Solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) can address the safety issue of organic electrolyte in rechargeable lithium batteries. Unfortunately, neither polymer nor ceramic SSEs used alone can meet the demand although great progress has been made in the past few years. Composite solid electrolytes (CSEs) composed of flexible polymers and brittle but more conducting ceramics can take advantage of the individual system for solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs). CSEs can be largely divided into two categories by the mass fraction of the components: “polymer rich” (PR) and “ceramic rich” (CR) systems with different internal structures and electrochemical properties. This review provides a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of recent advances and limitations of both PR and CR electrolytes, with a special focus on the ion conduction path based on polymer-ceramic interaction mechanisms and structural designs of ceramic fillers/frameworks. In addition, it highlights the PR and CR which bring the leverage between the electrochemical property and the mechanical property. Moreover, it further prospects the possible route for future development of CSEs according to their rational design, which is expected to accelerate the practical application of SSLMBs.

There is nothing illogical in the concept that hydrates are easily formed in oil and gas pipelines owing to the low-temperature and high-pressure environment, although requiring the cooperation of flow rate, water content, gas-liquid ratio, and other specific factors. Therefore, hydrate plugging is a major concern for the hydrate slurry pipeline transportation technology. In order to further examine potential mechanisms underlying these processes, the present paper listed and analyzed the significant research efforts specializing in the mechanisms of hydrate blockages in the liquid-rich system, including oil-based, water-based, and partially dispersed systems (PD systems), in gathering and transportation pipelines. In addition, it summarized the influences of fluid flow and water content on the risk of hydrate blockage and discussed. In general, flow rate was implicated in the regulation of blockage risk through its characteristic to affect sedimentation tendencies and flow patterns. Increasing water content can potentiate the growth of hydrates and change the oil-water dispersion degree, which causes a transition from completely dispersed systems to PD systems with a higher risk of clogging. Reasons of diversity of hydrate plugging mechanism in oil-based system ought to be studied in-depth by combining the discrepancy of water content and the microscopic characteristics of hydrate particles. At present, it is increasingly necessary to expand the application of the hydrate blockage formation prediction model in order to ensure that hydrate slurry mixed transportation technology can be more maturely applied to the natural gas industry transportation field.

Gasoline compression ignition (GCI) combustion faces problems such as high maximum pressure rise rate (MPRR) and combustion deterioration at high loads. This paper aims to improve the engine performance of the GCI mode by regulating concentration stratification and promoting fuel-gas mixing by utilizing the double main-injection (DMI) strategy. Two direct injectors simultaneously injected gasoline with an octane number of 82.7 to investigate the energy ratio between the two main-injection and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) on combustion and emissions. High-load experiments were conducted using the DMI strategy and compared with the single main-injection (SMI) strategy and conventional diesel combustion. The results indicate that the DMI strategy have a great potential to reduce the MPRR and improve the fuel economy of the GCI mode. At a 10 bar indicated mean effective pressure, increasing the main-injection-2 ratio (R_m-2) shortens the injection duration and increases the mean mixing time. Optimized R_m-2 could moderate the trade-off between the MPRR and the indicated specific fuel consumption with both reductions. An appropriate EGR should be adopted considering combustion and emissions. The DMI strategy achieves a highly efficient and stable combustion at high loads, with an indicated thermal efficiency (ITE) greater than 48%, CO and THC emissions at low levels, and MPRR within a reasonable range. Compared with the SMI strategy, the maximum improvement of the ITE is 1.5%, and the maximum reduction of MPRR is 1.5 bar/°CA.

