440 research outputs found
ALGAE TO ALKANES
Once considered infeasible and unviable, recently there has been renewed interest in the development of algae-derived transportation fuels. Currently, there are no commercialized algae to fuel ventures, and much debate is centered on the economic viability of such a process. Research conducted by NASA, among others, has expressed skepticism that terrestrially cultivated algae can ever compete with conventional fuels. The purpose of this project is to evaluate the economic feasibility of an algae-to-fuel venture that incorporates the state-of-the-art technologies available in the open literature.
Our challenge is to produce 20 thousand barrels per day of n-alkane product that meets the current diesel fuel specifications. To arrive at a recommendation, separate models were built for algae cultivation, lipid extraction, and lipid processing at a scale necessary to reach this target.
This analysis departs from prior studies on two major fronts. First, this analysis considers OriginOil’s new method of lipid extraction instead of conventional hexane extraction. Second, the objective of the lipid processing module is to produce n-alkanes from triglycerides, as opposed to producing FAME biodiesel. The n-alkane product from this process is comparable to petroleum-based diesel fuels. Thus it can be readily incorporated into existing energy infrastructure as a diesel blending stock or as a feedstock for other processing units in the refinery.
Our economic analysis shows that an algae-to-fuel venture is profitable if the fuel is sold at 2.2 billion, the capital investment of algae cultivation is nearly 40 times that of processing, which results in annual depreciation and fixed costs of nearly half of the revenue. Investors would be hesitant to invest such a large amount of money in an algae cultivation process where there is high uncertainty in the cost requirements.
Algae-to-fuel economics can be improved by realizing higher value uses of the algae biomass. Biomass composes of over half of algae product, and their potential uses in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and biomass power generation far surpass their value as animal feed. Proposed carbon-cap-and-trade programs may bring additional revenue. Thus, any algae-to-fuel venture should seek to optimize the value of its byproducts. Governments can support algae-to-fuel ventures by offering tax credits or mandating a market for renewable fuels, but the benefits of these measures are unclear. Additional analysis should address the uncertainties of various costs and look to reduce capital investment
Solitons, solitonic vortices, and vortex rings in a confined Bose-Einstein condensate
Quasi-one-dimensional solitons that may occur in an elongated Bose-Einstein
condensate become unstable at high particle density. We study two basic modes
of instability and the corresponding bifurcations to genuinely
three-dimensional solitary waves such as axisymmetric vortex rings and
non-axisymmetric solitonic vortices. We calculate the profiles of the above
structures and examine their dependence on the velocity of propagation along a
cylindrical trap. At sufficiently high velocity, both the vortex ring and the
solitonic vortex transform into an axisymmetric soliton. We also calculate the
energy-momentum dispersions and show that a Lieb-type mode appears in the
excitation spectrum for all particle densities.Comment: RevTeX 9 pages, 9 figure
Sea-level rise due to polar ice-sheet mass loss during past warm periods
Interdisciplinary studies of geologic archives have ushered in a new era of deciphering magnitudes, rates, and sources of sea-level rise from polar ice-sheet loss during past warm periods. Accounting for glacial isostatic processes helps to reconcile spatial variability in peak sea level during marine isotope stages 5e and 11, when the global mean reached 6 to 9 meters and 6 to 13 meters higher than present, respectively. Dynamic topography introduces large uncertainties on longer time scales, precluding robust sea-level estimates for intervals such as the Pliocene. Present climate is warming to a level associated with significant polar ice-sheet loss in the past. Here, we outline advances and challenges involved in constraining ice-sheet sensitivity to climate change with use of paleo–sea level records
Conversion coefficients for superheavy elements
In this paper we report on internal conversion coefficients for Z = 111 to Z
= 126 superheavy elements obtained from relativistic Dirac-Fock (DF)
calculations. The effect of the atomic vacancy created during the conversion
process has been taken into account using the so called "Frozen Orbital"
approximation. The selection of this atomic model is supported by our recent
comparison of experimental and theoretical conversion coefficients across a
wide range of nuclei. The atomic masses, valence shell electron configurations,
and theoretical atomic binding energies required for the calculations were
adopted from a critical evaluation of the published data. The new conversion
coefficient data tables presented here cover all atomic shells, transition
