Solar energy has received considerable attention over the past few decades, due to its importance as a green and renewable energy. Low-cost solar-grade silicon production is critical for the widespread use of solar cells. Conventional routes (e.g., modified Siemens process: chlorosilane and hot filament) have still dominated the production of solar-grade silicon. The metallurgical route offers benefits in the productivity and cost, but efficient removal of boron is one of the most daunting challenges in front of us. This paper reviews thermodynamic and kinetic properties (solubility, diffusivity, diffusion coefficients, mass transfer rate, and activity coefficient) of boron and recent research topics (slag treatment, solvent refining, gas injection, plasma treatment, and acid leaching) for boron removal.@en

Atmospheric ammonia has been hazardous to the environment and human health for decades. Current inventories are usually constructed in a bottom-up manner and subject to uncertainties and incapable of reproducing the spatiotemporal characteristics of ammonia emission. Satellite measurements, for example, Infrared Atmospheric Sounder Interferometer (IASI) and Cross-Track Infrared Sounder, which provide global coverage of ammonia distribution, have gained popularity in ammonia emission estimation through data assimilation methods. However, satellite-based emission inversion studies on China are limited. In this study, we propose a four-dimensional ensemble variational-based ammonia emission inversion system to optimize ammonia emissions in China. It was developed by assimilating the IASI ammonia retrievals onboard Meteorological Operational satellite A and B into a chemical transport model Goddard Earth Observing System Chemical model (GEOS-Chem). Monthly inversion experiments were conducted in April, July, and October 2016 to test the performance. The inversion result indicated that the prior inventory from the MEIC model captured ammonia spreads in general; however, it heterogeneously underrated the emission intensity. The increments obtained in the assimilation were as high as 50% in North, East, and Northwest China. The posterior emission inventory presented a regional emission flux consistent with relevant studies. Driven by the optimized source estimate, GEOS-Chem provides superior results than using the prior in the evaluation of the assimilated IASI retrievals and the surface ammonia concentration measured by the ground-based Ammonia Monitoring Network in China.@en

Nanometer-sized hematite was prepared via a two-step process. In the first step, FeSO4·7H2O was oxidized to Fe2(SO4)3 by oxygen in an acidic solution. In the second step, the Fe2(SO4)3 was reduced to nanosize hematite with sulfur vapor at 550 °C. The hematite has good thermal stability up to 500 °C and good colloid stability in water-based paint. Its properties satisfy the requirements of the international standard ISO 1248-A-I-1-a for an iron oxide red pigment. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]@en

For both the waste treatment of large quantities of blast furnace (BF) slag and carbon dioxide (CO2) that are discharged in ironworks, mineral carbonation by BF slag was proposed in this decade. However, it has not been widely used due to its high energy consumption and low production efficiency. In this study, a microwave roasting method was employed to mineralize CO2 with BF slag, and the process parameters for the sulfation and energy consumption were investigated. A mixture of BF slag and recyclable ammonium sulfate [(NH4)2SO4] (mass ratio, 1 : 2) was roasted in a microwave tube furnace, and then leached with distilled water at a solid : liquid ratio of 1 : 3 (g mL-1). Under the optimized experiment conditions (T = 340 °C, holding time = 2 min), the best sulfation ratios of calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), aluminum (Al), and titanium (Ti) were 93.3%, 98.3%, 97.5%, and 80.4%, respectively. Compared with traditional roasting, the production efficiency of this process was more than 10 times higher, and the energy consumption for mineralizing 1 kg of CO2 could be reduced by 40.2% after simulation with Aspen Plus v8.8. Moreover, 236.1 kg of CO2 could be mineralized by one ton of BF slag, and a series of by-products with economic value could also be obtained. The proposed process offers an energy-efficient method with high productivity and good economy for industrial waste treatment and CO2 storage.@en

To improve the boron-removal efficiency of metallurgical-grade silicon by increasing the reaction rate, a combined method with the 30 mol pct CaO-23.3 mol pct SiO2-46.7 mol pct CaCl2 slag treatment and ammonia injection at 1723 K to 1823 K was proposed. For 1 hour and at 1823 K, the maximum removal efficiency of boron was 98 pct, and the final boron concentration in silicon decreased to 1.5 ppmw by the present method without the introduction of the iron catalyst. A kinetic model was also established to clarify the reaction mechanism and rate-limiting steps of this complicated boron-removal process. In this model, the rate-limiting step is the mass transfer of boron oxide at the interface between the slag and silicon phase.@en