Natural Convection of Nanofluid in Cylindrical Enclosure Filled with Porous Media

A numerical study has been carried out to investigate the effect of aspect ratio on heat transfer by natural convection of nanofluid taking Cu nano particles and the water as based fluid. The flow is laminar, steady state, axisymmetric two-dimensional in a vertical cylindrical channel filled with porous media. Heat is generated uniformly along the center of the channel with its vertical surface remain with cooled constant wall temperature and insulated horizontal top and bottom surfaces. The governing equations which used are continuity, momentum and energy equations using Darcy law and Boussinesq＇s approximation which are transformed to dimensionless equations. The finite difference approach is used to obtain all the computational results using the MATLAB-7 program. The parameters affected on the system are Rayleigh number ranging within （10≤ Ra ≤ 103）, aspect ratio （1 ≤ As 〈 5） and the volume fraction （0 ≤0 〈 0.2）. The results obtained are presented graphically in the form of streamline and isotherm contour plots and the results show that as ~ increase from 0.01 to 0.2 the value of the mean Nusselt number increase 50.4% for Ra = 1,000.     

Modification of Corn Starch and Fine Flour by Acid and Gamma Irradiation. Part 1. Chemical Investigation of the Modified Products

Fine flour from corn and the isolated starch were dextrinized in the presence of acid and irradiated with y-rays. Starch irradiated with high doses of y-rays was highly modified while fine flour was less affected. The irradiated starch was reduced with sodium borohydride and then hydrolysed. Erythritol and other compounds were identified in the hydrolysate. It was concluded that the C2-C3 bonds in the intermediate glucose units are probably broken by irradiation. Such hypothesis was confirmed by periodate oxidation, hydrolysis with α-amylase and ferricyanide number determination of the irradiated starch.     

A Modular Composite Device of Poly(Ethylene Oxide)/Poly(Butylene Terephthalate) (PEOT/PBT) Nanofibers and Gelatin as a Dual Drug Delivery System for Local Therapy of Soft Tissue Tumors

In the clinical management of solid tumors, the possibility to successfully couple the regeneration of injured tissues with the elimination of residual tumor cells left after surgery could open doors to new therapeutic strategies. In this work, we present a composite hydrogel–electrospun nanofiber scaffold, showing a modular architecture for the delivery of two pharmaceutics with distinct release profiles, that is potentially suitable for local therapy and post-surgical treatment of solid soft tumors. The composite was obtained by coupling gelatin hydrogels to poly(ethylene oxide)/poly(butylene terephthalate) block copolymer nanofibers. Results of the scaffolds’ characterization, together with the analysis of gelatin and drug release kinetics, displayed the possibility to modulate the device architecture to control the release kinetics of the drugs, also providing evidence of their activity. In vitro analyses were also performed using a human epithelioid sarcoma cell line. Furthermore, publicly available expression datasets were interrogated. Confocal imaging showcased the nontoxicity of these devices in vitro. ELISA assays confirmed a modulation of IL-10 inflammation-related cytokine supporting the role of this device in tissue repair. In silico analysis confirmed the role of IL-10 in solid tumors including 262 patients affected by sarcoma as a negative prognostic marker for overall survival. In conclusion, the developed modular composite device may provide a key-enabling technology for the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma.     

Greenhouse gas emissions reduction by use of wind and solar energies for hydrogen and electricity production: Economic factors

