Development trends and market analysis of China''''s plastics industry

China's plastics industry has witnessed the leap-forward development with the stable and sound growth of national economy,having increased its economic and technical indicators stably and greatly for consecutive ten years.     

Fractal analysis of cracks in alumina–zirconia composites

The crack paths, induced by Vickers indentation in alumina–zirconia composites, were analyzed using fractal geometry. The fractal dimension n_S was calculated for each crack. This parameter refers to a corresponding three-dimensional fracture surface and indicates how its geometry varies by changing the magnification. An interesting correlation between K_IC and n_S was found: it suggests that the samples with high percentages of alumina and also the pure zirconia are characterized by an intergranular fracture mode, while the composites with high zirconia content present a transgranular fracture mode. This result is confirmed by analyzing the energies of fracture calculated using both the classical and fractal approaches. The results obtained in this research not only made it possible to understand the fracture behavior of the analyzed composites, but also confirmed the good potential of fractal analysis to explain complex mechanisms such as those involved in the fracture of brittle materials.     

Mechanical behavior analysis of high power commercial lithium-ion batteries

In application, lithium-ion cells undergo expansion during cycling. The mechanical behavior and the impact of external stress on lithium-ion battery are important in vehicle application. In this work, 18 Ah high power commercial cell with Li Ni_0.5Co_0.2Mn_0.3O₂/graphite electrode were adopted. A commercial compress machine was applied to monitor the mechanical characteristics under different stage of charge(SOC), lifetime and initial external force. The ...     

Steady-state operation analysis of an ideal heat integrated distillation column

A systematic approach for the steady-state operation analysis of chemical processes is pro-posed.The method affords the possibility of taking operation resilience into consideration during thestage of process design.It may serve the designer as an efficient means for the initial screening ofalternative design schemes.An ideal heat integrated distillation column(HIDiC),without any reboileror condenser attached,is studied throughout this work.It has been found that among the various va-riables concerned with the ideal HIDiC,feed thermal condition appears to be the only factor exertingsignificant influences on the interaction between the top and the bottom control loops.Maximuminteraction is expected when the feed thermal condition approaches 0.5.Total number of stages andheat transfer rate are essential to the system ability of disturbance rejection.Therefore,more stagesand higher heat transfer rate ought to be preferred.But,too many stages and higher heat transfer ratemay increase the load of the compres     

FT-Raman analysis of the effects of γ-radiation on nylon 6–12 filaments

Summary FT-Raman spectroscopy of commercial amorphous and crystalline nylon 6–12 filaments subjected to various -radiation doses are presented. The results show that a difference exists in the interaction of -radiation with these polyamides, depending on the crystallinity which can be evaluated by measuring the CH-stretching/CH-bending Raman band intensity ratio as a function of applied -dose.     

Simulation and analysis of multi-stage centrifugal fractional extraction process of 4-nitrobenzene glycine enantiomers☆

Based on the interfacial ligand exchange model and the law of conservation of mass, the multi-stage enantioselective liquid–liquid extraction model has been established to analyze and discuss on multi-stage centrifugal fractional extraction process of 4-nitrobenzene glycine (PGL) enantiomers. The influence of phase ratio, extractant concentra-tion, and PF6?concentration on the concentrations of enantiomers in the extract and raffinate was investigated by experiment and simulation. A good agreement between model and experiment was obtained. On this basis, the influence of many parameters such as location of stage, concentration levels, extractant excess, and number of stages on the symmetric separation performance was simulated. The optimal location of feed stage is the middle of fractional extraction equipment. The feed flow must satisfy a restricted relationship on flow ratios and the liquid throughout of centrifugal device. For desired purity specification, the required flow ratios decrease with extractant concentration and increase with PF6?concentration. When the number of stages is 18 stages at extractant excess of 1.0 or 14 stages at extractant excess of 2.0, the eeeq (equal enantiomeric excess) can reach to 99%.     

