Worcester Polytechnic Institute

About: Worcester Polytechnic Institute is a education organization based out in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Computer science & Population. The organization has 6270 authors who have published 12704 publications receiving 332081 citations. The organization is also known as: WPI.

Highly Active Iridium/Iridium–Tin/Tin Oxide Heterogeneous Nanoparticles as Alternative Electrocatalysts for the Ethanol Oxidation Reaction

Abstract: Ethanol is a promising fuel for low-temperature direct fuel cell reactions due to its low toxicity, ease of storage and transportation, high-energy density, and availability from biomass. However, the implementation of ethanol fuel cell technology has been hindered by the lack of low-cost, highly active anode catalysts. In this paper, we have studied Iridium (Ir)-based binary catalysts as low-cost alternative electrocatalysts replacing platinum (Pt)-based catalysts for the direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC) reaction. We report the synthesis of carbon supported Ir(71)Sn(29) catalysts with an average diameter of 2.7 ± 0.6 nm through a "surfactant-free" wet chemistry approach. The complementary characterization techniques, including aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy equipped with electron energy loss spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, are used to identify the "real" heterogeneous structure of Ir(71)Sn(29)/C particles as Ir/Ir-Sn/SnO(2), which consists of an Ir-rich core and an Ir-Sn alloy shell with SnO(2) present on the surface. The Ir(71)Sn(29)/C heterogeneous catalyst exhibited high electrochemical activity toward the ethanol oxidation reaction compared to the commercial Pt/C (ETEK), PtRu/C (Johnson Matthey) as well as PtSn/C catalysts. Electrochemical measurements and density functional theory calculations demonstrate that the superior electro-activity is directly related to the high degree of Ir-Sn alloy formation as well as the existence of nonalloyed SnO(2) on surface. Our cross-disciplinary work, from novel "surfactant-free" synthesis of Ir-Sn catalysts, theoretical simulations, and catalytic measurements to the characterizations of "real" heterogeneous nanostructures, will not only highlight the intriguing structure-property correlations in nanosized catalysts but also have a transformative impact on the commercialization of DEFC technology by replacing Pt with low-cost, highly active Ir-based catalysts.

An Overview of the Status and Challenges of CO2 Storage in Minerals and Geological Formations

Abstract: Since the Industrial Revolution, anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have grown exponentially, accumulating in the atmosphere and leading to global warming. According to the IPCC (IPCC Special Report 2018), atmospheric warming should be less than 2 ℃ to avoid the most serious consequences associated with climate change. This goal can be achieved in part by reducing CO2 emissions, together with capturing and sequestering CO2 from point sources. The most mature storage technique is sequestration in deep saline aquifers. In addition, CO2 can be mineralized and sequestered in solid form by various techniques: ex-situ, surficial and in situ mineralization. Ex situ and surficial approaches may produce valuable products while mitigating environmental hazards. In-situ mineralization uses ultramafic and mafic geological formations for permanent, solid storage. A portfolio that limits warming to less than 2 ℃ by 2100 will include avoiding CO2 emissions and removal of CO2 from air. Regardless of the specific mix of approaches, it will be essential to permanently sequester tens of billions of tons of CO2. Maximizing the potential of all of these storage technologies will help to meet global climate goals. The research agenda published by the National Academy of Science (NASEM 2019) calls for about $1 billion over a 10-20 year time period to advance deployment of CO2 sequestration in deep sedimentary reservoirs at the GtCO2/yr scale and develop CO2 mineralization at the MtCO2/yr scale. This overview study presents the advantages, drawbacks, cost, and CO2 storage potential of each technique, the current and future projects in this domain, and potential sequestration options in geologic formation around the world.

Bench to batch: advances in plant cell culture for producing useful products.

Abstract: Despite significant efforts over nearly 30 years, only a few products produced by in vitro plant cultures have been commercialized. Some new advances in culture methods and metabolic biochemistry have improved the useful potential of plant cell cultures. This review will provide references to recent relevant reviews along with a critical analysis of the latest improvements in plant cell culture, co-cultures, and disposable reactors for production of small secondary product molecules, transgenic proteins, and other products. Some case studies for specific products or production systems are used to illustrate principles.

Multiple material marching cubes algorithm

Abstract: The accurate reconstruction of three-dimensional (3D) boundary surfaces from two-dimensional (2D) medical images is a crucial procedure in most applications of computational biomedical engineering. This paper addresses an innovative system that efficiently reconstructs accurate, multiple-material, 3D surface meshes from 2D medical images. It is based on an enhanced marching cubes algorithm, the multi-material marching cubes algorithm (M3C), which extracts boundary surfaces between different materials within one sweep of the image stack in an integrated manner. The continuity and integrity of the surfaces are ensured with this robust algorithm. Surface adjustment algorithms were also revised to adapt to the multiple-material nature of the system. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A unified additive model approach for evaluating inefficiency and congestion with associated measures in DEA

Abstract: This paper develops a necessary and sufficient condition for the presence of (input) congestion. Relationships between the two congestion methods presently available are discussed. The equivalence between Fare et al. [12] , [13] and Brockett et al. [2] hold only when the law of variable proportions is applicable. It is shown that the work of Brockett et al. [2] improves upon the work of Fare et al. [12] , [13] in that it not only (1) detects congestion but also (2) determines the amount of congestion and, simultaneously, (3) identifies factors responsible for congestion and distinguishes congestion amounts from other components of inefficiency. These amounts are all obtainable from non-zero slacks in a slightly altered version of the additive model — which we here further extend and modify to obtain additional details. We also generate a new measure of congestion to provide the basis for a new unified approach to this and other topics in data envelopment analysis (DEA).