GaInX_3(X=S,Se,Te):Ultra-low thermal conductivity and excellent thermoelectric performance

Seeking intrinsically low thermal conductivity materials is a viable strategy in the pursuit of high-performance thermoelectric materials.Here,by using first-principles calculations and semiclassical Boltzmann transport theory,we systemically investigate the carrier transport and thermoelectric properties of monolayer Janus GaInX_(3)(X=S,Se,Te).It is found that the lattice thermal conductivities can reach values as low as 3.07 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1),1.16 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1)and 0.57 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1)for GaInS_(3),GaInSe_(3),and GaInTe_(3),respectively,at room temperature.This notably low thermal conductivity is attributed to strong acoustic-optical phonon coupling caused by the presence of low-frequency optical phonons in GaInX_(3) materials.Furthermore,by integrating the charac teristics of electronic and thermal transport,the dimensionless figure of merit ZT can reach maximum values of 0.95,2.37,and 3.00 for GaInS_(3),GaInSe_(3),and GaInTe_(3),respectively.Our results suggest that monolayer Janus GaInX_(3)(X=S,Se,Te)is a promising candidate for thermoelectric and heat management applications.

Improving the electrical performances of InSe transistors by interface engineering

InSe has emerged as a promising candidate for next-generation electronics due to its predicted ultrahigh electrical performance.However,the efficacy of the InSe transistor in meeting application requirements is hindered due to its sensitivity to interfaces.In this study,we have achieved notable enhancement in the electrical performance of InSe transistors through interface engineering.We engineered an InSe/h-BN heterostructure,effectively suppressing dielectric layer-induced scattering.Additionally,we successfully established excellent metal-semiconductor contacts using graphene ribbons as a buffer layer.Through a methodical approach to interface engineering,our graphene/InSe/h-BN transistor demonstrates impressive on-state current,field-effect mobility,and on/off ratio at room temperature,reaching values as high as 1.1 mA/μm,904 cm^(2)·V^(-1)·s^(-1),and>10~6,respectively.Theoretical computations corroborate that the graphene/InSe heterostructure shows significant interlayer charge transfer and weak interlayer interaction,contributing to the enhanced performance of InSe transistors.This research offers a comprehensive strategy to elevate the electrical performance of InSe transistors,paving the way for their utilization in future electronic applications.

Investigating the Impact of Base Heating and External Electric Field on PV Cell Performance under Intense Illumination

The characterization of the performances of a PV cell is linked to intrinsic factors of this cell. It is therefore important for us to identify the favorable or unfavorable conditions that affect the performance of PV cells. It is from this perspective that it seems judicious to us to study the simultaneous influence of the heating of the base and an external electric field on the performance of a PV cell under intense illumination of 50 suns. Two phenomena contribute to the heating of the base of a PV cell which is heating due to the transfer by conduction of solar radiation energy received by the surface of the PV cell and the heat generated inside the PV cell by various phenomena linked to the movement of photogenerated charged carriers. In this study, we take into account the heating linked to the movement of the charged carriers in the base. After a mathematical modeling of the PV cell considered, some hypotheses are formulated and the expressions of the electrical parameters are established as a function of the electric field and base temperature. Subsequently, we use numerical simulation to highlight the behavior of theses parameters as a function of temperature and of the intensity of the electric field. The results show that for any given temperature, the orientation of the electric field as considered in our work improves the performance of the PV cell while high temperatures degrade these performances. Furthermore, the analysis of the curves shows that the harmful effect of temperature on the performance of a PV cell is more accentuated at large values of electric field.

