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Dried, milled perennial ryegrass samples were processed using chemical and physical treatments and the extracted cellulose products were analysed for yield, crystallinity by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and for purity using Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Extraction protocols examined the use of chemical chelation, acid and alkaline hydrolysis, along with physical degradation methods. Highest product yields were obtained using single step chemical protocols followed by physical processing, however, these products had low crystallinity and higher amorphous fraction content. Multistep chemical processing to completely remove hemicellulose and lignin with an alkali refluxing step, delivered lower yielding cellulose products of greater crystallinity and purity. In combination, the four instrumental techniques highlighted removal of amorphous fractions, providing rapid, accurate compositional data on the extracted cellulose products.

Abstract A great deal of heat is wasted in intensive public shower facilities, such as those in schools, barracks and natatoriums, which open up at specified time. It will contribute a lot to energy saving and environmental protection with significant economic benefits to recycle the exhaust heat. In this paper, we propose two different kinds of heat pumps (an electric heat pump and an absorption heat pump) in the heat recovery systems. In both system, the used shower water is drained through a pipe and collected in a gray water pool. When the wastewater reaches certain volume, the heat pump system will begin working and recycling heat. The wastewater is filtered and piped to the heat exchanger to exchange heat with the tap water whose temperature will increase from 12 °C to 25 °C with the wastewater temperature dropping from 30 °C to 17 °C. Then the wastewater is piped to the heat pump evaporator and the tap water is piped to the condenser for farther heating. According to the different characteristics of the electric heat pump and absorption heat pump, we also introduce the processes and control methods of different heat recovery systems in details in this paper. Based on a practical example, this paper analyzes and compares the economic and environmental benefits of three retrofitting schemes, including “exhaust heat recovery using electric heat pump”, “exhaust heat recovery using electric heat pump + gas boiler” and “exhaust heat recovery using direct-fired heat pump”. Then we find out that the heat recovery system using direct-fired absorption heat pump has lower energy consumption, less pollution, lower operating cost, and shorter payback period. And it has a promising practical application.

In this study, levulinic acid (LA) was produced from rice straw biomass in co-solvent biphasic reactor system consisting of hydrochloric acid and dichloromethane organic solvent. The modified protocol achieved a 15% wt LA yield through the synergistic effect of acid and acidic products (auto-catalysis) and the designed system allowed facile recovery of LA to the organic phase. Further purification of the resulting extractant was achieved through traditional column chromatography, which yielded a high purity LA product while recovering ∼85% wt. Upon charcoal treatment of the resultant fraction generated an industrial grade target molecule of ∼99% purity with ∼95% wt recovery. The system allows the solvent to be easily recovered, in excess of 90%, which was shown to be able to be recycled up to 5 runs without significant loss of final product concentrations. Overall, this system points to a method to significantly reduce manufacturing cost during large-scale LA preparation.

According to the renewable energy directive 2009/28/EC, the European Union Member States should increase by 2020 the use of renewable energy to 20% of gross final energy consumption and to reach a mandatory share of 10% renewable energy in the transport sector. This study aims to quantify the impact of 2020 bioenergy targets on the land use in the EU, based on the projections of the National Renewable Action Plans in four scenarios: Scenario 1. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs; Scenario 2. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, no second generation biofuels; Scenario 3. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, reduced import of biofuels and bioliquids; Scenario 4. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, high imports of biofuels and bioliquids. This study also considers the credit for co-products generated from biofuel production. The analysis reveals that the land used in the EU for bioenergy would range between 13.5 Mha and 25.2 Mha in 2020. This represent between 12.2% and 22.5% of the total arable land used and 7.3% and 13.5% of the Utilised Agricultural Area (UAA). In the NREAPS scenario, about 17.4 Mha would be used for bioenergy production, representing 15.7% of arable land and 9.4% of UAA. The increased demand from biofuels would lead to an increased generation of co-products, replacing conventional fodder for animal feed. Considering the co-products, the land used for bioenergy would range between 8.8 Mha and 15.0 Mha in 2020 in the various scenarios. This represent between 7.9% and 13.3% of the total arable land used in the EU and 4.7% and 8.0% of the UAA. In the NREAPS scenario, when co-products are considered, about 10.3 Mha would be used for biofuels, bioliquids and bioenergy production, representing 9.3% of arable land and 5.6% of agricultural land. This study further provides detailed data on the impact on land use in each Member State.

