The production of hydrogen-based dense energy carriers (DECs) has been proposed as a combined solution for the storage and dispatch of power generated through intermittent renewables. Frameworks that model and optimize the production, storage, and dispatch of generated energy are important for data-driven decision making in the energy systems space. The proposed multiperiod framework considers the evolution of technology costs under different levels of promotion through research and targeted policies, using the year 2021 as a baseline. Furthermore, carbon credits are included as proposed by the 45Q tax amendment for the capture, sequestration, and utilization of carbon. The implementation of the mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) framework is illustrated through computational case studies to meet set hydrogen demands. The trade-offs between different technology pathways and contributions to system expenditure are elucidated, and promising configurations and technology niches are i... [more]

With the development of Industry 4.0 and the implementation of the 14th Five-Year Plan, intelligent manufacturing has become a significant trend in the steel industry, which can propel the steel industry toward a more intelligent, efficient, and sustainable direction. At present, the operation mode of unmanned warehouse area for slabs and coils has become relatively mature, while the positioning accuracy requirement of bars is getting more stringent because they are stacked in the warehouse area according to the stacking position and transferred by disk crane. Meanwhile, the traditional laser ranging and line scanning method cannot meet the demand for precise positioning of the whole bundle of bars. To deal with the problems above, this paper applies machine vision technology to the unmanned warehouse area of bars, proposing a binocular vision-based measurement method. On the one hand, a 3D reconstruction model with sub-pixel interpolation is established to improve the accuracy of 3D r... [more]

Effective fault diagnosis for diaphragm pumps is crucial. This paper proposes a diaphragm pump fault diagnosis method based on deep learning and multi-source information fusion (DMF). The time-domain features, frequency-domain features, and modulation features are extracted from the vibration signals from eight different positions. After feature enhancement and data preprocessing, the features are input into auto encoders (AE), convolutional neural networks (CNN), and support vector machines (SVM) to obtain the diagnostic results. The results indicate that the DMF method achieves a fault diagnosis accuracy of 99.98%, which is on average 9.09% higher than using a single diagnostic model. The demodulation method is more suitable for vibration signal feature extraction of the diaphragm pump, while the CNN is more suitable for identification of diaphragm pump faults. Specifically, it outperformed the sampling point 1-DPCA-AE model by 13.98% and the sampling point 4-DPCA-SVM model by 8.98%.

This work highlights the frustration that a researcher may face when trying to convince people in industries to use a new technology that has been developed in a small-scale laboratory. A moderate-reaction-severity process for hydrotreating of heavy crude oil (HIDRO-IMP technology) in fixed-bed reactors is used as an example. Although the development of such a technology has been scaled-up from bench and pilot-plant scales to a semi-commercial level with positive technical and economical results, the people in petroleum refinery who make decisions on the suitability of technologies for commercial implementation always ask for previous applications of the process developed. The different stages of development of the HIDRO-IMP technology are commented on, and some results that corroborate its feasibility for commercial application are discussed.

Inorganic phase-change materials (PCMs) with high melting points have great potential for thermal energy storage systems. Sodium chloride (NaCl) has a high melting point (801 °C) and high latent-heat-storage density (482 kJ/kg). However, it is difficult to encapsulate NaCl using a sintered ceramic shell because of its good wettability against ceramics and high volume-expansion capacity during melting. In this study, a novel NaCl/Al2O3 powder-composite structure was developed as highly stable PCM core material for highly stable encapsulation. The shape-retention performance and the mechanism of NaCl/Al2O3 powder-composite structure during melting were investigated. We have successfully fabricated a NaCl/Al2O3 powder-composite structure, which has a higher NaCl volume ratio of 80 vol% than conventional techniques. The gel-like network structure of Al2O3 particles in molten NaCl was a key structure to keep the shape of the composite ball and to prevent the evaporation of molten NaCl.

