Use of computational fluid dynamics simulations for design of a pretreatment screw conveyor reactor

Computational fluid dynamics simulations were employed to compare performance of various designs of a pretreatment screw conveyor reactor. The reactor consisted of a vertical screw used to create cross flow between the upward conveying solids and the downward flow of acid. Simulations were performed with the original screw design and a modified design in which the upper flights of the screw were removed. Results of the simulations show visually that the modified design provided favorable plug flow behavior within the reactor. Pressure drop across the length of the reactor without the upper screws in place was predicted by the simulations to be 5 vs 40 kPa for the original design.     

Rail vs truck transport of biomass

This study analyzes the economics of transshipping biomass from truck to train in a North American setting. Transshipment will only be economic when the cost per unit distance of a second transportation mode is less than the original mode. There is an optimum number of transshipment terminals which is related to biomass yield. Transshipment incurs incremental fixed costs, and hence there is a minimum shipping distance for rail transport above which lower costs/km offset the incremental fixed costs. For transport by dedicated unit train with an optimum number of terminals, the minimum economic rail shipping distance for straw is 170 km, and for boreal forest harvest residue wood chips is 145 km. The minimum economic shipping distance for straw exceeds the biomass draw distance for economically sized centrally located power plants, and hence the prospects for rail transport are limited to cases in which traffic congestion from truck transport would otherwise preclude project development. Ideally, wood chip transport costs would be lowered by rail transshipment for an economically sized centrally located power plant, but in a specific case in Alberta, Canada, the layout of existing rail lines precludes a centrally located plant supplied by rail, whereas a more versatile road system enables it by truck. Hence for wood chips as well as straw the economic incentive for rail transport to centrally located processing plants is limited. Rail transshipment may still be preferred in cases in which road congestion precludes truck delivery, for example as result of community objections.     

生物质洁净能源研究中的流化床动力学模型

分别对最小流化床、鼓泡流化床和腾涌流化床及相应的全混模型、鼓泡模型、气泡汇集模型等加以综述 ,分析其优缺点 ,并在此基础上提出动力学模拟研究的新思路 .根据流化床内在的本质———流化态的不同 ,将流化床分为最小流化床、鼓泡流化床和腾涌流化床三种 .总结了前人针对各种流化床提出的全混模型、鼓泡模型、气泡汇集模型等思想 ,建议今后可以在以下几个方面进行深入研究 :⑴使得模型更有普适性 .⑵由于气泡有效直径尚不能在理论上求得 ,可以在理想气泡直径变化公式的基础上 ,加入非线性化学的计算 .⑶确定不同情况下的参数 ,使得工作更有延续性 ,也使得模型更加具有生命力 .⑷从高压的角度去进行模型的计算 ,并得到相应的试验数据支持 .     

Microwave-hydrothermal synthesis and photocatalytic properties of biomass charcoal/TiO2 nanocomposites

Biomass charcoal-doped titanium dioxide (C/TiO₂) composites were proposed by microwave-hydrothermal and calcination method using tetrabutyl titanate as the titanium source and lignin as the carbon source. TiO₂ crystals with different morphologies could be successfully adsorbed onto the surface of biomass charcoal. These products were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), derivative thermogravimetric (DTG), UV–vis diffuser flection spectroscopy (UV–vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET). The photocatalytic activities of the as-obtained composites were checked under visible light irradiation. The results showed that both the microwave-hydrothermal temperature and time played an important role in the microstructure and photocatalytic activity of the samples. The rapid microwave-hydrothermal with the thermal post-treatment provides a promising route for the fabrication of biomass charcoal-doped nanocomposites materials.     

Supercapacitor performance of activated carbon derived from rotten carrot in aqueous,organic and ionic liquid based electrolytes

In this work, we report the synthesis of porous activated carbon (AC). AC was derived from rotten carrot, at different values of activating temperature under inert atmosphere, employing chemical activation method and ZnCl₂ as activation agent. On the basis of results observed by surface area and pore size analysis, effect of activation temperature on synthesized AC was determined. Other material properties such as morphology, thermal stability, vibrational response, and crystal structure of prepared AC were studied using standard techniques of material characterization. Further, the electrochemical performance of synthesized AC was studied as an electrode, in aqueous, organic and ionic liquid based electrolyte. It was found that the synthesized AC based electrode exhibits highest specific capacitance (135.5?F?g^?1 at 10?mHz) in aqueous electrolyte and highest specific energy (29.1?Wh?kg^?1 at 2.2?A?g^?1) and specific power (142.5?kW?kg^?1 at 2.2?A?g^?1) in ionic liquid based electrolyte. This shows the suitability of synthesized material for use in energy storage applications.     