Flexible and Robust Functionalized Boron Nitride/Poly(p‑Phenylene Benzobisoxazole)Nanocomposite Paper with High Thermal Conductivity and Outstanding Electrical Insulation

With the rapid development of 5G information technology,thermal conductivity/dissipation problems of highly integrated electronic devices and electrical equipment are becoming prominent.In this work,“high-temperature solid-phase&diazonium salt decomposition”method is carried out to prepare benzidine-functionalized boron nitride(m-BN).Subsequently,m-BN/poly(pphenylene benzobisoxazole)nanofiber(PNF)nanocomposite paper with nacremimetic layered structures is prepared via sol–gel film transformation approach.The obtained m-BN/PNF nanocomposite paper with 50 wt%m-BN presents excellent thermal conductivity,incredible electrical insulation,outstanding mechanical properties and thermal stability,due to the construction of extensive hydrogen bonds andπ–πinteractions between m-BN and PNF,and stable nacre-mimetic layered structures.Itsλ∥andλ_(⊥)are 9.68 and 0.84 W m^(-1)K^(-1),and the volume resistivity and breakdown strength are as high as 2.3×10^(15)Ωcm and 324.2 kV mm^(-1),respectively.Besides,it also presents extremely high tensile strength of 193.6 MPa and thermal decomposition temperature of 640°C,showing a broad application prospect in high-end thermal management fields such as electronic devices and electrical equipment.

Electrospinning-hot pressing technique for the fabrication of thermal and electrical storage membranes and its applications

The combination of electrospinning and hot pressing,namely the electrospinning-hot pressing technique(EHPT),is an efficient and convenient method for preparing nanofibrous composite materials with good energy storage performance.The emerging composite membrane prepared by EHPT,which exhibits the advantages of large surface area,controllable morphology,and compact structure,has attracted immense attention.In this paper,the conduction mechanism of composite membranes in thermal and electrical energy storage and the performance enhancement method based on the fabrication process of EHPT are systematically discussed.Moreover,the state-of-the-art applications of composite membranes in these two fields are introduced.In particular,in the field of thermal energy storage,EHPT-prepared membranes have longitudinal and transverse nanofibers,which generate unique thermal conductivity pathways;also,these nanofibers offer enough space for the filling of functional materials.Moreover,EHPT-prepared membranes are beneficial in thermal management systems,building energy conservation,and electrical energy storage,e.g.,improving the electrochemical properties of the separators as well as their mechanical and thermal stability.The application of electrospinning-hot pressing membranes on capacitors,lithium-ion batteries(LIBs),fuel cells,sodium-ion batteries(SIBs),and hydrogen bromine flow batteries(HBFBs)still requires examination.In the future,EHPT is expected to make the field more exciting through its own technological breakthroughs or be combined with other technologies to produce intelligent materials.

Thermal performance of cast-in-place piles with artificial ground freezing in permafrost regions

During the construction of cast-in-place piles in warm permafrost,the heat carried by concrete and the cement hydration reaction can cause strong thermal disturbance to the surrounding permafrost.Since the bearing capacity of the pile is quite small before the full freeze-back,the quick refreezing of the native soils surrounding the cast-in-place pile has become the focus of the infrastructure construction in permafrost.To solve this problem,this paper innovatively puts forward the application of the artificial ground freezing(AGF)method at the end of the curing period of cast-in-place piles in permafrost.A field test on the AGF was conducted at the Beiluhe Observation and Research Station of Frozen Soil Engineering and Environment(34°51.2'N,92°56.4'E)in the Qinghai Tibet Plateau(QTP),and then a 3-D numerical model was established to investigate the thermal performance of piles using AGF under different engineering conditions.Additionally,the long-term thermal performance of piles after the completion of AGF under different conditions was estimated.Field experiment results demonstrate that AGF is an effective method to reduce the refreezing time of the soil surrounding the piles constructed in permafrost terrain,with the ability to reduce the pile-soil interface temperatures to below the natural ground temperature within 3 days.Numerical results further prove that AGF still has a good cooling effect even under unfavorable engineering conditions such as high pouring temperature,large pile diameter,and large pile length.Consequently,the application of this method is meaningful to save the subsequent latency time and solve the problem of thermal disturbance in pile construction in permafrost.The research results are highly relevant for the spread of AGF technology and the rapid building of pile foundations in permafrost.

