Low gas-liquid ratio foam flooding for conventional heavy oil

The recovery of heavy oil by water flooding is 10% lower than that of conventional crude oil, so enhanced oil recovery （EOR） is of great significance for heavy oil. In this paper, foam flooding with a gas-liquid ratio （GLR） of 0.2：1 for the Zhuangxi heavy oil （325 mPa.s at 55 ℃） was performed on cores, sand packs and plate model. In sand pack tests, polymer enhanced foam flooding increased oil recovery by 39.8%, which was 11.4% higher than that for alkali/surfactant/polymer （ASP） flooding under the same conditions. Polymer enhanced foam flooding in plate models shows that the low GLR foam flooding increased oil recovery by about 30%, even when the extended water flooding was finished at 90% water cut. Moreover, it was discovered by microscopy that foam was more stable in heavy oil than in light oil. These results confirm that low GLR foam flooding is a promising technology for displacing conventional heavy oil.

Effect of Initial Microstructure Prior to Extrusion on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Extruded AZ80 Alloy with a Low Temperature and a Low Ratio

Magnesium(Mg)alloys are the lightest metal structural material for engineering applications and therefore have a wide market of applications.However,compared to steel and aluminum alloys,Mg alloys have lower mechanical properties,which greatly limits their application.Extrusion is one of the most important processing methods for Mg and its alloys.However,the effect of such a heterogeneous microstructure achieved at low temperatures on the mechanical properties is lacking investigation.In this work,commercial AZ80 alloys with different initial microstructures(as-cast and as-homogenized)were selected and extruded at a low extrusion temperature of 220℃and a low extrusion ratio of 4.The microstructure and mechanical properties of the two extruded AZ80 alloys were investigated.The results show that homogenized-extruded(HE)sample exhibits higher strength than the cast-extruded(CE)sample,which is mainly attributed to the high number density of fine dynamic precipitates and the high fraction of recrystallized ultrafine grains.Compared to the coarse compounds existing in CE sample,the fine dynamical precipitates of Mg17(Al,Zn)12form in the HE sample can effectively promote the dynamical recrystallization during extrusion,while they exhibit a similar effect on the size and orientation of the recrystallized grains.These results can facilitate the designing of high-strength wrought magnesium alloys by rational microstructure construction.

Effect of Low pH on Forming Process of Desulfurization Gypsum Composite Boards Strengthened by Melamine-formaldehyde Resin

Through exploring the effects of low pH on the composite system of desulfurization gypsum(DG)enhanced by melamine-formaldehyde resin(MF),it is found that the inducing of sulfate-ion,in contrast to chloride and oxalate ions,favors the longitudinal growth of the crystalline form of the hydration product,which was relatively simple and had the highest length to width(L/D)ratio.At the same time,MF can also improve L/D ratio of gypsum hydration products,which favors the formation of hydrated whiskers.Finally,in a composite system composed of hemihydrate gypsum,MF,and glass fibers,when dilute sulfuric acid was used to regulate pH=3-4,the tight binding formed among the components of the composite system compared to pH=5-6.The hydration product of gypsum adheres tightly to glass fiber surface and produces a good cross-linking and binding effect with MF.The flexural strength,compressive strength,elastic modulus,and water absorption of the desulphurized gypsum composite board is 22.7 MPa,39.8 MPa,5608 MPa,and 1.8%,respectively.

A 5mW 1.8V Low Over-Sampling Ratio ΣΔ Modulator with 81dB Dynamic Range

This work demonstrates that the ΣΔ modulator with a low oversampling ratio is a viable option for the high-resolution digitization in a low-voltage environment.Low power dissipation is achieved by designing a low-OSR modulator based on differential cascade architecture,while large signal swing maintained to achieve a high dynamic range in the low-voltage environment.Operating from a voltage supply of 1.8V,the sixth-order cascade modulator at a sampling frequency of 4-MHz with an OSR of 24 achieves a dynamic range of 81dB for a 80-kHz test signal,while dissipating only 5mW.