Extraction and analysis of risk factors from Chinese chemical accident reports

Accidents in chemical production usually result in fatal injury,economic loss and negative social impact.Chemical accident reports which record past accident information,contain a large amount of expert knowledge.However,manually finding out the key factors causing accidents needs reading and analyzing of numerous accident reports,which is time-consuming and labor intensive.Herein,in this paper,a semiautomatic method based on natural language process(NLP) technology is developed to construct a k...     

Statistics and analysis of China＇s sulphur market in 2011

对2011年我国硫磺进口情况进行统计,并对国内销售情况进行分析。2011年我国硫磺进口量为9523.2 kt,较2010年减少9.21%。上半年市场基本以价格上涨为主,6月初达到最高点,华东市场均价为1800元/t。下半年市场陷入僵持、疲软的行情,年底华东市场均价跌破1700元/t。2011年我国主要硫磺进口国为沙特阿拉伯、哈萨克斯坦和加拿大。硫磺采购主要集中在江苏、云南、贵州、山东、湖北等地。     

Development of a bifurcation analysis approach based on gPROMS platform☆

A bifurcation analysis approach is developed based on the process simulator gPROMS platform, which can automatically trace a solution path, detect and pass the bifurcation points and check the stability of solutions. The arclength continuation algorithm is incorporated as a process entity in gPROMS to overcome the limit of turning points and get multiple solutions with respect to a user-defined parameter. The bifurcation points are detected through a bifurcation test function τ which is written in C ++ routine as a foreign object connected with gPROMS through Foreign Process Interface. The stability analysis is realized by evaluating eigenvalues of the Jacobian matrix of each steady state solution. Two reference cases of an adiabatic CSTR and a homogenous azeotropic distillation from literature are studied, which successfully validate the reliability of the proposed approach. Besides the multiple steady states and Hopf bifurcation points, a more complex homoclinic bifurcation behavior is found for the distillation case compared to literature.     

XRD microstructural analysis of mullites obtained from kaolinite–alumina mixtures

A microstructural study of mullite obtained by the reaction sintering of kaolinite–α–alumina mixtures in the range 1150–1700°C has been performed by using X-ray line profile analyses together with scanning and transmission electron microscopy equipped with microanalysis by energy dispersion (SEM-EDS, TEM-AEM). Two kinds of morphology corresponding to primary (elongated grains) and secondary (equiaxed grains) mullite have been observed. A bimodal crystallite size distribution has been detected through XRD microstructural analysis from 1300°C. The results obtained by this method are compared with SEM/TEM data.     

Thermodynamic analysis and modification of Gibbs–Thomson equation for melting point depression of metal nanoparticles

Abnormal melting point depression of metal nanoparticles often occurs in heterogeneous catalytic reactions,which leads to a reduction in the stability of reactive nanoclusters.To study this abnormal phenomenon,the original and surface-energy modified Gibbs-Thomson equations were analyzed in this work and further modified by considering the effect of the substrate.The results revealed that the original Gibbs-Thomson equation was not suitable for the particles with radii smaller than 10 nm.Moreover,the performance of the surface-energy modified Gibbs-Thomson equation was improved,and the deviation was reduced to(-350-100) K,although further modification of the equation by considering the interfacial effect was necessary for the small particles(r 5 nm).The new model with the interfacial effect improved the model performance with a deviation of approximately-50 to 20 K,where the interfacial effect can be predicted quantitatively from the thermodynamic properties of the metal and substrate.Additionally,the micro-wetting parameter α_W can be used to qualitatively study the overall impact of the substrate on the melting point depression.     

