Aerobic moving bed biofilm reactor treating thermomechanical pulping whitewater under thermophilic conditions

The continuously operated laboratory scale Kaldnes moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) was used for thermophilic (55 degrees C) aerobic treatment of TMP whitewater. In the MBBR, the biomass is grown on carrier elements that move along with the water in the reactor. Inoculation with mesophilic activated sludge gave 60-65% SCOD removal from the first day onwards. During the 107 days of experiment, the 60-65% SCOD removals were achieved at organic loading rates of 2.5-3.5 kg SCODm(-3) d(-1), the highest loading rates applied during the run and HRT of 13-22h. Carbohydrates, which contributed to 50-60% of the influent SCOD. were removed by 90-95%, while less than 15% of the lignin-like material (30-35% of SCODin) was removed. The sludge yield was 0.23g VSSg SCOD(-1)removed. The results show that the aerobic biofilm process can be successfully operated under thermophilic conditions.     

Prevalence of alcohol and drugs among Norwegian motor vehicle drivers: a roadside survey

The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of alcohol, psychoactive medicinal drugs and illegal drugs among drivers in Norwegian road traffic. Drivers of motor vehicles were selected from April 2005 to April 2006 in the south-eastern part of Norway, surrounding, but not including the capital, Oslo. A stratified two-stage cluster sampling procedure was used. In the first stage, random road sites and time intervals were selected, and in the second stage, drivers were stopped by random at those sites and time intervals. Altogether about 12,000 drivers were asked to provide a sample of oral fluid (saliva) and answer a few questions. Samples of oral fluid were obtained from 88% of the drivers, of whom 30% were females and 70% males. The prevalence of each drug was estimated by a weighted average using weights adjusted for under- or over-sampling compared to traffic statistics. Alcohol or drugs were found in oral fluid samples of 4.5% of the drivers; alcohol in 0.4%, psychoactive medicinal drugs in 3.4%, and illegal drugs in 1.0%. Illegal drugs were found more frequently in samples from younger drivers, while psychoactive medicinal drugs were more frequently found in samples from older drivers. Psychoactive medicinal drugs were more prevalent among females than males, among drivers stopped on working days rather than weekends, and among those who reported annual driving distances less than 16,000km. The drugs found most frequently were zopiclone (1.4%), benzodiazepines (1.4%), codeine (0.8%), tetrahydrocannabinol (0.6%) and amphetamines (0.3%). Two or more drugs were found in 0.6% of the samples, corresponding to 15% of the drug-positive drivers.     

TearSim: A two-phase model addressing hot tearing formation during aluminum direct chill casting

A two-phase mathematical model for the study of hot tearing formation is presented. The model accounts for the main phenomena associated with the formation of hot tears, i.e., the lack of feeding at the late stages of solidification and the localization of viscoplastic deformation. The model incorporates an advanced viscoplastic constitutive model for the coherent part of the mushy zone, allowing for the possibility of dilatation/densification of the semisolid skeleton under applied deformation. Based on quantities computed by the model, a hot tearing criterion is proposed where liquid feeding difficulties and viscoplastic deformation at the late stages of solidification are taken into account. The model is applied to study hot tearing formation during the start-up phase for direct-chill (DC) casting of extrusion ingots, and to discuss the effect of different phenomena and process parameters. The modeling results are also compared to experimentally measured hot tearing susceptibilities, and the model is able to reproduce known experimental trends such as the effect of the casting speed and the importance of the design of the starting block.     

Vapor–liquid equilibrium in aqueous amine amino acid salt solution: 3-(methylamino)propylamine/sarcosine

Vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE) measurements were conducted for both unloaded and CO₂ loaded aqueous amine amino acid salt (AAAS) solutions; 3-(methylamino)propylamine/sarcosine (SARMAPA). Vapor–liquid equilibrium for unloaded solutions for 1.0–5.0 M SARMAPA were measured using a Swietoslawski ebulliometer for temperatures 40–100 °C and for total pressures 4.08–99.1 kPa. CO₂ equilibrium was determined for loaded 5 M SARMAPA using low and high temperature VLE apparatuses from 40 to 120 °C. A thermodynamic model representing equilibrium in the H₂O–AAAS–CO₂ system was developed using the extended UNIQUAC thermodynamic framework. The developed model predicts simplified speciations in H₂O–SARMAPA–CO₂ system and adequately correlates the experimental total and partial pressure data with an average absolute deviation of 8.9%.     