Advances in natural gas-fired technologies have deepened the coupling between electricity and gas networks, promoting the development of the integrated electricity-gas network (IEGN) and strengthening the interaction between the active-reactive power flow in the power distribution network (PDN) and the natural gas flow in the gas distribution network (GDN). This paper proposes a day-ahead active-reactive power scheduling model for the IEGN with multi-microgrids (MMGs) to minimize the total operating cost. Through the tight coupling relationship between the subsystems of the IEGN, the potentialities of the IEGN with MMGs toward multi-energy cooperative interaction is optimized. Important component models are elaborated in the PDN, GDN, and coupled MMGs. Besides, motivated by the non-negligible impact of the reactive power, optimal inverter dispatch (OID) is considered to optimize the active and reactive power capabilities of the inverters of distributed generators. Further, a second-order cone (SOC) relaxation technology is utilized to transform the proposed active-reactive power scheduling model into a convex optimization problem that the commercial solver can directly solve. A test system consisting of an IEEE-33 test system and a 7-node natural gas network is adopted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheduling method. The results show that the proposed scheduling method can effectively reduce the power losses of the PDN in the IEGN by 9.86%, increase the flexibility of the joint operation of the subsystems of the IEGN, reduce the total operation costs by $32.20, and effectively enhance the operation economy of the IEGN.

Metal, as the indispensable material, is functioning the society from technology to the environment. Niobium (Nb) is considered a unique earth metal as it is related to many emerging technologies. The increasing economic growth exerts an increasing pressure on supply, which leads to its significance in the economic sector. However, few papers have addressed Nb sustainability, which forms the scope of this paper in order to start the process of Nb market forecasting based on some previous data and some assumptions. Therefore, this paper will discuss different thoughts in material substitution and the substance flow of Nb throughout a static flow using Nb global data to have a better understanding of the process of Nb from production to end of life. This shall lead to the identification of the market needs to determine its growth which is around 2.5% to 3.0%. Moreover, due to China’s huge Nb consumption which comes from the continuous development that is happening over the years, it will also briefly mention the Nb situation as well as its growth which according to statistics will grow steadily till 2030 by a rate of 4.0% to 6.0%. The results show that there should be some enhancement to Nb recycling potentials out of steel scrap. In addition, there should be more involvement of Nb in different industries as this would lead to less-used materials which can be translated to less environmental impact.

In this paper, a fault-tolerant control method for an input-series output-parallel modular grid-tied pulse-width modulation (PWM) current source inverter is proposed to address the most commonly seen single symmetrical gate-commutated thyristor (SGCT) open-circuit fault problems. This method actively offsets the neutral point of the current space vector to ensure a sinusoidal output of the grid current, and it can achieve the upper limit power of the inverter under the condition of a single SGCT open-circuit fault. In addition, an active damping control method based on grid harmonic current feedback is proposed after analyzing the influence of the transformer ferromagnetic resonance caused by the neutral point offset on the power quality of the grid current. It has been demonstrated that the proposed method effectively suppresses the resonance caused by the transformer and the modified modulation, improving the grid current’s power quality.

CO₂ in natural gas (NG) is prone to condense directly from gas to solid or solidify from liquid to solid at low temperatures due to its high triple point and boiling temperature, which can cause a block of equipment. Meanwhile, CO₂ will also affect the calorific value of NG. Based on the above reasons, CO₂ must be removed during the NG liquefaction process. Compared with conventional methods, cryogenic technologies for CO₂ removal from NG have attracted wide attention due to their non-polluting and low-cost advantages. Its integration with NG liquefaction can make rational use of the cold energy and realize the purification of NG and the production of by-product liquid CO₂. In this paper, the phase behavior of the CH₄-CO₂ binary mixture is summarized, which provides a basis for the process design of cryogenic CO₂ removal from NG. Then, the detailed techniques of design and optimization for cryogenic CO₂ removal in recent years are summarized, including the gas-liquid phase change technique and the gas-solid phase change technique. Finally, several improvements for further development of the cryogenic CO₂ removal process are proposed. The removal process in combination with the phase change and the traditional techniques with renewable energy will be the broad prospect for future development.

