<p> In the past two decades, great interest in weakly ionized plasmas sustained by high voltage nanosecond pulsed plasmas at high repetition rates has emerged. For such plasmas, the electron number density does not significantly decay between pulses, unlike the electron temperature. Such conditions are favorable to reconfigurable plasma antennas where the low electron temperature may enable the reduction of the Johnson–Nyquist thermal noise if an antenna is operated in the plasma afterglow. Moreover, it may be possible to sustain such conditions with RF pulses. Doing so could enable a plasma antenna that transmits the driving frequency when the pulse is applied and receives other frequencies with low thermal noise between pulses.</p> <p>To study nanosecond pulsed plasmas, experiments were performed in a parallel-plate electrode configuration in argon and nitrogen gas at a pressure of several Torr and repetition frequencies of 30-75 kHz. To measure the time-resolved electron number density in the afterglow of each pulse, a custom 58.1 GHz homodyne microwave interferometer was constructed. The voltage and current measurements were made using a back current shunt (BCS). Initial analysis of the measured electron density in both plasmas indicated that the electron thermalization was much faster than the electron decay. In the nitrogen plasma, dissociative recombination with cluster ions was the dominant electron loss mechanism. However, the dissociative recombination rates of the electrons in the argon plasma suggested the presence of molecular impurities, such as water vapor. Therefore, to better understand the recombination mechanisms in argon plasma with trace amounts (0.1% or less by volume) of water vapor under the experimental conditions, a 0-D kinetic model was developed and fit to the experimental data. The influence of trace amounts of water on the electron temperature and density decay was studied by solving electron energy and continuity equations. It was found that in pure argon, Ar⁺ ions dominate while the electrons are very slow to thermalize and recombine. Including trace amounts of water impurities drastically reduces the time for electrons to thermalize and increases their rate of recombination. </p> <p>In addition to large quasi-steady electron number densities and low electron temperature in the plasma afterglow, plasmas sustained by nanosecond pulses use a lower power budget than those sustained by RF or DC supplies. The efficiency of the power budget can be characterized by measuring the ionization cost per electron, defined as the ratio of the energy deposited in a pulse to the total number of electrons created. This was experimentally determined in air and argon plasmas at 2-10 Torr sustained by 1-7 kV nanosecond pulses at repetition frequencies of 0.1-30 kHz. The number of electrons were determined from the measured electron density through microwave interferometry and assuming a plasma volume equivalent to the volume between electrodes. The energy deposited was calculated from voltage and current measurements using both a BCS as well as high frequency resistive voltage divider and fast current transformer (FCT). It was found that the ionization cost in all conditions was within a factor of three of Stoletov’s point (the theoretical minimum ionization cost) and two orders of magnitude less than RF plasma.</p><p> </p><p>Having shown that it is possible to generate high electron density, low electron temperature plasmas with nanosecond pulses, it was necessary to now create a plasma antenna prototype. Initially, commercial fluorescent light bulbs were used and ignited using surface wave excitation at various RF frequencies and powers. The S₁₁ of the antenna response was measured by a VNA through a novel coupling circuit, while the deposited power was measured using a bi-directional coupler. Next, a custom plasma antenna was created in which the pressure and gas composition could be varied. In addition to the S₁₁ and deposited power, the antenna gain, and the electron number density were also measured for a pure argon plasma antenna at pressures of 0.3-1 Torr. Varying the applied power shifts the antenna resonance frequency while increasing the excitation frequency caused an increase in measured electron density for the same deposited power. Initial tests using direct electrode excitation of a twin-tube integrated compact fluorescent light bulb with nanosecond pulses have successfully been achieved. Future efforts include designing the proper circuitry to time-gate out the large pulse voltage to facilitate safe antenna measurements in the plasma afterglow.<br></p>

