Dispersion Process (dispersion + process)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Towards Efficient Dispersion of Carbon Nanotubes in Thermotropic Liquid Crystals

ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 19 2010
Stefan Schymura
Abstract Motivated by numerous recent reports indicating attractive properties of composite materials of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and liquid crystals (LCs) and a lack of research aimed at optimizing such composites, the process of dispersing CNTs in thermotropic LCs is systematically studied. LC hosts can perform comparably or even better than the best known organic solvents for CNTs such as N -methyl pyrrolidone (NMP), provided that the dispersion process and choice of LC material are optimized. The chemical structure of the molecules in the LC is very important; variations in core as well as in terminal alkyl chain influence the result. Several observations moreover indicate that the anisotropic nematic phase, aligning the nanotubes in the matrix, per se stabilizes the dispersion compared to a host that is isotropic and thus yields random tube orientation. The chemical and physical phenomena governing the preparation of the dispersion and its stability are identified, taking into account enthalpic, entropic, as well as kinetic factors. This allows a guideline on how to best design and prepare CNT,LC composites to be sketched, following which tailored development of new LCs may take the advanced functional material that CNT,LC composites comprise to the stage of commercial application. [source]


Transient storage and downstream solute transport in nested stream reaches affected by beaver dams

HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 17 2009
Li Jin
Abstract Transient storage constitutes a key element in the hydrologic cycle of watersheds. Both in-channel slow moving water (dead zones) and hyporheic zones can contribute to transient storage, which retains water and solutes, increases residence time and influences solute transport in streams. Beaver dams and other in-stream obstructions throughout low-order streams attenuate streamflow and provide dead zone storage in pools. In this article, we report the results of four tracer tests in nested stream reaches in Cherry Creek (Wyoming, USA) covering ,2·5 km of stream length to explore how the degree of beaver dam obstructions and their impoundments influence water transient storage and downstream solute transport in low-order streams in the Rocky Mountain region of the American West. Travel-time parameters for the tracer tests increased linearly with beaver dam number (N) and pond size (V). Linear regression of the travel time to the peak concentration (Tp), the leading (Tl) and tailing edge (Tt) of the dye cloud and the duration of the dye cloud (Td) versus N and V were all significant (R2 = 0·99). Slopes of the linear regressions of Tt versus N and V, were three times larger than those for Tl, suggesting that longer residence times may be caused, in part, by transient storage in the stream system. One-dimensional transport with inflow and storage (OTIS) modelled cross-sectional area of transient storage zone (As) and dispersion coefficients (D) increased linearly with N and V and reach length. Two transient storage metrics, Fmean and , also showed a general increase with N and V, although the relationship was not as strong. This suggests that in-channel dead zones associated with beaver dams provide opportunities for generating transient water storage. The linear relationship between dispersion coefficient and reach length suggests the dispersion process might be analogous to the hydrodynamic dispersion in groundwater settings. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


A new approach to avoid excessive numerical diffusion in Eulerian,Lagrangian methods

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 11 2008
A. Younes
Abstract Lumping is often used to avoid non-physical oscillations for advection,dispersion equations but is known to add numerical diffusion. A new approach is detailed in order to avoid excessive numerical diffusion in Eulerian,Lagrangian methods when several time steps are used. The basic idea of this approach is to keep the same characteristics during all time steps and to interpolate only the concentration variations due to the dispersion process. In this way, numerical diffusion due to the lumping is removed at the end of each time step. The method is combined with the Eulerian,Lagrangian localized adjoint method (ELLAM) which is a mass conservative characteristic method for solving the advection,dispersion equation. Two test problems are modelled to compare the proposed method to the consistent, the full and the selective lumping approaches for linear and non-linear transport equations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Continuous pilot plant,scale immobilization of yeast in ,-carrageenan gel beads

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 7 2004
C. Decamps
Abstract A novel continuous two-phase dispersion process was developed to produce ,-carrageenan gel microspheres, using static mixers. It was shown that yeast-loaded carrageenan beads, with controlled diameter and tight size distribution, can be produced on a continuous basis, in a scalable mixer, at production rates appropriate to both pilot plant,scale and, potentially, industrial-scale operations. Immobilized yeast are intended to be used in continuous brewing operations. The effects of the static mixer diameter (D), the number of mixing elements (Ne), the fluid linear velocity (V), and the volumetric fraction (,) of ,-carrageenan, on the mean diameter and size distribution of the resulting gel microspheres, were studied. Image analysis showed that mean diameter was strongly influenced by the average linear fluid velocity through the mixer, and by the mixer diameter. The number of mixer elements and the mixer diameter governed bead size dispersion. A productivity of 10 L h,1 of beads was attained using a 1.27-cm-diameter static mixer. Because the productivity is proportional to the mixer diameter squared, this process, although suited for the production of small-size beads (down to 50 ,m), would be technically and economically feasible for a large industrial immobilization process. However, because the coefficient of variability increased with mixer diameter, and thus with scale-up, operational improvements are suggested, such as the use of smaller-diameter mixers operating in parallel, to reduce the size dispersion. © 2004 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 50: 1599,1605, 2004 [source]


Mechano-Chemical Changes of Nano Sized ,-Al2O3 During Wet Dispersion in Stirred Ball Mills

PARTICLE & PARTICLE SYSTEMS CHARACTERIZATION, Issue 1 2004
Frank Stenger
Abstract The mechano-chemical changes in synthetic ,-Al2O3 during wet dispersion in a stirred ball mill, are studied. It is shown that a second phase is generated which can be identified as an aluminum hydroxide (Bayerite) by use of dynamic scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry (TG), Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The amount of the Bayerite phase produced increases with milling time. A comparison of the evaluated amounts from TG- and DSC-measurements are in reasonable agreement. Furthermore, the measured BET surface area shows a strong dependence on the temperature of sample preparation. Depending on the temperature, the bayerite phase is seen to convert to the ,-phase again and also forms meso- and possibly micro-pores, leading to a high BET surface area. In this paper, we highlight the necessity for using different methods to characterize the dispersion process, and for a correct interpretation of the measurement results. [source]


A physical-mathematical model for the dispersion process in continuous mixers

POLYMER ENGINEERING & SCIENCE, Issue 1 2002
H. Potente
To modify the properties of polymers, mineral fillers are frequently added during the compounding process. Because of adhesive forces, these pulverized fillers tend to agglomerate. Therefore, in order to achieve good homogenization, it is essential not only to distribute them but also to break down the solid agglomerates. A number of relating models have been published, describing observations (agglomerate rupture, erosion, clustering) made during the dispersion process in a mostly isolated manner. New models for each observed effect have been developed and later superimposed in order to get a comprehensive model of the dispersion process. To verify the model, it was implemented into a program for the process simulation of co-rotating twin-screw extruders. It was then compared to experimental data. The results showed that the model is able to describe the experimentally determined data. [source]