North China Electric Power University Research Articles

Comparison of Nitrogen Activation on Trinuclear Niobium and Tungsten Sulfide Clusters Nb3Sn and W3Sn (n=0–3): A DFT Study

The front cover artwork is provided by Prof. Xun-Lei Ding's group at North China Electric Power University (NCEPU). The image shows the cleavage of the triple bond of a dinitrogen molecule on trinuclear metal clusters with sulfide ligands, which is the critical step in nitrogen reduction reactions (NRR). Read the full text of the Research Article at 10.1002/cphc.202200124.

Guest Editorial: Situational awareness of integrated energy systems

Guest Editorial: Situational awareness of integrated energy systems

A Study on PBL’s Application in New Standard College English Integrated Course 3

PBL (Project-Based Learning) is a student-centered approach in which learning is organized by means of projects. Students are required to explore problems with their teammates collaboratively and to display their output project. In this study, PBL has been conducted in three classes of North China Electric Power University (Baoding) for one semester to probe whether PBL serves as an effective way to combine explicit teaching content with implicit ideological and political education. Based on a questionnaire and in-depth interview, the results show that PBL enables value education to exert the impact on students’ development.

The Existence of Entire Positive Solutions to Monge-Amp`ere Type Equations

Aims/ Objectives: In this paper, we study the Monge-Amp`ere type equation det D2u + α∆u = p(|x|)f(u)(x ∈ Rn). 
 In the previous articles, the equation with Monge-Amp`ere operator or Laplace operator has been studied extensively. However, the research about the combination of two kinds of operator is scarce. We would like do some research on this topic. We obtain a sufficient condition of the existence of entire positive solutions for the equation. 
 Study Design: Study on the existence of solutions. 
 Place and Duration of Study: Department of Mathematics and Physics, North China Electric Power University, September 2019 to present. 
 Methodology: We prove the existence of the solution by constructing Euler’s break line, combining the idea of transformation and the method of mathematical analysis. Results: We obtain a sufficient condition of the existence of entire positive solutions for the equation.
 Conclusion: We prove the existence of entire positive solutions to Monge-Amp`ere type equation det D2u + α∆u = p(|x|)f(u)(x ∈ Rn) and obtain the sufficient condition for the existence of solutions.

Preface

The 2021 5th International Workshop on Renewable Energy and Development (IWRED 2021) was be held in the form of offline conference in Chengdu, China during April 23-25, 2021. IWRED 2021 focused on the renewable energy and development. The applications of renewable energy and development to such domains as Geothermal energy, Power system technology, Sustainability in process industries and Energy Security and Clean Use et al. It is a technical congregation where the latest theoretical and technological advances are presented and discussed. We expect that the conference and its publications will be a trigger for further related research and technology improvements in this important subject.The conference model was divided into four sessions, including oral presentations, keynote speeches, invited speeches and Q&A. In the first part, some scholars, whose submissions were selected as the excellent papers, were given 15 minutes to perform their oral presentations one by one. Then in the second and three part, keynote speakers and invited speakers were each allocated 30-45 minutes to hold their speeches. Finally, in the Q&A part, all participants were invited to join in academic groups to discuss and explore the academic issues after the presentations. The discussion session will last 30 minutes.More than 120 participants attended the conference. We are greatly honored to have invited Prof. Yinhui Zuo, from Chengdu University of Technology, China to serve as our Conference Chair. On this conference, three keynote speakers and an invited speaker had delivered their research works in area of Renewable Energy and Development. The first keynote speakers were Prof. Molang Cai, from North China Electric Power University, China. She delivered a wonderful speech: Strategies for Stability of Perovskite Solar Cells: Dynamical Regulation and Defects Control. The next keynote speakers were Prof. Shuihua Tang, from Southwest Petroleum University, China. She presented her latest research: Strategies for improving catalytic activity and stability of electrocatalysts in proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Prof. Tao Zhu, our third keynote speakers, from China university of mining and technology (Beijing), China, made a wonderful speech: Research on High-efficiency Utilization Technology of Coal Mine Ventilation Gas (Methane). In the invited speeches part, we were glad to invited Prof. Peigao Duan, from Xi’ an Jiaotong University, China as our invited speaker. He delivered a speech on Hydro-upgrading of algal biocrude in tetralin for the production of high-quality liquid fuel: process intensification. We would like to especially thank all the keynote speakers who shared their latest research results with the audience.IWRED 2021 is to bring together innovative academics and industrial experts in the field of Renewable Energy and Development to a common forum. Therefore, we compiled a lot of excellent papers featuring the latest advanced studies on the following topics: Renewable Energy, Sustainable Development and other related topics. All the papers have been through rigorous review and process to meet the requirements of International publication standard.We would like to acknowledge all of those who have supported IWRED 2021. Each individual and institutional help were very important for the success of this conference. Especially we would like to thank the organizing committee for their valuable advices in the organization and helpful peer review of the papers.The Organizing Committee of IWRED 2021Committee member, Conference Chairs, Conference Co-Chair, Conference Technical Committees are available in this pdf.

