Spectral induced polarization of the plant root: Experiments and numerical modeling.

<p>Exploration of plant roots and monitoring their conditions during growth is of great importance. A promising method for the non-invasive investigation of plant roots is spectral induced polarization (SIP). To enhance understanding of the mechanism controlling the plant root’s induced polarization response, we have conducted a series of experiments and constructed a physical-based numerical model. We measured the SIP signal of wheat root grown in the nutrient solution. The experiments have demonstrated a relationship between the SIP parameters (chargeability and relaxation time) and the root biomass and surface area. Monitoring the SIP response of roots poisoned by cyanide has revealed that the root polarization source is the cell membrane potential. In addition, we modeled plant root as a collection of 2-dimensional individual cells surrounded by an electrolyte. The SIP signal was calculated based on the numerical solution of the Poisson-Nernst-Planck equation. The model has supported the experimental results with the correlation between the magnitude of polarization and the root surface area. According to the model, the root polarization magnitude is related to the root’s external surface area. The polarization length scale is the root’s diameter, not the cell diameter. Based on these results and data from the literature, we suggest that at the low-frequency range associated with the SIP method, passing the current through the plant results in polarization of the individual cells, a relatively high polarization and relaxation time that is related to the cell length. On the other hand, injecting current to the growing medium results in the polarization of the external surface area of the root and polarization length scale related to the root diameter.</p>

n-Nonane hydroisomerization over hierarchical SAPO-11-based catalysts with sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate as a dispersant

To enhance the gasoline octane number, low-octane linear n-alkanes should be converted into their high-octane di-branched isomers via n-alkane hydroisomerization. Therefore, hierarchical SAPO-11-based catalysts are prepared by adding different contents of sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS), and they are applied in n-nonane hydroisomerization. When n(SDBS)/n(SiO2) is less than or equal to 0.125, the synthesized hierarchical molecular sieves are all pure SAPO-11, and as the SDBS content increases, the submicron particle size decreases, and the external surface area (ESA) increases. Additionally, these hierarchical SAPO-11 have smaller submicron particles and higher ESA values than conventional SAPO-11. When n(SDBS)/n(SiO2) is greater than 0.125, with increasing SDBS content (n(SDBS)/n(SiO2) = 0.25), the synthesized SAPO-11 contains amorphous materials, which leads to a decline in the ESA; with the further increase in SDBS content (n(SDBS)/n(SiO2) = 0.5), the products are all amorphous materials. These results indicate that in the case of n(SDBS)/n(SiO2) = 0.125, the synthesized SAPO-11 molecular sieve (S–S3) has the most external Brønsted acid centers and the highest ESA of these SAPO-11, and these advantages favor generation of the di-branched isomers in hydrocarbon hydroisomerization. Among these Pt/SAPO-11 catalysts, Pt/S–S3 displays the highest selectivity to entire isomers (83.4%), the highest selectivity to di-branched isomers (28.1%) and the minimum hydrocracking selectivity (15.7%) in n-nonane hydroisomerization.

Designer Synthesis of Ultra-Fine Fe-LTL Zeolite Nanocrystals

Nanosized zeolites with larger external surface area and decreased diffusion pathway provide many potential opportunities in adsorption, diffusion, and catalytic applications. Herein, we report a designer synthesis of ultra-fine Fe-LTL zeolite nanocrystals under very mild synthesis conditions. We prepared Fe-LTL zeolite nanocrystals synthesized using L precursor. The precursor is aging at room temperature to obtain zeolite L nuclei. In order to investigate more details of Fe-LTL zeolite nanocrystals, various characterizations including X-ray diffraction (XRD), inductively coupled plasma (ICP), diffuse reflectance ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, confirm the tetrahedral Fe3+ species in the zeolite framework. Besides, scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR), dynamic light scattering (DLS) indicate that the average particle size of Fe-LTL zeolite crystals is approximately 30 nm. Thus, ultra-fine Fe-LTL zeolite with large external surface area and shorter diffusion pathway to the active sites might have great potential in the near future.

Zeolite-based catalysts for the removal of trace olefins from aromatic streams

Removal of trace olefins from aromatic liquids was investigated on UZM-8 and MCM-22, which are the family of MWW zeolites. Both these zeolites were synthesized with similar Si/Al ratio and characterized by various techniques such as XRD, SEM, ICP, N2 adsorption, Ammonia TPD and solid-state MAS-NMR. Olefin conversion activity over UZM-8 was found to be significantly higher than that of MCM-22. In addition to this, deactivation of UZM-8 was slower than the MCM-22. UZM-8 with irregular stacking of MWW layers possess high external surface area and exposes more number of active sites to the reactant molecules. Mesopores generated due to the disordered layers of UZM-8 allows the fast diffusion of the substrate molecules in which pore clogging does not occur, thus making it more active and slow deactivation than that of MCM-22. Graphic abstract

