Fossil Fuels

Modern biocatalysis is developing new and precise tools to improve a wide range of production processes, which reduce energy and raw material consumption and generate less waste and toxic side-products. Biocatalysis is also achieving new advances in environmental fields from enzymatic bioremediation to the synthesis of renewable and clean energies and biochemical cleaning of "dirty" fossil fuels. Among the obvious benefits of biocatalysis the major hurdles hindering the exploitation of the great repertoire of enzymatic processes are, in many cases, the high production costs and the low yields obtained. This article will discuss these issues, pinpointing specific new advances in recombinant DNA techniques for future biocatalyst development, as well as drawing the attention of the biotechnology scientific community to the active pursuing and developing of Environmental Biocatalysis, covering from remediation with enzymes to novel green processes.

Large resources and growing markets are the salient prospects of natural gas for the coming decades. The greater impact of natural gas on the worldwide energy market can become a reality if several scientific disciplines can be mobilized in order to succeed in cutting production costs. Modeling, mechanics of complex fluids, and physical chemistry of interfaces are basic disciplines for understanding and mastering the gas processing technologies.

A novel technology to upgrade low rank coal into steam coal has been developed in Institut Teknologi Bandung, namely Coal Upgrading Technology (CUT). The product from this process is in dry powder form; therefore, additional agglomeration-compaction process is needed to improve the handling, storage and transport ability of the product. Briquetting process without the usage of binder (binderless briquetting) is chosen, but it usually requires high pressure and high temperature to produce a briquette with desirable mechanical strength. In this research, the potential of self-binding agent during the binderless briquetting process, especially in low temperature of less than 100 °C, was investigated. An axial hydraulic jack capable of compressing the briquette equal to 1500 bar was used with electric heated dies maintained at 50 °C. The mechanical strength and reabsorptivity of the formed briquette was examined in drop test and natural drying experiments, and its physical composition w...

Knowledge about the nutrient and carbon budgets in forest soils is essential to maintain sustainable production, but also in several environmental issues, such as acidification, eutrophication and climate change. The budgets are strongly influenced by atmospheric deposition as well as forestry. This study demonstrates how budget calculations for nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and base cations (BC) can be used as a basis for policy decisions on a regional level in Sweden. The study was based on existing nutrient and C budget calculations on a regional scale in Sweden. The nutrient budgets have been calculated for each square in a national 5 km  5 km net by means of mass balances including deposition, harvest losses, leaching, weathering (BC) and fixation (N). Scenarios with different deposition and forestry intensity have been run and illustrated on maps. A simplified C budget has been estimated by multiplying the N accumulation with the C/N ratio in the organic layer, based on the assumption that the C/N ratio in the accumulating organic matter is equal to the ratio in the soil organic matter pool. The budget approaches differ from earlier budget studies since they involve regional high resolution data, combine deposition and forestry scenarios and integrate different environmental aspects. The results indicate that whole-tree harvesting will cause net losses of N and base cations in large parts of Sweden, which means that forestry will not be sustainable unless nutrients are added through compensatory fertilization. To prevent net losses following whole-tree harvesting, compensatory fertilization of base cations would be required in almost the whole country, whereas N fertilization would be needed mainly in the northern half of Sweden. The results further suggest that today's recommendations for N fertilization should be revised in southern Sweden by applying the southwest-northeast gradient of the N budget calculations. The C and N accumulation calculations show that C sequestration in Swedish forest soils is not an effective or sustainable way to decrease the net carbon dioxide emissions. A better way is to apply whole-tree harvesting and use the branches, tops and needles as biofuel replacing fossil fuels. This could reduce the present carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels substantially. The study shows that high resolution budget calculations that illuminate different aspects of sustainability in forest ecosystems are important tools for identifying problem areas, investigating different alternatives through scenario analyses and developing new policies. Cooperation with stakeholders increases the probability that the research will be useful.

The International Maritime Organization adopted in April 2018 an emission target for shipping, which seeks to achieve reductions by at least 50 percent from 2008 levels by mid-century. Given shipping is outside of the framework of UNFCCC, this is a significant development that creates the much needed ‘interdependence between emitters’ which will be basis of global regulation.” Discuss

