On the complexity of the boundary layer structure and aerosol vertical distribution in the coastal Mediterranean regions: A case study

The planetary boundary layer structure in the coastal areas, and particularly in complex orography regions such as the Mediterranean, is extremely intricate. In this study, we show the evolution of the planetary boundary layer based on in situ airborne measurements and ground-based remote sensing observations carried out during the MORE (Marine Ozone and Radiation Experiment) campaign in June 2010. The campaign was held in a rural coastal Mediterranean region in Southern Italy. The study focuses on the observations made on 17 June. Vertical profiles of meteorological parameters and aerosol size distribution were measured during two flights: in the morning and in the afternoon. Airborne observations were combined with ground-based LIDAR, SODAR, microwave and visible radiometer measurements, allowing a detailed description of the atmospheric vertical structure. The analysis was complemented with data from a regional atmospheric model run with horizontal resolutions of 12, 4 and 1 km, respectively; back-trajectories were calculated at these spatial resolutions. The observations show the simultaneous occurrence of dust transport, descent of mid-tropospheric air and sea breeze circulation on 17 June. Local pollution effects on the aerosol distribution, and a possible event of new particles formation were also observed. A large variability in the thermodynamical structure and aerosol distribution in the flight region, extending by approximately 30km along the coast, was found. Within this complex, environment-relevant differences in the back-trajectories calculated at different spatial resolutions are found, suggesting that the description of several dynamical processes, and in particular the sea breeze circulation, requires high-resolution meteorological analyses. The study also shows that the integration of different observational techniques is needed to describe these complex conditions; in particular, the availability of flights and their timing with respect to the occurring phenomena are crucial

Retrofitting partial oxyfuel and Integrated Ca-Looping technologies to an existing cement plant: a case study

The present document describes the potential retrofit of an existing cement plant with carbon capture technologies applied in two sequential steps. The pathway proposed consists in a first retrofit through partial oxyfuel followed by the integrated calcium looping (CaL) technology. This kind of applications may represent a promising strategy for the decarbonization route in the cement sector without introducing chemical solvents or special components, in particular for existing cement kilns that may need to be revamped. The cement plant selected for this study is the 0.5 Mtcem/y Colleferro facility owned by Italcementi-HeidelbergCement. This study analyses the mass & energy balances of the partial oxyfuel, and the integrated CaL process retrofitted to the existing cement plant. The results of the two CCS technologies are then compared in terms of CO2 emission reduction and energy consumption with the reference plant without CO2 capture. The scope of this analysis is to evaluate the impact of carbon capture technologies on the cement production process. The process simulation software Aspen Plus V10.0® has been employed to develop the model for the three different plant configurations (i.e., the base case w/o carbon capture, the partial oxyfuel mode, and the integrated CaL). The base case has been validated using field measurements coming directly from the Colleferro plant. From this process flow model, the two CCS technologies have been developed according to the specific process requirements. Results show that a maximum reduction in CO2 emissions of 92.4% is possible with the integrated CaL, while the partial oxyfuel enables to capture 71.7% of the CO2 generated in the plant

The total number of acini remains constant throughout postnatal rat lung development.

The pulmonary airways are subdivided into conducting and gas-exchanging airways. The small tree of gas-exchanging airways which is fed by the most distal conducting airway represents an acinus. Very little is known about the development of the number of acini. The goal of this study was to estimate their number throughout rat postnatal development. Right middle rat lung lobes were obtained at postnatal day 4-60, stained with heavy metals, paraffin embedded, and scanned by synchrotron radiation-based X-ray tomographic microscopy or imaged with micro computed tomography after critical point drying. The acini were counted by detection of the transitional bronchioles [bronchioalveolar duct junction (BADJ)] by using morphological criteria (thickness of the walls of airways and appearance of alveoli) during examination of the resulting three-dimensional (3D) image stacks. Between postnatal days 4-60, the number of acini per lung remained constant (5,840 ± 547 acini), but their volume increased significantly. We concluded that the acini are formed before the end of the saccular stage (before postnatal day 4) and that the developmental increase of the lung volume is achieved by an increase of the acinar volume and not by an increase of their number. Furthermore, our results propose that the bronchioalveolar stem cells, which are residing in the BADJ, are as constant in their location as the BADJ itself

Ljubiteljsko gledališče na Malti

This article gives a short survey of amateur theatre practice in Malta. It demonstrates that the theatre system is based almost entirely on amateur practice, as Malta does not have the audience capacity and the administrative infrastructure to support professional theatre, and only a handful of persons make a living solely from theatre. However, the development of theatre education during the last thirty years has improved the quality of acting and staging and provided more scope for tackling challenging performances with regard to both content and mise-en-scène. The article looks into the different varieties of amateur theatre-making, taking into account issues such as the differing use of the two main languages of the country: Maltese and English. It discusses the importance of community identity as well as the role the Catholic Church has played in the development of theatre. The authors examine the challenges faced by contemporary amateur theatremakers in the light of the changes occurring in society and the new choices that these changes determine. New Western theatre styles are not only influencing both playwrights and performers, but have also changed the expectations of contemporary spectators concerning the way the performance presents social and political issues.peer-reviewe