Chitin and its derivative, chitosan, have diverse applications in fields such as agriculture, medicine, and biosensors, amongst others. Extraction is primarily conducted from marine sources, such as crustaceans, which have been the focus of process optimization studies. However, there are other sources that are more readily available, such as insects, where insufficient research has been conducted. The house cricket (Acheta domesticus) is a promising source for chitin extraction because of its high chitin content, availability, and short lifespan. Modern chemical chitin extraction methods have not been standardized due to the use of different reagents, molar concentrations, temperatures, and reaction times across publications. Therefore, in this study, the composition of Acheta domesticus cricket flour was determined: 2.62% humidity, 4.3% ash content, 56.29% protein, 13.35% fat, 23.44% carbohydrates, and 15.71% crude fiber content. After a drying, defatting, demineralization, deprotein... [more]

In order to indirectly calculate the core temperature of a cable joint, an equivalent transient thermal circuit model of single-core cable joint by considering axial heat dissipation is proposed. Firstly, the temperature field of the middle joint of a 110 kV single-core cable is calculated by finite element method. Based on the heat dissipation path of the core, an improved equivalent thermal circuit model is proposed. The axial heat dissipation of the cable joint core is simplified to a thermal resistance and the temperature rise of the cable body core, the temperature calculation of the cable joint transient process is realized. Compared with the results of finite element simulation, the steady-state temperature errors of the thermal circuit model are within 1 °C, while the maximum temperature errors of the transient process shall not exceed 3 °C, which proves the validity of the model. This method can provide reference for temperature inversion and the dynamic current-carrying capac... [more]

In the pursuit of understanding the oxidation mechanisms of hydrogenated biodiesel fuels and elucidating the combustion behavior of biomass fuels when blended with diesel, this study presents a comprehensive investigation into the reaction mechanism of hydrogenated biodiesel−ethanol−diesel mixtures. We develop a comprehensive reaction mechanism encompassing 187 components and 735 reactions for hydrogenated biodiesel−ethanol−diesel mixtures. Through kinetics analysis under varied conditions, including 1.0 MPa pressure, an equivalence ratio of 1.0, and temperatures of 900 K and 1400 K, we explore the impact of cross-reactions and changing fuel blend ratios on low- and high-temperature oxidation. Our findings indicate that oleic and stearic acid methyl esters serve as better substitutes for representing hydrogenated biodiesel kinetics than methyl decanoate. At lower temperatures, increased hydrogenated biodiesel and ethanol content leads to reduced OH generation, impacting reactivity. Con... [more]

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is used to evaluate the environmental load of fibre composite manufacturing technologies in the shipyards industry in a frame of the Fibre4Yards (Horizon 2020) project. This paper is focused on the LCA of fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) technologies used to produce all elements of the floating unit, i.e., the conventional vacuum infusion technology for the deck panel and adaptive mould process for superstructure panels, ultraviolet (UV) curved pultrusion process for the production of stiffeners, hot stamping technology for brackets, and three-dimensional (3D) printing and automatic tape placement (ATP) for pillars. Environmental impact was assessed based on standard indicators: Global Warming Potential, water consumption, and fossil resource scarcity. The results indicate that the total carbon footprint of analysed FRP technologies is mainly produced by the type of the materials applied rather than by the amount of energy consumed during the process.

In order to precisely ascertain the temperature at the hot spot within the intermediate joint of a three-core cable, this study focused on a 10 kV three-core cable joint as its primary subject. A three-dimensional finite element model of the cable joint was constructed, enabling the calculation of both the steady-state hot spot temperature field distribution and the transient temperature rise curve of the joint. Employing a one-dimensional transient thermal path model for the cable body, a radial inversion model for the cable core temperature was established. Through simulating the transient temperature field of the cable joint under varying currents, a fitting relationship was determined for the axial temperature points of the cable core. Subsequently, an inversion perception model was devised to calculate the hot spot temperature of the cable joint based on temperature measurements at specific points on the outer surface of the cable. Under both continuous and periodic loads, the inv... [more]