Developing numerical tools for polymer lifetime prediction constitutes a promising opportunity for shortening the duration of material certification procedures in the automotive industry without decreasing their reliability. This PhD thesis aims at modeling the photothermal oxidation of isotactic polypropylene (iPP), which is responsible for the alteration of both its mechanical and aspect properties. The adopted approach consists in coupling the kinetics of photo- and thermo-oxidation reactions with physical phenomena, such as oxygen transport and UV-light attenuation in the material thickness, in order to describe all the physico-chemical changes. Upper-scale properties, from which will be defined the end-of-life criteria, will be calculated afterwards by applying the suitable structure-property relationships. The main challenge was to extend the pre-existing kinetic model of thermal ageing to photothermal ageing by taking into account initiation reactions of photolysis. Heavy campaigns of ageing and characterization tests made on a reference iPP, as well as an exhaustive capitalization of literature data of other iPPs, have allowed elaborating a kinetic model of photothermal oxidation and to generalize it to the whole iPP family in large domains of oxygen partial pressure (from 0.2 to 50 bars), temperature (from 40 to 230°C) and UV-light exposure (variable intensities and light sources) describing both natural and accelerated ageing conditions. The experimental validation of the model has allowed substantiating the kinetic approach and showing its limitations, as well as highlighting some numerical issues. The model has been designed in order to be an upgradable numerical tool which will allow, at term, optimizing the representativeness of the ageing testing devices and the performance of commercial iPP formulations. All these theoretical and numerical developments are prone to be applied to the photothermal degradation of other types of polymer substrates, but also in other application fields of the macromolecular photochemistry such as UV-photopolymerization.Keywords: Polypropylene, photothermal oxidation, oxygen diffusion control, screen effect, kinetic modeling, lifetime prediction.

No description available.

Le développement d’une troisième génération d’aciers Fe-Mn-Al-C à structure duplex, pour des teneurs en Mn et Al inférieures à 8 %mass, pourrait être une réponse prometteuse aux objectifs d’allègement de 20% des véhicules automobiles, tout en garantissant des propriétés de haute résistance mécanique et haute formabilité.Le choix des nuances et l’optimisation des conditions d’élaboration nécessitent de prévoir en particulier les compositions et proportions des phases existantes en fonction de la route métallurgique. Une base de données thermodynamiques fiable et précise est donc requise. Cependant les données de la littérature sur le système quaternaire Fe-Mn-Al-C, dans les domaines de composition envisagés, sont limitées.Ce mémoire est consacré à l’établissement des équilibres de phases ferrite-α, austénite-γ et carbure-κ (Fe,Mn)3AlC entre 700 et 1000°C par une approche couplée d’expériences ciblées et de modélisation thermodynamique. Pour appuyer l’évolution expérimentale des fractions de phases et des compositions, une modélisation cinétique (DICTRA) est proposée. La cinétique de formation de l’austénite en fonction de la composition de l’alliage et de la température de maintien dans le domaine intercritique a été caractérisée. Les phases en équilibre, caractérisées par DRX, MEB, microsonde, sont représentées sous forme de conodes α/γ, γ/κ, α/γ/κ, ce qui permet de définir les domaines de stabilité de l’austénite et du carbure κ. Ces données expérimentales sont utilisées pour affiner la description thermodynamique du système quaternaire mais il est nécessaire de réviser la modélisation du carbure κ. / A third generation of Fe-Mn-Al-C steels with a duplex structure, for Mn and Al contents less than 8%mass, could be a promising response to the 20% weight lightening of automotive vehicles, by keeping a high strength and a high formability.The