Thermal energy storage has been a pivotal technology to fill the gap between energy demands and energy supplies. As a solid-solid phase change material, shape-memory alloys (SMAs) have the inherent advantages of leakage free, no encapsulation, negligible volume variation, as well as superior energy storage properties such as high thermal conductivity (compared with ice and paraffin) and volumetric energy density, making them excellent thermal energy storage materials. Considering these characteristics, the design of the shape-memory alloy based the cold thermal energy storage system for precooling car seat application is introduced in this paper based on the proposed shape-memory alloy-based cold thermal energy storage cycle. The simulation results show that the minimum temperature of the metal boss under the seat reaches 26.2 °C at 9.85 s, which is reduced by 9.8 °C, and the energy storage efficiency of the device is 66%. The influence of initial temperature, elastocaloric materials, and the shape-memory alloy geometry scheme on the performance of car seat cold thermal energy storage devices is also discussed. Since SMAs are both solid-state refrigerants and thermal energy storage materials, hopefully the proposed concept can promote the development of more promising shape-memory alloy-based cold and hot thermal energy storage devices.

The intermediate fluid vaporizer (IFV), different from other liquefied natural gas (LNG) vaporizers, has many advantages and has shown a great potential for future applications. In this present paper, studies of IFV and its heat transfer characteristics in the LNG vaporization unit E2 are systematically reviewed. The research methods involved include theoretical analysis, experimental investigation, numerical simulation, and process simulation. First, relevant studies on the overall calculation and system design of IFV are summarized, including the structural innovation design, the thermal calculation model, and the selection of different intermediate fluids. Moreover, studies on the fluid flow and heat transfer behaviors of the supercritical LNG inside the tubes and the condensation heat transfer of the intermediate fluid outside the tubes are summarized. In the thermal calculations of the IFV, the selections of the existing heat transfer correlations about the intermediate fluids are inconsistent in different studies, and there lacks the accuracy evaluation of those correlations or comparison with experimental data. Furthermore, corresponding experiments or numerical simulations on the cryogenic condensation heat transfer outside the tubes in the IFV need to be further improved, compared to those in the refrigeration and air-conditioning temperature range. Therefore, suggestions for further studies of IFV are provided as well.

The control of combustion is a hot and classical topic. Among the combustion technologies, electric-field assisted combustion is an advanced techno-logy that enjoys major advantages such as fast response and low power consumption compared with thermal power. However, its fundamental principle and impacts on the flames are complicated due to the coupling between physics, chemistry, and electromagnetics. In the last two decades, tremendous efforts have been made to understand electric-field assisted combustion. New observations have been reported based on different combustion systems and improved diagnostics. The main impacts, including flame stabilization, emission reduction, and flame propagation, have been revealed by both simulative and experimental studies. These findings significantly facilitate the application of electric-field assisted combustion. This brief review is intended to provide a comprehensive overview of the recent progress of this combustion technology and further point out research opportunities worth investigation.

Waste biomass-supported magnetic solid acids have particular advantages in catalyst separation. First, a novel magnetic carbonaceous catalyst was synthesized from waste garlic peel (GP) via in situ impregnation before conducting carbonization at 450–600°C and sulfonation at 105°C. The physical and chemical properties of the synthesized catalysts were characterized. It was found that the magnetism of the catalyst increased with the carbonization temperature. The optimized catalyst, carbonized at 600°C (C600-S), possessed an excellent magnetization value of 12.5 emu/g, with a specific surface area of 175.1 m²/g, a pore volume of 0.16 cm³/g, and an acidic property of 0.74 mmol/g -SO₃H density. By optimizing the esterification conditions to produce biodiesel, an oleic acid conversion of 94.5% was achieved at w(catalyst dosage) = 10% (w is mass fraction), a molar ratio of n(methanol): n(oleic acid) = 10: 1 (n is the amount of substance), and a reaction for 4 h at 90°C. Further, for catalyst regeneration, it was found that sulfuric acid treatment was more effective for improving the esterification activity than solvent washing, with which a conversion of more than 76% was achieved after the third run.

