1 Esterification of Waste Fatty Acid from Palm Oil Refining Process into Biodiesel by Heterogeneous Catalysis: Fuel Properties of B10, B20 Blends, Vu Hoang Nguyen, Ha Thi Thu Vu, Hung Manh Do, Jeong Yoo Woo, Hee Hyoung Jun
This study presented the preparation of Biodiesel B100 from waste fatty acid by heterogeneous catalysis process and the evaluation of the properties of B10, B20 blends. Efficiency of esterification of waste fatty acid into B100 was 98.91% over 3 cycles. Biodiesel B100 was satisfactory according to ASTM D6751, the American biodiesel standard. These methyl esters can be used to substitute diesel. However, the methyl esters obtained from waste fatty acid had a low oxidative stability and high cloud point. Therefore, with a high percentage of biodiesel (10÷20%), it is necessary to add additives into the blends for changing these disadvantages in accordance with ASTM D 7467.
2 Improving the energy efficiency by process parameter optimization approach: a case study for induction heating, Phuong-Xuan Dang
This paper introduces a method of improving the energy efficiency using process parameter optimization approach. The energy consumption of a manufacturing process depends not only on the efficiency of its machines and equipment but also the process parameter. An optimum process parameter can increase the energy efficiency effectively. A case study for induction heating process is demonstrated to show the application of process parameter optimization approach. The result shows that the energy efficiency can varies 10% in the valid input range of process parameter. Therefore, the selection of optimum process parameter is the best way, which is low or zero capital cost, for improving the energy efficiency
3 The comparison for a small scale wind farm which is composed of singly fed induction and doubly fed induction wind turbine generator systems, Chao Chanadee, Nattapan Thanomsat
This paper presents the comparison for a small scale wind farm which is composed of singly fed induction and doubly fed induction wind turbine generator systems. The singly fed induction generators are actually largely depended on reactive power, particularly when a fault occurs in the power system, otherwise such induction wind turbine generator become unstable and have to be disconnected from the power system. In this paper, a wind farm topology is considered, where connected wind turbine generator is represented by a doubly fed induction generator, which controlled by a back to back converter. No extra power or current control loops are required, this simplify the system design and improve transient performance of the whole system. Simulation results clearly show that the proposed topology is a cost effective solution and simplify a system design to minimize voltage fluctuation of both wind turbine generators as well as to improve the transient stability of the wind farm.
4 Research on Control Strategy of Series Hybrid Electric Vehicles, V. T. Long
The paper presents the analysis of two basic control strategies, the series thermostat control strategy and the series power follower control strategy, used for series hybrid electric vehicles. One of these control strategies, the series thermostat control strategy, is programmed and installed in an electronic control unit to manage the power flow of a two-seat series hybrid electric vehicle designed and fabricated at Mechatronics Department, Nha Trang University, Vietnam. The main vehicle components are composed of an 110cc gasoline internal combustion engine, a 12V three-phase alternator and two 350W in-wheel brushless DC motors powered by batteries. The experiment was also conducted to get some performance parameters of our series hybrid electric vehicle.
5 Development of Demolition Waste Management Patrice in Khulna City, Bangladesh, Md. Alamin, Ibadullah, S. M. Abdullah Al Faruq
Demolition wastes are materials produced during the renovation, demolition or deconstruction of an existing structure such as residential and commercial building and their infrastructure by using machines and tools for beneficial purposes. Components of demolition wastes typically include bricks of various shapes, reinforcing steels, woods, girders, grills, angles, tin, plumbing and fitting materials, pieces of concrete that is rubbish, floor finish, plaster, electric weir, electric board, electric cutout and meter etc. Questionnaire surveys were performed in different areas in Khulna City to collect data on causes of demolition, its process, obtain amount of reuse and recycle able materials and management process of waste generated from those demolition sites. Large amount of waste is generated in Khulna City from demolition of building in every year. A large numbers of people of Khulna City use their diligent endeavors in maintenance of those demolition wastes to remove the problems associated with mismanagement of demolition wastes. An investigation on 100 numbers of shops in Khulna City was done which handle to maintain various types of reuse and recyclable materials. It was tried to evaluate the performance of demolition workers in demolishing different parts of building and their wages.
