Hydrogeochemical modeling for groundwater management in arid and semiarid regions using MODFLOW and MT3DMS: A case study of the Jeffara of Medenine coastal aquifer,South-Eastern Tunisia

The study of water quality and the quantification of reserves and their variations according to natural and anthropogenic forcing is necessary to establish an adequate management plan for groundwater resources. For this purpose, a modeling approach is a useful tool that allows, after calibration phase and verification of simulation, and under different scenarios of forcing and operational changes, to estimate and control the groundwater quantity and quality. The main objective of this study is to collect all available data in a model that simulates the Jeffara of Medenine coastal aquifer system functioning. To achieve this goal, a conceptual model was constructed based on previous studies and hydrogeological investigations. The regional groundwater numerical flow model for the Jeffara aquifer was developed using MODFLOW working under steady-state and transient conditions. Groundwater elevations measured from the piezometric wells distributed throughout the study area in 1973 were selected as the target water levels for steady state (head) model calibration. A transient simulation was undertaken for the 42 years from 1973 to 2015. The historical transient model calibration was satisfactory, consistent with the continuous piezometric decline in response to the increase in groundwater abstraction. The developed numerical model was used to study the system's behavior over the next 35 years under various constraints. Two scenarios for potential groundwater extraction for the period 2015–2050 are presented. The predictive simulations show the effect of the increase of the exploitation on the piezometric levels. To study the phenomenon of salinization, which is one of the most severe and widespread groundwater contamination problems, especially in coastal regions, a solute transport model has been constructed by using MT3DMS software coupled with the groundwater flow model. The best calibration results are obtained when the connection with the overlying superficial aquifer is considered suggesting that groundwater contamination originates from this aquifer. Recommendations for water resource managers

• The results of this study show that Groundwater resources of Jeffara of Medenine coastal aquifer in Tunisia are under immense pressure from multiple stresses.
• The water resources manager must consider the impact of economic and demographic development in groundwater management to avoid the intrusion of saline water.
• The results obtained presented some reference information that can serve as a basis for water resources planning.
• The model runs to provide information that managers can use to regulate and adequately control the Jeffara of Medenine water resources.

     

Tailored side‐chain architecture of benzil voltage stabilizers for enhanced dielectric strength of cross‐linked polyethylene

The synthesis and physico‐chemical properties of seven benzil‐type voltage stabilizers are reported. The benzil core is substituted with alkyl chains of different length that are linked to the benzil core via an ester, ether, or tertiary amine group. All additives can be melt‐processed with low‐density polyethylene (LDPE). Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy confirms that benzil compounds are not affected by the LDPE cross‐linking reaction induced by dicumyl peroxide. Moreover, a combination of gel content measurements, thermal analysis, and small‐angle X‐ray scattering indicates that the presence of benzil voltage stabilizers does not significantly alter the microstructure of cross‐linked polyethylene (XLPE). Electrical tree inhibition experiments under high‐voltage alternating current conditions show that all investigated additives substantially enhance the dielectric strength of the insulating material at a concentration of only 10 mmol kg^?1. The highest improvement in dielectric strength, of more than 70% with respect to reference XLPE, is obtained with voltage stabilizers, which carry short (methyl) side chains that are linked to the benzil core via an ester or tertiary amine group. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2014 , 52, 1047–1054     

Enhanced magnetoconductivity and electrical property of MWCNT-CdS nanocomposite embedded in polyaniline

PANI/MWCNT-CdS nanocomposites with different content of CdS wt.% has been synthesized by the chemical oxidative in-situ polymerization reaction of aniline in the presence of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT). TEM, XRD, FTIR, and TGA studies were done for the structural and thermal characterization of the samples respectively. The particle size of CdS nanoparticles distributes in between 2.7 and 4.8 nm. XRD spectrum reveals that the co-existence of MWCNT, CdS in PANI matrix, where CdS forms a hexagonal structure. TGA result shows that nanocomposite becomes more thermally stable with the increase in CdS content. The dc electrical transport property of PANI/MWCNT-CdS nanocomposites has been investigated within a temperature range 77 ≤ T ≤ 300 K. The dc conductivity follows a 3D variable range hopping (VRH) model. A large magnetoconductivity change (19%) is observed for 2 wt% CdS content in PANI/MWCNT-CdS, which is explained by the wave function shrinkage model.     

