Diurnal and nocturnal measurements of PAH, nitro-PAH, and oxy-PAH compounds in atmospheric particulate matter of a sugar cane burning region

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

Sugar cane vinasse in water bodies: Impact assessed by liver histopathology in tilapia

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

Rainwater major and trace element contents in Southeastern Brazil: an assessment of a sugar cane region in dry and wet period

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

Study of thermal decomposition of ignition temperature of bagasse, coal and their blends

In Brazil, due to its availability, sugar cane bagasse has a high potential for power generation. The knowledge of ignition behavior, as well as the knowledge of the chemical kinetics, in of fuels combustion process is important features in boilers projects and in the stability of the combustion process control. The aim of this study is to investigate the thermal behavior of sugar cane bagasse, coal and their blends. The methodology proposed by Tognotti et al. (1985) was applied to determine the ignition temperature for all samples. Ignition temperatures were 256oC for neat bagasse and 427oC for neat coal, and 275oC for both blends (50-50% and 25-75%). The ModelFree Kinetics was applied to determine the apparent activation energy (Eα) of the thermal decomposition of sugar cane bagasse. For the two major events of mass loss of bagasse which correspond to the thermal decomposition of organic matter (mainly hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin), average values of Eα were obtained for both combustion and pyrolysis processes. In synthetic air atmosphere, the Eα were 170.8±26.3 kJ⋅mol-1 and 277.8±58.6 kJ⋅mol-1, while in nitrogen atmosphere, the Eα were 185.0 ± 11.4 kJ⋅mol-1 and 82.1±44.4 kJ⋅mol-1. The results obtained can be explained by synergistic effects when both bagasse and coal were blended, changing the fuel reactivity.

Correlation Between Apparent Activation Energy and NOx emission of renewable diesel from sugar cane, biodiesel, fossil diesel and their blends

Biofuels and their blends with fossil fuel are important energy resources, which production and application have been largely increased internationally. This study focus on the development of a correlation between apparent activation energy (Ea) and NOx emission of the thermal decomposition of three pure fuels: farnasane (renewable diesel from sugar cane), biodiesel and fossil diesel and their blends. Apparent Activation energy was determined by using thermogravimetry and Model-Free Kinetics. NOx emission was obtained from the European Stationary Cycle (ESC) with OM 926LA CONAMA P7/Euro 5 engine. Results showed that there is a linear correlation between apparent activation energy and NOx emission with R2 of 0,9667 considering pure fuels and their blends which is given as: NOx = 2,2514Ea - 96,309. The average absolute error of this correlation is 2.96% with respect to the measured NOx value. The main advantage of this correlation is its capability to predict NOx emission when either a new pure fuel or a blend of fuels is proposed to use in enginees.

Mutagenicity profile of atmospheric particulate matter in a small urban center subjected to airborne emission from vehicle traffic and sugar cane burning

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) is genotoxic and recently was classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. PM chemical composition varies depending on source and atmospheric conditions. The Salmonella/microsome assay is the most used mutagenicity test and can identify the major chemical classes responsible for observed mutagenicity. The objective of this work was to characterize the mutagenicity of PM samples from a countryside city, Limeira, Brazil, which is influenced by heavy traffic and sugar cane biomass burning. Six samples of total PM were collected. Air mass backward trajectories were calculated. Organic extracts were assayed using the Salmonella/microsome microsuspension mutagenicity assay using TA98, YG1041, and TA1538, with and without metabolic activation (S9). YG1041 was the most sensitive strain and mutagenicity reached 9,700 revertants per m(3) without metabolic activation. Potency for TA1538 was higher than TA98, indicating that this strain should be considered in air mutagenicity studies. The increased response to YG1041 relative to TA98, and the decreased response with S9, suggests that nitroaromatics are the major contributors. Limeira is among the most mutagenic cities in the world. High mutagenicity in Limeira seems to occur when the air mass from the area of sugarcane production is mixed with air from the region impacted by anthropogenic activities such as traffic. An increase in the formation of nitro-polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons may result from longer contact time between the aromatic compounds and the atmosphere with high NOx and ozone concentration, although more studies are required to confirm this hypothesis. Environ. Mol. Mutagen., 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Raman Lidar monitors emissions from sugar cane fires in the State of São Paulo: a pilot-project integrating radar, sodar, aerosol and gas observations

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

Physical characterization of particleboard produced with waste from ethanol and sugar mill

The problem of proper disposal of solid waste generated in different industrial processes is one of worldwide environmental concerns nowadays. Thus, this study aimed to establish a new alternative for the disposal of two agro-industrial residues employing them to produce particleboard for different purposes in building construction. The focus was given to the reuse of the sugarcane bagasse (SB) originated during the processing of Saccharum officinarum for sugar and ethanol production, and bamboo stem leaves of Dendrocalamus giganteus(BB). For this, six particleboards were produced in the following compositions: with 100% SB, 75% SB + 25% BB, 50% SB+50% BB, 40% SB +60 BB, 25% SB+ 75% BB and 100% BB in the total mass of the composites. The particleboards physical characterization followed Brazilian Standard ABNT NBR 14810-3 to density, moisture content and water absorption. Results showed these raw materials are compatible to particleboard production.

