News on China's scientific and technological development.

Originally Posted by escobar

Breaking their own record, Chinese researchers teleport photons 97 kilometers

Researchers announced recently they successfully teleported photons across more than 62 miles.

Scientists have long eyed the elusive and seemingly impossible goal of teleportation. The objective of such engineering research was not to teleport a physical object, but rather the information describing it. Such data could then serve as a framework applied to a new entity at a separate location, one that would subsequently assume that identity, MIT's Technology Review reports.

Physicists have been teleporting photons for the better part of the past 15 years. They have been able to do so because of quantum entanglement, a concept that scientists still do not entirely understand.

Quantum entanglement is a physical characteristic associated with the connections that are sometimes shared between two discrete quantum systems. The general study of entanglement, a term Schrödinger applied to the relationship, is essentially the basis of quantum information theory, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia.

Though it undoubtedly remains a mysterious force, quantum entanglement allows for two quantum objects to share the same existence, even though they are dispersed in space. Teleporting data has particularly sparked the interest of researchers throughout the globe, as the ability to transfer information without the risk of interception or eavesdropping.

New engineering tools have aimed to improve the efficiency and ultimately ensure the success of the emergent field of physics, known as quantum cryptography. Researchers have had to overcome myriad hurdles as they sought to teleport entangled photons across optical fibers over distances longer than two-thirds of a mile. By teleporting photons through the atmosphere, however, they have had significantly better luck, according to Technology Review.

Chinese scientists said in 2010 that they had teleported individual photons 16 kilometers, roughly equivalent to 10 miles. The same team of researchers said this week that they had broken their own record by teleporting photons over a distance of more than 97 kilometers, or approximately 60 miles. Popular Science reports that the feat is the latest in a series of stunning discoveries within the field.

The team of researchers, who are affiliated with the University of Science and Technology of China in Shanghai, used a 1.3-Watt laser and teleported the particles over a lake in China that is located at an altitude of more than 13,000 feet. As a result of their use of a laser, the scientists had to first ascertain how to prevent photons from getting lost when the device's beam widens.

They surmounted that barrier by designing a steering system that prevents the laser's beam from broadening. According to the team, they were able to teleport 1,100 photons over a distance of 97 kilometers in only four hours. Juan Yin, one of the scientists who participated in the research, said that the experiment's successful results suggested that scientists could one day teleport photons over even longer distances, with the potential to reach space-based satellites.

"Besides being of fundamental interest, our result represents an important step towards a global quantum network," the team said. "The successful quantum teleportation over such channel losses in combination with our high-frequency and high-accuracy [aiming] technique show the feasibility of satellite-based ultra-long-distance quantum teleportation."

I can't wait till scientist will be able to advance this technology where I can someday say: "beam me up...Scotty".

Sorry Equation, I meant to "like" escobar's post, and I inadvertently clicked the link on yours. My apologies.

Originally Posted by Norfolk

Sorry Equation, I meant to "like" escobar's post, and I inadvertently clicked the link on yours. My apologies.

No problems my friend.

Nowaday there are so many whitemen claim to be china military experts. That's very scary...

May 14, 2012, 2:45 PM HKT.

Is China About to Get Its Military Jet Engine Program Off the Ground?

By Gabe Collins and Andrew Erickson

Tensions in the South China Sea—most recently with the Philippines—and Beijing’s unease about Washington’s renewed strategic focus on Asia are likely to strengthen calls from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) for more modern fighters and strike aircraft. Russia has historically supplied the high performance military jet engines that power these craft. However, China’s defense industry is working hard to become capable of mass producing Chinese-made military jet engines in order to end dependence on Russia, give China maximum strategic flexibility, and begin to compete with Russian-made combat aircraft in export markets.

China’s inability to domestically mass-produce modern high-performance jet engines has been a persistent Achilles heel of the Chinese military aerospace sector. Although Chinese military engineers have made progress is building jet engines, the effort continues to suffer from problems with standardization and a shortage of skilled workers, in addition to an inability to consistently produce high quality turbine blades. Indeed, a recent article in People’s Daily quotes Russian sources saying China can copy most parts of the AL-31 engines that power much of China’s J-10 and J-11 fighter fleets, but still must import turbine blades from Russia.

The problems have likely slowed development and production of the J-15, J-20, and other late-generation tactical aircraft and are now attracting political attention at the highest levels.

