An economic and environmental assessment of biomass utilization in lignite‐fired power plants of Greece

The environmental and socio‐economic impacts of biomass utilization by co‐firing with brown coal in an existing thermoelectric unit in Greece or through its pure combustion in a new plant were studied and evaluated in this work. The 125 MW_e lignite‐fired power plant in Ptolemais Power Station (Western Macedonia) was used as reference system. The environmental benefits of the alternative biomass exploitation options were quantified based on the life cycle assessment methodology, as established by SETAC, while the BIOSEM technique was used to carry out socio‐economic calculations. The obtained results showed clear environmental benefits of both biomass utilization alternatives in comparison with the reference system. In addition, co‐firing biomass with lignite in an existing unit outperforms the combustion of biomass exclusively in a new plant, since it exhibits a better environmental performance and it is a low risk investment with immediate benefits. A biomass combustion unit requires a considerably higher capital investment and its benefits are more evident in the long run. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conducting composites of polythiophene and polyfuran with acetylene black

Conducting composites of polythiophene (PTP) and polyfuran (PF) with acetylene black (AB) were prepared via chemical oxidative polymerization of thiophene and furan in a suspension of AB in CHCl₃ at room temperature using anhydrous FeCl₃ as the oxidant. Formation of PTP and PF and their subsequent incorporation in PTP–AB and PF–AB composite systems were confirmed by FTIR analysis. Scanning electron microscope analysis showed the presence of compact clusters of particles in both composites. Transmission electron micrographs of PTP–AB and PF–AB composites showed formation of globular polymer encapsulated AB particles with average diameters of the order of ～100 nm in both systems. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed that the overall thermal stability varied in the order: AB > PTP–AB > PTP and AB > PF–AB > PF. DC conductivity values for the PTP–AB and PF–AB composites were of the order of 10^?2 and 10^?3 S cm^?1, respectively. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Application of boundary element method to 3-D problems of coupled thermoelasticity

This paper deals with a new boundary element method for analysis of the quasistatic problems in coupled thermoelasticity. Through some mathematical manipulation of the Navier equation in elasticity, the heat conduction equation is transformed into a simpler form, similar to the uncoupled-type equation with the modified thermal conductivity which shows the coupling effects. This procedure enables us to treat the coupled thermoelastic problems as an uncoupled one, A few examples are computed by the proposed BEM, and the results obtained are compared with the analytical ones available in the literature, whereby the accuracy and versatility of the proposed method are demonstrated.     

Emulsifying Capacity and Emulsion Stability of Soy Proteins Compared with Corn Germ Protein Flour

Both emulsifying capacity (EC) and emulsion stability (ES) increased with increasing concentrations from 0.4% to 0.8% of soy flour (SF), soy concentrate (SC), soy isolate (SI) and corn germ protein flour (CGPF) when studied by response surface methodology. EC and ES increased as pH increased from 6 to 8 in all samples. Increasing incubation temperatures of protein solutions from 20–70°C or from 4–20°C did not affect EC or ES, respectively. SF had the highest EC, followd by SI, SC, and CGPF.     

Adhesive Dispensing Process Analysis: Steady-State Dispensing of One-Component Adhesives

The process of dispensing one-component heat-cure adhesives was investigated in order to understand current application processes and to guide new process development. Typical one-component adhesives exhibit non-Newtonian rheological behavior, and hence Newtonian fluid mechanics does not adequately describe the dispensing process. In the present study, the adhesives were modeled as Bingham fluids possessing a yield stress and a steady state viscosity. The model of the dispensing apparatus includes four major flow sections connected in a serial configuration. The fluid mechanics equations derived for Bingham fluids in the individual flow sections were solved by numerical methods in order to understand the interrelationships between the material variables (e.g. yield stress, viscosity, temperature dependencies) and process variables (e.g. pressure, flow geometry, temperature, output). The concept of the model is generic and the details of the model can be modified for any forced-flow adhesive application process.

The adhesive flow properties significantly influence the process output. Dispensing temperature, among the process variables, has the strongest effect on process output. A ± 1.0·C perturbation in the dispensing temperature can cause as much as a 14% variation in the bead size for the range of adhesives studied. Differences in flow characteristics result in differences in processability and non-linear temperature/pressure sensitivity. The non-linear sensitivity can be eliminated by operating the dispensing process isothermally. Finally, the process limits for one-component adhesives, which are susceptible to chemical instability induced by viscous heating during processing, are defined and discussed in terms of a modified Brinkman number that takes into account viscous dissipation, heat conduction and convection, and chemical stability of the material during processing.     

