Application of Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells in Cement Plants for CO2 Capture and Clean Power Generation

Abstract Cement production process features intrinsically large CO 2 emission due to the decomposition of limestone by calcination reaction and to fuel combustion, necessary for sustaining the endothermic calcination process and the formation of clinker. Conventional approaches to CO 2 emission reduction in cement plants are based on post-combustion capture with chemical solvents, requiring a substantial energy consumption for regeneration, or oxycombustion in the cement kiln, involving a deep redesign of the plant. The aim of this work is investigating the application of Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells in cement plants for CO 2 capture from the plant exhaust gases, using the fuel cells as active CO 2 concentrators of combustion flue gases and eventually obtaining a purified CO 2 stream through a cryogenic process. A novel configuration with MCFCs added along the exhaust line has been assessed by means of process simulations. The results show a remarkable potential in terms of equivalent avoided CO 2 emissions (exceeding 1000 g/kWh), high share of CO 2 avoided (up to about 70%) and low energy penalties

The Influence of Bio-syngas Composition on the Derating of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells☆

Abstract In this work, the performance of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) fed with a syngas obtained from a steam-enriched air gasification of biomass has been investigated, varying the composition of the feeding gas (H2, CO, CO2, CH4, H2O, and N2). The composition has been obtained from experimental/numerical tests in a fluidized bed bench scale gasifier after catalytic steam reforming of the syngas carried out to remove tar. During the gasification tests, the oxygen purity in the enriched air (in the range of 0.2 and 0.9), the gasification process temperature (in the range of 750 and 850 °C), the steam to biomass (in the range of 0.5 and 1) and the equivalence ratio (in the range between 0.0 and 0.4) were varied to simulate the different operating conditions. Commercial SOFC cells have been employed in the experimental campaign, fed with the most representative fuel compositions mentioned above. Polarization curves have been carried out to determine the electrical performance of the cells, comparing the results with cells fed with hydrogen only. In the final paper, the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) will be reported for in-depth analysis of the performance parameters and to evaluate the long term degradation rate of the cell

The Calcium Looping Process for Low CO2 Emission Cement and Power

Abstract Calcium looping appears as one of the most promising technologies for CO2 capture in short-medium term plants featuring the combustion of fossil fuels. Ca-looping (CaL) is a regenerative process which takes advantage of the capacity of Calcium Oxide-based sorbents in capturing the CO2 from combustion gases by means of sequential carbonation-calcination cycles. CaL technology appears very promising for CO2 capture from cement plants, since the CaO-rich purge stream which must be extracted from the process can be a valuable raw material for clinker production. The aim of this study is to investigate from the technical and economic side the benefits arising from the integration between a coal-fired power plant with CaL process for CO2 capture and a cement plant using the CaL purge to substitute part of the raw meal. The main parameters affecting the CaL process are varied and the effects on both the plant performance and the final cost of clinker and electricityare discussed

Composition and biodiversity of soil and root-associated microbiome in Vitis vinifera cultivar Lambrusco distinguish the microbial terroir of the Lambrusco DOC protected designation of origin area on a local scale

Introduction Wines produced from the same grape cultivars but in different locations possess distinctive qualities leading to different consumer's appreciation, preferences, and thus purchase choices. Here, we explore the possible importance of microbiomes at the soil-plant interface as a determinant of the terroir properties in grapevine production, which confer specific growth performances and wine chemo-sensory properties at the local scale. MethodsIn particular, we investigated the variation in microbial communities associated with the roots of Vitis vinifera cultivar Lambrusco, as well as with surrounding bulk soils, in different vineyards across the "Consorzio Tutela Lambrusco DOC" protected designation of origin area (PDO, Emilia Romagna, Italy), considering viticultural sites located both inside and outside the consortium in two different seasons (June and November 2021). ResultsAccording to our findings, rhizospheric and soil microbiomes show significant structural differences in relation to the sampling site, regardless of seasonality, while endophytic microbiomes seem to be completely unaffected by such variables. Furthermore, a deeper insight into the microbial terroir of PDO areas highlighted the presence of some rhizospheric microorganisms enriched inside the consortium and characterizing the PDO regardless of both sampling season and farming strategy. These include Bacillus, Paenibacillus, and Azospirillum, which are all well-known plant growth-promoting bacteria. DiscussionTaken together, our results suggest a connection between soil and root microbiomes of V. vinifera cultivar Lambrusco and the local designation of origin, emphasizing the potential role of PDO-enriched plant growth-promoting bacteria in vine growing and final quality of the Lambrusco DOC wine

Expression of the ciliary neurotrophic factor and its receptor α in human placenta of first and third trimester of gestation

The ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) is a member of the IL-6 family of cytokines along with cardiotrophin-1, IL-11, leukemia inhibitory factor, oncostatin-M and IL-6 itself. These cytokines play an important role in the regulation of cellular processes such as gene activation and cell proliferation and differentiation. CNTF is a pleiotropic cytokine which effects are mediated via CNTF receptor α (CNTFRα). CNTF increases differentiation and/or survival in neuronal cells but it also has different effects on other cell types such as muscle cells, bone cells, adipocytes, retinal cells and pancreatic β-cells (1, 2). In addition, recent studies demonstrate that CNTF plays an important role in weight control since exogenously administration of CNTF has an anorectic effect in mice (3,4). Although many studies proved that CNTF plays different roles in many cell types, its role in the development of human placenta has never been investigated. In this study we investigated the expression of CNTF and CNTFRα in human trophoblast by, immunohistochemistry, immunocytochemistry and Western Blot analysis using normal first and third trimester human placentas and HTR-8/SVneo cell lines. Interestingly, using immunohistochemistry CNTF and CNTFRα were expressed in the cytotrophoblast and syncytiotrophoblast in the first and third trimester of gestation respectively. Moreover, the immunofluorescence analyses by confocal microscopy showed that CNTF is expressed in the cytoplasm and nuclei whereas CNTFRα is mainly expressed in the cell membrane and cytoplasm of HTR-8/SVneo cell line. In this study we demonstrated that CNTF and CNTFRα are normally expressed in human placenta and they may play an important role during placental development

