Desarrollo de sistemas nano/micro-particulados con aplicación en la fotodegradación selectiva de contaminantes orgánicos en solución. Development of nano / micro-particles systems with application to selective photodegradation of organic pollutants in solution.

IDENTIFICACIÓN DEL PROBLEMA DE ESTUDIO. Las sustancias orgánicas solubles en agua no biodegradables tales como ciertos herbicidas, colorantes industriales y metabolitos de fármacos de uso masivo son una de las principales fuentes de contaminación en aguas subterráneas de zonas agrícolas y en efluentes industriales y domésticos. Las reacciones fotocatalizadas por irradiación UV-visible y sensitizadores orgánicos e inorgánicos son uno de los métodos más económicos y convenientes para la descomposición de contaminantes en subproductos inocuos y/o biodegradables. En muchas aplicaciones es deseable un alto grado de especificidad, efectividad y velocidad de degradación de un dado agente contaminante que se encuentra presente en una mezcla compleja de sustancias orgánicas en solución. En particular son altamente deseables sistemas nano/micro -particulados que formen suspensiones acuosas estables debido a que estas permiten una fácil aplicación y una eficaz acción descontaminante en grandes volúmenes de fluidos. HIPÓTESIS Y PLANTEO DE LOS OBJETIVOS. El objetivo general de este proyecto es desarrollar sistemas nano/micro particulados formados por polímeros de impresión molecular (PIMs) y foto-sensibilizadores (FS). Un PIMs es un polímero especialmente sintetizado para que sea capaz de reconocer específicamente un analito (molécula plantilla) determinado. La actividad de unión específica de los PIMs en conjunto con la capacidad fotocatalizadora de los sensibilizadores pueden ser usadas para lograr la fotodescomposición específica de moléculas “plantilla” (en este caso un dado contaminante) en soluciones conteniendo mezclas complejas de sustancias orgánicas. MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS A UTILIZAR. Se utilizaran técnicas de polimerización en mini-emulsión para sintetizar los sistemas nano/micro PIM-FS para buscar la degradación de ciertos compuestos de interés. Para caracterizar eficiencias, mecanismos y especificidad de foto-degradación en dichos sistemas se utilizan diversas técnicas espectroscópicas (estacionarias y resueltas en el tiempo) y de cromatografía (HPLC y GC). Así mismo, para medir directamente distribuciones de afinidades de unión y eficiencia de foto-degradación se utilizaran técnicas de fluorescencia de molécula/partícula individual. Estas determinaciones permitirán obtener resultados importantes al momento de analizar los factores que afectan la eficiencia de foto-degradación (nano/micro escala), tales como cantidad y ubicación de foto- sensibilizadores en las matrices poliméricas y eficiencia de unión de la plantilla y los productos de degradación al PIM. RESULTADOS ESPERADOS. Los estudios propuestos apuntan a un mejor entendimiento de procesos foto-iniciados en entornos nano/micro-particulados para aplicar dichos conocimientos al diseño de sistemas optimizados para la foto-destrucción selectiva de contaminantes acuosos de relevancia social; tales como herbicidas, residuos industriales, metabolitos de fármacos de uso masivo, etc. IMPORTANCIA DEL PROYECTO. Los sistemas nano/micro-particulados PIM-FS que se propone desarrollar en este proyecto se presentan como candidatos ideales para tratamientos específicos de efluentes industriales y domésticos en los cuales se desea lograr la degradación selectiva de compuestos orgánicos. Los conocimientos adquiridos serán indispensables para construir una plataforma versátil de sistemas foto-catalíticos específicos para la degradación de diversos contaminantes orgánicos de interés social. En lo referente a la formación de recursos humanos, el proyecto propuesto contribuirá en forma directa a la formación de 3 estudiantes de postgrado y 2 estudiantes de grado. En las capacidades institucionales se contribuirá al acondicionamiento del Laboratorio para Microscopía Óptica Avanzada (LMOA) en el Dpto. de Química de la UNRC y al montaje de un sistema de microscopio de fluorescencia que permitirá la aplicación de técnicas avanzadas de espectroscopia de fluorescencia de molecula individual. Water-soluble organic molecules such as certain non-biodegradable herbicides, industrial dyes and metabolites of widespread use drugs are a major source of pollution in groundwater from agricultural areas and in industrial and domestic effluents. Photo-catalytic reactions by UV-visible irradiation and organic sensitizers are one of the most economical and convenient methods for the decomposition of pollutants into harmless byproducts. In many applications it is highly desirable a high degree of specificity, effectiveness and speed of degradation of specific pollutants present in a complex mixture. In particular nano/micro-particles systems that form stable aqueous suspensions are highly desirable because they allow for easy application and effective decontamination of large volumes of fluids. Herein we propose the development of nano/micro particles composed by molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP) and photo-sensitizers (PS). The specific binding of MIP and the photo-catalytic ability of the sensitizers are used to achieve the photo-decomposition of specific "template" molecules in complex mixtures. Mini-emulsion polymerization techniques will be used to synthesize nano/micro MIP-FS systems. Spectroscopy (steady-state and time resolved) and chromatography (GC and HPLC) will be used to characterize efficiency, mechanisms and specificity of photo-degradation in these systems. In addition single molecule/particle fluorescence spectroscopy techniques will be used to directly measure distributions of binding affinities and photo-degradation efficiency in individual particles. The proposed studies point to a more detailed understanding of the factors affecting the photo-degradation efficiency in nano/micro-particles and to apply that knowledge in the design of optimized systems for photo-selective destruction of socially relevant aqueous pollutants.

