Commentary on: “Indicators of European public research in hydrogen and fuel cells—an input–output analysis”

The output of European public research in hydrogen and fuel cells in terms of number of publications is reported in the paper by Seymour et al. [Indicators of European public research in hydrogen and fuel cells—An input–output analysis. Int J Hydrogen Energy 2007; 32(15): 3212–22]. The counting method for publications is not stated but whole counting has been used. It is not mentioned that the rankings of different countries might have changed if other counting methods had been used. The paper also reports measurements of citations based on the publications counted. The difference in results obtained by using different counting methods will be larger for citations but this is not mentioned. The values for the number of publications for the European countries have been added to provide the value for EU+$\mathrm{EU}+$. However, values obtained by whole counting for individual countries cannot be added to provide correct values for a union of these countries. Therefore the comparison reported in the paper between the publication output for EU+$\mathrm{EU}+$ and for US, Japan and China is invalid.     

Ex-situ bioremediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sewage sludge

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are regarded as environmental pollutants. A promising approach to reduce PAH pollution is based on the implementation of the natural potential of some microorganisms to utilize hydrocarbons. In this study Proteiniphilum acetatigenes was used for bioaugmentation of sewage sludge to improve the PAH removal. Bioaugmentation experiments were performed in parallel semi-continuously fed reactors started up with digested primary and secondary sludge. Three bioaugmentation approaches were investigated: A1, addition of bacteria once during starting up; A2, addition of bacteria at the beginning and then every 2nd day and A3, addition of encapsulated bacteria once during starting up. Removal of PAH was found to be both biotic and abiotic. All three approaches had a positive effect of the biological removal of PAH. Highest biological removal of individual PAH (up to 80%) was observed using continuous addition (approach A2) of the bacteria to the reactors. In general, the effect of bioaugmentation was higher in the reactors fed with primary sludge compared to the reactors fed with mixed sludge. Bioaugmentation resulted in biological removal of low molecular weight PAH in the reactors fed with primary sludge using all three approaches while clear biological removal of the medium- and high molecular weight PAH only was observed if the bacteria were added continuously (approach A2).     

The Development of Large Pressurized Fluid Bed Steam Dryers from Fundamental Research to Industrial Plants

Large industrial drying of particulate material (water evaporation 5 to 100 t/h) in air causes air pollution, and uses large energy supply. If the drying instead takes place in a closed system, under pressure in its own vapor, it will be possible to recover nearly 100% of the supplied energy as the energy leaves the dryer as a steam, which can be used as process steam for other purposes or be recompressed and used as an energy source for the same dryer. This will make it a heat pump dryer. Using the steam from the dryer means that air pollution with dust and volatile organic components (VOCs) will be fully avoided. That was the vision for the development over seven years starting with fundamental research followed by a pilot plant and a prototype. The ambitious goal has been reached. Thirty dryers have been built or are under construction. One dryer is currently evaporating 70 ton/h water saves 200 tons coal per day and does the drying without air pollution.     

Morphology of syndiotactic polypropylene/alumina nanocomposites

The effect of the addition of 50 nm spherical alumina nanoparticles with hydrophilic or hydrophobic surfaces on the morphology of syndiotactic polypropylene (sPP) was investigated. The filler content in the nanocomposites was 3 wt%. Polarized Optical Microscopy and Small Angle Light Scattering (SALS) studies showed that sPP and the nanocomposites form hedrites. The addition of alumina nanoparticles significantly increased the number of hedrites. A higher number of nucleation sites in the nanocomposites promote a higher crystallization rate, and thus hedritic growth was stopped at the early stage of crystallization. Quantitative evaluations by SALS analysis show that the object size is decreased by not only the crystallization conditions but also the presence of Al₂O₃ nanoparticles. A small amount of Al₂O₃ nanoparticles did not noticeably affect the crystallinity of sPP, but increased the melting point. Transmission Electron Microscopy images showed that the lamellar thickness did not change significantly with the incorporation of nanoparticles. The lamella thickness, however, depends on cooling rates. X-ray diffraction characterization indicated that the sPP and the nanocomposites were crystallized in disordered “form I”. The incorporation of alumina nanoparticles had a small effect on the crystal structure of syndiotactic polypropylene.     

