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Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

SRI Research Presented at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) 2015 Carbon Capture Technology Meeting

Three SRI researchers presented information at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) 2015 Carbon Capture Technology Meeting :

Development of Mixed-Salt Technology for CO 2 Capture from Coal Power Plants
Indira Jayaweera
Pilot-Scale Evaluation of an Advanced Carbon Sorbent-Based Process for Post-Combustion Carbon Capture
Marc Hornbostel
CO 2 Capture from IGCC Gas Streams Using the AC-ABC Process
Anoop Nagar
Development of a Pre-Combustion CO 2 Capture Process Using High-Temperature PBI Hollow-Fiber Membranes
Indira S. Jayaweera

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Cold Fusion: Comments on the State of Scientific Proof

Introduction THE question under discussion is whether the phenomenon known as cold fusion has been proven to be existent or non-existent. This is an important question, for if real, the possibility exists that cold fusion might become a meaningful primary energy source with few of the disadvantages associated with the power sources that we have available to us today. One expects science to be able to rationally investigate and determine answers to questions such as this. Having investigated this phenomenon almost full time for the past 25 years, I will state my preliminary conclusion up front and then proceed with a more nuanced discussion. Whatever it is and by whatever underlying mechanism it proceeds, the accumulated evidence strongly supports the conclusion that nuclear effects take place in condensed matter states by pathways, at rates and with products different from those of the simple, isolated, pairwise nuclear reactions that we are so familiar with in free space (i.e. two-body interactions). The implications of this statement are profound and we will proceed with caution on the basis of validation of the envisaged new science.

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Simulation, Design, Fabrication, and Testing of a Mems Resettable Circuit Breaker

We describe a novel concept for a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resettable circuit breaker. The concept involves fabricating the circuit breaker and the reset switch using a single microcantilever. The MEMS resettable circuit breaker consists of a microcantilever that is pulled toward the bottom electrode by electrostatic actuation. The MEMS cantilever also has a thermal heater, and when a current passes through the heater, it overcomes the electrostatic actuation force thereby disconnecting the circuit. A detailed finite element analysis using thermal-electric-structural multiphysics phenomena was studied. Electrostatic-structural coupled-field analysis shows the circuit breaker switch has a pull-in voltage of about 31 V for a singlecrystal Si cantilever with a thickness of 2 μm, a length of 1000 μm, and a width of 500 μm. Thermal-electric coupledfield analysis shows the switch maximum temperature is 80.5 °C at a 50-mA current flow. Thermal-electric-structural sequential analysis shows the cantilever tip has a maximum upward displacement of 0.3 μm, which is just enough to open the switch. The impact of the initial film stress in the SiO2 insulation layer was also simulated, and the results show that the film stress has a significant impact on the initial cantilever position after release. Fabrication of the chips was done using two wafers, a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer, and a double-side polished silicon wafer. The SOI wafer device silicon layer was selected as cantilever material. Platinum was selected as heater material and chrome-gold was selected for bonding, trace, and electrostatic electrodes. Electrical testing results confirmed the proposed and simulated operation principle of the MEMS resettable circuit breaker. The results showed that the switch achieved good contact at an electrostatic switch-ON voltage of about 55 V. The measured circuit breaker current threshold is in the range of 45-55 m- .

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Use of CR-39 Detectors to Determine the Branching Ratio in Pd/D Co-deposition

Columbia Resin-39 (CR-39) detectors used in Pd/D co-deposition experiments were examined using an optical microscope, scanned using an automated scanner, and underwent both sequential etching analysis as well as LET spectrum analysis. These analyses identified and quantified the energetic particles responsible for the tracks observed in the CR-39 detectors and made it possible to estimate the branching ratios of the primary and secondary reactions.

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Condensed Matter Nuclear Reaction Products Observed in Pd/D Co-deposition Experiments

Pd/D co-deposition has been used by a number of researchers to explore the condensed matter nuclear reactions occurring within the palladium lattice by generating highly loaded layers of lattice over the cathode. Reaction products that have been observed include heat, transmutation, tritium, energetic charged particles and neutrons. The results of these experiments are discussed here.

Chemistry, materials, & energy publications

Air Plasma-Material Interactions at the Oxidized Surface of the PM1000 Nickel-Chromium Superalloy

Nickel-based superalloys are promising options for the thermal protection systems of hypersonic re-entry vehicles operating under moderate aerothermal heating conditions. We present an experimental study on the interactions between PM1000, an oxide dispersion strengthened nickel-chromium superalloy, and air plasma at surface temperatures between 1000 and 1600 K and pressures of 1500, 7500 and 10,000 Pa. Pre-oxidized PM1000 specimens are tested in high-enthalpy reactive air plasma flows generated by the Plasmatron wind tunnel at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics. Microscopic analysis of plasma-exposed specimens shows enhanced damage to the chromia scale at the lowest plasma pressure. Elemental surface analysis reveals the loss of Cr and the enhancement of Ni at the scale surface. A thermodynamic analysis supports the accelerated volatilization of Cr2O3 and the relative stability of NiO in the presence of atomic oxygen. Changes in the reflectance and emissivity of the oxidized surfaces due to plasma-exposure are presented. The catalytic efficiencies for dissociated air species recombination are determined as a function of surface temperature and pressure through a numerical rebuilding procedure and are compared with values presented in the literature for the same material.

Biomedical sciences publications

Identification of a Novel Lysosomal Trafficking Peptide Using Phage Display Biopanning Coupled with Endocytic Selection Pressure

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Methods to select ligands that accumulate specifically in cancer cells and traffic through a defined endocytic pathway may facilitate rapid pairing of ligands with linkers suitable for drug conjugate therapies. We performed phage display biopanning on cancer cells that are treated with selective inhibitors of a given mechanism of endocytosis. Using chlorpromazine to inhibit clathrin-mediated endocytosis in H1299 nonsmall cell lung cancer cells, we identified two clones, ATEPRKQYATPRVFWTDAPG (15.1) and a novel peptide LQWRRDDNVHNFGVWARYRL (H1299.3). The peptides segregate by mechanism of endocytosis and subsequent location of subcellular accumulation. The H1299.3 peptide primarily utilizes clathrin-mediated endocytosis and colocalizes with Lamp1, a lysosomal marker. Conversely, the 15.1 peptide is clathrin-independent and localizes to a perinuclear region. Thus, this novel phage display scheme allows for selection of peptides that selectively internalize into cells via a known mechanism of endocytosis. These types of selections may allow for better matching of linker with targeting ligand by selecting ligands that internalize and traffic to known subcellular locations.