Enhanced entropy generation and heat transfer characteristics of magnetic nano-encapsulated phase change materials in latent heat thermal energy storage systems

The objective of the current study is to investigate the importance of entropy generation and thermal radiation on the patterns of velocity,isentropic lines,and temperature contours within a thermal energy storage device filled with magnetic nanoencapsulated phase change materials(NEPCMs).The versatile finite element method(FEM)is implemented to numerically solve the governing equations.The effects of various parameters,including the viscosity parameter,ranging from 1 to 3,the thermal conductivity parameter,ranging from 1 to 3,the Rayleigh parameter,ranging from 102 to 3×10^(2),the radiation number,ranging from 0.1 to 0.5,the fusion temperature,ranging from 1.0 to 1.2,the volume fraction of NEPCMs,ranging from 2%to 6%,the Stefan number,ranging from 1 to 5,the magnetic number,ranging from 0.1 to 0.5,and the irreversibility parameter,ranging from 0.1 to 0.5,are examined in detail on the temperature contours,isentropic lines,heat capacity ratio,and velocity fields.Furthermore,the heat transfer rates at both the cold and hot walls are analyzed,and the findings are presented graphically.The results indicate that the time taken by the NEPCMs to transition from solid to liquid is prolonged inside the chamber region as the fusion temperatureθf increases.Additionally,the contours of the heat capacity ratio Cr decrease with the increase in the Stefan number Ste.

Effects of Water-cement Ratio and Hydration Heat Regulating Materials on Hydration Process of Early-age Cementitious Materials

By means of low-field nuclear magnetic resonance(LF-NMR),the transverse relaxation time(T_(2))signals of physically bound water in cement paste were monitored to indicate water content change and characterize the early-age hydration process.With the curves of the T_(2)signals and hydration time obtained,the hydration process could be divided into four typical periods using the null points of the second derivative curve,and the influences of water-cement ratio(w/c)and hydration heat regulating materials(HHRM)on hydration process were analyzed.The experimental results showed that the hydration rate of pure cement paste in accelerated period presented a positive correlation with w/c.Compared to pure cement paste,the addition of HHRM extended all four periods,and led to a much faster hydration rate in initial period as well as a slower rate in accelerated period.Finally,according to the LFNMR test results,the early-age hydration model of cementitious materials was proposed considering w/c and HHRM content.

Microscopic Analysis of Cementitious Sand and Gravel Damming Materia

The mechanical properties of cementitious sand and gravel damming material have been experimentally determined by means of microscopic SEM(Scanning Electron Microscopy)image analysis.The results show that the combination of fly ash and water can fill the voids in cemented sand and gravel test blocks because of the presence of hydrated calcium silicate and other substances;thereby,the compactness and mechanical properties of these materials can be greatly improved.For every 10 kg/m^(3) increase in the amount of cementitious material,the density increases by about 2%,and the water content decreases by 0.2%.The amount of cementitious material used in the sand and gravel in these tests was 80-110 kg/m^(3),the water-binder ratio was 1-1.50.Moreover,the splitting tensile strength was 1/10 of the compressive strength,and the maximum strength was 7.42 MPa at 90 d.The optimal mix ratio has been found to be 50 kg of cement,60 kg of fly ash and 120 kg of water(C50F60W120).The related dry density was 2.6 g/cm^(3),the water content was 6%,and the water-binder ratio was 1.09.

The Effects of the Particle Size Ratio on the Behaviors of Binary Granular Materials

The particle size ratio(PSR)is an important parameter for binary granular materials,which may aect the microstructure and macro behaviors of granular materials.However,the eect of particle ratio on granular assemblies with dierent arrangements is still unclear.To explore and further clarify the eect of PSR in dierent packing structures,three types of numerical samples with regular,layered,and random packing are designed.Numerical results show that PSR has signi􀀀cant eects on binary granular samples with regular packing.The larger the PSR,the stronger the strength,the larger the modulus,and the smaller the angle between the shear band and the load direction.And a theoretical solution of the peak stress ratio vs.PSR is obtained for regular packing,and the results by DEM are in good agreement with the theoretical solution.Under layered packing,PSR has little eect on peak stress ratio due to similar microstructure obtained with the changing of PSR.The modulus slightly increased with the increase of PSR.Under random packing with small grain content of 50%,PSR has little eect in the range of 0.5–0.9,but in a larger range,larger PSR leads to greater modulus.

