Efficient calcium lactate production by fermentation coupled with crystallization-based in situ product removal.

PubMed

Xu, Ke; Xu, Ping

2014-07-01

Lactic acid is a platform chemical with various industrial applications, and its derivative, calcium lactate, is an important food additive. Fermentation coupled with in situ product removal (ISPR) can provide more outputs with high productivity. The method used in this study was based on calcium lactate crystallization. Three cycles of crystallization were performed during the fermentation course using a Bacillus coagulans strain H-1. As compared to fed-batch fermentation, this method showed 1.7 times higher average productivity considering seed culture, with 74.4% more L-lactic acid produced in the fermentation with ISPR. Thus, fermentation coupled with crystallization-based ISPR may be a biotechnological alternative that provides an efficient system for production of calcium lactate or lactic acid. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Life cycle energy efficiency and environmental impact assessment of bioethanol production from sweet potato based on different production modes

PubMed Central

Zhang, Jun; Jia, Chunrong; Wu, Yi; Xi, Beidou; Wang, Lijun; Zhai, Youlong

2017-01-01

The bioethanol is playing an increasingly important role in renewable energy in China. Based on the theory of circular economy, integration of different resources by polygeneration is one of the solutions to improve energy efficiency and to reduce environmental impact. In this study, three modes of bioethanol production were selected to evaluate the life cycle energy efficiency and environmental impact of sweet potato-based bioethanol. The results showed that, the net energy ratio was greater than 1 and the value of net energy gain was positive in the three production modes, in which the maximum value appeared in the circular economy mode (CEM). The environment emission mainly occurred to bioethanol conversion unit in the conventional production mode (CPM) and the cogeneration mode (CGM), and eutrophication potential (EP) and global warming potential (GWP) were the most significant environmental impact category. While compared with CPM and CGM, the environmental impact of CEM significantly declined due to increasing recycling, and plant cultivation unit mainly contributed to EP and GWP. And the comprehensive evaluation score of environmental impact decreased by 73.46% and 23.36%. This study showed that CEM was effective in improving energy efficiency, especially in reducing the environmental impact, and it provides a new method for bioethanol production. PMID:28672044

Life cycle energy efficiency and environmental impact assessment of bioethanol production from sweet potato based on different production modes.

PubMed

Zhang, Jun; Jia, Chunrong; Wu, Yi; Xia, Xunfeng; Xi, Beidou; Wang, Lijun; Zhai, Youlong

2017-01-01

The bioethanol is playing an increasingly important role in renewable energy in China. Based on the theory of circular economy, integration of different resources by polygeneration is one of the solutions to improve energy efficiency and to reduce environmental impact. In this study, three modes of bioethanol production were selected to evaluate the life cycle energy efficiency and environmental impact of sweet potato-based bioethanol. The results showed that, the net energy ratio was greater than 1 and the value of net energy gain was positive in the three production modes, in which the maximum value appeared in the circular economy mode (CEM). The environment emission mainly occurred to bioethanol conversion unit in the conventional production mode (CPM) and the cogeneration mode (CGM), and eutrophication potential (EP) and global warming potential (GWP) were the most significant environmental impact category. While compared with CPM and CGM, the environmental impact of CEM significantly declined due to increasing recycling, and plant cultivation unit mainly contributed to EP and GWP. And the comprehensive evaluation score of environmental impact decreased by 73.46% and 23.36%. This study showed that CEM was effective in improving energy efficiency, especially in reducing the environmental impact, and it provides a new method for bioethanol production.

Rice growing farmers efficiency measurement using a slack based interval DEA model with undesirable outputs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Sahubar Ali Mohd. Nadhar; Ramli, Razamin; Baten, M. D. Azizul

2017-11-01

In recent years eco-efficiency which considers the effect of production process on environment in determining the efficiency of firms have gained traction and a lot of attention. Rice farming is one of such production processes which typically produces two types of outputs which are economic desirable as well as environmentally undesirable. In efficiency analysis, these undesirable outputs cannot be ignored and need to be included in the model to obtain the actual estimation of firm's efficiency. There are numerous approaches that have been used in data envelopment analysis (DEA) literature to account for undesirable outputs of which directional distance function (DDF) approach is the most widely used as it allows for simultaneous increase in desirable outputs and reduction of undesirable outputs. Additionally, slack based DDF DEA approaches considers the output shortfalls and input excess in determining efficiency. In situations when data uncertainty is present, the deterministic DEA model is not suitable to be used as the effects of uncertain data will not be considered. In this case, it has been found that interval data approach is suitable to account for data uncertainty as it is much simpler to model and need less information regarding the underlying data distribution and membership function. The proposed model uses an enhanced DEA model which is based on DDF approach and incorporates slack based measure to determine efficiency in the presence of undesirable factors and data uncertainty. Interval data approach was used to estimate the values of inputs, undesirable outputs and desirable outputs. Two separate slack based interval DEA models were constructed for optimistic and pessimistic scenarios. The developed model was used to determine rice farmers efficiency from Kepala Batas, Kedah. The obtained results were later compared to the results obtained using a deterministic DDF DEA model. The study found that 15 out of 30 farmers are efficient in all cases. It is also found that the average efficiency values of all farmers for deterministic case is always lower than the optimistic scenario and higher than pessimistic scenario. The results confirm with the hypothesis since farmers who operates in optimistic scenario are in best production situation compared to pessimistic scenario in which they operate in worst production situation. The results show that the proposed model can be applied when data uncertainty is present in the production environment.

Freeze concentration of dairy products Phase 2. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Best, D.E.; Vasavada, K.C.

An efficient, electrically driven freeze concentration system offers potential for substantially increasing electricity demand while providing the mature dairy industry with new products for domestic and export markets together with enhanced production efficiencies. Consumer tests indicate that dairy products manufactured from freeze-concentrated ingredients are either preferred or considered equivalent in quality to fresh milk-based products. Economic analyses indicate that this technology should be competitive with thermal evaporation processes on a commercial basis.

An improvement in the calculation of the efficiency of oxidative phosphorylation and rate of energy dissipation in mitochondria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghafuri, Mohazabeh; Golfar, Bahareh; Nosrati, Mohsen; Hoseinkhani, Saman

2014-12-01

The process of ATP production is one of the most vital processes in living cells which happens with a high efficiency. Thermodynamic evaluation of this process and the factors involved in oxidative phosphorylation can provide a valuable guide for increasing the energy production efficiency in research and industry. Although energy transduction has been studied qualitatively in several researches, there are only few brief reviews based on mathematical models on this subject. In our previous work, we suggested a mathematical model for ATP production based on non-equilibrium thermodynamic principles. In the present study, based on the new discoveries on the respiratory chain of animal mitochondria, Golfar's model has been used to generate improved results for the efficiency of oxidative phosphorylation and the rate of energy loss. The results calculated from the modified coefficients for the proton pumps of the respiratory chain enzymes are closer to the experimental results and validate the model.

Evaluating the Impacts of Health, Social Network and Capital on Craft Efficiency and Productivity: A Case Study of Construction Workers in China

PubMed Central

Yi, Wen; Miao, Mengyi; Zhang, Lei

2018-01-01

The construction industry has been recognized, for many years, as among those having a high likelihood of accidents, injuries and occupational illnesses. Such risks of construction workers can lead to low productivity and social problems. As a result, construction workers’ well-being should be highly addressed to improve construction workers’ efficiency and productivity. Meanwhile, the social support from a social network and capital (SNC) of construction workers has been considered as an effective approach to promote construction workers’ physical and mental health (P&M health), as well as their work efficiency and productivity. Based on a comprehensive literature review, a conceptual model, which aims to improve construction workers’ efficiency and productivity from the perspective of health and SNC, was proposed. A questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the construction workers’ health, SNC and work efficiency and productivity in Nanjing, China. A structural equation model (SEM) was employed to test the three hypothetical relationships among construction workers’ P&M health, SNC and work efficiency and productivity. The results indicated that the direct impacts from construction workers’ P&M health on work efficiency and productivity were more significant than that from the SNC. In addition, the construction workers’ social capital and the network can indirectly influence the work efficiency and productivity by affecting the construction workers’ P&M health. Therefore, strategies for enhancing construction workers’ efficiency and productivity were proposed. Furthermore, many useable suggestions can be drawn from the research findings from the perspective of a government. The identified indicators and relationships would contribute to the construction work efficiency and productivity assessment and health management from the perspective of the construction workers. PMID:29462861

Evaluating the Impacts of Health, Social Network and Capital on Craft Efficiency and Productivity: A Case Study of Construction Workers in China.

PubMed

Yuan, Jingfeng; Yi, Wen; Miao, Mengyi; Zhang, Lei

2018-02-15

The construction industry has been recognized, for many years, as among those having a high likelihood of accidents, injuries and occupational illnesses. Such risks of construction workers can lead to low productivity and social problems. As a result, construction workers' well-being should be highly addressed to improve construction workers' efficiency and productivity. Meanwhile, the social support from a social network and capital (SNC) of construction workers has been considered as an effective approach to promote construction workers' physical and mental health (P&M health), as well as their work efficiency and productivity. Based on a comprehensive literature review, a conceptual model, which aims to improve construction workers' efficiency and productivity from the perspective of health and SNC, was proposed. A questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the construction workers' health, SNC and work efficiency and productivity in Nanjing, China. A structural equation model (SEM) was employed to test the three hypothetical relationships among construction workers' P&M health, SNC and work efficiency and productivity. The results indicated that the direct impacts from construction workers' P&M health on work efficiency and productivity were more significant than that from the SNC. In addition, the construction workers' social capital and the network can indirectly influence the work efficiency and productivity by affecting the construction workers' P&M health. Therefore, strategies for enhancing construction workers' efficiency and productivity were proposed. Furthermore, many useable suggestions can be drawn from the research findings from the perspective of a government. The identified indicators and relationships would contribute to the construction work efficiency and productivity assessment and health management from the perspective of the construction workers.

Performance of the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) Crop Production System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bubenheim, David L.; Flynn, Michael T.; Bates, Maynard; Schlick, Greg; Kliss, Mark (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

Regenerative life support systems potentially offer a level of self-sufficiency and a concomitant decrease in logistics and associated costs in support of space exploration and habitation missions. Current state-of-the-art in plant based, regenerative life support requires resources in excess of resource allocations proposed for candidate mission scenarios. Feasibility thresholds have been identified for candidate exploration missions. The goal of this paper is to review recent advances in performance achieved in the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) in light of likely resource constraints. A prototype CAAP crop production chamber has been constructed and operated at the Ames Research Center. The chamber includes a number of unique hardware and software components focused on attempts to increase production efficiency, increase energy efficiency, and control the flow of energy and mass through the system to achieve enhanced performance efficiency. Both single crop, batch production, and continuous cultivation of mixed crops Product ion scenarios have been completed. The crop productivity as well as engineering performance of the chamber will be described. For each scenario, energy required and partitioned for lighting, cooling, pumps, fans, etc. is quantified. Crop production and the resulting lighting efficiency and energy conversion efficiencies are presented. In the mixed-crop scenario, with up to 25 different crops under cultivation, 17 sq m of crop area provided a mean of 515 g edible biomass per day (83% of the approximately 620 g required for one person). Lighting efficiency (moles on photons kWh-1) approached 4 and the conversion efficiency of light energy to biomass was greatly enhanced compared with conventional growing systems. Engineering and biological performance achieved place plant-based life support systems at the threshold of feasibility.

Status of photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen and electrical energy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Byvik, C. E.; Walker, G. H.

1976-01-01

The efficiency for conversion of electromagnetic energy to chemical and electrical energy utilizing semiconductor single crystals as photoanodes in electrochemical cells was investigated. Efficiencies as high as 20 percent were achieved for the conversion of 330 nm radiation to chemical energy in the form of hydrogen by the photoelectrolysis of water in a SrTiO3 based cell. The SrTiO3 photoanodes were shown to be stable in 9.5 M NaOH solutions for periods up to 48 hours. Efficiencies of 9 percent were measured for the conversion of broadband visible radiation to hydrogen using n-type GaAs crystals as photoanodes. Crystals of GaAs coated with 500 nm of gold, silver, or tin for surface passivation show no significant change in efficiency. By suppressing the production of hydrogen in a CdSe-based photogalvanic cell, an efficiency of 9 percent was obtained in conversion of 633 nm light to electrical energy. A CdS-based photogalvanic cell produced a conversion efficiency of 5 percent for 500 nm radiation.

Directional Slack-Based Measure for the Inverse Data Envelopment Analysis

PubMed Central

Abu Bakar, Mohd Rizam; Lee, Lai Soon; Jaafar, Azmi B.; Heydar, Maryam

2014-01-01

A novel technique has been introduced in this research which lends its basis to the Directional Slack-Based Measure for the inverse Data Envelopment Analysis. In practice, the current research endeavors to elucidate the inverse directional slack-based measure model within a new production possibility set. On one occasion, there is a modification imposed on the output (input) quantities of an efficient decision making unit. In detail, the efficient decision making unit in this method was omitted from the present production possibility set but substituted by the considered efficient decision making unit while its input and output quantities were subsequently modified. The efficiency score of the entire DMUs will be retained in this approach. Also, there would be an improvement in the efficiency score. The proposed approach was investigated in this study with reference to a resource allocation problem. It is possible to simultaneously consider any upsurges (declines) of certain outputs associated with the efficient decision making unit. The significance of the represented model is accentuated by presenting numerical examples. PMID:24883350

Biodiversity influences plant productivity through niche-efficiency.

PubMed

Liang, Jingjing; Zhou, Mo; Tobin, Patrick C; McGuire, A David; Reich, Peter B

2015-05-05

The loss of biodiversity is threatening ecosystem productivity and services worldwide, spurring efforts to quantify its effects on the functioning of natural ecosystems. Previous research has focused on the positive role of biodiversity on resource acquisition (i.e., niche complementarity), but a lack of study on resource utilization efficiency, a link between resource and productivity, has rendered it difficult to quantify the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationship. Here we demonstrate that biodiversity loss reduces plant productivity, other things held constant, through theory, empirical evidence, and simulations under gradually relaxed assumptions. We developed a theoretical model named niche-efficiency to integrate niche complementarity and a heretofore-ignored mechanism of diminishing marginal productivity in quantifying the effects of biodiversity loss on plant productivity. Based on niche-efficiency, we created a relative productivity metric and a productivity impact index (PII) to assist in biological conservation and resource management. Relative productivity provides a standardized measure of the influence of biodiversity on individual productivity, and PII is a functionally based taxonomic index to assess individual species' inherent value in maintaining current ecosystem productivity. Empirical evidence from the Alaska boreal forest suggests that every 1% reduction in overall plant diversity could render an average of 0.23% decline in individual tree productivity. Out of the 283 plant species of the region, we found that large woody plants generally have greater PII values than other species. This theoretical model would facilitate the integration of biological conservation in the international campaign against several pressing global issues involving energy use, climate change, and poverty.

Biodiversity influences plant productivity through niche–efficiency

PubMed Central

Liang, Jingjing; Zhou, Mo; Tobin, Patrick C.; McGuire, A. David; Reich, Peter B.

2015-01-01

The loss of biodiversity is threatening ecosystem productivity and services worldwide, spurring efforts to quantify its effects on the functioning of natural ecosystems. Previous research has focused on the positive role of biodiversity on resource acquisition (i.e., niche complementarity), but a lack of study on resource utilization efficiency, a link between resource and productivity, has rendered it difficult to quantify the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship. Here we demonstrate that biodiversity loss reduces plant productivity, other things held constant, through theory, empirical evidence, and simulations under gradually relaxed assumptions. We developed a theoretical model named niche–efficiency to integrate niche complementarity and a heretofore-ignored mechanism of diminishing marginal productivity in quantifying the effects of biodiversity loss on plant productivity. Based on niche–efficiency, we created a relative productivity metric and a productivity impact index (PII) to assist in biological conservation and resource management. Relative productivity provides a standardized measure of the influence of biodiversity on individual productivity, and PII is a functionally based taxonomic index to assess individual species’ inherent value in maintaining current ecosystem productivity. Empirical evidence from the Alaska boreal forest suggests that every 1% reduction in overall plant diversity could render an average of 0.23% decline in individual tree productivity. Out of the 283 plant species of the region, we found that large woody plants generally have greater PII values than other species. This theoretical model would facilitate the integration of biological conservation in the international campaign against several pressing global issues involving energy use, climate change, and poverty. PMID:25901325

Biodiversity influences plant productivity through niche–efficiency

USGS Publications Warehouse

Liang, Jingjing; Zhou, Mo; Tobin, Patrick C.; McGuire, A. David; Reich, Peter B.

2015-01-01

The loss of biodiversity is threatening ecosystem productivity and services worldwide, spurring efforts to quantify its effects on the functioning of natural ecosystems. Previous research has focused on the positive role of biodiversity on resource acquisition (i.e., niche complementarity), but a lack of study on resource utilization efficiency, a link between resource and productivity, has rendered it difficult to quantify the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship. Here we demonstrate that biodiversity loss reduces plant productivity, other things held constant, through theory, empirical evidence, and simulations under gradually relaxed assumptions. We developed a theoretical model named niche–efficiency to integrate niche complementarity and a heretofore-ignored mechanism of diminishing marginal productivity in quantifying the effects of biodiversity loss on plant productivity. Based on niche–efficiency, we created a relative productivity metric and a productivity impact index (PII) to assist in biological conservation and resource management. Relative productivity provides a standardized measure of the influence of biodiversity on individual productivity, and PII is a functionally based taxonomic index to assess individual species’ inherent value in maintaining current ecosystem productivity. Empirical evidence from the Alaska boreal forest suggests that every 1% reduction in overall plant diversity could render an average of 0.23% decline in individual tree productivity. Out of the 283 plant species of the region, we found that large woody plants generally have greater PII values than other species. This theoretical model would facilitate the integration of biological conservation in the international campaign against several pressing global issues involving energy use, climate change, and poverty.

Improving production efficiency through genetic selection

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The goal of dairy cattle breeding is to increase productivity and efficiency by means of genetic selection. This is possible because related animals share some of their DNA in common, and we can use statistical models to predict the genetic merit animals based on the performance of their relatives. ...

Measuring Efficiency of Knowledge Production in Health Research Centers Using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA): A Case Study in Iran.

PubMed

Amiri, Mohammad Meskarpour; Nasiri, Taha; Saadat, Seyed Hassan; Anabad, Hosein Amini; Ardakan, Payman Mahboobi

2016-11-01

Efficiency analysis is necessary in order to avoid waste of materials, energy, effort, money, and time during scientific research. Therefore, analyzing efficiency of knowledge production in health areas is necessary, especially for developing and in-transition countries. As the first step in this field, the aim of this study was the analysis of selected health research center efficiency using data envelopment analysis (DEA). This retrospective and applied study was conducted in 2015 using input and output data of 16 health research centers affiliated with a health sciences university in Iran during 2010-2014. The technical efficiency of health research centers was evaluated based on three basic data envelopment analysis (DEA) models: input-oriented, output-oriented, and hyperbolic-oriented. The input and output data of each health research center for years 2010-2014 were collected from the Iran Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MOHE) profile and analyzed by R software. The mean efficiency score in input-oriented, output-oriented, and hyperbolic-oriented models was 0.781, 0.671, and 0.798, respectively. Based on results of the study, half of the health research centers are operating below full efficiency, and about one-third of them are operating under the average efficiency level. There is also a large gap between health research center efficiency relative to each other. It is necessary for health research centers to improve their efficiency in knowledge production through better management of available resources. The higher level of efficiency in a significant number of health research centers is achievable through more efficient management of human resources and capital. Further research is needed to measure and follow the efficiency of knowledge production by health research centers around the world and over a period of time.

Methods and systems for chemoautotrophic production of organic compounds

DOEpatents

Fischer, Curt R.; Che, Austin J.; Shetty, Reshma P.; Kelly, Jason R.

2013-01-08

The present disclosure identifies pathways, mechanisms, systems and methods to confer chemoautotrophic production of carbon-based products of interest, such as sugars, alcohols, chemicals, amino acids, polymers, fatty acids and their derivatives, hydrocarbons, isoprenoids, and intermediates thereof, in organisms such that these organisms efficiently convert inorganic carbon to organic carbon-based products of interest using inorganic energy, such as formate, and in particular the use of organisms for the commercial production of various carbon-based products of interest.

Methods and systems for chemoautotrophic production of organic compounds

DOEpatents

Fischer, Curt R.; Che, Austin J.; Shetty, Reshma P.; Kelly, Jason R.

2018-02-27

The present disclosure identifies pathways, mechanisms, systems and methods to confer chemoautotrophic production of carbon-based products of interest, such as sugars, alcohols, chemicals, amino acids, polymers, fatty acids and their derivatives, hydrocarbons, isoprenoids, and intermediates thereof, in organisms such that these organisms efficiently convert inorganic carbon to organic carbon-based products of interest using inorganic energy, such as formate, and in particular the use of organisms for the commercial production of various carbon-based products of interest.

Aspergillus oryzae-based cell factory for direct kojic acid production from cellulose.

PubMed

Yamada, Ryosuke; Yoshie, Toshihide; Wakai, Satoshi; Asai-Nakashima, Nanami; Okazaki, Fumiyoshi; Ogino, Chiaki; Hisada, Hiromoto; Tsutsumi, Hiroko; Hata, Yoji; Kondo, Akihiko

2014-05-18

Kojic acid (5-Hydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)-4-pyrone) is one of the major secondary metabolites in Aspergillus oryzae. It is widely used in food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. The production cost, however, is too high for its use in many applications. Thus, an efficient and cost-effective kojic acid production process would be valuable. However, little is known about the complete set of genes for kojic acid production. Currently, kojic acid is produced from glucose. The efficient production of kojic acid using cellulose as an inexpensive substrate would help establish cost-effective kojic acid production. A kojic acid transcription factor gene over-expressing the A. oryzae strain was constructed. Three genes related to kojic acid production in this strain were transcribed in higher amounts than those found in the wild-type strain. This strain produced 26.4 g/L kojic acid from 80 g/L glucose. Furthermore, this strain was transformed with plasmid harboring 3 cellulase genes. The resultant A. oryzae strain successfully produced 0.18 g/L of kojic acid in 6 days of fermentation from the phosphoric acid swollen cellulose. Kojic acid was produced directly from cellulose material using genetically engineered A. oryzae. Because A. oryzae has efficient protein secretion ability and secondary metabolite productivity, an A. oryzae-based cell factory could be a platform for the production of various kinds of bio-based chemicals.

Aspergillus oryzae-based cell factory for direct kojic acid production from cellulose

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Kojic acid (5-Hydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)-4-pyrone) is one of the major secondary metabolites in Aspergillus oryzae. It is widely used in food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. The production cost, however, is too high for its use in many applications. Thus, an efficient and cost-effective kojic acid production process would be valuable. However, little is known about the complete set of genes for kojic acid production. Currently, kojic acid is produced from glucose. The efficient production of kojic acid using cellulose as an inexpensive substrate would help establish cost-effective kojic acid production. Results A kojic acid transcription factor gene over-expressing the A. oryzae strain was constructed. Three genes related to kojic acid production in this strain were transcribed in higher amounts than those found in the wild-type strain. This strain produced 26.4 g/L kojic acid from 80 g/L glucose. Furthermore, this strain was transformed with plasmid harboring 3 cellulase genes. The resultant A. oryzae strain successfully produced 0.18 g/L of kojic acid in 6 days of fermentation from the phosphoric acid swollen cellulose. Conclusions Kojic acid was produced directly from cellulose material using genetically engineered A. oryzae. Because A. oryzae has efficient protein secretion ability and secondary metabolite productivity, an A. oryzae-based cell factory could be a platform for the production of various kinds of bio-based chemicals. PMID:24885968

Integration options for high energy efficiency and improved economics in a wood-to-ethanol process.

PubMed

Sassner, Per; Zacchi, Guido

2008-04-15

There is currently a steady increase in the use of wood-based fuels for heat and power production in Sweden. A major proportion of these fuels could serve as feedstock for ethanol production. In this study various options for the utilization of the solid residue formed during ethanol production from spruce, such as the production of pellets, electricity and heat for district heating, were compared in terms of overall energy efficiency and production cost. The effects of changes in the process performance, such as variations in the ethanol yield and/or the energy demand, were also studied. The process was based on SO2-catalysed steam pretreatment, which was followed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation. A model including all the major process steps was implemented in the commercial flow-sheeting program Aspen Plus, the model input was based on data recently obtained on lab scale or in a process development unit. For the five base case scenarios presented in the paper the overall energy efficiency ranged from 53 to 92%, based on the lower heating values, and a minimum ethanol selling price from 3.87 to 4.73 Swedish kronor per litre (0.41-0.50 EUR/L); however, ethanol production was performed in essentially the same way in each base case scenario. (Highly realistic) improvements in the ethanol yield and reductions in the energy demand resulted in significantly lower production costs for all scenarios. Although ethanol was shown to be the main product, i.e. yielding the major part of the income, the co-product revenue had a considerable effect on the process economics and the importance of good utilization of the entire feedstock was clearly shown. With the assumed prices of the co-products, utilization of the excess solid residue for heat and power production was highly economically favourable. The study also showed that improvements in the ethanol yield and reductions in the energy demand resulted in significant production cost reductions almost independently of each other.

Hydrogen Production from Nuclear Energy via High Temperature Electrolysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

James E. O'Brien; Carl M. Stoots; J. Stephen Herring

2006-04-01

This paper presents the technical case for high-temperature nuclear hydrogen production. A general thermodynamic analysis of hydrogen production based on high-temperature thermal water splitting processes is presented. Specific details of hydrogen production based on high-temperature electrolysis are also provided, including results of recent experiments performed at the Idaho National Laboratory. Based on these results, high-temperature electrolysis appears to be a promising technology for efficient large-scale hydrogen production.

Genetic engineering of microorganisms for biodiesel production

PubMed Central

Lin, Hui; Wang, Qun; Shen, Qi; Zhan, Jumei; Zhao, Yuhua

2013-01-01

Biodiesel, as one type of renewable energy, is an ideal substitute for petroleum-based diesel fuel and is usually made from triacylglycerides by transesterification with alcohols. Biodiesel production based on microbial fermentation aiming to establish more efficient, less-cost and sustainable biodiesel production strategies is under current investigation by various start-up biotechnology companies and research centers. Genetic engineering plays a key role in the transformation of microbes into the desired cell factories with high efficiency of biodiesel production. Here, we present an overview of principal microorganisms used in the microbial biodiesel production and recent advances in metabolic engineering for the modification required. Overexpression or deletion of the related enzymes for de novo synthesis of biodiesel is highlighted with relevant examples. PMID:23222170

Genetic engineering of microorganisms for biodiesel production.

PubMed

Lin, Hui; Wang, Qun; Shen, Qi; Zhan, Jumei; Zhao, Yuhua

2013-01-01

Biodiesel, as one type of renewable energy, is an ideal substitute for petroleum-based diesel fuel and is usually made from triacylglycerides by transesterification with alcohols. Biodiesel production based on microbial fermentation aiming to establish more efficient, less-cost and sustainable biodiesel production strategies is under current investigation by various start-up biotechnology companies and research centers. Genetic engineering plays a key role in the transformation of microbes into the desired cell factories with high efficiency of biodiesel production. Here, we present an overview of principal microorganisms used in the microbial biodiesel production and recent advances in metabolic engineering for the modification required. Overexpression or deletion of the related enzymes for de novo synthesis of biodiesel is highlighted with relevant examples.

Energy and protein feed-to-food conversion efficiencies in the US and potential food security gains from dietary changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shepon, A.; Eshel, G.; Noor, E.; Milo, R.

2016-10-01

Feeding a growing population while minimizing environmental degradation is a global challenge requiring thoroughly rethinking food production and consumption. Dietary choices control food availability and natural resource demands. In particular, reducing or avoiding consumption of low production efficiency animal-based products can spare resources that can then yield more food. In quantifying the potential food gains of specific dietary shifts, most earlier research focused on calories, with less attention to other important nutrients, notably protein. Moreover, despite the well-known environmental burdens of livestock, only a handful of national level feed-to-food conversion efficiency estimates of dairy, beef, poultry, pork, and eggs exist. Yet such high level estimates are essential for reducing diet related environmental impacts and identifying optimal food gain paths. Here we quantify caloric and protein conversion efficiencies for US livestock categories. We then use these efficiencies to calculate the food availability gains expected from replacing beef in the US diet with poultry, a more efficient meat, and a plant-based alternative. Averaged over all categories, caloric and protein efficiencies are 7%-8%. At 3% in both metrics, beef is by far the least efficient. We find that reallocating the agricultural land used for beef feed to poultry feed production can meet the caloric and protein demands of ≈120 and ≈140 million additional people consuming the mean American diet, respectively, roughly 40% of current US population.

Tensor-product preconditioners for higher-order space-time discontinuous Galerkin methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diosady, Laslo T.; Murman, Scott M.

2017-02-01

A space-time discontinuous-Galerkin spectral-element discretization is presented for direct numerical simulation of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations. An efficient solution technique based on a matrix-free Newton-Krylov method is developed in order to overcome the stiffness associated with high solution order. The use of tensor-product basis functions is key to maintaining efficiency at high-order. Efficient preconditioning methods are presented which can take advantage of the tensor-product formulation. A diagonalized Alternating-Direction-Implicit (ADI) scheme is extended to the space-time discontinuous Galerkin discretization. A new preconditioner for the compressible Euler/Navier-Stokes equations based on the fast-diagonalization method is also presented. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of these preconditioners for the direct numerical simulation of subsonic turbulent flows.

Tensor-Product Preconditioners for Higher-Order Space-Time Discontinuous Galerkin Methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Diosady, Laslo T.; Murman, Scott M.

2016-01-01

space-time discontinuous-Galerkin spectral-element discretization is presented for direct numerical simulation of the compressible Navier-Stokes equat ions. An efficient solution technique based on a matrix-free Newton-Krylov method is developed in order to overcome the stiffness associated with high solution order. The use of tensor-product basis functions is key to maintaining efficiency at high order. Efficient preconditioning methods are presented which can take advantage of the tensor-product formulation. A diagonalized Alternating-Direction-Implicit (ADI) scheme is extended to the space-time discontinuous Galerkin discretization. A new preconditioner for the compressible Euler/Navier-Stokes equations based on the fast-diagonalization method is also presented. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of these preconditioners for the direct numerical simulation of subsonic turbulent flows.

Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass with Ionic Liquids and Ionic Liquid-Based Solvent Systems.

PubMed

Hou, Qidong; Ju, Meiting; Li, Weizun; Liu, Le; Chen, Yu; Yang, Qian

2017-03-20

Pretreatment is very important for the efficient production of value-added products from lignocellulosic biomass. However, traditional pretreatment methods have several disadvantages, including low efficiency and high pollution. This article gives an overview on the applications of ionic liquids (ILs) and IL-based solvent systems in the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. It is divided into three parts: the first deals with the dissolution of biomass in ILs and IL-based solvent systems; the second focuses on the fractionation of biomass using ILs and IL-based solvent systems as solvents; the third emphasizes the enzymatic saccharification of biomass after pretreatment with ILs and IL-based solvent systems.

Can a canopy temperature-based stress index enhance water use efficiency in irrigated wine grape under arid conditions?

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Enhancement of irrigation water use efficiency and water productivity in arid wine grape production regions is hindered by a lack of automated, real-time methods for monitoring and interpreting vine water status. A normalized, water stress index calculated from real-time vine canopy temperature meas...

Evaluation of the Spectra Optia apheresis system for mononuclear cell (MNC) collection in G-CSF mobilized and nonmobilized healthy donors: results of a multicenter study.

PubMed

Karafin, Matthew S; Graminske, Sharon; Erickson, Paulette; Walters, Mark C; Scott, Edward P; Carter, Scott; Padmanabhan, Anand

2014-10-01

The Spectra Optia apheresis system is a newer centrifugation-based device that in comparison with the COBE Spectra includes features that enhance procedure automation and usability. In this FDA-approved three-center two-arm observational study we characterized the performance of the Spectra Optia for collection of MNCs and CD34+ cells from nonmobilized and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) mobilized healthy donors, respectively. There were a total of 15 evaluable subjects in each arm. Key performance indicators included collection efficiency of MNCs/CD34+ cells, product purity and cellular viability. For nonmobilized donors, median MNC collection efficiency, platelet collection efficiency, product hematocrit and granulocyte contamination were 57%, 12%, 4%, and 1.7%, respectively. For mobilized donors, median MNC collection efficiency, CD34+ cell collection efficiency, platelet collection efficiency, product hematocrit and granulocyte contamination were 61%, 77%, 19%, 4%, and 15%, respectively. Average WBC viability in the mobilized products was 99%. There was one severe (grade 3) adverse event related to citrate toxicity. This study demonstrates that the Spectra Optia can be used for safe and efficacious collection of MNCs, and results obtained are in line with expectations on collection efficiency and product characteristics. Adverse events were limited to those that are well documented in the stem-cell mobilization and leukapheresis process. As of the time of this writing, FDA 510(k) approval for use of the Spectra Optia device for MNC collection was achieved in the US based partly on the results of this study. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Determination of the efficiency of ethanol oxidation in a proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Altarawneh, Rakan M.; Majidi, Pasha; Pickup, Peter G.

2017-05-01

Products and residual ethanol in the anode and cathode exhausts of an ethanol electrolysis cell (EEC) have been analyzed by proton NMR and infrared spectrometry under a variety of operating conditions. This provides a full accounting of the fate of ethanol entering the cell, including the stoichiometry of the ethanol oxidation reaction (i.e. the average number of electrons transferred per ethanol molecule), product distribution and the crossover of ethanol and products through the membrane. The reaction stoichiometry (nav) is the key parameter that determines the faradaic efficiency of both EECs and direct ethanol fuel cells. Values determined independently from the product distribution, amount of ethanol consumed, and a simple electrochemical method based on the dependence of the current on the flow rate of the ethanol solution are compared. It is shown that the electrochemical method yields results that are consistent with those based on the product distribution, and based on the consumption of ethanol when crossover is accounted for. Since quantitative analysis of the cathode exhaust is challenging, the electrochemical method provides a valuable alternative for routine determination of nav, and hence the faradaic efficiency of the cell.

Assessment of Export Efficiency Equations in the Southern Ocean Applied to Satellite-Based Net Primary Production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arteaga, Lionel; Haëntjens, Nils; Boss, Emmanuel; Johnson, Kenneth S.; Sarmiento, Jorge L.

2018-04-01

Carbon export efficiency (e-ratio) is defined as the fraction of organic carbon fixed through net primary production (NPP) that is exported out of the surface productive layer of the ocean. Recent observations for the Southern Ocean suggest a negative e-ratio versus NPP relationship, and a reduced dependency of export efficiency on temperature, different than in the global domain. In this study, we complement information from a passive satellite sensor with novel space-based lidar observations of ocean particulate backscattering to infer NPP over the entire annual cycle, and estimate Southern Ocean export rates from five different empirical models of export efficiency. Inferred Southern Ocean NPP falls within the range of previous studies, with a mean estimate of 15.8 (± 3.9) Pg C yr-1 for the region south of 30°S during the 2005-2016 period. We find that an export efficiency model that accounts for silica(Si)-ballasting, which is constrained by observations with a negative e-ratio versus NPP relationship, shows the best agreement with in situ-based estimates of annual net community production (annual export of 2.7 ± 0.6 Pg C yr-1 south of 30°S). By contrast, models based on the analysis of global observations with a positive e-ratio versus NPP relationship predict annually integrated export rates that are ˜ 33% higher than the Si-dependent model. Our results suggest that accounting for Si-induced ballasting is important for the estimation of carbon export in the Southern Ocean.

Characteristics of feed efficiency within and across lactation in dairy cows and the effect of genetic selection.

PubMed

Hurley, A M; Lopez-Villalobos, N; McParland, S; Lewis, E; Kennedy, E; O'Donovan, M; Burke, J L; Berry, D P

2018-02-01

The objective of the present study was to investigate the phenotypic inter- and intra-relationships within and among alternative feed efficiency metrics across different stages of lactation and parities; the expected effect of genetic selection for feed efficiency on the resulting phenotypic lactation profiles was also quantified. A total of 8,199 net energy intake (NE I ) test-day records from 2,505 lactations on 1,290 cows were used. Derived efficiency traits were either ratio based or residual based; the latter were derived from least squares regression models. Residual energy intake (REI) was defined as NE I minus predicted energy requirements based on lactation performance; residual energy production (REP) was defined as net energy for lactation minus predicted energy requirements based on lactation performance. Energy conversion efficiency was defined as net energy for lactation divided by NE I . Pearson phenotypic correlations among traits were computed across lactation stages and parities, and the significance of the differences was determined using the Fisher r-to-z transformation. Sources of variation in the feed efficiency metrics were investigated using linear mixed models, which included the fixed effects of contemporary group, breed, parity, stage of lactation, and the 2-way interaction of parity by stage of lactation. With the exception of REI, parity was associated with all efficiency and production traits. Stage of lactation, as well as the 2-way interaction of parity by stage of lactation, were associated with all efficiency and production traits. Phenotypic correlations among the efficiency and production traits differed not only by stage of lactation but also by parity. For example, the strong phenotypic correlation between REI and energy balance (EB; 0.89) for cows in parity 3 or greater and early lactation was weaker for parity 1 cows at the same lactation stage (0.81), suggesting primiparous cows use the ingested energy for both milk production and growth. Nonetheless, these strong phenotypic correlations between REI and EB suggested negative REI animals (i.e., more efficient) are also in more negative EB. These correlations were further supported when assessing the effect on phenotypic performance of animals genetically divergent for feed intake and efficiency based on parental average. Animals genetically selected to have lower REI resulted in cows who consumed less NE I but were also in negative EB throughout the entire lactation. Nonetheless, such repercussions of negative EB do not imply that selection for negative REI (as defined here) should not be practiced, but instead should be undertaken within the framework of a balanced breeding objective, which includes traits such as reproduction and health. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Highly efficient generation of broadband cascaded four-wave mixing products.

PubMed

Cerqueira S, Arismar; Boggio, J M Chavez; Rieznik, A A; Hernandez-Figueroa, H E; Fragnito, H L; Knight, J C

2008-02-18

We propose a novel way to efficiently generate broadband cascaded Four-Wave Mixing (FWM) products. It consists of launching two strong pump waves near the zero-dispersion wavelength of a very short (of order a few meters) optical fiber. Simulations based on Split Step Fourier Method (SSFM) and experimental data demonstrate the efficiency of our new approach. Multiple FWM products have been investigated by using conventional fibers and ultra-flattened dispersion photonic crystal fibers (UFD-PCFs). Measured results present bandwidths of 300 nm with up to 118 FWM products. We have also demonstrated a flat bandwidth of 110 nm covering the C and L bands, with a small variation of only 1.2 dB between the powers of FWM products, has been achieved using highly nonlinear fibers (HNLFs). The use of UFD-PCFs has been shown interesting for improving the multiple FWM efficiency and reducing the separation between the pump wavelengths.

Research and development of energy-efficient appliance motor-compressors. Volume IV. Production demonstration and field test

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Middleton, M.G.; Sauber, R.S.

Two models of a high-efficiency compressor were manufactured in a pilot production run. These compressors were for low back-pressure applications. While based on a production compressor, there were many changes that required production process changes. Some changes were performed within our company and others were made by outside vendors. The compressors were used in top mount refrigerator-freezers and sold in normal distribution channels. Forty units were placed in residences for a one-year field test. Additional compressors were built so that a life test program could be performed. The results of the field test reveal a 27.0% improvement in energy consumptionmore » for the 18 ft/sup 3/ high-efficiency model and a 15.6% improvement in the 21 ft/sup 3/ improvement in the 21 ft/sup 3/ high-efficiency model as compared to the standard production unit.« less

Land-based production of animal protein: impacts, efficiency, and sustainability.

PubMed

Wu, Guoyao; Bazer, Fuller W; Cross, H Russell

2014-11-01

Land-based production of high-quality protein by livestock and poultry plays an important role in improving human nutrition, growth, and health, as well as economical and social developments worldwide. With exponential growth of the global population and marked rises in meat consumption per capita, demands for animal-source protein are expected to increase by 72% between 2013 and 2050. This raises concerns about the sustainability and environmental impacts of animal agriculture. An attractive solution to meeting the increasing needs for animal products and mitigating undesired effects of agricultural practices is to enhance the efficiency of animal growth, reproduction, and lactation. Breeding techniques may help achieve this goal, but have only met with limited success. A promising, mechanism-based approach is to optimize the proportion and amounts of amino acids in diets for maximizing whole-body protein synthesis and feed efficiency. Improvements in farm animal productivity will not only decrease the contamination of soils, groundwater, and air by excessive manure, but will also help sustain animal agriculture to produce high-quality protein for the expanding population in the face of diminishing resources. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

Resource recovery from residual household waste: An application of exergy flow analysis and exergetic life cycle assessment.

PubMed

Laner, David; Rechberger, Helmut; De Soete, Wouter; De Meester, Steven; Astrup, Thomas F

2015-12-01

Exergy is based on the Second Law of thermodynamics and can be used to express physical and chemical potential and provides a unified measure for resource accounting. In this study, exergy analysis was applied to four residual household waste management scenarios with focus on the achieved resource recovery efficiencies. The calculated exergy efficiencies were used to compare the scenarios and to evaluate the applicability of exergy-based measures for expressing resource quality and for optimizing resource recovery. Exergy efficiencies were determined based on two approaches: (i) exergy flow analysis of the waste treatment system under investigation and (ii) exergetic life cycle assessment (LCA) using the Cumulative Exergy Extraction from the Natural Environment (CEENE) as a method for resource accounting. Scenario efficiencies of around 17-27% were found based on the exergy flow analysis (higher efficiencies were associated with high levels of material recycling), while the scenario efficiencies based on the exergetic LCA lay in a narrow range around 14%. Metal recovery was beneficial in both types of analyses, but had more influence on the overall efficiency in the exergetic LCA approach, as avoided burdens associated with primary metal production were much more important than the exergy content of the recovered metals. On the other hand, plastic recovery was highly beneficial in the exergy flow analysis, but rather insignificant in exergetic LCA. The two approaches thereby offered different quantitative results as well as conclusions regarding material recovery. With respect to resource quality, the main challenge for the exergy flow analysis is the use of exergy content and exergy losses as a proxy for resource quality and resource losses, as exergy content is not per se correlated with the functionality of a material. In addition, the definition of appropriate waste system boundaries is critical for the exergy efficiencies derived from the flow analysis, as it is constrained by limited information available about the composition of flows in the system as well as about secondary production processes and their interaction with primary or traditional production chains. In the exergetic LCA, resource quality could be reflected by the savings achieved by product substitution and the consideration of the waste's upstream burden allowed for an evaluation of the waste's resource potential. For a comprehensive assessment of resource efficiency in waste LCA, the sensitivity of accounting for product substitution should be carefully analyzed and cumulative exergy consumption measures should be complimented by other impact categories. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sustainable and efficient biohydrogen production via electrohydrogenesis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cheng, S.; Logan, B.E.

2007-11-20

Hydrogen gas has tremendous potential as an environmentally acceptable energy carrier for vehicles, but most hydrogen is generated from nonrenewable fossil fuels such as natural gas. Here, the authors show that efficient and sustainable hydrogen production is possible from any type of biodegradable organic matter by electrohydrogenesis. In this process, protons and electrons released by exoelectrogenic bateria in specially designed reactors (based on modifying microbial fuel cells) are catalyzed to form hydrogen gas through the addition of a small voltage to the circuit. By improving the materials and reactor architecture, hydrogen gas was produced at yields of 2.01-3.95 mol/mol (50-99%more » of the theoretical maximum) at applied voltages of 0.2 to 0.8 V using acetic acid, a typical dead-end product of glucose or cellulose fermentation. At an applied voltage of 0.6 V, the overall energy efficiency of the process was 288% based solely on electricity applied, and 82% when the heat of combusion of acetic acid was included in the energy balance, at a gas production rate of 1.1 m{sup 3} of H{sub 2} per cubic meter of reactor per day. Direct high-yield hydrogen gas production was further demonstrated by using glucose, several volatile acids (acetic, butyric, lactic, propionic, and valeric), and cellulose at maximum stoichiometric yields of 54-91% and overall energy efficiencies of 64-82%. This electrohydrogenic process thus provides a highly efficient route for producting hydrogen gas from renewable and carbon-neutral biomass resources.« less

Resource limits and conversion efficiency with implications for climate change and California's energy supply

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Croft, Gregory Donald

There are two commonly-used approaches to modeling the future supply of mineral resources. One is to estimate reserves and compare the result to extraction rates, and the other is to project from historical time series of extraction rates. Perceptions of abundant oil supplies in the Middle East and abundant coal supplies in the United States are based on the former approach. In both of these cases, an approach based on historical production series results in a much smaller resource estimate than aggregate reserve numbers. This difference is not systematic; natural gas production in the United States shows a strong increasing trend even though modest reserve estimates have resulted in three decades of worry about the gas supply. The implication of a future decline in Middle East oil production is that the market for transportation fuels is facing major changes, and that alternative fuels should be analyzed in this light. Because the U.S. holds very large coal reserves, synthesizing liquid hydrocarbons from coal has been suggested as an alternative fuel supply. To assess the potential of this process, one has to look at both the resource base and the net efficiency. The three states with the largest coal production declines in the 1996 to 2006 period are among the top 5 coal reserve holders, suggesting that gross coal reserves are a poor indicator of future production. Of the three categories of coal reserves reported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, reserves at existing mines is the narrowest category and is approximately the equivalent of proved developed oil reserves. By this measure, Wyoming has the largest coal reserves in the U.S., and it accounted for all of U.S. coal production growth over the 1996 to 2006 time period. In Chapter 2, multi-cycle Hubbert curve analysis of historical data of coal production from 1850 to 2007 demonstrates that U.S. anthracite and bituminous coal are past their production peak. This result contradicts estimates based on aggregated reserve numbers. Electric power generation consumes 92 percent of U.S. coal production. Natural gas competes with coal as a baseload power generation fuel with similar or slightly better generation efficiency. Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, described in Chapter 2, creates transportation fuel from coal with an efficiency of less than 45 percent. Claims of higher efficiencies are based on waste heat recovery, since this is a highly exothermic process. The yield of liquid fuel as a proportion of the energy content of the coal input is always less than 45 percent. Compressed natural gas can be used for vehicle fuel with efficiency greater than 98 percent. If we view Fischer-Tropsch synthesis as a form of arbitrage between markets for electricity and transportation fuel, coal cannot simultaneously compete with natural gas for both transportation fuel and electric power. This is because Fischer-Tropsch synthesis is a way to turn power generation fuel into transportation fuel with low efficiency, while natural gas can be converted to transportation fuel with much greater efficiency. For this reason, Fischer-Tropsch synthesis will be an uneconomic source of transportation fuel as long as natural gas is economic for power generation. This conclusion holds even without the very high capital cost of coal-to-liquids plants. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has generated forty carbon production and emissions scenarios, see the IPCC Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (2000). Chapter 4 develops a base-case scenario for global coal production based on the physical multi-cycle Hubbert analysis of historical production data. Areas with large resources but little production history, such as Alaska or Eastern Siberia, can be treated as sensitivities on top of this base case. The value of our approach is that it provides a reality check on the magnitude of carbon emissions in a business-as-usual (BAU) scenario. The resulting base case is significantly below 36 of the 40 carbon emission scenarios from the IPCC, and the global peak of coal production from existing coalfields is predicted to occur about the year 2011. The peak coal production rate calculated here is 160 EJ/y, and the associated peak carbon emissions from coal burning are 4.5 Gt C per year. After 2011, the production rates of coal and CO2 decline, reaching 1990 levels by the year 2037, and reaching 50% of the peak value in the year 2047. It is unlikely that future mines will reverse the trend predicted in the base case scenario here, and current efforts to sequester carbon or to convert coal into liquid fuels should be reexamined in light of resource limits. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Efficient production of free fatty acids from ionic liquid-based acid- or enzyme-catalyzed bamboo hydrolysate.

PubMed

Mi, Le; Qin, Dandan; Cheng, Jie; Wang, Dan; Li, Sha; Wei, Xuetuan

2017-03-01

Two engineered Escherichia coli strains, DQ101 (MG1655 fadD - )/pDQTES and DQ101 (MG1655 fadD - )/pDQTESZ were constructed to investigate the free fatty acid production using ionic liquid-based acid- or enzyme-catalyzed bamboo hydrolysate as carbon source in this study. The plasmid, pDQTES, carrying an acyl-ACP thioesterase 'TesA of E. coli in pTrc99A was constructed firstly, and then (3R)-hydroxyacyl-ACP dehydratase was ligated after the TesA to give the plasmid pDQTESZ. These two strains exhibited efficient fatty acid production when glucose was used as the sole carbon source, with a final concentration of 2.45 and 3.32 g/L, respectively. The free fatty acid production of the two strains on xylose is not as efficient as that on glucose, which was 2.32 and 2.96 g/L, respectively. For mixed sugars, DQ101 (MG1655 fadD - )-based strains utilized glucose and pentose sequentially under the carbon catabolite repression (CCR) regulation. The highest total FFAs concentration from the mixed sugar culture reached 2.81 g/L by DQ101 (MG1655 fadD - )/pDQTESZ. Furthermore, when ionic liquid-based enzyme-catalyzed bamboo hydrolysate was used as the carbon source, the strain DQ101 (MG1655 fadD - )/pDQTESZ could produce 1.23 g/L FFAs with a yield of 0.13 g/g, and while it just produced 0.65 g/L free fatty acid with the ionic liquid-based acid-catalyzed bamboo hydrolysate as the feedstock. The results suggested that enzymatic catalyzed bamboo hydrolysate with ionic liquid pretreatment could serve as an efficient feedstock for free fatty acid production.

Improved base excision repair inhibition and bacteriophage Mu Gam protein yields C:G-to-T:A base editors with higher efficiency and product purity

PubMed Central

Komor, Alexis C.; Zhao, Kevin T.; Packer, Michael S.; Gaudelli, Nicole M.; Waterbury, Amanda L.; Koblan, Luke W.; Kim, Y. Bill; Badran, Ahmed H.; Liu, David R.

2017-01-01

We recently developed base editing, the programmable conversion of target C:G base pairs to T:A without inducing double-stranded DNA breaks (DSBs) or requiring homology-directed repair using engineered fusions of Cas9 variants and cytidine deaminases. Over the past year, the third-generation base editor (BE3) and related technologies have been successfully used by many researchers in a wide range of organisms. The product distribution of base editing—the frequency with which the target C:G is converted to mixtures of undesired by-products, along with the desired T:A product—varies in a target site–dependent manner. We characterize determinants of base editing outcomes in human cells and establish that the formation of undesired products is dependent on uracil N-glycosylase (UNG) and is more likely to occur at target sites containing only a single C within the base editing activity window. We engineered CDA1-BE3 and AID-BE3, which use cytidine deaminase homologs that increase base editing efficiency for some sequences. On the basis of these observations, we engineered fourth-generation base editors (BE4 and SaBE4) that increase the efficiency of C:G to T:A base editing by approximately 50%, while halving the frequency of undesired by-products compared to BE3. Fusing BE3, BE4, SaBE3, or SaBE4 to Gam, a bacteriophage Mu protein that binds DSBs greatly reduces indel formation during base editing, in most cases to below 1.5%, and further improves product purity. BE4, SaBE4, BE4-Gam, and SaBE4-Gam represent the state of the art in C:G-to-T:A base editing, and we recommend their use in future efforts. PMID:28875174

Irregular large-scale computed tomography on multiple graphics processors improves energy-efficiency metrics for industrial applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jimenez, Edward S.; Goodman, Eric L.; Park, Ryeojin; Orr, Laurel J.; Thompson, Kyle R.

2014-09-01

This paper will investigate energy-efficiency for various real-world industrial computed-tomography reconstruction algorithms, both CPU- and GPU-based implementations. This work shows that the energy required for a given reconstruction is based on performance and problem size. There are many ways to describe performance and energy efficiency, thus this work will investigate multiple metrics including performance-per-watt, energy-delay product, and energy consumption. This work found that irregular GPU-based approaches1 realized tremendous savings in energy consumption when compared to CPU implementations while also significantly improving the performance-per- watt and energy-delay product metrics. Additional energy savings and other metric improvement was realized on the GPU-based reconstructions by improving storage I/O by implementing a parallel MIMD-like modularization of the compute and I/O tasks.

Genetically Engineered Cyanobacteria

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, Ruanbao (Inventor); Gibbons, William (Inventor)

2015-01-01

The disclosed embodiments provide cyanobacteria spp. that have been genetically engineered to have increased production of carbon-based products of interest. These genetically engineered hosts efficiently convert carbon dioxide and light into carbon-based products of interest such as long chained hydrocarbons. Several constructs containing polynucleotides encoding enzymes active in the metabolic pathways of cyanobacteria are disclosed. In many instances, the cyanobacteria strains have been further genetically modified to optimize production of the carbon-based products of interest. The optimization includes both up-regulation and down-regulation of particular genes.

Fed-batch culture of Escherichia coli for L-valine production based on in silico flux response analysis.

PubMed

Park, Jin Hwan; Kim, Tae Yong; Lee, Kwang Ho; Lee, Sang Yup

2011-04-01

We have previously reported the development of a 100% genetically defined engineered Escherichia coli strain capable of producing L-valine from glucose with a high yield of 0.38 g L-valine per gram glucose (0.58 mol L-valine per mol glucose) by batch culture. Here we report a systems biological strategy of employing flux response analysis in bioprocess development using L-valine production by fed-batch culture as an example. Through the systems-level analysis, the source of ATP was found to be important for efficient L-valine production. There existed a trade-off between L-valine production and biomass formation, which was optimized for the most efficient L-valine production. Furthermore, acetic acid feeding strategy was optimized based on flux response analysis. The final fed-batch cultivation strategy allowed production of 32.3 g/L L-valine, the highest concentration reported for E. coli. This approach of employing systems-level analysis of metabolic fluxes in developing fed-batch cultivation strategy would also be applicable in developing strategies for the efficient production of other bioproducts. Copyright © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Lean manufacturing analysis to reduce waste on production process of fan products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siregar, I.; Nasution, A. A.; Andayani, U.; Sari, R. M.; Syahputri, K.; Anizar

2018-02-01

This research is based on case study that being on electrical company. One of the products that will be researched is the fan, which when running the production process there is a time that is not value-added, among others, the removal of material which is not efficient in the raw materials and component molding fan. This study aims to reduce waste or non-value added activities and shorten the total lead time by using the tools Value Stream Mapping. Lean manufacturing methods used to analyze and reduce the non-value added activities, namely the value stream mapping analysis tools, process mapping activity with 5W1H, and tools 5 whys. Based on the research note that no value-added activities in the production process of a fan of 647.94 minutes of total lead time of 725.68 minutes. Process cycle efficiency in the production process indicates that the fan is still very low at 11%. While estimates of the repair showed a decrease in total lead time became 340.9 minutes and the process cycle efficiency is greater by 24%, which indicates that the production process has been better.

Comparison of Iron and Tungsten Based Oxygen Carriers for Hydrogen Production Using Chemical Looping Reforming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, M. N.; Shamim, T.

2017-08-01

Hydrogen production by using a three reactor chemical looping reforming (TRCLR) technology is an innovative and attractive process. Fossil fuels such as methane are the feedstocks used. This process is similar to a conventional steam-methane reforming but occurs in three steps utilizing an oxygen carrier. As the oxygen carrier plays an important role, its selection should be done carefully. In this study, two oxygen carrier materials of base metal iron (Fe) and tungsten (W) are analysed using a thermodynamic model of a three reactor chemical looping reforming plant in Aspen plus. The results indicate that iron oxide has moderate oxygen carrying capacity and is cheaper since it is abundantly available. In terms of hydrogen production efficiency, tungsten oxide gives 4% better efficiency than iron oxide. While in terms of electrical power efficiency, iron oxide gives 4.6% better results than tungsten oxide. Overall, a TRCLR system with iron oxide is 2.6% more efficient and is cost effective than the TRCLR system with tungsten oxide.

Simulation based energy-resource efficient manufacturing integrated with in-process virtual management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katchasuwanmanee, Kanet; Cheng, Kai; Bateman, Richard

2016-09-01

As energy efficiency is one of the key essentials towards sustainability, the development of an energy-resource efficient manufacturing system is among the great challenges facing the current industry. Meanwhile, the availability of advanced technological innovation has created more complex manufacturing systems that involve a large variety of processes and machines serving different functions. To extend the limited knowledge on energy-efficient scheduling, the research presented in this paper attempts to model the production schedule at an operation process by considering the balance of energy consumption reduction in production, production work flow (productivity) and quality. An innovative systematic approach to manufacturing energy-resource efficiency is proposed with the virtual simulation as a predictive modelling enabler, which provides real-time manufacturing monitoring, virtual displays and decision-makings and consequentially an analytical and multidimensional correlation analysis on interdependent relationships among energy consumption, work flow and quality errors. The regression analysis results demonstrate positive relationships between the work flow and quality errors and the work flow and energy consumption. When production scheduling is controlled through optimization of work flow, quality errors and overall energy consumption, the energy-resource efficiency can be achieved in the production. Together, this proposed multidimensional modelling and analysis approach provides optimal conditions for the production scheduling at the manufacturing system by taking account of production quality, energy consumption and resource efficiency, which can lead to the key competitive advantages and sustainability of the system operations in the industry.

Measuring Efficiency of Knowledge Production in Health Research Centers Using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA): A Case Study in Iran

PubMed Central

Amiri, Mohammad Meskarpour; Nasiri, Taha; Saadat, Seyed Hassan; Anabad, Hosein Amini; Ardakan, Payman Mahboobi

2016-01-01

Introduction Efficiency analysis is necessary in order to avoid waste of materials, energy, effort, money, and time during scientific research. Therefore, analyzing efficiency of knowledge production in health areas is necessary, especially for developing and in-transition countries. As the first step in this field, the aim of this study was the analysis of selected health research center efficiency using data envelopment analysis (DEA). Methods This retrospective and applied study was conducted in 2015 using input and output data of 16 health research centers affiliated with a health sciences university in Iran during 2010–2014. The technical efficiency of health research centers was evaluated based on three basic data envelopment analysis (DEA) models: input-oriented, output-oriented, and hyperbolic-oriented. The input and output data of each health research center for years 2010–2014 were collected from the Iran Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MOHE) profile and analyzed by R software. Results The mean efficiency score in input-oriented, output-oriented, and hyperbolic-oriented models was 0.781, 0.671, and 0.798, respectively. Based on results of the study, half of the health research centers are operating below full efficiency, and about one-third of them are operating under the average efficiency level. There is also a large gap between health research center efficiency relative to each other. Conclusion It is necessary for health research centers to improve their efficiency in knowledge production through better management of available resources. The higher level of efficiency in a significant number of health research centers is achievable through more efficient management of human resources and capital. Further research is needed to measure and follow the efficiency of knowledge production by health research centers around the world and over a period of time. PMID:28344756

Light quality and efficiency of consumer grade solid state lighting products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dam-Hansen, Carsten; Corell, Dennis Dan; Thorseth, Anders; Poulsen, Peter Behrensdorff

2013-03-01

The rapid development in flux and efficiency of Light Emitting Diodes (LED) has resulted in a flooding of the lighting market with Solid State Lighting (SSL) products. Many traditional light sources can advantageously be replaced by SSL products. There are, however, large variations in the quality of these products, and some are not better than the ones they are supposed to replace. A lack of quality demands and standards makes it difficult for consumers to get an overview of the SSL products. Here the results of a two year study investigating SSL products on the Danish market are presented. Focus has been on SSL products for replacement of incandescent lamps and halogen spotlights. The warm white light and good color rendering properties of these traditional light sources are a must for lighting in Denmark and the Nordic countries. 266 SSL replacement lamps have been tested for efficiency and light quality with respect to correlated color temperature and color rendering properties. This shows a trade-off between high color rendering warm white light and energy efficiency. The lumen and color maintenance over time has been investigated and results for products running over 11000 h will be presented. A new internet based SSL product selection tool will be shown. Here the products can be compared on efficiency, light quality parameters, thus providing a better basis for the selection of SSL products for consumers.

Integration options for high energy efficiency and improved economics in a wood-to-ethanol process

PubMed Central

Sassner, Per; Zacchi, Guido

2008-01-01

Background There is currently a steady increase in the use of wood-based fuels for heat and power production in Sweden. A major proportion of these fuels could serve as feedstock for ethanol production. In this study various options for the utilization of the solid residue formed during ethanol production from spruce, such as the production of pellets, electricity and heat for district heating, were compared in terms of overall energy efficiency and production cost. The effects of changes in the process performance, such as variations in the ethanol yield and/or the energy demand, were also studied. The process was based on SO2-catalysed steam pretreatment, which was followed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation. A model including all the major process steps was implemented in the commercial flow-sheeting program Aspen Plus, the model input was based on data recently obtained on lab scale or in a process development unit. Results For the five base case scenarios presented in the paper the overall energy efficiency ranged from 53 to 92%, based on the lower heating values, and a minimum ethanol selling price from 3.87 to 4.73 Swedish kronor per litre (0.41–0.50 EUR/L); however, ethanol production was performed in essentially the same way in each base case scenario. (Highly realistic) improvements in the ethanol yield and reductions in the energy demand resulted in significantly lower production costs for all scenarios. Conclusion Although ethanol was shown to be the main product, i.e. yielding the major part of the income, the co-product revenue had a considerable effect on the process economics and the importance of good utilization of the entire feedstock was clearly shown. With the assumed prices of the co-products, utilization of the excess solid residue for heat and power production was highly economically favourable. The study also showed that improvements in the ethanol yield and reductions in the energy demand resulted in significant production cost reductions almost independently of each other. PMID:18471311

Physiological Importance and Mechanisms of Protein Hydrolysate Absorption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhanghi, Brian M.; Matthews, James C.

Understanding opportunities to maximize the efficient digestion and assimilation by production animals of plant- and animal-derived protein products is critical for farmers, nutritionists, and feed manufacturers to sustain and expand the affordable production of high quality animal products for human consumption. The challenge to nutritionists is to match gastrointestinal tract load to existing or ­inducible digestive and absorptive capacities. The challenge to feed manufacturers is to develop products that are efficient substrates for digestion, absorption, and/or both events. Ultimately, the efficient absorption of digesta proteins depends on the mediated passage (transport) of protein hydrosylate products as dipeptides and unbound amino acids across the lumen- and blood-facing membranes of intestinal absorptive cells. Data testing the relative efficiency of supplying protein as hydrolysates or specific dipeptides versus as free amino acids, and the response of animals in several physiological states to feeding of protein hydrolysates, are presented and reviewed in this chapter. Next, data describing the transport mechanisms responsible for absorbing protein hydrolysate digestion products, and the known and putative regulation of these mechanisms by their substrates (small peptides) and hormones are presented and reviewed. Several conclusions are drawn regarding the efficient use of protein hydrolysate-based diets for particular physiological states, the economically-practical application of which likely will depend on technological advances in the manufacture of protein hydrolysate products.

Improving production efficiency in the presence of genotype by environment interactions in pig genomic selection breeding programmes.

PubMed

Nirea, K G; Meuwissen, T H E

2017-04-01

We simulated a genomic selection pig breeding schemes containing nucleus and production herds to improve feed efficiency of production pigs that were cross-breed. Elite nucleus herds had access to high-quality feed, and production herds were fed low-quality feed. Feed efficiency in the nucleus herds had a heritability of 0.3 and 0.25 in the production herds. It was assumed the genetic relationships between feed efficiency in the nucleus and production were low (r g  = 0.2), medium (r g  = 0.5) and high (r g  = 0.8). In our alternative breeding schemes, different proportion of production animals were recorded for feed efficiency and genotyped with high-density panel of genetic markers. Genomic breeding value of the selection candidates for feed efficiency was estimated based on three different approaches. In one approach, genomic breeding value was estimated including nucleus animals in the reference population. In the second approach, the reference population was containing a mixture of nucleus and production animals. In the third approach, the reference population was only consisting of production herds. Using a mixture reference population, we generated 40-115% more genetic gain in the production environment as compared to only using nucleus reference population that were fed high-quality feed sources when the production animals were offspring of the nucleus animals. When the production animals were grand offspring of the nucleus animals, 43-104% more genetic gain was generated. Similarly, a higher genetic gain generated in the production environment when mixed reference population was used as compared to only using production animals. This was up to 19 and 14% when the production animals were offspring and grand offspring of nucleus animals, respectively. Therefore, in genomic selection pig breeding programmes, feed efficiency traits could be improved by properly designing the reference population. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

System Evaluation and Economic Analysis of a HTGR Powered High-Temperature Electrolysis Hydrogen Production Plant

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Michael G. McKellar; Edwin A. Harvego; Anastasia A. Gandrik

2010-10-01

A design for a commercial-scale high-temperature electrolysis (HTE) plant for hydrogen production has been developed. The HTE plant is powered by a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) whose configuration and operating conditions are based on the latest design parameters planned for the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). The current HTGR reference design specifies a reactor power of 600 MWt, with a primary system pressure of 7.0 MPa, and reactor inlet and outlet fluid temperatures of 322°C and 750°C, respectively. The power conversion unit will be a Rankine steam cycle with a power conversion efficiency of 40%. The reference hydrogen production plantmore » operates at a system pressure of 5.0 MPa, and utilizes a steam-sweep system to remove the excess oxygen that is evolved on the anode (oxygen) side of the electrolyzer. The overall system thermal-to-hydrogen production efficiency (based on the higher heating value of the produced hydrogen) is 40.4% at a hydrogen production rate of 1.75 kg/s and an oxygen production rate of 13.8 kg/s. An economic analysis of this plant was performed with realistic financial and cost estimating assumptions. The results of the economic analysis demonstrated that the HTE hydrogen production plant driven by a high-temperature helium-cooled nuclear power plant can deliver hydrogen at a cost of $3.67/kg of hydrogen assuming an internal rate of return, IRR, of 12% and a debt to equity ratio of 80%/20%. A second analysis shows that if the power cycle efficiency increases to 44.4%, the hydrogen production efficiency increases to 42.8% and the hydrogen and oxygen production rates are 1.85 kg/s and 14.6 kg/s respectively. At the higher power cycle efficiency and an IRR of 12% the cost of hydrogen production is $3.50/kg.« less

Best practices: Product category rule creation and use

EPA Science Inventory

Benefits of life cycle-based claims For most products, the majority of impact occurs upstream or downstream of product use . Single-stage claims for products (e.g., recycled content; energy efficient) don’t capture the relevance of that attribute in life-cycle environmental per...

Increasing the efficiency of designing hemming processes by using an element-based metamodel approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaiser, C.; Roll, K.; Volk, W.

2017-09-01

In the automotive industry, the manufacturing of automotive outer panels requires hemming processes in which two sheet metal parts are joined together by bending the flange of the outer part over the inner part. Because of decreasing development times and the steadily growing number of vehicle derivatives, an efficient digital product and process validation is necessary. Commonly used simulations, which are based on the finite element method, demand significant modelling effort, which results in disadvantages especially in the early product development phase. To increase the efficiency of designing hemming processes this paper presents a hemming-specific metamodel approach. The approach includes a part analysis in which the outline of the automotive outer panels is initially split into individual segments. By doing a para-metrization of each of the segments and assigning basic geometric shapes, the outline of the part is approximated. Based on this, the hemming parameters such as flange length, roll-in, wrinkling and plastic strains are calculated for each of the geometric basic shapes by performing a meta-model-based segmental product validation. The metamodel is based on an element similar formulation that includes a reference dataset of various geometric basic shapes. A random automotive outer panel can now be analysed and optimized based on the hemming-specific database. By implementing this approach into a planning system, an efficient optimization of designing hemming processes will be enabled. Furthermore, valuable time and cost benefits can be realized in a vehicle’s development process.

Sustainable and efficient biohydrogen production via electrohydrogenesis.

PubMed

Cheng, Shaoan; Logan, Bruce E

2007-11-20

Hydrogen gas has tremendous potential as an environmentally acceptable energy carrier for vehicles, but most hydrogen is generated from nonrenewable fossil fuels such as natural gas. Here, we show that efficient and sustainable hydrogen production is possible from any type of biodegradable organic matter by electrohydrogenesis. In this process, protons and electrons released by exoelectrogenic bacteria in specially designed reactors (based on modifying microbial fuel cells) are catalyzed to form hydrogen gas through the addition of a small voltage to the circuit. By improving the materials and reactor architecture, hydrogen gas was produced at yields of 2.01-3.95 mol/mol (50-99% of the theoretical maximum) at applied voltages of 0.2 to 0.8 V using acetic acid, a typical dead-end product of glucose or cellulose fermentation. At an applied voltage of 0.6 V, the overall energy efficiency of the process was 288% based solely on electricity applied, and 82% when the heat of combustion of acetic acid was included in the energy balance, at a gas production rate of 1.1 m(3) of H(2) per cubic meter of reactor per day. Direct high-yield hydrogen gas production was further demonstrated by using glucose, several volatile acids (acetic, butyric, lactic, propionic, and valeric), and cellulose at maximum stoichiometric yields of 54-91% and overall energy efficiencies of 64-82%. This electrohydrogenic process thus provides a highly efficient route for producing hydrogen gas from renewable and carbon-neutral biomass resources.