In situ formation of TiB2−Mg2TiO4 composites was investigated by combustion synthesis involving the solid-state reaction of Ti with boron and magnesiothermic reduction of B2O3. Certain amounts of MgO and TiO2 were added to the reactant mixtures of Ti/B/Mg/B2O3 to act as the moderator of highly exothermic combustion and a portion of the precursors to form Mg2TiO4. Two combustion systems were designed to ensure that synthesis reactions were sufficiently energetic to carry on self-sustainably, that is, in the mode of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). Consistent with thermodynamic analyses, experimental results indicated that the increase in pre-added MgO and TiO2 decreased the combustion temperature and propagation velocity of the flame front. MgO was shown to have a stronger dilution effect on combustion exothermicity than TiO2, because the extent of magnesiothermic reduction of B2O3 was reduced in the MgO-added samples. In situ formation of the TiB2−Mg2TiO4 composite wa... [more]

The network trend of isolated communities adds urgency to accelerate the deployment of community integrated energy systems (CIES). CIES effectively combines and optimizes multiple energy systems, leveraging their complementarity for efficient utilization and economical energy supply. However, the escalating intricacies of coupling multiple energy sources and the rising system uncertainties both pose challenges to flexibility scheduling of energy supply and demand. Additionally, the potential flexibility of building thermal inertia and pipeline gas linepack in diverse CIES, encompassing residential, commercial, and industrial communities, remains unexplored. To tackle these issues, a stochastic model predictive control (SMPC) based multi-temporal-spatial-scale flexibility scheduling strategy considering multiple uncertainty sources and system inertia components is proposed. First, the optimization model of CIES is formulated to improve operational flexibility and efficiency, resolve ene... [more]

In recent years, deep learning models have led to improved accuracy in industrial defect detection, often using variants of YOLO (You Only Look Once), due to its high performance at a low cost. However, the generalizability, fairness and bias of their outcomes have not been examined, which may lead to overconfident predictions. Additionally, the complexity added by co-occurring defects, single and multi-class defects, and the effect on training, is not taken into consideration. This study addresses these critical gaps by introducing new methodologies for analyzing dataset complexity and evaluating model fairness. It introduces the novel approach of co-occurrence impact analysis, examining how the co-occurrence of defects in sample images affects performance, and introducing new dimensions to dataset preparation and training. Its aim is to increase model robustness in the face of real-world scenarios where multiple defects often appear together. Our study also innovates in the evaluatio... [more]

The exploration of coal wettability is not only of paramount significance in the mitigation of coal dust and the development of coalbed methane, but it also provides crucial technical support for realizing the geological storage of CO2 within the ‘dual-carbon’ background. Molecular simulation serves as an effective means by which to investigate coal wettability at the microscopic level. This study employed a molecular dynamics simulation to investigate the wettability of coal across 13 distinct coal ranks. Through the analysis of trajectory files, and the incorporation of experimental data during the modeling process, the mechanisms governing the evolution of wettability were revealed. The results demonstrated that the contact angle on the surface of coal increases with the elevation of coal rank. The molecule relative concentration analysis revealed that, with increasing coal rank, the overlap range between water droplets and the coal slab decreases, the height increases, and the diff... [more]

The comparison between similar materials and original coal rock is the basis for similar simulation experiments in coal mines. The differences in mechanical properties, acoustic characteristics, and damage laws between similar materials and the original coal rock are of great significance for similar simulation research, to reveal objective laws. First, materials similar to coal rock with similar theoretical ratios were taken as the object of research, and the sand−cement ratio, the carbon paste ratio, and the water content were determined by multivariate linear regression to accurately match the ratios. Second, by using acoustic emission and digital scattering technology to explore the acoustic law, deformation characteristics, and spatial feature similarities of the materials similar to coal rock, the acoustic emission evolution law of the original rock was found to be the same as that of the similar materials. Digital scattering was able to describe the localization of strain in the... [more]

