High temperature corrosion research at the Albany Research Center

The Severe Environment Corrosion and Erosion Research Facility (SECERF) at the Albany Research Center is operational. SECERF consists of 6 modules that share the availability of up to 10 different gases to produce environments for high temperature corrosion and erosion research. Projects to be conducted in the modules include: corrosion sensors for fossil energy systems, thermal gradient effects on high temperature corrosion, the development of sulfidation resistant alloys, determination of the effects of ash on the corrosion of metals and alloys in coal and waste combustion and coal gasification environments, high temperature erosion-corrosion of metals, and molten slag effects on refractories. Results from two areas, the effect of ash deposits on alloy corrosion and thermal gradient effects on the corrosion of metals, will be highlighted. Ash produced in coal gasifiers, coal combustors, and waste combustors, when deposited on metal surfaces, provides sites for corrosion attack and contributes chemical species that participate in the corrosion reaction. Results are presented for the corrosion of 304L stainless steel, that was either uncoated or coated with ash or with ash containing NaCl or Na2SO4, in air-water vapor mixtures at 600 C. The presence of high heat fluxes and temperature gradients in many fossil energy systems creates the need for an understanding of their effects on corrosion and oxidation. Such information would be useful for both improved alloy design and for better translation of isothermal laboratory results to field use. Temperature gradients in a solid oxide result in two changes that modify diffusion within the oxide. The first is when a gradient in point defect concentration is created within the oxide, for example, where more vacancies are expected at a higher temperature. The second change is when the presence of a temperature gradient biases the diffusion jump of an atom. Results of tests are presented for cobalt with metal surface temperatures of approximately 920-950 C in N2 plus 1-10 vol% O2 environments with a heat flux of about 40 kW/m2. Non-equilibrium thermodynamics were used to develop oxidation rate equations in temperature gradients that were combined with point defect information of CoO to predict oxidation rates

Oxidation Resistance of Low Carbon Stainless Steel for Applications in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

Alloys protected from corrosion by Cr2O3 (chromia) are recognized as potential replacements for LaCrO3–based ceramic materials currently used as bipolar separators (interconnects) in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC). Stainless steels gain their corrosion resistance from the formation of chromia, when exposed to oxygen at elevated temperatures. Materials for interconnect applications must form uniform conductive oxide scales at 600–800o C while simultaneously exposed to air on the cathode side and mixtures of H2 - H2O, and, possibly, CHx and CO - CO2 on the anode side. In addition, they must possess good physical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Type 316L stainless steel was selected for the baseline study and development of an understanding of corrosion processes in complex gas environments. This paper discusses the oxidation resistance of 316L stainless steel exposed to dual SOFC environment for ~100 hours at ~900oK. The dual environment consisted of dry air on the cathode side of the specimen and a mixture of H2 and 3% H2O on the anode side. Post - corrosion surface evaluation involved the use of optical and scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction analyses

Understanding the corrosion behavior of chromia-forming 316L stainless steel in dual oxidizing-reducing environment representative of SOFC interconnect

A and B site doped LaCrO3-based electronically conducting Perovskite ceramic materials have been extensively used as interconnects in solid oxide fule cells (SOFC) operating at 800° to 1000°C as the Perovskites offer good electrical conductivity, chemical compatibility with the adjacent components of the fuel cell, chemical stability in reducing and oxidizing atmospheres, and thermal expansion coefficients that match other cell components. However, requirements for good mechanical properties, electrical and thermal conductivities, and low cost make metallic interconnects more promising. Significant progress in reducing the operating temperature of SOFC from ~1000°C to ~750°C is expected to permit the use of metallic materials with substantial cost reduction. Among the commercially available metallic materials, Cr2O3 (chromia) scale-forming iron base alloys appear to be the most promising candidates since they can fulfill the technical and economical requirements. These alloys, however, remain prone to reactions with oxygen and water vapor at fuel cell operating conditions and formation of gaseous chromium oxides and oxyhydroxides. To study the degradation processes and corrosion mechanisms of commercial chromia scale-forming alloys under SOFC interconnect exposure conditions, 316L was selected for this research because of the availability of the materials. The dual environment to which the interconnect material was exposed consisted of dry air (simulates the cathode side environment) and a mixture of H2 and 3% H2O (simulates the anode side environment). Post-corrosion surface evaluation involved the use of optical and scanning electron microscopy, as well as energy dispersive X-ray analyses

Treatment of Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Immunocompromised Adults:A Consensus Statement Regarding Initial Strategies

Background Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) guidelines have improved the treatment and outcomes of patients with CAP, primarily by standardization of initial empirical therapy. But current society-published guidelines exclude immunocompromised patients. Research Question There is no consensus regarding the initial treatment of immunocompromised patients with suspected CAP. Study Design and Methods This consensus document was created by a multidisciplinary panel of 45 physicians with experience in the treatment of CAP in immunocompromised patients. The Delphi survey methodology was used to reach consensus. Results The panel focused on 21 questions addressing initial management strategies. The panel achieved consensus in defining the population, site of care, likely pathogens, microbiologic workup, general principles of empirical therapy, and empirical therapy for specific pathogens. Interpretation This document offers general suggestions for the initial treatment of the immunocompromised patient who arrives at the hospital with pneumonia