Effect of the Inclination Angle on Slippage Loss in Gas-Liquid Two-Phase Flow

The lifting efficiency and stability of gas lift well are affected by the socalled slippage-loss effect in gas-liquid two-phase flow.The existing studies on this subject have generally been based on vertical and horizontal wells.Only a few of them have considered inclined pipes.In the present work a new focused study is presented along these lines.More specifically,we use the non-slip pressure drop model with Flanigan’s fluctuation correction coefficient formula(together with the parameters of slippage density,slippage pressure drop and slippage ratio)to analyze the influence of the inclination angle on slippage loss for different conditions(different gas-liquid superficial velocity and pipe diameters).Moreover,the“standard regression coefficient method”is used for multi-factor sensitivity analysis.The experimental results indicate that slippage loss is affected by multiple factors,and the influence of the inclination angle on slippage loss is less significant than other factors.The change of the slippage pressure drop with the superficial velocity of gas-liquid is similar to that of the total pressure drop.The inclination angles of 45°and 60°have the greatest influence on slippage loss.The correlation between slippage density and slippage ratio is not obvious.Using the so-called slippage ratio seems to be a more accurate option to evaluate the degree of slippage loss.

Biological Nutrient Removal in a Full Scale Anoxic/Anaerobic/Aerobic/ Pre-anoxic-MBR Plant for Low C/N Ratio Municipal Wastewater Treatment

A novel full scale modified A2O （anoxic/anaerobic/aerobic/pre-anoxic）-membrane bioreactor （MBR） plant combined with the step feed strategy was operated to improve the biological nutrient removal （BNR） from low C/N ratio municipal wastewater in Southern China. Transformation of organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, and membrane fouling were investigated. Experimental results for over four months demonstrated good efficiencies for chemical oxygen demand （COD） and NH4^＋-N removal, with average values higher than 84.5%and 98.1%, re-spectively. A relatively higher total nitrogen （TN） removal efficiency （52.1%） was also obtained at low C/N ratio of 3.82, contributed by the configuration modification （anoxic zone before anaerobic zone） and the step feed with a distribution ratio of 1：1. Addition of sodium acetate into the anoxic zone as the external carbon source, with a theoretical amount of 31.3 mg COD per liter in influent, enhanced denitrification and the TN removal efficiency in-creased to 74.9%. Moreover, the total phosphate （TP） removal efficiency increased by 18.0%. It is suggested that the external carbon source is needed to improve the BNR performance in treating low C/N ratio municipal waste-water in the modified A^2O-MBR process.

The Hydration of Blended Cement at Low W/B Ratio

The hydration process,hydration product and hydration heat of blended cement paste mixed with mineral admixture and expansive agent at low W/B ratio are studied by XRD,thermo analysis,and calorimetry instrument,and they were compared with those of pure cement paste.The results show that pure cement and blended cement at low W/B ratio have the same types of hydration products,but their respective amounts of hydration products of various blended cements at same ages and the variation law of the amount of same hydration products with ages are different;The joint effect of tumefaction of gel-ettringite due to water absorption and the expansive pressure on the pore and rift caused by the crystalloid ettringite is the impetus of the volume expansion of cement paste,and the former effect is much greater than the latter one.

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.

An innovative detection method of high frequency BPSK signal with low signal-to-noise ratio

Based on chaotic oscillator system, this paper proposes a novel method on high frequency low signal- to-noise ratio BPSK（ Binary Phase Shift Keying） signal detection. Chaotic oscillator system is a typical non-lin- ear system which is sensitive to periodic signals and immune to noise at the same time. Those properties make it possible to detect low signal-to-noise ratio signals. The BPSK signal is a common signal type which is widely used in modern communication. Starting from the analysis of advantages of chaotic, os~.illator system and signal features of the BPSK signal, we put forward a unique method that can detect low signar-to-noise ratio BPSK sig- nals with high frequency. The simulation results show that the novel method can dclct.t low signal-to-noise ratio BPSK signals with frequency in an order of magnitude of l0s Hz, and the input Signal-to-Noise Ratio threshold can be -20 dB.

Numerical simulation of VIV for an elastic cylinder mounted on the spring supports with low mass-ratio

With the development of the offshore deep water oil industry many researchers are focusing on the vortex-induced vibrations （VIV） of deep risers. In the present work, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes （RANS） equations were combined with the SST κ-ω turbulent model to simulate the stream-wise and transverse motion of an elastically mounted cylinder with a low mass-ratio, a natural frequency ratio of fx/fy = 1 and an Re number between 5 300 and 32 000, The four-order Runge-Kutta method was applied to solve the oscillating equation of the cylinder. The relationship between reduced velocity and parameters of the cylinder, including the lift coefficient, the drag coefficient, displacement and the vortex structure were then compared with recent experimental results and discussed in detail. The present numerical simulation reproduced effects have been observed in experiments, such as the lock-in phenomenon, the hysteretic phenomenon and beating behavior.

