abstract: Lithium ion batteries prepared with a ceramic separator, have proven to possess improved safety, reliability as well as performance characteristics when compared to those with polymer separators which are prone to thermal runaway. Purely inorganic separators are highly brittle and expensive. The electrode-supported ceramic separator permits thinner separators which are a lot more flexible in comparison. In this work, it was observed that not any α-alumina could be used by the blade coating process to get a good quality separator on Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) electrode. In this work specifically, the effect of particle size of α-alumina, on processability of slurry was investigated. The effect of the particle size variations on quality of separator formation was also studied. Most importantly, the effect of alumina particle size and its distribution on the performance of LTO/Li half cells is examined in detail. Large-sized particles were found to severely limit the ability to fabricate such separators. The α-alumina slurry was coated onto electrode substrate, leading to possible interaction between α-alumina and LTO substrate. The interaction between submicron sized particles of α-alumina with the substrate electrode pores, was found to affect the performance and the stability of the separator. Utilizing a bimodal distribution of submicron sized particles with micron sized particles of α-alumina to prepare the separator, improved cell performance was observed. Yet only a specific ratio of bimodal distribution achieved good results both in terms of separator formation and resulting cell performance. The interaction of α-alumina and binder in the separator, and its effect on the performance of substrate electrode was investigated, to understand the need for bimodal distribution of powder forming the separator. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Chemical Engineering 2017

Les exploitant aériens cherchent à réduire toujours davantage le coût d'utilisation et d'opération de maintenance des hélicoptères ainsi qu'à limiter leur impact environnemental. Par conséquent, les motoristes tels que Safran Helicopter Engines doivent constamment améliorer les performances de leurs moteurs. Cette amélioration passe notamment par la réduction des consommations de carburants et d'huile de lubrification. La consommation d'huile est liée en grande partie à la formation d'un brouillard diphasique air-huile au sein des paliers de roulements des arbres du moteur. L'air est continûment évacué en transportant des inclusions d'huile vers l'extérieur. Pour limiter ces rejets d'huile, un séparateur en rotation est utilisé pour récupérer l'huile et évacuer l'air. Afin de prédire avec davantage de précision la consommation d'huile et les pertes de charges induites par le séparateur, la présente thèse développe une stratégie d'analyse des écoulements diphasiques au sein des séparateurs. Cette stratégie s'appuie en premier lieu sur des simulations numériques du brouillard d'huile basées sur une approche Euler-Lagrange. Ces simulations permettent d'une part d'analyser l'écoulement d'air et les pertes de charges du séparateur et d'autre part d'appréhender les mécanismes de la séparation de l'huile et d'analyser la consommation en fonction des conditions de fonctionnement. Parallèlement, grâce au financement du projet européen E-Break, un banc d'essais dégazeur a été conçu dans le cadre de cette thèse et réalisé à l'Université Libre de Bruxelles. Des analyses croisées entre essais et simulations permettent de valider la méthodologie de simulation. Cependant, si les pertes de charges sont correctement prédites par le calcul, des efforts supplémentaires sont nécessaires, aussi bien sur la précision des mesures que sur la modélisation de l'écoulement diphasique, pour assurer une prédiction satisfaisante de la consommation d'huile. / Air operators try to reduce ever more operation and maintenance costs of helicopters as well as to limit their environmental impact. Consequently, engine manufacturers such as Safran Helicopter Engines must constantly improve the performance level of the engines they develop. To achieve such an improvement, oil and kerosene consumption must be reduced. Oil consumption is mostly due the formation of an oil mist inside bearing chambers. As the air is continuously scavenged, it carries along oil droplets out of the engines. In order to limit the oil wastes, a separator is used which recovers oil drops carried by the owing air that is vented out. In order to predict with a better level of accuracy the oil consumption and the pressure losses induced by the separator, the present thesis develops a strategy to analyse the two-phase flow within the separator. This strategy relies in the first place on Euler-Lagrange numerical simulation of the oil mist which allow on the one hand to compute the turbulent air flow and the pressure drop induced by the separator and on the other hand to better understand the separation mechanisms and to predict the oil consumption for various operating conditions. Besides, thanks to the funding of the E-Break European project, a test bench has been designed in the framework of this PhD and set up at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. Cross comparisons between measurements and simulations allow validating the numerical methodology. However, even though pressure drops are correctly predicted by the simulation, improvements are still needed, regarding both the measurement accuracy and the two-phase numerical modelling, in order to provide a satisfactory prediction of the oil consumption.