High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors (HTGRs) can be used for the generation of electricity and their process heat can be used to improve the efficiency of chemical processes such as hydrogen production. The JAEA-operated High-Temperature engineering Test Reactor (HTTR-GT/H 2) is exploring using the reactor for electricity and hydrogen production. A RELAP5-3D model of the HTTR-GT/H 2 secondary system has been developed using design information. The various components and heat exchangers in the secondary system were modeled and results were compared to the design conditions. The results for the sole-power generation mode were shown to fit the design conditions very well. The largest temperature difference was on the order of 7 K, and the largest pressure difference was on the order of 0.05 MPa. The results for the hydrogen cogeneration mode did not match the design conditions nearly as well. The largest temperature difference was about 39 K and the largest pressure difference was about 0.27 MPa at the compressor outlet. The larger differences for the hydrogen cogeneration mode are attributed to the various complex components and the flow being split in the secondary loop. A transient reduction in heat removal capability of the secondary system was investigated. Reactor temperatures are anticipated to rise as a result. The core reactivity response due to this increase in temperature is investigated and is expected to add negative reactivity to the reactor. An economic dispatch model was developed for a nuclear-driven iodine-sulfur cycle system to determine hydrogen sale prices that would make such a system profitable. The study focuses on the development of the economic model and the role that input data plays on final calculated values. It was found that the input electricity prices, whether using historical data or a host of synthetic time histories, produce significantly different breakeven hydrogen sale prices. As such, great care should be used in these economic dispatch analyses to select reasonable input assumptions.

The aim of this study is to shed light on the importance of biofuels as an
alternative to conventional energy, in addition to the importance of
preserving agricultural crops, which are the main source of this fuel, to
maintain food security, especially in developing countries. The increase
in global oil prices, in addition to the fear of global warming, are among
the main factors that draw the world’s attention to searching for
alternative sources of traditional energy, which are sustainable on the
one hand, and on the other hand reduce carbon emissions. Therefore, the
volume of global investment in renewable energy in general, and in
liquid biofuels and biomass in particular, has increased. Global fears
emerged that the excessive conversion of large farms suitable for
growing food to energy production would threaten global food security.
In the first ten years of the new millennium, biofuel production increased
fivefold, and the largest increase in biofuel production was recorded in
2007-2008, coinciding with a sharp rise in food prices. Compared to the
average food prices in the period 2002-2004, the average global prices
of cereals, oils and fats traded were 2 to 2.5 times higher in 2008, this
continuous increase in the use of food crops to produce biofuels has
reflected on global food security. Accordingly, this review article will
address previous studies on biofuel production; identify the theoretical
framework for the concept of biofuels and its characteristics, and the
relationship between biofuels and food security. In this study, we
presented biofuels, which are considered one of the important categories
in the field of renewable energy and its environmental and economic
effects, as well as the experiences of some countries in its production,
and the possibility of benefiting from the natural resources available for
its production. We will discuss the scientific (chemical) principles of
biofuel production.

A Grand Solar Minimum, which is a period of reduced solar activity, could cool the planet.However, this would not reverse the effects of human-caused global warming,given current trends,as many researchers feel. But a few hold that global warming and climate calamities can cause cooling. Ocean circulation changes can affect the cooling tendency,given the glacier melts which can disrupt ocean conveyors as important drivers of the ocean’s circulation system and Earth’s climate. And in fact, scientists have  hypothesized that greenhouse gases could cause cooling in some places and warming in others due to changes in ocean circulation. Increased volcanic activity could block solar radiation from reaching the Earth, which, combined with naturally reduced solar activity,can induce cooling effect. There are shifts in Earth's orbit and tilt of late which can presage a mini ice  age. The trajectory of Earth’s orbit is very slowly shifting the Northern Hemisphere away from the summer sun,causing cooling effect . This can lead to Alternating phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation NAO ,and may  contribute to the mini ice age, like in the case of the Little Ice Age in the past. It’s also clear that sufficient global warming could trigger an abrupt cooling in at least two ways — by increasing high-latitude rainfall or by melting Greenland’s ice, both of which could put enough fresh water into the ocean surface to suppress flushing.
According to some researchers, the heat trapped in the Earth's atmosphere from the greenhouse effect will offset this cooling -- essentially preventing the Earth from entering another ice age. Another school of thought makes the opposite prediction: Global warming might actually lead to another ice age. The general consensus seems to be that there is not much likelihood in the near future for a mini ice age,given warming trends.
However  overall, cooling caused by volcanic aerosols likely played the title role in the Little Ice Age in the past. This can be simulated by a combined effect of enhanced volcanic activity and a mini scale nuclear war or third war possibilities looming large on the horizon.
Groundwater pumping has also contributed to a measurable tilt in the Earth's axis. Changes in Earth’s tilt, even slight ones, can have cascading effects on the climate. A more pronounced tilt could lead to extreme seasonal contrasts, while a reduced tilt might diminish seasonal differences. Additionally, shifts in axial tilt can influence ocean currents. The Little Ice Age shows that small climate changes can have devastating consequences.
During the “years without a summer,” small global changes in climate from volcanic eruptions dramatically altered the likelihood of extreme local weather. The same thing is happening today.Though some studies indicate that A mini ice age is unlikely to occur due to global warming, climate calamities are possible based on enhanced volcanic activity and small scale nuclear war or third world War possibilities which cannot be discounted in the present international situation .
Thus,despite most scientists being skeptical about the likelihood of a mini ice age that is heralded in by global warming, there are clearly scientific indications,as discussed in this article, for a repetition of the Little Ice Age scenario ,in the form of a mini ice age in the not so distant future ,given possibilities for climate calamities presaged by events as highlighted in this paper.

