Application of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma packed with glass and ceramic pellets for SO2 removal at ambient temperature: optimization and modeling using response surface methodology

Air pollution is a major health problem in developing countries and has adverse effects on human health and the environment. Non-thermal plasma is an effective air pollution treatment technology. In this research, the performance of a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma reactor packed with glass and ceramic pellets was evaluated in the removal of SO₂ as a major air pollutant from air in ambient temperature. The response surface methodology was used to evaluate the effect of three key parameters (concentration of gas, gas flow rate, and voltage) as well as their simultaneous effects and interactions on the SO₂ removal process. Reduced cubic models were derived to predict the SO₂ removal efficiency (RE) and energy yield (EY). Analysis of variance results showed that the packed-bed reactors (PBRs) studied were more energy efficient and had a high SO₂ RE which was at least four times more than that of the non-packed reactor. Moreover, the results showed that the performance of ceramic pellets was better than that of glass pellets in PBRs. This may be due to the porous surface of ceramic pellets which allows the formation of microdischarges in the fine cavities of a porous surface when placed in a plasma discharge zone. The maximum SO₂ RE and EY were obtained at 94% and 0.81 g kWh⁻¹, respectively under the optimal conditions of a concentration of gas of 750 ppm, a gas flow rate of 2 l min⁻¹, and a voltage of 18 kV, which were achieved by the DBD plasma packed with ceramic pellets. Finally, the results of the model's predictions and the experiments showed good agreement.     

响应面法优化制备LDHs-CRMA复合改性沥青及其表征

采用熔融共混法，以克拉玛依90^#沥青为原料，Mg-Al水滑石(LDHs)与废橡胶粉(CR)作为改性剂，制备了具有抗紫外老化性能的水滑石/废胶粉复合改性沥青(LDHs/CRMA)，并对其软化点、针入度指数(PI)、延度进行了测试。通过Hassan数学方法将三个指标“归一化”得到总评“归一值”，采用响应面分析法建立总评“归一值”与各因素之间的Box-Behnken数学模型，得到了LDHs/CRMA的最优制备工艺条件为：剪切温度173℃、剪切时间89 min、剪切速率3500 r/min。通过紫外老化模拟实验对复合改性沥青的抗老化性能进行了评价，结果表明，引入水滑石可以减少沥青老化过程中含氧官能团的产生，抗紫外老化性能得到了明显提高。     

（S）-噻吗洛尔半水合物的合成及表征

为了开发β受体阻断剂新药（S）-噻吗洛尔半水合物，采用3-吗啉-4-氯-1，2，5-噻二唑为起始原料，经水解反应得到中间体1（3-吗啉-4-羟基-1，2，5-噻二唑）。中间体1与R-环氧氯丙烷发生醚化反应，经后处理及重结晶得到中间体2 {（R）-4-［4-（环氧乙烷-2-基甲氧基）-1，2，5-噻二唑-3-基］吗啉}。中间体2经胺化反应、马来酸成盐及重结晶得到（S）-马来酸噻吗洛尔。（S）-马来酸噻吗洛尔经游离、纯水转晶得到符合药典标准的（S）-噻吗洛尔半水合物，总收率14.05%且e.e.值为99.66%。最终成品经IR、1H-NMR、13C-NMR、MS、TGA、DSC表征，并优化各步反应条件。结果表明:以三乙胺为醚化反应缚酸剂75 ℃反应最佳；以乙醇为胺化反应溶剂46 ℃反应16 h最佳；S-噻吗洛尔的转晶拆分以水作溶剂，比传统不对称合成工艺安全稳定，操作简单，适合工业化生产。     

不同形貌碳酸钙的制备及其对PVC薄膜力学性能的影响

选用偏钒酸铵、聚乙二醇、十六烷基三甲基溴化铵、焦磷酸钠十水和聚乙烯吡咯烷酮作为碳酸钙形貌控制剂，以氯化钙和碳酸钠为原料，用氯化法制备得到了片状、菱形、棒状、球状和立方体状5种不同形貌碳酸钙微粒，并研究不同形貌碳酸钙颗粒形态对软质聚氯乙烯（PVC）薄膜力学性能的影响。结果表明，不同形貌碳酸钙均提高了PVC薄膜的力学性能，PVC薄膜拉伸强度和断裂伸长率均提高显著；其中，棒状形貌碳酸钙对PVC薄膜力学性能的提高效果最好，拉伸强度达到了27.11 MPa；菱形碳酸钙改性PVC薄膜的断裂伸长率最高，为98.23 %。     

Optimisation of process parameters to develop nutritionally rich spray‐dried honey powder with vitamin C content and antioxidant properties

