Role of micro-Ca/In alloying in tailoring the microstructural characteristics and discharge performance of dilute Mg-Bi-Sn-based alloys as anodes for Mg-air batteries

The influence of micro-Ca/In alloying on the microstructural charac teristics,electrochemical behaviors and discharge properties of extruded dilute Mg-0.5Bi-0.5Sn-based(wt.%)alloys as anodes for Mg-air batteries are evaluated.The grain size and texture intensity of the Mg-Bi-Sn-based alloys are significantly decreased after the Ca/In alloying,particularly for the In-containing alloy.Note that,in addition to nanoscale Mg_(3)Bi_(2)phase,a new microscale Mg_(2)Bi_(2)Ca phase forms in the Ca-containing alloy.The electrochemical test results demonstrate that Ca/In micro-alloying can enhance the electrochemical activity.Using In to alloy the Mg-Bi-Sn-based alloy is effective in restricting the cathodic hydrogen evolution(CHE)kinetics,leading to a low self-corrosion rate,while severe CHE occurred after Ca alloying.The micro-alloying of Ca/In to Mg-Bi-Sn-based alloy strongly deteriorates the compactness of discharge products film and mitigates the"chunk effect"(CE),hence the cell voltage,anodic efficiency as well as discharge capacity are greatly improved.The In-containing alloy exhibits outstanding discharge performance under the combined effect of the modified microstructure and discharge products,thus making it a potential anode material for primary Mg-air battery.

Dilution characteristics of dual buoyant jets in wavy cross-flow environment

Due to the difference in density between the discharge effluent and coastal water,partially treated wastewater is often discharged into the marine environment as a buoyant jet via submarine outfalls with multiport diffusers.The dilution characteristics of effluent discharge(dual buoyant jets)in a wavy cross-flow environment were studied in a laboratory.The planar laser-induced fluorescence technique was used to obtain the concentration data of the jets.The effects of different environmental variables on the diffusion and dilution characteristics of the jets were examined through physical experiments,dimensional analysis,and empirical formulations.It was found that the dilution process of the dual jets could be divided into two components:the original jet component and the effluent cloud component.The jet-to-current velocity ratio was the main parameter affecting the concentration levels of the effluent cloud.The merging of the two jets increased the jet concentration in the flow field.When the jets traveled further downstream,the axial dilution increased gradually and then increased significantly along the axis.Under the effects of strong waves,the concentration contours branched into two peaks,and the mean dilution became more significant than under the effects of weak waves.Therefore,the dilution of the effluent discharge was expected to be significant under strong wave effects because the hydrodynamic force increased.A dilution equation was derived to improve our understanding of the dilution process of buoyant jets in a wavy cross-flow environment.This equation was used to determine the influences of the jet-to-current velocity ratio,wave-to-current velocity ratio,and Strouhal number on the minimum jet dilution.It revealed that the wave and buoyancy effects in effluent discharges were significant.

A revised jump-diffusion and rotation-diffusion model

Quasi-elastic neutron scattering(QENS) has many applications that are directly related to the development of highperformance functional materials and biological macromolecules, especially those containing some water. The analysis method of QENS spectra data is important to obtain parameters that can explain the structure of materials and the dynamics of water. In this paper, we present a revised jump-diffusion and rotation-diffusion model(rJRM) used for QENS spectra data analysis. By the rJRM, the QENS spectra from a pure magnesium-silicate-hydrate(MSH) sample are fitted well for the Q range from 0.3 ^(-1) to 1.9 ^(-1) and temperatures from 210 K up to 280 K. The fitted parameters can be divided into two kinds. The first kind describes the structure of the MSH sample, including the ratio of immobile water(or bound water) C and the confining radius of mobile water a_0. The second kind describes the dynamics of confined water in pores contained in the MSH sample, including the translational diffusion coefficient Dt, the average translational residence timeτ0, the rotational diffusion coefficient D_r, and the mean squared displacement(MSD) u^2. The r JRM is a new practical method suitable to fit QENS spectra from porous materials, where hydrogen atoms appear in both solid and liquid phases.