ABSTRACT This study presents the design and construction of an experimental system for evaluating the thermal performance of heat pipes, using sintered‐wick heat pipes charged with CuO nanofluids. The device used in this study is a sintered‐wick heat pipe, in which the liquid return is driven by capillary forces within the porous wick structure. The effects of nanoparticle concentration and fill ratio on heat pipe performance were systematically investigated. A comparative analysis was performed between CuO nanofluid heat pipes and conventional deionised water heat pipes, focusing on thermal resistance, single heat pipe heat transport capacity and thermal start‐up performance. The results demonstrate that the effective thermal conductivity of a single heat pipe increases with increasing nanoparticle concentration, with an optimal liquid fill ratio of 40%–50% for heat pipes charged with 1.5 wt.% CuO nanofluid. Furthermore, under identical heating power, CuO nanofluid heat pipes exhibit a significantly faster thermal response time, with start‐up time reduced by approximately 1–2 s compared with those of conventional heat pipes.

ABSTRACT A thermosetting in situ curing resin microsphere system has been developed. It has controllable phase transition time and particle size. This system addresses the current challenges of low strength, shear susceptibility, and short phase transition time in polymer microsphere blockers and thermoplastic particle blockers. This system is in liquid form under low temperature conditions on the ground and has a relatively good flowability, with an average viscosity of 6.7 mPa·s between 50°C and 90°C. The liquid‐phase microspheres in the system solution can transform into solid particles after a certain period at high reservoir temperatures, thereby sealing the pore spaces. The impact of resin, crosslinking agents, emulsifiers, dispersants, and auxiliary dispersants on the system performance was studied. The optimal formula for the system was determined to be 12% cashew phenol modified epoxy resin + 4.5% oil‐based imidazole + 0.45% DMP‐30 + 4% closed‐type hydrophilic aliphatic polyisocyanate + 4% OP‐10 + 0.6% silica sol. Experimental results showed that the phase transition time of the system at 90°C is 8 h, with the median particle size of the produced resin microspheres being 41 μm and a microsphere yield of 98.1%. Mechanical property tests and indoor sand‐packed core displacement tests revealed that the microsphere particles produced by this system have a crushing rate of 5.57% under a pressure of 50 MPa and exhibit good sealing ability for high‐permeability channels, with a sealing rate exceeding 90%. The system shows promising potential for wide application.

ABSTRACT Silver‐doped cerium oxide nanoparticles (Ag/CeO 2 NPs) were synthesized using Ricinus communis seed extract as a bio‐derived fuel in a solution combustion method. The combustion reaction, carried out at 450°C with AgNO 3 and (NH 4 ) 2 [Ce (NO 3 ) 6 ] as metal precursors, produced CeO 2 and Ag/CeO 2 NPs. Their structure and morphology were estimated by P‐XRD and TEM, which confirmed the formation of cerianite with cubic fluorite CeO 2 crystal structure, while SEM revealed a porous morphology characteristic of combustion‐driven gas evolution. EDS revealed the presence of Ce, O, and Ag in the Ag/CeO 2 NPs. Optical studies, including UV–Vis and PL, showed that Ag incorporation narrowed the band gap and improved charge‐carrier separation, contributing to enhanced visible‐light activity. XPS analysis verified the successful incorporation of Ag species into the CeO 2 lattice. Among the investigated NPs, the 0.3 wt% Ag/CeO 2 sample exhibited the lowest PL intensity, indicating improved charge‐carrier separation, which was further supported by its high quantum yield (0.789). These results correlate with its enhanced photocatalytic activity. The nanomaterials were evaluated for dye degradation, Cr (VI) reduction, photocatalytic H 2 evolution, and antibacterial activity. The influences of pH, catalyst dosage, dye concentration, light intensity, radical scavengers, and recyclability were also systematically assessed. Overall, the study presents a sustainable synthesis approach for high‐performance Ag/CeO 2 NPs with broad potential in environmental remediation and antimicrobial applications.

