Cryogenic carbon capture

Cryogenic Carbon Capture™ (CCC) removes CO2 from flue gas in a bolt on retrofittable, cost-effective, and energy-efficient process. The process also provides grid-level energy storage capable of storing and releasing energy at hundreds of megawatt rates at high efficiency and minimal cost beyond the costs of the carbon capture technology. The energy storage can level daily load fluctuations and responds to intermittent power sources on time scales comparable to solar and wind farms. The technology cools flue gases to their condensation (desublimation) point forming solid CO2, separates the solids from the residual gases, pressurizes the solids, and reheats both streams to room temperature. The process produces two nominally ambient-temperature streams: liquid CO2 at about 150 bar and the light gases at ambient pressure. Essentially all of the sensible heating occurs through energy integration. The technology primary advantages include (a) consumes minimal energy for CO2 capture (appx. 0.7 GJe/tonne CO2 for typical coal flue gas) (b) costs relatively little (2.5 cents/kWh or less increase in COE) (c) retrofits existing plants with virtually no upstream modification (d) removes essentially all other pollutants except CO, including SOx, NOx, Hg, PMxx, and HC; (e) requires no additional cooling water; (f) requires no steam or other resources from the process other than electrical power Fully integrated versions of the technology at up to 1 tonne of CO2/day have operated on fuels including subbituminous coal, bituminous coal, natural gas, biomass, municipal waste and tires and at sites that include utility power plants, cement kilns, heat plants, and pilot-scale research combustors. This presentation summarizes the technology, field test results, and development plans for this technology. Further information is available at www.sesinnovation.com

Analysis of vaginal microbicide film hydration kinetics by quantitative imaging refractometry

We have developed a quantitative imaging refractometry technique, based on holographic phase microscopy, as a tool for investigating microscopic structural changes in water-soluble polymeric materials. Here we apply the approach to analyze the structural degradation of vaginal topical microbicide films due to water uptake. We implemented transmission imaging of 1-mm diameter film samples loaded into a flow chamber with a 1.5×2 mm field of view. After water was flooded into the chamber, interference images were captured and analyzed to obtain high resolution maps of the local refractive index and subsequently the volume fraction and mass density of film material at each spatial location. Here, we compare the hydration dynamics of a panel of films with varying thicknesses and polymer compositions, demonstrating that quantitative imaging refractometry can be an effective tool for evaluating and characterizing the performance of candidate microbicide film designs for anti-HIV drug delivery. © 2014 Rinehart et al

Stephen Leacock: A Reappraisal

This collection of essays explores the many dimensions of the writings of Stephen Leacock, the well-loved Canadian author of Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town