Extended finite element-based cohesive zone method for modeling simultaneous hydraulic fracture height growth in layered reservoirs

In this study,a fully coupled hydromechanical model within the extended finite element method(XFEM)-based cohesive zone method(CZM)is employed to investigate the simultaneous height growth behavior of multi-cluster hydraulic fractures in layered porous reservoirs with modulus contrast.The coupled hydromechanical model is first verified against an analytical solution and a laboratory experiment.Then,the fracture geometry(e.g.height,aperture,and area)and fluid pressure evolutions of multiple hydraulic fractures placed in a porous reservoir interbedded with alternating stiff and soft layers are investigated using the model.The stress and pore pressure distributions within the layered reservoir during fluid injection are also presented.The simulation results reveal that stress umbrellas are easily to form among multiple hydraulic fractures’tips when propagating in soft layers,which impedes the simultaneous height growth.It is also observed that the impediment effect of soft layer is much more significant in the fractures suppressed by the preferential growth of adjoining fractures.After that,the combined effect of in situ stress ratio and fracturing spacing on the multi-fracture height growth is presented,and the results elucidate the influence of in situ stress ratio on the height growth behavior depending on the fracture spacing.Finally,it is found that the inclusion of soft layers changes the aperture distribution of outmost and interior hydraulic fractures.The results obtained from this study may provide some insights on the understanding of hydraulic fracture height containment observed in filed.

Preparation of large In(OH)3 and In2O3 particles through a seed-mediated growth method in a microreactor

Indium hydroxide(ln(OH)3)and indium oxide(ln2O3)particles are typically synthesized through chemical precipitation methods.In this study,we used a seed-mediated growth method and microreactor-based synthesis process.We synthesized cubic In(OH)3 particles with a crystal size of 172 nm from an 5%(w/v)indium chloride solution.The In2O3 particles synthesized through the thermal decomposition of In(OH)3 particles featured crystals up to 90 nm in size with an average size of 73 nm,which were much larger than the 20-30 nm In2O3 particles synthesized by a traditional precipitation method.The concentrations of the seed and growth solutions were varied from 1%to 7%(w/v).The crystal size of the particles increased with the concentration of the seed and growth solutions;this tendency was the opposite to that observed for the precipitation method.Through the use of a 5%(w/v)seed solution,the flow rate of the growth solution was varied from 1 to 10mL/min,and the resulting crystal size decreased as the flow rate was increased.To understand the reasons for this trend,the growth rate of the crystals was determined at different flow rates(i.e.,1,5,and 10 mL/min).A growth model consistent with the experimental results was established,which demonstrated that slow addition of the growth solution was beneficial for preparing large indium hydroxide particles.

Seed-mediated growth method for high-quality noble metal nanocrystals

This review highlights work from the authors' laboratory on the recent development of seed-mediated growth method for noble metal nanocrystals. The seed-mediated growth method has become one of the most efficient and versatile methods for synthe-sizing high-quality noble metal nanocrystals. The seed-mediated growth method can separate the nucleation and growth stages of metal nanocrystals, and thus provide better control over the size, size distribution, and crystallographic evolution of metal nanocrystals. Because of its high controllability, the seed-mediated growth method is especially promising in providing mechanistic insights into the growth mechanisms of noble metal nanocrystals. In this review, the thermodynamic and kinetic parameters for the nucleation and growth of noble metal nanocrystals are systematically summarized. Mechanistic understanding of these parameters is provided. These studies provide useful guidelines for the rational design and synthesis of novel noble metal nanocrystals with high quality.

Seed-mediated growth of gold nanoparticles using self-assembled monolayer of polystyrene microspheres as nanotemplate arrays

Arrays of noble metal nanoparticles show potential applications in （bio-）sensing, optical storage, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, and waveguides. For all such potential devices, controlling the size, morphology, and interparticle spacing of the nanoparticles is very important. Here, we combine seed-mediated growth with nanosphere lithography to study the controllable growth of gold nanoparticles （Au NPs）, in which the self-assembly monolayer of polystyrene （PS） on a silicon surface is used to guide the modification of allaunesilanes and the subsequent adsorption of gold seeds; seed-mediated growth is applied to controlling the morphology and size of Au NPs. The size of adsorption region （determining the number of adsorbed gold seeds） is controlled by etching PS microspheres with oxygen plasma or annealing PS microspheres at the glass transition temperature. The size and morphology of the Au NPs are controlled by changing growth conditions. In such a way, we have achieved the dual control of the obtained Au NPs. Preliminary results show that this strategy holds a great promise. This approach can also be extended to a wide range of materials and substrates.

