Ce-doped LiNi1/3Co（1/3-x/3）Mn1/3Cex/3O2 cathode materials for use in lithium ion batteries

LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 and Ce-doped LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 cathode materials were synthesized by a co-precipitation method and solid phase synthesis and characterized using X-ray diffraction(XRD) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The results indicated that the resultant cathode materials with different Ce content all had a good layer structure and high crystallinity.Electrochemical performance testing of the cathode materials showed that the discharge capacity increased with increasing Ce content while the initial reversible capacity attenuation decreased with Ce doping.When the Ce content of the cathode materials is x=0.2,and the current charge and discharge rate is a constant 0.2 C,the discharge capacity maintained 91% of its initial capacity after cycling 50 times.     

Ferroelectricity of weak-polar organic molecules in alternate Langmuir-Blodgett multilayer films

Pyroelectric material is a polar solid and has been interested since the 1960s. Today it is one of important materials used in infrared detectors[1]. With the development of the devices, the focus point on the materials applied has been transferred from bulk materials to film ones. Ferroelectric material is a kind of pyroelectric materials which spontaneous polarization can be reversed with the direction change of external electric field. Observation of ferroelectric hysteresis loop or not cou…     

Characterization of Cu-Ti powder metallurgical materials

Powder metallurgical Cu-Ti alloys with different titanium additions produced by hot pressing were characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, and hardness, wear and bending tests. The addition of titanium to copper caused the formation of different intermetallic layers around titanium particles. The titanium content of the intermetallics decreased from the center of the particle to the copper matrix. The hardness, wear resistance, and bending strength of the materials increased with increasing Ti content, whereas strain in the bending test decreased. Worn surface analyses showed that different wear mechanisms were active during the wear test of specimens with different chemical compositions. Changes in the properties of the materials with titanium addition were explained by the high hardness of different Cu-Ti intermetallic phases.     

Effects of Ti additive on HPHT diamond synthesis in Fe-Ni-C system

Diamond crystals with low nitrogen concentration were synthesized from the Fe-Ni-C system with Ti additive at high pressure and high temperature （HPHT） in a china-type cubic high pressure apparatus （CHPA）. The synthesis pressure range was 4.8-5.2 GPa, and the temperature range was 1420-1600 K. The lowest synthesis pressure for diamond fell first and then rose with the increase of Ti additive. The color, shape, surface morphology and nitrogen impurity concentration of the synthesized diamond crystals were characterized using optical microscopy （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and micro Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectrometry. The results show that the Ti additive has significant effects on color, growth rate, crystal shape, surface morphology and nitrogen impurity con- centration of the synthesized diamond crystals. The color of diamond crystals synthesized without Ti additive is yellow, while that with Ti additive becomes light and nearly colorless. The growth rate without Ti additive is higher than that with Ti additive. The crystal shapes of as-grown diamond crystals vary with the increase of Ti additive. The {111} crystal faces become dominant and some {311} crystal faces appear with the increase of Ti additive. The concentration of nitrogen impurity in diamond crystals without Ti additive is higher than that with Ti additive.     

Fabrication of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels with excellent mechanical and pitting corrosion properties

A series of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels were successfully developed with a pressurized electroslag remelting furnace. Nitride additives and deoxidizer were packed into the stainless steel pipes, and then the stainless steel pipes were welded on the surface of an electrode with low nitrogen content to prepare a compound electrode. Using Si₃N₄ as a nitrogen alloying source, the silicon contents in the ingots were prone to be out of the specification range, the electric current fluctuated greatly and the surface qualities of the ingots were poor. The surface qualities of the ingots were improved with FeCrN as a nitrogen alloying source. The sound and compact macrostructure ingot with the maximum nitrogen content of 1.21wt% can be obtained. The 18Cr18Mn2Mo0.9N high nitrogen austenitic stainless steel exhibits high strength and good ductility at room temperature. The steel shows typical ductile-brittle transition behavior and excellent pitting corrosion resistance properties.     

