Influence of steaming pressure on steam explosion pretreatment of Lespedeza stalks (Lespedeza crytobotrya): Part 1. Characteristics of degraded cellulose

A two-step process based on steam explosion pretreatment followed by alkaline ethanol solution post-treatment was used to fractionate Lespedeza stalks (Lespedeza cyrtobotrya). Steam explosion pretreatment, under at 15 kg/m² to 25 kg/m² for 4 min, followed by post-treatment with 60% aqueous ethanol containing 1% NaOH yielded 49.6–65.5% (% dry matter) cellulose rich fractions, compared to 68.6% from non-pretreated material. It was found that the content of glucose was gradually increased from 73.7 to 86.9% as the result of elevating steaming pressure, but the solubilisation of lignin maintained the same level (about 10–11%) regardless of the severity. The average degree of polymerization increased first and then decreased, revealing that autohydrolysis reactions were dominant in different regions during the steam explosion. Scanning electron microscopy images of the cellulosic residues show that steam explosion mainly resulted in breakage of the fibres, and extraction post-treatment led to solution of lignin (and hemicelluloses) and significant defibrillation. The increase of onset degradation temperature, together with the higher pyrolysis residues suggest that the thermal stability of cellulose rich fractions was increased by steam explosion and elevated steaming pressure. All the rich-in-cellulose fractions were further characterized by FT-IR, XRD, and CP/MAS ¹³C NMR spectroscopy.     

Influence of steam explosion on the thermal stability of cellulose fibres

The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of different steam explosion treatments on the thermal degradation of a bleached cellulose. The intensity of a steam explosion treatment, which allows breakdown of the structural lignocellulosic material was determined by a correlation between time and temperature of the process.Results of this study showed that thermal degradation of cellulose fibres was limited when the severity factor applied was below 4.0. For higher intensities, determination of the degradation products in the water-soluble extract showed an important increase of the 5-hydroxymethyl-furfural concentration with the temperature. When the severity factor reached 5.2., TGA analysis showed that the increase of degradation products was coupled to an increase of the char level meaning a strong degradation of the cellulose. dTGA behaviour also showed that thermal stability of the steam explosion samples decreased with the intensity of the treatment. To conclude, a theoretical diagram predicting the degradation of the cellulose during the steam explosion treatment was established.     

蚕丝蒸汽闪爆改性后的形态结构研究

采用蒸汽闪爆技术对蚕丝进行物理改性 ,利用扫描电镜、红外光谱、X射线衍射、热分析等现代分析方法对处理前后的蚕丝进行形态结构表征 ,结果表明经蒸汽闪爆处理后 ,蚕丝表面形态 ,结晶结构 ,溶解性能有较大的改变 ,蚕丝的化学反应性能有了一定的改善 .     

棉纤维素蒸汽闪爆改性及其羧甲基化研究

研究了采用高压蒸气闪爆技术对原棉纤维进行预处理，以改性后的纤维为原料合成羧甲基纤维素，并优化了合成工艺。以产品的取代度为指标，研究了高压蒸气闪爆处理条件对产品性能的影响。结果表明，随着闪爆压力的提高，产品的性能有不同程度的提高。     

Influence of change in obstacle blocking rate gradient on LPG explosion behavior

The aim of this study was to examine the propagation characteristics of liquified petroleum gas (LPG)/air explosion. As such, the flame propagation process and pressure parameters of LPG explosion with an equivalent ratio of 1 were obtained using horizontal, long straight pipes and a high-speed camera. The large eddy simulation and power-law flame model were used to reproduce the simulation results, and the morphological evolution of the flame front during the explosion process was analyzed. The results showed that as the blockage ratio gradient increased, the time required for the flame to propagate from the electrode to the end of the pipe increased. Meanwhile, a flocculent flame formed at the end of the pipeline with a blockage ratio of 91%. Additionally, the maximum flame propagation speed changed in the same way as the blockage ratio. The gradient change of the barrier blockage ratio considerably influenced the pressure kinetics characteristics of LPG explosion: the maximum explosion pressure increased first and then decreased, the time to reach the maximum explosion pressure increased, and the deflagration index increased first and then decreased. The chemical kinetics analysis of premixed gas showed that when propane, n-butane, and isobutane were present in the premixed system, some of the elemental reactions that promote n-butane consumption inhibited propane and isobutane consumption. Meanwhile, the formation and consumption rate of H*, O*, and OH* from LPG during the explosion process was less than that of single-component combustible gas except propane.     