L'objectif de cette thèse est de réussir à utiliser des décompositions de graphes afin de résoudre des problèmes algorithmiques sur les graphes. Notre objet d'étude principal est la classe des graphes de Berge apprivoisés. Les graphes de Berge sont les graphes ne possédant ni cycle de longueur impaire supérieur à 4 ni complémentaire de cycle de longueur impaire supérieure à 4. Dans les années 60, Claude Berge a conjecturé que les graphes de Berge étaient des graphes parfaits. C'est-à-dire que la taille de la plus grande clique est exactement le nombre minimum de couleurs nécessaire à une coloration propre et ce pour tout sous-graphe. En 2002, Chudnovsky, Robertson, Seymour et Thomas ont démontré cette conjecture en utilisant un théorème de structure: les graphes de Berge sont basiques ou admettent une décomposition. Ce résultat est très utile pour faire des preuves par induction. Cependant, une des décompositions du théorème, la skew-partition équilibrée, est très difficile à utiliser algorithmiquement. Nous nous focalisons donc sur les graphes de Berge apprivoisés, c'est-à-dire les graphes de Berge sans skew-partition équilibrée. Pour pouvoir faire des inductions, nous devons adapter le théorème destructure de Chudnovsky et al à notre classe. Nous prouvons un résultat plus fort: les graphes de Berge apprivoisés sont basiques ou admettent une décomposition telle qu'un côté de la décomposition soit toujours basique. Nous avons de plus un algorithme calculant cette décomposition. Nous utilisons ensuite notre théorème pour montrer que les graphes de Berge apprivoisés admettent la propriété du grand biparti, de la clique-stable séparation et qu'il existe un algorithme polynomial permettant de calculer le stable maximum. / The goal of this these is to use graph's decompositions to solve algorithmic problems on graphs. We will study the class of Berge tame graphs. A Berge graph is a graph without cycle of odd length at least 4 nor complement of cycle of odd length at least 4.In the 60's, Claude Berge conjectured that Berge graphs are perfect graphs. The size of the biggest clique is exactly the number of colors required to color the graph. In 2002, Chudnovsky, Robertson, Seymour et Thomas proved this conjecture using a theorem of decomposition: Berge graphs are either basic or have a decomposition. This is a useful result to do proof by induction. Unfortunately, one of the decomposition, the skew-partition, is really hard to use. We arefocusing here on Berge tame graphs, i.e~Berge graph without balanced skew-partition. To be able to do induction, we must first adapt the Chudnovsky et al's theorem of structure to our class. We prove a stronger result: Berge tame graphs are basic or have a decomposition such that one side is always basic. We also have an algorithm to compute this decomposition. We then use our theorem to prouve that Berge tame graphs have the big-bipartite property, the clique-stable set separation property and there exists a polytime algorithm to compute the maximum stable set.

A dual phase gas diffusion-FIA system containing a tubular PTFE-membrane was studied as a mean of producing gas samples for routine 15N/14N isotopic ratio mass spectrometry. The method is based on Rittenberg's reaction; the ammonium sample is injected into a liquid alkaline stream containing hypobromite and the N2 gas produced in the reaction diffuses across a PTFE-membrane into a helium carrier stream which carries it to the detector. Initially here, the use of a tubular microporous PTFE-membrane as a device for the preconcentration of samples in aqueous solutions was investigated. The performance of such a membrane was studied under a variety of operating conditions. A qualitative model of the membrane mechanism was developed based on the diffusion transport of vapour away from the contained liquid surface through the connected pore space. The dispersion undergone by the sample in the GD-FIA system containing this preconcentration unit was also studied and this FIA system was applied as a practical device for the determination and speciation of aluminium in a river water sample. The procedure for generating nitrogen gas involved optimisation of the system parameters including the oxidation reaction step and the production on-line of the chemicals used. The nitrogen gas was generated easily and rapidly, allowing a sample throughput capability of the order of 20 h-1. The system was applied to the determination of total nitrogen content in agricultural sample prepared by the Kjeldahl digestion. The method offered precision and accuracy comparable to those of the standard distillationtitration procedure. Isotope ratios were determined with good precision and means for obtaining accuracy comparable with established techniques were developed. It was also shown that the DPGD-FIA system can be readily adapted to enable different forms of nitrogen e. g. N02-, N03- and NH4+ to be determined.

No description available.

Nanofibrous separators use in lithium-ion batteries brings many advantages. In contrast to contemporary used commercial separators, nanofibrous ones exhibit higher temperature resistance,ionic conductivity and higher electrolyte uptake. Better ionic conductivity is ensured by porous structure and large specific surface. Fibers creates channels for the ionic species motion. Amorphous texture of nanofibers allows quick lithium ionic species motion within the polymeric matrix of separator. Furthermore, these separators exhibit higher volume of uptaken electrolyte. Further advantage of electrospinned nanofibrous separators are both high porosity and chemical stability.

This thesis addresses plumbing systems for manufacturing building. The theoretical part explores ways of draining stormwater. Experimental part is measuring consumption of water. Project part solves plumbing systems in specified manufacturing building.