2D钙钛矿太阳能电池的能带调控

经过短短十年的发展,钙钛矿太阳能电池效率已经超过25%,极具商业化价值,这得益于三维(3D)钙钛矿材料具有合适的带隙、吸光系数高、电子迁移距离长等优点。但3D钙钛矿的稳定性依然是其亟待解决的问题。二维(2D)钙钛矿器件除了兼具3D钙钛矿的优异光电性质之外,其稳定性良好,是解决3D钙钛矿太阳能电池稳定性问题的一个可行方案。2D钙钛矿晶格中的疏水性大烷基胺阳离子能阻止湿气侵入的可能路径,使其成为光电器件的备选材料。由于2D钙钛矿对许多不同的有机和无机成分具有较高的耐受性,使其组成具有多样性,进而影响其能带变化。本文对2D钙钛矿的带隙调控及能带调控进行总结,希望对制备高效、稳定的低维度钙钛矿太阳能电池具有一定的指导意义。     

电气材料铜及铜合金中痕量杂质砷元素的氢化物发生-原子荧光光谱法测定

本文建立了氢化物发生-原子荧光光谱法测定电气材料铜及铜合金中痕量杂质元素砷的方法。通过使用L-半胱氨酸与铜基体形成络合物,抗坏血酸充分预还原砷,消除了基体干扰,并实现了铜及铜合金中痕量杂质砷的准确测定。在经过优化的实验条件下,砷的检出限为0.12 ng·m L-1,线性相关系数优于0.999,相对标准偏差小于4%。用加标回收法测定实际样品,回收率在92%到103%之间。该法操作简便,灵敏度高,无需基体预分离。     

Autonomous conveyer gel driven by frontal polymerization

Autonomous mechanical mass transportation for cargos on the microscale with no need of continuous external powering is of great scientific and technological interest due to their extensive applications. However, it is still challenging to create a self‐driven system applicable to diverse micromaterial transportation demands. In this work, we developed a novel autonomous conveyer gel driven by frontal polymerization (FP). The chemical wave produced in FP was stable, and self‐propagating with a constant velocity, which can be easily monitored by thermal imaging or fluorescence labeling. We investigated the influence of the initiation temperature, swelling ratio of the gel substrate, and the size of the cargos on the motion of driven behavior. Results showed that the driving velocity can be well controlled by altering the initiation temperatures of FP. The swelling ratio and the size of the cargos had a key impact on the feasibility of self‐driven behavior. In addition, powerful driven capability by FP was demonstrated by successfully transporting cargos in series, and further applied for targeted synthesis of CdS nanocrystals. The methodology developed here provides an effective way to convert chemical energy to mechanical work, and may be useful in energy conversion and utilization, mass transportation and other applications. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 1323‐1331     

Crosslinkable high dielectric constant polymer dielectrics for low voltage organic field‐effect transistor memory devices

I n this study, we successfully synthesized water/methanol soluble random copolymers with a high dielectric constant, poly(n‐(hydroxymethyl) acrylamide‐co‐5‐(9‐(5‐(diethylamino)pentyl)?2‐(4‐vinylphenyl)?9H‐fluorene(P(NMA‐co‐F6NSt)), which contained chemical crosslinkable segment (NMA) and hole trapping building block (F6NSt). The feeding molar ratios of two monomers (NMA:F6NSt) were set as 100:0, 95:5, 80:20, and 67:33 for the copolymers of P1 , P2 , P3, and P4 , respectively. The crosslinked P(NMA‐co‐F6NSt) thin film could serve as both dielectric and charge storage layers in organic field‐effect transistor (OFET) memory device and exhibited high k (i.e., 4.91–6.47) characteristics, leading to a low voltage operation and a small power consumption. Devices based on the P1 ‐ P4 dielectrics showed excellent insulating properties and good charge storage performance under a low operating voltage in a range of ±5V because of tightly network structures and well‐dispersed trapping cites. In particular, P3 ‐based memory device exhibited a large memory window of 4.13 V with stable data retention stability over 10⁴ s, a large on/off ratio of 10⁴, and good endurance characteristics as high as 200 cycles. The above results suggested that a high‐performance OFET memory device could be facilely achieved using the novel crosslinkable high‐k copolymers. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 3224–3236     