Optimization of SO2-catalyzed steam pretreatment of corn fiber for ethanol production

A batch reactor was employed to steam explode corn fiber at various degrees of severity to evaluate the potential of using this feedstock as part of an enzymatically mediated cellulose-to-ethanol process. Severity was controlled by altering temperature (150–230°C), residence time (1–9 min), and SO₂ concentration (0–6% [w/w] dry matter). The effects of varying the different parameters were assessed by response surface modeling. The results indicated that maximum sugar yields (hemicellulose-derived water soluble, and cellulose-derived following enzymatic hydrolysis) were recovered from corn fiber pretreated at 190°C for 5 minutes after exposure to 3% SO₂. Sequential SO₂-catalyzed steam explosion and enzymatic hydrolysis resulted in a conversion efficiency of 81% of the combined original hemicellulose and cellulose in the corn fiber to monomeric sugars. An additional posthydrolysis step performed on water soluble hemicellulose stream increased the concentration of sugars available for fermentation by 10%, resulting in the high conversion efficiency of 91%. Saccharomyces cerevisiae was able to ferment the resultant corn fiber hydrolysates, perhydrolysate, and liquid fraction from the posthydrolysis steps to 89, 94, and 85% of theoretical ethanol conversion, respectively. It was apparent that all of the parameters investigated during the steam explosion pretreatment had a significant effect on sugar recovery, inhibitory formation, enzymatic conversion efficiency, and fermentation capacity of the yeast.     

Effects of vapor‐phase‐formaldehyde treatments on thermal conductivity and diffusivity of ramie fibers in the range of low temperature

To understand the influence to thermal conductivity by bridging in the polymer fibers, the thermal conductivity, and thermal diffusivity of ramie fiber and those bridged by formaldehyde (HCHO) using vapor‐phase method (VP‐HCHO treatment) were investigated in the lower temperature range. The thermal conductivities of ramie fiber with and without VP‐HCHO treatments decreased with decreasing temperature. Thermal diffusivities of ramie fiber with and without VP‐HCHO treatments were almost constant in the temperature range of 250–50 K, and increased by decreasing temperature below 50 K. Thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of ramie fiber decreased by VP‐HCHO treatment. The crystallinities and orientation angles of ramie fibers with and without VP‐HCHO treatment were measured using solid state NMR and X‐ray diffraction. These were almost independent of VP‐HCHO treatment. Although tensile modulus decreased slightly by VP‐HCHO treatment, the decrease could not explain the decrease in thermal conductivity and diffusivity with decreasing sound velocity. The decrease of the thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity by VP‐HCHO treatment suggested the possibility of the reduction of the mean free path of phonon by HCHO in VP‐HCHO treated ramie fiber. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 2754–2766, 2005     

Flammability studies of 3-methyl pyridine/water system

In industrial processes, information on the safety property of chemicals is essentially crucial for safe handling during unit operations. Ensuring the safe use of combustible or flammable substances in processes is unlikely without detailed investigations of their flammability characteristics and related hazards. We studied 3-methyl pyridine (3-picoline), e.g., flammability limits (LFL/UFL), maximum explosion pressure (P _max), maximum explosion pressure rise (dP/dt)_max, minimum oxygen concentration (MOC), vapor deflagration index (K _g), and characterized the influence of inert steam (H₂O) on critical parameters for 3-picoline/water mixtures at 270°C, 1 atm, various oxygen concentrations, and vapor mixing ratios (100/0, 30/70, 10/90 and 5/95 vol.%) with a 20-L-Apparatus in simulated conditions, respectively. The results showed that the flammability characteristics of 3-picoline_(aq) all increased with the oxygen concentration. However, as the composition of inert steam increased, the flammability parameters and the degree of fire and explosion hazards were significantly reduced, instead. This study elucidated the flammability properties of 3-picoline mixed with inert steam. The conclusions could be applied to proactively prevent the relevant processes from incurring fire and explosion accidents.     

H2,CO,CH4多元爆炸性混合气体支链爆炸阻尼效应

对多元爆炸性混合气体爆炸的阻尼效应,进行了比较系统的研究,实验表明：“惰性气体”N2,CO2与水蒸汽对多元混合气体支链爆炸具有一定的抑制作用;甲烷与石油液化气对含H2易爆混合气体支链爆炸具有明显的阻尼效应．这对指导支链燃烧与支链爆炸的实践,关于工业尾气与废气的安全回收,有关爆炸性混合气体的置换技术的改进,以及工业与矿井混合气体爆炸事故的预防,具有重要的现实意义与理论价值．     

Improving Accessibility and Reactivity of Celluloses of Annual Plants for the Synthesis of Methylcellulose