Electrocaloric refrigeration represents an alternative solid-state cooling technology that has the potential to reach the ultimate goal of achieving zero-global-warming potential, highly efficient refrigeration, and heat pumps. To date, both polymeric and inorganic oxides have demonstrated giant electrocaloric effect as well as respective cooling devices. Although both polymeric and inorganic oxides have been identified as promising cooling methods that are distinguishable from the traditional ones, they still pose many challenges to more practical applications. From an electrocaloric material point of view, electrocaloric nanocomposites may provide a solution to combine the beneficial effects of both organic and inorganic electrocaloric materials. This article reviews the recent advancements in polymer-based electrocaloric composites and the state-of-the-art cooling devices operating these nanocomposites. From a device point of view, it discusses the existing challenges and potential opportunities of electrocaloric nanocomposites.

A two-stage gas-coupled Stirling/pulse tube refrigerator (SPR), whose first and second stages respectively involve Stirling and pulse tube refrigeration cycles, is a very promising spaceborne refrigerator. The SPR has many advantages, such as a compact structure, high reliability, and high performance, and is expected to become an essential refrigerator for space applications. In research regarding gas-coupled regenerative refrigerator, the energy flow distribution between the two stages, and optimal phase difference between the pressure wave and volume flow, are two critical parameters that could widely influence refrigerator performance. The effects of displacer displacement on the pressure wave, phase difference, acoustic power distribution, and inter-stage cooling capacity shift of the SPR have been investigated experimentally. Notably, to obtain the maximum first-stage cooling capacity, an inflection point in displacement exists. When the displacer displacement is larger than the inflection point, the cooling capacity could be distributed between the first and second stages. In the present study, an SPR was designed and manufactured to work between the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen temperatures, which can be used to cool small-scale zero boil-off systems and space detectors. Under appropriate displacer displacement, the SPR can reach a no-load cooling temperature of 15.4 K and obtain 2.6 W cooling capacity at 70 K plus 0.1 W cooling capacity at 20 K with 160 W compressor input electric power.

This paper investigates and discusses the interaction stability issues of a wind farm with weak grid connections, where the wind turbines (WTs) are controlled by a new type of converter control strategy referred to as the voltage source (VS) control. The primary intention of the VS control method is to achieve the high-quality inertial response capability of a single WT. However, when it is applied to multiple WTs within a wind farm, its weak-grid performance regarding the stability remains concealed and needs to be clarified. To this end, a frequency domain model of the wind farm under the VS control is first developed. Based on this model and the application of a stability margin quantification index, not only the interactions between the wind farm and the weak grid but also those among WTs will be systematically assessed in this paper. A crucial finding is that the inertial response of VS control has negative impacts on the stability margin of the system, and the dominant instability mode is more related to the interactions among the WTs rather than the typical grid-wind farm interaction. Based on this knowledge, a stabilization control strategy is then proposed, aiming for stability improvements of VS control while fulfilling the demand of inertial responses. Finally, all the results are verified by time-domain simulations in power systems computer aided design/electromagnetic transients including DC(PSCAD/EMTDC).

Since the catalytic activity of present nickel-based synthetic selenide is still to be improved, MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂ was synthesized on nickel foam (NF) (MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂/NF) by introducing a molybdenum source. After the molybdenum source was introduced, the surface of the catalyst changed from a single-phase structure to a multi-phase structure. The catalyst surface with enriched active sites and the synergistic effect of MoSe₂ and Ni₃Se₂ together enhance the hydrogen evolution reactions (HER), the oxygen evolution reactions (OER), and electrocatalytic total water splitting activity of the catalyst. The overpotential of the MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂/NF electrocatalyst is only 259 mV and 395 mV at a current density of 100 mA/cm² for HER and OER, respectively. MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂/NF with a two-electrode system attains a current density of 10 mA/cm² at 1.60 V. In addition, the overpotential of HER and OER of MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂/NF within 80000 s and the decomposition voltage of electrocatalytic total water decomposition hardly changed, showing an extremely strong stability. The improvement of MoSe₂-Ni₃Se₂/NF catalytic activity is attributed to the establishment of the multi-phase structure and the optimized inoculation of the multi-component and multi-interface.

