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Two design innovations give up to thirtyfold increase in power in 300 W laser amplifier. Heat is removed by flowing lasing gas through system, allowing larger lasing volumes. Fast, uniform excitation discharges are obtained with transverse, rather than longitudinal, electrodes.
An apparatus is disclosed in which a reservoir containing copper chloride is heated so that the copper chloride is maintained in a liquid form. The apparatus includes a means for flowing a buffer gas (which in the exemplary embodiment is neon) over the liquid copper chloride to provide a mixture of copper chloride vapor and neon above the liquid copper chloride. A conduit provides fluid communication between the reservoir containing the copper chloride vapor/neon mixture and the laser. The copper chloride vapor density in the laser is related to the liquid copper chloride temperature and the neon flow rate through the reservoir. In accordance with a further feature of the exemplary embodiment, neon is also provided directly to the laser in order to provide a further means of controlling the copper chloride vapor density in the laser.
A laser amplification system is disclosed whereby a metallic halide vapor such as copper chloride is caused to flow through a laser amplifier and a heat exchanger in a closed loop system so that the flow rate is altered to control the temperature rise across the length of the laser amplifier. The copper atoms within the laser amplifier should not exceed a temperature of 3000 K, so that the number of copper atoms in the metastable state will not be high enough to prevent amplification in the amplifier. A molecular dissociation apparatus is provided at the input to the laser amplifier for dissociating the copper chloride into copper atoms and ions and chlorine atoms and ions. The dissociation apparatus includes a hollow cathode tube and an annular ring spaced apart from the tube end. A voltage differential is applied between the annular ring and the hollow cathode tube so that as the copper chloride flows through, it is dissociated into copper and chlorine ions and atoms.
Four different grades of pitch-based graphite fibers (Amoco P-55, P-75, P-100. and P-120) were intercalated with each of four different intercalates: bromine (Br2), iodine monochloride (ICl), copper (II) chloride (CuCl2), and nickel (II) chloride (NiCl2). The P-55 fibers did not react with Br2 or NiCl2, and the P-75 did not react with NiCl2. The stability of the electrical resistance of the intercalated fibers was monitored over long periods of time in ambient, high humidity (100 percent at 60 C), vacuum (10 to the -6 torr), and high temperature (up to 400 C) conditions. Fibers with lower graphitization form graphite intercalation compounds (GIC's) which are more stable than those with higher graphitization (i.e., P-55 (most stable) greater than P-75 greater than P-100 greater than P-120 (least stable). Br2 formed the most stable GIC's followed in order of decreasing stability by ICl, CuCl2, and NiCl2. While Br2 GIC's had the most stability, ICl had the advantages of forming GIC's with slightly greater reduction in resistance (by about 10%) than Br2, and the ability to intercalate P-55 fiber. Transition metal chlorides are susceptible to water vapor and high temperature. The stability of fibers in composites differs.
In order to elucidate the nature of the imperfections which adversely affect pyroelectric processes in boracites, the thermal and dispersive characteristics of the low frequency dielectric response in iron-iodide boracite (Fe3B7O13I) and copper-chloride boracite (Cu3B7O13Cl) have been investigated. These characteristics were measured as a function of crystallographic orientation and applied field in both the ferroelectric and paraelectric states. The low frequency dielectric relaxation of 100 line oriented multi-domain copper-chloride boracite clearly indicates the dipole nature of the lattice imperfections. The activation energies calculated from a noninteracting Debye model, are 0.53 eV in the ferroelectric phase and 0.10 eV in the paraelectric phase.
Incorporating chiral organic cations into organic–inorganic hybrid materials has been shown to enable the inorganic sublattice to display chiroptical properties. We report a new two-dimensional magnetic (S = 1/2) chiral metal halide perovskite, (R)- and (S)-(C 4 H 9 FN) 2 CuCl 4 (where (C 4 H 9 FN) + is 3-fluoropyrrolidinium), which consists of Cu–Cl inorganic layers separated by (C 4 H 9 FN) + organic cations. The presence of the chiral (C 4 H 9 FN) + organic cation induces the formation of chiral magnetic order, even though the inorganic sublattice itself is nearly structurally centrosymmetric. We also report the racemic variant, containing an equal amount of (R)- and (S)- cations, which shows no evidence of chiral magnetic order. When the magnetic susceptibility is measured perpendicular to the inorganic Cu–Cl layer propagation direction, an antiferromagnetic phase transition at Néel temperature T N = 2.23 K is observed in both the chiral and racemic materials, and the existence of the magnetic phase transition is supported by specific heat capacity measurements. Field-induced magnetic chirality is observed through the existence of a second-order magnetoelectric effect in the chiral variant, while no magnetoelectric signal is observed for the racemic material, indicating the absence of magnetic chirality. Our findings demonstrate that materials exhibiting chiral magnetic order can be created through the incorporation of a chiral cation into an organic–inorganic hybrid magnetic material, potentially allowing for the design of tailored materials that combine chiral magnetism with other desirable optical and electronic properties that come from structural chirality.