An Investigation into the Attitudes and Perceptions of Non-English Major Undergraduate Students and Their Teachers in Six Chinese Universities Towards the Development of Speaking Skills and Implications of the Findings for the Classroom

This dissertation aims to examine the perspectives of non-English major students and their teachers towards the development of speaking skills in six Chinese universities. The study begins with a detailed literature review of the features of effective speaking. Then, Chinese L2 learners’ difficulties in learning English, specifically with regard to developing speaking skills, are discussed. Based on the difficulties identified, methods for improving speaking skills, including both teaching strategies and actual classroom activities are suggested. A survey is conducted by using questionnaires and interviews. To ensure maximum representation of their respective groups, 100 non-English major students and 4 English teachers with differing academic levels, based at six Chinese universities (China Youth University for Political Sciences, North China Electric Power University, Tianjin University of Finance & Economics, Henan University, Shandong University, Northeastern University) were selected from different geographic regions. In addition, the interviews with student participants are analyzed objectively in order to check whether their perceptions of their English proficiency match reality. Data is analyzed and recommendations on how to develop speaking skills for non-English major students will be made. The major findings of the study are briefly summarized as follows: the students and teachers who participated in the survey hold positive attitudes towards the teaching of speaking skills; teachers and students both had unrealistic expectations of their counter parts; although the students did not recognize it, pronunciation is a key cause of students’ problems with spoken English. To some extent, it is necessary to teach spoken grammar because it can affect fluency; Listening materials can be an effective resource, which can contribute to teaching speaking skills; Many other recommendations about how to develop speaking skills can be found in the discussion.

Simulation of Electric Field Distribution along Insulator Surface in Polluted Environments

In recent years, more than 50% of the cities in the inland area of our country have suffered from moderate pollution. It can affect the distribution of electric field along the surface of insulator and the pollution characteristics of its surface area, even endanger the safe operation of transmission lines. This paper takes the XSP-160 porcelain three umbrella insulator under the action of 0–±30 kV DC voltage as the research object, and establishes the physical model of the insulator; uses COMSOL software to simulate the electric field of the insulator. The comparison with the results of the wind tunnel test of North China Electric Power University verifies the rationality of the simulation method. In view of the medium pollution environment which often occurs in the inland area, the force of the polluted particles deposited on the insulator under 110 kV DC voltage was analyzed. The distribution characteristics of the electric field along the surface in the clean and three kinds of pollution environment (light, medium and heavy) were simulated and compared. The results showed that: 1) In the moderate pollution environment, the influence of fluid drag force on the movement of polluted particles is greater at the initial stage (0.28–0.33 s); at the late stage (after 0.33 s), the influence of the electric field force begins to increase, and gradually plays a major role in the process of fouling. 2) In the three different polluted environments, the potential along the surface of each umbrella skirt of the insulator increases non-linearly with the increasing of the pollution concentration, and there are apparent potential inflection points near b and l. 3) The pollution particle concentration has the most obvious influence on the electric field along the low-voltage umbrella skirt, whose potential distortion rate can be up to 220 times in the heavy polluted environment.

Analysis of Learning Strategy on the Improvement of the Listening Comprehension Ability of Non-English Majors in Engineering Colleges from the Perspective of CSE: A Case Study of NCEPU

In today’s world of increasingly frequent global cooperation and communication, English has become an indispensable communication tool. In the process of communication, listening comprehension skills are especially important to have an oral output. For a long time, the public English courses in engineering colleges and universities don’t have enough listening course settings for non-English majors, which cannot meet the needs of non-English learners since they also have to obtain cutting-edge scientific information, such as from relevant scientific lectures. In 2018, China’s Standards of English Language Ability (CSE) was officially released, which provides a comprehensive, clear and detailed description of the characteristics of each listening comprehension level(Guo Xiaoting, 2018). In December 2019, the scale was officially docked with TOEFL scores, highlighting the scale’s role as an ability assessment standard for English learners (Qiu Chenhui, 2019). In this paper, a questionnaire survey was conducted on the English listening comprehension ability of non-English majors of North China Electric Power University, using CSE as the assessment standard. It tries to draw out existing questions and proposes relevant strategies for practical research, and then test these strategies’ effectiveness through Eviews software.