Recent progresses in the suppression method based on the growth mechanism of lithium dendrite

Lithium secondary batteries（LSBs） with high energy densities need to be further developed for future applications in portable electronic devices, electric vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles and smart grids. Lithium metal is the most promising electrode for next-generation rechargeable batteries. However, the formation of lithium dendrite on the anode surface leads to serious safety concerns and low coulombic efficiency.Recently, researchers have made great efforts and significant progresses to solve these problems. Here we review the growth mechanism and suppression method of lithium dendrite for LSBs’ anode protection. We also establish the relationship between the growth mechanism and suppression method. The research direction for building better LSBs is given by comparing the advantages and disadvantages of these methods based on the growth mechanism.

Key Techniques and Applications of Adaptive Growth Method for Stiffener Layout Design of Plates and Shells

The application of the adaptive growth method is limited because several key techniques during the design process need manual intervention of designers. Key techniques of the method including the ground structure construction and seed selection are studied, so as to make it possible to improve the effectiveness and applicability of the adaptive growth method in stiffener layout design optimization of plates and shells. Three schemes of ground structures, which are comprised by different shell elements and beam elements, are proposed. It is found that the main stiffener layouts resulted from different ground structures are almost the same, but the ground structure comprised by 8-nodes shell elements and both 3-nodes and 2-nodes beam elements can result in clearest stiffener layout, and has good adaptability and low computational cost. An automatic seed selection approach is proposed, which is based on such selection rules that the seeds should be positioned on where the structural strain energy is great for the minimum compliance problem, and satisfy the dispersancy requirement. The adaptive growth method with the suggested key techniques is integrated into an ANSYS-based program, which provides a design tool for the stiffener layout design optimization of plates and shells. Typical design examples, including plate and shell structures to achieve minimum compliance and maximum bulking stability are illustrated. In addition, as a practical mechanical structural design example, the stiffener layout of an inlet structure for a large-scale electrostatic precipitator is also demonstrated. The design results show that the adaptive growth method integrated with the suggested key techniques can effectively and flexibly deal with stiffener layout design problem for plates and shells with complex geometrical shape and loading conditions to achieve various design objectives, thus it provides a new solution method for engineering structural topology design optimization.

Application of the Method of Characteristics to Population Balance Models Considering Growth and Nucleation Phenomena

The population balance modeling is regarded as a universally accepted mathematical framework for dynamic simulation of various particulate processes, such as crystallization, granulation and polymerization. This article is concerned with the application of the method of characteristics (MOC) for solving population balance models describing batch crystallization process. The growth and nucleation are considered as dominant phenomena, while the breakage and aggregation are neglected. The numerical solutions of such PBEs require high order accuracy due to the occurrence of steep moving fronts and narrow peaks in the solutions. The MOC has been found to be a very effective technique for resolving sharp discontinuities. Different case studies are carried out to analyze the accuracy of proposed algorithm. For validation, the results of MOC are compared with the available analytical solutions and the results of finite volume schemes. The results of MOC were found to be in good agreement with analytical solutions and superior than those obtained by finite volume schemes.

Analysis on high-temperature oxidation and growth stress of iron-based alloy using phase field method

High-temperature oxidation is an important property to evaluate thermal protection materials. However, since oxidation is a complex process involving microstructure evolution, its quantitative analysis has always been a challenge. In this work, a phase field method （PFM） based on the thermodynamics theory is developed to simulate the oxidation behavior and oxidation induced growth stress. It involves microstructure evolution and solves the problem of quantitatively computational analysis for the oxidation behavior and growth stress. Employing this method, the diffusion process, oxidation performance, and stress evolution axe predicted for Fe-Cr-A1-Y alloys. The numerical results agree well with the experimental data. The linear relationship between the maximum growth stress and the environment oxygen concentration is found. PFM provides a powerful tool to investigate high-temperature oxidation in complex environments.