The remarkable growth in global energy consumption has been accompanied by increasingly urgent questions about which energy sources ought to fuel the spiraling demand. Witness the recent controversy surrounding the North Dakota Access Pipeline, for example, in which activists joined forces with Native American groups in an attempt to halt the final phase of construction. News of the protests reached around the world, raising concern not just about Native American sovereignty and potential water and ground pollution of the transported oil, but also about the pipeline's facilitation of our more general continued reliance on fossil fuels that hasten climate change. Supporters of the pipeline pointed out that pipelines are safer than railroads for transporting the oil on which the US currently depends, and argued that the pipeline would bring economic benefits in the form of jobs and increased energy availability. The pipeline project thus became a flashpoint for much larger debates about the kinds of energy futures that people desire and how these impact the everyday lives of people along the paths of production, distribution, consumption, and waste.

The purpose of this project was to determine the impact of plant size on the profitability of second generation biorefineries using cellulosic biomass commonly available in Minnesota. The two feedstocks selected were corn stover for Southern Minnesota and hardwood for Northern Minnesota. Because much of the hardwood produced in Minnesota is currently used to produce paper, a third option considered is the integration of an ethanol production unit into the current infrastructure of a pulp and paper mill. The study estimated the costs of harvesting and delivering corn stover and hardwood to efficiently located biochemical processing plants. The cost of delivering the required supply of both types of biomass increases as the amount of feedstock required by a plant increases, because the biomass must be harvested from a larger area and transported to the plant. Larger plants are expected to enjoy economies of size, offsetting some portion of the higher biomass cost. This study estimates the profitability of various sizes of commercial plants considering both the increasing cost per ton of supplying larger quantities of biomass to a fixed location, and the economies of operating larger plants. 1 Funding for this research was from the University of Minnesota Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment Project (Number LG-B23-2005) titled "Liquid Fuels from Biomass: An Integrated Biorefinery Approach."

Mezquital Valley (MV), a Mexican wastewater-based agricultural and industrial region, is a "hot spot" of regulated air pollutants emissions, but the concurrent unregulated ones, like hazardous metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), remain undocumented. A biomonitoring survey with the epiphytic Tillandsia recurvata was conducted there to detect spatial patterns and potential sources of 20 airborne elements and 15 PAH. The natural δ 13 C and δ 15 N ratios of this plant helped in source identification. The regional mean concentrations of most elements was two (Cr) to over 40 times (Ni, Pb, V) higher than reported for Tillandsia in other countries. Eleven elements, pyrene and chrysene had 18-214% higher mean concentration at the industrial south than at the agricultural north of MV. The total quantified PAH (mean, 572 ng g −1 ; range, 142.6-2568) were composed by medium (65%, phenanthrene to chrysene), low (28%, naphthalene to fluorene) and high molecular weight compounds (7%, Benzo(b)fluoranthene to indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene). The δ 13 C (mean, −14.6‰; range, −15.7 to −13.7‰) was lower (<−15‰) near the major petroleum combustion sources. The δ 15 N (mean, −3.0‰; range, −9.9 to 3.3‰) varied from positive at agriculture/industrial areas to negative at rural sites. Factor analysis provided a five-factor solution for 74% of the data variance: (1) crustal rocks, 39.5% (Al, Ba, Cu, Fe, Sr, Ti); (2) soils, 11.3%, contrasting contributions from natural (Mg, Mn, Zn) and saline agriculture soils (Na); (3) cement production and fossil fuel combustion, 9.8% (Ca, Ni, V, chrysene, pyrene); (4) probable agricultural biomass burning, 8.1% (K and benzo(g,h,i)perylene), and (5) agriculture with wastewater, 5.2% (δ 15 N and P). These results indicated high deposition of bioaccumulative air pollutants at MV, especially at the industrial area. Since T. recurvata reflected the regional differences in exposition, it is recommended as a biomonitor for comparisons within and among countries where it is distributed: southern USA to Argentina.

Conifer forest resilience may be threatened by increasing wildfire activity and compound disturbances in western North America. Fire refugia enhance forest resilience, yet may decline over time due to delayed mortality-a process that remains poorly understood at landscape and regional scales. To address this uncertainty, we used high-resolution satellite imagery (5-m pixel) to map and quantify delayed mortality of conifer tree cover between 1 and 5 years postfire, across 30 large wildfires that burned within three montane ecoregions in the western United States. We used statistical models to explore the influence of burn severity, topography, soils, and climate moisture deficit on delayed mortality. We estimate that delayed mortality reduced live conifer tree cover by 5%-25% at the fire perimeter scale and 12%-15% at the ecoregion scale. Remotely sensed burn severity (1-year postfire) was the strongest predictor of delayed mortality, indicating patch-level fire effects are a strong proxy for fire injury severity among surviving trees that eventually perish. Delayed mortality rates were further influenced by long-term average and short-term postfire climate moisture deficits, illustrating the impact of drought on fire-injured tree survival. Our work demonstrates that delayed mortality in conifer forests of the western United States can be remotely quantified at a fine grain and landscape scale, is a spatially extensive phenomenon, is driven by fire-climate-environment interactions, and has important ecological implications.