Estimating the precipitation potential in urine-collecting systems

Precipitation in urine-separating toilets (NoMix toilets) and waterless urinals causes severe maintenance problems and can strongly reduce the content of soluble phosphate. In this study, we present a computer model for estimating the precipitation potential (PP) in urine-collecting systems. Calculating the PP enables to predict the composition and mass concentration of precipitates. We used our computer model for investigating how urea hydrolysis and dilution with flushing water affect precipitation. In a previous study, we found that microbial urea hydrolysis (ureolysis) triggers precipitation and that the amount of precipitates is limited by calcium and magnesium. With the present simulations, we could confirm these findings. We determined that only a small fraction of urea has to be hydrolysed for reaching 95% of the maximum PP. Since urease-positive bacteria are abundant in urine-collecting systems, strong precipitation is very likely. In further simulations, we determined that struvite (MgNH(4)PO(4).6H(2)O) and hydroxyapatite (HAP, Ca(10)(PO(4))(6)(OH)(2)) are the main precipitate compounds. If urine is highly diluted with tapwater, calcite (CaCO(3)) occurs as well. HAP is the only calcium phosphate mineral, although several others were supersaturated. Additionally, the simulations indicated that urine dilution diminishes the risk of blockages, since the mass concentration of precipitates decreases with the volume of flushing water. Rainwater flushing is more effective than flushing with tapwater. Moreover, flushing with tapwater leads to high phosphate fixation, because the total amount of calcium and magnesium ions increases, while the total amount of phosphate keeps constant. Finally, we compared simulation results with field measurements and found good agreement at low and very high urine dilution.     

High-Temperature Proton-Conducting Lanthanum Ortho-Niobate-Based Materials. Part II: Sintering Properties and Solubility of Alkaline Earth Oxides

The sintering properties and microstructure of La_{1− x} A _x NbO₄ powders ( x =0, 0.005, and 0.02 and A=Ca, Sr, and Ba), prepared by spray pyrolysis have been investigated. Dense materials (>97%) were obtained by conventional sintering at 1200°C and by hot pressing (25 MPa) at 1050°C, respectively. Homogeneous materials were obtained and the average grain size obtained by the two densification methods was ∼2.0 and ∼0.4 μm, respectively, for the 2% doped materials. Pure lanthanum ortho-niobate (LaNbO₄) showed a higher degree of grain growth. In the acceptor-doped materials, secondary phases were observed to inhibit grain growth at 1200°C. At 1400°C or higher, molten secondary phases in the Ba-doped materials resulted in severe grain growth, causing microcracking during cooling due to crystallographic anisotropy. A low solubility of AO (A=Ca, Sr, and Ba) in LaNbO₄ is inferred from the presence of secondary phases, and 1 mol% solubility of SrO in LaNbO₄ was found by electron microprobe analysis. The electrical conductivity in wet hydrogen of the materials demonstrated that the main charge carrier was protons up to 1000°C and reached a maximum value of ∼8·10⁻⁴ S/cm at 900°C.     

Haze of polyethylene films—effects of material parameters and clarifying agents

Effects of material parameters on the haze of blown films were analyzed. Four linearlow‐density polyethylenes (two metallocene grades and two Ziegler‐Natta grades) were studied in combination with three additives (two sorbitol‐based clarifying agents and a low‐molecular‐weight long‐chain branched polyethylene). One of the sorbitol‐based additives reduced the haze of both the metallocene materials in this study, but did not have any positive effect on the two Ziegler‐Natta materials. The variation in haze among the four base materials was directly related to the root‐mean‐square surface roughness (σ). When considering all 16 material/additive combinations, the link between haze and surface topography was not a simple σ‐haze relationship, but the haze was correlated with the average distance between adjacent surface profile peaks, the average slope, and the power spectral density at high lateral frequencies. Both of the mechanisms referred to in the literature, extrusion‐induced haze and crystallization‐induced haze, were probably active for the films in this study.     

Determination of Levoglucosan in Particulate Matter Reference Materials

Source identification is critical for the effective management of air pollution. The ratio of levoglucosan (1,6-anhydro- β -D-glucose) to organic carbon has been used to identify and quantify the contribution of biomass combustion to the organic carbon content in aerosols. Therefore, accurate levoglucosan measurements in particulate matter are important. This study determined levoglucosan concentrations in urban dust Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) 1649a and 1648 available from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as well as two particulate matter samples with particle sizes nominally 2.5 μ m and smaller collected in Baltimore, MD. Levoglucosan was extracted using both pressurized fluid and Soxhlet techniques. Quantification was performed with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) using a deuterated levoglucosan internal standard and two different GC columns. Levoglucosan concentrations were 81.1 μ g g^?1 with a standard deviation of 9.4 μ g g^?1 (n = 9) for SRM 1649a, 107 μ g g^?1 with a standard deviation of 18 μ g g ^?1 (n = 8) for SRM 1648, 225 μ g g^?1 (standard deviation of 41 μ g g^?1 n = 4) and 138 μ g g^?1 (standard deviation of 39 μ g g ^{? 1} n = 5) for the two fine particulate matter samples collected in Baltimore, MD.     

