A nanodiamond‐based composite monolithic column was fabricated by redox initiation for high‐performance liquid chromatography. In the fabrication process, functionalized nanodiamond was used as the functional monomer, dipentaerythritol hexaacrylate and 1,10‐decanediol diacrylate as cross‐linking agents, polyethylene glycol 400 and 1‐propanol as coporogens, and dibenzoyl peroxide and N,N‐dimethyl aniline as initiators. Compared to polymer monolithic columns without nanodiamond, a nanodiamond‐based composite monolithic column prepared under the same conditions exhibited relatively high resolution and efficiency. Characterizations of the resulting nanocomposite were carried out, including scanning electron microscopy, mercury intrusion porosimetry, nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherm measurement, and thermogravimetric analysis. The ND‐based composite monolith exhibited a uniform and reticular skeleton microstructure, thermal stability, and mechanical stability. In addition, the nanodiamond‐based composite monolithic column was used to separate a series of small molecules with good resolution and reproducibility in high‐performance liquid chromatography. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43776.

Latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) systems using phase change material (PCM) have received significant research attention in numerous engineering fields. The transient heat transfer phenomenon inside a vertical LHTES unit is numerically investigated, with the paraffin as the PCM and water as the heat transfer fluid (HTF). As a performance enhancement technique, the metal foam insert is applied in both the HTF and PCM sides. The conjugate thermal model for the HTF/foam-wall-PCM/foam system is built, considering the non-equilibrium effect between the solid and fluid phases with two-temperature energy equation and the natural convection inside the PCM with Boussinesq approximation. The enthalpy-based method is employed to account for the solid-liquid phase change problem. The overall performance is compared with other three cases: no foam insert, foam insert in HTF side and foam insert in PCM side. Besides, parametric study is also conducted on the melting features, including the foam structural parameters and inlet conditions of HTF. The results show that foam insert in both sides accelerates the PCM melting effectively. The foam porosity and HTF inlet temperature play important roles in the overall heat transfer, whereas the pore density and HTF inlet velocity have limited effects on the melting rate. The findings can provide referential information for the design of a LHTES system.