Modified nanocellulose have distinctive qualities and have drawn a lot of interest from a variety of fields. It is a natural, sustainable product that is manufactured from plant-based materials like wood and other renewable resources. It is also biodegradable. It is a possible material for battery separators because of its great mechanical strength, flexibility, and ability to create a stable and consistent membrane. Due to the cost of using it as a membrane, it has been investigated in this work to see if it can be coated onto a substrate and used as battery separator. In this work sulfonated cellulose nanofibrils (SCNF) has been used to be coated on kraft paper and inkjet paper using a rod coater. Parameters like concentration, thickness and substrates have been varied in this experiment. Viscosity was measured using Brookfield instrument to measure the viscosity for 0,5% SCNF and 1,5% SCNF. The coating was carried out using a rod coater and varying between two rods to influence the thickness, the coating used concentrations of 0,5% SCNF and 1,5% SCNF and two different substrates, kraft paper and inkjet paper. Thickness was determined to study the effect of the variation in rod. The mechanical strength was tested on the coated paper substrates and compared the results to the noncoated substrates as reference, the mechanical strength showed an improvement with the coated SCNF substrates. Permeance through the Gurley method was studied in order to understand how the coated substrates behaves compared to the noncoated. Contact angle was determined as well to understand the wettability of the coated substrates and how they would behave as separators in zinc ion batteries. The contact angle decreased with increasing concentration of the SCNF which is a result of the sulfonate groups. Cross sections were analyzed using SEM to study the influence of the coating to the substrates. Ionic conductivity was also tested to evaluate the possibility of the coated substrates as separators.

No description available.

O objetivo do presente trabalho foi a avaliação das características operacionais de um reator UASB sem o dispositivo de coleta de gás (separador trifásico) e sem o anteparo retentor de escuma posicionado próximo à canaleta de coleta do efluente. A motivação para esta pesquisa foi o interesse manifestado pelas companhias de saneamento em aplicar esta simplificação, que poderá implicar em economia na implantação dos reatores e praticamente na eliminação da necessidade de remoção de escuma. Utilizou-se um reator UASB com tais simplificações com volume útil de 24,5 m3 e estabeleceu-se uma estratégia operacional com aumento gradual da vazão de alimentação, compondo quatro fases de operação, com tempos de retenção hidráulica respectivamente de 16, 12, 10 e 8 horas. As vazões foram mantidas constantes em cada fase, com exceção da última, em que se impôs dois picos de vazão ao longo dia. O reator manteve-se operando com eficiências médias de remoção de DQO total, respectivamente, de 65,9%, 60,3%, 48,7% e 15,0%. De modo geral, pode-se afirmar que o reator piloto não apresentou o desempenho esperado, em termos de remoção de matéria orgânica, para TDH de 8 horas. Quanto ao perfil de sólidos no manto de lodo, nas duas primeiras etapas (TDH de 16 e 12 horas), o teor de sólidos daquele foi elevado, mas reduziu-se drasticamente a partir da etapa com TDH de 10 horas. Na última etapa, o comportamento da manta de lodo foi pouco previsível, observando-se progressivo arraste de sólidos do reator. Em função da grande perda de sólidos, acredita-se que o artifício empregado possa ser utilizado com melhor desempenho com a implantação de um decantador a jusante do reator ou mediante a aplicação de um pós-tratamento que garanta a recuperação dos sólidos perdidos (por exemplo, lodos ativados). Outra alternativa é a própria substituição do UASB pelo decantador primário antes de um pós-tratamento aeróbio. / The objective of this study was to evaluate the operational characteristics of a UASB reactor without the gas collection device (three phase separator) and without the scum retainer screen positioned near the effluent collection channel. The motivation for this research was the interest shown by sanitation companies to apply this simplification, which can result in savings in the implementation of the reactors and practically in eliminating the need of scum removal. An UASB reactor was used with such simplifications with a volume of 24.5 m3 and an operational strategy was established with gradual increase of the feed flow, consisting of four operating phases, with hydraulic retention times, respectively, of 16, 12, 10 and 8 hours. The flows were kept constants at each operating phase, except the last, which was imposed two peak flows throughout the day. The reactor was kept operating with efficiency of COD removal, respectively, of 65.9%, 60.3%, 48.7% and 15,0%. Generally, the pilot reactor had not the expected performance in removal of organic matter, with hydraulic retention time of 8 hours. In the first two fases (HDT of 16 and 12 hours), solid\'s content in sludge blanket was high, but had reduced significantly from the second fase, with 10 hours of HDT. In the last fase, the sludge blanket behavior was bit predictable, with progressive drag of solids from reactor. Because of high solids loss, it is believed that the applied device can be used with better performance with the implantation of a settler after the reactor or a post-treatment that ensures the lost solids recovery (for example, activated sludge). Another alternative is the replacement of UASB by the primary clarifier before aerobic post-treatment.