Quantifying technological aspects of process sustainability: a thermodynamic approach

Thermodynamic analysis has greatly helped to compare and to improve the energy efficiency of all kinds of technological processes, and recently we have also attempted to analyse some important biochemical processes under intracellular conditions. This work has pointed to some key strategies on sustainable process operation, such as the exceptionally high thermodynamic efficiencies of chemical and solar energy conversion in living cells.From this it was expected that the sustainability strategies of specific biochemical processes and those of the ecosphere as a whole could be of guidance to current technological processes, especially now that there is a growing demand from government and industry to effectively deal with sustainability aspects in process analysis. Our focus on this issue has led to methodologies to quantify technological aspects of sustainability by making use of thermodynamic principles. Three indicators were constructed to express three technological aspects of process sustainability. First, an indicator for the sustainability of resource utilization considers the thermodynamic input and the availability the resources used in the process. Secondly, an efficiency indicator focuses on the conversion and loss of thermodynamic quantities in the process itself. Thirdly, an indicator for environmental compatibility takes into account the thermodynamic input required to prevent possible negative side effects of the process, such as global warming or water pollution. The three indicators are used to reflect on (un)sustainable characteristics of current technological processes compared to biochemical processes. Finally, we address the drawbacks of combining indicator values to express overall sustainability.     

Thermoplastic vulcanizates obtained by reaction-induced phase separation: Interplay between phase separation dynamics,final morphology and mechanical properties

Reaction-induced phase separation (RIPS) of miscible blends of poly(?-caprolactone) (PCL) and an epoxy resin based on poly(propylene oxide) (PPO) was used to prepare thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs) with fine rubber dispersions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed the formation of cross-linked rubber particles dispersed in the thermoplastic matrix at PCL contents ≥20 wt%. The morphology development during phase separation was studied by optical microscopy (OM) and time-resolved small-angle light scattering (SALS). It was shown that higher curing temperatures lead to a decrease in rubber particle size, but at the same time lead to an increase in the extent of particle connectivity. In some cases, gelation of the PPO-rich phase limits full structure development, which leads to extensive connectivity between the dispersed rubber particles and a strong deterioration in tensile properties.     

An improved system for the control of dissolved oxygen in freshwater aquaria

A system for the removal and control of dissolved oxygen (DO) from freshwater was designed and constructed with aquarium-type fish studies in mind. Degassed water was obtained using a partial vacuum of -14 psi, and DO regulated at an aquarium scale using electronically controlled aeration with timed partial water renewal. The degassing system was capable of producing water with approximately 1.7 mg L(-1) DO within 10 min of operation, and 0.55 mg L(-1) after 2h. The control system was capable of maintaining DO levels of ca 0.8 mg L(-1) over 48 h in the absence of aeration and further capable of precisely controlling DO levels as low as 1.16+/-0.002 mg L(-1) (mean+/-SEM) with aeration over a 48 h period.     

Critical incidents and chronic stressors at work: Their impact on forensic doctors.

Workers in medium- or high-risk professions are often confronted with critical incidents at the workplace. The impact of these acute stressors may be serious and enduring. Many workers also experience chronic job stressors, such as work overload or role conflicts. This study examined the frequently neglected relationship of acute and chronic stressors with self-reported health symptoms, such as posttraumatic responses, fatigue, and burnout. This association was investigated in a sample of forensic doctors in the Netherlands (N = 84). It was found that the more traumatic events the respondents experienced, the more problems they reported in coping with the traumatic events. Chronic job stressors were associated with posttraumatic responses (intrusions and avoidances) and with burnout and fatigue. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of morphological information on cataphoric pronoun assignment.

In 3 eye-tracking experiments, the authors investigated the use of morphological information during pronoun resolution. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that disruption occurred when a preferred assignment was inconsistent with gender information. Experiment 2 ensured that this difficulty was not due to the introduction of a new discourse entity. Experiment 3 showed that disruption also occurred when number information was inconsistent with the preferred assignment. The results indicate that the use of morphological information is delayed until after the computation of coreference relations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of adolescent reading comprehension in language 1 and language 2: A longitudinal analysis of constituent components.

This study investigated the relationship between reading comprehension development of 389 adolescents in their dominant language (Language 1 [L1], Dutch) and a foreign language (Language 2 [L2], English). In each consecutive year from Grades 8 through 10, a number of measurements were taken. Students' reading comprehension, their linguistic knowledge (vocabulary and grammar knowledge) and processing efficiency (speed of word recognition and sentence comprehension) in both languages, and their metacognitive knowledge about reading were assessed. The relative strengths of the effects of these components of reading were analyzed to distinguish among 3 hypotheses about the relationship between L1 and L2 reading comprehension: the transfer hypothesis, the threshold hypothesis, and the processing efficiency hypothesis. The transfer hypothesis predicts a strong relationship between L1 and L2 reading comprehension and a strong effect of metacognitive knowledge on L2 reading comprehension, whereas the threshold and processing efficiency hypotheses predict a more important role of language-specific knowledge and processing skills. Results support the transfer hypothesis, although language-specific knowledge and fluency also contribute to L2 reading performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Factors affecting contrasting results between self-reported and performance-based levels of physical limitation

Molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) maps of certain 3-methoxy flavone derivatives having different anti-picornavirus activities have been studied. Geometries of the molecules were optimised and charge distributions computed using the AM1 molecular orbital method. Hybridization displacement charges (HDC) were combined with the L?wdin charge distributions to compute the MEP maps. Reliability of the method of computing MEP maps was tested by studying certain other molecules for which ab initio MEP results are available. The anti-picornavirus activities of the flavones have been shown to be related with negative MEP values in two regions, one near the 3-methoxy group and another in a diagonally opposite region near the substituent attached to the C7 atom of the molecules.     

A planar integrated RCD snubber/voltage clamp

In order to reduce the cost, size, and weight of power electronic systems, it has become necessary to integrate electromagnetic structures, which until now have been constructed with discrete components. This approach not only reduces the component count, but also gives much greater control over parasitic elements. In this article, the authors describe an electromagnetically integrated resistor-capacitor-diode (RCD) snubber/voltage clamp that uses a planar construction technique. The design and construction are described and the performance is verified experimentally. Some advantages of the integrated component over its discrete counterpart are also given