Thermoelectric cells cogeneration from biomass power plant: literature review

Thermoelectric cells convert directly heat into electricity but, due to the low conversion efficiency (up to 5%), most applications are in waste heat recovery. Another promising application is in biomass boiler. In this case, the installation of thermoelectric modules converts a biomass boiler into a cogeneration system, where the aim of the integration is not the electricity production for external power supply, but the realization of a stand-alone biomass power plant which could match the customer needs in isolated places. This review is focused on the recent research papers in thermoelectric biomass cogeneration

Techno-economic analysis of different plant configuration for thermoelectric cogeneration from biomass boiler

Thermoelectric modules integration within biomass boiler for the direct conversion of heat into electricity is a possibility to increase efficiency and to realize a stand-alone biomass boiler. Due to the low conversion efficiency (up to 5%) of commercial thermoelectric modules, the aim of the integration shall not be the electricity production for external power supply, but the energy self-consumption of biomass boiler electric auxiliaries. The paper describes and analyses four different options for the integration of thermoelectric modules within a biomass boiler: in the combustion chamber, in the convective tubes, in the chimney and with a condensing fluid circuit to be realized outside the biomass boiler. Five quantitative and qualitative key performance indicators have been defined to assess how the integration strategy can influence the electric yield of thermoelectric modules, the ease of maintenance, the operation continuity, the need of auxiliaries systems to be added as well as the impact on biomass boiler redesign or retrofit. The analysis shows that the realization of a circuit with a condensing fluid allows reaching the best combination of key performance indicators. On the basis of this result, the paper also shows the preliminary design of a new test facility to test Glycerol Triacetate as condensing fluid to produce electricity by thermoelectric modules

Innovative technological solutions moving towards the realization of a stand-alone biomass boiler with near-zero particulate emissions

Abstract The paper describes two innovative technological solutions developed at the University of Bologna and shows a preliminary design on how they can be integrated in a commercial biomass boiler for residential application. The first innovation is a high efficiency and low cost filter for particulate emissions: the first prototype of bubble-column scrubber was tested in University of Bologna laboratory on a 25 kW th and reaches PM2.5 removal efficiency up to 95%. The second innovation is the integration of a thermoelectric generator able to produce electricity directly from heat exchange. A prototype has been realized and tested in University of Bologna laboratory and represents a new approach in the design and application of thermoelectric generator in the field of biomass boiler. The paper will evaluate how these new technologies can be integrated in a residential size biomass boiler from a technological and economic point of view, considering also operation and maintenance costs

Assessing Topographical Orientation Skills in Cannabis Users

The long-term effects of cannabis on human cognition are still unclear, but, considering that cannabis is a widely used substance and, overall, its potential use in therapeutic interventions, it is important to evaluate them. We hypothesize that the discrepancies among studies could be attributed to the specific cognitive function investigated and that skills subserved by the hippocampus, such as the spatial orientation abilities and, specifically, the ability to form and use cognitive maps, should be more compromised than others. Indeed it has been showed that cannabis users have a reduced hippocampus and that the hippocampus is the brain region in which cannabis has the greatest effect since it contains the highest concentration of cannabinoid receptors. To test this hypothesis we asked 15 heavy cannabis users and 19 nonusers to perform a virtual navigational test, the CMT, that assesses the ability to form and use cognitive maps. We found that using cannabis has no effect on these hippocampus-dependent orientation skills. We discuss the implications of our findings and how they relate to evidence reported in the literature that the intervention of functional reorganization mechanisms in cannabis user allows them to cope with the cognitive demands of navigational tasks

Metastasis to parotid gland from non Head and Neck tumors

Most primary tumors spreading metastasis to the parotid gland are usually located in the head and neck region, nonetheless, rarely, parotid gland can also be the target of metastatic localization site of distant primary tumors. The purpose of this study was to describe a clinical series of metastasis to the parotid gland from distant primary tumors (non Head & Neck)

