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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

Comparative techno-economic analysis and process design for indirect liquefaction pathways to distillate-range fuels via biomass-derived oxygenated intermediates upgrading: Liquid Transportation Fuel Production via Biomass-derived Oxygenated Intermediates Upgrading

This paper presents a comparative techno-economic analysis (TEA) of five conversion pathways from biomass to gasoline-, jet-, and diesel-range hydrocarbons via indirect liquefaction with specific focus on pathways utilizing oxygenated intermediates. The four emerging pathways of interest are compared with one conventional pathway (Fischer-Tropsch) for the production of the hydrocarbon blendstocks. The processing steps of the four emerging pathways include: biomass to syngas via indirect gasification, gas cleanup, conversion of syngas to alcohols/oxygenates followed by conversion of alcohols/oxygenates to hydrocarbon blendstocks via dehydration, oligomerization, and hydrogenation. Conversion of biomass-derived syngas to oxygenated intermediates occurs via three different pathways, producing: 1) mixed alcohols over a MoS2 catalyst, 2) mixed oxygenates (a mixture of C2+ oxygenated compounds, predominantly ethanol, acetic acid, acetaldehyde, ethyl acetate) using an Rh-based catalyst, and 3) ethanol from syngas fermentation. This is followed by the conversion of oxygenates/alcohols to fuel-range olefins in two approaches: 1) mixed alcohols/ethanol to 1-butanol rich mixture via Guerbet reaction, followed by alcohol dehydration, oligomerization, and hydrogenation, and 2) mixed oxygenates/ethanol to isobutene rich mixture and followed by oligomerization and hydrogenation. The design features a processing capacity of 2,000 tonnes/day (2,205 short tons) of dry biomass. The minimum fuel selling prices (MFSPs) for the four developing pathways range from $3.40 to $5.04 per gasoline-gallon equivalent (GGE), in 2011 US dollars. Sensitivity studies show that MFSPs can be improved with co-product credits and are comparable to the commercial Fischer-Tropsch benchmark ($3.58/GGE). Overall, this comparative TEA study documents potential economics for the developmental biofuel pathways via mixed oxygenates.

Tan, Eric C. D.↗
DOE OSTI2016

The interaction of reactants, intermediates and products with Cu ions in Cu-SSZ-13 NH3 SCR catalysts: An energetic and ab initio X-ray absorption modeling study

Copper-exchanged SSZ-13 (Cu-SSZ-13) provides excellent catalytic activity and hydrothermal stability in the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx by using NH3 as a reductant. In this contribution, we compare the most likely positions for Cu with a single charge compensating Al atom (ZCu), including the effect of the adsorption of reactants, intermediates and products of a NH3 SCR reaction by using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. We find that the 6-membered ring (6MR) site is the most energetically favorable while the 8-membered ring (8MR) sites are less favorable with energy differences about 0.5 eV with respect to the 6MR site. Upon molecular adsorption, the energy differences between Cu in the 8MR and 6MR sites decreases and almost disappears, which means that the thermodynamic stability of ZCu with molecularly adsorbed species is nearly identical for Cu in different sites. Considering more complicated scenarios of NO (or CO) adsorption, we find that the co-adsorption of 2 NO (or 2 CO) molecules weakens their interaction with Cu, as well as their co-adsorption with OH and H2O. The X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) of Cu in Cu-SSZ-13 under different conditions was also modeled from first principles. We find that the pre-edge feature in the K-edge XANES of Cu in clean Cu-SSZ-13 with Cu in a 8MR site is induced by a 1s to 4s transition while there is no pre-edge peak when Cu is in a 6MR site. Molecular adsorption onto Cu in a 6MR or a 8MR site results in the same K-edge XANES. When NO is adsorbed onto Cu in SSZ-13, we find that the origin of the small pre-edge peak in the K-edge XANES lies in a 1s to 3d electron transition. On the other hand, when CO or N2 is adsorbed onto an isolated Cu atom in SSZ-13, a transition from the 1s state to the hybridized state of 3d and 4p results in a pre-edge peak in the K-edge of the XANES spectrum. It is also found that the edge position and intensity of the maximum peak of Cu K-edge XANES depend on the Cu locations and the adsorbed molecules. By studying the Cu K-edge XANES of ZCu with adsorption of species of different oxidizing power, we conclude that a higher oxidation state of Cu will result in a higher energy edge position in the Cu K-edge XANES. These results are expected to greatly aid our understanding of Cu-SSZ-13 SCR catalysts. This work was supported by institutional funds provided to JSM from the Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering. Financial support was also provided by the National Science Foundation GOALI program under contract Nos. CBET-1258717, CBET-1258715 and CBET-1258690. We thank Prof. Fabio Ribeiro, Mr. Atish Parekh, Prof. W. F. Schneider, Mr. Christopher Paolucci, Mr. Trunjoyo Anggara and Prof. Jeff Miller for stimulating discussions on the modeling of the XANES spectrum and Ms. Alyssa Hensley for her comments on the manuscript. J.Sz. acknowledges the financial support of this work by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Vehicle Technologies Program. A portion of the computer time for the computational work was performed using EMSL, a national scientific user facility sponsored by the Department of Energy’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research and located at PNNL. PNNL is a multi-program national laboratory operated for the US DOE by Battelle.