Assessment of Palm Press Fibre and Sawdust-Based Substrate Formulas for Efficient Carpophore Production of Lentinus squarrosulus (Mont.) Singer

PubMed Central

Chiejina, Nneka Virginia

2015-01-01

Development of efficient substrate formulas to improve yield and shorten production time is one of the prerequisites for commercial cultivation of edible mushrooms. In this study, fifteen substrate formulas consisting of varying ratios of palm press fibre (PPF), mahogany sawdust (MS), Gmelina sawdust, wheat bran (WB), and fixed proportions of 1% calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and 1% sucrose were assessed for efficient Lentinus squarrosulus production. Proximate compositions of mushrooms produced on the different substrate formulas were also analysed and compared. Substrate formulations containing 85% PPF, 13% WB, 1% CaCO3, and 1% sucrose were found to produce the highest carpophore yield, biological efficiency and size (206.5 g/kg, 61.96%, and 7.26 g, respectively). Days to production (first harvest) tended to increase with an increase in the amount of WB in the substrate formulas, except for PPF based formulas. The addition of WB in amounts equivalent to 8~18% in substrate formulas containing 80~90% PPF resulted in a decrease in the time to first harvest by an average of 17.7 days compared to 80~90% MS with similar treatment. Nutritional content of mushrooms was affected by the different substrate formulas. Protein content was high for mushrooms produced on formulas containing PPF as the basal substrate. Thus, formulas comprising PPF, WB, CaCO3, and sucrose at 85% : 13% : 1% : 1%) respectively could be explored as starter basal ingredients for efficient large scale production of L. squarrosulus. PMID:26839507

Increasing energy efficiency level of building production based on applying modern mechanization facilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prokhorov, Sergey

2017-10-01

Building industry in a present day going through the hard times. Machine and mechanism exploitation cost, on a field of construction and installation works, takes a substantial part in total building construction expenses. There is a necessity to elaborate high efficient method, which allows not only to increase production, but also to reduce direct costs during machine fleet exploitation, and to increase its energy efficiency. In order to achieve the goal we plan to use modern methods of work production, hi-tech and energy saving machine tools and technologies, and use of optimal mechanization sets. As the optimization criteria there are exploitation prime cost and set efficiency. During actual task-solving process we made a conclusion, which shows that mechanization works, energy audit with production juxtaposition, prime prices and costs for energy resources allow to make complex machine fleet supply, improve ecological level and increase construction and installation work quality.

Production and Application of Lignosulfonates and Sulfonated Lignin.

PubMed

Aro, Thomas; Fatehi, Pedram

2017-05-09

Lignin is the largest reservoir of aromatic compounds on earth and has great potential to be used in many industrial applications. Alternative methods to produce lignosulfonates from spent sulfite pulping liquors and kraft lignin from black liquor of kraft pulping process are critically reviewed herein. Furthermore, options to increase the sulfonate contents of lignin-based products are outlined and the industrial attractiveness of them is evaluated. This evaluation includes sulfonation and sulfomethylation of lignin. To increase the sulfomethylation efficiency of lignin, various scenarios, including hydrolysis, oxidation, and hydroxymethylation, were compared. The application of sulfonated lignin-based products is assessed and the impact of the properties of these products on the characteristics of their end-use application is critically evaluated. Sulfonated lignin-based products have been used as dispersants in cement admixtures and dye solutions more than other applications, and their molecular weight and degree of sulfonation were crucial in determining their efficiency. The use of lignin-based sulfonated products in composites may result in an increase in the hydrophilicity of some composites, but the sulfonated products may need to be desulfonated with an alkali and/or oxygen prior to their use in composites. To be used as a flocculant, sulfonated lignin-based products may need to be cross-linked to increase their molecular weight. The challenges associated with the use of lignin-based products in these applications are comprehensively discussed herein. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Efficiency of Health Care Production in Low-Resource Settings: A Monte-Carlo Simulation to Compare the Performance of Data Envelopment Analysis, Stochastic Distance Functions, and an Ensemble Model

PubMed Central

Giorgio, Laura Di; Flaxman, Abraham D.; Moses, Mark W.; Fullman, Nancy; Hanlon, Michael; Conner, Ruben O.; Wollum, Alexandra; Murray, Christopher J. L.

2016-01-01

Low-resource countries can greatly benefit from even small increases in efficiency of health service provision, supporting a strong case to measure and pursue efficiency improvement in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, the knowledge base concerning efficiency measurement remains scarce for these contexts. This study shows that current estimation approaches may not be well suited to measure technical efficiency in LMICs and offers an alternative approach for efficiency measurement in these settings. We developed a simulation environment which reproduces the characteristics of health service production in LMICs, and evaluated the performance of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Distance Function (SDF) for assessing efficiency. We found that an ensemble approach (ENS) combining efficiency estimates from a restricted version of DEA (rDEA) and restricted SDF (rSDF) is the preferable method across a range of scenarios. This is the first study to analyze efficiency measurement in a simulation setting for LMICs. Our findings aim to heighten the validity and reliability of efficiency analyses in LMICs, and thus inform policy dialogues about improving the efficiency of health service production in these settings. PMID:26812685

Efficient generation of sum-of-products representations of high-dimensional potential energy surfaces based on multimode expansions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziegler, Benjamin; Rauhut, Guntram

2016-03-01

The transformation of multi-dimensional potential energy surfaces (PESs) from a grid-based multimode representation to an analytical one is a standard procedure in quantum chemical programs. Within the framework of linear least squares fitting, a simple and highly efficient algorithm is presented, which relies on a direct product representation of the PES and a repeated use of Kronecker products. It shows the same scalings in computational cost and memory requirements as the potfit approach. In comparison to customary linear least squares fitting algorithms, this corresponds to a speed-up and memory saving by several orders of magnitude. Different fitting bases are tested, namely, polynomials, B-splines, and distributed Gaussians. Benchmark calculations are provided for the PESs of a set of small molecules.

Efficient generation of sum-of-products representations of high-dimensional potential energy surfaces based on multimode expansions.

PubMed

Ziegler, Benjamin; Rauhut, Guntram

2016-03-21

The transformation of multi-dimensional potential energy surfaces (PESs) from a grid-based multimode representation to an analytical one is a standard procedure in quantum chemical programs. Within the framework of linear least squares fitting, a simple and highly efficient algorithm is presented, which relies on a direct product representation of the PES and a repeated use of Kronecker products. It shows the same scalings in computational cost and memory requirements as the potfit approach. In comparison to customary linear least squares fitting algorithms, this corresponds to a speed-up and memory saving by several orders of magnitude. Different fitting bases are tested, namely, polynomials, B-splines, and distributed Gaussians. Benchmark calculations are provided for the PESs of a set of small molecules.

Resource efficiency potential of selected technologies, products and strategies.

PubMed

Rohn, Holger; Pastewski, Nico; Lettenmeier, Michael; Wiesen, Klaus; Bienge, Katrin

2014-03-01

Despite rising prices for natural resources during the past 30 years, global consumption of natural resources is still growing. This leads to ecological, economical and social problems. So far, however, limited effort has been made to decrease the natural resource use of goods and services. While resource efficiency is already on the political agenda (EU and national resource strategies), there are still substantial knowledge gaps on the effectiveness of resource efficiency improvement strategies in different fields. In this context and within the project "Material Efficiency and Resource Conservation", the natural resource use of 22 technologies, products and strategies was calculated and their resource efficiency potential analysed. In a preliminary literature- and expert-based identification process, over 250 technologies, strategies, and products, which are regarded as resource efficient, were identified. Out of these, 22 subjects with high resource efficiency potential were selected. They cover a wide range of relevant technologies, products and strategies, such as energy supply and storage, Green IT, transportation, foodstuffs, agricultural engineering, design strategies, lightweight construction, as well as the concept "Using Instead of Owning". To assess the life-cycle-wide resource use of the selected subjects, the material footprint has been applied as a reliable indicator. In addition, sustainability criteria on a qualitative basis were considered. The results presented in this paper show significant resource efficiency potential for many technologies, products and strategies. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Development and application of a crossbreeding simulation model for goat production systems in tropical regions.

PubMed

Tsukahara, Y; Oishi, K; Hirooka, H

2011-12-01

A deterministic simulation model was developed to estimate biological production efficiency and to evaluate goat crossbreeding systems under tropical conditions. The model involves 5 production systems: pure indigenous, first filial generations (F1), backcross (BC), composite breeds of F1 (CMP(F1)), and BC (CMP(BC)). The model first simulates growth, reproduction, lactation, and energy intakes of a doe and a kid on a 1-d time step at the individual level and thereafter the outputs are integrated into the herd dynamics program. The ability of the model to simulate individual performances was tested under a base situation. The simulation results represented daily BW changes, ME requirements, and milk yield and the estimates were within the range of published data. Two conventional goat production scenarios (an intensive milk production scenario and an integrated goat and oil palm production scenario) in Malaysia were examined. The simulation results of the intensive milk production scenario showed the greater production efficiency of the CMP(BC) and CMP(F1) systems and decreased production efficiency of the F1 and BC systems. The results of the integrated goat and oil palm production scenario showed that the production efficiency and stocking rate were greater for the indigenous goats than for the crossbreeding systems.

Steam explosion and its combinatorial pretreatment refining technology of plant biomass to bio-based products.

PubMed

Chen, Hong-Zhang; Liu, Zhi-Hua

2015-06-01

Pretreatment is a key unit operation affecting the refinery efficiency of plant biomass. However, the poor efficiency of pretreatment and the lack of basic theory are the main challenges to the industrial implementation of the plant biomass refinery. The purpose of this work is to review steam explosion and its combinatorial pretreatment as a means of overcoming the intrinsic characteristics of plant biomass, including recalcitrance, heterogeneity, multi-composition, and diversity. The main advantages of the selective use of steam explosion and other combinatorial pretreatments across the diversity of raw materials are introduced. Combinatorial pretreatment integrated with other unit operations is proposed as a means to exploit the high-efficiency production of bio-based products from plant biomass. Finally, several pilot- and demonstration-scale operations of the plant biomass refinery are described. Based on the principle of selective function and structure fractionation, and multi-level and directional composition conversion, an integrated process with the combinatorial pretreatments of steam explosion and other pretreatments as the core should be feasible and conform to the plant biomass refinery concept. Combinatorial pretreatments of steam explosion and other pretreatments should be further exploited based on the type and intrinsic characteristics of the plant biomass used, the bio-based products to be made, and the complementarity of the processes. Copyright © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The components of crop productivity: measuring and modeling plant metabolism

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bugbee, B.

1995-01-01

Several investigators in the CELSS program have demonstrated that crop plants can be remarkably productive in optimal environments where plants are limited only by incident radiation. Radiation use efficiencies of 0.4 to 0.7 g biomass per mol of incident photons have been measured for crops in several laboratories. Some early published values for radiation use efficiency (1 g mol-1) were inflated due to the effect of side lighting. Sealed chambers are the basic research module for crop studies for space. Such chambers allow the measurement of radiation and CO2 fluxes, thus providing values for three determinants of plant growth: radiation absorption, photosynthetic efficiency (quantum yield), and respiration efficiency (carbon use efficiency). Continuous measurement of each of these parameters over the plant life cycle has provided a blueprint for daily growth rates, and is the basis for modeling crop productivity based on component metabolic processes. Much of what has been interpreted as low photosynthetic efficiency is really the result of reduced leaf expansion and poor radiation absorption. Measurements and models of short-term (minutes to hours) and long-term (days to weeks) plant metabolic rates have enormously improved our understanding of plant environment interactions in ground-based growth chambers and are critical to understanding plant responses to the space environment.

Estimating multi-period global cost efficiency and productivity change of systems with network structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tohidnia, S.; Tohidi, G.

2018-02-01

The current paper develops three different ways to measure the multi-period global cost efficiency for homogeneous networks of processes when the prices of exogenous inputs are known at all time periods. A multi-period network data envelopment analysis model is presented to measure the minimum cost of the network system based on the global production possibility set. We show that there is a relationship between the multi-period global cost efficiency of network system and its subsystems, and also its processes. The proposed model is applied to compute the global cost Malmquist productivity index for measuring the productivity changes of network system and each of its process between two time periods. This index is circular. Furthermore, we show that the productivity changes of network system can be defined as a weighted average of the process productivity changes. Finally, a numerical example will be presented to illustrate the proposed approach.

Performance of the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) crop production system.

PubMed

Bubenheim, D L; Schlick, G; Wilson, D; Bates, M

2003-01-01

Regenerative life support systems potentially offer a level of self-sufficiency and a decrease in logistics and associated costs in support of space exploration and habitation missions. Current state-of-the-art in plant-based, regenerative life support requires resources in excess of allocation proposed for candidate mission scenarios. Feasibility thresholds have been identified for candidate exploration missions. The goal of this paper is to review recent advances in performance achieved in the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) in light of the likely resource constraints. A prototype CAAP crop production chamber has been constructed and operated at the Ames Research Center. The chamber includes a number of unique hardware and software components focused on attempts to increase production efficiency, increase energy efficiency, and control the flow of energy and mass through the system. Both single crop, batch production and continuous cultivation of mixed crops production studies have been completed. The crop productivity as well as engineering performance of the chamber are described. For each scenario, energy required and partitioned for lighting, cooling, pumping, fans, etc. is quantified. Crop production and the resulting lighting efficiency and energy conversion efficiencies are presented. In the mixed-crop scenario, with 27 different crops under cultivation, 17 m2 of crop area provided a mean of 515 g edible biomass per day (85% of the approximate 620 g required for one person). Enhanced engineering and crop production performance achieved with the CAAP chamber, compared with current state-of-the-art, places plant-based life support systems at the threshold of feasibility. c2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd on behalf of COSPAR.

Performance of the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) crop production system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bubenheim, D. L.; Schlick, G.; Wilson, D.; Bates, M.

Regenerative life support systems potentially offer a level of self-sufficiency and a decrease in logistics and associated costs in support of space exploration and habitation missions. Current state-of-the-art in plant-based, regenerative life support requires resources in excess of allocation proposed for candidate mission scenarios. Feasibility thresholds have been identified for candidate exploration missions. The goal of this paper is to review recent advances in performance achieved in the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) in light of the likely resource constraints. A prototype CAAP crop production chamber has been constructed and operated at the Ames Research Center. The chamber includes a number of unique hardware and software components focused on attempts to increase production efficiency, increase energy efficiency, and control the flow of energy and mass through the system. Both single crop, batch production and continuous cultivation of mixed crops production studies have been completed. The crop productivity as well as engineering performance of the chamber are described. For each scenario, energy required and partitioned for lighting, cooling, pumping, fans, etc. is quantified. Crop production and the resulting lighting efficiency and energy conversion efficiencies are presented. In the mixed-crop scenario, with 27 different crops under cultivation, 17 m2 of crop area provided a mean of 515g edible biomass per day (85% of the approximate 620 g required for one person). Enhanced engineering and crop production performance achieved with the CAAP chamber, compared with current state-of-the-art, places plant-based life support systems at the threshold of feasibility.

Performance of the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) crop production system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bubenheim, D. L.; Schlick, G.; Wilson, D.; Bates, M.

2003-01-01

Regenerative life support systems potentially offer a level of self-sufficiency and a decrease in logistics and associated costs in support of space exploration and habitation missions. Current state-of-the-art in plant-based, regenerative life support requires resources in excess of allocation proposed for candidate mission scenarios. Feasibility thresholds have been identified for candidate exploration missions. The goal of this paper is to review recent advances in performance achieved in the CELSS Antarctic Analog Project (CAAP) in light of the likely resource constraints. A prototype CAAP crop production chamber has been constructed and operated at the Ames Research Center. The chamber includes a number of unique hardware and software components focused on attempts to increase production efficiency, increase energy efficiency, and control the flow of energy and mass through the system. Both single crop, batch production and continuous cultivation of mixed crops production studies have been completed. The crop productivity as well as engineering performance of the chamber are described. For each scenario, energy required and partitioned for lighting, cooling, pumping, fans, etc. is quantified. Crop production and the resulting lighting efficiency and energy conversion efficiencies are presented. In the mixed-crop scenario, with 27 different crops under cultivation, 17 m2 of crop area provided a mean of 515 g edible biomass per day (85% of the approximate 620 g required for one person). Enhanced engineering and crop production performance achieved with the CAAP chamber, compared with current state-of-the-art, places plant-based life support systems at the threshold of feasibility. c2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd on behalf of COSPAR.

Development of a millimetrically scaled biodiesel transesterification device that relies on droplet-based co-axial fluidics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeh, S. I.; Huang, Y. C.; Cheng, C. H.; Cheng, C. M.; Yang, J. T.

2016-07-01

In this study, we investigated a fluidic system that adheres to new concepts of energy production. To improve efficiency, cost, and ease of manufacture, a millimetrically scaled device that employs a droplet-based co-axial fluidic system was devised to complete alkali-catalyzed transesterification for biodiesel production. The large surface-to-volume ratio of the droplet-based system, and the internal circulation induced inside the moving droplets, significantly enhanced the reaction rate of immiscible liquids used here - soybean oil and methanol. This device also decreased the molar ratio between methanol and oil to near the stoichiometric coefficients of a balanced chemical equation, which enhanced the total biodiesel volume produced, and decreased the costs of purification and recovery of excess methanol. In this work, the droplet-based co-axial fluidic system performed better than other methods of continuous-flow production. We achieved an efficiency that is much greater than that of reported systems. This study demonstrated the high potential of droplet-based fluidic chips for energy production. The small energy consumption and low cost of the highly purified biodiesel transesterification system described conforms to the requirements of distributed energy (inexpensive production on a moderate scale) in the world.

A gas circulation and purification system for gas-cell-based low-energy RI-beam production.

PubMed

Sonoda, T; Tsubota, T; Wada, M; Katayama, I; Kojima, T M; Reponen, M

2016-06-01

A gas circulation and purification system was developed at the RIKEN Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory that can be used for gas-cell-based low-energy RI-beam production. A high-flow-rate gas cell filled with one atmosphere of buffer gas (argon or helium) is used for the deceleration and thermalization of high-energy RI-beams. The exhausted buffer gas is efficiently collected using a compact dry pump and returned to the gas cell with a recovery efficiency of >97%. The buffer gas is efficiently purified using two gas purifiers as well as collision cleaning, which eliminates impurities in the gas. An impurity level of one part per billion is achieved with this method.

A gas circulation and purification system for gas-cell-based low-energy RI-beam production

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sonoda, T.; Wada, M.; Katayama, I.

A gas circulation and purification system was developed at the RIKEN Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory that can be used for gas-cell-based low-energy RI-beam production. A high-flow-rate gas cell filled with one atmosphere of buffer gas (argon or helium) is used for the deceleration and thermalization of high-energy RI-beams. The exhausted buffer gas is efficiently collected using a compact dry pump and returned to the gas cell with a recovery efficiency of >97%. The buffer gas is efficiently purified using two gas purifiers as well as collision cleaning, which eliminates impurities in the gas. An impurity level of one part permore » billion is achieved with this method.« less

Finite Progressive Planning for the Assembly Process in Footwear

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reyes, John; Aldás, Darwin; Salazar, Edisson; Armendáriz, Evelyn; Álvarez, Kevin; Núñez, José; García, Mario

2017-06-01

The scheduling of the operations of a manufacturing system is recognized for its efficiency in establishing a characteristic rate of production based on the forecasting of the ending date of an order. However, progressive planning focused on the footwear industries has not been studied in detail, since it is limited by the use of machines and supply according to the demand of the production line, whose development is based on just in time. The study proposes a finite progressive planning model in the area of footwear assembly that begins with analysis of the demand and identification of manufacturing constraints in order to establish an optimal ordering sequence. The results show manufacturing requirements through production orders that automatically determine production shifts per order, through experimentation of scenarios, the 25% increase in productivity indicators and a 31% improvement in efficiency are established. This improvement represents higher benefits for the industrial sector when establishing planning in the workplace.

Maximizing root/rhizosphere efficiency to improve crop productivity and nutrient use efficiency in intensive agriculture of China.

PubMed

Shen, Jianbo; Li, Chunjian; Mi, Guohua; Li, Long; Yuan, Lixing; Jiang, Rongfeng; Zhang, Fusuo

2013-03-01

Root and rhizosphere research has been conducted for many decades, but the underlying strategy of root/rhizosphere processes and management in intensive cropping systems remain largely to be determined. Improved grain production to meet the food demand of an increasing population has been highly dependent on chemical fertilizer input based on the traditionally assumed notion of 'high input, high output', which results in overuse of fertilizers but ignores the biological potential of roots or rhizosphere for efficient mobilization and acquisition of soil nutrients. Root exploration in soil nutrient resources and root-induced rhizosphere processes plays an important role in controlling nutrient transformation, efficient nutrient acquisition and use, and thus crop productivity. The efficiency of root/rhizosphere in terms of improved nutrient mobilization, acquisition, and use can be fully exploited by: (1) manipulating root growth (i.e. root development and size, root system architecture, and distribution); (2) regulating rhizosphere processes (i.e. rhizosphere acidification, organic anion and acid phosphatase exudation, localized application of nutrients, rhizosphere interactions, and use of efficient crop genotypes); and (3) optimizing root zone management to synchronize root growth and soil nutrient supply with demand of nutrients in cropping systems. Experiments have shown that root/rhizosphere management is an effective approach to increase both nutrient use efficiency and crop productivity for sustainable crop production. The objectives of this paper are to summarize the principles of root/rhizosphere management and provide an overview of some successful case studies on how to exploit the biological potential of root system and rhizosphere processes to improve crop productivity and nutrient use efficiency.

48 CFR 323.7100 - Policy.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND WATER EFFICIENCY, RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES, OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY, AND DRUG-FREE... the acquisition and use of designated recycled content, and Energy Star ®, Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)-registered, energy-efficient, bio-based, and environmentally preferable...

Ergonomics and simulation-based approach in improving facility layout

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abad, Jocelyn D.

2018-02-01

The use of the simulation-based technique in facility layout has been a choice in the industry due to its convenience and efficient generation of results. Nevertheless, the solutions generated are not capable of addressing delays due to worker's health and safety which significantly impact overall operational efficiency. It is, therefore, critical to incorporate ergonomics in facility design. In this study, workstation analysis was incorporated into Promodel simulation to improve the facility layout of a garment manufacturing. To test the effectiveness of the method, existing and improved facility designs were measured using comprehensive risk level, efficiency, and productivity. Results indicated that the improved facility layout generated a decrease in comprehensive risk level and rapid upper limb assessment score; an increase of 78% in efficiency and 194% increase in productivity compared to existing design and thus proved that the approach is effective in attaining overall facility design improvement.

ProSens: integrated production control by automated inspection planning and efficient multisensor metrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glaser, Ulf; Li, Zhichao; Bichmann, Stephan, II; Pfeifer, Tilo

2003-05-01

By China's entry into the WTO, Chinese as well as German companies are facing the question, how to minimize the risk of unfamiliar cooperation partners when developing products. The rise of customer demands concerning quality, product diversity and the reduction of expenses require flexibility and efficiency with reliable component suppliers. In order to build and strengthen sino-german cooperations, a manufacturing control using homogenized and efficient measures to assure high quality is of vital importance. Lack of unifications may cause identical measurements conducted at subcontractors or customers to be carried out with different measurement processes which leads to incomparable results. Rapidly growing company cooperations and simultaneously decreasing of manufacturing scope cause substantial difficulties when coordinating joint quality control activities. "ProSens," a sino-german project consortium consisting of industrial users, technology producers and research institutes, aims at improving selected production processes by: Creation of a homogeneous quality awareness in sino-german cooperations. Sensitization for process accompanying metrology at an early stage of product development. Increase of the process performance by the use of integrated metrology. Reduction of production time and cost. Unification of quality control of complex products by means of efficient measurement strategies and CAD-based inspection planning.

Strategies of Production Control as Tools of Efficient Management of Production Enterprises

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Budynek, Mateusz; Celińska, Elżbieta; Dybikowska, Adrianna; Kozak, Monika; Ratajczak, Joanna; Urban, Jagoda; Materne, Karolina

2016-03-01

The paper discusses the problem of principle methods of production control as a strategy supporting the production system and stimulating efficient solutions in respect management in production enterprises. The article describes MRP, ERP, JIT, KANBAN and TOC methods and focuses on their main goals, principles of functioning as well as benefits resulting from their application. The methods represent two diverse strategies of production control, i.e. pull and push strategies. Push strategies are used when the plans apply to the first and principle part of production and are based on the demand forecasts. Pull strategies are used when all planning decisions apply to the final stage and depend on the actual demand or orders from customers.

Techno-economic evaluation of stillage treatment with anaerobic digestion in a softwood-to-ethanol process.

PubMed

Barta, Zsolt; Reczey, Kati; Zacchi, Guido

2010-09-15

Replacing the energy-intensive evaporation of stillage by anaerobic digestion is one way of decreasing the energy demand of the lignocellulosic biomass to the ethanol process. The biogas can be upgraded and sold as transportation fuel, injected directly into the gas grid or be incinerated on-site for combined heat and power generation. A techno-economic evaluation of the spruce-to-ethanol process, based on SO2-catalysed steam pretreatment followed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, has been performed using the commercial flow-sheeting program Aspen Plus™. Various process configurations of anaerobic digestion of the stillage, with different combinations of co-products, have been evaluated in terms of energy efficiency and ethanol production cost versus the reference case of evaporation. Anaerobic digestion of the stillage showed a significantly higher overall energy efficiency (87-92%), based on the lower heating values, than the reference case (81%). Although the amount of ethanol produced was the same in all scenarios, the production cost varied between 4.00 and 5.27 Swedish kronor per litre (0.38-0.50 euro/L), including the reference case. Higher energy efficiency options did not necessarily result in lower ethanol production costs. Anaerobic digestion of the stillage with biogas upgrading was demonstrated to be a favourable option for both energy efficiency and ethanol production cost. The difference in the production cost of ethanol between using the whole stillage or only the liquid fraction in anaerobic digestion was negligible for the combination of co-products including upgraded biogas, electricity and district heat.

Techno-economic evaluation of stillage treatment with anaerobic digestion in a softwood-to-ethanol process

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Replacing the energy-intensive evaporation of stillage by anaerobic digestion is one way of decreasing the energy demand of the lignocellulosic biomass to the ethanol process. The biogas can be upgraded and sold as transportation fuel, injected directly into the gas grid or be incinerated on-site for combined heat and power generation. A techno-economic evaluation of the spruce-to-ethanol process, based on SO2-catalysed steam pretreatment followed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, has been performed using the commercial flow-sheeting program Aspen Plus™. Various process configurations of anaerobic digestion of the stillage, with different combinations of co-products, have been evaluated in terms of energy efficiency and ethanol production cost versus the reference case of evaporation. Results Anaerobic digestion of the stillage showed a significantly higher overall energy efficiency (87-92%), based on the lower heating values, than the reference case (81%). Although the amount of ethanol produced was the same in all scenarios, the production cost varied between 4.00 and 5.27 Swedish kronor per litre (0.38-0.50 euro/L), including the reference case. Conclusions Higher energy efficiency options did not necessarily result in lower ethanol production costs. Anaerobic digestion of the stillage with biogas upgrading was demonstrated to be a favourable option for both energy efficiency and ethanol production cost. The difference in the production cost of ethanol between using the whole stillage or only the liquid fraction in anaerobic digestion was negligible for the combination of co-products including upgraded biogas, electricity and district heat. PMID:20843330

Impacts of kafirin allelic diversity, starch content, and protein digestibility on ethanol conversion efficiency in grain sorghum

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Seed protein and starch composition determines the efficiency of ethanol conversion in the production of grain-based biofuels. Sorghum, highly water- and nutrient-efficient, has the potential to replace fuel crops with greater irrigation and fertiliser requirements, such as maize. However, sorghum g...

Hydrogen by electrolysis of water

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

Hydrogen production by electrolytic decomposition of water is explained. Power efficiency, efficient energy utilization, and costs were emphasized. Four systems were considered: two were based on current electrolyzer technology using present efficiency values for electrical generation by fossil fired and nuclear thermal stations, and two using projected electrolyzer technology with advanced fossil and nuclear plants.

Network-based production quality control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, Yongjin; Tseng, Bill; Chiou, Richard

2007-09-01

This study investigates the feasibility of remote quality control using a host of advanced automation equipment with Internet accessibility. Recent emphasis on product quality and reduction of waste stems from the dynamic, globalized and customer-driven market, which brings opportunities and threats to companies, depending on the response speed and production strategies. The current trends in industry also include a wide spread of distributed manufacturing systems, where design, production, and management facilities are geographically dispersed. This situation mandates not only the accessibility to remotely located production equipment for monitoring and control, but efficient means of responding to changing environment to counter process variations and diverse customer demands. To compete under such an environment, companies are striving to achieve 100%, sensor-based, automated inspection for zero-defect manufacturing. In this study, the Internet-based quality control scheme is referred to as "E-Quality for Manufacturing" or "EQM" for short. By its definition, EQM refers to a holistic approach to design and to embed efficient quality control functions in the context of network integrated manufacturing systems. Such system let designers located far away from the production facility to monitor, control and adjust the quality inspection processes as production design evolves.

Particulate Photocatalyst Sheets Based on Carbon Conductor Layer for Efficient Z-Scheme Pure-Water Splitting at Ambient Pressure.

PubMed

Wang, Qian; Hisatomi, Takashi; Suzuki, Yohichi; Pan, Zhenhua; Seo, Jeongsuk; Katayama, Masao; Minegishi, Tsutomu; Nishiyama, Hiroshi; Takata, Tsuyoshi; Seki, Kazuhiko; Kudo, Akihiko; Yamada, Taro; Domen, Kazunari

2017-02-01

Development of sunlight-driven water splitting systems with high efficiency, scalability, and cost-competitiveness is a central issue for mass production of solar hydrogen as a renewable and storable energy carrier. Photocatalyst sheets comprising a particulate hydrogen evolution photocatalyst (HEP) and an oxygen evolution photocatalyst (OEP) embedded in a conductive thin film can realize efficient and scalable solar hydrogen production using Z-scheme water splitting. However, the use of expensive precious metal thin films that also promote reverse reactions is a major obstacle to developing a cost-effective process at ambient pressure. In this study, we present a standalone particulate photocatalyst sheet based on an earth-abundant, relatively inert, and conductive carbon film for efficient Z-scheme water splitting at ambient pressure. A SrTiO 3 :La,Rh/C/BiVO 4 :Mo sheet is shown to achieve unassisted pure-water (pH 6.8) splitting with a solar-to-hydrogen energy conversion efficiency (STH) of 1.2% at 331 K and 10 kPa, while retaining 80% of this efficiency at 91 kPa. The STH value of 1.0% is the highest among Z-scheme pure water splitting operating at ambient pressure. The working mechanism of the photocatalyst sheet is discussed on the basis of band diagram simulation. In addition, the photocatalyst sheet split pure water more efficiently than conventional powder suspension systems and photoelectrochemical parallel cells because H + and OH - concentration overpotentials and an IR drop between the HEP and OEP were effectively suppressed. The proposed carbon-based photocatalyst sheet, which can be used at ambient pressure, is an important alternative to (photo)electrochemical systems for practical solar hydrogen production.

Advanced Natural Gas Reciprocating Engine(s)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pike, Edward

The objective of the Cummins ARES program, in partnership with the US Department of Energy (DOE), is to develop advanced natural gas engine technologies that increase engine system efficiency at lower emissions levels while attaining lower cost of ownership. The goals of the project are to demonstrate engine system achieving 50% Brake Thermal Efficiency (BTE) in three phases, 44%, 47% and 50% (starting baseline efficiency at 36% BTE) and 0.1 g/bhp-hr NOx system out emissions (starting baseline NOx emissions at 2 – 4 g/bhp-hr NOx). Primary path towards above goals include high Brake Mean Effective Pressure (BMEP), improved closed cyclemore » efficiency, increased air handling efficiency and optimized engine subsystems. Cummins has successfully demonstrated each of the phases of this program. All targets have been achieved through application of a combined set of advanced base engine technologies and Waste Heat Recovery from Charge Air and Exhaust streams, optimized and validated on the demonstration engine and other large engines. The following architectures were selected for each Phase: Phase 1: Lean Burn Spark Ignited (SI) Key Technologies: High Efficiency Turbocharging, Higher Efficiency Combustion System. In production on the 60/91L engines. Over 500MW of ARES Phase 1 technology has been sold. Phase 2: Lean Burn Technology with Exhaust Waste Heat Recovery (WHR) System Key Technologies: Advanced Ignition System, Combustion Improvement, Integrated Waste Heat Recovery System. Base engine technologies intended for production within 2 to 3 years Phase 3: Lean Burn Technology with Exhaust and Charge Air Waste Heat Recovery System Key Technologies: Lower Friction, New Cylinder Head Designs, Improved Integrated Waste Heat Recovery System. Intended for production within 5 to 6 years Cummins is committed to the launch of next generation of large advanced NG engines based on ARES technology to be commercialized worldwide.« less

The Interactive Effect of Diversification and Farming Scale on Productivity of Family Farm:Taking Rice Cultivation as An Example

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Zhou

2017-05-01

Based on the diversification and cultivation scale, the rice cropping data of rural fixed observation points in 2011 were selected and the effect of diversification degree on rice productivity was analyzed by the Tobit model. The empirical results of the model show that diversification of sample farm will lead to loss of rice production efficiency. With the increase of rice planting scale, the loss of rice production efficiency will need to be further increased by diversification. Thus, we should stick to the family farm of specialized production operation. The transfer of land, the price and quantity of leasing, respecting the law of the market; the raising of funds can be considered non-subsidized capital market financing to help, while maintaining a certain degree of diversification, to avoid idle assets, low resource efficiency loss.

Teamwork in health care: opportunities for gains in quality, productivity, and competitive advantage. What works, what doesn't, and why.

PubMed

Montebello, A R

1994-01-01

Wholesale political, economic, and social change is pressuring health-care organizations to reinvent themselves as they enter a new arena of managed competition. Survival is at stake. Will belt-tightening efforts, combined with structural changes and strategic alliances, achieve the necessary improvements in efficiency and help to secure an adequate patient base? It seems reasonable to expect that health-care institutions can realize the major gains in quality, productivity, efficiency, and competitive edge that organizations in the manufacturing and service industries have enjoyed for the past several years. It seems like a logical next step for health-care organizations to deploy proven methods--such as work redesign, team-based structures, and empowered workforces--that have helped to restore competitiveness to many industrial and service firms. This article describes how to organize teams at all levels and accelerate their development to achieve important organizational objectives--such as improving quality, productivity, and efficiency--while increasing employee satisfaction. Pioneering workplace innovations are reviewed to demonstrate how high-involvement teams integrating strategic planning, research, and health-care delivery processes are not only possible but highly desirable. Enhanced quality, improved productivity, greater efficiency, and employee satisfaction all translate to an undeniable competitive advantage.

Upgrading plant amino acids through cattle to improve the nutritional value for humans: effects of different production systems.

PubMed

Patel, M; Sonesson, U; Hessle, A

2017-03-01

Efficiency in animal protein production can be defined in different ways, for example the amount of human-digestible essential amino acids (HDEAA) in the feed ration relative to the amount of HDEAA in the animal products. Cattle production systems are characterised by great diversity and a wide variety of feeds and feed ration compositions, due to ruminants' ability to digest fibrous materials inedible to humans such as roughage and by-products from the food and biofuel industries. This study examined the upgrading of protein quality through cattle by determining the quantity of HDEAA in feeds and animal products and comparing different milk and beef production systems. Four different systems for milk and beef production were designed, a reference production system for milk and beef representing typical Swedish production systems today and three alternative improved systems: (i) intensive cattle production based on maize silage, (ii) intensive systems based on food industry by-products for dairy cows and high-quality forage for beef cattle, and (iii) extensive systems based on forage with only small amounts of concentrate. In all four production systems, the quantity of HDEAA in the products (milk and meat) generally exceeded the quantity of HDEAA in the feeds. The intensive production models for beef calves generally resulted in output of the same magnitude as input for most HDEAA. However, in beef production based on calves from dairy cows, the intensive rearing systems resulted in lower output than input of HDEAA. For the extensive models, the amounts of HDEAA in meat were of the same magnitude as the amounts in the feeds. The extensive models with beef calves from suckler cows resulted in higher output in meat than input in feeds for all HDEAA. It was concluded that feeding cattle plants for production of milk and meat, instead of using the plants directly as human food, generally results in an upgrading of both the quantity and quality of protein, especially when extensive, forage-based production models are used. The results imply that the key to efficiency is the utilisation of human-inedible protein by cattle and justifies their contribution to food production, especially in regions where grasslands and/or forage production has comparative benefits over plant food production. By fine-tuning estimation of the efficiency of conversion from human-edible protein to HDEAA, comparisons of different sources of protein production may be more complete and the magnitude of amino acid upgrading in plants through cattle more obvious.

Production of DNA minicircles less than 250 base pairs through a novel concentrated DNA circularization assay enabling minicircle design with NF-κB inhibition activity

PubMed Central

Thibault, Thomas; Degrouard, Jeril; Baril, Patrick; Pichon, Chantal; Midoux, Patrick

2017-01-01

Abstract Double-stranded DNA minicircles of less than 1000 bp in length have great interest in both fundamental research and therapeutic applications. Although minicircles have shown promising activity in gene therapy thanks to their good biostability and better intracellular trafficking, minicircles down to 250 bp in size have not yet been investigated from the test tube to the cell for lack of an efficient production method. Herein, we report a novel versatile plasmid-free method for the production of DNA minicircles comprising fewer than 250 bp. We designed a linear nicked DNA double-stranded oligonucleotide blunt-ended substrate for efficient minicircle production in a ligase-mediated and bending protein-assisted circularization reaction at high DNA concentration of 2 μM. This one pot multi-step reaction based-method yields hundreds of micrograms of minicircle with sequences of any base composition and position and containing or not a variety of site-specifically chemical modifications or physiological supercoiling. Biochemical and cellular studies were then conducted to design a 95 bp minicircle capable of binding in vitro two NF-κB transcription factors per minicircle and to efficiently inhibiting NF-κB-dependent transcriptional activity in human cells. Therefore, our production method could pave the way for the design of minicircles as new decoy nucleic acids. PMID:27899652

Recent Developments on Genetic Engineering of Microalgae for Biofuels and Bio-Based Chemicals.

PubMed

Ng, I-Son; Tan, Shih-I; Kao, Pei-Hsun; Chang, Yu-Kaung; Chang, Jo-Shu

2017-10-01

Microalgae serve as a promising source for the production of biofuels and bio-based chemicals. They are superior to terrestrial plants as feedstock in many aspects and their biomass is naturally rich in lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, pigments, and other valuable compounds. Due to the relatively slow growth rate and high cultivation cost of microalgae, to screen efficient and robust microalgal strains as well as genetic modifications of the available strains for further improvement are of urgent demand in the development of microalgae-based biorefinery. In genetic engineering of microalgae, transformation and selection methods are the key steps to accomplish the target gene modification. However, determination of the preferable type and dosage of antibiotics used for transformant selection is usually time-consuming and microalgal-strain-dependent. Therefore, more powerful and efficient techniques should be developed to meet this need. In this review, the conventional and emerging genome-editing tools (e.g., CRISPR-Cas9, TALEN, and ZFN) used in editing the genomes of nuclear, mitochondria, and chloroplast of microalgae are thoroughly surveyed. Although all the techniques mentioned above demonstrate their abilities to perform gene editing and desired phenotype screening, there still need to overcome higher production cost and lower biomass productivity, to achieve efficient production of the desired products in microalgal biorefineries. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Microbial and sponge loops modify fish production in phase-shifting coral reefs.

PubMed

Silveira, Cynthia B; Silva-Lima, Arthur W; Francini-Filho, Ronaldo B; Marques, Jomar S M; Almeida, Marcelo G; Thompson, Cristiane C; Rezende, Carlos E; Paranhos, Rodolfo; Moura, Rodrigo L; Salomon, Paulo S; Thompson, Fabiano L

2015-10-01

Shifts from coral to algae dominance of corals reefs have been correlated to fish biomass loss and increased microbial metabolism. Here we investigated reef benthic and planktonic primary production, benthic dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release and bacterial growth efficiency in the Abrolhos Bank, South Atlantic. Benthic DOC release rates are higher while water column bacterial growth efficiency is lower at impacted reefs. A trophic model based on the benthic and planktonic primary production was able to predict the observed relative fish biomass in healthy reefs. In contrast, in impacted reefs, the observed omnivorous fish biomass is higher, while that of the herbivorous/coralivorous fish is lower than predicted by the primary production-based model. Incorporating recycling of benthic-derived carbon in the model through microbial and sponge loops explains the difference and predicts the relative fish biomass in both reef types. Increased benthic carbon release rates and bacterial carbon metabolism, but decreased bacterial growth efficiency could lead to carbon losses through respiration and account for the uncoupling of benthic and fish production in phase-shifting reefs. Carbon recycling by microbial and sponge loops seems to promote an increase of small-bodied fish productivity in phase-shifting coral reefs. © 2015 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Development of mini linac-based positron source and an efficient positronium convertor for positively charged antihydrogen production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muranaka, T.; Debu, P.; Dupré, P.; Liszkay, L.; Mansoulie, B.; Pérez, P.; Rey, J. M.; Ruiz, N.; Sacquin, Y.; Crivelli, P.; Gendotti, U.; Rubbia, A.

2010-04-01

We have installed in Saclay a facility for an intense positron source in November 2008. It is based on a compact 5.5 MeV electron linac connected to a reaction chamber with a tungsten target inside to produce positrons via pair production. The expected production rate for fast positrons is 5·1011 per second. The study of moderation of fast positrons and the construction of a slow positron trap are underway. In parallel, we have investigated an efficient positron-positronium convertor using porous silica materials. These studies are parts of a project to produce positively charged antihydrogen ions aiming to demonstrate the feasibility of a free fall antigravity measurement of neutral antihydrogen.

49 CFR 525.7 - Basis for petition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... efficient production mix of vehicle configurations and base levels of its passenger automobiles which the...) The petitioner's annual total production and production mix of passenger automobiles manufactured or... road load setting, determined in accordance with 40 CFR part 86, and the method used to determine that...

Sustainability through precision agriculture

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

As population and standard of living increase in many parts of the world, so will the need for food and other agriculturally-based products. To be sustainable, these increases in production must occur with minimum impact on the environment and with efficient use of production resources, including la...

Technology and production of plant-based meat analogs with authentic texture

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Extrusion cooking has been widely used in modern food industry due to its versatility, high productivity, energy efficiency and low cost. Well-known applications include breakfast cereals, pasta, snacks, confectionery products, and textured vegetable proteins. Most applications take place at low ...

An efficient matrix product operator representation of the quantum chemical Hamiltonian

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Keller, Sebastian, E-mail: sebastian.keller@phys.chem.ethz.ch; Reiher, Markus, E-mail: markus.reiher@phys.chem.ethz.ch; Dolfi, Michele, E-mail: dolfim@phys.ethz.ch

We describe how to efficiently construct the quantum chemical Hamiltonian operator in matrix product form. We present its implementation as a density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithm for quantum chemical applications. Existing implementations of DMRG for quantum chemistry are based on the traditional formulation of the method, which was developed from the point of view of Hilbert space decimation and attained higher performance compared to straightforward implementations of matrix product based DMRG. The latter variationally optimizes a class of ansatz states known as matrix product states, where operators are correspondingly represented as matrix product operators (MPOs). The MPO construction schememore » presented here eliminates the previous performance disadvantages while retaining the additional flexibility provided by a matrix product approach, for example, the specification of expectation values becomes an input parameter. In this way, MPOs for different symmetries — abelian and non-abelian — and different relativistic and non-relativistic models may be solved by an otherwise unmodified program.« less

Recent advances in the metabolic engineering of lignan biosynthesis pathways for the production of transgenic plant-based foods and supplements.

PubMed

Satake, Honoo; Ono, Eiichiro; Murata, Jun

2013-12-04

Plant physiological, epidemiological, and food science studies have shed light on lignans as healthy diets for the reduction of the risk of lifestyle-related noncommunicable diseases and, thus, the demand for lignans has been rapidly increasing. However, the low efficiency and instability of lignan production via extraction from plant resources remain to be resolved, indicating the requirement for the development of new procedures for lignan production. The metabolic engineering of lignan-biosynthesizing plants is expected to be most promising for efficient, sustainable, and stable lignan production. This is supported by the recent verification of biosynthetic pathways of major dietary lignans and the exploration of lignan production via metabolic engineering using transiently gene-transfected or transgenic plants. The aim of this review is to present an overview of the biosynthetic pathways, biological activities, and metabolic engineering of lignans and also perspectives in metabolic engineering-based lignan production using transgenic plants for practical application.

Artificial Leaf Based on Artificial Photosynthesis for Solar Fuel Production

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-06-30

AFRL-AFOSR-JP-TR-2017-0054 Artificial Leaf Based on Artificial Photosynthesis for Solar Fuel Production Mamoru Nango NAGOYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY...for Solar Fuel Production 5a.  CONTRACT NUMBER 5b.  GRANT NUMBER FA2386-14-1-4015 5c.  PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 61102F 6. AUTHOR(S) Mamoru Nango 5d...density immobilization of the photoreactants in the nanocavity inside PGP. The maximum production efficiency of formic acid inside the nanocavity was

Spatio-Temporal Convergence of Maximum Daily Light-Use Efficiency Based on Radiation Absorption by Canopy Chlorophyll

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yao; Xiao, Xiangming; Wolf, Sebastian; Wu, Jin; Wu, Xiaocui; Gioli, Beniamino; Wohlfahrt, Georg; Cescatti, Alessandro; van der Tol, Christiaan; Zhou, Sha; Gough, Christopher M.; Gentine, Pierre; Zhang, Yongguang; Steinbrecher, Rainer; Ardö, Jonas

2018-04-01

Light-use efficiency (LUE), which quantifies the plants' efficiency in utilizing solar radiation for photosynthetic carbon fixation, is an important factor for gross primary production estimation. Here we use satellite-based solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence as a proxy for photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by chlorophyll (APARchl) and derive an estimation of the fraction of APARchl (fPARchl) from four remotely sensed vegetation indicators. By comparing maximum LUE estimated at different scales from 127 eddy flux sites, we found that the maximum daily LUE based on PAR absorption by canopy chlorophyll (ɛmaxchl), unlike other expressions of LUE, tends to converge across biome types. The photosynthetic seasonality in tropical forests can also be tracked by the change of fPARchl, suggesting the corresponding ɛmaxchl to have less seasonal variation. This spatio-temporal convergence of LUE derived from fPARchl can be used to build simple but robust gross primary production models and to better constrain process-based models.

Matrix product operators, matrix product states, and ab initio density matrix renormalization group algorithms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chan, Garnet Kin-Lic; Keselman, Anna; Nakatani, Naoki; Li, Zhendong; White, Steven R.

2016-07-01

Current descriptions of the ab initio density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithm use two superficially different languages: an older language of the renormalization group and renormalized operators, and a more recent language of matrix product states and matrix product operators. The same algorithm can appear dramatically different when written in the two different vocabularies. In this work, we carefully describe the translation between the two languages in several contexts. First, we describe how to efficiently implement the ab initio DMRG sweep using a matrix product operator based code, and the equivalence to the original renormalized operator implementation. Next we describe how to implement the general matrix product operator/matrix product state algebra within a pure renormalized operator-based DMRG code. Finally, we discuss two improvements of the ab initio DMRG sweep algorithm motivated by matrix product operator language: Hamiltonian compression, and a sum over operators representation that allows for perfect computational parallelism. The connections and correspondences described here serve to link the future developments with the past and are important in the efficient implementation of continuing advances in ab initio DMRG and related algorithms.

Matrix product operators, matrix product states, and ab initio density matrix renormalization group algorithms.

PubMed

Chan, Garnet Kin-Lic; Keselman, Anna; Nakatani, Naoki; Li, Zhendong; White, Steven R

2016-07-07

Current descriptions of the ab initio density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithm use two superficially different languages: an older language of the renormalization group and renormalized operators, and a more recent language of matrix product states and matrix product operators. The same algorithm can appear dramatically different when written in the two different vocabularies. In this work, we carefully describe the translation between the two languages in several contexts. First, we describe how to efficiently implement the ab initio DMRG sweep using a matrix product operator based code, and the equivalence to the original renormalized operator implementation. Next we describe how to implement the general matrix product operator/matrix product state algebra within a pure renormalized operator-based DMRG code. Finally, we discuss two improvements of the ab initio DMRG sweep algorithm motivated by matrix product operator language: Hamiltonian compression, and a sum over operators representation that allows for perfect computational parallelism. The connections and correspondences described here serve to link the future developments with the past and are important in the efficient implementation of continuing advances in ab initio DMRG and related algorithms.

Whole-cell based solvent-free system for one-pot production of biodiesel from waste grease.

PubMed

Li, Aitao; Ngo, Thao P N; Yan, Jinyong; Tian, Kaiyuan; Li, Zhi

2012-06-01

A whole-cell based solvent-free system was developed for efficient conversion of waste grease to biodiesel via one-pot esterification and transesterification. By isolation and screening of lipase-producing strains from soil, Serratia marcescens YXJ-1002 was discovered for the biotransformation of grease to biodiesel. The lipase (SML) from this strain was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli as an intracellular enzyme, showing 6 times higher whole-cell based hydrolysis activity than that of wild type strain. The recombinant cells were used for biodiesel production from waste grease in one-pot reactions containing no solvent with the addition of methanol in several small portions, and 97% yield of biodiesel (FAME) was achieved under optimized conditions. In addition, the whole-cell biocatalysts showed excellent reusability, retaining 74% productivity after 4 cycles. The developed system, biocatalyst, and process enable the efficient, low-cost, and green production of biodiesel from waste grease, providing with a potential industrial application. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Material efficiency in a multi-material world.

PubMed

Lifset, Reid; Eckelman, Matthew

2013-03-13

Material efficiency--using less of a material to make a product or supply a service--is gaining attention as a means for accomplishing important environmental goals. The ultimate goal of material efficiency is not to use less physical material but to reduce the impacts associated with its use. This article examines the concept and definition of material efficiency and argues that for it to be an effective strategy it must confront the challenges of operating in a multi-material world, providing guidance when materials are used together and when they compete. A series of conceptions of material efficiency are described, starting with mass-based formulations and expanding to consider multiple resources in the supply chain of a single material, and then to multiple resources in the supply chains of multiple materials used together, and further to multiple environmental impacts. The conception of material efficiency is further broadened by considering material choice, exploring the technical and economic effects both of using less material and of materials competition. Finally, this entire materials-based techno-economic system is considered with respect to the impact of complex policies and political forces. The overall goal here is to show how the concept of material efficiency when faced with more expansive--and yet directly relevant--definitional boundaries is forced to confront analytical challenges that are both familiar and difficult in life cycle assessment and product-based approaches.

Reusing Design Knowledge Based on Design Cases and Knowledge Map

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Cheng; Liu, Zheng; Wang, Haobai; Shen, Jiaoqi

2013-01-01

Design knowledge was reused for innovative design work to support designers with product design knowledge and help designers who lack rich experiences to improve their design capacity and efficiency. First, based on the ontological model of product design knowledge constructed by taxonomy, implicit and explicit knowledge was extracted from some…

Efficiency of using construction machines when strengthening foundation soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turchin, Vadim; Yudina, Ludmila; Ivanova, Tatyana; Zhilkina, Tatyana; Sychugove, Stanislav; Mackevicius, Rimantas; Danutė, Slizyte

2017-10-01

The article describes the efficiency of using construction machines when strengthening foundation base soils, as one of the ways to solve the problem of reducing and optimizing costs during construction. The analysis is presented in regard to inspection results of the soil bodies in the pile foundation base of “School of general education No. 5 in the town of Malgobek” of the republic of Ingushetia. Economical efficiency through reducing the duration of construction due to the automation of production is calculated.

Quantitative Modeling of Cerenkov Light Production Efficiency from Medical Radionuclides

PubMed Central

Beattie, Bradley J.; Thorek, Daniel L. J.; Schmidtlein, Charles R.; Pentlow, Keith S.; Humm, John L.; Hielscher, Andreas H.

2012-01-01

There has been recent and growing interest in applying Cerenkov radiation (CR) for biological applications. Knowledge of the production efficiency and other characteristics of the CR produced by various radionuclides would help in accessing the feasibility of proposed applications and guide the choice of radionuclides. To generate this information we developed models of CR production efficiency based on the Frank-Tamm equation and models of CR distribution based on Monte-Carlo simulations of photon and β particle transport. All models were validated against direct measurements using multiple radionuclides and then applied to a number of radionuclides commonly used in biomedical applications. We show that two radionuclides, Ac-225 and In-111, which have been reported to produce CR in water, do not in fact produce CR directly. We also propose a simple means of using this information to calibrate high sensitivity luminescence imaging systems and show evidence suggesting that this calibration may be more accurate than methods in routine current use. PMID:22363636

Water use efficiency and productivity of habanero pepper (Capsicum chinense Jacq.) based on two transplanting dates.

PubMed

López-López, Rutilo; Inzunza-Ibarra, Marco Antonio; Sánchez-Cohen, Ignacio; Fierro-Álvarez, Andrés; Sifuentes-Ibarra, Ernesto

2015-01-01

Habanero pepper production was assessed with drip irrigation and plastic mulch, based on two transplanting dates. The objectives of the study were: (i) to evaluate the effect of two transplanting dates and the use of plastic mulch on water productivity and habanero pepper fruit yield under drip irrigation conditions; and (ii) to determine the profitability and economic viability of the product in the regional market. The work was conducted in the municipality of Huimanguillo, state of Tabasco, Mexico, in loam soils classified as Eutric Fluvisol. The Jaguar variety of habanero pepper, developed by INIFAP and possessing better genetic and productive characteristics, was used. Two transplanting dates were studied, (i) 30 January 2013 and (ii) 15 February 2013, with and without plastic mulch. The conclusions were: (i) application of irrigation depths based on crop evapotranspiration (ETc) and plastic mulch transplanted on 30 January increased the fruit yield of the crop and improved the benefit-cost ratio of the production system; and (ii) water use efficiency based on the 30 January transplanting date was 8.68 kg m⁻³ of water applied with plastic mulch, 6.51 kg m⁻³ without plastic mulch, and 3.65 kg m⁻³ for the 15 February transplanting date with plastic mulch.

76 FR 37678 - Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain Commercial and Industrial Equipment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-06-28

... the purpose of Part A-1 of EPCA, which is to improve the efficiency of electric motors and pumps and... to improve the efficiency of electric motors, pumps and certain other industrial equipment to.... Energy Information Administration. \\2\\ Based on Energy Efficiency and Electric Motors, Report PB- 259 129...

Development of a millimetrically scaled biodiesel transesterification device that relies on droplet-based co-axial fluidics

PubMed Central

Yeh, S. I.; Huang, Y. C.; Cheng, C. H.; Cheng, C. M.; Yang, J. T.

2016-01-01

In this study, we investigated a fluidic system that adheres to new concepts of energy production. To improve efficiency, cost, and ease of manufacture, a millimetrically scaled device that employs a droplet-based co-axial fluidic system was devised to complete alkali-catalyzed transesterification for biodiesel production. The large surface-to-volume ratio of the droplet-based system, and the internal circulation induced inside the moving droplets, significantly enhanced the reaction rate of immiscible liquids used here – soybean oil and methanol. This device also decreased the molar ratio between methanol and oil to near the stoichiometric coefficients of a balanced chemical equation, which enhanced the total biodiesel volume produced, and decreased the costs of purification and recovery of excess methanol. In this work, the droplet-based co-axial fluidic system performed better than other methods of continuous-flow production. We achieved an efficiency that is much greater than that of reported systems. This study demonstrated the high potential of droplet-based fluidic chips for energy production. The small energy consumption and low cost of the highly purified biodiesel transesterification system described conforms to the requirements of distributed energy (inexpensive production on a moderate scale) in the world. PMID:27426677

Bio-based products from solar energy and carbon dioxide.

PubMed

Yu, Jian

2014-01-01

Producing bio-based products directly from CO₂ and solar energy is a desirable alternative to the conventional biorefining that relies on biomass feedstocks. The production paradigm is based on an artificial photosynthetic system that converts sunlight to electricity and H₂ via water electrolysis. An autotrophic H₂-oxidizing bacterium fixes CO₂ in dark conditions. The assimilated CO₂ is stored in bacterial cells as polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), from which a range of products can be derived. Compared with natural photosynthesis of a fast-growing cyanobacterium, the artificial photosynthetic system has much higher energy efficiency and productivity of bio-based products. The new technology looks promising because of possible cost reduction in feedstock, equipment, and operation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Leanergy(TM): how lean manufacturing can improve energy efficiency.

PubMed

Riche, Jean-Pierre

2013-01-01

Energy efficiency has become a competitive issue for industrial companies. The evolution of energy prices and regulation will make this issue even more important in the future. For several years, the energy-intensive chemical industry has been implementing corrective actions. Helped by the absorption of base load energy consumption by larger production volumes, specific energy consumption (KWh per production unit) has been significantly reduced in recent years. However, most plants have reached the end of their first action plan based on improving the utilities performance. The Leanergy(TM) method developed by the consultancy company Okavango-energy, is a structured approach based on lean manufacturing which widens the scope of saving sources to process and operations. Starting from the analysis of actual production requirements, Okavango is able to adjust consumption to minimum requirements and so remove any energy consumption that does not contribute to the added value creation.

NDSI products system based on Hadoop platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Yan; Jiang, He; Yang, Xiaoxia; Geng, Erhui

2015-12-01

Snow is solid state of water resources on earth, and plays an important role in human life. Satellite remote sensing is significant in snow extraction with the advantages of cyclical, macro, comprehensiveness, objectivity, timeliness. With the continuous development of remote sensing technology, remote sensing data access to the trend of multiple platforms, multiple sensors and multiple perspectives. At the same time, in view of the remote sensing data of compute-intensive applications demand increase gradually. However, current the producing system of remote sensing products is in a serial mode, and this kind of production system is used for professional remote sensing researchers mostly, and production systems achieving automatic or semi-automatic production are relatively less. Facing massive remote sensing data, the traditional serial mode producing system with its low efficiency has been difficult to meet the requirements of mass data timely and efficient processing. In order to effectively improve the production efficiency of NDSI products, meet the demand of large-scale remote sensing data processed timely and efficiently, this paper build NDSI products production system based on Hadoop platform, and the system mainly includes the remote sensing image management module, NDSI production module, and system service module. Main research contents and results including: (1)The remote sensing image management module: includes image import and image metadata management two parts. Import mass basis IRS images and NDSI product images (the system performing the production task output) into HDFS file system; At the same time, read the corresponding orbit ranks number, maximum/minimum longitude and latitude, product date, HDFS storage path, Hadoop task ID (NDSI products), and other metadata information, and then create thumbnails, and unique ID number for each record distribution, import it into base/product image metadata database. (2)NDSI production module: includes the index calculation, production tasks submission and monitoring two parts. Read HDF images related to production task in the form of a byte stream, and use Beam library to parse image byte stream to the form of Product; Use MapReduce distributed framework to perform production tasks, at the same time monitoring task status; When the production task complete, calls remote sensing image management module to store NDSI products. (3)System service module: includes both image search and DNSI products download. To image metadata attributes described in JSON format, return to the image sequence ID existing in the HDFS file system; For the given MapReduce task ID, package several task output NDSI products into ZIP format file, and return to the download link (4)System evaluation: download massive remote sensing data and use the system to process it to get the NDSI products testing the performance, and the result shows that the system has high extendibility, strong fault tolerance, fast production speed, and the image processing results with high accuracy.

Research of grasping algorithm based on scara industrial robot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Tao; Zuo, Ping; Yang, Hai

2018-04-01

As the tobacco industry grows, facing the challenge of the international tobacco giant, efficient logistics service is one of the key factors. How to complete the tobacco sorting task of efficient economy is the goal of tobacco sorting and optimization research. Now the cigarette distribution system uses a single line to carry out the single brand sorting task, this article adopts a single line to realize the cigarette sorting task of different brands. Using scara robot special algorithm for sorting and packaging, the optimization scheme significantly enhances the indicators of smoke sorting system. Saving labor productivity, obviously improve production efficiency.

A new dawn for industrial photosynthesis.

PubMed

Robertson, Dan E; Jacobson, Stuart A; Morgan, Frederick; Berry, David; Church, George M; Afeyan, Noubar B

2011-03-01

Several emerging technologies are aiming to meet renewable fuel standards, mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and provide viable alternatives to fossil fuels. Direct conversion of solar energy into fungible liquid fuel is a particularly attractive option, though conversion of that energy on an industrial scale depends on the efficiency of its capture and conversion. Large-scale programs have been undertaken in the recent past that used solar energy to grow innately oil-producing algae for biomass processing to biodiesel fuel. These efforts were ultimately deemed to be uneconomical because the costs of culturing, harvesting, and processing of algal biomass were not balanced by the process efficiencies for solar photon capture and conversion. This analysis addresses solar capture and conversion efficiencies and introduces a unique systems approach, enabled by advances in strain engineering, photobioreactor design, and a process that contradicts prejudicial opinions about the viability of industrial photosynthesis. We calculate efficiencies for this direct, continuous solar process based on common boundary conditions, empirical measurements and validated assumptions wherein genetically engineered cyanobacteria convert industrially sourced, high-concentration CO(2) into secreted, fungible hydrocarbon products in a continuous process. These innovations are projected to operate at areal productivities far exceeding those based on accumulation and refining of plant or algal biomass or on prior assumptions of photosynthetic productivity. This concept, currently enabled for production of ethanol and alkane diesel fuel molecules, and operating at pilot scale, establishes a new paradigm for high productivity manufacturing of nonfossil-derived fuels and chemicals.

Domestic refrigeration appliances in Poland: Potential for improving energy efficiency

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meyers, S.; Schipper, L.; Lebot, B.

1993-08-01

This report is based on information collected from the main Polish manufacturer of refrigeration appliances. We describe their production facilities, and show that the energy consumption of their models for domestic sale is substantially higher than the average for similar models made in W. Europe. Lack of data and uncertainty about future production costs in Poland limits our evaluation of the cost-effective potential to increase energy efficiency, but it appears likely that considerable improvement would be economic from a societal perspective. Many design options are likely to have a simple payback of less than five years. We found that themore » production facilities are in need of substantial modernization in order to produce higher quality and more efficient appliances. We discuss policy options that could help to build a market for more efficient appliances in Poland and thereby encourage investment to produce such equipment.« less

Use of maize wastewater for the cultivation of the Pleurotus spp. mushroom and optimization of its biological efficiency.

PubMed

Loss, Edenes; Royer, Andrea Rafaela; Barreto-Rodrigues, Marcio; Barana, Ana Claudia

2009-07-30

This study evaluated the Pleurotus spp. mushroom production process using an effluent from the maize agroindustrial process as a carbon and nitrogen source and as a wetting agent. A complete experimental design based on factorial planning was used to optimize the biological efficiency and evaluate the effect of the concentration of effluent, pH and species of Pleurotus. The results indicated that the effluent affects the biological efficiency for the production of both species of mushrooms at all pH values studied. The maximum biological efficiency predicted by the model (81.36%) corresponded to the point defined by the effluent contents (X(1)=1), pH (X(2)=-1) and fungus species (X(3)=1), specifically 50%, 5.0 and P. floridae, respectively. The results demonstrated that the effluent is a good alternative for the production of Pleurotus mushrooms.

A Network Analysis of Countries’ Export Flows: Firm Grounds for the Building Blocks of the Economy

PubMed Central

Caldarelli, Guido; Cristelli, Matthieu; Gabrielli, Andrea; Pietronero, Luciano; Scala, Antonio; Tacchella, Andrea

2012-01-01

In this paper we analyze the bipartite network of countries and products from UN data on country production. We define the country-country and product-product projected networks and introduce a novel method of filtering information based on elements’ similarity. As a result we find that country clustering reveals unexpected socio-geographic links among the most competing countries. On the same footings the products clustering can be efficiently used for a bottom-up classification of produced goods. Furthermore we mathematically reformulate the “reflections method” introduced by Hidalgo and Hausmann as a fixpoint problem; such formulation highlights some conceptual weaknesses of the approach. To overcome such an issue, we introduce an alternative methodology (based on biased Markov chains) that allows to rank countries in a conceptually consistent way. Our analysis uncovers a strong non-linear interaction between the diversification of a country and the ubiquity of its products, thus suggesting the possible need of moving towards more efficient and direct non-linear fixpoint algorithms to rank countries and products in the global market. PMID:23094044

Center for Advanced Biofuel Systems (CABS) Final Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kutchan, Toni M.

2015-12-02

One of the great challenges facing current and future generations is how to meet growing energy demands in an environmentally sustainable manner. Renewable energy sources, including wind, geothermal, solar, hydroelectric, and biofuel energy systems, are rapidly being developed as sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. Biofuels are particularly attractive to the U.S., given its vast agricultural resources. The first generation of biofuel systems was based on fermentation of sugars to produce ethanol, typically from food crops. Subsequent generations of biofuel systems, including those included in the CABS project, will build upon the experiences learned from those early research results and willmore » have improved production efficiencies, reduced environmental impacts and decreased reliance on food crops. Thermodynamic models predict that the next generations of biofuel systems will yield three- to five-fold more recoverable energy products. To address the technological challenges necessary to develop enhanced biofuel systems, greater understanding of the non-equilibrium processes involved in solar energy conversion and the channeling of reduced carbon into biofuel products must be developed. The objective of the proposed Center for Advanced Biofuel Systems (CABS) was to increase the thermodynamic and kinetic efficiency of select plant- and algal-based fuel production systems using rational metabolic engineering approaches grounded in modern systems biology. The overall strategy was to increase the efficiency of solar energy conversion into oils and other specialty biofuel components by channeling metabolic flux toward products using advanced catalysts and sensible design:1) employing novel protein catalysts that increase the thermodynamic and kinetic efficiencies of photosynthesis and oil biosynthesis; 2) engineering metabolic networks to enhance acetyl-CoA production and its channeling towards lipid synthesis; and 3) engineering new metabolic networks for the production of hydrocarbons required to meet commercial fuel standards.« less

Evaluation of a novel ultra small target technology supporting on-product overlay measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smilde, Henk-Jan H.; den Boef, Arie; Kubis, Michael; Jak, Martin; van Schijndel, Mark; Fuchs, Andreas; van der Schaar, Maurits; Meyer, Steffen; Morgan, Stephen; Wu, Jon; Tsai, Vincent; Wang, Cathy; Bhattacharyya, Kaustuve; Chen, Kai-Hsiung; Huang, Guo-Tsai; Ke, Chih-Ming; Huang, Jacky

2012-03-01

Reducing the size of metrology targets is essential for in-die overlay metrology in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. In this paper, μ-diffraction-based overlay (μDBO) measurements with a YieldStar metrology tool are presented for target-sizes down to 10 × 10 μm2. The μDBO technology enables selection of only the diffraction efficiency information from the grating by efficiently separating it from product structure reflections. Therefore, μDBO targets -even when located adjacent to product environment- give excellent correlation with 40 × 160 μm2 reference targets. Although significantly smaller than standard scribe-line targets, they can achieve total-measurement-uncertainty values of below 0.5 nm on a wide range of product layers. This shows that the new μDBO technique allows for accurate metrology on ultra small in-die targets, while retaining the excellent TMU performance of diffraction-based overlay metrology.

Recirculation: A New Concept to Drive Innovation in Sustainable Product Design for Bio-Based Products.

PubMed

Sherwood, James; Clark, James H; Farmer, Thomas J; Herrero-Davila, Lorenzo; Moity, Laurianne

2016-12-29

Bio-based products are made from renewable materials, offering a promising basis for the production of sustainable chemicals, materials, and more complex articles. However, biomass is not a limitless resource or one without environmental and social impacts. Therefore, while it is important to use biomass and grow a bio-based economy, displacing the unsustainable petroleum basis of energy and chemical production, any resource must be used effectively to reduce waste. Standards have been developed to support the bio-based product market in order to achieve this aim. However, the design of bio-based products has not received the same level of attention. Reported here are the first steps towards the development of a framework of understanding which connects product design to resource efficiency. Research and development scientists and engineers are encouraged to think beyond simple functionality and associate value to the potential of materials in their primary use and beyond.

Cataloging Efficiency and Effectiveness.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCain, Cheryl; Shorten, Jay

2002-01-01

Reports on a survey of academic libraries that was conducted to supplement findings of cost studies by providing measures of efficiency and effectiveness for cataloging departments based on reported productivity, number of staff, task distribution, and quality measures including backlogs, authority control, and database maintenance. Identifies…

Energy efficiency of conventional, organic, and alternative cropping systems for food and fuel at a site in the U.S. Midwest.