HAWAIIAN SUGAR CANE RAT CONTROL METHODS AND PROBLEMS

The problem of rats in our Hawaiian sugar cane fields has been with us for a long time. Early records tell of heavy damage at various times on all the islands where sugar cane is grown. Many methods were tried to control these rats. Trapping was once used as a control measure, a bounty was used for a time, gangs of dogs were trained to catch the rats as the cane was harvested. Many kinds of baits and poisons were used. All of these methods were of some value as long as labor was cheap. Our present day problem started when the labor costs started up and the sugar industry shifted to long cropping. Until World War II cane was an annual crop. After the war it was shifted to a two year crop, three years in some places. Depending on variety, location, and soil we raise 90 to 130 tons of sugar cane per acre, which produces 7 to 15 tons of sugar per acre for a two year crop. This sugar brings about $135 dollars per ton. This tonnage of cane is a thick tangle of vegetation. The cane grows erect for almost a year, as it continues to grow it bends over at the base. This allows the stalk to rest on the ground or on other stalks of cane as it continues to grow. These stalks form a tangled mat of stalks and dead leaves that may be two feet thick at the time of harvest. At the same time the leafy growing portion of the stalk will be sticking up out of the mat of cane ten feet in the air. Some of these individual stalks may be 30 feet long and still growing at the time of harvest. All this makes it very hard to get through a cane field as it is one long, prolonged stumble over and through the cane. It is in this mat of cane that our three species of rats live. Two species are familiar to most people in the pest control field. Rattus norvegicus and Rattus rattus. In the latter species we include both the black rat and the alexandrine rats, their habits seem to be the same in Hawaii. Our third rat is the Polynesian rat, Rattus exlans, locally called the Hawaiian rat. This is a small rat, the average length head to tip of tail is nine inches and the average body weight is 65 grams. It has dark brownish fur like the alexandrine rats, and a grey belly. It is found in Indonesia, on most of the islands of Oceania and in New Zealand. All three rats live in our cane fields and the brushy and forested portions of our islands. The norway and alexandrine rats are found in and around the villages and farms, the Polynesian rat is only found in the fields and waste areas. The actual amount of damage done by rats is small, but destruction they cause is large. The rats gnaw through the rind of the cane stalk and eat the soft juicy and sweet tissues inside. They will hollow out one to several nodes per stalk attacked. The effect to the cane stalk is like ringing a tree. After this attack the stalk above the chewed portion usually dies, and sometimes the lower portion too. If the rat does not eat through the stalk the cane stalk could go on living and producing sugar at a reduced rate. Generally an injured stalk does not last long. Disease and souring organisms get in the injury and kill the stalk. And if this isn't enough, some insects are attracted to the injured stalk and will sometimes bore in and kill it. An injured stalk of cane doesn't have much of a chance. A rat may only gnaw out six inches of a 30 foot stalk and the whole stalk will die. If the rat only destroyed what he ate we could ignore them but they cause the death of too much cane. This dead, dying, and souring cane cause several direct and indirect tosses. First we lose the sugar that the cane would have produced. We harvest all of our cane mechanically so we haul the dead and souring cane to the mill where we have to grind it with our good cane and the bad cane reduces the purity of the sugar juices we squeeze from the cane. Rats reduce our income and run up our overhead.

An Alternative Method for the Simultaneous Determination of Copper and Lead for Quality Control of Sugar Cane Spirit using a Nanotube-Based Sensor

The development of an electroanalytical method for simultaneous determination of copper and lead ions in sugar cane spirit (cachaca) using carbon paste electrode modified with ascorbic acid and carbon nanotubes (CPE-AaCNT) is described. Squarewave voltammetry (SWV) with anodic stripping was employed, and this technique was optimized with respect to the following parameters: frequency (50 Hz), amplitude (100 mV) and scan increment (9 mV). The analytical curves were linear in the range from 0.0900 to 7.00 mg L-1 for lead and copper. The limits of detection were 48.5 and 23.9 mu g L-1 for lead and copper, respectively. The developed method was applied to the simultaneous determination of copper and lead in five commercial samples of sugar cane spirit. The results were in good agreement with those obtained by F AAS/GF AAS (flame atomic absorption spectrometry/graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry) and showed that CPE-AaCNT can be successfully employed in the simultaneous determination of these metals in real sugar cane spirit samples.