Gerhard P. Hancke (M'88) received the B.Sc., B.Eng., and M.Eng. degrees from the University of Stellenbosch in 1970 and 1973, respectively, and the D.Eng. degree from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, in 1983. After a period of service with the Instrumentation Division of the Atomic Energy Board, he joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pretoria in 1976, where he is at present a Professor, specializing in the field of instrumentation and measurement. Apart from his academic responsibilities, he has also been involved in various industrial applications of instrumentation and control systems. He is the author or coauthor of a number of technical papers and has presented more than 50 papers at international conferences. Dr. Hancke is a Professional Engineer and a senior member of AIMC.

Basing on results of previous studies, the efficiency of a Brayton/Hirn combined cycle, fuelled with a clean syngas produced by means of biomass gasification and equipped with CO 2 removal by chemical absorption, resulted 33.94%, considering also the separated CO 2 compression process. The specific CO 2 emission of the power plant was 178 kg/MWh. In comparison with values previously found for an Integrated Coal Gasification Combined Cycle (ICGCC) with upstream CO 2 chemical absorption (38-39% efficiency, 130 kg/MWh specific CO 2 emissions), this configuration seems to be attractive because of the possibility of operating with a simplified scheme and for the possibility of using biomass in a more efficient way with respect to conventional systems. In this paper a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was carried out presenting results on the basis of the Eco-Indicator'95 impact assessment methodology. Further, a comparison with the results previously obtained for the LCA of the ICGCC was performed, in order to highlight environmental impact of biomass production with fossil fuels utilisation. The LCA shows the important environmental advantages of biomass utilisation in terms of reduction of both greenhouse gas emissions and natural resource depletion, although an improved impact assessment methodology may better highlight the advantages due to the biomass utilisation.

Fran Barns, retired aerospace Engineer, and self trained geologist, studied and wrote about the area, was the guide for Gene Shoemaker when he came to the area. Note the "No temporal linkage has been the impact and rifting event." Let's examine the rift, then figure out what happened.

to sequester 1.5-2.0 MT/ha carbon per year over a 20-year period. The concept could be used to meet a portion of the timber industry's needs while simultaneously sequestering carbon in lands which would otherwise remain non-productive. The CCWESTRS includes a constructed wetland to enhance the ability to sequester carbon and to remove any nutrients and metals present in the coal fly ash process water runoff. The CCWESTRS project is a cooperative effort between TVA, EPRI, and DOE-NETL, with a total budget of $1,574,000. The proposed demonstration project began in October 2000 and has continued through December 2005. Additional funding is being sought in order to extend the project. ix through the FGD mulch and upper soil horizons, levels of nitrogen, iron, magnesium, and sulfate increase, while boron decreases. Boron levels decrease and indicates that boron, at least initially, is being removed from the water and is potentially accumulating in the FGD mulch and upper horizons soil horizons. Boron levels in surface waters are similar to levels found in the ash pond (irrigation source). This may indicate the existence of surface runoff of the irrigation water or shallow lateral movement (via the upper layers of mulch and soil) of boron into the ponds. Iron and manganese levels in the ponds are similar to levels found in the irrigation water and are lower than groundwater levels. Surface water levels of magnesium, sulfate, ammonia and calcium are roughly midway between irrigation source and groundwater levels. Year 5 project expenditures were $116,000.

The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis has undertaken a study of the use of risk analysis in siting liquefied energy gas facilities in four countries: the Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The work on which the present paper is based was part of this larger study. The authors of this paper have devised a descriptive framework for the issues raised by siting large-scale technological facilities, and have illustrated its concepts by applying them to an LNG siting process in California. They also suggest ways of using analytical methods to improve both the interaction process among the interested parties and the outcome of the siting debate. Their ideas are in the spirit of the research that IIASA is presently carrying out on the role of analysts in the policymaking process. Thus, this paper not only contributes to the Institute's work on the problems of risk but also has somewhat broader implications.

