Cluster and Condensed Phase Properties of Light Elements (especially B, C, N, Na and Si)

Amorphous forms of C will first be compared and contrasted with amorphous Si, the differences in chemical bonding being emphasized in relation to atomic structure. After a brief discussion of ordered layers of graphite and of BN, some attention will be focused on BN cages and polymers and on C nanotubes. Finally properties of Na metal clusters will be discussed, including fission of such charged clusters

Elastic properties of disordered binary hcp-Fe alloys under high pressure: Effects of light elements

The effects of light elements on the elastic properties of disordered binary hcp-Fe alloys were investigated at high pressures using plane-wave density functional theory combined with the Monte Carlo special quasi-random structure method.We found that the increase in the O content in hcp-Fe had a more pronounced effect on the sound velocity than Si,S,and C.The longitudinal wave velocity was decreased by∼6%with 2%O content,which was a much greater decrease than the values of 0.6%and 2%induced by the same content of Si and S,respectively,under high pressures.Compared with the other three light elements,the longitudinal wave velocity of the Fe-C alloy exhibited the most gradual decreasing with increasing C content.In addition,the effects of different O and S contents on the anisotropy of hcp-Fe alloys strongly depended on the variation in pressure,whereas the pressure only slightly affected the anisotropy of Fe-Si alloy systems.

Correlations between Light Rare Earth Elements in Soil and Navel Orange Tree System in Gannan Area

The total content of light rare earth elements( LREEs) in the soil of navel orange orchards of Gannan area is greater than that of heavy rare earth elements( HREEs). Appropriate content of LREE can not only promote the growth of navel oranges,and it is also conducive to human health. On the basis of exploring the correlations between the content of LREE in the soil of navel orange orchards of Gannan area and the contents of LREE in navel orange leaves and fruit,the influence mechanism of LREEs on the quality of navel oranges was revealed. In this study,with two Newhall navel orange orchards with different soil LREEs background levels in Xinfeng County as the research object,the changes in the content of LREE( lanthanum,La; cerium,Ce; praseodymium,Pr; neodymium,Nd) in leaves and fruit of navel orange at different growth stages were analyzed using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry( ICP-MS),and the correlations between the content of LREE in the soil,navel orange leaves and navel orange fruit were studied. The results showed that the contents of the four kinds of LREEs in the soil ranked as Ce > La > Nd > Pr,and there were significant differences among them( P < 0. 01). Navel orange leaves and fruit have selective and heterogenic absorption for LREEs. At different growth stages,La showed the highest accumulation amount in the leaves and fruit of navel orange; and the content of LREE in the leaves of navel orange increased first and then decreased,while that in the fruit of navel orange showed continuous decrease. During the migration of LREEs from soil to leaves to fruit,the content of LREE decreased rapidly as the migration distance increased. The accumulation amount of LREE in navel orange was positively correlated with the content of LREE in the soil. The correlation between the content of LREE in the leaves and fruit of navel orange was greatest. Among the four kinds of LREEs,the correlation of La was greatest,followed by Ce,indicating that the accumulation amount of LREE in the navel orange body was affected by the element types.

Light alloying element‐regulated noble metal catalysts for energy‐related applications

Noble metals have been widely used as heterogeneous catalysts because they exhibit high activity and selectivity for many reactions of both academic and industrial interest.The introduction of light atomic species(e.g.,H,B,C,and N)into noble metal lattices plays an important role in optimizing catalytic performance by modulating structural and electronic properties.In this review,we present a general overview of the recent advances in the modification of noble metals with light alloying elements for various catalytic reactions,particularly for energy‐related applications.We summarize the types,location,concentration,and ordering degree of light atoms as major factors in the performance of noble metal‐based catalysts,with emphasis on how they can be rationally controlled to promote activity and selectivity.We then summarize the synthetic strategies developed to incorporate light elements and highlight the theoretical and experimental methods for understanding the alloying effects.We further focus on the wide usage of noble metal‐based catalysts modified with different light alloying atoms and attempt to correlate the structural features with their catalytic performances.Finally,we discuss current challenges and future perspectives regarding the development of highly efficient noble metal‐based catalysts modified with light elements.

Study effects of El Jadida—Casablanca industrial zone neighbouring areas

The analytical technique PIXE experiment for measuring light and heavy elements concentration inside different samples of soil and residual water collected in the region of Safi-El Jadida, where an industrial complex resided, was performed. The same method was used to investigate the presence of elements ranging from silicon to lead in different soils samples and seaweed collected upstream from the site of Safi-El Jadida industrial zone, inside lands and downstream of it, in the entrance of the Casablanca region. This study allows us to highlight the influence of activities of this industrial zone on the neighbouring areas the site.

Solvent extraction and separation of light rare earth elements (La, Pr and Nd) in the presence of lactic acid as a complexing agent by Cyanex 272 in kerosene and the effect of citric acid,acetic acid and Titriplex Ⅲ as auxiliary agents

At present, the use of rare earth elements（REEs） has become an inevitable necessity in many modern industries. In general, liquid extraction is the best commercial method for extracting REEs due to its ability to control high volumes of liquids with electrical load. With the aim of improving a separation technology that would be superior to the existing extraction systems, the extraction behaviors of La（Ⅲ）,Pr（Ⅲ）, and Nd（Ⅲ） from an HCI medium with Cyanex 272 in the presence of the complexing agent lactic acid（HLac） and auxiliary agents citric acid（H3 Cit）, acetic acid（HAc）, and Titriplex Ⅲ have been reported.The effect of pH and lactic acid concentration has been examined. The use of lactic acid as a complexing agent leading to a high extraction of REEs with Cyanex 272 at pH = 5 was compared with systems without lactic acid. The results show that the use of acetic acid along with lactic acid leads to an increase in the extraction percentage of LREEs. While use of citric acid and Titriplex Ⅲ reduces the extraction percentage of LREEs. Finally, the presence of Titriplex Ⅲ together with lactic acid could lead to an increase in the separation factor of Pr and Nd.

Size effect of lattice material and minimum weight design

The size effects of microstructure of lattice materials on structural analysis and minimum weight design are studied with extented multiscale finite element method（EMsFEM） in the paper. With the same volume of base material and configuration, the structural displacement and maximum axial stress of micro-rod of lattice structures with different sizes of microstructure are analyzed and compared.It is pointed out that different from the traditional mathematical homogenization method, EMsFEM is suitable for analyzing the structures which is constituted with lattice materials and composed of quantities of finite-sized micro-rods.The minimum weight design of structures composed of lattice material is studied with downscaling calculation of EMsFEM under stress constraints of micro-rods. The optimal design results show that the weight of the structure increases with the decrease of the size of basic sub-unit cells. The paper presents a new approach for analysis and optimization of lattice materials in complex engineering constructions.