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Sodium - metal chloride batteries have certain distinct advantages over sodium - sulfur batteries such as increased safety, inherent overcharge capability and lower operating temperatures. Two systems, i.e., Na/FeCl2 and Na/NiCl2 were developed extensively elsewhere and evaluated for various applications including electric vehicles and space. Their performance has been very encouraging and prompted a detailed fundamental study on these cathodes here at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. A brief review of our studies on these new cathode materials is presented here. The initial efforts focused on the methods of fabrication of the electrodes and their electrochemical characterization." Subsequent studies were aimed at establishing the reaction mechanism, determining the kinetics and identifying the rate-limiting processes in the reduction of metal chloride cathodes. Nickel chloride emerged from these studies as the most promising candidate material and was taken up for further detailed study on its passivation - a rate limiting process - under different experimental conditions. Also, the feasibility of using copper chloride, which is expected to have higher energy density, has been assessed. Based on the criteria established from the voltametric response of FeCl2, NiCl2 and CuCI2, several other transition metal chlorides were screened. Of these, molybdenum and cobalt chlorides appear promising.
Following the disclosures by Coetzer et al. on the use of transition metal chlorides in chloroaluminates as alternate cathodes to sulfur in rechargeable sodium batteries, several laboratories, including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, focused their attention on these systems. These systems have certain distinct advantages over sodium-sulfur batteries such as increased safety, inherent overcharge capability, and lower operating temperatures. Two systems, i.e., Na/FeCl2 and NaNiCl2, were developed extensively and evaluated in various applications including electric vehicles and space. Their performance has been very encouraging and warrants a detailed fundamental study on these cathodes. At the Jet Propulsion Laboratory a program was initiated two years back to understand the electrochemical behavior of FeCl2 and NiCl2, and to identify and evaluate other transition metal chlorides of promise. The initial efforts focused on the methods of fabrication of the electrodes and their electrochemical characterization. Subsequent studies were aimed at establishing the reaction mechanism, determining the kinetics, and identifying the rate-limiting processes in te reduction of metal chloride cathodes. Nickel chloride emerged form these studies as the most promising candidate material and was taken up for further detailed study on its passivation- a rate limiting process-under different experimental conditions. Also, the feasibility of using copper chloride, which is expected to have a higher energy density, has been assessed. On the basis of the criteria established from the voltammetric response of FeCl2, NiCl2, and CuCl2, several other transition metal chlorides were screened. Of these, molybdenum and cobalt appear promising.
Tracing sources of contamination, including potentially toxic elements (PTEs), has historically been achieved through sampling and analysis of soil or biota, which are labor-intensive, costly, and destructive methods. Thus, availability of a non-destructive in situ remote sensing method for monitoring metals deposited in biota is of great interest. Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is an emerging spectroscopic and imaging technique that documents changes in molecular energy level in plants as a biological response to metal contamination. For a proof-of-concept study and preliminary experiment, moss was selected for experimentation due to its long history of use in tracing atmospheric deposition of PTEs. Consecutive treatments of copper chloride (CuCl2) were administered to three moss samples, simulating wet deposition every 48 h over 10 days until reaching cumulative Cu concentrations of 2.690 to 8.075 μmol/cm2. While these Cu amounts are above environmentally relevant concentrations, they allowed the best conditions for testing and fine tuning of the imaging and data processing protocols presented in this paper. Moss fluorescence was induced using both 532 nm green and 355 nm UV lasers. A CMOS camera captured images of the LIF response, and red–green–blue (RGB) decimal code values were extracted for each pixel in the images, and pixel densities of color channels from treated and untreated moss samples were compared. Results show a shift towards lower color decimal codes corresponding to increased Cu concentration. We developed and contrasted multiple quantitative analyses of color distributions and demonstrated that LIF shows great promise for remote sensing of Cu accumulation in moss at μmol/cm2 levels. Though currently, the method would be limited to highly toxic sites, it illustrates the possibility and provides a framework for development of higher-sensitivity methods to detect nmol/cm2 that are viable for urban contamination level monitoring.
The development of efficient and stable back contacts remains a major challenge in achieving high performance and long-term stability of CdTe thin-film solar cells. Here, this work revisits the formation of NiTe 2 by chemical bath deposition (CBD) as a back contact for CdTe devices. An optimized CBD recipe, based on high-purity precursors and the addition of copper chloride directly into the bath, was developed and applied to fabricate Cu-doped CdTe solar cells. A modified Cu-free methodology was also applied to Group V doped absorbers. The process included pinhole filling, ion milling, CBD, annealing, and sputtering to form a low-barrier back contact. Devices fabricated using this method achieved consistent open-circuit voltages (V oc ) above 800 mV and fill factors (FF) exceeding 70%. The best Cu-doped devices reached power conversion efficiencies (PCE) above 18 %, and preliminary results with Group V-doped material demonstrated compatibility of the method with high-efficiency, state-of-the-art CdTe devices. This study shows that NiTe 2 /Ni back contacts, formed via an optimized chemical process followed by sputtering of Ni, represent a promising pathway for achieving low-barrier and potentially stable back contacts in modern CdTe photovoltaics.