Problems related to increases of green house gases in the atmosphere and the. It of fossil fuels have made the conversion of C02 into useful chemicals and fuels an important area of research. However, C02 reduction poses many scientific challenges. Despite intense interest in photochemical and electrochemical C02 reduction, the kinetics and mechanism of the reduction remain unclear in many systems. A number of 14-membered tetraazamacrocyclic complexes serve as catalysts for photochemical and electrochemical C02 reduction. [CoHMD(H20)](C104)2 (HMD = 5,7,7,12,14,14-hexamethy1-1,4,8,11-tetraaza-cyclotetradeca-4,11-diene) L2 and Ni(cyclam)C12 (cyclam = 1,4,8,11-tetraaza~yclotetradecane)~ have been used as electrocatalysts for the reduction of CO2 in H20 or aqueous CH3CN. The ratio for COLE32 production is-1 for [CoHMD(H20)](C104)2 and >lo0 for Ni(cyclam)Cl2. Metal(I) complexes, metal(I1I) hydride complexes, and metallocarboxylates such as [NiIII(cyclam)(CO22-)p are postulated as intermediates in the electro-and photo-chemical CO2~eduction.~ Our research focuses on mechanistic and kinetic studies of photochemical and electrochemical C02 reduction that involves metal complexes as catalysts. This work makes use of UV-vis, NMR, and FTIR spectroscopy, flash photolysis, pulse radiolysis, X-ray diffraction, XANES @-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy) and E M S (extended X-ray absorption fine structure). Here we summarize our research on photochemical carbon dioxide reduction with metal macrocycles. 2. NATURE OF CO-CO~ ADDUCTS We and others have characterized the interaction of low-spin ds ColHMD+ with C02 in CH3CN5-9 and in H20.10,ll Schmidt et a1.12 have characterized the binding thermodynamics as a function of organic solvent. The chiral N-H centers of the macrocycle give rise to two diastereomers, N-ruc and N-meso. The CoL complexes are shown below.

The concept of waste biorefinery is known as one of the several energy recovery technologies capable of producing multi products in the form of biofuels and value-added products treating different fractions of municipal solid waste (MSW). The conversion technologies such as anaerobic digestion (AD), pyrolysis, transesterification, incineration treat food, plastic, meat, and lignocellulosic wastes to produce liquid, gaseous and solid biofuels. Makkah city landfills receive about 2750 tons of waste every day. Whilst during the Ramadan and Hajj seasons, these quantities become 3000 tons and 4706 tons per day respectively. More than 2.5 million animals were sold for slaughtering in 2014 Hajj, and their blood and organic solid waste were disposed untreated. Similarly, around 2.1 million plastic Zam-Zam cups were wasted every day during the 2014 Ramadan time. In the first three days of 2014&#39;s Ramadan, 5000 tons of food was wasted only in Makkah municipality. Collectively, about 3853 t...

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), millions of Muslims come to perform Pilgrimage every year. Around one million ton of municipal solid waste (MSW) is generated in Makkah city annually. The collected MSW is disposed of in the landfills without any treatment or energy recovery. As a result, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and contamination of the soil and water bodies along with leachate and odors are occurring in waste disposal vicinities. The composition of MSW shows that food waste is the largest waste stream (up to 51%) of the total generated MSW. About 13% of the food waste consists of fat content that is equivalent to about 64 thousand tons per year. This study aims to estimate the production potential of biodiesel first time in Makkah city from fat/oil fractions of MSW and highlight its economic and environmental benefits. It has been estimated that 62.53, 117.15 and 6.38 thousand tons of biodiesel, meat and bone meal (MBM) and glycerol respectively could be produced in 2014. A total electricity potential of 852 Gigawatt hour (GWh) from all three sources based on their energy contents, Higher Heating Value (HHV) of 40.17, 18.33 and 19 MJ/kg, was estimated for 2014 that will increase up to 1777 GWh in 2050. The cumulative net savings from landfill waste diversion (256 to 533 million Saudi Riyal (SAR)), carbon credits (46 to 96 million SAR), fuel savings (146 to 303 million SAR) and electricity generation (273 to 569 million SAR) have a potential to add a total net revenue of 611 to 1274 million SAR every year to the Saudi economy, from 2014 to 2050 respectively. However, further studies including real-time data about annual slaughtering activities and the amount of waste generation and its management are critical to decide optimum waste management practices based on life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) methodologies.

The energy consumption in Saudi Arabia has increased significantly in recent years due to a rapidly growing population and economic development. The current peak demand of electrcity is 55 GW and it is projected to become 120 GW in the year 2032. Fossil fuels are the only choice to meet the energy requirements. The government plans to double its energy generating capacity by 2020, of which around 85% will come from renewable resources. Natural zeolites are found abundantly in Saudi Arabia and have a significant role in the energy generation applications. Natural zeolites samples have been collected from the Jabal Shama occurrence near Jeddah city. All of the samples showed the standard zeolite group of alumina-silicate minerals with the presence of other elements such as Na, Mg and K etc. A highly crystalline structure is found in natural zeolites, which is critical when using in the energy applications as a process catalyst. However, there is a need of special milling and purificat...