Pretreatments (water-soaking, pre-mercerization, mercerization under a pressure of 15 bars and steam explosion) were used to improve the accessibilities and reactivities of celluloses of bleached flax, hemp, sisal, abaca and jute pulps for the synthesis of methylcellulose. Degrees of crystallinity were determined by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) spectra. The iodine adsorption accessibilities of pulps were low and accessible fractions ranged from 1.3 to 5.2%. Accessible fractions in amorphous cellulose were calculated in the 5–18% range. The accessibilities of these pulps were hemp pulp > flax pulp > sisal pulp > jute pulp > abaca pulp. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectra showed that mean hydrogen bond strengths were weakened and relative crystallinity indexes were decreased by pretreatments. The accessibility and reactivity of the abaca pulp were improved by water soaking, mercerization under 15 bars pressure, steam explosion and preliminary mercerization, of which steam explosion and pre-mercerization were the best treatments. Species was the main factor for the accessibility and reactivity.     

Stabilization of aqueous suspensions of palygorskite by thermal vapour pressure shock explosion (TSE) treatment

A device was constructed in which a clay suspension is hermetically heated at 220°C for a few minutes. This thermal treatment is accompanied by a pressure increase in the cell. Once the valve is opened, there is a fast release of the pressure inside the cell and a sudden evolution of the interparticle water. This shock leads to a quasi explosion of the clay particle. This technique was named thermal vapour pressure shock explosion (TSE). The effect of TSE treatment on the properties of palygorskite suspensions was investigated. Palygorskite suspensions in water are rather unstable and particles smaller than 3 μm in size are not found before a TSE treatment. Stabilization of the suspension can be obtained by TSE treatments and/or by using a dispersing agent such as pyrophosphate, or both. As a result of TSE treatments smaller particles are obtained, the dispersiveness of the particles is improved and electrophoretic mobility is increased. Electron microscopy scans showed that the aggregates of needles which form the palygorskite fibres, disintegrate to separated thin needles as a result of the TSE treatment. Dedicated to Professor Lisa Heller-Kallai on the occasion of her 65^th birthday     

Understanding effect of wall structure on the hydrothermal stability of mesostructured silica SBA-15

Mesostructured silica SBA-15 materials with different structural parameters, such as pore size, pore volume, and wall thickness, etc., were prepared by varying the postsynthesis hydrothermal treatment temperature and adding inorganic salts. The hydrothermal stabilities of these materials in steam (100% water vapor) were systematically investigated using a variety of techniques including powder X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, nitrogen sorption, and (29)Si solid-state NMR. The effect of the pore size, microporosity or mesoporosity, and wall thickness on the stability was discussed. The results show that all of the SBA-15 materials have a good hydrothermal stability under steam of 600 degrees C for at least 24 h. N(2) sorption measurements show that the Brumauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of SBA-15 materials is decreased by about 62% after treatment under steam at 600 degrees C for 24 h. The materials with thicker walls and more micropores show relatively better hydrothermal stability in steam of 600 degrees C. Interestingly, we found that the microporosity of the mesostructured silica SBA-15 is a very important factor for the hydrothermal stability. To the materials with more micropores, the recombination of Si-O-Si bonds during the high-temperature steam treatment may not cause direct destruction to the wall structure. As a result, SBA-15 materials with more micropores show better stability in pure steam of 600 degrees C. Nevertheless, these materials are easily destroyed in steam of 800 degrees C for 6 h. Two methods to effectively improve the hydrothermal stability are introduced here: one is a high-temperature treatment, and another is a carbon-propping thermal treatment. Thermal treatment at 900 degrees C can enhance the polymerization degree of Si-O-Si bonds and effectively improve the hydrothermal stability of these SBA-15 materials in 800 degrees C steam for 12 h. But, this approach will cause very serious shrinkage of the mesopores, resulting in smaller pore diameter and low surface area. A carbon-propping thermal treating method was employed to enhance the polymerization of Si-O-Si bonds and minimize the serious shrinkage of mesopores at the same time. It was demonstrated to be an effective method that can greatly improve the hydrothermal stability of SBA-15 materials in 800 degrees C steam for 12 h. Furthermore, the SBA-15 materials obtained by using the carbon-propping method possess larger pores and higher surface area after the steam treatment at 800 degrees C compared to the materials from the direct thermal treatment method after the steam treatment.     

