Aging Characteristics on.Epoxy Resin Surface Under Repetitive Microsecond Pulses in Air at Atmospheric Pressure

Research on aging characteristics of epoxy resin （EP） under repetitive microsecond pulses is important for the design of insulating materials in high power apparatus. It is because that very fast transient overvoltage always occurs in a power system, which causes flashover and is one of the main factors causing aging effects of EP materials. Therefore, it is essential to obtain a better understanding of the aging effect on an EP surface resulting from flashover. In this work, aging effects on an EP surface were investigated by surface flashover discharge under repetitive microsecond pulses in atmospheric pressure. The investigations of parameters such as the surface micro-morphology and chemical composition of the insulation material under different degrees of aging were conducted with the aid of measurement methods such as atomic force microscopy （AFM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）. Results showed that with the accumulation of aging energy on the material surface, the particles formed on the material surface increased both in number and size, leading to the growth of surface roughness and a reduction in the water contact angle; the surface also became more absorbent. Furthermore, in the aging process, the molecular chains of EP on the surface were broken, resulting in oxidation and carbonisation.

Aging Characteristics and Influencing Factors of the Sheds of Composite Insulators in Karst Regions of China

In recent years,more and more high-voltage overhead transmission lines were built passing through the karst regions in southwestern China.This type of special landform seems to have an adverse effect on the aging of the sheds of the line suspension composite insulators,which may lead to unexpected flashover and line tripping.In order to find out the particularity of the aging characteristics of insulators operating in the karst regions,samples in operation were selected from both the karst regions and the flatlands.Hydrophobicity,amount of surface contamination,and contaminant composition of the sheds were studied,then a comparison of performance between the two was made,and the possible influencing factors that cause such differences were discussed.The results show that the overall aging of the sheds of the composite insulators operating at the karst regions is more aggravated,which is caused by the combined influence of factors including the special topography,climate,and pollution in the area.The strong wind crossing the col will bring about the mutual scraping on the edges and stress concentration at the root of the sheds,leaving scratches and root cracks;the infiltration from these rupture of acid liquid,if any,will accelerate the aging and corroding of the internal silicone rubber material;moreover,the carbonates enriched on the surface of the sheds will gradually transform into more corrosive sulfates in an acidic environment,leading to further deterioration and chalking of the sheds of the insulators.The research work in this paper can provide guidance for the current operation and maintenance of composite insulators in the karst areas,as well as having important reference values for the layout design and insulation configuration of transmission lines to be built across karst landforms in the future.

Aging Characteristics of Lithium-Ion Battery Under Fast Charging Based on Electrochemical-thermalmechanical Coupling Model

The aging characteristics of lithium-ion battery(LIB)under fast charging is investigated based on an electrochemical-thermal-mechanical(ETM)coupling model.Firstly,the ETM coupling model is established by COMSOL Multiphysics.Subsequently,a long cycle test was conducted to explore the aging characteristics of LIB.Specifically,the effects of charging(C)rate and cycle number on battery aging are analyzed in terms of nonuniform distribution of solid electrolyte interface(SEI),SEI formation,thermal stability and stress characteristics.The results indicate that the increases in C rate and cycling led to an increase in the degree of nonuniform distribution of SEI,and thus a consequent increase in the capacity loss due to the SEI formation.Meanwhile,the increases in C rate and cycle number also led to an increase in the heat generation and a decrease in the heat dissipation rate of the battery,respectively,which result in a decrease in the thermal stability of the electrode materials.In addition,the von Mises stress of the positive electrode material is higher than that of the negative electrode material as the cycling proceeds,with the positive electrode material exhibiting tensile deformation and the negative electrode material exhibiting compressive deformation.The available lithium ion concentration of the positive electrode is lower than that of the negative electrode,proving that the tensile-type fracture occurring in the positive material under long cycling dominated the capacity loss process.The aforementioned studies are helpful for researchers to further explore the aging behavior of LIB under fast charging and take corresponding preventive measures.

Martensite Aging Effect and Thermal Cyclic Characteristics in Ti-Pd and Ti-Pd-Ni High Temperature Shape Memory Alloys

The effect of thermal cycling and aging in martensitic state in Ti-Pd-Ni alloys were investigated by DSC and TEM observations. It is shown that the thermal cycling causes the decreases in M, and Af temperatures in Ti50Pd50-xNix (x=10, 20, 30) alloys, but no obvious thermal cycling effect was observed in Ti50Pd50Pd40Ni10 alloys and the aging effect shows a curious feature, i.e., the Af temperature does not saturate even after relatively long time aging, which is considered to be due to the occurrence of recovery recrystallization during aging.

DC Characteristics of Lattice-Matched InAlN/AlN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors

Lattice-matched InAlN/AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) grown on sapphire substrate by using low-pressure metallorganic chemical vapor deposition were prepared, and the comprehensive DC characteristics were implemented by Keithley 4200 Semiconductor Characterization System. The experimental results indicated that a maximum drain current over 400 mA/mm and a peak external transconductance of 215 mS/mm can be achieved in the initial HEMTs. However, after the devices endured a 10-h thermal aging in furnace under nitrogen condition at 300 ℃, the maximum reduction of saturation drain current and external transconductance at high gate-source voltage and drain-source voltage were 30% and 35%, respectively. Additionally, an increased drain-source leakage current was observed at three-terminal off-state. It was inferred that the degradation was mainly related to electron-trapping defects in the InAlN barrier layer.