At the conclusion of flooding in an oil-or gas-bearing reservoir, a significant fraction of the original hydrocarbon in place remains in the swept region as trapped residual phase. In addition to the amount of trapped phase, its microscopic distribution within the pore space of a reservoir rock is important to gain a better understanding of recovery mechanisms and for the design and implementation of tertiary recovery processes. Despite the importance of the pore scale structure and distribution of residual oil, little quantitative information is currently available. We utilize a technique for imaging the pore-scale distribution of fluids in reservoir cores. The method allows the same core to be imaged after flooding under different wettability conditions, saturation states and flooding rates. Secondary and tertiary floods can be considered. Recovery mechanisms can be directly tested and the differences in the habitat of the residual fluids under different conditions can be directly quantified. We present results for imbibition experiments on a number of sandstone and reservoir carbonate samples of varying complexity. The role of rate, wettability and initial water saturation on residual phase saturations are given. The detailed structure of the residual trapped phase is described; the size distributions of residual oil blobs, features of blob shape and dimensions are enumerated and compared under variable flooding conditions. These results provide an important platform for both the understanding of pore scale displacement mechanisms and for the testing and calibration of image and networkbased models of multiphase flow.

Tree species as a function of area (a) and as a function of annual empower (b) for high-elevation (>1200m) forest in the Wine Spring Creek watershed .........46 3-7\\\\\\Energy systems diagrams of EMERGYDYN used to simulate dynamics of emergy accumulation for wood biomass of the Coweeta watershed. Calibration of energy and material flows (a) and empower sources (b) ............51 3-8\\\\\\Simulation results of EMERGYDYN calibrated in Figure 3-7 for wood biomass of Coweeta. Time series of wood biomass, emergy of wood biomass, and transformity of wood biomass are shown..

A laboratory-scale system incorporating a high temperature furnace has been utilized to study the reaction of heavy metal species and sorbents. The interaction between heavy metal species (cadmium and lead) and sorbents for different injection conditions is studied. Three different sorbents, a solid phase pillar intercalated clay (PICL) and two in-situ generated silica and titania, are used for capture of the heavy metals. The in-situ generated silica agglomerates had a high surface area and suppressed nucleation of cadmium and lead species vapors over all injection conditions. The mean particle size of the resultant heavy metals-silica complex is significantly larger than that of heavy metals alone. It can be tuned for effective capture in existing particle control devices. However, in-situ generated titania showed spherical form due to slow collision characteristic time and hindered to grow by heavy metal species. It showed smaller particle size distribution compared to silica except for injection TiO 2 precursor into the first furnace and then injection heavy metal species into the second furnace. The solid phase pillar intercalated clay sorbent was not stable at 1000 o C, and structural changes resulted. The PICL sorbent showed low removal efficiency of heavy metals.

Energy and environmental issues, such as fossil fuel shortage and climate change are global challenges that need to be addressed. Research and innovation in sustainable energy-related functional materials, produced by environmentally benign technologies, will play a critical role in meeting these challenges. In this sense, energy, environment, and materials constitute a trinomial combination of special relevance for the sustainable development of our society. Aerosol science and technology is an enabling discipline that can address these issues effectively. These gas phase techniques are widely recognized as being capable of producing a variety of novel materials with controlled functionality for energy and environmental applications. Fundamental principles of aerosol processing of materials are briefly described. Specific examples of advanced functional materials development by using aerosol processes are demonstrated, such as photocatalysts for carbon dioxide photoreduction and th...

Abstract: A laboratory-scale system incorporating a high temperature furnace has been utilized to study the reaction of heavy metal species and sorbents. The interaction between heavy metal species (cadmium and lead) and sorbents for different injection conditions is ...

Carbon terrestrial sinks are seen as a low-cost alternative to fuel switching and reduced fossil fuel use for lowering atmospheric CO 2. In this study, we review issues related to the use of terrestrial forestry activities to create CO 2 offset credits. To gain a deeper understanding of the confusing empirical studies of forest projects to create carbon credits under Kyoto, we employ meta-regression analysis to analyze conditions under which forest activities generate CO 2emission reduction offsets at competitive 'prices'. In particular, we examine 68 studies of the costs of creating carbon offsets using forestry. Baseline estimates of costs of sequestering carbon are some US$3-$280 per tCO 2 , indicating that the costs of creating CO 2-emission offset credits through forestry activities vary wildly. Intensive plantations in the tropics could potentially yield positive benefits to society, but in Europe similar projects could cost as much as $195/tCO 2. Indeed, Europe is the highest cost region, with costs in the range of $50-$280 per tCO 2. This might explain why Europe has generally opposed biological sinks as a substitute for emissions reductions, while countries rush to finance forestry sector CDM projects. In Canada and the U.S., carbon sequestration costs range from a low of about $2 to nearly $80 per tCO 2. One conclusion is obvious: some forestry projects to sequester carbon are worthwhile undertaking, but certainly not all.

