Synthesis of boron nitride nanorod and its performance as a metalfree catalyst for oxidative desulfurization of diesel fuel

In order to reduce the sulfur compounds in diesel fuel,boron nitride(BN)has been used as a novel metal-free catalyst in the present research.This nanocatalyst was synthesized via template-free approach followed by heating treatment at 900℃ in nitrogen atmosphere that the characteristics of the sample were identified by the X-ray diffraction,Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy,Raman spectroscopy,field emission scanning electron microscopy,transmission electron microscopy,atomic force microscopy,and N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms.The results of structural and morphological analysis represented that BN has been successfully synthesized.The efficacy of the main operating parameters on the process was studied by using response surface methodology based on the Box-Behnken design method.The prepared catalyst showed high efficiency in oxidative desulfurization of diesel fuel with initial sulfur content of 8040 mg·kg^(-1)S.From statistical analysis,a significant quadratic model was obtained to predict the sulfur removal as a function of efficient parameters.The maximum efficiency of 72.4%was achieved under optimized conditions at oxidant/sulfur molar ratio of 10.2,temperature of 71℃,reaction time of 113 min,and catalyst dosage of 0.36 g.Also,the reusability of the BN was studied,and the result showed little reduction in activity of the catalyst after 10 times regeneration.Moreover,a plausible mechanism was proposed for oxidation of sulfur compounds on the surface of the catalyst.The present study shows that BN materials can be selected as promising metal-free catalysts for desulfurization process.

Production of single-walled carbon nanotubes from methane over Co-Mo/MgO nanocatalyst:A comparative study of fixed and fluidized bed reactors

In this study,the performances of fixed and fluidized bed reactors in the production of single-walled carbon nanotubes（SWNTs）have been investigated.In both reactors,single-walled carbon nanotubes were grown by catalytic chemical vapor decomposition（CCVD）of methane over Co-Mo/MgO nanocatalyst under two different operating conditions.The synthesized samples were characterized by TEM,TGA and Raman spectroscopy.It is found that the performance of a fluidized bed in the synthesis of carbon nanotubes is much better than that of a fixed bed.The quality of carbon nanotubes obtained from the fluidized bed was significantly higher than that from the fixed bed and the former one with the ID/IG ratio of 0.11 while the latter one with the ID/IG ratio of 0.71.Also,the yield of SWNTs in the fluidized bed was 92 wt%,while it was 78 wt%in the fixed bed.These advantages of fluidized bed reactors for the synthesis of carbon nanotubes can be attributed to more available space for the growth of carbon nanotubes and more uniform temperature and concentration profiles.

Comprehensive study of nanostructured supports with high surface area for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis

An extensive study of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis on nanostructure supports with high surface area such as nanostructure -y-alumina, single wall carbon nanotubes （SWNTs）, and the hybrid of SWNTs/nanostructure -y-alumina has been investigated. The nanostructure γ-alumina was promoted with lanthanum to obtain better performance of catalyst and 15 wt% cobalt loading was the basis of our investigation. Fischer- Tropsch synthesis was performed in a fixed bed reactor under different reaction conditions （220-240 ℃, 15-25 bar, H2/CO ratio of 2, GHSV of 900-1400） in order to study the effects of temperature, pressure and gas hourly space velocity （GHSV） changes on hydrocarbon selec- tivity and catalyst activity. The catalysts were extensively characterized by different methods including X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, inductively coupled plasma （ICP）, hydrogen （H2） chemisorption and temperature-programmed reduction （TPR）. The results showed that the yield of hybrid supported catalyst （55.4%） is higher than that of nanos- tructure -y-alumina supported catalyst （55.0%） and lower than that of SWNTs supported cobalt catalyst （71.0%）. The hybrid supported catalyst showed higher reduction degree and dispersion of cobalt particles. The temperature, pressure and GHSV effects on hybrid supported catalyst were studied and results showed that higher pressure favors the chain growth and temperature increase leads to the increases in methane selec- tivity and CO conversion. Higher hydrocarbon selectivity and CO conversion showed positive relationship with increasing GHSV while lower hydrocarbon selectivity diminishes.

Cobalt supported on CNTs-covered γ-and nano-structured alumina catalysts utilized for wax selective Fischer-Tropsch synthesis

Cobalt supported on carbon nanotubes （CNTs）-covered alumina has been recently developed and successfully utilized as a catalyst in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis （FTS）. Problems associated with shaping of Co/CNTs into extrudates or pellets as well as catalyst attrition rendered these materials unfavorable for industrial applications. In this investigation regular γ- and nano-structured （N-S） alumina as well as CNTs-covered regular γ- and N-S-alumina supports were impregnated by cobalt nitrate solution to make new cobalt-based catalysts which were also promoted by Ru. The catalysts were characterized and tested in a micro reactor to evaluate their applicability in FTS. γ-Al2O3 was prepared by calcination of bohemite and N-S-Al2O3 was prepared by sol-gel method using aluminum chloride as starting material. Catalyst evaluations indicated that N-S-Al2O3 was superior to regular γ-Al2O3 and that CNTs-covered alumina supports were favored over non-covered ones in terms of activity and heavy hydrocarbon selectivity. These were justified by porosimetric characteristics of the catalysts and existence of CNTs points of view. CNTs-covered catalysts also showed higher wax selectivity and better resistance to deactivation. Furthermore, TPR analysis indicated that the cobalt aluminate phase, which is responsible for the permanent deactivation of alumina supported Co-based catalysts, did not form on alumina supported Co-based catalysts covered with CNTs due to weaker interactions between cobalt and alumina.

