35 research outputs found

    Der Cluster für Industrielle Biotechnologie – CLIB2021

    Get PDF

    Kinematically complete experimental study of Compton scattering at helium atoms near the ionization threshold

    Full text link
    Compton scattering is one of the fundamental interaction processes of light with matter. Already upon its discovery [1] it was described as a billiard-type collision of a photon kicking a quasi-free electron. With decreasing photon energy, the maximum possible momentum transfer becomes so small that the corresponding energy falls below the binding energy of the electron. Then ionization by Compton scattering becomes an intriguing quantum phenomenon. Here we report a kinematically complete experiment on Compton scattering at helium atoms below that threshold. We determine the momentum correlations of the electron, the recoiling ion, and the scattered photon in a coincidence experiment finding that electrons are not only emitted in the direction of the momentum transfer, but that there is a second peak of ejection to the backward direction. This finding links Compton scattering to processes as ionization by ultrashort optical pulses [2], electron impact ionization [3,4], ion impact ionization [5,6], and neutron scattering [7] where similar momentum patterns occur.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure

    Completion of the 8 MW Multi-Frequency ECRH System at ASDEX Upgrade

    Get PDF
    Over the last 15 years, the Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heating (ECRH) system at the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak has been upgraded from a 2 MW, 2 s, 140 GHz system to an 8 MW, 10 s, dual frequency system (105/140 GHz). Eight gyrotrons were in routine operation during the current experimental campaign. All gyrotrons are step-tunable operating at 105 and 140 GHz with a maximum output power of about 1 MW and 10 s pulse length. The system includes 8 transmission lines, mainly consisting of oversized corrugated waveguides (I.D. = 87 mm) with overall lengths between 50 and 70 meters including quasi-optical sections at both ends. Further improvements of the transmission lines with respect to power handling and reliability are underway

    Denisova admixture and the first modern human dispersals into Southeast Asia and Oceania

    Get PDF
    It has recently been shown that ancestors of New Guineans and Bougainville Islanders have inherited a proportion of their ancestry from Denisovans, an archaic hominin group from Siberia. However, only a sparse sampling of populations from Southeast Asia and Oceania were analyzed. Here, we quantify Denisova admixture in 33 additional populations from Asia and Oceania. Aboriginal Australians, Near Oceanians, Polynesians, Fijians, east Indonesians, and Mamanwa (a ‘‘Negrito’’ group from the Philippines) have all inherited genetic material from Denisovans, but mainland East Asians, western Indonesians, Jehai (a Negrito group from Malaysia), and Onge (a Negrito group from the Andaman Islands) have not. These results indicate that Denisova gene flow occurred into the common ancestors of New Guineans, Australians, and Mamanwa but not into the ancestors of the Jehai and Onge and suggest that relatives of present-day East Asians were not in Southeast Asia when the Denisova gene flow occurred. Our finding that descendants of the earliest inhabitants of Southeast Asia do not all harbor Denisova admixture is inconsistent with a history in which the Denisova interbreeding occurred in mainland Asia and then spread over Southeast Asia, leading to all its earliest modern human inhabitants. Instead, the data can be most parsimoniously explained if the Denisova gene flow occurred in Southeast Asia itself. Thus, archaic Denisovans must have lived over an extraordinarily broad geographic and ecological range, from Siberia to tropical Asia

    Gene expression of NMDA receptor subunits in the cerebellum of elderly patients with schizophrenia

    Get PDF
    To determine if NMDA receptor alterations are present in the cerebellum in schizophrenia, we measured NMDA receptor binding and gene expression of the NMDA receptor subunits in a post-mortem study of elderly patients with schizophrenia and non-affected subjects. Furthermore, we assessed influence of genetic variation in the candidate gene neuregulin-1 (NRG1) on the expression of the NMDA receptor in an exploratory study. Post-mortem samples from the cerebellar cortex of ten schizophrenic patients were compared with nine normal subjects. We investigated NMDA receptor binding by receptor autoradiography and gene expression of the NMDA receptor subunits NR1, NR2A, NR2B, NR2C and NR2D by in situ hybridization. For the genetic study, we genotyped the NRG1 polymorphism rs35753505 (SNP8NRG221533). Additionally, we treated rats with the antipsychotics haloperidol or clozapine and assessed cerebellar NMDA receptor binding and gene expression of subunits to examine the effects of antipsychotic treatment. Gene expression of the NR2D subunit was increased in the right cerebellum of schizophrenic patients compared to controls. Individuals carrying at least one C allele of rs35753505 (SNP8NRG221533) showed decreased expression of the NR2C subunit in the right cerebellum, compared to individuals homozygous for the T allele. Correlation with medication parameters and the animal model revealed no treatment effects. In conclusion, increased NR2D expression results in a hyperexcitable NMDA receptor suggesting an adaptive effect due to receptor hypofunction. The decreased NR2C expression in NRG1 risk variant may cause a deficit in NMDA receptor function. This supports the hypothesis of an abnormal glutamatergic neurotransmission in the right cerebellum in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia

