No presente trabalho são apresentados resultados referentes ao primeiro coeficiente Townsend de ionização (α) no isobutano puro, para a faixa de campo elétrico reduzido (E/N) de 145 até194 Td. A configuração do aparato experimental consiste de uma configuração semelhante a uma RPC, com o anodo constituído por um vidro de elevada resistividade (2 x 1012 Ωcm) e um catodo metálico, ligado diretamente a um eletrômetro, onde fotoelétrons são produzidos pela incidência de um feixe de laser pulsado. O coeficiente α é determinado por meio da medição da corrente elétrica em regime de ionização primária e em regime de avalanche. Uma vez que, para o isobutano puro não há valores experimentais disponíveis na literatura, para a faixa de E/N analisada por este trabalho, os valores obtidos foram comparados com os resultados da simulação Magboltz 2. Os estudos incluíram a determinação do coeficiente α para diferentes taxas de repetição e intensidades do feixe de laser. Como a relação entre a carga rápida e a total relaciona-se com o primeiro coeficiente de Townsend, estudos relativos à contribuição iônica e eletrônica para a corrente média também foram realizados. Como existem poucos resultados disponíveis na literatura referentes às secções de choque de colisão e parâmetros de transporte para o isobutano é comum considerar os resultados de seu isômero estrutural: o n-butano. Assim, a fim de realizar uma análise comparativa, o coeficiente α foi determinado também para o n-butano. / In the present work, results concerning the first Townsend ionization coefficient (α) in pure isobutane within the density-normalized electric field (E/N) range of 145 to 194 Td are presented. The experimental setup consists of RPC-like cell with the anode made of a high resistivity glass (2 x 1012 Ωcm) and a metallic cathode, directly connected to an electrometer, on which photoelectrons are produced by the incidence of a pulsed laser beam. The α coefficient is determined by measuring the current under primary ionization and avalanche regime. Since for the E/N range covered by this work, there are no experimental values for pure isobutane available in the literature, the obtained values were compared with Magboltz 2 results. Our studies included the determination of α coefficient for different repetition rates and laser beam intensity. The ratio of the fast charge to the total charge is related to the first Townsend coefficient, so studies concerning the ionic and the electronic contribution to the average current were also performed. Since there are few results available in the literature for isobutane, concerning collisional cross section and electron transport parameters, is common to consider results from its structural isomer: n-butane. Thus, in order to perform a comparative analysis, the coefficient α was also determined for n-butane.

La déshydrogénation oxydante du n-butane a été étudiée sur des catalyseurs à base de pyrophosphates de Ti, Zr, Ce et Sn. Leurs propriétés physico-chimiques (morphologie, structure, composition) ont été suivies par une série de techniques physiques et leurs propriétés catalytiques évaluées entre 410 et 570°C. TiP2O7 présente, à 530°C, le meilleur rendement : les sélectivités en butènes et butadiène atteignent respectivement 42% et 14% pour une conversion de 25%. L'ajout d'eau a un effet négatif sur les performances catalytiques. Mis à part CeP2O7, qui se transforme en deux phases phosphate de Ce(III) durant la réaction, les catalyseurs restent inchangés et peuvent être classifiés en deux groupes en fonction de mécanisme réactionnel impliqué : le premier avec ZrP2O7, SnP2O7 et TiP2O7 à basse température et le deuxième avec TiP2O7 à haute température. Des mesures de conductivité électrique et des caractérisations par RPE, spectroscopie Raman et TAP ont été mises en œuvre pour étudier le mécanisme réactionnel. Sur les deux types de catalyseur l'étape initiale d'activation de l'alcane correspond à l'attaque de l'alcane par une espèce O– menant à un radical, mais tandis que le radical formé est rapidement transformé en butène suite à une deuxième abstraction d'hydrogène par un mécanisme similaire sur le premier type de catalyseur, il est piégé dans une lacune anionique ou sur un site acide de Lewis Ti4+, étant transformé en une espèce alcoxyde ou directement en butènes par l'abstraction d'un proton, sur le deuxième type. Dans le premier mécanisme l'étape limitante est l'attaque de l'alcane par une espèce O– alors que dans le second c'est la réoxydation du site par diffusion de l'oxygène réticulaire ou directement par l'oxygène de la phase gaz. On observe pour TiP2O7 entre 400 et 450°C une situation particulière dont l'étape limitante est toujours l'attaque de l'alcane par une espèce O– mais l'intermédiaire réactionnel peut également être piégé sur le catalyseur.