Bentonite Treatment for Economical Dust Reduction on Limestone Surfaced Secondary Roads, HR-351, 1995

This research project was directed at laboratory and field evaluation of sodium montmorillonite clay (Bentonite) as a dust palliative for limestone surfaced secondary roads. It was postulated that the electrically charged surfaces (negative) of the clay particles could interact with the charged surfaces (positive) of the limestone and act as a bonding agent to agglomerate fine (-#200) particulates, and also to bond the fine particulates to larger (+#200) limestone particles. One mile test roads were constructed in Tama, Appanoose, and Hancock counties in Iowa using Bentonite treatment levels (by weight of aggregate) ranging from 3.0 to 12.0%. Construction was accomplished by adding dry Bentonite to the surfacing material and then dry road mixing. The soda ash/water solution (dispersing agent) was spray applied and the treated surfacing material wet mixed by motor graders to a consistency of 2 to 3 inch slump concrete. Two motor graders working in tandem provided rapid mixing. Following wet mixing the material was surface spread and compacted by local traffic. Quantitative and qualitative periodic evaluations and testing of the test roads was conducted with respect to dust generation, crust development, roughness, and braking characteristics. As the Bentonite treatment level increased dust generation decreased. From a cost/benefit standpoint, an optimum level of treatment is about 8% (by weight of aggregate). For roads with light traffic, one application at this treatment level resulted in a 60-70% average dust reduction in the first season, 40-50% in the second season, and 20-30% in the third season. Crust development was rated at two times better than untreated control sections. No discernible trend was evident with respect to roughness. There was no evident difference in any of the test sections with respect to braking distance and braking handling characteristics, under wet surface conditions compared to the control sections. Chloride treatments are more effective in dust reduction in the short term (3-4 months). Bentonite treatment is capable of dust reduction over the long term (2-3 seasons). Normal maintenance blading operations can be used on Bentonite treated areas. Soda ash dispersed Bentonite treatment is estimated to be more than twice as cost effective per percent dust reduction than conventional chloride treatments, with respect to time. However, the disadvantage is that there is not the initial dramatic reduction in dust generation as with the chloride treatment. Although dust is reduced significantly after treatment there is still dust being generated. Video evidence indicates that the dust cloud in the Bentonite treated sections does not rise as high, or spread as wide as the cloud in the untreated section. It also settles faster than the cloud in the untreated section. This is considered important for driving safety of following traffic, and for nuisance dust invasion of residences and residential areas. The Bentonite appears to be functioning as a bonding agent.

Waste management policies for industrial symbiosis development: case studies in European countries

Industrial symbiosis (IS) emerged as a self-organizing business strategy among firms that are willing to cooperate to improve their economic and environmental performance. The adoption of such cooperative strategies relates to increasing costs of waste management, most of which are driven by policy and legislative requirements. Development of IS depends on an enabling context of social, informational, technological, economical and political factors. The power to influence this context varies among the agents involved such as the government, businesses or coordinating entities. Governmental intervention, as manifested through policies, could influence a wider range of factors; and we believe this is an area which is under-researched. This paper aims to critically appraise the waste policy interventions from supra-national to sub-national levels of government. A case study methodology has been applied to four European countries i.e. Denmark, the UK, Portugal and Switzerland, in which IS emerged or is being fostered. The findings suggest that there are commonalities in policy instruments that may have led to an IS enabling context. The paper concludes with lessons learnt and recommendations on shaping the policy context for IS development.