    Economic Trends in the Transition into a Circular Bioeconomy

    No full text
    The shift away from fossil fuels needed to reduce CO2 emissions requires the use of renewable carbon and energy sources, including biomass in the bioeconomy. Already today, the bioeconomy has a significant share in the EU economy with traditionally bio-based sectors. For the future, the energy, mobility and chemical sectors have additional high expectations of the bioeconomy, especially for agriculture and forestry to produce biomass as an industrial feedstock. Numerous studies have been published on the availability of feedstocks, but these often only look at individual applications. Looking at the total demand and considering the sustainability limits of biomass production leads to the conclusion that the expected demand for all industries that could process biomass exceeds the sustainably available capacity. To mitigate this conflict between feedstock demand and availability, it is proposed that the organic chemical sector be fully integrated into the bioeconomy and the energy sector be only partially integrated. In addition, recycling of wastes and residues including CO2 should lead to a circular bioeconomy. The purpose of this manuscript is to help fill the research gap of quantitatively assessing the demand and supply of biomass, to derive economic trends for the current transition phase, and to further develop the theoretical concept of the bioeconomy towards circularity

    Bioeconomy: Markets, Implications, and Investment Opportunities

    No full text
    In order to achieve the objectives of the Paris Climate Change Agreement, the conversion of our economy, which is still dominated by fossil carbon, to the bioeconomy model must be completed by 2050. This requires a shift from oil, gas and coal to agricultural, forestry and marine raw materials and will affect the global processing chains for energy, fuels and chemicals. However, the land required for the production of raw materials is competing with the production of food and animal feed. In addition, future land use must better take into account planetary boundaries and the preservation of ecosystem services. In order to achieve economic, ecological and societal sustainability, the necessary measures must therefore be geared towards the UN’s sustainability goals. Against this background, the future bioeconomy will have to concentrate on the food, chemical and heavy fuel sectors. Important sub-areas are alternative animal protein for nutrition, feedstock efficiency in the processing of bio-based raw materials, and the expansion of the raw materials spectrum. This requires enormous investment in industrial facilities, the integration of newly emerging value chains and the necessary infrastructure. The annual global investment requirements for renewable energy, bio-based chemicals and fuels, and ecosystem services is estimated at USD 1–2 trillion over the next three decades, equivalent to about 1.3–2.6% of global GDP. This article discusses the implications and guard rails of the bioeconomy model, as well as capital needs and possible sources

    EU-Bioenergies: Status and Future Prospects

    No full text
    For climate protection and a sustainable economy, the European Union is pursuing a policy of switching from fossil to renewable energies, which should lead to a reduction in greenhouse gases (GHG) and a reduction in dependence on energy imports. This report uses publicly available databases and analyses to examine the extent to which these goals are achieved or are achievable by means of bioenergy (fuel, heat, electricity). In addition, EU regulations and databases relevant to bioenergy are critically scrutinised. Today, bioenergy accounts for around 10% of Europe's energy supply, making up more than half (59%) of renewable energies. There is potential to further increase bioenergy, but the future contribution to energy supply and independence from imports is rather to be estimated as moderate. The evaluation of GHG suffers from the fact that the official databases do not meet the requirements for a scientific evaluation. In order to make a sustainable contribution to the EU targets, besides energy, all other options for the use of biomass, the use of biogenic CO2 through carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) and the combination of bioenergy and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) should be integrated. To promote the implementation of such an integrated approach, the pricing of GHG should be combined with incentives for the upscaling of sustainable bioenergy, CCU and CCS.   Received: 20 October 2023 | Revised: 11 January 2024 | Accepted: 26 February 2024   Conflicts of Interest The author declares that he has no conflicts of interest to this work.   Data Availability Statement The data is available upon request from the author
    corecore