The thesis examines for the first time the supercapacitive properties of three different nickel (II) phthalocyanine complexes, nickel (II) tetraamino phthalocyanine (NiTAPc), nickel (II) phthalocyanine and nickel (II) tetra tert-butylphthalocyanine as a) nanocomposites with multiwalled carbon nanotubes and as (b) an electropolymer supported on multiwalled carbon nanotube platform (MWCNT-polyNiTAPc). The supercapacitive properties of nickel (II) tetraaminophthalocyanine (NiTAPc)/multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) nanocomposite films have been found to possess a maximum specific capacitance of 981 F g-1 (200 mF cm-2), a maximum power density of 700 Wkg -1, a maximum specific energy of 134 Wh kg-1 and excellent stability of over 1500 chargedischarge continuous cycling. When compared to MWCNTs modified with unsubstituted nickel (II) phthalocyanine (MWCNT-NiPc) or nickel (II) tetra tert-butylphthalocyanine (MWCNT-tBuNiPc), MWCNT-NiTAPc exhibited superior supercapacitive behaviour, possibly due to the influence of nitrogen-containing groups on the phthalocyanine. The MWCNTpolyNiTAPc electrode had a maximum (112 mF cm-2) capacitance which was higher than that observed for MWCNT-polyNi(OH)TAPc (84.9 mFcm-2) but lower that of the MWCNT-NiTAPc (200 mF cm-2). Copyright / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Chemistry / unrestricted

Amid a growing world population and diminishing living space, the discerning and beneficial use of steel plant slag as liming material in agriculture has become a viable option. However, until the potentially detrimental effect on human health and environmental quality of heavy metals contained within the matrixes of slag has been assessed, the use of slag in agriculture cannot be deemed sustainable. This study aims to correlate the mechanisms by which chromium(III) and nickel are sorbed in Eastern Highveld soils to easily classifiable soil constituents. In addition, the influence of an external source of silicon, as would be the case in dissolving slag, on Cr(III) and Ni mobility was investigated. The study consisted of an investigation into the mechanisms by which Cr(III) and Ni are sequestered in soil within a single wetting and drying cycle, as well as over a period of five rewetting and drying cycles. The effect of Si was observed for the latter and a detailed mineralogical study conducted as part of the former. Additionally, the reactivity of and heavy metal (Cr and Ni) release from two commercially available slag samples used as liming material in a highly buffered soil was investigated. Five main conclusions were drawn: (i) whereas Cr(III) is effectively sorbed (even at near water saturated conditions) and precipitation ascribed to bulk-solution saturation, Ni is not sequestered as effectively, and initially precipitates owing to the influence of soil mineralogy; (ii) conclusive evidence could not be gathered for the further immobilisation after sorption of Cr(III) and Ni over a short time period; (iii) both Cr(III) and Ni associate mainly with the amorphous Fe oxide mineral phase; (iv) an external source of Si renders Ni less mobile in soil that does not sequester the element effectively, but more mobile in soil that does tend to sequester the element to some degree; and (v) although neither Cr(III) nor Ni mobility could be explained using field classifiable soil characteristics (soil colour and texture), soil mineralogical and detailed surface charge characterisation did provide explanations for sorption behaviour. Copyright / Dissertation (MSc(Agric))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Plant Production and Soil Science / unrestricted

Title: Electronics and adsorption properties of model catalytic systems contains cerium Author: Miloš Cabala Department: Department of Surface and Plasma Science, Supervisor: RNDr. Kateřina Veltruská, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, Abstract: The doctoral thesis contains the study of model catalyst systems based on cerium and ceria. The thesis deals with model systems of CeAg, CeO2/Cu(111), Ni- CeO2/Cu(111) a Ni-Sn-CeO2/Cu(111). We have studied these systems using photoelectron spectroscopy, ion scattering spectroscopy and low energy electron diffraction. Model systems were prepared under strictly defined conditions. The strong bimetallic interaction was observed on the CeAg layers. Molecular adsorption of carbon monoxide on CeAg was demonstrated. We also observed intensive reaction of these layers with oxygen. By measurements in different directions of surface Brillouin zone, we managed to reconstruct the band structure of the prepared CeO2/Cu(111) layer. We have shown that the Cu substrate interacts weakly with deposited CeO2 layer. This interaction results in a charge transfer from Cu into CeO2. Overall, in the valence spectrum we have identified three main electron bands corresponding to O 2p state bound in CeO2. It has been proven that the deposition of Ni on CeO2 layers leads to partial...