The aim of present research was to optimise the conditions to develop nutritionally rich honey powder using honey, whey protein concentrate (WPC), aonla (Emblica officinalis. Gaertn) and basil (Ocimum sanctum) extract with the help of co‐current spray drier. Response surface methodology was applied to study the effects of inlet temperature (160–180 °C), whey protein concentrate (25–35%), feed flow rate (0.08–0.13 mL s^?1), aonla extract (6–8%) and basil extract (6–8%) on product responses, viz. bulk density, hygroscopicity, antioxidant activity (AOA), total phenolic content (TPC) and vitamin C. Statistical analysis revealed that independent variables significantly affected all the responses. The results demonstrated that increasing inlet temperature lowered the bulk density, hygroscopicity, AOA, TPC and vitamin C, whereas addition of aonla extract and basil extract increased the AOA (82.73%), TPC (63.27%) and total vitamin C content (94.89%) as these functional compounds were encapsulated by WPC. Similarly, with increase in feed flow rate and WPC, there was increase and decrease in the bulk density and hygroscopicity, respectively. The recommended optimum spray‐drying conditions were inlet air temperature (170 °C), feed rate (0.11 mL s^?1), whey protein concentrate (35%), aonla (8%) and basil extract (6%).     

二水硫酸钙间接矿化二氧化碳CTAB对碳酸钙晶型的影响

提升产品附加值对改善二氧化碳矿化过程的经济性具有重要意义。在二水硫酸钙与碳酸铵溶液进行间接矿化反应过程中,采用十六烷基三甲基溴化铵（CTAB）为晶型调节剂,可以获得球霰石晶型的碳酸钙。系统研究了反应时间、反应温度、CTAB加入量对碳酸钙晶型和形貌的影响,通过X射线衍射（XRD）、扫描电镜（SEM）和红外光谱（FT-IR）对碳酸钙的晶型、形貌进行了表征。结果表明：反应过程为先形成亚稳定相的球霰石,再向热力学最稳定的方解石相转化;添加CTAB能够明显地增强球霰石的稳定性;较低温度有利于球霰石的形成;在反应温度为30 ℃、二水硫酸钙和碳酸铵加入量均为0.1 mol/L、CTAB加入量为0.54 mmol/L条件下,碳酸钙中球霰石占比高达80%以上;CTAB在球霰石表面上的吸附降低了其表面能,从而抑制了球霰石向方解石的转化。     

The link between operational practices and specific energy consumption in metal ore milling plants – Ontario experiences

An energy audit was conducted on a base metal milling facility where a top-down, bottom-up approach was presented to balance data measurements and estimates. The relation between throughput and specific electricity consumption, presented as a part-load efficiency curve for a milling operation, was established from the audit data. Unsurprisingly, the most efficient use of electricity occurred when the mill was operating at design capacity, but a survey of 14 metal mills operating in Ontario showed that 12 were operated under design capacity during 2012. For base metal flotation mills, 16–36% electricity cost savings could be realized by modification to the operating schedule, which would ensure that these facilities operated at design capacity even if plant operation was intermittent. With the Ontario electricity tariff arrangements, additional cost savings from strategic scheduling could reduce demand during coincident peak hours, which could provide financial benefit to these milling facilities.     

Accounting for the uncertainties in the estimation of average shear wave velocity using V S– N correlations

Site-specific seismic hazard analysis is crucial for designing earthquake resistance structures, particularly in seismically active regions. Shear wave velocity ( V _S) is a key parameter in such analysis, although the economy and other factors restrict its direct field measurement in many cases. Various V _S–SPT– N correlations are routinely incorporated in seismic hazard analysis to estimate the value of V _S. However, many uncertainties question the reliability of these estimated V _S values. This paper comes up with a statistical approach to take care of such uncertainties involved in V _S calculations. The measured SPT– N values from all the critical boreholes were converted into statistical parameters and passed through various correlations to estimate V _S at different depths. The effect of different soil layers in the boreholes on the Vs estimation was also taken into account. Further, the average shear wave velocity of the top 30 m soil cover ( V _S30) is estimated after accounting for various epistemic and aleatoric uncertainties. The scattering nature of the V _S values estimated using different V _S– N correlations was reduced significantly with the application of the methodology. Study results further clearly demonstrated the potential of the approach to eliminate various uncertainties involved in the estimation of V _S30 using general and soil-specific correlations.     

Development of green extraction process to produce antioxidant-rich extracts from purple coneflower

The present study was conducted to develop subcritical water extraction (SWE) of Echinacea purpurea flowers. The influence of temperature and extraction time on quality of extracts considering total phenols content, total flavonoids content, antioxidant capacity and extraction yield, was determined. Optimized extraction parameters for maximised investigated responses were as follows: 147.56 °C and 8.43 min. The experimental values agreed with the values predicted, thus indicating the adequacy of central composite experimental design for modelling the SWE of bioactive compounds from E. purpurea. Results of the study also highlighted the potential application of E. purpurea subcritical water extracts as a source of valuable bioactive compounds.