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This study aims to simulate a vapor compression refrigeration cycle, working with either butane (R-600) or isobutane (R-600a). For this purpose a computer program is written to design a household refrigerator, by modeling a steady-state, vapor compression cycle, with user defined input data. Each refrigerator component can be designed separately, as well as parts of a single refrigeration system in the program. In order to determine the refrigerant thermophysical properties at different states, least squares polynomial equations for different properties of R-600 and R-600a have been developed. Computer program is used for refrigeration cycle analysis, variable speed compressor design and calculating coefficient of performance (COP) and irreversibility of the cycle. Sample-preliminary designs have been carried out for different refrigeration loads, room and cold space temperatures with the program, to compare the performance characteristics of the refrigerants. Designs have been performed at different refrigeration loads, room and cold space temperatures. It is observed that for the same conditions R-600 has slightly better performance characteristics than those of R-600a.

Th. doct. ing.--Bordeaux 1, 1983. N°: 348.

Th.--Sci.--Bordeaux 1, 1981. N°: 707.

abstract: The world is grappling with two serious issues related to energy and climate change. The use of solar energy is receiving much attention due to its potential as one of the solutions. Air conditioning is particularly attractive as a solar energy application because of the near coincidence of peak cooling loads with the available solar power. Recently, researchers have started serious discussions of using adsorptive processes for refrigeration and heat pumps. There is some success for the >100 ton adsorption systems but none exists in the <10 ton size range required for residential air conditioning. There are myriad reasons for the lack of small-scale systems such as low Coefficient of Performance (COP), high capital cost, scalability, and limited performance data. A numerical model to simulate an adsorption system was developed and its performance was compared with similar thermal-powered systems. Results showed that both the adsorption and absorption systems provide equal cooling capacity for a driving temperature range of 70-120 ºC, but the adsorption system is the only system to deliver cooling at temperatures below 65 ºC. Additionally, the absorption and desiccant systems provide better COP at low temperatures, but the COP's of the three systems converge at higher regeneration temperatures. To further investigate the viability of solar-powered heat pump systems, an hourly building load simulation was developed for a single-family house in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Thermal as well as economic performance comparison was conducted for adsorption, absorption, and solar photovoltaic (PV) powered vapor compression systems for a range of solar collector area and storage capacity. The results showed that for a small collector area, solar PV is more cost-effective whereas adsorption is better than absorption for larger collector area. The optimum solar collector area and the storage size were determined for each type of solar system. As part of this dissertation work, a small-scale proof-of-concept prototype of the adsorption system was assembled using some novel heat transfer enhancement strategies. Activated carbon and butane was chosen as the adsorbent-refrigerant pair. It was found that a COP of 0.12 and a cooling capacity of 89.6 W can be achieved. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering 2011

Well-defined silica supported bimetallic catalysts Pt100-x Pdx (where x is the molar ratio of Pd) are prepared by Surface Organometallic Chemistry (SOMC) via controlled decomposition of Pd2(allyl)2Cl2 on Pt/SiO2. For comparison purposes, Pt100-x Pdx bimetallic catalysts is also prepared by ion-exchange (IE). According to the results of STEM, XAS and H2 chemisorption, all bimetallic nanoparticles, prepared using neither SOMC nor IE, produce discrete formation of monometallic species (either Pt or Pd). Most catalysts exhibit a narrow particle size distribution with an average diameter ranging from 1 to 3 nm for samples prepared by IE and from 2 to 5 nm for the ones synthesized by SOMC. For all catalysts investigated in the present work, iso-butane reaction with hydrogen under differential conditions (conversions below 5%) leads to the formation of methane and propane (hydrogenolysis), n-butane (isomerization), and traces of iso-butylene (dehydrogenation). The total rate of reaction decreases with increasing the Pd loading for both catalysts series as a result of decreasing turnover rate (expressed as moles converted per total surface metal per second) of both isomerization and hydrogenolysis. In the case of Pt100-x Pdx(SOMC) catalysts, the results suggest a selective coverage of Pt (100) surface by a Pd layer, followed by a buildup of Pd overcoat onto a Pd layer assuming that each metal keeps its intrinsic catalytic properties. There is no mutual electronic charge transfer between the two metals (DFT). For the PtPd catalysts prepared by IE, the catalytic behavior cannot simply be explained by a surface coverage of highly active Pt metal by less active Pd (not observed), suggesting there is formation of a surface alloy between Pt and Pd collaborated by EXAFS and DFT. The catalytic results are explained by a simple structure activity relationship based on the previously proposed mechanism of C-H bond and C-C Bond activation and cleavage for iso-butane hydrogenolysis, isomerization, cracking and dehydrogenation.

