Construction of hydrogen fermentation from garbage slurry using the membrane free bioelectrochemical system

The aim of this study was to show the effectiveness of the membrane free bioelectrochemical system (BES) using three electrodes on inhibition of methanogenesis and construction of hydrogen fermentation from the artificial garbage slurry. The electrical redox-potential on the working electrode was adjusted to -1.0V (vs. Ag/AgCl) that has positive effect on methanogenesis. The redox-potential on the counter electrode was measured to be 1.6V. The pH in the effluents was 5.5-6.4. Hydrogen production rate at the cathode side was similar to that at the anode side and much higher than that calculated from current, and reached a maximum of 2445±815 (average±standard deviation) mL?L(-1)?d(-1) at an organic loading rate of 58.7g dichromate chemical oxygen demand per L d(-1). Methane production was negligible throughout the experiment. Acetate and butyrate were the main products of the fermentation using a BES; these offered favorable conditions for hydrogen production. The bacterial community in the bioelectrochemical hydrogen fermentor differed from that in the methanogenic seed sludge and included hitherto unknown species. These results show that high redox-potential on the anodic electrode and acidic pH in the membrane free BES can be utilized for hydrogen fermentation from the artificial garbage slurry by avoiding methanogenesis.     

Acceleration of cellulose degradation and shift of product via methanogenic co-culture of a cellulolytic bacterium with a hydrogenotrophic methanogen

Although the effects of syntrophic relationships between bacteria and methanogens have been reported in some environments, those on cellulose decomposition using cellulolytic bacteria from methanogenic reactors have not yet been examined. The effects of syntrophic co-culture on the decomposition of a cellulosic material were investigated in a co-culture of Clostridium clariflavum strain CL-1 and the hydrogenotrophic methanogen Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus strain ΔH and a single-culture of strain CL-1 under thermophilic conditions. In this study, strain CL-1 was newly isolated as a cellulolytic bacterium from a thermophilic methanogenic reactor used for degrading garbage slurry. The degradation efficiency and cell density of strain CL-1 were 2.9- and 2.7-fold higher in the co-culture than in the single-culture after 60?h of incubation, respectively. Acetate, lactate and ethanol were the primary products in both cultures, and the concentration of propionate was low. The content of acetate to total organic acids plus ethanol was 59.3% in the co-culture. However, the ratio decreased to 24.9% in the single-culture, although acetate was the primary product. Therefore, hydrogen scavenging by the hydrogenotrophic methanogen strain ΔH could shift the metabolic pathway to the acetate production pathway in the co-culture. Increases in the cell density and the consequent acceleration of cellulose degradation in the co-culture would be caused by increases in adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) levels, as the acetate production pathway includes ATP generation. Syntrophic cellulose decomposition by the cellulolytic bacteria and hydrogenotrophic methanogens would be the dominant reaction in the thermophilic methanogenic reactor degrading cellulosic materials.     

Round‐robin measurement intercomparison of c‐Si PV modules among Asian testing laboratories

Because of recent advances in the production and installation of photovoltaic (PV) systems, the international conformity of PV module performance measurement has become increasingly important. The increase in PV production sites is particularly significant in the Asian region. The present paper summarizes and discusses the results of a round‐robin intercomparison of crystalline silicon modules among national laboratories and certified testing laboratories in the Asian region conducted from 2009 to 2011. Most of the values of P_max measured at the different laboratories were within a ±2% range, although some P_max results showed differences of up to about 3%. This result is comparable to that obtained in the recent intercomparison among international laboratories. Possible sources of difference in the measured values of I_sc, V_oc, FF, and P_max are discussed, for further improvement of international conformity in PV measurement technologies. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Queuing Scheme for Improved Downlink Throughput on WLANs

A transmission queuing scheme is described that increases downlink throughput on wireless local area networks (WLANs) while also increasing the total throughput. When the amount of uplink traffic increases on a WLAN, the carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) protocol, which is the prescribed scheme for IEEE 802.11 WLAN channel access, may substantially reduce the rate of downlink data frame transmission. This results in severe throughput degradation for mobile stations with downlink traffic. The proposed scheme comprises a transmission control function based on consecutive transmission, as described in the IEEE 802.11e standard, and a dynamic queue prioritization algorithm. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme increases the maximum total throughput for uplink and downlink traffic by 17% compared with the conventional distributed coordination function (DCF) scheme and that it reduces the difference between uplink and downlink throughput. In an environment where transmission errors occur, the difference in throughput is reduced by about 50% compared with the conventional schemes.     

