Sudheendra Dhulipala's Blog
Posted by Sudheendra Dhulipala
With an aim to improve the efficiency of the present turbines and hence reduce the consumption of fuel, a UK company Numerics Technology has designed a turbine which gives 20 per cent more efficiency than normal turbines.
By this improvement in turbine design, not just the automotive market, but also the marine, road and rail market benefit. While the normal turbines function under constant pressure, the rotary internal combustion turbine or RICT functions under constant volume.
The benefits of using these turbines are:
a) They have fewer parts as compared to piston engines. So the cost of maintenance and the cost of manufacture are less.
b) Since they contain fewer parts, they function for a longer period without problems and their lifespan is more.
c) The currently used piston engines have only an efficiency of about 25 per cent. These new RICT engines have an efficiency of nearly 50 to 60 per cent.
d) When the efficiency is greater, the fuel consumption is reduced and so is the problem of pollution.
This turbine is different from the normal turbines in the sense that it uses much higher temperatures and pressures for functioning normally. It can also run on a wide range of liquid and gaseous fuels.
The design of the turbines makes it safe to use with all kinds of fuels, removing any fears of vehicle parts getting thrown out.
The engine is presently suitable for running at low speeds only, but soon it will be developed to run as the same speed as the other vehicles. Hence, both the needs for greater energy and better fuel efficiency will be solved.
Posted by Sudheendra Dhulipala
Researchers at the Wake Forest University have succeeded in manufacturing solar cells of plastic which have an efficiency of slightly over 6 per cent.
The problem presently used solar cells have is that they are made of silicon, which is an extremely bulky and inflexible. They are also very expensive. In order to counter these problems, researchers have to working hard to create cells out of inexpensive organic materials that can be even wound around circular surfaces.
Up until now, the cells made of plastic could only provide an efficiency of up to 3 per cent. This was way too low as compared to the 12 per cent efficiency that silicon cells provide.
Great strides have been made in research relating to solar cells. Clearly, this progress can be linked to the urgent need to find an alternate source of energy that is cheaper and pollution free.
Solar energy is suited for most purposes but the problem with this energy is that the efficiency of devices used to harness it was very low. Hence, people now are working to build devices that capture this energy in a better way.
Another advantage of the plastic solar cells is that they are extremely light. Hence, the structure of the body or place where these are used need not be reinforced to make them capable of holding these cells, like for silicon panels.
By using solar cells, the sunlight is converted into electricity and is used for various purposes. With the emergence of more efficient plastic cells, even smaller automobiles have become capable of harnessing this energy.
Posted by Sudheendra Dhulipala
Scientists at the Rutherford Appleton laboratory of pulsed neutron and muon source ISIS are in the process of finding newer ways to hold hydrogen fuel for vehicles.
At present, hydrogen fuel requires extremely large tanks for holding the fuel required for supplying energy to hydrogen vehicles. Moreover, the fuel also has to be compressed before being stored in these tanks. Due to this reason, a large amount of fuel has to be carried, and a greater quantity than usual has to be used in providing energy to move the heavier vehicle.
But now, scientists at the facility are trying to study potential lightweight materials which are capable of storing hydrogen at the atomic level. The requirements of this material are that it should absorb and release hydrogen quickly and should also be stable at a temperature of around 100°C. The materials should also have lesser tendency to leak out.
The materials selected should be stable under various pressures and at various temperatures. The material should also have enough volume to expand and hold the hydrogen atoms. At present, tests are being carried out on alloys of underweight metals like lithium, boron or magnesium. Another potential metal is zeolite, a highly porous metal.
Since hydrogen is being stored at the atomic level now, it is held both by physical and chemical bonds. According to the scientists, the bonds need to be just strong enough to prevent the gas from leaking out. If the bond is too weak, the gas leaks out easily and if it is too strong, there will be a difficulty in releasing the hydrogen gas properly.
Posted by Sudheendra Dhulipala
Recent advances in the field of chemical engineering have aided the development of new treatments for various diseases. One among these diseases is cancer. Anticancer drugs have been a reason for concern in the recent days. The solubility of these drugs is low, which makes the process of adding solvents to them mandatory. These solvents dilute the drugs, reduce their potency and even make them toxic.
Researchers from the ULCA’s California Research Institute working in coordination with Jonsson Cancer center have created a new drug delivery system that overcomes these problems. By slight manipulation of silica based nanoparticles to increase their delivering capacity, insoluble drugs can easily be delivered to the cancer cells for treatment.
The anticancer drug on which this test was performed is camptothecin. This study was headed by Fuyu Tamanoi and Jeffery Zink of the ULCA. In this method, insoluble anticancer drugs were embedded into the pores of nanoparticle materials and transported to the cancer affected cells to have an immediate impact on them. Hence, these particles are being used as vehicles to transport the drug to the infected cells.
The invention of the new drug delivery method creates hope for the success of treatment with camptothecin, which is the most effective of all the anticancer drugs. This drug is insoluble in its original form and hence had to be mixed with solvents to increase its effect on infected cells.
With the newly invented process, this drug can be transported to the targeted organs or cells through mesoporous silica nanoparticles. With further manipulation, the release of these drugs from the nanoparticle surface can also be controlled.
Posted by Sudheendra Dhulipala
Many drivers unintentionally pollute the atmosphere with their inefficient driving. For all such drivers, a new device is being designed which will tell them how to correct their driving so as to make it more efficient and pollution-free.
This device is being developed by a team led by Brunel University in the UK along with Sussex Police Authority, the Institute for Advanced Motorists, Transport for London, Nissan and TRW Conekt.
The aim of this project is to bring changes in the driver behavior over a period of time. Using this device regularly will help drivers modify their driving styles to minimize sudden breaking and sudden acceleration actions. By doing so, pollution from traffic will be reduced and driving will become safer.
The device will give immediate feedback to the driver on his display panel. Data can also be collected by the sensors and be reviewed after the journey.
The team will review different driving styles which are fuel-efficient and also safe. A prototype model of the device will be developed and put for testing in real driving conditions.
This device can prove extremely beneficial given that the number of accidents have been increasing rapidly in the recent days. And then, there is also the issue of green house gas emissions and global warming.
By making the drivers switch to a more efficient method of driving, the researchers believe that they can reduce congestion on roads and also reduce anxiety during driving. This project is scheduled to start in July and will involve a number of partners playing different roles in its completion.