CuCl2Cu5PbSe2O8Cl3 crystallizes in the monoclinic C2/m space group. The structure is three-dimensional and consists of four copper chloride molecules and one Cu5PbSe2O8Cl3 framework. In the Cu5PbSe2O8Cl3 framework, there are four inequivalent Cu+2.17+ sites. In the first Cu+2.17+ site, Cu+2.17+ is bonded in a distorted trigonal bipyramidal geometry to three O2- and two Cl1- atoms. There are one shorter (1.99 Å) and two longer (2.17 Å) Cu–O bond lengths. There are one shorter (2.24 Å) and one longer (2.37 Å) Cu–Cl bond lengths. In the second Cu+2.17+ site, Cu+2.17+ is bonded in a distorted rectangular see-saw-like geometry to three O2- and one Cl1- atom. There are a spread of Cu–O bond distances ranging from 1.93–2.02 Å. The Cu–Cl bond length is 2.32 Å. In the third Cu+2.17+ site, Cu+2.17+ is bonded in a distorted rectangular see-saw-like geometry to three O2- and one Cl1- atom. There are a spread of Cu–O bond distances ranging from 1.91–2.03 Å. The Cu–Cl bond length is 2.25 Å. In the fourth Cu+2.17+ site, Cu+2.17+ is bonded in a distorted rectangular see-saw-like geometry to four O2- atoms. There is two shorter (1.95 Å) and two longer (1.99 Å) Cu–O bond length. Pb4+ is bonded in a 5-coordinate geometry to three O2- and two Cl1- atoms. There are one shorter (2.46 Å) and two longer (2.48 Å) Pb–O bond lengths. There are one shorter (3.01 Å) and one longer (3.05 Å) Pb–Cl bond lengths. There are two inequivalent Se2+ sites. In the first Se2+ site, Se2+ is bonded in a trigonal non-coplanar geometry to three O2- atoms. There is two shorter (1.73 Å) and one longer (1.77 Å) Se–O bond length. In the second Se2+ site, Se2+ is bonded in a trigonal non-coplanar geometry to three O2- atoms. There is two shorter (1.73 Å) and one longer (1.76 Å) Se–O bond length. There are six inequivalent O2- sites. In the first O2- site, O2- is bonded in a trigonal planar geometry to two equivalent Cu+2.17+ and one Se2+ atom. In the second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a trigonal planar geometry to two equivalent Cu+2.17+ and one Se2+ atom. In the third O2- site, O2- is bonded to three Cu+2.17+ and one Pb4+ atom to form distorted corner-sharing OCu3Pb tetrahedra. In the fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded to four Cu+2.17+ atoms to form corner-sharing OCu4 tetrahedra. In the fifth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted trigonal planar geometry to two Cu+2.17+ and one Se2+ atom. In the sixth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to one Cu+2.17+, one Pb4+, and one Se2+ atom. There are three inequivalent Cl1- sites. In the first Cl1- site, Cl1- is bonded in an L-shaped geometry to two Cu+2.17+ atoms. In the second Cl1- site, Cl1- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Cu+2.17+ and one Pb4+ atom. In the third Cl1- site, Cl1- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Cu+2.17+ and one Pb4+ atom.
Cr(N2Cl)3CuCl2 crystallizes in the cubic Pn-3m space group. The structure is three-dimensional and consists of four copper chloride molecules and one Cr(N2Cl)3 framework. In the Cr(N2Cl)3 framework, Cr6+ is bonded in a hexagonal planar geometry to six equivalent N+0.33- atoms. All Cr–N bond lengths are 1.83 Å. N+0.33- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Cr6+ and two equivalent Cl1- atoms. Both N–Cl bond lengths are 2.27 Å. Cl1- is bonded in a distorted rectangular see-saw-like geometry to four equivalent N+0.33- atoms.
CuCl2N2(HCl)2 is Protactinium-derived structured and crystallizes in the tetragonal P4_2/mnm space group. The structure is zero-dimensional and consists of four ammonia molecules, two copper chloride molecules, and two HCl clusters. In each HCl cluster, H1+ is bonded in a bent 120 degrees geometry to two equivalent Cl1- atoms. Both H–Cl bond lengths are 1.59 Å. Cl1- is bonded in a 6-coordinate geometry to two equivalent H1+ atoms.