Growth and characterization of superconducting Ca_(1-x)Na_(x)Fe_(2)As_(2) single crystals by NaAs-flux method

High-quality superconducting Ca_(1-x)Na_(x)Fe_(2)As_(2)single crystals have been successfully grown by the NaAs-flux method,with sodium doping level x=0.4–0.64.The typical sizes of these crystals are more than 10 mm in ab-plane and~0.1 mm along c-axis in thickness.X-ray diffraction,resistance and magnetization measurements are carried out to characterize the quality of these crystals.While no signature of magnetic phase transitions is detected in the normal state,bulk superconductivity is found for these samples,with a sharp transition at T_(c) ranging from 19.8 K(x=0.4)to 34.8 K(x=0.64).The doping dependences of the c-axis parameter and T_(c) are consistent with previous reports,suggesting a possible connection between the lattice parameters and superconductivity.

Study on the Bubble Growth and Departure with A Lattice Boltzmann Method

For the growth and departure of bubbles from an orifice, a free energy lattice Boltzmann model is adopted to deal with this complex multiphase flow phenomenon. A virtual layer is set at the boundary of the flow domain to deal with the no-slip boundary condition. Effects of the viscosity, surface tension, gas inertial force and buoyancy on the characteristics of bubbles when they grow and departure from an orifice in quiescent liquid are studied. The releasing period and departure diameter of the bubble are influenced by the residual gas at the orifice, and the interaction between bubbles is taken into consideration. The relations between the releasing period or departure diameter and the gravity acceleration show fair agreements with previous numerical and theoretical results. And the influence of the gas outflow velocity on bubble formation is discussed as well. For the bubbles growing in cross-flow field, effects of the cross-flow speed and the gas outflow velocity on the bubble formation are discussed, which is related to the application in ship resistance reduction. And optimal choice of the ship speed and gas outflow velocity is studied. Cases in this paper also prove that this high density ratio LBM model has its flexibility and effectiveness on multiphase flow simulations.

A Novel Deflection Method for Measuring the Growth Stress of Thermally Growing Oxide Scales

A kind of new deflection technique has been developed for measuring the growth stress of thermally growing oxide scales during high temperature oxidation of alloys. The average growth stresses in oxide scales such as Al2O3, NiO and Cr2O3 formed on the surface of the superalloys can be investigated by this technique. Unlike the comventional deflection method, the novel method does not need to apply a coating for preventing one main face of thin strip specimen from oxidizing and can be used under the condition of longer time and higher temperature.

Preparation,Growth Mechanisms and Characterizations of ZnSe Films via the Solvothermal Method

With diethylamine as a solvent, ZnSe films were formed on the Si substrate directly from zinc and selenium through the modified solvothermal method. The effects of holding temperature, deposition time and substrate surface treatment on the quality and morphologies of the ZnSe films were investigated. The growth mechanism of ZnSe films was proved to be a layer-nucleation growth process, which was tied in with the Stranski-Krastanov （SK） model. ZnSe films were identified by the X-ray diffraction pattern （XRD）, the scanning electron microscope （SEM）, the X-ray photoelectron spectroscope （XPS） and the photoluminescence （PL） techniques. The results indicate that the modified solvothermal method with diethylamine as a solvent is suitable to prepare high quality ZnSe films.