Development and Evaluation of a Portable Device for Measuring Curling and Warping in Concrete Pavements, 2016

Portland cement concrete (PCC) pavement undergoes repeated environmental load-related deflection resulting from temperature and moisture variations across pavement depth. This has been recognized as resulting in PCC pavement curling and warping since the mid-1920s. Slab curvature can be further magnified under repeated traffic loads and may ultimately lead to fatigue failures, including top-down and bottom-up transverse, longitudinal, and corner cracking. It is therefore significant to measure the “true” degree of curling and warping in PCC pavements, not only for quality control (QC) and quality assurance (QA) purposes, but also for better understanding of its relationship to long-term pavement performance. Although several approaches and devices—including linear variable differential transducers (LVDTs), digital indicators, and some profilers—have been proposed for measuring curling and warping, their application in the field is subject to cost, inconvenience, and complexity of operation. This research therefore explores developing an economical and simple device for measuring curling and warping in concrete pavements with accuracy comparable to or better than existing methodologies. Technical requirements were identified to establish assessment criteria for development, and field tests were conducted to modify the device to further enhancement. The finalized device is about 12 inches in height and 18 pounds in weight, and its manufacturing cost is just $320. Detailed development procedures and evaluation results for the new curling and warping measuring device are presented and discussed, with a focus on achieving reliable curling and warping measurements in a cost effective manner.

Development of filter media treatments for liquid filtration

Woven monofilament, multifilament, and spun yarn filter media have long been the standard media in liquid filtration equipment. While the energy for a solid-liquid separation process is determined by the engineering work, it is the interface between the slurry and the equipment - the filter media - that greatly affects the performance characteristics of the unit operation. Those skilled in the art are well aware that a poorly designed filter medium may endanger the whole operation, whereas well-performing filter media can make the operation smooth and economical. As the mineral and pulp producers seek to produce ever finer and more refined fractions of their products, it is becoming increasingly important to be able to dewater slurries with average particle sizes around 1 ¿m using conventional, high-capacity filtration equipment. Furthermore, the surface properties of the media must not allow sticky and adhesive particles to adhere to the media. The aim of this thesis was to test how the dirt-repellency, electrical resistance and highpressure filtration performance of selected woven filter media can be improved by modifying the fabric or yarn with coating, chemical treatment and calendering. The results achieved by chemical surface treatments clearly show that the woven media surface properties can be modified to achieve lower electrical resistance and improved dirt-repellency. The main challenge with the chemical treatments is the abrasion resistance and, while the experimental results indicate that the treatment is sufficiently permanent to resist standard weathering conditions, they may still prove to be inadequately strong in terms of actual use.From the pressure filtration studies in this work, it seems obvious that the conventional woven multifilament fabrics still perform surprisingly well against the coated media in terms of filtrate clarity and cake build-up. Especially in cases where the feed slurry concentration was low and the pressures moderate, the conventional media seemed to outperform the coated media. In the cases where thefeed slurry concentration was high, the tightly woven media performed well against the monofilament reference fabrics, but seemed to do worse than some of the coated media. This result is somewhat surprising in that the high initial specific resistance of the coated media would suggest that the media will blind more easily than the plain woven media. The results indicate, however, that it is actually the woven media that gradually clogs during the coarse of filtration. In conclusion, it seems obvious that there is a pressure limit above which the woven media looses its capacity to keep the solid particles from penetrating the structure. This finding suggests that for extreme pressures the only foreseeable solution is the coated fabrics supported by a strong enough woven fabric to hold thestructure together. Having said that, the high pressure filtration process seems to follow somewhat different laws than the more conventional processes. Based on the results, it may well be that the role of the cloth is most of all to support the cake, and the main performance-determining factor is a long life time. Measuring the pore size distribution with a commercially available porometer gives a fairly accurate picture of the pore size distribution of a fabric, but failsto give insight into which of the pore sizes is the most important in determining the flow through the fabric. Historically air, and sometimes water, permeability measures have been the standard in evaluating media filtration performance including particle retention. Permeability, however, is a function of a multitudeof variables and does not directly allow the estimation of the effective pore size. In this study a new method for estimating the effective pore size and open pore area in a densely woven multifilament fabric was developed. The method combines a simplified equation of the electrical resistance of fabric with the Hagen-Poiseuille flow equation to estimate the effective pore size of a fabric and the total open area of pores. The results are validated by comparison to the measured values of the largest pore size (Bubble point) and the average pore size. The results show good correlation with measured values. However, the measured and estimated values tend to diverge in high weft density fabrics. This phenomenon is thought to be a result of a more tortuous flow path of denser fabrics, and could most probably be cured by using another value for the tortuosity factor.