The effect of oxygen vacancies on the adsorption and activation of CO₂ on the surface of different phases of ZrO₂ is investigated by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The calculations show that the oxygen vacancies contribute greatly to both the adsorption and activation of CO₂. The adsorption energy of CO₂ on the c-ZrO₂, t-ZrO₂ and, m-ZrO₂ surfaces is enhanced to 5, 4, and 3 folds with the help of oxygen vacancies, respectively. Moreover, the energy barrier of CO₂ dissociation on the defective surfaces of c-ZrO₂, t-ZrO₂, and m-ZrO₂ is reduced to 1/2, 1/4, and 1/5 of the perfect surface with the assistance of oxygen vacancies. Furthermore, the activation of CO₂ on the ZrO₂ surface where oxygen vacancies are present, and changes from an endothermic reaction to an exothermic reaction. This finding demonstrates that the presence of oxygen vacancies promotes the activation of CO₂ both kinetically and thermodynamically. These results could provide guidance for the high-efficient utilization of CO₂ at an atomic scale.

Solid chemisorption technologies for hydrogen storage, especially high-efficiency hydrogen storage of fuel cells in near ambient temperature zone defined from − 20 to 100°C, have a great application potential for realizing the global goal of carbon dioxide emission reduction and vision of carbon neutrality. However, there are several challenges to be solved at near ambient temperature, i.e., unclear hydrogen storage mechanism, low sorption capacity, poor sorption kinetics, and complicated synthetic procedures. In this review, the characteristics and modification methods of chemisorption hydrogen storage materials at near ambient temperature are discussed. The interaction between hydrogen and materials is analyzed, including the microscopic, thermodynamic, and mechanical properties. Based on the classification of hydrogen storage metals, the operation temperature zone and temperature shifting methods are discussed. A series of modification and reprocessing methods are summarized, including preparation, synthesis, simulation, and experimental analysis. Finally, perspectives on advanced solid chemisorption materials promising for efficient and scalable hydrogen storage systems are provided.

Wind power (WP) is considered as one of the main renewable energy sources (RESs) for future low-carbon and high-cost-efficient power system. However, its low inertia characteristic may threaten the system frequency stability of the power system with a high penetration of WP generation. Thus, the capability of WP participating in the system frequency regulation has become a research hotspot. In this paper, the impact of WP on power system frequency stability is initially presented. In addition, various existing control strategies of WP participating in frequency regulation are reviewed from the wind turbine (WT) level to the wind farm (WF) level, and their performances are compared in terms of operating principles and practical applications. The pros and cons of each control strategy are also discussed. Moreover, the WP combing with energy storage system (ESS) for system frequency regulation is explored. Furthermore, the prospects, future challenges, and solutions of WP participating in power system frequency regulation are summarized.

In this work, using fractured shale cores, isothermal adsorption experiments and core flooding tests were conducted to investigate the performance of injecting different gases to enhance shale gas recovery and CO₂ geological storage efficiency under real reservoir conditions. The adsorption process of shale to different gases was in agreement with the extended-Langmuir model, and the adsorption capacity of CO₂ was the largest, followed by CH_4, and that of N₂ was the smallest of the three pure gases. In addition, when the CO₂ concentration in the mixed gas exceeded 50%, the adsorption capacity of the mixed gas was greater than that of CH₄, and had a strong competitive adsorption effect. For the core flooding tests, pure gas injection showed that the breakthrough time of CO₂ was longer than that of N₂, and the CH₄ recovery factor at the breakthrough time () was also higher than that of N₂. The of CO₂ gas injection was approximately 44.09%, while the of N₂ was only 31.63%. For CO₂/N₂ mixed gas injection, with the increase of CO₂ concentration, the increased, and the for mixed gas CO₂/N₂ = 8:2 was close to that of pure CO₂, about 40.24%. Moreover, the breakthrough time of N₂ in mixed gas was not much different from that when pure N₂ was injected, while the breakthrough time of CO₂ was prolonged, which indicated that with the increase of N₂ concentration in the mixed gas, the breakthrough time of CO₂ could be extended. Furthermore, an abnormal surge of N₂ concentration in the produced gas was observed after N₂ breakthrough. In regards to CO₂ storage efficiency (), as the CO₂ concentration increased, also increased. The of the pure CO₂ gas injection was about 35.96%, while for mixed gas CO₂/N₂ = 8:2, was about 32.28%.