Preface

After successfully held for seven consecutive year, the current 2020 8th International Conference on Advanced Manufacturing Technology and Materials Engineering (AMTME 2020) took place in Chengdu, China during October 23-25, 2020.A key aspect of this conference is the strong mixture of academia and industry. This allows for the free exchange of ideas and challenges faced by these two key stakeholders and encourage future collaboration between members of these groups. AMTME 2020 is to bring together innovative academics and industrial experts in the field of advanced manufacturing technology and materials engineering to a common forum. The primary goal of the conference is to promote research and developmental activities in advanced manufacturing technology and materials engineering and another goal is to promote scientific information interchange between researchers, developers, engineers, students, and practitioners working all around the world. The conference will be held every year to make it an ideal platform for people to share views and experiences in advanced manufacturing technology and materials engineering and related areas.The conference model was divided into two sessions, including oral presentations and keynote speeches. In the first part, some scholars, whose submissions were selected as the excellent papers, were given 15 minutes to perform their oral presentations one by one. Then in the second part, keynote speakers were each allocated 30-45 minutes to hold their speeches. More than 40 participants attended the meeting. We were greatly honored to have invited Prof. Xiaodong Wang from North China Electric Power University to serve as our Conference Co-Chairmen. In the keynote presentations part, we invited two professors as our keynote speakers. Prof. Guozhe Meng, our first keynote speakers, from School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University, engaged in the research of corrosion and protection of materials in the marine environment. The last keynote speaker was A. Prof. Wenbo Liu, from School of Mechanical Engineering, Sichuan University, China. His research area is nanostructured metal materials for energy conversion and storage.The proceedings are a compilation of the accepted papers and represent an interesting outcome of the conference. Topics include but are not limited to the following areas: Advanced Manufacturing Technology, New Materials and Advanced Materials, Advanced Design Technology, Manufacturing Systems and Automation and other related topics. All the papers have been through rigorous review and process to meet the requirements of International publication standard.We are really grateful to the International/National advisory committee, keynote speakers, session chairs, organizing committee members, student volunteers and administrative assistance of the management section of University, including accounts section, digital media and publication house. Also, we are thankful to all the authors for contributing a large number of papers in the conference, because of which the conference became a story of success. It was the quality of their presentations and their passion to communicate with the other participants that really make this conference series a great success.The Organizing Committee of AMTME 2020List of Committee member are available in the pdf.

Committees

NOTITLE. General Co-Chairs Prof. Dr. Ravindran Balasubramani, Kyonggi University, South KoreaDr. Muhammad Wakil Shahzad, Northumbria University, United KingdomProf. Dr. Aihong Fu, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China International Technical Program Committee Prof. Qingsheng Wang, Texas A&M University, College Station, USAProf. Subodh Kumar Maiti, Indian Institute of Technology, IndiaPh.D Research Scholar Muhammad Qasim, Hanynag University, South KoreaDr. Taesic Kim, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, USAProf. & Dr. Yagang Zhang, North China Electric Power University, ChinaDr. Kakarla Raghava Reddy, The University of Sydney, AustraliaProf. Karthikeyan Palaniswamy, PSG College of Technology, IndiaDr. Sergei V. Jargin, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, RussiaDr. Asmaa Nasser Mohamed Eid, Pan African University, EgyptDr. Xingwei Li, Jiangsu University, ChinaDr. Anil Kumar Misra, Sikkim University, IndiaDr. Mahdieh Abolhasani, Semnan University, IranDr. Chuck Chuan NG, Quest International University Perak, MalaysiaProf. Ezhilarasan Devaraj, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, IndiaDr. Xiaowei Li, Shanghai University, ChinaDr. Surajbhan Sevda, National Institute of Technology Warangal, IndiaDr. Ali Koolivand, Arak University of Medical Sciences, IranMr. G. R. Abhijith, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, IndiaDr. Palaniappan Sivasankar, Periyar University, IndiaDr. Bárbara Maria Borges Ribeiro, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), BrazilDr. Duong Duc La, Institute of Chemistry and Materials, VietnamDr. Asirat Teshome Tolosa, Debre tabor University, EthiopiaProf. & Dr. Bharat Bhusan Patnaik, Fakir Mohan University, IndiaDr. Naveed Ahmed, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, PakistanDr. ALA’A H. AL-MUHTASEB, Sultan Qaboos University, OmanDr. YOGESH KUMAR VERMANI, SGGS World University, IndiaDr. Korai M Safar, Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, PakistanDr. Shuvashish Behera, Vasantdada Sugar Institute, IndiaDr. Safaa A Kadhum, University of Al-Qadissiayh, IraqDr. Gonghuan FANG, Chinese Academy of Sciences, ChinaMrs. Hanna Radziuk, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, PolandDr. Suman Jagatee, Utkal University, India