The emulsifying properties of a polysaccharide isolated from the fruit of Cordia abyssinica

Polysaccharide was isolated from Cordia abyssinica and its effect, at differing concentrations, on its emulsifying ability was determined. Emulsions of vegetable oil containing up to 1% of the polysaccharide in phosphate pH 7.4 buffer, were prepared by using a hand piston homogenizer. Emulsification was assessed by diluting samples of the emulsions in sodium dodecyl sulphate and measuring absorbance at 500 nm. Addition of increasing concentrations of the polysaccharide up to 1% enhanced emulsification and emulsion stability. Above 1% concentration the polysaccharide solutions were too viscous for making emulsions conveniently. At a constant concentration of the polysaccharide, addition of up to a 1% concentration of salt enhanced emulsion formation. Further addition of salt above 1% resulted in no further changes in emulsifying ability, but the stability of the emulsions formed decreased on increasing the concentration of salt above 1%. The effect of pH on emulsifying ability was investigated by preparing emulsions using buffers of different pH, from pH 3 to pH 13. The polysaccharide had poor emulsifying ability below pH 7. Emulsifying ability increased with pH between pH 7 and 11. At pH above 11 there was a decrease in emulsifying ability.     

中原高温高盐油藏疏水缔合聚合物凝胶调剖剂研究

针对中原油田高温(>80℃)、高盐度(>50 g/L)、高硬度(>1 g/L)砂岩油藏,研制了地下成胶的高热稳定性聚合物凝胶调剖剂。所用聚合物为疏水缔合聚合物AP-P4,M=9.0×106,HD=27%,疏水基摩尔分数0.2%;交联剂为可生成酚醛树脂的3种化合物;调剖剂胶液用矿化度160 g/L的马寨油田污水配制;实验温度95℃。根据形成的凝胶黏度(95℃,1.1 s-1)确定交联剂各组分用量为:MZ-YL 0.429%,MZ-BE 0.060%,MZ-XS 0.012%;酸度调整剂用量0.12%;成胶时间10~15小时。2.5、3.0、3.5 g/L AP-P4的凝胶在95℃老化100天后黏度保持在~40 Pa.s及以上。初配制胶液在3000 r/min下剪切15分钟后黏度降低87.5%~89.0%,但成胶后和老化过程中凝胶黏度只比未剪切样降低17.1%~6.6%。3.5 g/L AP-P4的调剖剂对~1μm2的6支储层岩心的堵塞率在88.1%~95.8%范围,平均93.3%,造成的残余阻力系数在15.2~28.6范围,平均19.8,使渗透率级差2.3~8.0的4组双人造岩心的注水流量比发生不同程度的反转。认为该凝胶调剖剂高温下稳定性好的原因,是强化学交联密度低,因而凝胶脱水收缩作用弱。图2表5参5。     

谐振式力传感器对其晶振频率稳定度的要求

为了寻找石英晶振频率稳定度对传感器影响的判据,根据石英谐振式力传感器的灵敏度阈值和量程与晶体的相关常数及结构参数间的关系,导出了反映谐振式力传感器研究水平的指标参数与晶体结构参数及晶振频率稳定度之间的关系式,为传感器的研究提供了依据。例如,欲制作量程阈值比达到105量级的传感器,所用晶振的频率稳定度必须优于108。     

Simulation of the Forming Behaviour of a Boron Modified P91 Ferritic Steel

The forming behaviour at high temperature of a modified 9%Cr‐1%Mo (P91) ferritic steel containing B and Ti for elevated temperature service was investigated. The microstructure of the as‐received material is mainly martensite at room temperature, but special etching revealed prior austenite grains of about 25 μm in size. Torsion tests were conducted at temperatures in the range 850 to 1250 °C to simulate the hot rolling process under comparable conditions of temperature, strain rate and strain. The deformation data obtained from these tests were correlated with the Garofalo equation with a stress exponent of 4.6 and an activation energy of 315 kJ/mol. This equation was used to predict the formability behaviour for the rolling process and also to determine the maximum forming efficiency and stability of the steel. A temperature of 1200 °C is recommended to conduct the forming process.