PubMed

Gelfand, Ilya; Snapp, Sieglinde S; Robertson, G Philip

2010-05-15

The prospect of biofuel production on a large scale has focused attention on energy efficiencies associated with different agricultural systems and production goals. We used 17 years of detailed data on agricultural practices and yields to calculate an energy balance for different cropping systems under both food and fuel scenarios. We compared four grain and one forage systems in the U.S. Midwest: corn (Zea mays) - soybean (Glycine max) - wheat (Triticum aestivum) rotations managed with (1) conventional tillage, (2) no till, (3) low chemical input, and (4) biologically based (organic) practices, and (5) continuous alfalfa (Medicago sativa). We compared energy balances under two scenarios: all harvestable biomass used for food versus all harvestable biomass used for biofuel production. Among the annual grain crops, average energy costs of farming for the different systems ranged from 4.8 GJ ha(-1) y(-1) for the organic system to 7.1 GJ ha(-1) y(-1) for the conventional; the no-till system was also low at 4.9 GJ ha(-1) y(-1) and the low-chemical input system intermediate (5.2 GJ ha(-1) y(-1)). For each system, the average energy output for food was always greater than that for fuel. Overall energy efficiencies ranged from output:input ratios of 10 to 16 for conventional and no-till food production and from 7 to 11 for conventional and no-till fuel production, respectively. Alfalfa for fuel production had an efficiency similar to that of no-till grain production for fuel. Our analysis points to a more energetically efficient use of cropland for food than for fuel production and large differences in efficiencies attributable to management, which suggests multiple opportunities for improvement.

Informatics in radiology: Efficiency metrics for imaging device productivity.

PubMed

Hu, Mengqi; Pavlicek, William; Liu, Patrick T; Zhang, Muhong; Langer, Steve G; Wang, Shanshan; Place, Vicki; Miranda, Rafael; Wu, Teresa Tong

2011-01-01

Acute awareness of the costs associated with medical imaging equipment is an ever-present aspect of the current healthcare debate. However, the monitoring of productivity associated with expensive imaging devices is likely to be labor intensive, relies on summary statistics, and lacks accepted and standardized benchmarks of efficiency. In the context of the general Six Sigma DMAIC (design, measure, analyze, improve, and control) process, a World Wide Web-based productivity tool called the Imaging Exam Time Monitor was developed to accurately and remotely monitor imaging efficiency with use of Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) combined with a picture archiving and communication system. Five device efficiency metrics-examination duration, table utilization, interpatient time, appointment interval time, and interseries time-were derived from DICOM values. These metrics allow the standardized measurement of productivity, to facilitate the comparative evaluation of imaging equipment use and ongoing efforts to improve efficiency. A relational database was constructed to store patient imaging data, along with device- and examination-related data. The database provides full access to ad hoc queries and can automatically generate detailed reports for administrative and business use, thereby allowing staff to monitor data for trends and to better identify possible changes that could lead to improved productivity and reduced costs in association with imaging services. © RSNA, 2011.

Genome Editing in Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4 with the CRISPR-Cas9 System.

PubMed

Wang, Shaohua; Dong, Sheng; Wang, Pixiang; Tao, Yong; Wang, Yi

2017-05-15

Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4 is well known as a hyper-butanol-producing strain. However, the lack of genetic engineering tools hinders further elucidation of its solvent production mechanism and development of more robust strains. In this study, we set out to develop an efficient genome engineering system for this microorganism based on the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated 9 (CRISPR-Cas9) system. First, the functionality of the CRISPR-Cas9 system previously customized for Clostridium beijerinckii was evaluated in C. saccharoperbutylacetonicum by targeting pta and buk , two essential genes for acetate and butyrate production, respectively. pta and buk single and double deletion mutants were successfully obtained based on this system. However, the genome engineering efficiency was rather low (the mutation rate is <20%). Therefore, the efficiency was further optimized by evaluating various promoters for guide RNA (gRNA) expression. With promoter P J23119 , we achieved a mutation rate of 75% for pta deletion without serial subculturing as suggested previously for C. beijerinckii Thus, this developed CRISPR-Cas9 system is highly desirable for efficient genome editing in C. saccharoperbutylacetonicum Batch fermentation results revealed that both the acid and solvent production profiles were altered due to the disruption of acid production pathways; however, neither acetate nor butyrate production was eliminated with the deletion of the corresponding gene. The butanol production, yield, and selectivity were improved in mutants, depending on the fermentation medium. In the pta buk double deletion mutant, the butanol production in P2 medium reached 19.0 g/liter, which is one of the highest levels ever reported from batch fermentations. IMPORTANCE An efficient CRISPR-Cas9 genome engineering system was developed for C. saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4. This paves the way for elucidating the solvent production mechanism in this hyper-butanol-producing microorganism and developing strains with desirable butanol-producing features. This tool can be easily adapted for use in closely related microorganisms. As also reported by others, here we demonstrated with solid data that the highly efficient expression of gRNA is the key factor determining the efficiency of CRISPR-Cas9 for genome editing. The protocol developed in this study can provide essential references for other researchers who work in the areas of metabolic engineering and synthetic biology. The developed mutants can be used as excellent starting strains for development of more robust ones for desirable solvent production. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

Downstream processing and chromatography based analytical methods for production of vaccines, gene therapy vectors, and bacteriophages.

PubMed

Kramberger, Petra; Urbas, Lidija; Štrancar, Aleš

2015-01-01

Downstream processing of nanoplexes (viruses, virus-like particles, bacteriophages) is characterized by complexity of the starting material, number of purification methods to choose from, regulations that are setting the frame for the final product and analytical methods for upstream and downstream monitoring. This review gives an overview on the nanoplex downstream challenges and chromatography based analytical methods for efficient monitoring of the nanoplex production.

Downstream processing and chromatography based analytical methods for production of vaccines, gene therapy vectors, and bacteriophages

PubMed Central

Kramberger, Petra; Urbas, Lidija; Štrancar, Aleš

2015-01-01

Downstream processing of nanoplexes (viruses, virus-like particles, bacteriophages) is characterized by complexity of the starting material, number of purification methods to choose from, regulations that are setting the frame for the final product and analytical methods for upstream and downstream monitoring. This review gives an overview on the nanoplex downstream challenges and chromatography based analytical methods for efficient monitoring of the nanoplex production. PMID:25751122

Impacts of feeding less food-competing feedstuffs to livestock on global food system sustainability.

PubMed

Schader, Christian; Muller, Adrian; Scialabba, Nadia El-Hage; Hecht, Judith; Isensee, Anne; Erb, Karl-Heinz; Smith, Pete; Makkar, Harinder P S; Klocke, Peter; Leiber, Florian; Schwegler, Patrizia; Stolze, Matthias; Niggli, Urs

2015-12-06

Increasing efficiency in livestock production and reducing the share of animal products in human consumption are two strategies to curb the adverse environmental impacts of the livestock sector. Here, we explore the room for sustainable livestock production by modelling the impacts and constraints of a third strategy in which livestock feed components that compete with direct human food crop production are reduced. Thus, in the outmost scenario, animals are fed only from grassland and by-products from food production. We show that this strategy could provide sufficient food (equal amounts of human-digestible energy and a similar protein/calorie ratio as in the reference scenario for 2050) and reduce environmental impacts compared with the reference scenario (in the most extreme case of zero human-edible concentrate feed: greenhouse gas emissions -18%; arable land occupation -26%, N-surplus -46%; P-surplus -40%; non-renewable energy use -36%, pesticide use intensity -22%, freshwater use -21%, soil erosion potential -12%). These results occur despite the fact that environmental efficiency of livestock production is reduced compared with the reference scenario, which is the consequence of the grassland-based feed for ruminants and the less optimal feeding rations based on by-products for non-ruminants. This apparent contradiction results from considerable reductions of animal products in human diets (protein intake per capita from livestock products reduced by 71%). We show that such a strategy focusing on feed components which do not compete with direct human food consumption offers a viable complement to strategies focusing on increased efficiency in production or reduced shares of animal products in consumption. © 2015 The Authors.

Impacts of feeding less food-competing feedstuffs to livestock on global food system sustainability

PubMed Central

Hecht, Judith; Isensee, Anne; Smith, Pete; Makkar, Harinder P. S.; Klocke, Peter; Leiber, Florian; Stolze, Matthias; Niggli, Urs

2015-01-01

Increasing efficiency in livestock production and reducing the share of animal products in human consumption are two strategies to curb the adverse environmental impacts of the livestock sector. Here, we explore the room for sustainable livestock production by modelling the impacts and constraints of a third strategy in which livestock feed components that compete with direct human food crop production are reduced. Thus, in the outmost scenario, animals are fed only from grassland and by-products from food production. We show that this strategy could provide sufficient food (equal amounts of human-digestible energy and a similar protein/calorie ratio as in the reference scenario for 2050) and reduce environmental impacts compared with the reference scenario (in the most extreme case of zero human-edible concentrate feed: greenhouse gas emissions −18%; arable land occupation −26%, N-surplus −46%; P-surplus −40%; non-renewable energy use −36%, pesticide use intensity −22%, freshwater use −21%, soil erosion potential −12%). These results occur despite the fact that environmental efficiency of livestock production is reduced compared with the reference scenario, which is the consequence of the grassland-based feed for ruminants and the less optimal feeding rations based on by-products for non-ruminants. This apparent contradiction results from considerable reductions of animal products in human diets (protein intake per capita from livestock products reduced by 71%). We show that such a strategy focusing on feed components which do not compete with direct human food consumption offers a viable complement to strategies focusing on increased efficiency in production or reduced shares of animal products in consumption. PMID:26674194

Microbial surface displayed enzymes based biofuel cell utilizing degradation products of lignocellulosic biomass for direct electrical energy.

PubMed

Fan, Shuqin; Hou, Chuantao; Liang, Bo; Feng, Ruirui; Liu, Aihua

2015-09-01

In this work, a bacterial surface displaying enzyme based two-compartment biofuel cell for the direct electrical energy conversion from degradation products of lignocellulosic biomass is reported. Considering that the main degradation products of the lignocellulose are glucose and xylose, xylose dehydrogenase (XDH) displayed bacteria (XDH-bacteria) and glucose dehydrogenase (GDH) displayed bacteria (GDH-bacteria) were used as anode catalysts in anode chamber with methylene blue as electron transfer mediator. While the cathode chamber was constructed with laccase/multi-walled-carbon nanotube/glassy-carbon-electrode. XDH-bacteria exhibited 1.75 times higher catalytic efficiency than GDH-bacteria. This assembled enzymatic fuel cell exhibited a high open-circuit potential of 0.80 V, acceptable stability and energy conversion efficiency. Moreover, the maximum power density of the cell could reach 53 μW cm(-2) when fueled with degradation products of corn stalk. Thus, this finding holds great potential to directly convert degradation products of biomass into electrical energy. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of silver nanoparticles/graphene-coupled TiO2 beads photocatalyst on the photoconversion efficiency of photoelectrochemical hydrogen production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ke, Chun-Ren; Guo, Jyun-Sheng; Su, Yen-Hsun; Ting, Jyh-Ming

2016-10-01

In this work, a novel configuration of the photoelectrochemical hydrogen production device is demonstrated. It is based on TiO2 beads as the primary photoanode material with the addition of a heterostructure of silver nanoparticles/graphene. The heterostructure not only caters to a great improvement in light harvesting efficiency (LHE) but also enhances the charge collection efficiency. For LHE, the optimized cell based on TiO2 beads/Ag/graphene shows a 47% gain as compared to the cell having a photoanode of commercial P25 TiO2 powders. For the charge collection efficiency, there is a pronounced improvement of an impressive value of 856%. The reason for the improvement in light absorption is attributed to either the light scattering of TiO2 beads or the surface plasmonic resonance on the Ag nanoparticles/graphene. The photoconversion efficiency (PCE) of the resulting cells is also presented and discussed. The PCE of the TiO2 beads/Ag/graphene cell is approximately 2.5 times than that of pure P25 cell.

Biohydrogen Production: Strategies to Improve Process Efficiency through Microbial Routes

PubMed Central

Chandrasekhar, Kuppam; Lee, Yong-Jik; Lee, Dong-Woo

2015-01-01

The current fossil fuel-based generation of energy has led to large-scale industrial development. However, the reliance on fossil fuels leads to the significant depletion of natural resources of buried combustible geologic deposits and to negative effects on the global climate with emissions of greenhouse gases. Accordingly, enormous efforts are directed to transition from fossil fuels to nonpolluting and renewable energy sources. One potential alternative is biohydrogen (H2), a clean energy carrier with high-energy yields; upon the combustion of H2, H2O is the only major by-product. In recent decades, the attractive and renewable characteristics of H2 led us to develop a variety of biological routes for the production of H2. Based on the mode of H2 generation, the biological routes for H2 production are categorized into four groups: photobiological fermentation, anaerobic fermentation, enzymatic and microbial electrolysis, and a combination of these processes. Thus, this review primarily focuses on the evaluation of the biological routes for the production of H2. In particular, we assess the efficiency and feasibility of these bioprocesses with respect to the factors that affect operations, and we delineate the limitations. Additionally, alternative options such as bioaugmentation, multiple process integration, and microbial electrolysis to improve process efficiency are discussed to address industrial-level applications. PMID:25874756

Biohydrogen production: strategies to improve process efficiency through microbial routes.

PubMed

Chandrasekhar, Kuppam; Lee, Yong-Jik; Lee, Dong-Woo

2015-04-14

The current fossil fuel-based generation of energy has led to large-scale industrial development. However, the reliance on fossil fuels leads to the significant depletion of natural resources of buried combustible geologic deposits and to negative effects on the global climate with emissions of greenhouse gases. Accordingly, enormous efforts are directed to transition from fossil fuels to nonpolluting and renewable energy sources. One potential alternative is biohydrogen (H2), a clean energy carrier with high-energy yields; upon the combustion of H2, H2O is the only major by-product. In recent decades, the attractive and renewable characteristics of H2 led us to develop a variety of biological routes for the production of H2. Based on the mode of H2 generation, the biological routes for H2 production are categorized into four groups: photobiological fermentation, anaerobic fermentation, enzymatic and microbial electrolysis, and a combination of these processes. Thus, this review primarily focuses on the evaluation of the biological routes for the production of H2. In particular, we assess the efficiency and feasibility of these bioprocesses with respect to the factors that affect operations, and we delineate the limitations. Additionally, alternative options such as bioaugmentation, multiple process integration, and microbial electrolysis to improve process efficiency are discussed to address industrial-level applications.

Biosurfactants' Production from Renewable Natural Resources: Example of Innovativeand Smart Technology in Circular Bioeconomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Satpute, Surekha K.; Płaza, Grażyna A.; Banpurkar, Arun G.

2017-03-01

A strong developed bio-based industrial sector will significantly reduce dependency on fossil resources, help the countries meet climate change targets, and lead to greener and more environmental friendly growth. The key is to develop new technologies to sustainably transform renewable natural resources into bio-based products and biofuels. Biomass is a valuable resource and many parameters need to be taken in to account when assessing its use and the products made from its. The bioeconomy encompass the production of renewable biological resources and their conversion into food, feed and bio-based products (chemicals, materials and fuels) via innovative and efficient technologies provided by industrial biotechnology. The paper presents the smart and efficient way to use the agro-industrial, dairy and food processing wastes for biosurfactant's production. Clarification processes are mandatory to use the raw substrates for microbial growth as well as biosurfactant production for commercial purposes. At the same time it is very essential to retain the nutritional values of those cheap substrates. Broad industrial perspectives can be achieved when quality as well as the quantity of the biosurfactant is considered in great depth. Since substrates resulting from food processing, dairy, animal fat industries are not explored in great details; and hence are potential areas which can be explored thoroughly.

Layout design in order to improve efficiency in manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siregar, I.; Tarigan, U.; Nasution, T. H.

2018-02-01

This research was conducted at the company that produces bobbins and ream type cigarette paper. Problems that found on the production process is the back and forth (back tracking) movement. Back and forth (back tracking) movement extending the total distance moved by the material and increase the total moment of transfer materials thus reducing the efficiency of the transfer of materials in the production process. The purpose of this study is to give design for the layout of production facilities in the company, so that the expected production produced by the company can reach the targets set by the management company. The method used in this research is the Graph-Based Construction and Travel Chart Method. The results of the analysis of the proposed layout with Graph-Based Construction was selected with a total value that is equal to the moment of transfer of 780 758 m / year. This result is better than the actual layout in the amount of 1,021,038.12 meters / year and the results of the method Travel Alternative Chart I of 826.236,60 meters/year, Alternative II of 1.004.433,56 meters / year, and Alternative III for 828,467.12 meters/year. The design layout of Graph-Based Construction material increases the transfer efficiency for 23.53%. With this layout proposal, expected production capacity will be increased along with the shortening of the distance of the displacement that must be passed by the material to be processed.

Production of DNA minicircles less than 250 base pairs through a novel concentrated DNA circularization assay enabling minicircle design with NF-κB inhibition activity.

PubMed

Thibault, Thomas; Degrouard, Jeril; Baril, Patrick; Pichon, Chantal; Midoux, Patrick; Malinge, Jean-Marc

2017-03-17

Double-stranded DNA minicircles of less than 1000 bp in length have great interest in both fundamental research and therapeutic applications. Although minicircles have shown promising activity in gene therapy thanks to their good biostability and better intracellular trafficking, minicircles down to 250 bp in size have not yet been investigated from the test tube to the cell for lack of an efficient production method. Herein, we report a novel versatile plasmid-free method for the production of DNA minicircles comprising fewer than 250 bp. We designed a linear nicked DNA double-stranded oligonucleotide blunt-ended substrate for efficient minicircle production in a ligase-mediated and bending protein-assisted circularization reaction at high DNA concentration of 2 μM. This one pot multi-step reaction based-method yields hundreds of micrograms of minicircle with sequences of any base composition and position and containing or not a variety of site-specifically chemical modifications or physiological supercoiling. Biochemical and cellular studies were then conducted to design a 95 bp minicircle capable of binding in vitro two NF-κB transcription factors per minicircle and to efficiently inhibiting NF-κB-dependent transcriptional activity in human cells. Therefore, our production method could pave the way for the design of minicircles as new decoy nucleic acids. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Highly efficient method for production of radioactive silver seed cores for brachytherapy.

PubMed

Cardoso, Roberta Mansini; de Souza, Carla Daruich; Rostelato, Maria Elisa Chuery Martins; Araki, Koiti

2017-02-01

A simple and highly efficient (shorter reaction time and almost no rework) method for production of iodine based radioactive silver seed cores for brachytherapy is described. The method allows almost quantitative deposition of iodine-131 on dozens of silver substrates at once, with even distribution of activity per core and insignificant amounts of liquid and solid radioactive wastes, allowing the fabrication of cheaper radioactive iodine seeds for brachytherapy. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

[Induction and regulation of cellulase expression in filamentous fungi: a review].

PubMed

Zhang, Fei; Bai, Fengwu; Zhao, Xinqing

2016-11-25

Production of bioenergy and bio-based chemicals by using fermentable sugars released from low-cost renewable lignocellulosic biomass has received great attention. Efficient cellulolytic enzymes are crucial for lignocellulose bioconversion, but high cellulase production cost is limiting the bioconversion efficiency of cellulosic biomass and industrial applications of lignocellulose biorefinery. Studies on induction and regulation of cellulase in filamentous fungi will help to further develop superior fungal strains for efficient cellulase production and reduce cellulase production cost. With the advances in high-throughput sequencing and gene manipulation technology using fungal strains, an in-depth understanding of cellulase induction and regulation mechanisms of enzyme expression has been achieved. We reviewed recent progresses in the induction and regulation of cellulase expression in several model filamentous fungi, emphasizing sugar transporters, transcription factors and chromatin remodeling. Future prospects in application of artificial zinc finger proteins for cellulase induction and regulation in filamentous fungi were discussed.

Review of fusion synfuels

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fillo, J.A.

1980-01-01

Thermonuclear fusion offers an inexhaustible source of energy for the production of hydrogen from water. Depending on design, electric generation efficiencies of approx. 40 to 60% and hydrogen production efficiencies by high-temperature electrolysis of approx. 50 to 65% are projected for fusion reactors using high-temperatures blankets. Fusion/coal symbiotic systems appear economically promising for the first generation of commercial fusion synfuels plants. Coal production requirements and the environmental effects of large-scale coal usage would be greatly reduced by a fusion/coal system. In the long term, there could be a gradual transition to an inexhaustible energy system based solely on fusion.

Application of RFID in the area of agricultural products quality traceability and tracking and the anti-collision algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zu-liang; Zhang, Ting; Xie, Shi-yang

2017-01-01

In order to improve the agricultural tracing efficiency and reduce tracking and monitoring cost, agricultural products quality tracking and tracing based on Radio-Frequency Identification(RFID) technology is studied, then tracing and tracking model is set up. Three-layer structure model is established to realize the high quality of agricultural products traceability and tracking. To solve the collision problems between multiple RFID tags and improve the identification efficiency a new reservation slot allocation mechanism is proposed. And then we analyze and optimize the parameter by numerical simulation method.

Efficient Kriging via Fast Matrix-Vector Products

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Memarsadeghi, Nargess; Raykar, Vikas C.; Duraiswami, Ramani; Mount, David M.

2008-01-01

Interpolating scattered data points is a problem of wide ranging interest. Ordinary kriging is an optimal scattered data estimator, widely used in geosciences and remote sensing. A generalized version of this technique, called cokriging, can be used for image fusion of remotely sensed data. However, it is computationally very expensive for large data sets. We demonstrate the time efficiency and accuracy of approximating ordinary kriging through the use of fast matrixvector products combined with iterative methods. We used methods based on the fast Multipole methods and nearest neighbor searching techniques for implementations of the fast matrix-vector products.

Improvement of L-valine production at high temperature in Brevibacterium flavum by overexpressing ilvEBNrC genes.

PubMed

Hou, Xiaohu; Ge, Xiangyang; Wu, Di; Qian, He; Zhang, Weiguo

2012-01-01

Brevibacterium flavum ATCC14067 was engineered for L: -valine production by overexpression of different ilv genes; the ilvEBN(r)C genes from B. flavum NV128 provided the best candidate for L: -valine production. In traditional fermentation, L: -valine production reached 30.08 ± 0.92 g/L at 31°C in 72 h with a low conversion efficiency of 0.129 g/g. To further improve the L: -valine production and conversion efficiency based on the optimum temperatures of L: -valine biosynthesis enzymes (above 35°C) and the thermotolerance of B. flavum, the fermentation temperature was increased to 34, 37, and 40°C. As a result, higher metabolic rate and L: -valine biosynthesis enzymes activity were obtained at high temperature, and the maximum L: -valine production, conversion efficiency, and specific L: -valine production rate reached 38.08 ± 1.32 g/L, 0.241 g/g, and 0.133 g g(-1) h(-1), respectively, at 37°C in 48 h fermentation. The strategy for enhancing L: -valine production by overexpression of key enzymes in thermotolerant strains may provide an alternative approach to enhance branched-chain amino acids production with other strains.

Prospects and challenges for the recovery of 2-butanol produced by vacuum fermentation - a techno-economic analysis.

PubMed

Pereira, Joana P C; Lopez-Gomez, Gustavo; Reyes, Noelia G; van der Wielen, Luuk A M; Straathof, Adrie J J

2017-07-01

The conceptual design of a bio-based process for 2-butanol production is presented for the first time. Considering a hypothetical efficient producing strain, a vacuum fermentation is proposed to alleviate product toxicity, but the main challenge is the energy-efficient product recovery from the vapor. Three downstream scenarios were examined for this purpose: 1) multi-stage vapor recompression; 2) temperature swing adsorption; and 3) vapor absorption. The processes were simulated using Aspen Plus, considering a production capacity of 101 kton/yr. Process optimization was performed targeting the minimum selling price of 2-butanol. The feasibility of the different configurations was analyzed based on the global energy requirements and capital expenditure. The use of integrated adsorption and absorption minimized the energy duty required for azeotrope purification, which represents 11% of the total operational expenditure in Scenario 1. The minimum selling price of 2-butanol as commodity chemical was estimated as 1.05 $/kg, 1.21 $/kg, and 1.03 $/kg regarding the fermentation integrated with downstream scenarios 1), 2), and 3), respectively. Significant savings in 2-butanol production could be achieved in the suggested integrated configurations if more efficient microbial strains were engineered, and more selective adsorption and absorption materials were found for product recovery. Copyright © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Scalable graphene production from ethanol decomposition by microwave argon plasma torch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melero, C.; Rincón, R.; Muñoz, J.; Zhang, G.; Sun, S.; Perez, A.; Royuela, O.; González-Gago, C.; Calzada, M. D.

2018-01-01

A fast, efficient and simple method is presented for the production of high quality graphene on a large scale by using an atmospheric pressure plasma-based technique. This technique allows to obtain high quality graphene in powder in just one step, without the use of neither metal catalysts and nor specific substrate during the process. Moreover, the cost for graphene production is significantly reduced since the ethanol used as carbon source can be obtained from the fermentation of agricultural industries. The process provides an additional benefit contributing to the revalorization of waste in the production of a high-value added product like graphene. Thus, this work demonstrates the features of plasma technology as a low cost, efficient, clean and environmentally friendly route for production of high-quality graphene.

Efficient Hydrogen Storage and Production Using a Catalyst with an Imidazoline-Based, Proton-Responsive Ligand.

PubMed

Wang, Lin; Onishi, Naoya; Murata, Kazuhisa; Hirose, Takuji; Muckerman, James T; Fujita, Etsuko; Himeda, Yuichiro

2017-03-22

A series of new imidazoline-based iridium complexes has been developed for hydrogenation of CO 2 and dehydrogenation of formic acid. One of the proton-responsive complexes bearing two -OH groups at ortho and para positions on a coordinating pyridine ring (3 b) can catalyze efficiently the chemical fixation of CO 2 and release H 2 under mild conditions in aqueous media without using organic additives/solvents. Notably, hydrogenation of CO 2 can be efficiently carried out under CO 2 and H 2 at atmospheric pressure in basic water by 3 b, achieving a turnover frequency of 106 h -1 and a turnover number of 7280 at 25 °C, which are higher than ever reported. Moreover, highly efficient CO-free hydrogen production from formic acid in aqueous solution employing the same catalyst under mild conditions has been achieved, thus providing a promising potential H 2 -storage system in water. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Modelling and analysis of solar cell efficiency distributions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wasmer, Sven; Greulich, Johannes

2017-08-01

We present an approach to model the distribution of solar cell efficiencies achieved in production lines based on numerical simulations, metamodeling and Monte Carlo simulations. We validate our methodology using the example of an industrial feasible p-type multicrystalline silicon “passivated emitter and rear cell” process. Applying the metamodel, we investigate the impact of each input parameter on the distribution of cell efficiencies in a variance-based sensitivity analysis, identifying the parameters and processes that need to be improved and controlled most accurately. We show that if these could be optimized, the mean cell efficiencies of our examined cell process would increase from 17.62% ± 0.41% to 18.48% ± 0.09%. As the method relies on advanced characterization and simulation techniques, we furthermore introduce a simplification that enhances applicability by only requiring two common measurements of finished cells. The presented approaches can be especially helpful for ramping-up production, but can also be applied to enhance established manufacturing.

Efficient hydrogen storage and production using a catalyst with an imidazoline-based, proton-responsive ligand

DOE PAGES

Wang, Lin; Onishi, Naoya; Murata, Kazuhisa; ...

2016-12-28

A series of new imidazoline-based iridium complexes has been developed for hydrogenation of CO 2 and dehydrogenation of formic acid. One of the proton-responsive complexes bearing two –OH groups at ortho and para positions on a coordinating pyridine ring (3 b) can catalyze efficiently the chemical fixation of CO 2 and release H 2 under mild conditions in aqueous media without using organic additives/solvents. Notably, hydrogenation of CO 2 can be efficiently carried out under CO 2 and H 2 at atmospheric pressure in basic water by 3 b, achieving a turnover frequency of 106 h –1 and a turnovermore » number of 7280 at 25 °C, which are higher than ever reported. Furthermore, highly efficient CO-free hydrogen production from formic acid in aqueous solution employing the same catalyst under mild conditions has been achieved, thus providing a promising potential H 2-storage system in water.« less

Prospective Evaluation of the Energy and CO 2 Emissions Impact of China’s 2010 – 2013 Efficiency Standards for Products

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khanna, Nina; Zhou, Nan; Fridley, David

Since China introduced its first mandatory minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for eight major household products in 1989, its MEPS program has expanded significantly to cover nearly 60 residential, industrial and commercial products. In June of 2012, the pace of standards development for new and revised standards was further accelerated with the launch of the national “100 Energy Efficiency Standards.” Initiatives. An unprecedented 21 MEPS were adopted by China from 2012 to 2013, compared to only 7 MEPS adopted from 2010 to 2011. The Chinese MEPS program now covers 15 products in the residential sector, 15 types of commercial andmore » office equipment, 14 types of industrial equipment and 13 lighting products, making it one of the most comprehensive MEPS program in the world. This study provides an updated prospective evaluation of the potential energy and CO 2 impact of 23 of the 28 MEPS adopted by China from 2010 to 2013. This study updates a previous analysis (Zhou et al. 2011) by quantifying the additional potential energy and CO 2 reductions from the newest standards that have been adopted since 2010. The most recent actual and projected sales, usage, and efficiency data were collected for 14 product categories covered under 23 MEPS adopted between 2010 and 2013. Three scenarios are then used to quantify the energy and CO 2 reduction potential of the one-time implementation of these 23 MEPS, including a baseline counterfactual scenario, the actual MEPS scenario and a best available technologies efficiency scenario. The setting of the baseline efficiency is crucial to determining the savings potential of the new and revised MEPS and international best available technology efficiency levels, as it reflects the market average in the absence of MEPS. For this study, the average baseline is based on either the reported 2010 market-average efficiency if sales-weighted efficiency data is available for new product MEPS and selected products with revised MEPS, or the minimum efficiency requirement of the previous MEPS for products with revised MEPS from 2010 to 2013 that do not have sales-weighted efficiency data. Using sales-weighted efficiency data for the baseline help capture market transformation that has already occurred prior to the implementation of the MEPS, and can better differentiate the savings that are attributable to MEPS. The efficiency levels of best available technologies are taken from recent reviews of international commercially available best available technologies.« less

Feed conversion efficiency in aquaculture: do we measure it correctly?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fry, Jillian P.; Mailloux, Nicholas A.; Love, David C.; Milli, Michael C.; Cao, Ling

2018-02-01

Globally, demand for food animal products is rising. At the same time, we face mounting, related pressures including limited natural resources, negative environmental externalities, climate disruption, and population growth. Governments and other stakeholders are seeking strategies to boost food production efficiency and food system resiliency, and aquaculture (farmed seafood) is commonly viewed as having a major role in improving global food security based on longstanding measures of animal production efficiency. The most widely used measurement is called the ‘feed conversion ratio’ (FCR), which is the weight of feed administered over the lifetime of an animal divided by weight gained. By this measure, fed aquaculture and chickens are similarly efficient at converting feed into animal biomass, and both are more efficient compared to pigs and cattle. FCR does not account for differences in feed content, edible portion of an animal, or nutritional quality of the final product. Given these limitations, we searched the literature for alternative efficiency measures and identified ‘nutrient retention’, which can be used to compare protein and calories in feed (inputs) and edible portions of animals (outputs). Protein and calorie retention have not been calculated for most aquaculture species. Focusing on commercial production, we collected data on feed composition, feed conversion ratios, edible portions (i.e. yield), and nutritional content of edible flesh for nine aquatic and three terrestrial farmed animal species. We estimate that 19% of protein and 10% of calories in feed for aquatic species are ultimately made available in the human food supply, with significant variation between species. Comparing all terrestrial and aquatic animals in the study, chickens are most efficient using these measures, followed by Atlantic salmon. Despite lower FCRs in aquaculture, protein and calorie retention for aquaculture production is comparable to livestock production. This is, in part, due to farmed fish and shrimp requiring higher levels of protein and calories in feed compared to chickens, pigs, and cattle. Strategies to address global food security should consider these alternative efficiency measures.

Design of experiment analysis of CO2 dielectric barrier discharge conditions on CO production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becker, Markus; Ponduri, Srinath; Engeln, Richard; van de Sanden, Richard; Loffhagen, Detlef

2016-09-01

Dielectric barrier discharges (DBD) are frequently used for the generation of CO from CO2 which is of particular interest for syngas production. It has been found by means of fluid modelling in that the CO2 conversion frequency in a CO2 DBD depends linearly on the specific energy input (SEI) while the energy efficiency of CO production is only weakly dependent on the SEI. Here, the same numerical model as in is applied to study systematically the influence of gas pressure, applied voltage amplitude and frequency on the CO2 conversion frequency and the energy efficiency of CO production based on a 2-level 3-factor full factorial experimental design. It is found that the operating conditions of the CO2 DBD for CO production can be chosen to either have an optimal throughput or a better energy efficiency. This work was partly supported by the German Research Foundation within the Collaborative Research Centre Transregio 24.

Initial economic and operations data base for DSS 13 automation test

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Remer, D. S.; Lorden, G.

1979-01-01

A summary is given of the data base collected for nine weeks of Deep Space Station II. Life cycle cost parameters on efficiency and productivity ratios, costs, and telemetry were calculated from this data base.

Novel approach for computing photosynthetically active radiation for productivity modeling using remotely sensed images in the Great Plains, United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singh, Ramesh K.; Liu, Shu-Guang; Tieszen, Larry L.; Suyker, Andrew E.; Verma, Shashi B.

2012-01-01

Gross primary production (GPP) is a key indicator of ecosystem performance, and helps in many decision-making processes related to environment. We used the Eddy covariancelight use efficiency (EC-LUE) model for estimating GPP in the Great Plains, United States in order to evaluate the performance of this model. We developed a novel algorithm for computing the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) based on net radiation. A strong correlation (R2=0.94,N=24) was found between daily PAR and Landsat-based mid-day instantaneous net radiation. Though the Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer (MODIS) based instantaneous net radiation was in better agreement (R2=0.98,N=24) with the daily measured PAR, there was no statistical significant difference between Landsat based PAR and MODIS based PAR. The EC-LUE model validation also confirms the need to consider biological attributes (C3 versus C4 plants) for potential light use efficiency. A universal potential light use efficiency is unable to capture the spatial variation of GPP. It is necessary to use C3 versus C4 based land use/land cover map for using EC-LUE model for estimating spatiotemporal distribution of GPP.

Neutron Detection in the A2 Collaboration Experiment on Neutral Pion Photo-production on Neutron

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bulychjov, S. A.; Kudryavtsev, A. E.; Kulikov, V. V.

Neutron detection is of crucial importance for the neutral pion photo-production study on a neutron target that now is in progress at MAMI. Two electro-magnetic calorimeters, based on NaI and BaF 2 crystals, are used in the A2 experiment. While these calorimeters are optimized for pion decay photon detection, they have a reason able efficiency for neutron detection also. The paper describes the method, which has been used to measure this efficiency using the same data taken for pion photo-production study on deuterium target with tagged photon been of 800 MeV maximal energy. As a result, the detection efficiency ismore » a rising function of neutron momentum that reaches 40% near 1 GeV/c.« less

Neutron Detection in the A2 Collaboration Experiment on Neutral Pion Photo-production on Neutron

DOE PAGES

Bulychjov, S. A.; Kudryavtsev, A. E.; Kulikov, V. V.; ...

2018-04-09

Neutron detection is of crucial importance for the neutral pion photo-production study on a neutron target that now is in progress at MAMI. Two electro-magnetic calorimeters, based on NaI and BaF 2 crystals, are used in the A2 experiment. While these calorimeters are optimized for pion decay photon detection, they have a reason able efficiency for neutron detection also. The paper describes the method, which has been used to measure this efficiency using the same data taken for pion photo-production study on deuterium target with tagged photon been of 800 MeV maximal energy. As a result, the detection efficiency ismore » a rising function of neutron momentum that reaches 40% near 1 GeV/c.« less

Dry matter intake and feed efficiency profiles of 3 genotypes of Holstein-Friesian within pasture-based systems of milk production.

PubMed

Coleman, J; Berry, D P; Pierce, K M; Brennan, A; Horan, B

2010-09-01

The primary objective of the study was to quantify the effect of genetic improvement using the Irish total merit index (Economic Breeding Index) on dry matter intake and feed efficiency across lactation and to quantify the variation in performance among alternative definitions of feed efficiency. Three genotypes of Holstein-Friesian dairy cattle were established from within the Moorepark dairy research herd: 1) low Economic Breeding Index North American Holstein-Friesian representative of the Irish national average dairy cow, 2) high genetic merit North American Holstein-Friesian, and 3) high genetic merit New Zealand Holstein-Friesian. Animals from within each genotype were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 possible intensive pasture-based feed systems: 1) the Moorepark pasture system (2.64 cows/ha and 500 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation) and 2) a high output per hectare pasture system (2.85 cows/ha and 1,200 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation). A total of 128 and 140 spring-calving dairy cows were used during the years 2007 and 2008, respectively. Each group had an individual farmlet of 17 paddocks, and all groups were managed similarly throughout the study. The effects of genotype, feed system, and the interaction between genotype and feed system on dry matter intake, milk production, body weight, body condition score, and different definitions of feed efficiency were studied using mixed models with factorial arrangements of genotypes and feed systems accounting for the repeated cow records across years. No significant genotype-by-feed-system interactions were observed for any of the variables measured. Results showed that aggressive selection using the Irish Economic Breeding Index had no effect on dry matter intake across lactation when managed on intensive pasture-based systems of milk production, although the ranking of genotypes for feed efficiency differed depending on the definition of feed efficiency used. Performance of animals grouped on alternative definitions of feed efficiency showed that conventional definitions such as feed conversion efficiency or residual feed intake may be inappropriate measures of efficiency for lactating dairy cows. An alternative definition, residual solids production, is proposed. This definition of feed efficiency identifies animals that produce greater volumes of milk solids at similar levels of feed intake without excessive body tissue mobilization and with improved fertility performance. The results also suggest that although there are differences in feed efficiency between strains of Holstein-Friesian, there is also variation within genotypes so that improvements in feed efficiency can be realized if the appropriate definition of feed efficiency is incorporated into breeding programs. Copyright (c) 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A data envelope analysis to assess factors affecting technical and economic efficiency of individual broiler breeder hens.

PubMed

Romero, L F; Zuidhof, M J; Jeffrey, S R; Naeima, A; Renema, R A; Robinson, F E

2010-08-01

This study evaluated the effect of feed allocation and energetic efficiency on technical and economic efficiency of broiler breeder hens using the data envelope analysis methodology and quantified the effect of variables affecting technical efficiency. A total of 288 Ross 708 pullets were placed in individual cages at 16 wk of age and assigned to 1 of 4 feed allocation groups. Three of them had feed allocated on a group basis with divergent BW targets: standard, high (standard x 1.1), and low (standard x 0.9). The fourth group had feed allocated on an individual bird basis following the standard BW target. Birds were classified in 3 energetic efficiency categories: low, average, and high, based on estimated maintenance requirements. Technical efficiency considered saleable chicks as output and cumulative ME intake and time as inputs. Economic efficiency of feed allocation treatments was analyzed under different cost scenarios. Birds with low feed allocation exhibited a lower technical efficiency (69.4%) than standard (72.1%), which reflected a reduced egg production rate. Feed allocation of the high treatment could have been reduced by 10% with the same chick production as the standard treatment. The low treatment exhibited reduced economic efficiency at greater capital costs, whereas high had reduced economic efficiency at greater feed costs. The average energetic efficiency hens had a lower technical efficiency in the low compared with the standard feed allocation. A 1% increment in estimated maintenance requirement changed technical efficiency by -0.23%, whereas a 1% increment in ME intake had a -0.47% effect. The negative relationship between technical efficiency and ME intake was counterbalanced by a positive correlation of ME intake and egg production. The negative relationship of technical efficiency and maintenance requirements was synergized by a negative correlation of hen maintenance and egg production. Economic efficiency methodologies are effective tools to assess the economic effect of selection and flock management programs because biological, allocative, and economic factors can be independently analyzed.

Research on the industry environmental total factor productivity in Jiangsu Province based on the SBM-SML

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lingfang, Sun; Han, Wang; Jian, Gong

2017-03-01

This paper uses the SBM-SML to measure the industry environmental total factor productivity in Jiangsu province of its 13 cities during 2005-2014 with SO2 emissions as the undesirable output, and discomposes the total factor productivity into the pure technical efficiency, the scale efficiency change, the pure technical change and the scale technical change. The research shows that the overall trend of the industry environmental total factor productivity is increasing in Jiangsu province during 2005-2014, the technical change is a main reason pushing up growth rates of economy, and the pure technical change is the intrinsic motivation of the technical change.Introduction.

Enhanced d-lactic acid production by recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae following optimization of the global metabolic pathway.

PubMed

Yamada, Ryosuke; Wakita, Kazuki; Mitsui, Ryosuke; Ogino, Hiroyasu

2017-09-01

Utilization of renewable feedstocks for the production of bio-based chemicals such as d-lactic acid by engineering metabolic pathways in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has recently become an attractive option. In this study, to realize efficient d-lactic acid production by S. cerevisiae, the expression of 12 glycolysis-related genes and the Leuconostoc mesenteroides d-LDH gene was optimized using a previously developed global metabolic engineering strategy, and repeated batch fermentation was carried out using the resultant strain YPH499/dPdA3-34/DLDH/1-18. Stable d-lactic acid production through 10 repeated batch fermentations was achieved using YPH499/dPdA3-34/DLDH/1-18. The average d-lactic acid production, productivity, and yield with 10 repeated batch fermentations were 60.3 g/L, 2.80 g/L/h, and 0.646, respectively. The present study is the first report of the application of a global metabolic engineering strategy for bio-based chemical production, and it shows the potential for efficient production of such chemicals by global metabolic engineering of the yeast S. cerevisiae. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 2075-2084. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Using a Web-Based System to Estimate the Cost of Online Course Production

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gordon, Stuart; He, Wu; Abdous, M'hammed

2009-01-01

The increasing demand for online courses requires efficient and low cost production. Since the decision to develop online courses is often affected by financial factors, it is becoming increasingly important to determine, upfront, the cost of online course production. Many of the programs and educators interested in developing online courses…

Traditional versus rule-based programming techniques - Application to the control of optional flight information

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ricks, Wendell R.; Abbott, Kathy H.

1987-01-01

A traditional programming technique for controlling the display of optional flight information in a civil transport cockpit is compared to a rule-based technique for the same function. This application required complex decision logic and a frequently modified rule base. The techniques are evaluated for execution efficiency and implementation ease; the criterion used to calculate the execution efficiency is the total number of steps required to isolate hypotheses that were true and the criteria used to evaluate the implementability are ease of modification and verification and explanation capability. It is observed that the traditional program is more efficient than the rule-based program; however, the rule-based programming technique is more applicable for improving programmer productivity.

Highly efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic hydrogen production of CdS-cluster-decorated graphene nanosheets.

PubMed

Li, Qin; Guo, Beidou; Yu, Jiaguo; Ran, Jingrun; Zhang, Baohong; Yan, Huijuan; Gong, Jian Ru

2011-07-20

The production of clean and renewable hydrogen through water splitting using photocatalysts has received much attention due to the increasing global energy crises. In this study, a high efficiency of the photocatalytic H(2) production was achieved using graphene nanosheets decorated with CdS clusters as visible-light-driven photocatalysts. The materials were prepared by a solvothermal method in which graphene oxide (GO) served as the support and cadmium acetate (Cd(Ac)(2)) as the CdS precursor. These nanosized composites reach a high H(2)-production rate of 1.12 mmol h(-1) (about 4.87 times higher than that of pure CdS nanoparticles) at graphene content of 1.0 wt % and Pt 0.5 wt % under visible-light irradiation and an apparent quantum efficiency (QE) of 22.5% at wavelength of 420 nm. This high photocatalytic H(2)-production activity is attributed predominantly to the presence of graphene, which serves as an electron collector and transporter to efficiently lengthen the lifetime of the photogenerated charge carriers from CdS nanoparticles. This work highlights the potential application of graphene-based materials in the field of energy conversion.

Sodium Hydroxide Pretreatment of Switchgrass for Ethanol Production

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Lignocellulose-to-ethanol conversion is a promising technology to supplement corn-based ethanol production. However, the recalcitrant structure of lignocellulosic material is a major obstacle to the efficient conversion. To improve the enzymatic digestibility of switchgrass for the fermentable sugar...

Sustainable Life Cycles of Natural-Precursor-Derived Nanocarbons.

PubMed

Bazaka, Kateryna; Jacob, Mohan V; Ostrikov, Kostya Ken

2016-01-13

Sustainable societal and economic development relies on novel nanotechnologies that offer maximum efficiency at minimal environmental cost. Yet, it is very challenging to apply green chemistry approaches across the entire life cycle of nanotech products, from design and nanomaterial synthesis to utilization and disposal. Recently, novel, efficient methods based on nonequilibrium reactive plasma chemistries that minimize the process steps and dramatically reduce the use of expensive and hazardous reagents have been applied to low-cost natural and waste sources to produce value-added nanomaterials with a wide range of applications. This review discusses the distinctive effects of nonequilibrium reactive chemistries and how these effects can aid and advance the integration of sustainable chemistry into each stage of nanotech product life. Examples of the use of enabling plasma-based technologies in sustainable production and degradation of nanotech products are discussed-from selection of precursors derived from natural resources and their conversion into functional building units, to methods for green synthesis of useful naturally degradable carbon-based nanomaterials, to device operation and eventual disintegration into naturally degradable yet potentially reusable byproducts.

Reliability based design optimization: Formulations and methodologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agarwal, Harish

Modern products ranging from simple components to complex systems should be designed to be optimal and reliable. The challenge of modern engineering is to ensure that manufacturing costs are reduced and design cycle times are minimized while achieving requirements for performance and reliability. If the market for the product is competitive, improved quality and reliability can generate very strong competitive advantages. Simulation based design plays an important role in designing almost any kind of automotive, aerospace, and consumer products under these competitive conditions. Single discipline simulations used for analysis are being coupled together to create complex coupled simulation tools. This investigation focuses on the development of efficient and robust methodologies for reliability based design optimization in a simulation based design environment. Original contributions of this research are the development of a novel efficient and robust unilevel methodology for reliability based design optimization, the development of an innovative decoupled reliability based design optimization methodology, the application of homotopy techniques in unilevel reliability based design optimization methodology, and the development of a new framework for reliability based design optimization under epistemic uncertainty. The unilevel methodology for reliability based design optimization is shown to be mathematically equivalent to the traditional nested formulation. Numerical test problems show that the unilevel methodology can reduce computational cost by at least 50% as compared to the nested approach. The decoupled reliability based design optimization methodology is an approximate technique to obtain consistent reliable designs at lesser computational expense. Test problems show that the methodology is computationally efficient compared to the nested approach. A framework for performing reliability based design optimization under epistemic uncertainty is also developed. A trust region managed sequential approximate optimization methodology is employed for this purpose. Results from numerical test studies indicate that the methodology can be used for performing design optimization under severe uncertainty.

The Path to Savings: Understanding the Federal Purchase of Energy-Consuming Products

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Taylor, Margaret; Fujita, K. Sydny

Energy efficiency has been a federal procurement policy objective since at least 1992, with the origin of the Energy Efficient Product Procurement (EEPP) program within the larger Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP). Today, the EEPP program’s mandate is based on requirements that 95% of new contract actions, task orders, and delivery orders for products and services be energy and water efficient, as laid out in Executive Order 13514 in 2009. Facilitating full compliance with EO 13514 presents a significant strategic planning challenge to the FEMP EEPP program, given the size of the federal government, the range of missions of itsmore » many agencies, the mix of management approaches for its buildings, and the diverse set of roughly 80 energy efficient products which has been established through preceding legislation and executive orders. The goal of this report is to aid the program in prioritizing its resources by providing an overview of how the purchase of energy-consuming products occurs in today’s evolving federal procurement system, as well as identify likely intervention points and compliance review mechanisms. Through a synthesis of the literature on U.S. federal sector procurement and two dozen primary interviews, the report particularly focuses on the importance of price in determining the actor(s) responsible for any given purchase of an energy-consuming product. This identification is important, as the relevant actors are trained and reviewed in different ways that the FEMP EEPP program can prioritize for targeting, based on the decision criteria such as the potential energy savings associated with the actor’s purchases or the administrative ease of the intervention.« less

Marinopyrroles: Unique Drug Discoveries Based on Marine Natural Products.

PubMed

Li, Rongshi

2016-01-01

Natural products provide a successful supply of new chemical entities (NCEs) for drug discovery to treat human diseases. Approximately half of the NCEs are based on natural products and their derivatives. Notably, marine natural products, a largely untapped resource, have contributed to drug discovery and development with eight drugs or cosmeceuticals approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency, and ten candidates undergoing clinical trials. Collaborative efforts from drug developers, biologists, organic, medicinal, and natural product chemists have elevated drug discoveries to new levels. These efforts are expected to continue to improve the efficiency of natural product-based drugs. Marinopyrroles are examined here as a case study for potential anticancer and antibiotic agents. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

An experimental strategy validated to design cost-effective culture media based on response surface methodology.

PubMed

Navarrete-Bolaños, J L; Téllez-Martínez, M G; Miranda-López, R; Jiménez-Islas, H

2017-07-03

For any fermentation process, the production cost depends on several factors, such as the genetics of the microorganism, the process condition, and the culture medium composition. In this work, a guideline for the design of cost-efficient culture media using a sequential approach based on response surface methodology is described. The procedure was applied to analyze and optimize a culture medium of registered trademark and a base culture medium obtained as a result of the screening analysis from different culture media used to grow the same strain according to the literature. During the experiments, the procedure quantitatively identified an appropriate array of micronutrients to obtain a significant yield and find a minimum number of culture medium ingredients without limiting the process efficiency. The resultant culture medium showed an efficiency that compares favorably with the registered trademark medium at a 95% lower cost as well as reduced the number of ingredients in the base culture medium by 60% without limiting the process efficiency. These results demonstrated that, aside from satisfying the qualitative requirements, an optimum quantity of each constituent is needed to obtain a cost-effective culture medium. Study process variables for optimized culture medium and scaling-up production for the optimal values are desirable.

Monitoring Crop Productivity over the U.S. Corn Belt using an Improved Light Use Efficiency Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, X.; Xiao, X.; Zhang, Y.; Qin, Y.; Doughty, R.

2017-12-01

Large-scale monitoring of crop yield is of great significance for forecasting food production and prices and ensuring food security. Satellite data that provide temporally and spatially continuous information that by themselves or in combination with other data or models, raises possibilities to monitor and understand agricultural productivity regionally. In this study, we first used an improved light use efficiency model-Vegetation Photosynthesis Model (VPM) to simulate the gross primary production (GPP). Model evaluation showed that the simulated GPP (GPPVPM) could well captured the spatio-temporal variation of GPP derived from FLUXNET sites. Then we applied the GPPVPM to further monitor crop productivity for corn and soybean over the U.S. Corn Belt and benchmarked with county-level crop yield statistics. We found VPM-based approach provides pretty good estimates (R2 = 0.88, slope = 1.03). We further showed the impacts of climate extremes on the crop productivity and carbon use efficiency. The study indicates the great potential of VPM in estimating crop yield and in understanding of crop yield responses to climate variability and change.

Catalytic Enantioselective Olefin Metathesis in Natural Product Synthesis. Chiral Metal-Based Complexes that Deliver High Enantioselectivity and More

PubMed Central

Malcolmson, Steven J.; Meek, Simon J.; Zhugralin, Adil R.

2012-01-01

Chiral olefin metathesis catalysts enable chemists to access enantiomerically enriched small molecules with high efficiency; synthesis schemes involving such complexes can be substantially more concise than those that would involve enantiomerically pure substrates and achiral Mo alkylidenes or Ru-based carbenes. The scope of research towards design and development of chiral catalysts is not limited to discovery of complexes that are merely the chiral versions of the related achiral variants. A chiral olefin metathesis catalyst, in addition to furnishing products of high enantiomeric purity, can offer levels of efficiency, product selectivity and/or olefin stereoselectivity that are unavailable through the achiral variants. Such positive attributes of chiral catalysts (whether utilized in racemic or enantiomerically enriched form) should be considered as general, applicable to other classes of transformations. PMID:19967680

Efficiency measurement and the operationalization of hospital production.

PubMed

Magnussen, J

1996-04-01

To discuss the usefulness of efficiency measures as instruments of monitoring and resource allocation by analyzing their invariance to changes in the operationalization of hospital production. Norwegian hospitals over the three-year period 1989-1991. Efficiency is measured using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The distribution of efficiency and the ranking of hospitals is compared across models using various distribution-free tests. Input and output data are collected by the Norwegian Central Bureau of Statistics. The distribution of efficiency is found to be unaffected by changes in the specification of hospital output. Both the ranking of hospitals and the scale properties of the technology, however, are found to depend on the choice of output specification. Extreme care should be taken before resource allocation is based on DEA-type efficiency measures alone. Both the identification of efficient and inefficient hospitals and the cardinal measure of inefficiency will depend on the specification of output. Since the scale properties of the technology also vary with the specification of output, the search for an optimal hospital size may be futile.

Electrical power production from low-grade waste heat using a thermally regenerative ethylenediamine battery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahimi, Mohammad; D'Angelo, Adriana; Gorski, Christopher A.; Scialdone, Onofrio; Logan, Bruce E.

2017-05-01

Thermally regenerative ammonia-based batteries (TRABs) have been developed to harvest low-grade waste heat as electricity. To improve the power production and anodic coulombic efficiency, the use of ethylenediamine as an alternative ligand to ammonia was explored here. The power density of the ethylenediamine-based battery (TRENB) was 85 ± 3 W m-2-electrode area with 2 M ethylenediamine, and 119 ± 4 W m-2 with 3 M ethylenediamine. This power density was 68% higher than that of TRAB. The energy density was 478 Wh m-3-anolyte, which was ∼50% higher than that produced by TRAB. The anodic coulombic efficiency of the TRENB was 77 ± 2%, which was more than twice that obtained using ammonia in a TRAB (35%). The higher anodic efficiency reduced the difference between the anode dissolution and cathode deposition rates, resulting in a process more suitable for closed loop operation. The thermal-electric efficiency based on ethylenediamine separation using waste heat was estimated to be 0.52%, which was lower than that of TRAB (0.86%), mainly due to the more complex separation process. However, this energy recovery could likely be improved through optimization of the ethylenediamine separation process.

Translation elicits a growth rate-dependent, genome-wide, differential protein production in Bacillus subtilis.

PubMed

Borkowski, Olivier; Goelzer, Anne; Schaffer, Marc; Calabre, Magali; Mäder, Ulrike; Aymerich, Stéphane; Jules, Matthieu; Fromion, Vincent

2016-05-17

Complex regulatory programs control cell adaptation to environmental changes by setting condition-specific proteomes. In balanced growth, bacterial protein abundances depend on the dilution rate, transcript abundances and transcript-specific translation efficiencies. We revisited the current theory claiming the invariance of bacterial translation efficiency. By integrating genome-wide transcriptome datasets and datasets from a library of synthetic gfp-reporter fusions, we demonstrated that translation efficiencies in Bacillus subtilis decreased up to fourfold from slow to fast growth. The translation initiation regions elicited a growth rate-dependent, differential production of proteins without regulators, hence revealing a unique, hard-coded, growth rate-dependent mode of regulation. We combined model-based data analyses of transcript and protein abundances genome-wide and revealed that this global regulation is extensively used in B. subtilis We eventually developed a knowledge-based, three-step translation initiation model, experimentally challenged the model predictions and proposed that a growth rate-dependent drop in free ribosome abundance accounted for the differential protein production. © 2016 The Authors. Published under the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license.

A web-based system for supporting global land cover data production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Gang; Chen, Jun; He, Chaoying; Li, Songnian; Wu, Hao; Liao, Anping; Peng, Shu

2015-05-01

Global land cover (GLC) data production and verification process is very complicated, time consuming and labor intensive, requiring huge amount of imagery data and ancillary data and involving many people, often from different geographic locations. The efficient integration of various kinds of ancillary data and effective collaborative classification in large area land cover mapping requires advanced supporting tools. This paper presents the design and development of a web-based system for supporting 30-m resolution GLC data production by combining geo-spatial web-service and Computer Support Collaborative Work (CSCW) technology. Based on the analysis of the functional and non-functional requirements from GLC mapping, a three tiers system model is proposed with four major parts, i.e., multisource data resources, data and function services, interactive mapping and production management. The prototyping and implementation of the system have been realised by a combination of Open Source Software (OSS) and commercially available off-the-shelf system. This web-based system not only facilitates the integration of heterogeneous data and services required by GLC data production, but also provides online access, visualization and analysis of the images, ancillary data and interim 30 m global land-cover maps. The system further supports online collaborative quality check and verification workflows. It has been successfully applied to China's 30-m resolution GLC mapping project, and has improved significantly the efficiency of GLC data production and verification. The concepts developed through this study should also benefit other GLC or regional land-cover data production efforts.

Assessment of end-of-life design in solid-state lighting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dzombak, Rachel; Padon, Jack; Salsbury, Josh; Dillon, Heather

2017-08-01

Consumers in the US market and across the globe are beginning to widely adopt light emitting diode (LED) lighting products while the technology continues to undergo significant changes. While LED products are evolving to consume less energy, they are also more complex than traditional lighting products with a higher number of parts and a larger number of electronic components. Enthusiasm around the efficiency and long expected life span of LED lighting products is valid, but research to optimize product characteristics and design is needed. This study seeks to address that gap by characterizing LED lighting products' suitability for end of life (EOL) recycling and disposal. The authors disassembled and assessed 17 different lighting products to understand how designs differ between brands and manufacture year. Products were evaluated based on six parameters to quantify the design. The analysis indicates that while the efficiency of LED products has improved dramatically in the recent past, product designers and manufacturers could incorporate design strategies to improve environmental performance of lighting products at end-of-life.

Method for detecting binding efficiencies of synthetic oligonucleotides: Targeting bacteria and insects

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Expanding applications of gene-based targeting biotechnology in functional genomics and the treatment of plants, animals, and microbes has synergized the need for new methods to measure binding efficiencies of these products to their genetic targets. The adaptation and innovative use of Cell–Penetra...

Polymer optical fiber compound parabolic concentrator tip for enhanced coupling efficiency for fluorescence based glucose sensors

PubMed Central

Hassan, Hafeez Ul; Nielsen, Kristian; Aasmul, Soren; Bang, Ole

2015-01-01

We demonstrate that the light excitation and capturing efficiency of fluorescence based fiber-optical sensors can be significantly increased by using a CPC (Compound Parabolic Concentrator) tip instead of the standard plane-cut tip. We use Zemax modelling to find the optimum CPC tip profile and fiber length of a polymer optical fiber diabetes sensor for continuous monitoring of glucose levels. We experimentally verify the improved performance of the CPC tipped sensor and the predicted production tolerances. Due to physical size requirements when the sensor has to be inserted into the body a non-optimal fiber length of 35 mm is chosen. For this length an average improvement in efficiency of a factor of 1.7 is experimentally demonstrated and critically compared to the predicted ideal factor of 3 in terms of parameters that should be improved through production optimization. PMID:26713213

Energy-efficient biomass processing with pulsed electric fields for bioeconomy and sustainable development.

PubMed

Golberg, Alexander; Sack, Martin; Teissie, Justin; Pataro, Gianpiero; Pliquett, Uwe; Saulis, Gintautas; Stefan, Töpfl; Miklavcic, Damijan; Vorobiev, Eugene; Frey, Wolfgang

2016-01-01

Fossil resources-free sustainable development can be achieved through a transition to bioeconomy, an economy based on sustainable biomass-derived food, feed, chemicals, materials, and fuels. However, the transition to bioeconomy requires development of new energy-efficient technologies and processes to manipulate biomass feed stocks and their conversion into useful products, a collective term for which is biorefinery. One of the technological platforms that will enable various pathways of biomass conversion is based on pulsed electric fields applications (PEF). Energy efficiency of PEF treatment is achieved by specific increase of cell membrane permeability, a phenomenon known as membrane electroporation. Here, we review the opportunities that PEF and electroporation provide for the development of sustainable biorefineries. We describe the use of PEF treatment in biomass engineering, drying, deconstruction, extraction of phytochemicals, improvement of fermentations, and biogas production. These applications show the potential of PEF and consequent membrane electroporation to enable the bioeconomy and sustainable development.

Highly efficient catalytic systems based on Pd-coated microbeads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Jin Hyun; Cho, Ahyoung; Lee, Seung Hwan; Park, Bumkyo; Kang, Dong Woo; Koo, Chong Min; Yu, Taekyung; Park, Bum Jun

2018-01-01

The efficiency of two prototype catalysis systems using palladium (Pd)-coated microparticles was investigated with regard to the recovery and recyclability of the catalytic particles. One such system was the interface-adsorption method, in which polymer particles coated with Pd nanoparticles strongly and irreversibly attach to the oil-water interface. Due to the irreversible adsorption of the catalytic particles to the interface, particle loss was completely prevented while mixing the aqueous solution and while collecting the products. The other system was based on the magnetic field-associated particle recovery method. The use of polymeric microparticles containing Pd nanoparticles and magnetite nanoparticles accelerated the sedimentation of the particles in the aqueous phase by applying a strong magnetic field, consequently suppressing drainage of the particles from the reactor along the product stream. Upon multiple runs of the catalytic reactions, it was found that conversion does not change significantly, demonstrating the excellent recyclability and performance efficiency in the catalytic processes.

Industrial Internet of Things-Based Collaborative Sensing Intelligence: Framework and Research Challenges.

PubMed

Chen, Yuanfang; Lee, Gyu Myoung; Shu, Lei; Crespi, Noel

2016-02-06

The development of an efficient and cost-effective solution to solve a complex problem (e.g., dynamic detection of toxic gases) is an important research issue in the industrial applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). An industrial intelligent ecosystem enables the collection of massive data from the various devices (e.g., sensor-embedded wireless devices) dynamically collaborating with humans. Effectively collaborative analytics based on the collected massive data from humans and devices is quite essential to improve the efficiency of industrial production/service. In this study, we propose a collaborative sensing intelligence (CSI) framework, combining collaborative intelligence and industrial sensing intelligence. The proposed CSI facilitates the cooperativity of analytics with integrating massive spatio-temporal data from different sources and time points. To deploy the CSI for achieving intelligent and efficient industrial production/service, the key challenges and open issues are discussed, as well.

Polymer optical fiber compound parabolic concentrator tip for enhanced coupling efficiency for fluorescence based glucose sensors.

PubMed

Hassan, Hafeez Ul; Nielsen, Kristian; Aasmul, Soren; Bang, Ole

2015-12-01

We demonstrate that the light excitation and capturing efficiency of fluorescence based fiber-optical sensors can be significantly increased by using a CPC (Compound Parabolic Concentrator) tip instead of the standard plane-cut tip. We use Zemax modelling to find the optimum CPC tip profile and fiber length of a polymer optical fiber diabetes sensor for continuous monitoring of glucose levels. We experimentally verify the improved performance of the CPC tipped sensor and the predicted production tolerances. Due to physical size requirements when the sensor has to be inserted into the body a non-optimal fiber length of 35 mm is chosen. For this length an average improvement in efficiency of a factor of 1.7 is experimentally demonstrated and critically compared to the predicted ideal factor of 3 in terms of parameters that should be improved through production optimization.

Industrial Internet of Things-Based Collaborative Sensing Intelligence: Framework and Research Challenges

PubMed Central

Chen, Yuanfang; Lee, Gyu Myoung; Shu, Lei; Crespi, Noel

2016-01-01

The development of an efficient and cost-effective solution to solve a complex problem (e.g., dynamic detection of toxic gases) is an important research issue in the industrial applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). An industrial intelligent ecosystem enables the collection of massive data from the various devices (e.g., sensor-embedded wireless devices) dynamically collaborating with humans. Effectively collaborative analytics based on the collected massive data from humans and devices is quite essential to improve the efficiency of industrial production/service. In this study, we propose a collaborative sensing intelligence (CSI) framework, combining collaborative intelligence and industrial sensing intelligence. The proposed CSI facilitates the cooperativity of analytics with integrating massive spatio-temporal data from different sources and time points. To deploy the CSI for achieving intelligent and efficient industrial production/service, the key challenges and open issues are discussed, as well. PMID:26861345

Global patterns and climate drivers of water-use efficiency in terrestrial ecosystems deduced from satellite-based datasets and carbon cycle models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sun, Yan; Piao, Shilong; Huang, Mengtian

Our aim is to investigate how ecosystem water-use efficiency (WUE) varies spatially under different climate conditions, and how spatial variations in WUE differ from those of transpiration-based water-use efficiency (WUE t) and transpiration-based inherent water-use efficiency (IWUE t). LocationGlobal terrestrial ecosystems. We investigated spatial patterns of WUE using two datasets of gross primary productivity (GPP) and evapotranspiration (ET) and four biosphere model estimates of GPP and ET. Spatial relationships between WUE and climate variables were further explored through regression analyses. Global WUE estimated by two satellite-based datasets is 1.9 ± 0.1 and 1.8 ± 0.6g C m -2mm -1 lowermore » than the simulations from four process-based models (2.0 ± 0.3g C m -2mm -1) but comparable within the uncertainty of both approaches. In both satellite-based datasets and process models, precipitation is more strongly associated with spatial gradients of WUE for temperate and tropical regions, but temperature dominates north of 50 degrees N. WUE also increases with increasing solar radiation at high latitudes. The values of WUE from datasets and process-based models are systematically higher in wet regions (with higher GPP) than in dry regions. WUE t shows a lower precipitation sensitivity than WUE, which is contrary to leaf- and plant-level observations. IWUE t, the product of WUE t and water vapour deficit, is found to be rather conservative with spatially increasing precipitation, in agreement with leaf- and plant-level measurements. In conclusion, WUE, WUE t and IWUE t produce different spatial relationships with climate variables. In dry ecosystems, water losses from evaporation from bare soil, uncorrelated with productivity, tend to make WUE lower than in wetter regions. Yet canopy conductance is intrinsically efficient in those ecosystems and maintains a higher IWUEt. This suggests that the responses of each component flux of evapotranspiration should be analysed separately when investigating regional gradients in WUE, its temporal variability and its trends.« less

Global patterns and climate drivers of water-use efficiency in terrestrial ecosystems deduced from satellite-based datasets and carbon cycle models

DOE PAGES

Sun, Yan; Piao, Shilong; Huang, Mengtian; ...

2015-12-23

Our aim is to investigate how ecosystem water-use efficiency (WUE) varies spatially under different climate conditions, and how spatial variations in WUE differ from those of transpiration-based water-use efficiency (WUE t) and transpiration-based inherent water-use efficiency (IWUE t). LocationGlobal terrestrial ecosystems. We investigated spatial patterns of WUE using two datasets of gross primary productivity (GPP) and evapotranspiration (ET) and four biosphere model estimates of GPP and ET. Spatial relationships between WUE and climate variables were further explored through regression analyses. Global WUE estimated by two satellite-based datasets is 1.9 ± 0.1 and 1.8 ± 0.6g C m -2mm -1 lowermore » than the simulations from four process-based models (2.0 ± 0.3g C m -2mm -1) but comparable within the uncertainty of both approaches. In both satellite-based datasets and process models, precipitation is more strongly associated with spatial gradients of WUE for temperate and tropical regions, but temperature dominates north of 50 degrees N. WUE also increases with increasing solar radiation at high latitudes. The values of WUE from datasets and process-based models are systematically higher in wet regions (with higher GPP) than in dry regions. WUE t shows a lower precipitation sensitivity than WUE, which is contrary to leaf- and plant-level observations. IWUE t, the product of WUE t and water vapour deficit, is found to be rather conservative with spatially increasing precipitation, in agreement with leaf- and plant-level measurements. In conclusion, WUE, WUE t and IWUE t produce different spatial relationships with climate variables. In dry ecosystems, water losses from evaporation from bare soil, uncorrelated with productivity, tend to make WUE lower than in wetter regions. Yet canopy conductance is intrinsically efficient in those ecosystems and maintains a higher IWUEt. This suggests that the responses of each component flux of evapotranspiration should be analysed separately when investigating regional gradients in WUE, its temporal variability and its trends.« less

A performance assessment method for hospitals: the case of municipal hospitals in Angola.

PubMed

Kirigia, Joses M; Emrouznejad, Ali; Cassoma, Basilio; Asbu, Eyob Zere; Barry, Saidou

2008-12-01

Over 60% of the recurrent budget of the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Angola is spent on the operations of the fixed health care facilities (health centres plus hospitals). However, to date, no study has been attempted to investigate how efficiently those resources are used to produce health services. Therefore the objectives of this study were to assess the technical efficiency of public municipal hospitals in Angola; assess changes in productivity over time with a view to analyzing changes in efficiency and technology; and demonstrate how the results can be used in the pursuit of the public health objective of promoting efficiency in the use of health resources. The analysis was based on a 3-year panel data from all the 28 public municipal hospitals in Angola Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), a non-parametric linear programming approach, was employed to assess the technical and scale efficiency and productivity change over time using Malmquist index. The results show that on average, productivity of municipal hospitals in Angola increased by 4.5% over the period 2000-2002; that growth was due to improvements in efficiency rather than innovation.

