Valorisation of vietnamese rice straw waste:catalytic aqueous phase reforming of hydrolysate from steam explosion to platform chemicals

A family of tungstated zirconia solid acid catalysts were synthesised via wet impregnation and subsequent thermochemical processing for the transformation of glucose to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). Acid strength increased with tungsten loading and calcination temperature, associated with stabilisation of tetragonal zirconia. High tungsten dispersions of between 2 and 7 W atoms·nm−2 were obtained in all cases, equating to sub-monolayer coverages. Glucose isomerisation and subsequent dehydration via fructose to HMF increased with W loading and calcination temperature up to 600 °C, indicating that glucose conversion to fructose was favoured over weak Lewis acid and/or base sites associated with the zirconia support, while fructose dehydration and HMF formation was favoured over Brönsted acidic WOx clusters. Aqueous phase reforming of steam exploded rice straw hydrolysate and condensate was explored heterogeneously for the first time over a 10 wt% WZ catalyst, resulting in excellent HMF yields as high as 15% under mild reaction conditions.

Solid biofuel production by mechanical pre-treatment of brewers' spent grain

The brewing industry produces large amounts of by-products and wastes like brewers' spent grain (BSG). In Germany, each year approximately 2.1 million tonnes of BSG are generated. During the last years conventional routes of BSG utilization face a remarkable change, such as the decline in the demand as animal feed. Due to its high content of organic matter energetic utilization may create an additional economic value for breweries. Furthermore, in the recent past breweries tend to shift their energy supply towards more sustainable concepts. Although, a decent number of research projects were carried out already, still no mature strategy is available. However, one possible solution can be the mechanical pretreatment of BSG. This step allows optimized energy utilization by the fractionation of BSG. Due to the transfer of digestible components, such as protein, to the liquid phase, the solid phase will largely consist of combustible components. That represents an opportunity to produce a solid biofuel with lower fuelnitrogen content compared to only thermal dried BSG. Therefore, two main purposes for the mechanical pre-treatment were determined, (1) to reduce the moisture content to at least 60 % (w/w) and (2) to diminish the protein content of the solid phase by 30 %. Moreover, the combustion trials should demonstrate whether stable processes and flue gas emissions within the legal limits in Germany are feasible. The results of the mechanical pre-treatment trials showed that a decrease of the moisture and protein content has been achieved. With regard to the combustion trials inconsistent outcomes were found. On the one hand a stable combustion was realized. On the other hand the legal emission levels of NOx (500 mgm -3) and dust (50 mgm-3) could not be kept during all trials. The further research steps will focus on the optimization of the air/fuel ratio by reducing the primary and secondary air conditions. Copyright © 2014,AIDIC Servizi S.r.l.

Drug repurposing screen identifies Foxo1-dependent angiopoietin-2 regulation in sepsis

Objective: The recent withdrawal of a targeted sepsis therapy has diminished pharmaceutical enthusiasm for developing novel drugs for the treatment of sepsis. Angiopoietin-2 is an endothelial-derived protein that potentiates vascular inflammation and leakage and may be involved in sepsis pathogenesis. We screened approved compounds for putative inhibitors of angiopoietin-2 production and investigated underlying molecular mechanisms. Design: Laboratory and animal research plus prospective placebo-controlled randomized controlled trial (NCT00529139) and retrospective analysis (NCT00676897). Setting: Research laboratories of Hannover Medical School and Harvard Medical School. Patients: Septic patients/C57Bl/6 mice and human endothelial cells. Interventions: Food and Drug Administration-approved library screening. Measurements and Main Results: In a cell-based screen of more than 650 Food and Drug Administration-approved compounds, we identified multiple members of the 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitor drug class (referred to as statins) that suppressed angiopoietin-2. Simvastatin inhibited 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase, which in turn activated PI3K-kinase. Downstream of this signaling, PI3K-dependent phosphorylation of the transcription factor Foxo1 at key amino acids inhibited its ability to shuttle to the nucleus and bind cis-elements in the angiopoietin-2 promoter. In septic mice, transient inhibition of angiopoietin-2 expression by liposomal siRNA in vivo improved absolute survival by 50%. Simvastatin had a similar effect, but the combination of angiopoietin-2 siRNA and simvastatin showed no additive benefit. To verify the link between statins and angiopoietin-2 in humans, we performed a pilot matched case-control study and a small randomized placebo-controlled trial demonstrating beneficial effects on angiopoietin-2. Conclusions: 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitors may operate through a novel Foxo1-angiopoietin-2 mechanism to suppress de novo production of angiopoietin-2 and thereby ameliorate manifestations of sepsis. Given angiopoietin-2's dual role as a biomarker and candidate disease mediator, early serum angiopoietin-2 measurement may serve as a stratification tool for future trials of drugs targeting vascular leakage.

