Conversion of Industrial Paper Sludge to Ethanol: Fractionation of Sludge and Its Impact

Paper sludge is an attractive biomass source for the conversion to ethanol due to its low cost and the lack of severe pretreatment required. Four sludges from pulp and paper operations including both virgin kraft (VK) and recycled and deinking (RD) paper mills were analyzed. A fractionation process using a laboratory screen was utilized to produce a fiber-rich stream for enzymatic hydrolysis. This process removed 82–98 % of the ash with fiber yields from 39 to 69 %. Even though sludges in both non-fractionated and fractionated scenarios were pH-adjusted, total sugar conversion was still improved by 12–27 % by fractionation with 4.5 times less acid required for pH adjustment. Fermentation of the fractionated sludges showed very high ethanol yields. Acid insoluble clay adsorbs 3–5 mg enzyme per gram of clay depending on enzyme dosage. Acid soluble CaCO₃ adsorbs about half of the enzyme compared to clay. Fractionation efficiency was also evaluated by testing different size mesh screen openings (100 to 500 mesh). The 400-mesh screen presented the best fiber yield, ash removal and ash fractionation ratio for both VK and RD sludges. The ash-rich streams have a lower C/N ratio than the original sludge which improves its suitability as soil amendment.     

Kinetic studies on acid- and base-catalyzed aquation of bis-alaninatochromium(III) and on oxidation of tris- and bis-Aa–chromium(III) complexes (Aa = Gly,Ala, Asn) by H2O2

Two aqua derivatives of [Cr(Ala)₃] were characterized in solution. Acid-catalyzed aquation of cis-[Cr(Ala)₂(H₂O)₂]⁺ leads to inert [Cr(Ala)(H₂O)₄]²⁺, whereas base hydrolysis of cis-Cr(Ala)₂(OH)₂]^? causes dissociation of both the Ala ligands and formation of chromates(III). Kinetics of these processes have been studied spectrophotometrically in both 0.1–1.0 M HClO₄ and 0.2–0.9 M NaOH under first-order conditions. A linear dependence of the k _obs,H on [H⁺] and a small dependence of the (k _obs)_OH on [OH^?] were established. In the proposed mechanism, the rate determining step is Cr–N bond breaking in the reactive form of the substrate, i.e., in the protonated aqua- or dihydroxo complex. The effect of pH on the complex reactivity is discussed. The kinetic results are compared with those determined previously for analogous glycine and asparagine complexes. Additionally, oxidation of tris- and bis-Aa–chromium(III) complexes, where Aa = Gly, Ala or Asn, by hydrogen peroxide in alkaline medium was studied. Two reaction products were detected: thermodynamically stable CrO₄ ^2? and [Cr(O₂)₄]^3? that under a large excess of hydrogen peroxide is metastable. The rate-limiting stage of this process is an inner sphere two-electron transfer within the peroxido intermediate.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance study of the stoichiometry and stability of several HgX<Subscript>2</Subscript>–acetylemethylentriparatolylphosphorane complexes in various acetone–dimethylformamide mixtures

The reaction of phosphorus ylide, acetylmethylenetriparatolylphosphorane (L) with HgX₂ (X = Cl, Br, I and NO₃) in equimolar ratios using acetone and dimethylformamide as solvents leads to binuclear products. ³¹P NMR spectroscopy was used to investigate the stoichiometry and stability of a HgX₂ complex with CH₃COCHP(p-tolyl)₃ (L) in binary acetone–dimethylformamide mixtures of varying composition. In all cases studied, the variation of ³¹P NMR chemical shift with the [HgX₂]/[L] mole ratio indicated the formation of 1:1 complexes. The formation constants of the resulting complexes were evaluated from computer fitting of the mole ratio data to an equation that relates the observed chemical shifts to the formation constant. In all mercuric salts used, the stabilities of the resulting 1:1 complexes varied in the order Hg(NO₃)₂ > HgCl₂ > HgBr₂ > HgI₂. It was found that, in the case of all complexes, an increase in the percentage of dimethylformamide in the solvent mixtures significantly decreases the stability of the complexes.     

