Lanthanum Telluride: Mechanochemical Synthesis of a Refractory Thermoelectric Material

Recent experimental work on lanthanum telluride has confirmed its significant potential as an n-type material for high temperature thermoelectric (TE) power generation application. The phase of interest, La3−xTe4, has a Th3P4 defect structure where x is the lanthanum vacancy with values ranging between 0 and 1/3. Thermoelectric properties change rapidly with x since the carrier concentration, n, is proportional to the (1−3x) parameter. Controlling the Te to La stoichiometry in lanthanum telluride is thus vital to achieving the optimum self-doping level for the highest dimensionless figure of merit ZT value. We report on a significant improvement in reproducibly preparing this refractory compound over prior lengthy and unwieldy high temperature experimental techniques developed in the 1980's. Mechanochemical processes are utilized to synthesize precise stoichiometries of lanthanum telluride at room temperature, enabling improved characterization, analysis and modeling of its transport properties as a function of the number of La vacancies. We report TE properties for a large range of the allowed compositions, with ZT values greater than 1.0 obtained at 1275 K for several compositions. In addition to stoichiometric optimization within the pure compound, chemical substitutions can enhance performance by decreasing the lattice thermal conductivity and tuning the electrical properties for maximum ZT values at lower temperatures; preliminary studies indicate that the addition of ytterbium increases ZT. Some properties pertaining to device development are discussed. Specifically, lanthanum telluride has a low sublimation rate, and a coefficient of thermal expansion that closely matches a p-type rare earth compound analog (the Yb14MnSb11 Zintl compound)

Constellation: A Musical Exploration of Phone-Based Audience Interaction Roles

Presented at the 2nd Web Audio Conference (WAC), April 4-6, 2016, Atlanta, Georgia.Constellation designs various relationships between audience and performers by using mobile devices to empower communication during a performance. We direct audience members to a website, which changes throughout the piece and controls the interaction among the performers and audience. We explore several paradigms of interaction, using them as movements of a larger piece. (1) We first explore audience members producing a soundscape using their own actions, through a mobile visual interface that encourages motion, and produces sounds such as bells and controlled noise. (2) We then allow the audience to control onstage performers, through an interface by which an audience can vote on projected notes that performers attempt to follow. This can easily be adjusted to be synthesized sounds without performers. (3) A final paradigm of interaction is of performers directly controlling the audience, using instrumentation that echoes out through the phones of the performers. We move throughout three different sections of the piece, exploring these different interactions and blending them together musically. Constellation was designed and built with the target of performance in an April 2015 concert with the Princeton Laptop Orchestra (PLOrk), with source material from medieval piece “Stella Splendens”. Constellation uses primarily uses socket.io, node.js, WebAudio, and Full Tilt

The composition of aerial insect communities varies across habitats in an endangered oak ecosystem

Insect communities are sensitive to changes in their habitat including light and moisture levels, and as such can be considered important indicators of environmental change. We studied the abundance, diversity, and composition of insect families within three contrasting habitats in a 100-ha endangered oak ecosystem in central Oregon in order to gain baseline knowledge of these communities and how they might change with habitat restoration. Sampled habitats included an open-grassy savannah, semi-open woodland, and a conifer-deciduous mixed forest. Approximately 500 insects were collected and identified in Fall 2019. There was no significant difference in the mean number or diversity of insects collected in the different habitats. However, there was a difference in the composition of insect communities, with mixed conifer-oak forests having significantly different types of insects than the relatively interchangeable savannah and woodland. This important baseline information will allow us to assess the success of our restoration efforts in this endangered ecosystem

The small FNR regulon of Neisseria gonorrhoeae: comparison with the larger Escherichia coli FNR regulon and interaction with the NarQ-NarP regulon

