Sustainability assessment of the energy projects implementation in regional scale

The concept of sustainable energy development cannot be separated from the understanding of additional positive socio-economic effect of sustainable energy projects (energy efficiency measures, use of renewable energy sources). Implementation of sustainable energy projects has positive impact on security of energy supply, provides financial economies and improved comfort and has multiplier effect for new jobs, involving small and medium size enterprises. Therefore integration of sustainable energy projects into regional development process may create external positive effect concerning increased energy security and other regional development goals (reduction of unemployment, reduction of environmental impact, etc.). The examples of EU-15 countries implementing their sustainable energy development and climate change mitigation policies on local level can be successfully applied in Lithuania. The aim of the article is to discuss methodological problems related with integration of sustainable energy projects into regional development procedures and provide guidelines, ensuring that energy elements may compile integral uniformity in terms of regional goals.     

The effect of ovine and bovine milk on the textural properties of Lighvan cheese during ripening

The effect of milk origin on the physicochemical characteristics, microstructure and texture of Lighvan cheese was investigated over a 90‐day ripening period. Besides fat, other physicochemical properties of Lighvan cheese were affected by milk type. The moisture content of Lighvan cheese decreased when half or all the ovine milk was substituted with bovine milk. The Lighvan cheese's microstructural properties and porosity were affected by type of milk and ripening time. Compaction of cheeses manufactured from ovine and mixed ovine and bovine milk is similar, and more than that of bovine Lighvan cheese. Ovine Lighvan cheese is harder and less brittle than bovine and mixed bovine and ovine.     

Application of 252Cf-PDMS to characterize airborne particles deposited in an Antarctic glacier

The aim of this study is to apply the (252)Cf-PDMS (plasma desorption mass spectrometry) technique to characterize particles deposited in ice samples. This technique allows identification of molecular ions, even large molecules, desorbed from the sample surface, in contrast with PIXE (particle induced X-ray emission) or EDS (energy dispersive spectrometry). Two shallow snow cores obtained from different glacial drainage basins on King George Island ice cap, South Shetland Islands (Antarctica), were analyzed by PDMS. The chemical compounds identified in the ice mass spectra show that the particle contents of both samples were statistically different, indicating a non-homogeneous spatial deposition distribution for the deposited particles. The analysis of the ice mass spectra suggests some possible sources for the airborne particles. The mass spectra of ice samples collected at a site exposed directly to air masses coming from the Drake Passage show a significant contribution of particles from crustal and anthropogenic sources. However, the mass spectra of ice samples taken from a site on a slope towards a local inlet point out a high influence of marine aerosol. Therefore, it was concluded that particles deposited onto the ice cap were attributable to different aerosol sources, besides long-range atmospheric transport. The (252)Cf-PDMS technique can be considered a powerful tool for studies of snow and ice samples, providing important information for understanding the global atmospheric transport and deposition of airborne particles.     

Discrete wavelet transform and support vector machine‐based parallel transmission line faults classification

This paper presents a scheme for classification of faults on double circuit parallel transmission lines using combination of discrete wavelet transform and support vector machine (SVM). Only one cycle post fault of the phase currents was employed to predict the fault type. Two features for each phase current were extracted using discrete wavelet transform. Thus, a total of 12 features were extracted for the six phase currents. The training data were collected, and SVM was employed to establish the fault classification unit. After that, the fault classification unit was tested for different fault states. The power system simulation was conducted using the MATLAB/Simulink program. The proposed technique took into account the mutual coupling between the parallel transmission lines and the randomness of the faults on transmission line considering time of occurrence, fault location, fault type, fault resistance, and loading conditions. The results show that the proposed technique can classify all the faults on the parallel transmission lines correctly. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Separation of no-carrier-added 52Mn from bulk chromium: a simulation study for accelerator mass spectrometry measurement of 53Mn

53Mn radionuclide (T(1/2) = 3.7 x 10(6) y) is produced through the interaction of cosmic rays. Measurements of concentrations of 53Mn in rocks might help to understand Earth surface processes that occurred in time periods not accessible with other cosmogenic nuclides. Only accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) can determine such ultratrace levels of 53Mn. The main interference in the detection of 53Mn by AMS is its stable isobar 53Cr, which is roughly approximately 10(12) times more abundant in nature. A prerequisite of any AMS measurement of 53Mn in geological samples is therefore chromium separation by an efficient chemistry. Thus, we have developed a method for the separation of chromium and manganese by using a radiometric simulation. The separation procedure was monitored by 51Cr (T(1/2) = 27.70 d) and 52Mn (T(1/2) = 5.59 d) as the corresponding radiotracers for chromium and manganese, respectively. The separation studies were performed by a liquid-liquid extraction technique using trioctylamine (TOA) diluted in cyclohexane. A high separation factor (approximately 16 000) for Mn and Cr can be obtained at optimal conditions of 0.8 M TOA and 9 M HCl. The developed method has been found equally applicable for real geological samples such as manganese crusts, lava, and sediment samples. Therefore, the method offers an important tool to improve 53Mn measurements by AMS.     

