Preparation and characterization of trilobal activated carbon fibers

The objective of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of several different methods for controlling the pore size and pore size distribution in activated carbon fibers. Variables studied included fiber shape, activation time, and the addition of small amounts of silver nitrate. Pure isotropic pitch and the same isotropic pitch containing 1 wt.% silver were melt spun to form fibers with round and trilobal cross sections. These fibers were then stabilized, carbonized, and activated in carbon dioxide. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE SEM), electron dispersive spectra (EDS), and wavelength dispersive spectra (WDS) were used to monitor the size and distribution of the silver particles in the fibers before and after activation. Each of these analyses showed that the distribution of silver particles was extremely uniform before and after activation. The fibers were also weighed before and after activation to determine the percent burn-off. The BET specific surface areas of the activated fibers were determined from N₂ adsorption isotherms measured at −196 °C. The results showed that round and trilobal fibers with equivalent cross-sectional areas yielded similar burn-off values and specific surface areas after activation. Also, activation rates were found to be independent of CO₂ flow rate. The porosity of the activated fibers depended on the total time of activation and the cross-sectional area of fibers. The N₂ adsorption measurements showed that the activated fibers had extremely high specific surface areas (greater than 3000 m²/g) and high degrees of meso- and macro-porosity. FE SEM was also used to investigate surface texture and size of pore openings on the surfaces of the activated fibers. The photos showed that silver particles generated surface macro- and mesopores, in agreement with the inferences from N₂ adsorption measurements.     

A study on the factors for improving the ethanol production from Jerusalem artichoke by Kluyveromyces fragilis

This study is to investigate the factors influencing the alcohol production byKluyveromyces fragilis using the juice of Jerusalem Artichoke tubers. The cell growth rate and ethanol production rate were stimulated by aeration and by the addition of unsaturated fatty acids and the cell mass production and the ethanol production were substantially improved. It was found that oxygen and unsaturated fatty acids added played a decisive role on the increase of alcohol tolerance of yeast.     

Characterization of poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)-based polymer electrolyte filled with TiO2 nanoparticles

Nanoscale TiO₂ particle filled poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) film is characterized by investigating some properties such as surface morphology, thermal and crystalline properties, swelling behavior after absorbing electrolyte solution, chemical and electrochemical stabilities, ionic conductivity, and compatibility with lithium electrode. Decent self-supporting polymer electrolyte film can be obtained at the range of <50 wt% TiO₂. Different optimal TiO₂ contents showing maximum liquid uptake may exist by adopting other electrolyte solution. Room temperature ionic conductivity of the polymer electrolyte placed surely on the region of >10⁻³ S/cm, and thus the film is very applicable to rechargeable lithium batteries. An emphasis is also be paid on that much lower interfacial resistance between the polymer electrolyte and lithium metal electrode can be obtained by the solid-solvent role of nanoscale TiO₂ filler.     

Structure and functional complementation of engineered fragments from yeast phosphoglycerate kinase

Previous studies have shown that, although the isolated structuraldomains of yeast phosphoglycerate kinase recover a quasi-nativestructure in vitro as well as in vivo, they do not reassociatenor generate a functional enzyme. The aim of this work was firstto study the folding of complementary fragments different fromstructural domains and second to determine the requirementsfor their reassociation and functional complementation. Themethod used for producing rigorously defined fragments consistsof the introduction of a unique cysteinyl residue in the proteinfollowed by a specific cleavage by 5'5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoate)/potassiumcyanide at this residue. Two pairs of complementary fragmentswere thus obtained, 1–96/97–415 and 1–248/249–415.The structure and stabilities of the different fragments werestudied. The short fragments, i.e. 1–96 and 249–415were found to contain some secondary structure, but to havea low stability. Each large fragment has a high structural contentand a stability close to that of the corresponding domain. Incontrast to that observed with the isolated domains, a weakbut significant complementation was observed for the two pairsof fragments; the pair of fragments 1–248/249–415recovered 8% of the activity of the native enzyme upon complementation.An independent refolding of the complementary fragments beforereassociation decreased the yield of complementation for thepair of fragments 1–96/97–415, but did not affectthe complementation for the other pair (1–248/249–415).From the present data and previous work on the isolated domains,it appears that the correct folding of the isolated fragmentsis not a prerequisite for their complementation.     

加强战略管理势在必行

战略管理是指对企业经营战略的制订、实施和控制进行的管理。目前国内涂料企业的战略意识淡薄、决策随意性大 ,提出企业领导应把主要精力放在战略的制订和实施上 ,建立健全相关制度的建议     

Companion robots for older adults: Rodgers’ evolutionary concept analysis approach

Intelligent Service Robotics - This study aims to analyze the concept of companion robots for older adults from the perspective of nursing. This study employed a concept analysis. The literature...     

Process for dense 2D SiC fiber-SiC matrix composites

A new process using SiC fiber fabrics and SiC tapes to produce dense 2D SiC fiber-SiC (SiC/SiC) composites is demonstrated. The strategy for fabricating the SiC/SiC composites involves: (i) alternately stacking the SiC fiber fabrics and SiC tapes at room temperature, (ii) pyrolyzing of the stacked composites, and (iii) hot-pressing the pyrolyzed composites. By controlling the hot-pressing temperature, it is possible to obtain dense 2D SiC/SiC composites with relative densities of >98%. The 2D SiC/SiC composites show no degradation of the SiC fibers and a higher mechanical strength.     

The form error prediction in side wall machining considering tool deflection

In this research, an effective method for the form error prediction in side wall machining with a flat end mill is suggested. The form error is predicted directly from the tool deflection without surface generation by cutting edge locus with time simulation. The developed model can predict the surface form error accurately about 300 times faster than the previous method. Cutting forces and tool deflection are calculated considering tool geometry, tool setting error and machine tool stiffness. The characteristics and the difference of generated surface shape in up milling and down milling are discussed. The usefulness of the presented method is verified from a set of experiments under various cutting conditions generally used in die and mold manufacturing. This study contributes to real time surface shape estimation and cutting process planning for the improvement of form accuracy.     

A timing controller embedded driver IC with 3.24‐Gbps eDP interface for chip‐on‐glass TFT‐LCD applications

This paper presents a timing controller embedded driver (TED) IC with 3.24‐Gbps embedded display port (eDP), which is implemented using a 45‐nm high‐voltage CMOS process for the chip‐on‐glass (COG) TFT‐LCD applications. The proposed TED‐IC employs the input offset calibration scheme, the zero‐adjustable equalizer, and the phase locked loop‐based bang‐bang clock and data recovery to enhance the maximum data rate. Also, the proposed TED‐IC provides efficient power management by supporting advanced link power management feature of eDP standard v1.4. Additionally, the smart charge sharing is proposed to reduce the dynamic power consumption of output buffers. Measured result demonstrates the maximum data rate of 3.24 Gbps from a 1.1 V supply voltage with a 7.9‐inch QXGA 60‐Hz COG‐LCD prototype panel and 44% power saving from the display system.