Hydrothermally stable, conformal, sulfated zirconia monolayer catalysts for glucose conversion to 5-HMF

The grafting and sulfation of zirconia conformal monolayers on SBA-15 to create mesoporous catalysts of tunable solid acid/base character is reported. Conformal zirconia and sulfated zirconia (SZ) materials exhibit both Brönsted and Lewis acidity, with the Brönsted/Lewis acid ratio increasing with film thickness and sulfate content. Grafted zirconia films also exhibit amphoteric character, whose Brönsted/Lewis acid site ratio increases with sulfate loading at the expense of base sites. Bilayer ZrO2/SBA-15 affords an ordered mesoporous material with a high acid site loading upon sulfation and excellent hydrothermal stability. Catalytic performance of SZ/SBA-15 was explored in the aqueous phase conversion of glucose to 5-HMF, delivering a 3-fold enhancement in 5-HMF productivity over nonporous SZ counterparts. The coexistence of accessible solid basic/Lewis acid and Brönsted acid sites in grafted SZ/SBA-15 promotes the respective isomerization of glucose to fructose and dehydration of reactively formed fructose to the desired 5-HMF platform chemical.

A new inverse DEA method for merging banks

This study suggests a novel application of Inverse Data Envelopment Analysis (InvDEA) in strategic decision making about mergers and acquisitions in banking. The conventional DEA assesses the efficiency of banks based on the information gathered about the quantities of inputs used to realize the observed level of outputs produced. The decision maker of a banking unit willing to merge/acquire another banking unit needs to decide about the inputs and/or outputs level if an efficiency target for the new banking unit is set. In this paper, a new InvDEA-based approach is developed to suggest the required level of the inputs and outputs for the merged bank to reach a predetermined efficiency target. This study illustrates the novelty of the proposed approach through the case of a bank considering merging with or acquiring one of its competitors to synergize and realize higher level of efficiency. A real data set of 42 banking units in Gulf Corporation Council countries is used to show the practicality of the proposed approach.

Financial innovation and engineering in Islamic financial institutions

Drawing from work found in the financial innovation literature, the main objective of this research is to explore the effect of religious orientation towards financial innovation and engineering in Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs). The research also examines what constitutes this religious orientation and how it is enacted in the innovation process. Religious orientation towards financial innovation is conceptualised and defined, as a system, in this research study. In order to achieve this objective, the study employs multiple theoretical perspectives to develop its theoretical framework. It combines innovation orientation theory with the theory on boundary objects to explore the role of religion in the financial innovation processes in IFIs. Religious orientation

Földfelvásárlások Afrikában

Egy brit hátterű multinacionális cég, a ProCana igen komoly beruházást jelentett be 2007-ben: Mozambik Massingir nevű régiójában egy nagykapacitású bioetanol üzemet kívántak felépíteni. Ennek érdekében összesen 30 000 hektár földet kívántak bérelni a mozambiki kormánytól, amin cukornádat termeltek volna. A terv szerint a termésből helyben készült bioetanolt a maputói kikötőben tankhajókba töltve Európába exportáltak volna. A beruházás értékét több mint félmilliárd dollárra tették, amely nagyjából 2 000 munkahelyet teremtett volna, nem is beszélve arról, hogy jelentősen hozzájárult volna Mozambik infrastruktúrájának fejlődéséhez és az exportjának növekedéséhez.

Parametrikus nyugdíjreformok és életciklus-munkakínálat (Parametric pension reforms and life-cycle labour supply)