A simple model-based control for Pichia pastoris allows a more efficient heterologous protein production bioprocess.

PubMed

Cos, Oriol; Ramon, Ramon; Montesinos, José Luis; Valero, Francisco

2006-09-05

A predictive control algorithm coupled with a PI feedback controller has been satisfactorily implemented in the heterologous Rhizopus oryzae lipase production by Pichia pastoris methanol utilization slow (Mut(s)) phenotype. This control algorithm has allowed the study of the effect of methanol concentration, ranging from 0.5 to 1.75 g/L, on heterologous protein production. The maximal lipolytic activity (490 UA/mL), specific yield (11,236 UA/g(biomass)), productivity (4,901 UA/L . h), and specific productivity (112 UA/g(biomass)h were reached for a methanol concentration of 1 g/L. These parameters are almost double than those obtained with a manual control at a similar methanol set-point. The study of the specific growth, consumption, and production rates showed different patterns for these rates depending on the methanol concentration set-point. Results obtained have shown the need of implementing a robust control scheme when reproducible quality and productivity are sought. It has been demonstrated that the model-based control proposed here is a very efficient, robust, and easy-to-implement strategy from an industrial application point of view. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Highly Efficient Coherent Optical Memory Based on Electromagnetically Induced Transparency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsiao, Ya-Fen; Tsai, Pin-Ju; Chen, Hung-Shiue; Lin, Sheng-Xiang; Hung, Chih-Chiao; Lee, Chih-Hsi; Chen, Yi-Hsin; Chen, Yong-Fan; Yu, Ite A.; Chen, Ying-Cheng

2018-05-01

Quantum memory is an important component in the long-distance quantum communication based on the quantum repeater protocol. To outperform the direct transmission of photons with quantum repeaters, it is crucial to develop quantum memories with high fidelity, high efficiency and a long storage time. Here, we achieve a storage efficiency of 92.0 (1.5)% for a coherent optical memory based on the electromagnetically induced transparency scheme in optically dense cold atomic media. We also obtain a useful time-bandwidth product of 1200, considering only storage where the retrieval efficiency remains above 50%. Both are the best record to date in all kinds of schemes for the realization of optical memory. Our work significantly advances the pursuit of a high-performance optical memory and should have important applications in quantum information science.

Highly Efficient Coherent Optical Memory Based on Electromagnetically Induced Transparency.

PubMed

Hsiao, Ya-Fen; Tsai, Pin-Ju; Chen, Hung-Shiue; Lin, Sheng-Xiang; Hung, Chih-Chiao; Lee, Chih-Hsi; Chen, Yi-Hsin; Chen, Yong-Fan; Yu, Ite A; Chen, Ying-Cheng

2018-05-04

Quantum memory is an important component in the long-distance quantum communication based on the quantum repeater protocol. To outperform the direct transmission of photons with quantum repeaters, it is crucial to develop quantum memories with high fidelity, high efficiency and a long storage time. Here, we achieve a storage efficiency of 92.0 (1.5)% for a coherent optical memory based on the electromagnetically induced transparency scheme in optically dense cold atomic media. We also obtain a useful time-bandwidth product of 1200, considering only storage where the retrieval efficiency remains above 50%. Both are the best record to date in all kinds of schemes for the realization of optical memory. Our work significantly advances the pursuit of a high-performance optical memory and should have important applications in quantum information science.

Culture time of vitrified/warmed zygotes before microinjection affects the production efficiency of CRISPR-Cas9-mediated knock-in mice.

PubMed

Nakagawa, Yoshiko; Sakuma, Tetsushi; Nishimichi, Norihisa; Yokosaki, Yasuyuki; Takeo, Toru; Nakagata, Naomi; Yamamoto, Takashi

2017-05-15

Robust reproductive engineering techniques are required for the efficient and rapid production of genetically modified mice. We have reported the efficient production of genome-edited mice using reproductive engineering techniques, such as ultra-superovulation, in vitro fertilization (IVF) and vitrification/warming of zygotes. We usually use vitrified/warmed fertilized oocytes created by IVF for microinjection because of work efficiency and flexible scheduling. Here, we investigated whether the culture time of zygotes before microinjection influences the efficiency of producing knock-in mice. Knock-in mice were generated using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system and single-stranded oligodeoxynucleotide (ssODN) or PITCh (Precise Integration into Target Chromosome) system, a method of integrating a donor vector assisted by microhomology-mediated end-joining. The cryopreserved fertilized oocytes were warmed, cultured for several hours and microinjected at different timings. Microinjection was performed with Cas9 protein, guide RNA(s), and an ssODN or PITCh donor plasmid for the ssODN knock-in and the PITCh knock-in, respectively. Different production efficiencies of knock-in mice were observed by changing the timing of microinjection. Our study provides useful information for the CRISPR-Cas9-based generation of knock-in mice. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Rational engineering of p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase to enable efficient gallic acid synthesis via a novel artificial biosynthetic pathway.

PubMed

Chen, Zhenya; Shen, Xiaolin; Wang, Jian; Wang, Jia; Yuan, Qipeng; Yan, Yajun

2017-11-01

Gallic acid (GA) is a naturally occurring phytochemical that has strong antioxidant and antibacterial activities. It is also used as a potential platform chemical for the synthesis of diverse high-value compounds. Hydrolytic degradation of tannins by acids, bases or microorganisms serves as a major way for GA production, which however, might cause environmental pollution and low yield and efficiency. Here, we report a novel approach for efficient microbial production of GA. First, structure-based rational engineering of PobA, a p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, generated a new mutant, Y385F/T294A PobA, which displayed much higher activity toward 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (3,4-DHBA) than the wild-type and any other reported mutants. Remarkably, expression of this mutant in Escherichia coli enabled generation of 1149.59 mg/L GA from 1000 mg/L 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (4-HBA), representing a 93% molar conversion ratio. Based on that, we designed and reconstituted a novel artificial biosynthetic pathway of GA and achieved 440.53 mg/L GA production from simple carbon sources in E. coli. Further enhancement of precursor supply through reinforcing shikimate pathway was able to improve GA de novo production to 1266.39 mg/L in shake flasks. Overall, this study not only led to the development of a highly active PobA variant for hydroxylating 3,4-DHBA into GA via structure-based protein engineering approach, but also demonstrated a promising pathway for bio-based manufacturing of GA and its derived compounds. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 2571-2580. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Technical efficiency of selected hospitals in Eastern Ethiopia.

PubMed

Ali, Murad; Debela, Megersa; Bamud, Tewfik

2017-12-01

This study examines the relative technical efficiency of 12 hospitals in Eastern Ethiopia. Using six-year-round panel data for the period between 2007/08 and 2012/13, this study examines the technical efficiency, total factor productivity, and determinants of the technical inefficiency of hospitals. Data envelopment analysis (DEA) and DEA- based Malmquist productivity index used to estimate relative technical efficiency, scale efficiency, and total factor productivity index of hospitals. Tobit model used to examine the determinants of the technical inefficiency of hospitals. The DEA Variable Returns to Scale (VRS) estimate indicated that 6 (50%), 5 (42%), 3 (25%), 3 (25%), 4 (33%), and 3 (25%) of the hospitals were technically inefficient while 9 (75%), 9 (75%), 7 (58%), 7 (58%), 7 (58%) and 8 (67%) of hospitals were scale inefficient between 2007/08 and 2012/13, respectively. On average, Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (MTFP) of the hospitals decreased by 3.6% over the panel period. The Tobit model shows that teaching hospital is less efficiency than other hospitals. The Tobit regression model further shows that medical doctor to total staff ratio, the proportion of outpatient visit to inpatient days, and the proportion of inpatients treated per medical doctor were negatively related with technical inefficiency of hospitals. Hence, policy interventions that help utilize excess capacity of hospitals, increase doctor to other staff ratio, and standardize number of inpatients treated per doctor would contribute to the improvement of the technical efficiency of hospitals.

The global anthropogenic gallium system: determinants of demand, supply and efficiency improvements.

PubMed

Løvik, Amund N; Restrepo, Eliette; Müller, Daniel B

2015-05-05

Gallium has been labeled as a critical metal due to rapidly growing consumption, importance for low-carbon technologies such as solid state lighting and photovoltaics, and being produced only as a byproduct of other metals (mainly aluminum). The global system of primary production, manufacturing, use and recycling has not yet been described or quantified in the literature. This prevents predictions of future demand, supply and possibilities for efficiency improvements on a system level. We present a description of the global anthropogenic gallium system and quantify the system using a combination of statistical data and technical parameters. We estimated that gallium was produced from 8 to 21% of alumina plants in 2011. The most important applications of gallium are NdFeB permanent magnets, integrated circuits and GaAs/GaP-based light-emitting diodes, demanding 22-37%, 16-27%, and 11-21% of primary metal production, respectively. GaN-based light-emitting diodes and photovoltaics are less important, both with 2-6%. We estimated that 120-170 tons, corresponding to 40-60% of primary production, ended up in production wastes that were either disposed of or stored. While demand for gallium is expected to rise in the future, our results indicated that it is possible to increase primary production substantially with conventional technology, as well as improve the system-wide material efficiency.

Improving the thermal efficiency of a jaggery production module using a fire-tube heat exchanger.

PubMed

La Madrid, Raul; Orbegoso, Elder Mendoza; Saavedra, Rafael; Marcelo, Daniel

2017-12-15

Jaggery is a product obtained after heating and evaporation processes have been applied to sugar cane juice via the addition of thermal energy, followed by the crystallisation process through mechanical agitation. At present, jaggery production uses furnaces and pans that are designed empirically based on trial and error procedures, which results in low ranges of thermal efficiency operation. To rectify these deficiencies, this study proposes the use of fire-tube pans to increase heat transfer from the flue gases to the sugar cane juice. With the aim of increasing the thermal efficiency of a jaggery installation, a computational fluid dynamic (CFD)-based model was used as a numerical tool to design a fire-tube pan that would replace the existing finned flat pan. For this purpose, the original configuration of the jaggery furnace was simulated via a pre-validated CFD model in order to calculate its current thermal performance. Then, the newly-designed fire-tube pan was virtually replaced in the jaggery furnace with the aim of numerically estimating the thermal performance at the same operating conditions. A comparison of both simulations highlighted the growth of the heat transfer rate at around 105% in the heating/evaporation processes when the fire-tube pan replaced the original finned flat pan. This enhancement impacted the jaggery production installation, whereby the thermal efficiency of the installation increased from 31.4% to 42.8%. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Redundancy and Reduction: Speakers Manage Syntactic Information Density

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jaeger, T. Florian

2010-01-01

A principle of efficient language production based on information theoretic considerations is proposed: Uniform Information Density predicts that language production is affected by a preference to distribute information uniformly across the linguistic signal. This prediction is tested against data from syntactic reduction. A single multilevel…

Understanding the cell-to-module efficiency gap in Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 photovoltaics scale-up

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bermudez, Veronica; Perez-Rodriguez, Alejandro

2018-06-01

Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 (CIGS) solar cells show record efficiencies comparable to those of crystalline Si-based technologies. Their industrial module production costs are also comparable to those of Si photovoltaics in spite of their much lower production volume. However, the competitiveness of CIGS is compromised by the difference in performance between cell and module scales, known as the cell-to-module efficiency gap, which is significantly higher than in competing industrial photovoltaic technologies. In this Review, we quantify the main cell-to-module efficiency loss mechanisms and discuss the various strategies explored in academia and industry to reduce the efficiency gap: new transparent conductive oxides, hybrid modularization approaches and the use of wide-bandgap solar absorbers in the 1.4-1.5 eV range. To implement these strategies, research gaps relating to various device layers need to be filled.

[Research on resources chemistry of Chinese medicinal materials and resources recycling utilization ways and goals and tasks].

PubMed

Duan, Jin-ao; Su, Shu-lan; Guo, Sheng; Jiang, Shu; Liu, Pei; Yan, Hui; Qian, Da-wei; Zhu, Hua-xu; Tang, Yu-ping; Wu, Qi-nan

2015-09-01

The objects of research on the resources chemistry of Chinese medicinal materials (RCCMM) are promotion of efficient production, rational utilization and improving quality of CMM and natural products. The development of TCM cause depends on the efficient utilization and sustainable development of CMM, hinges on the technologies and methods for using and discovering medicinal biological resources, stand or fall on the extension of industy chains, detailed utilizaion of resource chemical components by multi-way, multi-level. All of these may help to the recycling utilization and sound development of RCMM. In this article, five respects were discussed to the RCCMM researches and resources recycling utilization ways and goals and tasks. First, based on the principle of resource scarcity, discovering or replacing CMM resources, protecting the rare or endangered species or resources. Second, based on the multifunctionality of CMM, realizing the value-added and value compensation, and promoting the utilization efficiency through systermatic and detailed exploitation and utilization. Third, based on the resource conservation and environment-friendly, reducing raw material consumption, lowering cost, promoting recycling utilization and elevating utilization efficiency. Fourth, based on the stratege of turning harm into good, using the invasive alien biological resources by multi-ways and enriching the medicial resources. Fifth, based on the method of structure modification of chemical components, exploring and enhancing the utility value of resouces chemical substances. These data should provide references and attention for improving the utilization efficiency, promoting the development of recycling economy, and changing the mode of economic growth of agriculture and industry of CMM fundamentally.

Identifying Nonprovider Factors Affecting Pediatric Emergency Medicine Provider Efficiency.

PubMed

Saleh, Fareed; Breslin, Kristen; Mullan, Paul C; Tillett, Zachary; Chamberlain, James M

2017-10-31

The aim of this study was to create a multivariable model of standardized relative value units per hour by adjusting for nonprovider factors that influence efficiency. We obtained productivity data based on billing records measured in emergency relative value units for (1) both evaluation and management of visits and (2) procedures for 16 pediatric emergency medicine providers with more than 750 hours worked per year. Eligible shifts were in an urban, academic pediatric emergency department (ED) with 2 sites: a tertiary care main campus and a satellite community site. We used multivariable linear regression to adjust for the impact of shift and pediatric ED characteristics on individual-provider efficiency and then removed variables from the model with minimal effect on productivity. There were 2998 eligible shifts for the 16 providers during a 3-year period. The resulting model included 4 variables when looking at both ED sites combined. These variables include the following: (1) number of procedures billed by provider, (2) season of the year, (3) shift start time, and (4) day of week. Results were improved when we separately modeled each ED location. A 3-variable model using procedures billed by provider, shift start time, and season explained 23% of the variation in provider efficiency at the academic ED site. A 3-variable model using procedures billed by provider, patient arrivals per hour, and shift start time explained 45% of the variation in provider efficiency at the satellite ED site. Several nonprovider factors affect provider efficiency. These factors should be considered when designing productivity-based incentives.

Car painting process scheduling with harmony search algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syahputra, M. F.; Maiyasya, A.; Purnamawati, S.; Abdullah, D.; Albra, W.; Heikal, M.; Abdurrahman, A.; Khaddafi, M.

2018-02-01

Automotive painting program in the process of painting the car body by using robot power, making efficiency in the production system. Production system will be more efficient if pay attention to scheduling of car order which will be done by considering painting body shape of car. Flow shop scheduling is a scheduling model in which the job-job to be processed entirely flows in the same product direction / path. Scheduling problems often arise if there are n jobs to be processed on the machine, which must be specified which must be done first and how to allocate jobs on the machine to obtain a scheduled production process. Harmony Search Algorithm is a metaheuristic optimization algorithm based on music. The algorithm is inspired by observations that lead to music in search of perfect harmony. This musical harmony is in line to find optimal in the optimization process. Based on the tests that have been done, obtained the optimal car sequence with minimum makespan value.

Catalytic amino acid production from biomass-derived intermediates

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Deng, Weiping; Wang, Yunzhu; Zhang, Sui

Amino acids are the building blocks for protein biosynthesis and find use in myriad industrial applications including in food for humans, in animal feed, and as precursors for bio-based plastics, among others. However, the development of efficient chemical methods to convert abundant and renewable feedstocks into amino acids has been largely unsuccessful to date. To that end, here we report a heterogeneous catalyst that directly transforms lignocellulosic biomass-derived a-hydroxyl acids into a-amino acids, including alanine, leucine, valine, aspartic acid, and phenylalanine in high yields. The reaction follows a dehydrogenation-reductive amination pathway, with dehydrogenation as the rate-determining step. Ruthenium nanoparticles supportedmore » on carbon nanotubes (Ru/CNT) exhibit exceptional efficiency compared with catalysts based on other metals, due to the unique, reversible enhancement effect of NH 3 on Ru in dehydrogenation. Based on the catalytic system, a two-step chemical process was designed to convert glucose into alanine in 43% yield, comparable with the well-established microbial cultivation process, and therefore, the present strategy enables a route for the production of amino acids from renewable feedstocks. Moreover, a conceptual process design employing membrane distillation to facilitate product purification is proposed and validated. Overall, this study offers a rapid and potentially more efficient chemical method to produce amino acids from woody biomass components.« less

Catalytic amino acid production from biomass-derived intermediates

PubMed Central

Deng, Weiping; Zhang, Sui; Gupta, Krishna M.; Hülsey, Max J.; Asakura, Hiroyuki; Liu, Lingmei; Han, Yu; Karp, Eric M.; Jiang, Jianwen; Tanaka, Tsunehiro; Wang, Ye

2018-01-01

Amino acids are the building blocks for protein biosynthesis and find use in myriad industrial applications including in food for humans, in animal feed, and as precursors for bio-based plastics, among others. However, the development of efficient chemical methods to convert abundant and renewable feedstocks into amino acids has been largely unsuccessful to date. To that end, here we report a heterogeneous catalyst that directly transforms lignocellulosic biomass-derived α-hydroxyl acids into α-amino acids, including alanine, leucine, valine, aspartic acid, and phenylalanine in high yields. The reaction follows a dehydrogenation-reductive amination pathway, with dehydrogenation as the rate-determining step. Ruthenium nanoparticles supported on carbon nanotubes (Ru/CNT) exhibit exceptional efficiency compared with catalysts based on other metals, due to the unique, reversible enhancement effect of NH3 on Ru in dehydrogenation. Based on the catalytic system, a two-step chemical process was designed to convert glucose into alanine in 43% yield, comparable with the well-established microbial cultivation process, and therefore, the present strategy enables a route for the production of amino acids from renewable feedstocks. Moreover, a conceptual process design employing membrane distillation to facilitate product purification is proposed and validated. Overall, this study offers a rapid and potentially more efficient chemical method to produce amino acids from woody biomass components. PMID:29712826

Catalytic amino acid production from biomass-derived intermediates

DOE PAGES

Deng, Weiping; Wang, Yunzhu; Zhang, Sui; ...

2018-04-30

Amino acids are the building blocks for protein biosynthesis and find use in myriad industrial applications including in food for humans, in animal feed, and as precursors for bio-based plastics, among others. However, the development of efficient chemical methods to convert abundant and renewable feedstocks into amino acids has been largely unsuccessful to date. To that end, here we report a heterogeneous catalyst that directly transforms lignocellulosic biomass-derived a-hydroxyl acids into a-amino acids, including alanine, leucine, valine, aspartic acid, and phenylalanine in high yields. The reaction follows a dehydrogenation-reductive amination pathway, with dehydrogenation as the rate-determining step. Ruthenium nanoparticles supportedmore » on carbon nanotubes (Ru/CNT) exhibit exceptional efficiency compared with catalysts based on other metals, due to the unique, reversible enhancement effect of NH 3 on Ru in dehydrogenation. Based on the catalytic system, a two-step chemical process was designed to convert glucose into alanine in 43% yield, comparable with the well-established microbial cultivation process, and therefore, the present strategy enables a route for the production of amino acids from renewable feedstocks. Moreover, a conceptual process design employing membrane distillation to facilitate product purification is proposed and validated. Overall, this study offers a rapid and potentially more efficient chemical method to produce amino acids from woody biomass components.« less

Status of Solid State Lighting Product Development and Future Trends for General Illumination.

PubMed

Katona, Thomas M; Pattison, P Morgan; Paolini, Steve

2016-06-07

After decades of research and development on fabrication of efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs) throughout the visible spectrum, LED-based lighting has reached unparalleled performance with respect to energy efficiency and has become the light source for virtually all new lighting products being designed today. The development of the core light sources and their subsequent integration into lighting systems continue to present unique challenges and opportunities for product designers. We review these systems and the current development status, as well as provide context for the trends in solid state lighting that are leading to the development of value-added lighting solutions that extend the domain of lighting beyond light generation, into fields as diverse as communications, healthcare, and agricultural production.

A window-DEA based efficiency evaluation of the public hospital sector in Greece during the 5-year economic crisis

PubMed Central

Flokou, Angeliki; Aletras, Vassilis; Niakas, Dimitris

2017-01-01

The main objective of this study was to apply the non-parametric method of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to measure the efficiency of Greek NHS hospitals between 2009–2013. Hospitals were divided into four separate groups with common characteristics which allowed comparisons to be carried out in the context of increased homogeneity. The window-DEA method was chosen since it leads to increased discrimination on the results especially when applied to small samples and it enables year-by-year comparisons of the results. Three inputs -hospital beds, physicians and other health professionals- and three outputs—hospitalized cases, surgeries and outpatient visits- were chosen as production variables in an input-oriented 2-year window DEA model for the assessment of technical and scale efficiency as well as for the identification of returns to scale. The Malmquist productivity index together with its components (i.e. pure technical efficiency change, scale efficiency change and technological scale) were also calculated in order to analyze the sources of productivity change between the first and last year of the study period. In the context of window analysis, the study identified the individual efficiency trends together with “all-windows” best and worst performers and revealed that a high level of technical and scale efficiency was maintained over the entire 5-year period. Similarly, the relevant findings of Malmquist productivity index analysis showed that both scale and pure technical efficiency were improved in 2013 whilst technological change was found to be in favor of the two groups with the largest hospitals. PMID:28542362

Discovery and characterization of a highly efficient enantioselective mandelonitrile hydrolase from Burkholderia cenocepacia J2315 by phylogeny-based enzymatic substrate specificity prediction.

PubMed

Wang, Hualei; Sun, Huihui; Wei, Dongzhi

2013-02-18

A nitrilase-mediated pathway has significant advantages in the production of optically pure (R)-(-)-mandelic acid. However, unwanted byproduct, low enantioselectivity, and specific activity reduce its value in practical applications. An ideal nitrilase that can efficiently hydrolyze mandelonitrile to optically pure (R)-(-)-mandelic acid without the unwanted byproduct is needed. A novel nitrilase (BCJ2315) was discovered from Burkholderia cenocepacia J2315 through phylogeny-based enzymatic substrate specificity prediction (PESSP). This nitrilase is a mandelonitrile hydrolase that could efficiently hydrolyze mandelonitrile to (R)-(-)-mandelic acid, with a high enantiomeric excess of 98.4%. No byproduct was observed in this hydrolysis process. BCJ2315 showed the highest identity of 71% compared with other nitrilases in the amino acid sequence. BCJ2315 possessed the highest activity toward mandelonitrile and took mandelonitrile as the optimal substrate based on the analysis of substrate specificity. The kinetic parameters Vmax, Km, Kcat, and Kcat/Km toward mandelonitrile were 45.4 μmol/min/mg, 0.14 mM, 15.4 s(-1), and 1.1×10(5) M(-1)s(-1), respectively. The recombinant Escherichia coli M15/BCJ2315 had a strong substrate tolerance and could completely hydrolyze mandelonitrile (100 mM) with fewer amounts of wet cells (10 mg/ml) within 1 h. PESSP is an efficient method for discovering an ideal mandelonitrile hydrolase. BCJ2315 has high affinity and catalytic efficiency toward mandelonitrile. This nitrilase has great advantages in the production of optically pure (R)-(-)-mandelic acid because of its high activity and enantioselectivity, strong substrate tolerance, and having no unwanted byproduct. Thus, BCJ2315 has great potential in the practical production of optically pure (R)-(-)-mandelic acid in the industry.

SeMPI: a genome-based secondary metabolite prediction and identification web server.

PubMed

Zierep, Paul F; Padilla, Natàlia; Yonchev, Dimitar G; Telukunta, Kiran K; Klementz, Dennis; Günther, Stefan

2017-07-03

The secondary metabolism of bacteria, fungi and plants yields a vast number of bioactive substances. The constantly increasing amount of published genomic data provides the opportunity for an efficient identification of gene clusters by genome mining. Conversely, for many natural products with resolved structures, the encoding gene clusters have not been identified yet. Even though genome mining tools have become significantly more efficient in the identification of biosynthetic gene clusters, structural elucidation of the actual secondary metabolite is still challenging, especially due to as yet unpredictable post-modifications. Here, we introduce SeMPI, a web server providing a prediction and identification pipeline for natural products synthesized by polyketide synthases of type I modular. In order to limit the possible structures of PKS products and to include putative tailoring reactions, a structural comparison with annotated natural products was introduced. Furthermore, a benchmark was designed based on 40 gene clusters with annotated PKS products. The web server of the pipeline (SeMPI) is freely available at: http://www.pharmaceutical-bioinformatics.de/sempi. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Design of Fusion Proteins for Efficient and Soluble Production of Immunogenic Ebola Virus Glycoprotein in Escherichia coli.

PubMed

Ji, Yang; Lu, Yuan; Yan, Yishu; Liu, Xinxin; Su, Nan; Zhang, Chong; Bi, Shengli; Xing, Xin-Hui

2018-03-03

The Ebola hemorrhagic fever caused by Ebola virus is an extremely dangerous disease, and effective therapeutic agents are still lacking. Platforms for the efficient production of vaccines are crucial to ensure quick response against an Ebola virus outbreak. Ebola virus glycoprotein (EbolaGP) on the virion surface is responsible for membrane binding and virus entry, thus becoming the key target for vaccine development. However, heterologous expression of this protein still faces engineering challenges such as low production levels and insoluble aggregation. Here, the authors design and compare various fusion strategies, attaching great importance to the solubility-enhancing effect, and tag removal process. It is found that a C-terminal intein-based tag greatly enhances the solubility of EbolaGP and allows one-step chromatographic purification of the untagged EbolaGP through thiol-catalyzed self-cleavage. The purified untagged EbolaGP alone or with Freund's adjuvant are highly immunogenic, as confirmed in a mouse model. Consequently, the present study puts forward a new strategy for the efficient and soluble expression of untagged immunogenic EbolaGP. The intein-based protein fusion approach may be of importance for the large-scale production of Ebola virus subunit vaccine. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

A geostatistical approach to estimate mining efficiency indicators with flexible meshes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Freixas, Genis; Garriga, David; Fernàndez-Garcia, Daniel; Sanchez-Vila, Xavier

2014-05-01

Geostatistics is a branch of statistics developed originally to predict probability distributions of ore grades for mining operations by considering the attributes of a geological formation at unknown locations as a set of correlated random variables. Mining exploitations typically aim to maintain acceptable mineral laws to produce commercial products based upon demand. In this context, we present a new geostatistical methodology to estimate strategic efficiency maps that incorporate hydraulic test data, the evolution of concentrations with time obtained from chemical analysis (packer tests and production wells) as well as hydraulic head variations. The methodology is applied to a salt basin in South America. The exploitation is based on the extraction of brines through vertical and horizontal wells. Thereafter, brines are precipitated in evaporation ponds to obtain target potassium and magnesium salts of economic interest. Lithium carbonate is obtained as a byproduct of the production of potassium chloride. Aside from providing an assemble of traditional geostatistical methods, the strength of this study falls with the new methodology developed, which focus on finding the best sites to exploit the brines while maintaining efficiency criteria. Thus, some strategic indicator efficiency maps have been developed under the specific criteria imposed by exploitation standards to incorporate new extraction wells in new areas that would allow maintain or improve production. Results show that the uncertainty quantification of the efficiency plays a dominant role and that the use flexible meshes, which properly describe the curvilinear features associated with vertical stratification, provides a more consistent estimation of the geological processes. Moreover, we demonstrate that the vertical correlation structure at the given salt basin is essentially linked to variations in the formation thickness, which calls for flexible meshes and non-stationarity stochastic processes.

Research on personalized recommendation algorithm based on spark

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zeng; Liu, Yu

2018-04-01

With the increasing amount of data in the past years, the traditional recommendation algorithm has been unable to meet people's needs. Therefore, how to better recommend their products to users of interest, become the opportunities and challenges of the era of big data development. At present, each platform enterprise has its own recommendation algorithm, but how to make efficient and accurate push information is still an urgent problem for personalized recommendation system. In this paper, a hybrid algorithm based on user collaborative filtering and content-based recommendation algorithm is proposed on Spark to improve the efficiency and accuracy of recommendation by weighted processing. The experiment shows that the recommendation under this scheme is more efficient and accurate.

State policy as a driver of innovation to support economic growth: California energy-efficiency policy (1975-2005)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klementich, Eloisa Y.

2011-12-01

Purpose. The purpose of this research was to identify whether a relationship exists between state energy-efficiency policy and innovation in the State of California and to shed light on the impact that energy-efficiency policy can have on supporting statewide economic development goals. Theoretical Framework. The theoretical framework drew from foundations in neoclassical economic theory, technology change theory, and new growth theory. Together these theories formed the basis to describe the impacts caused by the innovations within the market economy. Under this framework, policy-generated innovations are viewed to be translated into efficiency and productivity that propel economic benefits. Methodological Considerations. This study examined various economic indices and efficiency attainment indices affecting four home appliances regulated under Title 20's energy-efficiency standard established by the California Energy Commission, Warren Alquist Act. The multiple regression analysis performed provided an understanding of the relationship between the products regulated, the regulation standard, and the policy as it relates to energy-efficiency regulation. Findings. There is enough evidence to show that strategies embedded in the Warren Alquist Act, Title 20 do drive innovation. Three of the four product categories tested showed statistical significance in the policy standard resulting in an industry efficiency improvement. Conclusively, the consumption of electricity per capita in California has positively diverged over a 35-year period from national trends, even though California had mirrored the nation in income and family size during the same period, the only clear case of divergence is the state's action toward a different energy policy. Conclusions and Recommendations. California's regulations propelled manufacturers to reach higher efficiency levels not otherwise pursued by market forces. The California effort included alliances all working together to make the change financially feasible as well as increasing efficiency levels. The success of the policy is based on the attainment of regulation standards, economic growth within the energy-efficiency industry, and energy-efficiency business savings. The key to the policy was its ability to "level the playing field" for manufacturers who could then choose the technology and design that best fit their products and compliance levels while at the same time lowering the cost of production.

Evaluating multiple indices of agricultural water use efficiency and productivity to improve comparisons between sites and trends

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levy, M. C.

2012-12-01

Approximately 70% of global available freshwater supplies are used in the agricultural sector. Increased demands for water to meet growing population food requirements, and expected changes in the reliability of freshwater supplies due to climate change, threaten the sustainability of water supplies worldwide - not only on farms, but in connected cities and industries. Researchers concerned with agricultural water use sustainability use a variety of theoretical and empirical measures of efficiency and productivity to gain insight into the sustainability of agricultural water use. However, definitions of measures, or indices, vary between different natural and political boundaries, across regions, states and nations and between their respective research, industry, and environmental groups. Index development responds to local data availability and local agendas, and there is debate about the validity of various indices. However, real differences in empirical index measures are not well-understood across the multiple disciplines that study agricultural water use, including engineering and hydrology, agronomy, climate and soil sciences, and economics. Nevertheless reliable, accessible, and generalizable indices are required for planners and policymakers to promote sustainable water use systems. This study synthesizes a set of water use efficiency and productivity indices based on academic, industry and government literature in California and Australia, two locations with similarly water-stressed and valuable agricultural industries under pressure to achieve optimal water use efficiency and productivity. Empirical data at the irrigation district level from the California San Joaquin Valley and Murray Darling Basin states of Victoria and New South Wales in Australia are used to compute indices that estimate efficiency, yield productivity, and economic productivity of agricultural water use. Multiple index estimates of same time-series data demonstrate historical spread in efficiency and productivity measures in different agricultural regions. Individual indices consistently over- or under- estimate trends in efficiency and productivity by their construction, and may provide inaccurate results in years with extreme climatic events, such as droughts. By treating multiple indices as an "ensemble" of measures, analogous to the treatment of multiple climate model predictions, this study quantifies likely "true" states of efficiency and productivity in the selected agricultural regions, and error in individual indices. While different individual indices are preferable at different scales, and relative to the quality of available input data, ensemble indices can be more reliably used in comparative study across different agricultural regions, and for prediction.

Comparative Assessment of Gasification Based Coal Power Plants with Various CO2 Capture Technologies Producing Electricity and Hydrogen

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Seven different types of gasification-based coal conversion processes for producing mainly electricity and in some cases hydrogen (H2), with and without carbon dioxide (CO2) capture, were compared on a consistent basis through simulation studies. The flowsheet for each process was developed in a chemical process simulation tool “Aspen Plus”. The pressure swing adsorption (PSA), physical absorption (Selexol), and chemical looping combustion (CLC) technologies were separately analyzed for processes with CO2 capture. The performances of the above three capture technologies were compared with respect to energetic and exergetic efficiencies, and the level of CO2 emission. The effect of air separation unit (ASU) and gas turbine (GT) integration on the power output of all the CO2 capture cases is assessed. Sensitivity analysis was carried out for the CLC process (electricity-only case) to examine the effect of temperature and water-cooling of the air reactor on the overall efficiency of the process. The results show that, when only electricity production in considered, the case using CLC technology has an electrical efficiency 1.3% and 2.3% higher than the PSA and Selexol based cases, respectively. The CLC based process achieves an overall CO2 capture efficiency of 99.9% in contrast to 89.9% for PSA and 93.5% for Selexol based processes. The overall efficiency of the CLC case for combined electricity and H2 production is marginally higher (by 0.3%) than Selexol and lower (by 0.6%) than PSA cases. The integration between the ASU and GT units benefits all three technologies in terms of electrical efficiency. Furthermore, our results suggest that it is favorable to operate the air reactor of the CLC process at higher temperatures with excess air supply in order to achieve higher power efficiency. PMID:24578590

Comparative Assessment of Gasification Based Coal Power Plants with Various CO2 Capture Technologies Producing Electricity and Hydrogen.

PubMed

Mukherjee, Sanjay; Kumar, Prashant; Hosseini, Ali; Yang, Aidong; Fennell, Paul

2014-02-20

Seven different types of gasification-based coal conversion processes for producing mainly electricity and in some cases hydrogen (H 2 ), with and without carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) capture, were compared on a consistent basis through simulation studies. The flowsheet for each process was developed in a chemical process simulation tool "Aspen Plus". The pressure swing adsorption (PSA), physical absorption (Selexol), and chemical looping combustion (CLC) technologies were separately analyzed for processes with CO 2 capture. The performances of the above three capture technologies were compared with respect to energetic and exergetic efficiencies, and the level of CO 2 emission. The effect of air separation unit (ASU) and gas turbine (GT) integration on the power output of all the CO 2 capture cases is assessed. Sensitivity analysis was carried out for the CLC process (electricity-only case) to examine the effect of temperature and water-cooling of the air reactor on the overall efficiency of the process. The results show that, when only electricity production in considered, the case using CLC technology has an electrical efficiency 1.3% and 2.3% higher than the PSA and Selexol based cases, respectively. The CLC based process achieves an overall CO 2 capture efficiency of 99.9% in contrast to 89.9% for PSA and 93.5% for Selexol based processes. The overall efficiency of the CLC case for combined electricity and H 2 production is marginally higher (by 0.3%) than Selexol and lower (by 0.6%) than PSA cases. The integration between the ASU and GT units benefits all three technologies in terms of electrical efficiency. Furthermore, our results suggest that it is favorable to operate the air reactor of the CLC process at higher temperatures with excess air supply in order to achieve higher power efficiency.

Light Extraction From Solution-Based Processable Electrophosphorescent Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krummacher, Benjamin C.; Mathai, Mathew; So, Franky; Choulis, Stelios; Choong, And-En, Vi

2007-06-01

Molecular dye dispersed solution processable blue emitting organic light-emitting devices have been fabricated and the resulting devices exhibit efficiency as high as 25 cd/A. With down-conversion phosphors, white emitting devices have been demonstrated with peak efficiency of 38 cd/A and luminous efficiency of 25 lm/W. The high efficiencies have been a product of proper tuning of carrier transport, optimization of the location of the carrier recombination zone and, hence, microcavity effect, efficient down-conversion from blue to white light, and scattering/isotropic remission due to phosphor particles. An optical model has been developed to investigate all these effects. In contrast to the common misunderstanding that light out-coupling efficiency is about 22% and independent of device architecture, our device data and optical modeling results clearly demonstrated that the light out-coupling efficiency is strongly dependent on the exact location of the recombination zone. Estimating the device internal quantum efficiencies based on external quantum efficiencies without considering the device architecture could lead to erroneous conclusions.

Performance evaluation of the multiple root node approach to the Rete pattern matcher for production systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sohn, A.; Gaudiot, J.-L.

1991-12-31

Much effort has been expanded on special architectures and algorithms dedicated to efficient processing of the pattern matching step of production systems. In this paper, the authors investigate the possible improvement on the Rete pattern matcher for production systems. Inefficiencies in the Rete match algorithm have been identified, based on which they introduce a pattern matcher with multiple root nodes. A complete implementation of the multiple root node-based production system interpreter is presented to investigate its relative algorithmic behavior over the Rete-based Ops5 production system interpreter. Benchmark production system programs are executed (not simulated) on a sequential machine Sun 4/490more » by using both interpreters and various experimental results are presented. Their investigation indicates that the multiple root node-based production system interpreter would give a maximum of up to 6-fold improvement over the Lisp implementation of the Rete-based Ops5 for the match step.« less

[Impact of the funding reform of teaching hospitals in Brazil].

PubMed

Lobo, M S C; Silva, A C M; Lins, M P E; Fiszman, R

2009-06-01

To assess the impact of funding reform on the productivity of teaching hospitals. Based on the Information System of Federal University Hospitals of Brazil, 2003 and 2006 efficiency and productivity were measured using frontier methods with a linear programming technique, data envelopment analysis, and input-oriented variable returns to scale model. The Malmquist index was calculated to detect changes during the study period: 'technical efficiency change,' or the relative variation of the efficiency of each unit; and 'technological change' after frontier shift. There was 51% mean budget increase and improvement of technical efficiency of teaching hospitals (previously 11, 17 hospitals reached the empirical efficiency frontier) but the same was not seen for the technology frontier. Data envelopment analysis set benchmark scores for each inefficient unit (before and after reform) and there was a positive correlation between technical efficiency and teaching intensity and dedication. The reform promoted management improvements but there is a need of further follow-up to assess the effectiveness of funding changes.

Assessment of food-water nexus by water footprint: a case study in Saskatchewan, Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Y.; Si, B.

2016-12-01

It is important but challengeable to understand the water-food nexus complexity. The water footprint (WF), a relatively new index, is a comprehensive indicator that can be used to evaluate crop water production. This paper aims to 1) determine how water footprint changes at different crop rotational types; 2) investigate what is difference if WF is calculated by yield-based or protein-based; and 3) explore how virtual water flows are responding to regional meteorological, agricultural, and socio-economic factors. The result provided the water footprint and virtual water flow exemplified for Saskatchewan agri-food production industries. By using the water footprint, we determined the best rotation for pulse crops in terms of efficiency of water productivity and water-saving opportunity. While yield is a comprehensive index to assess the productivity (yield-based WF), it underestimated the contribution of some crops, such as pulse crops with relatively low yield but high protein contents (protein-based WF). Consequently, we concluded that water-saving benefits can be achieved by the development and adoption of water efficient technology and better virtual water flows may be achieved by increased area of low water footprint in Saskatchewan. Our finding improves the current concepts of water and food security, informs production and trade decisions, and thus suggests optimal strategies by reduced water footprints in terms of agricultural management.

X-ray fluorescence spectrometry-based approach to precision management of bioavailable phosphorus in soil environments

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Declining nutrient use efficiency in crop production has been a global priority to preserve high agricultural productivity with finite non-renewable nutrient resources, in particular phosphorus (P). Rapid spectroscopic methods increase measurement density of soil nutrients, and the availability of ...

Endowing non-cellulolytic microorganisms with cellulolytic activity aiming for consolidated bioprocessing.

PubMed

Yamada, Ryosuke; Hasunuma, Tomohisa; Kondo, Akihiko

2013-11-01

With the exhaustion of fossil fuels and with the environmental issues they pose, utilization of abundant lignocellulosic biomass as a feedstock for biofuels and bio-based chemicals has recently become an attractive option. Lignocellulosic biomass is primarily composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin and has a very rigid and complex structure. It is accordingly much more expensive to process than starchy grains because of the need for extensive pretreatment and relatively large amounts of cellulases for efficient hydrolysis. Efficient and cost-effective methods for the production of biofuels and chemicals from lignocellulose are required. A consolidated bioprocess (CBP), which integrates all biological steps consisting of enzyme production, saccharification, and fermentation, is considered a promising strategy for reducing production costs. Establishing an efficient CBP using lignocellulosic biomass requires both lignocellulose degradation into glucose and efficient production of biofuels or chemicals from glucose. With this aim, many researchers are attempting to endow selected microorganisms with lignocellulose-assimilating ability. In this review, we focus on studies aimed at conferring lignocellulose-assimilating ability not only to yeast strains but also to bacterial strains by recombinant technology. Recent developments in improvement of enzyme productivity by microorganisms and in improvement of the specific activity of cellulase are emphasized. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A method of designing smartphone interface based on the extended user's mental model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Wei; Li, Fengmin; Bian, Jiali; Pan, Juchen; Song, Song

2017-01-01

The user's mental model is the core guiding theory of product design, especially practical products. The essence of practical product is a tool which is used by users to meet their needs. Then, the most important feature of a tool is usability. The design method based on the user's mental model provides a series of practical and feasible theoretical guidance for improving the usability of the product according to the user's awareness of things. In this paper, we propose a method of designing smartphone interface based on the extended user's mental model according to further research on user groups. This approach achieves personalized customization of smartphone application interface and enhance application using efficiency.

Satellite-based terrestrial production efficiency modeling

PubMed Central

McCallum, Ian; Wagner, Wolfgang; Schmullius, Christiane; Shvidenko, Anatoly; Obersteiner, Michael; Fritz, Steffen; Nilsson, Sten

2009-01-01

Production efficiency models (PEMs) are based on the theory of light use efficiency (LUE) which states that a relatively constant relationship exists between photosynthetic carbon uptake and radiation receipt at the canopy level. Challenges remain however in the application of the PEM methodology to global net primary productivity (NPP) monitoring. The objectives of this review are as follows: 1) to describe the general functioning of six PEMs (CASA; GLO-PEM; TURC; C-Fix; MOD17; and BEAMS) identified in the literature; 2) to review each model to determine potential improvements to the general PEM methodology; 3) to review the related literature on satellite-based gross primary productivity (GPP) and NPP modeling for additional possibilities for improvement; and 4) based on this review, propose items for coordinated research. This review noted a number of possibilities for improvement to the general PEM architecture - ranging from LUE to meteorological and satellite-based inputs. Current PEMs tend to treat the globe similarly in terms of physiological and meteorological factors, often ignoring unique regional aspects. Each of the existing PEMs has developed unique methods to estimate NPP and the combination of the most successful of these could lead to improvements. It may be beneficial to develop regional PEMs that can be combined under a global framework. The results of this review suggest the creation of a hybrid PEM could bring about a significant enhancement to the PEM methodology and thus terrestrial carbon flux modeling. Key items topping the PEM research agenda identified in this review include the following: LUE should not be assumed constant, but should vary by plant functional type (PFT) or photosynthetic pathway; evidence is mounting that PEMs should consider incorporating diffuse radiation; continue to pursue relationships between satellite-derived variables and LUE, GPP and autotrophic respiration (Ra); there is an urgent need for satellite-based biomass measurements to improve Ra estimation; and satellite-based soil moisture data could improve determination of soil water stress. PMID:19765285

Vectors to Increase Production Efficiency of Inducible Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) | NCI Technology Transfer Center | TTC

Cancer.gov

This invention describes the discovery that specific p53 isoform increase the number of inducible pluripotent stem cells (iPS). It is known that the activity of p53 regulates the self-renewal and pluripotency of normal and cancer stem cells, and also affects re-programming efficiency of iPS cells. This p53 isoform-based technology provides a more natural process of increasing iPS cell production than previous methods of decreasing p53. NCI seeks licensees for this technology.

Electrorheology for energy production and conservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Ke

Recently, based on the physics of viscosity, we developed a new technology, which utilizes electric or magnetic fields to change the rheology of complex fluids to reduce the viscosity, while keeping the temperature unchanged. The method is universal and applicable to all complex fluids with suspended particles of nano-meter, submicrometer, or micrometer size. Completely different from the traditional viscosity reduction method, raising the temperature, this technology is energy-efficient, as it only requires small amount of energy to aggregate the suspended particles. In this thesis, we will first discuss this new technology in detail, both in theory and practice. Then, we will report applications of our technology to energy science research. Presently, 80% of all energy sources are liquid fuels. The viscosity of liquid fuels plays an important role in energy production and energy conservation. With an electric field, we can reduce the viscosity of asphalt-based crude oil. This is important and useful for heavy crude oil and off-shore crude oil production and transportation. Especially, since there is no practical way to raise the temperature of crude oil inside the deepwater pipelines, our technology may play a key role in future off-shore crude oil production. Electrorehology can also be used to reduce the viscosity of refinery fuels, such as diesel fuel and gasoline. When we apply this technology to fuel injection, the fuel droplets in the fuel atomization become smaller, leading to faster combustion in the engine chambers. As the fuel efficiency of internal combustion engines depends on the combustion speed and timing, the fast combustion produces much higher fuel efficiency. Therefore, adding our technology on existing engines improves the engine efficiency significantly. A theoretical model for the engine combustion, which explains how fast combustion improves the engine efficiency, is also presented in the thesis. As energy is the key to our national security, we believe that our technology is important and will have a strong impact on energy production and conversation in the future.

On the Efficiency of Text Production in Vocabulary Learning: An Empirical Study on Iranian GFL-Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haghani, Nader; Kiani, Samira

2018-01-01

The concept of text-oriented vocabulary exercises is based on Kühn's (2000) three-step model of vocabulary teaching--receptive, reflective and productive vocabulary exercises--which focuses on working with texts. Since the production is in principle more exhausting than the reception--as can be seen from the Levels of Processing Effect--one can…

Dropwise additive manufacturing of pharmaceutical products for melt-based dosage forms.

PubMed

Içten, Elçin; Giridhar, Arun; Taylor, Lynne S; Nagy, Zoltan K; Reklaitis, Gintaras V

2015-05-01

The US Food and Drug Administration introduced the quality by design approach and process analytical technology guidance to encourage innovation and efficiency in pharmaceutical development, manufacturing, and quality assurance. As part of this renewed emphasis on the improvement of manufacturing, the pharmaceutical industry has begun to develop more efficient production processes with more intensive use of online measurement and sensing, real-time quality control, and process control tools. Here, we present dropwise additive manufacturing of pharmaceutical products (DAMPP) as an alternative to conventional pharmaceutical manufacturing methods. This mini-manufacturing process for the production of pharmaceuticals utilizes drop on demand printing technology for automated and controlled deposition of melt-based formulations onto edible substrates. The advantages of drop-on-demand technology, including reproducible production of small droplets, adjustable drop sizing, high placement accuracy, and flexible use of different formulations, enable production of individualized dosing even for low-dose and high-potency drugs. In this work, DAMPP is used to produce solid oral dosage forms from hot melts of an active pharmaceutical ingredient and a polymer. The dosage forms are analyzed to show the reproducibility of dosing and the dissolution behavior of different formulations. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Bismuth vanadate-based semiconductor photocatalysts: a short critical review on the efficiency and the mechanism of photodegradation of organic pollutants.

PubMed

Monfort, Olivier; Plesch, Gustav

2018-06-02

The number of publications on photocatalytic bismuth vanadate-based materials is constantly increasing. Indeed, bismuth vanadate is gaining stronger interest in the photochemical community since it is a solar-driven photocatalyst. However, the efficiency of BiVO 4 -based photocatalyst under sunlight is questionable: in most of the studies investigating the photodegradation of organic pollutants, only few works identify the by-products and evaluate the real efficiency of BiVO 4 -based materials. This short review aims to (i) present briefly the principles of photocatalysis and define the photocatalytic efficiency and (ii) discuss the formation of reactive species involved in the photocatalytic degradation process of pollutants and thus the corresponding photodegradation mechanism could be determined. All these points are developed in a comprehensive discussion by focusing especially on pure, doped, and composite BiVO 4 . Therefore, this review exhibits a critical overview on different BiVO 4 -based photocatalytic systems with their real efficiency. This is a necessary knowledge for potential implementation of BiVO 4 materials in environmental applications at larger scale than laboratory conditions.

Optimization Control of the Color-Coating Production Process for Model Uncertainty

PubMed Central

He, Dakuo; Wang, Zhengsong; Yang, Le; Mao, Zhizhong

2016-01-01

Optimized control of the color-coating production process (CCPP) aims at reducing production costs and improving economic efficiency while meeting quality requirements. However, because optimization control of the CCPP is hampered by model uncertainty, a strategy that considers model uncertainty is proposed. Previous work has introduced a mechanistic model of CCPP based on process analysis to simulate the actual production process and generate process data. The partial least squares method is then applied to develop predictive models of film thickness and economic efficiency. To manage the model uncertainty, the robust optimization approach is introduced to improve the feasibility of the optimized solution. Iterative learning control is then utilized to further refine the model uncertainty. The constrained film thickness is transformed into one of the tracked targets to overcome the drawback that traditional iterative learning control cannot address constraints. The goal setting of economic efficiency is updated continuously according to the film thickness setting until this reaches its desired value. Finally, fuzzy parameter adjustment is adopted to ensure that the economic efficiency and film thickness converge rapidly to their optimized values under the constraint conditions. The effectiveness of the proposed optimization control strategy is validated by simulation results. PMID:27247563

Optimization Control of the Color-Coating Production Process for Model Uncertainty.

PubMed

He, Dakuo; Wang, Zhengsong; Yang, Le; Mao, Zhizhong

2016-01-01

Optimized control of the color-coating production process (CCPP) aims at reducing production costs and improving economic efficiency while meeting quality requirements. However, because optimization control of the CCPP is hampered by model uncertainty, a strategy that considers model uncertainty is proposed. Previous work has introduced a mechanistic model of CCPP based on process analysis to simulate the actual production process and generate process data. The partial least squares method is then applied to develop predictive models of film thickness and economic efficiency. To manage the model uncertainty, the robust optimization approach is introduced to improve the feasibility of the optimized solution. Iterative learning control is then utilized to further refine the model uncertainty. The constrained film thickness is transformed into one of the tracked targets to overcome the drawback that traditional iterative learning control cannot address constraints. The goal setting of economic efficiency is updated continuously according to the film thickness setting until this reaches its desired value. Finally, fuzzy parameter adjustment is adopted to ensure that the economic efficiency and film thickness converge rapidly to their optimized values under the constraint conditions. The effectiveness of the proposed optimization control strategy is validated by simulation results.

A simulation-based approach for solving assembly line balancing problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Xiaoyu

2017-09-01

Assembly line balancing problem is directly related to the production efficiency, since the last century, the problem of assembly line balancing was discussed and still a lot of people are studying on this topic. In this paper, the problem of assembly line is studied by establishing the mathematical model and simulation. Firstly, the model of determing the smallest production beat under certain work station number is anysized. Based on this model, the exponential smoothing approach is applied to improve the the algorithm efficiency. After the above basic work, the gas stirling engine assembly line balancing problem is discussed as a case study. Both two algorithms are implemented using the Lingo programming environment and the simulation results demonstrate the validity of the new methods.

Evaluation of the persistence of transformation products from ozonation of trace organic compounds - a critical review.

PubMed

Hübner, Uwe; von Gunten, Urs; Jekel, Martin

2015-01-01

Ozonation is an efficient treatment system to reduce the concentration of trace organic compounds (TrOCs) from technical aquatic systems such as drinking water, wastewater and industrial water, etc. Although it is well established that ozonation generally improves the removal of organic matter in biological post-treatment, little is known about the biodegradability of individual transformation products resulting from ozonation of TrOCs. This publication provides a qualified assessment of the persistence of ozone-induced transformation products based on a review of published product studies and an evaluation of the biodegradability of transformation products with the biodegradability probability program (BIOWIN) and the University of Minnesota Pathway Prediction System (UM-PPS). The oxidation of TrOCs containing the four major ozone-reactive sites (olefins, amines, aromatics and sulfur-containing compounds) follows well described reaction pathways leading to characteristic transformation products. Assessment of biodegradability revealed a high sensitivity to the formed products and hence the ozone-reactive site present in the target compound. Based on BIOWIN, efficient removal can be expected for products from cleavage of olefin groups and aromatic rings. In contrast, estimations and literature indicate that hydroxylamines and N-oxides, the major products from ozonation of secondary and tertiary amines are not necessarily better removed in biological post-treatment. According to UM-PPS, degradation of these products might even occur via reformation of the corresponding amine. Some product studies with sulfide-containing TrOCs showed a stoichiometric formation of sulfoxides from oxygen transfer reactions. However, conclusions on the fate of transformation products in biological post-treatment cannot be drawn based on BIOWIN and UM-PPS.

Estimation efficiency of usage satellite derived and modelled biophysical products for yield forecasting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kolotii, Andrii; Kussul, Nataliia; Skakun, Sergii; Shelestov, Andrii; Ostapenko, Vadim; Oliinyk, Tamara

2015-04-01

Efficient and timely crop monitoring and yield forecasting are important tasks for ensuring of stability and sustainable economic development [1]. As winter crops pay prominent role in agriculture of Ukraine - the main focus of this study is concentrated on winter wheat. In our previous research [2, 3] it was shown that usage of biophysical parameters of crops such as FAPAR (derived from Geoland-2 portal as for SPOT Vegetation data) is far more efficient for crop yield forecasting to NDVI derived from MODIS data - for available data. In our current work efficiency of usage such biophysical parameters as LAI, FAPAR, FCOVER (derived from SPOT Vegetation and PROBA-V data at resolution of 1 km and simulated within WOFOST model) and NDVI product (derived from MODIS) for winter wheat monitoring and yield forecasting is estimated. As the part of crop monitoring workflow (vegetation anomaly detection, vegetation indexes and products analysis) and yield forecasting SPIRITS tool developed by JRC is used. Statistics extraction is done for landcover maps created in SRI within FP-7 SIGMA project. Efficiency of usage satellite based and modelled with WOFOST model biophysical products is estimated. [1] N. Kussul, S. Skakun, A. Shelestov, O. Kussul, "Sensor Web approach to Flood Monitoring and Risk Assessment", in: IGARSS 2013, 21-26 July 2013, Melbourne, Australia, pp. 815-818. [2] F. Kogan, N. Kussul, T. Adamenko, S. Skakun, O. Kravchenko, O. Kryvobok, A. Shelestov, A. Kolotii, O. Kussul, and A. Lavrenyuk, "Winter wheat yield forecasting in Ukraine based on Earth observation, meteorological data and biophysical models," International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, vol. 23, pp. 192-203, 2013. [3] Kussul O., Kussul N., Skakun S., Kravchenko O., Shelestov A., Kolotii A, "Assessment of relative efficiency of using MODIS data to winter wheat yield forecasting in Ukraine", in: IGARSS 2013, 21-26 July 2013, Melbourne, Australia, pp. 3235 - 3238.

A metal-free electrocatalyst for carbon dioxide reduction to multi-carbon hydrocarbons and oxygenates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Jingjie; Ma, Sichao; Sun, Jing; Gold, Jake I.; Tiwary, Chandrasekhar; Kim, Byoungsu; Zhu, Lingyang; Chopra, Nitin; Odeh, Ihab N.; Vajtai, Robert; Yu, Aaron Z.; Luo, Raymond; Lou, Jun; Ding, Guqiao; Kenis, Paul J. A.; Ajayan, Pulickel M.

2016-12-01

Electroreduction of carbon dioxide into higher-energy liquid fuels and chemicals is a promising but challenging renewable energy conversion technology. Among the electrocatalysts screened so far for carbon dioxide reduction, which includes metals, alloys, organometallics, layered materials and carbon nanostructures, only copper exhibits selectivity towards formation of hydrocarbons and multi-carbon oxygenates at fairly high efficiencies, whereas most others favour production of carbon monoxide or formate. Here we report that nanometre-size N-doped graphene quantum dots (NGQDs) catalyse the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide into multi-carbon hydrocarbons and oxygenates at high Faradaic efficiencies, high current densities and low overpotentials. The NGQDs show a high total Faradaic efficiency of carbon dioxide reduction of up to 90%, with selectivity for ethylene and ethanol conversions reaching 45%. The C2 and C3 product distribution and production rate for NGQD-catalysed carbon dioxide reduction is comparable to those obtained with copper nanoparticle-based electrocatalysts.

Liquefaction of kraft lignin by hydrocracking with simultaneous use of a novel dual acid-base catalyst and a hydrogenation catalyst.

PubMed

Wang, Jindong; Li, Wenzhi; Wang, Huizhen; Ma, Qiaozhi; Li, Song; Chang, Hou-Min; Jameel, Hasan

2017-11-01

In this study, a novel catalyst, S 2 O 8 2- -KNO 3 /TiO 2 , which has active acidic and basic sites, was prepared and used in lignin hydrocracking with a co-catalyst, Ru/C. Ru/C is an efficient hydrogenation catalyst and S 2 O 8 2- -KNO 3 /TiO 2 is a dual catalyst, which could efficiently degrade lignin. This catalytic hydrogenation system can reduce solid products to less than 1%, while giving a high liquid product yield of 93%. Catalytic hydrocracking of kraft lignin at 320°C for 6h gave 93% liquid product with 0.5% solid product. Most of this liquid product was soluble in petroleum ether (60% of 93%), which is a clear liquid and comprises mainly of monomeric and dimeric degradation products. These results demonstrated that the combination of the two catalysts is an efficient catalyst for liquefaction of lignin, with little char formation (∼1%). This concept has the potential to produce valuable chemicals and fuels from lignin under moderate conditions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exergy-based efficiency and renewability assessment of biofuel production.

PubMed

Dewulf, J; Van Langenhove, H; Van De Velde, B

2005-05-15

This study presents an efficiency and renewability analysis of the production of three biofuels: rapeseed methyl ester (RME), soybean methyl ester (SME) and corn-based ethanol (EtOH). The overall production chains have been taken into account: not only the agricultural crop production and the industrial conversion into biofuel, but also production of the supply of agricultural resources (pesticides, fertilizers, fuel, seeding material) and industrial resources (energy and chemicals) to transform the crops into biofuel. Simultaneously, byproducts of the agricultural and industrial processes have been taken into account when resources have to be allocated to the biofuels. The technical analysis via the second law of thermodynamics revealed that corn-based EtOH results in the highest production rate with an exergetic fuel content of 68.8 GJ ha(-1) yr(-1), whereas the RME and SME results were limited to 47.5 and 16.4 GJ ha(-1) yr(-1). The allocated nonrenewable resource input to deliver these biofuels is significant: 16.5, 15.4, and 5.6 MJ ha(-1) yr(-1). This means that these biofuels, generally considered as renewable resources, embed a nonrenewable fraction of one-quarter for EtOH and even one-third for RME and SME. This type of analysis provides scientifically sound quantitative information that is necessarywith respect to the sustainability analysis of so-called renewable energy.

Chapter 16: Soy Proteins as Wood Adhesives

Treesearch

Charles R. Frihart; Christopher G. Hunt; Michael J. Birkeland

2014-01-01

Protein adhesives allowed the development of bonded wood products such as plywood and glulam in the early 20th century. Petrochemical-based adhesives replaced proteins in most wood bonding applications because of lower cost, improved production efficiencies, and enhanced durability. However, several technological and environmental factors have led to a resurgence of...

Plant, soil and weather based cues for irrigation timing in soybean production 2014

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Expanded use of irrigation management tools are needed to improve irrigation and water use efficiency in eastern Arkansas soybean production. In 2014 we initiated an Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board supported project to examine irrigation initiation timing on a sandy loam soil in a furrow-irrigated ...

Integrating solar induced flourescence and the photochemical reflectance index for estimating gross primary production in a cornfield

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The utilization of remotely sensed observations for light use efficiency (LUE) and tower-based gross primary production (GPP) estimates was studied in a USDA cornfield. Nadir hyperspectral reflectance measurements were acquired at canopy level during a collaborative field campaign conducted in four ...

Homogenous Surface Nucleation of Solid Polar Stratospheric Cloud Particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tabazadeh, A.; Hamill, P.; Salcedo, D.; Gore, Warren J. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

A general surface nucleation rate theory is presented for the homogeneous freezing of crystalline germs on the surfaces of aqueous particles. While nucleation rates in a standard classical homogeneous freezing rate theory scale with volume, the rates in a surface-based theory scale with surface area. The theory is used to convert volume-based information on laboratory freezing rates (in units of cu cm, seconds) of nitric acid trihydrate (NAT) and nitric acid dihydrate (NAD) aerosols into surface-based values (in units of sq cm, seconds). We show that a surface-based model is capable of reproducing measured nucleation rates of NAT and NAD aerosols from concentrated aqueous HNO3 solutions in the temperature range of 165 to 205 K. Laboratory measured nucleation rates are used to derive free energies for NAT and NAD germ formation in the stratosphere. NAD germ free energies range from about 23 to 26 kcal mole, allowing for fast and efficient homogeneous NAD particle production in the stratosphere. However, NAT germ formation energies are large (greater than 26 kcal mole) enough to prevent efficient NAT particle production in the stratosphere. We show that the atmospheric NAD particle production rates based on the surface rate theory are roughly 2 orders of magnitude larger than those obtained from a standard volume-based rate theory. Atmospheric volume and surface production of NAD particles will nearly cease in the stratosphere when denitrification in the air exceeds 40 and 78%, respectively. We show that a surface-based (volume-based) homogeneous freezing rate theory gives particle production rates, which are (not) consistent with both laboratory and atmospheric data on the nucleation of solid polar stratospheric cloud particles.

Development of Biodegradable Polycation-Based Inhalable Dry Gene Powders by Spray Freeze Drying

PubMed Central

Okuda, Tomoyuki; Suzuki, Yumiko; Kobayashi, Yuko; Ishii, Takehiko; Uchida, Satoshi; Itaka, Keiji; Kataoka, Kazunori; Okamoto, Hirokazu

2015-01-01

In this study, two types of biodegradable polycation (PAsp(DET) homopolymer and PEG-PAsp(DET) copolymer) were applied as vectors for inhalable dry gene powders prepared by spray freeze drying (SFD). The prepared dry gene powders had spherical and porous structures with a 5~10-μm diameter, and the integrity of plasmid DNA could be maintained during powder production. Furthermore, it was clarified that PEG-PAsp(DET)-based dry gene powder could more sufficiently maintain both the physicochemical properties and in vitro gene transfection efficiencies of polyplexes reconstituted after powder production than PAsp(DET)-based dry gene powder. From an in vitro inhalation study using an Andersen cascade impactor, it was demonstrated that the addition of l-leucine could markedly improve the inhalation performance of dry powders prepared by SFD. Following pulmonary delivery to mice, both PAsp(DET)- and PEG-PAsp(DET)-based dry gene powders could achieve higher gene transfection efficiencies in the lungs compared with a chitosan-based dry gene powder previously reported by us. PMID:26343708

The efficiency and budgeting of public hospitals: case study of iran.

PubMed

Yusefzadeh, Hasan; Ghaderi, Hossein; Bagherzade, Rafat; Barouni, Mohsen

2013-05-01

Hospitals are the most costly and important components of any health care system, so it is important to know their economic values, pay attention to their efficiency and consider factors affecting them. The aim of this study was to assess the technical scale and economic efficiency of hospitals in the West Azerbaijan province of Iran, for which Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to propose a model for operational budgeting. This study was a descriptive-analysis that was conducted in 2009 and had three inputs and two outputs. Deap2, 1 software was used for data analysis. Slack and radial movements and surplus of inputs were calculated for selected hospitals. Finally, a model was proposed for performance-based budgeting of hospitals and health sectors using the DEA technique. The average scores of technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency (managerial efficiency) and scale efficiency of hospitals were 0.584, 0.782 and 0.771, respectively. In other words the capacity of efficiency promotion in hospitals without any increase in costs and with the same amount of inputs was about 41.5%. Only four hospitals among all hospitals had the maximum level of technical efficiency. Moreover, surplus production factors were evident in these hospitals. Reduction of surplus production factors through comprehensive planning based on the results of the Data Envelopment Analysis can play a major role in cost reduction of hospitals and health sectors. In hospitals with a technical efficiency score of less than one, the original and projected values of inputs were different; resulting in a surplus. Hence, these hospitals should reduce their values of inputs to achieve maximum efficiency and optimal performance. The results of this method was applied to hospitals a benchmark for making decisions about resource allocation; linking budgets to performance results; and controlling and improving hospitals performance.

Effects of steam pretreatment and co-production with ethanol on the energy efficiency and process economics of combined biogas, heat and electricity production from industrial hemp.

PubMed

Barta, Zsolt; Kreuger, Emma; Björnsson, Lovisa

2013-04-22

The study presented here has used the commercial flow sheeting program Aspen Plus™ to evaluate techno-economic aspects of large-scale hemp-based processes for producing transportation fuels. The co-production of biogas, district heat and power from chopped and steam-pretreated hemp, and the co-production of ethanol, biogas, heat and power from steam-pretreated hemp were analysed. The analyses include assessments of heat demand, energy efficiency and process economics in terms of annual cash flows and minimum biogas and ethanol selling prices (MBSP and MESP). Producing biogas, heat and power from chopped hemp has the highest overall energy efficiency, 84% of the theoretical maximum (based on lower heating values), providing that the maximum capacity of district heat is delivered. The combined production of ethanol, biogas, heat and power has the highest energy efficiency (49%) if district heat is not produced. Neither the inclusion of steam pretreatment nor co-production with ethanol has a large impact on the MBSP. Ethanol is more expensive to produce than biogas is, but this is compensated for by its higher market price. None of the scenarios examined are economically viable, since the MBSP (EUR 103-128 per MWh) is higher than the market price of biogas (EUR 67 per MWh). The largest contribution to the cost is the cost of feedstock. Decreasing the retention time in the biogas process for low solids streams by partly replacing continuous stirred tank reactors by high-rate bioreactors decreases the MBSP. Also, recycling part of the liquid from the effluent from anaerobic digestion decreases the MBSP. The production and prices of methane and ethanol influence the process economics more than the production and prices of electricity and district heat. To reduce the production cost of ethanol and biogas from biomass, the use of feedstocks that are cheaper than hemp, give higher output of ethanol and biogas, or combined production with higher value products are primarily suggested. Further, practical investigations on increased substrate concentration in biogas and ethanol production, recycling of the liquid in anaerobic digestion and separation of low solids flows into solid and a liquid fraction for improved reactor applications deserves further attention.

Effects of steam pretreatment and co-production with ethanol on the energy efficiency and process economics of combined biogas, heat and electricity production from industrial hemp

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The study presented here has used the commercial flow sheeting program Aspen Plus™ to evaluate techno-economic aspects of large-scale hemp-based processes for producing transportation fuels. The co-production of biogas, district heat and power from chopped and steam-pretreated hemp, and the co-production of ethanol, biogas, heat and power from steam-pretreated hemp were analysed. The analyses include assessments of heat demand, energy efficiency and process economics in terms of annual cash flows and minimum biogas and ethanol selling prices (MBSP and MESP). Results Producing biogas, heat and power from chopped hemp has the highest overall energy efficiency, 84% of the theoretical maximum (based on lower heating values), providing that the maximum capacity of district heat is delivered. The combined production of ethanol, biogas, heat and power has the highest energy efficiency (49%) if district heat is not produced. Neither the inclusion of steam pretreatment nor co-production with ethanol has a large impact on the MBSP. Ethanol is more expensive to produce than biogas is, but this is compensated for by its higher market price. None of the scenarios examined are economically viable, since the MBSP (EUR 103–128 per MWh) is higher than the market price of biogas (EUR 67 per MWh). The largest contribution to the cost is the cost of feedstock. Decreasing the retention time in the biogas process for low solids streams by partly replacing continuous stirred tank reactors by high-rate bioreactors decreases the MBSP. Also, recycling part of the liquid from the effluent from anaerobic digestion decreases the MBSP. The production and prices of methane and ethanol influence the process economics more than the production and prices of electricity and district heat. Conclusions To reduce the production cost of ethanol and biogas from biomass, the use of feedstocks that are cheaper than hemp, give higher output of ethanol and biogas, or combined production with higher value products are primarily suggested. Further, practical investigations on increased substrate concentration in biogas and ethanol production, recycling of the liquid in anaerobic digestion and separation of low solids flows into solid and a liquid fraction for improved reactor applications deserves further attention. PMID:23607263

Efficiency measurement and the operationalization of hospital production.

