Hydrothermal Ethanol Flames in Co-Flow Jets

Results on the autoignition and stabilization of ethanol hydrothermal flames in a Supercritical Water Oxidation (SCWO) reactor operating at constant pressure are reported. The flames are observed as luminous reaction zones occurring in supercritical water; i.e., water at conditions above its critical point (approximately 22 MPa and 374 C). A co-flow injector is used to inject fuel (inner flow), comprising an aqueous solution ranging from 20%-v to 50%-v ethanol, and air (annular flow) into a reactor filled with supercritical water at approximately 24.3 MPa and 425 C. Results show hydrothermal flames are autoignited and form diffusion flames which exhibit laminar and/or turbulent features depending upon flow conditions. Two orthogonal camera views are used; one providing a backlit shadowgraphic image of the co-flow jet and the other providing color images of the flame. In addition, spectroscopic measurements of flame emissions in the UV and visible spectrum are discussed

Diffusion Limited Supercritical Water Oxidation (SCWO) in Microgravity Environments

Tests designed to quantify the gravitational effects on thermal mixing and reactant injection in a Supercritical Water Oxidation (SCWO) reactor have recently been performed in the Zero Gravity Facility (ZGF) at NASA s Glenn Research Center. An artificial waste stream, comprising aqueous mixtures of methanol, was pressurized to approximately 250 atm and then heated to 450 C. After uniform temperatures in the reactor were verified, a controlled injection of air was initiated through a specially designed injector to simulate diffusion limited reactions typical in most continuous flow reactors. Results from a thermal mapping of the reaction zone in both 1-g and 0-g environments are compared. Additionally, results of a numerical model of the test configuration are presented to illustrate first order effects on reactant mixing and thermal transport in the absence of gravity

A study of patent thickets

Report analysing whether entry of UK enterprises into patenting in a technology area is affected by patent thickets in the technology area

Constraints on the χ_(c1) versus χ_(c2) polarizations in proton-proton collisions at √s = 8 TeV

The polarizations of promptly produced χ_(c1) and χ_(c2) mesons are studied using data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC, in proton-proton collisions at √s=8  TeV. The χ_c states are reconstructed via their radiative decays χ_c → J/ψγ, with the photons being measured through conversions to e⁺e⁻, which allows the two states to be well resolved. The polarizations are measured in the helicity frame, through the analysis of the χ_(c2) to χ_(c1) yield ratio as a function of the polar or azimuthal angle of the positive muon emitted in the J/ψ → μ⁺μ⁻ decay, in three bins of J/ψ transverse momentum. While no differences are seen between the two states in terms of azimuthal decay angle distributions, they are observed to have significantly different polar anisotropies. The measurement favors a scenario where at least one of the two states is strongly polarized along the helicity quantization axis, in agreement with nonrelativistic quantum chromodynamics predictions. This is the first measurement of significantly polarized quarkonia produced at high transverse momentum