Energy consumption of electrooxidation systems with boron-doped diamond electrodes in the pulse current mode

A pulse current technique was conducted in a boron-doped diamond (BDD) anode system for electrochemical wastewater treatment. Due to the strong generation and weak absorption of hydroxyl radicals on the diamond surface, the BDD electrode possesses a powerful capability of electrochemical oxidation of organic compounds, especially in the pulse current mode. The influences of pulse current parameters such as current density, pulse duty cycle, and frequency were investigated in terms of chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal, average current efficiency, and specific energy consumption. The results demonstrated that the relatively high COD removal and low specific energy consumption were obtained simultaneously only if the current density or pulse duty cycle was adjusted to a reasonable value. Increasing the frequency slightly enhanced the COD removal and average current efficiency. A pulse-BDD anode system showed a stronger energy saving ability than a constant-BDD anode system when the electrochemical oxidation of phenol of the two systems was compared. The results prove that the pulse current technique is more cost-effective and more suitable for a BDD anode system for real wastewater treatment. A kinetic analysis was presented to explain the above results.     

In situ hyperspectral data analysis for pigment content estimation of rice leaves

Analyses of the correlation between hyperspectral reflectance and pigment content including chlorephyll-a, chlorephyll-b and carotenoid of leaves in different sites of rice were reported in this paper. The hyperspectral reflectance of late rice during the whole growing season was measured using a Spectroradiometer with spectral range of 350 - 1050 nm and resolution of 3 nm. The chlorophyll-a, chlorephyll-b and carotenoid contents in rice leaves in rice fields to which different levels of nitrogen were applied were measured. The chlorephyll-a content of upper leaves was well correlated with the spectral variables. However, the correlation between both chlorephyll-b and careteniod and the spectral variables was far from that of chlorophyll-a. The potential of hyperspectral reflectance measurement for estimating chlorophyll-a of upper leaves was evaluated using univariate correlation and multivariate regression analysis methods with different types of predictors. This study showed that the most suitable estimated model of chlorephyll-a of upper leaves was obtained by using some hyperspectral variables such as SDr , SDb and their integration.     

Effects of SiO2 on the preparation and metallurgical properties of acid oxidized pellets

The effects of SiO₂ content on the preparation process and metallurgical properties of acid oxidized pellets, including compressive strength, reduction, and softening–melting behaviors, were systematically investigated.Mineralogical structures, elemental distribution, and pore size distribution were varied to analyze the mechanism of the effects.The results show that with an increase in SiO₂ content from 3.51 wt%to 7.18 wt%, compressive strength decreases from 3150 N/pellet to 2100 N/pellet and reducibility decreases from 76.5% to 71.4%.The microstructure showed that pellets with high SiO₂ content contained more magnetite in the mineralogical structures.Additionally, some liquid phases appeared, which hindered the continuous crystallization of hematite.Also, the softening–melting properties of the pellets clearly deteriorated as the SiO₂ content increased.With increasing SiO₂ content, the temperature range of the softening–melting zone decreased, and the maximum differential pressure and the comprehensive permeability index increased significantly.When acid oxidized pellets are used as the raw materials for blast furnace smelting, it should be combined with high basicity sinters to improve the softening–melting behaviors of the comprehensive charge.     

碳纸在LiCl–KCl–Li3N熔盐中的直接电化学氮掺杂

Graphite materials are widely used as electrode materials for electrochemical energy storage. N-doping is an effective method for enhancing the electrochemical properties of graphite. A novel one-step N-doping method for complete and compact carbon paper was proposed for molten salt electrolysis in the LiCl?KCl?Li₃N system. The results show that the degree of graphitization of carbon paper can be improved by the electrolysis of molten salts, especially at 2.0 V. Nitrogen gas was produced at the anode and nitrogen atoms can substitute carbon atoms of carbon paper at different sites to create nitrogen doping during the electrolysis process. The doping content of N in carbon paper is up to 13.0wt%. There were three groups of nitrogen atoms, i.e. quaternary N (N-Q), pyrrolic N (N-5), and pyridinic N (N-6) in N-doping carbon paper. N-doping carbon paper as an Al-ion battery cathode shows strong charge?recharge properties.     