Observation and Reflection of English Intensive Reading Classroom from the Perspective of Multimodal Discourse Analysis

The application of Multimodal Discourse Analysis to language teaching classroom adapts to the requirements put forward by the multimodality environment in modern social life, since various multimodal teaching strategies are employed to enhance students' language skills. However, problems exist in the efficient collocation between various modes. Classroom observation is employed to collect the data, and the framework proposed by Zhang Delu (2016) is followed to conduct the Multimodal Discourse Analysis of the Intensive Reading class of the juniors of English majors in North China Electric Power University. Finally, the problems from the aspects of cultural context, contextual context, interactive context, modal and media are identified, and the suggestions to improve language teaching practice are raised accordingly in terms of teachers' employment of modality and the teaching design.

Neutronics benchmark analysis of the EBR-II SHRT-45R with SAC-3D

Neutronics calculation model plays a very important role in applying a specific simulation of a reactor system. The accuracy of the reactor core neutronics calculation results can hugely affect the final results of the reactor system analysis. At present, system analysis codes applied two kinds of methods to conduct the neutronics calculation. In normal conditions, the point kinetics model can get a satisfying result. But in the large scale reactor core or in several accident conditions in which the reactor core power distribution varies greatly in space, the point kinetics model may have a result with a large error caused by ignoring the spacing effect. To solve this problem, a system code with a 3D neutronics calculation model inside is required. SAC is a system analysis code with different versions which is developed by North China Electric Power University. In the SAC-3D version, we apply the hexagonal nodal expansion method for the diffusion equation to conduct the core flux (power) distribution calculation. In this paper, we prepared the calculation model of the EBR-II SHRT-45R reactor core with the neutronics calculation module integrated with SAC-3D and do the neutronics benchmark analysis. By comparing with the benchmark data and other project participants’ results, the good agreement demonstrated the accuracy and capability of SAC-3D to simulate the principle physics phenomenon for the liquid-cooled fast reactor.

Enhancement of College English Teachers’ Information Literacy in Information Environment

The 21st century is an era of knowledge and information. Modern science and technology based on information technology has inspired profound changes in the world, including college education. Information literacy is an intrinsic element that often plays an important role in teaching and school management. In the information age, how to improve college teachers’ information literacy has become a major issue in the development of college education. This paper focuses on the study of college English teachers’ information literacy. It first studies the basic connotation of information literacy of college teachers which covers information awareness, information knowledge, and information ability. Then this paper takes college English teachers in North China Electric Power University as the research object, and adopts questionnaire survey and literature research to analyze the current situation of the information literacy of college English teachers. Based on the analysis of the basic connotation of teachers’ information literacy, and the current situation of college English teachers’ information literacy, this paper puts forward three strategies for improving college English teachers’ information literacy: enhancing college English teachers’ self-development consciousness, making use of group dynamics, and perfecting modern information technology training system.

Reviewing Municipal Energy System Planning in a Bibliometric Analysis: Evolution of the Research Field between 1991 and 2019

In the context of the energy transition, energy system planning is becoming increasingly relevant for decentralized systems. Motivated by the strong increase of publications on municipal energy system planning (MESP), these studies are subjected to a bibliometric analysis in this paper. The 1235 articles, which are based on the Web of Science database, are examined using the R-tool bibliometrix. The study shows that China is the most important contributor with 225 articles, followed by the USA (205) and Germany (120). Most cross-country collaborations were conducted between China and Canada, focusing mainly on uncertainties in MESP. Among the institutions, the North China Electric Power University is responsible for most articles (42). The core journals on MESP are Energy, Applied Energy, Energy Policy, Energies and Renewable Energy, which published 37% of the 1235 articles. Publications on MESP focus on renewable energies, optimization and hybrid energy systems. Furthermore, district heating seems to be a core topic in MESP and is addressed in three of the top five most cited articles. The demonstration of global research trends in MESP can support researchers in identifying the relevant issues regarding this expanding and transforming research area.