6 The Effect Temperature on the Growth Characteristics of Ethanol Producing Yeast Strains, Dac Hai Nam Ho, Chris Powel
For commercial corn mash to ethanol production it is known that increasing temperature can maximize ethanol yield, although care must be taken to avoid causing heat shock resulting in the death of the yeast culture. Despite the potentially negative effects of high temperature, short sub-lethal stress has been reported to procure a benefit to yeast cells. However, the effect of such yeast pre-treatment on bioethanol fermentations has not previously been investigated. In order to understand more about the effects of the temperature on yeast prior corn mash fermentation, the growth characteristic of four industrial ethanologenic yeast strains to heat stress was determined. The spot plate method and analysis of yeast growth in liquid medium were used in this study. Our obtained results offer an optimal condition for the use of yeast cells in pre-conditioning before the fermentation of corn mash or other materials to bioethanol.
7 Simulation Gasification of Solid Waste from Agricultural Products in Vietnam, Hien Van Le, Nghia Hieu Nguyen
The interest in biomass utilization has been enhanced in recent years. With the Biomass-Heat pipe-Gasifier (HPG), an innovative pressurized allothermic gasification technology, a hydrogen-rich product gas can be generated, which is well suitable for production of fuel gas. Based on this model the thermo-chemical conversion process of solid biomass in the HPG was analyzed. The operating parameters reactor temperature and pressure as well as mean residence time were varied and their influence on amount and composition of residue char was determined. Further an efficiency diagram, characterizing the operation state of the HPG, was created.
8 Indian sparrows on the brink of extinction: population dynamics combined with ecological changes, Vasanth Kamath, Asish Oommen Mathew, Lewlyn L. R. Rodrigues
The Indian sparrow, popularly known as the House sparrow (Passer domesticus indicus), is the most wide spread subspecies of the sparrow family (Passer domesticus) in India. Of late, due to its vanishing numbers the bird has lost prominence. These birds are termed as the indicators of the environmental health and their decline is a warning signal to all of us. This research paper attempts to use the concept of System Dynamics to explain the reason as to why these dramatic changes in the house sparrow population have occurred in the last few years, and demonstrate it through Causal loop diagrams. Specifically, it explores the structural characteristics of the house sparrow population, focusing on feeding and breeding. It also discusses certain measures like the effect of implementation of bio-fertilizers, and the creation of awareness to develop an ecosystem where they can continue to co-exist in harmony and not follow the ‘dodo’ trail.
9 Analysis of the Effect of Incidence Angle variation in Fusion of SAR images with Multispectral image using Empirical Mode Decomposition, A. Dalrin Ampritta, S. S. Ramakrishnan
In the field of Remote Sensing and GIS, colour images of high resolution in the form of aerial photos or satellite images are desired for visually interpreting various features in our environment, but are limited due to their expensiveness. On the other hand, SAR images of high resolution are available at a comparatively lower cost. With the increasing demand for better image quality, lot of image processing algorithms have been designed for analyzing optical and SAR images. In the image fusion process multi-sensor outputs can be combined to give a better quality image of the area. The purpose of fusion process is to synthesize a new multispectral image, whose bands coincide as much as possible with those of the original multispectral image, and with a spatial resolution comparable to the radar image. Currently, the most used image fusion techniques are IHS (Intensity Hue Saturation), Wavelet Transform, and PCA (Principal Component Analysis). It is evident that the employed methods seem to work well for single-sensor, single-date fusion. However with radar and multispectral data from different sensors or dates, these fusion methods create images of higher spatial resolution, but usually at the cost of the original colour or spectral characteristics of the input images. This is especially true if two completely different sensors are used. So new algorithms are required to overcome these problems and establish superiority over the standard fusion techniques. In this paper, the effect of variation in incidence angle of three SAR images which are fused separately with the multispectral image is studied. The analysis is done based on the capability of performing visual land use interpretation using each of the fused images. For the fusion process, a new algorithm based on 2D EMD (Two Dimensional Empirical Mode Decomposition) is coded using Matlab software. EMD is a non-parametric data-driven analysis tool that decomposes the single band radar image into high frequency IMFs (Intrinsic Mode Functions).This algorithm then combines the IMFs generated from the radar (SAR) image with the optical (multispectral) image, thus obtaining the fused image. The implementation of this algorithm is done by using ERS – 2 SAR and Landsat ETM+ images of Mansadevi region in Himachal Pradesh, India. Finally, Quality assessment of Empirical Mode Decomposition Algorithm with Conventional Fusion Techniques is done by using a statistical metric technique – Universal Image Quality Index.