knowledge of the corresponding quaternary phase diagram serves as a roadmap for the choice of compositions and the optimization of elaboration conditions. A reliable and precise thermodynamic database is therefore required. However, the literature data on the Fe-Mn-Al-C quaternary system in the targeted domains are limited.This study is devoted to the establishment of phase equilibria involving ferrite-α, austenite-γ and carbide-κ (Fe,Mn)3AlC between 700 and 1000°C by a coupled approach of experiments and thermodynamic modeling. A kinetic model (DICTRA) is proposed to support the experimental evolution of phase fraction and composition. The kinetics of austenite formation as a function of the alloy composition and of the maintaining temperature in the intercritical domain have been calculated. The phases in equilibrium, characterized by XRD, SEM, EPMA, are represented as α/γ, γ/κ, α/γ/κ tie-lines in order to specify the stability fields of γ and κ. These data are used to refine the thermodynamic description of the quaternary system but it is necessary to revise the modeling of κ carbide.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:01:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Bruna_CQ_DISSERT.pdf: 1009487 bytes, checksum: af0c16848a5883b1c5e6bb465ced353e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-08-19 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / This dissertation aims the development of an experimental device to determine quantitatively the content of benzene, toluene and xylenes (BTX) in the atmosphere. BTX are extremely volatile solvents, and therefore play an important role in atmospheric chemistry, being precursors in the tropospheric ozone formation. In this work a BTX new standard gas was produced in nitrogen for stagnant systems. The aim of this dissertation is to develop a new method, simple and cheaper, to quantify and monitor BTX in air using solid phase microextraction/ gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (SPME/CG/MS). The features of the calibration method proposed are presented in this dissertation. SPME sampling was carried out under non-equilibrium conditions using a Carboxen/PDMS fiber exposed for 10 min standard gas mixtures. It is observed that the main parameters that affect the extraction process are sampling time and concentration. The results of the BTX multicomponent system studied have shown a linear and a nonlinear range. In the non-linear range, it is remarkable the effect of competition by selective adsorption with the following affinity order p-xylene > toluene > benzene. This behavior represents a limitation of the method, however being in accordance with the literature. Furthermore, this behavior does not prevent the application of the technique out of the non-linear region to quantify the BTX contents in the atmosphere. / Esta disserta??o de mestrado trata da montagem e da valida??o de um dispositivo experimental para determinar quantitativamente os teores de benzeno, tolueno e xilenos (BTX) na atmosfera. BTX s?o solventes extremamente vol?teis e, portanto, desempenha um papel importante na qu?mica atmosf?rica, sendo precursores na forma??o de oz?nio troposf?rico. Nesta disserta??o um novo padr?o gasoso de BTX foi produzido em nitrog?nio para sistemas estagnados. O objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver um novo m?todo, simples e barato, para quantificar e monitorar BTX no ar utilizando microextra??o em fase s?lida, cromatografia gasosa/espectrometria de massa (SPME/CG/MS). As caracter?sticas do m?todo de calibra??o proposto s?o apresentadas nesta disserta??o. Amostragem SPME foi realizada sob condi??es de n?o-equil?brio usando uma fibra Carboxen / PDMS exposta por 10 minutos na mistura de gases padr?o BTX-N2. Observam que os principais par?metros que afetam o processo de extra??o s?o tempo de amostragem, concentra??o e temperatura. Os resultados do sistema multicomponente BTX-N2 estudado mostraram um comportamento linear e n?o-linear em termos de concentra??o de BTX. Na faixa n?o-linear, ? not?vel o efeito da concorr?ncia por adsor??o seletiva com a seguinte ordem de afinidade: p-xileno> tolueno> benzeno. Este comportamento representa uma limita??o do m?todo, no entanto, est? de acordo com a literatura e n?o impede a aplica??o da t?cnica fora da regi?o n?o linear para quantificar os teores de BTX na atmosfera.

