Comparative study of MSW heat treatment processes and electricity generation

This paper discusses the latest analysis in solid waste thermal treatment methods including life cycle assessment (LCA), process systems, economic and energy analysis. The MSW collected by municipalities such as paper, plastics, organic materials, glass, metals, food, leather and rubber can be utilized, via primary treatment methods which are mainly pyrolysis, gasification and combined pyrolysis gasification (P–G) cycles to generate thermal energy or electricity. The importance of solid waste treatment comes from its potential to convert waste into several sources of energy or fuels such as gasoline, syngas or diesel, eliminate waste, and reduce CO₂ emissions. The process systems are explained in terms of process stages, carrier gases, operating pressures and temperatures, end products and reaction residence time. According to MSW management statistics, landfilling and incineration are considered a major activity and is incompatible with the exponential increase of global production of MSW per year. Environmental analysis shows that combined pyrolysis–gasification has lowest environmental impact with acceptable results for pyrolysis and gasification. Economic analysis shows highest capital cost for combined pyrolysis gasification (P–G) followed by pyrolysis and gasification process systems respectively. Operating and maintenance cost shows highest for pyrolysis, while gasification systems show highest revenue per ton.     

Power system reliability evaluation

A review is provided of indices and methods for evaluating power system reliability performance using probability theory. Particular emphasis is placed on development since about 1960, when a stochastic process view of power systems was used for reliability evaluation. The present status of such evaluation is given, and desirable areas of further research are outlined.     

Predictive validity of the Child Abuse Potential Inventory.

200 predominantly female parents (average age 22.4 yrs) who were participants in an at-risk parent–child program were administered the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI) to determine the degree of correspondence between Ss' CAPI scores and subsequent confirmed reports of abuse, neglect, or failure to thrive. It was found that 42 parents were reported to a suspected child abuse and neglect team, confirmed for maltreatment, and referred to a human resources department; 11 Ss were reported for abuse, 15 for neglect, and 16 for failure to thrive. Although all abusive Ss earned scores above the CAPI cutoff score for abuse, the majority of Ss earning elevated scores did not abuse. A significant relationship was found between CAPI abuse scores and subsequent abuse and between abuse scores and later neglect. No relationship was found between abuse scores and subsequent failure to thrive. Findings support the predictive validity of the CAPI. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cationisation of Glycerol Plasticised Wheat Starch under Microhydric Molten Conditions

Cationisation of glycerol plasticised wheat starch was performed in a molten mixture under the action of thermo‐mechanical energy using two reagents: 3‐chloro‐2‐hydroxypropyltrimethylammonium chloride and 2‐epoxypropyltrimethylammonium chloride. The reaction was catalysed with sodium hydroxide under microhydric conditions. The results showed that under these conditions the reaction proceeds rapidly and reaches completion within a few minutes. The reaction efficiencies were higher for lower degrees of substitution (DS). The epoxide showed a higher reactivity than the chloro derivative. Both destructurisation of starch granules and increased sodium hydroxide concentration enhanced the reaction, but an increase in plasticiser concentration had a negative effect. Measurements of intrinsic viscosity showed a decrease of the average molecular weight of the product, which was attributed to the thermo‐mechanical melting process. An increase in water affinity with DS was seen in the water sorption properties of the chemically modified starch.     

Smart hybrid SDN approach for MPLS VPN management on digital environment

Telecommunication Systems - MPLS VPN is growing in front of the other network layer tunneling technologies of the OSI model. The trend related to this technology is justified mainly by the...     

Nonlinear dimensionality reduction in robot vision for industrial monitoring process via deep three dimensional Spearman correlation analysis (D3D-SCA)

Multimedia Tools and Applications - During the era of Industry 4.0, the industrial robot monitoring process is getting success and popularity day by day. It also plays a vital role in the...     

HPLC–PDA–ESI–MS/MS profiling and chemopreventive potential of Eucalyptus gomphocephala DC

An HPLC–PDA–ESI/MS/MS method was developed to identify the phytoconstituents of the EtOAc fraction of Eucalyptus gomphocephala DC. The antioxidant effect of the EtOAc fraction together with its sub-fractions was determined in vitro. The cytotoxicity was evaluated on different cell lines. The EtOAc fraction exhibited strong antioxidant activity, reduced the viability of all cell lines and was more active on MCF-7 and HepG-2 cell lines. Subsequently, the cytotoxicity of the sub-fractions and the isolated compounds were tested on MCF-7, HepG-2. The EtOAc fraction possessed potential antitumour promoting properties. It inhibited the stimulated NO (20%), 5-LOX (48.0%) and COX-2 (49.7%) respectively (at concentration of 20 μg/ml). This study suggests that this fraction is a source of different antioxidant and cytotoxic compounds with potential chemopreventive properties that might prevent different stages of the carcinogenesis process.     

Synthesis and chemical modification of new luminescent substituted poly(p-phenylene) polymers

A new acyl-functionalized poly(p-phenylene) (Ac-PPP) was synthesized by Yamamoto cross-coupling and chemically modified to obtain an anthracene-containing derivative (An-PPP). The chemical structures of the polymers were confirmed by ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, and FTIR spectroscopic analysis. They are fully soluble in common organic solvents and have number-average molecular weight of 2.70 × 10³ and 5.26 × 10³ g mol⁻¹ for Ac-PPP and An-PPP, respectively. The optical properties of the polymers were investigated by UV–visible absorption and photoluminescence spectroscopies. A green emission was observed in Ac-PPP solid thin film and a yellow one in the anthracene-containing polymer An-PPP. The optical bandgap values were 3.21 and 3.08 eV for Ac-PPP and An-PPP, respectively. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

The effect of UV‐irradiation and molten medium on the mechanical and thermal properties of polystyrene–polycarbonate blends

Polymer materials with improved properties can be obtained through polymer blends. As a polymer mixture is generally immiscible and incompatible, it is necessary to develop new methods to improve the interfacial adhesion. The aim of this work is to find formulations and associated processes to upgrade engineering polystyrene (PS) and polycarbonate (PC) polymer blends with the objective of using the best “process‐formulation” couple. In this study, blends of PS/PC were prepared in molten medium using reactive extrusion after UV‐irradiation. The effects of UV‐irradiation on some properties of blends under molten medium were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The data showed that the presence of polycarbonate in the blend increased the tensile strength and elongation at break with respect to pure PS. The mechanical properties of the blends were improved after irradiation. All irradiated blends are thermally more stable than those nonirradiated. Chemical changes can be clearly seen in FTIR spectra through two bands assigned to C?O and OH groups. The mutual influence between the PS/PC polymer blends compositions during UV‐irradiation was studied. PS and PC have different photo‐mechanisms due to the larger UV absorption of polystyrene and formation of more stable tertiary carbon radicals. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012