A high-reliability alumina-platinum multilayer system for implantable medical devices

A new Pt-Al₂O₃ multilayer composite system has been developed and validated with an Accelerated Life Test (ALT) to confirm its potential for long-term use in implantable medical devices (IMD). Panels containing over 100 Pt vias were subjected to highly accelerated immersion testing in deionized water at temperatures ranging from 90 to 175°C. Deionized water was employed as it best represents the IMD use environment. Degradation of individual Pt vias was evaluated using fluorescent dye infiltration into the subsurface of the panels. ALT guided refinement of materials and processing to produce a Pt-Al₂O₃ multilayer composite system with promising performance for possible use in implantable devices.     

Beta-1,3 Oligoglucans Specifically Bind to Immune Receptor CD28 and May Enhance T Cell Activation

Beta glucans are known to have immunomodulatory effects that mediated by a variety of mechanisms. In this article, we describe experiments and simulations suggesting that beta-1,3 glucans may promote activation of T cells by a previously unknown mechanism. First, we find that treatment of a T lymphoblast cell line with beta-1,3 oligoglucan significantly increases mRNA levels of T cell activation-associated cytokines, especially in the presence of the agonistic anti-CD3 antibody. This immunostimulatory activity was observed in the absence of dectin-1, a known receptor for beta-1,3 glucans. To clarify the molecular mechanism underlying this activity, we performed a series of molecular dynamics simulations and free-energy calculations to explore the interaction of beta-1,3 oligoglucans with potential immune receptors. While the simulations reveal little association between beta-1,3 oligoglucan and the immune receptor CD3, we find that beta-1,3 oligoglucans bind to CD28 near the region identified as the binding site for its natural ligands CD80 and CD86. Using a rigorous absolute binding free-energy technique, we calculate a dissociation constant in the low millimolar range for binding of 8-mer beta-1,3 oligoglucan to this site on CD28. The simulations show this binding to be specific, as no such association is computed for alpha-1,4 oligoglucan. This study suggests that beta-1,3 glucans bind to CD28 and may stimulate T cell activation collaboratively with T cell receptor activation, thereby stimulating immune function.     

Managing transboundary rivers: The case of the Mekong river basin

Abstract

During the last decade, leaders of the Mekong Countries have found it mutually advantageous to open up the Mekong Sub‐Region (MR) for development and trade, which promises some degree of political stability and regional security. Within the present political, cultural, and economic dynamics, the Mekong River Basin (MRB) ‐ one of the major international river basins in MR ‐ is a powerful catalyst for regional cooperation that facilitates sustainable development and regional stability; if, that is, the effective management intervention is in place to make sure that the benefits and costs of river basin development are spread equitably and peacefully. Nonetheless, there are numerous stumbling blocks in achieving integrated and balanced MRB management, such as limited success in real basin wide planning, implementation and monitoring and a poor knowledge base for supporting informed decision making and, finally, political impediments.

A workable and truly regional cooperative mechanism for integrated management of the MRB is yet to be developed, regardless of the existence of numerous regional institutions and organizations. The present paper proposes new schemes with (re)designing principles and performance determinants for a regional cooperative mechanism.     

Dissipativity reinforcement in feedback systems and its application to expanding power systems

This paper focuses on the performance analysis and improvement of interconnected passive systems. We assume that each subsystem has a special passivity property that is characterized by 2 parameters. The parameters are also utilized for evaluating the dissipation performance as the L₂‐gain. Then, the feedback system composed of passive subsystems inherits the parameter‐dependent passivity, and the parameter transition is given. In addition, it is shown that the dissipation performance of the feedback system is strictly improved as compared with that of the subsystems, which is called dissipativity reinforcement in this paper. Furthermore, we expand the feedback system to a larger‐scale system via the iterative feedback connection of the passive subsystems. Then, the performance of the entire system is gradually reinforced with the increase in the number of subsystems. Subsequently, we extend the class of parameter‐dependent passivity to a frequency‐dependent one. Finally, dissipativity reinforcement via an iterative feedback connection is applied to a power system that involves a large number of renewable energy generators. In particular, we propose a strategy for designing the power system, such that the dissipation performance of the entire system is gradually reinforced via scale expansion, ie, with the increase in the amount of energy generators installed.     

Bending fatigue strength of case-carburized helical gears (In the case of large helix angles)

Case-carburizing enlarges the depth of the hardened layer at the tooth width end on the acute angle side of helical gears. For the helical gears with large helix angles (Exceeding 25°), this hardened layer may lower their bending fatigue strength. Therefore, we investigated the influence of this hardened layer on their bending fatigue strength through the bending fatigue tests. Our results suggest that this hardened layer might reduce the case-carburizing’s effect to enhance their bending fatigue strength. Thus, using only the maximum tooth root stress would be inadequate for evaluating their bending fatigue strength, and it would be necessary to consider the relationship between the hardened layer and the tooth root stress distribution (Especially, the stress applied at the tooth width end on the acute angle side) from the beginning of meshing to the end.