Sonoelectrochemical hydrogenation of safrole: A reactor design,statistical analysis and computational fluid dynamic approach

In this work, ultrasound-assisted electrocatalytic hydrogenation (US-ECHSA) of safrole was carried out in water medium, using sacrificial anode of nickel. The ultrasonic irradiation was carried out at frequency of 20 kHz ± 500 Hz with a titanium cylindrical horn (MS 73 microtip; Ti-6AI-4V alloy; 3.0 mm diameter). The optimal conditions were analyzed by statistical experimental design (fractional factorial). The influence of the sonoelectrochemical reactor design was also investigated by using computational fluid dynamics as simulation tool. Among the five parameters studied: catalyst type, use of β-cyclodextrin as inverse phase transfer catalyst, sonoelectrochemical reactor design, ultrasound mode and the temperature of the solution, only the last three were significant. The hydrogenation product, dihydrosafrole, reached 94% yield, depending on the experimental conditions applied. Data of computational fluid dynamics showed that a wing shape tube added to the sonoelectrochemical reactor can work as a cooling apparatus, during the electrochemical process. The reactional solution temperature diminishes 14 °C when compared to the four-way-type reactor. Cooper cathode, absence of β-cyclodextrin, four-way-type reactor, ultrasound continuous mode (14 W) and absence of temperature control were the most effective reaction parameters for the safrole hydrogenation using US-ECHSA method. The proposed approach represents an important contribution for understanding the hydrodynamic behavior of sonoelectrochemical reactors designs and, consequently, for the reducing of the experimental costs inherent to the sonoelectrochemical process.     

Poly(4-vinylpyridinium)hydrogen sulfate: a novel and efficient catalyst for the synthesis of 14-aryl-14H-dibenzo[a,j]xanthenes under conventional heating and ultrasound irradiation

A simple and convenient procedure for the synthesis of 14-aryl-14H-dibenzo[a,j]xanthenes is described through a one-pot condensation of 2-naphthol with aryl aldehydes in the presence of poly(4-vinylpyridinium)hydrogen sulfate as an efficient, cheap, readily synthesized and eco-friendly catalyst in a solvent free media using conventional heating and ultrasound irradiation.     

Numerical Study of Fin-and-Tube Heat Exchanger in Low-Pressure Environment: Air-Side Heat Transfer and Frictional Performance,Entropy Generation Analysis,and Model Development

Heat transfer and frictional performance at the air-side is predominant for the application and optimization of finned tube heat exchangers. For aerospace engineering, the heat exchanger operates under negative pressure, whereas the general prediction models of convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure penalty for this scenario are rarely reported. In the current study, a numerical model is developed to determine the air-side heat transfer and frictional performance. The influence of air pressure (absolute pressure) is discussed in detail, and the entropy generation considering the effect of heat transfer and pressure drop are analyzed. Furthermore, prediction models of air-side thermal and frictional factors are also developed. The results indicate that both the convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure penalty decrease significantly with decreasing air pressure, and the air-side heat transfer coefficient is decreased by 64.6~73.3% at an air pressure of 25 kPa compared with normal environment pressure. The entropy generation by temperature difference accounts for the highest proportion of the total entropy generation. The prediction correlations of Colburn j-factor and friction factor f show satisfactory accuracy with the absolute mean deviations of 7.48% and 9.42%, respectively. This study can provide a reference for the practical application of fined tube heat exchangers under a negative pressure environment.     

Output-only identification and dynamic analysis of time-varying mechanical structures under random excitation: A comparative assessment of parametric methods

This article addresses the problem of parametric time-domain identification and dynamic analysis for time-varying (TV) mechanical structures under unobservable random excitation. The methods presented are based on time-dependent autoregressive moving average (TARMA) models, and are classified according to the mathematical structure imposed on the TV parameter evolution as unstructured parameter evolution, stochastic parameter evolution, and deterministic parameter evolution. The features and relative merits of each class are outlined. A representative method from each is then assessed through its application to the identification and dynamic analysis of a laboratory TV structure consisting of a beam with a mass moving on it. The results are mutually compared and contrasted to those obtained through “frozen-configuration” (multiple experiment) baseline identification.