This study addresses economic aspects of introducing renewable technologies in place of fossil fuel ones to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Unlike for traditional fossil fuel technologies, greenhouse gas emissions from renewable technologies are associated mainly with plant construction and the magnitudes are significantly lower. The prospects are shown to be good for producing the environmentally clean fuel hydrogen via water electrolysis driven by renewable energy sources. Nonetheless, the cost of wind- and solar-based electricity is still higher than that of electricity generated in a natural gas power plant. With present costs of wind and solar electricity, it is shown that, when electricity from renewable sources replaces electricity from natural gas, the cost of greenhouse gas emissions abatement is about four times less than if hydrogen from renewable sources replaces hydrogen produced from natural gas. When renewable-based hydrogen is used in a fuel cell vehicle instead of gasoline in a IC engine vehicle, the cost of greenhouse gas emissions reduction approaches the same value as for renewable-based electricity only if the fuel cell vehicle efficiency exceeds significantly (i.e., by about two times) that of an internal combustion vehicle. It is also shown that when 6000 wind turbines (Kenetech KVS-33) with a capacity of 350 kW and a capacity factor of 24% replace a 500-MW gas-fired power plant with an efficiency of 40%, annual greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by 2.3 megatons. The incremental additional annual cost is about $280 million (US). The results provide a useful approach to an optimal strategy for greenhouse gas emissions mitigation.     

Exergy Efficiency of Two-Phase Flow in a Shell and Tube Condenser

This study deals with a comprehensive efficiency investigation of a TEMA “E” shell and tube condenser through exergy efficiency as a potential parameter for performance assessment. Exergy analysis of condensation of pure vapor in a mixture of non-condensing gas in a TEMA “E” shell and tube condenser is presented. This analysis is used to evaluate both local exergy efficiency of the system (along the condensation path) and for the entire condenser, i.e., overall exergy efficiency. The numerical results for an industrial condenser with a steam–air mixture and cooling water as working fluids indicate significant effects of temperature differences between the cooling water and the environment on exergy efficiency. Typical predicted cooling water and condensation temperature profiles are illustrated and compared with the corresponding local exergy efficiency profiles, which reveal a direct (inverse) influence of the coolant (condensation) temperature on the exergy efficiency. Further results provide verification of the newly developed exergy efficiency correlation with a set of experimental data.     

Estimation of global solar irradiation on horizontal and inclined surfaces based on the horizontal measurements

Solar radiation data are essential in the design of solar energy conversion devices. In this regard, empirical models were selected to estimate the global solar radiation on horizontal and inclined surfaces. The hourly solar radiation data measured at the study area during the period of 2004-2007, were used to calculate solar radiations using selected models. The selected models were compared on the basis of statistical methods. Based on the results, a new model, H/H_o = 0.19490 + 0.4771(n/N) + 0.02994 exp(n/N) has been developed, based on Kadir Bakirci linear exponential model. This is highly recommended to estimate monthly mean daily global solar irradiation, on a horizontal surface. Further, a model to convert horizontal solar global radiation to that of radiation on a tilted surface is also presented. It is based upon a relatively simple model proposed by Olmo et al. which requires only measurements of horizontal solar radiation. The developed model appears to give excellent results and has the advantage of being relatively simple for applications. The present work will help to improve the state of knowledge of global solar radiation to the point where it has applications in the estimation of global solar radiation, both on horizontal and inclined surfaces.     

Properties and microstructure of copper-alloyed solid solution-strengthened ductile iron

Solid solution-strengthened ductile iron (DI) exhibits outstanding mechanical properties due to the high silicon content. The strengthening by silicon addition is limited since additions above 4.3?wt-% lead to embrittlement. For a further improvement of mechanical properties, other alloying elements need to be considered. In the present work, the effect of various copper additions on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of solid solution-strengthened DI were investigated. The results show that no appreciable strengthening can be achieved by copper addition without the formation of pearlite in the matrix. The pearlite content increases considerably for Cu-additions above 0.23?wt-% and is independent of the cooling rate for the cooling conditions analysed.     

Exhaust emission profiling of fatty acid methyl esters and NOx control studies using selective synthetic and natural additives

Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy - The present study was focused on the optimized biodiesel production using Moringa oleifera (M. oleifera) and rice bran oils, characterization, and...     

Temporal relation algebra for audiovisual content analysis

Multimedia Tools and Applications - The context of this work is to characterize the content and the structure of audiovisual documents by analysing the temporal relationships between basic events...