Economical and operational analysis of outsourced warehouse function

The target of the thesis was to find out has the decision to outsource part of Filtronic LK warehouse function been profitable. Furthermore, another thesis target was to demonstrate current logistics processes between TPLP and company and find out the targets for developing these processes. The decision to outsource part of logistical funtions have been profitable during the first business year. Partnership includes always business risks. Risk increases high asset specific investments. In the other hand investment to partnership increases mutual trust and commitment between parties. By developing partnership risks and opportunitic behaviour can be decreased. The potential of managing material and data flows between logistic service provider and company observed. By analyzing inventory effiency were highlighted the need for decreasing the capital invested to inventories. The recommendations for managing outsourced logistical funtions were established such as improving partnership, process development, performance measurement and invoice checking.

Development of a simple, rapid and validated spectrophotometric method for nitazoxanide in pharmaceutical formulations and comparison with HPLC

A rapid, economical, reproducible, and simple direct spectrophotometric method was developed and validated for the assay of nitazoxanide in pharmaceutical formulations. Nitazoxanide concentration was estimated in water at 345 nm and pH 4.5. The method was suitable and validated for specificity, linearity, precision, and accuracy. There was no interference of the excipients in the determination of the active pharmaceutical ingredient. The proposed method was successfully applied in the determination of nitazoxanide in coated tablets and in powders for oral suspension. This method was compared to a previously developed and validated method for liquid chromatography to the same drug. There was no significative difference between these methods for nitazoxanide quantitation.

Platform as a Service - new opportunities for software development companies

Today cloud computing is the next stage in development information-oriented society in field of information technologies. Great attention is paid to cloud computing in general, but the lack of scientific consideration to components brings to the problem, that not all aspects are well examined. This thesis is an attempt to consider Platform as a Service (a technology of providing development environment through the Internet) from divergent angles. Technical characteristics, costs, time, estimation of effectiveness, risks, strategies that can be applied, migration process, advantages and disadvantages and the future of the approach are examined to get the overall picture of cloud platforms. During the work literature study was used to examine Platform as a Service, characteristics of existent cloud platforms were explored and a model of a typical software development company was developed to create a scenario of migration to cloud technologies. The research showed that besides all virtues in reducing costs and time, cloud platforms have some significant obstacles in adoption. Privacy, security and insufficient legislation impede the concept to be widespread.

Using Moodle to provide added value in the teaching of a software development course

The rate of adoption and use of learning management systems to support teaching and learning processes in academic institutions is growing rapidly. Universities are acquiring systems with functionalities that can match with their specific needs and requirements. Moodle is one of the most popular and widely deployed learning management systems in academic institutions today. However, apart from the system, universities tend to maintain other applications for the purpose of supplementing their teaching and learning processes. This situation is similar to Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT), which is our case study in this project. Apart from Moodle, the university also maintains other systems such as Oodi, Noppa and Uni portal for the purpose of supporting its educational activities. This thesis has two main goals. The first goal is to understand the specific role of Moodle at LUT. This information is fundamental in assessing whether Moodle is needed in the university’s current teaching and learning environment. The second aim is to provide insights to teachers and other departmental stakeholders on how Moodle can provide added value in the teaching of a software development course. In response to this, a Moodle module for a software development course is created and the underlying features are tested. Results of the constructive work proposed some improvements through (i) the use of Moodle for in-class surveys, (ii) transfer of grades from Moodle to Oodi, (iii) use of Moodle in self-study courses and MOOCs, (iv) online examinations, and (v) Moodle integrations with third party applications. The proposed items were then evaluated for their utility through interviews of five expert interviews. The final results of this work are considered useful to LUT administration and management specifically on ways that Moodle can bring changes to the university at managerial, economical and technical level. It also poses some challenges on platform innovations and research.

