mass transfer resistances during electrochemical oxidation/precipitation. Compared to the use of individual approaches, the hybrid reactor is expected to intensify the treatment process by 5–20 times, depending on the application in question, which can be confirmed based on the literature illustrations. Also, the use of Ozonix® has been successfully proven while processing recycled fluids at commercial sites on over 750 oil and natural gas wells during hydraulic operations around the United States. The superiority of the hybrid process over conventional chemical treatments in terms of bacteria and scale reduction as well as increased water flowability and better chemical compatibility, which is a key requirement for oil and gas applications, has been established.     

Analysis and design considerations for a real-time system for non-destructive evaluation in the nuclear industry

This paper studies the feasibility of implementing a real-time system for non-destructive evaluation of nuclear reactors based on the principles of synthetic aperture processing. A detailed analysis of the computational requirements and simulation and benchmarking work on several computers seems to suggest the design of a special purpose processor as the most viable solution to the problem. The paper concludes with a discussion of the parameters affecting field design and some preliminary design considerations of the overall system.     

Hydrodynamic cavitation as a novel approach for pretreatment of oily wastewater for anaerobic co-digestion with waste activated sludge

Application of hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) was investigated with the objective of biogas production enhancement from co-digestion of oily wastewater (OWW) and waste activated sludge (WAS). Initially, the effect of HC on the OWW was evaluated in terms of energy consumption and turbidity increase. Then, several mixtures of OWW (with and without HC pretreatment) and WAS with the same concentration of total volatile solid were prepared as a substrate for co-digestion. Following, several batch co-digestion trials were conducted. To compare the biogas production, a number of digestion trials were also conducted with a mono substrate (OWW or WAS alone). The best operating condition of HC was achieved in the shortest retention time (7.5 min) with the application of 3 mm diameter orifice and maximum pump rotational speed. Biogas production from all co-digestion reactors was higher than the WAS mono substrate reactors. Moreover, biogas production had a direct relationship with OWW ratio and no major inhibition was observed in any of the reactors. The biogas production was also enhanced by HC pretreatment and almost all of the reactors with HC pretreatment had higher reaction rates than the reactors without pretreatment.     

Modeling and simulation of circulating fluidized bed reactors applied to a carbonation/calcination loop

A fluid dynamic model for a gas-solid circulating fluidized bed (CFB) designed using two coupled riser reactors is developed and implemented numerically with code programmed in Matlab. The fluid dynamic model contains heat and species mass balances to calculate temperatures and compositions for a carbonation/calcination loop process.Because of the high computational costs required to resolve the three-dimensional phenomena, a model representing a trade-off between computational time requirements and accuracy is developed. For dynamic processes with a solid flux between the two reactor units that depends on the fluid dynamics of both risers, a dynamic one-dimensional two-fluid model is sufficient.A two-fluid model using the constant particle viscosity closure for the stress term is used for the solid phase, and an algebraic turbulence model is applied to the gas phase. The numerical model implementation is based on the finite volume method with a staggered grid scheme. The exchange of solids between the reactor units constituting the circulating fluidized bed (solid flux) is implemented through additional mass source/sink terms in the continuity equations of the two phases.For model validation, a relevant experimental analysis provided in the literature is reproduced by the numerical simulations. The numerical analysis indicates that sufficient heat integration between the two reactor units is important for the performance of the circulating fluidized bed system.The two-fluid model performs fairly well for this chemical process operated in a CFB designed as two coupled riser reactors. Further analysis and optimization of the solution algorithms and the reactor coupling strategy is warranted.     

Modeling acoustic cavitation with inhomogeneous polydisperse bubble population on a large scale

A model for acoustic cavitation flows able to depict large geometries and time scales is proposed. It is based on the Euler–Lagrange approach incorporating a novel Helmholtz solver with a non-linear acoustic attenuation model. The method is able to depict a polydisperse bubble population, which may vary locally. The model is verified and analyzed in a setup with a large sonotrode. Influences of the initial void fraction and the population type are studied. The results show that the velocity is strongly influenced by these parameters. Furthermore, the largest bubbles determine the highest pressure amplitude reached in the domain, which corresponds to the Blake threshold of these bubbles. Additionally, a validation is performed with a small sonotrode. The model reproduces most of the experimentally observed phenomena. In the experiments, neighboring bubbles are found which move in different directions depending on their size. The numerical results show that the responsible mechanism here is the reversal of the primary Bjerknes force at a certain pressure amplitude.     

