Special Section on Energy-Efficient Technologies:Crowd Energy Applications

It is no secret--the world as it is today only runs with energy; and it is also no secret that the world is faced with steadily increasing energy demands. The reduction of dependence on fossil fuels is a global goal. To achieve this goal three paths have to be considered： First, the substitution of fossil fuels with renewable energy; secondly, the increase in energy efficiency and the expansion of opportunities for energy storage; and thirdly, to find solutions to the associated socio-economic challenges.

Chapter model systems in heterogeneous catalysis at the atomic level: a personal view

The review presents an overview of studies in the surface science of oxide and related surfaces with an emphasis of the studies performed in the authors’ group. Novel instruments and technique developments, as well as their applications are reported, in an attempt to cover studies on model systems of increasing complexity, including some of the key ingredients of an industrially applied heterogeneous catalyst and its fabrication. The review is intended to demonstrate the power of model studies in understanding heterogeneous catalysis at the atomic level. The studies include those on supported nano-particles, both, prepared in vacuum and from solution, interaction of surfaces and the underlying bulk with molecules from the gas phase, strong metal support interaction, as well as the first attempt to include studies on reactions in confined spaces.

The influence of hydrochar from biogas digestate on soil improvement and plant growth aspects

Hydrochar(HC),produced by hydrothermal carbonization,offers technical advantages over biochar(BC)produced by pyrolysis,and is suitable for soil amelioration,carbon sequestration,and enhanced plant growth.BC grain size has been shown to influence nutrient retention,microbial colonization and aggregate formation;however,similar research for HC is lacking.Pot trials were conducted to investigate the influence of HC grain size[coarse(6.3-2 mm),medium(2-0.63 mm)and fine(<0.63 mm)],produced from biogas digestate,for soil improvement in three soils:loamy Chernozem,sandy Podzol,and clayey Gleysol,at a 5%HC application rate(w/w).All soils including two controls(with and without plants)were analysed for water holding capacity(WHC),cation exchange capacity(CEC),wet aggregate stability,pH,plant available nutrients(PO_(4)-P,K and N_(min))and germination and biomass success using standard laboratory and statistical methods.Soil pH showed a compensatory shift toward the HC pH(7.2)in all soils over the course of the study.For example,the pH of the medium grained HC treatment for the Chernozem decreased from 7.9 to 7.2 and increased in the Podzol and Gleysol from 5.9 to 6.1 and 4.9 to 5.5,respectively.The nutrient-rich HC(2034±38.3 mg kg^(−1) PO_(4)-P and 2612.5±268.7 mg kg^(−1) K content)provided only a short-term supply of nutrients,due to the relatively easily mineralized fraction of HC,which allowed for quick nutrient release.The pH and PO_(4)-P effects were most pronounced in the fine grained HC treatments,with a~87%,~308%and~2500%increase in PO_(4)-P content in the Chernozem,Podzol and Gleysol,respectively,compared to the controls at the beginning of the study.The same trend was observed for the K and NH_(4)^(+)content in the fine and medium grained HC treatments in all soils.No seed germination inhibition of Chinese cabbage was observed,with average germina-tion rates>50%in all soils.An effect on NO_(3)^(−)content was indeterminable,while there was little to no effect on biomass production,WHC,CEC and aggregate stability.In conclusion,the application of 5%fine grained HC significantly influenced the nutrient content over a short-term.However,the application rate was insufficient to substantially improve plant growth,nor to sustain a longer-term nutrients supply,regardless of grain size.

Statistics for Surface Modes of Nanoparticles with Shape Fluctuations

We develop a numerical method for approximating the surface modes of sphere-like nanoparticles in the quasi-static limit,based on an expansion of(the angular part of)the potentials into spherical harmonics.Comparisons of the results obtained in this manner with exact solutions and with a perturbation ansatz prove that the scheme is accurate if the shape deviations from a sphere are not too large.The method allows fast calculations for large numbers of particles,and thus to obtain statistics for nanoparticles with random shape fluctuations.As an application we present some statistics for the distribution of resonances,polariziabilities,and dipole axes for particles with random perturbations.