10 Impact of urbanization on municipal solid waste management: a system dynamics approach, Rajesh R. Pai, Lewlyn L. R. Rodrigues, Asish Oommen Mathew, Sunith Hebbar
Today, increasing population and rapid development are posing challenges on the “environmental sustainability”. One of the major concerns is on effective management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). This includes nonhazardous garbage, rubbish, and trash from homes, institutions, and industrial facilities. Garbage contains moist wastes like food, meat and vegetables; rubbish encompasses mostly dry constituents such as glass, textiles, paper, and plastic objects; and trash includes bulky waste materials and objects that are not collected routinely for disposal such as discarded mattresses, appliances, and pieces of furniture. Therefore waste should be traced and has to be recovered as much as possible. Even though, there are different policies to counter this problem, the compliance is a cause of concern. Having identified this need, an attempt has been made to study the impact of increasing population on the amount of waste generation through System Dynamics (SD) Modeling on the basis of which effective strategies could be developed for managing the same.
11 Comparative analysis of greenhouse gas emissions from major cities of India, Sridevi H., Shreejith K., T. V. Ramachandra
Concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has increased rapidly due to anthropogenic activities resulting in significant increase in the temperature of the earth causing global warming. This is quantified using an indicator like global warming potential (GWP) and expressed as tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent. Assessing the greenhouse gas emissions is an important step towards making quantifiable emission reductions. This study focuses on estimating the greenhouse gas emission from major cities in India namely Delhi, Greater Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore across various sectors and expresses the total emission in terms of Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2 eq). Emissions from key sectors like electricity, transportation, industries, agriculture, waste and others have been computed. Country specific emission factors have also been used to reduce estimation uncertainties. The total Carbon dioxide equivalent emissions are compared with their economic activity, measured in terms of GDP.The result shows Chennai emits highest CO2 eq emissions per GDP followed by Delhi.
12 Saving the big cats from extinction – a systems approach to study India’s environmental initiatives to protect the Bengal tigers, Asish Oommen Mathew, Vasanth Kamath, Lewlyn L. R. Rodrigues
Tigers (Panthera tigris), the biggest cat species in this world, are facing an all time challenge of survival and existence on planet Earth. The International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has rated the conservation status of Tigers as ‘Endangered’. There were nine sub-species of tigers known to exist, out of which three of them have walked into extinction in the 20th century. Since then, the warning bells have been going on for the remaining tiger population existing across the globe, which was estimated to be just below 4000 by the beginning of the new millennium. Out of this more than 50% belongs to the sub-species ‘The Bengal Tiger’ (Panthera tigris tigris) which lives across the Asian countries India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. The population of Bengal tigers in India alone is approximately 1700 as per the national tiger census held in the year 2010. India in co-operation with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has started various environmental projects in the last few decades, to save their national animal from extinction. This research aims at analyzing the various factors affecting the survival of Tigers in India - the most important being environmental habitat destruction, environmental habitat fragmentation & poaching, and also the measures taken by the Government of India to protect its tigers. A system dynamics (SD) cause and effect model is developed, incorporating the diverse factors identified, to study the various reinforcing and balancing forces of the system. The research methodology employed for this research will be in line with the SD modelling process as proposed by Sterman (2000) which constitutes a five stage process viz. Problem articulation, Dynamic hypothesis development, Formulation, Testing and Policy formulation & evaluation. The outcome of this research enables to describe the various interactions between the different factors of the system influencing the tiger population. A stock & flow SD model for simulation analysis is developed to forecast what would be the tiger population trend in India for the next few decades, on implementation of different types of conservation strategies.
13 Graphene Oxide Synthesized by using Modified Hummers Approach, Leila Shahriary, Anjali A. Athawale
The graphite oxide was prepared by oxidizing purified natural flake graphite via modified Hummers method. The graphene oxide was prepared by graphite oxide exfoliating in distilled water with ultrasonic waves. Structural and physiochemical properties of the products were investigated with the help of ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). UV-vis spectra of GO exhibit maximum absorption peak at ~237 nm attributable to ?-?* transition of the atomic C-C bonds. The results of FT-IR and Raman showed that graphite oxidized by strong oxidants caused the oxygen atoms introduced into the graphite layer and formed C?O, C-H, COOH and C-O-C chemical bond with graphene. The XRD results showed 2? of 12.02° with inter layer spacing equal to 0.77 nm. SEM images demonstrate ultrathin and homogeneous graphene films. Electrochemical behavior of GO modified glassy carbon electrode investigated with reference to K3FeCN6 redox system and results reflect that electrochemical behavior is controlled by the electron transfer.