Thickness dependence of thermally induced changes in surface and bulk properties of Nafion® nanofilms

Thermally induced changes in surface wettability, dewetting behavior, and proton transport of “self‐assembled” nanothin Nafion^® films (4–300 nm) on SiO₂ substrate is reported. Thermal annealing induces switching of the surface wettability of 55 nm and thinner films from hydrophilic to super‐hydrophobic. Thickness dependence of this behavior is observed with higher annealing temperature required for lower thickness films, indicating highly restrictive mobility of Nafion^® ionomer as film thickness decreases. Dewetting is only observed for 4‐nm thin film. Significant suppression in proton conductivity upon thermal annealing was noted. Similarly, two other bulk properties, water uptake and swelling, were found to decrease upon annealing. This work reports a systematic examination of the thickness dependence of thermally induced changes in both surface and bulk properties of ultra‐thin Nafion^®. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016 , 54, 1267–1277     

First-principles study on the electronic transport properties of M/SiC Schottky junctions (M=Ag,Au and Pd)

In this work, we investigate the electronic transport properties of M/SiC Schottky junctions (M=Ag, Au and Pd). The results show that the band structures of hydrogenated zigzag SiC nanoribbons (ZSiCNRs) and hydrogenated armchair SiC nanoribbons (ASiCNRs) are almost unaffected by their width changes. When the hydrogenated 7-ASiCNR is directly connected to the Ag, Au and Pd electrode, the transmission spectra of three metal-semiconductor junctions show that the Fermi level of metal is pinned to a fixed position in the semiconductor band gap of hydrogenated 7-ASiCNR. The nearly same rectifying current-voltage characteristics are found in three metal-semiconductor junctions. The average rectification ratios of three M/SiC Schottky junctions are all in the neighborhood of 10⁶. In other word, the M/SiC Schottky junction has remarkable application prospect as the candidate for Schottky Diode.     

Charge transport properties of MDMO PPV thin films cast in different solvents

Charge transport properties in thin films of Poly(2‐methoxy‐5‐(3′,7′‐dimethyloctyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylenevinylene) (MDMO PPV) cast using either chloroform (CF), toluene (TOL), or chlorobenzene (CB) as solvent were investigated. Hole mobility (μ) in these thin films measured using time‐of‐flight transient photoconductivity showed an increasing trend with respect to the solvent used in the same order, that is, μ_CF (2.4 × 10^?7 cm²/Vs) < μ_TOL (6.9 × 10^?7 cm²/Vs) < μ_CB (2.3 × 10^?6 cm²/Vs). Observed variations in mobilities were attributed to different morphologies of MDMO PPV chains in thin films cast using the aforesaid solvents. Nature of the interchain interactions and aggregate formation were obtained using photoluminescence (PL), Raman spectroscopy, and AFM studies. Ratio of PL peak intensities of 0–0 and 0–1 transitions, which is a direct measure of interchain interaction, was the highest in CB and lowest in CF. Variation in the relative intensities of out‐of‐plane wagging of vinylene group (～963 cm^?1 mode) in Raman spectra suggested different extent of coiling of polymer chains in these thin films. From these observations, it was elicited that aggregate size and interchain interactions are highest in CB and least in CF. AFM‐based topographic images of thin films further supported these variations in the size of aggregates. Variation in the aggregate sizes and interchain interactions explained the corresponding variation in the mobility. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015 , 53, 1431–1439