BACKGROUND: Neisseria gonorrhoeae can survive during oxygen starvation by reducing nitrite to nitrous oxide catalysed by the nitrite and nitric oxide reductases, AniA and NorB. The oxygen-sensing transcription factor, FNR, is essential for transcription activation at the aniA promoter, and full activation also requires the two-component regulatory system, NarQ-NarP, and the presence of nitrite. The only other gene known to be activated by the gonococcal FNR is ccp encoding a cytochrome c peroxidase, and no FNR-repressed genes have been reported in the gonococcus. In contrast, FNR acts as both an activator and repressor involved in the control of more than 100 operons in E. coli regulating major changes in the adaptation from aerobic to anaerobic conditions. In this study we have performed a microarray-led investigation of the FNR-mediated responses in N. gonorrhoeae to determine the physiological similarities and differences in the role of FNR in cellular regulation in this species. RESULTS: Microarray experiments show that N. gonorrhoeae FNR controls a much smaller regulon than its E. coli counterpart; it activates transcription of aniA and thirteen other genes, and represses transcription of six genes that include dnrN and norB. Having previously shown that a single amino acid substitution is sufficient to enable the gonococcal FNR to complement an E. coli fnr mutation, we investigated whether the gonococcal NarQ-NarP can substitute for E. coli NarX-NarL or NarQ-NarP. A plasmid expressing gonococcal narQ-narP was unable to complement E. coli narQP or narXL mutants, and was insensitive to nitrate or nitrite. Mutations that progressively changed the periplasmic nitrate sensing region, the P box, of E. coli NarQ to the sequence of the corresponding region of gonococcal NarQ resulted in loss of transcription activation in response to the availability of either nitrate or nitrite. However, the previously reported ligand-insensitive ability of gonococcal NarQ, the "locked on" phenotype, to activate either E. coli NarL or NarP was confirmed. CONCLUSION: Despite the sequence similarities between transcription activators of E. coli and N. gonorrhoeae, these results emphasise the fundamental differences in transcription regulation between these two types of pathogenic bacteria

Calculation of dopant solubilities and phase diagrams of X–Pb–Se (X = Br, Na) limited to defects with localized charge

The control of defects, particularly impurities, to tune the concentrations of electrons and holes is of utmost importance in the use of semiconductor materials. To estimate the amount of dopant that can be added to a semiconductor without precipitating secondary phases, a detailed phase diagram is needed. The ability of ab initio computational methods to predict defect stability can greatly accelerate the discovery of new semiconductors by calculating phase diagrams when time-consuming experimental ones are not available. DFT defect energy calculations are particularly successful in identifying doping strategies by determining the energy of multiple defect charge states in large band gap semiconductors and insulators. In metals, detailed phase diagrams can be determined from such calculations but only one, uncharged defect is needed. In this work, we have calculated dopant solubilities of Br and Na in the thermoelectric material PbSe by mapping its solvus boundaries in different regions of the respective ternary phase diagrams using DFT defect energy calculations. The narrow gap PbSe provides an example where defects with nominal charge state (based on valence counting) have properly-localized charge states. However, defects with unexpected charge states produce delocalized electrons, which are then, in effect, defects with the expected charge state. Simply applying the methods for calculating multiple defect charge states in PbSe and treating them as separate defects fails to predict properties measured by experiments. Performing thermodynamic calculations using only the expected charge states, excluding others, enables accurate prediction of experimentally measured doping efficiencies and phase diagrams. Identifying which defect charge states to include in thermodynamic calculations will expedite the use of such calculations for other semiconductors in understanding phase diagrams and devising effective doping strategies

A Global Review of Innovative Practices in Regional SME Exporting Strategies and Foreign Direct Investment Attraction

This Co-Learning Plan describes findings from the MSU Center for Community and Economic Development based on research conducted at a global scale to identify innovative practices in regional exporting strategies and foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction

TBCC TSTO Design for the NASA-AFRL Joint System Study

NASA and the Air Force Research Laboratory are involved in a Joint System Study (JSS) on Two-Stage-to-Orbit (TSTO) vehicles. The JSS will examine the performance, operability and uncertainty of unmanned, fully reusable, airbreathing-based TSTO launch vehicle concepts. NASA is providing a concept using turbine-based combined cycle (TBCC) propulsion on the booster stage and an all-rocket orbiter. The Air Force supplied two vehicle concepts, both utilizing an all-rocket booster; one with an all-rocket orbiter, the other using a rocket-based combined cycle orbiter. For NASA, this study is being used for tool assessment and development, and to identify generic technology gaps, not to choose vehicle types or concepts. This presentation starts with an overview of the major JSS ground rules and assumptions. Second, the NASA TSTO concept, Reusable Airbreathing Launch Vehicle - iteration B (RALV-B) is introduced, including its mission profile and, the vehicle (booster and orbiter) layout and packaging. The high speed propulsion concept is then briefly discussed, including the work performed and lessons learned. The low speed TBCC propulsion system is covered next in some detail. An overview for the low speed system is given; then its development is discussed (starting with initial layout and leading to more detailed analyses performed and results). The low speed system portion is wrapped up with lessons learned and summary. Finally, an overall summary and lessons learned so far for the JSS are given as well as work planned to complete the study

System and method for suppressing sublimation using opacified aerogel

The present invention relates to a castable, aerogel-based, ultra-low thermal conductivity opacified insulation to suppress sublimation. More specifically, the present invention relates to an aerogel opacified with various opacifying or reflecting constituents to suppress sublimation and provide thermal insulation in thermoelectric modules. The opacifying constituent can be graded within the aerogel for increased sublimation suppression, and the density of the aerogel can similarly be graded to achieve optimal thermal insulation and sublimation suppression