Heterostructure CdS/ZnS nanoparticles as a visible light-driven photocatalyst for hydrogen generation from water

(CdS)_x/(ZnS)_1–x nanoparticles were synthesized as a visible light-driven photocatalyst using the stepped microemulsion technique with a series of the ratio factors (x). The photocatalytic test results showed that (CdS)_x/(ZnS)_1-x with x = 0.8 had the highest photo-reactivity for H₂ production from water under visible light. The composite (CdS)_0.8/(ZnS)_0.2 catalyst had a heterogeneous structure that exhibited a much greater photocatalytic hydrogen production activity than either pure CdS or the homogeneous Cd_0.8Zn_0.2S solid solution. ZnS deposition also was shown to largely improve the stability of CdS in the heterostructured CdS/ZnS catalyst. Thermal treatment of the catalyst, i.e., annealing (CdS)_0.8/(ZnS)_0.2 at 723 K, improved the crystallinity of the catalyst and increased its photocatalytic H₂ production rate by more than 36 times. Deposition of Ru on the surface of the catalyst particles by in situ photo-deposition further increased the photo-H₂ generation rate by 3 times. The photocatalyst of 0.5%Ru/CdS/ZnS achieved the highest H₂ production activity, at a rate of 12650 μmol/g-h and with a light to hydrogen energy conversion efficiency of 6.5%.     

近50年来云贵高原太阳辐射变化特征及影响

到达地面的太阳辐射变化会对气候和生态环境产生较大影响。用云贵高原1961～2009年日射站辐射和气象观测资料,对多年来到达地面太阳总辐的年和季节变化趋势,及辐射变化对气候要素的影响进行了分析。结果表明：1961~1988年,总辐射呈明显下降趋势,之后发生逆转,1988~1994年总辐射呈显著上升趋势,1994年后其变化趋于缓和。总体呈现变暗－变亮－变缓的趋势。各季节总辐射变化的趋势为,秋季变化趋势极显著,春季变化的趋势显著,夏季变化的趋势较显著,冬季变化不明显。高原日照时数变化趋势与总辐射经历的变暗－变亮－变缓在时间上基本一致。总辐射变化对该地区的最高气温影响显著,但对蒸发量的影响不太明显。影响年辐射变化的各因子中,云量是影响高原总辐射变化的主要因素,相对湿度和能见度则影响较小     

近52年太阳活动与江淮梅雨异常关系分析

我国涝灾主要集中在江淮地区,其中6-7月的旱涝,大部分是由梅雨异常引起的。为了研究梅雨的影响因子,利用1954-2005年太阳黑子、江淮地区33站梅雨期降水资料,分析了太阳活动对江淮地区梅雨的影响。研究表明,梅雨量趋势系数的最大值中心位于杭州地区,而太阳活动与杭州地区的梅雨基本上没有关系。太阳活动对江淮地区梅雨量、梅雨强度的影响具有地域性。太阳活动与梅雨量的相关关系由北向南,依次呈现为负相关性、正相关性和负相关性,太阳活动强的年份,江淮地区北部和南部梅雨量偏少,江淮中部梅雨量偏多;太阳活动与梅雨强度的相关关系由北向南,依次呈现正相关性、负相关性,太阳活动强的年份,江淮地区北部梅雨强度较强,江淮南部梅雨强度较弱。合成分析结果表明:太阳活动谷年江淮地区普遍偏涝。     

几种涂层氙弧灯光老化试验加速性研究

太阳辐射是引起有机材料老化的最主要原因,实验室氙弧灯光老化试验具有较高的加速性。本文通过对有机涂层在广州试验站自然暴露试验结果以及实验室氙弧灯光老化试验结果进行对比研究,得到3种常用有机防护涂层的加速倍数,对于1#、2#样品的加速倍数为9,3#样品的加速倍数为6。     

Using LiDAR Data Analysis to Estimate Changes in Insolation Under Large‐Scale Riparian Deforestation1