Grain Growth Kinetics of SnO_2 Nanocrystals Synthesized by Precipitation Method

Monodispersed spheroidal SnO2 nanocrystals with the grain size of 8-30 nm were synthesized by the precipitation method using SnCl4·5H2O （stannic chloride hydrate） as raw materials.Differential scanning calorimetry/thermogravimetry （DSC/TG）,X-ray diffraction （XRD） and transmission electron microscope （TEM） were used to characterize the structure of SnO2 nanocrystals.The influences of the calcination temperature and time on the lattice constant,the lattice distortion and the grain size of SnO2 nanocrystals were discussed based on the XRD results.The grain growth kinetics of SnO2 nanocrystals during calcination process was simulated with a conventional grain growth model which only took into account of diffusion and with a new isothermal model proposed by our group,which took into account of both diffusion and surface reactions.Using conventional model,the grain growth rate constant of SnO2 crystals is 1.55×104nm5/min with a pre-exponential factor of 5 and an activation energy of 108.62 kJ/mol.Compared with the convention model,the new isothermal model is more realistic in reflecting the grain growth behavior of SnO2 nanocrystals during the calcination process.This indicates that the grain growth of SnO2 nanocrystals is controlled by both diffusion and reaction factors,and the effect of surface reactivity on the grain growth of SnO2 nanocrystals could not be ignored.A combined activation energy estimated with the new isothermal model is 53.46 kJ/mol.

Effect of culture methods on individual variation in the growth of sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus within a cohort and family

There is substantial individual variation in the growth rates of sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus individuals. This necessitates additional work to grade the seed stock and lengthens the production period. We evaluated the infl uence of three culture methods(free-mixed, isolated-mixed, isolated-alone) on individual variation in growth and assessed the relationship between feeding, energy conversion efficiency, and individual growth variation in individually cultured sea cucumbers. Of the different culture methods, animals grew best when reared in the isolated-mixed treatment(i.e., size classes were held separately), though there was no difference in individual variation in growth between rearing treatment groups. The individual variation in growth was primarily attributed to genetic factors. The difference in food conversion efficiency caused by genetic differences among individuals was thought to be the origin of the variance. The level of individual growth variation may be altered by interactions among individuals and environmental heterogeneity. Our results suggest that, in addition to traditional seed grading, design of a new kind of substrate that changes the spatial distribution of sea cucumbers would effectively enhance growth and reduce individual variation in growth of sea cucumbers in culture.

Machine Learning to Instruct Single Crystal Growth by Flux Method

Growth of high-quality single crystals is of great significance for research of condensed matter physics. The exploration of suitable growing conditions for single crystals is expensive and time-consuming, especially for ternary compounds because of the lack of ternary phase diagram. Here we use machine learning(ML) trained on our experimental data to predict and instruct the growth. Four kinds of ML methods, including support vector machine(SVM), decision tree, random forest and gradient boosting decision tree, are adopted. The SVM method is relatively stable and works well, with an accuracy of 81% in predicting experimental results. By comparison,the accuracy of laboratory reaches 36%. The decision tree model is also used to reveal which features will take critical roles in growing processes.

Quantifying growth and breakage of agglomerates in fluid-particle flow using discrete particle method

The cohesive solids in liquid flows are featured by the dynamic growth and breakage of agglomerates, and the difficulties in the development, design and optimization of these systems are related to this significant feature.In this paper, discrete particle method is used to simulate a solid–liquid flow system including millions of cohesive particles, the growth rate and breakage rate of agglomerates are then systematically investigated. It was found that the most probable size of the agglomerates is determined by the balance of growth and breakage of the agglomerates the cross point of the lines of growth rate and breakage rate as a function of the particle numbers in an agglomerate, marks the most stable agglomerate size. The finding here provides a feasible way to quantify the dynamic behaviors of growth and breakage of agglomerates, and therefore offers the possibility of quantifying the effects of agglomerates on the hydrodynamics of fluid flows with cohesive particles.

Studies on the Synthesis, Growth and Characterization of ([Paranitrophenyl]Imino)Benzene NLO Crystal by Sankaranarayanan-Ramasamy Method