Construction of core@double-shell structured energetic composites with simultaneously enhanced thermal stability and safety performance

The poor thermal stability and high sensitivity severely hinder the practical application of hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane(CL-20).Herein,a kind of novel core@double-shell CL-20 based energetic composites were fabricated to address the above issues.The coordination complexes which consist of natural polyphenol tannic acid(TA) and Fe~Ⅲ were chosen to construct the inner shell,while the graphene sheets were used to build the outer shell.The resulting CL-20/TA-Fe~Ⅲ/graphene composites exhibited simultaneously improved thermal stability and safety performance with only 1 wt% double-shell content,which should be ascribed to the intense physical encapsulation effect from inner shell combined with the desensitization effect of carbon nano-materials from outer shell.The phase transition(ε to γ) temperature increased from 173.70 ℃ of pure CL-20 to 191.87℃ of CL-20/TA-Fe~Ⅲ/graphene composites.Meanwhile,the characteristic drop height(H_(50)) dramatically increased from 14.7 cm of pure CL-20 to112.8 cm of CL-20/TA-Fe~Ⅲ/graphene composites,indicating much superior safety performance after the construction of the double-shell structure.In general,this work has provided an effective and versatile strategy to conquer the thermal stability and safety issues of CL-20 and contributes to the future application of high energy density energetic materials.

Thermal Distortion Compensation for Improving Electrical Performance of Reflector Antennas

Aiming at the problem of the surface accuracy and electrical performance of the antenna in space environment are reduced due to thermal deformation caused by temperature load. This paper presents a method to compensate the thermally induced shape distortion of antenna reflector by actively adjusting actuators in order to improve the electrical performance. The adjustment of each actuator is related to the local deformation of the panel. Then, taking a space deployable antenna with a diameter of 5 meters as an example, the finite element model is established. According to the range of the temperature variation in space (−180°C - 200°C), different temperature loads are applied to the antenna. The variation of electrical properties and surface accuracy is analyzed and the worst working condition is determined, and the antenna is compensated based on this condition. Then, four different electrical performance parameters are used as the optimization objectives, and the electromechanical coupling optimization model is established, and the PSO algorithm is used to optimize the actuators adjustments. The results show that the method can effectively improve the electrical performance of the deformed reflector antenna.

Reducing Operation Emissions and Improving Work Efficiency Using a Pure Electric Wheel Drive Tractor

In response to the problems of excessive greenhouse-gas and particulate emissions and the low traction efficiency of conventional diesel tractors in the field,a purely electric wheel-side drive tractor was studied,including an electric motor drive system,a battery ballast system,and an electro–hydraulic suspension system.This paper develops a dynamics model of an electric tractor-ploughing unit under complex soil conditions,leading to the proposal of an active control method for drive wheel torque and a joint control method for the traction force of the suspension system and the front-and rear-axle loads of a tractor.Finally,the tractor is prototyped and assembled,and ploughing tests are carried out.The ploughing results show that the active torque-distribution control method proposed in this study reduces the tractor slip by 14.83%and increases the traction efficiency by 10.28%compared with the average torquedistribution mode.Compared with the conventional traction control mode,the joint control method for traction and ballast proposed in this paper results in a 3.7%increase in traction efficiency,a 15.05%decrease in slip,and a 4.9%reduction in total drive motor energy consumption.This study will help to improve the operation quality and traction efficiency of electric tractors in complex soil conditions.

The action mechanism of the work done by the electric field force on moving charges to stimulate the emergence of carrier generation/recombination in a PN junction

It is discovered that the product of the current and the electric field in a PN junction should be regarded as the rate of work(power)done by the electric field force on moving charges(hole current and electron current),which was previously misinterpreted as solely a Joule heating effect.We clarify that it is exactly the work done by the electric field force on the moving charges to stimulate the emergence of non-equilibrium carriers,which triggers the novel physical phenomena.As regards to Joule heat,we point out that it should be calculated from Ohm’s law,rather than simply from the product of the current and the electric field.Based on this understanding,we conduct thorough discussion on the role of the electric field force in the process of carrier recombination and carrier generation.The thermal effects of carrier recombination and carrier generation followed are incorporated into the thermal equation of energy.The present study shows that the exothermic effect of carrier recombination leads to a temperature rise at the PN interface,while the endothermic effect of carrier generation causes a temperature reduction at the interface.These two opposite effects cause opposite heat flow directions in the PN junction under forward and backward bias voltages,highlighting the significance of managing device heating phenomena in design considerations.Therefore,this study possesses referential significance for the design and tuning on the performance of piezotronic devices.