Machine learning-based stiffness optimization of digital composite metamaterials with desired positive or negative Poisson's ratio

Mechanical metamaterials such as auxetic materials have attracted great interest due to their unusual properties that are dictated by their architectures.However,these architected materials usually have low stiffness because of the bending or rotation deformation mechanisms in the microstructures.In this work,a convolutional neural network(CNN)based self-learning multi-objective optimization is performed to design digital composite materials.The CNN models have undergone rigorous training using randomly generated two-phase digital composite materials,along with their corresponding Poisson's ratios and stiffness values.Then the CNN models are used for designing composite material structures with the minimum Poisson's ratio at a given volume fraction constraint.Furthermore,we have designed composite materials with optimized stiffness while exhibiting a desired Poisson's ratio(negative,zero,or positive).The optimized designs have been successfully and efficiently obtained,and their validity has been confirmed through finite element analysis results.This self-learning multi-objective optimization model offers a promising approach for achieving comprehensive multi-objective optimization.

Effect of contact angle and helix angle on slide-roll ratio under the accelerated motion state of ball screw mechanism

To study the effect of the contact angle and helix angle on slide-roll ratio at the ball contact points under the accelerated motion state of ball screw mechanisrm(B S M),the curve theory in differential geometry a d the homogeneous transformation matrix ae used to establish the acceleration kinematics model of BSM.The model can be used to describe the accelerated motion relationships among the screw,balls and nut,calculate the acceleration of relative motion at the contact points between the balls and raceways,and analyze five accelerated motion rules between the balls and raceways.It also conducts a simulation analysis of the slide-roll ratio relationship between the accelerations at the ball center and the contact point of ball under different contact angles and helix angles.As shownby the analysis,with the increase in the BSM’s contact angle,the slide-roll ratio at the contact points decreases,and the contact angle has a relatively significant effect on the slide-roll ratio.However,with the decrease in the BSM’helix angle,the slide-roll ratio at the contact points decreases,and the helix angle has a relatively insignificant effect on the slide-roll ratio.By measuring the accelerations of both the screw and nut under the accelerated motion state,it also verifies the existence of the slide-roll mixed motion at the ball contact point A between the ball and the screw racewayand pure rolling at the ball contact point B between the ball and the nut raceway during the accelerated motion.

Preparation and Effect of Rare Earth Composite Ceramic Materials on Reducing Exhaust Emissions

Rare earth composite ceramic materials (RE/CM) were prepared by the method of firing the mixtures of the rare earth elements, polar crystal mineral materials and clays. The effects of processing method on the reducing exhaust emissions were studied. The results show that after dealt with the ceramic balls, the surface tension of gasoline, and the CO concentration among exhaust emissions during combustion, decrease by 2.7% and 11.5%, respectively; however the temperature of the inner flue increases by 4.8%.

Decomposition of Different Organic Materials and Variation of Active Organic Carbon and Nitrogen Contents in Tobacco-planted Soil

The oilseed cake, vetch, rapeseed straw, wheat straw and corn straw were buried in tobacco-planted soil. The decomposition rates, the variation of active organic C and N contents in the residues and the relationship between active organic C and N contents and decomposition rate were investigated. The results showed the decomposition rates of different organic materials were all high in the early period and then low in the late period. Among the organic materials, the decomposition rates ranked as oilseed cake 〉 vetch 〉 wheat straw and rapeseed straw 〉 corn straw. The decomposition rate was positively related to total N content （P〈0.01）, but was negatively related to the active organic C/N ratio （P〈0.01）. However, there was no significant relationship between decomposition ratio and active organic C content. With the proceeding of decomposition, the active organic C content and the total N content in rapeseed straw, vetch, wheat straw and corn straw all trended to increase, but the active organic C/N ratio trended to decrease. However, the variation of active organic C content, total N content and active organic C/N ratio in oilseed cake was on the contrary.

Impact of material and energy flow variation-based iron /steel ratio on production cost

This paper establishes a model for the production cost of iron and steel enterprise.The variation rule of the production cost versus the iron/steel ratio for two cases, namely,fixed steel production and a fixed amount of molten iron,is analyzed,and the concept of a steel scrap threshold price is proposed.According to the analysis results,when the steel scrap unit price exceeds the steel scrap threshold price, an increase in the iron/steel ratio can reduce the production cost,and vice versa.When the gap between the steel scrap unit price and the steel scrap threshold price is relatively large, the impact of the iron/steel ratio on the production cost is more prominent.According to the calculation example,when steel production is fixed （284 358 t/month）and the steel scrap unit price is 263.2 yuan/t more than the steel scrap threshold price,an increase of 0.01 in the iron/steel ratio causes a monthly production cost reduction of approximately 750 000 yuan （2.63 yuan/t）.When the amount of molten iron is fixed （270 425 t/month）and the steel scrap unit price is 140.7 yuan/t more than the threshold price,an increase of 0.01 in the iron/steel ratio causes a monthly production cost reduction of approximately 430 000 yuan （1.5 yuan/t）.The results indicate that iron and steel enterprise should adjust the production strategy in time when the scrap price fluctuates, and then the production cost will be reduced.

