Advanced technology applications for second and third general coal gasification systems

The historical background of coal conversion is reviewed and the programmatic status (operational, construction, design, proposed) of coal gasification processes is tabulated for both commercial and demonstration projects as well as for large and small pilot plants. Both second and third generation processes typically operate at higher temperatures and pressures than first generation methods. Much of the equipment that has been tested has failed. The most difficult problems are in process control. The mechanics of three-phase flow are not fully understood. Companies participating in coal conversion projects are ordering duplicates of failure prone units. No real solutions to any of the significant problems in technology development have been developed in recent years

Attenuation of amiodarone induced lung fibrosis and phospholipidosis in hamsters, by treatment with the platelet activating factor receptor antagonist, WEB 2086

Therapeutic use of amiodarone (AMD), a Class III antiarrhythmic drug is complicated by the development of lung fibrosis (LF) and phospholipidosis (PL). In the present study, the effectiveness of a PAF antagonist, WEB 2086, against AMD induced LF and PL has been tested in hamsters. The animals were randomly divided into four groups: (1) saline + H2O; (2) WEB + H2O; (3) saline + AMD; and (4) WEB + AMD. Saline or WEB (10 mg/kg i.p.) was given 2 days prior to intratracheal instillation of water or AMD (1.5 μmol/0.25 ml/100 g BW) and thereafter daily throughout the study. Twenty-eight days after intratracheal instillation, the animals were killed and the lungs processed for various assays. The amount of lung hydroxyproline, an index of LF, in saline + H2O, WEB + H2O, saline + AMD, and WEB + AMD groups were 959 ± 46, 1035 ± 51, 1605 ± 85 and 1374 ± 69 μg/lung, respectively. Total lung PL, an index of phospholipidosis, in the corresponding groups were 8.4 ± 0.4, 8.3 ± 0.3, 11.7 ± 0.3 and 9.9 μg/lung. Lung malondialdehyde, an index of lipid peroxidation and superoxide dismutase activity in saline + H2O WEB + H2O, saline + AMD, and WEB + AMD were 93.0 ± 4.3, 93.0 ± 2.7, 138.9 ± 6.0 and 109.0 ± 3.8 nmol/lung and 359.7 ± 13.9, 394.0 ± 22.8, 497.5 ± 19.7 and 425.5 ± 4.9 units/lung, respectively. Administration of AMD alone caused significant increases in all the above indexes of lung toxicity, and treatment with WEB 2086 minimized the AMD induced toxicity as reflected by significant decreases in these indexes. Histopathological studies revealed a marked reduction in the extent and severity of lung lesions in the WEB + AMD group compared with the saline + AMD group. Treatment with WEB 2086 also reduced the acute mortality from 35% in saline + AMD group to 22% in WEB + AMD group. It was concluded that PAF is involved in the AMD induced lung fibrosis and phospholipidosis and that the PAF receptor antagonist may, therefore, be potentially useful in reducing AMD induced lung toxicity

Southern high-latitude Digisonde observations of ionosphere E-region Bragg scatter during intense lacuna conditions

