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The separation efficiency of a triboelectrostatic separation (TES) for fine coal cleaning depends profoundly on the surface charges of the particles involved. In general, the larger the difference between the charges of the particle to be separated, the higher the separation efficiency. The premise that coal and mineral matter can be triboelectrically charged differently serves as a basis for the TES process. In order to improve the separation performance, it is apparent that a highly efficient charger is needed for the TES unit, as well as the information on the triboelectrification mechanisms of the coal and mineral matter. Tribo- or contact electrification is a phenomenon in which electrical charge is usually transferred form one material to another, when two dissimilar materials are brought into rubbing or contact. In the present work, the triboelectrification mechanisms of coal, quartz, and pyrite were investigated in an in-line static mixer charger. A new in-situ charge-measuring device has been developed, in which an in-line mixer charger is located in side a Faraday cage. This makes it possible to observe the charging mechanisms of the particles when they pass through the mixer. This device was used to study the tribocharging mechanisms of coal, quartz, and pyrite as functions of the air velocity, particle feed rate, particle size, temperature, ash content, and the work functions of the materials that make up the in-line mixer. Evidence suggests that the charge transfer mechanisms of coal and mineral matter be due to electrons. A new turbocharger designed and developed in the present study has been tested and used to investigate the triboelectrification mechanisms of coal and quartz. The charge measurements were conducted using a developed on-line charge-measuring device, which is based on the principle of the Faraday cage. The tribocharging mechanisms of coal and quartz were investigated as functions of the particle feed rate, particle size, rotor-blade rotation speed, ash content, and the type of the materials used to construct the turbocharger. The information on the charging mechanisms of the coal and quartz will be useful for improving the triboelectrification process and subsequently the design of a TES unit. / Ph. D.

Electrostatic charging is a widely known natural phenomenon that has been observed sinceancient times. This phenomenon is also reported in solids handling and processing industrieswith varying extent of its interference in established processes and operations. Particlecollisions lead to electrostatic charge generation through triboelectrification. Sustainedcharging leads to particle agglomeration and adhesion, or even explosions. Hence, the presenceof charged particles are seen as a hindrance and a risk in certain processes. The focus of thisthesis is directed at gas-solid fluidization and pneumatic conveying where this holds true.Polyethylene is commonly manufactured in catalytic gas-solid fluidized bed reactors. Theinsulative nature of the polymer particles, the catalyst particles and the surrounding gas set upa conducive environment for electrostatic charge generation. Charged particles adhere on tonearby surfaces forming fused masses of polymer sheets. Presence of sheets in the reactorhinders the reactor productivity, thus warranting reactor shutdown and maintenance. On theother hand, catalyst introduction into the polyethylene reactor is performed through pneumaticconveying systems. In general, solids pneumatic conveying is known to cause the largestdegree of triboelectrification among many gas-solid systems. Therefore, the charging ofcatalyst particles may also contribute to operational challenges faced by this industry.Numerous studies have attributed particle characteristics, system variables, and operatingparameters as probable sources contributing to electrostatic charging in both fluidizationprocess and pneumatic conveying systems. However, a comprehensive consensus explainingparticle charging in real-world scenarios and suitable methods to mitigate or prevent chargingstill require further investigation. Thus, desirable control of charging in affected industrialsectors is still not present.Beyond the scope of fluidization and pneumatic conveying, certain studies have investigatedthe influence of dielectric strength of gases on the charging behaviour of solids. The worksclaim that gases with low dielectric strength perform better in minimizing electrostatic chargeof solids in controlled environments due to gas discharge and subsequent charge dissipation.Thus, applicability of such gases in dynamic processes like fluidization and pneumaticconveying must be investigated in hopes of reproducing similar observations. The principalaim of this thesis was to uncover a functional method to limit charging and particle