ABSTRACT Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVdF) is commonly used as a binder material in the preparation of anode or cathode electrode slurries for commercial Li‐ion batteries (LIBs). High‐cost PVdF binder generally requires the use of toxic and environmentally unfriendly N ‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP) as a solvent for dissolution. Transitioning to electrode synthesis with low‐cost and nontoxic aqueous binders provides a breakthrough toward achieving fully sustainable and environmentally friendly LIBs. Considering these considerations, graphite anodes with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), carboxymethyl cellulose/styrene‐butadiene rubber (CMC/SBR), and polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) as novel water‐soluble binders are manufactured, analysed, and compared with graphite anode with the conventional PVdF binder. To comprehensively evaluate the performance of the relevant binders, the synthesized electrodes undergo various electrochemical analyses and material characterization techniques. Electrochemical analyses demonstrated that the graphite anode electrode with PVA binder delivered the highest initial discharge capacity of 412 mAh/g with a Coulombic efficiency of 91% and the highest discharge capacity of 359 mAh/g after 200 cycles at 70 mA/g with superior capacity retention and rate performance of 292 mAh/g at 700 mA/g. These results highlight the potential of PVA to improve electrode performance, making it a functional and eco‐friendly water‐soluble binder option for LIBs.

ABSTRACT Conductive pitch‐based porous carbon materials were synthesized and systematically investigated as high‐performance electrode materials for supercapacitors. Petroleum‐derived pitch was thermally treated and chemically activated using KOH and NaOH at different pitch: activating agent molar ratio (1:1, 1:2, and 1:4) to optimize the pore structure and electrical conductivity. The resulting activated carbons exhibited large specific surface areas (up to 1686 m 2 g −1 ) and high micropore fractions (84–90%). Among them, the KOH‐activated sample prepared at a 1:2 ratio displayed the highest specific capacitance of 112.6 F g −1 at 10 mV s −1 in a three‐electrode system using an Ag/AgCl reference electrode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy revealed that the NaOH‐activated sample at a 1:4 ratio showed the lowest charge‐transfer resistance (2.7 Ω) due to its superior conductivity (51 S cm −1 ), whereas the KOH‐activated 1:2 sample exhibited enhanced ion diffusion attributed to its high micropore fraction. These results indicate that micropore fraction and conductivity, rather than total surface area alone, predominantly govern the electrochemical behavior of pitch‐derived carbon electrodes. This study demonstrates that pitch‐based porous carbon is a cost‐effective and structurally tunable material platform for next‐generation energy storage devices.

ABSTRACT To explore the influence of typical wall deformation structure in the scrubbing‐cooling tube on the liquid film, this paper studied the liquid film flow behavior on the riblet walls with representative riblet radii and compared them with the flat wall. Under different liquid film Reynolds numbers ( Re l = 8.3 × 10 3 ~ 3.14 × 10 4 ), the liquid film velocity and thickness on different wall conditions were measured by ultrasonic Doppler velocimetry (UDV). The results show that the riblet wall will cause reflux of the liquid, which plays a thickening effect and slows down the thinning of the liquid film. The riblet wall changes the force distribution and extends the residence time of the liquid film. Combined with average liquid film thickness data on different wall surfaces, a prediction model of average liquid film thickness on the riblet wall can be established, with an error within ±20%.

ABSTRACT Natural gas decarbonization is a crucial processing step. In this study, the snow separation technology for removal of carbon dioxide in natural gas based on CO 2 desublimation characteristics was introduced. The phase equilibrium calculation of CH 4 ‐CO 2 and N 2 ‐CO 2 system was carried out by using cubic equations of states (EOSs), and identified the SRK‐EOS as the most accurate model under low‐temperature, low‐pressure conditions ( T < 250 K, p < 3.2 MPa) for N 2 ‐CO 2 system and the PR‐EOS for CH 4 ‐CO 2 system. Analysis of the CH 4 ‐CO 2 system's frosting characteristics defined the operational window for CO 2 desublimation, leading to the development of a novel experimental separation system, and the process consistently reduced the CO 2 content in the top product gas to below 3% (molar fraction) under pressures of 0.7–1.2 MPa. This study conducted numerical simulation on the CO 2 desublimation process, which cannot be tested experimentally. Numerical simulations revealed that the nucleation rate and supersaturation increased with higher system pressure and feed CO 2 mole fraction, accelerating CO 2 ice crystal growth and consumption of gas‐phase CO 2 . Conversely, higher temperatures exhibited an opposing effect. These results confirm the technical feasibility of the CO 2 desublimation process for efficient natural gas decarbonization.

