Síntese e caracterização de biodiesel obtido via catálises homogênea e heterogênea de óleo extraído de sementes de Helianthus annuus

O biodiesel é definido como um mono alquil éster de ácidos graxos de cadeia longa derivado de fontes renováveis tais como óleos vegetais e gorduras animais. Sua importância esta associada ao uso como um combustível alternativo para motores do ciclo Diesel podendo ser utilizado puro ou em misturas com o diesel representando economia de petróleo e menor poluição ambiental. Em geral é obtido por meio da reação de transesterificação na qual os triacilgliceróis, principais constituintes dos óleos e gorduras reagem com álcool, em presença de um catalisador ácido ou básico, produzindo ésteres de ácidos graxos e glicerol. A transesterificação pode ser conduzida por catálise homogênea ou heterogênea. O grande desafio da indústria é otimizar o processo a fim de alcançar um produto e uma rota de produção tecnologicamente eficiente e ambientalmente correta. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi estudar a síntese do biodiesel utilizando o processo de transesterificação do óleo de girassol por catálises homogênea e heterogênea. Foram realizadas reações de transesterificação via rotas metílica e etílica, empregando como catalisador homogêneo alcóxido de potássio e como catalisador heterogêneo a resina comercial de troca iônica Amberlyst 26

Refractive-index change and sensitivity improvement in holographic recording in LiNbO3:Ce:Cu crystals with green light

Nonvolatile holographic recording is performed with green light in LiNbO3:Ce:Cu crystals. The refractive-index change and the recording sensitivity are times better than those obtained by recording with red light, and higher optical fixing efficiency is obtained. Correspondingly, theoretical investigations are given.

The impact of Cow Green Reservoir on invertebrate populations in the River Tees

Cow Green is a new reservoir situated in Pennine moorland. It has an area of 312 ha, a capacity of 40 . 9 x 10 SUP-6 m SUP-3 and a maximum depth of 22 . 8 m. The function of the reservoir is to regulate flow in the River Tees to provide industrial Teesside with sufficient water during the dry spells. Invertebrate studies were carried out in the Tees to monitor changes resulting from the construction of the reservoir both in the flooded basin and below the dam. The overall effect of the reservoir on the Tees has been to increase the numbers and biomass of certain taxa, but generally not at the expense of previous fauna. Some of the positive effects, ie. increase in number and biomass, and maintenance of faunal diversity, may in part be attributable to the presence of the rapids and waterfall. Turbulence resulting from this rapid flow over heterogeneous bottom is sufficient to prevent clogging of interstitial spaces by silt and to maintain the variety of ecological niches necessary for a diverse fauna.

Effects of Cow Green Reservoir upon downstream fish populations

Post impoundment observations on the fish populations of the River Tees, downstream from the Cow Green Reservoir were made between 1971 and 1980. Both bullhead (Cottus gobio L.) and brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) population densities increased in the river after impoundment but changes in growth rate were small. Investigations into the stomach contents of the two species reflects the results of other work on increases of benthos in the river. Following regulation there was an increase in the quantity of Ephemerella ignita found in trout stomachs while in the bullhead, regulation caused an increase in the importance of Mollusca and a decrease in importance of Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera.

On concentrated loads and Green's functions in elastostatics

This investigation is concerned with the notion of concentrated loads in classical elastostatics and related issues. Following a limit treatment of problems involving concentrated internal and surface loads, the orders of the ensuing displacements and stress singularities, as well as the stress resultants of the latter, are determined. These conclusions are taken as a basis for an alternative direct formulation of concentrated-load problems, the completeness of which is established through an appropriate uniqueness theorem. In addition, the present work supplies a reciprocal theorem and an integral representation-theorem applicable to singular problems of the type under consideration. Finally, in the course of the analysis presented here, the theory of Green's functions in elastostatics is extended.

Fast Lattice Green's Function Methods for Viscous Incompressible Flows on Unbounded Domains

In this thesis, a collection of novel numerical techniques culminating in a fast, parallel method for the direct numerical simulation of incompressible viscous flows around surfaces immersed in unbounded fluid domains is presented. At the core of all these techniques is the use of the fundamental solutions, or lattice Green’s functions, of discrete operators to solve inhomogeneous elliptic difference equations arising in the discretization of the three-dimensional incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on unbounded regular grids. In addition to automatically enforcing the natural free-space boundary conditions, these new lattice Green’s function techniques facilitate the implementation of robust staggered-Cartesian-grid flow solvers with efficient nodal distributions and fast multipole methods. The provable conservation and stability properties of the appropriately combined discretization and solution techniques ensure robust numerical solutions. Numerical experiments on thin vortex rings, low-aspect-ratio flat plates, and spheres are used verify the accuracy, physical fidelity, and computational efficiency of the present formulations.