Greenberg, Jonathan Asher, Erin L. Hestir, David Riano, George J. Scheer, and Susan L. Ustin, 2012. Using LiDAR Data Analysis to Estimate Changes in Insolation Under Large‐Scale Riparian Deforestation. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 48(5): 939‐948. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2012.00664.x Abstract: Riparian vegetation provides shade from insolation to stream channels. A consequence of removing vegetation may be an increase in insolation that can increase water temperatures and negatively impact ecosystem health. Although the mechanisms of riparian shading are well understood, spatially explicit, mechanistic models of shading have been limited by the data requirements of precisely describing the three‐dimensional structure of a riparian corridor. Remotely acquired, high spatial resolution LiDAR data provide detailed three‐dimensional vegetation structure and terrain topography over large regions. By parameterizing solar radiation models that incorporate terrain shadowing with LiDAR data, we can produce spatially explicit estimates of insolation. As a case study, we modeled the relative change in insolation on channels in the Sacramento‐San Joaquin River Delta under current conditions and under a hypothesized deforested Delta using classified LiDAR, rasterized at a 1‐m resolution. Our results suggest that the removal of levee vegetation could result in a 9% increase in solar radiation incident on Delta waters, and may lead to water temperature increases. General, coarse‐scale channel characteristics (reach width, azimuth, levee vegetation cover, and height) only accounted for 72% of the variation in the insolation. This indicates that the detailed information derived from LiDAR data has greater explanatory power than coarser reach‐scale metrics often used for insolation estimates.     

浅谈太阳能电池生产用超纯水的工程设计

宜兴某太阳能电池生产厂以市政自来水作为太阳能电池生产用的纯水水源,该工程以超滤( UF )、反渗透( RO)和电除盐( EDI)的全膜法工艺为主,投产运行3年的结果表明,系统性能稳定,出水水质大大优于太阳能电池生产用水水质标准,可达到超纯水水质标准。     

Comparison of ANN,MVR, and SWR models for computing thermal efficiency of a solar still

In this paper, the viability of modeling the instantaneous thermal efficiency (η_ith) of a solar still was determined using meteorological and operational data with an artificial neural network (ANN), multivariate regression (MVR), and stepwise regression (SWR). This study used meteorological and operational variables to hypothesize the effect of solar still performance. In the ANN model, nine variables were used as input parameters: Julian day, ambient temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, solar radiation, feed water temperature, brine water temperature, total dissolved solids of feed water, and total dissolved solids of brine water. The η_ith was represented by one node in the output layer. The same parameters were used in the MVR and SWR models. The advantages and disadvantages were discussed to provide different points of view for the models. The performance evaluation criteria indicated that the ANN model was better than the MVR and SWR models. The mean coefficient of determination for the ANN model was about 13% and14% more accurate than those of the MVR and SWR models, respectively. In addition, the mean root mean square error values of 6.534% and 6.589% for the MVR and SWR models, respectively, were almost double that of the mean values for the ANN model. Although both MVR and SWR models provided similar results, those for the MVR were comparatively better. The relative errors of predicted η_ith values for the ANN model were mostly in the vicinity of ±10%. Consequently, the use of the ANN model is preferred, due to its high precision in predicting η_ith compared to the MVR and SWR models. This study should be extremely beneficial to those coping with the design of solar stills.     