A társadalombiztosítási nyugdíjrendszer finanszírozása pusztán a demográfiai folyamatok következtében is jelentős terhet ró majd a költségvetésére, amin a különböző parametrikus és paradigmatikus nyugdíjreformok enyhíthetnek. A reformok azonban hosszú távon olyan viselkedési, munkakínálati reakciókat válthatnak ki, amelyek alapvetően változtatják meg a költségvetési hatásokat. Az 1999 és 2009 között Magyarországon megfigyelhető átlagos munka- és nyugdíjkorprofilok bemutatása után arra tettünk kísérletet, hogy mikroökonómiai alapon határozzuk meg néhány alapvető parametrikus nyugdíjreformnak a férfiak életciklus-munkakínálatára gyakorolt hatását. A modell paramétereit a magyar gazdaság 1999 és 2009 közötti jellemzőinek megfelelően kalibráltuk. Eredményeink szerint a helyettesítési ráta csökkentése, a nyugdíjkorhatár emelése és a svájci indexálás árindexálásra cserélése összességében számottevően növeli az egyes képzettségi csoportok munkakínálatát, s a fiatalabb korosztályok javára csoportosítja át az életciklus-munkakínálatot, míg a nyugdíj kiszámításához figyelembe vett évek számának megváltoztatása nem hoz jelentős aggregált hatást, és nem jár a munkakínálat korcsoportok közötti átcsoportosításával. ____ Financing the social-security pension system will weigh heavily on the government budget in developed countries, merely through the projected demographic processes. The burden could be eased by various parametric and paradigmatic pension reforms, but in the long run such reforms may trigger behavioural, labour-supply responses, which may alter the budgetary effects fundamentally. Having described the average work and pension profiles in Hungary between 1999 and 2009, the authors use a microeconomic approach in an attempt to assess the effect of certain parametric pension reforms on the life-cycle labour supply of males. The parameters for the model were calibrated for the characteristics of the Hungarian economy. The results show that decreasing the replacement rate, increasing the retirement age and replacing Swiss indexation of pensions by price indexation cause a considerable increase in the labour supply of all education-level groups, whereas changing the number of years considered in computing pensions does not have a significant aggregate effect. While introducing price indexation increases the labour supply of all cohorts by the same amount, the other reforms reallocate the life-cycle labour supply, mainly towards younger age-groups.

A magyar différance

A tanulmányban a szerző arra tesz kísérletet, hogy Magyarországnak az euró bevezetésével kapcsolatos halogató magatartását egy rendszerszemléletű megközelítésen keresztül értelmezze. A makrogazdasági (in)stabilitás kérdését interdiszciplináris megközelítéssel tárgyalja, amelynek során olyan területek releváns ismereteire támaszkodik, mint a fejlődéstan, az új politikai gazdaságtan, a pszichológia és a komplexitás tudománya. Fő következtetése az, hogy az euró bevezethetőségének egyik peremfeltétele a politikai-társadalmi-gazdasági rendszerbe, mint innovációs ökoszisztémába injektált pótlólagos bizonytalanság mérséklése, amin keresztül a vázolt magyar attitűd is megtörhető.

Efficiency and power density improvement of grid-connected hybrid renewable energy systems utilizing high frequency-based power converters

High efficiency of power converters placed between renewable energy sources and the utility grid is required to maximize the utilization of these sources. Power quality is another aspect that requires large passive elements (inductors, capacitors) to be placed between these sources and the grid. The main objective is to develop higher-level high frequency-based power converter system (HFPCS) that optimizes the use of hybrid renewable power injected into the power grid. The HFPCS provides high efficiency, reduced size of passive components, higher levels of power density realization, lower harmonic distortion, higher reliability, and lower cost. The dynamic modeling for each part in this system is developed, simulated and tested. The steady-state performance of the grid-connected hybrid power system with battery storage is analyzed. Various types of simulations were performed and a number of algorithms were developed and tested to verify the effectiveness of the power conversion topologies. A modified hysteresis-control strategy for the rectifier and the battery charging/discharging system was developed and implemented. A voltage oriented control (VOC) scheme was developed to control the energy injected into the grid. The developed HFPCS was compared experimentally with other currently available power converters. The developed HFPCS was employed inside a microgrid system infrastructure, connecting it to the power grid to verify its power transfer capabilities and grid connectivity. Grid connectivity tests verified these power transfer capabilities of the developed converter in addition to its ability of serving the load in a shared manner. In order to investigate the performance of the developed system, an experimental setup for the HF-based hybrid generation system was constructed. We designed a board containing a digital signal processor chip on which the developed control system was embedded. The board was fabricated and experimentally tested. The system's high precision requirements were verified. Each component of the system was built and tested separately, and then the whole system was connected and tested. The simulation and experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the developed converter system for grid-connected hybrid renewable energy systems as well as for hybrid electric vehicles and other industrial applications.