Thermally insulating and fire-retardant bio-mimic structural composites with a negative Poisson's ratio for battery protection

Battery safety has attracted considerable attention worldwide due to the rapid development of wearable electronics and the steady increase in the production and use of electric vehicles.As battery failures are often associated with mechanical-thermal coupled behaviors,protective shielding materials with excellent mechanical robustness and flame-retardant properties are highly desired to mitigate thermal runaway.However,most of the thermal insulating materials are not strong enough to protect batteries from mechanical abuse,which is one of the most critical scenarios with catastrophic consequences.Here,inspired by wood,we have developed an effective approach to engineer a hierarchical nanocomposite via self-assembly of calcium silicate hydrate and polyvinyl alcohol polymer chains(referred as CSH wood).The versatile protective material CSH wood demonstrates an unprecedented combination of light weight(0.018 g cm-3),high stiffness(204 MPa in the axial direction),negative Poisson's ratio(-0.15),remarkable toughness(6.67×105 J m-3),superior thermal insulation(0.0204 W m-1 K-1 in the radial direction),and excellent fire retardancy(UL94-V0).When applied as a protective cover or a protective layer within battery packages,the tough CSH wood can resist high-impact load and block heat diffusion to block or delay the spread of fire,therefore significantly reducing the risk of property damage or bodily injuries caused by battery explosions.This work provides new pathways for fabricating advanced thermal insulating materials with large scalability and demonstrates great potential for the protection of electronic devices.

Microstructure and electrical properties of Y_2O_3-doped ZnO-based varistor ceramics prepared by high-energy ball milling

Y2O3-doped ZnO-based varistor ceramics were prepared using high-energy ball milling （HEBM） and low-temperature sin- tering technique, with voltage-gradient of 1934-2197 V/mm, non-linear coefficients of 20.8-21.8, leakage currents of 0.59-1.04 μA, and densities of 5.46-5.57 g/cm3. With increasing Y2O3 content, the voltage-gradient increases because of the decrease of ZnO grain size; the non-linear coefficient and the leakage current improve but the density decreases because of more porosity; the donor con- centration and density of interface states decrease, whereas the barrier height and width increase because of the acceptor effect of Y2O3 in varistor ceramics.

Synthesis and Characterizations of Nanocrystalline WC-Co Composite Powders by a Unique Ball Milling Process

In order to explore the high efficiency of fabricating nanocrystalline WC-Co composite powders, this paper presented a unique high energy ball milling process with variable rotation rate and repeatious circulation, by which nanocrystalline WC-10Co-0.8VC-0.2Cr3C2 (wt pct) composite powders with mean grain size of 25 nm were prepared in 32 min, and the quantity of the powders for a batch was as much as 800 grams. The as-prepared powders were analyzed and characterized by chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The results show that high energy ball milling with variable rotation rates and repeatious circulation could be used to produce nanocrystalline WC-Co powder composites with high efficiency. The compositions of the powders meet its specifications with low impurity content. The mean grain size decreases, lattice distortion and system energy increase with increasing the milling time. The morphology of nanocrystalline WC-Co particles displays dominantiy sphere shape and their particle sizes are all lower than 80 nm. The eutectic temperature of the nanocrystalline WC-10Co-0.8VC-0.2Cr3C2 composites is about 1280℃.

Fatigue Damage Calculated by the Ratio-Method to Materials and Its Machine Part

Several new calculating equations on the damage-evolving rate are suggested for describing the elastic-plastic behavior of some materials under un-symmetric cyclic loading. And the estimating formulas are given of the life relative to varied damage value D oi at each loading history. The method is to adopt the ratio of plastic strain range to elastic strain range as the stress-strain parameter, using the staple material constants as the material parameters in damage calculating expression. And it gives out a new concept of the compositive material constant, that has a functional relation with the staple material constants, average stress,average strain and critical loading time. In addition, it calculates fatigue damage as example for a part of car, its calculating results are accordant with the Landgraf’s equation, and calculating precision is more rigorous, so could avoid unnecessary fatigue tests and will be of practical significance to stint times, manpower and capitals, and to provide convenience for engineering applications.