adhesionin fluidization and other solids handling systems. As a means of accomplishing this, theobjective of this thesis was directed to study the efficacy of argon, which has a low dielectricstrength, against nitrogen in reducing triboelectrification of polyethylene particles influidization and pneumatic conveying operations.A stainless-steel fluidization apparatus was used to study the charging behaviour of acommercially produced polyethylene resin at atmospheric pressure. Results were drawn forpure argon and compared against pure nitrogen. Aiming to minimize the quantity of argonwhile simultaneously retaining as much efficacy as possible, binary mixtures of nitrogen andargon were also tested along with successive fluidization trials. Pure argon resulted in 90%reduction in fouling compared to pure nitrogen. Even binary mixture of 10 vol % argon showeda reduction of 50% in fouling values. Successive fluidization resulted in fouling valuescomparable to pure argon trials. Multiple pulse pneumatic conveying was carried out in astainless-steel tube with dehydrated amorphous silica that is a commonly used catalyst base inpolyethylene process. The net specific charge of the particles and the fouling inside the tubewere smaller under argon in the first injections. Subsequent injections were not as significant.Results from the above operations were validated through bench-scale shake tests performedunder controlled gaseous environment. Single large polyethylene particle charging was firsttested in nitrogen and argon atmosphere followed by multiple smaller particles. Bench-scaleshake tests showed argon influenced the saturation charges, reducing it and reaching it earliercompared to nitrogen. However, the degree of charge and fouling reduction was not assignificant as observed in fluidization trials.The thesis concludes that argon is indeed influential in reducing particle charge and particleadhesion in applicable systems. Influence of argon was observed in all operations withfluidization exhibiting the greatest degree of reduction in charging and fouling values.Furthermore, even small quantities of argon can make a non-linear impact on said parameters.The results also suggest that the majority of gas discharge and subsequent charge dissipationoccurs in areas of considerable electric fields. These are observed to entertain large number ofparticles contact and separation, providing plenty of opportunities for gas molecules to ionize.

Scanning probe microscopy was employed to characterize the piezotronic effect in both longitudinal and transverse force sensing modes in CdSe, and GaN nanowires, respectively. Both experimental results show exponential response of their conductivity change to applied forces. Theoretical models are also presented to explain this mechanism and quantify the relationship, where strain induced piezoelectric polarization changes the metal-semiconductor Schottky barrier height. An in-situ method based on SPM is developed to characterize the triboelectric process, including tribo-charge intensity, multi-cycle friction effect, as well as its surface diffusion. Beyond that, effect of external electric field was investigated as an approach to manipulate the polarization and intensity. Finally, a concept of self-powered motion sensing technology is developed and demonstrated experimentally with nanometer resolution, long working distance as well as high robustness. It provides a promising solution for application areas that need ultra-low power consumption devices.

The triboelectrification of particles by contact or frictional charging is known to be an operational challenge in the polyolefin industry. Particularly in polyethylene production, gas-solid fluidized bed reactors are known to be susceptible to electrostatic charging due to the rigorous mixing of polyethylene and catalyst particles in a dry environment. The presence of charged particles coupled with a highly exothermic polymerization reaction results in sheet formation on the reactor walls. This behaviour can decrease reactor performance and obstruct the system, consequently forcing a shutdown for reactor maintenance. The generation of electrostatic charge in fluidized beds has been widely studied throughout the years; however, limited attention has been paid to the simulation and modeling of this phenomenon. Since it is difficult to accurately quantify the charge generation in industrial fluidized beds, developing an electrostatic model based on material properties would considerably aid in providing insight on this occurrence and its effects. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model that incorporates this electrostatic model can then be used as a predictive tool in research and development. Simulating electrostatic charging in gas-solid fluidized beds would be a cost-effective alternative to running experiments on them, especially for industrial-scale test runs. In this thesis, an electrostatic charging model was developed to be used in conjunction with an Euler-Euler Two-Fluid CFD model to simulate triboelectrification and its effects in gas-solid flows. The electrostatic model was first established for mono-dispersed gas-particle flows and was validated using past experimental findings of particle charging for gas-solid fluidization runs. With the goal of providing a realistic representation of gas-solid fluidization of polyethylene resins with a wide particle-size distribution, the electrostatic model was extended to consider bi-dispersed particulate flow systems. Simulation results using this model show the prediction of bipolar charging when the particles have different sizes, even though they are made of the same material. This phenomenon is analyzed and is shown to be driven by the electric field produced by the charge accumulated on the particles. Experimental studies of particle-wall and particle-particle contact charging were performed to investigate the electrostatic and mechanical parameters that are crucial for modeling the magnitude and direction of charge transfer in gas-solid flow systems. Particle-wall contact charging due to single and repeated collisions were tested with various particles, including commercial linear low-density polyethylene, to determine their rates of charging as well as their charge saturation limits when colliding with a metal surface. Plotting the charge saturation value of the particles against their respective surface areas revealed a linear trend which could be used to calculate the charge saturation of the particle for a given particle size. Additional particle-wall charging studies include the effect of initial charge, collision frequency, particle type, impact angle, impact velocity and the presence of impurities on particle charging. To study particle-particle contact charging, a novel apparatus was designed, built, and tested to determine the magnitude and direction of charge transfer due to the individual particle-particle collisions of insulator particles. This apparatus was the first of its kind, and it ensured that the measured charge transfer for each experimental trial was solely due to the binary collision between the particles. It was observed that the direction of charge transfer in identical particle collisions is not dictated by the net initial charges of the particles, but the localized charge difference at the particles’ contacting surface. Moreover, particle-particle collisions of nylon particles of varying sizes confirmed the bipolar charging phenomena, where the direction of charging was dictated by the relative size of the colliding particles. These findings, among others, contradict the charge transfer behavior predicted by electrostatic charging models currently proposed for particle-particle collisions. As such, it was concluded that an empirically accurate charge transfer model needs to be established to simulate the electrostatic charging of particles in poly-dispersed gas-solid flow systems.

With the threatening of global warming and energy crises, searching for renewable and green energy resources with reduced carbon emissions is one of the most urgent challenges to the sustainable development of human civilization. In the past decades, increasing research efforts have been committed to seek for clean and renewable energy sources as well as to develop renewable energy technologies. Mechanical motion ubiquitously exists in ambient environment and people’s daily life. In recent years, it becomes an attractive target for energy harvesting as a promising supplement to traditional fuel sources and a potentially alternative power source to battery-operated electronics. Until recently, the mechanisms of mechanical energy harvesting are limited to transductions based on piezoelectric effect, electromagnetic effect, electrostatic effect and magnetostrictive effect. Widespread usage of these techniques is likely to be shadowed by possible limitations, such as structure complexity, low power output, fabrication of high-quality materials, reliance on external power sources and little adaptability on structural design for different applications. In 2012, triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), a creative invention for harvesting ambient mechanical energy based on the coupling between triboelectric effect and electrostatic effect has been launched as a new and renewable energy technology. The concept and design presented in this thesis research can greatly promote the development of TENG as both sustainable power sources and self-powered active sensors. And it will greatly help to define the TENG as a fundamentally new green energy technology, featured as being simple, reliable, cost-effective as well as high efficiency.