A Low-Cost Dual Energy CT System with Sparse Data

Dual Energy CT （DECT） has recently gained significant research interest owing to its ability to discriminate materials, and hence is widely applied in the field of nuclear safety and security inspection. With the current technological developments, DECT can be typically realized by using two sets of detectors, one for detecting lower energy X-rays and another for detecting higher energy X-rays. This makes the imaging system expensive, limiting its practical implementation. In 2009, our group performed a preliminary study on a new low-cost system design, using only a complete data set for lower energy level and a sparse data set for the higher energy level. This could significantly reduce the cost of the system, as it contained much smaller number of detector elements. Reconstruction method is the key point of this system. In the present study, we further validated this system and proposed a robust method, involving three main steps： （1） estimation of the missing data iteratively with TV constraints; （2） use the reconstruction from the complete lower energy CT data set to form an initial estimation of the projection data for higher energy level; （3） use ordered views to accelerate the computation. Numerical simulations with different number of detector elements have also been examined. The results obtained in this study demonstrate that 1 ＋ 14% CT data is sufficient enough to provide a rather good reconstruction of both the effective atomic number and electron density distributions of the scanned object, instead of 2 sets CT data.     

A first-principles study of displacive β to ω transition in Ti-V alloys

The ground state properties of β and ω phases in Ti-(0–30 at%)V alloys were calculated, and subsequently thermodynamics and energy barriers of the displacive β to ω transition were investigated by first-principles. The results show that the lattice parameters of β and ω phases decreases with increasing V content in Ti-V alloys. The principal lattice strains for the β to ω transition are highly compositional dependent, and the volume variation decreases with increasing V content. The mechanical stability of the ω phase increases initially at the V content around 10 at% and then decreases with increasing V content. Based on the quasiharmonic Debye model, a metastable diffusionless phase diagram has been established, showing that the ω phase is thermodynamically more stable than the β phase at room temperature, anticipating a spontaneous transition from β to ω phases in Ti-V alloys. The calculations of energy pathways indicate that there is an energy barrier during the displacive βto ω transition in Ti-V alloys at temperatures from 100 to 500 K, but not at 0 K.     

Low-cost preparation of mesoporous silica with high pore volume

Mesoporous silica materials with high pore volume were successfully prepared by the chemical precipitation method, with water glass and a biodegradable nonionic surfactant polyethylene glycol (PEG). The obtained materials were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermo gravimetric analyzer and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), nitrogen adsorption-desorption measurements, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results showed that the changes of the pore parameters depended on both the surfactant content and heat treatment temperature. When the content of PEG was 10wt% and the obtained PEG/SiO₂ composite was heated at 600℃, the mesoporous silica with a pore volume of 2.2 cma/g, a BET specific surface area of 361.55 m2/g, and a diameter of 2-4 μm could be obtained. The obtained mesoporous silica materials have potential applications in the fields of paint and plastic, as thickening, reinforcing, and flatting agents.     

Performance of a combined capacitor based on ultrafine nickel oxide/carbon nanotubes composite electrodes

A new sol-gel process for the preparation of ultrafine nickel hydroxide electrode materials was developed. The composite electrodes consisting of carbon nanotubes and Ni(OH)₂ were developed by mixing the hydroxide and carbon nanotubes together in different mass ratios. In order to enhance energy density, a combined type pseudocapacitor/electric double layer capacitor was considered and its electrochemical properties were characterized by cyclic voltammetry and dc charge/discharge test. The combined capacitor shows excellent capacitor behavior with an operating voltage up to 1.6 V in KOH aqueous electrolyte. Stable charge/discharge behaviors were observed with much higher specific capacitance values of 24 F/g compared with that of EDLC (12F/g) by introducing 60% Ni(OH)₂ in the anode material. By using the modified anode of a Ni(OH)₂/carbon nanotubes composite electrode, the specific capacitance of the cell was less sensitive to discharge current density compared with that of the capacitor employing pure nickel hydroxide as anode. The combined capacitor in this study exhibits high energy density and stable power characteristics.     