Design and Development of Instrumentation Systems to determine the Dry Rubber Content in Natural Rubber Latex

Hevea latex is a natural biological liquid of very complex composition .Besides rubber hydrocarbons,it contains many proteinous and resinous substances,carbohydrates,inorganic matter,water,and others.The Dry Rubber Content (DRC) of latex varies according to season, tapping system,weather,soil conditions ,clone,age of the tree etc. The true DRC of the latex must be determined to ensure fair prices for the latex during commercial exchange.The DRC of Hevea latex is a very familiar term to all in the rubber industry.It has been the basis for incentive payments to tappers who bring in more than the daily agreed poundage of latex.It is an important parameter for rubber and latex processing industries for automation and verious decesion making processes.This thesis embodies the efforts made by me to determine the DRC of rubber latex following different analytical tools such as MIR absorption,thermal analysis.dielectric spectroscopy and NIR reflectance.The rubber industry is still Looking for a compact instrument that is accurate economical,easy to use and environment friendly.I hope the results presented in this thesis will help to realise this goal in the near future.

Perspectives of Urban Growth Management and Sustainable Development In West Bank, Hebron District as a case Study

The main objective of this PhD research study is to provide a perspective on the urban growth management and sustainable development in Palestine, and more specifically in Hebron district as a case study. Hebron is located 36 km south of Jerusalem, with an overall population size of around 600,000 people living in a total area around1246km2. Hebron is the biggest Palestinian district that has 16 municipalities and 154 localities. The research discusses and analyzes the urban planning system, economical and environmental policies and the solution required to manage and integrate the development elements to develop a sustainable development plan for Hebron. The research provides answers for fundamental questions such as what kind and definition of sustainable development are applicable to the Palestinian case?. What are the sustainability problems there and how the Israeli occupation and unstable political condition affect the sustainable development in Palestine? What are the urban growth management and sustainability policies and actions required from government, public and privets sector in Palestine? The fast urban growth in Palestine is facing many problems and challenges due to the increase in the population size and the resulting impact of this increase including, but not limited to, the demand of new houses, need for more infrastructure services, demands on new industrial, commercial, educational and health projects, which in turn reduces the area of agricultural lands and threatens the natural resources and environment. There are also other associated sustainability problems like the absence of effective plans or regulations that control urban expansion, the absence of sufficient sustainable development plans at the national levels for the district, new job requirements, Israeli restrictions and occupation for more than 60 years, existence of construction factories near residential areas, poor public awareness and poor governmental funds for service projects and development plans. The study consists of nine chapters. Chapter One includes an introduction, study objectives, problems and justifications, while Chapter Two has a theoretical background on sustainability topic and definitions of sustainability. The Palestinian urban planning laws and local government systems are discussed in Chapter Three and the methodology of research is detailed in Chapter Four. As for Chapter Five, it provides a general background on Hebron District including demographical and economical profiles, along with recommendations related to sustainable development for each profile Chapter Six addresses the urban environment, sustainability priorities and policies required. Chapter Seven discusses and analyzes infrastructure services including transportation, water and wastewater. As for Chapter Eight, it addresses the land use, housing and urban expansion beside the cultural heritage, natural heritage with relevant sustainable development polices and recommendations. Finally, Chapter Nine includes a conclusion and comprehensive recommendations integrating all of urban and sustainability event in one map. Hebron has a deep history including a rich cultural heritage aged by thousands of years, with 47% of Hebron district population under 14 years old. Being the biggest Palestinian district, Hebron has thousands of industrial and economical organizations beside a large agricultural sector at Palestine level. This gives Hebron a potential to play major roles in developing a national sustainability plan, as the current urban planning system in Palestine needs urgent reform and development to fulfill the sustainability requirement. The municipalities and ministers should find permanent financial aid for urban planning and development studies so as to face future challenges. The Palestinian government can benefit from available local human resources in development projects; hence Palestinian people have sufficient qualifications in most sectors. The Palestinian people also can invest in the privet sector in Palestine in case businessmen have been encouraged and clear investment laws and plans have been developed. The study provides recommendations associated to the sustainable development in Palestine in general and Hebron, as a case study, in specific. Recommendations include increasing the privet sector as well as the public involvement in urban growth management, and stopping unplanned urban expansion, subjecting granting building permits of new projects to the no-harm environmental impact assessment, increasing the coordination and cooperation between localities and central bodies, protection and renovation of old cites and green areas, increasing the quality and quantity of infrastructure services, establishing district urban planning department to coordinate and organize urban planning and sustainable development activities. Also, among recommendations come dividing Hebron into three planning and administrative areas (north, central and south), and dividing the sustainable development and implementation period (2010 to 2025) into three main phases. Finally, the study strongly recommends benefiting from the same urban development plans in similar districts at national and international levels, also to use new technologies and information systems in urban planning process.