A Geographical Information System (GIS) supported methodology has been developed in order to assess the technical and economic potential of biomass exploitation for energy production in Sicily. The methodology was based on the use of agricultural, economic, climatic, and infrastructural data in a GIS. Data about land use, transportation facilities, urban cartography, regional territorial planning, terrain digital model, lithology, climatic types, and civil and industrial users have been stored in the GIS to define potential areas for gathering the residues coming from the pruning of olive groves, vineyards, and other agricultural crops, and to assess biomass available for energy cultivation. Further, it was possible to assess the potential of biodiesel production, supposing the cultivation of rapeseed in arable crop areas. For the biomass used for direct combustion purposes, the economic availability has been assessed assuming a price of the biomass and comparing it with other fuels. This assessment has shown the strong competitiveness of firewood in comparison with traditional fossil fuels when the collection system is implemented in an efficient way. Moreover, the economic potential of biodiesel was assessed considering the ongoing financial regime for fuel. At the same time, the study has shown a significant competitiveness of the finished biomass (pellets), and good potential for a long-term development of this market. An important result was the determination of biofuel production potential in Sicily. An outcome of the study was to show the opportunities stemming from the harmonisation of Energy Policy with the Waste Management System and Rural Development Plan.

Adsorption and absorption were effective in G/P partitioning and equilibrium was not reached. • The pp-LFER, mp-pp-LFER and QSPR models were evaluated for the first time for PCDD/Fs. • The performance of the G/P partitioning models in the EQ, NE and MP domains was assessed. • While H-B, D-E, J-P and L-MY were good yet the L-MY model gave the closest predictions. • J-P and pp-LFER models showed remarkable performance at the high logK OA values.

The search for the exploitation of renewable and environmental benign energy resources increase globally due to increasing prices and uncertainties in the availability of conventional energy resources such as mineral fuels. Biofuels are alternative renewable fuels that have received considerable attention in the recent past: namely bioethanol, which is made from crop grains or sugarcane and biodiesel, which is made from vegetable oils and animal fats, and both are used as a sources of power for cars, trucks, and aircrafts. Presently the fuels are produced and marketed in Brazil and many developed countries, and serves as a potent supplement/substitute for fossil fuel. This paper examines the precedence of biofuel as a fuel and highlights the advances made in the production, use and quality assessment at the global level.

Abstract:-Concerns over the impact of the environment on the massive usage of fossil fuels, combined with soaring energy prices, triggered increased interest in the use of solar energy. Solar energy is abundant, provides an important saving to the consumer, and contributes to a personal comfort without environmental damage. One of the most attractive applications of solar energy is for hot water usage in the public and commercial sector. The available building surface for the residential, commercial and industrial sector is approximately ...

Field trial was conducted under low fertile sand soil conditions to follow up the role of organic additives with presence and absence of compatible bacterial inoculum in enhancement of peanut growth and yield. Bradyrhizobium spp. (foreign strain USDA 3456), inoculation resulted in relative increase of seed yield, as average, by about 5% over the un-inoculated plants despite of organic additive source. Similarly, organic additives had increased the seed yield, in average, over the non-treated plant which relatively accounted for 5%, 16% and 37% as affected by animal manure, leuceana residues and quail feces, respectively. On overall means basis of N uptake by seeds, comparison between organic additives indicated the superiority of animal manure over both of leuceana residues and quail feces. Nitrogen derived from mineral fertilizer seems to be higher in absence of organic manure and tended to decrease with addition of different organic amendments. Accordingly, the portion of fertiliz...

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins (PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs) and trace metals have been assessed in sediment samples from the Yser and the Upper-Scheldt rivers. The contamination level in the sediments of the Upper-Scheldt river are generally much higher than in the Yser, but a good correlation between all contaminants is observed. Using several diagnostic PAH ratios, it appears that the PAH levels in the sediments are clearly from pyrolytic (combustion) origin. For the PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs we compared the fingerprint observed in the sediments with that found in deposition material. In both type of samples the OCDD followed by HpCDD are the dominant congeners for the PCDD/Fs and dioxinlike PCBs. This means that the sources are either combustion and/or atmospheric OCDD formation reactions from pentachlorophenol. The main sources for the high trace metals levels in the sediments of the Upper-Scheldt river are/were steel and non-ferrous metals' smelters, while in Yser river sediments Cu levels are enhanced due to the natural levels in the soils of that Basin. 2 For trace metals and dioxins a substantial reduction of their sediment concentrations since the 80ies and 90ies is observed, but this is not the case for the PAHs. This is confirmed by emission trends of these contaminants.