Multi-collector ICP-MS Analysis of Pb Isotope Ratios in Rocks: Data, Procedure and Caution

The authors measured Pb isotope compositions of seven USGS rock referencestandards, i.e. AGV-1, AGV-2, BHVO-1, BHVO-2, BCR-2, BIR-1/1 and W-2, together with NBS 981 using amicromass isoprobe multi-collector inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS) at theUniversity of Queensland. ^(203)Tl-^(205)Tl isotopes were used as an internal standard to correctfor mass-dependant isotopic fractionation. The results for both NBS 981 and USGS rock standardsAGV-1 and BHVO-1 are comparable to or better than double- and triple-spike TIMS (thermal ionizationmass spectrometry) data in precision. The data for BHVO-2 and, to a lesser extent, AGV-2 and BCR-2are reproducibly higher for ^(206)Pb/^(204)Pb, ^(207)Pb/^(204)Pb and ^(208)Pb/^(204)Pb thandouble-spike TIMS data in the literature. The authors also obtained the Pb isotope data for BIR- 1/1and W-2, which may be used as reference values in future studies. It is found that linearcorrection for Pb isotopic fractionation is adequate with the results identical to those correctedfollowing an exponential law or a power law. Precise ^(207)Pb/^(206)Pb, ^(208)Pb/^(206)Pb and^(208)Pb/^(207)Pb ratios can be acquired for sample solutions with Pb>=1 ppb. However, Pb isotoperatios involving ^(204)Pb (i.e., ^(206)Pb/^(204)Pb, ^(207)Pb/^(204)Pb and ^(208)Pb/^(204)Pb) arereliable for solutions with Pb>=40 ppb. The errors for Pb isotope ratio analysis using the MC-ICP-MSare dominated by errors in the analysis of ^(204)Pb, which is commonly ascribed to the difficultyand imprecise correction for a ^(204)Hg isobaric interference. It is found however that the majorerrors on ^(204)Pb come from the tailings of mass ^(203)Tl and mass ^(205)Tl These mass tailingslead to over-subtraction of the baseline for ^(204)Pb, which is measured at +-0.5 amu on both sidesof mass-204 (i.e., at amu 203.5 and 204.5 respectively). Such errors are insignificant for Pb-richsample solutions (i.e., high Pb/Tl ratios), but can be severe for low-Pb sample solutions whenover-'spiked' with Tl. Experiments in this study suggest that a minimum concentration ratio ofPb/Tl>5 in Tl-'spiked' solutions be required to ensure reliable ^(206)Pb/^(204)Pb, ^(207)Pb/^(204)Pband ^(208)Pb/^(204)Pb isotopic ratios. The tailings of ^(203)Tl and ^(205)Tl can also lead toover-subtraction of baselines for ^(202)Hg (at amu 202.5) and ^(206)Pb (at amu 205.5). Therefore,the elegance of using ^(203)Tl and ^(205)Tl isotopes for mass fractionation correction becomes asevere problem in low-Pb rock solution-caution is required. Alternative internal standards for massfractionation correction may be considered. Of course, significant instrumental refinement inabundance sensitivity is in demand.

Optimization of clay material mixture ratio and filling process in gypsum mine goaf

Because there is neither waste rock nor mill tailings in the gypsum mine, and the buildings on the goaf of gypsum mine are needed to be protected, the research proposed the scheme of the clay filling technology. Gypsum, cement, lime and water glass were used as adhesive, and the strength of different material ratios were investigated in this study. The influence factors of clay strength were obtained in the order of cement, gypsum, water glass and lime. The results show that the cement content is the determinant influence factor, and gypsum has positive effects, while the water glass can enhance both clay strength and the fluidity of the filing slurry. Furthermore, combining chaotic optimization method with neural network, the optimal ratio of composite cementing agent was obtained. The results show that the optimal ratio of water glass, cement, lime and clay (in quality) is 1.17:6.74:4.17:87.92 in the process of bottom self-flow filling, while the optimal ratio is 1.78:9.58:4.71:83.93 for roof-contacted filling. A novel filling process to fill in gypsum mine goaf with clay is established. The engineering practice shows that the filling cost is low, thus, notable economic benefit is achieved.

