Graphene is a novel two dimensional material that is revolutionizing many areas of science and it is no surprise that a significant amount of effort is dedicated to its investigation. One of the major areas of graphene research is the development of procedures for large scale production. Among many recently developed methodologies, graphene oxide reduction stands out as a straightforward and scalable procedure for producing final material with properties similar to those of graphene. Laser reduction of graphite oxide is one of the novel approaches for producing multilayer graphene, and this work describes a viable approach in detail. It is determined that a material which is comprised of a combination of laser reduced graphite oxide-coupled to an unreduced graphite oxide layers beneath it, produces a broadband photosensitive material. The efficiency of light conversion into electrical current is greatly dependent upon the oxygen content of the underlying graphite oxide. Developing novel ways for reducing graphite oxide is an ongoing effort. This work also presents a new method for achieving complete reduction of graphite oxide for producing predominantly sp2 hybridized material. This approach is based on the irradiation of graphite oxide with a high flux 3 keV Ar ion beam in vacuum. It is determined that the angle of irradiation greatly influences the final surface morphology of reduced graphite oxide. Also, multilayer epitaxial graphene growth on silicon carbide in ultra-high vacuum was investigated with quadrupole mass spectrometry (QMS). Subliming molecular and atomic species were monitored as a function of temperature and heating time. The grown films were characterized with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy coupled with Ar ion depth profiling.

Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Production of graphite dust inside the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) influences the reactor operation negatively. Graphite is used as a moderator in the reactor core and the formation and transportation of graphite dust away from the reactor core decreases the amount of moderator which in turn has a negative impact on the reactor operation. High levels of radioactive dust may also contaminate reactor components which may pose a health risk to maintenance personnel. In this study a pressure vessel was designed and used to measure the wear of a graphite pebble in helium at elevated temperatures. By means of a multi-linear regression analysis a proper mathematical function was established in order to relate graphite wear to certain tribological parameters. These parameters were identified through a literature study. Discrete Element Modelling (DEM) was used to simulate the gravitational flow of graphite pebbles through the reactor core. The experimentally determined mathematical function was incorporated into the DEM simulation to estimate the annual mass of graphite dust to be produced by the PBMR pebble bed as a result of pebble-pebble interaction and pebble-wall interaction during refuelling. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die vorming van grafiet stof binne die korrelbed-modulêre reaktor (PBMR) beïnvloed die werking daarvan negatief. Grafiet word gebruik as 'n moderator in die reaktor kern en die vorming en vervoer van grafietstof weg van die reaktor kern lei tot 'n afname in die hoeveelheid moderator en dit het 'n negatiewe impak op die werking van die reaktor. Hoë vlakke van radioaktiewe grafietstof kontamineer ook reaktorkomponente wat 'n gesondheidsrisiko vir onderhoudspersoneel inhou. In hierdie studie was 'n drukvat ontwerp en gebruik om die slytasie van 'n grafietkorrel in helium by verhoogde temperature te meet. 'n Multi-lineêre regressie analise is dan gebruik om 'n wiskundige funksie daar te stel wat die verband tussen grafietslytasie en die eksperimentele parameters vas stel. Hierdie parameters was met behulp van 'n literatuurstudie geïdentifiseer. Diskrete Element Modellering (DEM) was gebruik om die gravitasionele vloei van grafietkorrels in die reaktor te modelleer. Die eksperimenteel bepaalde wiskundige funksie word in die DEM simulasie ge-inkorporeer om 'n skatting te maak van die jaarlikse massa grafietstof wat gevorm sal word in die PBMR korrelbed as 'n gevolg van korrel-korrel interaksie en korrel-wand interaksie gedurende hersirkulasie.