Zhang, Renqin↗
DOE OSTI2016

Cobalt (II) oxide and nickel (II) oxide alloys as potential intermediate-band semiconductors: A theoretical study

Solar cells based on single pn junctions, employing single-gap semiconductors can ideally achieve efficiencies as high as 34%. Developing solar cells based on intermediate-band semiconductors (IBSCs), which can absorb light across multiple band gaps, is a possible way to defy this theoretical limit and achieve efficiencies as high as 60%. Here, we use first principles quantum mechanics methods and introduce CoO and Co{sub 0.25}Ni{sub 0.75}O as possible IBSCs. We show that the conduction band in both of these materials is divided into two distinct bands separated by a band gap. We further show that the lower conduction band (i.e., the intermediate band) is wider in Co{sub 0.25}Ni{sub 0.75}O compared with CoO. This should enhance light absorption from the valence band edge to the intermediate band, making Co{sub 0.25}Ni{sub 0.75}O more appropriate for use as an IBSC. Our findings provide the basis for future attempts to partially populate the intermediate band and to reduce the lower band gap in Co{sub 0.25}Ni{sub 0.75}O in order to enhance the potential of this material for use in IBSC solar cell technologies. Furthermore, with proper identification of heterojunctions and dopants, CoO and Co{sub 0.25}Ni{sub 0.75}O could be used in multi-color light emitting diode and laser technologies.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Direct observation of unimolecular decay of CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO Criegee intermediates to OH radical products

The unimolecular decay of carbonyl oxide intermediates, known as Criegee intermediates, produced in alkene ozonolysis is a significant source of OH radicals in the troposphere. Here, the rate of appearance of OH radical products is examined directly in the time-domain for a prototypical alkyl-substituted Criegee intermediate, CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO, following vibrational activation under collision-free conditions. Complementary statistical Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus calculations of the microcanonical unimolecular decay rate for CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO are also carried out at energies in the vicinity of the barrier for 1,4 hydrogen atom transfer that leads to OH products. Tunneling through the barrier, derived from high level electronic structure calculations, contributes significantly to the decay rate. Infrared transitions of CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO are identified in the CH stretch overtone region, which are detected by ultraviolet laser-induced fluorescence of the resultant OH products. The features observed are attributed to CH vibrational excitations and conformational forms utilizing insights from theory. Both experiment and theory yield unimolecular decay rates for CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO of ca. 10{sup 7} s{sup −1}, which are slower than those obtained for syn-CH{sub 3}CHOO or (CH{sub 3}){sub 2}COO reported previously [Fang et al., J. Chem. Phys. 144, 061102 (2016)] at similar energies. Master equation modeling is also utilized to predict the thermal decay rate of CH{sub 3}CH{sub 2}CHOO under atmospheric conditions, giving a rate of 279 s{sup −1} at 298 K.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

H-cluster Intermediates and Catalytic Properties of Clostridium pasteurianum [FeFe]-Hydrogenase III

[FeFe]-Hydrogenases are structurally diverse enzymes that catalyze reversible H2 activation at a catalytic cofactor or H-cluster. The H-cluster is a [4Fe-4S] cubane linked by a cysteine thiolate to a diiron subsite containing unique CO, CN-, and dithiomethylamine ligands. The established H-cluster resting state of [4Fe-4S]2+-[FeII-FeI], or Hox, functions in H2 binding and oxidation, or by proton-coupled reduction initiates H2 evolution. In contrast, in Clostridium pasteurianum [FeFe]-hydrogenase III (CpIII) the resting state of the H-cluster is fully oxidized, [4Fe-4S]2+-[FeII-FeII], or Hox+1. To begin to understand if Hox+1 has a role in the mechanism of CpIII, we determined the spectroscopic and redox properties of CpIII H-cluster states under catalytic conditions. CpIII poised in Hox+1 and either equilibrated under 1 atm of H2 or reduced with sodium dithionite, resulted in a mixture of reduced states including Hox (Em8 = -407 mV), Htrans-like [4Fe-4S]+-[FeII-FeII] (Em8 = -418 mV), Hred [4Fe-4S]+-[FeII-FeI], and HredH+ [4Fe-4S]2+-[FeI-FeI] (Em8 = -455-480 mV). Under H2 the population of the Htrans-like state was >20-fold higher than Hox, implicating a role in CpIII catalysis. Unlike other enzymes, there was no spectral evidence of fully reduced states, such as HsredH+ ([4Fe-4S]+-[FeI-FeI]) or Hhyd ([4Fe-4S]+-[FeII-FeII]-H-). Thus, while the H-cluster states of CpIII encompass most of the catalytic intermediates, it is either unable to form HsredH+ and Hhyd, or these states are highly destabilized in CpIII. Thus, these results demonstrate that catalytic intermediates of reduced CpIII differ from the typical intermediates of other catalytic [FeFe]-hydrogenases and may explain the catalytic preference for H2 production.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2016