In late 2010, President Hu Jintao gave Gan Xiaohua, chief engineer of the Air Force Armament Research Institute, an award in recognition of his 26 years of work on China’s military jet engine programs. High-level leadership engagement is important to help break down bureaucratic barriers that Mr. Gan says have hindered China’s ability to take a more integrated approach to building a jet engine industrial base and production infrastructure.

Despite the increased attention and resources China has focused on the manufacturing of jet engines, Mr. Gan’s concerns appear to remain valid. Engine production facilities remain geographically divided between the cities of Shenyang (Liaoning Province), Xi’an (Shaanxi Province) and Anshun (Guizhou province). This organizational structure produces more micro-level, but less macro-level, “competition” than Western norms. In addition, publicly reported figures concerning numbers of Chinese personnel working on particular programs appear surprisingly low by Western standards—unless there are significant “off balance sheet” resources somewhere else.

With jet engines, “Western standards” would appear to remain relevant, as the world’s few top jet engine producers are all located in the U.S. and Western Europe (with Russia a distant second in quality). Lack of cooperation and coordination among the various branches of the PLA the jet engine end-users, appears to be a problem. Localized bargaining and patronage may produce duplication of effort, mismanagement of resources and increased time-to-market. Dispersing resources among competing research entities to the extent that China does may be counterproductive, particularly at this stage of development.

The Soviet defense industrial base, on which China’s was originally modeled, failed in precisely this area: Talented designers and technicians presided over balkanized “feudal” design bureaus and irregularly-linked production facilities. Lack of standardization and quality control rendered that system less than the sum of its parts, helping the U.S. to win the space race with its superior systems integration—as facilitated by such private corporations as AT&T.

One of China’s great theoretical advantages over earlier Soviet efforts—widespread access to and exploitation of foreign technology—has worked in other areas previously, but it may prove problematic in practice when developing and producing systems as complex and demanding as high performance jet engines.

Standardization and integration, essential for jet engine development, may suffer particularly from an ad hoc, eclectic approach to strategic technology development and acquisition. Without advanced quality management practices such as Six Sigma or Total Quality Management (TQM), sophisticated components and systems design and integration capabilities, and an organizational culture that ensures honest reporting of problems, China’s technology will not add up to high-performance engines in practice. And with jet engines, there is little if any room for error or substandard approaches.

China’s ability to resolve the domestic engine production problem matters because if China’s engine makers can attain the technical capability level that U.S. manufacturers had 20 years ago, China will be able to power its latest-generation fighter and strike aircraft with domestically-made engines.

The new J-20 strike fighter program (first unveiled during Defense Secretary Gates’ January 2011 visit to China), especially needs domestic engine development and production breakthroughs because Russia appears reluctant to sell the high-powered engines that could enable the J-20 to supercruise (sustain supersonic flight without using inefficient afterburners) and thereby match the performance of the world’s most modern fighters such as the Lockheed Martin F-22 and Sukhoi T-50/PAK FA. Such developments would help cement China as a formidable regional air power and deserve close attention from policymakers.

However, evidence still suggests that China’s main military jet engine maker—Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC)—is struggling to maintain consistent quality control as it scales up production of the WS-10 Taihang turbofan that China hopes to use to power more of its fighter fleet. This issue is causing problems with reliability and keeping China’s tactical aircraft heavily reliant on imported Russian engines. China’s July 2011 order of 123 additional AL-31 jet engines supports the view that domestically-made engines still are not good enough to rely on as the mainstay to power Chinese fighters.

The latest jet engine import numbers suggest Chinese engines may now power roughly 20% of the country’s most modern fighters and strike aircraft as well as the JF-17 fighters it is exporting to Pakistan. That means at least 80% of China’s tactical aircraft fleet runs on Russian-made engines and will likely continue to rely substantially on imported Russian engines to support its tactical aircraft programs over the next two years. China’s high-performance jet engine programs are nearing takeoff but they, and China’s development of a more competitive precision manufacturing sector, appear to still have some additional runway ahead of them.

That's because China is the next bogeyman for these fictional writers to exploit the possible drama and get paid for it by their publishers. It's feeding fear frenzy these days.

These guys should really get a thank you letter from AVIC. The more they underestimate Chinese engineering, the better.