Interfacial built-in electric field and crosslinking pathways enabling WS_(2)/Ti_(3)C_(2)T_(x) heterojunction with robust sodium storage at low temperature

Developing efficient energy storage for sodium-ion batteries(SIBs)by creating high-performance heterojunctions and understanding their interfacial interaction at the atomic/molecular level holds promise but is also challenging.Besides,sluggish reaction kinetics at low temperatures restrict the operation of SIBs in cold climates.Herein,cross-linking nanoarchitectonics of WS_(2)/Ti_(3)C_(2)T_(x) heterojunction,featuring built-in electric field(BIEF),have been developed,employing as a model to reveal the positive effect of heterojunction design and BIEF for modifying the reaction kinetics and electrochemical activity.Particularly,the theoretical analysis manifests the discrepancy in work functions leads to the electronic flow from the electron-rich Ti_(3)C_(2)T_(x) to layered WS_(2),spontaneously forming the BIEF and“ion reservoir”at the heterogeneous interface.Besides,the generation of cross-linking pathways further promotes the transportation of electrons/ions,which guarantees rapid diffusion kinetics and excellent structure coupling.Consequently,superior sodium storage performance is obtained for the WS_(2)/Ti_(3)C_(2)T_(x) heterojunction,with only 0.2%decay per cycle at 5.0 A g^(-1)(25℃)up to 1000 cycles and a high capacity of 293.5 mA h g^(-1)(0.1A g^(-1)after 100 cycles)even at-20℃.Importantly,the spontaneously formed BIEF,accompanied by“ion reservoir”,in heterojunction provides deep understandings of the correlation between structure fabricated and performance obtained.

Reinforcement Learning-Based Electric Vehicles Energy Management Strategy with Battery Thermal Model

The promotion of electric vehicles(EVs)is restricted due to their short cruising range.It is desirable to design an effective energy management strategy to improve their energy efficiency.Most existing work concerning energy management strategies focused on hybrids rather than the EVs.The work focusing on the energy management strategy for EVs mainly uses the traditional optimization strategies,thereby limiting the advantages of energy economy.To this end,a novel energy management strategy that considered the impact of battery thermal effects was proposed with the help of reinforcement learning.The main idea was to first analyze the energy flow path of EVs,further formulize the energy management as an optimization problem,and finally propose an online strategy based on reinforcement learning to obtain the optimal strategy.Additionally,extensive simulation results have demonstrated that our strategy reduces energy consumption by at least 27.4%compared to the existing methods.

Designing an Effective Method for Automatic Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in a Static Environment

This article outlines an Effective Method for Automatic Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in a Static Environment. It consists of investigated wireless transformer structures with various ferrite forms. WPT technology has rapidly advanced in the last few years. At kilowatt power levels, the transmission distance grows from a few millimeters to several hundred millimeters with a grid to load efficiency greater than 90%. The improvements have made the WPT more appealing for electric vehicle (EV) charging applications in both static and dynamic charging scenarios. Static and dynamic WEVCS, two of the main applications, are described, and current developments with features from research facilities, academic institutions, and businesses are noted. Additionally, forthcoming concepts based WEVCS are analyzed and examined, including “dynamic” wireless charging systems (WCS). A dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT) system, which can supply electricity to moving EVs, is one of the feasible alternatives. The moving secondary coil is part of the dynamic WPT system, which also comprises of many fixed groundside (primary) coils. An equivalent circuit between the stationary system and the dynamic WPT system that results from the stationary system is demonstrated by theoretical investigations. The dynamic WPT system’s solenoid coils outperform circular coils in terms of flux distribution and misalignment. The WPT-related EV wireless charging technologies were examined in this study. WPT can assist EVs in overcoming their restrictions on cost, range, and charging time.

