Compact Electric Energy Storage for Marine Vehicles Using on-Board Hydrogen Production

The use of electric energy in marine vessels has been increasing in recent years. In general, it is motivated by the low ecological impact. However, in the case of underwater vehicles it is functionally essential. The objective of this study is to demonstrate the advantage of electric power generation and storage based on on-board hydrogen generation via the reaction between activated aluminum and water and application of the hydrogen in a fuel cell. The original activation process enabling a spontaneous reaction with water to produce hydrogen as well as a parametric study of hydrogen generation rate and yield are briefly described. The potential increase in specific energy （energy per unit mass） and energy density （energy per unit volume） vs. batteries and other means of hydrogen storage is presented. It is shown that the use of the present technology may result in a substantial increase of specific electric energy along with a reduction in volume or an increase in operating time for the same overall mass of energy storage and generation system.

Regeneration of Spent Catalyst and Impregnation of Catalyst by Supercritical Fluid

The possibility and feasibility of using supercritical fluid СО2 extraction process have been investigated and described in the book as part of the task of spent catalysts regeneration. The analysis of deactivating compounds has been carried out for industrial catalysts such as: 1) palladium catalyst G-58E of ethane-ethylene fraction hydrogenation;2) nickel/kieselguhr catalyst of process of separating acetylenic compounds from isoprene;3) active aluminum oxide catalyst of methyl phenyl carbinol dehydration process;4) palladium catalyst LD-265 of hydrocarbons hydrogenation process;5) nickel-molybdenum catalysts DN-3531 and Criterion 514 of kerosene hydrotreating process. The results of the study of catalyst deactivating compounds solubility in pure supercritical carbon dioxide and supercritical carbon dioxide are modified with polar additive. The results of the solubility study are described using the Peng-Robinson equation of state. The results of the implementation of the supercritical fluid СО2 extraction process with respect to deactivated industrial catalyst samples have been provided. A comparison of the characteristics of samples of catalysts regenerated using the traditional approach and the SC-CO2 extraction process has been conducted. The possibility of using supercritical fluid CO2 impregnation process in the synthesis of a palladium catalyst has been investigated. The synthesis of palladium chloride-based organometallic complexes has been carried out. The results of the study of solubility thereof in supercritical carbon dioxide have been provided. A dynamic supercritical fluid CO2 impregnation process condition has been implemented. A comparison of the characteristics of palladium catalyst samples synthesized using the conventional approach and SC-CO2 impregnation process has been conducted and presented in the book.

A functional hydrogenase mimic that catalyzes robust H_(2) evolution spontaneously in aqueous environment

Although great progress has been made in improving hydrogen production,highly efficient catalysts,which are able to produce hydrogen in a fast and steady way at ambient temperature and pressure,are still in large demand.Here,we report a[NiCo]-based hydrogenase mimic,NiCo_(2)O_(4) nanozyme,that can catalyze robust hydrogen evolution spontaneously in water without external energy input at room temperature.This hydrogenase nanozyme facilitates water splitting reaction by forming a three-center Ni-OH-Co bond analogous to the[NiFe]-hydrogenase reaction by using aluminum as electron donor,and realizes hydrogen evolution with a high production rate of 915 L·h^(-1) per gram of nanozymes,which is hundreds of times higher than most of the natural hydrogenase or hydrogenase mimics.Furthermore,the NiCo_(2)O_(4) nanozyme can robustly disrupt the adhesive oxidized layer of aluminum and enable the full consumption of electrons from aluminum.In contrast to the often-expensive synthetic catalysts that rely on rare elements and consume high energy,we envision that this NiCo_(2)O_(4) nanozyme can potentially provide an upgrade for current hydrogen evolution,accelerate the development of scale-up hydrogen production,and generate a clean energy future.

Potential acute effects of suspended aluminum nitride (AlN) nanoparticles on soluble microbial products (SMP) of activated sludge

The study aims to identify the potential acute effects of suspended aluminum nitride（Al N）nanoparticles（NPs） on soluble microbial products（SMP） of activated sludge.Cultured activated sludge loaded with 1,10,50,100,150 and 200 mg/L of Al N NPs were carried out in this study.As results showed,Al N NPs had a highly inverse proportionality to bacterial dehydrogenase and OUR,indicating its direct toxicity to the activated sludge viability.The toxicity of Al N NPs was mainly due to the nano-scale of Al N NPs.In SMP,Al N NPs led to the decrease of polysaccharide and humic compounds,but had slight effects on protein.The decrease of tryptophan-like substances in SMP indicated the inhibition of Al N NPs on the bacterial metabolism.Additionally,Al N NPs reduced obviously the molecular weight of SMP,which might be due to the nano-scale of Al N.