Application of Multi-Beam Sounding System in the Monitoring of Pile Foundation Erosion of Offshore Wind Turbines

[Introduction] The purpose is to study the influence of tidal current and wave on the sub-aqueous foundation of wind turbine in offshore wind farm. [Method] Through two seabed topography surveys, the changes of seabed topography were compared. [Result] The study shows that the erosion of the foundation of offshore wind turbines mainly occur in the direction of local tides. In the early stage of construction, a deep scour pit will be formed, and scour troughs will appear after two years, and siltation will appear around the foundation after the scour troughs are formed. [Conclusion] Long-term monitoring of the foundation erosion of offshore wind turbines is helpful to understand the changes in the extent and depth of erosion. Hydrological surveys will help to establish ocean hydrodynamic models to predict the foundation erosion of wind turbines. Measures such as rock dumping and solidified soil should be carried out for erosion filling to delay the occurrence of erosion

Design of an Electrically Tunable Micro-Lens Based on Graded Photonic Crystal

A micro-lens with an adjustable focal length (FL) is designed by using Graded Photonic Crystal (GPC) structures and a Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC) material. The GPCs are formed by gradually changing the radius of the polymer rods in the Photonic Crystal (PC) with square lattices of polymer rods in the background of Liquid Crystals (LCs). The electrically tunable focusing characteristics of the micro-lens are investigated by loading a continuous voltage source to change the LC rotation angle. The sensitivity of the focal shift in terms of LCs tilting angle is 0.152 λ(nm/deg). Moreover, the effect of the defects and deviations on the focusing characteristics are also analyzed. This research is crucial for future applications of the proposed device in the integrated photonics and adaptive optics

Different-Shaped Ultrafine MoNbTaW HEA Powders Prepared via Mechanical Alloying

Different-shaped ultrafine MoNbTaW high-entropy alloy powders were firstly prepared by a convenient mechanical alloying method. The phase composition and microstructure of the powders were characterized. The powders are ultrafine with nano-sized grains and a good homogeneous microstructure. All the powders have a single body-centered cubic solid solution phase and form the high-entropy alloy during mechanical alloying. These powders with different shapes are quite attractive for developing high-performance MoNbTaW high-entropy alloy bulk and coatings combined with a following sintering, spraying, or additive manufacturing technique

Insight into the charge transfer in particulate Ta3N5 photoanode with high photoelectrochemical performance.

Charge separation is one of the most critical factors for generating solar fuels via photoelectrochemical water splitting, but it is still not well understood. This work reveals the fundamental role of charge transfer in photoanodes for achieving high charge separation efficiency. Specifically, we fabricated a particulate Ta3N5 photoanode by a bottom-up method. By improving the charge separation with refined necking treatment, the photocurrent is increased by two orders of magnitude. The charge separation efficiency (ηsep) is analyzed by dividing it into charge generation efficiency (Φgene) and transportation efficiency (Φtrans). Necking treatment is found to substantially improve the electron transfer. Transient photovoltage (TPV) measurements based on the Dember effect is used to confirm the benefit of necking treatment in improving the charge transportation. The superior electron transfer in the necked-Ta3N5 electrode is further evidenced by the facile electron exchange reaction with the ferri/ferrocyanide redox couple. Moreover, cobalt phosphate is found to promote both charge separation and surface reaction, resulting in a photocurrent of 6.1 mA cm-2 at 1.23 V vs. RHE, which is the highest response for a particulate photoanode