PubMed Central

Magnussen, J

1996-01-01

OBJECTIVE. To discuss the usefulness of efficiency measures as instruments of monitoring and resource allocation by analyzing their invariance to changes in the operationalization of hospital production. STUDY SETTING. Norwegian hospitals over the three-year period 1989-1991. STUDY DESIGN. Efficiency is measured using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The distribution of efficiency and the ranking of hospitals is compared across models using various distribution-free tests. DATA COLLECTION. Input and output data are collected by the Norwegian Central Bureau of Statistics. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS. The distribution of efficiency is found to be unaffected by changes in the specification of hospital output. Both the ranking of hospitals and the scale properties of the technology, however, are found to depend on the choice of output specification. CONCLUSION. Extreme care should be taken before resource allocation is based on DEA-type efficiency measures alone. Both the identification of efficient and inefficient hospitals and the cardinal measure of inefficiency will depend on the specification of output. Since the scale properties of the technology also vary with the specification of output, the search for an optimal hospital size may be futile. PMID:8617607

Empirical Study on Total Factor Productive Energy Efficiency in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region-Analysis based on Malmquist Index and Window Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Qiang; Ding, Shuai; An, Jingwen

2017-12-01

This paper studies the energy efficiency of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and to finds out the trend of energy efficiency in order to improve the economic development quality of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Based on Malmquist index and window analysis model, this paper estimates the total factor energy efficiency in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region empirically by using panel data in this region from 1991 to 2014, and provides the corresponding political recommendations. The empirical result shows that, the total factor energy efficiency in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region increased from 1991 to 2014, mainly relies on advances in energy technology or innovation, and obvious regional differences in energy efficiency to exist. Throughout the window period of 24 years, the regional differences of energy efficiency in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region shrank. There has been significant convergent trend in energy efficiency after 2000, mainly depends on the diffusion and spillover of energy technologies.

Evaluation of optimum roughage to concentrate ratio in maize stover based complete rations for efficient microbial biomass production using in vitro gas production technique.

PubMed

Reddy, Y Ramana; Kumari, N Nalini; Monika, T; Sridhar, K

2016-06-01

A study was undertaken to evaluate the optimum roughage to concentrate ratio in maize stover (MS) based complete diets for efficient microbial biomass production (EMBP) using in vitro gas production technique. MS based complete diets with roughage to concentrate ratio of 100:0, 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, 60:40, 50:50, 40:60, and 30:70 were formulated, and 200 mg of oven-dried sample was incubated in water bath at 39°C along with media (rumen liquor [RL] - buffer) in in vitro gas syringes to evaluate the gas production. The gas produced was recorded at 8 and 24 h of incubation. In vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD), metabolizable energy (ME), truly digestible organic matter (TDOM), partitioning factor (PF), and EMBP were calculated using appropriate formulae. Ammonia nitrogen and total volatile fatty acids (TVFAs) production were analyzed in RL fluid-media mixture after 24 h of incubation. In vitro gas production (ml) at 24 h incubation, IVOMD, ME, TDOM, TVFA concentration, and ammonia nitrogen production were increased (p<0.01) in proportion to the increase in the level of concentrate in the diet. Significantly (p<0.01) higher PF and EMBP was noticed in total mixed ration with roughage to concentrate ratio of 60:40 and 50:50 followed by 70:30 and 40:60. Based on the results, it was concluded that the MS can be included in complete rations for ruminants at the level of 50-60% for better microbial biomass synthesis which in turn influences the performance of growing sheep.

A multi-objective model for closed-loop supply chain optimization and efficient supplier selection in a competitive environment considering quantity discount policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jahangoshai Rezaee, Mustafa; Yousefi, Samuel; Hayati, Jamileh

2017-06-01

Supplier selection and allocation of optimal order quantity are two of the most important processes in closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) and reverse logistic (RL). So that providing high quality raw material is considered as a basic requirement for a manufacturer to produce popular products, as well as achieve more market shares. On the other hand, considering the existence of competitive environment, suppliers have to offer customers incentives like discounts and enhance the quality of their products in a competition with other manufacturers. Therefore, in this study, a model is presented for CLSC optimization, efficient supplier selection, as well as orders allocation considering quantity discount policy. It is modeled using multi-objective programming based on the integrated simultaneous data envelopment analysis-Nash bargaining game. In this study, maximizing profit and efficiency and minimizing defective and functions of delivery delay rate are taken into accounts. Beside supplier selection, the suggested model selects refurbishing sites, as well as determining the number of products and parts in each network's sector. The suggested model's solution is carried out using global criteria method. Furthermore, based on related studies, a numerical example is examined to validate it.

The Genome-Based Metabolic Systems Engineering to Boost Levan Production in a Halophilic Bacterial Model.

PubMed

Aydin, Busra; Ozer, Tugba; Oner, Ebru Toksoy; Arga, Kazim Yalcin

2018-03-01

Metabolic systems engineering is being used to redirect microbial metabolism for the overproduction of chemicals of interest with the aim of transforming microbial hosts into cellular factories. In this study, a genome-based metabolic systems engineering approach was designed and performed to improve biopolymer biosynthesis capability of a moderately halophilic bacterium Halomonas smyrnensis AAD6 T producing levan, which is a fructose homopolymer with many potential uses in various industries and medicine. For this purpose, the genome-scale metabolic model for AAD6 T was used to characterize the metabolic resource allocation, specifically to design metabolic engineering strategies for engineered bacteria with enhanced levan production capability. Simulations were performed in silico to determine optimal gene knockout strategies to develop new strains with enhanced levan production capability. The majority of the gene knockout strategies emphasized the vital role of the fructose uptake mechanism, and pointed out the fructose-specific phosphotransferase system (PTS fru ) as the most promising target for further metabolic engineering studies. Therefore, the PTS fru of AAD6 T was restructured with insertional mutagenesis and triparental mating techniques to construct a novel, engineered H. smyrnensis strain, BMA14. Fermentation experiments were carried out to demonstrate the high efficiency of the mutant strain BMA14 in terms of final levan concentration, sucrose consumption rate, and sucrose conversion efficiency, when compared to the AAD6 T . The genome-based metabolic systems engineering approach presented in this study might be considered an efficient framework to redirect microbial metabolism for the overproduction of chemicals of interest, and the novel strain BMA14 might be considered a potential microbial cell factory for further studies aimed to design levan production processes with lower production costs.

Optimization of biogas production using MEMS based near infrared inline-sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saupe, Ray; Seider, Thomas; Stock, Volker; Kujawski, Olaf; Otto, Thomas; Gessner, Thomas

2013-03-01

Due to climate protection and increasing oil prices, renewable energy is becoming extremely important. Anaerobic digestion is a particular environmental and resource-saving way of heat and power production in biogas plants. These plants can be operated decentralized and independent of weather conditions and allow peak load operation. To maximize energy production, plants should be operated at a high efficiency. That means the entire installed power production capacity (e.g. CHP) and biogas production have to be used. However, current plant utilization in many areas is significantly lower, which is economically and environmentally inefficient, since the biochemical process responds to fluctuations in boundary conditions, e.g. mixing in the conditions and substrate composition. At present only a few easily accessible parameters such as fill level, flow rates and temperature are determined on-line. Monitoring of substrate composition occurs only sporadically with the help of laboratory methods. Direct acquisition of substrate composition combined with a smart control and regulation concept enables significant improvement in plant efficiency. This requires a compact, reliable and cost-efficient sensor. It is for this reason that a MEMS sensor system based on NIR spectroscopy has been developed. Requirements are high accuracy, which is the basic condition for exact chemometric evaluation of the sample as well as optimized MEMS design and packaging in order to work in poor environmental conditions. Another issue is sample presentation, which needs an exact adopted optical-mechanical system. In this paper, the development and application of a MEMS-based analyzer for biogas plants will be explained. The above mentioned problems and challenges will be discussed. Measurement results will be shown to demonstrate its performance.

Product code optimization for determinate state LDPC decoding in robust image transmission.

PubMed

Thomos, Nikolaos; Boulgouris, Nikolaos V; Strintzis, Michael G

2006-08-01

We propose a novel scheme for error-resilient image transmission. The proposed scheme employs a product coder consisting of low-density parity check (LDPC) codes and Reed-Solomon codes in order to deal effectively with bit errors. The efficiency of the proposed scheme is based on the exploitation of determinate symbols in Tanner graph decoding of LDPC codes and a novel product code optimization technique based on error estimation. Experimental evaluation demonstrates the superiority of the proposed system in comparison to recent state-of-the-art techniques for image transmission.

RNAi Knock-Down of LHCBM1, 2 and 3 Increases Photosynthetic H2 Production Efficiency of the Green Alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

PubMed Central

Oey, Melanie; Ross, Ian L.; Stephens, Evan; Steinbeck, Janina; Wolf, Juliane; Radzun, Khairul Adzfa; Kügler, Johannes; Ringsmuth, Andrew K.; Kruse, Olaf; Hankamer, Ben

2013-01-01

Single cell green algae (microalgae) are rapidly emerging as a platform for the production of sustainable fuels. Solar-driven H2 production from H2O theoretically provides the highest-efficiency route to fuel production in microalgae. This is because the H2-producing hydrogenase (HYDA) is directly coupled to the photosynthetic electron transport chain, thereby eliminating downstream energetic losses associated with the synthesis of carbohydrate and oils (feedstocks for methane, ethanol and oil-based fuels). Here we report the simultaneous knock-down of three light-harvesting complex proteins (LHCMB1, 2 and 3) in the high H2-producing Chlamydomonas reinhardtii mutant Stm6Glc4 using an RNAi triple knock-down strategy. The resultant Stm6Glc4L01 mutant exhibited a light green phenotype, reduced expression of LHCBM1 (20.6% ±0.27%), LHCBM2 (81.2% ±0.037%) and LHCBM3 (41.4% ±0.05%) compared to 100% control levels, and improved light to H2 (180%) and biomass (165%) conversion efficiencies. The improved H2 production efficiency was achieved at increased solar flux densities (450 instead of ∼100 µE m−2 s−1) and high cell densities which are best suited for microalgae production as light is ideally the limiting factor. Our data suggests that the overall improved photon-to-H2 conversion efficiency is due to: 1) reduced loss of absorbed energy by non-photochemical quenching (fluorescence and heat losses) near the photobioreactor surface; 2) improved light distribution in the reactor; 3) reduced photoinhibition; 4) early onset of HYDA expression and 5) reduction of O2-induced inhibition of HYDA. The Stm6Glc4L01 phenotype therefore provides important insights for the development of high-efficiency photobiological H2 production systems. PMID:23613840

Does body size of dairy cows, at constant ratio of maintenance to production requirements, affect productivity in a pasture-based production system?

PubMed

Hofstetter, P; Steiger Burgos, M; Petermann, R; Münger, A; Blum, J W; Thomet, P; Menzi, H; Kohler, S; Kunz, P

2011-12-01

This study compared productivity of dairy cows with different body weight (BW), but a constant ratio of maintenance to production requirements in their first lactation, in a pasture-based production system with spring calving. Two herds, Herd L (13 and 14 large cows in 2003 and 2004 respectively; average BW after calving, 721 kg) and Herd S (16 small cows in both years; 606 kg) [Correction added after online publication 14 January 2011: 16 small cows in both years; 621 kg was changed to 16 small cows in both years; 606 kg], all in their second or following lactations, were each allocated 6 ha of pasture and rotationally grazed on 10 parallel paddocks with equal herbage offer and nutritional values. Winter hay, harvested from the same pastures, was offered ad libitum in the indoor periods in a tied stall barn. Each herd received, per lactation and year, approximately 2000 kg dry matter (DM) of concentrates and of fodder beets, equally distributed to every individual. Indoors, the L-cows ingested more DM than the S-cows (18.7 vs. 16.3 kg DM/cow per day; p < 0.01), but DM intake per 100 kg of metabolic BW was similar (13.0 vs. 13.1 kg DM/cow per day). Estimates based on the n-alkane technique gave similar results on pasture (17.9 vs. 15.5 kg DM/cow per day; p < 0.001). Roughage intakes per 100 kg of metabolic BW, at 13.5 kg DM/cow per day, were similar. Mean annual yield of energy-corrected milk (ECM)/ha was slightly higher for the S-herd than the L-herd (13,026 vs. 12,284 kg) but was associated with a higher stocking rate (on average +20%) for the S-herd. Feed conversion efficiency (1.2 vs. 1.3 kg ECM/kg DM intake) and overall milk production efficiency (45.3 vs. 47.3 kg ECM/kg metabolic BW) were similar in L- and S-cows. Thus, both dairy cow types were equally efficient in utilising pasture-based forage. © 2010 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Mitigating climate change: the role of domestic livestock.

PubMed

Gill, M; Smith, P; Wilkinson, J M

2010-03-01

Livestock contribute directly (i.e. as methane and nitrous oxide (N2O)) to about 9% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and around 3% of UK emissions. If all parts of the livestock production lifecycle are included (fossil fuels used to produce mineral fertilizers used in feed production and N2O emissions from fertilizer use; methane release from the breakdown of fertilizers and from animal manure; land-use changes for feed production and for grazing; land degradation; fossil fuel use during feed and animal production; fossil fuel use in production and transport of processed and refrigerated animal products), livestock are estimated to account for 18% of global anthropogenic emissions, but less than 8% in the UK. In terms of GHG emissions per unit of livestock product, monogastric livestock are more efficient than ruminants; thus in the UK, while sheep and cattle accounted for 32% of meat production in 2006, they accounted for 48% of GHG emissions associated with meat production. More efficient management of grazing lands and of manure can have a direct impact in decreasing emissions. Improving efficiency of livestock production through better breeding, health interventions or improving fertility can also decrease GHG emissions through decreasing the number of livestock required per unit product. Increasing the energy density of the diet has a dual effect, decreasing both direct emissions and the numbers of livestock per unit product, but, as the demands for food increase in response to increasing human population and a better diet in some developing countries, there is increasing competition for land for food v. energy-dense feed crops. Recalculating efficiencies of energy and protein production on the basis of human-edible food produced per unit of human-edible feed consumed gave higher efficiencies for ruminants than for monogastric animals. The policy community thus have difficult decisions to make in balancing the negative contribution of livestock to the environment against the positive benefit in terms of food security. The animal science community have a responsibility to provide an evidence base which is objective and holistic with respect to these two competing challenges.

Continuous recovery of valine in a model mixture of amino acids and salt from Corynebacterium bacteria fermentation using a simulated moving bed chromatography.

PubMed

Park, Chanhun; Nam, Hee-Geun; Jo, Se-Hee; Wang, Nien-Hwa Linda; Mun, Sungyong

2016-02-26

The economical efficiency of valine production in related industries is largely affected by the performance of a valine separation process, in which valine is to be separated from leucine, alanine, and ammonium sulfate. Such separation is currently handled by a batch-mode hybrid process based on ion-exchange and crystallization schemes. To make a substantial improvement in the economical efficiency of an industrial valine production, such a batch-mode process based on two different separation schemes needs to be converted into a continuous-mode separation process based on a single separation scheme. To address this issue, a simulated moving bed (SMB) technology was applied in this study to the development of a continuous-mode valine-separation chromatographic process with uniformity in adsorbent and liquid phases. It was first found that a Chromalite-PCG600C resin could be eligible for the adsorbent of such process, particularly in an industrial scale. The intrinsic parameters of each component on the Chromalite-PCG600C adsorbent were determined and then utilized in selecting a proper set of configurations for SMB units, columns, and ports, under which the SMB operating parameters were optimized with a genetic algorithm. Finally, the optimized SMB based on the selected configurations was tested experimentally, which confirmed its effectiveness in continuous separation of valine from leucine, alanine, ammonium sulfate with high purity, high yield, high throughput, and high valine product concentration. It is thus expected that the developed SMB process in this study will be able to serve as one of the trustworthy ways of improving the economical efficiency of an industrial valine production process. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Over production of fermentable sugar for bioethanol production from carbohydrate-rich Malaysian food waste via sequential acid-enzymatic hydrolysis pretreatment.

PubMed

Hafid, Halimatun Saadiah; Nor 'Aini, Abdul Rahman; Mokhtar, Mohd Noriznan; Talib, Ahmad Tarmezee; Baharuddin, Azhari Samsu; Umi Kalsom, Md Shah

2017-09-01

In Malaysia, the amount of food waste produced is estimated at approximately 70% of total municipal solid waste generated and characterised by high amount of carbohydrate polymers such as starch, cellulose, and sugars. Considering the beneficial organic fraction contained, its utilization as an alternative substrate specifically for bioethanol production has receiving more attention. However, the sustainable production of bioethanol from food waste is linked to the efficient pretreatment needed for higher production of fermentable sugar prior to fermentation. In this work, a modified sequential acid-enzymatic hydrolysis process has been developed to produce high concentration of fermentable sugars; glucose, sucrose, fructose and maltose. The process started with hydrothermal and dilute acid pretreatment by hydrochloric acid (HCl) and sulphuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ) which aim to degrade larger molecules of polysaccharide before accessible for further steps of enzymatic hydrolysis by glucoamylase. A kinetic model is proposed to perform an optimal hydrolysis for obtaining high fermentable sugars. The results suggested that a significant increase in fermentable sugar production (2.04-folds) with conversion efficiency of 86.8% was observed via sequential acid-enzymatic pretreatment as compared to dilute acid pretreatment (∼42.4% conversion efficiency). The bioethanol production by Saccharomyces cerevisiae utilizing fermentable sugar obtained shows ethanol yield of 0.42g/g with conversion efficiency of 85.38% based on the theoretical yield was achieved. The finding indicates that food waste can be considered as a promising substrate for bioethanol production. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Control of the dehydration process in production of intermediate-moisture meat products: a review.

PubMed

Chang, S F; Huang, T C; Pearson, A M

1996-01-01

IM meat products are produced by lowering the aw to 0.90 to 0.60. Such products are stable at ambient temperature and humidity and are produced in nearly every country in the world, especially in developing areas where refrigeration is limited or unavailable. Traditionally IM meats use low cost sources of energy for drying, such as sun drying, addition of salt, or fermentation. Products produced by different processes are of interest since they do not require refrigeration during distribution and storage. Many different IM meat products can be produced by utilizing modern processing equipment and methods. Production can be achieved in a relatively short period of time and their advantages during marketing and distribution can be utilized. Nevertheless, a better understanding of the principles involved in heat transfer and efficiency of production are still needed to increase efficiency of processing. A basic understanding of the influence of water vapor pressure and sorption phenomena on water activity can materially improve the efficiency of drying of IM meats. Predrying treatments, such as fermentation and humidity control, can also be taken advantage of during the dehydration process. Such information can lead to process optimization and reduction of energy costs during production of IM meats. The development of sound science-based methods to assure the production of high-quality and nutritious IM meats is needed. Finally, such products also must be free of pathogenic microorganisms to assure their success in production and marketing.

Study on Providing Professors with Efficient Service Based on Time Management Strategy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Chunlin; Liu, Mengchao; Wang, Yining

2016-01-01

Time management is the study to use time scientifically by deploying skills, techniques and means, and maximizing time value to help individuals or organizations efficiently complete tasks and achieve goals. University professor as a body is an important force in teaching and research. In order to ensure high-quality teaching, productive research,…

Design of production process main shaft process with lean manufacturing to improve productivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siregar, I.; Nasution, A. A.; Andayani, U.; Anizar; Syahputri, K.

2018-02-01

This object research is one of manufacturing companies that produce oil palm machinery parts. In the production process there is delay in the completion of the Main shaft order. Delays in the completion of the order indicate the low productivity of the company in terms of resource utilization. This study aimed to obtain a draft improvement of production processes that can improve productivity by identifying and eliminating activities that do not add value (non-value added activity). One approach that can be used to reduce and eliminate non-value added activity is Lean Manufacturing. This study focuses on the identification of non-value added activity with value stream mapping analysis tools, while the elimination of non-value added activity is done with tools 5 whys and implementation of pull demand system. Based on the research known that non-value added activity on the production process of the main shaft is 9,509.51 minutes of total lead time 10,804.59 minutes. This shows the level of efficiency (Process Cycle Efficiency) in the production process of the main shaft is still very low by 11.89%. Estimation results of improvement showed a decrease in total lead time became 4,355.08 minutes and greater process cycle efficiency that is equal to 29.73%, which indicates that the process was nearing the concept of lean production.

Increased energy efficiency of a steel foundry plant by using a cleaner production quick-E-scan methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasmeni, Zelda; Pan, Xiaowei

2017-07-01

The Quick-E-Scan methodology is a simple and quick method that is used to achieve operational energy efficiency as opposed to detailed energy audits, which therefore offers a no cost or less cost solutions for energy management programs with a limited budget. The quick-E-scan methodology was used to assesses a steel foundry plant based in Benoni through dividing the foundry into production sections which entailed a review of the current processes and usage patterns of energy within the plant and a detailed analysis of options available for improvement and profitable areas in which energy saving measures may be implemented for an increase energy efficiency which can be presented to management of the company.

Statistical media design for efficient polyhydroxyalkanoate production in Pseudomonas sp. MNNG-S.

PubMed

Saranya, V; Rajeswari, V; Abirami, P; Poornimakkani, K; Suguna, P; Shenbagarathai, R

2016-07-03

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is a promising polymer for various biomedical applications. There is a high need to improve the production rate to achieve end use. When a cost-effective production was carried out with cheaper agricultural residues like molasses, traces of toxins were incorporated into the polymer, which makes it unfit for biomedical applications. On the other hand, there is an increase in the popularity of using chemically defined media for the production of compounds with biomedical applications. However, these media do not exhibit favorable characteristics such as efficient utilization at large scale compared to complex media. This article aims to determine the specific nutritional requirement of Pseudomonas sp. MNNG-S for efficient production of polyhydroxyalkanoate. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used in this study to statistically design for PHA production based on the interactive effect of five significant variables (sucrose; potassium dihydrogen phosphate; ammonium sulfate; magnesium sulfate; trace elements). The interactive effects of sucrose with ammonium sulfate, ammonium sulfate with combined potassium phosphate, and trace element with magnesium sulfate were found to be significant (p < .001). The optimization approach adapted in this study increased the PHA production more than fourfold (from 0.85 g L(-1) to 4.56 g L(-1)).

Serum-free Erythroid Differentiation for Efficient Genetic Modification and High-Level Adult Hemoglobin Production.

PubMed

Uchida, Naoya; Demirci, Selami; Haro-Mora, Juan J; Fujita, Atsushi; Raines, Lydia N; Hsieh, Matthew M; Tisdale, John F

2018-06-15

In vitro erythroid differentiation from primary human cells is valuable to develop genetic strategies for hemoglobin disorders. However, current erythroid differentiation methods are encumbered by modest transduction rates and high baseline fetal hemoglobin production. In this study, we sought to improve both genetic modification and hemoglobin production among human erythroid cells in vitro . To model therapeutic strategies, we transduced human CD34 + cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with lentiviral vectors and compared erythropoietin-based erythroid differentiation using fetal-bovine-serum-containing media and serum-free media. We observed more efficient transduction (85%-93%) in serum-free media than serum-containing media (20%-69%), whereas the addition of knockout serum replacement (KSR) was required for serum-free media to promote efficient erythroid differentiation (96%). High-level adult hemoglobin production detectable by electrophoresis was achieved using serum-free media similar to serum-containing media. Importantly, low fetal hemoglobin production was observed in the optimized serum-free media. Using KSR-containing, serum-free erythroid differentiation media, therapeutic adult hemoglobin production was detected at protein levels with β-globin lentiviral transduction in both CD34 + cells and PBMCs from sickle cell disease subjects. Our in vitro erythroid differentiation system provides a practical evaluation platform for adult hemoglobin production among human erythroid cells following genetic manipulation.

Negative base encoding in optical linear algebra processors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perlee, C.; Casasent, D.

1986-01-01

In the digital multiplication by analog convolution algorithm, the bits of two encoded numbers are convolved to form the product of the two numbers in mixed binary representation; this output can be easily converted to binary. Attention is presently given to negative base encoding, treating base -2 initially, and then showing that the negative base system can be readily extended to any radix. In general, negative base encoding in optical linear algebra processors represents a more efficient technique than either sign magnitude or 2's complement encoding, when the additions of digitally encoded products are performed in parallel.

Optical design for consumer products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Anurag

2014-10-01

Optical engineers often limit their focus on meeting the provided targets on performance and geometry and assume that the specifications are largely non-negotiable. Such approach ignores the value proposition behind the product and the challenges associated with overall product design, manufacturing, business development and legal issues. As a result, the design effort can be expensive, time consuming and can result in product failure. We discuss a product based systems engineering approach that leads to an application specific optical design that is more effective and efficient to implement.

Performance analysis of different rice-based cropping systems in tropical region of Nepal.

PubMed

Pokhrel, Anil; Soni, Peeyush

2017-07-15

Energy inputs, environmental impacts and economic outputs are the main concerns in today's agricultural production systems. The current study investigated the energy, environmental and financial performances of different rice-based cropping systems (CSs). The CSs studied were: Rice-Wheat-Fallow (R-W-F), Rice-Wheat-Maize (R-W-M), Rice-Wheat-Mungbean (R-W-Mu), Rice-Lentil-Maize (R-L-M), Rice-Lentil-Mungbean (R-L-Mu), Rice-Garlic (R-G) and Rice-Onion (R-O). Primary data were collected from 210 randomly selected farms by using structured questionnaire. In this study, Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to analyze the technical efficiencies of the farms in order to estimate their energy inputs saving potential, under different CSs. Among the studied systems, R-W-M, R-L-M and R-W-Mu were found energy efficient, R-L-Mu, R-W-F and R-W-Mu were efficient considering their greenhouse gas emissions, and R-G, R-O and R-L-M were more profitable systems. Based on the combined energy, environmental and economic criteria, we conclude that R-L-M, R-L-Mu and R-W-M are the most energy, environmentally and economically efficient CSs as compared to other systems in the study. The mean technical efficiency scores of farms indicated a considerable potential of reducing energy inputs (18-34%), without compromising the economic return of the majority farms under different CSs. The results of this study support eco-efficient CSs with modern production technologies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tool Efficiency Analysis model research in SEMI industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lei, Ma; Nana, Zhang; Zhongqiu, Zhang

2018-06-01

One of the key goals in SEMI industry is to improve equipment through put and ensure equipment production efficiency maximization. This paper is based on SEMI standards in semiconductor equipment control, defines the transaction rules between different tool states, and presents a TEA system model which is to analysis tool performance automatically based on finite state machine. The system was applied to fab tools and verified its effectiveness successfully, and obtained the parameter values used to measure the equipment performance, also including the advices of improvement.

Evolutionary process development towards next generation crystalline silicon solar cells : a semiconductor process toolbox application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

John, J.; Prajapati, V.; Vermang, B.; Lorenz, A.; Allebe, C.; Rothschild, A.; Tous, L.; Uruena, A.; Baert, K.; Poortmans, J.

2012-08-01

Bulk crystalline Silicon solar cells are covering more than 85% of the world's roof top module installation in 2010. With a growth rate of over 30% in the last 10 years this technology remains the working horse of solar cell industry. The full Aluminum back-side field (Al BSF) technology has been developed in the 90's and provides a production learning curve on module price of constant 20% in average. The main reason for the decrease of module prices with increasing production capacity is due to the effect of up scaling industrial production. For further decreasing of the price per wattpeak silicon consumption has to be reduced and efficiency has to be improved. In this paper we describe a successive efficiency improving process development starting from the existing full Al BSF cell concept. We propose an evolutionary development includes all parts of the solar cell process: optical enhancement (texturing, polishing, anti-reflection coating), junction formation and contacting. Novel processes are benchmarked on industrial like baseline flows using high-efficiency cell concepts like i-PERC (Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell). While the full Al BSF crystalline silicon solar cell technology provides efficiencies of up to 18% (on cz-Si) in production, we are achieving up to 19.4% conversion efficiency for industrial fabricated, large area solar cells with copper based front side metallization and local Al BSF applying the semiconductor toolbox.

Semiconductive Copper(I)-Organic Frameworks for Efficient Light-Driven Hydrogen Generation Without Additional Photosensitizers and Cocatalysts.

PubMed

Shi, Dongying; Zheng, Rui; Sun, Ming-Jun; Cao, Xinrui; Sun, Chun-Xiao; Cui, Chao-Jie; Liu, Chun-Sen; Zhao, Junwei; Du, Miao

2017-11-13

As the first example of a photocatalytic system for splitting water without additional cocatalysts and photosensitizers, the comparatively cost-effective Cu 2 I 2 -based MOF, Cu-I-bpy (bpy=4,4'-bipyridine) exhibited highly efficient photocatalytic hydrogen production (7.09 mmol g -1  h -1 ). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations established the electronic structures of Cu-I-bpy with a narrow band gap of 2.05 eV, indicating its semiconductive behavior, which is consistent with the experimental value of 2.00 eV. The proposed mechanism demonstrates that Cu 2 I 2 clusters of Cu-I-bpy serve as photoelectron generators to accelerate the copper(I) hydride interaction, providing redox reaction sites for hydrogen evolution. The highly stable cocatalyst-free and self-sensitized Cu-I-bpy provides new insights into the future design of cost-effective d 10 -based MOFs for highly efficient and long-term solar fuels production. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Operational and environmental performance in China's thermal power industry: Taking an effectiveness measure as complement to an efficiency measure.

PubMed

Wang, Ke; Zhang, Jieming; Wei, Yi-Ming

2017-05-01

The trend toward a more fiercely competitive and strictly environmentally regulated electricity market in several countries, including China has led to efforts by both industry and government to develop advanced performance evaluation models that adapt to new evaluation requirements. Traditional operational and environmental efficiency measures do not fully consider the influence of market competition and environmental regulations and, thus, are not sufficient for the thermal power industry to evaluate its operational performance with respect to specific marketing goals (operational effectiveness) and its environmental performance with respect to specific emissions reduction targets (environmental effectiveness). As a complement to an operational efficiency measure, an operational effectiveness measure not only reflects the capacity of an electricity production system to increase its electricity generation through the improvement of operational efficiency, but it also reflects the system's capability to adjust its electricity generation activities to match electricity demand. In addition, as a complement to an environmental efficiency measure, an environmental effectiveness measure not only reflects the capacity of an electricity production system to decrease its pollutant emissions through the improvement of environmental efficiency, but it also reflects the system's capability to adjust its emissions abatement activities to fulfill environmental regulations. Furthermore, an environmental effectiveness measure helps the government regulator to verify the rationality of its emissions reduction targets assigned to the thermal power industry. Several newly developed effectiveness measurements based on data envelopment analysis (DEA) were utilized in this study to evaluate the operational and environmental performance of the thermal power industry in China during 2006-2013. Both efficiency and effectiveness were evaluated from the three perspectives of operational, environmental, and joint adjustments to each electricity production system. The operational and environmental performance changes over time were also captured through an effectiveness measure based on the global Malmquist productivity index. Our empirical results indicated that the performance of China's thermal power industry experienced significant progress during the study period and that policies regarding the development and regulation of the thermal power industry yielded the expected effects. However, the emissions reduction targets assigned to China's thermal power industry are loose and conservative. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Factors Affecting Aerosol Radiative Forcing from Both Production-based and Consumption-based View

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, J.; Lin, J.; Ni, R.

2017-12-01

Aerosol radiative forcing (RF) is determined by emissions and various chemical-transport-radiative processes in the atmosphere, a multi-factor problem whose individual contributors have not been well quantified. This problem becomes more complicated when taking into account the role of international trade, which means reallocated aerosol RF due to separation of regions producing goods and emissions and regions consuming those goods. Here we analyze major factors affecting RF of secondary inorganic aerosols (SIOAs, including sulfate, nitrate and ammonium), primary organic aerosol (POA) and black carbon (BC), extending the work of Lin et al. (2016, Nature Geoscience). We contrast five factors determining production-based (RFp, due to a region's production of goods) and consumption-based (RFc, due to a region's consumption) forcing by 11 major regions, including population size, per capita output, emission intensity (emission per output), chemical efficiency (mass per unit emission) and radiative efficiency (RF per unit mass). Comparing across the 11 regions, East Asia produces the strongest RFp and RFc of SIOA and BC and the second largest RFp and RFc of POA primarily due to its high emission intensity. Although Middle East and North Africa has low emissions, its RFp is strengthened by its largest chemical efficiency for POA and BC and second largest chemical efficiency for SIOA. However, RFp of South-East Asia and Pacific is greatly weakened by its lowest chemical efficiency. Economic trade means that net importers (Western Europe, North America and Pacific OECD) have higher RFc than RFp by 50-100%. And such forcing difference is mainly due to the high emission intensity of the exporters supplying these regions. For North America, SIOA's RFc is 50% stronger than RFp, for that emission intensity of SIOA is 5.2 times in East Asia and 2.5 times in Latin America and Caribbean compared with that in North America, and the chemical efficiency in the top four exporters are 1.4-2.1 times of North America. For East Asia, the RFc of SIOA is 20% lower than RFp due to the relatively low emission intensity and chemical efficiency of the top two exporters (Pacific OECD and Western Europe). Overall, economic, emission and atmospheric factors all play important roles in differentiating regions' RFp and RFc.

Catalytic amino acid production from biomass-derived intermediates.

PubMed

Deng, Weiping; Wang, Yunzhu; Zhang, Sui; Gupta, Krishna M; Hülsey, Max J; Asakura, Hiroyuki; Liu, Lingmei; Han, Yu; Karp, Eric M; Beckham, Gregg T; Dyson, Paul J; Jiang, Jianwen; Tanaka, Tsunehiro; Wang, Ye; Yan, Ning

2018-05-15

Amino acids are the building blocks for protein biosynthesis and find use in myriad industrial applications including in food for humans, in animal feed, and as precursors for bio-based plastics, among others. However, the development of efficient chemical methods to convert abundant and renewable feedstocks into amino acids has been largely unsuccessful to date. To that end, here we report a heterogeneous catalyst that directly transforms lignocellulosic biomass-derived α-hydroxyl acids into α-amino acids, including alanine, leucine, valine, aspartic acid, and phenylalanine in high yields. The reaction follows a dehydrogenation-reductive amination pathway, with dehydrogenation as the rate-determining step. Ruthenium nanoparticles supported on carbon nanotubes (Ru/CNT) exhibit exceptional efficiency compared with catalysts based on other metals, due to the unique, reversible enhancement effect of NH 3 on Ru in dehydrogenation. Based on the catalytic system, a two-step chemical process was designed to convert glucose into alanine in 43% yield, comparable with the well-established microbial cultivation process, and therefore, the present strategy enables a route for the production of amino acids from renewable feedstocks. Moreover, a conceptual process design employing membrane distillation to facilitate product purification is proposed and validated. Overall, this study offers a rapid and potentially more efficient chemical method to produce amino acids from woody biomass components. Copyright © 2018 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.

Design and Stereoselective Preparation of a New Class of Chiral Olefin Metathesis Catalysts and Application to Enantioselective Synthesis of Quebrachamine: Catalyst Development Inspired by Natural Product Synthesis

PubMed Central

Sattely, Elizabeth S.; Meek, Simon J.; Malcolmson, Steven J.; Schrock, Richard R.; Hoveyda, Amir H.

2010-01-01

A total synthesis of the Aspidosperma alkaloid quebrachamine in racemic form is first described. A key catalytic ring-closing metathesis of an achiral triene is used to establish the all-carbon quaternary stereogenic center and the tetracyclic structure of the natural product; the catalytic transformation proceeds with reasonable efficiency through the use of existing achiral Ru or Mo catalysts. Ru- or Mo-based chiral olefin metathesis catalysts have proven to be inefficient and entirely nonselective in cases where the desired product is observed. In the present study, the synthesis route thus serves as a platform for the discovery of new olefin metathesis catalysts that allow for efficient completion of an enantioselective synthesis of quebrachamine. Accordingly, on the basis of mechanistic principles, stereogenic-at-Mo complexes bearing only monodentate ligands have been designed. The new catalysts provide significantly higher levels of activity than observed with the previously reported Ru- or Mo-based complexes. Enantiomerically enriched chiral alkylidenes are generated through diastereoselective reactions involving achiral Mo-based bispyrrolides and enantiomerically pure silyl-protected binaphthols. Such chiral catalysts initiate the key enantioselective ring-closing metathesis step in the total synthesis of quebrachamine efficiently (1 mol % loading, 22 °C, 1 h, >98% conversion, 84% yield) and with high selectivity (98:2 er, 96% ee). PMID:19113867

How efficiently do corn- and soybean-based cropping systems use water? A systems modeling analysis.

PubMed

Dietzel, Ranae; Liebman, Matt; Ewing, Robert; Helmers, Matt; Horton, Robert; Jarchow, Meghann; Archontoulis, Sotirios

2016-02-01

Agricultural systems are being challenged to decrease water use and increase production while climate becomes more variable and the world's population grows. Low water use efficiency is traditionally characterized by high water use relative to low grain production and usually occurs under dry conditions. However, when a cropping system fails to take advantage of available water during wet conditions, this is also an inefficiency and is often detrimental to the environment. Here, we provide a systems-level definition of water use efficiency (sWUE) that addresses both production and environmental quality goals through incorporating all major system water losses (evapotranspiration, drainage, and runoff). We extensively calibrated and tested the Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) using 6 years of continuous crop and soil measurements in corn- and soybean-based cropping systems in central Iowa, USA. We then used the model to determine water use, loss, and grain production in each system and calculated sWUE in years that experienced drought, flood, or historically average precipitation. Systems water use efficiency was found to be greatest during years with average precipitation. Simulation analysis using 28 years of historical precipitation data, plus the same dataset with ± 15% variation in daily precipitation, showed that in this region, 430 mm of seasonal (planting to harvesting) rainfall resulted in the optimum sWUE for corn, and 317 mm for soybean. Above these precipitation levels, the corn and soybean yields did not increase further, but the water loss from the system via runoff and drainage increased substantially, leading to a high likelihood of soil, nutrient, and pesticide movement from the field to waterways. As the Midwestern United States is predicted to experience more frequent drought and flood, inefficiency of cropping systems water use will also increase. This work provides a framework to concurrently evaluate production and environmental performance of cropping systems. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Hydrodynamic cavitation as a strategy to enhance the efficiency of lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment.

PubMed

Terán Hilares, Ruly; Ramos, Lucas; da Silva, Silvio Silvério; Dragone, Giuliano; Mussatto, Solange I; Santos, Júlio César Dos

2018-06-01

Hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) is a process technology with potential for application in different areas including environmental, food processing, and biofuels production. Although HC is an undesirable phenomenon for hydraulic equipment, the net energy released during this process is enough to accelerate certain chemical reactions. The application of cavitation energy to enhance the efficiency of lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment is an interesting strategy proposed for integration in biorefineries for the production of bio-based products. Moreover, the use of an HC-assisted process was demonstrated as an attractive alternative when compared to other conventional pretreatment technologies. This is not only due to high pretreatment efficiency resulting in high enzymatic digestibility of carbohydrate fraction, but also, by its high energy efficiency, simple configuration, and construction of systems, besides the possibility of using on the large scale. This paper gives an overview regarding HC technology and its potential for application on the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. The parameters affecting this process and the perspectives for future developments in this area are also presented and discussed.

Cradle-to-grave analysis on batik cabut product to reduce environmental impact

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Djunaidi, Much.; Nursanti, Ida; Suryadarmawan, Viditwo Ashari

2017-06-01

Nowadays, the development of batik industry is growing rapidly. Efforts to protect the environment are increasing fast as well. This makes both of them go in line. In one of batik producers residing in Kampung Batik Laweyan, the process of making batik needs raw and supporting materials, both of which contain chemicals potentially dangerous to the environment. Assessment methods, such as life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost (LCC), to determine the value of the environmental impact are, therefore, needed. LCA and LCC are used to assess the level of product eco-efficiency. The eco-efficiency combines concepts of economic efficiency and efficiency of environmental resources. Based on assessment of 3,120 pieces of batik cabut product, it is found that scores of life cycle assessment (SLCA) and of life cycle cost (SLCC) are 4,049.15 points and IDR 146,437,138.29, respectively. Improvements proposed in this research are by replacing synthetic dyes with natural ones and by substituting wood with LPG. The proposal can reduce the environmental impact as much as 6.65%.

Possibility of Exosome-Based Therapeutics and Challenges in Production of Exosomes Eligible for Therapeutic Application.

PubMed

Yamashita, Takuma; Takahashi, Yuki; Takakura, Yoshinobu

2018-01-01

Exosomes are cell-derived vesicles with a diameter 30-120 nm. Exosomes contain endogenous proteins and nucleic acids; delivery of these molecules to exosome-recipient cells causes biological effects. Exosomes derived from some types of cells such as mesenchymal stem cells and dendritic cells have therapeutic potential and may be biocompatible and efficient agents against various disorders such as organ injury. However, there are many challenges for the development of exosome-based therapeutics. In particular, producing exosomal formulations is the major barrier for therapeutic application because of their heterogeneity and low productivity. Development and optimization of producing methods, including methods for isolation and storage of exosome formulations, are required for realizing exosome-based therapeutics. In addition, improvement of therapeutic potential and delivery efficiency of exosomes are important for their therapeutic application. In this review, we summarize current knowledge about therapeutic application of exosomes and discuss some challenges in their successful use.

Energy saving and recovery measures in integrated urban water systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Freni, Gabriele; Sambito, Mariacrocetta

2017-11-01

The present paper describes different energy production, recovery and saving measures which can be applied in an integrated urban water system. Production measures are often based on the installation of photovoltaic systems; the recovery measures are commonly based on hydraulic turbines, exploiting the available pressure potential to produce energy; saving measures are based on substitution of old pumps with higher efficiency ones. The possibility of substituting some of the pipes of the water supply system can be also considered in a recovery scenario in order to reduce leakages and recovery part of the energy needed for water transport and treatment. The reduction of water losses can be obtained through the Active Leakage Control (ALC) strategies resulting in a reduction in energy consumption and in environmental impact. Measures were applied to a real case study to tested it the efficiency, i.e., the integrated urban water system of the Palermo metropolitan area in Sicily (Italy).

Liquid Fuel Production from Biomass via High Temperature Steam Electrolysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Grant L. Hawkes; Michael G. McKellar

2009-11-01

A process model of syngas production using high temperature electrolysis and biomass gasification is presented. Process heat from the biomass gasifier is used to heat steam for the hydrogen production via the high temperature steam electrolysis process. Hydrogen from electrolysis allows a high utilization of the biomass carbon for syngas production. Oxygen produced form the electrolysis process is used to control the oxidation rate in the oxygen-fed biomass gasifier. Based on the gasifier temperature, 94% to 95% of the carbon in the biomass becomes carbon monoxide in the syngas (carbon monoxide and hydrogen). Assuming the thermal efficiency of the powermore » cycle for electricity generation is 50%, (as expected from GEN IV nuclear reactors), the syngas production efficiency ranges from 70% to 73% as the gasifier temperature decreases from 1900 K to 1500 K. Parametric studies of system pressure, biomass moisture content and low temperature alkaline electrolysis are also presented.« less

A two-stage DEA approach for environmental efficiency measurement.

PubMed

Song, Malin; Wang, Shuhong; Liu, Wei

2014-05-01

The slacks-based measure (SBM) model based on the constant returns to scale has achieved some good results in addressing the undesirable outputs, such as waste water and water gas, in measuring environmental efficiency. However, the traditional SBM model cannot deal with the scenario in which desirable outputs are constant. Based on the axiomatic theory of productivity, this paper carries out a systematic research on the SBM model considering undesirable outputs, and further expands the SBM model from the perspective of network analysis. The new model can not only perform efficiency evaluation considering undesirable outputs, but also calculate desirable and undesirable outputs separately. The latter advantage successfully solves the "dependence" problem of outputs, that is, we can not increase the desirable outputs without producing any undesirable outputs. The following illustration shows that the efficiency values obtained by two-stage approach are smaller than those obtained by the traditional SBM model. Our approach provides a more profound analysis on how to improve environmental efficiency of the decision making units.

Immobilized magnetic beads-based multi-target affinity selection coupled with HPLC-MS for screening active compounds from traditional Chinese medicine and natural products.

PubMed

Chen, Yaqi; Chen, Zhui; Wang, Yi

2015-01-01

Screening and identifying active compounds from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and other natural products plays an important role in drug discovery. Here, we describe a magnetic beads-based multi-target affinity selection-mass spectrometry approach for screening bioactive compounds from natural products. Key steps and parameters including activation of magnetic beads, enzyme/protein immobilization, characterization of functional magnetic beads, screening and identifying active compounds from a complex mixture by LC/MS, are illustrated. The proposed approach is rapid and efficient in screening and identification of bioactive compounds from complex natural products.

Effective and Durable Co Single Atomic Cocatalysts for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production.

PubMed

Zhao, Qi; Yao, Weifeng; Huang, Cunping; Wu, Qiang; Xu, Qunjie

2017-12-13

This research reports for the first time that single cobalt atoms anchored in nitrogen-doped graphene (Co-NG) can serve as a highly effective and durable cocatalyst for visible light photocatalytic hydrogen production from water. Results show that, under identical conditions, the hydrogen production rate (1382 μmol/h) for 0.25 wt % Co-NG-loaded CdS photocatalyst (0.25 wt % Co-NG/CdS) is 3.42 times greater than that of nitrogen-doped graphene (NG) loaded CdS photocatalyst (NG/CdS) and about 1.3 times greater than the greatest hydrogen production rate (1077 μmol/h) for 1.5 wt % Pt nanoparticle loaded CdS photocatalyst (1.5 wt % Pt-NPs/CdS). At 420 nm irradiation, the quantum efficiency of the 0.25 wt % Co-NG/CdS photocatalyst is 50.5%, the highest efficiency among those literature-reported non-noble metal cocatalysts. The Co-NG/CdS nanocomposite-based photocatalyst also has an extended durability. No activity decline was detected during three cyclic photocatalytic life span tests. The very low cocatalyst loading, along with the facile preparation technology for this non-noble metal cocatalyst, will significantly reduce the hydrogen production costs and finally lead to the commercialization of the solar catalytic hydrogen production process. Based on experimental results, we conclude that Co-NG can successfully replace noble metal cocatalysts as a highly effective and durable cocatalyst for renewable solar hydrogen production. This finding will point to a new way for the development of highly effective, long life span, non-noble metal-based cocatalysts for renewable and cost-effective hydrogen production.

High Efficiency Solar-based Catalytic Structure for CO 2 Reforming

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Menkara, Hisham

Throughout this project, we developed and optimized various photocatalyst structures for CO 2 reforming into hydrocarbon fuels and various commodity chemical products. We also built several closed-loop and continuous fixed-bed photocatalytic reactor system prototypes for a larger-scale demonstration of CO 2 reforming into hydrocarbons, mainly methane and formic acid. The results achieved have indicated that with each type of reactor and structure, high reforming yields can be obtained by refining the structural and operational conditions of the reactor, as well as by using various sacrificial agents (hole scavengers). We have also demonstrated, for the first time, that an aqueous solutionmore » containing acid whey (a common bio waste) is a highly effective hole scavenger for a solar-based photocatalytic reactor system and can help reform CO 2 into several products at once. The optimization tasks performed throughout the project have resulted in efficiency increase in our conventional reactors from an initial 0.02% to about 0.25%, which is 10X higher than our original project goal. When acid whey was used as a sacrificial agent, the achieved energy efficiency for formic acid alone was ~0.4%, which is 16X that of our original project goal and higher than anything ever reported for a solar-based photocatalytic reactor. Therefore, by carefully selecting sacrificial agents, it should be possible to reach energy efficiency in the range of the photosynthetic efficiency of typical crop and biofuel plants (1-3%).« less

Contracting for Efficiency. A Best Practices Guide for Energy-Efficient Product Procurement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bunch, Saralyn; Payne, Christopher

2016-04-01

The requirement to buy energy- and water-efficient products applies to federal purchases made through any procurement pathway (e.g., purchase cards, e-retailers, and solicitations) and to a wide variety of federal projects. The Federal Energy Management Program’s (FEMP's) Buy Energy-Efficient Products buyer overview fact sheet and Contracting for Efficiency best practices guide for product procurement are designed to support federal buyers in the purchase of energy- and water-efficient products.

Contracting for Efficiency: A Best Practices Guide for Energy Efficient Product Procurement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bunch, Saralyn; Payne, Christopher

The requirement to buy energy- and water-efficient products applies to federal purchases made through any procurement pathway (e.g., purchase cards, e-retailers, and solicitations) and to a wide variety of federal projects. The Federal Energy Management Program’s (FEMP's) Buy Energy-Efficient Products buyer overview fact sheet and Contracting for Efficiency best practices guide for product procurement are designed to support federal buyers in the purchase of energy- and water-efficient products.

Performance evaluation of intensive, pond-based culture systems for catfish production in Mississippi: year one

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Catfish farming is the leading form of aquaculture in the U.S. and has a significant economic impact in the southern states. Increased feed and energy costs, and competition from foreign imports have recently caused catfish farmers to intensify production as a means of improving efficiency and profi...

A Technical and Economic Review of Solar Hydrogen Production Technologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilhelm, Erik; Fowler, Michael

2006-01-01

Hydrogen energy systems are being developed to replace fossil fuels-based systems for transportation and stationary application. One of the challenges facing the widespread adoption of hydrogen as an energy vector is the lack of an efficient, economical, and sustainable method of hydrogen production. In the short term, hydrogen produced from…

Organizational determinants of efficiency and effectiveness in mental health partial care programs.

PubMed Central

Schinnar, A P; Kamis-Gould, E; Delucia, N; Rothbard, A B

1990-01-01

The use of partial care as a treatment modality for mentally ill patients, particularly the chronically mentally ill, has greatly increased. However, research into what constitutes a "good" program has been scant. This article reports on an evaluation study of staff productivity, cost efficiency, and service effectiveness of adult partial care programs carried out in New Jersey in fiscal year 1984/1985. Five program performance indexes are developed based on comparisons of multiple measures of resources, service activities, and client outcomes. These are used to test various hypotheses regarding the effect of organizational and fiscal variables on partial care program efficiency and effectiveness. The four issues explored are: auspices, organizational complexity, service mix, and fiscal control by the state. These were found to explain about half of the variance in program performance. In addition, partial care programs demonstrating midlevel performance with regard to productivity and efficiency were observed to be the most effective, implying a possible optimal level of efficiency at which effectiveness is maximized. PMID:2113046

Genome editing of Ralstonia eutropha using an electroporation-based CRISPR-Cas9 technique.

PubMed

Xiong, Bin; Li, Zhongkang; Liu, Li; Zhao, Dongdong; Zhang, Xueli; Bi, Changhao

2018-01-01

Ralstonia eutropha is an important bacterium for the study of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) synthesis and CO 2 fixation, which makes it a potential strain for industrial PHA production and attractive host for CO 2 conversion. Although the bacterium is not recalcitrant to genetic manipulation, current methods for genome editing based on group II introns or single crossover integration of a suicide plasmid are inefficient and time-consuming, which limits the genetic engineering of this organism. Thus, developing an efficient and convenient method for R. eutropha genome editing is imperative. An efficient genome editing method for R. eutropha was developed using an electroporation-based CRISPR-Cas9 technique. In our study, the electroporation efficiency of R. eutropha was found to be limited by its restriction-modification (RM) systems. By searching the putative RM systems in R. eutropha H16 using REBASE database and comparing with that in E. coli MG1655, five putative restriction endonuclease genes which are related to the RM systems in R. eutropha were predicated and disrupted. It was found that deletion of H16_A0006 and H16_A0008 - 9 increased the electroporation efficiency 1658 and 4 times, respectively. Fructose was found to reduce the leaky expression of the arabinose-inducible pBAD promoter, which was used to optimize the expression of cas9 , enabling genome editing via homologous recombination based on CRISPR-Cas9 in R. eutropha . A total of five genes were edited with efficiencies ranging from 78.3 to 100%. The CRISPR-Cpf1 system and the non-homologous end joining mechanism were also investigated, but failed to yield edited strains. We present the first genome editing method for R. eutropha using an electroporation-based CRISPR-Cas9 approach, which significantly increased the efficiency and decreased time to manipulate this facultative chemolithoautotrophic microbe. The novel technique will facilitate more advanced researches and applications of R. eutropha for PHA production and CO 2 conversion.

Removal efficiency and toxicity reduction of 4-chlorophenol with physical, chemical and biochemical methods.

PubMed

Gómez, M; Murcia, M D; Dams, R; Christofi, N; Gómez, E; Gómez, J L

2012-01-01

Chlorophenols are well-known priority pollutants and many different treatments have been assessed to facilitate their removal from industrial wastewater. However, an absolute and optimum solution still has to be practically implemented in an industrial setting. In this work, a series ofphysical, chemical and biochemical treatments have been systematically tested for the removal of 4-chlorophenol, and their results have been compared in order to determine the most effective treatment based on removal efficiency and residual by-product formation. Chemical treatments based on advanced oxidation processes (AOP) produced the best results on rate and extent of pollutant removal. The non-chemical technologies showed advantages in terms of complete (in the case of adsorption) or easy (enzymatic treatments) removal of toxic treatment by-products. The AOP methods led to the production of different photoproducts depending on the chosen treatment. Toxic products remained in most cases following treatment, though the toxicity level is significantly reduced with combination treatments. Among the treatments, a photochemical method combining UV, produced with a KrCl excilamp, and hydrogen peroxide achieved total removal of chlorophenol and all by-products and is considered the best treatment for chlorophenol removal.

Human Factors and Their Effects on Human-Centred Assembly Systems - A Literature Review-Based Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Q.; Abubakar, M. I.

2017-09-01

If a product has more than one component, then it must be assembled. Assembly of products relies on assembly systems or lines in which assembly of each product is often carried out manually by human workers following assembly sequences in various forms. It is widely understood that efficiency of assembling a product by reducing assembly times (therefore costs) is vital particularly for small and medium-sized manufacturing companies to survive in an increasingly competitive market. Ideally, it is helpful for pre-determining efficiency or productivity of a human-centred assembly system at the early design stage. To date, most research on performance of an assembly system using modelling simulation methods is focused on its “operational functions”. The term used in a narrow sense always indicates the performance of the “operational system”, which does not incorporate the effect of human factors that may also affect the system performance. This paper presents a research outcome of findings through a literature review-based study by identifying possible human factors that mostly affect the performance on human-centred manufacturing systems as part of the research project incorporating parameters of human factors into a DES (discrete event simulation) tool.

Synthetic Biology and Microbial Fuel Cells: Towards Self-Sustaining Life Support Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogan, John Andrew

2014-01-01

NASA ARC and the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) collaborated to investigate the development of advanced microbial fuels cells (MFCs) for biological wastewater treatment and electricity production (electrogenesis). Synthetic biology techniques and integrated hardware advances were investigated to increase system efficiency and robustness, with the intent of increasing power self-sufficiency and potential product formation from carbon dioxide. MFCs possess numerous advantages for space missions, including rapid processing, reduced biomass and effective removal of organics, nitrogen and phosphorus. Project efforts include developing space-based MFC concepts, integration analyses, increasing energy efficiency, and investigating novel bioelectrochemical system applications

Stereospecific Palladium-Catalyzed C-H Arylation of Pyroglutamic Acid Derivatives at the C3 Position Enabled by 8-Aminoquinoline as a Directing Group.

PubMed

Verho, Oscar; Maetani, Micah; Melillo, Bruno; Zoller, Jochen; Schreiber, Stuart L

2017-09-01

An efficient and stereospecific Pd-catalyzed protocol for the C-H arylation of pyroglutamic acid derivatives that uses 8-aminoquinoline as a directing group is described. The reaction was shown to proceed efficiently with a variety of aryl and heteroaryl iodides bearing different functional groups, giving C3-arylated cis products in good to high yields. Removal of the 8-aminoquinoline unit from these C-H arylation products enables access to synthetically useful cis and trans pyroglutamic acid-based building blocks.

Efficient propagation of the hierarchical equations of motion using the matrix product state method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Qiang; Xu, Yang; Yan, Yaming; Xu, Meng

2018-05-01

We apply the matrix product state (MPS) method to propagate the hierarchical equations of motion (HEOM). It is shown that the MPS approximation works well in different type of problems, including boson and fermion baths. The MPS method based on the time-dependent variational principle is also found to be applicable to HEOM with over one thousand effective modes. Combining the flexibility of the HEOM in defining the effective modes and the efficiency of the MPS method thus may provide a promising tool in simulating quantum dynamics in condensed phases.

Product carbon footprint assessment supporting the green supply chain construction in household appliance manufacturers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jianhua; Sun, Liang; Guo, Huiting

2017-11-01

Supply chain carbon emission is one of the factors considered in the green supply chain management. A method was designed to support the green supply chain measures based on the carbon footprint assessment for products. A research for 3 typical household appliances carbon footprint assessment was conducted to explore using product carbon footprint assessment method to guide the green supply chain management of the manufacturers. The result could reflect the differences directions on green supply chain management of manufacturers of washing machine, air conditioner and microwave, respectively That is, the washing machine manufacturer should pay attention to the low carbon activities in upstream suppliers in highest priority, and also the promotion of product energy efficiency. The air conditioner manufacturer should pay attention to the product energy efficiency increasing in highest priority, and the improvement of refrigerant to decrease its GWP. And the microwave manufacture could only focus on the energy efficiency increasing because it contributes most of the carbon emission to its carbon footprint. Besides, the representativeness of product and the applicability of the method were also discussed. As the manufacturer could master the technical information on raw material and components of its products to conduct the product carbon footprint assessment, this method could help the manufacturer to identify the effective green supply chain measures in the preliminary stage.

Performance-Based Measurement: Action for Organizations and HPT Accountability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larbi-Apau, Josephine A.; Moseley, James L.

2010-01-01

Basic measurements and applications of six selected general but critical operational performance-based indicators--effectiveness, efficiency, productivity, profitability, return on investment, and benefit-cost ratio--are presented. With each measurement, goals and potential impact are explored. Errors, risks, limitations to measurements, and a…

Effects of by-product feed-based silage on feeding, rumination, and excretion in growing Hanwoo heifers.

PubMed

Kim, Young-Il; Lee, Sang Moo; Lee, Youn Hee; Lee, Myeon; Choi, Do Young; Kwak, Wan Sup

2015-01-01

This study investigated the effects of feeding by-product feed (BF)-based silage on the behavior of growing Hanwoo heifers. Twelve Hanwoo heifers (13.2 months-old, 315 kg body weight; four heifers per pen) were assigned to three diets: a rice straw (RS) diet (concentrate mix and free access to RS), a RS and BF-based silage (RSBFS) diet (concentrate mix and free access to RS and BF-based silage), and a BF-based silage (BFS) diet (concentrate mix and free access to BF-based silage). Behavior was recorded for 5 days using camcorders. Compared to the RS group, the BFS group showed 21.7% higher dry matter intake, shorter feeding, rumination, and chewing times, as well as longer resting time (p < 0.05). Although all groups exhibited similar drinking, urination, and defecation frequencies, the BFS group exhibited higher feeding rates, rumination efficiency, and chewing efficiency than the RS group (p < 0.05). Compared to the BFS group, the RSBFS group showed higher peNDF8.0 intake (15.2% vs. 25.0% dry matter intake), longer feeding and sitting times, lower defecation frequency (p < 0.05), and similar rumination efficiency. In conclusion, complete replacement of conventional RS with BF-based silage reduced rumination and chewing activity in growing Hanwoo heifers, and BF-based silage feeding with large-particle straw is an effective approach in improving heifer behavior.

Assessment of different pre-treatment methods for the removal of limonene in citrus waste and their effect on methane potential and methane production rate.

PubMed

Ruiz, Begoña; de Benito, Amparo; Rivera, José Daniel; Flotats, Xavier

2016-12-01

The objective of this study was to assess the limonene removal efficiency of three pre-treatment methods when applied to citrus waste and to evaluate their effects on the biochemical methane potential and the methane production rate using batch anaerobic tests. The methods tested were based on removal (biological pretreatment by fungi) or recovery (steam distillation and ethanol extraction) of limonene. All the treatments decreased the concentration of limonene in orange peel, with average efficiencies of 22%, 44% and 100% for the biological treatment, steam distillation and ethanol extraction, respectively. By-products from limonene biodegradation by fungi exhibited an inhibitory effect also, not making interesting the biological pretreatment. The methane potential and production rate of the treated orange peel increased significantly after applying the recovery strategies, which separated and recovered simultaneously other inhibitory components of the citrus essential oil. Apart from the high recovery efficiency of the ethanol extraction process, it presented a favourable energy balance. © The Author(s) 2016.

A Total Factor Productivity Based Structure for Tactical Cluster Assessment: Empirical Investigation in the Airline Industry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vasigh, Bijan; Fleming, Kenneth

2005-01-01

In this paper we analyze and assess the efficiency of the United States (U.S.) airline industry through the total factor productivity (TFP) method. While airlines use various resources to produce a heterogeneous group of outputs, this article focuses on certain fundamental outputs as final products of selected airlines. The results from this analysis indicate that the national airlines (US. domestic carriers) have higher TFP as compared to the major airlines. While major airlines have drastically cut costs in the past few years, they also need to improve efficiency or risk going out of business. In this paper, we investigate the efficiency and productivity of a selection of U.S. airlines for the years 1996 through 2001. These years have been chosen as a good example of years in which the industry experienced normal growth and generally positively returns. Subsequent to 2001 the industry experienced two severe external shocks, namely, the September 11, 2001. terrorist attacks and the Iraq war. These anomalous shocks make the years after 2001 inconsistent with respect to the type of index developed in this article.

Noble metal-free reduced graphene oxide-ZnxCd₁-xS nanocomposite with enhanced solar photocatalytic H₂-production performance.

PubMed

Zhang, Jun; Yu, Jiaguo; Jaroniec, Mietek; Gong, Jian Ru

2012-09-12

Design and preparation of efficient artificial photosynthetic systems for harvesting solar energy by production of hydrogen from water splitting is of great importance from both theoretical and practical viewpoints. ZnS-based solid solutions have been fully proved to be an efficient visible-light driven photocatalysts, however, the H(2)-production rate observed for these solid solutions is far from exciting and sometimes an expensive Pt cocatalyst is still needed in order to achieve higher quantum efficiency. Here, for the first time we report the high solar photocatalytic H(2)-production activity over the noble metal-free reduced graphene oxide (RGO)-Zn(x)Cd(1-x)S nanocomposite prepared by a facile coprecipitation-hydrothermal reduction strategy. The optimized RGO-Zn(0.8)Cd(0.2)S photocatalyst has a high H(2)-production rate of 1824 μmol h(-1) g(-1) at the RGO content of 0.25 wt % and the apparent quantum efficiency of 23.4% at 420 nm (the energy conversion efficiency is ca. 0.36% at simulated one-sun (AM 1.5G) illumination). The results exhibit significantly improved photocatalytic hydrogen production by 450% compared with that of the pristine Zn(0.8)Cd(0.2)S, and are better than that of the optimized Pt-Zn(0.8)Cd(0.2)S under the same reaction conditions, showing that the RGO-Zn(0.8)Cd(0.2)S nanocomposite represents one of the most highly active metal sulfide photocatalyts in the absence of noble metal cocatalysts. This work creates a green and simple way for using RGO as a support to enhance the photocatalytic H(2)-production activity of Zn(x)Cd(1-x)S, and also demonstrates that RGO is a promising substitute for noble metals in photocatalytic H(2)-production.

A novel solid state fermentation coupled with gas stripping enhancing the sweet sorghum stalk conversion performance for bioethanol

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Bioethanol production from biomass is becoming a hot topic internationally. Traditional static solid state fermentation (TS-SSF) for bioethanol production is similar to the traditional method of intermittent operation. The main problems of its large-scale intensive production are the low efficiency of mass and heat transfer and the high ethanol inhibition effect. In order to achieve continuous production and high conversion efficiency, gas stripping solid state fermentation (GS-SSF) for bioethanol production from sweet sorghum stalk (SSS) was systematically investigated in the present study. Results TS-SSF and GS-SSF were conducted and evaluated based on different SSS particle thicknesses under identical conditions. The ethanol yield reached 22.7 g/100 g dry SSS during GS-SSF, which was obviously higher than that during TS-SSF. The optimal initial gas stripping time, gas stripping temperature, fermentation time, and particle thickness of GS-SSF were 10 h, 35°C, 28 h, and 0.15 cm, respectively, and the corresponding ethanol stripping efficiency was 77.5%. The ethanol yield apparently increased by 30% with the particle thickness decreasing from 0.4 cm to 0.05 cm during GS-SSF. Meanwhile, the ethanol yield increased by 6% to 10% during GS-SSF compared with that during TS-SSF under the same particle thickness. The results revealed that gas stripping removed the ethanol inhibition effect and improved the mass and heat transfer efficiency, and hence strongly enhanced the solid state fermentation (SSF) performance of SSS. GS-SSF also eliminated the need for separate reactors and further simplified the bioethanol production process from SSS. As a result, a continuous conversion process of SSS and online separation of bioethanol were achieved by GS-SSF. Conclusions SSF coupled with gas stripping meet the requirements of high yield and efficient industrial bioethanol production. It should be a novel bioconversion process for bioethanol production from SSS biomass. PMID:24713041

Understanding moisture stress on light use efficiency across terrestrial ecosystems based on global flux and remote-sensing data

Treesearch

Yulong Zhang; Conghe Song; Ge Sun; Lawrence E. Band; Asko Noormets; Quanfa Zhang

2015-01-01

Light use efficiency (LUE) is a key biophysical parameter characterizing the ability of plants to convert absorbed light to carbohydrate. However, the environmental regulations on LUE, especially moisture stress, are poorly understood, leading to large uncertainties in primary productivity estimated by LUE models. The objective of this study is to investigate the...

Investigation of a functional role for Titin in the bovine ovary based on the results of an initial whole genome scan for antral follicle count

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A world-wide food shortage is predicted by the year 2050, and biotechnologies are needed to improve production efficiency in agriculture. Biotechnologies that improve reproductive efficiency in domestic farm species will improve the availability and price of food for the growing world population. ...

Enhanced production and application of acidothermophilic Streptomyces cellulase.

PubMed

Budihal, Saikumar R; Agsar, Dayanand; Patil, Sarvamangala R

2016-01-01

An efficient cellulolytic and acidothermophilic actinobacterium was isolated from soil, adhered to decomposing tree bark and was identified as Streptomyces DSK59. Screening of synthetic media and the media components identified that, a medium based on starch casein minerals containing carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC) and beef extract (BE) could support enhanced cellulase production by the organism. CMC, BE, NaCl, temperature and pH were accounted as significant for cellulase production and these were optimized using a response surface central composite design (CCD). Optimization of cellulase production resulted in an enhancement of endoglucanase activity to 27IUml(-1). Acidothermophillic Streptomyces cellulase was found to be efficient for hydrolysis of pretreated sorghum stover and liberated 0.413gg(-1) of total reducing sugars which was higher than previously reported sugar yields obtained using fungal enzymes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hydrogen-based power generation from bioethanol steam reforming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tasnadi-Asztalos, Zs.; Cormos, C. C.; Agachi, P. S.

2015-12-01

This paper is evaluating two power generation concepts based on hydrogen produced from bioethanol steam reforming at industrial scale without and with carbon capture. The power generation from bioethanol conversion is based on two important steps: hydrogen production from bioethanol catalytic steam reforming and electricity generation using a hydrogen-fuelled gas turbine. As carbon capture method to be assessed in hydrogen-based power generation from bioethanol steam reforming, the gas-liquid absorption using methyl-di-ethanol-amine (MDEA) was used. Bioethanol is a renewable energy carrier mainly produced from biomass fermentation. Steam reforming of bioethanol (SRE) provides a promising method for hydrogen and power production from renewable resources. SRE is performed at high temperatures (e.g. 800-900°C) to reduce the reforming by-products (e.g. ethane, ethene). The power generation from hydrogen was done with M701G2 gas turbine (334 MW net power output). Hydrogen was obtained through catalytic steam reforming of bioethanol without and with carbon capture. For the evaluated plant concepts the following key performance indicators were assessed: fuel consumption, gross and net power outputs, net electrical efficiency, ancillary consumptions, carbon capture rate, specific CO2 emission etc. As the results show, the power generation based on bioethanol conversion has high energy efficiency and low carbon footprint.

Mechanical properties of sheet metal components with local reinforcement produced by additive manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ünsal, Ismail; Hama-Saleh, R.; Sviridov, Alexander; Bambach, Markus; Weisheit, A.; Schleifenbaum, J. H.