Effects of in situ CO2 enrichment on structural characteristics, photosynthesis, and growth of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica

Seagrass is expected to benefit from increased carbon availability under future ocean acidification. This hypothesis has been little tested by in situ manipulation. To test for ocean acidification effects on seagrass meadows under controlled CO2/pH conditions, we used a Free Ocean Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FOCE) system which allows for the manipulation of pH as continuous offset from ambient. It was deployed in a Posidonia oceanica meadow at 11 m depth in the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea. It consisted of two benthic enclosures, an experimental and a control unit both 1.7 m**3, and an additional reference plot in the ambient environment (2 m**2) to account for structural artifacts. The meadow was monitored from April to November 2014. The pH of the experimental enclosure was lowered by 0.26 pH units for the second half of the 8-month study. The greatest magnitude of change in P. oceanica leaf biometrics, photosynthesis, and leaf growth accompanied seasonal changes recorded in the environment and values were similar between the two enclosures. Leaf thickness may change in response to lower pH but this requires further testing. Results are congruent with other short-term and natural studies that have investigated the response of P. oceanica over a wide range of pH. They suggest any benefit from ocean acidification, over the next century (at a pH of 7.7 on the total scale), on Posidonia physiology and growth may be minimal and difficult to detect without increased replication or longer experimental duration. The limited stimulation, which did not surpass any enclosure or seasonal effect, casts doubts on speculations that elevated CO2 would confer resistance to thermal stress and increase the buffering capacity of meadows.

Annotated record of the detailed examination of Mn deposits from the R/V Rig Seismic Cruise 11 (BMR 66) in 1986 over the Great Australian Bight Basin area

Late Cretaceous and younger sediments dredged from the upper continental slope and canyon walls in the Great Australian Bight Basin between 126° and 136°E broadly confirm the stratigraphy which had been established previously from scattered exploration wells. Late Cretaceous to Early Eocene marine and marginal marine terrigenous sediments are overlain by Middle Eocene and younger pelagic carbonate (fine limestone and calcareous ooze). The samples provide the first evidence of truly marine Maastrichtian sedimentation, with abundant calcareous nannoplankton, on the southern margin of the continent. Other samples of interest include Precambrian sheared granodiorite on the upper slope south of Eyre Terrace, Paleocene phosphatic sediment in 'Eucla' Canyon at 128° 30'E, and terrigenous Early Miocene mudstone at 133° 20' and 134° 50'E. The mudstone is of note as an exception to the uniform pelagic carbonate wackestone and ooze which characterise Middle Eocene and younger sedimentation at all other sites. Fragments of alkali basalt lava of unknown age were recovered in 'Eucla' Canyon. Cores are mostly pelagic calcareous ooze, but those from submarine canyons include terrigenous turbidites.

Data compilation on the biological response to ocean acidification: environmental and experimental context of data sets and related literature

The exponential growth of studies on the biological response to ocean acidification over the last few decades has generated a large amount of data. To facilitate data comparison, a data compilation hosted at the data publisher PANGAEA was initiated in 2008 and is updated on a regular basis (doi:10.1594/PANGAEA.149999). By January 2015, a total of 581 data sets (over 4 000 000 data points) from 539 papers had been archived. Here we present the developments of this data compilation five years since its first description by Nisumaa et al. (2010). Most of study sites from which data archived are still in the Northern Hemisphere and the number of archived data from studies from the Southern Hemisphere and polar oceans are still relatively low. Data from 60 studies that investigated the response of a mix of organisms or natural communities were all added after 2010, indicating a welcomed shift from the study of individual organisms to communities and ecosystems. The initial imbalance of considerably more data archived on calcification and primary production than on other processes has improved. There is also a clear tendency towards more data archived from multifactorial studies after 2010. For easier and more effective access to ocean acidification data, the ocean acidification community is strongly encouraged to contribute to the data archiving effort, and help develop standard vocabularies describing the variables and define best practices for archiving ocean acidification data.

O teatro de Elias Canetti em diálogo com a pós-modernidade

The purpose of this dissertation is to analyse the dramaturgic work of the Bulgarian author Elias Canetti, composed by the plays The Wedding, Comedy of Vanity and Their Days are Numbered, seeking to comprehend how the contemporary critic theories act on his trilogy, making a dialogue with theoretical references which may justify its approaching to the postmodernism. In this perspective, the theories by Jean-François Lyotard, Fredric Jameson and Jürgen Habermas contribute for a better comprehension of the postmodernity phenomenon. Undertaking Canetti’s notes and theatre with the philosophical concepts of Adorno’s negative aesthetics, we realise there is a space to reflect upon the theories which befell, like Foucault’s power relations in Micro-physics of Power and the discourses of resistance and deterritorialisation developed by Deleuze and Guattari in A Thousand Plateau and Anti-Oedipus. Even though Canetti’s plays were written between 1932 and 1956, all of them show a strong critic against modernism, and their characteristics did not help their recognition by the critics, which resulted in a rediscovery of Canetti’s plays after the author won the Nobel Prize in 1981.