How is that guy wrong? he was correct in the problems pointed out. like he said, china doesnt have a problem making the single crystal blades, its just the perfection rate is too low, leading to expensive final product. The two top factors in perfection rates, apart from historical know-how, are the quality control system and experienced technicians. China did in fact produced jet engines for decades, but not until very recently were those high tech single crystal blades put into mass production. In the past it was mostly R&D, therefore only a small amount of technicians are experienced.
In terms of quality control, it is unarguable that western standards were not enforced until last decade or two, perhaps until less than a decade ago in some departments.

I don't see what's wrong with the highlighted sections.

PS: that article is too long, i only read the highlighted part. the rest may be idiotic, but as for the highlighted part itself, it is not flawed.

China starts laying record capacity power cables

Construction of an ultra-high voltage power transmission line designed with the world's largest capacity started Sunday in China's far western Xinjiang region.

The 800 kv ultra-high voltage direct current (UHVDC) transmission line connects the energy base of Hami prefecture in eastern Xinjiang with the central city of Zhengzhou, according to the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), the project contractor.

The 2,210-km-long line goes through the vast region of Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan. It costs 23.39 billion yuan (3.7 billion U.S.dollars), and is designed to have a transmission capacity of 8 million kw upon completion in 2014, setting up a new world record.

The line will transmit 37 billion kwh on average annually, according to Liu Zhenya, general manager of the State Grid Corporation of China. "We can reduce 317,000 tonnes of sulfur dioxide and 267,000 tonnes of nitrogen oxide which would otherwise be produced during the transportation," Liu said.

Zhou Yongkang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, attended the construction launch ceremony in Xinjiang.

In the meantime, a second 750-kv HVDC transmission line which links Xinjiang with the main network of the Northwest China Grid Co. Ltd. kicked off on Sunday.

With an investment of 9.56 billion yuan, the 2,180-km-long line will become the major route to transmit wind and solar power generated in Hami prefecture, Jiuquan city of Gansu province, and Qaidam basin in Qinghai province to the rest parts of the country.

The construction boom of the ultra-high voltage power transmission lines came as the country strives to transmit the electricity from the energy-rich west to the booming central and eastern regions.

Xinjiang has 2 trillion tonnes of coal reserve, one third of which is in Hami. Meanwhile, Hami is one of the country's major wind power bases.

China's large energy bases are mostly distributed in the west and north, more than 2,000 km from the power network load centers in the eastern and central regions, said Zhang Guobao, director of Expert Advisory Committee under the National Energy Administration.

"The ultra-high power transmission lines are a way out for the country's imbalanced distribution of energy reserve," Zhang said.

Ultra-high voltage power transmission (UHVPT) projects, however, have met many obstacles, as some doubt whether the technology is mature enough and can bring about economic benefit.

China has been suffering prolonged and ever worsening power shortage in recent years, a driving force for the country to develop long-distance, high-voltage power transmission lines.

Starting from March 2011, an unprecedented power shortage swept most southern and eastern provinces and municipalities, with a supply gap of 30 million kilowatts, according to China Electricity Council.

"In spite of the controversy, the projects will continuously be carried forward," said Zhou Fengqi, deputy president of China Energy Society.

Industry insiders have said the State Grid Corporation of China will push for the construction of four alternating current and three direct current ultra-high voltage power transmission lines across the country, with an investment exceeding 300 billion yuan in 2012 alone.

China's 5-Year Natural Gas Plan Unveiled

China's annual natural gas consumption will add up to 260 billion cubic meters by the end of 2015, representing 7% to 8% of total energy consumption, according to a five-year plan released by the National Energy Administration.

The nation's natural gas consumption expanded 20.6% to 129 billion cubic meters last year, or 4% of total energy consumption, the plan shows.

By the end of 2015, China will have to produce 170 billion cubic meters of natural gas and import 90 billion cubic meters per year to meet domestic demand.

A strong appetite for cleaner vehicles has driven up demand for natural gas. The number of natural gas-powered vehicles in China has surged from 10,000 in 2000 to more than a million last year, making the country the fourth largest natural gas-powered auto market in Asia and sixth largest in the world.

This growing market will help boost China's natural gas consumption to 400 billion cubic meters annually by 2030, when domestic output is projected to total just 250 billion cubic meters, meaning as many as 150 billion cubic meters need to be imported, predicted Jia Chen, former vice president of CNPC, the parent of China's largest oil and gas explorer PetroChina Co.