2018-05-01

New technological challenges like electro-mobility pose an increasing demand for cost-efficient processes for the production of product variants. This demand opens the possibility to combine established die-based manufacturing methods and innovative, dieless technologies like additive manufacturing [1, 2]. In this context, additive manufacturing technologies allow for the weight-efficient local reinforcement of parts before and after forming, enabling manufacturers to produce product variants from series parts [3]. Previous work by the authors shows that the optimal shape of the reinforcing structure can be determined using sizing optimization. Sheet metal parts can then be reinforced using laser metal deposition. The material used is a pearlite-reduced, micro-alloyed steel (ZE 630). The aim of this paper is to determine the effect of the additive manufacturing process on the material behavior and the mechanical properties of the base material and the resulting composite material. The parameters of the AM process are optimized to reach similar material properties in the base material and the build-up volume. A metallographic analysis of the parts is presented, where the additive layers, the base material and also the bonding between the additive layers and the base material are analyzed. The paper shows the feasibility of the approach and details the resulting mechanical properties and performance.

Hydrogen-based power generation from bioethanol steam reforming

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tasnadi-Asztalos, Zs., E-mail: tazsolt@chem.ubbcluj.ro; Cormos, C. C., E-mail: cormos@chem.ubbcluj.ro; Agachi, P. S.

This paper is evaluating two power generation concepts based on hydrogen produced from bioethanol steam reforming at industrial scale without and with carbon capture. The power generation from bioethanol conversion is based on two important steps: hydrogen production from bioethanol catalytic steam reforming and electricity generation using a hydrogen-fuelled gas turbine. As carbon capture method to be assessed in hydrogen-based power generation from bioethanol steam reforming, the gas-liquid absorption using methyl-di-ethanol-amine (MDEA) was used. Bioethanol is a renewable energy carrier mainly produced from biomass fermentation. Steam reforming of bioethanol (SRE) provides a promising method for hydrogen and power production frommore » renewable resources. SRE is performed at high temperatures (e.g. 800-900°C) to reduce the reforming by-products (e.g. ethane, ethene). The power generation from hydrogen was done with M701G2 gas turbine (334 MW net power output). Hydrogen was obtained through catalytic steam reforming of bioethanol without and with carbon capture. For the evaluated plant concepts the following key performance indicators were assessed: fuel consumption, gross and net power outputs, net electrical efficiency, ancillary consumptions, carbon capture rate, specific CO{sub 2} emission etc. As the results show, the power generation based on bioethanol conversion has high energy efficiency and low carbon footprint.« less

Silicon solar cells: Past, present and the future

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Youn-Jung; Kim, Byung-Sung; Ifitiquar, S. M.; Park, Cheolmin; Yi, Junsin

2014-08-01

There has been a great demand for renewable energy for the last few years. However, the solar cell industry is currently experiencing a temporary plateau due to a sluggish economy and an oversupply of low-quality cells. The current situation can be overcome by reducing the production cost and by improving the cell is conversion efficiency. New materials such as compound semiconductor thin films have been explored to reduce the fabrication cost, and structural changes have been explored to improve the cell's efficiency. Although a record efficiency of 24.7% is held by a PERL — structured silicon solar cell and 13.44% has been realized using a thin silicon film, the mass production of these cells is still too expensive. Crystalline and amorphous silicon — based solar cells have led the solar industry and have occupied more than half of the market so far. They will remain so in the future photovoltaic (PV) market by playing a pivotal role in the solar industry. In this paper, we discuss two primary approaches that may boost the silicon — based solar cell market; one is a high efficiency approach and the other is a low cost approach. We also discuss the future prospects of various solar cells.

Acaricidal properties of the formulations based on essential oils from Cymbopogon winterianus and Syzygium aromaticum plants.

PubMed

de Mello, Valéria; Prata, Márcia Cristina de Azevedo; da Silva, Márcio Roberto; Daemon, Erik; da Silva, Luciane Santos; Guimarães, Flávia del Gaudio; de Mendonça, Alessandra Esther; Folly, Evelize; Vilela, Fernanda Maria Pinto; do Amaral, Lilian Henriques; Cabral, Lucio Mendes; do Amaral, Maria da Penha Henriques

2014-12-01

The cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, has caused serious harm to livestock raising in Brazil, considering the costs of controlling it, loss of revenue due to smaller production of milk and meat, and damage to leather, in addition to transmitting diseases. The use of medicinal plants is considered an alternative to the recurring resistance to chemicals. Due to the need for efficient alternatives with less environmental impact, this study aimed to develop contact formulations with essential oils from the Java citronella (Cymbopogon winterianus) and clove (Syzygium aromaticum) plants and to assess in vitro the effects in different stages of the tick cycle. In the present study, concentrations from 0.5-15.0% of the essential oils incorporated in the formulations were used. The ticks from different geographical areas were treated with those formulations, and their effects on the production levels of eggs, on the larvae hatching, and their efficiency on ticks were assessed. The obtained results were compared with other commercial acaricidal products. After the 20th day of treatment, the formulations with citronella essential oil had 2.09-55.51% efficiency, depending on the concentration of the oil incorporated. The efficiency of the treatment with formulations containing clove essential oil was higher, from 92.47-100%. The results showed the acaricidal effects of the formulations tested when compared to commercial chemical products. In vivo studies should be performed in order to assess the efficiency of those formulations in the fields, aiming to use these products as an alternative for controlling cattle ticks.

New Metamaterials with Combined Subnano - and Mesoscale Topology for High-efficiency Catalytic Combustion Chambers of Innovative Gas Turbine Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knysh, Yu A.; Xanthopoulou, G. G.

2018-01-01

The object of the study is a catalytic combustion chamber that provides a highly efficient combustion process through the use of effects: heat recovery from combustion, microvortex heat transfer, catalytic reaction and acoustic resonance. High efficiency is provided by a complex of related technologies: technologies for combustion products heat transfer (recuperation) to initial mixture, catalytic processes technology, technology for calculating effective combustion processes based on microvortex matrices, technology for designing metamaterials structures and technology for obtaining the required topology product by laser fusion of metal powder compositions. The mesoscale level structure provides combustion process with the use of a microvortex effect with a high intensity of heat and mass transfer. High surface area (extremely high area-to-volume ratio) created due to nanoscale periodic structure and ensures catalytic reactions efficiency. Produced metamaterial is the first multiscale product of new concept which due to combination of different scale level periodic topologies provides qualitatively new set of product properties. This research is aimed at solving simultaneously two global problems of the present: ensure environmental safety of transport systems and power industry, as well as the economy and rational use of energy resources, providing humanity with energy now and in the foreseeable future.

Integrating metabolic modeling and population heterogeneity analysis into optimizing recombinant protein production by Komagataella (Pichia) pastoris.

PubMed

Theron, Chrispian W; Berrios, Julio; Delvigne, Frank; Fickers, Patrick

2018-01-01

The methylotrophic yeast Komagataella (Pichia) pastoris has become one of the most utilized cell factories for the production of recombinant proteins over the last three decades. This success story is linked to its specific physiological traits, i.e., the ability to grow at high cell density in inexpensive culture medium and to secrete proteins at high yield. Exploiting methanol metabolism is at the core of most P. pastoris-based processes but comes with its own challenges. Co-feeding cultures with glycerol/sorbitol and methanol is a promising approach, which can benefit from improved understanding and prediction of metabolic response. The development of profitable processes relies on the construction and selection of efficient producing strains from less efficient ones but also depends on the ability to master the bioreactor process itself. More specifically, how a bioreactor processes could be monitored and controlled to obtain high yield of production. In this review, new perspectives are detailed regarding a multi-faceted approach to recombinant protein production processes by P. pastoris; including gaining improved understanding of the metabolic pathways involved, accounting for variations in transcriptional and translational efficiency at the single cell level and efficient monitoring and control of methanol levels at the bioreactor level.

Productivity Analysis of Public and Private Airports: A Causal Investigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vasigh, Bijan; Gorjidooz, Javad

2007-01-01

Around the world, airports are being viewed as enterprises, rather than public services, which are expected to be managed efficiently and provide passengers with courteous customer services. Governments are, increasingly, turning to the private sectors for their efficiency in managing the operation, financing, and development, as well as providing security for airports. Operational and financial performance evaluation has become increasingly important to airport operators due to recent trends in airport privatization. Assessing performance allows the airport operators to plan for human resources and capital investment as efficiently as possible. Productivity measurements may be used as comparisons and guidelines in strategic planning, in the internal analysis of operational efficiency and effectiveness, and in assessing the competitive position of an airport in transportation industry. The primary purpose of this paper is to investigate the operational and financial efficiencies of 22 major airports in the United States and Europe. These airports are divided into three groups based on private ownership (7 British Airport Authority airports), public ownership (8 major United States airports), and a mix of private and public ownership (7 major European Union airports. The detail ownership structures of these airports are presented in Appendix A. Total factor productivity (TFP) model was utilized to measure airport performance in terms of financial and operational efficiencies and to develop a benchmarking tool to identify the areas of strength and weakness. A regression model was then employed to measure the relationship between TFP and ownership structure. Finally a Granger causality test was performed to determine whether ownership structure is a Granger cause of TFP. The results of the analysis presented in this paper demonstrate that there is not a significant relationship between airport TFP and ownership structure. Airport productivity and efficiency is, however dependent upon the level of competition, choice of the market, and regulatory control.

Explorative evaluation of the impact of severe premenstrual disorders on work absenteeism and productivity.

PubMed

Heinemann, Lothar A J; Minh, Thai Do; Filonenko, Anna; Uhl-Hochgräber, Kerstin

2010-01-01

To assess the effects of premenstrual disorders on work productivity and absenteeism in the multinational Impact study. Women aged 15-45 years were screened for suspected premenstrual dysphoric disorders (PMDD) and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and invited to participate in this web-based study. Based on the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) questionnaire, symptoms were assessed prospectively over 2 months. Participants were categorized as having no perceived symptoms/mild PMS or moderate-to-severe PMS/PMDD based on a validated algorithm. Work productivity impairment and absenteeism were assessed retrospectively using the Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool (PSST) and a modified version of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. Work productivity impairment was also assessed prospectively over 2 months using the DRSP questionnaire. Overall 1,477 women started the study-of these, 822 (56%) completed the study as planned and represent the full analysis set. Employed women with moderate-to-severe PMS/PMDD had higher rate of productivity impairment on the modified version of the WPAI questionnaire (values >/=7) relative to those with no perceived symptoms/mild PMS (adjusted odds ratio, 3.12; 95% confidence interval, 1.75-5.57). Similar outcomes were obtained for impairment of working productivity or efficiency using the PSST scale (value 4). The mean number of days on the DRSP with at least moderate reduction in productivity or efficiency in daily routine was higher for women with moderate-to-severe PMS/PMDD (5.6 vs. 1.1). Women with moderate-to-severe PMS/PMDD had a higher rate of absenteeism (>8hours per cycle; 14.2% vs. 6.0%). Moderate-to-severe PMS/PMDD seems to be associated with work productivity impairment and increased absenteeism, and thus poses a potential economic burden. Copyright 2010 Jacobs Institute of Women

A DNA replicon system for rapid high-level production of virus-like particles in plants.

PubMed

Huang, Zhong; Chen, Qiang; Hjelm, Brooke; Arntzen, Charles; Mason, Hugh

2009-07-01

Recombinant virus-like particles (VLPs) represent a safe and effective vaccine strategy. We previously described a stable transgenic plant system for inexpensive production and oral delivery of VLP vaccines. However, the relatively low-level antigen accumulation and long-time frame to produce transgenic plants are the two major roadblocks in the practical development of plant-based VLP production. In this article, we describe the optimization of geminivirus-derived DNA replicon vectors for rapid, high-yield plant-based production of VLPs. Co-delivery of bean yellow dwarf virus (BeYDV)-derived vector and Rep/RepA-supplying vector by agroinfiltration of Nicotiana benthamiana leaves resulted in efficient replicon amplification and robust protein production within 5 days. Co-expression of the P19 protein of tomato bush stunt virus, a gene silencing inhibitor, further enhanced VLP accumulation by stabilizing the mRNA. With this system, hepatitis B core antigen (HBc) and Norwalk virus capsid protein (NVCP) were produced at 0.80 and 0.34 mg/g leaf fresh weight, respectively. Sedimentation analysis and electron microscopy of transiently expressed antigens verified the efficient assembly of VLPs. Furthermore, a single replicon vector containing a built-in Rep/RepA cassette without P19 drove protein expression at similar levels as the three-component system. These results demonstrate the advantages of fast and high-level production of VLP-based vaccines using the BeYDV-derived DNA replicon system for transient expression in plants. (c) 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A DNA replicon system for rapid high-level production of virus-like particles in plants

PubMed Central

Huang, Zhong; Chen, Qiang; Hjelm, Brooke; Arntzen, Charles

2009-01-01

Recombinant virus-like particles (VLPs) represent a safe and effective vaccine strategy. We previously described a stable transgenic plant system for inexpensive production and oral delivery of VLP vaccines. However, the relatively low level antigen accumulation and long time frame to produce transgenic plants are the two major roadblocks in the practical development of plant-based VLP production. In this paper, we describe the optimization of geminivirus-derived DNA replicon vectors for rapid, high-yield plant-based production of VLPs. Co-delivery of bean yellow dwarf virus (BeYDV)-derived vector and Rep/RepA-supplying vector by agroinfiltration of Nicotiana benthamiana leaves resulted in efficient replicon amplification and robust protein production within five days. Co-expression of the P19 protein of tomato bush stunt virus, a gene silencing inhibitor, further enhanced VLP accumulation by stabilizing the mRNA. With this system, hepatitis B core antigen (HBc) and Norwalk virus capsid protein (NVCP) were produced at 0.80 and 0.34 mg/g leaf fresh weight, respectively. Sedimentation analysis and electron microscopy of transiently expressed antigens verified the efficient assembly of VLPs. Furthermore, a single replicon vector containing a built-in Rep/RepA cassette without p19 drove protein expression at similar levels as the three-component system. These results demonstrate the advantages of fast and high-level production of VLP-based vaccines using the BeYDV-derived DNA replicon system for transient expression in plants. PMID:19309755

Solid state recycling of aluminium alloys via a porthole die hot extrusion process: Scaling up to production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paraskevas, Dimos; Kellens, Karel; Deng, Yelin; Dewulf, Wim; Kampen, Carlos; Duflou, Joost R.

2017-10-01

Whereas industrial symbiosis has led to increased energy and resource efficiency in process industries, this concept has not yet been applied in discrete product manufacturing. Metal scrap is first conventionally recycled, for which substantial energy and resource efficiency losses have been reported. Recent research has however proven the feasibility of `meltless' recycling of light metal scrap, yielding a first glimpse of potential industrial symbiosis. Various solid state recycling techniques (such as recycling via hot extrusion or Spark Plasma Sintering) have been proposed for scrap consolidation directly into bulk products or semis by physical disruption and dispersion of the oxide surface film by imposing significant plastic and shear strain. Solid State Recycling (SSR) methods can omit substantial material losses as they bypass the metallurgical recycling step. In this context the case of direct production of bulk aluminium profiles via hot extrusion at industrial scale is demonstrated within this paper. The extrusion tests were performed directly into the production line, highlighting the scaling up potentials and the industrial relevance of this research. A significant amount of machining chips were collected, chemically cleaned and cold compacted into chip based billets with ˜80% relative density. Afterwards the scrap consolidation was achieved by imposing significant plastic and shear deformation into the material during hot extrusion through a modified 2-porthole extrusion die-set. The production process sequence along with microstructural investigations and mechanical properties comparison of the cast based profile used as reference versus the chip based profile are presented.

Optimization of insect cell based protein production processes - online monitoring, expression systems, scale up.

PubMed

Druzinec, Damir; Salzig, Denise; Brix, Alexander; Kraume, Matthias; Vilcinskas, Andreas; Kollewe, Christian; Czermak, Peter

2013-01-01

Due to the increasing use of insect cell based expression systems in research and industrial recombinant protein production, the development of efficient and reproducible production processes remains a challenging task. In this context, the application of online monitoring techniques is intended to ensure high and reproducible product qualities already during the early phases of process development. In the following chapter, the most common transient and stable insect cell based expression systems are briefly introduced. Novel applications of insect cell based expression systems for the production of insect derived antimicrobial peptides/proteins (AMPs) are discussed using the example of G. mellonella derived gloverin. Suitable in situ sensor techniques for insect cell culture monitoring in disposable and common bioreactor systems are outlined with respect to optical and capacitive sensor concepts. Since scale up of production processes is one of the most critical steps in process development, a conclusive overview is given about scale up aspects for industrial insect cell culture processes.

Effect of manganese ions on ethanol fermentation by xylose isomerase expressing Saccharomyces cerevisiae under acetic acid stress.

PubMed

Ko, Ja Kyong; Um, Youngsoon; Lee, Sun-Mi

2016-12-01

The efficient fermentation of lignocellulosic hydrolysates in the presence of inhibitors is highly desirable for bioethanol production. Among the inhibitors, acetic acid released during the pretreatment of lignocellulose negatively affects the fermentation performance of biofuel producing organisms. In this study, we evaluated the inhibitory effects of acetic acid on glucose and xylose fermentation by a high performance engineered strain of xylose utilizing Saccharomyces cerevisiae, SXA-R2P-E, harboring a xylose isomerase based pathway. The presence of acetic acid severely decreased the xylose fermentation performance of this strain. However, the acetic acid stress was alleviated by metal ion supplementation resulting in a 52% increased ethanol production rate under 2g/L of acetic acid stress. This study shows the inhibitory effect of acetic acid on an engineered isomerase-based xylose utilizing strain and suggests a simple but effective method to improve the co-fermentation performance under acetic acid stress for efficient bioethanol production. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Practical application of game theory based production flow planning method in virtual manufacturing networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olender, M.; Krenczyk, D.

2016-08-01

Modern enterprises have to react quickly to dynamic changes in the market, due to changing customer requirements and expectations. One of the key area of production management, that must continuously evolve by searching for new methods and tools for increasing the efficiency of manufacturing systems is the area of production flow planning and control. These aspects are closely connected with the ability to implement the concept of Virtual Enterprises (VE) and Virtual Manufacturing Network (VMN) in which integrated infrastructure of flexible resources are created. In the proposed approach, the players role perform the objects associated with the objective functions, allowing to solve the multiobjective production flow planning problems based on the game theory, which is based on the theory of the strategic situation. For defined production system and production order models ways of solving the problem of production route planning in VMN on computational examples for different variants of production flow is presented. Possible decision strategy to use together with an analysis of calculation results is shown.

Recycling acetic acid from polarizing film of waste liquid crystal display panels by sub/supercritical water treatments.

PubMed

Wang, Ruixue; Chen, Ya; Xu, Zhenming

2015-05-19

Waste liquid crystal display (LCD) panels mainly contain inorganic materials (glass substrate) and organic materials (polarizing film and liquid crystal). The organic materials should be removed first since containing polarizing film and liquid crystal is to the disadvantage of the indium recycling process. In the present study, an efficient and environmentally friendly process to obtain acetic acid from waste LCD panels by sub/supercritical water treatments is investigated. Furthermore, a well-founded reaction mechanism is proposed. Several highlights of this study are summarized as follows: (i) 99.77% of organic matters are removed, which means the present technology is quite efficient to recycle the organic matters; (ii) a yield of 78.23% acetic acid, a quite important fossil energy based chemical product is obtained, which can reduce the consumption of fossil energy for producing acetic acid; (iii) supercritical water acts as an ideal solvent, a requisite reactant as well as an efficient acid-base catalyst, and this is quite significant in accordance with the "Principles of Green Chemistry". In a word, the organic matters of waste LCD panels are recycled without environmental pollution. Meanwhile, this study provides new opportunities for alternating fossil-based chemical products for sustainable development, converting "waste" into "fossil-based chemicals".

Phosphoketolase pathway engineering for carbon-efficient biocatalysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Henard, Calvin Andrew; Freed, Emily Frances; Guarnieri, Michael Thomas

2015-12-01

Recent advances in metabolic engineering have facilitated the development of microbial biocatalysts capable of producing an array of bio-products, ranging from fuels to drug molecules. These bio-products are commonly generated through an acetyl-CoA intermediate, which serves as a key precursor in the biological conversion of carbon substrates. Moreover, conventional biocatalytic upgrading strategies proceeding through this route are limited by low carbon efficiencies, in large part due to carbon losses associated with pyruvate decarboxylation to acetyl-CoA. Bypass of pyruvate decarboxylation offers a means to dramatically enhance carbon yields and, in turn, bioprocess economics. Here, we discuss recent advances and prospects formore » employing the phosphoketolase pathway for direct biosynthesis of acetyl-CoA from carbon substrates, and phosphoketolase-based metabolic engineering strategies for carbon efficient biocatalysis.« less

A Constraint-Based Planner for Data Production

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pang, Wanlin; Golden, Keith

2005-01-01

This paper presents a graph-based backtracking algorithm designed to support constrain-tbased planning in data production domains. This algorithm performs backtracking at two nested levels: the outer- backtracking following the structure of the planning graph to select planner subgoals and actions to achieve them and the inner-backtracking inside a subproblem associated with a selected action to find action parameter values. We show this algorithm works well in a planner applied to automating data production in an ecological forecasting system. We also discuss how the idea of multi-level backtracking may improve efficiency of solving semi-structured constraint problems.

System design considerations for a production-grade, ESR-based x-ray lithography beamline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kovacs, Stephen; Melore, Dan; Cerrina, Franco; Cole, Richard K.

1991-08-01

As electron storage ring (ESR) based x-ray lithography technology moves closer to becoming an industrial reality, more and more attention has been devoted to studying problem areas related to its application in the production environment. A principle component is the x-ray lithography beamline (XLBL) and its associated design requirements. XLBL, an x-ray radiation transport system, is one of the three major subunits in the ESR-based x-ray lithography system (XLS) and has a pivotal role in defining performance characteristics of the entire XLS. Its major functions are to transport the synchrotron orbital radiation (SOR) to the lithography target area with defined efficiency and to modify SOR into the spectral distribution defined by the lithography process window. These functions must be performed reliably in order to satisfy the required high production rate and ensure 0.25 micron resolution lithography conditions. In this paper the authors attempt to answer some specific questions that arise during the formulation of an XLBL system design. Three principle issues that are essential to formulating a design are (1) Radiation transport efficiency, (2) X-ray optical configurations in the beamline, (3) Beamline system configurations. Some practical solutions to thee problem areas are presented, and the effects of these parameters on lithography production rate are examined.

Application of membrane processes to alcohol-water separation: Improving the energy efficiency of biofuel production

EPA Science Inventory

Pervaporation • Membrane-based separation process • Not filtration Separation based on solution-diffusion transport through non-porous or “molecularly-porous” membrane Permeate is a vapor • Permeate contains only volatile compounds • Able to separate mixtures of mis...

Life cycle efficiency of beef production: II. Relationship of cow efficiency ratios to traits of the dam and progeny weaned.

PubMed

Davis, M E; Rutledge, J J; Cundiff, L V; Hauser, E R

1983-10-01

Several measures of life cycle cow efficiency were calculated using weights and individual feed consumptions recorded on 160 dams of beef, dairy and beef X dairy breeding and their progeny. Ratios of output to input were used to estimate efficiency, where outputs included weaning weights of progeny plus salvage value of the dam and inputs included creep feed consumed by progeny plus feed consumed by the dam over her entire lifetime. In one approach to estimating efficiency, inputs and outputs were weighted by probabilities that were a function of the cow herd age distribution and percentage calf crop in a theoretical herd. The second approach to estimating cow efficiency involved dividing the sum of the weights by the sum of the feed consumption values, with all pieces of information being given equal weighting. Relationships among efficiency estimates and various traits of dams and progeny were examined. Weights, heights, and weight:height ratios of dams at 240 d of age were not correlated significantly with subsequent efficiency of calf production, indicating that indirect selection for lifetime cow efficiency at an early age based on these traits would be ineffective. However, females exhibiting more efficient weight gains from 240 d to first calving tended to become more efficient dams. Correlations of efficiency with weight of dam at calving and at weaning were negative and generally highly significant. Height at withers was negatively related to efficiency. Ratio of weight to height indicated that fatter dams generally were less efficient. The effect of milk production on efficiency depended upon the breed combinations involved. Dams calving for the first time at an early age and continuing to calve at short intervals were superior in efficiency. Weaning rate was closely related to life cycle efficiency. Large negative correlations between efficiency and feed consumption of dams were observed, while correlations of efficiency with progeny weights and feed consumptions in individual parities tended to be positive though nonsignificant. However, correlations of efficiency with accumulative progeny weights and feed consumptions generally were significant.

LARGE-SCALE HYDROGEN PRODUCTION FROM NUCLEAR ENERGY USING HIGH TEMPERATURE ELECTROLYSIS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

James E. O'Brien

2010-08-01

Hydrogen can be produced from water splitting with relatively high efficiency using high-temperature electrolysis. This technology makes use of solid-oxide cells, running in the electrolysis mode to produce hydrogen from steam, while consuming electricity and high-temperature process heat. When coupled to an advanced high temperature nuclear reactor, the overall thermal-to-hydrogen efficiency for high-temperature electrolysis can be as high as 50%, which is about double the overall efficiency of conventional low-temperature electrolysis. Current large-scale hydrogen production is based almost exclusively on steam reforming of methane, a method that consumes a precious fossil fuel while emitting carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Demandmore » for hydrogen is increasing rapidly for refining of increasingly low-grade petroleum resources, such as the Athabasca oil sands and for ammonia-based fertilizer production. Large quantities of hydrogen are also required for carbon-efficient conversion of biomass to liquid fuels. With supplemental nuclear hydrogen, almost all of the carbon in the biomass can be converted to liquid fuels in a nearly carbon-neutral fashion. Ultimately, hydrogen may be employed as a direct transportation fuel in a “hydrogen economy.” The large quantity of hydrogen that would be required for this concept should be produced without consuming fossil fuels or emitting greenhouse gases. An overview of the high-temperature electrolysis technology will be presented, including basic theory, modeling, and experimental activities. Modeling activities include both computational fluid dynamics and large-scale systems analysis. We have also demonstrated high-temperature electrolysis in our laboratory at the 15 kW scale, achieving a hydrogen production rate in excess of 5500 L/hr.« less

Evaluation of the LTQ-Orbitrap mass spectrometer for the analysis of polymerase chain reaction products.

PubMed

Manduzio, Hélène; Ezan, Eric; Fenaille, François

2010-12-30

We have investigated the potential and robustness of the off-line coupling of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), for further applications in the screening of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). This was based on recently reported data demonstrating that anion-exchange solid-phase extraction was the most efficient technique for efficiently desalting PCR products, with a recovery of ∼70%. Results showed that this purification approach efficiently removes almost all the chemicals commonly added to PCR buffers. ESI-MS analysis of a model 114-bp PCR product performed on the LTQ-Orbitrap instrument demonstrated that detection limits in the nM range along with an average mass measurement uncertainty of 9.15 ± 7.11 ppm can be routinely obtained using an external calibration. The PCR/ESI-MS platform was able to detect just a few copies of a targeted oligonucleotide. However, it was shown that if two PCR products are present in a mixture in a ratio higher than 10 to 1, the lower abundance one might not be reproducibly detected. Applications to SNPs demonstrated that an LTQ-Orbitrap with a resolution of 30 000 (at m/z 400) easily identified a single (A ↔ G) switch, i.e. a 16 Da difference, in binary mixtures of ∼ 35 kDa PCR products. Complementary experiments also showed that the combination of endonucleases and ESI-MS could be used to confirm base composition and sequence, and thus to screen for unknown polymorphisms in specific sequences. For example, a single (T ↔ A) switch (9 Da mass difference) was successfully identified in a 114-bp PCR product. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Design and function of biomimetic multilayer water purification membranes

PubMed Central

Ling, Shengjie; Qin, Zhao; Huang, Wenwen; Cao, Sufeng; Kaplan, David L.; Buehler, Markus J.

2017-01-01

Multilayer architectures in water purification membranes enable increased water throughput, high filter efficiency, and high molecular loading capacity. However, the preparation of membranes with well-organized multilayer structures, starting from the nanoscale to maximize filtration efficiency, remains a challenge. We report a complete strategy to fully realize a novel biomaterial-based multilayer nanoporous membrane via the integration of computational simulation and experimental fabrication. Our comparative computational simulations, based on coarse-grained models of protein nanofibrils and mineral plates, reveal that the multilayer structure can only form with weak interactions between nanofibrils and mineral plates. We demonstrate experimentally that silk nanofibril (SNF) and hydroxyapatite (HAP) can be used to fabricate highly ordered multilayer membranes with nanoporous features by combining protein self-assembly and in situ biomineralization. The production is optimized to be a simple and highly repeatable process that does not require sophisticated equipment and is suitable for scaled production of low-cost water purification membranes. These membranes not only show ultrafast water penetration but also exhibit broad utility and high efficiency of removal and even reuse (in some cases) of contaminants, including heavy metal ions, dyes, proteins, and other nanoparticles in water. Our biomimetic design and synthesis of these functional SNF/HAP materials have established a paradigm that could lead to the large-scale, low-cost production of multilayer materials with broad spectrum and efficiency for water purification, with applications in wastewater treatment, biomedicine, food industry, and the life sciences. PMID:28435877

Design and function of biomimetic multilayer water purification membranes.

PubMed

Ling, Shengjie; Qin, Zhao; Huang, Wenwen; Cao, Sufeng; Kaplan, David L; Buehler, Markus J

2017-04-01

Multilayer architectures in water purification membranes enable increased water throughput, high filter efficiency, and high molecular loading capacity. However, the preparation of membranes with well-organized multilayer structures, starting from the nanoscale to maximize filtration efficiency, remains a challenge. We report a complete strategy to fully realize a novel biomaterial-based multilayer nanoporous membrane via the integration of computational simulation and experimental fabrication. Our comparative computational simulations, based on coarse-grained models of protein nanofibrils and mineral plates, reveal that the multilayer structure can only form with weak interactions between nanofibrils and mineral plates. We demonstrate experimentally that silk nanofibril (SNF) and hydroxyapatite (HAP) can be used to fabricate highly ordered multilayer membranes with nanoporous features by combining protein self-assembly and in situ biomineralization. The production is optimized to be a simple and highly repeatable process that does not require sophisticated equipment and is suitable for scaled production of low-cost water purification membranes. These membranes not only show ultrafast water penetration but also exhibit broad utility and high efficiency of removal and even reuse (in some cases) of contaminants, including heavy metal ions, dyes, proteins, and other nanoparticles in water. Our biomimetic design and synthesis of these functional SNF/HAP materials have established a paradigm that could lead to the large-scale, low-cost production of multilayer materials with broad spectrum and efficiency for water purification, with applications in wastewater treatment, biomedicine, food industry, and the life sciences.

A New Strategy to Evaluate Technical Efficiency in Hospitals Using Homogeneous Groups of Casemix : How to Evaluate When There is Not DRGs?

PubMed

Villalobos-Cid, Manuel; Chacón, Max; Zitko, Pedro; Instroza-Ponta, Mario

2016-04-01

The public health system has restricted economic resources. Because of that, it is necessary to know how the resources are being used and if they are properly distributed. Several works have applied classical approaches based in Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) for this purpose. However, if we have hospitals with different casemix, this is not the best approach. In order to avoid biases in the comparisons, other works have recommended the use of hospital production data corrected by the weights from Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs), to adjust the casemix of hospitals. However, not all countries have this tool fully implemented, which limits the efficiency evaluation. This paper proposes a new approach for evaluating the efficiency of hospitals. It uses a graph-based clustering algorithm to find groups of hospitals that have similar production profiles. Then, DEA is used to evaluate the technical efficiency of each group. The proposed approach is tested using the production data from 2014 of 193 Chilean public hospitals. The results allowed to identify different performance profiles of each group, that differs from other studies that employs data from partially implemented DRGs. Our results are able to deliver a better description of the resource management of the different groups of hospitals. We have created a website with the results ( bioinformatic.diinf.usach.cl/publichealth ). Data can be requested to the authors.

Innovative Strategy on Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Utilizing Activated Liquid Water

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hwang, Bing-Joe; Chen, Hsiao-Chien; Mai, Fu-Der; Tsai, Hui-Yen; Yang, Chih-Ping; Rick, John; Liu, Yu-Chuan

2015-11-01

Splitting water for hydrogen production using light, or electrical energy, is the most developed ‘green technique’. For increasing efficiency in hydrogen production, currently, the most exciting and thriving strategies are focused on efficient and inexpensive catalysts. Here, we report an innovative idea for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) utilizing plasmon-activated liquid water with reduced hydrogen-bonded structure by hot electron transfer. This strategy is effective for all HERs in acidic, basic and neutral systems, photocatalytic system with a g-C3N4 (graphite carbon nitride) electrode, as well as in an inert system with an ITO (indium tin oxide) electrode. Compared to deionized water, the efficiency of HER increases by 48% based on activated water ex situ on a Pt electrode. Increase in energy efficiency from activated water is 18% at a specific current yield of -20 mA in situ on a nanoscale-granulated Au electrode. Moreover, the onset potential of -0.023 V vs RHE was very close to the thermodynamic potential of the HER (0 V). The measured current density at the corresponding overpotential for HER in an acidic system was higher than any data previously reported in the literature. This approach establishes a new vista in clean green energy production.

From Policy to Compliance: Federal Energy Efficient Product Procurement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DeMates, Laurèn; Scodel, Anna

Federal buyers are required to purchase energy-efficient products in an effort to minimize energy use in the federal sector, save the federal government money, and spur market development of efficient products. The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP)’s Energy Efficient Product Procurement (EEPP) Program helps federal agencies comply with the requirement to purchase energy-efficient products by providing technical assistance and guidance and setting efficiency requirements for certain product categories. Past studies have estimated the savings potential of purchasing energy-efficient products at over $500 million per year in energy costs across federal agencies.1 Despite the strong policy support for EEPP and resourcesmore » available, energy-efficient product purchasing operates within complex decision-making processes and operational structures; implementation challenges exist that may hinder agencies’ ability to comply with purchasing requirements. The shift to purchasing green products, including energy-efficient products, relies on “buy in” from a variety of potential actors throughout different purchasing pathways. Challenges may be especially high for EEPP relative to other sustainable acquisition programs given that efficient products frequently have a higher first cost than non-efficient ones, which may be perceived as a conflict with fiscal responsibility, or more simply problematic for agency personnel trying to stretch limited budgets. Federal buyers may also face challenges in determining whether a given product is subject to EEPP requirements. Previous analysis on agency compliance with EEPP, conducted by the Alliance to Save Energy (ASE), shows that federal agencies are getting better at purchasing energy-efficient products. ASE conducted two reviews of relevant solicitations for product and service contracts listed on Federal Business Opportunities (FBO), the centralized website where federal agencies are required to post procurements greater than $25,000. In 2010, ASE estimated a compliance rate of 46% in 2010, up from an estimate of 12% in 2008. Our work updates and expands on ASE’s 2010 analysis to gauge agency compliance with EEPP requirements.« less

A PBOM configuration and management method based on templates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Kai; Qiao, Lihong; Qie, Yifan

2018-03-01

The design of Process Bill of Materials (PBOM) holds a hinge position in the process of product development. The requirements of PBOM configuration design and management for complex products are analysed in this paper, which include the reuse technique of configuration procedure and urgent management need of huge quantity of product family PBOM data. Based on the analysis, the function framework of PBOM configuration and management has been established. Configuration templates and modules are defined in the framework to support the customization and the reuse of configuration process. The configuration process of a detection sensor PBOM is shown as an illustration case in the end. The rapid and agile PBOM configuration and management can be achieved utilizing template-based method, which has a vital significance to improve the development efficiency for complex products.

Current progress and future prospect of microalgal biomass harvest using various flocculation technologies.

PubMed

Wan, Chun; Alam, Md Asraful; Zhao, Xin-Qing; Zhang, Xiao-Yue; Guo, Suo-Lian; Ho, Shih-Hsin; Chang, Jo-Shu; Bai, Feng-Wu

2015-05-01

Microalgae have been extensively studied for the production of various valuable products. Application of microalgae for the production of renewable energy has also received increasing attention in recent years. However, high cost of microalgal biomass harvesting is one of the bottlenecks for commercialization of microalgae-based industrial processes. Considering harvesting efficiency, operation economics and technological feasibility, flocculation is a superior method to harvest microalgae from mass culture. In this article, the latest progress of various microalgal cell harvesting methods via flocculation is reviewed with the emphasis on the current progress and prospect in environmentally friendly bio-based flocculation. Harvesting microalgae through bio-based flocculation is a promising component of the low-cost microalgal biomass production technology. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An exergy based assessment of the production and conversion of switchgrass, equine waste and forest residue to bio-oil using fast pyrolysis

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The resource efficiency of biofuel production via biomass pyrolysis is evaluated using exergy as an assessment metric. Three feedstocks, important to various sectors of US agriculture, switchgrass, forest residue and equine waste are considered for conversion to bio-oil (pyrolysis oil) via fast pyro...

Reconceptualizing Educational Productivity for New South Wales Public Schools: An Empirical Application of Modified Quadriform Analytics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rolle, R. Anthony

2016-01-01

Little is known about the educational productivity of public schooling organizations when examined outside of market-based, cost-minimization frameworks. The purpose of this research was to extend the literature that supports the appropriateness of measuring levels of the economic efficiency of public schools via an alternative approach, utilizing…

Economic analysis of fuel ethanol production from hulled barley by the EDGE (Enhanced Dry Grind Enzymatic) process

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A cost model was developed for fuel ethanol production from barley based on the EDGE (Enhanced Dry Grind Enzymatic) process (Nghiem, et al., 2008). In this process, in addition to beta-glucanases, which is added to reduce the viscosity of the barley mash for efficient mixing, another enzyme, beta-...

Ring Expansion and Rearrangements of Rhodium(II) Azavinyl Carbenes

PubMed Central

Selander, Nicklas; Worrell, Brady T.

2013-01-01

An efficient, regioselective and convergent method for the ring expansion and rearrangement of 1-sulfonyl-1,2,3-triazoles under rhodium(II)-catalyzed conditions is described. These denitrogenative reactions form substituted enaminone and olefin-based products, which in the former case can be further functionalized to unique products rendering the sulfonyl triazole traceless. PMID:23161725

78 FR 16443 - Energy Efficiency Program for Consumer Products: Energy Conservation Standards for Ceiling Fans...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-15

... with medium screw base sockets, as well as pin-based sockets. (42 U.S.C. 6295(ff)(2)-(3)) The statute... (including candelabra screw base sockets) by January 1, 2007, and if DOE failed to issue such standards by... standards for light kits with sockets other than medium-screw base or pin-based fluorescent lamps in the CFR...

The impact of biotechnological advances on the future of US bioenergy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Davison, Brian H.; Brandt, Craig C.; Guss, Adam M.

Modern biotechnology has the potential to substantially advance the feasibility, structure, and efficiency of future biofuel supply chains. Advances might be direct or indirect. A direct advance would be improving the efficiency of biochemical conversion processes and feedstock production. Direct advances in processing may involve developing improved enzymes and bacteria to convert lignocellulosic feedstocks to ethanol. Progress in feedstock production could include enhancing crop yields via genetic modification or the selection of specific natural variants and breeds. Other direct results of biotechnology might increase the production of fungible biofuels and bioproducts, which would impact the supply chain. Indirect advances mightmore » include modifications to dedicated bioenergy crops that enable them to grow on marginal lands rather than land needed for food production. This study assesses the feasibility and advantages of near-future (10-year) biotechnological developments for a US biomass-based supply chain for bioenergy production. We assume a simplified supply chain of feedstock, logistics and land use, conversion, and products and utilization. The primary focus is how likely developments in feedstock production and conversion technologies will impact bioenergy and biofuels in the USA; a secondary focus is other innovative uses of biotechnologies in the energy arenas. The assessment addresses near-term biofuels based on starch, sugar, and cellulosic feedstocks and considers some longer-term options, such as oil-crop and algal technologies.« less

The impact of biotechnological advances on the future of US bioenergy

DOE PAGES

Davison, Brian H.; Brandt, Craig C.; Guss, Adam M.; ...

2015-05-14

Modern biotechnology has the potential to substantially advance the feasibility, structure, and efficiency of future biofuel supply chains. Advances might be direct or indirect. A direct advance would be improving the efficiency of biochemical conversion processes and feedstock production. Direct advances in processing may involve developing improved enzymes and bacteria to convert lignocellulosic feedstocks to ethanol. Progress in feedstock production could include enhancing crop yields via genetic modification or the selection of specific natural variants and breeds. Other direct results of biotechnology might increase the production of fungible biofuels and bioproducts, which would impact the supply chain. Indirect advances mightmore » include modifications to dedicated bioenergy crops that enable them to grow on marginal lands rather than land needed for food production. This study assesses the feasibility and advantages of near-future (10-year) biotechnological developments for a US biomass-based supply chain for bioenergy production. We assume a simplified supply chain of feedstock, logistics and land use, conversion, and products and utilization. The primary focus is how likely developments in feedstock production and conversion technologies will impact bioenergy and biofuels in the USA; a secondary focus is other innovative uses of biotechnologies in the energy arenas. The assessment addresses near-term biofuels based on starch, sugar, and cellulosic feedstocks and considers some longer-term options, such as oil-crop and algal technologies.« less

Modeling and comparative assessment of bubbling fluidized bed gasification system for syngas production - a gateway for a cleaner future in Pakistan.

PubMed

Shehzad, Areeb; Bashir, Mohammed J K; Horttanainen, Mika; Manttari, Mika; Havukainen, Jouni; Abbas, Ghulam

2017-06-19

The present study explores the potential of MSW gasification for exergy analysis and has been recently given a premier attention in a region like Pakistan where the urbanization is rapidly growing and resources are few. The plant capacity was set at 50 MW based on reference data available and the total exergetic efficiency was recorded to be 31.5 MW. The largest irreversibility distribution appears in the gasifier followed by methanation unit and CO 2 capture. The effect of process temperature, equivalence ratio and MSW moisture content was explored for inspecting the variations in syngas composition, lower heating value, carbon conversion efficiency and cold gas efficiency. Special attention of the paper is paid to the comparative assessment of MSW gasification products in four regions, namely Pakistan, USA, UAE and Thailand. This extended study gave an insight into the spectrum of socioeconomic conditions with varying MSW compositions in order to explain the effect of MSW composition variance on the gasification products.

A metal-free electrocatalyst for carbon dioxide reduction to multi-carbon hydrocarbons and oxygenates

PubMed Central

Wu, Jingjie; Ma, Sichao; Sun, Jing; Gold, Jake I.; Tiwary, ChandraSekhar; Kim, Byoungsu; Zhu, Lingyang; Chopra, Nitin; Odeh, Ihab N.; Vajtai, Robert; Yu, Aaron Z.; Luo, Raymond; Lou, Jun; Ding, Guqiao; Kenis, Paul J. A.; Ajayan, Pulickel M.

2016-01-01

Electroreduction of carbon dioxide into higher-energy liquid fuels and chemicals is a promising but challenging renewable energy conversion technology. Among the electrocatalysts screened so far for carbon dioxide reduction, which includes metals, alloys, organometallics, layered materials and carbon nanostructures, only copper exhibits selectivity towards formation of hydrocarbons and multi-carbon oxygenates at fairly high efficiencies, whereas most others favour production of carbon monoxide or formate. Here we report that nanometre-size N-doped graphene quantum dots (NGQDs) catalyse the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide into multi-carbon hydrocarbons and oxygenates at high Faradaic efficiencies, high current densities and low overpotentials. The NGQDs show a high total Faradaic efficiency of carbon dioxide reduction of up to 90%, with selectivity for ethylene and ethanol conversions reaching 45%. The C2 and C3 product distribution and production rate for NGQD-catalysed carbon dioxide reduction is comparable to those obtained with copper nanoparticle-based electrocatalysts. PMID:27958290

Use of residual feed intake in Holsteins during early lactation shows potential to improve feed efficiency through genetic selection.

PubMed

Connor, E E; Hutchison, J L; Norman, H D; Olson, K M; Van Tassell, C P; Leith, J M; Baldwin, R L

2013-08-01

Improved feed efficiency is a primary goal in dairy production to reduce feed costs and negative impacts of production on the environment. Estimates for efficiency of feed conversion to milk production based on residual feed intake (RFI) in dairy cattle are limited, primarily due to a lack of individual feed intake measurements for lactating cows. Feed intake was measured in Holstein cows during the first 90 d of lactation to estimate the heritability and repeatability of RFI, minimum test duration for evaluating RFI in early lactation, and its association with other production traits. Data were obtained from 453 lactations (214 heifers and 239 multiparous cows) from 292 individual cows from September 2007 to December 2011. Cows were housed in a free-stall barn and monitored for individual daily feed consumption using the GrowSafe 4000 System (GrowSafe Systems, Ltd., Airdrie, AB, Canada). Animals were fed a total mixed ration 3 times daily, milked twice daily, and weighed every 10 to 14 d. Milk yield was measured at each milking. Feed DM percentage was measured daily, and nutrient composition was analyzed from a weekly composite. Milk composition was analyzed weekly, alternating between morning and evening milking periods. Estimates of RFI were determined as the difference between actual energy intake and predicted intake based on a linear model with fixed effects of parity (1, 2, ≥ 3) and regressions on metabolic BW, ADG, and energy-corrected milk yield. Heritability was estimated to be moderate (0.36 ± 0.06), and repeatability was estimated at 0.56 across lactations. A test period through 53 d in milk (DIM) explained 81% of the variation provided by a test through 90 DIM. Multiple regression analysis indicated that high efficiency was associated with less time feeding per day and slower feeding rate, which may contribute to differences in RFI among cows. The heritability and repeatability of RFI suggest an opportunity to improve feed efficiency through genetic selection, which could reduce feed costs, manure output, and greenhouse gas emissions associated with dairy production.

Base-catalyzed efficient tandem [3 + 3] and [3 + 2 + 1] annulation-aerobic oxidative benzannulations.

PubMed

Diallo, Aboubacar; Zhao, Yu-Long; Wang, He; Li, Sha-Sha; Ren, Chuan-Qing; Liu, Qun

2012-11-16

An efficient synthesis of substituted benzenes via a base-catalyzed [3 + 3] aerobic oxidative aromatization of α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds with dimethyl glutaconate was reported. All the reactions were carried out under mild, metal-free conditions to afford the products in high to excellent yields with molecular oxygen as the sole oxidant and water as the sole byproduct. Furthermore, a more convenient tandem [3 + 2 + 1] aerobic oxidative aromatization reaction was developed through the in situ generation of the α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds from aldehydes and ketones.

Solid phase synthesis of phosphorothioate oligonucleotides utilizing diethyldithiocarbonate disulfide (DDD) as an efficient sulfur transfer reagent.

PubMed

Cheruvallath, Zacharia S; Kumar, R Krishna; Rentel, Claus; Cole, Douglas L; Ravikumar, Vasulinga T

2003-04-01

Diethyldithiodicarbonate (DDD), a cheap and easily prepared compound, is found to be a rapid and efficient sulfurizing reagent in solid phase synthesis of phosphorothioate oligodeoxyribonucleotides via the phosphoramidite approach. Product yield and quality based on IP-LC-MS compares well with high quality oligonucleotides synthesized using phenylacetyl disulfide (PADS) which is being used for manufacture of our antisense drugs.

Comparative efficiency of technologies for conversion and transportation of energy resources of Russia's eastern regions to NEA countries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kler, Aleksandr; Tyurina, Elina; Mednikov, Aleksandr

2018-01-01

The paper presents perspective technologies for combined conversion of fossil fuels into synthetic liquid fuels and electricity. The comparative efficiency of various process flows of conversion and transportation of energy resources of Russia's east that are aimed at supplying electricity to remote consumers is presented. These also include process flows based on production of synthetic liquid fuel.

NREL Solar Research Garners Two Prestigious R&D 100 Awards | News | NREL

Science.gov Websites

efficient bulk power generator that produces 40 percent more energy than conventional fixed photovoltaic panels. The 53-kilowatt photovoltaic power generator is based on the MegaModule, a turnkey unit pairing a wafers more efficient and a mammoth power generator that sets a new standard for the production of solar

Carbon sorbent based on flax boon

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Abramov, M.V.; Tyulina, R.M.; Yaroslavtsev, V.T.

1994-11-10

Flax-fiber production wastes such as boon can be used effectively as the starting material for producing carbon sorbents. Activated carbons are among the most widely used sorbents in industrial wastewater and waste gas treatment. A single-stage process has been developed for producing an efficient, cheap carbon sorbent based on flax boon.

Performance-Based Funding: State Policy Influences on Small Rural Community Colleges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thornton, Zoë Mercedes; Friedel, Janice Nahra

2016-01-01

Performance-based funding (PBF) models intend to increase efficiency and productivity of the institution, thereby influencing organizational change. This change may be structural, programmatic, or procedural, and it may affect institutional practice and/or policy. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the organizational…

Catalytic upgrading of butyric acid towards fine chemicals and biofuels

PubMed Central

Matsakas, Leonidas; Christakopoulos, Paul; Rova, Ulrika

2016-01-01

Fermentation-based production of butyric acid is robust and efficient. Modern catalytic technologies make it possible to convert butyric acid to important fine chemicals and biofuels. Here, current chemocatalytic and biocatalytic conversion methods are reviewed with a focus on upgrading butyric acid to 1-butanol or butyl-butyrate. Supported Ruthenium- and Platinum-based catalyst and lipase exhibit important activities which can pave the way for more sustainable process concepts for the production of green fuels and chemicals. PMID:26994015

Catalytic upgrading of butyric acid towards fine chemicals and biofuels.

PubMed

Sjöblom, Magnus; Matsakas, Leonidas; Christakopoulos, Paul; Rova, Ulrika

2016-04-01

Fermentation-based production of butyric acid is robust and efficient. Modern catalytic technologies make it possible to convert butyric acid to important fine chemicals and biofuels. Here, current chemocatalytic and biocatalytic conversion methods are reviewed with a focus on upgrading butyric acid to 1-butanol or butyl-butyrate. Supported Ruthenium- and Platinum-based catalyst and lipase exhibit important activities which can pave the way for more sustainable process concepts for the production of green fuels and chemicals. © FEMS 2016.

High-Efficiency Food Production in a Renewable Energy Based Micro-Grid Power System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bubenheim, David; Meiners, Dennis

2016-01-01

Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) systems can be used to produce high-quality, desirable food year round, and the fresh produce can positively contribute to the health and well being of residents in communities with difficult supply logistics. While CEA has many positive outcomes for a remote community, the associated high electric demands have prohibited widespread implementation in what is typically already a fully subscribed power generation and distribution system. Recent advances in CEA technologies as well as renewable power generation, storage, and micro-grid management are increasing system efficiency and expanding the possibilities for enhancing community supporting infrastructure without increasing demands for outside supplied fuels. We will present examples of how new lighting, nutrient delivery, and energy management and control systems can enable significant increases in food production efficiency while maintaining high yields in CEA. Examples from Alaskan communities where initial incorporation of renewable power generation, energy storage and grid management techniques have already reduced diesel fuel consumption for electric generation by more than 40% and expanded grid capacity will be presented. We will discuss how renewable power generation, efficient grid management to extract maximum community service per kW, and novel energy storage approaches can expand the food production, water supply, waste treatment, sanitation and other community support services without traditional increases of consumable fuels supplied from outside the community. These capabilities offer communities with a range of choices to enhance their communities. The examples represent a synergy of technology advancement efforts to develop sustainable community support systems for future space-based human habitats and practical implementation of infrastructure components to increase efficiency and enhance health and well being in remote communities today and tomorrow.

High-Efficiency Food Production in a Renewable Energy Based Micro-Grid

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bubenheim, David L.

2017-01-01

Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) systems can be used to produce high-quality, desirable food year round, and the fresh produce can positively contribute to the health and well being of residents in communities with difficult supply logistics. While CEA has many positive outcomes for a remote community, the associated high electric demands have prohibited widespread implementation in what is typically already a fully subscribed power generation and distribution system. Recent advances in CEA technologies as well as renewable power generation, storage, and micro-grid management are increasing system efficiency and expanding the possibilities for enhancing community supporting infrastructure without increasing demands for outside supplied fuels. We will present examples of how new lighting, nutrient delivery, and energy management and control systems can enable significant increases in food production efficiency while maintaining high yields in CEA.Examples from Alaskan communities where initial incorporation of renewable power generation, energy storage and grid management techniques have already reduced diesel fuel consumption for electric generation by more than 40 and expanded grid capacity will be presented. We will discuss how renewable power generation, efficient grid management to extract maximum community service per kW, and novel energy storage approaches can expand the food production, water supply, waste treatment, sanitation and other community support services without traditional increases of consumable fuels supplied from outside the community. These capabilities offer communities with a range of choices to enhance their communities. The examples represent a synergy of technology advancement efforts to develop sustainable community support systems for future space-based human habitats and practical implementation of infrastructure components to increase efficiency and enhance health and well-being in remote communities today and tomorrow.

Low-temperature solid-state preparation of ternary CdS/g-C3N4/CuS nanocomposites for enhanced visible-light photocatalytic H2-production activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Feiyue; Yin, Hui; Xiang, Quanjun

2017-01-01

Low-temperature solid-state method were gradually demonstrated as a high efficiency, energy saving and environmental protection strategy to fabricate composite semiconductor materials. CdS-based multiple composite photocatalytic materials have attracted increasing concern owning to the heterostructure constituents with tunable band gaps. In this study, the ternary CdS/g-C3N4/CuS composite photocatalysts were prepared by a facile and novel low-temperature solid-state strategy. The optimal ternary CdS/g-C3N4/CuS composite exhibits a high visible-light photocatalytic H2-production rate of 57.56 μmol h-1 with the corresponding apparent quantum efficiency reaches 16.5% at 420 nm with Na2S/Na2SO3 mixed aqueous solution as sacrificial agent. The ternary CdS/g-C3N4/CuS composites show the enhanced visible-light photocatalytic H2-evolution activity comparing with the binary CdS-based composites or simplex CdS. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is ascribed to the heterojunctions and the synergistic effect of CuS and g-C3N4 in promotion of the charge separation and charge mobility. This work shows that the low-temperature solid-state method is efficient and environmentally benign for the preparation of CdS-based multiple composite photocatalytic materials with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic H2-production activity.

Highly efficient preparation of sphingoid bases from glucosylceramides by chemoenzymatic method[S

PubMed Central

Gowda, Siddabasave Gowda B.; Usuki, Seigo; Hammam, Mostafa A. S.; Murai, Yuta; Igarashi, Yasuyuki; Monde, Kenji

2016-01-01

Sphingoid base derivatives have attracted increasing attention as promising chemotherapeutic candidates against lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Natural sphingoid bases can be a potential resource instead of those derived by time-consuming total organic synthesis. In particular, glucosylceramides (GlcCers) in food plants are enriched sources of sphingoid bases, differing from those of animals. Several chemical methodologies to transform GlcCers to sphingoid bases have already investigated; however, these conventional methods using acid or alkaline hydrolysis are not efficient due to poor reaction yield, producing complex by-products and resulting in separation problems. In this study, an extremely efficient and practical chemoenzymatic transformation method has been developed using microwave-enhanced butanolysis of GlcCers and a large amount of readily available almond β-glucosidase for its deglycosylation reaction of lysoGlcCers. The method is superior to conventional acid/base hydrolysis methods in its rapidity and its reaction cleanness (no isomerization, no rearrangement) with excellent overall yield. PMID:26667669

Electronic medical records and efficiency and productivity during office visits.

PubMed

Furukawa, Michael F

2011-04-01

To estimate the relationship between electronic medical record (EMR) use and efficiency of utilization and provider productivity during visits to US office-based physicians. Cross-sectional analysis of the 2006-2007 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. The sample included 62,710 patient visits to 2625 physicians. EMR systems included demographics, clinical notes, prescription orders, and laboratory and imaging results. Efficiency was measured as utilization of examinations, laboratory tests, radiology procedures, health education, nonmedication treatments, and medications. Productivity was measured as total services provided per 20-minute period. Survey-weighted regressions estimated association of EMR use with services provided, visit intensity/duration, and productivity. Marginal effects were estimated by averaging across all visits and by major reason for visit. EMR use was associated with higher probability of any examination (7.7%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.4%, 13.1%); any laboratory test (5.7%, 95% CI = 2.6%, 8.8%); any health education (4.9%, 95% CI = 0.2%, 9.6%); and fewer laboratory tests (-7.1%, 95% CI = -14.2%, -0.1%). During pre/post surgery visits, EMR use was associated with 7.3% (95% CI= -12.9%, -1.8%) fewer radiology procedures. EMR use was not associated with utilization of nonmedication treatments and medications, or visit duration. During routine visits for a chronic problem, EMR use was associated with 11.2% (95% CI = 5.7%, 16.8%) more diagnostic/screening services provided per 20-minute period. EMR use had a mixed association with efficiency and productivity during office visits. EMRs may improve provider productivity, especially during visits for a new problem and routine chronic care.

Making a mixed-model line more efficient and flexible by introducing a bypass line

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsuura, Sho; Matsuura, Haruki; Asada, Akiko

2017-04-01

This paper provides a design procedure for the bypass subline in a mixed-model assembly line. The bypass subline is installed to reduce the effect of the large difference in operation times among products assembled together in a mixed-model line. The importance of the bypass subline has been increasing in association with the rising necessity for efficiency and flexibility in modern manufacturing. The main topics of this paper are as follows: 1) the conditions in which the bypass subline effectively functions, and 2) how the load should be distributed between the main line and the bypass subline, depending on production conditions such as degree of difference in operation times among products and the mixing ratio of products. To address these issues, we analyzed the lower and the upper bounds of the line length. Based on the results, a design procedure and a numerical example are demonstrated.

The recommendation of line-balancing improvement on MCM product line 1 using genetics algorithm and moodie young at XYZ Company, Co.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sriwana, I. K.; Marie, I. A.; Mangala, D.

2017-12-01

Kencana Gemilang, Co. is one electronics industry engaging in the manufacture sector. This company manufactures and assembles household electronic products, such as rice cooker, fan, iron, blender, etc. The company deals with an issue of underachievement of an established production target on MCM products line 1. This study aimed to calculate line efficiencies, delay times, and initial line smoothness indexes. The research was carried out by means of depicting a precedence diagram and gathering time data of each work element followed by examination and calculation of standard time as well as line balancing using methods of Moodie Young and Generics Algorithm. Based on results of calculation, better line balancing than the existing initial conditions, i.e. improvement in the line efficiency by 18.39%, deterioration in balanced delay by 28.39%, and deterioration of a smoothness index by 23.85% was obtained.

Hydrogen production from coal using a nuclear heat source

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Quade, R. N.

1976-01-01

A strong candidate for hydrogen production in the intermediate time frame of 1985 to 1995 is a coal-based process using a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) as a heat source. Expected process efficiencies in the range of 60 to 70% are considerably higher than all other hydrogen production processes except steam reforming of a natural gas. The process involves the preparation of a coal liquid, hydrogasification of that liquid, and steam reforming of the resulting gaseous or light liquid product. A study showing process efficiency and cost of hydrogen vs nuclear reactor core outlet temperature has been completed, and shows diminishing returns at process temperatures above about 1500 F. A possible scenario combining the relatively abundant and low-cost Western coal deposits with the Gulf Coast hydrogen users is presented which provides high-energy density transportation utilizing coal liquids and uranium.

Graphical tensor product reduction scheme for the Lie algebras so(5) = sp(2) , su(3) , and g(2)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vlasii, N. D.; von Rütte, F.; Wiese, U.-J.

2016-08-01

We develop in detail a graphical tensor product reduction scheme, first described by Antoine and Speiser, for the simple rank 2 Lie algebras so(5) = sp(2) , su(3) , and g(2) . This leads to an efficient practical method to reduce tensor products of irreducible representations into sums of such representations. For this purpose, the 2-dimensional weight diagram of a given representation is placed in a ;landscape; of irreducible representations. We provide both the landscapes and the weight diagrams for a large number of representations for the three simple rank 2 Lie algebras. We also apply the algebraic ;girdle; method, which is much less efficient for calculations by hand for moderately large representations. Computer code for reducing tensor products, based on the graphical method, has been developed as well and is available from the authors upon request.

Characterization of retroviral infectivity and superinfection resistance during retrovirus-mediated transduction of mammalian cells.

PubMed

Liao, J; Wei, Q; Fan, J; Zou, Y; Song, D; Liu, J; Liu, F; Ma, C; Hu, X; Li, L; Yu, Y; Qu, X; Chen, L; Yu, X; Zhang, Z; Zhao, C; Zeng, Z; Zhang, R; Yan, S; Wu, T; Wu, X; Shu, Y; Lei, J; Li, Y; Zhang, W; Wang, J; Reid, R R; Lee, M J; Huang, W; Wolf, J M; He, T-C; Wang, J

2017-06-01

Retroviral vectors including lentiviral vectors are commonly used tools to stably express transgenes or RNA molecules in mammalian cells. Their utilities are roughly divided into two categories, stable overexpression of transgenes and RNA molecules, which requires maximal transduction efficiency, or functional selection with retrovirus (RV)-based libraries, which takes advantage of retroviral superinfection resistance. However, the dynamic features of RV-mediated transduction are not well characterized. Here, we engineered two murine stem cell virus-based retroviral vectors expressing dual fluorescence proteins and antibiotic markers, and analyzed virion production efficiency and virion stability, dynamic infectivity and superinfection resistance in different cell types, and strategies to improve transduction efficiency. We found that the highest virion production occurred between 60 and 72 h after transfection. The stability of the collected virion supernatant decreased by >60% after 3 days in storage. We found that RV infectivity varied drastically in the tested human cancer lines, while low transduction efficiency was partially overcome with increased virus titer, prolonged infection duration and/or repeated infections. Furthermore, we demonstrated that RV receptors PIT1 and PIT2 were lowly expressed in the analyzed cells, and that PIT1 and/or PIT2 overexpression significantly improved transduction efficiency in certain cell lines. Thus, our findings provide resourceful information for the optimal conditions of retroviral-mediated gene delivery.

WaterSense Program: Methodology for National Water Savings Analysis Model Indoor Residential Water Use

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Whitehead, Camilla Dunham; McNeil, Michael; Dunham_Whitehead, Camilla

2008-02-28

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) influences the market for plumbing fixtures and fittings by encouraging consumers to purchase products that carry the WaterSense label, which certifies those products as performing at low flow rates compared to unlabeled fixtures and fittings. As consumers decide to purchase water-efficient products, water consumption will decline nationwide. Decreased water consumption should prolong the operating life of water and wastewater treatment facilities.This report describes the method used to calculate national water savings attributable to EPA?s WaterSense program. A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet model, the National Water Savings (NWS) analysis model, accompanies this methodology report. Version 1.0more » of the NWS model evaluates indoor residential water consumption. Two additional documents, a Users? Guide to the spreadsheet model and an Impacts Report, accompany the NWS model and this methodology document. Altogether, these four documents represent Phase One of this project. The Users? Guide leads policy makers through the spreadsheet options available for projecting the water savings that result from various policy scenarios. The Impacts Report shows national water savings that will result from differing degrees of market saturation of high-efficiency water-using products.This detailed methodology report describes the NWS analysis model, which examines the effects of WaterSense by tracking the shipments of products that WaterSense has designated as water-efficient. The model estimates market penetration of products that carry the WaterSense label. Market penetration is calculated for both existing and new construction. The NWS model estimates savings based on an accounting analysis of water-using products and of building stock. Estimates of future national water savings will help policy makers further direct the focus of WaterSense and calculate stakeholder impacts from the program.Calculating the total gallons of water the WaterSense program saves nationwide involves integrating two components, or modules, of the NWS model. Module 1 calculates the baseline national water consumption of typical fixtures, fittings, and appliances prior to the program (as described in Section 2.0 of this report). Module 2 develops trends in efficiency for water-using products both in the business-as-usual case and as a result of the program (Section 3.0). The NWS model combines the two modules to calculate total gallons saved by the WaterSense program (Section 4.0). Figure 1 illustrates the modules and the process involved in modeling for the NWS model analysis.The output of the NWS model provides the base case for each end use, as well as a prediction of total residential indoor water consumption during the next two decades. Based on the calculations described in Section 4.0, we can project a timeline of water savings attributable to the WaterSense program. The savings increase each year as the program results in the installation of greater numbers of efficient products, which come to compose more and more of the product stock in households throughout the United States.« less

Dedicated nuclear facilities for electrolytic hydrogen production

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foh, S. E.; Escher, W. J. D.; Donakowski, T. D.

1979-01-01

An advanced technology, fully dedicated nuclear-electrolytic hydrogen production facility is presented. This plant will produce hydrogen and oxygen only and no electrical power will be generated for off-plant use. The conceptual design was based on hydrogen production to fill a pipeline at 1000 psi and a 3000 MW nuclear base, and the base-line facility nuclear-to-shaftpower and shaftpower-to-electricity subsystems, the water treatment subsystem, electricity-to-hydrogen subsystem, hydrogen compression, efficiency, and hydrogen production cost are discussed. The final conceptual design integrates a 3000 MWth high-temperature gas-cooled reactor operating at 980 C helium reactor-out temperature, direct dc electricity generation via acyclic generators, and high-current density, high-pressure electrolyzers based on the solid polymer electrolyte approach. All subsystems are close-coupled and optimally interfaced and pipeline hydrogen is produced at 1000 psi. Hydrogen costs were about half of the conventional nuclear electrolysis process.

Thin-film filament-based solar cells and modules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tuttle, J. R.; Cole, E. D.; Berens, T. A.; Alleman, J.; Keane, J.

1997-04-01

This concept paper describes a patented, novel photovoltaic (PV) technology that is capable of achieving near-term commercialization and profitability based upon design features that maximize product performance while minimizing initial and future manufacturing costs. DayStar Technologies plans to exploit these features and introduce a product to the market based upon these differential positions. The technology combines the demonstrated performance and reliability of existing thin-film PV product with a cell and module geometry that cuts material usage by a factor of 5, and enhances performance and manufacturability relative to standard flat-plate designs. The target product introduction price is 1.50/Watt-peak (Wp). This is approximately one-half the cost of the presently available PV product. Additional features include: increased efficiency through low-level concentration, no scribe or grid loss, simple series interconnect, high voltage, light weight, high-throughput manufacturing, large area immediate demonstration, flexibility, modularity.

Lignocellulosic ethanol production by starch-base industrial yeast under PEG detoxification

PubMed Central

Liu, Xiumei; Xu, Wenjuan; Mao, Liaoyuan; Zhang, Chao; Yan, Peifang; Xu, Zhanwei; Zhang, Z. Conrad

2016-01-01

Cellulosic ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass offers a sustainable solution for transition from fossil based fuels to renewable alternatives. However, a few long-standing technical challenges remain to be addressed in the development of an economically viable fermentation process from lignocellulose. Such challenges include the needs to improve yeast tolerance to toxic inhibitory compounds and to achieve high fermentation efficiency with minimum detoxification steps after a simple biomass pretreatment. Here we report an in-situ detoxification strategy by PEG exo-protection of an industrial dry yeast (starch-base). The exo-protected yeast cells displayed remarkably boosted vitality with high tolerance to toxic inhibitory compounds, and with largely improved ethanol productivity from crude hydrolysate derived from a pretreated lignocellulose. The PEG chemical exo-protection makes the industrial S. cerevisiae yeast directly applicable for the production of cellulosic ethanol with substantially improved productivity and yield, without of the need to use genetically modified microorganisms. PMID:26837707

Lignocellulosic ethanol production by starch-base industrial yeast under PEG detoxification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xiumei; Xu, Wenjuan; Mao, Liaoyuan; Zhang, Chao; Yan, Peifang; Xu, Zhanwei; Zhang, Z. Conrad

2016-02-01

Cellulosic ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass offers a sustainable solution for transition from fossil based fuels to renewable alternatives. However, a few long-standing technical challenges remain to be addressed in the development of an economically viable fermentation process from lignocellulose. Such challenges include the needs to improve yeast tolerance to toxic inhibitory compounds and to achieve high fermentation efficiency with minimum detoxification steps after a simple biomass pretreatment. Here we report an in-situ detoxification strategy by PEG exo-protection of an industrial dry yeast (starch-base). The exo-protected yeast cells displayed remarkably boosted vitality with high tolerance to toxic inhibitory compounds, and with largely improved ethanol productivity from crude hydrolysate derived from a pretreated lignocellulose. The PEG chemical exo-protection makes the industrial S. cerevisiae yeast directly applicable for the production of cellulosic ethanol with substantially improved productivity and yield, without of the need to use genetically modified microorganisms.

Nickel stabilization efficiency of aluminate and ferrite spinels and their leaching behavior.

PubMed

Shih, Kaimin; White, Tim; Leckie, James O

2006-09-01

Stabilization efficiencies of spinel-based construction ceramics incorporating simulated nickel-laden waste sludge were evaluated and the leaching behavior of products investigated. To simulate the process of immobilization, nickel oxide was mixed alternatively with gamma-alumina, kaolinite, and hematite. These tailoring precursors are commonly used to prepare construction ceramics in the building industry. After sintering from 600 to 1480 degrees C at 3 h, the nickel aluminate spinel (NiAl204) and the nickel ferrite spinel (NiFe204) crystallized with the ferrite spinel formation commencing about 200-300 degrees C lower than for the aluminate spinel. All the precursors showed high nickel incorporation efficiencies when sintered at temperatures greater than 1250 degrees C. Prolonged leach tests (up to 26 days) of product phases were carried out using a pH 2.9 acetic acid solution, and the spinel products were invariably superior to nickel oxide for immobilization over longer leaching periods. The leaching behavior of NiAl2O4 was consistent with congruent dissolution without significant reprecipitation, but for NiFe2O4, ferric hydroxide precipitation was evident. The major leaching reaction of sintered kaolinite-based products was the dissolution of cristobalite rather than NiAl2O4. This study demonstrated the feasibility of transforming nickel-laden sludge into spinel phases with the use of readily available and inexpensive ceramic raw materials, and the successful reduction of metal mobility under acidic environments.

