Trimethylbenzoic acids as metabolite signatures in the biogeochemical evolution of an aquifer contaminated with jet fuel hydrocarbons

Evolution of trimethylbenzoic acids in the KC-135 aquifer at the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (WAFB), Oscoda, MI was examined to determine the functionality of trimethylbenzoic acids as key metabolite signatures in the biogeochemical evolution of an aquifer contaminated with JP-4 fuel hydrocarbons. Changes in the composition of trimethylbenzoic acids and the distribution and concentration profiles exhibited by 2,4,6- and 2,3,5-trimethylbenzoic acids temporally and between multilevel wells reflect processes indicative of an actively evolving contaminant plume. The concentration levels of trimethylbenzoic acids were 3-10 orders higher than their tetramethylbenzene precursors, a condition attributed to slow metabolite turnover under sulfidogenic conditions. The observed degradation of tetramethylbenzenes into trimethylbenzoic acids obviates the use of these alkylbenzenes as non-labile tracers for other degradable aromatic hydrocarbons, but provides rare field evidence on the range of high molecular weight alkylbenzenes and isomeric assemblages amenable to anaerobic degradation in situ. The coupling of actual tetramethylbenzene loss with trimethylbenzoic acid production and the general decline in the concentrations of these compounds demonstrate the role of microbially mediated processes in the natural attenuation of hydrocarbons and may be a key indicator in the overall rate of hydrocarbon degradation and the biogeochemical evolution of the KC-135 aquifer.     

Emissions from RDF/coal blended fuel combustion

The significant volume and weight reduction along with the energy potential of MSW, in the form of refuse derived fuel (RDF), has made its incineration an attractive alternative. However, the gaseous emissions such as, CO₂, CO, NO_x and SO₂, which are the byproduct of the combustion process pose serious environmental problems. These problems are compounded by the presence of certain highly regulated hazardous wastes such as, dioxins and furans in the exhaust stream. In the present investigation, different compositions of RDF/Coal blends were examined and the gaseous emissions from the combustion of the briquetted fuel were measured. Also, a direct comparison of emissions from RDF/coal blend incineration with coal combustion is presented in this paper. The potential for recovery of ferrous and non- ferrous metals provides an additional economic motivation for the use of RDF/Coal blended briquettes.     

包装废弃物添加脱氯半焦制备SRF的热解及动力学特性

利用热重红外分析仪(TG-FTIR)对包装废弃物添加了4种不同比例脱氯半焦制备而成的固体衍生燃料(SRF)的热解特性及热反应动力学进行了研究分析.研究发现,4种燃料热解过程主要包括4个阶段,其中300~400℃和400~500℃为两个主要失重阶段.前一阶段,SRF-1失重显著高于SRF-2、SRF-3和SRF-4,而后一阶段失重分别呈2、3、4倍增加.4种燃料热解残余量的顺序为SRF-4SRF-3SRF-2SRF-1,即添加了脱氯半焦的燃料热解程度越高.FTIR分析表明,添加了脱氯半焦的SRF燃料第三失重峰处不产生氯代烃.随脱氯半焦添加量的增加,第二失重峰CO2产生的浓度减少;第三失重峰CH4析出浓度增加;第四失重峰CO2析出的浓度增加.采用DEAM分布活化能法得到,转化率α0.3时,SRF-2和SRF-3的活化能均高于SRF-1的活化能,0.3α0.9时(α为0.6时除外),SRF-2、SRF-3和SRF-4 3种燃料的活化能低于SRF-1,且SRF-1的活化能呈升高的趋势,而其他3种燃料呈相反趋势.脱氯半焦的添加有利于SRF燃料的热解.     

垃圾衍生燃料灰渣中主要元素变化的研究

以垃圾衍生燃料(RDF)为研究对象,在600~1100℃条件下灼烧RDF灰渣,对灰渣中的主要元素变化情况进行分析.研究结果表明,RDF灰渣中主要元素包括硅、氧、铝、钙、镁、钾、钠、碳、硫、氯、磷、钛、锌等;灰渣中的可溶盐倾向富集在≤0.3 mm的灰渣颗粒上;在600~1000℃范围内,其总量处于动态平衡,在1100℃则大幅度减少.随着温度的上升,碳转化为二氧化碳气体;硫元素转化为硫酸盐,随后部分再转化为二氧化硫气体;氯元素转化为以氯化钠和氯化钾为主的氯化盐,在达到一定温度时发生相变转化为气体.硅、氧、铝、钙、镁、磷等元素留存于废渣中,随着温度提高,发生复合化学反应,相互键接形成复合硅酸盐物质.     

辅助燃料对垃圾熔融炉炉温影响的分析研究

文章计算了在不同焦炭加入量及不同焦炭和煤的配比条件下处理城市生活垃圾时气化熔融炉的炉温。计算结果表明,用焚烧法处理重庆市的生活垃圾时,在常温鼓风条件下,要使垃圾灰渣完全熔融,焦炭配比至少应在42％以上;在一定的条件下,可以用煤部分或全部代替焦炭,同时配以高温鼓风,可使炉温达到并超过垃圾灰渣的熔融温度,从而使得垃圾灰渣熔融。     

从废水中回收沼气能及氢能与电能

厌氧发酵制沼气、厌氧发酵制氢和微生物燃料电池技术是利用微生物在废水处理的同时回收能源的三种主要方式。文章结合相关研究现状,介绍了这三种技术的基本原理及其在废水处理领域的发展状况和展望,并对三种生物能源进行了比较。     