Component Matching Based on Low Bypass Ratio Mixed Exhaust Turbofan Engine

In order to study component matching which exists in off-design situation at the initial design stage of turbine engine,by establishing performance analysis model of low bypass ratio mixed flow turbofan engine and components characteristic data,and by applying Newton-Raphson method to solve the nonlinear equations of offdesign points in flying envelop,the factors which affect matching between engine components are studied.The results show that low pressure turbine(LPT)must not operate in a critical condition,and the partial derivative(slope)of pressure ratio to similitude mass flow ratio of working point in LPT characteristic map affects the stability of engine.The smaller the slope is,the more stable the engine is.In addition,the engine is more stable when the fan characteristic map is steep.

Applicability of P/S amplitude ratios for the discrimination of low magnitude seismic events

Applicability of regional P/S amplitude ratios for the discrimination of low-magnitude seismic events was tested and proved using earthquakes and explosions in Central Asia. Results obtained show that regional P/S amplitude ratios which may discriminate medium or large magnitude events well, are also applicable to low magnitude events Their performances for low magnitude events are almost as good as that for medium or large events. Statistical comparisons based on 25 P/S discriminate from the four seismic stations WMQ, BLK, MUL and MAK showed that the average misclassification rate for low-magnitude seismic events averagely was only 2 percent higher than that for medium and large magnitude seismic events.

Numerical Study on the Effects of Contraction Ratio in a Two-Phase Flow Injection Nozzle

The Euler-Euler numerical method was used to investigate the effects of contraction ratio on twophase flow mixing with mass transfer in the flow injection nozzle. The geometric shape of the nozzle was modified to improve carbonation efficiency. A gas inlet hole was created to increase the flow mixing of CO2 with water. A nozzle throat was also introduced to increase the gas dissolution by increasing flow rates. Various contraction ratios of nozzle throat, inlet gas and liquid velocities, and gas bubble sizes were employed to determine their effects on gas hold-up, gas concentration, and mass transfer coefficient. Results revealed that the flow injection nozzle with high contraction ratios improved carbonation because of high gas hold-up. Gas concentration was directly related to contraction ratio and gas flow velocities. Carbonation reduced when high liquid velocities and large gas bubbles were employed because of inefficient flow mixing. This study indicated that flow injection nozzle with large contraction ratios were suitable for carbonation because of their ability to increase gas hold-up, gas concentration, and mass transfer coefficient.

Penetration behavior of electrolyte into graphite cathode in NaF-KF-LiF-AlF_(3) system with low cryolite ratios

The current study focuses on the electrolyte penetration of the graphite cathode in a NaF−KF−LiF−AlF_(3) aluminum-electrolysis system with a cryolite ratio of 1.3.It involves a comprehensive investigation of the electrolyte in the cathode before and after electrolysis by X-ray diffraction and analysis of the results by semi-quantitative calculation in MAUD.The results show that KF can promote electrolyte penetration,with higher KF contents resulting in greater penetration.During electrolyte penetration,K_(2)NaAlF_(6) and solid solutions containing KF play important roles in KF-containing systems.LiF effectively prevents the electrolyte penetration,while the Na_(3)Li_(3)Al_(2)F_(12) phase plays an essential role in systems with high LiF contents.

Effects of ratio of hydrogen flow on microstructure of hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon films deposited by magnetron sputtering at 100 ℃

Hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon(μc-Si:H)films were prepared on glass and silicon substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering at 100°C using a mixture of argon(Ar)and hydrogen(H2)gasses as precursor gas.The effects of the ratio of hydrogen flow(H2/(Ar+H2)%)on the microstructure were evaluated.Results show that the microstructure,bonding structure,and surface morphology of theμc-Si:H films can be tailored based on the ratio of hydrogen flow.An amorphous to crystalline phase transition occurred when the ratio of hydrogen flow increased up to 50%.The crystallinity increased and tended to stabilize with the increase in ratio of hydrogen flow from 40%to 70%.The surface roughness of thin films increased,and total hydrogen content decreased as the ratio of hydrogen flow increased.Allμc-Si:H films have a preferred(111)orientation,independent of the ratio of hydrogen flow.And theμc-Si:H films had a dense structure,which shows their excellent resistance to post-oxidation.