An optimized fed-batch culture strategy integrated with a one-step fermentation improves L-lactic acid production by Rhizopus oryzae.

PubMed

Fu, Yongqian; Sun, Xiaolong; Zhu, Huayue; Jiang, Ru; Luo, Xi; Yin, Longfei

2018-05-21

In previous work, we proposed a novel modified one-step fermentation fed-batch strategy to efficiently generate L-lactic acid (L-LA) using Rhizopus oryzae. In this study, to further enhance efficiency of L-LA production through one-step fermentation in fed-batch cultures, we systematically investigated the initial peptone- and glucose-feeding approaches, including different initial peptone and glucose concentrations and maintained residual glucose levels. Based on the results of this study, culturing R. oryzae with initial peptone and glucose concentrations of 3.0 and 50.0 g/l, respectively, using a fed-batch strategy is an effective approach of producing L-LA through one-step fermentation. Changing the residual glucose had no obvious effect on the generation of L-LA. We determined the maximum LA production and productivity to be 162 g/l and 6.23 g/(l·h), respectively, during the acid production stage. Compared to our previous work, there was almost no change in L-LA production or yield; however, the productivity of L-LA increased by 14.3%.

Managing maritime automobile terminals: an approach toward decision-support model for higher productivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beškovnik, Bojan; Twrdy, Elen

2011-12-01

The article describes actions and strategies to obtain higher productivity on maritime automobile terminals. The main focus is on elaboration of efficient and effective organizational structure to model and implement short-term, mid-term and long-term strategies. In addition, with an empiric approach we combined the analyses of current findings in important scientific papers and our acknowledgments in practical research of north Adriatic maritime automobile terminals. The main goal is to propose actions towards increasing system's productivity. Based on our research of the north Adriatic maritime automobile terminals and with Lambert's model an in-deep analysis of limiting factors, user's expectations and possibilities for productivity increase has been performed. Moreover, with our acknowledgments a three-level decision-support model is presented. With an adequate model implementation it is possible to efficiently develop and implement different strategies of productivity measurement and productivity increase, especially in the fields of internal transport productivity, entrance/exit truck gates operations and wagon manipulations. According to our observation a significant increase might be achieved in all three fields.

Total OH reactivity as a constraint of model calculated peroxy radical production, and the catalytic efficiency of NOx in O3 production in a boreal forest environment.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Javed, M. U.; Hens, K.; Martinez, M.; Kubistin, D.; Novelli, A.; Beygi, Z. H.; Axinte, R.; Nölscher, A. C.; Sinha, V.; Song, W.; Johnson, A. M.; Auld, J.; Bohn, B.; Sander, R.; Taraborrelli, D.; Williams, J.; Fischer, H.; Lelieveld, J.; Harder, H.

2016-12-01

Peroxy radicals play a key role in ozone (O3) production and hydroxyl (OH) recycling influencing the self-cleansing capacity and air quality. Organic peroxy radical (RO2) concentrations are estimated by three different approaches for a boreal forest, based on the field campaign HUMPPA-COPEC 2010 in Southern Finland. RO2 concentrations were simulated by a box model constrained by the comprehensive dataset from the campaign and cross-checked against the photostationary state (PSS) of NOx [= nitric oxide (NO) + nitrogen dioxide (NO2)] calculations. The model simulated RO2 concentrations appear too low to explain the measured PSS of NOx. As the atmospheric RO2 production is proportional to OH loss, the total OH loss rate frequency (total OH reactivity) in the model is underestimated compared to the measurements. The total OH reactivity of the model is tuned to match the observed total OH reactivity by increasing the biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOCs) concentrations for the model simulations. The new-found simulated RO2 concentrations based on the tuned OH reactivity explain the measured PSS of NOx reasonably well. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the NOx lifetime and the catalytic efficiency of NOx (CE) in O3 production, in the context of organic alkyl nitrate (RONO2) formation, was also investigated. Based on the campaign data, it was found that the lifetime of NOx and the CE are reduced and are sensitive to the RONO2 formation under low-NOx conditions, which matches a previous model-based study.

Energy Operation Model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Energy Operation Model (EOM) simulates the operation of the electric grid at the zonal scale, including inter-zonal transmission constraints. It generates the production cost, power generation by plant and category, fuel usage, and locational marginal price (LMP) with a flexible way to constrain the power production by environmental constraints, e.g. heat waves, drought conditions). Different from commercial software such as PROMOD IV where generator capacity and heat rate efficiency can only be adjusted on a monthly basis, EOM calculates capacity impacts and plant efficiencies based on hourly ambient conditions (air temperature and humidity) and cooling water availability for thermal plants.more » What is missing is a hydro power dispatch.« less

Photosynthesis of Scenedesmus obliquus in outdoor open thin-layer cascade system in high and low CO2 in Belgium.

PubMed

de Marchin, Thomas; Erpicum, Michel; Franck, Fabrice

2015-12-10

Two outdoor open thin-layer cascade systems operated as batch cultures with the alga Scenedesmus obliquus were used to compare the productivity and photosynthetic acclimations in control and CO2 supplemented cultures in relation with the outdoor light irradiance. We found that the culture productivity was limited by CO2 availability. In the CO2 supplemented culture, we obtained a productivity of up to 24gdwm(-2)day(-1) and found a photosynthetic efficiency (value based on the PAR solar radiation energy) of up to 5%. In the CO2 limited culture, we obtained a productivity of up to 10gdwm(-2)day(-1) while the photosynthetic efficiency was up to 3.3% and decreased to 2.1% when the integrated daily PAR increased. Fluorescence and oxygen evolution measurements showed that ETR and oxygen evolution light saturation curves, as well as light-dependent O2 uptake were similar in algal samples from both cultures when the CO2 limitation was removed. In contrast, we found that CO2 limitation conducted to a decreased PSII photochemical efficiency and an increased light-induced heat-dissipation in the control culture compared to the CO2 supplemented culture. These features are in line with a lower light use efficiency and may therefore contribute to the lower productivity observed in absence of CO2 supplementation in outdoor mass cultures of S. obliquus. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Efficiency and Budgeting of Public Hospitals: Case Study of Iran

PubMed Central

Yusefzadeh, Hasan; Ghaderi, Hossein; Bagherzade, Rafat; Barouni, Mohsen

2013-01-01

Background Hospitals are the most costly and important components of any health care system, so it is important to know their economic values, pay attention to their efficiency and consider factors affecting them. Objective The aim of this study was to assess the technical scale and economic efficiency of hospitals in the West Azerbaijan province of Iran, for which Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to propose a model for operational budgeting. Materials and Methods This study was a descriptive-analysis that was conducted in 2009 and had three inputs and two outputs. Deap2, 1 software was used for data analysis. Slack and radial movements and surplus of inputs were calculated for selected hospitals. Finally, a model was proposed for performance-based budgeting of hospitals and health sectors using the DEA technique. Results The average scores of technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency (managerial efficiency) and scale efficiency of hospitals were 0.584, 0.782 and 0.771, respectively. In other words the capacity of efficiency promotion in hospitals without any increase in costs and with the same amount of inputs was about 41.5%. Only four hospitals among all hospitals had the maximum level of technical efficiency. Moreover, surplus production factors were evident in these hospitals. Conclusions Reduction of surplus production factors through comprehensive planning based on the results of the Data Envelopment Analysis can play a major role in cost reduction of hospitals and health sectors. In hospitals with a technical efficiency score of less than one, the original and projected values of inputs were different; resulting in a surplus. Hence, these hospitals should reduce their values of inputs to achieve maximum efficiency and optimal performance. The results of this method was applied to hospitals a benchmark for making decisions about resource allocation; linking budgets to performance results; and controlling and improving hospitals performance. PMID:24349726

Laser processes and system technology for the production of high-efficient crystalline solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayerhofer, R.; Hendel, R.; Zhu, Wenjie; Geiger, S.

2012-10-01

The laser as an industrial tool is an essential part of today's solar cell production. Due to the on-going efforts in the solar industry, to increase the cell efficiency, more and more laser-based processes, which have been discussed and tested at lab-scale for many years, are now being implemented in mass production lines. In order to cope with throughput requirements, standard laser concepts have to be improved continuously with respect to available average power levels, repetition rates or beam profile. Some of the laser concepts, that showed high potential in the past couple of years, will be substituted by other, more economic laser types. Furthermore, requirements for processing with less-heat affected zones fuel the development of industry-ready ultra short pulsed lasers with pulse widths even below the picosecond range. In 2011, the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) had launched the program "PV-Innovation Alliance", with the aim to support the rapid transfer of high-efficiency processes out of development departments and research institutes into solar cell production lines. Here, lasers play an important role as production tools, allowing the fast implementation of high-performance solar cell concepts. We will report on the results achieved within the joint project FUTUREFAB, where efficiency optimization, throughput enhancement and cost reduction are the main goals. Here, the presentation will focus on laser processes like selective emitter doping and ablation of dielectric layers. An indispensable part of the efforts towards cost reduction in solar cell production is the improvement of wafer handling and throughput capabilities of the laser processing system. Therefore, the presentation will also elaborate on new developments in the design of complete production machines.

In situ measurement of gold nanoparticle production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Affandi, Mohd Syafiq; Bidin, Noriah; Abdullah, Mundzir; Aziz, Muhammad Safuan Abd.; Al-Azawi, Mohammed; Nugroho, Waskito

2015-01-01

The closeness of the experimental and theoretical values enables the development of an in situ characterization technique to monitor and analyze the production of gold nanoparticles (NPs), overcoming the use of high-end and expensive instrumentation. Gold NPs below the radius size of 10 nm were successfully synthesized in accordance with a few working parameters of pulse laser ablation in a liquid technique. In this report, the size, shape, concentration, and aggregation properties of gold NPs were estimated by the Mie-Gans model based on a reliable and interactive real-time absorption spectroscopy. The major features can be an important means toward determination of efficient process measures, productivity of gold NPs generated, and efficiency of the mass ablation rate. The accuracy in the measurement is confirmed via transmission electron microscopy analysis.

Technical efficiency in milk production in underdeveloped production environment of India*.

PubMed

Bardhan, Dwaipayan; Sharma, Murari Lal

2013-12-01

The study was undertaken in Kumaon division of Uttarakhand state of India with the objective of estimating technical efficiency in milk production across different herd-size category households and factors influencing it. Total of 60 farm households having representation from different herd-size categories drawn from six randomly selected villages of plain and hilly regions of the division constituted the ultimate sampling units of the study. Stochastic frontier production function analysis was used to estimate the technical efficiency in milk production. Multivariate regression equations were fitted taking technical efficiency index as the regressand to identify the factors significantly influencing technical efficiency in milk production. The study revealed that variation in output across farms in the study area was due to difference in their technical efficiency levels. However, it was interesting to note that smallholder producers were more technically efficient in milk production than their larger counterparts, especially in the plains. Apart from herd size, intensity of market participation had significant and positive impact on technical efficiency in the plains. This provides definite indication that increasing the level of commercialization of dairy farms would have beneficial impact on their production efficiency.

Production of farnesene and santalene by Saccharomyces cerevisiae using fed-batch cultivations with RQ-controlled feed.

PubMed

Tippmann, Stefan; Scalcinati, Gionata; Siewers, Verena; Nielsen, Jens

2016-01-01

Terpenes have various applications as fragrances, cosmetics and fuels. One of the most prominent examples is the sesquiterpene farnesene, which can be used as diesel substitute in its hydrogenated form farnesane. Recent metabolic engineering efforts have enabled efficient production of several terpenes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Escherichia coli. Plant terpene synthases take on an essential function for sesquiterpene production as they catalyze the specific conversion of the universal precursor farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) to the sesquiterpene of interest and thereby impose limitations on the overall productivity. Using farnesene as a case study, we chose three terpene synthases with distinct plant origins and compared their applicability for farnesene production in the yeast S. cerevisiae. Differences regarding the efficiency of these enzymes were observed in shake flask cultivation with maximal final titers of 4 mg/L using α-farnesene synthase from Malus domestica. By employing two existing platform strains optimized for sesquiterpene production, final titers could be raised up 170 mg/L in fed-batch fermentations with RQ-controlled exponential feeding. Based on these experiments, the difference between the selected synthases was not significant. Lastly, the same fermentation setup was used to compare these results to production of the fragrance sesquiterpene santalene, and almost equivalent titers were obtained with 163 mg/L, using the highest producing strain expressing a santalene synthase from Clausena lansium. However, a reduction of the product yield on biomass by 50% could indicate a higher catalytic efficiency of the farnesene synthase. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Efficient Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering substrates from femtosecond laser based fabrication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parmar, Vinod; Kanaujia, Pawan K.; Bommali, Ravi Kumar; Vijaya Prakash, G.

2017-10-01

A fast and simple femtosecond laser based methodology for efficient Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) substrate fabrication has been proposed. Both nano scaffold silicon (black silicon) and gold nanoparticles (Au-NP) are fabricated by femtosecond laser based technique for mass production. Nano rough silicon scaffold enables large electromagnetic fields for the localized surface plasmons from decorated metallic nanoparticles. Thus giant enhancement (approximately in the order of 104) of Raman signal arises from the mixed effects of electron-photon-phonon coupling, even at nanomolar concentrations of test organic species (Rhodamine 6G). Proposed process demonstrates the low-cost and label-less application ability from these large-area SERS substrates.

An environmental, economic, and social assessment of improving cattle finishing weight or average daily gain within U.S. beef production.

PubMed

White, R R; Capper, J L

2013-12-01

The objective of this study was to assess environmental impact, economic viability, and social acceptability of 3 beef production systems with differing levels of efficiency. A deterministic model of U.S. beef production was used to predict the number of animals required to produce 1 × 10(9) kg HCW beef. Three production treatments were compared, 1 representing average U.S. production (control), 1 with a 15% increase in ADG, and 1 with a 15% increase in finishing weight (FW). For each treatment, various socioeconomic scenarios were compared to account for uncertainty in producer and consumer behavior. Environmental impact metrics included feed consumption, land use, water use, greenhouse gas emissions (GHGe), and N and P excretion. Feed cost, animal purchase cost, animal sales revenue, and income over costs (IOVC) were used as metrics of economic viability. Willingness to pay (WTP) was used to identify improvements or reductions in social acceptability. When ADG improved, feedstuff consumption, land use, and water use decreased by 6.4%, 3.2%, and 12.3%, respectively, compared with the control. Carbon footprint decreased 11.7% and N and P excretion were reduced by 4% and 13.8%, respectively. When FW improved, decreases were seen in feedstuff consumption (12.1%), water use (9.2%). and land use (15.5%); total GHGe decreased 14.7%; and N and P excretion decreased by 10.1% and 17.2%, compared with the control. Changes in IOVC were dependent on socioeconomic scenario. When the ADG scenario was compared with the control, changes in sector profitability ranged from 51 to 117% (cow-calf), -38 to 157% (stocker), and 37 to 134% (feedlot). When improved FW was compared, changes in cow-calf profit ranged from 67% to 143%, stocker profit ranged from -41% to 155% and feedlot profit ranged from 37% to 136%. When WTP was based on marketing beef being more efficiently produced, WTP improved by 10%; thus, social acceptability increased. When marketing was based on production efficiency and consumer knowledge of growth-enhancing technology use, WTP decreased by 12%-leading to a decrease in social acceptability. Results demonstrated that improved efficiency also improved environmental impact, but impacts on economic viability and social acceptability are highly dependent on consumer and producer behavioral responses to efficiency improvements.

Different culture media containing methyldopa for melanin production by Cryptococcus species.

PubMed

Menezes, Ralciane de Paula; Penatti, Mário Paulo Amante; Pedroso, Reginaldo dos Santos

2011-10-01

Melanin production by species of Cryptococcus is widely used to characterize C. neoformans complex in mycology laboratories. This study aims to test the efficacy of methyldopa from pharmaceutical tablet as a substrate for melanin production, to compare the production of melanin using different agar base added with methyldopa, and to compare the melanin produced in those media with that produced in Niger seed agar and sunflower seed agar by C. neoformans, C. laurentii, and C. albidus. Two isolates of each species, C. neoformans, C. laurentii, and C. albidus, and one of Candida albicans were used to experimentally detect conditions for melanin production. The following media were tested: Mueller-Hinton agar (MHA), brain and heart infusion agar (BHIA), blood agar base (BAB), and minimal medium agar (MMA), all added with methyldopa, and the media Niger seed agar (NSA) and sunflower seed agar (SSA). All isolates grew in most of the culture media after 24h. Strains planted on media BAB and BHIA showed growth only after 48h. All isolates produced melanin in MMA, MHA, SSA, and NSA media. Methyldopa in the form pharmaceutical tablet can be used as a substrate for melanin production by Cryptococcus species; minimal medium plus methyldopa was more efficient than the BAB, MHA, and BHIA in the melanin production; and NSA and SSA, followed by MMA added with methyldopa, were more efficient than other media studied for melanin production by all strains studied.

FRET ratiometric probes reveal the chiral-sensitive cysteine-dependent H2S production and regulation in living cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Lv; Yi, Long; Song, Fanbo; Wei, Chao; Wang, Bai-Fan; Xi, Zhen

2014-04-01

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an endogenously produced gaseous signalling molecule with multiple biological functions. In order to visualize and quantify the endogenous in situ production of H2S in living cells, here we developed two new sulphide ratiometric probes (SR400 and SR550) based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) strategy for live capture of H2S. The FRET-based probes show excellent selectivity toward H2S in a high thiol background under physiological buffer. The probe can be used to in situ visualize cysteine-dependent H2S production in a chiral-sensitive manner in living cells. The ratiometric imaging studies indicated that D-Cys induces more H2S production than that of L-Cys in mitochondria of human embryonic kidney 293 cells (HEK293). The cysteine mimics propargylglycine (PPG) has also been found to inhibit the cysteine-dependent endogenous H2S production in a chiral-sensitive manner in living cells. D-PPG inhibited D-Cys-dependent H2S production more efficiently than L-PPG, while, L-PPG inhibited L-Cys-dependent H2S production more efficiently than D-PPG. Our bioimaging studies support Kimura's discovery of H2S production from D-cysteine in mammalian cells and further highlight the potential of D-cysteine and its derivatives as an alternative strategy for classical H2S-releasing drugs.

Water requirements for livestock production: a global perspective.

PubMed

Schlink, A C; Nguyen, M L; Viljoen, G J

2010-12-01

Water is a vital but poorly studied component of livestock production. It is estimated that livestock industries consume 8% of the global water supply, with most of that water being used for intensive, feed-based production. This study takes a broad perspective of livestock production as a component of the human food chain, and considers the efficiency of its water use. Global models are in the early stages of development and do not distinguish between developing and developed countries, or the production systems within them. However, preliminary indications are that, when protein production is adjusted for biological value in the human diet, no plant protein is significantly more efficient at using water than protein produced from eggs, and only soybean is more water efficient than milk and goat and chicken meat. In some regions, especially developing countries, animals are not used solely for food production but also provide draught power, fibre and fertiliser for crops. In addition, animals make use of crop by-products that would otherwise go to waste. The livestock sector is the fastest-growing agricultural sector, which has led to increasing industrialisation and, in some cases, reduced environmental constraints. In emerging economies, increasing involvement in livestock is related to improving rural wealth and increasing consumption of animal protein. Water usage for livestock production should be considered an integral part of agricultural water resource management, taking into account the type of production system (e.g. grain-fed or mixed crop-livestock) and scale (intensive or extensive), the species and breeds of livestock, and the social and cultural aspects of livestock farming in various countries.

Impact analysis of government investment on water projects in the arid Gansu Province of China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhan; Deng, Xiangzheng; Li, Xiubin; Zhou, Qing; Yan, Haiming

In this paper, we introduced three-nested Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) production function into a static Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) Model. Through four levels of factor productivity, we constructed three nested production function of land use productivity in the conceptual modeling frameworks. The first level of factor productivity is generated by the basic value-added land. On the second level, factor productivity in each sector is generated by human activities that presents human intervention to the first level of factor productivity. On the third level of factor productivity, water allocation reshapes the non-linear structure of transaction among first and second levels. From the perspective of resource utilization, we examined the economic efficiency of water allocation. The scenario-based empirical analysis results show that the three-nested CES production function within CGE model is well-behaved to present the economy system of the case study area. Firstly, water scarcity harmed economic production. Government investment on water projects in Gansu thereby had impacts on economic outcomes. Secondly, huge governmental financing on water projects bring depreciation of present value of social welfare. Moreover, water use for environment adaptation pressures on water supply. The theoretical water price can be sharply increased due to the increasing costs of factor inputs. Thirdly, water use efficiency can be improved by water projects, typically can be benefited from the expansion of water-saving irrigation areas even in those expanding dry area in Gansu. Therefore, increasing governmental financing on water projects can depreciate present value of social welfare but benefit economic efficiency for future generation.

Guidelines for Risk-Based Changeover of Biopharma Multi-Product Facilities.

PubMed

Lynch, Rob; Barabani, David; Bellorado, Kathy; Canisius, Peter; Heathcote, Doug; Johnson, Alan; Wyman, Ned; Parry, Derek Willison

2018-01-01

In multi-product biopharma facilities, the protection from product contamination due to the manufacture of multiple products simultaneously is paramount to assure product quality. To that end, the use of traditional changeover methods (elastomer change-out, full sampling, etc.) have been widely used within the industry and have been accepted by regulatory agencies. However, with the endorsement of Quality Risk Management (1), the use of risk-based approaches may be applied to assess and continuously improve established changeover processes. All processes, including changeover, can be improved with investment (money/resources), parallel activities, equipment design improvements, and standardization. However, processes can also be improved by eliminating waste. For product changeover, waste is any activity not needed for the new process or that does not provide added assurance of the quality of the subsequent product. The application of a risk-based approach to changeover aligns with the principles of Quality Risk Management. Through the use of risk assessments, the appropriate changeover controls can be identified and controlled to assure product quality is maintained. Likewise, the use of risk assessments and risk-based approaches may be used to improve operational efficiency, reduce waste, and permit concurrent manufacturing of products. © PDA, Inc. 2018.

A similarity score-based two-phase heuristic approach to solve the dynamic cellular facility layout for manufacturing systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Ravi; Singh, Surya Prakash

2017-11-01

The dynamic cellular facility layout problem (DCFLP) is a well-known NP-hard problem. It has been estimated that the efficient design of DCFLP reduces the manufacturing cost of products by maintaining the minimum material flow among all machines in all cells, as the material flow contributes around 10-30% of the total product cost. However, being NP hard, solving the DCFLP optimally is very difficult in reasonable time. Therefore, this article proposes a novel similarity score-based two-phase heuristic approach to solve the DCFLP optimally considering multiple products in multiple times to be manufactured in the manufacturing layout. In the first phase of the proposed heuristic, a machine-cell cluster is created based on similarity scores between machines. This is provided as an input to the second phase to minimize inter/intracell material handling costs and rearrangement costs over the entire planning period. The solution methodology of the proposed approach is demonstrated. To show the efficiency of the two-phase heuristic approach, 21 instances are generated and solved using the optimization software package LINGO. The results show that the proposed approach can optimally solve the DCFLP in reasonable time.

Relationships of efficiency to reproductive disorders in Danish milk production: a stochastic frontier analysis.

PubMed

Lawson, L G; Bruun, J; Coelli, T; Agger, J F; Lund, M

2004-01-01

Relationships of various reproductive disorders and milk production performance of Danish dairy farms were investigated. A stochastic frontier production function was estimated using data collected in 1998 from 514 Danish dairy farms. Measures of farm-level milk production efficiency relative to this production frontier were obtained, and relationships between milk production efficiency and the incidence risk of reproductive disorders were examined. There were moderate positive relationships between milk production efficiency and retained placenta, induction of estrus, uterine infections, ovarian cysts, and induction of birth. Inclusion of reproductive management variables showed that these moderate relationships disappeared, but directions of coefficients for almost all those variables remained the same. Dystocia showed a weak negative correlation with milk production efficiency. Farms that were mainly managed by young farmers had the highest average efficiency scores. The estimated milk losses due to inefficiency averaged 1142, 488, and 256 kg of energy-corrected milk per cow, respectively, for low-, medium-, and high-efficiency herds. It is concluded that the availability of younger cows, which enabled farmers to replace cows with reproductive disorders, contributed to high cow productivity in efficient farms. Thus, a high replacement rate more than compensates for the possible negative effect of reproductive disorders. The use of frontier production and efficiency/inefficiency functions to analyze herd data may enable dairy advisors to identify inefficient herds and to simulate the effect of alternative management procedures on the individual herd's efficiency.

A modified indirect mathematical model for evaluation of ethanol production efficiency in industrial-scale continuous fermentation processes.

PubMed

Canseco Grellet, M A; Castagnaro, A; Dantur, K I; De Boeck, G; Ahmed, P M; Cárdenas, G J; Welin, B; Ruiz, R M

2016-10-01

To calculate fermentation efficiency in a continuous ethanol production process, we aimed to develop a robust mathematical method based on the analysis of metabolic by-product formation. This method is in contrast to the traditional way of calculating ethanol fermentation efficiency, where the ratio between the ethanol produced and the sugar consumed is expressed as a percentage of the theoretical conversion yield. Comparison between the two methods, at industrial scale and in sensitivity studies, showed that the indirect method was more robust and gave slightly higher fermentation efficiency values, although fermentation efficiency of the industrial process was found to be low (~75%). The traditional calculation method is simpler than the indirect method as it only requires a few chemical determinations in samples collected. However, a minor error in any measured parameter will have an important impact on the calculated efficiency. In contrast, the indirect method of calculation requires a greater number of determinations but is much more robust since an error in any parameter will only have a minor effect on the fermentation efficiency value. The application of the indirect calculation methodology in order to evaluate the real situation of the process and to reach an optimum fermentation yield for an industrial-scale ethanol production is recommended. Once a high fermentation yield has been reached the traditional method should be used to maintain the control of the process. Upon detection of lower yields in an optimized process the indirect method should be employed as it permits a more accurate diagnosis of causes of yield losses in order to correct the problem rapidly. The low fermentation efficiency obtained in this study shows an urgent need for industrial process optimization where the indirect calculation methodology will be an important tool to determine process losses. © 2016 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Cationic nanoemulsions as nucleic acids delivery systems.

PubMed

Teixeira, Helder Ferreira; Bruxel, Fernanda; Fraga, Michelle; Schuh, Roselena Silvestri; Zorzi, Giovanni Konat; Matte, Ursula; Fattal, Elias

2017-12-20

Since the first clinical studies, knowledge in the field of gene therapy has advanced significantly, and these advances led to the development and subsequent approval of the first gene medicines. Although viral vectors-based products offer efficient gene expression, problems related to their safety and immune response have limited their clinical use. Thus, design and optimization of nonviral vectors is presented as a promising strategy in this scenario. Nonviral systems are nanotechnology-based products composed of polymers or lipids, which are usually biodegradable and biocompatible. Cationic liposomes are the most studied nonviral carriers and knowledge about these systems has greatly evolved, especially in understanding the role of phospholipids and cationic lipids. However, the search for efficient delivery systems aiming at gene therapy remains a challenge. In this context, cationic nanoemulsions have proved to be an interesting approach, as their ability to protect and efficiently deliver nucleic acids for diverse therapeutic applications has been demonstrated. This review focused on cationic nanoemulsions designed for gene therapy, providing an overview on their composition, physicochemical properties, and their efficacy on biological response in vitro and in vivo. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Growing Chlorella sp. on meat processing wastewater for nutrient removal and biomass production.

PubMed

Lu, Qian; Zhou, Wenguang; Min, Min; Ma, Xiaochen; Chandra, Ceria; Doan, Yen T T; Ma, Yiwei; Zheng, Hongli; Cheng, Sibo; Griffith, Richard; Chen, Paul; Chen, Chi; Urriola, Pedro E; Shurson, Gerald C; Gislerød, Hans R; Ruan, Roger

2015-12-01

In this work, Chlorella sp. (UM6151) was selected to treat meat processing wastewater for nutrient removal and biomass production. To balance the nutrient profile and improve biomass yield at low cost, an innovative algae cultivation model based on wastewater mixing was developed. The result showed that biomass yield (0.675-1.538 g/L) of algae grown on mixed wastewater was much higher than that on individual wastewater and artificial medium. Wastewater mixing eased the bottleneck for algae growth and contributed to the improved biomass yield. Furthermore, in mixed wastewater with sufficient nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen removal efficiencies (68.75-90.38%) and total nitrogen removal efficiencies (30.06-50.94%) were improved. Wastewater mixing also promoted the synthesis of protein in algal cells. Protein content of algae growing on mixed wastewater reached 60.87-68.65%, which is much higher than that of traditional protein source. Algae cultivation model based on wastewater mixing is an efficient and economical way to improve biomass yield. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Platinum-Free Counter Electrode Comprised of Metal-Organic-Framework (MOF)-Derived Cobalt Sulfide Nanoparticles for Efficient Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs)

PubMed Central

Hsu, Shao-Hui; Li, Chun-Ting; Chien, Heng-Ta; Salunkhe, Rahul R.; Suzuki, Norihiro; Yamauchi, Yusuke; Ho, Kuo-Chuan; Wu, Kevin C.-W.

2014-01-01

We fabricated a highly efficient (with a solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency (η) of 8.1%) Pt-free dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The counter electrode was made of cobalt sulfide (CoS) nanoparticles synthesized via surfactant-assisted preparation of a metal organic framework, ZIF-67, with controllable particle sizes (50 to 320 nm) and subsequent oxidation and sulfide conversion. In contrast to conventional Pt counter electrodes, the synthesized CoS nanoparticles exhibited higher external surface areas and roughness factors, as evidenced by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) element mapping, and electrochemical analysis. Incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE) results showed an increase in the open circuit voltage (VOC) and a decrease in the short-circuit photocurrent density (Jsc) for CoS-based DSSCs compared to Pt-based DSSCs, resulting in a similar power conversion efficiency. The CoS-based DSSC fabricated in the study show great potential for economically friendly production of Pt-free DSSCs. PMID:25382139

Critical Zone services as environmental assessment criteria in intensively managed landscapes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, Meredith; Kumar, Praveen

2017-06-01

The Critical Zone (CZ) includes the biophysical processes occurring from the top of the vegetation canopy to the weathering zone below the groundwater table. CZ services provide a measure for the goods and benefits derived from CZ processes. In intensively managed landscapes, cropland is altered through anthropogenic energy inputs to derive more productivity, as agricultural products, than would be possible under natural conditions. However, the actual costs of alterations to CZ functions within landscape profiles are unknown. Through comparisons of corn feed and corn-based ethanol, we show that valuation of these CZ services in monetary terms provides a more concrete tool for characterizing seemingly abstract environmental damages from agricultural production systems. Multiple models are combined to simulate the movement of nutrients throughout the soil system, enabling the measurement of agricultural anthropogenic impacts to the CZ's regulating services. Results indicate water quality and atmospheric stabilizing services, measured by soil carbon storage, carbon respiration, and nitrate leaching, among others, can cost more than double that of emissions estimated in previous studies. Energy efficiency in addition to environmental impact is assessed to demonstrate how the inclusion of CZ services is necessary in accounting for the entire life cycle of agricultural production systems. These results conclude that feed production systems are more energy efficient and less environmentally costly than corn-based ethanol.

Platform based design of EAP transducers in Danfoss PolyPower A/S

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarban, Rahimullah; Gudlaugsson, Tómas V.

2013-04-01

Electroactive Polymer (EAP) has gained increasing focus, in research communities, in last two decades. Research within the field of EAP has, so far, been mainly focused on material improvements, characterization, modeling and developing demonstrators. As the EAP technology matures, the need for a new area of research namely product development emerges. Product development can be based on an isolated design and production for a single product or platform design where a product family is developed. In platform design the families of products exploits commonality of platform modules while satisfying a variety of different market segments. Platform based approach has the primary benefit of being cost efficient and short lead time to market when new products emerges. Products development based on EAP technology is challenging both technologically as well as from production and processing point of view. Both the technological and processing challenges need to be addressed before a successful implementation of EAP technology into products. Based on this need Danfoss PolyPower A/S has, in 2011, launched a EAP platform project in collaboration with three Danish universities and three commercial organizations. The aim of the project is to develop platform based designs and product family for the EAP components to be used in variety of applications. This paper presents the structure of the platform project as a whole and specifically the platform based designs of EAP transducers. The underlying technologies, essential for EAP transducers, are also presented. Conceptual design and solution for the concepts are presented as well.

A random-key encoded harmony search approach for energy-efficient production scheduling with shared resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garcia-Santiago, C. A.; Del Ser, J.; Upton, C.; Quilligan, F.; Gil-Lopez, S.; Salcedo-Sanz, S.

2015-11-01

When seeking near-optimal solutions for complex scheduling problems, meta-heuristics demonstrate good performance with affordable computational effort. This has resulted in a gravitation towards these approaches when researching industrial use-cases such as energy-efficient production planning. However, much of the previous research makes assumptions about softer constraints that affect planning strategies and about how human planners interact with the algorithm in a live production environment. This article describes a job-shop problem that focuses on minimizing energy consumption across a production facility of shared resources. The application scenario is based on real facilities made available by the Irish Center for Manufacturing Research. The formulated problem is tackled via harmony search heuristics with random keys encoding. Simulation results are compared to a genetic algorithm, a simulated annealing approach and a first-come-first-served scheduling. The superior performance obtained by the proposed scheduler paves the way towards its practical implementation over industrial production chains.

Enzymatic Production of c-di-GMP Using a Thermophilic Diguanylate Cyclase.

PubMed

Venkataramani, Prabhadevi; Liang, Zhao-Xun

2017-01-01

C-di-GMP has emerged as a prevalent bacterial messenger that controls a multitude of bacterial behaviors. Having access to milligram or gram quantities of c-di-GMP is essential for the biochemical and structural characterization of enzymes and effectors involved in c-di-GMP signaling. Although c-di-GMP can be synthesized using chemical methods, diguanylate cyclases (DGC)-based enzymatic synthesis is the most efficient method of preparing c-di-GMP today. Many DGCs are not suitable for c-di-GMP production because of poor protein stability and the presence of a c-di-GMP-binding inhibitory site (I-site) in most DGCs. We have identified and engineered a thermophilic DGC for efficient production of c-di-GMP for characterizing c-di-GMP signaling proteins and riboswitches. Importantly, residue replacement in the inhibitory I-site of the thermophilic DGC drastically relieved product inhibition to enable the production of hundreds of milligrams of c-di-GMP using 5-10 mg of this robust biocatalyst.

Energy availability from livestock and agricultural productivity in Europe, 1815–1913: a new comparison.

PubMed

Kander, Astrid; Warde, Paul

2011-01-01

This article explores the proposition that a reason for high agricultural productivity in the early nineteenth century was relatively high energy availability from draught animals. The article is based on the collection of extensive new data indicating different trends in draught power availability and the efficiency of its use in different countries of Europe. This article shows that the proposition does not hold, and demonstrates that, although towards the end of the nineteenth century England had relatively high numbers of draught animals per agricultural worker, it also had low number of workers and animals per hectare, indicating the high efficiency of muscle power, rather than an abundance of such power. The higher efficiency was related to a specialization on less labour-intensive farming and a preference for horses over oxen.

Influence of irrigation method and container type on Northern red oak seedling growth and media electrical conductivity

Treesearch

Anthony S. Davis; Douglass F. Jacobs; Ronald P. Overton; R. Kasten Dumroese

2008-01-01

Container production of hardwood seedlings has not been extensively practiced. Efficient nursery production of hardwood seedlings in containers can be limited by formation of a broad foliar canopy, which limits irrigation uniformity. This study was established to investigate suitability of subirrigation, a method of irrigating seedlings from the container base that...

Designing overall stoichiometric conversions and intervening metabolic reactions

DOE PAGES

Chowdhury, Anupam; Maranas, Costas D.

2015-11-04

Existing computational tools for de novo metabolic pathway assembly, either based on mixed integer linear programming techniques or graph-search applications, generally only find linear pathways connecting the source to the target metabolite. The overall stoichiometry of conversion along with alternate co-reactant (or co-product) combinations is not part of the pathway design. Therefore, global carbon and energy efficiency is in essence fixed with no opportunities to identify more efficient routes for recycling carbon flux closer to the thermodynamic limit. Here, we introduce a two-stage computational procedure that both identifies the optimum overall stoichiometry (i.e., optStoic) and selects for (non-)native reactions (i.e.,more » minRxn/minFlux) that maximize carbon, energy or price efficiency while satisfying thermodynamic feasibility requirements. Implementation for recent pathway design studies identified non-intuitive designs with improved efficiencies. Specifically, multiple alternatives for non-oxidative glycolysis are generated and non-intuitive ways of co-utilizing carbon dioxide with methanol are revealed for the production of C 2+ metabolites with higher carbon efficiency.« less

RFM-based eco-efficiency analysis using Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy and AHP approach

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen Ruiyang

2009-04-15

Eco-design is crucial to take environmental aspects into account in the phases of design. Few literature review that green product must meet market value. The development of models to predict market value is thus very useful because it can provide early eco-efficiency to the eco-design. For the eco-design engineer, when he tries to solve a customer feedback problem, he usually faces the eco-efficiency. There are, however, often other types of fuzziness uncertainty present, which are related to the quantity of eco-design conditions. In this paper, it is derived that analysis of eco-efficiency can be identified by using the RFM valuemore » for quantifying eco-design with Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy system on customer feedback problem. It clusters eco-efficiency into segments according to green product usages value expressed in terms of weighted RFM. This experiment examined the weighted RFM effect of overall average normalized, AHP and non-weighted for F1 metric. The experimental results show that the proposed methodology indeed can yield identification of higher quality.« less

Complex Approach to Conceptual Design of Machine Mechanically Extracting Oil from Jatropha curcas L. Seeds for Biomass-Based Fuel Production

PubMed Central

Mašín, Ivan

2016-01-01

One of important sources of biomass-based fuel is Jatropha curcas L. Great attention is paid to the biofuel produced from the oil extracted from the Jatropha curcas L. seeds. A mechanised extraction is the most efficient and feasible method for oil extraction for small-scale farmers but there is a need to extract oil in more efficient manner which would increase the labour productivity, decrease production costs, and increase benefits of small-scale farmers. On the other hand innovators should be aware that further machines development is possible only when applying the systematic approach and design methodology in all stages of engineering design. Systematic approach in this case means that designers and development engineers rigorously apply scientific knowledge, integrate different constraints and user priorities, carefully plan product and activities, and systematically solve technical problems. This paper therefore deals with the complex approach to design specification determining that can bring new innovative concepts to design of mechanical machines for oil extraction. The presented case study as the main part of the paper is focused on new concept of screw of machine mechanically extracting oil from Jatropha curcas L. seeds. PMID:27668259

Harnessing the genetics of the modern dairy cow to continue improvements in feed efficiency.

PubMed

VandeHaar, M J; Armentano, L E; Weigel, K; Spurlock, D M; Tempelman, R J; Veerkamp, R

2016-06-01

Feed efficiency, as defined by the fraction of feed energy or dry matter captured in products, has more than doubled for the US dairy industry in the past 100 yr. This increased feed efficiency was the result of increased milk production per cow achieved through genetic selection, nutrition, and management with the desired goal being greater profitability. With increased milk production per cow, more feed is consumed per cow, but a greater portion of the feed is partitioned toward milk instead of maintenance and body growth. This dilution of maintenance has been the overwhelming driver of enhanced feed efficiency in the past, but its effect diminishes with each successive increment in production relative to body size and therefore will be less important in the future. Instead, we must also focus on new ways to enhance digestive and metabolic efficiency. One way to examine variation in efficiency among animals is residual feed intake (RFI), a measure of efficiency that is independent of the dilution of maintenance. Cows that convert feed gross energy to net energy more efficiently or have lower maintenance requirements than expected based on body weight use less feed than expected and thus have negative RFI. Cows with low RFI likely digest and metabolize nutrients more efficiently and should have overall greater efficiency and profitability if they are also healthy, fertile, and produce at a high multiple of maintenance. Genomic technologies will help to identify these animals for selection programs. Nutrition and management also will continue to play a major role in farm-level feed efficiency. Management practices such as grouping and total mixed ration feeding have improved rumen function and therefore efficiency, but they have also decreased our attention on individual cow needs. Nutritional grouping is key to helping each cow reach its genetic potential. Perhaps new computer-driven technologies, combined with genomics, will enable us to optimize management for each individual cow within a herd, or to optimize animal selection to match management environments. In the future, availability of feed resources may shift as competition for land increases. New approaches combining genetic, nutrition, and other management practices will help optimize feed efficiency, profitability, and environmental sustainability. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An approach to optimize the batch mixing process for improving the quality consistency of the products made from traditional Chinese medicines*

PubMed Central

Yan, Bin-jun; Qu, Hai-bin

2013-01-01

The efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is based on the combined effects of its constituents. Variation in chemical composition between batches of TCM has always been the deterring factor in achieving consistency in efficacy. The batch mixing process can significantly reduce the batch-to-batch quality variation in TCM extracts by mixing them in a well-designed proportion. However, reducing the quality variation without sacrificing too much of the production efficiency is one of the challenges. Accordingly, an innovative and practical batch mixing method aimed at providing acceptable efficiency for industrial production of TCM products is proposed in this work, which uses a minimum number of batches of extracts to meet the content limits. The important factors affecting the utilization ratio of the extracts (URE) were studied by simulations. The results have shown that URE was affected by the correlation between the contents of constituents, and URE decreased with the increase in the number of targets and the relative standard deviations of the contents. URE could be increased by increasing the number of storage tanks. The results have provided a reference for designing the batch mixing process. The proposed method has possible application value in reducing the quality variation in TCM and providing acceptable production efficiency simultaneously. PMID:24190450

An approach to optimize the batch mixing process for improving the quality consistency of the products made from traditional Chinese medicines.

PubMed

Yan, Bin-jun; Qu, Hai-bin

2013-11-01

The efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is based on the combined effects of its constituents. Variation in chemical composition between batches of TCM has always been the deterring factor in achieving consistency in efficacy. The batch mixing process can significantly reduce the batch-to-batch quality variation in TCM extracts by mixing them in a well-designed proportion. However, reducing the quality variation without sacrificing too much of the production efficiency is one of the challenges. Accordingly, an innovative and practical batch mixing method aimed at providing acceptable efficiency for industrial production of TCM products is proposed in this work, which uses a minimum number of batches of extracts to meet the content limits. The important factors affecting the utilization ratio of the extracts (URE) were studied by simulations. The results have shown that URE was affected by the correlation between the contents of constituents, and URE decreased with the increase in the number of targets and the relative standard deviations of the contents. URE could be increased by increasing the number of storage tanks. The results have provided a reference for designing the batch mixing process. The proposed method has possible application value in reducing the quality variation in TCM and providing acceptable production efficiency simultaneously.

Heavy Bearings Exploitation Energy and Reduction Methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szekely, V. G.; Cioară, R.

2016-11-01

The global trend of resource conservation so as “not to compromise the ability of future generation's development” is the fundamental basis of the concept of sustainable development. Concordant with this, the energy efficiency of products is increasingly discussed and frequently taken into account in the design stage. In more cases a product is more appreciated and more attractive as the energy consumption and its associated materials are lower. In the production stage, said consumption advantages primarily the manufacturer, particularly through low consumption thereof. In the operational phase, low energy and materials consumption represents an user advantage and it's a major argument in the decision to purchase and use a particular product. Heavy bearings are frequent products used in wind turbines that are producing non-conventional “clean” energy, as windmills. An enhanced energy efficiency bearing contributes to the enhancement of the overall efficiency of the wind turbines. Based on a suitable mathematical model, this paper identifies and recommends courses of action to reduce the operating energy of heavy bearing through the “cage” - which is the subject of a much larger research - with the highest priority. The identified actions may constitute from a set of requirements for the design stage of the heavy bearing predominantly oriented towards innovation-invention.

An efficient formulation of robot arm dynamics for control and computer simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, C. S. G.; Nigam, R.

This paper describes an efficient formulation of the dynamic equations of motion of industrial robots based on the Lagrange formulation of d'Alembert's principle. This formulation, as applied to a PUMA robot arm, results in a set of closed form second order differential equations with cross product terms. They are not as efficient in computation as those formulated by the Newton-Euler method, but provide a better analytical model for control analysis and computer simulation. Computational complexities of this dynamic model together with other models are tabulated for discussion.

An adjoint-based framework for maximizing mixing in binary fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eggl, Maximilian; Schmid, Peter

2017-11-01

Mixing in the inertial, but laminar parameter regime is a common application in a wide range of industries. Enhancing the efficiency of mixing processes thus has a fundamental effect on product quality, material homogeneity and, last but not least, production costs. In this project, we address mixing efficiency in the above mentioned regime (Reynolds number Re = 1000 , Peclet number Pe = 1000) by developing and demonstrating an algorithm based on nonlinear adjoint looping that minimizes the variance of a passive scalar field which models our binary Newtonian fluids. The numerical method is based on the FLUSI code (Engels et al. 2016), a Fourier pseudo-spectral code, which we modified and augmented by scalar transport and adjoint equations. Mixing is accomplished by moving stirrers which are numerically modeled using a penalization approach. In our two-dimensional simulations we consider rotating circular and elliptic stirrers and extract optimal mixing strategies from the iterative scheme. The case of optimizing shape and rotational speed of the stirrers will be demonstrated.

A facile strategy for rapid preparation of graphene spongy balls

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wan, Shu; Bi, Hengchang; Xie, Xiao; Su, Shi; Du, Kai; Jia, Haiyang; Xu, Tao; He, Longbing; Yin, Kuibo; Sun, Litao

2016-09-01

Porous three dimensional (3D) graphene macrostructures have demonstrated the potential in versatile applications in recent years, including energy storage, sensors, and environment protection, etc. However, great research attention has been focused on the optimization of the structure and properties of graphene-based materials. Comparatively, there are less reports on how to shape 3D graphene macrostructures rapidly and effortlessly, which is critical for mass production in industry. Here, we introduce a facile and efficient method, low temperature frying to form graphene-based spongy balls in liquid nitrogen with a yield of ~400 balls min-1. Moreover, the fabrication process can be easily accelerated by using multi pipettes working at the same time. The graphene spongy balls show energy storage with a specific capacitance of 124 F g-1 and oil adsorbing with a capacity of 105.4 times its own weight. This strategy can be a feasible approach to overcome the low efficiency in production and speed up the development of porous 3D graphene-based macrostructures in industrial applications.

Noble-Metal-Free Molybdenum Disulfide Cocatalyst for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production.

PubMed

Yuan, Yong-Jun; Lu, Hong-Wei; Yu, Zhen-Tao; Zou, Zhi-Gang

2015-12-21

Photocatalytic water splitting using powered semiconductors as photocatalysts represents a promising strategy for clean, low-cost, and environmentally friendly production of H2 utilizing solar energy. The loading of noble-metal cocatalysts on semiconductors can significantly enhance the solar-to-H2 conversion efficiency. However, the high cost and scarcity of noble metals counter their extensive utilization. Therefore, the use of alternative cocatalysts based on non-precious metal materials is pursued. Nanosized MoS2 cocatalysts have attracted considerable attention in the last decade as a viable alternative to improve solar-to-H2 conversion efficiency because of its superb catalytic activity, excellent stability, low cost, availability, environmental friendliness, and chemical inertness. In this perspective, the design, structures, synthesis, and application of MoS2 -based composite photocatalysts for solar H2 generation are summarized, compared, and discussed. Finally, this Review concludes with a summary and remarks on some challenges and opportunities for the future development of MoS2 -based photocatalysts. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Targeting Net Zero Energy at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay: Preprint

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burman, K.; Kandt, A.; Lisell, L.

2012-05-01

This paper summarizes the results of an NREL assessment of Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH), Kaneohe Bay to appraise the potential of achieving net zero energy status through energy efficiency, renewable energy, and hydrogen vehicle integration. In 2008, the U.S. Department of Defense's U.S. Pacific Command partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to assess opportunities for increasing energy security through renewable energy and energy efficiency at Hawaii military installations. DOE selected Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH), Kaneohe Bay, to receive technical support for net zero energy assessment and planning funded through the Hawaiimore » Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI). NREL performed a comprehensive assessment to appraise the potential of MCBH Kaneohe Bay to achieve net zero energy status through energy efficiency, renewable energy, and hydrogen vehicle integration. This paper summarizes the results of the assessment and provides energy recommendations. The analysis shows that MCBH Kaneohe Bay has the potential to make significant progress toward becoming a net zero installation. Wind, solar photovoltaics, solar hot water, and hydrogen production were assessed, as well as energy efficiency technologies. Deploying wind turbines is the most cost-effective energy production measure. If the identified energy projects and savings measures are implemented, the base will achieve a 96% site Btu reduction and a 99% source Btu reduction. Using excess wind and solar energy to produce hydrogen for a fleet and fuel cells could significantly reduce energy use and potentially bring MCBH Kaneohe Bay to net zero. Further analysis with an environmental impact and interconnection study will need to be completed. By achieving net zero status, the base will set an example for other military installations, provide environmental benefits, reduce costs, increase energy security, and exceed its energy goals and mandates.« less

Ultra-low background DNA cloning system.

PubMed

Goto, Kenta; Nagano, Yukio

2013-01-01

Yeast-based in vivo cloning is useful for cloning DNA fragments into plasmid vectors and is based on the ability of yeast to recombine the DNA fragments by homologous recombination. Although this method is efficient, it produces some by-products. We have developed an "ultra-low background DNA cloning system" on the basis of yeast-based in vivo cloning, by almost completely eliminating the generation of by-products and applying the method to commonly used Escherichia coli vectors, particularly those lacking yeast replication origins and carrying an ampicillin resistance gene (Amp(r)). First, we constructed a conversion cassette containing the DNA sequences in the following order: an Amp(r) 5' UTR (untranslated region) and coding region, an autonomous replication sequence and a centromere sequence from yeast, a TRP1 yeast selectable marker, and an Amp(r) 3' UTR. This cassette allowed conversion of the Amp(r)-containing vector into the yeast/E. coli shuttle vector through use of the Amp(r) sequence by homologous recombination. Furthermore, simultaneous transformation of the desired DNA fragment into yeast allowed cloning of this DNA fragment into the same vector. We rescued the plasmid vectors from all yeast transformants, and by-products containing the E. coli replication origin disappeared. Next, the rescued vectors were transformed into E. coli and the by-products containing the yeast replication origin disappeared. Thus, our method used yeast- and E. coli-specific "origins of replication" to eliminate the generation of by-products. Finally, we successfully cloned the DNA fragment into the vector with almost 100% efficiency.

A high-performance ground-based prototype of horn-type sequential vegetable production facility for life support system in space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Yuming; Liu, Hui; Shao, Lingzhi; Wang, Minjuan; Berkovich, Yu A.; Erokhin, A. N.; Liu, Hong

2013-07-01

Vegetable cultivation plays a crucial role in dietary supplements and psychosocial benefits of the crew during manned space flight. Here we developed a ground-based prototype of horn-type sequential vegetable production facility, named Horn-type Producer (HTP), which was capable of simulating the microgravity effect and the continuous cultivation of leaf-vegetables on root modules. The growth chamber of the facility had a volume of 0.12 m3, characterized by a three-stage space expansion with plant growth. The planting surface of 0.154 m2 was comprised of six ring-shaped root modules with a fibrous ion-exchange resin substrate. Root modules were fastened to a central porous tube supplying water, and moved forward with plant growth. The total illuminated crop area of 0.567 m2 was provided by a combination of red and white light emitting diodes on the internal surfaces. In tests with a 24-h photoperiod, the productivity of the HTP at 0.3 kW for lettuce achieved 254.3 g eatable biomass per week. Long-term operation of the HTP did not alter vegetable nutrition composition to any great extent. Furthermore, the efficiency of the HTP, based on the Q-criterion, was 7 × 10-4 g2 m-3 J-1. These results show that the HTP exhibited high productivity, stable quality, and good efficiency in the process of planting lettuce, indicative of an interesting design for space vegetable production.

A synthetic design environment for ship design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chipman, Richard R.

1995-01-01

Rapid advances in computer science and information system technology have made possible the creation of synthetic design environments (SDE) which use virtual prototypes to increase the efficiency and agility of the design process. This next generation of computer-based design tools will rely heavily on simulation and advanced visualization techniques to enable integrated product and process teams to concurrently conceptualize, design, and test a product and its fabrication processes. This paper summarizes a successful demonstration of the feasibility of using a simulation based design environment in the shipbuilding industry. As computer science and information science technologies have evolved, there have been many attempts to apply and integrate the new capabilities into systems for the improvement of the process of design. We see the benefits of those efforts in the abundance of highly reliable, technologically complex products and services in the modern marketplace. Furthermore, the computer-based technologies have been so cost effective that the improvements embodied in modern products have been accompanied by lowered costs. Today the state-of-the-art in computerized design has advanced so dramatically that the focus is no longer on merely improving design methodology; rather the goal is to revolutionize the entire process by which complex products are conceived, designed, fabricated, tested, deployed, operated, maintained, refurbished and eventually decommissioned. By concurrently addressing all life-cycle issues, the basic decision making process within an enterprise will be improved dramatically, leading to new levels of quality, innovation, efficiency, and customer responsiveness. By integrating functions and people with an enterprise, such systems will change the fundamental way American industries are organized, creating companies that are more competitive, creative, and productive.

Buy Energy-Efficient Products: A Guide for Federal Purchasers and Specifiers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

In a single year, energy-efficient product purchases could save the federal government almost a half billion dollars worth of energy. By purchasing products that exceed the minimum required efficiency levels, buyers can save the government even more energy and money. Federal employees and contractors must take an active role in ensuring that the government receives products that meet efficiency requirements. This document provides an overview of product purchasing requirements and shows you how to write compliant contracts, find funding, and confirm product compliance.

Demonstration & Testing of ClimaStat for Improved DX Air-Conditioning Efficiency

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-01

impaired productivity and increased transmission of viruses and bacteria. Allowing indoor RH to rise above an average of 60%rh or a peak of 70%rh can...testing of an engineering prototype culminated in issuance of US Patent 6,427,454 in 2002. Then, development, testing and refinement of a production ...field tests on four Trane (American Standard) systems at a university site were concluded in 2009. A production prototype was constructed based on

Finite basis representations with nondirect product basis functions having structure similar to that of spherical harmonics.

PubMed

Czakó, Gábor; Szalay, Viktor; Császár, Attila G

2006-01-07

The currently most efficient finite basis representation (FBR) method [Corey et al., in Numerical Grid Methods and Their Applications to Schrodinger Equation, NATO ASI Series C, edited by C. Cerjan (Kluwer Academic, New York, 1993), Vol. 412, p. 1; Bramley et al., J. Chem. Phys. 100, 6175 (1994)] designed specifically to deal with nondirect product bases of structures phi(n) (l)(s)f(l)(u), chi(m) (l)(t)phi(n) (l)(s)f(l)(u), etc., employs very special l-independent grids and results in a symmetric FBR. While highly efficient, this method is not general enough. For instance, it cannot deal with nondirect product bases of the above structure efficiently if the functions phi(n) (l)(s) [and/or chi(m) (l)(t)] are discrete variable representation (DVR) functions of the infinite type. The optimal-generalized FBR(DVR) method [V. Szalay, J. Chem. Phys. 105, 6940 (1996)] is designed to deal with general, i.e., direct and/or nondirect product, bases and grids. This robust method, however, is too general, and its direct application can result in inefficient computer codes [Czako et al., J. Chem. Phys. 122, 024101 (2005)]. It is shown here how the optimal-generalized FBR method can be simplified in the case of nondirect product bases of structures phi(n) (l)(s)f(l)(u), chi(m) (l)(t)phi(n) (l)(s)f(l)(u), etc. As a result the commonly used symmetric FBR is recovered and simplified nonsymmetric FBRs utilizing very special l-dependent grids are obtained. The nonsymmetric FBRs are more general than the symmetric FBR in that they can be employed efficiently even when the functions phi(n) (l)(s) [and/or chi(m) (l)(t)] are DVR functions of the infinite type. Arithmetic operation counts and a simple numerical example presented show unambiguously that setting up the Hamiltonian matrix requires significantly less computer time when using one of the proposed nonsymmetric FBRs than that in the symmetric FBR. Therefore, application of this nonsymmetric FBR is more efficient than that of the symmetric FBR when one wants to diagonalize the Hamiltonian matrix either by a direct or via a basis-set contraction method. Enormous decrease of computer time can be achieved, with respect to a direct application of the optimal-generalized FBR, by employing one of the simplified nonsymmetric FBRs as is demonstrated in noniterative calculations of the low-lying vibrational energy levels of the H3+ molecular ion. The arithmetic operation counts of the Hamiltonian matrix vector products and the properties of a recently developed diagonalization method [Andreozzi et al., J. Phys. A Math. Gen. 35, L61 (2002)] suggest that the nonsymmetric FBR applied along with this particular diagonalization method is suitable to large scale iterative calculations. Whether or not the nonsymmetric FBR is competitive with the symmetric FBR in large-scale iterative calculations still has to be investigated numerically.

A system of {sup 99m}Tc production based on distributed electron accelerators and thermal separation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bennett, R.G.; Christian, J.D.; Petti, D.A.

1999-04-01

A system has been developed for the production of {sup 99m}Tc based on distributed electron accelerators and thermal separation. The radioactive decay parent of {sup 99m}Tc, {sup 99}Mo, is produced from {sup 100}Mo by a photoneutron reaction. Two alternative thermal separation processes have been developed to extract {sup 99m}Tc. Experiments have been performed to verify the technical feasibility of the production and assess the efficiency of the extraction processes. A system based on this technology enables the economical supply of {sup 99m}Tc for a large nuclear pharmacy. Twenty such production centers distributed near major metropolitan areas could produce the entiremore » US supply of {sup 99m}Tc at a cost less than the current subsidized price.« less

The quantile regression approach to efficiency measurement: insights from Monte Carlo simulations.

PubMed

Liu, Chunping; Laporte, Audrey; Ferguson, Brian S

2008-09-01

In the health economics literature there is an ongoing debate over approaches used to estimate the efficiency of health systems at various levels, from the level of the individual hospital - or nursing home - up to that of the health system as a whole. The two most widely used approaches to evaluating the efficiency with which various units deliver care are non-parametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) and parametric stochastic frontier analysis (SFA). Productivity researchers tend to have very strong preferences over which methodology to use for efficiency estimation. In this paper, we use Monte Carlo simulation to compare the performance of DEA and SFA in terms of their ability to accurately estimate efficiency. We also evaluate quantile regression as a potential alternative approach. A Cobb-Douglas production function, random error terms and a technical inefficiency term with different distributions are used to calculate the observed output. The results, based on these experiments, suggest that neither DEA nor SFA can be regarded as clearly dominant, and that, depending on the quantile estimated, the quantile regression approach may be a useful addition to the armamentarium of methods for estimating technical efficiency.

A study on operation efficiency evaluation based on firm's financial index and benchmark selection: take China Unicom as an example

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Zu-guang; Tian, Zhan-jun; Liu, Hui; Huang, Rui; Zhu, Guo-hua

2009-07-01

Being the only listed telecom operators of A share market, China Unicom has always been attracted many institutional investors under the concept of 3G recent years,which itself is a great technical progress expectation.Do the institutional investors or the concept of technical progress have signficant effect on the improving of firm's operating efficiency?Though reviewing the documentary about operating efficiency we find that schoolars study this problem useing the regress analyzing based on traditional production function and data envelopment analysis(DEA) and financial index anayzing and marginal function and capital labor ratio coefficient etc. All the methods mainly based on macrodata. This paper we use the micro-data of company to evaluate the operating efficiency.Using factor analyzing based on financial index and comparing the factor score of three years from 2005 to 2007, we find that China Unicom's operating efficiency is under the averge level of benchmark corporates and has't improved under the concept of 3G from 2005 to 2007.In other words,institutional investor or the conception of technical progress expectation have faint effect on the changes of China Unicom's operating efficiency. Selecting benchmark corporates as post to evaluate the operating efficiency is a characteristic of this method ,which is basicallly sipmly and direct.This method is suit for the operation efficiency evaluation of agriculture listed companies because agriculture listed also face technical progress and marketing concept such as tax-free etc.

Strategies to mitigate nitrous oxide emissions from herbivore production systems.

PubMed

Schils, R L M; Eriksen, J; Ledgard, S F; Vellinga, Th V; Kuikman, P J; Luo, J; Petersen, S O; Velthof, G L

2013-03-01

Herbivores are a significant source of nitrous oxide (N(2)O) emissions. They account for a large share of manure-related N(2)O emissions, as well as soil-related N(2)O emissions through the use of grazing land, and land for feed and forage production. It is widely acknowledged that mitigation measures are necessary to avoid an increase in N(2)O emissions while meeting the growing global food demand. The production and emissions of N(2)O are closely linked to the efficiency of nitrogen (N) transfer between the major components of a livestock system, that is, animal, manure, soil and crop. Therefore, mitigation options in this paper have been structured along these N pathways. Mitigation technologies involving diet-based intervention include lowering the CP content or increasing the condensed tannin content of the diet. Animal-related mitigation options also include breeding for improved N conversion and high animal productivity. The main soil-based mitigation measures include efficient use of fertilizer and manure, including the use of nitrification inhibitors. In pasture-based systems with animal housing facilities, reducing grazing time is an effective option to reduce N(2)O losses. Crop-based options comprise breeding efforts for increased N-use efficiency and the use of pastures with N(2)-fixing clover. It is important to recognize that all N(2)O mitigation options affect the N and carbon cycles of livestock systems. Therefore, care should be taken that reductions in N(2)O emissions are not offset by unwanted increases in ammonia, methane or carbon dioxide emissions. Despite the abundant availability of mitigation options, implementation in practice is still lagging. Actual implementation will only follow after increased awareness among farmers and greenhouse gases targeted policies. So far, reductions in N(2)O emissions that have been achieved are mostly a positive side effect of other N-targeted policies.

Orbit-product representation and correction of Gaussian belief propagation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, Jason K; Chertkov, Michael; Chernyak, Vladimir

We present a new interpretation of Gaussian belief propagation (GaBP) based on the 'zeta function' representation of the determinant as a product over orbits of a graph. We show that GaBP captures back-tracking orbits of the graph and consider how to correct this estimate by accounting for non-backtracking orbits. We show that the product over non-backtracking orbits may be interpreted as the determinant of the non-backtracking adjacency matrix of the graph with edge weights based on the solution of GaBP. An efficient method is proposed to compute a truncated correction factor including all non-backtracking orbits up to a specified length.

Safe gas handling and system design for the large scale production of amorphous silicon based solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fortmann, C. M.; Farley, M. V.; Smoot, M. A.; Fieselmann, B. F.

1988-07-01

Solarex is one of the leaders in amorphous silicon based photovoltaic production and research. The large scale production environment presents unique safety concerns related to the quantity of dangerous materials as well as the number of personnel handling these materials. The safety measures explored by this work include gas detection systems, training, and failure resistant gas handling systems. Our experiences with flow restricting orifices in the CGA connections and the use of steel cylinders is reviewed. The hazards and efficiency of wet scrubbers for silane exhausts are examined. We have found it to be useful to provide the scrubbler with temperature alarms.

Optimizing the integrated efficiency for water resource utilization：based on Economic perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, L.; Yoshikawa, S.; Kanae, S.

2014-12-01

At present, total global water withdrawal is increasing and water shortage will become a crucial issue around the world. In the 2050, the water withdrawal will exceed the water which we can get it from the river and underground. One of the ways of alleviating water scarcity is increasing the efficiency of water use without development of additional water supplies. In previous literatures about water use efficiency, there are less discussion about the temporal efficiency change with corresponding characteristics of water resource. The main aim of this paper is to estimate the temporal efficiency of water use during 2011-2020 for proposing how to use efficiently the limited water. This paper used dynamic Data Envelope Analysis to estimate the efficiency which is the ratio of the sum of weighted outputs to the sum of weighted inputs. Our model uses cost of agricultural production as input indices and production value of the agriculture as output index，water withdrawal as temporal linkage. We mainly work on the two problems: Firstly, finding out the evident how much the value of water use efficiencies are in each target country; Secondly, adjusting the output value to make those countries which water use inefficiency reach to DEA efficient. The results provide a scientific reference to make rational allocation and the sustainable use of water resources would be realized.

Recombinant protein expression in Pichia pastoris strains with an engineered methanol utilization pathway

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Βackground The methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris has become an important host organism for recombinant protein production and is able to use methanol as a sole carbon source. The methanol utilization pathway describes all the catalytic reactions, which happen during methanol metabolism. Despite the importance of certain key enzymes in this pathway, so far very little is known about possible effects of overexpressing either of these key enzymes on the overall energetic behavior, the productivity and the substrate uptake rate in P. pastoris strains. Results A fast and easy-to-do approach based on batch cultivations with methanol pulses was used to characterize different P. pastoris strains. A strain with MutS phenotype was found to be superior over a strain with Mut+ phenotype in both the volumetric productivity and the efficiency in expressing recombinant horseradish peroxidase C1A. Consequently, either of the enzymes dihydroxyacetone synthase, transketolase or formaldehyde dehydrogenase, which play key roles in the methanol utilization pathway, was co-overexpressed in MutS strains harboring either of the reporter enzymes horseradish peroxidase or Candida antarctica lipase B. Although the co-overexpression of these enzymes did not change the stoichiometric yields of the recombinant MutS strains, significant changes in the specific growth rate, the specific substrate uptake rate and the specific productivity were observed. Co-overexpression of dihydroxyacetone synthase yielded a 2- to 3-fold more efficient conversion of the substrate methanol into product, but also resulted in a reduced volumetric productivity. Co-overexpression of formaldehyde dehydrogenase resulted in a 2-fold more efficient conversion of the substrate into product and at least similar volumetric productivities compared to strains without an engineered methanol utilization pathway, and thus turned out to be a valuable strategy to improve recombinant protein production. Conclusions Co-overexpressing enzymes of the methanol utilization pathway significantly affected the specific growth rate, the methanol uptake and the specific productivity of recombinant P. pastoris MutS strains. A recently developed methodology to determine strain specific parameters based on dynamic batch cultivations proved to be a valuable tool for fast strain characterization and thus early process development. PMID:22330134

Sunlight absorption engineering for thermophotovoltaics: contributions from the optical design.

PubMed

Míguez, Hernán

2015-03-01

Nowadays, solar thermophotovoltaic systems constitute a platform in which sophisticated optical material designs are put into practice with the aim of achieving the long sought after dream of developing an efficient energy conversion device based on this concept. Recent advances demonstrate that higher efficiencies are at reach using photonic nanostructures amenable to mass production and scale-up. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Reactive granular optics for passive tracking of the sun

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frenkel, I.; Niv, A.

2017-08-01

The growing need for cost-effective renewable energy sources is hampered by the stagnation in solar cell technology, thus preventing a substantial reduction in the module and energy-production price. Lowering the energy-production cost could be achieved by using modules with efficiency. One of the possible means for increasing the module efficiency is concentrated photovoltaics (CPV). CPV, however, requires complex and accurate active tracking of the sun that reduces much of its cost-effectiveness. Here, we propose a passive tracking scheme based on a reactive optical device. The optical reaction is achieved by a new kind of light activated mechanical force that acts on micron-sized particles. This optical force allows the formation of granular disordered optical media that can be switched from being opaque to become transparent based on the intensity of light it interacts with. Such media gives rise to an efficient passive tracking scheme that when combined with an external optical cavity forms a new solar power conversion approach. Being external to the cell itself, this approach is indifferent to the type of semiconducting material that is used, as well as to other aspects of the cell design. This, in turn, liberates the cell layout from its optical constraints thus paving the way to higher efficiencies at lower module price.

Ultrasound assisted biogas production from co-digestion of wastewater sludges and agricultural wastes: Comparison with microwave pre-treatment.

PubMed

Aylin Alagöz, B; Yenigün, Orhan; Erdinçler, Ayşen

2018-01-01

This study investigates the effect of ultrasonication and microwave sludge disintegration/pre-treatment techniques on the anaerobic co-digestion efficiency of wastewater sludges with olive and grape pomaces. The effects of both co-digestion and sludge pre-treatment techniques were evaluated in terms of the organic removal efficiency and the biogas production. The "co-digestion" of wastewater sludge with both types of pomaces was revealed to be a much more efficient way for the biogas production compared to the single (mono) sludge digestion. The ultrasonication and microwave pre-treatments applied to the sludge samples caused to a further increase in biogas and methane yields. Based on applied specific energies, ultrasonication pre-treatment was found much more effective than microwave irradiation. The specific energy applied in microwave pre-treatment (87,000kj/kgTS) was almost 9 times higher than that of used in ultrasonication (10,000kj/kgTS), resulting only 10-15% increases in biogas/methane yield. Co-digestion of winery and olive industry residues with pre-treated wastewater sludges appears to be a suitable technique for waste management and energy production. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Advances of zeolite based membrane for hydrogen production via water gas shift reaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Makertihartha, I. G. B. N.; Zunita, M.; Rizki, Z.; Dharmawijaya, P. T.