High cost has undoubtedly become the biggest obstacle to the commercialization of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), in which Pt-based catalysts employed in the cathodic catalyst layer (CCL) account for the major portion of the cost. Although non-precious metal catalysts (NPMCs) show appreciable activity and stability in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), the performance of fuel cells based on NPMCs remains unsatisfactory compared to those using Pt-based CCL. Therefore, most studies on NPMC-based fuel cells focus on developing highly active catalysts rather than facilitating oxygen transport. In this work, the oxygen transport behavior in CCLs based on highly active Fe-N-C catalysts is comprehensively explored through the elaborate design of two types of membrane electrode structures, one containing low-Pt-based CCL and NPMC-based dummy catalyst layer (DCL) and the other containing only the NPMC-based CCL. Using Zn-N-C based DCLs of different thickness, the bulk oxygen transport resistance at the unit thickness in NPMC-based CCL was quantified via the limiting current method combined with linear fitting analysis. Then, the local and bulk resistances in NPMC-based CCLs were quantified via the limiting current method and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. Results show that the ratios of local and bulk oxygen transport resistances in NPMC-based CCL are 80% and 20%, respectively, and that an enhancement of local oxygen transport is critical to greatly improve the performance of NPMC-based PEMFCs. Furthermore, the activity of active sites per unit in NPMC-based CCLs was determined to be lower than that in the Pt-based CCL, thus explaining worse cell performance of NPMC-based membrane electrode assemblys (MEAs). It is believed that the development of NPMC-based PEMFCs should proceed not only through the design of catalysts with higher activity but also through the improvement of oxygen transport in the CCL.

The coal-to-liquid coupled with carbon capture, utilization, and storage technology has the potential to reduce CO₂ emissions, but its carbon footprint and cost assessment are still insufficient. In this paper, coal mining to oil production is taken as a life cycle to evaluate the carbon footprint and levelized costs of direct-coal-to-liquid and indirect-coal-to-liquid coupled with the carbon capture utilization and storage technology under three scenarios: non capture, process capture, process and public capture throughout the life cycle. The results show that, first, the coupling carbon capture utilization and storage technology can reduce CO₂ footprint by 28%–57% from 5.91 t CO₂/t·oil of direct-coal-to-liquid and 24%–49% from 7.10 t CO₂/t·oil of indirect-coal-to-liquid. Next, the levelized cost of direct-coal-to-liquid is 648–1027 $/t of oil, whereas that of indirect-coal-to-liquid is 653–1065 $/t of oil. When coupled with the carbon capture utilization and storage technology, the levelized cost of direct-coal-to-liquid is 285–1364 $/t of oil, compared to 1101–9793 $/t of oil for indirect-coal-to-liquid. Finally, sensitivity analysis shows that CO₂ transportation distance has the greatest impact on carbon footprint, while coal price and initial investment cost significantly affect the levelized cost of coal-to-liquid.

Production of hydrogen, one of the most promising alternative clean fuels, through catalytic conversion from fossil fuel is the most technically and economically feasible technology. Catalytic conversion of natural gas into hydrogen and carbon is thermodynamically favorable under atmospheric conditions. However, using noble metals as a catalyst is costly for hydrogen production, thus mandating non-noble metal-based catalysts such as Ni, Co, and Cu-based alloys. This paper reviews the various hydrogen production methods from fossil fuels through pyrolysis, partial oxidation, autothermal, and steam reforming, emphasizing the catalytic production of hydrogen via steam reforming of methane. The multicomponent catalysts composed of several non-noble materials have been summarized. Of the Ni, Co, and Cu-based catalysts investigated in the literature, Ni/Al₂O₃ catalyst is the most economical and performs best because it suppresses the coke formation on the catalyst. To avoid carbon emission, this method of hydrogen production from methane should be integrated with carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). Carbon capture can be accomplished by absorption, adsorption, and membrane separation processes. The remaining challenges, prospects, and future research and development directions are described.