Thermal spin molecular logic gates modulated by an electric field

Logic gates are fundamental structural components in all modern digital electronic devices. Here, nonequilibrium Green's functions are incorporated with the density functional theory to verify the thermal spin transport features of the single-molecule spintronic devices constructed by a single molecule in series or parallel connected with graphene nanoribbons electrodes. Our calculations demonstrate that the electric field can manipulate the spin-polarized current. Then, a complete set of thermal spin molecular logic gates are proposed, including AND, OR, and NOT gates. The mentioned logic gates enable different designs of complex thermal spin molecular logic functions and facilitate the electric field control of thermal spin molecular devices.

Thermal and Electrical Properties of Liquid Metal Gallium During Phase Transition

Liquid metal gallium has been widely used in numerous fields, from nuclear engineering, catalysts, and energy storage to electronics owing to its remarkable thermal and electrical properties along with low viscosity and nontoxicity. Compared with high-temperature liquid metals, room-temperature liquid metals, such as gallium(Ga), are emerging as promising alternatives for fabricating advanced energy storage devices, such as phase change materials, by harvesting the advantageous properties of their liquid state maintained without external energy input. However, the thermal and electrical properties of liquid metals at the phase transition are rather poorly studied, limiting their practical applications. In this study, we reported on the physical properties of the solid–liquid phase transition of Ga using a custom-designed, solid–liquid electrical and thermal measurement system. We observed that the electrical conductivity of Ga progressively decreases with an increase in temperature. However, the Seebeck coefficient of Ga increases from 0.2 to 2.1 μV/K, and thermal conductivity from 7.6 to 33 W/(K·m). These electrical and thermal properties of Ga at solid–liquid phase transition would be useful for practical applications.

Improved RF power performance of InAlN/GaN HEMT by optimizing rapid thermal annealing process for high-performance low-voltage terminal applications

Improved radio-frequency(RF)power performance of InAlN/GaN high electron mobility transistor(HEMT)is achieved by optimizing the rapid thermal annealing(RTA)process for high-performance low-voltage terminal applications.By optimizing the RTA temperature and time,the optimal annealing condition is found to enable low parasitic resistance and thus a high-performance device.Besides,compared with the non-optimized RTA HEMT,the optimized one demonstrates smoother ohmic metal surface morphology and better heterojunction quality including the less degraded heterojunction sheet resistance and clearer heterojunction interfaces as well as negligible material out-diffusion from the barrier to the channel and buffer.Benefiting from the lowered parasitic resistance,improved maximum output current density of 2279 mA·mm^(-1)and higher peak extrinsic transconductance of 526 mS·mm^(-1)are obtained for the optimized RTA HEMT.In addition,due to the superior heterojunction quality,the optimized HEMT shows reduced off-state leakage current of 7×10^(-3)mA·mm^(-1)and suppressed current collapse of only 4%,compared with those of 1×10^(-1)mA·mm^(-1)and 15%for the non-optimized one.At 8 GHz and V_(DS)of 6 V,a significantly improved power-added efficiency of 62%and output power density of 0.71 W·mm^(-1)are achieved for the optimized HEMT,as the result of the improvement in output current,knee voltage,off-state leakage current,and current collapse,which reveals the tremendous advantage of the optimized RTA HEMT in high-performance low-voltage terminal applications.

Spray Effect on the Thermal Performances of a Dry Cooling Tower

Pre-cooling the inlet air of a dry cooling tower by means of a spray can improve the tower performance during periods of high temperature.To study the spray effect on the thermal performance of natural draft dry cooling towers(NDDCTs),in this study 3-D numerical simulations of such a process have been conducted using Fluent 16.2(a two-way coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian approach).The considered NDDCT is 120 m high and only half system is simulated due to its structural symmetry.Three different spray strategies have been investigated at a typical crosswind speed of 4 m/s,which is the most frequent wind speed.The results have shown that:(1)The three implemented spray strategies can improve the thermal performance of the studied NDDCT with a vary-ing degree of success.In one case,the heat rejection rate can be increased by 35.2%,and the tower outlet water temperature can be decreased by 2.1℃ when compared with the no spray case;(2)To improve the thermal per-formance of the NDDCT using a small amount of water,the design of the spray pre-cooling system must include more nozzles on the windward and fewer or even no nozzles on the leeward sides of the NDDCT.