A esterificação do sec-butanol com ácido acético, submetida à catálise homogênea, apresenta poucos resultados experimentais de cinética reacional e equilíbrio químico disponíveis na literatura. A presente dissertação visa determinar os parâmetros cinéticos e de equilíbrio químico desta reação de esterificação, empregando modelo cinético de 2ª ordem baseado em atividades. Os experimentos cinéticos foram realizados em reator batelada com auxílio da metodologia Karl Fischer para análise do teor de água e determinação do perfil de frações molares ao longo da reação. A principal dificuldade na modelagem desta esterificação consistiu em representar satisfatoriamente as não-idealidades da mistura em fase líquida, em espacial nas reações cuja fração molar inicial de ácido acético foi superior a 50%. Netas condições admitiu-se a ocorrência de dissociação do ácido acético levando ao surgimento de interações iônicas. O modelo empregado para obtenção das atividades, com base em frações molares, foi o NRTL. Este modelo representou bem as interações moleculares em condição de baixa acidez, mas apresentou desvios em condições de acidez e teores de água mais elevados. O estudo também visou o desenvolvimento de modelos de calibração para um método analítico on-line visando determinar o perfil de frações molares ao longo da reação. O método empregado foi a espectroscopia de infravermelho próximo (NIR), em vista à capacidade deste método analítico em determinar quantitativamente frações molares de água, além dos demais compostos envolvidos. Outro fator determinante ao emprego do NIR é a seu crescente uso no meio industrial, e o presente trabalho visou também contribuir para o uso futuro desta técnica de monitoramento no processo industrial. Modelos de calibração multivariável com conjuntos de calibração interna por validação cruzada se mostraram adequados ao sistema estudado. Calibrações externas resultaram em modelos imprecisos, não sendo possível determinar claramente os fatores responsáveis pela imprecisão. / There is a lack of literature data on the reaction kinetics and equilibrium of the homogeneously catalyzed esterification of sec-butanol with acetic acid. This work aims at obtaining the kinetic parameters and chemical equilibrium parameters of this esterification reaction by using a second order kinetic model based on activities. The kinetic experiments were performed in a batch reactor and the Karl Fischer analytical method was used to determine the molar fraction of water along the reaction progress. The main challenge of modeling this reaction was to represent the highly non-ideal mixture in liquid phase, specially for reactions runs starting with acetic acid mole fraction higher than 50%. In these conditions, it was assumed the occurrence of acetic acid dissociation that leads to ionic interactions. The thermodynamic model used to calculate the activities was the NRTL. This model predicted well the molecular interactions on low acidity conditions but presented deviations when molar fractions of acid and water were higher. The present study also aims to develop calibration models for analytical on-line method to obtain molar fraction profiles along the reaction. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) was used due to the possibility of quantitatively analyze water mole fraction, besides the mole fractions of the other components. Another important reason to choose NIR was its crescent use in industry, and the present work intended to contribute towards the future use of this on line monitoring technique in industrial applications. Multivariate calibration models using internal set of calibration and cross-validation seems to be suitable for this system. External set of calibration leads to less accurate models, and the causes of this lack of accuracy were not clearly identified.

Cement slurries are used in oil wells to isolate the production area from the rock formation. An important property of these materials is their durability. Due to the interactions of the cement slurries with aggressive media in the oil wells, the durability can be threatened or lost. Cement slurries modified with polymers are promising materials candidates for cementing oil wells. Thus, it is necessary to evaluate new materials in hostile environments. In this work, new cement slurries were prepared with the Epoxy resin and the ethylenediamine hardener in two different media: distilled water and sea water. The new slurries were tested for their mechanical properties and characterized before and after interaction with the following media: production water, hydrochloric acid solution and mud acid solution. After 365 days of contact with the production water, the modified slurries showed greater chemical and mechanical resistance compared to the slurries without the polymer network (Standard slurries). Moreover, for the modified slurries after contact with