energies from 1 keV up to 6000 keV, and multipole orders of 1 to 5. A similar
approach was used in our previous calculations [1] for Z = 5 - 110.Comment: Accepted for publication in Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Table
Spectrum of the Y=2 Pentaquarks
By assuming a mass formula for the spectrum of the Y=2 pentaquarks, where the
chromo-magnetic interaction plays a main role, and identifying the lightest
state with the Theta^+(1540), we predict a spectrum in good agreement with the
few I=0 and I=1 candidates proposed in the past.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, LaTe
A Naturally Narrow Positive Parity Theta^+
We present a consistent color-flavor-spin-orbital wave function for a
positive parity Theta^+ that naturally explains the observed narrowness of the
state. The wave function is totally symmetric in its flavor-spin part and
totally antisymmetric in its color-orbital part. If flavor-spin interactions
dominate, this wave function renders the positive parity Theta^+ lighter than
its negative parity counterpart. We consider decays of the Theta^+ and compute
the overlap of this state with the kinematically allowed final states. Our
results are numerically small. We note that dynamical correlations between
quarks are not necessary to obtain narrow pentaquark widths.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure, Revtex4, two-column format, version to be
published in Phys. Rev. D, includes numerical estimates of decay width
On the derivative of the associated Legendre function of the first kind of integer order with respect to its degree
In our recent works [R. Szmytkowski, J. Phys. A 39 (2006) 15147; corrigendum:
40 (2007) 7819; addendum: 40 (2007) 14887], we have investigated the derivative
of the Legendre function of the first kind, , with respect to its
degree . In the present work, we extend these studies and construct
several representations of the derivative of the associated Legendre function
of the first kind, , with respect to the degree , for
. At first, we establish several contour-integral
representations of . They are then
used to derive Rodrigues-type formulas for with . Next, some closed-form
expressions for are
obtained. These results are applied to find several representations, both
explicit and of the Rodrigues type, for the associated Legendre function of the
second kind of integer degree and order, ; the explicit
representations are suitable for use for numerical purposes in various regions
of the complex -plane. Finally, the derivatives
, and , all with , are evaluated in terms
of .Comment: LateX, 40 pages, 1 figure, extensive referencin
Density dependent hadron field theory for neutron stars with antikaon condensates
We investigate and condensation in -equilibrated
hyperonic matter within a density dependent hadron field theoretical model. In
this model, baryon-baryon and (anti)kaon-baryon interactions are mediated by
the exchange of mesons. Density dependent meson-baryon coupling constants are
obtained from microscopic Dirac Brueckner calculations using Groningen and Bonn
A nucleon-nucleon potential. It is found that the threshold of antikaon
condensation is not only sensitive to the equation of state but also to
antikaon optical potential depth. Only for large values of antikaon optical
potential depth, condensation sets in even in the presence of negatively
charged hyperons. The threshold of condensation is always reached
after condensation. Antikaon condensation makes the equation of state
softer thus resulting in smaller maximum mass stars compared with the case
without any condensate.Comment: 20 pages, 7 figures; final version to appear in Physical Review
Pairing and Density Correlations of Stripe Electrons in a Two-Dimensional Antiferromagnet
We study a one-dimensional electron liquid embedded in a 2D antiferromagnetic
insulator, and coupled to it via a weak antiferromagnetic spin exchange
interaction. We argue that this model may qualitatively capture the physics of
a single charge stripe in the cuprates on length- and time scales shorter than
those set by its fluctuation dynamics. Using a local mean-field approach we
identify the low-energy effective theory that describes the electronic spin
sector of the stripe as that of a sine-Gordon model. We determine its phases
via a perturbative renormalization group analysis. For realistic values of the
model parameters we obtain a phase characterized by enhanced spin density and
composite charge density wave correlations, coexisting with subleading triplet
and composite singlet pairing correlations. This result is shown to be
independent of the spatial orientation of the stripe on the square lattice.
Slow transverse fluctuations of the stripes tend to suppress the density
correlations, thus promoting the pairing instabilities. The largest amplitudes
for the composite instabilities appear when the stripe forms an antiphase
domain wall in the antiferromagnet. For twisted spin alignments the amplitudes
decrease and leave room for a new type of composite pairing correlation,
breaking parity but preserving time reversal symmetry.Comment: Revtex, 28 pages incl. 5 figure
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