A molecular thermodynamic model was developed for describing the restricted swelling behavior of a thermosensitive hydrogel confined in a limited space. The Gibbs free energy includes two contributions, the contribution of mixing of polymer and solvent calculated by using the lattice model of random polymer solution, and the contribution due to the elasticity of polymer network. This model can accurately describe the swelling behavior of restricted hydrogels under uniaxial and biaxial constraints by using two model parameters. One is the interaction energy parameter between polymer network and solvent, and the other is the size parameter depending on the degree of cross-linking. The calculated results show that the swelling ratio reduces significantly and the phase transition temperature decreases slightly as the restricted degree increases, which agree well with the experimental data.
A bifurcation analysis approach is developed based on the process simulator gPROMS platform, which can automatically trace a solution path, detect and pass the bifurcation points and check the stability of solutions. The arclength continuation algorithm is incorporated as a process entity in gPROMS to overcome the limit of turning points and get multiple solutions with respect to a user-defined parameter. The bifurcation points are detected through a bifurcation test function τ which is written in C ++ routine as a foreign object connected with gPROMS through Foreign Process Interface. The stability analysis is realized by evaluating eigenvalues of the Jacobian matrix of each steady state solution. Two reference cases of an adiabatic CSTR and a homogenous azeotropic distillation from literature are studied, which successfully validate the reliability of the proposed approach. Besides the multiple steady states and Hopf bifurcation points, a more complex homoclinic bifurcation behavior is found for the distillation case compared to literature.
Magnesium and rare earth mixed oxides(Mg_3 REO_x(RE=La, Y. Ce)) were prepared and characterized by Xray diffraction(XRD), N_2 adsorption-desorption, infrared spectra and microcalorimetry of CO_2. The results reveal that the Mg_3 CeO_x catalyst is present in the form of Mg-Ce-O solid solution,while the Mg3 LaOx and Mg_3 YO_x catalysts are probably rare earth oxides dispersed on MgO surface. As a result, among the calcined Mg_3 REO_x catalysts, the Mg_3 CeO_x catalyst presents the highest rate constant for acetone aldolization, which is well correlated to its more homogeneous distribution of basic sites. In contrary, the Mg_3 YO_x catalyst exhibit the lowest catalytic activity for acetone aldolization. Upon hydration pre-treatment, the basic properties on the surface of the Mg_3 REO_x catalysts were changed markedly. The Mg_3 YO_x catalyst after hydration treatment shows the highest amount of basic sites on catalyst surface, and then exhibits the highest activity among the hydrated Mg_3 REO_x catalysts. These results make it possible to fine-tune basic sites for acetone aldolization.
Taming the electron transfer across metal–support interfaces appears to be an attractive yet challenging methodology to boost catalytic properties.Herein,we demonstrate a precise engineering strategy for the carbon surface chemistry of Pt/C catalysts—that is,for the electron-withdrawing/donating oxygencontaining groups on the carbon surface—to fine-tune the electrons of the supported metal nanoparticles.Taking the ammonia borane hydrolysis as an example,a combination of density functional theory(DFT)calculations,advanced characterizations,and kinetics and isotopic analyses reveals quantifiable relationships among the carbon surface chemistry,Pt charge state and binding energy,activation entropy/enthalpy,and resultant catalytic activity.After decoupling the influences of other factors,the Pt charge is unprecedentedly identified as an experimentally measurable descriptor of the Pt active site,contributing to a 15-fold increment in the hydrogen generation rate.Further incorporating the Pt charge with the number of Pt active sites,a mesokinetics model is proposed for the first time that can individually quantify the contributions of the electronic and geometric properties to precisely predict the catalytic performance.Our results demonstrate a potentially groundbreaking methodology to design and manipulate metal–carbon catalysts with desirable properties.