International audienceDuring summer months at solar cycle minimum, F-region lacuna and slant-Es conditions (SEC) are common features of daytime ionograms recorded around local magnetic noon at Casey, Antarctica. Digisonde measurements of drift velocity height profiles show that the occurrence of lacuna prevents the determination of F-region drift velocities and also affects E-region drift velocity measurements. Unique E-region spectral features revealed as intervals of Bragg scatter superimposed on typical background E-region reflection were observed in Digisonde Doppler spectra during intense lacuna conditions. Daytime E-region Doppler spectra recorded at carrier frequencies from 1.5 to 2.7MHz, below the E-region critical frequency foE, have two side-peaks corresponding to Bragg scatter at approximately ±1-2Hz symmetrically located on each side of a central-peak corresponding to near-zenith total reflections. Angle-of-arrival information and ray-tracing simulations show that echo returns are coming from oblique directions most likely resulting from direct backscatter from just below the total reflection height for each sounding frequency. The Bragg backscatter events are shown to manifest during polar lacuna conditions, and to affect the determination of E-region background drift velocities, and as such must be considered when using standard Doppler-sorted interferometry (DSI) techniques to estimate ionospheric drift velocities. Given the Doppler and spatial separation of the echoes determined from high-resolution Doppler measurements, we are able to estimate the Bragg scatter phase velocity independently from the bulk E-region motion. The phase velocity coincides with the ExB direction derived from in situ fluxgate magnetometer records. When ionospheric refraction is considered, the phase velocity amplitudes deduced from DSI are comparable to the ion-acoustic speed expected in the E-region. We briefly consider the plausibility that these previously unreported polar cap E-region Bragg scatter Doppler spectral signatures, observed at Casey in December 1996 during SEC/lacuna conditions may be linked to ionosphere irregularities. These irregularities may possibly be generated by primary plasma waves triggered by current-driven instabilities, that is to say, a hybrid of the "modified two-stream" and "gradient drift" instability mechanisms

Sports mega-events – three sites of contemporary political contestation

This article discusses the contemporary politics of sports mega-events, involving the Olympic Games and Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Men’s Football World Cup Finals as well as other lower ‘order’ sports megas, taking two main forms: the promotional and the protest. There is a politics in, and a politics of, sports mega-events. The former focuses on the internal politics of the organizing bodies, such as the International Olympic Committee and FIFA. This form of politics has been written about elsewhere, and hence, there is no detailed discussion in this article about it. Instead this article offers a brief discussion of the range and number of sports mega-events since 2000, an assessment of the contemporary politics of sports mega-events, a focus on three main sites of political contestation – rights, legacy and labour, and finally, it offers conclusions about research into the politics of sports mega-events

Phylogenetics and evolution of nematode-trapping fungi (Orbiliales) estimated from nuclear and protein coding genes

The systematic classification of nematode-trapping fungi is redefined based on phylogenies inferred from sequence analyses of 28S rDNA, 5.8S rDNA and ß-tubulin genes. Molecular data were analyzed with maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian analysis. An emended generic concept of nematode-trapping fungi is provided. Arthrobotrys is characterized by adhesive networks, Dactylellina by adhesive knobs, and Drechslerella by constricting-rings. Phylogenetic placement of taxa characterized by stalked adhesive knobs and non-constricting rings also is confirmed in Dactylellina. Species that produce unstalked adhesive knobs that grow out to form loops are transferred from Gamsylella to Dactylellina, and those that produce unstalked adhesive knobs that grow out to form networks are transferred from Gamsylella to Arthrobotrys. Gamsylella as currently circumscribed cannot be treated as a valid genus. A hypothesis for the evolution of trapping-devices is presented based on multiple gene data and morphological studies. Predatory and nonpredatory fungi appear to have been derived from nonpredatory members of Orbilia. The adhesive knob is considered to be the ancestral type of trapping device from which constricting rings and networks were derived via two pathways. In the first pathway adhesive knobs retained their adhesive material forming simple two-dimension networks, eventually forming complex three-dimension networks. In the second pathway adhesive knobs lost their adhesive materials, with their ends meeting to form nonconstricting rings and they in turn formed constricting rings with three inflated-cells.published_or_final_versio

The family Pleosporaceae: intergeneric relationships and phylogenetic perspectives based on sequence analyses of partial 28S rDNA