Development and modification of permanent magnet brushed DC motor for hybrid photovoltaic-operated solar systems

A modified brushed permanent magnet DC (PMDC) motor has been developed and fabricated for a photovoltaic (PV)-operated solar systems. The conventional PMDC motor has been plagued with constraints, the most critical being ingestion of vapours of working fluid inside the rotor and stator, damaging the insulation of windings and forming a thin film of moisture between commutator and brushes. This flaw results into a very low mean time between failures of the motor. In the past, many attempts have been made where-in variety of seals to isolate the working fluid vapours from inner parts of motor have been tried out, but to no avail. Even Brushless DC motors have been designed in the past but their exorbitant cost makes the entire arrangement not viable economically. The modification attempted in this article overcomes the problem of working fluid ingestion inside the motor. It is found that mass flow rate of working fluid obtained at maximum peak sunshine hours is 17.5 l/min at 3030 rpm of motor driven by a PV module of 40 W at 16.20 V. This low-cost modified PMDC motor has been robust with high mean time between failures as no breakdown observed during 18 months of operation.     

Mycobiota and mycotoxins in bee pollen collected from different areas of Slovakia

Contamination by microscopic fungi and mycotoxins in different bee pollen samples, which were stored under three different ways of storing as freezing, drying and UV radiation, was investigated. During spring 2009, 45 samples of bee-collected pollen were gathered from beekeepers who placed their bee colonies on monocultures of sunflower, rape and poppy fields within their flying distance. Bee pollen was collected from bees’ legs by special devices placed at the entrance to hives. Samples were examined for the concentration and identification of microscopic fungi able to grow on Malt and Czapek-Dox agar and mycotoxins content [deoxynivalenol (DON), T-2 toxin (T-2), zearalenone (ZON) and total aflatoxins (AFL), fumonisins (FUM), ochratoxins (OTA)] by direct competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The total number of microscopic fungi in this study ranged from 2.98 ± 0.02 in frozen sunflower bee pollen to 4.06 ± 0.10 log cfu.g^?1 in sunflower bee pollen after UV radiation. In this study, 449 isolates belonging to 21 fungal species representing 9 genera were found in 45 samples of bee pollen. The total isolates were detected in frozen poppy pollen 29, rape pollen 40, sunflower pollen 80, in dried poppy pollen 12, rape pollen 36, sunflower 78, in poppy pollen after UV radiation treatment 54, rape 59 and sunflower 58. The most frequent isolates of microscopic fungi found in bee pollen samples of all prevalent species were Mucor mucedo (49 isolates), Alternaria alternata (40 isolates), Mucor hiemalis (40 isolates), Aspergillus fumigatus (33 isolates) and Cladosporium cladosporioides (31 isolates). The most frequently found isolates were detected in sunflower bee pollen frozen (80 isolates) and the lowest number of isolates was observed in poppy bee pollen dried (12 isolates). The most prevalent mycotoxin of poppy bee pollen was ZON (361.55 ± 0.26 μg.kg^?1), in rape bee pollen T-2 toxin (265.40 ± 0.18 μg.kg^?1) and in sunflower bee pollen T-2 toxin (364.72 ± 0.13 μg.kg^?1) in all cases in frozen samples.     

Laboratory studies of dissipation of 14C‐DDT from soil and plywood surfaces

Abstract

The effects of temperature and solar radiation on dissipation of ¹⁴C‐p,p'‐DDT from a latosol soil were studied under laboratory conditions. Volatilization was measured by trapping organic volatiles during 6 weeks and was found to increase with rise of temperature from 3.8% of initial amount at ambient temperature to 5.9% at 45°C.

Studies on the effect of solar radiation using quartz tubes under sterilized and non‐sterilized conditions have shown that volatilized organics were highest in quartz tubes, with soil microflora presumably playing a very minor role in volatilization. Mineralization was shown to be low in sterilized systems and highest in non‐sterilized quartz systems. Studies on binding suggest that soil bioactivity may be involved in the formation of a portion of the bound residue. These laboratory experiments seem to support data from the field, where it is maintained that volatilization is a major mechanism for dissipation. Degradation in soil and to a lesser extent solar irradiation contribute also substantially to the dissipation mechanisms. Radiocarbon dissipated from plywood surfaces under indoor conditions in a biphasic fashion. Loss of 50% occurred after 5.5 weeks while the remainder dissipated at a very slow rate.