Techno-economic analysis of calcium looping processes for low CO2 emission cement plants

The scope of this work is to perform a techno-economic analysis of two Calcium Looping processes (CaL) for CO 2 capture in cement plants. Both tail-end CaL system with fluidized bed reactors and integrated CaL system with entrained flow reactors have been considered in the analysis. The calculation of the heat and mass balances and the economic analysis are consistent with the methodology defined in the framework of the H2020 Cemcap project. The analysis shows that the assessed CaL systems (especially the tail-end configuration) involve a significant increase of fuel consumption compared to a reference cement kiln without carbon capture. However, a large part of this additional energy input is exploited in a heat recovery steam cycle, which generates the electric power required to satisfy the consumption of the CO 2 capture auxiliaries (i.e. the power absorbed by the air separation and CO 2 compression and purification units). The integrated CaL process features a lower rise of equivalent fuel consumption (+59% compared to the reference) and a larger reduction of direct CO 2 emission (-93% compared to the reference). The specific primary energy consumption for CO 2 avoided (SPECCA), which takes into account also the indirect fuel consumption/savings and indirect emissions/avoided emissions due to electricity exchange (import/export) with the grid, ranges between 3.17–3.27 MJ LHV /kg CO2 for the integrated system vs. 3.76–4.42 MJ LHV /kg CO2 for tail-end cases, depending on the scenario considered for the grid electricity mix. The economic analysis highlights that CaL processes are capital intensive, which involve, roughly, a doubling of the Capex of the whole cement plant with CCS compared to a greenfield conventional cement plant. However, the obtained cost of CO 2 avoided is competitive with alternative technologies and ranges between about 52 €/t CO2 of the tail-end configuration and 58.6 €/t CO2 of the integrated one

Reviewing the state of biosensors and lab-on-a- chip technologies: opportunities for extreme environments and space exploration

The space race is entering a new era of exploration, in which the number of robotic and human missions to various places in our solar system is rapidly increasing. Despite the recent advances in propulsion and life support technologies, there is a growing need to perform analytical measurements and laboratory experiments across diverse domains of science, while keeping low payload requirements. In this context, lab-on-a-chip nanobiosensors appear to be an emerging technology capable of revolutionizing space exploration, given their low footprint, high accuracy, and low payload requirements. To date, only some approaches for monitoring astronaut health in spacecraft environments have been reported. Although non-invasive molecular diagnostics, like lab-on-a-chip technology, are expected to improve the quality of long-term space missions, their application to monitor microbiological and environmental variables is rarely reported, even for analogous extreme environments on Earth. The possibility of evaluating the occurrence of unknown or unexpected species, identifying redox gradients relevant to microbial metabolism, or testing for specific possible biosignatures, will play a key role in the future of space microbiology. In this review, we will examine the current and potential roles of lab-on-a-chip technology in space exploration and in extreme environment investigation, reporting what has been tested so far, and clarifying the direction toward which the newly developed technologies of portable lab-on-a-chip sensors are heading for exploration in extreme environments and in space

Effects of recombinant Irisin on the musculoskeletal system of hind-limb suspended mice

We previously showed that Irisin, a myokine released from skeletal muscle after physical exercise, plays a central role in the control of bone mass, driving positive effects on cortical mineral density and geometry in vivo (1). Here we demonstrated that r-Irisin treatment prevents bone loss in hind-limb suspended mice when administered during suspension and recovers bone mass when mice were injected after a suspension period (4 weeks) during which they developed bone loss. Micro computed tomography of femurs showed that r-Irisin treatment positively affected both cortical and trabecular bone. As expected, unloaded mice treated with vehicle displayed a remarkable decrease of cortical and trabecular bone mineral density (BMD), whereas in Irisin-treated unloaded mice no loss of BMD was observed with respect to control mice kept under normal loading. Likewise, by treating mice after they already developed disuse-induced bone loss, r-Irisin was able to restore the damaged mineral component. Furthermore, trabecular bone volume fraction (BV/TV), which dramatically decreased in unloaded mice, was prevented by r-Irisin therapy. In particular, r-Irisin treatment preserved the number of trabeculae (Tb.N) and the fractal dimension, an index of optimal micro-architectural complexity of trabecular bone.We also showed that r-Irisin treatment protects muscle mass suffering from atrophy during unloading. Thus, unloaded mice treated with vehicle displayed a severe loss of muscle mass, as confirmed by ~ 60% decline of vastus lateralis weight and ~33% decrease of fiber cross-sectional area. Conversely, Irisin-treated unloaded mice showed no loss of muscle weight and similar fiber cross-sectional area to control mice. Our data reveal for the first time that r-Irisin treatment prevents and retrieves disuse-induced bone loss and muscle atrophy. These findings may lead to develop an Irisin-based therapy for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis and sarcopenia in all patients who cannot perform physical activity, as occurs during aging and immobility, and it could also represent a countermeasure for astronauts exposed to microgravity during space flight missions.This work was supported in part by ERISTO grant (to M.G.), by MIUR grant ex60% (to M.G.) and by SIOMMMS grant (to G.C.)