ABSTRACT In order to reflect the actual production situation more comprehensively and optimize the production cost, this paper solves the short‐term scheduling optimization problem for a single pipeline containing high melting point crude oil. Based on the refining plan given by the upper layer, a multi‐objective optimization model with high melting point crude oil constraints is established to optimize five common cost objectives in the scheduling process. For the model characteristics, the NSGA‐III algorithm is used to solve the problem. The reference points of the algorithm can be flexibly set according to the number of objectives, which allows for more efficient coverage of the high‐dimensional objective space. The results show that the NSGA‐III algorithm performs better in the solution performance, and the hypervolume (HV) indicator is improved by more than 10% compared with other algorithms. Comparison of the solution sets obtained using the NSGA‐III algorithm with the existing literature shows that the optimization results on different objectives are improved by 4.6%–13.3%, and the comprehensive cost index is significantly reduced, which proves the effectiveness of the method. This study provides a more cost‐effective solution to the practical scheduling problem in refineries by incorporating high melting point crude oil constraints and improving the efficiency of the algorithm.

ABSTRACT During underground excavation, coal dust generation threatens miners' health and damages ecosystems. Its generation is directly influenced by cutting pick performance and inherent coal properties. This study investigates the effects of coal properties and cutting parameters on coal fragmentation characteristics from a mesoscopic perspective, elucidating the dust generation mechanism during coal cutting. The results demonstrate that after normalizing the elastic modulus, both the damage range and the crack count in coal samples exhibit a decreasing trend with increasing confining pressure and uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), while the proportion of tensile cracks continues to decline. Correspondingly, dust generation follows an identical decreasing trend under these conditions. As the attack angle increases, the internal damage range, the crack count, and dust generation of coal samples first decrease and then increase, whereas the proportion of tensile cracks initially rises before decreasing. With greater cutting depth and larger pick tip angles, the damage range, the crack count, and the dust generation progressively increase, while the proportion of tensile cracks gradually decreases. The variation patterns of cutting force and specific energy (SE) obtained through numerical simulation are largely consistent with laboratory experimental findings. This study thus provides crucial insights for reducing coal dust and enhancing safety through optimized cutting strategies.

ABSTRACT The hydrogen storage in metal hydrides is an imminent, innovative, and environmentally beneficial approach that offers benefits for example, an ample amount of storage and elasticity in terms of thermodynamics necessary for hydrogen absorption and release. By successfully integrating temperature management with hydrogen storage procedures, thermal energy storage (TES) systems offer a way to improve the energy efficiency and economic viability of metal hydride‐based storage. This review presents an overview of metal hydride materials utilized for storing hydrogen, emphasizing their thermodynamic and kinetic characteristics. This study examines TES materials, focusing on sensible, latent, and thermochemical energy storage options, particularly those functioning at temperatures suitable for extensively researched hydride systems. An analysis of lanthanum and magnesium‐based metal hydride is presented. Additionally, the study presents a comprehensive review that yields additional combinations of magnesium‐based and lanthanum‐based metal hydrides, elucidating their properties, which encompass the ranges of absorption and desorption temperatures, as well as gravimetric storage capacity. The study concludes that the kinetics of both absorption and desorption are enhanced; in the case of magnesium‐based metal hydrides at elevated temperatures (MgH 2 –7 wt% Fe−7 wt% HCS and MgH 2 @Ni‐MOF) exhibit the highest absorption and desorption temperatures. This study provides a greater understanding to researchers in developing efficient materials for hydrogen storage and can identify patterns in various alloys, including the influence of alloy composition on thermodynamic properties and can screen alloys with desirable properties for various applications.