Electrochemical Detection of Transient Cobalt Hydride Intermediates of Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Production

We report the use of variable scan rate cyclic voltammetry to detect transient CoIIIH and CoIIH intermediates of electrocatalytic H2 production by CoII(dmgBF2)2(CH3CN)2 and [CoII(PtBu2NPh2)(CH3CN)3]2+. In both cases, reduction of the CoIIIH intermediate was observed to coincide with the CoII/I couple, and the resulting CoIIH intermediate is protonated by acid to afford H2. Our studies indicate that in electrocatalytic H2 production, protonation of CoIIH is rate-limiting for CoII(dmgBF2)2(CH3CN)2, and protonation of CoI is rate-limiting for [CoII(PtBu2NPh2)(CH3CN)3]2+. This research was supported as part of the Center for Molecular Electrocatalysis, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is operated by Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy.

cobalt, electrocatalysis, hydrogen↗
DOE OSTI2018

Metastable Intermediates in Amorphous Titanium Oxide: A Hidden Role Leading to Ultra-Stable Photoanode Protection

Metastable intermediates represent a non-equilibrium state of matter that may impose profound impacts to materials properties beyond our understandings of monolithic and equilibrium systems. Here, we report a discovery of hidden metastable intermediates in amorphous TiO 2 thin films and their critical role in electrochemical damage. These intermediates have a non-bulk crystal-like structure and exhibit significantly higher electrical conductivity than both the amorphous and the crystalline phases. When these TiO 2 films are applied to protect Si photoelectrochemical (PEC) photoanodes, the intermediates can induce localized high electrical currents that largely accelerate the etching of the TiO 2 film and the Si electrode underneath. The intermediates can be effectively suppressed by raising their nucleation barrier via reducing the film thickness from 24 to 2.5 nm. The homogeneous amorphous TiO 2 -film-coated Si photoanodes achieved more than 500 h of PEC water oxidation at a steady photocurrent density of over 30 mA·cm –2 .

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Comment on “A novel and facile decay path of Criegee intermediates by intramolecular insertion reactions via roaming transition states” [J. Chem. Phys. 142 , 124312 (2015)]

In a recent article, Nguyen et al. report the discovery of a new decomposition pathway for small Criegee intermediates. Prior to this publication, the lowest known pathway for decomposition of Criegee intermediates involved ring closure to form a dioxirane followed by ring opening to make a methylenebisoxy biradical, which can then isomerize or decompose via a variety of pathways. The new pathway reported by Nguyen et al. involves the partial cleavage of the OO bond of the Criegee intermediate forming nascent H 2 CO and O( 1 D) fragments. The O( 1 D) fragment then orbits around the H 2 CO fragment in a manner reminiscent of roaming radical reactions and eventually inserts into one of the CH bonds of the H 2 CO fragment leading directly to formic acid. The authors report saddle point geometries for this pathway determined at a number of different levels of theory in which the distance between the oxygen atom and the formaldehyde varies from 2.0 Å to 3.5 Å depending on the level of theory. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations are found to give more compact, planar saddle point structures while coupled cluster, CCSD(T), and complete active space self consistent field, CASSCF, optimizations lead to looser saddle point structures in which the O atom orbits above the plane of the H 2 CO fragment.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Four-Carbon Criegee Intermediate from Isoprene Ozonolysis: Methyl Vinyl Ketone Oxide Synthesis, Infrared Spectrum, and OH Production

The reaction of ozone with isoprene, one of the most abundant volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere, produces three distinct carbonyl oxide species (RR'COO) known as Criegee intermediates: formaldehyde oxide (CH 2 OO), methyl vinyl ketone oxide (MVK-OO), and methacrolein oxide (MACR-OO). The nature of the substituents (R,R' = H, CH 3 , CH＝CH 2 ) and conformations of the Criegee intermediates control their subsequent chemistry in the atmosphere. In particular, unimolecular decay of MVK-OO is predicted to be the major source of hydroxyl radicals (OH) in isoprene ozonolysis. Our study reports the initial laboratory synthesis and direct detection of MVK-OO through reaction of a photolytically generated, resonance-stabilized monoiodoalkene radical with O 2 . MVK-OO is characterized utilizing infrared (IR) action spectroscopy, in which IR activation of MVK-OO with two quanta of CH stretch at ca. 6000 cm –1 is coupled with ultraviolet detection of the resultant OH products. MVK-OO is identified by comparison of the experimentally observed IR spectral features with theoretically predicted IR absorption spectra. For syn -MVK-OO, the rate of appearance of OH products agrees with the unimolecular decay rate predicted using statistical theory with tunneling. This validates the hydrogen atom transfer mechanism and computed transition-state barrier (18.0 kcal mol –1 ) leading to OH products. Theoretical calculations display a further roaming pathway between the separating radical fragments, which results in other products. Master equation modeling yields a thermal unimolecular decay rate for syn -MVK-OO of 33 s –1 (298 K, 1 atm). For anti -MVK-OO, theoretical exploration of several unimolecular decay pathways predicts that isomerization to dioxole is the most likely initial step to products.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