On the respective terms of the derived and the polycentral series of a free lie algabra and an ideal

Let F be a free Lie algebra of rank> 1 and S be an ideal of F. Denote by F_m and F_{n l},…,n_k the terms of the lower central and the polycentral series of F. The aim of this paper is to provide a sufficient condition for the quotient algebra F_{n l},…,n_k/S_{n l},…,n_k to be infinitely generated. The case F_m/S_m was studied in [6] for free groups and in [ 2 ] for free Lie algebras. In this paper the following main theorem is proved : If F = F2 = S, k > 1 and n_i > 1 for i=l,…, k, then F_{n l}…,n_k/S_{n l} is infinitely generated.     

ESR spectroscopic investigation of gamma-irradiated lithium trifluoromethanesulfonate

ABSTRACT

The effect of gamma radiation on lithium trifluoromethanesulfonate (LiTf) was investigated in detail using electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. The experimental spectra consisted of complex overlapped signals. Simulations of both the 1st- and 10th-day ESR spectra gave valuable information about the spectroscopic and structural features of radiation-induced radicals. More information about the qualitative and quantitative features of the radicals were gathered from the microwave power, storage time and dosimetric feature findings. In the light of the information obtained, four radicals were accepted to be produced after irradiation of LiTf.     

Synthesis and characterization of conductive silver ink for electrode printing on cellulose film

Silver nanoparticles with size less than 50 nm were synthesized from silver nitrate, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and ethylene glycol, where these chemicals acted as metal precursor, stabilizer and reducing agent, respectively. Then a conductive silver ink was prepared with a suitable solvent by adding a viscosifier, hydroxyethyl-cellulose (HEC), and a surfactant, diethylene glycol (DEG). The combined effect of both viscosifier and surfactant on the physical property of the silver ink was analyzed by measuring the contact angle of the silver ink on a cellulose film. Moreover, the influences of PVP molecular weight and reaction temperature on the size of the silver nanoparticles were analyzed. Then the silver ink was coated on the cellulose film by spin coating and the effects of different solvents, sintering temperatures and solid contents on its electrical resistivity were examined. It was found that, with 50 % co-solvent of deionized water and DEG and solid content of around 50 %, the silver ink exhibited the lowest resistivity. This ink can be used for inkjet printing of conductive patterns on cellulose films.     

Improvement in thermal conductivity of paraffin by adding high aspect-ratio carbon-based nano-fillers

Molecular dynamics simulations have been utilized to study thermal conductivity of liquid and solid mixtures of paraffin and carbon-based high aspect-ratio nano-additives, i.e. carbon nanotubes and graphene. In agreement with existing experimental data, we observe high enhancement in thermal conductivity through adding these graphitic nano-additives into paraffin, particularly in the solid phase. We demonstrate that this significant improvement is mainly achieved by the enhancement in thermal conductivity of the matrix itself. This is caused by carbon nanotubes and graphene promoting ordering of the matrix molecules which consequently leads to improvement of its thermal conductivity.     

Angular Dependence of L X-ray Relative Intensities of Uranium and Thorium at 59.5 keV

INTRODUCTION

The knowledge of relative intensities of K, L and higher shell X-rays is needed for the investigation of various phenomena in atomic physics. In earlier studies, L X-ray relative intensities and energies have been reported for many elements by several investigators [1–5], but the angular dependence of L X-ray relative intensity has not been reported. According to Flugge et a1 [6], if the angular momentum J=1/2 and J>1/2 of the originating shell, then the angular distribution of X-rays is isotropic and anisotropic, respectively. From this idea, L_α, L_l and some of L_β, intensities are dependent on changing the scattering angles. In this study, we have measured the angular dependence of L_α, La_l, L_α/L_β, and L_α/L_γ, intensity ratios of U and Th at different angles varying from 45° to 135°.     

An Alternative Synthesis of the Dopaminergic Drug 2‐Amino‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydronaphthalene‐5,6‐diol (5,6‐ADTN)

Racemic 2‐amino‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydronaphthalene‐5,6‐diol (5,6‐ADTN; 4 ) was synthesized from 5,6‐dimethoxynaphthalene‐2‐carboxylic acid ( 14 ) in four steps (60% overall yield; Scheme). The crucial steps of the synthesis are Birch reduction of 14 to the valuable synthon 15 , Curtius reaction and carbamate formation ( 16 ), hydrogenolysis ( 17 ), and demethylation to the biologically active hydrobromide salt 18 of 4 .