The Course Reform of “Power Plant Chemistry” under the Background of Engineering Professional Certification

Based on the environmental engineering professional engineering certification and double first-rate construction of North China Electric Power University, the comprehensive professional curriculum "Power Plant Chemistry" will be comprehensively reformed, from classroom teaching methods to evaluation methods, giving full play to the functions of computer simulation and adding calysis. Combined with experiment, homework and process assessment, the study guide of keyase an content has been strengthened, and the ability of students to analyze problems has been improved. The degree of achievement of the course is greater than 0.70, which can meet the requirements of the corresponding index points of graduation requirements. It laid the foundation for professional certification.

Micro-lecture Teaching for Improving the Learning Effect of Non-English Majors at North China Electric Power University

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of micro-lecture teaching on non-English majors’ academic achievements and learning motivation. One hundred and twenty-two non-English majors studying the college English course in North China Electric Power University participated in the study. The micro-lecture teaching and traditional PPT teaching were implemented in the two classes respectively. Statistical analysis showed a significant improvement in the academic achievements of the participants (t = 3.128, p < 0.05) between the pre and post measurements in favor of the post measurement. The results of the questionnaire survey undertaken in the experimental class showed that participants’ learning motivations were improved. Accordingly, the researcher concluded that micro-lecture teaching was significantly effective in improving non-English majors’ academic achievements and enhancing their learning motivation.

Optimization of the contamination particle deposition model based on humidity and surface energy

The research on contamination accumulation characteristics of insulators is the basis of pollution flashover prevention work. The porcelain three-umbrella insulator used in the wind tunnel test at North China Electric Power University was taken as the research object. Using simulation software COMSOL Multiphysics, the original pollution particle deposition model was optimized in progressively based on humidity and surface energy to simulate their effect on the contamination accumulation characteristics of the insulator used in the wind tunnel. Using the wind tunnel test results for reference, the simulation results showed that the average relative error of the two optimized models (based on humidity and surface energy) was reduced from 61.25% in the original model to 27.64% and 12.18%, respectively. The rationality of each optimization model was verified. The variation trend of the simulation results of the final optimized model with DC voltage was more similar to that observed in the test results, which could provide a reference for the simulation study of the natural pollution characteristics of the considered insulator.

Benchmark of cosRMC with CFETR fusion neutronics model

cosRMC is a three dimensional Monte Carlo code for coupled neutron and photon transport simulation, it is jointly developed for fission reactor by State Power Investment Corporation Research Institute of China, Tsinghua University and North China Electric Power University. In order to evaluate its feasibility and accuracy in fusion neutronics analysis, a preliminary benchmark is conducted on cosRMC using CFETR fusion neutronics model with the WCCB blanket module. The tritium breeding ratio (TBR), nuclear heating (NH) and neutron wall loading (NWL) are calculated by cosRMC, and the results are compared with those calculated by MCNP with the same nuclear data library FENDL-2.1. Preliminary comparison results show that a very good consistency is obtained between the two Monte Carlo codes: the relative differences of calculated results are mostly within 1% and the statistical errors are within the statistical uncertainty of the MC method.

The Efficacy of Using Liulishuo for Spoken English Ability—Taking the Practice of Liulishuo in North China Electric Power University (Baoding) as an Example

This research aims to verify the effectiveness and practicability of Liulishuo, an English-learning APP, in improving college students’ oral English. The research adopts different student groups according to their different listening levels, and compares the scores of the pre- and post-practice tests of the control groups and the feedback analysis of the two sessions. The research results showed an upward trend, which proved the efficacy and practicability of Liulishuo in improving students’ oral English.

Teaching Translation for Electric Power English From the Perspective of Relevance Theory: Belt and Road Initiative and Electric Power Education

With the continuous development of the Belt and Road international cooperation of electric power, companies related to electric power develop overseas markets and invest overseas electric power projects. The market demand for translation of electric power English is increasing. Translation for Electric Power English is a basic required course for English major students in North China Electric Power University. The course combines translation skills with basic electric power knowledge in the process of teaching to help students gain professional knowledge and improve students’ practical language application in international electric power cooperation activities. Most of English majors master little knowledge about electric power, which makes it difficult for them to finish translation task with high quality of translation. Translation for Electric Power English Course should be taught in the following aspects: help students accurately understand the meaning of the original materials, aid them in selecting appropriate translation methods, modify the translated text and improve their translation ability for electric power English. Translation for Electric Power English Course focuses on imparting the translation methods of electric power English to students, such as literal translation, free translation, amplification and omission. This paper discusses the importance of the teaching of the course and uses Relevance Theory to analyze the teaching methods of Translation for Electric Power English.