生物阴极型微生物燃料电池同步降解偶氮染料与产电性能研究

构建了生物阴极型微生物燃料电池(BCMFC),研究了以葡萄糖-偶氮染料(活性艳红X-3B)为共基质条件下,BCMFC产电性能及偶氮染料的降解特性.结果表明,电能的产生源于BCMFC对葡萄糖的降解,共代谢下活性艳红X-3B的(ABRX3B)的生物降解是主要的脱色机理.当葡萄糖初始浓度为500mg·L-1(以COD计),ABRX3B浓度低于300 mg·L-1时,功率密度维持50.7 mW·m-2,最终脱色率在94.4%以上,而ABRX3B浓度的进一步提高对BCMFC产电会产生抑制作用.阳极液的COD去除率和UV-Vis光谱表明,ABRX3B的降解过程中,有中间产物的积累.共基质条件下,BCMFC可成功实现同步电能输出和高效脱色.     

Prospects for carbon-neutral housing: the influence of greater wood use on the carbon footprint of a single-family residence

This paper examines the energy and carbon balance of two residential house alternatives; a typical wood frame home using more conventional materials (brick cladding, vinyl windows, asphalt shingles, and fibreglass insulation) and a similar wood frame house that also maximizes wood use throughout (cedar shingles and siding, wood windows, and cellulose insulation) in place of the more typical materials used – a wood-intensive house. Carbon emission and fossil fuel consumption balances were established for the two homes based on the cumulative total of three subsystems: (1) forest harvesting and regeneration; (2) cradle-to-gate product manufacturing, construction, and replacement effects over a 100-year service life; and (3) end-of-life effects – landfilling with methane capture and combustion or recovery of biomass for energy production.The net carbon balance of the wood-intensive house showed a complete offset of the manufacturing emissions by the credit given to the system for forest re-growth. Including landfill methane emissions, the wood-intensive life cycle yielded 20 tons of CO₂e emissions compared to 72 tons for the typical house. The wood-intensive home's life cycle also consumed only 45% of the fossil fuels used in the typical house.Diverting wood materials from the landfill at the end of life improved the life cycle balances of both the typical and wood-intensive houses. The carbon balance of the wood-intensive house was 5.2 tons of CO₂e permanently removed from the atmosphere (a net carbon sink) as compared to 63.4 of total CO₂e emissions for the typical house. Substitution of wood fuel for natural gas and coal in electricity production led to a net energy balance of the wood-intensive house that was nearly neutral, 87.1 GJ energy use, 88% lower than the scenario in which the materials were landfilled.Allocating biomass generation and carbon sequestration in the forest on an economic basis as opposed to a mass basis significantly improves the life cycle balances of both houses. Employing an economic allocation method to the forest leads to 3–5 times greater carbon sequestration and fossil fuel substitution attributable to the house, which is doubled in forestry regimes that remove stumps and slash as fuel. Thus, wood use has the potential to create a significantly negative carbon footprint for a house up to the point of occupancy and even offset a portion of heating and cooling energy use and carbon emissions; the wood-intensive house is energy and carbon neutral for 34–68 years in Ottawa and has the potential to be a net carbon sink and energy producer in a more temperate climate like San Francisco.     

Application of response surface methodology for the optimization of biodiesel production from yellow mustard (Sinapis alba L.) seed oil

In the present study, response surface methodology (RSM) involving central composite design (CCD) was applied to optimize the reaction parameters of biodiesel production from yellow mustard (Sinapis alba L.) seed oil during the single-step transesterification process. A total of 30 experiments were designed and performed to determine under the effects of variables on the biodiesel yield such as methanol to oil molar ratio (2:1–10:1), catalyst concentration (0.2–1.0 wt.% NaOH), reaction temperature (50–70°C), and reaction time (30–90 min). The second order polynomial model was used to predict the biodiesel yield and coefficient of determination (R²) was found to be at 0.9818. The optimum biodiesel yield was calculated as 96.695% from the model with the following reaction conditions: 7.41:1 of methanol to oil molar ratio, 0.63 wt. % NaOH of catalyst concentration, 61.84°C of reaction temperature, and 62.12 min of reaction time. It is seen that the regression model results were in agreement with the experimental data. The results showed that RSM is a suitable statistical technique for optimizing the reaction parameters in the transesterification process in order to maximize the biodiesel yield.     

Dynamic contact angle effects on gas-liquid behaviors in the cathode of proton exchange membrane fuel cell with stirred tank reactor design

Liquid water management is still a critical issue in the improvement of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) performance. In this work, for the first time, the liquid water behavior and transport inside the cathode of a PEMFC with a stirred tank reactor (STR) design, rather than the conventional PEMFC flow channel design, are numerically studied. The dynamic contact angle (DCA) is applied to multiple wall boundaries in the numerical model through a user-defined-function (UDF) code, i.e., STR-DCA model. Another numerical model with the static contact angle (SCA) and same operating conditions, i.e., STR-SCA model, is also developed for comparison. The volume of fluid (VOF) method is employed in the simulation to track the gas-liquid interface. The results show that the liquid water distribution and transport are significantly different between these two models, indicating the remarkable effects of DCA on the simulation results. It is also verified the capability of STR-PEMFC to reduce the liquid water flooding, showing the potential of this channel-less type fuel cell in the further development.