Factors That Drive Peptide Assembly and Fibril Formation: Experimental and Theoretical Analysis of Sup35 NNQQNY Mutants

Residue mutations have substantial effects on aggregation kinetics and propensities of amyloid peptides and their aggregate morphologies. Such effects are attributed to conformational transitions accessed by various types of oligomers such as steric zipper or single β-sheet. We have studied the aggregation propensities of six NNQQNY mutants: NVVVVY, NNVVNV, NNVVNY, VIQVVY, NVVQIY, and NVQVVY in water using a combination of ion-mobility mass spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. Our data show a strong correlation between the tendency to form early β-sheet oligomers and the subsequent aggregation propensity. Our molecular dynamics simulations indicate that the stability of a steric zipper structure can enhance the propensity for fibril formation. Such stability can be attained by either hydrophobic interactions in the mutant peptide or polar side-chain interdigitations in the wild-type peptide. The overall results display only modest agreement with the aggregation propensity prediction methods such as PASTA, Zyggregator, and RosettaProfile, suggesting the need for better parametrization and model peptides for these algorithms

The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data

The FLUXNET2015 dataset provides ecosystem-scale data on CO2, water, and energy exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and other meteorological and biological measurements, from 212 sites around the globe (over 1500 site-years, up to and including year 2014). These sites, independently managed and operated, voluntarily contributed their data to create global datasets. Data were quality controlled and processed using uniform methods, to improve consistency and intercomparability across sites. The dataset is already being used in a number of applications, including ecophysiology studies, remote sensing studies, and development of ecosystem and Earth system models. FLUXNET2015 includes derived-data products, such as gap-filled time series, ecosystem respiration and photosynthetic uptake estimates, estimation of uncertainties, and metadata about the measurements, presented for the first time in this paper. In addition, 206 of these sites are for the first time distributed under a Creative Commons (CC-BY 4.0) license. This paper details this enhanced dataset and the processing methods, now made available as open-source codes, making the dataset more accessible, transparent, and reproducible.Peer reviewe

A Poster for the 16th Annual Conference on Fossil Energy Materials:

Manuscript Abstract The Severe Environment Corrosion and Erosion Research Facility (SECERF) at the Albany Research Center is operational. SECERF consists of 6 modules that share the availability of up to 10 different gases to produce environments for high temperature corrosion and erosion research. Projects to be conducted in the modules include: corrosion sensors for fossil energy systems, thermal gradient effects on high temperature corrosion, the development of sulfidation resistant alloys, determination of the effects of ash on the corrosion of metals and alloys in coal and waste combustion and coal gasification environments, high temperature erosion-corrosion of metals, and molten slag effects on refractories. Results from two areas, the effect of ash deposits on alloy corrosion and thermal gradient effects on the corrosion of metals, will be highlighted. Ash produced in coal gasifiers, coal combustors, and waste combustors, when deposited on metal surfaces, provides sites for corrosion attack and contributes chemical species that participate in the corrosion reaction. Results are presented for the corrosion of 304L stainless steel, that was either uncoated or coated with ash or with ash containing NaCl or Na 2 SO 4 , in air-water vapor mixtures at 600º C. The presence of high heat fluxes and temperature gradients in many fossil energy systems creates the need for an understanding of their effects on corrosion and oxidation. Such information would be useful for both improved alloy design and for better translation of isothermal laboratory results to field use. Temperature gradients in a solid oxide result in two changes that modify diffusion within the oxide. The first is when a gradient in point defect concentration is created within the oxide, for example, where more vacancies are expected at a higher temperature. The second change is when the presence of a temperature gradient biases the diffusion jump of an atom. Results of tests are presented for cobalt with metal surface temperatures of approximately 920-950º C in N 2 plus 1-10 vol% O 2 environments with a heat flux of about 40 kW/m 2 . Non-equilibrium thermodynamics were used to develop oxidation rate equations in temperature gradients that were combined with point defect information of CoO to predict oxidation rates

Corrosion behavior of stainless steel in solid oxide fuel cell simulated gaseous environment

Significant progress in reducing the operating temperature of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) from {approx}1000 C to {approx} 750 C may permit the replacement of currently used ceramic interconnects by metallic interconnects in planar SOFCs (PSOFC). The use of metallic interconnects will result in a substantial cost reduction of PSOFCs. The interconnects operate in severe gaseous environments, in which one side of the interconnect can be exposed to hydrogen and the other side to air or oxygen at temperatures up to 800 C. Similar environmental conditions can exist in devices used for separating hydrogen from CO after reforming methane and steam. Type 304 stainless steel was selected for this base line study aimed at understanding corrosion processes in dual gas environments. This paper discusses the oxidation resistance of 304 stainless steel exposed to a dual environment gas at 800 C. The dual environment consisted of air on one side of the specimen and 1% hydrogen in nitrogen on the other side. The surface characterization techniques used in this study were optical and scanning electron microscopy, as well as various x-ray techniques