An EDXRF method for determination of uranium and thorium in AHWR fuel after dissolution

A fast energy dispersive x‐ray fluorescence (EDXRF) method requiring only microgram amounts of analytes, i.e. uranium (U) and thorium (Th), in their mixtures in solution form is described. Calibration solutions and samples covering the fuel composition range (0–5% of U in U + Th) of advanced heavy water reactor (AHWR) were prepared by mixing uranium and thorium solutions. A known fixed amount of internal standard yttrium (Y) was added to these solutions. EDXRF spectra of calibration solutions and samples were measured by taking 20 µl aliquots on 30 mm diameter filter papers, after drying, using a Rh target tube operated at 40 kV and 500 µA. Calibration plots were made by plotting U/Y, U/Th and Th/Y amount ratios against the respective intensity ratios of Th Lα, U Lα and Y Kα. In the first set, U was determined using Y as an internal standard, and for Th determination, U, thus determined, was used as an internal standard since the amounts of Th and Y were kept constant in the calibration solutions and samples. In the second set, both U and Th were varied and determined using Y as internal standard. The results of U and Th determinations showed a precision of about 3% (1s) and the results deviated from the expected values by <3% in most of the cases. This approach has an advantage that it requires only microgram amounts of sample, thus mitigating radiation hazards associated with radioactive samples as well as the amount of radioactive analytical waste generated is quite less. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gradient Copolymers by ATRP in Semibatch Reactors: Dynamic Monte Carlo Simulation

We developed a dynamic Monte Carlo model for ATRP in semibatch reactors. Semibatch reactors can be used to produce gradient copolymers even if the difference between the reactivity ratios of the comonomers is not significant by using different comonomer feed policies. The model was used to predict average molecular weights, polydispersity index, copolymer composition and complete distributions of molecular weight, chemical composition, and comonomer sequence length at any polymerization time. Two case studies, poly[styrene‐co‐(methyl methacrylate)] and poly[acrylonitrile‐co‐(methyl methacrylate)], were chosen to demonstrate the effect of comonomer feed compositions on the final chemical composition distribution of the copolymer.

     

纳米通道内酶组装及其催化反应研究进展

研究酶的组装和催化反应不仅有利于探索生命活动的本质,同时对开发酶在工业合成、分析检测、疾病治疗等领域的实际应用价值具有重要的指导意义. 研究发现,酶的有效固定和有序组装是保持酶活性、酶促反应的稳定性和对酶催化过程进行控制的重要途径,而在纳米通道内进行单酶或多酶的有序组装,利用纳米通道的限域效应可有效保持酶的构型进而提高酶催化反应的选择性和催化效率,增强酶级联反应的动力学进程. 本文概述了近年来基于纳米通道的酶反应器在生物传感领域的研究进展,着重描述纳米通道限域空腔内酶的组装方法、酶催化反应及其动力学机制,并展望了基于纳米通道的酶反应器的应用前景.     

Mathematical modeling and simulation of the reaction environment in electrochemical reactors

An electrochemical reactor, enabling controlled flow and capable of including a varied range of forms of electrodes, is important in the studies of electrochemical processes, such as energy production and storage, electrosynthesis of chemicals, electrowinning of metals, purification of water, wastewater treatment, remediation of soils, and so on, before the process development and scale-up. Here, we reviewed recent advances in modeling and simulation of the reaction environment in many electrochemical reactors used in multiple applications. The importance of computational fluid dynamics simulations to study existing reactors and to design novel reactor geometries and some components of existing cells is discussed. Aspects include the effect of electrolyte velocity on the flow dispersion, mass transport rates, and current distribution.     

吸附反应器的研究进展

本文概括介绍了吸附反应和吸附反应器, 着重评价了变压反应器的实验室研究和数学模拟取得的进展。