Kinetics of carbon dioxide absorption into aqueous amine amino acid salt: 3-(methylamino)propylamine/sarcosine solution

A string of discs contactor apparatus was used to measure the CO₂ absorption kinetics into an unloaded aqueous amine amino acid salt, 3-(methylamino)propylamine/sarcosine, SARMAPA solution. The solution was prepared by mixing equinormal proportions of sarcosine, SAR and 3-(methylamino)propylamine, MAPA. Experiments were carried out for the concentration range 1.0–5.0 kmol m⁻³ and for temperatures 25–62 °C. The termolecular mechanism was applied to interpret the experimental data after correcting for non-idealities from the ionic strength using an ionic correction factor. A model correlation without the ionic strength correction was found not to give a good fit to the experimental data. The reaction rate constant for aqueous SARMAPA was determined and found to be comparable to values for amines. It increases significantly with temperature and concentration. The reaction rate constant for water is higher in the SARMAPA system than in amine systems indicating that water contributes significantly to the overall absorption rate and more than in amine systems. The reaction order with respect to the amino acid salt, SARMAPA, concentration varies from 1.06 to 1.43 with an average value of 1.21. A simplified approach applied to the complex speciation chemistry of the amine amino acid salt, AAAS, system gave a good representation of the experimentally observed kinetic rate constant.     

Kinetics of the reaction of carbon dioxide with aqueous sodium and potassium carbonate solutions

Kinetics for CO₂ absorption into 5–30 wt-% sodium carbonate solutions and 5–50 wt-% potassium carbonate solutions up to 70 °C were studied in a string of discs apparatus under conditions, in which the reaction of CO₂ could be assumed pseudo-first-order. The experimental data were evaluated based on the use of activities in the reaction rate expressions. The second order kinetic constant for the CO₂ reaction CO₂+OH^??HCO₃^? at infinite dilution is discussed and an expression for it is obtained up to 70 °C.The difference between the activity and concentration based kinetic constants were found to be small at low concentrations, where the apparent Henry’s law constant is close to that at infinite dilution in water. However, at high concentrations (high apparent Henry’s law constants), the difference was bigger. Using the activity based approach, the second order kinetic constant was calculated, compared to the second order kinetic constant in infinite dilution and found to be independent of both carbonate concentration and the cation present in the solution.     

Prevalence of alcohol and drugs among motorcycle riders killed in road crashes in Norway during 2001–2010

The aim of the study was to examine the prevalence of alcohol and drugs in blood samples from motorcycle riders who died in road crashes in Norway from 2001 to 2010. An additional aim was to compare the prevalence of alcohol and drugs in blood samples from fatally injured motorcycle riders and car drivers who died during the same time period.     

Validation of Predicted Residual Stresses within Direct Chill Cast Magnesium Alloy Slab

A significant level of cold cracking has been observed within direct chill (DC) cast, high-strength magnesium alloy Elektron WE43. These cracks have been attributed to the formation of significant residual stresses during casting. A finite-element modeling (FEM) code, which is called ALSIM, has been used to predict the residual stress within the DC-cast slab. Verification of the predicted residual stress field within an 870 × 315-mm sized slab has been carried out using neutron diffraction measurements. Given that measurements in such large-scale components using diffraction measurements are particularly challenging and expensive, the efficient use of neutron diffraction measurements is emphasized. This has included the use of sectioning, allowing the residual stress within the slab to be mapped in detail.     

MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUES AND DATA INTERPRETATIONS FOR VALIDATING CFD MULTI PHASE REACTOR MODELS

One problem associated with the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics(CFD) in reactor modeling is the proper validation of the models. Proper validation in this context means that the physical fluid dynamic model, the mathematical implementation and the data used for validation must be consistent. The present paper addresses this issue and to provide appropriate relations between experimental method and modeling approach

A critical review of currently used measurement techniques for characterizing multiphase now systems is presented. The interpretation of the data obtained from the various techniques is discussed as well as how these data can be used for validation of various CFD model formulations

Steady state models can be validated using time averaged data, making sure that the averaging time for the experimental data is long enough so that low frequency periodic oscillations also are evened out. If homogeneous systems are considered, then a volume average approach may be used for modeling, If the system cannot be considered homogeneous and steady, as is the most common case, then a dynamic ensemble averaging technique should be preferred. The validation of such models must be done with methods fast enough to resolve periodic fluctuating structures of interest. These methods are cumbersome and tedious to operate and the ergodic hypothesis may be invoked enabling the use of volume or time averaged data for the validation of ensemble averaged models.