Exergy analysis of humidification–dehumidification desalination systems using driving forces concept

In this paper, a new method for exergy analysis of humidification–dehumidification (HD) desalination systems is presented. It is based on the principle that there are exergy losses wherever the driving forces exist. A methodology was developed for investigating various parametric effects on exergy losses. The method involved developing a sink and source model as well as basic relations in the system. Results showed that the mass transfer phenomenon does not have any effect on the total exergy losses of the HD systems. Heater was the largest irreversibility resource. Flow rate of the Un-heated fluid and the maximum temperature of the system had key roles in the total exergy losses. An optimum point for the water-heated HD desalination system is also introduced. Finally, some comparisons are proposed between the water-heated and the air-heated HD desalination systems.     

Systemic analysis of MgO hydration effects on alumina–magnesia refractory castables

The use of magnesia sources with high specific surface area and small particle size in the Al₂O₃–MgO system can induce faster in situ spinel (MgAl₂O₄) formation in castable compositions, improving the slag corrosion resistance. However, the higher reactivity of these raw materials lead to an intensive brucite formation (followed by volumetric expansion), spoiling the castable's properties during the curing and drying steps. Considering these aspects, a systemic analysis of three magnesia sources (dead-burnt and caustic ones) was carried out in order to evaluate: (1) their hydration impact on the refractory castables properties, and (2) their bonding ability in cement-free compositions. Mechanical strength, thermogravimetric and Young's modulus tests were conducted during the castables’ curing and drying steps. According to the results, the elastic modulus measurement is an efficient tool to evaluate the magnesia hydration. The addition of proper amounts of calcium aluminate cement and/or silica fume to the castables can inhibit the crack formation and provide suitable mechanical properties. The results also show that under certain conditions, MgO can be used as a binder, replacing calcium aluminate cement and leading to a significant reduction in the castables costs with no drawbacks to their refractoriness.     

Network analysis of N flows and food self-sufficiency—a comparative study of crop-livestock systems of the highlands of East and southern Africa

Smallholder farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa are often nutrient-limited, and therefore imports must be increased to compensate exports and losses. To explore whether the properties of nutrient cycling networks relate to the systems’ capability to sustain rural families, we investigated N flows within contrasting crop-livestock systems in Ethiopia, Kenya and Zimbabwe applying concepts from ecological network analysis. Farm households were conceptualised as networks, the compartments were the household and their farming activities which were connected by the N flows. Indicators assessing network size, activity and cycling, and the organisation and diversity of the N flows were compared with system productivity and food self-sufficiency. Results showed that organisation and diversity of N flows to, from and within the farm households differed more between farms of different resource endowments than across sites. The amount of N cycled per household was small and comparable across sites: less than 25 kg N year⁻¹, and for the poor households less than 5 kg N year⁻¹. Poor households with soil N stocks that were 50–60% smaller than wealthier households depended more on external inputs (e.g. a dependence of 65% vs. 45% in Zimbabwe). Productivity was positively related to network size, its organisation and N cycling, but utilisation efficiencies were different across sites in relation to soil N stock and the importance of livestock for N flows. Greater size of the N flow network and its organisation led to increased productivity and food self-sufficiency, reducing dependence, which may increase the adaptability and reliability of smallholder crop-livestock systems.     

Expanded hexadentate ligands of Jäger type: synthesis and X-ray analysis

The free ligand 2 of Jäger type was synthesized via demetallation of the copper complex 1. 2 was expanded by condensation with dicarbonyl compounds to yield further hexadentate ligands with [N₄O₂]-donorset suitable for transition metal complexation. The structures of 2 and 3 were described by NMR and X-ray analysis.     

Co-pyrolysis of soybean soapstock with iron slag/aluminum scrap,and characterization and analysis of their products

Soybean soapstock(SS) is one of the main solid wastes produced in the refinery of edible oil processing. In this study, the co-pyrolysis of SS with iron slag(IS) and aluminum scrap(AS) was carried out in a tubular furnace. The gas, liquid and solid products were characterized and the char yield decreased with increasing IS/AS ratio. IS and AS can improve the gas yield, and when the ratio of SS/IS was 1:0.25, the total pyrolysis gas and hydrogen contents were significantly increased. The content ...