To ease strained supplies, China will step up the development of unconventional resources such as shale gas, coalbed gas and oil sand.

China will also press ahead with the shift from government-set prices to a system based on international fluctuations in a move to better regulate the industry.

... but still must import turbine blades from Russia.

I've never heard of this before. Any source for this claim?

JV to build $1B plant

SEMICONDUCTOR Manufacturing International Corp and Beijing's city government will form a joint venture for the construction of a highly-advanced US$1 billion chip factory in the capital, the Chinese mainland's biggest chip maker said yesterday.

Although SMIC and the Beijing government didn't reveal investment details of the company's second-phase wafer plant, analysts estimated it will be at least US$1 billion.

"It's a good time for SMIC to increase production capacity because the market is going to rebound," said Vincent Gu, an analyst of iSuppli, a US-based research firm.

The second phase of SMIC's Beijing plant will cost US$1 billion to US$2 billion, Gu said.

The SMIC Beijing plant will operate at the more advanced 45/40 nanometer and 32/28 nanometer technology nodes.

Ningde 4 gets its dome

A major milestone in the construction of unit 4 of the Ningde nuclear power plant in China's Fujian province has been reached with the dome of the reactor building being successfully lowered into place.



On 5 May, in an operation lasting just under one hour, the 144-tonne reactor dome was lifted by a giant crane and placed on top of the containment building walls, according to plant constructor China Nuclear Engineering and Construction Corporation. The operation to install the dome - with a diametre of 37 metres and a height of 11 metres - was completed at 7:13am. Work on the nuclear island at Ningde 4 officially began on 29 September 2010 at a ceremony attended by project partners China Guangdong Nuclear Power Company and Datang International.

Four Chinese-designed CPR-1000 pressurized water reactors are currently under construction at the Ningde site, near Fuding city. Work on the first Ningde unit started in February 2008, with construction of units 2 and 3 beginning in November 2008 and January 2010, respectively. All four units at the site are scheduled to come online between late 2012 and 2015.

The construction of two further CPR-1000 reactors is planned for Phase II of the Ningde plant.

Meanwhile, another CPR-1000 project at China National Nuclear Corp's Fangjiashan in Zhejiang province has reached another milestone. In an operation lasting almost six hours, the reactor pressure vessel of unit 1's reactor was successfully installed on the backing ring on 30 April.

The Fangjiashan project will see two CPR-1000 reactors with a combined capacity of 2160 MWe constructed near the existing Qinshan plant. First concrete for the first unit at the Fangjiashan plant was poured in December 2008, while that for the second was poured in July 2009. The dates scheduled for the start of their commercial operation are December 2013 and October 2014, respectively.

The CPR-1000 is a standardized Chinese design developed from the two Areva PWRs imported for the Daya Bay plant in Guangdong province, starting up in 1994. Those units were built to the French three-loop standard, outputting 944 MWe. The CPR-1000 builds on that to produce 1080 MWe. The CPR-1000, along with Westinghouse's AP1000, is a mainstay of China's planned near-term nuclear capacity expansion, with 18 CPR-1000s already under construction.

Originally Posted by CottageLV

How is that guy wrong? he was correct in the problems pointed out. like he said, china doesnt have a problem making the single crystal blades, its just the perfection rate is too low, leading to expensive final product. The two top factors in perfection rates, apart from historical know-how, are the quality control system and experienced technicians. China did in fact produced jet engines for decades, but not until very recently were those high tech single crystal blades put into mass production. In the past it was mostly R&D, therefore only a small amount of technicians are experienced.
In terms of quality control, it is unarguable that western standards were not enforced until last decade or two, perhaps until less than a decade ago in some departments.

I don't see what's wrong with the highlighted sections.

PS: that article is too long, i only read the highlighted part. the rest may be idiotic, but as for the highlighted part itself, it is not flawed.

WRT quality control, the massive improvements in Chinese ship construction with the incorporation of Six Sigma et al methods is also having an effect in Chinese gas turbine construction too, as cross-collaboration in quality control methods between aviation and ship construction will improve the rate production of Chinese domestic turbines. It shouldn't be a surprise to see a massive surge of domestic turbine production in the next several years once all these elements fall into place.

Originally Posted by escobar

JV to build $1B plant

How competitive are SMIC in comparison to TSMC from Taiwan?