The study of imine-bridged organics has been the hot spot synthesis of second order nonlinear optical (SONLO) and photo-responsive materials in recent years. Herein we present a study of synthesis, growth, and characterization of ([paranitrophenyl]imino)benzene (PNPIB) NLO single crystal. The title compound was synthesized in one step by Schiff base formation. PNPIB single crystal of diameter of 40 mmand length 50 mmwas successfully grown by SR method using a seed as the nucleus. The growth rate formula is derived for the SR method. PNPIB single crystals of 10 mmdiameter and 60 mmheight have been grown at an average growth rate of 3 mmper day from the point seed in a glass crystallizer. Almost 100% stable crystal conversion efficiency was achieved. The as grown PNPIB crystals were characterized using single crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), Ultraviolet-Visible-Near Infrared (UV-Vis-NIR), 1H & 13C NMR spectral studies, dielectric measurement and NLO studies. Single crystal XRD analysis confirms that the grown ingot belongs to the space group of P2 of monoclinic system thus exhibiting noncentrosymmetric structure. The crystalline perfection was assessed by XRPD. The powder diffraction pattern of the grown crystal has been indexed. The presence of C=N bond with intramolecular hydrogen bonding and the protonation of ions were confirmed by FTIR analysis. The UV-Vis-NIR spectrum of the crystal shows that the crystal has a cut-off at 298 nm. The 1H & 13C NMR spectra confirm the molecular structure. The dielectric behaviour was measured in the frequency range 1 KHz - 10 KHz for the temperature range from 30℃ to 170℃. The slight decrease in dielectric constant has been observed as the frequency is increased and the dielectric loss is very low for the entire frequency range. The second harmonic generation (SHG) in the crystal was observed by Kurtz powder technique.

Fatigue crack growth rate test using a frequency sweep method

Fatigue crack propagation characteristics of a diesel engine crankshaft are studied by measuring the fatigue crack growth rate using a frequency sweep method on a resonant fatigue test rig. Based on the phenomenon that the system frequency will change when the crack becomes large, this method can be directly applied to a complex component or structure. Finite element analyses (FEAs) are performed to calibrate the relation between the frequency change and the crack size, and to obtain the natural frequency of the test rig and the stress intensity factor (SIF) of growing cracks. The crack growth rate i.e. da/dN-ΔK of each crack size is obtained by combining the testing-time monitored data and FEA results. The results show that the crack growth rate of engine crankshaft, which is a component with complex geometry and special surface treatment, is quite different from that of a pure material. There is an apparent turning point in the Paris's crack partition. The cause of the fatigue crack growth is also dis-cussed.

Effects of Different Density-reducing Methods on Canopy Microenvironment, Tree Growth and Fruit Quality in Closed Apple Orchard

In order to optimize and transform closed mature apple orchards with standard rootstocks and improve the quality of fruit,taking a closed Red Fuji apple orchard as the test object,the effects of different density-reducing methods(deinterlacing,removing every other plant in each row,removing every other plant every other row)on the canopy microenvironment,tree structure,leaf photosynthesis and fruit quality were studied.The results showed that different density-reducing methods significantly reduced the orchard coverage and increased the crown transmittance.Among them,the deinterlacing treatment was the best in improving the population structure of the closed orchard,as it reduced the orchard coverage rate by 55.68 percentage points and the canopy transmittance by 82.38 percentage points,compared with the control(CK).Different density-reducing methods all could significantly reduce the branch amount in the closed orchard and optimized the branch composition.The three density-reducing methods decreased the number of branches per plant by 18.96%,12.41%and 19.58%,respectively,compared with the CK.And compared with the CK,the proportion of short branches and leafy branches to the total branches was increased by 17.13%,14.27%and 7.37%,respectively,and the proportion of long branches and developmental branches to the total branches was decreased by 24.47%,18.04%and 10.79%,respectively.The effects of the different density-reducing methods on the temperature,relative light intensity,SPAD and leaf photosynthetic rate in canopies all followed an order of deinterlacing>removing every other plant in each row>removing every other plant every other row>CK,while those on the relative humidity showed an order of deinterlacing>removing every other plant in each row>removing every other plant every other row>CK,while those on the relative humidity showed an order of deinterlacing<removing every other plant in each row<removing every other plant every other row<CK.The average single fruit weight(238.3 g),coloring index(89.2),smoothness index(83.2),soluble solid content(15.1%)and high quality fruit rate(82.4%)of the deinterlacing treatment were higher than those of other treatments,and the values were 18.2%,11.4%,5.85%,26.9%and 25.2%higher than the CK,respectively.The use of dein￣terlacing to reduce density is the best for improving the microenvironment of closed apple orchards and improving the photosynthetic efficiency and fruit quality.