The influence of ethanol on the degradation kinetics of linear alkyl benzene sulfonate (LAS) and organic matter was investigated using batch experiments with different initial LAS concentrations (8.3 mg L-1 to 66.9 mg L-1) and biomass immobilized on sand. Data were fitted with a substrate inhibition model. Concentrations of 2.4 mg LAS L-1 and 18.9 mg LAS L-1 (without and with ethanol) provided the maximum LAS utilization rate by the biomass (Sbm). For LAS degradation, ethanol addition favored a lower decrease in the specific substrate utilization rate (robs), even at the LAS concentration usually reported as inhibitory (> 14.4 mg L-1). For organic matter degradation, robs was higher with ethanol. Higher biomass differentiation was observed at higher LAS concentrations. With ethanol, microbial selection occurred at LAS concentrations near Sbm. At higher LAS concentrations, the dominance and diversity values did not change significantly with ethanol, whereas without ethanol, their behaviors were irregular.

This paper reports the real-time behavior of the leakage current flowing on glass-type insulator strings of a 230-kV substation tower during washing. Monitoring of two insulator strings in the tower is achieved by use of a pair of optical-fiber sensors that detect samples of the leakage current waveforms and transmit those samples to a processing module via an optical link. It is observed that leakage current during washing may reach high peak levels, and the effectiveness of the washing can be inferred by the degree of leakage current after drying of the insulator strings. Direct monitoring of the leakage current can thus be used as an important guideline for proper washing procedures during this type of intervention as well as for determining the effectiveness of the procedure.

Abstract An outlook into the country profile at the existing electricity generation with crude oil production at the present level with accompanying gas flares cause CO 2 emission as well as the industrial, human activities and the grid electricity distribution has been accounted for. The estimation of solar radiation levels as well as its productivity in terms of photovoltaics (PV׳s), concentrated solar powers (CSP) and chimney towers have been paid for others renewable energies; wind, tidal and geothermal productivity. A selection of possible site for installation according to the given geographical hazard and the maximum solar radiation could be collected. An overview for futuristic demands and possible solar energy supply that could be generated has reviewed. Furthermore, the desalination of underground or polluted water to support the solar system as well as the needed plantation to preserve a clean and green environment and low dust climate is presented.

Abstract Most refrigeration plants for cooling mines use cold water. This is becoming uneconomical as mines get deeper and pumping costs increase. This Paper proposes an air cycle refrigeration system for use in deep mines to provide underground refrigeration without the use of water.

Abstract This paper aims to investigate sustainable waste management solutions for the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, based on a life cycle approach. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was performed by using the LCA-IWM methodology. The model was adapted to the Brazilian solid waste context and to the local characteristics, including waste composition, electricity mix and regulations. The annual amount of waste generated was the functional unit adopted. Eight municipal solid waste management strategies were evaluated. Scenarios including mixed waste collection and source separated collection as well as materials recovery and energy from waste were investigated. Scenarios were ranked based on the LCA results. Sensitivity analysis was carried out by varying the electricity mix. The results indicate that the current situation of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Rio de Janeiro presents the worst performance in terms of aggregated environmental burdens, indicating the urgency for implement new strategies toward a more environmentally friendly and sustainable MSW management system. It is noted that the better LCA performances were obtained in scenarios with high separately collection rates. Among them, the scenario based on recyclables recovery and anaerobic digestion shows to be a promising strategy to improve environmental sustainability. Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the ranking of scenarios was not affected by changes in the electricity mix. From the results, the investment in source separated waste collection and materials recovery is the most environmentally friendly MSW strategy for Rio de Janeiro. In addition, scenarios with an emphasis in materials recovery presented higher environmental benefits than the alternatives focused on energy generation.