Effects of channel size, wall wettability, and electric field strength on ion removal from water in nanochannels

Molecular dynamics simulations are employed to estimate the effect of nanopore size, wall wettability, and the external field strength on successful ion removal from water solutions. It is demonstrated that the presence of ions, along with the additive effect of an external electric field, constitute a multivariate environment that affect fluidic interactions and facilitate, or block, ion drift to the walls. The potential energy is calculated across every channel case investigated, indicating possible ion localization, while electric field lines are presented, to reveal ion routing throughout the channel. The electric field strength is the dominant ion separation factor, while wall wettability strength, which characterizes if the walls are hydrophobic or hydrophilic has not been found to affect ion movement significantly at the scale studied here. Moreover, the diffusion coefficient values along the three dimensions are reported. Diffusion coefficients have shown a decreasing tendency as the external electric field increases, and do not seem to be affected by the degree of wall wettability at the scale investigated here.

Analysis of the temperature-frequency effect on dielectric losses in a grain medium

The aim of the study is to determine the influence of the thermal effect on dielectric losses in grain mass subject to bruising during drying and storage on the example of wheat across a wide external electric field frequency range. The study of the electrophysical characteristics of a dispersed medium comprising mechanically activated wheat grains takes into account the effect of the degree of breakage on the dielectric parameters of the studied medium. The studies were carried out on experimental samples having different degrees of mechanical activation of particles, which ranged in size from from 50 to 1000 μm. Variations in the dielectric loss tangent were studied using the dielectric method across a wide temperature-frequency range. Studies of variations in dielectric properties were carried out for wheat sam-ples subjected to grinding according to the mechanical activation method at temperatures varying from 20°C to 255°C with a constant heating rate of 0.7 deg / min. During the course of the experiment, the frequency of the external electric field was varied from 25 Hz to 1∙106 Hz. Dielectric constant and dielectric loss tangent calculations were carried out using data on electrical capacity and conductivity obtained using an E7-20 immittance meter and a measuring cell in the form of a flat capacitor. An analysis of variations in these dielectric characteristics was also performed. The obtained stable correlation of the dielectric loss tangent with the frequency of external electric impact and the degree of heating of the samples was most pronounced for finely dispersed samples (particle size 50 μm). Variations in dielectric characteristics are most significant when the frequency decreases to 100 Hz and below. The study of variations in the main dielectric parameters can be used to prevent self-heating and ignition of the grain mass during storage, as well as for selecting the most efficient energy-saving drying mode.