Zeolite-Supported Ni Catalysts for CO2 Methanation: Effect of Zeolite Structure and Si/Al Ratio

The urgent need to reduce CO2 emissions requires the development of efficient catalysts for the conversion of CO2 into chemicals and fuels. In this study, a series of nickel catalysts supported on ITQ-2 and ZSM-5 zeolites have been prepared, characterized and tested in the hydrogenation reaction of CO2 towards methane. Specifically, two ITQ-2 and two ZSM 5 zeolites with different aluminum content have been studied. For both types, the higher Si/Al ratio of the material, the more active the catalyst due probably to its higher hydrophobicity. The largest difference was found for the ITQ-2 samples, being the CO2 conversion for the sample with a greater Si/Al ratio 50 points higher at 350 °C. Comparing both zeolite structures, while similar catalytic results were obtained with the samples with lower Si/Al ratio, a distinctly higher activity was found for the ITQ-2 zeolite without aluminum, pure silica. Therefore, this result suggests that the presence of aluminum is of particular relevance. Among the studied materials, the catalyst supported on the delaminated ITQ-2 zeolite without Al was the most active catalyst. Its higher activity was mainly attributed to the smaller crystallite size of nickel supported on the large external surface area presented by this zeolite.

Adsorption of Salmonella in Clay Minerals and Clay-Based Materials

A series of clay minerals and clay-based materials have been tested to eliminate one of the most dangerous bacteria we can find in the water: Salmonella. It has been proven that the use of clays and their PCH materials can be a suitable method for removing Salmonella from water. The results of this initial study show that all the materials analyzed have great salmonella adsorption capacities ranging from the lowest value observed in the mont-PCH sample (0.29 × 1010 CFU g−1) to the highest value observed in the natural palygorskite sample (1.52 × 1010 CFU g−1). Macroporosity, accessible external surface area, and the presence of silanol groups in the external surface of the particles appears to be the controlling factors for Salmonella adsorption capacity while it seems that the structural characteristics of the clay minerals and their respective PCH does not affect the adsorption capacity.

Physical and chemical characteristics of feed coal and its by-products from a Brazilian thermoelectric power plant

In this study, feed coal (FC) from the Figueira Thermoelectric Power Plant (FTPP), located in the state of Paraná (PR), Brazil was characterized by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), particle size distribution analysis by laser diffraction, loss of ignition (LOI), total carbon content (TC), pH and conductivity. FC-derived by-products (CCBs) collected at the FTPP were: bottom ash (BA), fly ash from cyclone filter (CA) and fly ash from bag filter (FA). In addition to the techniques used for feed coal characterization, CCBs were also characterized by total surface area (by using BET method), external surface area (by using laser diffraction), cation exchange capacity (CEC), bulk density, besides leaching and solubilization tests. FC sample contains 72.2% of volatile material, of which 55.3% is total carbon content. LOI, FTIR, TGA and TC analyzes corroborated with these results. The main crystalline phases in the FC sample were found to be quartz, kaolinite and pyrite. The elements As, Cr, Ni and Pb were encountered in the FC sample, indicating that the use of FTPP feed coal should be monitored due to the toxic potential of these elements. The three coal ashes were classified as class F according to ASTM and presented similar chemical composition, with total content of the main oxides (SiO2, Al2O3 and Fe2O3) above 72%. Ashes enrichment factor analysis (EF) showed that As, Zn and Pb concentrate mainly in fly ash from bag filter (FA), whereas the elements K and Mg presented higher enrichment in the bottom ash (BA) . All ashes presented quartz, mullite and magnetite as crystalline phases, as well as the same functional groups, related to the presence of humidity, organic matter and Si and Al compounds. XRD, XRF, TGA, FTIR, LOI and TC techniques were correlated and confirmed the obtained results. Total and external surface area values of CCBs were related to the total carbon content (TC), as well as to the results of particle size distribution and the scanning electron micrographs of the samples. On the other hand the CEC of the ashes showed relation with the particle size distribution and with the external surface area. Leaching and solubilization tests of CCBs showed that FA sample was considered hazardous and classified as class I waste, while CA and BA samples were considered non-hazardous and non-inert wastes and classified as class II-A. FA sample from Figueira power plant must be discarded only after treatment or a stringent disposal criterion must be followed to avoid contamination on site. In this work, feed coal sample was also compared to the CCBs samples generated from it. The results showed the differences between fuel and products through the different characterization techniques. In addition to contributing to the understanding of the relationship between coal and its combustion products, this work can also help to reduce the environmental impacts caused by the CCBs disposal, as well as can also be used to compare the characteristics of CCBs from FTPP with the new wastes that will be generated by the same thermal power plant that will be soon modernized.