Development and validation of an analytical method by RP-HPLC for quantification of sibutramine hydrochloride in pharmaceutical capsules

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Tsallis statistics and gradually truncated Levy flight - distribution of an economical index

Tsallis postulated a generalized form for entropy and give rise to a new statistics now known as Tsallis statistics. In the present work, we compare the Tsallis statistics with the gradually truncated Levy flight, and discuss the distribution of an economical index-the Standard and Poor's 500-using the values of standard deviation as calculated by our model. We find that both statistics give almost the same distribution. Thus we feel that gradual truncation of Levy distribution, after certain critical step size for describing complex systems, is a requirement of generalized thermodynamics or similar. The gradually truncated Levy flight is based on physical considerations and bring a better physical picture of the dynamics of the whole system. Tsallis statistics gives a theoretical support. Both statistics together can be utilized for the development of a more exact portfolio theory or to understand better the complexities in human and financial behaviors. A comparison of both statistics is made. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier B.V. B.V.

Effect of different plot coverings on emergence and early development of seven palm species (arecaceae)

The Arecaceae family comprises plants with economical importance in many Brazilian regions, for agricultural exploration or for landscaping. In great portion, species of this family present low germination velocity and percentage. This work meant to evaluate the germination and early development of seven palm species (Archontophoenix alexandrae H. Wendl. et Drude, Copernicia prunifera (Miller) H.E. Moore, Latania commersonii Gmel., Livistona chinensis R. Br., Syagrus campos-portoana Bondar, Syagrus coronata (Mart.) Beccari, Syagrus picrophylla Barb. Rod.), submitted to three kinds of seed bed plot coverings. Three 10 x 2 m seedbeds were built and filled with a mixture of sand, soil and chicken manure (1:3:0.5 proportion), where two lines were sown with each specie. On top of each seedbed, plastic covering and fifty percent screen were set allowing one third of the seedbed to full sunlight exposure. Seedbeds were irrigated by dripping system. All species had the same germination rate, regardless of the covering, by the end of the experiment (146 days after sowing), eventhough, A. alexandrae under plastic covering conditions, L. commersonii at full sunlight exposure and Syagrus campos-portoana under fifty percent shade, had reached that percentage around 51 days after sowing. The remaining species reached the greatest germination percentage earlier with some of the coverings, rather than at full sunlight exposure. For the studied conditions, covering type had no effect in leaf length and width. For leaf number, there was interaction between species x covering type for Livistona chinensis and Copernicia prunifera.

Economical analysis of ethanol steam reformer for hydrogen production associated with a sugarcane industry

An expressive amount of produced hydrogen is generated by customers in-situ such as petrochemical, fertilizer and sugarcane industries. However, the most utilized feedstock is natural gas, a non-renewable and fossil fuel. The introduction of biohydrogen production process associated in a sugarcane industry is an alternative to diminish emissions and contribute to create a CO2 cycle, where the plants capture this gas by photosynthesis process and produces sucrose for ethanol production. The cost of production of ethanol has dramatically decreased (from about US$ 700/m3 in 1970s to US$ 200/m3 today), becoming this a good option at near term, inclusively for its utilization by customers localized in main regions (localized especially in regions such as Southeastern Brazil) Also in near future, it will possible the utilization of fuel cells as form of distributed generation. Its utilization could occur specially in peak hours, diminishing the cost of investments in newer transmission systems. A technical and economic analysis of steam reformer of ethanol to hydrogen production associated with sugarcane industry was recently performed. This technique will also allow the use of ethanol when its price is relatively low. This study was based on a previous R&D study (sponsored by CEMIG - State of Minas Gerais Electricity Company) where thermodynamic and economic analyses were developed, based in the development of two ethanol steam reformers prototypes.x In this study an analysis was performed considering the use of bagasse as source of heat in the steam reforming process. Its use could to diminish the costs of hydrogen production, especially at large scale, obtaining cost-competitive production and permitting that sugarcane industry produces hydrogen in large scale beyond ethylic alcohol, anhydrous alcohol (or ethanol) and sugar.