Although cellulases have generally been reported to be produced by microbes including bacteria and fungi, their activity has been detected in the whole body saline extracts of some insects. In this paper, the cellulase activity is being reported from the locally collected insects viz., tiger beetle (Cicindela scutellaris), red cotton bug (Dysdercus koenigii), blue pumpkin beetle (Aulacophora atripennis), red pumpkin beetles (Aulacophora foveicollis and Aulacophora hilaris) and grass hopper (Chrotogonus trachypterus trachypterus). The whole body extracts of these insects were able to hydrolyze carboxy-methylcellulose and crystalline cellulose. Carboxy-methylcellulase activity produced by the insects was studied for the heterogeneity using PAGE and zymogram technique, which showed that there were at least 2 fractions for each insect enzyme activity. The phenomenon of heterogeneity was comparable to bacterial cellulase enzymes.

This study explores a large set of OC and EC measurements in PM(10) and PM(2.5) aerosol samples, undertaken with a long term constant analytical methodology, to evaluate the capability of the OC/EC minimum ratio to represent the ratio between the OC and EC aerosol components resulting from fossil fuel combustion (OC(ff)/EC(ff)). The data set covers a wide geographical area in Europe, but with a particular focus upon Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom, and includes a great variety of sites: urban (background, kerbside and tunnel), industrial, rural and remote. The highest minimum ratios were found in samples from remote and rural sites. Urban background sites have shown spatially and temporally consistent minimum ratios, of around 1.0 for PM(10) and 0.7 for PM(2.5).The consistency of results has suggested that the method could be used as a tool to derive the ratio between OC and EC from fossil fuel combustion and consequently to differentiate OC from primary and secondary sources. To explore this capability, OC and EC measurements were performed in a busy roadway tunnel in central Lisbon. The OC/EC ratio, which reflected the composition of vehicle combustion emissions, was in the range of 03-0.4. Ratios of OC/EC in roadside increment air (roadside minus urban background) in Birmingham, UK also lie within the range 03-0.4. Additional measurements were performed under heavy traffic conditions at two double kerbside sites located in the centre of Lisbon and Madrid. The OC/EC minimum ratios observed at both sites were found to be between those of the tunnel and those of urban background air, suggesting that minimum values commonly obtained for this parameter in open urban atmospheres over-predict the direct emissions of OC(ff) from road transport. Possible reasons for this discrepancy are explored.

The extent to which humans are modifying Earth's surface chemistry can be quantified by comparing total anthropogenic element fluxes with their natural counterparts (Klee & Graedel, 2004). We quantify anthropogenic mass transfer of 77 elements from mining, fossil fuel burning, biomass burning, construction activities, and human apportionment of terrestrial net primary productivity, and compare it to natural mass transfer from terrestrial and marine net primary productivity, riverine dissolved and suspended matter fluxes to the ocean, soil erosion, eolian dust, sea-salt spray, cosmic dust, volcanic emissions and-for helium-hydrodynamic escape from the Earth's atmosphere. We introduce an approach to correct for losses during industrial processing of elements belonging to geochemically coherent groups, and explicitly incorporate uncertainties of element mass fluxes through Monte Carlo simulations. We find that at the Earth's surface anthropogenic fluxes of iridium, osmium, helium, gold, ruthenium, antimony, platinum, palladium, rhenium, rhodium and chromium currently exceed natural fluxes. For these elements mining is the major factor of anthropogenic influence, whereas petroleum burning strongly influences the surficial cycle of rhenium. Our assessment indicates that if anthropogenic contributions to soil erosion and eolian dust are considered, anthropogenic fluxes of up to 62 elements surpass their corresponding natural fluxes.

A dynamic simulation of coupled supply and demand of energy, resources and nuclear reactors is done with the global model Prospective Outlook for Long Term Energy Supply (POLES) over this century. In this model, both electricity demand and uranium supply are not independent of the cost of all base load electricity suppliers. Uranium consuming Thermal Neutron Reactors and future generation, free from the uranium market once started, breeder reactors are only one part of the market and are in a global competition, not limited to the other nuclear generation. In this paper we present a new model of the impact of uranium scarcity on the development of nuclear reactors. Many scenarios rely on the subjective definition of ultimate uranium resources. We suggest that when uranium will mainly be extracted together with other resources, its cost should not be simply a function of cumulated uranium mined but also of mine yearly outputs. We describe the sensitivities of our model to breeder rea...

The Economist tarafından yapılan analiz, kömür santrallerini kapatmanın karbon emisyonu ton başına sadece 34 dolar gibi bir maliyetle karbon emisyonlarını büyük ölçüde azaltabileceğini ortaya koyuyor. İklim değişikliğinin ekonomik etkisine ilişkin tahminler, yıllık küresel GSYİH’nın % 2 ila % 10’u arasında değişmektedir. Ortam hava kirliliği, her yıl küresel GSYİH’nın tahmini % 4 ila % 5'ine mal olmakta.