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The ‘4 per mille Soils for Food Security and Climate’ was launched at the COP21 with an aspiration to increase global soil organic matter stocks by 4 per 1000 (or 0.4 %) per year as a compensation for the global emissions of greenhouse gases by anthropogenic sources. This paper surveyed the soil organic carbon (SOC) stock estimates and sequestration potentials from 20 regions in the world (New Zealand, Chile, South Africa, Australia, Tanzania, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, India, China Taiwan, South Korea, China Mainland, United States of America, France, Canada, Belgium, England & Wales, Ireland, Scotland, and Russia). We asked whether the 4 per mille initiative is feasible for the region. The outcomes highlight region specific efforts and scopes for soil carbon sequestration. Reported soil C sequestration rates globally show that under best management practices, 4 per mille or even higher sequestration rates can be accomplished. High C sequestration rates (up to 10 per mille) can be achieved for soils with low initial SOC stock (topsoil less than 30 t C ha− 1), and at the first twenty years after implementation of best management practices. In addition, areas which have reached equilibrium will not be able to further increase their sequestration. We found that most studies on SOC sequestration only consider topsoil (up to 0.3 m depth), as it is considered to be most affected by management techniques. The 4 per mille number was based on a blanket calculation of the whole global soil profile C stock, however the potential to increase SOC is mostly on managed agricultural lands. If we consider 4 per mille in the top 1m of global agricultural soils, SOC sequestration is between 2-3 Gt C year− 1, which effectively offset 20–35% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. As a strategy for climate change mitigation, soil carbon sequestration buys time over the next ten to twenty years while other effective sequestration and low carbon technologies become viable. The challenge for cropping farmers is to find disruptive technologies that will further improve soil condition and deliver increased soil carbon. Progress in 4 per mille requires collaboration and communication between scientists, farmers, policy makers, and marketeers.

In order to reduce production costs and environmental impact of bioethanol from sugar beet low purity syrup 2, an intensification of the industrial alcoholic fermentation carried out by Saccharomyces cerevisiae is necessary. Two fermentation processes were tested: multi-stage batch and fed-batch fermentations with different operating conditions. It was established that the fed-batch process was the most efficient to reach the highest ethanol concentration. This process allowed to minimize both growth and ethanol production inhibitions by high sugar concentrations or ethanol. Thus, a good management of the operating conditions (initial volume and feeding rate) could produce 15.2% (v/v) ethanol in 53 h without residual sucrose and with an ethanol productivity of 2.3 g L h−1.

The work in this research thesis presents a contribution to voltage regulation in electrical networks. By considering adequate active and reactive powers injection into the grid, voltage control and load balancing are provided. These powers are generated from a grid connected renewable energy conversion system : a special attention was paid to the Wind Energy ConversionSystem (WECS) based on Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG).The typical control strategy for WECS is the maximum power coefficient tracking method. However, this method limits desirable ancillary power services, such as the participation of wind turbines in voltage regulation in the power grid. Therefore, a new method that derives the optimal power coefficient enhancing the participation of WTS in voltage regulation in the network (reactive and unbalanced power compensation), has been developed. The multilevel NPC (Neutral Point Clamped) converter, used for grid interface connection of renewable energy sources systems, has been studied. A predictive control method for the three-level NPC converter, capable of simultaneously compensating the problems of : DC link capacitors voltage balancing, load balancing and power factor correction in the power system, has been proposed. Then, the application of this predictive control was extended to simultaneously achieve multiple objectives: load balancing with power factor correction in the network, DC link capacitors voltage balancing, switching losses minimization and common mode voltage reduction. The switching losses minimization was obtained by proposing a new strategy which consists on exploiting the manufacturer datasheets that gives the evolution of the switching loss energy in function of the circulating current. The experimental curves of the datasheet are expressed in a mathematical model implemented in the predictive control. Simulation and experimental results are presented to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. ; Le travail de cette thèse apporte une contribution aux méthodes de ...