Combustion of coal, bagasse and blends thereof Part II: Speciation of PAH emissions

This work reports on emissions of unburned hydrocarbon species from batch combustion of fixed beds of coal, sugar-cane bagasse, and blends thereof in a pre-heated two-stage laboratory furnace operated in the temperature range of 800-1000 degrees C. The effects of fuel blending, combustion staging, and operating furnace temperatures on emissions of pollutants were assessed. Furnace effluents were analyzed for products of incomplete combustion (PICs) including CO, volatile and semi-volatile hydrocarbons, and particulate matter, as has been reported in Ref. [1]. Emitted unburned hydrocarbons include traces of potentially health-hazardous Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are the focus of this work. Under the batch combustion conditions implemented herein, PAH were only generated during the volatile combustion phase of the fuels. The most prevalent species were in descending order: naphthalene, acenaphthylene, phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, dibenzofuran, benzofuran, byphenyl, fluorene, 9H-fluoren-9-one, acephenantrylene, benzo[b] fluoranthene, 1-methyl-naphthalene; 2-methyl-naphthalene, benz[a] anthracene and benzo[a] pyrene. PAH yields were the highest from combustion of neat bagasse. Combustion of the blends resulted in lower yields of PAH, than combustion of either of their neat fuel constituents. Increasing the furnace operating temperature enhanced the PAH emissions from bagasse, but had little effect on those from the coal or from the blends. Flue gas treatment in a secondary-stage furnace, upon with additional air, typically reduced PAH yields by promoting oxidation of the primary-stage furnace effluents. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Response of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Cadmium and Nickel Stress: The Use of the Sugar Cane Vinasse as a Potential Mitigator

Most of the metals released from industrial activity, among them are cadmium (Cd) and nickel (Ni), inhibit the productivity of cultures and affect microbial metabolism. In this context, the aim of this work was to investigate the capacity of sugar cane vinasse to mitigate the adverse effects of Cd and Ni on cell growth, viability, budding rate and trehalose content of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, likely because of adsorption and chelating action. For this purpose, the yeast was grown batch-wise in YED medium supplemented with selected amounts of vinasse and Cd or Ni. The negative effects of Cd and Ni on S. cerevisiae growth and the mitigating one of sugar cane vinasse were quantified by an exponential model. Without vinasse, the addition of increasing levels of Cd and Ni reduced the specific growth rate, whereas in its presence no reduction was observed. Consistently with the well-proved toxicity of both metals, cell viability and budding rate progressively decreased with increasing their concentration, but in the presence of vinasse the situation was remarkably improved. The trehalose content of S. cerevisiae cells followed the same qualitative behavior as cell viability, even though the negative effect of both metals on this parameter was stronger. These results demonstrate the ability of sugar cane vinasse to mitigate the toxic effects of Cd and Ni.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF SUGAR CANE SPIRITS FERMENTED BY DIFFERENT Saccharomyces cerevisiae YEAST STRAINS

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF SUGAR CANE SPIRITS FERMENTED BY DIFFERENT Saccharomyces cerevisiae YEAST STRAINS. The aim of this study was to evaluate the chemical composition of sugar cane spirits, fermented by different commercial Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strains and double distilled by pot still. Sugar cane juices were separately fermented by yeasts CA-11, Y-904, BG-1, PE-2, SA-1 and CAT-1 and distilled by pot still according to the methodology used for whisky production. The alcoholic liquids from first and second distillations were analyzed for concentrations of ethanol, volatile acidity, aldehydes, esters, furfural, higher alcohols and methanol. The sugar cane spirits derived from fermentation by the different yeast strains presented distinct chemical compositions.

Endophytic and rhizospheric enterobacteria isolated from sugar cane have different potentials for producing plant growth-promoting substances

Background and aims Endophytic and rhizospheric environments differ in many respects, leading to the presence of different bacterial communities at each site. However, microorganisms such as enterobacteria can be found both within plants and in the surrounding soil. Bacteria must present differences in the traits that affect such environments in order to successfully colonise them. The present study compared the plant growth-promoting potential of diazotrophic enterobacteria isolated from the rhizosphere and from within surface-disinfected plants. Methods A total of 46 diazotrophic enterobacterial strains (21 rhizospheric and 25 putatively endophytic) belonging to the Klebsiella and Enterobacter genera, which are prevalent in sugar cane plantations, were isolated from the rhizosphere and from surface-disinfected plants. Their ability to synthesise amino acids using combined nitrogen obtained from nitrogen fixation, and their ability to synthesise indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Endogenous ethylene production by the bacteria was measured using gas chromatography, and biocontrol of phytopathogenic fungi was determined qualitatively using a dual culture technique. Results The putative endophytes released significantly higher amounts of amino acids than the rhizospheric bacteria, whilst the latter produced higher quantities of ethylene and were more actively antagonistic to fungi. Both types of bacteria released similar amounts of IAA. Conclusion Endophytic and rhizospheric bacteria differ in their capacity to release plant growth-promoting substances, which may be a reflection of their adaptations and an indication of their potential impact on their natural environment.

Conductive polymer gas sensor for quantitative detection of methanol in Brazilian sugar-cane spirit

A low-cost chemiresistive gas sensor is described, made by the deposition of a thin film of a conductive polymer, poly(2-dodecanoylsulfanyl-p-phenylenevinylene), doped with dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid (10%, w/w), onto interdigitated electrodes. The sensor exhibits linear electrical conductance changes in function of the concentration of methanol present in sugar-cane spirit in the range between 0.05% and 4.0%. Since the sensor is cheap, easy to fabricate, durable, presents low power consumption, and is not sensitive to ethanol, acetic acid or water, it can be used in portable equipments for monitoring methanol levels in distilled alcoholic beverages such as Brazilian sugar-cane spirit (cachaca). (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.