Thermal decomposition behaviors and dust explosion characteristics of nano-polystyrene

With the development of nano-powder technology, polymeric nano-materials are widely used in various industries, while not much research on their thermal decomposition and dust explosion characteristics has been conducted. The thermal behaviors and explosion characteristic parameters of the nano-polystyrene (nano-PS) with a typical particle size of 90 nm were studied by employing thermogravimetric analysis (TG), MIE-D 1.2 minimum ignition energy (MIE) test device, and 20-L spherical dust explosion test equipment. The results showed that the thermal decomposition of the nano-PS occurred in a two-step process which was different from the single process for conventional PS. Meanwhile, the reaction rate of the thermal decomposition for nano-PS increased with the heating rate. The TG and DTG curves shifted to the higher-temperature zone when the heating rate increased, and the initial temperature, final temperature, temperature at the maximum rate, and the maximum rate also increased. The sensitivity parameter of the minimum ignition energy of nano-PS varied as the dust concentration altered, and the most sensitive explosive concentration was about 200 g m⁻³. Also, nano-PS was proved to be quite sensitive to the electrostatic spark, as its calculated MIE value was as low as 11 mJ. For the severity parameters, the explosion pressure and its rising rate of nano-PS tended to increase at first and then decrease with the increase in dust concentrations. According to the risk classification standard, the explosion risk class of nano-PS was St2. The results were further extensively compared to other previous works. The results demonstrated both the higher explosion possibility and severity of nano-PS. This study could provide guidance for the safety management of nano-PS in its manufacture, storage, and handling process.

     

Effect of treatment on the thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of oil‐palm‐fiber‐reinforced phenolformaldehyde composites

The thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of oil‐palm‐fiber‐reinforced untreated (Sample 1) and differently treated composites were measured with the transient plane source technique at room temperature and under normal pressure. All the composites were 40% oil‐palm fiber by weight. The fibers were treated with alkali (Composite 2), silane (Composite 3), and acetic acid (Composite 4) and reinforced in a phenolformaldehyde matrix. The thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of the composites increased after treatment to different extents. The thermal conductivity of the treated fibers as well as of the untreated fibers was calculated theoretically. The model results show that the thermal conductivity of the untreated fiber was smaller than the thermal conductivity of the treated fibers. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 38: 916–921, 2000     

Application of global kinetic models to HMX beta-delta transition and cookoff processes

The reduction of the number of reactions in kinetic models for both the HMX (octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine) beta-delta phase transition and thermal cookoff provides an attractive alternative to traditional multi-stage kinetic models due to reduced calibration effort requirements. In this study, we use the LLNL code ALE3D to provide calibrated kinetic parameters for a two-reaction bidirectional beta-delta HMX phase transition model based on Sandia instrumented thermal ignition (SITI) and scaled thermal explosion (STEX) temperature history curves, and a Prout-Tompkins cookoff model based on one-dimensional time to explosion (ODTX) data. Results show that the two-reaction bidirectional beta-delta transition model presented here agrees as well with STEX and SITI temperature history curves as a reversible four-reaction Arrhenius model yet requires an order of magnitude less computational effort. In addition, a single-reaction Prout-Tompkins model calibrated to ODTX data provides better agreement with ODTX data than a traditional multistep Arrhenius model and can contain up to 90% fewer chemistry-limited time steps for low-temperature ODTX simulations. Manual calibration methods for the Prout-Tompkins kinetics provide much better agreement with ODTX experimental data than parameters derived from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements at atmospheric pressure. The predicted surface temperature at explosion for STEX cookoff simulations is a weak function of the cookoff model used, and a reduction of up to 15% of chemistry-limited time steps can be achieved by neglecting the beta-delta transition for this type of simulation. Finally, the inclusion of the beta-delta transition model in the overall kinetics model can affect the predicted time to explosion by 1% for the traditional multistep Arrhenius approach, and up to 11% using a Prout-Tompkins cookoff model.     

Physical Pretreatment Methods for Improving Microalgae Anaerobic Biodegradability

Microalgae may be a potential feedstock for biogas production through anaerobic digestion. However, this process is limited by the hydrolytic stage, due to the complex and resistant microalgae cell wall components. This fact hinders biomass conversion into biogas, demanding the application of pretreatment techniques for inducing cell damage and/or lysis and organic matter solubilisation. In this study, sonication, thermal, ultrasound, homogeneizer, hydrothermal and steam explosion pretreatments were evaluated in different conditions for comparing their effects on anaerobic digestion performance in batch reactors. The results showed that the highest biomass solubilisation values were reached for steam explosion (65–73%) and ultrasound (33–57%). In fact, only applied energies higher than 220 W or temperatures higher than 80 °C induced cell wall lysis in C. sorokiniana. Nonetheless, the highest methane yields were not correlated to biogas production. Thermal hydrolysis and steam explosion showed lower methane yields in respect to non-pretreated biomass, suggesting the presence of toxic compounds that inhibited the biological process. Accordingly, these pretreatment techniques led to a negative energy balance. The best pretreatment method among the ones evaluated was thermal pretreatment, with four times more energy produced that demanded.     

