Electro-membrane Processes for the Green Hydrogen Production

Since the last century, humanity has been facing challenging scenarios, like global warming, environmental pollution and the dramatic increase in energy demand. In this framework, green hydrogen has been identified as the most promising energy vector to achieve carbon neutrality. With this respect, the idea of the present work is to combine the Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) membrane process with hydrogen production. Experimental RED tests were carried out by feeding the unit with different concentrated solutions to study the process performance. Collected results suggest that this approach is a viable way to produce hydrogen with high faradic efficiencies, up to a maximum of 99 %, highlighting also the technology advantage of producing hydrogen by exploiting the salinity gradient energy, thus leading to a production with Specific Energy Consumption close to zero

Electro-membrane Processes for the Green Hydrogen Production

Since the last century, humanity has been facing challenging scenarios, like global warming, environmental pollution and the dramatic increase in energy demand. In this framework, green hydrogen has been identified as the most promising energy vector to achieve carbon neutrality. With this respect, the idea of the present work is to combine the Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) membrane process with hydrogen production. Experimental RED tests were carried out by feeding the unit with different concentrated solutions to study the process performance. Collected results suggest that this approach is a viable way to produce hydrogen with high faradic efficiencies, up to a maximum of 99 %, highlighting also the technology advantage of producing hydrogen by exploiting the salinity gradient energy, thus leading to a production with Specific Energy Consumption close to zero

Gis Multicriteria per misurare l'attrattività del paesaggio rurale di Ivrea (TO)

Obiettivo del presente studio è la costruzione di un modello di analisi territoriale riferito ad una piccola regione a nord-est di Torino: l'Anfiteatro Morenico di Ivrea. A partire dagli studi condotti da Sjerp De Vries sul paesaggio rurale olandese, abbiamo cercato i legami tra paesaggio, attrattività, fruibilità rappresentandoli attraverso le modalità proprie della cartografia numerica. La metodologia parte da una definizione di attrattività come variabile proporzionale alla presenza di elementi che possono innescare interesse o disinteresse (indicatori). Elaborando i dati geografici "open" a nostra disposizione, abbiamo prodotto carte per ognuno di questi indicatori; attraverso lo strumento dei questionari, abbiamo quantificato il valore ad essi riconosciuto dai soggetti intervistati e unito le carte tramite una somma pesata ottenendo la "Carta dell'Attrattività". Abbiamo ritenuto conveniente aggiungere una analoga valutazione riguardante la fruibilità dei luoghi oggetto del nostro studio, definita come la somma di capillarità del sistema di trasporto e distribuzione geografica dell'offerta turistica. Abbiamo chiamato il risultato di queste sovrapposizioni "Carta della Capacità Attrattiva". Una parziale validazione di questo modello sta nelle considerazioni successive: le zone con maggiore attrattività coincidevano con i luoghi di riconosciuto interesse turistico

Gis Multicriteria per misurare l'attrattività del paesaggio rurale di Ivrea (TO)

Obiettivo del presente studio è la costruzione di un modello di analisi territoriale riferito ad una piccola regione a nord-est di Torino: l'Anfiteatro Morenico di Ivrea. A partire dagli studi condotti da Sjerp De Vries sul paesaggio rurale olandese, abbiamo cercato i legami tra paesaggio, attrattività, fruibilità rappresentandoli attraverso le modalità proprie della cartografia numerica. La metodologia parte da una definizione di attrattività come variabile proporzionale alla presenza di elementi che possono innescare interesse o disinteresse (indicatori). Elaborando i dati geografici "open" a nostra disposizione, abbiamo prodotto carte per ognuno di questi indicatori; attraverso lo strumento dei questionari, abbiamo quantificato il valore ad essi riconosciuto dai soggetti intervistati e unito le carte tramite una somma pesata ottenendo la "Carta dell'Attrattività". Abbiamo ritenuto conveniente aggiungere una analoga valutazione riguardante la fruibilità dei luoghi oggetto del nostro studio, definita come la somma di capillarità del sistema di trasporto e distribuzione geografica dell'offerta turistica. Abbiamo chiamato il risultato di queste sovrapposizioni "Carta della Capacità Attrattiva". Una parziale validazione di questo modello sta nelle considerazioni successive: le zone con maggiore attrattività coincidevano con i luoghi di riconosciuto interesse turistico

Measuring Ivrea Landscape Attractiveness through GIS Multicriteria and Surveys

Basing on previous studies lead by Sjerp de Vries (2013) about measuring the attractiveness of Dutch landscapes, we investigated the link between landscape, attractiveness, appreciation applied on a small region of Piedmont (IT) on the east of Turin: the Morain Amphitheatre of Ivrea. Concerning the concept of attractiveness, we intend the presence of elements that can trigger an increase of interest. In order to measure the landscape attractiveness, we have developed a set of the elements (indicators) that make a landscape attractive and usable and (through surveys) submit them to a participate evaluation, thus giving each indicator the proper weight. Through a GIS-based method, rooted on open regional geographic data, we were able to use survey statistics for defining the proper weight of good and bad indicators in the ending map, that is called Appeal Capacity Map. Our method is aimed to support decision-making process in the framework of regional planning, contribute in the building strategies, and defining landscape units, building developing scenarios. Together the landscape attractiveness, we retain advantageous also the evaluation of the usability, considering the usability as the sum of the connectivity grade of mobility system and touristic offer (presence of hotels and farmhouses). Surveys includes the application of a PPGIS tool in a website called SightMap, that traces pictures of concentration shot by users, a major concentration of which means an identification of the landscape key-elements

High-pressure synthesis of CO and syngas from CO2 reduction using Ni−N-doped porous carbon electrocatalyst

Electrochemical conversion of CO2 to CO or syngas (CO/H2 mixture) is considered one of the most promising approaches to valorise waste-CO2. To develop the process on industrial scale, it would be necessary to use selective and inexpensive electrodes and to obtain high productivities with low energy consumption. In this frame, Ni−NC catalysts are considered among the most interesting ones because of their relatively low cost, high faradaic efficiency in CO (FECO), and high stability. However, up to now, quite low productivities were obtained as a result of low current densities achieved in aqueous electrolytes. In this work, we have evaluated the performances of a Ni−NC electrocatalyst at relatively high carbon dioxide pressures (5–30 bar) in a wide range of cell potentials and current densities. It is found that proper selection of CO2 pressure and catalyst loading improves drastically the performance of the process, obtaining high FECO (close to 100%), high current densities (>100 mA cm−2), and high productivities. Furthermore, it is shown that it is possible to obtain syngas with a target ratio of two between H2 and CO under various operating conditions. As an example, syngas was obtained with FE close to 100% and a productivity of ∼18 mol h−1 m−2 working at 30 bar with a current density close to 195 mA cm−

Comparative transcriptomics in human and mouse

Cross-species comparisons of genomes, transcriptomes and gene regulation are now feasible at unprecedented resolution and throughput, enabling the comparison of human and mouse biology at the molecular level. Insights have been gained into the degree of conservation between human and mouse at the level of not only gene expression but also epigenetics and inter-individual variation. However, a number of limitations exist, including incomplete transcriptome characterization and difficulties in identifying orthologous phenotypes and cell types, which are beginning to be addressed by emerging technologies. Ultimately, these comparisons will help to identify the conditions under which the mouse is a suitable model of human physiology and disease, and optimize the use of animal models