Review of policies and measures for energy efficiency in industry sector

Energy efficiency in industry plays key roles in improving energy security, environmental sustainability and economic performance. It is particularly important in strategies to mitigate climate change. The evidence of great potential for cost-effective efficiency-derived reductions in industrial energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have prompted governments to implement numerous policies and measures aimed at improving their manufacturing industries’ energy efficiency. What can be learned from these many and varied initiatives? This paper provides foundation for policy analysis for enhancing energy efficiency and conservation in industry, by surveying more than 300 policies, encompassing about 570 measures, implemented by governments in IEA countries, Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia and South Africa. It outlines the measures’ main features, their incidence of use, and their connections with specific technical actions and key stakeholders (i.e., how and where measures affect the energy efficiency of industry). It also examines the key features underlying the measures’ success: (1) potential to reduce energy use and CO₂ emissions cost-efficiently; (2) ease of policy development, execution and assessment and (3) ancillary societal effects.     

Binding affinity of tea catechins for HSA: Characterization by high‐performance affinity chromatography with immobilized albumin column

Catechins are the major polyphenols in green tea leaves. Recent studies have suggested that the catechins form complexes with HSA for transport in human blood, and their binding affinity for albumin is believed to modulate their bioavailability. In this study, the binding affinities of catechins and their analogs were evaluated and the relationship between the chemical structure of each catechin and its binding property were investigated. Comparing these catechins by HPLC analysis with the HSA column, we showed that galloylated catechins have higher binding affinities with HSA than non‐galloylated catechins. In addition, pyrogallol‐type catechins have a high affinity compared to catechol‐type catechins. Furthermore, the binding affinity of the catechin with 2,3‐trans structure was higher than those of the catechin with 2,3‐cis structure. The importance of the hydroxyl group on the galloyl group and B‐ring was confirmed using methylated catechins. These results indicate that the most important structural element contributing to HSA binding of tea catechins is the galloyl group, followed by the number of hydroxyl groups on the B‐ring and the galloyl group or the configuration at C‐2. Our findings provide fundamental information on the relationship between the chemical structure of tea catechins and its biological activity.     

Cloning and nucleotide sequence of carbaryl hydrolase gene (cahA) from Arthrobacter sp. RC100

A carbaryl hydrolase gene (cahA) encoded on the plasmid pRC1 in Arthrobacter sp. RC100 was cloned and sequenced. The entire region of the deduced amino acid sequence was found to be homologous to that of an amidase family. Parts of the consensus sequences of the amidase gene have been identified in CahA from strain RC100. CahA was overexpressed in Escherichia coli JM109, and the enzyme was purified to homogeneity by protamine sulfate treatment, ammonium sulfate precipitation, and hydrophobic and anion-exchange chromatographies. The purified enzyme showed hydrolase activity toward 1-naphthylacetamide and isobutyramide but showed no activity toward 1-naphthylacetate. This is the first report of an amidase that is able to hydrolyze N-methylcarbamate pesticides.     

A study of flame spread along a droplet array at elevated pressures up to a supercritical pressure

Experimental investigations on flame spread along a droplet array have been conducted at elevated pressures up to supercritical pressures of the fuel droplet under normal gravity and microgravity. The flame spread rate is measured using high‐speed chemiluminescence images of OH radicals and direct visualization is employed to observe the images of the vaporizing fuel around the unburnt droplet. The mode of flame spread is categorized into two: a continuous mode and an intermittent one. There exist a limit droplet spacing and a limit ambient pressure in normal gravity, above which flame spread does not occur. It is seen that flame spread rate is dependent upon the relative position of flame to droplet spacing. In microgravity, the limit droplet spacing of flame spread and the droplet spacing of maximum flame spread rate are larger than those in normal gravity. In microgravity, the flame spread rate with ambient pressure decreases initially, shows a minimum, and then decreases again after taking a maximum. Flame spread time is determined by competing effects between the increased transfer time of the thermal boundary layer due to reduced flame diameter and the decreased ignition delay time in terms of the increase of ambient pressure. In normal gravity, the flame spread rate with ambient pressure decreases monotonically and there exists a limit ambient pressure, except at small droplet spacing, under which flame spread extends to the range of supercritical pressures of fuel. This is because natural convection induces the upward flow of hot gases into a plume above the burning droplets and limits the lateral transfer of thermal boundary layer. Consequently, it is found that flame spread behaviour under microgravity is considerably different from that under normal gravity due to the absence of natural convection. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dissolution and Shrinking of a Single Microbubble in Stationary Liquid with Surfactants

For a variety of applications of microbubbles, it is necessary to clarify the dissolution dynamics and the lifetime of a microbubble. Although various models have been proposed, predicting the dissolution rate of a microbubble in a static fluid with a surfactant is still difficult. In this study, dissolution behavior was predicted with taking into account the mass transfer inhibition effect due to a surfactant at the bubble surface. The shrinking behavior of an oxygen microbubble was observed with several surfactants and the experimental results were in good agreement with model predictions.     