Effects of Process Parameters on the Size of Nanostructure Magnesium Oxide Synthesized by a Surfactant and Ligand Assisted Wet Chemical Method

A surfactant and ligand assisted wet chemical method was employed for the preparation of nanostructure magnesium oxide with a high specific area and sphere-like nanoparticles. The influence of surfactants and ligands on the crystallite size and morphology of MgO was studied using various parameters. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies show that the crystallite size varies. Observations with Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FFSEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) show that the ligands and surfactants strongly affect the size of nanostructure. We synthesized less than 15 nm using a PVA 72000 surfactant in the presence of EDA and 4-methyl morpholine ligands, 15 - 40 nm with a PVA 72000 surfactant in the presence of oleic acid, and more than 40 nm with a PEG 6000 surfactant. The effects of several process parameters, such as surfactant, ligand and solvent, were examined.

Experimental and DFT insights into nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon nanotubes for effective desulfurization of liquid phases:Equilibrium&kinetic study

Herein,nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon nanotubes(NS-CNT)adsorbents were synthesized via the chemical vapor deposition technique at 1000°C by employing the camphor,urea and sulfur trioxide pyridine.In this study,desulfurization of two types of mercaptans(dibenzothiophene(DBT)and tertiary butyl mercaptan(TBM)as nonlinear and linear forms of mercaptan)was studied.In this regard,a maximum capacity of NS-CNT was obtained as 106.9 and 79.4 mg/g and also the removal efficiencies of 98.6%and 88.3%were achieved after 4 h at 298K and 0.9 g of NS-CNT for DBT and TBM,respectively.Characterization of the NS-CNTs was carried out through exploiting scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray diffraction(XRD),Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR),and elemental analysis(CHN).The isotherm equilibrium data could be ascribed to the Freundlich nonlinear regression form and the kinetic data was fitted by nonlinear form of the pseudo second order model.The negative values of ΔS^(0),ΔH^(0) and ΔG^(0) specify that the adsorption of both types of mercaptans was a natural exothermic process with a reduced entropy.Maintenance of more than 96%of the adsorption capacity even after nine cycles suggest the NS-CNT as a superior adsorbent for mercaptans removal in the industry.Density functional theory(DFT)calculations were also performed to peruse the effects of S/N co-doping and carbon monovacancy defects in CNTs toward the adsorption of DBT and TBM.

Antifouling nanocomposite polymer coatings for marine applications:A review on experiments,mechanisms,and theoretical studies

Marine fouling is a worldwide challenge with huge damages on industrial structures,side effects on economics of industries,and environmental and safety-related hazards.Different approaches have been used for combating fouling in the marine environment.Meanwhile,nanocomposite polymer coatings are a novel generation of antifouling coatings with merits of toxin-free chemical composition and ease of large-scale application.Nanomaterials such as nano-metals,nano-metal oxides,metal-organic frameworks,carbon-based nanostructures,MXene,and nanoclays have antibacterial and antifouling properties in the polymer coatings.Besides,these nanomaterials can improve the corrosion resistance,mechanical strength,weathering stability,and thermal resistance of the polymer coatings.Therefore,in this review paper,the antifouling nanocomposite coatings are introduced and antifouling mechanisms are discussed.This review explicitly indicates that the antifouling efficiency of the nanocomposite coatings depends on the properties of the polymer matrix,the inherent properties of the nanomaterials,the weight percent and the dispersion method of the nanomaterials within the coating matrix,and the chemicals used for modifying the surface of the nanomaterials;meanwhile,the hybrids of different nanomaterials and appropriate chemical agents could be used to improve the antifouling behavior of the prepared nanocomposites.Moreover,the theoretical studies are introduced to pave the way of researchers working on theantifouling coatings,and the importance of the theoretical studies and computational modeling along with the experimental research is notified to develop antifouling coatings with high efficiency.

A Novel Approach for Energy and Water Conservation by Using Silver-Carbon Quantum Dots Hybrid Nanofluids in Wet Cooling Towers Systems

This study presents the use of Silver-Carbon Quantum Dots(Ag-CQD)hybrid nanofluids,prepared by a facile wet chemical method,for heat transfer enhancement of wet cooling towers systems.The samples were characterized using different analyses,including FT-IR,XRD and TEM.After synthesizing the CQD,it was hybridized with silver nanoparticles and dispersed in water,using ultrasonic probe.The viscosity and density of the prepared nanofluid were investigated as a function of temperature and nanoparticles concentration,which demonstrated that there were no noticeable changes at lower particles concentration.Then,thermal conductivity and convective heat transfer coefficient were measured to evaluate the heat transfer enhancement of the nanofluid.At 45℃ and 0.5 wt%,the most significant thermal conductivity improvement compared to the base fluid was 24%;and 28%enhancement of the heat transfer coefficient was obtained at Reynolds number of 15529.The nanofluid performance was evaluated in a wet cooling tower for investigating the efficiency and water consumption rate.The results indicated that the efficiency of the cooling tower,by applying Ag-CQD nanofluid,enhanced from 23.72%to 28.23%;consequently,the amount of the consumed water decreased from 80.76 mL·min^(−1)to 69.67 mL·min^(−1).The results proved that the prepared nanofluid is a successful and promising candidate to enhance heat transfer.