Effect of Cerium on Mechanical Performance and Electrical Conductivity of Aluminum Rod for Electrical Purpose

The effect of rare earth element Ce on mechanical performance and electrical conductivity of aluminum rod for electrical purpose were studied under industrial production condition. Using optical microscope, SEM, TEM, EDS and X-ray diffractometer, the microstructure and phase composition of aluminum rod were measured and analyzed. The results indicate that the content of rare earth element Ce is between 0.05% -0.16% in the aluminum rod for electrical purpose. Its tensile strength is enhanced to some extent. The research also discovers that the tensile strength is enhanced remarkably with impurity element Si content increases. Because influence of Si is big to the conductivity, the Si content should be controlled continuously strictly in the aluminum for electrical purpose. Adding rare earth element Ce reduces the solid solubility of Si in the aluminum matrix, and the negative effect of Si on the aluminum conductor reduces effectively. So the limit of in Si content in aluminum rod for electrical purpose can be relaxed moderately.

Oxidation Modification of Polyacrylonitrile-Based Carbon Fiber and Its Electro-Chemical Performance as Marine Electrode for Electric Field Test

A novel sensor for ocean electric field testing has been fabricated by polyacrylonitrile-based on carbon fibers with electro-chemical oxidation.The surface profile characteristics of the carbon fibers were characterized by scanning electron microscope,Fourier transform infrared spectra and contact angle.Cyclic voltammetry and Tafel curves have been used to study its electro-chemical performances.Two identical electrodes in sea water as the electric field sensor will swiftly respond to applied electric field which causes positive and negative ions to move in opposite direction,resulting in a electric potential difference(ΔE).Test result indicates that the offset potential is typically below 1 m V with a drift of 60-170μVd^-1.Typical self noise level is 1.07 nV√Hz^(1/2)@1 Hz.The electric field response indicates that the modified electrode pair shows better response to AC sine signal of amplitude and frequency(5 mV and 1 mHz)respectively than its blank.The electric field response model of the modified electrodes is creatively presented according to its electric double layer capacitance and Faraday pseudo-capacitance.Many advantages of the carbon fiber electric field electrode will make it have potential application prospect.

Realization and Analysis of Good Fuel Economy and Kinetic Performance of a Low-cost Hybrid Electric Vehicle

By using high-power and high-efficiency propulsion systems,current hybrid electric vehicles（HEVs） in market can achieve excellent fuel economy and kinetic performance.However,it is the cost of current HEVs that hinders HEVs coming into widespread use.A novel hybrid electric propulsion system is designed to balance HEV cost and performance for developing markets.A battery/supercapacitor-based hybrid energy storage system（HESS） is used to improve energy conversion efficiency and reduce battery size and cost.An all-in-one-controller（AIOC） which integrates engine electronic control unit（ECU）,motor ECU,and HESS management system is developed to save materials and energy,and reduce the influence of distribution parameters on circuit.As for the powertrain configuration,four schemes are presented：belt-driven starter generator（BSG） scheme,four-wheel drive HEV scheme,full HEV scheme,and ranger-extender electric vehicle（EV） scheme.Component selection and parameter matching for the propulsion system are performed,and an energy management strategy is developed based on powertrain configuration and selected components.Forward-facing simulation models are built,comprehending the control strategy based on the optimal engine torque for the low-cost hybrid electric propulsion system.Co-simulation of AVL CRUISE and Matlab/Simulink is presented and the best scheme is selected.The simulation results indicate that,for the best design,fuel consumption in urban driving condition is 4.11 L/（100 km） and 0-50 km/h accelerating time is 10.95 s.The proposed research can realize low-cost concept for HEV while achieving satisfactory fuel economy and kinetic performance,and help to improve commercialization of HEVs.