Particle Size Analyzer to Develop Metal-Fuel Technologies

拟议的颗粒粒度分析仪(PSA)将支持一系列关于金属作为清洁和可持续的零碳燃料燃烧的研究。我们在McGill的团队正在倡导一种新型的金属燃料循环，在这种循环中，金属燃料与空气一起燃烧以产生热量，这些热量可以通过热机转换为电力或动力，或者与水一起燃烧以按需生产氢气。这一概念承诺为大量清洁、低碳能源的储存和贸易提供一种手段，用于广泛的交通和发电应用，可以为加拿大带来经济和环境回报。*PSA还将支持我们世界领先的金属火焰物理学基础研究，该研究得到了几项正在进行的研究拨款的支持，其中包括与加拿大和欧洲航天局合作的一个项目，该项目利用抛物线飞行器和探空火箭研究微重力条件下金属火焰的燃烧。这项基础工作使我们的团队能够在金属燃烧和金属火焰的国际研究的前沿开展工作。*所要求的PSA将使我们能够了解颗粒大小及其分布的影响，这对我们正在进行的基础科学实验和清洁能源技术开发工作都是至关重要的。在燃烧实验中，颗粒大小是一个关键参数，因为它影响着反应速率、燃烧速度、燃烧时间和停留时间。对于颗粒收集系统，要捕获的颗粒大小是主要的设计标准。PSA将由超过8名HQP使用，在他们进行尖端研究和开发新的清洁能源技术时改善他们的培训经验。**

The proposed particle-size analyser (PSA) will support a range of studies on the combustion of metals as clean and sustainable zero-carbon fuels. Our group at McGill is championing a novel metal-fuel cycle, where metal fuels are burned with air to produce heat, that can be converted to electrical or motive power with heat engines, or be burned with water to produce hydrogen on demand. This concept promises to provide a means for the storage and trade of large quantities of clean, low-carbon energy for a wide range of transportation and power-generation applications, which can bring economic and environmental returns to Canada. ******The PSA will also support our world-leading fundamental research on the physics of metal flames, which is supported by several ongoing research grants including a collaborative project with the Canadian and European Space Agencies to study the combustion of metal flames in microgravity conditions using parabolic-flight aircraft and sounding rockets. This fundamental work has enabled our group to work at the cutting edge of international research on metal combustion and metal flames.******The requested PSA will enable us to understand the influence of particle size and its distribution, a critical property for both the fundamental-science experiments and clean-energy technology development efforts that we are undertaking. The particle size is a critical parameter in combustion experiments as it has an effect on reaction rates, burning velocity, burn time and residence time. For the particle collection system, the particle size to be captured is the primary design criteria. The PSA will be used by over 8 HQP, improving their training experience as they undertake cutting-edge research and develop novel clean-energy technologies. **