Sulphide-induced deactivation of Pd/Al2O3 as hydrodechlorination catalyst and its oxidative regeneration with permanganate

Pd-based catalysts have become important in environmental catalysis for their ability to hydrodechlorinate a wide range of chlorinated organic contaminants in water under ambient conditions. The success of their application in the remediation practice, e.g. for groundwater treatment, is often hindered by the sensitivity of Pd to poisoning by sulphur compounds. In this study, the stability and sulphide-induced deactivation behaviour of a highly active Pd/Al₂O₃ catalyst was investigated. The specific activity of Pd for the hydrodechlorination of chlorobenzene corresponds to rate coefficients up to k_Pd = 350 L g⁻¹ min⁻¹. The totally deactivated catalyst, resultant of sulphide poisoning, was regenerated with potassium permanganate. The pH value, as a key parameter which may influence the degree of deactivation as well as the efficiency of catalyst regeneration, was evaluated. Results show that in clean water the Pd/Al₂O₃ catalyst showed no inherent deactivation regardless of the ageing time and the pH value of the catalyst suspension. The degree of catalyst poisoning effected by 1.8–5.4 μM sulphide, corresponding to molar ratios of S:Pd_surface = 1.5–8.5, was observed to be higher under neutral and alkaline than under acidic conditions. The exposure of the catalyst to higher sulphide concentration of 14.2 μM resulted in complete catalyst deactivation regardless of the pH conditions. However, the efficacy of permanganate as oxidative regenerant for the fouled catalyst showed strong pH-dependence. A regeneration time of 10–30 min at low pH was sufficient to recover completely the high catalytic activity of Pd/Al₂O₃ for the hydrodechlorination reaction.     

An active protein kinase A (PKA) is involved in meiotic arrest of rat growing oocytes

Reinitiation of meiosis in meiotically competent, fully grown mammalian oocytes is governed by a fall in intraoocyte cAMP concentrations and the subsequent inactivation of protein kinase A (PKA). A similar reduction in intraoocyte cAMP concentrations in growing, meiotically incompetent rat oocytes not leading to resumption of meiosis, questions the involvement of PKA in the regulation of meiosis at this early stage of oocyte development. We examined the possibility of whether PKA activity maintains growing oocytes in meiotic arrest and further explored the mode of activation of PKA under conditions of relatively low cAMP concentrations. Our experiment demonstrated that inactivation of PKA stimulates growing rat oocytes to resume meiosis, and elevates the activity of their maturation-promoting factor (MPF). We also found that the expressions of type I and type II regulatory subunits (RI and RII) of PKA are higher in growing and fully grown oocytes, respectively. In addition, we revealed that the common 1:1 ratio between the regulatory (R) and catalytic (C) subunits of PKA is apparently not abrogated and, in accordance PKA activity in growing oocyte-cell extract is fully dependent on cAMP. Finally, we identified in growing oocytes, the A kinase anchoring protein (AKAP) 140, which was previously depicted in fully grown oocytes. We conclude that an active PKA prevents growing oocytes from resuming meiosis. Our findings further suggest that relatively high abundance of the PKAI isoform and/or its subcellular compartmentalization, through interaction with AKAP140, could possibly account for the high basal PKA activity at relatively low intraoocyte cAMP concentrations.     

Nutritional Quality of Edible Parts of Moringa oleifera

This study was carried out in order to compare the biochemical characteristics from three edible parts of the multipurpose tree Moringa oleifera such as the leaves, flowers, and immature pods. On average, the three most abundant amino acids were glutamic acid, arginine, and aspartic acid. The fatty acids present at the highest content were linolenic acid (C18:3ω3), palmitic acid (C16:0), linoleic acid (C18:2ω6), and oleic acid (C18:1ω9). The chemical composition (of dry weight) ranged from 19.34% to 22.42% for protein, 1.28% to 4.96% for lipids, 7.62% to 14.60% for ash, and 30.97% to 46.78% for dietary fiber. M. oleifera is a nonconventional plant with substantial nutritional value.     

Monitoring of energy supply sustainability in the Baltic Sea region

BASREC (Baltic Sea Region Energy Cooperation) was established in 1999. It brings together the 11 countries around the Baltic Sea (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia, and Sweden) and the European Commission. BASREC offers a unique regional forum, in which policies and projects of regional and broader significance can be prepared and implemented. Five working groups within BASREC, for Bioenergy, Climate Change, Electricity, Energy Efficiency and Gas, were active in the period 2003–2005. These working groups quite well represent the priorities of regional energy cooperation in the Baltic Sea region. Since the EU participates actively in BASREC activities, this kind of cooperation can provide for the EU sustainable energy policy promotion in non-member countries, such as Russia, and can help sharing the experience between old and new member states as well as facilitate the know how transfer from such highly developed and advanced in sustainable development countries as Iceland and Norway to less developed ones.