CFD-DEM simulation of three-dimensional aeolian sand movement

A three-dimensional CFD-DEM model is proposed to investigate the aeolian sand movement. The results show that the mean particle horizontal velocity can be expressed by a power function of heights. The probability distribution of the impact and lift-off velocities of particles can be described by a log-normal function, and that of the impact and lift-off angles can be expressed by an exponential function. The probability distribution of particle horizontal velocity at different heights can be described as a lognormal function, while the probability distribution of longitudinal and vertical velocity can be described as a normal function. The comparison with previous two-dimensional calculations shows that the variations of mean particle horizontal velocity along the heights in two-dimensional and three-dimensional models are similar. However, the mean particle density of the two-dimensional model is larger than that in reality, which will result in the overestimation of sand transportation rate in the two-dimensional calculation. The study also shows that the predicted probability distributions of particle velocities are in good agreement with the experimental results.

Energy and entropy radiated by a black hole embedded in a de Sitter braneworld

We study the Hawking radiation of a (4+n)-dimensional Schwarzschild black hole imbedded in space-time with a positive cosmological constant. The greybody and energy emission rates of scalars, fermions, bosons, and gravitons are calculated in the full range of energy. Valuable information on the dimensions and curvature of space-time is revealed. Furthermore, we investigate the entropy radiated and lost by black holes. We find their ratio near 1 in favor of the Bekenstein's conjecture.

Holographic dual of linear dilaton black hole in Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton-axion gravity

Motivated by the recently proposed Kerr/CFT correspondence, we investigate the holographic dual of the extremal and non-extremal rotating linear dilaton black hole in Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton-Axion Gravity. For the case of extremal black hole, by imposing the appropriate boundary condition at spatial infinity of the near horizon extremal geometry, the Virasoro algebra of conserved charges associated with the asymptotic symmetry group is obtained. It is shown that the microscopic entropy of the dual conformal field given by Cardy formula exactly agrees with Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of extremal black hole. Then, by rewriting the wave equation of massless scalar field with sufficient low energy as the SLL(2, R) x SLR(2, R) Casimir operator, we find the hidden conformal symmetry of the non-extremal linear dilaton black hole, which implies that the non-extremal rotating linear dilaton black hole is holographically dual to a two dimensional conformal field theory with the non-zero left and right temperatures. Furthermore, it is shown that the entropy of non-extremal black hole can be reproduced by using Cardy formula.

Entropy of Kaluza-Klein black hole from Kerr/CFT correspondence

We extend the recently proposed Kerr/CFT correspondence to examine the dual conformal field theory of four-dimensional Kaluza-Klein black hole in Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton theory. For the extremal Kaluza-Klein black hole, the central charge and temperature of the dual conformal field are calculated following the approach of Guica, Hartman, Song and Strominger. Meanwhile, we show that the microscopic entropy given by the Cardy formula agrees with Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of extremal Kaluza-Klein black hole. For the non-extremal case, by studying the near-region wave equation of a neutral massless scalar field, we investigate the hidden conformal symmetry of Kaluza-Klein black hole, and find the left and right temperatures of the dual conformal field theory. Furthermore, we find that the entropy of non-extremal Kaluza-Klein black hole is reproduced by Cardy formula. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synthesis and characterization of carbon black supported Pt-Ru alloy as a model catalyst for fuel cells

A set of bimetallic Pt-Ru catalysts prepared by co-impregnation of carbon black with ruthenium(III) chloride hydrate and hydrogen hexachloroplatinate(IV) hydrate were investigated by temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), chemisorption of hydrogen, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), microcalorimetry of adsorbed CO and a structure-sensitive reaction (n-hexane conversion). The results showed that the volumetric capacities for CO and H-2 adsorption is influenced in the bimetallic Pt-Ru catalysts by the formation of a Pt-Ru alloy. The n-hexane reaction revealed that the reaction mechanism for the pure Pt catalyst mainly occurs via cyclic isomerization and aromatization due to the presence of bigger Pt surface ensembles, whereas the Pt-Ru catalysts exhibited predominantly bond-shift isomerization by the diluting effect of Ru metal addition. The differential heats of CO chemisorption on Pt-Ru catalysts fell between the two monometallic Pt and Ru catalysts extremes. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Direct conversion of methane under nonoxidative conditions

Direct conversion of methane into hydrogen and valuable chemicals under nonoxidative conditions is a process severely limited thermodynamically. However, the movement from the present era of fossil fuels into the coming hydrogen energy age makes it an interesting and important approach compared with the direct conversion of methane under the aid of oxidants. This paper gives a brief overview of the direct conversion of CH4 under nonoxidative conditions. At the same time, our understanding of methane dehydroaromatization over Mo/HZSM-5 catalysts for the simultaneous formation of hydrogen and light aromatics is discussed in general, while the bifunctionality of Mo/HZSM-5 catalysts and the role of carbonaceous deposits formed during the reaction are reviewed in more detail. A perspective of the topic from both academic points of view and potential industrial applications is also presented. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.

Direct spectroscopic evidence for the specific property of aqueous core phase in black soap film

The microenvironment of the aqueous core phase in the black soap film of cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide with the anionic dye Brilliant Yellow as spectral probe has been studied by UV-vis spectroscopy. Under neutral and basic conditions, the dye aggregates in the films exist as both the acid and base forms in contrast to a preference of the base form in the bulk solutions. The specific property of black soap film, that the intrinsic pH value of the aqueous core phase insensitively responds to pH changes of the bulk solution, is directly observed through UV-vis spectra.