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第17890号 / 工博第3799号 / 新制||工||1581(附属図書館) / 30710 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科物質エネルギー化学専攻 / (主査)教授 江口 浩一, 教授 安部 武志, 教授 阿部 竜 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第19729号 / 工博第4184号 / 新制||工||1645(附属図書館) / 32765 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科物質エネルギー化学専攻 / (主査)教授 江口 浩一, 教授 安部 武志, 教授 陰山 洋 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第20932号 / 理博第4384号 / 新制||理||1630(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院理学研究科化学専攻 / (主査)教授 三木 邦夫, 教授 杉山 弘, 教授 秋山 芳展 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DGAM

In light of global warming’s environmental implications, research is shifted towards potential processes that can utilize CO2 and reduce its emissions in the industrial sector. One of the promising processes is dry reforming of methane (DRM), which is capable of utilizing CO2 and producing valuable syngas (H2 and CO). The main challenge of DRM is the deactivation of catalysts under the reaction temperatures (above 700 °C) due to sintering of the active metal and coke formation. Ni-based catalysts are the most widely investigated catalysts in literature for DRM due to their cost efficiency and availability. This study is an extension of the work done by Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) devoted to investigating Ni-Ce-In system for DRM reaction. Five catalysts were synthesized by dry impregnation method according to SABIC synthesis procedure (Ni/Al2O3, Ni-In/Al2O3, Ni/CeO2/Al2O3, Ni/In-CeO2/Al2O3, and Ni-In/CeO2/Al2O3). The metallic loading targets were 7.5 wt.%, 10 wt.%, and 0.8 wt.% for nickel, cerium, and indium, respectively. The addition of indium in combination with cerium resulted in the highest catalytic activity. Additionally, the co-impregnation of indium and cerium resulted in enhancing the catalytic activity more than subsequential impregnation (Ni/In-CeO2/Al2O3 compared to Ni-In/CeO2/Al2O3). The addition of cerium or indium separately with nickel did not seem to affect activity since Ni/Al2O3, Ni-In/Al2O3, and Ni/CeO2/Al2O3 exhibited similar conversion values. All catalysts were stable for more than two days under DRM conditions without deactivating. Therefore, deactivation behaviors of the catalysts were not covered in this study.

No description available.

Non-ionic deep eutectic solvent (ni-DES) possesses various advantages such as good solvation, biodegradability, and non-toxicity which makes it a perfect and environmentally friendly solvent for organic synthesis. A Pd (OAc)2 catalyzed, Suzuki reaction of aryl bromide and N-heteroaryl halide with arylboronic acid in green and novel solvent (ni-DES) is described. In this work, the possibility of using ni-DES and the impact of this solvent on the scope of the reaction is studied. It is illustrated that using the mixture of N-alkyl derivatives of urea and acetamide as a green solvent for Suzuki reaction is achievable even though the desired amount of product was not obtained. However, the high yield in ni-DES can be obtained by choosing 4-bromobenzotrifluoride or 4-bromoanisole as the aryl bromide with arylboronic acid that possess the electron donating groups. Despite that, for getting more yield through Suzuki reaction in ni-DES more studies on optimization are required.

<p> The purpose of this work was to develop a growth pathway for synthesis of high-quality ferromagnetic Ni-Mn-Ga shape memory thin films and to understand their functional properties. </p> <p>Two groups of Ni-Mn-Ga films were prepared using the pulsed laser deposition technique. One group was grown on (100) YSZ ((Zr,Y)O2 with ZrO2:Y2O2=92:8) and was used to study the thermal, magnetic, and magnetocaloric properties. The other group was deposited on (100) MgO. These films were fabricated into free-standing micro-bridges.</p> <p>These Ni-Mn-Ga films were synthesized in a previously unexplored high temperature deposition regime. The temperatures employed encouraged the development of the desired micrometer-size highly twinned martensite grain structure while the general problem of preferential evaporation of the volatile elements at elevated temperatures was solved by using a manganese and gallium enriched target.</p> <p> The films grown on (100) YSZ exhibit a self-reversible, magnetically induced reorientation of the martensite variants (MIR), which is temperature dependent. The mechanism associated with the self-activated reversibility in the MIR effect was established through a detailed characterization of the texture, microstructure, and magnetic domain structure of the films. </p> <p> The synthesized films also show a large magnetocaloric effect (MCE), which is particularly strong at low magnetic fields. The effect is associated with an overlapped ferromagnetic and martensitic phase transition. Detailed characterization of these transitions allow for an understanding of the role each phase transition plays in determining the level of enhancement to a standard MCE governed only by the ferromagnetic phase transition.</p> <p> Ni-Mn-Ga free-standing micro-bridges were fabricated using photolithography followed by wet chemical etching. Microstructural evolution of the martensitic variants resulting from changes to the stress field in the detached areas was studied in the context of potential film applications for micro-actuators.</p> / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)