L'augmentation des performances des moteurs conduisent à un accroissement des températures dans les collecteurs d'échappement. Les fontes ferritiques, GS50 ou SiMo, utilisées par RENAULT présentent des évolutions microstructurales à température élevée (800oC) qui peuvent compromettre leur résistance. Plutôt que d'adopter des matériaux plus résistants, mais plus chers, une meilleure connaissance des évolutions microstructurales des fontes GS et de leur comportement permettraient d'optimiser la géométrie des pièces dans la recherche d'un compromis légèreté-fiabilité. Une expertise de collecteurs vieillis sur banc, comparés aux mêmes pièces à l'état brut, a permis de recenser trois principaux modes d'endommagement : oxydation, décarburation et transformation de phases. Ils ont été étudiées par des essais de vieillissement isotherme et anisotherme. Les cinétiques d'oxydation et de décarburation ont été déterminées à différentes températures. La connaissance des mécanismes de vieillissement ont permis de reproduire sur des éprouvettes massives certaines des microstructures observées. Les matériaux décarburés et bruts de coulée ont été comparés lors d'essais de dilatométrie et de fatigue oligocyclique. Et des lois de comportement élasto-viscoplastiques des nuances brutes et vieillies ont été identifiées. Des essais de fatigue thermique ont été simulés avec une bonne précision à partir des lois de comportements déterminées par des essais isothermes. Les résultats de simulation d'essais thermomécaniques sur des matériaux en partie décarburés, effectués sur une géométrie simple, sont suffisamment satisfaisants pour envisager d'étendre ces calculs à des collecteurs d'échappement.

Ce mémoire est consacré au Carbonifère et Permien du pays briançonnais entre Monétier et Névache. Sont abordés : - la stratigraphie des formations - les niveaux charbonneux : anthracite - la tectonique - les lambeaux houillers de réotier, St crépin - le Massif de Peyre Haute et du Prorel - la rive gauche de la Guisane et rive gauche et droite de la Clarée, le massif du chardonnet , de Rochachille et la vallée etroite

No description available.

No description available.

We are today experiencing an increasing demand for high energy density storage devices like the lithium-ion battery for applications in portable electronic devices, electric vehicles (EV) and as interim storage for renewable energy. High capacity retention and long cycle life are prerequisites, particularly for the EV market. The key for a long cycle life is the formation of a stable solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer on the surface of the negative electrode, which typically forms on the first cycles due to decomposition reactions at the electrode-electrolyte interface. More control over the surface layer can be gained when the layer is generated prior to the battery operation. Such a layer can be tailored more easily and can reduce the loss of lithium inventory considerably. In this context, water-soluble electrode binders, e.g. sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC-Na) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), have proven themselves exceptionally useful. Since the binder is a standard component in composite electrodes anyway, its integration into the electrode fabrication process is easily accomplished. This thesis work investigates the parameters that govern binder distribution in elec-trode coatings, control the stability and electrochemical performance of the elec-trode and that determine the composition of the surface layer. Several commonly used electrode materials (graphite, silicon and lithium titanate) have been applied in order to study the impact of the binder on the electrode morphology and the differ-ent electrode-electrolyte interfaces. The results are correlated with the electrochemi-cal performance and with the SEI composition obtained by in-house and synchro-tron-based photoelectron spectroscopy (PES). The results demonstrate that the poor swellability of these water-soluble binders leads to a protection of the active material, given that the surface coverage is high and the binder evenly distributed. Although on the laboratory scale electrode formu-lations with a high binder content are common, they have little practical use in commercial devices due to the high content of inactive material. As the binder con-tent is decreased, complete surface coverage is more difficult to achieve and the binder distribution is more strongly coupled to the particle-binder interactions during the preparation process. Moreover, it is demonstrated in this thesis how these inter-actions are related to the surface area of the electrode components applied, the surface composition and the electrochemistry of the electrode. As a result of the smaller binder contents the benefits provided by CMC-Na and PAA at the electrode surface are compromised and the performance differs less distinctly from electrodes fabricated with the conventional binder, i.e. poly(vinylidene difluoride) (PVdF). Composites of alloying and conversion materials, on the other hand, typically em-ploy binders in larger amounts. Despite the frequently noted resiliency to volume expansion, which is also a positive side effect of the poor swellability of the binder in the electrolyte, the protection of the surface and the formation of a more stable interface are the major cause for the improved electrochemical behaviour, com-pared to electrodes employing PVdF binders.