Cu3Yb3(TeO3)4Cl6 crystallizes in the monoclinic P2/c space group. The structure is two-dimensional and consists of two copper chloride molecules and one Yb3Cu2Te4(O3Cl)4 sheet oriented in the (1, 0, 0) direction. In the Yb3Cu2Te4(O3Cl)4 sheet, there are two inequivalent Yb3+ sites. In the first Yb3+ site, Yb3+ is bonded in a 8-coordinate geometry to eight O2- atoms. There are a spread of Yb–O bond distances ranging from 2.37–2.73 Å. In the second Yb3+ site, Yb3+ is bonded in a 7-coordinate geometry to seven O2- atoms. There are a spread of Yb–O bond distances ranging from 2.27–2.68 Å. Cu+1.67+ is bonded in a square pyramidal geometry to three O2- and two Cl1- atoms. There are a spread of Cu–O bond distances ranging from 1.89–2.45 Å. There are one shorter (2.20 Å) and one longer (2.22 Å) Cu–Cl bond lengths. There are two inequivalent Te4+ sites. In the first Te4+ site, Te4+ is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to three O2- atoms. There are a spread of Te–O bond distances ranging from 1.87–1.98 Å. In the second Te4+ site, Te4+ is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to three O2- atoms. There are a spread of Te–O bond distances ranging from 1.86–1.98 Å. There are six inequivalent O2- sites. In the first O2- site, O2- is bonded to two Yb3+, one Cu+1.67+, and one Te4+ atom to form distorted corner-sharing OYb2CuTe tetrahedra. In the second O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to two Yb3+, one Cu+1.67+, and one Te4+ atom. In the third O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted trigonal planar geometry to two Yb3+ and one Te4+ atom. In the fourth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted trigonal non-coplanar geometry to two Yb3+ and one Te4+ atom. In the fifth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a 2-coordinate geometry to one Yb3+, one Cu+1.67+, and one Te4+ atom. In the sixth O2- site, O2- is bonded in a distorted trigonal planar geometry to two equivalent Yb3+ and one Te4+ atom. There are two inequivalent Cl1- sites. In the first Cl1- site, Cl1- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Cu+1.67+ atom. In the second Cl1- site, Cl1- is bonded in a distorted single-bond geometry to one Cu+1.67+ atom.
A hydrometallurgical process is developed to lower the costs of copper production and thereby sustain the use of copper throughout the global transition to renewable energy technologies. The unique feature of the hydrometallurgical process is the reductive treatment of chalcopyrite, which is in contrast to the oxidative treatment more commonly pursued in the literature. Chalcopyrite reduction by chromium(II) ion is described for the first time and superior kinetics are shown. At high concentrate loadings of 39, 78, and 117 gL –1 , chalcopyrite reacted completely within minutes at room temperature and pressure. The XRD, SEM-EDS, and XPS measurements indicate that chalcopyrite reacts to form copper(I) chloride (CuCl). After the reductive treatment, the mineral products are leached by iron(III) sulfate to demonstrate the complete extraction of copper. The chromium(II) ion may be regenerated by an electrolysis unit inspired by an iron chromium flow battery in a practical industrial process.
An analysis of thirty-year-old, down graded flight cables was conducted to determine the makeup of a green material on the surface of the shielded wire near soldered areas and to ascertain if the green material had corroded the nickel-coated copper wire. Two likely candidates were possible due to the handling and environments to which these cables were exposed. The flux used to solder the cables is known to contain abietic acid, a carboxylic acid found in many pine rosins used for the soldering process. The resulting material copper abietate is green in color and is formed during the application of heat during soldering operations. Copper (II) chloride, which is also green in color is known to contaminate flight parts and is corrosive. Data is presented that shows the material is copper abietate, not copper (II) chloride, and more importantly that the abietate does not aggressively attack nickel-plated copper wire.
Co-deposition electrochemical cells are a simple means to examine novel nuclear reactions. In this study, palladium and deuterium atoms were co-deposited on a cathode at stoichiometric densities, forming dendritic morphologies. Bubble detector neutron dosimeters were used to measure equivalent dose levels during electrolytic deposition. Standard configuration cells expected to produce excess neutrons were denoted as experimental cells and contained an electrolyte consisting of palladium(II) chloride, lithium chloride, and heavy water. The control cells used copper(II) chloride, lithium chloride, and heavy water electrolyte. Experimental and control cells were supplied current, increasing from 0.1 to 100.0 mA over a period of 20 days. For test days 9 through 20, the standard configuration experimental cells exhibited significantly higher average neutron radiation than the controls at a 99% confidence level. Alternative configurations involving more increasing current over a shortened time scale, substitutions of water in place of heavy water or potassium chloride for lithium chloride, as well as inclusion of depleted uranium near the cell cathodes all resulted in inconclusive evidence for promoting neutron production.