the production water, a decrease of 9% in the compressive strength occurred, whereas for the slurries without the polymer network, the reduction reached 40%. Kinetic studies, chemical and thermodynamic equilibrium were carried out in the investigation of the interaction of the cement slurries with the solutions of HCl and mud acid. The results have suggested that the interactions between the modified slurries and the acid media are due to surface reactions with preservation of the hydrated compounds of the cement, causing a mass loss around 25%. For the standard slurries, the mechanism is predominantly diffusion, with structural deterioration of these slurries and mass loss of approximately 46%. Thus, the modified slurries with the polymer network Epoxy-EDA presented good characteristics to be used in the oil well procedures. / Pastas de cimento são utilizadas em poços de petróleo para isolar a zona de produção da formação rochosa. Uma propriedade importante desses materiais é sua durabilidade. Devido suas interações com meios agressivos, essa propriedade pode ser ameaçada ou perdida. Pastas de cimento modificadas com polímeros são materiais promissores candidatos à cimentação de poços de petróleo. Assim, é necessário avaliar novos materiais em meios hostis. Neste trabalho, novas pastas de cimento foram preparadas com a resina Epoxy e o endurecedor Etilenodiamina em dois meios distintos: água destilada e água do mar. As novas pastas foram testadas em relação às suas propriedades mecânicas e caracterizadas antes e após a interação com os seguintes meios: água de produção, solução de ácido clorídrico e solução de mud acid. Após 365 dias de contato com a água de produção, as pastas modificadas apresentaram maior resistência química em comparação com as pastas sem a rede polimérica (pastas padrão). Além disso, para as pastas modificadas após o contato com a água de produção, ocorreu uma diminuição de 9% na resistência à compressão, já para as pastas sem a rede polimérica, a redução atingiu 40%. Estudos cinéticos, equilíbrio químico e termodinâmico foram realizados na investigação da interação das pastas de cimento com as soluções de HCl e mud acid. Os resultaram sugerem que as interações entre as pastas modificadas e os meios ácidos são devido a reações superficiais com preservação dos compostos hidratados do cimento, ocasionando uma perda de massa em torno de 25%. Para as pastas padrão, o mecanismo é predominantemente por difusão, com deterioração estrutural dessas pastas e perda de massa de aproximadamente de 46%. Desta forma, as pastas modificadas com a rede polimérica Epoxy-EDA apresentaram boas características para serem utilizadas em ambientes subterrâneos dos poços de petróleo. / São Cristóvão, SE

In the present work, a super water-absorbent poly(acrylic acid) was synthetized by inverse suspension polymerization, using Span60 as the dispersant, toluene as the dispersing organic phase, trimethylolpropane triacrylate as the crosslinking agent, and sodium persulfate as the initiator. The synthesis was conducted in a small-scale glass reactor operated in semi-batch mode. The following reaction conditions were evaluated: effects of initiator concentration, temperature, percentage of multifunctional cross-linker agent and monomer concentration. Also, two important properties were determined, conversion and gel fraction. A kinetic model including a population balance was employed to simulate the process. The proposed model uses the numerical fractionation technique and is capable of predicting the pre-gel and post-gel properties, the effect of the crosslinking agent level on the polymer properties and the dynamic of gelation. The model was compared with the experimental results and showed a satisfactory representation of the system after parameter adjusting. / No presente trabalho, o poli (ácido acrílico) super-absorvente foi sintetizado por polimerização em suspensão inversa, usando Span 60 como o dispersante, tolueno como fase orgânica, trimetilolpropano triacrilato como agente de reticulação e persulfato de sódio como iniciador. A síntese foi conduzida num reator de vidro em escala de bancada, operado em modo semi-batelada-batelada. As seguintes condições da reação foram avaliadas: os efeitos da concentração de iniciador, a temperatura, a porcentagem de agente de reticulação multifuncional e a concentração de monómero. Além disso, foram determinadas propriedades importantes, como a conversão e a fração de gel. Da mesma forma, foi desenvolvido um modelo de balanço populacional para simular o processo em conjunto com a técnica de fracionamento numérico, que é capaz de prever as propriedades pré-gel e pós-gel, o efeito do nível do agente de reticulação no polímero e as propriedades da dinâmica de gelificação. O modelo foi comparado com os resultados experimentais e mostrou uma representação satisfatória do sistema após o ajuste dos parâmetros.

