ELECTROCATALYSIS AT A MICRODISK ELECTRODE MODIFIED WITH A REDOX SPECIES

The current equation of the electrocatalytic reaction at a microdisk electrode modified with redox species has been described and verified experimentally. There exists a linear relationship between plateau limiting current and the radius of the microdisk electrode for a catalytic process. The influence of the dimensions of the microdisk electrode on catalytic efficiency is discussed. The polyvinylferrocene (PVFc)-modified microdisk electrode prepared by the coating method was taken as a typical example, on which the electrocatalytic oxidation of ascorbic acid could be studied. The catalytic reaction rate constants were determined as an average value of 1.5 X 10(-7) cm3/mol s by this method, and are consistent with those obtained at a conventional electrode.

Sulfamide-amine alcohol catalyzed enantioselective alkynylation of aromatic ketones

The new readily available sulfamide-amine alcohol 11 was found to be effective in catalyzing enantioselective phenylacetylene addition to aromatic ketones without using another central metal, providing the chiral tertiary propargylic alcohols in good yields (up to 83%) and enantioselectivities (up to 83% e.e.). The conditions of this catalytic process are both mild and Simple, (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Computational modelling of freeze layers in smelting processes

The use of computational modelling in examining process engineering issues is very powerful. It has been used in the development of the HIsmelt process from its concept. It is desirable to further water-cool the HIsmelt vessel to reduce downtime for replacing refractory. Water-cooled elements close to a metal bath run the risk of failure. This generally occurs when a process perturbation causes the freeze and refractory layers to come away from the water-cooled element, which is then exposed to liquid metal. The element fails as they are unable to remove all the heat. Modelling of the water-cooled element involves modelling the heat transfer, fluid flow, stress and solidification for a localised section of the reaction vessel. The complex interaction between the liquid slag and the refractory applied to the outside of thewater-cooled element is also being examined to model the wear of this layer. The model is being constructed in Physica, a CFD code developed at the University of Greenwich. Modelling of this system has commenced with modelling solidification test cases. These test cases have been used to validate the CFD code’s capability to model the solidification in this system. A model to track the penetration of slag into refractory has also been developed and tested.

Mathematical modelling of the behaviour of granular material in a computational fluid dynamics framework using micro-mechanical models

In this paper, a Computational Fluid Dynamics framework is presented for the modelling of key processes which involve granular material (i.e. segregation, degradation, caking). Appropriate physical models and sophisticated algorithms have been developed for the correct representation of the different material components in a granular mixture. The various processes, which arise from the micromechanical properties of the different mixture species can be obtained and parametrised in a DEM / experimental framework, thus enabling the continuum theory to correctly account for the micromechanical properties of a granular system. The present study establishes the link between the micromechanics and continuum theory and demonstrates the model capabilities in simulations of processes which are of great importance to the process engineering industry and involve granular materials in complex geometries.

Nanoporous metal organic framework materials for hydrogen storage

Hydrogen is expected to play an important role in future transportation as a promising alternative clean energy source to carbon-based fuels. One of the key challenges to commercialize hydrogen energy is to develop appropriate onboard hydrogen storage systems, capable of charging and discharging large quantities of hydrogen with fast enough kinetics to meet commercial requirements. Metal organic framework (MOF) is a new type of inorganic and organic hybrid nanoporous particulate materials. Its diverse networks can enhance hydrogen storage through tuning the structure and property of MOFs. The MOF materials so far developed adsorb hydrogen through weak dispersion interactions, which allow significant quantity of hydrogen to be stored at cryogenic temperatures with fast kinetics. Novel MOFs are being developed to strengthen the interactions between hydrogen and MOFs in order to store hydrogen under ambient conditions. This review surveys the development of such candidate materials, their performance and future research needs. (C) 2009 Chinese Society of Particuology and Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.