Hepatic blood flow and splanchnic oxygen consumption in patients with liver failure. Effect of high-volume plasmapheresis

Liver failure represents a major therapeutic challenge, and yet basic pathophysiological questions about hepatic perfusion and oxygenation in this condition have been poorly investigated. In this study, hepatic blood flow (HBF) and splanchnic oxygen delivery (DO2, sp) and oxygen consumption (VO2,sp) were assessed in patients with liver failure defined as hepatic encephalopathy grade II or more. Measurements were repeated after high-volume plasmapheresis (HVP) with exchange of 8 to 10 L of plasma. HBF was estimated by use of constant infusion of D-sorbitol and calculated according to Fick's principle from peripheral artery and hepatic vein concentrations. In 14 patients with acute liver failure (ALF), HBF (1.78 +/- 0.78 L/min) and VO2,sp (3.9 +/- 0.9 mmol/min) were higher than in 11 patients without liver disease (1.07 +/- 0.19 L/min, P <.01) and (2.3 +/- 0.7 mmol/min, P <.001). In 9 patients with acute on chronic liver disease (AOCLD), HBF (1.96 +/- 1.19 L/min) and VO2,sp (3.9 +/- 2.3 mmol/min) were higher than in 18 patients with stable cirrhosis (1.00 +/- 0.36 L/min, P <.005; and 2.0 +/- 0.6 mmol/min, P <.005). During HVP, HBF increased from 1.67 +/- 0.72 to 2.07 +/- 1.11 L/min (n=11) in ALF, and from 1.89 +/- 1.32 to 2.34 +/- 1.54 L/min (n=7) in AOCLD, P <.05 in both cases. In patients with ALF, cardiac output (thermodilution) was unchanged (6.7 +/- 2.5 vs. 6.6 +/- 2.2 L/min, NS) during HVP. Blood flow was redirected to the liver as the systemic vascular resistance index increased (1,587 +/- 650 vs. 2, 020 +/- 806 Dyne. s. cm-5. m2, P <.01) whereas splanchnic vascular resistance was unchanged. In AOCLD, neither systemic nor splanchnic vascular resistance was affected by HVP, but as cardiac output increased from 9.1 +/- 2.8 to 10.1 +/- 2.9 L/min (P <.01) more blood was directed to the splanchnic region. In all liver failure patients treated with HVP (n=18), DO2,sp increased by 15% (P <.05) whereas VO2,sp was unchanged. Endothelin-1 (ET-1) and ET-3 were determined before and after HVP. Changes of ET-1 were positively correlated with changes in HBF (P <.005) and VO2,sp (P <.05), indicating a role for ET-1 in splanchnic circulation and oxygenation. ET-3 was negatively correlated with systemic vascular resistance index before HVP (P <.05) but changes during HVP did not correlate. Our data suggest that liver failure is associated with increased HBF and VO2, sp. HVP further increased HBF and DO2,sp but VO2,sp was unchanged, indicating that splanchnic hypoxia was not present.     

Psychometric properties of the Accident Fear Questionnaire: An analysis based on motor vehicle accident survivors in a rehabilitation setting.

ABSTRACT. Objective: To evaluate the reliability and validity of the Accident Fear Questionnaire (AFQ; K. Kuch, B. J. Cox, & D. M. Direnfeld, 1995), a self-rated instrument developed for efficient screening of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and phobic avoidance after involvement in a motor vehicle accident (MVA). Participants: One hundred thirteen individuals receiving rehabilitation after an MVA. Setting: Tertiary rehabilitation center. Main Measures: The AFQ, comprising a 10-item accident profile and a 10-item phobic avoidance (PA) subscale; a structured clinical interview; and other self-report measures of psychopathology, personality and pain. Results: Correlations between the AFQ-PA total score and measures of psychopathology and personality indicated adequate convergent and discriminant validity. Patients diagnosed with PTSD or accident phobia scored higher on the AFQ-PA subscale and 6 of its 10 items than did those with neither diagnosis. An AFQ-PA cutoff score of 15 appears suitable for screening of patients in a rehabilitation setting. Hierarchical logistic regression indicated that the AFQ-PA was the only self-report measure that possessed incremental power over and above general negative affectivity in predicting group membership… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)