Novel Eco-Friendly Kinetic Hydrate Inhibitors

Amid concerns over negative the environmental impacts of offshore chemicals, Baker Hughes explored new chemistries to develop environmentally friendly kinetic hydrate inhibitors (KHI). Our efforts were focused on improving biodegradability and toxicity of KHIs to meet environmental protection requirements, as well as mitigating challenges in field applications. A novel KHI design with branched polymers containing sugar alcohol ester groups as linkages, was proposed and synthesized. The new KHI polymer demonstrated > 20% biodegradability and >100 mg/L toxicity to seawater algae, and it also exhibited competitive or even better KHI performance to traditional non-biodegradable KHI products. Additionally, new KHI showed improved stability in water/brine at elevated temperatures as compared to traditional KHI products, which might mitigate concerns on polymer deposition at high temperatures.

Theoretical Evaluation for the Assisted Electropolymerization of a Monomer, Obtained by an Indirect Electrochemical Synthesis

In this work, the possibility for indirect electropolymerization of a monomer synthesized by an indirect electrosynthesis has been evaluated. Based on the reaction mechanism, the correspondent mathematical model has been developed and analyzed using linear stability theory and bifurcation analysis. It has been shown that in the case of indirect monomer electrosynthesis and electropolymerization, the polymer deposition is far more stable than for direct participation of the monomer in the electrochemical stage. The surface tends to be more developed. Yet, the electrochemical oscillations are expected to be less probable than in the case of the direct anodic process.

Comparative Study of Natural Terpenoid Precursors in Reactive Plasmas for Thin Film Deposition

If plasma polymer thin films are to be synthesised from sustainable and natural precursors of chemically heterogeneous composition, it is important to understand the extent to which this composition influences the mechanism of polymerisation. To this end, a well-studied monoterpene alcohol, terpinen-4-ol, has been targeted for a comparative study with the naturally occurring mix of terpenes (viz. Melaleuca alternifolia oil) from which it is commonly distilled. Positive ion mode mass spectra of both terpinen-4-ol and M. alternifolia oil showed a decrease in disparities between the type and abundance of cationic species formed in their respective plasma environments as applied plasma power was increased. Supplementary biological assay revealed the antibacterial action of both terpinen-4-ol and M. alternifolia derived coatings with respect to S. aureus bacteria, whilst cytocompatibility was demonstrated by comparable eukaryotic cell adhesion to both coatings. Elucidating the processes occurring within the reactive plasmas can enhance the economics of plasma polymer deposition by permitting use of the minimum power, time and precursor pre-processing required to control the extent of monomer fragmentation and fabricate a film of the desired thickness and functionality.

CMOS-MEMS VOCs sensor functionalized via inkjet polymer deposition for high-sensitivity acetone detection

CMOS-MEMS micro-resonators have become excellent candidates for developing portable chemical VOCs sensing systems thanks to their extremely large mass sensitivity, extraordinary miniaturization capabilities, and on-chip integration with CMOS circuitry to...

Plasma Parameters and Etching Characteristics of SiOxNy Films in CF4 + O2 + X (X = C4F8 or CF2Br2) Gas Mixtures

In this work, we carried out the study of CF4 + O2 + X (X = C4F8 or CF2Br2) gas chemistries in respect to the SiOxNy reactive-ion etching process in a low power regime. The interest in the liquid CF2Br2 as an additive component is motivated by its generally unknown plasma etching performance. The combination of various diagnostic tools (double Langmuir probe, quadrupole mass-spectrometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) allowed us to compare the effects of CF4/X mixing ratio, input power and gas pressure on gas-phase plasma characteristics as well as to analyze the SiOxNy etching kinetics in terms of process-condition-dependent effective reaction probability. It was found that the given gas systems are characterized by: (1) similar changes in plasma parameters (electron temperature, ion current density) and fluxes of active species with variations in processing conditions; (2) identical behaviors of SiOxNy etching rates, as determined by the neutral-flux-limited process regime; and (3) non-constant SiOxNy + F reaction probabilities due to changes in the polymer deposition/removal balance. The features of CF4 + CF2Br2 + O2 plasma are lower polymerization ability (due to the lower flux of CFx radicals) and a bit more vertical etching profile (due to the lower neutral/charged ratio).