With the continuous growth of the population and the improvement of production, the shortage of freshwater has plagued many countries. The use of novel technologies such as desalination to produce fresh water on a large scale has become inevitable in the world. Hydrate-based desalination (HBD) technology has drawn an increasing amount of attention due to its mild operation condition and environmental friendliness. In this paper, literature on hydrate-based desalination is comprehensively analyzed and critically evaluated, focuses on experimental progress in different hydrate formers that have an impact on thermodynamics and dynamics in hydrate formation. Besides, various porous media promotion is investigated. Besides, the hydrate formation morphology and hydrate crystal structure with different hydrate formers are analyzed and compared. Moreover, molecular dynamic simulation is discussed to further understand microscopic information of hydrate formation. Furthermore, simulations of the HBD process by considering the energy consumption are also investigated. In conclusion, the hydrated based desalination is a potential technology to get fresh water in a sustainable way.

With multiple microgrids (MGs) integrated into power distribution networks in a distributed manner, the penetration of renewable energy like photovoltaic (PV) power generation surges. However, the operation of power distribution networks is challenged by the issues of multiple power flow directions and voltage security. Accordingly, an efficient voltage control strategy is needed to ensure voltage security against ever-changing operating conditions, especially when the network topology information is absent or inaccurate. In this paper, we propose a novel data-driven voltage profile improvement model, denoted as system-wide composite adaptive network (SCAN), which depends on operational data instead of network topology details in the context of power distribution networks integrated with multiple MGs. Unlike existing studies that realize topology identification and decision-making optimization in sequence, the proposed end-to-end model determines the optimal voltage control decisions in one shot. More specifically, the proposed model consists of four modules, Pre-training Network and modified interior point methods with adversarial networks (Modified IPMAN) as core modules, and discriminator generative adversarial network (Dis-GAN) and Volt convolutional neural network (Volt-CNN) as ancillary modules. In particular, the generator in SCAN is trained by the core modules in sequence so as to form an end-to-end mode from data to decision. Numerical experiments based on IEEE 33-bus and 123-bus systems have validated the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method.

Exploring cathode materials that combine excellent cycling stability and high energy density poses a challenge to aqueous Zn-ion hybrid supercapacitors (ZHSCs). Herein, polyaniline (PANI) coated boron-carbon-nitrogen (BCN) nanoarray on carbon cloth surface is prepared as advanced cathode materials via simple high-temperature calcination and electrochemical deposition methods. Because of the excellent specific capacity and conductivity of PANI, the CC@BCN@PANI core-shell nanoarrays cathode shows an excellent ion storage capability. Moreover, the 3D nanoarray structure can provide enough space for the volume expansion and contraction of PANI in the charging/discharging cycles, which effectively avoids the collapse of the microstructure and greatly improves the electrochemical stability of PANI. Therefore, the CC@BCN@PANI-based ZHSCs exhibit superior electrochemical performances showing a specific capacity of 145.8 mAh/g, a high energy density of 116.78 Wh/kg, an excellent power density of 12 kW/kg, and a capacity retention rate of 86.2% after 8000 charge/discharge cycles at a current density of 2 A/g. In addition, the flexible ZHSCs (FZHSCs) also show a capacity retention rate of 87.7% at the current density of 2 A/g after 450 cycles.

