Ultrahigh compression of water using intense heavy ion beams: laboratory planetary physics

Intense heavy ion beams offer a unique tool for generating samples of high energy density matter with extreme conditions of density and pressure that are believed to exist in the interiors of giant planets. An international accelerator facility named FAIR (Facility for Antiprotons and Ion Research) is being constructed at Darmstadt, which will be completed around the year 2015. It is expected that this accelerator facility will deliver a bunched uranium beam with an intensity of 5x10(11) ions per spill with a bunch length of 50-100 ns. An experiment named LAPLAS (Laboratory Planetary Sciences) has been proposed to achieve a low-entropy compression of a sample material like hydrogen or water (which are believed to be abundant in giant planets) that is imploded in a multi-layered target by the ion beam. Detailed numerical simulations have shown that using parameters of the heavy ion beam that will be available at FAIR, one can generate physical conditions that have been predicted to exist in the interior of giant planets. In the present paper, we report simulations of compression of water that show that one can generate a plasma phase as well as a superionic phase of water in the LAPLAS experiments.

Emittance estimation by an ion optical element with variable focusing strength and a viewing target

The emittance of an extracted ion beam can be estimated to first order by a series of three linear independent profile measurements. This estimation is restricted to the evaluation of an upper limit of the emittance value for a homogeneous, nonfilamented beam. The beam is assumed to be round, respectively elliptical, without any structure of the intensity distribution, no space charge has been assumed for the drifting beam, and the optics is assumed to be linear. Instead of using three different drift sections, a linear focusing element with three different focusing strengths can be used. Plotting the beam radius as function of focusing strength, three independent solutions can be used to calculate the Twiss parameters alpha, beta, and gamma and furthermore the emittance epsilon. Here we describe the measurements which have been performed with the SECRAL ion source at Institute of Modern Physics Lanzhou.

Effect of acid strength distribution on conversion of FCC gasoline over a ZSM-5 zeolite catalyst

Acid strength distribution and the distribution of aromatics formed in the FCC gasoline conversion reaction on a ZSM-5 zeolite with different Na contents have been studied. With increasing Na content in the ZSM-5 zeolite, the acid sites determined by NH3-TPD technique, especially the strong acid sites, clearly decrease. When used as catalyst for the aromatization reaction, the transformation of olefins in the FCC gasoline into aromatics is governed directly by the strong acid sites on the ZSM-5 catalyst. Only under the conditions that a ZSM-5 catalyst possesses suitable strong acid sites is reaction temperature favorable for the aromatics formed.

Effect of sodium alginate concentration on membrane strength and permeating property of poly-l-arginine group microcapsule

A novel poly-l-arginine microcapsule was prepared due to its nutritional function and pharmacological efficacy. A high-voltage electrostatic droplet generator was used to make uniform microcapsules. The results show that the membrane strength and permeating property are both remarkably affected with the changes of sodium alginate concentration. With the sodium alginate concentration increasing, gel beads sizes increase from 233 mum to 350 mum, release ratio is also higher at the same time, but the membrane strength decreases.

The role of acid strength of zeolites in liquid-phase alkylation of benzene with ethylene

The role of acid strength of zeolites in liquid-phase alkylation of benzene with ethylene was studied over beta, MCM-22, and USY zeolites by means of adsorbing NH3 at different temperatures. The strong acid sites are active centers, while the weak acid sites are inactive. The selectivity behavior of the strong acid sites varies with the relative acid strength as well as the types of the zeolites.

The synthesis of nanostructured W2C on ultrahigh surface area carbon materials via carbothermal hydrogen reduction

Nanostructured tungsten carbides were synthesized, for the first time, with a size distribution of 5-12 nm on ultrahigh surface area carbon material, by carbothermal hydrogen reduction (CHR) at 850degreesC and metal Ni promoted CHR at 650 degreesC.

Influences of Gd on the microstructure and strength of Mg-4.5Zn alloy

Microstructure and mechanical properties of peak-aged Mg-4.5Zn-xGd (x=0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 wt.%) alloys have been investigated. The results showed that the grain size of the alloys was refined gradually with increasing Gd. Mg5Gd and Mg3Gd2Zn3 phases were found in the Gd-containing alloys. The strengths were greatly improved with Gd additions, and the highest strength level was obtained in the Mg-4.5Zn-1.5Gd alloy, in which the ultimate tensile strength and yield strength were 231 MPa and 113 MPa, respectively.

Characterization of High Melt Strength Polypropylene Synthesized via Silane Grafting Initiated by In Situ Heat Induction Reaction

High melt strength polypropylene (HMSPP) was synthesized by in situ heat induction reaction, in which pure polypropylene (PP) powders without any additives were used as a basic resin and vinyl trimethoxysilane (VTMS) as a grafting and crosslinking agent. The grafting reaction of VTMS with PP was confirmed by FTIR. The structure and properties of HMSPP were characterized by means of various measurements. The content of grafted silane played a key role on the melt strength and melt flow rate (MFR) of HMSPP. With increasing the content of grafted silane, the melt strength of HMSPP increased, and the MFR reduced. In addition, due to the existence of cross-linking structure, the thermal stability and tensile strength of HMSPP were improved compared with PP.

Improved Melting Strength of Polypropylene by Reactive Compounding With Ultrafine Full-Vulcanized Polybutadiene Rubber (UFBR) Particles

Ultrafine full-vulcanized polybutadiene rubber (UFBR) in particle sizes of ca. 50-100 nm has been used for modifying mechanical and processing performances of polypropylene (PP), and PP-g-maleic anhydride (PP-MA) has been used as a compatibilizer for enhancing the interfacial adhesion between the two components. The results show that PP/UFBR possesses rheological behaviors such as highly branched PP when UFBR content in blends reaches 10 wt%, while in contrast, the much low content of UFBR combining small amount of PP-MA endows the material with rheological characteristics of high melt strength materials like highly branched PP.

Novel Method for Preparation of Polypropylene Blends with High Melt Strength by Reactive Compounding

Ultrafine full-vulcanized polybutadiene rubber(UFBR) with particle sizes of ca. 50-100 nm were used for modifying mechanical and processing performances of polypropylene(PP) with PP-g-maleic anhydride(PP-g-MA) as a compatibilizer for enhancing the interfacial adhesion between the two components. The morphology, dynamical rheology response and mechanical properties of the blends were characterized by means of SEM, rheometer and tensile test, respectively.

Adhesive strength of new thermal barrier coatings of rare earth zirconates

La2Zr2O7 (LZ) and La-2(Zr0.7Ce0.3)(2)O-7 (LZ7C3) as novel candidate materials for thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were prepared by electron beam-physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD). The adhesive strength of the as-deposited LZ and LZ7C3 coatings were evaluated by transverse scratch test. Meanwhile, the factors affecting the critical load value were also investigated. The critical load value of LZ7C3 coating is larger than that of LZ coating, whereas both values of these two coatings are lower than that of the traditional coating material, i.e. 8 wt% yttria stabilized zirconia (8YSZ). The micro-cracks formed in the scratch channel can partially release the stress in the coating and then enhance the adhesive strength of the coating. The width of the scratch channel and the surface spallation after transverse scratch test are effective factors to evaluate the adhesive strength of LZ and LZ7C3 coatings.