Influence of thermal effect on the efficiency of a solar cell

The short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage of a solar cell based on the p-n junction are studied theoretically, taking into account the thermoemf originating due to the temperature difference between the front and back surfaces of the solar cell. It is shown that the consideration of the thermal motion of photogenerated carriers leads to the increase in the collection coefficient. Calculations show that at the irradiation intensity 5 × 10²⁰ photon/cm² s and at the temperature gradient ～ 30–40°C for silicon solar cells the open circuit voltage increases by ～ 6–7% and the short circuit current by ～40–50%.     

Dependence of X-ray diffraction patterns on the parameters of primary incident beam

X-ray diffraction patterns obtained from a plane-parallel crystalline plate with a spherical cavity and from a wedge-shaped crystal have been investigated depending on the collimation of the primary incident beam. It is shown that in the case of ribbon-like incident beam the sectional topograms, obtained from the wedge-shaped crystal, have the form of V-shaped or straight fringes depending on the orientation of reflecting planes relative to the surface of the X-ray ribbon-like beam. In the case of a wide parallel beam or an asymmetrically reflected wide monochromatic beam the parallel fringes are obtained from the wedge-shaped crystals, and the circular fringes are obtained from the plane-parallel crystalline plates with a spherical cavity. For the primary ribbon-like beam the V-shaped patterns acquire the form of circular fringes as a result of scanning the crystal with a spherical cavity and the X-ray film.     

Surface Structure Modification and Deuterium Retention in Tungsten under Pulsed Plasma Loads

Modification of the surface layer and deuterium accumulation in tungsten targets under plasma irradiation in a quasi-stationary plasma accelerator with an intrinsic magnetic field QSPA-T, which reproduces the conditions (plasma thermal load of 0.2-5 MJ/m2, pulse duration of 0.1-1.2 ms) typical of ELM events in ITER, are studied. Using a scanning electron microscope, structure modifications at the surface and in the bulk after deuterium plasma irradiation are analyzed. The observed changes in the near-surface layer are compared with the calculated data on the change in the internal structure of tungsten under intense thermal action obtained as a result of the numerical solution of the heat conduction problem. The total deuterium retention in the samples was measured using thermal desorption spectroscopy, and it was in the range of (3-4) × 1016 particles/cm2 for the samples melted during plasma exposure. These numbers exceed by an order of magnitude the values obtained for samples without traces of melting.     

Radial oscillations of neutron stars in strong magnetic fields

The eigen frequencies of radial pulsations of neutron stars are calculated in a strong magnetic field. At low densities we use the magnetic BPS equation of state (EOS) similar to that obtained by Lai and Shapiro while at high densities the EOS obtained from the relativistic nuclear mean field theory is taken and extended to include strong magnetic field. It is found that magnetized neutron stars support higher maximum mass whereas the effect of magnetic field on radial stability for observed neutron star masses is minimal.     

Immobilization of Fungal β-Glucosidase on Silica Gel and Kaolin Carriers

β-Glucosidase is a key enzyme in the hydrolysis of cellulose for producing feedstock glucose for various industrial processes. Reuse of enzyme through immobilization can significantly improve the economic characteristics of the process. Immobilization of the fungal β-glucosidase by covalent binding and physical adsorption on silica gel and kaolin was conducted for consequent application of these procedures in large-scale industrial processes. Different immobilization parameters (incubation time, ionic strength, pH, enzyme/support ratio, glutaric aldehyde concentration, etc.) were evaluated for their effect on the thermal stability of the immobilized enzyme. It was shown that the immobilized enzyme activity is stable at 50 °C over 8 days. It has also been shown that in the case of immobilization on kaolin, approximately 95% of the initial enzyme was immobilized onto support, and loss of activity was not observed. However, covalent binding of the enzyme to silica gel brings significant loss of enzyme activity, and only 35% of activity was preserved. In the case of physical adsorption on kaolin, gradual desorption of enzyme takes place. To prevent this process, we have carried out chemical modification of the protein. As a result, after repeated washings, enzyme desorption from kaolin has been reduced from 75 to 20–25% loss.     

Synthesis and biological activity of 1-(aryloxy)-3-(6-chloro-4,4-dimethyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolin-2-yl)propan-2-ols

Treatment of 1-(4-chlorobenzylamino)-2-methylpropan-2-ol with concentrated sulfuric acid at 0°C gave 6-chloro-4,4-dimethyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline which reacted with (aryloxymethyl)oxiranes to afford new propan-2-ol derivatives of the tetrahydroisoquinoline series, 1-(aryloxy)-3-(6-chloro-4,4-dimethyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolin-2-yl)propan-2-ols. Some of the synthesized compounds or their hydrochlorides showed moderate adrenergic blocking and sympatholytic activities.