Performance of an Anode Supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cell with Indirect Internal Reforming

The conversion of fuel into hydrogen-rich gas is necessary for fuel cells. This can be achieved either indirectly in fuel processing systems, in which the hydrocarbon feed is converted in an external catalytic steam reformer, or directly in the fuel cell. In this paper, the unit module of solid oxide fuel cell was assembled by one reformer and four cells. The reformer was fabricated by extruded dummy cell and combined with two cells on each side respectively. The reforming catalyst was coated on internal channel of the dummy cell. The unit module has successfully tested with wet CH4 as fuel and air as oxidant and its maximum power density exceeded 150mW/cm(2) at 750 degrees C.open110Nsciescopu

Preliminary Studies about Synthesis and Electrical Properties of Ruthenium Doped Lanthanum Strontium Titanate as a Potential Anode of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

The lanthanum strontium titanate (LST) is one of the most representative alternative anode materials. Although it shows low catalytic properties, the disadvantage could be improved by doping of ruthenium which is widely used as catalyst under steam reforming reaction or oxidation reaction. The ruthenium doped lanthanum strontium titanates (LSTRs) powders were synthesized by complex EDTA-citrate method showing well crystallinity. Additionally, the prepared samples were evaluated through various experimental tests. For example, the stability in the reducing atmosphere and chemical compatibility with YSZ electrolyte such as reactivity test in high temperature were confirmed by XRD (X-ray diffraction). And electrical conductivity in wet H-2 atmosphere at 900 degrees C is about 350.6 S/cm, 342.4 S/cm and 179.1 S/cm with sintered bar of LST, LSTR0.02 and LSTR0.05, respectively.open1111Nsciescopu

Statistical variability study of random dopant fluctuation on gate-all-around inversion-mode silicon nanowire field-effect transistors

Random dopant fluctuation effects of gate-all-around inversion-mode silicon nanowire field-effect transistors (FETs) with different diameters and extension lengths are investigated. The nanowire FETs with smaller diameter and longer extension length reduce average values and variations of subthreshold swing and drain-induced barrier lowering, thus improving short channel immunity. Relative variations of the drain currents increase as the diameter decreases because of decreased current drivability from narrower channel cross-sections. Absolute variations of the drain currents decrease critically as the extension length increases due to decreasing the number of arsenic dopants penetrating into the channel region. To understand variability origins of the drain currents, variations of source/drain series resistance and low-field mobility are investigated. All these two parameters affect the variations of the drain currents concurrently. The nanowire FETs having extension lengths sufficient to prevent dopant penetration into the channel regions and maintaining relatively large cross-sections are suggested to achieve suitable short channel immunity and small variations of the drain currents. (C) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.open111415sciescopu

Variability study of Si nanowire FETs with different junction gradients

Random dopant fluctuation effects of gate-all-around Si nanowire field-effect transistors (FETs) are investigated in terms of different diameters and junction gradients. The nanowire FETs with smaller diameters or shorter junction gradients increase relative variations of the drain currents and the mismatch of the drain currents between source-drain and drain-source bias change in the saturation regime. Smaller diameters decreased current drivability critically compared to standard deviations of the drain currents, thus inducing greater relative variations of the drain currents. Shorter junction gradients form high potential barriers in the source-side lightly-doped extension regions at on-state, which determines the magnitude of the drain currents and fluctuates the drain currents greatly under thermionic-emission mechanism. On the other hand, longer junction gradients affect lateral field to fluctuate the drain currents greatly. These physical phenomena coincide with correlations of the variations between drain currents and electrical parameters such as threshold voltages and parasitic resistances. The nanowire FETs with relatively-larger diameters and longer junction gradients without degrading short channel characteristics are suggested to minimize the relative variations and the mismatch of the drain currents. (C) 2016 Author(s). All article content, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).1163Ysciescopu

Grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering studies on templating nanopores in networked polymer thin films with a multi-armed porogen

The mechanism of thermal pore generation in organosilicate thin films loaded with a six-armed star-shaped poly(epsilon-caprolactone) porogen was quantitatively investigated by using in-situ grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering and thermogravimetry. These analyses found that the blend components have a limited miscibility that depends on the compositionfor porogen loadings up to only 20 wt%, molecularly miscible blend films were obtained. Even for the miscible blend films, heating the films produced a curing reaction of the precursor matrix component, leading to the phase separation of the porogen component. This phase separation was found to begin at 393 K for 10 wt% porogen loaded films and at 373 K for 20 wt% porogen loaded films, and to continue for temperatures up to 423 K. The porogen aggregates remained and were confined within the matrix film without any further growth or movement until complete thermal decomposition above 564 K.ope

Concurrent use of prescription drugs and herbal medicinal products in older adults: A systematic review