Orientador: Fernando Galembeck / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Química / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T09:01:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Balestrin_LiaBeraldodaSilveira_M.pdf: 4255591 bytes, checksum: c4d0f9d5952dc35354bfb9f0d111643b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Quando dois materiais isolantes são atritados, ocorre a triboeletrização de suas superfícies, isto é, a formação de cargas estáticas, distribuídas em padrões fractais. Uma das hipóteses para explicar a eletrização de isolantes é a ocorrência de reações mecanoquímicas seguidas da transferência mútua de massa. Esta dissertação apresenta mapas de potencial elétrico de superfícies atritadas, que também foram examinadas por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (SEI, BEI) e microanálise EDX. Os resultados verificam a hipótese mecanoquímica associada à transferência de fragmentos poliméricos iônicos, sendo as reações iniciadas pela quebra de cadeias seguida da formação de várias espécies de alta energia e produtos de oxidação. Microanálises também detectaram a fixação de N2 nestas superfícies, evidenciando a participação da atmosfera e a formação de triboplasma. As imagens BEI revelam uma distribuição fractal de composição química consistente com a distribuição de fragmentos limitada por difusão, mas superior à dimensão fractal de distribuição de cargas. Esta diferença é atribuída à supressão de cargas devido a microdescargas elétricas desencadeadas por gradientes superiores à rigidez dielétrica do sólido ou do ar. As microdescargas diminuem os gradientes elétricos, mas, ao mesmo tempo, geram novas espécies muito reativas, aumentando a heterogeneidade química das superfícies. Essa dissertação descreve também alguns experimentos acerca da eletrização produzida por simples contato, obtendo-se padrões bem definidos com tempo de contato de 1 h, porém não revelam a transferência de fragmentos poliméricos mutuamente, sugerindo que o cisalhamento desempenhe um papel importante na transferência de fragmentos poliméricos eletrizados. Em um menor grau de aprofundamento, esta dissertação contempla outras consequências de cargas estáticas, como alterações no coeficiente de atrito / Abstract: Triboelectrification occurs when two insulators are rubbed, i.e. static charges are formed on the surface with a fractal distribution pattern. One of the hypotheses raised by the literature indicates that the electrification is accompanied by mutual mass transfer. This dissertation presents electric potential maps of rubbed surfaces, which were also examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEI, BEI) and EDX microanalysis. The results verify the hypothesis that the electrification is due to mechanochemical reactions associated with transfer of charged polymeric fragments. The reaction is initiated by breaking the chains, generating reactive species and oxidation products. Microanalysis also detected N2 fixation on these surfaces, evidencing the contribution of the atmosphere and the formation of triboplasma. The BEI images show a fractal distribution of chemical composition consistent with a fragment distribution limited by diffusion, but higher than the fractal dimension of the charge distribution. This difference is attributed to the suppression of charges due to electrical micro discharge triggered by gradients higher than the dielectric strength of solid or air. The micro discharges decrease electrical gradients, but at the same time, generates very reactive species further increasing the chemical heterogeneity of surfaces. This dissertation also describes some experiments about the electrification produced by single contact, resulting in well-defined patterns with a contact time of 1 h, but do not show the mutual transfer of polymeric fragments, suggesting that the shearing plays an important role in transferring electrified fragments. This work also includes other consequences of static charges, such as changes in the friction coefficient / Mestrado / Físico-Química / Mestra em Química

Energy harvesting and energy storage are two most important technologies in today's green and renewable energy science. As for energy harvesting, the fundamental science and practically applicable technologies are not only essential in realizing the self-powered electronic devices and systems, but also tremendously helpful in meeting the rapid-growing world-wide energy consumptions. Mechanical energy is one of the most universally-existing, diversely-presenting, but usually-wasted energies in the natural environment. Owing to the limitations of the traditional technologies for mechanical energy harvesting, it is highly desirable to develop new technology that can efficiently convert different types of mechanical energy into electricity. On the other hand, the electricity generated from environmental energy often needs to be stored before used to drive electronic devices. For the energy storage units such as Li-ion batteries as the power sources, the limited lifetime is the prominent problem. Hybridizing energy harvesting devices with energy storage units could not only provide new solution for this, but also lead to the realization of sustainable power sources. In this dissertation, the research efforts have led to several critical advances in a new technology for mechanical energy harvesting—triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). Previous