Variations in carbon isotopic composition in the subcontinental lithospheric mantle beneath the Yangtze and North China Cratons: Evidence from in-situ analysis of diamonds using SIMS

The components and evolution of subcontinental lithospheric mantle beneath the North China Craton and the Yangtze Craton is a current topic in the geological study of China and the carbon isotopic composition of diamond is one of the most direct probes into cratonic lithospheric mantle processes.In this paper,in-situ SIMS(Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry) techniques were used to analyze the carbon isotope compositions at different internal growth zones of diamonds from Shandong and Liaoning in the North China Craton and Hunan in the Yangtze Craton.It was found that the carbon isotopic range of diamonds from the North China Craton are rather distinct from those of the Yangtze Craton;the former has a range of 6.0‰ to 2.0‰(relative to VPDB) with an average value of 3.0‰ in their core areas,which is consistent with global peridotitic diamonds;the diamonds from the Yangtze Craton,however,have a carbon isotopic range from 8.6‰ to 3.0‰ with an average value of 7.4‰ in their core areas,being more consistent with global eclogitic diamonds.The variations of carbon isotope ratios between different internal growth zones in individual diamonds were different in the three diamond localities studied.There was a clear correlation between changes in carbon isotopic composition and phases of diamond dissolution and new growth,while no correlation was observed between δ13C and internal inclusions.The variations suggest that the carbon isotopic compositions of mantle fluids were changing during the process of diamond crystallization,and that the heterogeneity of the carbon isotopic composition in mantle carbon reservoirs was a more important factor than carbon isotope fractionation in controlling the carbon isotopic compositions and their variation in diamonds.In addition,the preliminary results of in-situ nitrogen analyses demonstrated that the variation of carbon isotopic compositions between the core and outer growth zones does not correlate with nitrogen abundances,implying either that diamonds crystallized in an open environment or that the carbon isotopic composition and nitrogen contents in mantle fluids were controlled by other,not yet understood factors.The experimental results provide hints that the isotopic composition of carbon and its original sources were different in metasomatic fluids controlling diamond formation in the mantle beneath the North China Craton and the Yangtze Craton.     

Impact of nuclear actin on the prophase chromosome construction of Physarum polycephalum

A cell-free system efficiently promoting mitosis has been developed using the precise natural synchronous plasmodium of Physarum polycephalum. The content changes of nuclear cyclin B were exploited to represent the prophase process of Physarum polycephalum. The possible function of nuclear actin on chromosome construction was investigated by detecting the content changes of nuclear cyclin B in the late G2 phase nuclei treated with cytochalasin B and incubated in the cell-free system. Our results showed that nuclear actin plays an important role in the process of the chromosome construction.     

Study on the HPHT synthetic diamond crystal from Fe-C（H） system and its significance

Investigations of crystal habit, micro-topographic imaging, micro-composition and micro-structural analysis of HPHT synthetic diamonds from the Fe-C（H） system indicate that most of them have an octahedral habit. The crystals grow mainly layer-to-layer from center to periphery. HPHT synthetic diamond is smaller in size than natural diamond because it only goes through nucleation and growth in the early stage. In the middle and late stages, due to the coalescence of diamond grains related to differences of surface energy, the growth of HPHT synthetic diamond is limited. The active energy （E） of transforming single nitrogen into a nitrogen-pair is lowered and the time of transforming single nitrogen into a nitrOgen-pair is shortened because of the existence of hydrogen. Therefore, aggregate nitrogen （A-centers） may exist in synthetic diamond from HPHT and explosive detonation processes. It needs further discussion on a worldwide view that the time of natural diamond formation extracted from nitrogen aggregation is some hundred million years. Consideration of the way in which surface energy influences the growth of diamond can help to understand some of the remaining issues （e.g. growth mechanism, etc.） in the HPHT synthetic process and effectively explain the formation of natural diamond in terms of HPHT thermodynamic theory. Especially, it is important to pay more attention to the influence of hydrogen on surface energy in that hydrogen may be a ＂bridge＂ for explaining the formation of HPHT synthetic and natural diamond.     