An electric power purchase strategy for bilateral contracts focusing on reliability of customers

With the introduction of the competitive electrical power market, large‐scale customers can select electric power suppliers. Customers need to consider not only the economical efficiency but also reliability, to decide the amount of electrical power to purchase. This paper develops an economic electric power purchase strategy for customers focusing on reliability. A bilateral contract model expressing electric power suppliers as generators with a forced outage rate is proposed and introduced to assess potential outage risks of the bilateral contract between an electric power supplier and a customer. The outage‐related cost, consisting of potential outage risks and the estimated outage cost, is also proposed and introduced as an index of the reliability on the customer side, and an optimal reliability level of a customer is obtained by using the index. Several numerical examples demonstrate the availability of the proposed electric power purchase decision method and reliability improvement strategies for customers are discussed. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 156(4): 9–21, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20345     

Integrated model framework for the evaluation of an SOFC/GT system as a centralized power source

New power generation technologies are expected to reduce various environmental impacts of providing electricity to urban regions for some investment cost. Determining which power generation technologies are most suitable for meeting the demand of a particular region requires analysis of tradeoffs between costs and environmental impacts. Models simulating different power generation technologies can help quantify these tradeoffs. An Internet‐based modelling infrastructure called DOME (distributed object‐based modelling environment) provides a flexible mechanism to create integrated models from independent simulation models for different power generation technologies. As new technologies appear, corresponding simulation models can readily be added to the integrated model. DOME was used to combine a simulation model for hybrid SOFC (solid oxide fuel cell) and gas turbine system with a power generation capacity and dispatch optimization model. The integrated models were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the system as a centralized power source for meeting the power demand in Japan. Evaluation results indicate that a hybrid system using micro‐tube SOFC may reduce CO₂ emissions from power generation in Japan by about 50%. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Identification and Field Evaluation of Sex Pheromone Components of the Pear Barkminer Moth, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Spulerina astaurota</Emphasis>

The pear barkminer moth, Spulerina astaurota Meyrick (Gracillariidae: Gracillariinae), is a harmful pest of the Asian-pear tree. Pheromone components of the female were analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) with an electroantennographic (EAG) detector and GC coupled with mass spectrometry. The analyses of a crude pheromone extract and those of a fractionated extract on a Florisil column indicated three EAG-active components, tetradecadien-1-ol, its acetate, and an aldehyde derivative. Characteristic fragment ions in the mass spectra of the dienyl compounds and derivatives with 4-methyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione revealed double bonds at the 9- and 11-positions. By comparing the chromatographic behaviors to those of four authentic geometrical isomers, which were synthesized by three different routes starting from 1,8-octanediol or 1,9-nonanediol, the configuration of each natural component was assigned to be 9Z,11Z; i.e., it was concluded that the S. astaurota females secreted (9Z,11Z)-9,11-tetradecadien-1-ol (Z9,Z11-14:OH) as a main pheromone component, and the acetate and aldehyde derivatives (Z9,Z11-14:OAc and Z9,Z11-14:Ald) as minor components. This identification was confirmed by a field evaluation of the synthetic pheromone. While the male moths could be attracted to a lure baited with Z9,Z11-14:OH alone, Z9,Z11-14:OAc showed a strong synergistic effect on the attraction. Among the lures tested, the mixture of alcohol and acetate in a ratio of 7:3 exhibited the strongest attraction. Addition of Z9,Z11-14:Ald in the mixture did not significantly increase the number of males attracted. Furthermore, the field test indicated that some contamination of a geometrical isomer of the alcohol did not impair the activity of the binary mixture with the 9Z,11Z configuration.     

Role of Neuroinflammation and Blood-Brain Barrier Permutability on Migraine

Currently, migraine is treated mainly by targeting calcitonin gene-related peptides, although the efficacy of this method is limited and new treatment strategies are desired. Neuroinflammation has been implicated in the pathogenesis of migraine. In patients with migraine, peripheral levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α, are known to be increased. Additionally, animal models of headache have demonstrated that immunological responses associated with cytokines are involved in the pathogenesis of migraine. Furthermore, these inflammatory mediators might alter the function of tight junctions in brain vascular endothelial cells in animal models, but not in human patients. Based on clinical findings showing elevated IL-1β, and experimental findings involving IL-1β and both the peripheral trigeminal ganglion and central trigeminal vascular pathways, regulation of the Il-1β/IL-1 receptor type 1 axis might lead to new treatments for migraine. However, the integrity of the blood-brain barrier is not expected to be affected during attacks in patients with migraine.     

植被净初级生产力的遥感模型在武汉地区的应用

卫星遥感成为观测和估算地面植被净初级生产力的一种极其有利的工具,其原因不仅仅在于它将人们从繁重的地面实验中解放出来,同时也因为它能够实现对大范围区域的植被净初级生产力进行实时监测。为了更加充分有效地利用卫星数据获取植被信息,我们在模式分解方法的基础上,建立了一种新的植被指数(VIPD)。根据地面实验建立的相应光合成曲线估算模型,估算武汉地区地域性植被净初级生产力（NPP）,研究该地区植被生长年间变化状况。并通过和不同方法估算结果及地面调查结果进行比较,检验模型对该地区的适用情况,为该地区植被NPP长期监测研究提供可靠依据。