Complete resolution of non-necrotizing lung granuloma and pyoderma gangrenosum after restorative proctocolectomy in a woman with severe ulcerative colitis and cytomegalovirus infection

Here, we report the unusual case of an ulcerative colitis female patient presenting together with cytomegalovirus infection, pyoderma gangrenosum and a noncaseating lung granuloma, both resistant to immunomodulatory drugs which dramatically obtained a clinical stable remission after restorative proctocolectomy

Magnetic Dynamo Caused by Axions in Neutron Stars

The coupling between axions and photons modifies Maxwell’s equations, introducing a dynamo term in the magnetic induction equation. In neutron stars, for critical values of the axion decay constant and axion mass, the magnetic dynamo mechanism increases the total magnetic energy of the star. We show that this generates substantial internal heating due to enhanced dissipation of crustal electric currents. These mechanisms would lead magnetized neutron stars to increase their magnetic energy and thermal luminosity by several orders of magnitude, in contrast to observations of thermally emitting neutron stars. To prevent the activation of the dynamo, bounds on the allowed axion parameter space can be derived.F. A., P. D. L., and A. M. are supported by the Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav), through Project No. CE170100004. P. D. L. is supported through ARC Discovery Project No. DP220101610. J. A. P. acknowledges support by the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2019/071) and AEI Grant No. PID2021-127495NB-I00

Magnetic dynamo caused by axions in neutron stars

The coupling between axions and photons modifies Maxwell's equations, introducing a dynamo term in the magnetic induction equation. In neutron stars, for critical values of the axion decay constant and axion mass, the magnetic dynamo mechanism increases the total magnetic energy of the star. We show that this generates substantial internal heating due to enhanced dissipation of crustal electric currents. These mechanisms would lead magnetized neutron stars to increase their magnetic energy and thermal luminosity by several orders of magnitude, in contrast to observations of thermally-emitting neutron stars. To prevent the activation of the dynamo, bounds on the allowed axion parameter space can be derived.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, 1 table + Supplemental Materia

Encoding many channels in the same frequency through radio vorticity: first experimental test

We have shown experimentally that it is possible to propagate and use the properties of twisted non-monochromatic incoherent radio waves to simultaneously transmit to infinity more radio channels on the same frequency band by encoding them in different orbital angular momentum states. This novel radio technique allows the implementation of, at least in principle, an infinite number of channels on one and the same frequency, even without using polarization or dense coding techniques. An optimal combination of all these physical properties and techniques represents a solution for the problem of radio band congestion. Our experimental findings show that the vorticity of each twisted electromagnetic wave is preserved after the propagation, paving the way for entirely new paradigms in radio communication protocols.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures, with a public experiment, three audio files in mp3 forma

The Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System (FIRMOS) for spectral characterization of the atmospheric emission

The Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System (FIRMOS) is a Fourier transform spectroradiometer developed to support the Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring (FORUM) satellite mission by validating measurement methods and instrument design concepts, both in the laboratory and in field campaigns. FIRMOS is capable of measuring the downwelling spectral radiance emitted by the atmosphere in the spectral band from 100 to 1000 cm$^{−1}$ (10–100 µm in wavelength), with a maximum spectral resolution of 0.25 cm$^{−1}$. We describe the instrument design and its characterization and discuss the geophysical products obtained by inverting the atmospheric spectral radiance measured during a campaign from the high-altitude location of Mount Zugspitze in Germany, beside the Extended-range Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (E-AERI), which is permanently installed at the site. Following the selection of clear-sky scenes, using a specific algorithm, the water vapour and temperature profiles were retrieved from the FIRMOS spectra by applying the Kyoto protocol and Informed Management of the Adaptation (KLIMA) code. The profiles were found in very good agreement with those provided by radiosondes and by the Raman lidar operating from the Zugspitze Schneefernerhaus station. In addition, the retrieval products were validated by comparing the retrieved integrated water vapour values with those obtained from the E-AERI spectra