2017-07-01

Hydrogen is considered as a promising energy vector which can be obtained from various renewable sources. However, an efficient hydrogen production technology is still challenging. One technology to produce hydrogen with very high capacity with low cost is through water gas shift (WGS) reaction. Water gas shift reaction is an equilibrium reaction that produces hydrogen from syngas mixture by the introduction of steam. Conventional WGS reaction employs two or more reactors in series with inter-cooling to maximize conversion for a given volume of catalyst. Membrane reactor as new technology can cope several drawbacks of conventional reactor by removing reaction product and the reaction will favour towards product formation. Zeolite has properties namely high temperature, chemical resistant, and low price makes it suitable for membrane reactor applications. Moreover, it has been employed for years as hydrogen selective layer. This review paper is focusing on the development of membrane reactor for efficient water gas shift reaction to produce high purity hydrogen and carbon dioxide. Development of membrane reactor is discussed further related to its modification towards efficient reaction and separation from WGS reaction mixture. Moreover, zeolite framework suitable for WGS membrane reactor will be discussed more deeply.

Rational modular design of metabolic network for efficient production of plant polyphenol pinosylvin.

PubMed

Wu, Junjun; Zhang, Xia; Zhu, Yingjie; Tan, Qinyu; He, Jiacheng; Dong, Mingsheng

2017-05-03

Efficient biosynthesis of the plant polyphenol pinosylvin, which has numerous applications in nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals, is necessary to make biological production economically viable. To this end, an efficient Escherichia coli platform for pinosylvin production was developed via a rational modular design approach. Initially, different candidate pathway enzymes were screened to construct de novo pinosylvin pathway directly from D-glucose. A comparative analysis of pathway intermediate pools identified that this initial construct led to the intermediate cinnamic acid accumulation. The pinosylvin synthetic pathway was then divided into two new modules separated at cinnamic acid. Combinatorial optimization of transcriptional and translational levels of these two modules resulted in a 16-fold increase in pinosylvin titer. To further improve the concentration of the limiting precursor malonyl-CoA, the malonyl-CoA synthesis module based on clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats interference was assembled and optimized with other two modules. The final pinosylvin titer was improved to 281 mg/L, which was the highest pinosylvin titer even directly from D-glucose without any additional precursor supplementation. The rational modular design approach described here could bolster our capabilities in synthetic biology for value-added chemical production.

Eco-efficiency Analysis of Furniture Product Using Life Cycle Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rinawati, Dyah Ika; Sriyanto; Sari, Diana Puspita; Prayodha, Andana Cantya

2018-02-01

Furniture is one of Indonesia's main commodities strategically role in economic growth and employment in Indonesia. In their production process there many wastes resulted, such as such as sawdust, cuttings - pieces of wood, components that do not conform to specifications and the edges of wood from a log. Contrast with requirement of timber for furniture industries, availability of raw material sources decrease because of limited forest areas. Beside that, using electricity and chemical material in furniture production process have impact to environment. This study aim to assess the eco-cost and eco-efficiency ratio of the product so strategic recommendations to improve the eco-efficiency of products can be designed. The results of data processing showed the environmental costs of the furniture production process amount Rp 30.887.84. Eco-efficiency index of furniture products studied was 4,79 with the eco-efficiency ratio of 79,12%. This result means that the measured furniture products already profitable and sustainable, as well as its production process is already fairly efficient. However, improved performance of the production process can still be done to improve the eco-efficiency by minimizing the use of raw materials.

Nitrogen use efficiency and crop production: Patterns of regional variation in the United States, 1987-2012.

PubMed

Swaney, Dennis P; Howarth, Robert W; Hong, Bongghi

2018-04-17

National-level summaries of crop production and nutrient use efficiency, important for international comparisons, only partially elucidate agricultural dynamics within a country. Agricultural production and associated environmental impacts in large countries vary significantly because of regional differences in crops, climate, resource use and production practices. Here, we review patterns of regional crop production, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and major inputs of nitrogen to US crops over 1987-2012, based on the Farm Resource Regions developed by the Economic Research Service (USDA-ERS). Across the US, NUE generally decreased over time over the period studied, mainly due to increased use in mineral N fertilizer above crop N requirements. The Heartland region dominates production of major crops and thus tends to drive national patterns, showing linear response of crop production to nitrogen inputs broadly consistent with an earlier analysis of global patterns of country-scale data by Lassaletta et al. (2014). Most other regions show similar responses, but the Eastern Uplands region shows a negative response to nitrogen inputs, and the Southern Seaboard shows no significant relationship. The regional differences appear as two branches in the response of aggregate production to N inputs on a cropland area basis, but not on a total area basis, suggesting that the type of scaling used is critical under changing cropland area. Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is positively associated with fertilizer as a percentage of N inputs in four regions, and all regions considered together. NUE is positively associated with crop N fixation in all regions except Northern Great Plains. It is negatively associated with manure (livestock excretion); in the US, manure is still treated largely as a waste to be managed rather than a nutrient resource. This significant regional variation in patterns of crop production and NUE vs N inputs, has implications for environmental quality and food security. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lunar surface base propulsion system study, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

The efficiency, capability, and evolution of a lunar base will be largely dependent on the transportation system that supports it. Beyond Space Station in low Earth orbit (LEO), a Lunar-derived propellant supply could provide the most important resource for the transportation infrastructure. The key to an efficient Lunar base propulsion system is the degree of Lunar self-sufficiency (from Earth supply) and reasonable propulsion system performance. Lunar surface propellant production requirements must be accounted in the measurement of efficiency of the entire space transportation system. Of all chemical propellant/propulsion systems considered, hydrogen/oxygen (H/O) OTVs appear most desirable, while both H/O and aluminum/oxygen propulsion systems may be considered for the lander. Aluminized-hydrogen/oxygen and Silane/oxygen propulsion systems are also promising candidates. Lunar propellant availability and processing techniques, chemical propulsion/vehicle design characteristics, and the associated performance of the total transportation infrastructure are reviewed, conceptual propulsion system designs and vehicle/basing concepts, and technology requirements are assessed in context of a Lunar Base mission scenario.

Supplementation of banana flower powder pellet and plant oil sources on in vitro ruminal fermentation, digestibility, and methane production.

PubMed

Kang, Sungchhang; Wanapat, Metha; Viennasay, Bounnaxay

2016-12-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of banana flower power pellet (BAFLOP-pellet) and plant oil source on in vitro gas production, fermentation efficiency, and methane (CH 4 ) production. Rumen fluid was collected from two rumen-fistulated dairy steers fed on rice straw-based diet with concentrate supplement to maintain normal rumen ecology. All supplemented feed were added to respective treatments in the 30:70 roughage to concentrate-based substrate. The treatments were arranged according to a 3 × 3 factorial arrangement in a completely randomized design. First factor was different levels of BAFLOP-pellet supplementation (0, 30, and 60 g/kg of dietary substrate) and second factor was plant oil source supplementation [non-supplemented, 20 g/kg krabok seed oil (KSO), and 20 g/kg coconut oil (CO) of dietary substrate, respectively]. Under this investigation, BAFLOP-pellet supplementation increased gas production kinetics and in vitro digestibility (P < 0.05). Ruminal pH was dropped post incubation time in the non-supplemented group but was enhanced in BAFLOP-pellet-supplemented treatments. On the other hand, supplementation of KSO and CO depressed gas production and digestibility, but did not influence ruminal pH. In addition, protozoal population and CH 4 production were decreased by BAFLOP-pellet and plant oil addition (P < 0.05). Based on this study, it could be concluded that supplementation of BAFLOP-pellet and plant oil source could enhance the in vitro fermentation efficiency while reduced protozoal population and CH 4 production. It is suggested that BAFLOP-pellet (60 g/kg of dietary substrate) and KSO/CO (20 g/kg of dietary substrate) could be used to manipulate rumen fermentation characteristics fed on high-concentrate diet.

Increasing Your Productivity with Web-Based Surveys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wissmann, Mary; Stone, Brittney; Schuster, Ellen

2012-01-01

Web-based survey tools such as Survey Monkey can be used in many ways to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of Extension professionals. This article describes how Survey Monkey has been used at the state and county levels to collect community and internal staff information for the purposes of program planning, administration, evaluation and…

[Characteristics of phosphorus uptake and use efficiency of rice with high yield and high phosphorus use efficiency].

PubMed

Li, Li; Zhang, Xi-Zhou; Li, Tinx-Xuan; Yu, Hai-Ying; Ji, Lin; Chen, Guang-Deng

2014-07-01

A total of twenty seven middle maturing rice varieties as parent materials were divided into four types based on P use efficiency for grain yield in 2011 by field experiment with normal phosphorus (P) application. The rice variety with high yield and high P efficiency was identified by pot experiment with normal and low P applications, and the contribution rates of various P efficiencies to yield were investigated in 2012. There were significant genotype differences in yield and P efficiency of the test materials. GRLu17/AiTTP//Lu17_2 (QR20) was identified as a variety with high yield and high P efficiency, and its yields at the low and normal rates of P application were 1.96 and 1.92 times of that of Yuxiang B, respectively. The contribution rate of P accumulation to yield was greater than that of P grain production efficiency and P harvest index across field and pot experiments. The contribution rates of P accumulation and P grain production efficiency to yield were not significantly different under the normal P condition, whereas obvious differences were observed under the low P condition (66.5% and 26.6%). The minimal contribution to yield was P harvest index (11.8%). Under the normal P condition, the contribution rates of P accumulation to yield and P harvest index were the highest at the jointing-heading stage, which were 93.4% and 85.7%, respectively. In addition, the contribution rate of P accumulation to grain production efficiency was 41.8%. Under the low P condition, the maximal contribution rates of P accumulation to yield and grain production efficiency were observed at the tillering-jointing stage, which were 56.9% and 20.1% respectively. Furthermore, the contribution rate of P accumulation to P harvest index was 16.0%. The yield, P accumulation, and P harvest index of QR20 significantly increased under the normal P condition by 20.6%, 18.1% and 18.2% respectively compared with that in the low P condition. The rank of the contribution rates of P efficiencies to the yield was in order of P uptake efficiency > P utilization efficiency > P transportation efficiency. The greatest contribution rate of P accumulation to the yield was noticed at the jointing-heading stage with the normal P application while it reached the maximal value at the tillering-jointing stage with the low P application. Therefore, these two stages may be the critical periods to coordinate high yield and high P efficiency in rice.

Statistics-based model for prediction of chemical biosynthesis yield from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The robustness of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in facilitating industrial-scale production of ethanol extends its utilization as a platform to synthesize other metabolites. Metabolic engineering strategies, typically via pathway overexpression and deletion, continue to play a key role for optimizing the conversion efficiency of substrates into the desired products. However, chemical production titer or yield remains difficult to predict based on reaction stoichiometry and mass balance. We sampled a large space of data of chemical production from S. cerevisiae, and developed a statistics-based model to calculate production yield using input variables that represent the number of enzymatic steps in the key biosynthetic pathway of interest, metabolic modifications, cultivation modes, nutrition and oxygen availability. Results Based on the production data of about 40 chemicals produced from S. cerevisiae, metabolic engineering methods, nutrient supplementation, and fermentation conditions described therein, we generated mathematical models with numerical and categorical variables to predict production yield. Statistically, the models showed that: 1. Chemical production from central metabolic precursors decreased exponentially with increasing number of enzymatic steps for biosynthesis (>30% loss of yield per enzymatic step, P-value = 0); 2. Categorical variables of gene overexpression and knockout improved product yield by 2~4 folds (P-value < 0.1); 3. Addition of notable amount of intermediate precursors or nutrients improved product yield by over five folds (P-value < 0.05); 4. Performing the cultivation in a well-controlled bioreactor enhanced the yield of product by three folds (P-value < 0.05); 5. Contribution of oxygen to product yield was not statistically significant. Yield calculations for various chemicals using the linear model were in fairly good agreement with the experimental values. The model generally underestimated the ethanol production as compared to other chemicals, which supported the notion that the metabolism of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has historically evolved for robust alcohol fermentation. Conclusions We generated simple mathematical models for first-order approximation of chemical production yield from S. cerevisiae. These linear models provide empirical insights to the effects of strain engineering and cultivation conditions toward biosynthetic efficiency. These models may not only provide guidelines for metabolic engineers to synthesize desired products, but also be useful to compare the biosynthesis performance among different research papers. PMID:21689458

Energy-based culture medium design for biomanufacturing optimization: A case study in monoclonal antibody production by GS-NS0 cells.

PubMed

Quiroga-Campano, Ana L; Panoskaltsis, Nicki; Mantalaris, Athanasios

2018-03-02

Demand for high-value biologics, a rapidly growing pipeline, and pressure from competition, time-to-market and regulators, necessitate novel biomanufacturing approaches, including Quality by Design (QbD) principles and Process Analytical Technologies (PAT), to facilitate accelerated, efficient and effective process development platforms that ensure consistent product quality and reduced lot-to-lot variability. Herein, QbD and PAT principles were incorporated within an innovative in vitro-in silico integrated framework for upstream process development (UPD). The central component of the UPD framework is a mathematical model that predicts dynamic nutrient uptake and average intracellular ATP content, based on biochemical reaction networks, to quantify and characterize energy metabolism and its adaptive response, metabolic shifts, to maintain ATP homeostasis. The accuracy and flexibility of the model depends on critical cell type/product/clone-specific parameters, which are experimentally estimated. The integrated in vitro-in silico platform and the model's predictive capacity reduced burden, time and expense of experimentation resulting in optimal medium design compared to commercially available culture media (80% amino acid reduction) and a fed-batch feeding strategy that increased productivity by 129%. The framework represents a flexible and efficient tool that transforms, improves and accelerates conventional process development in biomanufacturing with wide applications, including stem cell-based therapies. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Multiparty quantum key agreement protocol based on locally indistinguishable orthogonal product states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Dong-Huan; Xu, Guang-Bao

2018-07-01

Based on locally indistinguishable orthogonal product states, we propose a novel multiparty quantum key agreement (QKA) protocol. In this protocol, the private key information of each party is encoded as some orthogonal product states that cannot be perfectly distinguished by local operations and classical communications. To ensure the security of the protocol with small amount of decoy particles, the different particles of each product state are transmitted separately. This protocol not only can make each participant fairly negotiate a shared key, but also can avoid information leakage in the maximum extent. We give a detailed security proof of this protocol. From comparison result with the existing QKA protocols, we can know that the new protocol is more efficient.

Improving the efficiency of CHO cell line generation using glutamine synthetase gene knockout cells.

PubMed

Fan, Lianchun; Kadura, Ibrahim; Krebs, Lara E; Hatfield, Christopher C; Shaw, Margaret M; Frye, Christopher C

2012-04-01

Although Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells, with their unique characteristics, have become a major workhorse for the manufacture of therapeutic recombinant proteins, one of the major challenges in CHO cell line generation (CLG) is how to efficiently identify those rare, high-producing clones among a large population of low- and non-productive clones. It is not unusual that several hundred individual clones need to be screened for the identification of a commercial clonal cell line with acceptable productivity and growth profile making the cell line appropriate for commercial application. This inefficiency makes the process of CLG both time consuming and laborious. Currently, there are two main CHO expression systems, dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR)-based methotrexate (MTX) selection and glutamine synthetase (GS)-based methionine sulfoximine (MSX) selection, that have been in wide industrial use. Since selection of recombinant cell lines in the GS-CHO system is based on the balance between the expression of the GS gene introduced by the expression plasmid and the addition of the GS inhibitor, L-MSX, the expression of GS from the endogenous GS gene in parental CHOK1SV cells will likely interfere with the selection process. To study endogenous GS expression's potential impact on selection efficiency, GS-knockout CHOK1SV cell lines were generated using the zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) technology designed to specifically target the endogenous CHO GS gene. The high efficiency (∼2%) of bi-allelic modification on the CHO GS gene supports the unique advantages of the ZFN technology, especially in CHO cells. GS enzyme function disruption was confirmed by the observation of glutamine-dependent growth of all GS-knockout cell lines. Full evaluation of the GS-knockout cell lines in a standard industrial cell culture process was performed. Bulk culture productivity improved two- to three-fold through the use of GS-knockout cells as parent cells. The selection stringency was significantly increased, as indicated by the large reduction of non-producing and low-producing cells after 25 µM L-MSX selection, and resulted in a six-fold efficiency improvement in identifying similar numbers of high-productive cell lines for a given recombinant monoclonal antibody. The potential impact of GS-knockout cells on recombinant protein quality is also discussed. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

NOKOMIS 3-AA

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Technical product bulletin: this water-based dispersant used in oil spill cleanups is most efficient when agitated and mixed thoroughly with the oil and water. It can be applied at full strength by using a direct connection from pump to drum.

Soil Macronutrient Sensing for Precision Agriculture

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Accurate measurements of soil macronutrients (i.e., nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) are needed for efficient agricultural production, including site-specific crop management (SSCM), where fertilizer nutrient application rates are adjusted spatially based on local requirements. Rapid, non-destru...

Construction of a simple biocatalyst using psychrophilic bacterial cells and its application for efficient 3-hydroxypropionaldehyde production from glycerol.

PubMed

Tajima, Takahisa; Fuki, Koji; Kataoka, Naoya; Kudou, Daizou; Nakashimada, Yutaka; Kato, Junichi

2013-12-05

Most whole cell biocatalysts have some problems with yields and productivities because of various metabolites produced as byproducts and limitations of substrate uptake. We propose a psychrophile-based simple biocatalyst for efficient bio-production using mesophilic enzymes expressed in psychrophilic Shewanella livingstonensis Ac10 cells whose basic metabolism was inactivated by heat treatment. The 45°C heat-treated cells expressing lacZ showed maximum beta-galactosidase activity as well as chloroform/SDS-treated cells to increase membrane permeability. The fluorescent dye 5-cyano-2,3-ditolyl-tetrazolium chloride staining indicated that most basic metabolism of Ac10 was lost by heat treatment at 45˚C for 10 min. The simple biocatalyst was applied for 3-HPA production by using Klebsiella pneumoniae dhaB genes. 3-HPA was stoichiometrically produced with the complete consumption of glycerol at a high production rate of 8.85 mmol 3-HPA/g dry cell/h. The amount of 3-HPA production increased by increasing the concentrations of biocatalyst and glycerol. Furthermore, it could convert biodiesel-derived crude glycerol to 3-HPA.

Enhanced production of lovastatin by Omphalotus olearius (DC.) Singer in solid state fermentation.

PubMed

Atlı, Burcu; Yamaç, Mustafa; Yıldız, Zeki; Isikhuemnen, Omoanghe S

2015-01-01

Although lovastatin production has been reported for different microorganism species, there is limited information about lovastatin production by basidiomycetes. The optimization of culture parameters that enhances lovastatin production by Omphalotus olearius OBCC 2002 was investigated, using statistically based experimental designs under solid state fermentation. The Plackett Burman design was used in the first step to test the relative importance of the variables affecting production of lovastatin. Amount and particle size of barley were identified as efficient variables. In the latter step, the interactive effects of selected efficient variables were studied with a full factorial design. A maximum lovastatin yield of 139.47mg/g substrate was achieved by the fermentation of 5g of barley, 1-2mm particle diam., at 28°C. This study showed that O. olearius OBCC 2002 has a high capacity for lovastatin production which could be enhanced by using solid state fermentation with novel and cost-effective substrates, such as barley. Copyright © 2013 Revista Iberoamericana de Micología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Induced catabolic bio-electrohydrolysis of complex food waste by regulating external resistance for enhancing acidogenic biohydrogen production.

PubMed

Chandrasekhar, K; Venkata Mohan, S

2014-08-01

A novel bio-electrohydrolysis system (BEH) based on self-inducing electrogenic activity was designed as pretreatment device to enhance biohydrogen (H2) production efficiency from food waste. Two-stage hybrid operation with hydrolysis in the initial stage and acidogenic fermentation of the resulting hydrolysate (after hydrolysis) for H2 production in the second stage was evaluated. Application of variable external resistances viz., 10Ω, 100Ω, 1000Ω and closed circuit (CC) influenced the hydrolysis of substrate in BEH system and hydrogen production in acidogenic reactor compared to control. Pretreated substrate at 100Ω documented higher H2 production (1.05l) than 10Ω (0.93l), CC (0.91l), 1000Ω (0.88l) and control operation (0.68l). Comparatively, 10Ω documented higher substrate degradation (53.4%) followed by CC (52.42%), 100Ω (49.51%), 1000Ω (47.57%) and control (43.68%). Voltammetric profiles were in agreement with the observed bio-electrohydrolysis and H2 production efficiency. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of feeding crude glycerin on performance and ruminal kinetics of lactating Holstein cows fed corn silage- or cottonseed hull-based, low-fiber diets.

PubMed

Shin, J H; Wang, D; Kim, S C; Adesogan, A T; Staples, C R

2012-07-01

The objective was to determine whether crude glycerin could partially replace concentrate ingredients in corn silage- or cottonseed hull-based diets formulated to support minimal milk fat production without reducing milk production. Multiparous, lactating Holstein cows (n=24; 116 ± 13d in milk) were assigned to dietary treatments arranged in a 2 × 3 factorial design; namely, 2 dietary roughage sources (cottonseed hulls or corn silage) and 3 dietary concentrations of glycerin [0, 5, or 10% on a dry matter (DM) basis]. Four different cows received each dietary treatment in each of 3 periods such that each diet was evaluated using 12 cows. Crude glycerin, produced using soybean oil, contained 12% water, 5% oil, 6.8% sodium chloride, and 0.4% methanol. Glycerin partially replaced ground corn, corn gluten feed, and citrus pulp. Diets of minimum fiber concentrations were fed to lactating dairy cows and resulted in low concentrations of milk fat (averaging 3.12% for cows fed diets without glycerin). The effects of glycerin on cow performance and ruminal measurements were the same for both dietary roughage sources with the exception of feed efficiency. Replacing concentrate with crude glycerin at 5% of dietary DM increased DM intake without increasing milk yield. Concentration and yield of milk fat were reduced when glycerin was fed at 10% of dietary DM. This was accompanied by a 30% reduction in apparent total-tract digestion of dietary neutral detergent fiber. Crude glycerin affected the microbial population in the rumen as evidenced by increased molar proportions of propionic, butyric, and valeric acids and decreased molar proportions of acetic acid. Efficiency of N utilization was improved as evidenced by lower concentrations of blood urea nitrogen and ruminal ammonia-N. Cows fed cottonseed hull-based diets consumed 5.3 kg/d more DM but produced only 1.7 kg/d more milk, resulting in reduced efficiency. Increased production of ruminal microbial protein, molar proportion of propionic acid, and passage of ruminal fluid resulted from feeding the cottonseed hull- versus corn silage-based diets, although apparent digestibilities of DM and neutral detergent fiber were reduced. Replacing 5 and 10% of concentrate ingredients with crude glycerin improved efficiency of 4% fat-corrected milk production when corn silage-based diets were fed but decreased it when cottonseed hull-based diets were fed. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gene expression profiling reveals candidate genes related to residual feed intake in duodenum of laying ducks.

PubMed

Zeng, T; Huang, L; Ren, J; Chen, L; Tian, Y; Huang, Y; Zhang, H; Du, J; Lu, L

2017-12-01

Feed represents two-thirds of the total costs of poultry production, especially in developing countries. Improvement in feed efficiency would reduce the amount of feed required for production (growth or laying), the production cost, and the amount of nitrogenous waste. The most commonly used measures for feed efficiency are feed conversion ratio (FCR) and residual feed intake (RFI). As a more suitable indicator assessing feed efficiency, RFI is defined as the difference between observed and expected feed intake based on maintenance and growth or laying. However, the genetic and biological mechanisms regulating RFI are largely unknown. Identifying molecular mechanisms explaining divergence in RFI in laying ducks would lead to the development of early detection methods for the selection of more efficient breeding poultry. The objective of this study was to identify duodenum genes and pathways through transcriptional profiling in 2 extreme RFI phenotypes (HRFI and LRFI) of the duck population. Phenotypic aspects of feed efficiency showed that RFI was strongly positive with FCR and feed intake (FI). Transcriptomic analysis identified 35 differentially expressed genes between LRFI and HRFI ducks. These genes play an important role in metabolism, digestibility, secretion, and innate immunity including (), (), (), β (), and (). These results improve our knowledge of the biological basis underlying RFI, which would be useful for further investigations of key candidate genes for RFI and for the development of biomarkers.

An earth imaging camera simulation using wide-scale construction of reflectance surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murthy, Kiran; Chau, Alexandra H.; Amin, Minesh B.; Robinson, M. Dirk

2013-10-01

Developing and testing advanced ground-based image processing systems for earth-observing remote sensing applications presents a unique challenge that requires advanced imagery simulation capabilities. This paper presents an earth-imaging multispectral framing camera simulation system called PayloadSim (PaySim) capable of generating terabytes of photorealistic simulated imagery. PaySim leverages previous work in 3-D scene-based image simulation, adding a novel method for automatically and efficiently constructing 3-D reflectance scenes by draping tiled orthorectified imagery over a geo-registered Digital Elevation Map (DEM). PaySim's modeling chain is presented in detail, with emphasis given to the techniques used to achieve computational efficiency. These techniques as well as cluster deployment of the simulator have enabled tuning and robust testing of image processing algorithms, and production of realistic sample data for customer-driven image product development. Examples of simulated imagery of Skybox's first imaging satellite are shown.

Direct procurement of wound management products.

PubMed

Jenkins, Trevor

2014-03-01

This article describes a collaborative project between Bedfordshire Community Health Services and Primary Care Trusts/Clinical Commissioning Groups to improve provision of dressings to nurses for the patients they treat. Commissioners have facilitated a transformational approach and encouraged development of efficient systems of increased cost-effectiveness rather than a transactional approach based on opportunistic cost improvement plans. Reconfiguration to direct procurement from GP prescribing has reduced wastage, released nurse time from processes to spend on clinical contact time with patients, increased efficiency, and reduced prescription workload for GPs, all without adverse effects on expenditure. Establishing a wound care products formulary placed control under the nurses treating patients and facilitated decision-making based on cost-effectiveness in clinical use. Nurses now manage 60% of expenditure in the local community health economy, and this is increasing. Relationships with the dressings manufacturing industry have also changed in a positive, constructive direction.

Exploiting virus-like particles as innovative vaccines against emerging viral infections.

PubMed

Jeong, Hotcherl; Seong, Baik Lin

2017-03-01

Emerging viruses pose a major threat to humans and livestock with global public health and economic burdens. Vaccination remains an effective tool to reduce this threat, and yet, the conventional cell culture often fails to produce sufficient vaccine dose. As an alternative to cell-culture based vaccine, virus-like particles (VLPs) are considered as a highpriority vaccine strategy against emerging viruses. VLPs represent highly ordered repetitive structures via macromolecular assemblies of viral proteins. The particulate nature allows efficient uptake into antigen presenting cells stimulating both innate and adaptive immune responses towards enhanced vaccine efficacy. Increasing research activity and translation opportunity necessitate the advances in the design of VLPs and new bioprocessing modalities for efficient and cost-effective production. Herein, we describe major achievements and challenges in this endeavor, with respect to designing strategies to harnessing the immunogenic potential, production platforms, downstream processes, and some exemplary cases in developing VLP-based vaccines.

Domestic and Industrial Water Disinfection Using Boron-Doped Diamond Electrodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rychen, Philippe; Provent, Christophe; Pupunat, Laurent; Hermant, Nicolas

This chapter first describes main properties and manufacturing process (production using HF-CVD, quality-control measurements, etc.) of diamond electrodes and more specifically boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes. Their exceptional properties make such electrodes particularly suited for many disinfection applications as thanks to their wide working potential window and their high anodic potential, they allow generating a mixture of powerful oxidizing species mainly based on active oxygen and peroxides. Such mixture of disinfecting agents is far more efficient than conventional chemical or physical known techniques. Their efficiency was tested against numerous microorganisms and then proved to be greater than conventional methods. All bacteria and viruses tested up to date were inactivated 3-5 times faster with a treatment based on with BDD electrodes and the DiaCellⓇ technology than with other techniques. Several applications, either industrial or private (wellness and home use), are discussed with a focus on the dedicated products and the main technology advantages.

Improvement of production layout based on optimum production balancing scale results by using Moodie Young and Comsoal method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ikhsan, Siregar; Ulina Anastasia Sipangkar, Tri; Prasetio, Aji

2017-09-01

This research was conducted at a make to order production system company which is engaged in the car body of the vehicle. One of the products produced is dump truck which is one kind of transportation for the transport of goods equipped with hydraulics to facilitate goods’ loading and unloading process. The company has 7 work stations with different cycle times. Companies often experience delays in order delivery. The production process on the production floor has not been done optimally where there is a build up of work in process in some work centres. The build up of work in process (WIP) products is seen in the welding and painting stations. Stacking that occurs on the production line may cause the company to be liable for damages due to delays in product completion. The WIP occurs due to unbalanced paths can be seen from the variance of cycle time of each station is very diverse. The time difference of each work element is due to the allocation of work elements to each work centre unevenly. On the basis of the allocation of uneven work elements, the dump truck assembly line is made. The analysis is done by using Moodie Young and Comsoal method to do the balancing of production line. The result of layout improvement by using systematic layout planning (SLP) method is change the composition of the work centre from 7 into 4 work centre which enables the movement of material to be more effective and efficient so that it can get an efficient and effective production trajectory and can solve existing problems. The result of the track balancing is then used as a guide in constructing a new layout based on the balancing result with the most optimum method.

When is good, good enough? Methodological pragmatism for sustainable guideline development.

PubMed

Browman, George P; Somerfield, Mark R; Lyman, Gary H; Brouwers, Melissa C

2015-03-06

Continuous escalation in methodological and procedural rigor for evidence-based processes in guideline development is associated with increasing costs and production delays that threaten sustainability. While health research methodologists are appropriately responsible for promoting increasing rigor in guideline development, guideline sponsors are responsible for funding such processes. This paper acknowledges that other stakeholders in addition to methodologists should be more involved in negotiating trade-offs between methodological procedures and efficiency in guideline production to produce guidelines that are 'good enough' to be trustworthy and affordable under specific circumstances. The argument for reasonable methodological compromise to meet practical circumstances is consistent with current implicit methodological practice. This paper proposes a conceptual tool as a framework to be used by different stakeholders in negotiating, and explicitly reporting, reasonable compromises for trustworthy as well as cost-worthy guidelines. The framework helps fill a transparency gap in how methodological choices in guideline development are made. The principle, 'when good is good enough' can serve as a basis for this approach. The conceptual tool 'Efficiency-Validity Methodological Continuum' acknowledges trade-offs between validity and efficiency in evidence-based guideline development and allows for negotiation, guided by methodologists, of reasonable methodological compromises among stakeholders. Collaboration among guideline stakeholders in the development process is necessary if evidence-based guideline development is to be sustainable.

The impact of changes in the rheological parameters of fine-grained hydromixtures on the efficiency of a selected industrial gravitational hydraulic transport system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Popczyk, Marcin

2017-11-01

Polish hard coal mines commonly use hydromixtures in their fire prevention practices. The mixtures are usually prepared based on mass-produced power production wastes, namely the ashes resulting from power production [1]. Such hydromixtures are introduced to the caving area which is formed due to the advancement of a longwall. The first part of the article presents theoretical fundamentals of determining the parameters of gravitational hydraulic transport of water and ash hydromixtures used in the mining pipeline systems. Each hydromixture produced based on fine-grained wastes is characterized by specified rheological parameters that have a direct impact on the future flow parameters of a given pipeline system. Additionally, the gravitational character of the hydraulic transport generates certain limitations concerning the so-called correct hydraulic profile of the system in relation to the applied hydromixture characterized by required rheological parameters that should ensure safe flow at a correct efficiency [2]. The paper includes an example of a gravitational hydraulic transport system and an assessment of the correctness of its hydraulic profile as well as the assessment of the impact of rheological parameters of fine-grained hydromixtures (water and ash) produced based on laboratory tests, depending on the specified flow parameters (efficiency) of the hydromixture in the analyzed system.

Seasonal Responses of Terrestrial Ecosystem Water-use Efficiency to Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, M.; Piao, S.; Zeng, Z.; Peng, S.; Ciais, P.; Cheng, L.; Mao, J.; Poulter, B.; Shi, X.; Yao, Y.; Yang, H.; Wang, Y.

2016-12-01

Ecosystem water-use efficiency (EWUE) is an indicator of carbon-water interactions and is defined as the ratio of carbon assimilation (GPP) to evapotranspiration (ET). Previous research suggests an increasing long-term trend in annual EWUE over many regions, and is largely attributed to the physiological effects of rising CO2. The seasonal trends in EWUE, however, have not yet been analyzed. In this study, we investigate seasonal EWUE trends and responses to various drivers during 1982-2008. The seasonal cycle for two variants of EWUE, water-use efficiency (WUE, GPP/ET) and transpiration-based WUE (WUEt, the ratio of GPP and transpiration), is analyzed from 0.5° gridded fields from four process-based models and satellite-based products, as well as a network of 63 local flux tower observations. WUE derived from flux tower observations shows moderate seasonal variation for most latitude bands, which is in agreement with satellite-based products. In contrast, the seasonal EWUE trends are not well captured by the same satellite-based products. Trend analysis, based on process-model factorial simulations separating effects of climate, CO2 and nitrogen deposition (NDEP), further suggests that the seasonal EWUE trends are mainly associated with seasonal trends of climate, whereas CO2 and NDEP do not show obvious seasonal difference in EWUE trends. About 66% grid cells show positive annual WUE trends, mainly over mid- and high northern latitudes. In these regions, spring climate change has amplified the effect of CO2 in increasing WUE by more than 0.005 gC m-2 mm-1 yr-1 for 41% pixels. Multiple regression analysis further shows that the increase in springtime WUE in the northern hemisphere is the result of GPP increasing faster than ET because of the higher temperature sensitivity of GPP relative to ET. The partitioning of annual EWUE to seasonal components provides new insight into the relative sensitivities of GPP and ET to climate, CO2 and NDEP.

[Improvement of butanol production by Escherichia coli via Tn5 transposon mediated mutagenesis].

PubMed

Lin, Zhao; Dong, Hongjun; Li, Yin

2015-12-01

For engineering an efficient butanol-producing Escherichia coli strain, many efforts have been paid on the known genes or pathways based on current knowledge. However, many genes in the genome could also contribute to butanol production in an unexpected way. In this work, we used Tn5 transposon to construct a mutant library including 1 196 strains in a previously engineered butanol-producing E. coli strain. To screen the strains with improved titer of butanol production, we developed a high-throughput method for pyruvate detection based on dinitrophenylhydrazine reaction using 96-well microplate reader, because pyruvate is the precursor of butanol and its concentration is inversely correlated with butanol in the fermentation broth. Using this method, we successfully screened three mutants with increased butanol titer. The insertion sites of Tn5 transposon was in the ORFs of pykA, tdk, and cadC by inverse PCR and sequencing. These found genes would be efficient targets for further strain improvement. And the genome scanning strategy described here will be helpful for other microbial cell factory construction.

Toward Genome-Based Metabolic Engineering in Bacteria.

PubMed

Oesterle, Sabine; Wuethrich, Irene; Panke, Sven

2017-01-01

Prokaryotes modified stably on the genome are of great importance for production of fine and commodity chemicals. Traditional methods for genome engineering have long suffered from imprecision and low efficiencies, making construction of suitable high-producer strains laborious. Here, we review the recent advances in discovery and refinement of molecular precision engineering tools for genome-based metabolic engineering in bacteria for chemical production, with focus on the λ-Red recombineering and the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/Cas9 nuclease systems. In conjunction, they enable the integration of in vitro-synthesized DNA segments into specified locations on the chromosome and allow for enrichment of rare mutants by elimination of unmodified wild-type cells. Combination with concurrently developing improvements in important accessory technologies such as DNA synthesis, high-throughput screening methods, regulatory element design, and metabolic pathway optimization tools has resulted in novel efficient microbial producer strains and given access to new metabolic products. These new tools have made and will likely continue to make a big impact on the bioengineering strategies that transform the chemical industry. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ethanol production from lignocellulosic hydrolysates using engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae harboring xylose isomerase-based pathway.

PubMed

Ko, Ja Kyong; Um, Youngsoon; Woo, Han Min; Kim, Kyoung Heon; Lee, Sun-Mi

2016-06-01

The efficient co-fermentation of glucose and xylose is necessary for the economically feasible bioethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass. Even with xylose utilizing Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the efficiency of the lignocellulosic ethanol production remains suboptimal mainly due to the low conversion yield of xylose to ethanol. In this study, we evaluated the co-fermentation performances of SXA-R2P-E, a recently engineered isomerase-based xylose utilizing strain, in mixed sugars and in lignocellulosic hydrolysates. In a high-sugar fermentation with 70g/L of glucose and 40g/L of xylose, SXA-R2P-E produced 50g/L of ethanol with an yield of 0.43gethanol/gsugars at 72h. From dilute acid-pretreated hydrolysates of rice straw and hardwood (oak), the strain produced 18-21g/L of ethanol with among the highest yield of 0.43-0.46gethanol/gsugars ever reported. This study shows a highly promising potential of a xylose isomerase-expressing strain as an industrially relevant ethanol producer from lignocellulosic hydrolysates. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Design on wireless auto-measurement system for lead rail straightness measurement based on PSD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Xiugang; Zhang, Shuqin; Dong, Dengfeng; Cheng, Zhi; Wu, Guanghua; Wang, Jie; Zhou, Weihu

2016-10-01

Straightness detection is not only one of the key technologies for the product quality and installation accuracy of all types of lead rail, but also an important dimensional measurement technology. The straightness measuring devices now available have disadvantages of low automation level, limiting by measuring environment, and low measurement efficiency. In this paper, a wireless measurement system for straightness detection based on position sensitive detector (PSD) is proposed. The system has some advantage of high automation-level, convenient, high measurement efficiency, easy to transplanting and expanding, and can detect straightness of lead rail in real-time.

Efficient LIDAR Point Cloud Data Managing and Processing in a Hadoop-Based Distributed Framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, C.; Hu, F.; Sha, D.; Han, X.

2017-10-01

Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is one of the most promising technologies in surveying and mapping city management, forestry, object recognition, computer vision engineer and others. However, it is challenging to efficiently storage, query and analyze the high-resolution 3D LiDAR data due to its volume and complexity. In order to improve the productivity of Lidar data processing, this study proposes a Hadoop-based framework to efficiently manage and process LiDAR data in a distributed and parallel manner, which takes advantage of Hadoop's storage and computing ability. At the same time, the Point Cloud Library (PCL), an open-source project for 2D/3D image and point cloud processing, is integrated with HDFS and MapReduce to conduct the Lidar data analysis algorithms provided by PCL in a parallel fashion. The experiment results show that the proposed framework can efficiently manage and process big LiDAR data.

Solar photochemical process engineering for production of fuels and chemicals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biddle, J. R.; Peterson, D. B.; Fujita, T.

1984-01-01

The engineering costs and performance of a nominal 25,000 scmd (883,000 scfd) photochemical plant to produce dihydrogen from water were studied. Two systems were considered, one based on flat-plate collector/reactors and the other on linear parabolic troughs. Engineering subsystems were specified including the collector/reactor, support hardware, field transport piping, gas compression equipment, and balance-of-plant (BOP) items. Overall plant efficiencies of 10.3 and 11.6% are estimated for the flat-plate and trough systems, respectively, based on assumed solar photochemical efficiencies of 12.9 and 14.6%. Because of the opposing effects of concentration ratio and operating temperature on efficiency, it was concluded that reactor cooling would be necessary with the trough system. Both active and passive cooling methods were considered. Capital costs and energy costs, for both concentrating and non-concentrating systems, were determined and their sensitivity to efficiency and economic parameters were analyzed. The overall plant efficiency is the single most important factor in determining the cost of the fuel.

Solar photochemical process engineering for production of fuels and chemicals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biddle, J. R.; Peterson, D. B.; Fujita, T.

1985-01-01

The engineering costs and performance of a nominal 25,000 scmd (883,000 scfd) photochemical plant to produce dihydrogen from water were studied. Two systems were considered, one based on flat-plate collector/reactors and the other on linear parabolic troughs. Engineering subsystems were specified including the collector/reactor, support hardware, field transport piping, gas compression equipment, and balance-of-plant (BOP) items. Overall plant efficiencies of 10.3 and 11.6 percent are estimated for the flat-plate and trough systems, respectively, based on assumed solar photochemical efficiencies of 12.9 and 14.6 percent. Because of the opposing effects of concentration ratio and operating temperature on efficiency, it was concluded that reactor cooling would be necessary with the trough system. Both active and passive cooling methods were considered. Capital costs and energy costs, for both concentrating and non-concentrating systems, were determined and their sensitivity to efficiency and economic parameters were analyzed. The overall plant efficiency is the single most important factor in determining the cost of the fuel.

Measurement of the Solar Electron Neutrino Flux with the Homestake Chlorine Detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cleveland, Bruce T.; Daily, Timothy; Davis, Raymond, Jr.; Distel, James R.; Lande, Kenneth; Lee, C. K.; Wildenhain, Paul S.; Ullman, Jack

1998-03-01

The Homestake Solar Neutrino Detector, based on the inverse beta-decay reaction νe + 37Cl --> 37Ar + e-, has been measuring the flux of solar neutrinos since 1970. The experiment has operated in a stable manner throughout this time period. All aspects of this detector are reviewed, with particular emphasis on the determination of the extraction and counting efficiencies, the key experimental parameters that are necessary to convert the measured 37Ar count rate to the solar neutrino production rate. A thorough consideration is also given to the systematics of the detector, including the measurement of the extraction and counting efficiencies and the nonsolar production of 37Ar. The combined result of 108 extractions is a solar neutrino-induced 37Ar production rate of 2.56 +/- 0.l6 (statistical) +/- 0.16 (systematic) SNU.

Practical water production from desert air.

PubMed

Fathieh, Farhad; Kalmutzki, Markus J; Kapustin, Eugene A; Waller, Peter J; Yang, Jingjing; Yaghi, Omar M

2018-06-01

Energy-efficient production of water from desert air has not been developed. A proof-of-concept device for harvesting water at low relative humidity was reported; however, it used external cooling and was not desert-tested. We report a laboratory-to-desert experiment where a prototype using up to 1.2 kg of metal-organic framework (MOF)-801 was tested in the laboratory and later in the desert of Arizona, USA. It produced 100 g of water per kilogram of MOF-801 per day-and-night cycle, using only natural cooling and ambient sunlight as a source of energy. We also report an aluminum-based MOF-303, which delivers more than twice the amount of water. The desert experiment uncovered key parameters pertaining to the energy, material, and air requirements for efficient production of water from desert air, even at a subzero dew point.

Toxicity and efficiency study of plant extracts-based bleaching agents.

PubMed

Baldea, Ioana; Olteanu, Diana Elena; Filip, Adriana Gabriela; Cenariu, Mihai; Dudea, Diana; Tofan, Alina; Alb, Camelia; Moldovan, Marioara

2017-05-01

Tooth bleaching is one of the most required dental esthetic treatments. However, it can generate side effects like oral irritation, enamel alteration, tooth sensitivity, especially caused by hydrogen peroxide, the main bleaching component of the commercial products. Therefore, development of new tooth bleaching agents, based on natural products, with comparable esthetic results and lower side effects is needed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the biological effects and bleaching efficacy of four experimental bleaching agents, derived from fruit juices, against the commercially available Opalescence (Ultradent, USA). Organic acid composition of the gels was characterized by HPLC. Bleaching efficiency was tested by spectrophotometry on composite restorative materials. Biological testing was done in vitro, on human fibroblasts. Cells were exposed to dilutions of the bleaching gel-conditioned medium. Viability was measured by MTS, apoptosis by FACS-AnnexinV FITC/Propidium iodide, NF-kB activation by western blot, malondyaldehide, and superoxide dismutase activity by spectrophotometry. All gels exhibited physical stability and dental bleaching capabilities. Experimental gels induced significantly better viability and apoptosis rates, lower lipid peroxidation, and increased antioxidant defense, compared to Opalescence. The studied experimental gel formulations exhibited a good safety profile in vitro, as well as bleaching efficiency on restorative composite materials. These data open new possibilities for the use of new natural products in dental bleaching treatments that can insure significant esthetic results and lower side effects.

Efficiency of a novel "Food to waste to food" system including anaerobic digestion of food waste and cultivation of vegetables on digestate in a bubble-insulated greenhouse.

PubMed

Stoknes, K; Scholwin, F; Krzesiński, W; Wojciechowska, E; Jasińska, A

2016-10-01

At urban locations certain challenges are concentrated: organic waste production, the need for waste treatment, energy demand, food demand, the need for circular economy and limited area for food production. Based on these factors the project presented here developed a novel technological approach for processing organic waste into new food. In this system, organic waste is converted into biogas and digester residue. The digester residue is being used successfully as a stand-alone fertilizer as well as main substrate component for vegetables and mushrooms for the first time - a "digeponics" system - in a closed new low energy greenhouse system with dynamic soap bubble insulation. Biogas production provides energy for the process and CO2 for the greenhouse. With very limited land use highly efficient resource recycling was established at pilot scale. In the research project it was proven that a low energy dynamic bubble insulated greenhouse can be operated continuously with 80% energy demand reduction compared to conventional greenhouses. Commercial crop yields were achieved based on fertilization with digestate; in individual cases they were even higher than the control yields of vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce among others. For the first time an efficient direct use of digestate as substrate and fertilizer has been developed and demonstrated. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Total Factor Productivity Growth, Technical Progress & Efficiency Change in Vietnam Coal Industry - Nonparametric Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phuong, Vu Hung

2018-03-01

This research applies Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach to analyze Total Factor Productivity (TFP) and efficiency changes in Vietnam coal mining industry from 2007 to 2013. The TFP of Vietnam coal mining companies decreased due to slow technological progress and unimproved efficiency. The decadence of technical efficiency in many enterprises proved that the coal mining industry has a large potential to increase productivity through technical efficiency improvement. Enhancing human resource training, technology and research & development investment could help the industry to improve efficiency and productivity in Vietnam coal mining industry.

Materials and methods for efficient lactic acid production

DOEpatents

Zhou, Shengde; Ingram, Lonnie O& #x27; Neal; Shanmugam, Keelnatham T; Yomano, Lorraine; Grabar, Tammy B; Moore, Jonathan C

2013-04-23

The present invention provides derivatives of Escherichia coli constructed for the production of lactic acid. The transformed E. coli of the invention are prepared by deleting the genes that encode competing pathways followed by a growth-based selection for mutants with improved performance. These transformed E. coli are useful for providing an increased supply of lactic acid for use in food and industrial applications.

Materials and methods for efficient lactic acid production

DOEpatents

Zhou, Shengde [Sycamore, IL; Ingram, Lonnie O'Neal [Gainesville, FL; Shanmugam, Keelnatham T [Gainesville, FL; Yomano, Lorraine [Gainesville, FL; Grabar, Tammy B [Gainesville, FL; Moore, Jonathan C [Gainesville, FL

2009-12-08

The present invention provides derivatives of ethanologenic Escherichia coli K011 constructed for the production of lactic acid. The transformed E. coli of the invention are prepared by deleting the genes that encode competing pathways followed by a growth-based selection for mutants with improved performance. These transformed E. coli are useful for providing an increased supply of lactic acid for use in food and industrial applications.

Impact of environmental production conditions on productivity and efficiency: a case study of wheat farmers in Bangladesh.

PubMed

Rahman, Sanzidur; Hasan, M Kamrul

2008-09-01

Environmental conditions significantly affect production, but are often ignored in studies analysing productivity and efficiency leading to biased results. In this study, we examine the influence of selected environmental factors on productivity and efficiency in wheat farming in Bangladesh. Results reveal that environmental production conditions significantly affect the parameters of the production function and technical efficiency, as well as correlates of inefficiency. Controlling for environmental production conditions improves technical efficiency by 4 points (p<0.01) from 86% to 90%. Large farms are more efficient relative to small and medium sized farms (p<0.01 and 0.05), with no variation among regions. Policy implications include soil fertility improvement through soil conservation and crop rotation, improvement in managerial practices through extension services and adoption of modern technologies, promotion of education, strengthening the research-extension link, and development of new varieties that have higher yield potential and are also suitable for marginal areas.

Hydrogen production by the engineered cyanobacterial strain Nostoc PCC 7120 ΔhupW examined in a flat panel photobioreactor system.

PubMed

Nyberg, Marcus; Heidorn, Thorsten; Lindblad, Peter

2015-12-10

Nitrogenase based hydrogen production was examined in a ΔhupW strain of the filamentous heterocystous cyanobacterium Nostoc PCC 7120, i.e., cells lacking the last step in the maturation system of the large subunit of the uptake hydrogenase and as a consequence with a non-functional uptake hydrogenase. The cells were grown in a developed flat panel photobioreactor system with 3.0L culture volume either aerobically (air) or anaerobically (Ar or 80% N2/20% Ar) and illuminated with a mixture of red and white LED. Aerobic growth of the ΔhupW strain of Nostoc PCC 7120 at 44μmolar photons m(-2)s(-1) PAR gave the highest hydrogen production of 0.7mL H2 L(-1)h(-1), 0.53mmol H2 mg chlorophyll a(-1)h(-1), and a light energy conversion efficiency of 1.2%. Anaerobic growth using 100% argon showed a maximal hydrogen production of 1.7mLL(-1)h(-1), 0.85mmol per mg chlorophyll a(-1) h(-1), and a light energy conversion efficiency of 2.7%. Altering between argon/N2 (20/80) and 100% argon phases resulted in a maximal hydrogen production at hour 128 (100% argon phase) with 6.2mL H2L(-1)h(-1), 0.71mL H2 mg chlorophyll a(-1)h(-1), and a light energy efficiency conversion of 4.0%. The highest buildup of hydrogen gas observed was 6.89% H2 (100% argon phase) of the total photobioreactor system with a maximal production of 4.85mL H2 L(-1)h(-1). The present study clearly demonstrates the potential to use purpose design cyanobacteria in developed flat panel photobioreactor systems for the direct production of the solar fuel hydrogen. Further improvements in the strain used, environmental conditions employed, and growth, production and collection systems used, are needed before a sustainable and economical cyanobacterial based hydrogen production can be realized. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Application of high temperature phase change materials for improved efficiency in waste-to-energy plants.

PubMed

Dal Magro, Fabio; Xu, Haoxin; Nardin, Gioacchino; Romagnoli, Alessandro

2018-03-01

This study reports the thermal analysis of a novel thermal energy storage based on high temperature phase change material (PCM) used to improve efficiency in waste-to-energy plants. Current waste-to-energy plants efficiency is limited by the steam generation cycle which is carried out with boilers composed by water-walls (i.e. radiant evaporators), evaporators, economizers and superheaters. Although being well established, this technology is subjected to limitations related with high temperature corrosion and fluctuation in steam production due to the non-homogenous composition of solid waste; this leads to increased maintenance costs and limited plants availability and electrical efficiency. The proposed solution in this paper consists of replacing the typical refractory brick installed in the combustion chamber with a PCM-based refractory brick capable of storing a variable heat flux and to release it on demand as a steady heat flux. By means of this technology it is possible to mitigate steam production fluctuation, to increase temperature of superheated steam over current corrosion limits (450°C) without using coated superheaters and to increase the electrical efficiency beyond 34%. In the current paper a detailed thermo-mechanical analysis has been carried out in order to compare the performance of the PCM-based refractory brick against the traditional alumina refractory bricks. The PCM considered in this paper is aluminium (and its alloys) whereas its container consists of high density ceramics (such as Al 2 O 3 , AlN and Si 3 N 4 ); the different coefficient of linear thermal expansion for the different materials requires a detailed thermo-mechanical analysis to be carried out to ascertain the feasibility of the proposed technology. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Arrow 227: Air transport system design simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bontempi, Michael; Bose, Dave; Brophy, Georgeann; Cashin, Timothy; Kanarios, Michael; Ryan, Steve; Peterson, Timothy

1992-01-01

The Arrow 227 is a student-designed commercial transport for use in a overnight package delivery network. The major goal of the concept was to provide the delivery service with the greatest potential return on investment. The design objectives of the Arrow 227 were based on three parameters; production cost, payload weight, and aerodynamic efficiency. Low production cost helps to reduce initial investment. Increased payload weight allows for a decrease in flight cycles and, therefore, less fuel consumption than an aircraft carrying less payload weight and requiring more flight cycles. In addition, fewer flight cycles will allow a fleet to last longer. Finally, increased aerodynamic efficiency in the form of high L/D will decrease fuel consumption.

Improving the Quality of Welding Seam of Automatic Welding of Buckets Based on TCP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Min

2018-02-01

Since February 2014, the welding defects of the automatic welding line of buckets have been frequently appeared. The average repair time of each bucket is 26min, which seriously affects the production efficiency and welding quality. We conducted troubleshooting, and found the main reasons for the welding defects of the buckets were the deviations of the center points of the robot tools and the poor quality of the locating welding. We corrected the gripper, welding torch, and accuracy of repeat positioning of robots to control the quality of positioning welding. The welding defect rate of buckets was reduced greatly, ensuring the production efficiency and welding quality.

Assessing efficiency of software production for NASA-SEL data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vonmayrhauser, Anneliese; Roeseler, Armin

1993-01-01

This paper uses production models to identify and quantify efficient allocation of resources and key drivers of software productivity for project data in the NASA-SEL database. While analysis allows identification of efficient projects, many of the metrics that could have provided a more detailed analysis are not at a level of measurement to allow production model analysis. Production models must be used with proper parameterization to be successful. This may mean a new look at which metrics are helpful for efficiency assessment.

Devices for monitoring content of microparticles and bacterium in injection solutions in pharmaceutical production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilyi, Olexander I.; Getman, Vasyl B.; Konyev, Fedir A.; Sapunkov, Olexander; Sapunkov, Pavlo G.

2001-06-01

The devices for monitoring of parameters of efficiency of water solutions filtration, which are based on the analysis of scattered light by microparticles are considered in this article. The efficiency of using of devices in pharmaceutics in technological processes of manufacturing medical injection solutions is shown. The examples of monitoring of contents of bacterial cultures Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, and Micrococcus luteus in water solutions of glucose are indicated.

Process modelling of biomass conversion to biofuels with combined heat and power.

PubMed

Sharma, Abhishek; Shinde, Yogesh; Pareek, Vishnu; Zhang, Dongke

2015-12-01

A process model has been developed to study the pyrolysis of biomass to produce biofuel with heat and power generation. The gaseous and solid products were used to generate heat and electrical power, whereas the bio-oil was stored and supplied for other applications. The overall efficiency of the base case model was estimated for conversion of biomass into useable forms of bio-energy. It was found that the proposed design is not only significantly efficient but also potentially suitable for distributed operation of pyrolysis plants having centralised post processing facilities for production of other biofuels and chemicals. It was further determined that the bio-oil quality improved using a multi-stage condensation system. However, the recycling of flue gases coming from combustor instead of non-condensable gases in the pyrolyzer led to increase in the overall efficiency of the process with degradation of bio-oil quality. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving efficiency, reducing infection, and enhancing experience.

PubMed

Massa, Judith

For health professionals to make an informed choice and tailor each bed bath to the individual needs of the patient, they must firstly understand the different bed bath options available, their impact on skin integrity, and any associated risks they may pose to the patient in terms of cross-infection. Only with this knowledge can health professionals determine the appropriate form and frequency of the bed bath. Specialist wipes offer significant improvements in skin care and a reduced risk of cross-infection, compared with the traditional soap and water bed bath. Use of these wipes also improves the efficiency of the process, which links to the Productive Ward Initiative and results in clinical staff (i.e. nursing staff, healthcare assistants) having more time available to undertake additional patient care activities. This product focus highlights the benefits of moving to a wipe-based bed bath method, and the significant efficiency savings that can be realized as a result.

Triplet-triplet annihilation photon-upconversion: towards solar energy applications.

PubMed

Gray, Victor; Dzebo, Damir; Abrahamsson, Maria; Albinsson, Bo; Moth-Poulsen, Kasper

2014-06-14

Solar power production and solar energy storage are important research areas for development of technologies that can facilitate a transition to a future society independent of fossil fuel based energy sources. Devices for direct conversion of solar photons suffer from poor efficiencies due to spectrum losses, which are caused by energy mismatch between the optical absorption of the devices and the broadband irradiation provided by the sun. In this context, photon-upconversion technologies are becoming increasingly interesting since they might offer an efficient way of converting low energy solar energy photons into higher energy photons, ideal for solar power production and solar energy storage. This perspective discusses recent progress in triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA) photon-upconversion systems and devices for solar energy applications. Furthermore, challenges with evaluation of the efficiency of TTA-photon-upconversion systems are discussed and a general approach for evaluation and comparison of existing systems is suggested.

Effect of feed-related farm characteristics on relative values of genetic traits in dairy cows to reduce greenhouse gas emissions along the chain.

PubMed

Van Middelaar, C E; Berentsen, P B M; Dijkstra, J; Van Arendonk, J A M; De Boer, I J M

2015-07-01

Breeding has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from dairy farming. Evaluating the effect of a 1-unit change (i.e., 1 genetic standard deviation improvement) in genetic traits on GHG emissions along the chain provides insight into the relative importance of genetic traits to reduce GHG emissions. Relative GHG values of genetic traits, however, might depend on feed-related farm characteristics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of feed-related farm characteristics on GHG values by comparing the values of milk yield and longevity for an efficient farm and a less efficient farm. The less efficient farm did not apply precision feeding and had lower feed production per hectare than the efficient farm. Greenhouse gas values of milk yield and longevity were calculated by using a whole-farm model and 2 different optimization methods. Method 1 optimized farm management before and after a change in genetic trait by maximizing labor income; the effect on GHG emissions (i.e., from production of farm inputs up to the farm gate) was considered a side effect. Method 2 optimized farm management after a change in genetic trait by minimizing GHG emissions per kilogram of milk while maintaining labor income and milk production at least at the level before the change in trait; the effect on labor income was considered a side effect. Based on maximizing labor income (method 1), GHG values of milk yield and longevity were, respectively, 279 and 143kg of CO2 equivalents (CO2e)/unit change per cow per year on the less efficient farm, and 247 and 210kg of CO2e/unit change per cow per year on the efficient farm. Based on minimizing GHG emissions (method 2), GHG values of milk yield and longevity were, respectively, 538 and 563kg of CO2e/unit change per cow per year on the less efficient farm, and 453 and 441kg of CO2e/unit change per cow per year on the efficient farm. Sensitivity analysis showed that, for both methods, the absolute effect of a change in genetic trait depends on model inputs, including prices and emission factors. Substantial changes in relative importance between traits due to a change in model inputs occurred only in case of maximizing labor income. We concluded that assumptions regarding feed-related farm characteristics affect the absolute level of GHG values, as well as the relative importance of traits to reduce emissions when using a method based on maximizing labor income. This is because optimizing farm management based on maximizing labor income does not give any incentive for lowering GHG emissions. When using a method based on minimizing GHG emissions, feed-related farm characteristics affected the absolute level of the GHG values, but the relative importance of the traits scarcely changed: at each level of efficiency, milk yield and longevity were equally important. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Towards fully spray coated organic light emitting devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gilissen, Koen; Stryckers, Jeroen; Manca, Jean; Deferme, Wim

2014-10-01

Pi-conjugated polymer light emitting devices have the potential to be the next generation of solid state lighting. In order to achieve this goal, a low cost, efficient and large area production process is essential. Polymer based light emitting devices are generally deposited using techniques based on solution processing e.g.: spin coating, ink jet printing. These techniques are not well suited for cost-effective, high throughput, large area mass production of these organic devices. Ultrasonic spray deposition however, is a deposition technique that is fast, efficient and roll to roll compatible which can be easily scaled up for the production of large area polymer light emitting devices (PLEDs). This deposition technique has already successfully been employed to produce organic photovoltaic devices (OPV)1. Recently the electron blocking layer PEDOT:PSS2 and metal top contact3 have been successfully spray coated as part of the organic photovoltaic device stack. In this study, the effects of ultrasonic spray deposition of polymer light emitting devices are investigated. For the first time - to our knowledge -, spray coating of the active layer in PLED is demonstrated. Different solvents are tested to achieve the best possible spray-able dispersion. The active layer morphology is characterized and optimized to produce uniform films with optimal thickness. Furthermore these ultrasonic spray coated films are incorporated in the polymer light emitting device stack to investigate the device characteristics and efficiency. Our results show that after careful optimization of the active layer, ultrasonic spray coating is prime candidate as deposition technique for mass production of PLEDs.

Rational selection of structurally diverse natural product scaffolds with favorable ADME properties for drug discovery.

PubMed

Samiulla, D S; Vaidyanathan, V V; Arun, P C; Balan, G; Blaze, M; Bondre, S; Chandrasekhar, G; Gadakh, A; Kumar, R; Kharvi, G; Kim, H O; Kumar, S; Malikayil, J A; Moger, M; Mone, M K; Nagarjuna, P; Ogbu, C; Pendhalkar, D; Rao, A V S Raja; Rao, G Venkateshwar; Sarma, V K; Shaik, S; Sharma, G V R; Singh, S; Sreedhar, C; Sonawane, R; Timmanna, U; Hardy, L W

2005-01-01

Natural product analogs are significant sources for therapeutic agents. To capitalize efficiently on the effective features of naturally occurring substances, a natural product-based library production platform has been devised at Aurigene for drug lead discovery. This approach combines the attractive biological and physicochemical properties of natural product scaffolds, provided by eons of natural selection, with the chemical diversity available from parallel synthetic methods. Virtual property analysis, using computational methods described here, guides the selection of a set of natural product scaffolds that are both structurally diverse and likely to have favorable pharmacokinetic properties. The experimental characterization of several in vitro ADME properties of twenty of these scaffolds, and of a small set of designed congeners based upon one scaffold, is also described. These data confirm that most of the scaffolds and the designed library members have properties favorable to their utilization for creating libraries of lead-like molecules.

Measurement and mitigation of methane emissions from beef cattle in tropical grazing systems: a perspective from Australia and Brazil.

PubMed

Berndt, A; Tomkins, N W

2013-06-01

The growing global demand for food of animal origin will be the incentive for countries such as Australia and Brazil to increase their beef production and international exports. This increased supply of beef is expected to occur primarily through on-farm productivity increases. The strategies for reducing resultant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions should be evaluated in the context of the production system and should encompass a broader analysis, which would include the emissions of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon sequestration. This paper provides an insight into CH4 measurement techniques applicable to grazing environments and proposed mitigation strategies, with relevance to the production systems that are predominant in grazing systems of Australia and Brazil. Research and technology investment in both Australia and Brazil is aimed at developing measurement techniques and increasing the efficiency of cattle production by improving herd genetics, utilization of the seasonal feed-base and reducing the proportion of metabolizable energy lost as CH4. Concerted efforts in these areas can be expected to reduce the number of unproductive animals, reduce age at slaughter and inevitably reduce emission intensity (EI) from beef production systems. Improving efficiency of livestock production systems in tropical grazing systems for Australia and Brazil will be based on cultivated and existing native pastures and the use of additives and by-products from other agricultural sectors. This approach spares grain-based feed reserves typically used for human consumption, but potentially incurs a heavier EI than current intensive feeding systems. The determination of GHG emissions and the value of mitigation outcomes for entire beef production systems in the extensive grazing systems is complex and require a multidisciplinary approach. It is fortunate that governments in both Australia and Brazil are supporting ongoing research activities. Nevertheless, to achieve an outcome that feeds a growing population while reducing emissions on a global scale continues to be a monumental challenge for ruminant nutritionists.

Efficiency and productivity change in the English National Health Service: can data envelopment analysis provide a robust and useful measure?

PubMed

Hollingsworth, Bruce; Parkin, David

2003-10-01

Several tools are available to health care organisations in England to measure efficiency, but these are widely reported to be unpopular and unusable. Moreover, they do not have a sound conceptual basis. This paper describes the development and evaluation of a user-friendly tool that organisations can use to measure their efficiency, based on the technique of data envelopment analysis (DEA), which has a firm basis in economic theory. Routine data from 57 providers and 14 purchasing organisations in one region of the English National Health Service (NHS) for 1994-1996 were used to create information on efficiency based on DEA. This was presented to them using guides that explained the information and how it was to be used. They were surveyed to elicit their views on current measures of efficiency and on the potential use of the DEA-based information. The DEA measure demonstrated considerable scope for improvements in health service efficiency. There was a very small improvement over time with larger changes in some hospitals than others. Overall, 80% of those surveyed gave high scores for the potential usefulness of the DEA-based measures compared with 9-45% for existing methods. The quality of presentation of the information was also consistently high. There is dissatisfaction with efficiency information currently available to the NHS. DEA produces potentially useful information, which is easy to use and can be easily explained to and understood by potential users. The next step would be the implementation, on a developmental basis, of a routine DEA-based information system.

Towards microalgal triglycerides in the commodity markets.

PubMed

Benvenuti, Giulia; Ruiz, Jesús; Lamers, Packo P; Bosma, Rouke; Wijffels, René H; Barbosa, Maria J

2017-01-01

Microalgal triglycerides (TAGs) hold great promise as sustainable feedstock for commodity industries. However, to determine research priorities and support business decisions, solid techno-economic studies are essential. Here, we present a techno-economic analysis of two-step TAG production (growth reactors are operated in continuous mode such that multiple batch-operated stress reactors are inoculated and harvested sequentially) for a 100-ha plant in southern Spain using vertically stacked tubular photobioreactors. The base case is established with outdoor pilot-scale data and based on current process technology. For the base case, production costs of 6.7 € per kg of biomass containing 24% TAG (w/w) were found. Several scenarios with reduced production costs were then presented based on the latest biological and technological advances. For instance, much effort should focus on increasing the photosynthetic efficiency during the stress and growth phases, as this is the most influential parameter on production costs (30 and 14% cost reduction from base case). Next, biological and technological solutions should be implemented for a reduction in cooling requirements (10 and 4.5% cost reduction from base case when active cooling is avoided and cooling setpoint is increased, respectively). When implementing all the suggested improvements, production costs can be decreased to 3.3 € per kg of biomass containing 60% TAG (w/w) within the next 8 years. With our techno-economic analysis, we indicated a roadmap for a substantial cost reduction. However, microalgal TAGs are not yet cost efficient when compared to their present market value. Cost-competiveness strictly relies on the valorization of the whole biomass components and on cheaper PBR designs (e.g. plastic film flat panels). In particular, further research should focus on the development and commercialization of PBRs where active cooling is avoided and stable operating temperatures are maintained by the water basin in which the reactor is placed.

Base Excision Repair of Oxidative DNA Damage

PubMed Central

David, Sheila S.; O’Shea, Valerie L.; Kundu, Sucharita

2010-01-01

Base excision repair plays an important role in preventing mutations associated with the common product of oxidative damage, 8-oxoguanine. Recent structural studies have shown that 8-oxoguanine glycosylases use an intricate series of steps to efficiently search and locate 8-oxoguanine lesions within the multitude of undamaged bases. The importance of prevention of mutations associated with 8-oxoguanine has also been illustrated by direct connections between defects in the BER glycosylase MUTYH and colorectal cancer. In addition, the properties of other guanine oxidation products and the BER glycosylases that remove them are being uncovered. This work is providing surprising and intriguing new insights into the process of base excision repair. PMID:17581577

Synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoate from palm oil and some new applications.

PubMed

Sudesh, Kumar; Bhubalan, Kesaven; Chuah, Jo-Ann; Kek, Yik-Kang; Kamilah, Hanisah; Sridewi, Nanthini; Lee, Yan-Fen

2011-03-01

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is a potential substitute for some petrochemical-based plastics. This biodegradable plastic is derived from microbial fermentation using various carbon substrates. Since carbon source has been identified as one of the major cost-absorbing factors in PHA production, cheap and renewable substrates are currently being investigated as substitutes for existing sugar-based feedstock. Plant oils have been found to result in high-yield PHA production. Malaysia, being the world's second largest producer of palm oil, is able to ensure continuous supply of palm oil products for sustainable PHA production. The biosynthesis and characterization of various types of PHA using palm oil products have been described in detail in this review. Besides, by-products and waste stream from palm oil industry have also demonstrated promising results as carbon sources for PHA biosynthesis. Some new applications in cosmetic and wastewater treatment show the diversity of PHA usage. With proper management practices and efficient milling processes, it may be possible to supply enough palm oil-based raw materials for human consumption and other biotechnological applications such as production of PHA in a sustainable manner.