SO2-catalyzed steam explosion of corn fiber for ethanol production

Corn fiber, a by-product of the corn wet-milling industry, represents a renewable resource that is readily available in significant quantities and could potentially serve as a low-cost feedstock for the production of fuel-grade alcohol. In this study, we used a batch reactor to steam explode corn fiber at various degrees of severity to evaluate the potential of using this feedstock in the bioconversion process. The results indicated that maximum sugar yields (soluble and following enzymatic hydrolysis) were recovered from corn fiber that was pretreated at 190°C for 5 min with 6% SO₂. Sequential SO₂-catalyzed steam explosion and enzymatic hydrolysis resulted in very high conversion (81%) of all polysaccharides in the corn fiber to monomeric sugars. Subsequently, Saccharomyces cerevisiae was able to convert the resultant corn fiber hydrolysates to ethanol very efficiently, yielding 90–96% of theoretical conversion during the fermentation process.     

Modeling of a MED-TVC desalination system by considering the effects of nanoparticles: energetic and exergetic analysis

In this study, the energetic and exergetic analysis of a multi-effect desalination system with a thermal vapor compression desalination system has been numerically evaluated. For this purpose, the mass, energy, and exergy balance equations for the thermo-compressor, first effect as well as middle effects, and condenser have been developed. The effects of motive steam pressure and number of effects on yield, gained output ratio (GOR), performance ratio (PR) and irreversibility have been examined. Nanoparticles were used to improve the heat transfer properties at different stages. The highest rate of exergy destruction with 61.67% is concerned with thermo-compressor, owing to the large difference between the motive steam pressure and the entrained steam. The lowest exergy losses rate among the various components was 4.89% for the condenser, due to the fact that much of the final distillate steam entrained the thermo-compressor. As the number of effects increased from 1 to 7, the yield, GOR as well as PR, improved by approximately 590% and the irreversibility reduced by 1.88%. As the motive steam pressure increased from 400 to 1290 kPa, the yield decreased by 25.45% while the GOR and PR improved by 12.62 and 14.8%, respectively. From the second law viewpoint, irreversibility intensified by 16.11% which in turn diminished the second efficiency by 3.17%.

     

Decontamination Efficiency of Thermal,Photothermal, Microwave,and Steam Treatments for Biocontaminated Household Textiles

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, textile laundering hygiene has proved to be a fundamental measure in preventing the spread of infections. The first part of our study evaluated the decontamination efficiency of various treatments (thermal, photothermal, and microwave) for bio contaminated textiles. The effects on textile decontamination of adding saturated steam into the drum of a household textile laundering machine were investigated and evaluated in the second part of our study. The results show that the thermal treatment, conducted in a convection heating chamber, provided a slight reduction in efficiency and did not ensure the complete inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus on cotton swatches. The photothermal treatment showed higher reduction efficiency on contaminated textile samples, while the microwave treatment (at 460 W for a period of 60 s) of bio contaminated cotton swatches containing higher moisture content provided satisfactory bacterial reduction efficiency (more than 7 log steps). Additionally, the treatment of textiles in the household washing machine with the injection of saturated steam into the washing drum and a mild agitation rhythm provided at least a 7 log step reduction in S. aureus. The photothermal treatment of bio contaminated cotton textiles showed promising reduction efficiency, while the microwave treatment and the treatment with saturated steam proved to be the most effective.     

乙酰氧肟酸的热稳定性分析

为预防化工生产、储运和使用中由乙酰氧肟酸(Acetohydroxamic acid, AHA)引发的火灾和爆炸事故, 采用绝热量热法对其热稳定性进行实验研究, 并将加速量热仪(Accelerating Rate Calorimeter, ARC)的测试结果与差示扫描量热仪(Differential Scanning Calorimetry, DSC)的结果进行了比较. ARC绝热测试结果表明, AHA的初始放热温度为352.68 K, 最高放热温度为465.82 K, 最大温升速率和最大温升速率时间分别为8.748 K•min^－1和382.65 min, 单位质量AHA生成气体的最大压力为2.22 MPa•g^－1. 根据ARC绝热测试结果, 采用速率常数法计算了AHA的动力学参数表观活化能和指前因子, 并求出了AHA的某种典型包装的不可逆温度和自加速反应温度. 研究结果表明, AHA的热稳定性较差, 爆炸性较强.