Developing bifunctional oxygen electrode materials with superior activity for oxygen reduction (ORR) and oxygen evolution (OER) reactions is essential for advancing regenerative fuel cell and rechargeable metal−air battery technologies. This present work deals with the synthesis and characterization of electrocatalysts containing Pt and Ni nanoparticles supported on nitrogen-doped mixed metal oxides (Mn2O3-NiO) and the systematic evaluation of their bifunctional ORR/OER performance in an alkaline medium. These electrocatalysts have been successfully synthesized by a simple and fast microwave method. PtNi/Mn2O3-NiO-N with a binary metal oxide-to-N ratio of 1:2 demonstrated the best performance among the studied materials regarding bifunctional electrocatalytic activity (∆E = 0.96 V) and robust stability.

Mobile camera modules are manufactured by aligning and assembling multiple differently shaped part lenses. Therefore, selecting the part lenses to assemble from candidates (called cavities) and determining the directional angle of each part lens for assembly have been important issues to maximize production yield. Currently, this process is manually conducted by experts at the manufacturing site, and the manual assembly condition optimization carries the risk of reduced production yield and increased failure cost as it largely depends on one’s expertise. Herein, we propose an AI framework that determines the optimal assembly condition including the combination of part lens cavities and the directional angles of part lenses. To achieve this, we combine the genetic algorithm with convolutional bidirectional long-term short-term memory (C-BLSTM). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study on lens module production finding the optimal combination of part lens cavities and direct... [more]

An analysis of entropy generation and exergy efficiency can effectively explore the energy-saving potential of reheating furnaces. This paper simulated the combustion, flow, and heat transfer in a walking beam reheating furnace by establishing a half-furnace model. The entropy generation rate distribution of different thermal processes was numerically calculated. The effect of slab residence time and fuel distribution in the furnace was studied to optimize exergy efficiency. The results indicated that combustion and radiative heat transfer are the primary sources of entropy generation. Irreversible losses accounted for 26.39% of the total input exergy, in which the combustion process accounted for 16.43%, and radiative heat transfer accounted for 8.47%. Reducing the residence time by 60 min decreased irreversible exergy loss by about 2.5% but increased heat dissipation and exhaust exergy loss by 5.8%. Energy saving can only be achieved when the heat exchanger’s exergy recovery efficien... [more]

This article introduces process mining as an innovative approach to enterprise data analysis, offering a systematic method for extracting, analyzing, and visualizing digital traces within information systems. The technique establishes connections within data, forming intricate process maps that serve as a foundation for the comprehensive analysis, interpretation, and enhancement of internal business processes. The article presents a methodical procedure designed to analyze processes using process mining. This methodology was validated through a case study conducted in the Fluxicon Disco software (version 3.6.7) application environment. The primary objective of this study was to propose and practically validate a methodical procedure applied to industrial practice data. Focusing on the evaluation and optimization of manufacturing processes, the study explored the integration of a software tool to enhance efficiency. The article highlights key trends in the field, providing valuable insi... [more]

Casing deformation is evident during the development of shale oil and gas wells in the Sichuan and Junggar Basins in China. Their casing deformation characteristics, distribution law of deformation points, and main controlling factors were analyzed. According to the analysis results, shear is the main cause of casing deformation of shale oil and gas wells in the Sichuan and Junggar Basins in China and has the characteristics of “a dense heel end and a sparse toe end”. Faults account for 75% of casing deformation points, and fault slip caused by multi-stage fracturing is the primary factor responsible. The calculation model for fault slip that takes into account fracturing fluid invasion was established, and the dynamic variation law of fault slip was clarified: the fracturing fluid intruded into the fault, the relative dislocation of the damaged fault was caused by gravity, and the fault slippage was caused by the increase in fault activation length. This resulted in a linear increase... [more]