Abstract— The odd nucleoside 4‐thiouridine, which is present in position 8 of 70% of E. coli tRNAs, possesses unusual spectroscopic properties which make it suitable for intramolecular energy transfer studies. Both its luminescence excitation spectrum and the action spectrum (230–380 nm) for the 8–13 link formation have been established in native E. coli tRNA at room temperature. The spectra are identical and present a new unexpected peak around 260 nm. At this wavelength, they are amplified by a factor of nine as compared with the absorption and excitation spectra of the free nucleoside in aqueous solution.The origin of this new peak is discussed and it is concluded that energy transfer does occur from the common nucleosides to the 4‐thiouridine residue. Using the values of the nucleosides to 4‐thiouridine distances inferred from the sets of atomic coordinates obtained on yeast tRNAphe crystals, a satisfactory account of our finding can be obtained assuming singlet‐singlet energy transfer. The efficiency of the mechanism is probably favoured by a good overlap between the emission spectra of the common nucleosides and the absorption spectrum of 4‐thiouridine.

Dans le stockage d’énergie, les alternatives aux énergies fossiles sont peu nombreuses. Le stockage d’énergie dans un condensateur, permet d’atteindre de grande puissances électriques, mais pour une densité d’énergie trop faible. La présente thèse à pour objectif la compréhension des nano-céramiques ferroélectriques afin d’augmenter leur densité d’énergie et de se diriger ainsi vers un super-condensateur céramique. Nous avons développé dans un premier temps un modèle par champs effectif moyen du système core-shell. Une fois introduit dans l’énergie libre de Landau, ce modèle donne une idée de la densité d’énergie d’un système ferroélectrique donné. Les calculs – sur quelques pérovskites courantes - indiquent que la densité d’énergie reste relativement faible. Néanmoins nos calculs montrent que l’on peu optimiser le stockage d’énergie dans de telles céramiques en enrobant des grains de forme allongée comme des disques ou des fils. En outre, ce modèle phénoménologique permet d’expliquer de nombreuses mesures expérimentales sur les céramiques, y compris dans le cas ou s’ajoute de la conductivité et de la relaxation de Maxwell-Wagner. Nous nous sommes tournés par la suite vers une modélisation ab-initio : l’Hamiltonien effectif. La modélisation de nano-système core-shell de BaTiO3 a montré la présence d’un paramètre d’ordre particulier : le moment toroïdale. Ce paramètre d’ordre peut impliquer un comportement diélectrique différent. Introduit dans une description phénoménologique de type Landau, ce dernier est responsable de la disparition de la phase orthorhombique dans BaTiO3. La synthèse de nanoparticules de BaTiO3 de formes cubiques et homogènes, nous a permis de faire une série de mesure. Les mesures MET, RAMAN, RX, diélectriques sur les poudres et les céramiques, suggèrent la présences de transitions de phases générées par la présence d’un paramètre d’ordre similaire à celui observé dans modélisation ab-initio. For energy storage applications, fossils energies are difficult to compete. By storing energy in capacitors, one can get a huge electric power. However the density of energy in a capacitor is too weak to be interesting in energy storage application. The present thesis aims to understand the well known core-shell system in ferroelectric nano-ceramics and the influence of the geometry of the grain in order to determine and optimize the density of energy in this kind of dielectric, going toward an ultra-capacitor of ceramics. We have first developed an effective-medium core-shell model. By introducing this model in the phenomenological Landau Free energy of several ferroelectrics, we can get quantitative information about of density of energy in these materials. Our calculation for common ferroelectrics has shown that the density of energy remains too weak to become interesting. However, the density of energy can be optimized by using nano-disks or nano-rods in a structured ceramic. Our model agrees well with experimental results, even with extrinsic phenomena like the Maxwell-Wagner relaxation. To go further, we have modeled the BaTiO3 core-shell system using an effective Hamiltonian. The model shows that a new order parameter is observed in the core-shell system namely the toroidal moment. This order affects the dielectrics behavior of coated dots, and for important coating can lead to significant differences with Landau predictions. Moreover, by introducing the toroidal moment in Landau formalism, we can predict the disappearance of the orthorhombic phase in BaTiO3.The synthesis of homogenized cubic BaTiO3 particles, allowed us to make experimental measurement. The combination of RX, Dielectric and Raman measurements lead to a phase diagram for BaTiO3 that can be explain by the presence of a toroidal moment.

In the context of Abstract geometrical computation, it has been proved that black hole model (and SAD computers) can be implemented. To be more physic-like, it would be interesting that the construction is reversible and preserves some energy. There is already a (energy) conservative and reversible two-counter automaton simulation. In the present paper, based on reversible and conservative stacks, reversible Turing machines are simulated. Then a shrinking construction that preserves these properties is presented. All together, a black hole model implementation that is reversible and conservative (both the shrinking structure and the universal Turing machine) is provided.