Starch Modification for Slow Release of Herbicide Encapsulated with Concentrated Starch Paste

An attempt on starch modification has been made to increase the paste concentration of potato starch for reducing the energy consumption required for the encapsulation of herbicide within starch matrix by encapsulating 2,4-D as model herbicide. The matrix behaviors were evaluated in terms of the herbicide content,capability of swelling in water,encapsulation efficiency,and the rate of herbicide released from the matrix. To increase paste concentration of starch for decreasing the energy consumption in dry process,potato starch was acidified before the encapsulation. However,the matrix prepared in such a way showed that it weakened the control to the herbicide encapsulated,which increased the rate of herbicide released from the matrix. By introducing covalent bonds among starch molecules,the problem with the control and release rate can be completely solved. Moreover,the effects of formaldehyde amount,medium pH,herbicide content,and particle size on the matrix behaviors and release rate were also investigated. The newly developed matrix shows low capability of swelling and slow release,and reduces water evaporation in dry process by about 40% during matrix preparation.     

Effects of SiO_2 on the preparation and metallurgical properties of acid oxidized pellets

The effects of SiO_2 content on the preparation process and metallurgical properties of acid oxidized pellets, including compressive strength, reduction, and softening–melting behaviors, were systematically investigated.Mineralogical structures, elemental distribution, and pore size distribution were varied to analyze the mechanism of the effects.The results show that with an increase in SiO_2 content from 3.51 wt%to 7.18 wt%, compressive strength decreases from 3150 N/pellet to 2100 N/pellet and reducibility decreases from 76.5% to 71.4%.The microstructure showed that pellets with high SiO_2 content contained more magnetite in the mineralogical structures.Additionally, some liquid phases appeared, which hindered the continuous crystallization of hematite.Also, the softening–melting properties of the pellets clearly deteriorated as the SiO_2 content increased.With increasing SiO_2 content, the temperature range of the softening–melting zone decreased, and the maximum differential pressure and the comprehensive permeability index increased significantly.When acid oxidized pellets are used as the raw materials for blast furnace smelting, it should be combined with high basicity sinters to improve the softening–melting behaviors of the comprehensive charge.     

Optimizing ultrasensitive single electron magnetometer based on nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond

The measurement of the weak magnetic field in nanoscale resolution and at room temperature is always a significant topic in biological, physical, and material science. Such detection can be used to decide the characterization of the samples, such as cells, materials, and so on. Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond has been proved to be able to detect a magnetic field with nano Tesla sensitivity and nanometer resolution at room temperature. Here we experimentally demonstrate an optimized NV center based single electron magnetometer in a commercial diamond and under a home-built optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) microscope. With current technology, we change the optically detected time window to get a better signal to noise ratio, and use dynamical decoupling to increase the slope of magnetic field amplitude versus fluorescence signal. By employing the 8-pulse XY-4 dynamical decoupling sequence we achieve a sensitivity of 18.9 nT (Hz)(1/2) , which is 1.7 times better than spin echo. We also propose a NV center based scanning diamond microscope for electron and nuclear spins detection as well as nanoscale magnetic resonance imaging. If it is realized, the NV center based magnetometry will have wide application in the future.     

Nano Cr Interlayered CrN Coatings on Steels

CrN coated steels assisted with a nano Cr interlayer were investigated. The Cr nano-interlayers were prepared by sputter deposition with a thickness about 70-100 nm. CrN coatings were also prepared by sputter deposition on the Cr nano-interlayers. The crystal structures, microhardness, and scratch resistance of CrN/Cr coatings were determined. Results show that the Cr nano-interlayers improve scratch resistance and the microhardness of CrN coated steels. A rapid heat treatment with infrared （IR） was performed for coated specimens in the attempt to improve bonding, With IR heat treatments, the beneficial effect of the Cr nano-interlayers was clearly observed. Without the Cr nano-interlayers, severe cracks on the surface of coatings were observed after IR heat treatment. However, with a Cr interlayer, no cracks on the surface of CrN coatings were observed after the heat treatment. The scratch resistance of coatings was also affected by the Cr nano-interlayers. The scratch track was clean and showed significantly smaller amount of scratch debris for CrN coatings with Cr interlayers than those without the Cr nano-interlayers. The microhardness of coatings with the Cr nano-interlayers is higher than those without the Cr nano-interlayers after IR heat treatment. The Cr and CrN phase have been identified with X-ray diffraction analysis, and the results show that the higher the nitrogen content in the sputtering gas, the stronger the CrN peaks observed in the diffraction patterns are.