Fractured-vuggy carbonate reservoirs are tectonically complex; their reservoirs are dominated by holes and fractures, which are extremely nonhomogeneous and are difficultly exploited. Conventional water injection can lead to water flooding, and the recovery effect is poor. This paper takes the injection of foam and solid particles to control bottom water as the research direction. Firstly, the rheological properties of foam were studied under different foam qualities and the presence of particles. The ability of foam to carry particles was tested. By designing a microcosmic model of a fractured-vuggy reservoir, we investigated the remaining oil types and the distribution caused by bottom water. Additionally, we analyzed the mechanisms of remaining oil mobilization and bottom water plugging during foam flooding and foam−particle co-injection. The experimental results showed that foam was a typical power-law fluid. Foam with a quality of 80% had good stability and apparent viscosity. Dur... [more]

Renewable energy integration is a crucial approach for achieving a low-carbon energy supply in industrial utility systems. However, the uncertainty of user demand often leads to a mismatch between the system’s real operating conditions and the optimal operating points, resulting in energy wastage and high emissions. This study presents a multi-source heat and power system that integrates biomass gasification, solar collecting, solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC), gas turbine, and steam power systems. A scheduling strategy that varies the heat-to-power ratio is proposed to accommodate changes in user requirements. A simulation model of this multi-source system is established and validated. The influence of three key parameters on system performance under different configurations is explored. Energy and economic evaluations are conducted for three different configurations, and the system’s energy production and adjustable range are determined. The analysis reveals that, under the optimal config... [more]

A pantograph is a key component on the tops of trains that allows them to efficiently tap electricity from power lines and propel them. This study investigates the possibility of using metal matrix composites (MMCs), specifically aluminum MMCs, as a material for making pantograph parts regarding the dynamics of the train’s movement and external meteorological conditions. In this study, a computer-aided design (CAD) model is created using PTC Creo design software and moves to detailed finite element analysis (FEA) simulations executed by the ANSYS software suite. These simulations are important in examining how the dynamic performance of pantographs can vary. The incorporation of Al MMC materials into the structure of the pantograph resulted in significant improvements in structural robustness, with equal stress reduced by up to 0.18%. Similarly, aluminum MMC materials reduced the strain energy by 0.063 millijoules. The outcomes not only give a new perspective to the implementation of m... [more]

In order to explore technically feasible options for improving the performance of the H2 shaft furnace (HSF), a previously built and validated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was employed in the current work to assess the potential of the operation based on a center gas distributor (CGD). A set of simulations was performed to mimic scenarios where different amounts of feed gas (0−30% of 1400 Nm3/t-pellet) are injected via the CGD located at the bottom of the HSF. The results showed that a relatively large stagnant zone (approximately 8.0-m in height and 0.3-m in diameter) exists in the furnace center where the gas flows are weak owing to an overly shortened penetration depth of the H2 stream solely injected from the circumferentially installed bustle-pipe. When adopting the CGD operation, however, the center gas flows can be effectively enhanced, consequently squeezing the stagnant zone and thus leading to a better overall performance of the HSF. In particular, the uniformity... [more]

Biochar, a carbon-dense material known for its substantial specific surface area, remarkable porosity, diversity of functional groups, and cost-effective production, has garnered widespread acclaim as a premier adsorbent for the elimination of heavy metal ions and organic contaminants. Nevertheless, the application of powdered biochar is hindered by the challenges associated with its separation from aqueous solutions, and without appropriate management, it risks becoming hazardous waste. To facilitate its use as an immobilization medium, biochar necessitates modification. In this investigation, sodium alginate, celebrated for its superior gelation capabilities, was amalgamated with polyvinyl alcohol to bolster mechanical robustness, thereby embedding biochar to formulate sodium alginate biochar microspheres (PVA/SA-FMB). A meticulously designed response surface methodology experiment was employed to ascertain the optimal synthesis conditions for PVA/SA-FMB. Characterization outcomes un... [more]