Effect of Steam Treatment on Pellet Strength and the Energy Input in Pelleting of Softwood Particles

2012 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 2265-2272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Tooyserkani ◽  
S. Sokhansanj ◽  
X. Bi ◽  
C. J. Lim ◽  
J. Saddler ◽  
...  
Author(s):  
Andrew Clarke

A diurnal (circadian) rhythm in body temperature is a widespread, and possibly universal, feature of endotherms. Some mammals and birds down-regulate their metabolic rate significantly by night, allowing their body temperature to drop sufficiently that they become inactive and enter torpor. Both the minimum temperature achieved and the duration of torpor are highly variable. Daily torpor is principally a response to reduced energy intake, and a drop in ambient temperature. Hibernation is essentially an extreme form of torpor. Small mammals hibernating at high latitudes have regular arousals during which they urinate and may feed. Bears hibernate with relatively high body temperature, and do not undergo arousal. Only one bird, the poorwill, is known to hibernate. Rewarming during arousal may be fuelled exclusively by metabolism (for example in small mammals in the Arctic) or with significant energy input from basking (for example in subtropical arid areas). The capacity for torpor appears to be an ancestral character in both mammals and birds, possibly related to the origin of endothermy in small species subject to marked diurnal and/or seasonal variation in body temperature. Both deep hibernation and strict endothermy are probably derived characteristics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 4030
Author(s):  
Emily Birch ◽  
Ben Bridgens ◽  
Meng Zhang ◽  
Martyn Dade-Robertson

This paper introduces a new active material which responds to changes in environmental humidity. There has been growing interest in active materials which are able to respond to their environment, creating dynamic architectural systems without the need for energy input or complex systems of sensors and actuators. A subset of these materials are hygromorphs, which respond to changes in relative humidity (RH) and wetting through shape change. Here, we introduce a novel hygromorphic material in the context of architectural design, composed of multiple monolayers of microbial spores of Bacillus subtilis and latex sheets. Methods of fabrication and testing for this new material are described, showing that small actuators made from this material demonstrate rapid, reversible and repeatable deflection in response to changes in RH. It is demonstrated that the hygromorphic actuators are able to lift at least 150% of their own mass. Investigations are also extended to understanding this new biomaterial in terms of meaningful work.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 2169
Author(s):  
Pauline Macharia ◽  
Nzula Kitaka ◽  
Paul Yillia ◽  
Norbert Kreuzinger

This study examined the current state of water demand and associated energy input for water supply against a projected increase in water demand in sub-Saharan Africa. Three plausible scenarios, namely, Current State Extends (CSE), Current State Improves (CSI) and Current State Deteriorates (CSD) were developed and applied using nine quantifiable indicators for water demand projections and the associated impact on energy input for water supply for five Water Service Providers (WSPs) in Kenya to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach based on real data in sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, the daily per capita water-use in the service area of four of the five WSPs was below minimum daily requirement of 50 L/p/d. Further, non-revenue water losses were up to three times higher than the regulated benchmark (range 26–63%). Calculations showed a leakage reduction potential of up to 70% and energy savings of up to 12 MWh/a. The projected water demand is expected to increase by at least twelve times the current demand to achieve universal coverage and an average daily per capita consumption of 120 L/p/d for the urban population by 2030. Consequently, the energy input could increase almost twelve-folds with the CSI scenario or up to fifty-folds with the CSE scenario for WSPs where desalination or additional groundwater abstraction is proposed. The approach used can be applied for other WSPs which are experiencing a similar evolution of their water supply and demand drivers in sub-Saharan Africa. WSPs in the sub-region should explore aggressive strategies to jointly address persistent water losses and associated energy input. This would reduce the current water supply-demand gap and minimize the energy input that will be associated with exploring additional water sources that are typically energy intensive.


Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 641
Author(s):  
Hee Young Kim ◽  
Meran Keshawa Ediriweera ◽  
Kyung-Hwan Boo ◽  
Chang Sook Kim ◽  
Somi Kim Cho

We investigated the effects of cooking (steaming and microwaving) and processing (freeze-drying and hot-air-drying) methods on the antioxidant activity of broccoli florets. 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•), 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS•), and alkyl• free radical scavenging assays were employed to assess anti-oxidant potentials. The cytoprotective effect against oxidative damage induced by H2O2 was studied using hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells. Anti-proliferative effects were assessed in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. L-sulforaphane in broccoli extracts was quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Steam and microwave treatments caused increases in total polyphenol content (TPC), whereas the total flavonoid content (TFC) decreased following steam treatment. A slight increase in TFC was observed in the microwaved samples. Extracts of all broccoli samples showed almost identical radical scavenging and cytoprotective effects. HPLC demonstrated that steamed (3 min)-freeze-dried (F-S3) and microwaved (2 min)-freeze-dried (F-M2) samples exhibited elevated levels of L-sulforaphane. In addition, the F-S3 and F-M2 extracts displayed strong anti-proliferative effects in MCF-7 cells, which correlated with L-sulforaphane content. As we observed no significant decrease in the antioxidant activity of broccoli florets, the cooking and processing methods and conditions studied here are recommended for broccoli.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Taheri Andani ◽  
Reza Dehghani ◽  
Mohammad Reza Karamooz-Ravari ◽  
Reza Mirzaeifar ◽  
Jun Ni

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