The Pleosporaceae is an important loculoascomycete family. There has been disagreement, however, regarding the taxonomic placement of many genera within this family. This study investigates phylogenetic relationships among the genera Cochliobolus, Kirschsteiniothelia, Leptosphaerulina, Macroventuria, Pleospora, Pyrenophora, and Wettsteinina. Partial 28S rDNA sequences from taxa within these genera were analyzed with maximum parsimony, likelihood and Bayesian methods. Cochliobolus can be segregated broadly into two groups as previously proposed. Pleospora is polyphyletic in its current sense. Taxa with Stemphylium anamorphs are closely related to Cochliobolus and fit within the Pleosporaceae, whereas the affinities of Pleospora herbarum and P. ambigua are still ambiguous. Pyrenophora constitutes a monophyletic group within the Pleosporaceae, whereas Leptosphaerulina and Macroventuria appear to share phylogenetic affinities with the Leptosphaeriaceae and Phaeosphaeriaceae. Phylogenies indicate that Wettsteinina should be excluded from the Pleosporaceae. Similar findings are reported for Kirschsteiniothelia, which is probably polyphyletic. Anamorphic characters appear to be significant (especially in Cochliobolus) while ascospore morphologies, such as shape and color and substrate occurrence are poor indicators of phylogenetic relationships among these loculoascomycetes.published_or_final_versio

DUS II SOIL GAS SAMPLING AND AIR INJECTION TEST RESULTS

Soil vapor extraction (SVE) and air injection well testing was performed at the Dynamic Underground Stripping (DUS) site located near the M-Area Settling Basin (referred to as DUS II in this report). The objective of this testing was to determine the effectiveness of continued operation of these systems. Steam injection ended on September 19, 2009 and since this time the extraction operations have utilized residual heat that is present in the subsurface. The well testing campaign began on June 5, 2012 and was completed on June 25, 2012. Thirty-two (32) SVE wells were purged for 24 hours or longer using the active soil vapor extraction (ASVE) system at the DUS II site. During each test five or more soil gas samples were collected from each well and analyzed for target volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The DUS II site is divided into four parcels (see Figure 1) and soil gas sample results show the majority of residual VOC contamination remains in Parcel 1 with lesser amounts in the other three parcels. Several VOCs, including tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE), were detected. PCE was the major VOC with lesser amounts of TCE. Most soil gas concentrations of PCE ranged from 0 to 60 ppmv with one well (VEW-22A) as high as 200 ppmv. Air sparging (AS) generally involves the injection of air into the aquifer through either vertical or horizontal wells. AS is coupled with SVE systems when contaminant recovery is necessary. While traditional air sparging (AS) is not a primary component of the DUS process, following the cessation of steam injection, eight (8) of the sixty-three (63) steam injection wells were used to inject air. These wells were previously used for hydrous pyrolysis oxidation (HPO) as part of the DUS process. Air sparging is different from the HPO operations in that the air was injected at a higher rate (20 to 50 scfm) versus HPO (1 to 2 scfm). . At the DUS II site the air injection wells were tested to determine if air sparging affected VOC soil gas concentrations during ASVE. Five (5) SVE wells that were located closest to the air injection wells were used as monitoring points during the air sparging tests. The air sparging tests lasted 48 hours. Soil gas sample results indicate that sparging did not affect VOC concentrations in four of the five sparging wells, while results from one test did show an increase in soil gas concentrations

Emission lines in early-type galaxies: active nuclei or stars?

We selected 27244 nearby, red, giant early-type galaxies (RGEs) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). In a large fraction (53%) of their spectra the [O III] emission line is detected, with an equivalent width (EW) distribution strongly clustered around ~0.75 A. The vast majority of those RGEs for which it is possible to derive emission line ratios (amounting to about half of the sample) show values characteristic of LINERs. The close connection between emission lines and stellar continuum points to stellar processes as the most likely source of the bulk of the ionizing photons in RGEs, rather than active nuclei. In particular, the observed EW and optical line ratios are consistent with the predictions of models in which the photoionization comes from to hot evolved stars. Shocks driven by supernovae or stellar ejecta might also contribute to the ionization budget. A minority, ~4%, of the galaxies show emission lines with an equivalent that is width a factor of ~2 greater than the sample median. Only among them are Seyfert-like spectra found. Furthermore, 40% of this subgroup have a radio counterpart, compared to ~6% of the rest of the sample. These characteristics argue in favor of an AGN origin for their emission lines. Emission lines diagnostic diagrams do not reveal a distinction between the AGN subset and the other members of the sample, and consequently they are not a useful tool for establishing the dominant source of the ionizing photons, which is better predicted by the EW of the emission lines.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&