无定形硅铝催化生物质热裂解气齐聚合成汽油的特性

选取无定形硅铝(ASA)作为生物质热裂解气齐聚反应催化剂,分析了齐聚反应前后ASA的织构性质、酸性和积碳行为的变化规律,并在固定床反应器中评价了ASA在不同反应条件(100~320℃,2.0~4.0MPa)下的齐聚反应性能.结果表明,在不同齐聚反应条件下ASA均有不同程度的酸性损失和积碳,L酸位量损失随着温度升高呈现先降低后增加的趋势,在280℃达到最低;压力的升高则有利于降低L酸位量的损失.催化剂积碳量变化与L酸位量变化趋势一致.在反应过程中,低碳烯烃转化率和汽油段产物收率随着温度和压力的升高逐渐增大,在4.0 MPa,280℃反应条件下达到最优,其乙烯、丙烯和丁烯的反应转化率分别为19.2%,37.3%和58.7%,汽油段产物收率(摩尔分数)为22.9%,C_5~+的烯烃类选择性可达73.5%.     

Biomass conversion to hydrogen-rich synthesis fuels using water steam plasma

In this study, an experimental plasma-chemical reactor equipped with an arc discharge water steam plasma torch was used for biomass conversion to hydrogen-rich synthesis fuels. Glycerol and crushed wood were used as biomass sources. The effects of different conversion parameters including the water steam flow rate, treated material flow rate, and plasma torch power were studied. The experimentally obtained results were compared with the model based on the thermodynamic equilibrium. Additionally, the quantification of the plasma conversion system in terms of energy efficiency and specific energy requirement was performed. It has been found that the synthesis gas can be effectively produced from the biomass using water steam plasma.     

小球藻、球等鞭金藻和螺旋藻生物量高光谱成像的可视化研究

微藻高效培养是微藻生物能源开发利用的关键和前提,而在营养充足的培养条件下生长迅速但较易受到环境污染和影响,因此微藻生长过程中对其生长状况进行监测意义重大。高光谱成像技术同时拥有丰富物质品质信号的优点和图像包含丰富品质分布空间信息的优点,可为微藻的快速无损检测提供新的方法和手段。分别采集小球藻、球等鞭金藻和螺旋藻三种微藻各45个样本的高光谱图像,并提取样本感兴趣区域(ROI)的平均光谱。利用连续投影算法(SPA)波长优选之后,取30个建模集样本的光谱数据与其相应的生物量建立多元线性回归(MLR)模型,对15个预测集样本的生物量进行预测,小球藻、球等鞭金藻和螺旋藻预测相关系数(r)分别为0.950,0.969和0.961,预测均方根误差(RMSEP)为0.010 2,0.010 7和0.017 1,获得了较好的预测精度。最后,用所建MLR模型对预测集图像上每个像素点的生物量加以预测,采用Matlab图像编程处理将不同的生物量用不同的颜色表示,最终以伪彩图的形式实现藻液生物量的可视化。研究结果表明,高光谱成像技术对小球藻和螺旋藻藻液生物量的可视化效果较好,对球等鞭金藻的预测效果还需要进一步改进。本研究为实现微藻生长信息的快速获取和进一步开展微藻生物质能源利用奠定了一定的研究基础。     

Simultaneous Multielement Study of the Binding of Metals in Solution by an Algal Biomass,Chlorella Vulgaris

Abstract

The adsorption process of four metals in solution (Pb, Cu, Zn, Cd) to Chlorella Vulgaris will be described and compared to a previous study using three metals (Pb,Cu,Zn) in solution. The binding capacity of Chlorella Vulgaris to four elements simultaneously increases with time, mass of algae, and up to a temperature of about 20.0°C. The equilibrium points for binding three metals simultaneously are at pH=4.55, with 7 mg of algae, and after 2.0 hrs. in a 5 ml aliquot of the solution. In the four metal system, the optimum values are significantly higher while the binding capacity is reduced. The competition between metals for binding sites in the algal cells is governed by kinetic properties as related to the pH, mass of algae, time, and concentration of solution. The binding process is also dependent upon thermodynamics with respect to the temperature of the solution.     

精制废木屑热解油/柴油新型混合燃料制备实验研究

为提高废木屑热解油品质,使其能够作为发动机燃料使用,提出了一条新的热解油提质路线。首先将热解原油进行基于组分分离的乙醚萃取和化学催化相结合的精制过程,得到精制热解油;其次,利用超声反应器制备了精制热解油/柴油新型混合燃料,以单位体积柴油所溶解的精制油的体积定为S值,作为判断乳化效果的准则,考察了不同的影响因素对S值的影响。研究结果表明,乳化剂添加量对S值影响较大,在V_{精制生物油}:V_柴油:V_乳化剂=10:30:5条件下,存在最佳的乳化超声操作条件:超声时间、超声电功率、乳化温度分别为20 min、540 W、50℃。制备了不同S值的乳化燃料,通过对燃料物理指标的分析发现,该燃料性质稳定、燃烧性能优良,有望成为柴油的替代产品。