Television static represents the absence of a legible image and the presence of something iconic and disturbing - a sinister abstraction. These repeating rhythms also occur in the Hail Mary prayer, in the houses in my neighborhood, in large crowds, and in my mother's crotchet patterns. The unsettling aspect of repetitive mark making in my drawings mirrors in part my psychotherapy, in which the past is revived over and over, as well as the idea of penance absorbed through my Catholic background.Since moving away from Mexico I have been using imagery related to the United States: rivers, mountains, and landscapes. But in the final drawings this subject matter remains distant to me; I connect to the work only through making marks on paper. On one level, specificity is important: which river? or which mountain?, but another kind of connection is made when the images cease to be legible. As information accumulates on the surface, I am interested in a purely visual and phenomenological effect that briefly defies the emotional nature of my source material.

Lithium-ion batteries are today finding use in automobiles aiming at reducing fuel consumption and emissions within transportation. The requirements on batteries used in vehicles are high regarding performance and lifetime, and a better understanding of the interior processes that dictate energy and power capabilities is a key to strategic development. This thesis concerns aging in lithium-ion cells using electrochemical tools to characterize electrode and electrolyte properties that affect performance and performance loss in the cells.   A central difficulty regarding battery aging is to manage the coupled effects of temperature and cycling conditions on the various degradation processes that determine the lifetime of a cell. In this thesis, post-mortem analyses on harvested electrode samples from small pouch cells and larger cylindrical cells aged under different conditions form the basis of aging evaluation. The characterization is focused on electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements and physics-based EIS modeling supported by several material characterization techniques to investigate degradation in terms of properties that directly affect performance. The results suggest that increased temperature alter electrode degradation and limitations relate in several cases to electrolyte transport. Variations in electrode properties sampled from different locations in the cylindrical cells show that temperature and current distributions from cycling cause uneven material utilization and aging, in several dimensions. The correlation between cell performance and localized utilization/degradation is an important aspect in meeting the challenges of battery aging in vehicle applications.   The use of in-situ nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging to directly capture the development of concentration gradients in a battery electrolyte during operation is successfully demonstrated. The salt diffusion coefficient and transport number for a sample electrolyte are obtained from Li+ concentration profiles using a physics-based mass-transport model. The method allows visualization of performance limitations and can be a useful tool in the study of electrochemical systems. / <p>QC 20140512</p>

Cette thèse vise à développer une démarche de dimensionnement à la fatigue thermomécanique de disques de freins automobiles en fonte à graphite lamellaire. La première étape est la proposition d'une loi de comportement cyclique permettant de représenter les phénomènes non-linéaires ainsi que la forte dissymétrie de comportement entre traction et compression observés sur la fonte GL. Le modèle s'appuie sur l'introduction d'un tenseur d'endommagement d'ordre 2 induit par le chargement. A partir de l'analyse des mécanismes d'endommagement, on propose ensuite un critère de fatigue fondé sur la densité d'énergie dissipée par cycle, permettant de prédire l'amorçage de fissures dans les zones critiques. On s'intéresse enfin à l'étude de la formation d'un réseau de faïençage observé sur les pistes des disques de frein. / This thesis aims at developing an approach for thermomechanical fatigue design of automotive brake discs made of flake graphite (grey) cast-iron. The first step of this work consists of modeling the nonlinear cyclic behavior and tension/compression strong dissymmetry of grey cast iron. The proposed model is based on the introduction of a second-order induced damage tensor. From the analysis of the damage mechanisms, a fatigue criterion based on the dissipated energy per cycle, allowing crack initiation in the critical areas to be defined, is proposed. Finally, the formation of crack networks on braking discs is studied.