to the research of this dissertation, the TENG only has one basic mode—the contact mode. Through rational structural design, we largely improved the output performance of the contact-mode TENG and systematically studied their characteristics as a power source. Beyond this, we have also established the second basic mode for TENG—the lateral sliding mode, and demonstrated sliding-based disk TENGs for harvesting rotational energy and wind-cup-based TENGs for harvesting wind energy. In order to expand the application and versatility of TENG by avoid the connection of the electrode on the moving part, we further developed another basic mode—freestanding-layer mode, which is capable of working with supreme stability in non-contact mode and harvesting energy from any free-moving object. Both the grating structured and disk-structured TENGs based on this mode also display much improved long-term stability and very high energy conversion efficiency. For the further improvement of the TENG’s output performance from the material aspect, we introduced the ion-injection method to study the maximum surface charge density of the TENG, and for the first time unraveled its dependence on the structural parameter—the thickness of the dielectric film. The above researches have largely propelled the development of TENGs for mechanical energy harvesting and brought a big potential of impacting people’s everyday life. Targeted at developing sustainable and independent power sources for electronic devices, efforts have been made in this dissertation to develop new fundamental science and new devices that hybridize the nanogenerator-based mechanical energy harvesting and the Li-ion-battery-based energy storage process into a single-step process or in a single device. Through hybridizing a piezoelectric nanogenerator with a Li-ion battery, a self-charging power cell has been demonstrated based on a fundamentally-new mechanical-to-electrochemcial process. The triboelectric nanogenerator as a powerful technology for mechanical energy harvesting has also been hybridized with a Li-ion battery into a self-charging power unit. This new concept of device can sustainably provide a constant voltage for the non-stop operation of electronic devices.

L'objectif principal de la thèse a été d'étudier le comportement triboélectrique des contacts glissants à sec entre matériaux polymères (ABS, PE, PP, PS et deux types de PVC), incluant la possibilité de contrôler et d'optimiser les résultats générés, en termes de charge électrique et d’usure. Un tribomètre linéaire a été conçu et construit, afin de permettre le réglage des principales variables de contrôle du processus de charge triboélectrique : force normale, vitesse de glissement, durée et course. Ce dispositif facilite la mesure de certaines grandeurs physiques caractérisant les conditions de frottement: les variations des forces normale et tangentielle, ainsi que le déplacement relatif entre les éprouvettes. De plus, la charge électrique générée et l’augmentation de la température à la surface du polymère ont été aussi été mesurées et mise en relation avec les propriétés tribologiques. Les expériences ont montré que le niveau et la distribution de la charge générée par le frottement sec dépendent de la force normale appliquée, du temps de frottement (le nombre de cycles), de la vitesse de glissement, des propriétés mécaniques des matériaux et de la rugosité ou de la texture des surfaces en contact. La décharge couronne peut être utilisée pour déposer une charge initiale sur les surfaces avant le glissement. La modélisation du processus de charge triboélectrique a été faite avec la méthodologie des plans d’expériences. Les résultats peuvent alors être utilisés pour prédire et optimiser la charge triboélectrique. Des cartes de contrôle peuvent assurer le monitoring du processus et la détection de variations non-maîtrisés de la charge générée par effet triboélectrique. / The main objective of the thesis was to study the triboelectric behavior of dry sliding contacts between polymeric materials (ABS, PE, PP, PS and two types of PVC), including the possibility to control and optimize the results in terms of either surface charge generated or wear. A linear tribometer with tribocharging capabilities was designed and built, to enable the study of the sliding contact between solids and to allow the adjustment of main tribocharging control variables: normal force, sliding speed, time and stroke. This device also provided measurement data to characterize the friction condition: the variations of the normal and tangential forces, as well as the relative displacement between the specimens. Furthermore, the electric charge generated and temperature raise due to rubbing on the surface of the polymer were measured, so that to investigate the relationship between the tribological properties. The experiments showed that the level and distribution of the charge generated by dry friction depends on the normal force applied, friction time (cycle), sliding speed, material mechanical properties and surface roughness or texture. Corona discharge may be used to provide initial charge on the surfaces before sliding. Modelling of tribocharging processes was done using the design of experiments methodology. The models can be used to predict and optimize the tribocharging. Control charts were used to monitor the process and detect the special causes of variation in the charge generated by triboelectric effect.