Intelligent power systems can improve operational efficiency by installing a large number of sensors. Data-based methods of supervised learning have gained popularity because of available Big Data and computing resources. However, the common paradigm of the loss function in supervised learning requires large amounts of labeled data and cannot process unlabeled data. The scarcity of fault data and a large amount of normal data in practical use pose great challenges to fault detection algorithms. Moreover, sensor data faults in power systems are dynamically changing and pose another challenge. Therefore, a fault detection method based on self-supervised feature learning was proposed to address the above two challenges. First, self-supervised learning was employed to extract features under various working conditions only using large amounts of normal data. The self-supervised representation learning uses a sequence-based Triplet Loss. The extracted features of large amounts of normal data are then fed into a unary classifier. The proposed method is validated on exhaust gas temperatures (EGTs) of a real-world 9F gas turbine with sudden, progressive, and hybrid faults. A comprehensive comparison study was also conducted with various feature extractors and unary classifiers. The results show that the proposed method can achieve a relatively high recall for all kinds of typical faults. The model can detect progressive faults very quickly and achieve improved results for comparison without feature extractors in terms of F1 score.

China’s aluminum (Al) production has released a huge amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As one of the biggest country of primary Al production, China must mitigate its overall GHG emission from its Al industry so that the national carbon neutrality target can be achieved. Under such a background, the study described in this paper conducts a dynamic material flow analysis to reveal the spatiotemporal evolution features of Al flows in China from 2000 to 2020. Decomposition analysis is also performed to uncover the driving factors of GHG emission generated from the Al industry. The major findings include the fact that China’s primary Al production center has transferred to the western region; the primary Al smelting and carbon anode consumption are the most carbon-intensive processes in the Al life cycle; the accumulative GHG emission from electricity accounts for 78.14% of the total GHG emission generated from the Al industry; China’s current Al recycling ratio is low although the corresponding GHG emission can be reduced by 93.73% if all the primary Al can be replaced by secondary Al; and the total GHG emission can be reduced by 88.58% if major primary Al manufacturing firms are transferred from Inner Mongolia to Yunnan. Based upon these findings and considering regional disparity, several policy implications are proposed, including promotion of secondary Al production, support of clean electricity penetration, and relocation of the Al industry.

Free-piston engine generators (FPEGs) can be applied as decarbonized range extenders for electric vehicles because of their high thermal efficiency, low friction loss, and ultimate fuel flexibility. In this paper, a parameter-decoupling approach is proposed to model the design of an FPEG. The parameter-decoupling approach first divides the FPEG into three parts: a two-stroke engine, an integrated scavenging pump, and a linear permanent magnet synchronous machine (LPMSM). Then, each of these is designed according to predefined specifications and performance targets. Using this decoupling approach, a numerical model of the FPEG, including the three aforementioned parts, was developed. Empirical equations were adopted to design the engine and scavenging pump, while special considerations were applied for the LPMSM. A finite element model with a multi-objective genetic algorithm was adopted for its design. The finite element model results were fed back to the numerical model to update the LPMSM with increased fidelity. The designed FPEG produced 10.2 kW of electric power with an overall system efficiency of 38.5% in a stable manner. The model provides a solid foundation for the manufacturing of related FPEG prototypes.

The introduction of a practical solar cell by Bell Laboratory, which had an efficiency of approximately 6%, signified photovoltaic technology as a potentially viable energy source. Continuous efforts have been made to increase power conversion efficiency (PCE). In the present review, the advances made in solar cells (SCs) are summarized. Material and device engineering are described for achieving enhanced light absorption, electrical properties, stability and higher PCE in SCs. The strategies in materials and coating techniques for large area deposition are further elaborated, which is expected to be helpful for realizing high-efficiency SCs. The methods of light-harvesting in SCs via anti-reflecting coatings, surface texturing, patterned growth of nanostructure, and plasmonics are discussed. Moreover, progress in mechanical methods that are used for sun tracking are elaborated. The assistance of the above two protocols in maximizing the power output of SCs are discussed in detail. Finally, further research efforts needed to overcome roadblocks in commercialization were highlighted and perspectives on the future development of this rapidly advancing field are offered.