Selective catalytic reduction failure of low NH_(3)-NO_(x) ratio

An insufficient amount of NH_(3) (ammonia)will reduce the conversion efficiency of NO_(x),which may lead to excess NO_(x) emissions,resulting in NH3SCR failure.In this article,SCR failure caused by a low NH_(3)NO_(x) ratio is studied systematically by experiments.The main reasons for a low NH_(3)NO_(x) ratio in SCR include insufficient urea injection,hydrothermal aging of catalysts and urea crystallization.It was found from an insufficient urea injection experiment that with the increase of NH_(3)NO_(x) ratio,the NO_(x) conversion efficiency of the SCR system increased,but the ammonia leakage also increased.The main influencing factors of NO_(x) conversion efficiency are different under different NH3NOx ratios.A flow reactor system was used in the catalyst hydrothermal aging experiment to investigate the effect of hydrothermal aging on catalyst activity.After a 24 h hydrothermal aging experiment at 800℃,the NO_(x) conversion efficiency of the copperbased zeolite catalysts decreased significantly at the boundary of medium and low temperature regions.And the NO_(2)-NO_(x) ratio in the mixture had a significant effect on the catalytic performance.Thermogravimetry coupled to Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(TGFTIR)was used to analyze the composition of urea deposits in a urea deposits analysis experiment.It was found that the main components of urea deposits were urea and isocyanic acid(HNCO).Preventing HNCO polymerization,especially the formation of CYA,can decrease the formation of urea deposits.

Low-Cost Preparation of Boron Nitride Ceramic Powders

The amorphous boron nitride ceramic powders were prepared at 750-950 ℃ by the low-cost urea route, and the effects of preparation temperatures, molar ratios of the raw materials and oxidation treatment on the composition, structure and surface morphology of the products were investigated through FT-IR, XRD and SEM. The results show that the products ceramize and crystallize gradually with the increase of the temperature. When the molar ratio and reaction temperature are 3：2 and 850 ℃, respectively, the products have high purity, compact structure and nice shape. The oxidation treatment at 450 ℃ will not impair the composition and structure of boron nitride but effectively remove the impurities.

The R&D of a Novel Sulfur Tolerant CO Shift Catalyst and Its Application in the Integrated Low Water Gas Ratio Process

The QDB-5 sulfur tolerant CO shift catalyst, with anti-methanation property by supported compositing alkali promoters, has been proved to effectively reduce the outlet methane content in the condition of a low water gas ratio. Thus, a new technology based on a lower water/gas ratio than before has been developed with the new catalyst. The CO conversion at lower temperatures and catalyst stability were confirmed by long term industrial application. The high temperature catalyst performance also showed a better result than the conventional commercial catalyst, with higher CO conversion and well controlled methane outlet. Our research and the industrial application of catalyst have shown the importance of alkali metals as core promoters for such kind of catalysts.

Experimental Analysis of the Flow Characteristics of an Adjustable Critical-Flow Venturi Nozzle

The response of an adjustable critical-flow Venturi nozzle is investigated through a set indoor experiments aimed to determine the related critical flow rate,critical pressure ratio,and discharge coefficient.The effect of a variation in the cone displacement and liquid content on the critical flow characteristics is examined in detail and it is shown that the former can be used to effectively adjust the critical flow rate.The critical pressure ratio of the considered nozzle is above 0.85,and the critical flow control deviation of the gas flow is within±3%.Liquid flow can reduce the gas critical mass flow rate accordingly,especially for the cases with larger liquid volume and lower inlet pressure.The set of results and conclusions provided are intended to support the optimization of steam injection techniques in the context of heavy oil recovery processes.

Effect of Strain Ratio on Fatigue Model of Ultra-fine Grained Pure Titanium

The ultra-fine grained(UFG)pure titanium was prepared by equal channel angular pressing(ECAP)and rotary swaging(RS).The strain controlled low cycle fatigue(LCF)test was carried out at room temperature.The fatigue life prediction model and mean stress relaxation model under asymmetrical stress load were discussed.The results show that the strain ratio has a significant effect on the low cycle fatigue performance of the UFG pure titanium,and the traditional Manson-coffin model can not accurately predict the fatigue life under asymmetric stress load.Therefore,the SWT mean stress correction model and three-parameter power curve model are proposed,and the test results are verified.The final research shows that the threeparameter power surface model has better representation.By studying the mean stress relaxation phenomenon under the condition of R≠-1,it is revealed that the stress ratio and the strain amplitude are the factors that significantly afiect the mean stress relaxation rate,and the mean stress relaxation model with the two variables is calculated to describe the mean stress relaxation phenomenon of the UFG pure titanium under different strain ratios.The fracture morphology of the samples was observed by SEM,and it was concluded that the final fracture zone of the fatigue fracture of the UFG pure titanium was a mixture of ductile fracture and quasi cleavage fracture.The toughness of the material increases with the increase of strain ratio at the same strain amplitude.