天然气净化厂脱硫装置能耗分析及节能措施探讨

高含硫天然气净化厂需对H2S含量较高的原料气进行处理,溶液循环量大、工艺流程长、公用工程消耗量大、能耗高。通过对天然气净化厂脱硫单元的耗能点及耗能关联因素进行分析,从优化工艺方案、采用先进节能设备、回收可回收的能量、减少工艺过程能量损失等方面,提出了热泵、贫液与半贫液分流工艺及板式换热器在MDEA脱硫单元中的应用及改造措施,详细阐述了各种节能措施的优势及适用条件。充分挖掘天然气净化厂的节能潜力,能够创造良好的经济效益和环境效益。     

天然气增压站噪声和振动治理效果分析

分析了天然气增压站噪声的主要来源,在阐述降噪原理的基础上,根据增压站所在地区实际情况,采用更换消声器、修建减振沟、修建降噪厂房、优化降噪厂房墙体等不同措施,结合治理前后噪声监测数据分析,对不同措施降噪减振的效果进行评价,同时综合了采取不同措施的合理性,为类似增压站噪声和振动治理提供借鉴。     

Confusing messages of sustainability indicators

This study examines sustainability indicators using the sustainability report of the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry as the case study. The report is a compilation of indicators designed to assess the sustainability of natural resource management. The interviews with the users revealed, however, that the indicators have not been particularly effective in informing the actors or in affecting their behaviour. Clearly, the informative value of the indicators has been overrated and the complexity of the information transfer has been underestimated. At least partly, the difficulties were due to the obscurity of the indicator-concept itself and consequently to their improper use. First, the statistics with the objective state-of-affairs information should be distinguished from the indicators that are always related to policy discussion. In addition, the technical and communicative use of the indicators should be distinguished from each other as they have different relationship between the information, policy values and the associated activities.     

Environmental management policy in a coastal tourism municipality: the case study of Cervia (Italy)

The sustainability concept applied to human activities implies the need to harmonise the protection of environment with a satisfactory economic and social development. This is particularly true for tourism development: a misuse of the natural resources can cause a degradation of the tourist appeal of the destination, bringing it finally to its economic decline. This problem is particularly important in coastal tourism destinations. The implementation of an environmental management system is a powerful way for progressing towards better environmental performances. In this paper, the main results obtained in applying the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme procedure to the municipality of Cervia, a well-known tourist destination located on the Adriatic coast of Italy are described. This research puts into evidence that the main environmental pressures in the summer season are related to the supply of potable water, the production of solid wastes and wastewater air pollution and noise, etc. However, if correctly planned and managed, tourism can also contribute to environmental protection, to the conservation of biodiversity and to a sustainable use of natural resources.     

EVALUATION OF THE SUSTAINABILITY OF WATER WITHDRAWALS IN THE UNITED STATES, 1995 TO 20251

To evaluate the long term sustainability of water withdrawals in the United States, a county level analysis of the availability of renewable water resources was conducted, and the magnitudes of human withdrawals from surface water and ground water sources and the stored water requirements during the warmest months of the year were evaluated. Estimates of growth in population and electricity generation were then used to estimate the change in withdrawals assuming that the rates of water use either remain at their current levels (the business as usual scenario) or that they exhibit improvements in efficiency at the same rate as observed over 1975 to 1995 (the improved efficiency scenario). The estimates show several areas, notably the Southwest and major metropolitan areas throughout the United States, as being likely to have significant new storage requirements with the business‐as‐usual scenario, under the condition of average water availability. These new requirements could be substantially eliminated under the improved efficiency scenario, thus indicating the importance of water use efficiency in meeting future requirements. The national assessment identified regions of potential water sustainability concern; these regions can be the subject of more targeted data collection and analyses in the future.     

钇覆盖Si@Al_（12）团簇的贮氢性能

利用密度泛函理论系统地研究了Y_mSi@Al_（12）（m=1—3）团簇及其贮氢性质.结果表明,在所研究的尺度范围内,钇原子未在Si@Al_（12）团簇上团聚;每个钇原子按18电子规则吸附氢分子,其中Y_3Si@Al_（12）团簇可以吸附16个完整氢分子,贮氢质量分数为5.0%,平均吸附能处于0.324—0.527 eV之间,较为理想的吸附能说明在室温条件下吸氢和脱氢是可行的.     

Green Composites as Panacea? Socio-Economic Aspects of Green Materials

Much academic research and industrial development explores new ways to create greener and environmentally friendlier chemicals and materials for a variety of applications. A significant part of this work focuses on the development, processing and manufacturing, recycling and disposal of green plastics, adhesives, polymer composites, blends and many other industrial products from renewable resources. Natural fibres offer the potential to deliver greater added value, sustainability, renewability and lower costs especially in the automotive industry. Further research involves the fibre crop production. The ever-increasing volume of scientific literature refers with enthusiasm to the potential of natural fibres in technological, economic and ecological terms. This enthusiasm tends to also expand to the areas of human life and socio-economic development for the fibre crop growers and their communities. However, there is very little debate or evidence to support statements about the assumed advantages for the affected population in rural areas. We argue that despite the predicted new boom in the demand of natural fibres, it is unlikely that this will represent a real improvement in the quality of life of crop fibre growers and their communities. This paper examines the experience of Mexico as a case study and argues that only through consistent political will and co-operation between governments, industry, scientists, consumer groups and local communities, as well as a suitable economic strategy such as local subsidies, a truly sustainable economic development, social equity and improved environmental quality will be achieved for tens of thousands of natural fibre growers.     

The Wild Animal as a Research Animal

Most discussions on animal experimentation refer to domesticated animals and regulations are tailored to this class of animals. However, wild animals are also used for research, e.g., in biological field research that is often directed to fundamental ecological-evolutionary questions or to conservation goals. There are several differences between domesticated and wild animals that are relevant for evaluation of the acceptability of animal experiments. Biological features of wild animals are often more critical as compared with domesticated animals because of their survival effects. An important issue is what is called here “natural suffering”: the suffering from natural circumstances. Should this type of suffering be taken into account when suffering from experimentation is evaluated? As an answer, it is suggested that ``natural functioning'' should be considered as an additional standard in the evaluation of wild animal experimentation. Finally, two topics related to the ecological context are considered. Firstly, the often inevitable involvement of non-research animals in wild animal experimentation, and secondly, the eco-centric approach to nature conservation. According to the latter position, animals are subordinated to ecosystems. All these aspects make the evaluation of wild animal experiments much more complex than experiments with domesticated animals. Preliminary scores are proposed to deal with these aspects. It is argued that this should not lead to a more complex governmental regulation, since an effective maintenance and control are hard to realize and one may loose the cooperation of researchers themselves. In addition, non-governmental professional organizations such as research societies and funding organizations play a pivotal role.