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.The use of herbal medicinal products (HMPs) is common among older adults. However, little is known about concurrent use with prescription drugs as well as the potential interactions associated with such combinations. Objective Identify and evaluate the literature on concurrent prescription and HMPs use among older adults to assess prevalence, patterns, potential interactions and factors associated with this use. Methods Systematic searches in MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, Web of Science and Cochrane from inception to May 2017 for studies reporting concurrent use of prescription medicines with HMPs in adults (≥65 years). Quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklists. The Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Co-ordinating Centre (EPPI-Centre) three stage approach to mixed method research was used to synthesise data. Results Twenty-two studies were included. A definition of HMPs or what was considered HMP was frequently missing. Prevalence of concurrent use by older adults varied widely between 5.3% and 88.3%. Prescription medicines most combined with HMPs were antihypertensive drugs, beta blockers, diuretics, antihyperlipidemic agents, anticoagulants, analgesics, antihistamines, antidiabetics, antidepressants and statins. The HMPs most frequently used were: ginkgo, garlic, ginseng, St John’s wort, Echinacea, saw palmetto, evening primrose oil and ginger. Potential risks of bleeding due to use of ginkgo, garlic or ginseng with aspirin or warfarin was the most reported herb-drug interaction. Some data suggests being female, a lower household income and less than high school education were associated with concurrent use. Conclusion Prevalence of concurrent prescription drugs and HMPs use among older adults is substantial and potential interactions have been reported. Knowledge of the extent and manner in which older adults combine prescription drugs will aid healthcare professionals can appropriately identify and manage patients at risk.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Magnetic domain tuning and the emergence of bubble domains in the bilayer manganite La 2−2x Sr 1+2x Mn 2 O 7 (x=0.32)

We report a magnetic force microscopy study of the magnetic domain evolution in the layered manganite La2-2x Sr1+2x Mn2O7 (with x = 0.32). This strongly correlated electron compound is known to exhibit a wide range of magnetic phases, including a recently uncovered biskyrmion phase. We observe a continuous transition from dendritic to stripelike domains, followed by the formation of magnetic bubbles due to a field-and temperaturedependent competition between in-plane and out-of-plane spin alignments. The magnetic bubble phase appears at comparable field and temperature ranges as the biskyrmion phase, suggesting a close relation between both phases. Based on our real-space images we construct a temperature-field phase diagram for this composition.open115Ysciescopu

Supernovae from rotating stars

The present paper discusses the main physical effects produced by stellar rotation on presupernovae, as well as observations which confirm these effects and their consequences for presupernova models. Rotation critically influences the mass of the exploding cores, the mass and chemical composition of the envelopes and the types of supernovae, as well as the properties of the remnants and the chemical yields. In the formation of gamma-ray bursts, rotation and the properties of rotating stars appear as the key factor. In binaries, the interaction between axial rotation and tidal effects often leads to interesting and unexpected results. Rotation plays a key role in shaping the evolution and nucleosynthesis in massive stars with very low metallicities (metallicity below about the Small Magellanic Cloud metallicity down to Population III stars). At solar and higher metallicities, the effects of rotation compete with those of stellar winds. In close binaries, the synchronisation process can lock the star at a high rotation rate despite strong mass loss and thus both effects, rotation and stellar winds, have a strong impact. In conclusion, rotation is a key physical ingredient of the stellar models and of presupernova stages, and the evolution both of single stars and close binaries. Moreover, important effects are expected along the whole cosmic history.Comment: 36 pages, 15 figures, published in Handbook of Supernovae, A.W. Alsabti and P. Murdin (eds), Springe

Facial expressions depicting compassionate and critical emotions: the development and validation of a new emotional face stimulus set

Attachment with altruistic others requires the ability to appropriately process affiliative and kind facial cues. Yet there is no stimulus set available to investigate such processes. Here, we developed a stimulus set depicting compassionate and critical facial expressions, and validated its effectiveness using well-established visual-probe methodology. In Study 1, 62 participants rated photographs of actors displaying compassionate/kind and critical faces on strength of emotion type. This produced a new stimulus set based on N = 31 actors, whose facial expressions were reliably distinguished as compassionate, critical and neutral. In Study 2, 70 participants completed a visual-probe task measuring attentional orientation to critical and compassionate/kind faces. This revealed that participants lower in self-criticism demonstrated enhanced attention to compassionate/kind faces whereas those higher in self-criticism showed no bias. To sum, the new stimulus set produced interpretable findings using visual-probe methodology and is the first to include higher order, complex positive affect displays

The clinical features of the piriformis syndrome: a systematic review

Piriformis syndrome, sciatica caused by compression of the sciatic nerve by the piriformis muscle, has been described for over 70 years; yet, it remains controversial. The literature consists mainly of case series and narrative reviews. The objectives of the study were: first, to make the best use of existing evidence to estimate the frequencies of clinical features in patients reported to have PS; second, to identify future research questions. A systematic review was conducted of any study type that reported extractable data relevant to diagnosis. The search included all studies up to 1 March 2008 in four databases: AMED, CINAHL, Embase and Medline. Screening, data extraction and analysis were all performed independently by two reviewers. A total of 55 studies were included: 51 individual and 3 aggregated data studies, and 1 combined study. The most common features found were: buttock pain, external tenderness over the greater sciatic notch, aggravation of the pain through sitting and augmentation of the pain with manoeuvres that increase piriformis muscle tension. Future research could start with comparing the frequencies of these features in sciatica patients with and without disc herniation or spinal stenosis