In an increasingly energy-hungry world, our capacity to meet the heightened energy demands of the future has become a pressing matter. The most urgent of these concerns are tied to the accessibility of petroleum. Various experts have proselytized both the imminent arrival of peak oil production rates and the ensuing decline of those rates thereafter. And to that end, the development of novel and advanced oil exploration methodologies has become almost as important as finding the sources of oil themselves. The soils above petroleum reservoirs play host to various communities of alkane- oxidizing bacteria that can utilize the natural gas emitted by the reservoirs as a source of carbon and energy. While methane can originate from non-petroleum sources, the only natural sources of propane and butane are oil and gas fields. The increased presence of propane and butane-oxidizing bacteria in a given soil sample is used by oil prospectors as an accurate indicator of a proximal petroleum reservoirs. For over a century, cell counts and hydrocarbon metabolic rates have been the metrics used to determine the presence of hydrocarbon-oxidizing microbes. These methods require weeks to complete. Here, we have developed a set of DNA primers for a much more rapid detection of hydrocarbon-oxidizing microbes through PCR amplification - for the chief purpose of petroleum exploration. Each primer’s design is based on a nucleotide sequence alignment of seven prmA and bmoX genes from seven organisms, which encode the large hydroxylase subunit of propane monooxygenase and the alpha hydroxylase subunit of butane monooxygenase respectively. These monooxygenases are the enzymes responsible for the initiation of propane and butane catabolism. Optimization of PCR with this primer set was accomplished using DNA extracted from known butane and propane oxidizers as positive controls, and methane and toluene oxidizers as negative controls. PCR products recovered from cultures of butane-oxidizing and propane-oxidizing bacteria, and soil samples, were sequenced. Phylogenetic trees were constructed from the sequencing data to confirm the accuracy of amplification. We demonstrate the use of PCR and agarose gel electrophoresis to detect hydrocarbon-oxidizing bacteria in culture and in complex microbial soil communities. Detection limits were elucidated through two different experiments. Potential avenues of advancements include narrowing specificity by selectively removing primer degeneracies, the use of additional positive and negative controls and the adaptation of the primers to a qPCR TaqMan assay.

L'alkylat est un additif de choix de l'essence reformulée puisqu'il possède une densité énergétique et un indice d'octane élevés et que de plus sa combustion est propre et produit moins d'émissions. Les catalyseurs liquides commerciaux utilisés pour l'alkylation isobutane/N-butène créent des dangers significatifs pour l'environnement. De nombreux acides solides ont été essayés pour cette réaction. Aucun d'entre eux n'a connu un succès commercial en raison de la désactivation rapide du catalyseur. Cette désactivation est due à 1'adsorption préférentielle et au remplissage des pores par l'oléfine. C'est la raison pour laquelle l'application d'acides mésoporeux solides est d'intérêt. Dans cette thèse, une série de matériaux acides fonctionnalisés et mésostructurés ont été synthétisés. La force acide a pu être ajustée par l'immobilisation des groupes acides propyl-sulfoniques, arène-sulfoniques et perfluoroalkylsulfoniques. Le caractère hydrophile-hydrophobe de la surface a été ajusté par l'utilisation d'une organosilice ou par le recouvrement des OHs de la surface de la silice. Des matériaux ayant des réseaux de canaux à une dimension et à trois dimensions ont été synthétisés et comparés. Ces matériaux sont caractérisés généralement par l'analyse élémentaire, la volumétrie d'azote, le dosage acido-basique, la RMN MAS du ²⁹Si, FT-IR, TGA, SEM et TEM . Ce sont des matériaux mésostructurés typiques possédant des groupes acides immobilisés. L'alkylation de l'isobutane par le 1-butène a été effectuée sur les matériaux synthétisés. La force acide des catalyseurs est le facteur déterminant de l'activité d'alkylation. Les matériaux modifiés avec les groupes acides perfluoroalkylsulfoniques démontrent la meilleure activité catalytique. Les organosilices mésoporeuses fonctionnalisées acides de la silice silanisée, qui possèdent une surface hydrophobe, ont mieux performé que les catalyseurs ayant une surface hydrophile. Nous croyons que cette performance supérieure est le résultat d'une concentration élevée de la paraffine dans les pores. Les solides mésoporeux acides à réseaux tridimensionnels surpassent ceux à une dimension pour la conversion des butènes et la sélectivité en TMPs. La structure mésoporeuse à trois dimensions est capable de diffuser facilement les molécules et de résister à la désactivation par le colmatage des pores. Il est suggéré que les sites acides forts comme les groupes acides perfluoroalkylsulfoniques, la structure mésoporeuse à trois dimensions et la surface hydrophobe doivent être recherchés pour concevoir un catalyseur d'alkylation.