A method of removing substantially all solvent from a solution containing a polyphenylene etherpolymer resin with little by-product formation (less than 250 ppm) is provided. The method employs a wiped thin film evaporator with a cylindrical heating chamber operating under conditions that satisfy the relationships defined by Equations I and II.5.3*1024RLδ exp(−24123 / T) / m<C I100−(4960AP / Tm)<C II;Yields are maximized wherein values for feed rate (m) and percent solids (C) are selected to provide a maximum value for the output, Q, determined from the equation m*C=Q and the melt viscosity of the polyphenylene ether product is less than 50,000 centipoise at the operating temperature of the cylindrical heating chamber.
A solar heat collector includes a housing defining an insulated chamber extending from a focusing lens at a solar receiving end to a target glass at a target end forming a boundary wall between the insulated chamber and a target chamber receiving a heat transfer fluid therein. A target object is supported in the target chamber at the focal point of the focusing lens so as to be surrounded by the heat transfer fluid. In a preferred embodiment a heat engine is supported on the target end of the housing such that the target object and heat transfer fluid are the heat source of the heat engine.
Heating device having an electric heating body arranged within an accumulator block. The electric heating body includes an insulated flat resister. The accumulator block is structured and arranged to store calories. The heating device is adapted for use in a heating apparatus. This Abstract is not intended to define the invention disclosed in the specification, nor intended to limit the scope of the invention in any way.
A piezoelectric ceramic composition has as a chief ingredient a composite oxide that has Pb, Ti and Zr as constituent elements. It contains as a first accessory ingredient at least one element selected from the group consisting of Mn, Co, Cr, Fe and Ni in an amount of 0.2 mass % or less excluding 0 mass % in terms of an oxide. As the first accessory ingredient, at least one species selected from the ingredients represented by CuOx, wherein x≧0, can be adopted. In this case, the content of the first accessory ingredient is 3.0 mass % or less excluding 0 mass %. The piezoelectric ceramic composition is fired under reducing and firing conditions. The reducing and firing conditions include a firing temperature in the range of 800° C. to 1200° C. and an oxygenpartial pressure in the range of 1×10−10 to 1×10−6 atm., for example.