Determination of water equivalent ratio for some dosimetric materials in proton therapy using MNCPX simulation tool

The water equivalent ratio(WER) was calculated for polypropylene(PP), paraffin, polyethylene(PE), polystyrene(PS), polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA), and polycarbonate materials with potential applications in dosimetry and medical physics. This was performed using the Monte Carlo simulation code, MCNPX, at different proton energies. The calculated WER values were compared with National Institute of Standards and Technology(NIST) data, available experimental and analytical results,as well as the FLUKA, SRIM, and SEICS codes. PP and PMMA were associated with the minimum and maximum WER values, respectively. Good agreement was observed between the MCNPX and NIST data. The biggest difference was 0.71% for PS at 150 MeV proton energy. In addition, a relatively large positive correlation between the WER values and the electron density of the dosimetric materials was observed. Finally, it was noted that PE presented the most analogous Depth Dose Characteristics to liquid water.

Determination of Hf–Sr–Nd isotopic ratios by MC-ICP-MS using rapid acid digestion after flux-free fusion in geological materials

In this study, we established a rapid acid digestion for determining Hf-Sr-Nd isotopic ratios of geological samples by using MC-ICP-MS. Conditions of 1600 ℃ for 1 min and 1400 ℃ for 1 min were adopted for fusing intrusive rocks and extrusive rocks, respectively. The rapid acid digestion technique is superior in digestion time compared with high-pressure PTFE bomb method. The procedural blanks of the method were also lower than that flux fusion. Replicate analyses of international certified reference materials （CRMs） indicate that isotopic ratios of ^176Hf/^177Hf, ^87Sr/^86Sr and 143Nd/144Nd agree well with previously published data. The external reproducibility （2SD, n = 5） of ten CRMs are ±0.000030 for ^87Sr/^86Sr, ± 0.000030 for ^143Nd/^144Nd, and ±0.000018 for ^176Hf/^177Hf.

Mass ratio design based on compaction properties of backfill materials

The backfill-mining mass ratio is the ratio of the mass of the backfill materials in the goaf to the mass of the produced raw coal during solid backfill mining and it is regarded as a direct control index of the backfill effect in solid backfill mining. To design the backfill-mining mass ratio in a solid backfill mining panel, the backfill-mining mass ratio was defined on the basis of the basic principle of solid backfill mining. In addition, the density-stress relationship of backfill materials under compaction was obtained for five types of materials to derive a design formula for backfill-mining mass ratio. Moreover, the 6304-1 backfill panel under the large-scale dam of Ji′ning No. 3 coal mine was taken as an engineering case to design the backfill-mining mass ratio. In this way, it is found that the designed backfill-mining mass ratio is 1.22, while the mean value of the measured backfill-mining mass ratio is 1.245. Besides, the maximum roof subsidence is only 340 mm which effectively guarantees the backfill effect in the panel and control of strata movement and surface subsidence.

Form and Mechanism of Sulfate Attack on Cement-based Material Made of Limestone Powder at Low Water-binder Ratio under Low Temperature Conditions

The development of strength and the form of attack of cement-based material made of limestone powder at low water-binder ratio under low-temperature sulfate environment were studied. The results indicate that when water-binder ratio is lower than 0.40, the cement-based material with limestone powder has insignificant change in appearance after being soaked in 10% magnesium sulfate solution at low temperature for 120 d, and has significant change in appearance after being soaked at the age of 200 d. Expansion damage and exfoliation occur on the surface of concrete test cube at different levels. When limestone powder accounts for about 28 percent of cementitious material, with the decrease of water-binder ratio, the compressive strength loss has gradually decreased after the material is soaked in the magnesium sulfate solution at low temperature at the age of 200 d. After the specimen with the water-binder ratio of less than 0.4 and the limestone powder volume of greater than 20% is soaked in 10% magnesium sulfate solution at low temperature at the age of 200 d, gypsum attack-led destruction is caused to the concrete test cube, without thaumasite sulfate attack.

Multirange Fractals in Materials: Applications to Fracture and Mechanical Alloying under Ball Milling

A new model of multirange fractals is proposed to explain the experimental results observed on the fractal dimensions of the fractured surfaces in materials. A new explanation to the Williford's multifractal curve on the relationship of fractal dimension with fracture properties in materials has been given. It shows the importance of fractorizing out the effect of fractal structure from other physical causes and separating the appropriate range of scale from multirange fractals. Mechanical alloying process under ball milling as a non-equilibrium dynamical system has been also analyzed.