Calcite covering of sediment as a possible way of curbing blue-green algae

Natural calcite precipitation in lakes is a well-known control mechanism of eutrophication. In hard-water lakes, calcite deposits on the flat bottoms of shallow lakes and near the shores of deeper lakes resulted from biogenic decalcification during the millenia after the last glacial period. The objective of a new restoration technology is to intensify the natural process of precipitation by utilizing the different qualities of calcareous mud layers. In a pilot experiment in Lake Rudower See, East Germany, phosphorus-poor deeper layers of the sediments were flushed out and spread over the phosphorus-rich uppermost sediments, to promote the co- precipitation of calcite with phosphorus from the water-column.

Miscibility and Hydrogen Bonding in Blends of Poly(4-vinylphenol)/Poly(vinyl methyl ketone)

The miscibility and phase behavior of poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVPh) with poly(vinyl methyl ketone) (PVMK) was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was shown that all blends of PVPh/PVMK are totally miscible. A DSC study showed the apparition of a single glass transition (T-g) over their entire composition range. When the amount of PVPh exceeds 50% in blends, the obtained T(g)s are found to be significantly higher than those observed for each individual component of the mixture, indicating that these blends are capable of forming interpolymer complexes. FTIR analysis revealed the existence of preferential specific interactions via hydrogen bonding between the hydroxyl and carbonyl groups, which intensified when the amount of PVPh was increased in blends. Furthermore, the quantitative FTIR study carried out for PVPh/PVMK blends was also performed for the vinylphenol (VPh) and vinyl methyl ketone (VMK) functional groups. These results were also established by scanning electron microscopy study (SEM).

Numerical and experimental analysis on green laser crystallization of amorphous silicon thin films

The effect of laser fluence on the crystallization of amorphous silicon irradiated by a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser is studied both theoretically and experimentally. An effective numerical model is set up to predict the melting threshold and the optimized laser fluence for the crystallization of 200-nm-thick amorphous silicon. The variation of the temperature distribution with time and the melt depth is analyzed. Besides the model, the Raman spectra of thin films treated with different fluences are measured to confirm the phase transition and to determine the optimized fluence. The calculating results accord well with those obtained from the experimental data in this research. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis on fluorescence intensity reverse photonic phenomenon between red and green fluorescence of oxyfluoride nanophase vitroceramics

An interesting fluorescence intensity reverse photonic phenomenon between red and green fluorescence is investigated. The dynamic range. of intensity reverse between red and green fluorescence of Er( 0.5) Yb( 3): FOV oxyfluoride nanophase vitroceramics, when excited by 378.5nm and 522.5nm light respectively, is about 4.32 x 10(2). It is calculated that the phonon- assistant energy transfer rate of the electric multi- dipole interaction of {(4)G(11/2)( Er3+) -> F-4(9/2)( Er3+), F-2(7/2)( Yb3+). F-2(5/2)( Yb3+)} energy transfer of Er( 0.5) Yb( 3): FOV is around 1.380 x 10(8) s(-1), which is much larger than the relative multiphonon nonradiative relaxation rates 3.20 x 10(5) s(-1). That energy transfer rate for general material with same rare earth ion's concentration is about 1.194 x 10(5) s(-1). These are the reason to emerge the unusual intensity reverse phenomenon in Er( 0.5) Yb( 3): FOV. (C) 2007 Optical Society of America.

Cultura de microalgas marinhas Isochrysis galbana , Green (variedade T. Iso) e Tetraselmis suecica (Kilin) Butch

The experimental cultures of the marine microalgae Isochrysis galbana Green (variety T. Iso) and Tetraselmis suecica (Kylin) Butch for feeding mussel larvae are described in detail.

Green and red upconversion luminescence in ytterbium-sensitized erbrium-doped novel lead-free germanium bismuth lanthanum glass

Structural and infrared-to-visible upconversion fluorescence properties in ytterbium-sensitized erbrium-doped novel lead-free germanium bismuth-lanthanum glass have been studied. The structure of lead-free germanium-bismuth-lanthanum glass was investigated by peak-deconvolution of Raman spectrum, and the structural information was obtained from the peak wavenumbers. Intense green and red emissions centered at 525, 546, and 657 nm, corresponding to the transitions 2H(11/2) -> I-4(15/2), S-4(3/2) -> I-4(15/2), and F-4(9/2) -> I-4(15/2), respectively, were observed at room temperature. The quadratic dependence of the 525, 546, and 657 nm emissions on excitation power indicates that a two-photon absorption process occurs under 975 nm excitation. This novel lead-free germanium-bismuth-lanthanum glass with low maximum phonon energy (similar to 751 cm(-1)) can be used as potential host material for upconversion lasers. (c) 2005 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Blue green emission from a Cu+-Doped transparent material prepared by sintering porous glass

A colorless transparent, blue green emission material was fabricated by sintering porous glass impregnated with copper ions. The emission spectral profile obtained from Cu+ -doped high silica glass (HSG) by 267-mn monochromatic light excitation matches that obtained by pumping with an 800-nm femtosecond laser, indicating that the emissions in both cases come from an identical origin. The upconversion emission excited by 800-nm femtosecond laser is considered to be a three-photon excitation process. A tentative scheme of upconverted emission from Cu+ -doped HSG was also proposed. The glass materials presented herein are expected to find application in lamps, high density optical storage, and three-dimensional color displays.