L’objectif de cette thèse est de développer un matériau à base de polyméthacrylate de méthyle (PMMA) amorcé par une réaction redox à température ambiante pour produire des composites thermoplastiques. Plus particulièrement, notre travail a consisté à étudier le mécanisme d’amorçage afin d’améliorer la formulation de la résine en terme de cinétique de polymérisation. Afin d’atteindre cet objectif, les paramètres d’Arrhenius de la décomposition d’amorceur ont été déterminés et intégrés dans un modèle de simulation numérique décrivant la polymérisation du MMA à température ambiante développé à l’aide du logiciel PREDICI. Basé sur cette simulation, des différents paramètres ont été testés dans le but de diminuer le temps de polymérisation. En complément de la détermination des paramètres du système d’amorçage, une étude de copolymérisation avec un grand nombre de comonomères a été effectuée. Cette étude a conduit à l’identification d’un monomère permettant d’accélérer la vitesse de polymérisation : le méthacrylate d’acetoacetoxyethyle (AAEMA). Une étude cinétique de ce monomère a été réalisée avec l’identification du coefficient de la vitesse de propagation kp ainsi que les paramètres de copolymérisation avec MMA, rMMA et rAAEMA. Les paramètres cinétiques, qui ont été déterminés expérimentalement, ont été vérifiés par une simulation numérique de copolymérisation de MMA et AAEMA. / Composite materials are used for decades as high-performance materials in industry. Up to date these materials were based on non-recyclable thermoset polymers. Nowadays, environmental and economical restrictions enhance the development of recyclable composite materials. For answering that demand, research focuses on the development of recyclable thermoplastic polymer composites. Within this context, the work of this thesis focuses on the development of a material based on a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) resin initiated with a redox initiation system at room temperature in order to prepare thermoplastic composites. More precisely, our work consisted of studying this initiation system and to improve the kinetics of the resin formulation. For that purpose, the Arrhenius parameters of the initiator decomposition reaction were determined and implemented in a simulation model that describes the polymerization of MMA at room temperature. Based on the simulation carried out on the software PREDICI, several conditions were tested aiming in the decrease of the polymerization times. Besides investigating parameters concerning the initiation system, a copolymerization study, using a large variety of comonomers, was conducted. This study led to the identification of an interesting fast polymerizing methacrylate: acetoacetoxyethyl methacrylate (AAEMA). The kinetics of this monomer were studied including the determination of the propagation rate coefficient kp and the copolymerization parameters with MMA rMMA and rAAEMA. The determined kinetic parameters were finally verified by a copolymerization simulation of MMA and AAEMA.

Applying mathematical models to dynamic contrast enhanced MRI (DCE MRI) data to perform quantitative tracer kinetic analysis enables the estimation of tissue characteristics such as vascular permeability and the fractional volume of plasma in a tissue. However, it is unclear to what extent modeling assumptions, particularly regarding water exchange between tissue compartments, impacts parameter estimates derived from clinical DCE MRI data. In this work, a new model is developed which includes water exchange effects, termed the water exchange modified two compartment exchange model (WX-2CXM). Two boundaries of this model (the fast and no exchange limits) were used to analyse a clinical DCE MRI bladder cancer dataset. Comparisons with DCE CT, which is not affected by water exchange, suggested that water exchange may have affected estimates of vp, the fractional volume of plasma. Further investigation and simulations led to the development of a DCE MRI protocol which was sensitised to water exchange, in order to further evaluate the water exchange effects found in the bladder cancer dataset. This protocol was tested by imaging the parotid glands in eight healthy volunteers, and confirmed evidence of water exchange effects on vp, as well as flow Fp and the fractional volume of extravascular extracellular space ve. This protocol also enabled preliminary estimates of the water residence times in parotid tissue, however, these estimates had a large variability and require further validation. The work presented in this thesis suggests that, although water exchange effects do not have a large effect on clinical data, the effect is measurable, and may lead to the ability to estimate of tissue water residence times. Results do not support a change in the current practise of neglecting water exchange effects in clinical DCEMRI acquisitions.