Improving the Energy Efficiency of Petrochemical Plant Operations: A Measurement and Verification Case Study Using a Balanced Wave Optimizer

The Chinese petrochemical industry is facing pressure to meet strict targets of energy consumption and carbon emission reductions. Water pumps are the primary equipment used in most chemical and agrochemical industries sectors since water is commonly used for cooling and heating purposes, but these pumps also consume a large amount of energy. Other uses of water pumps in these industries include producing steam for heating, preparing reaction media or absorptive reagents, rinsing products, and distilling. As for the electrical components of the water pump systems, current technologies of variable frequency drives and superconducting transmission lines are unable to increase the energy efficiency of these systems with a fixed load. However, the Balanced Wave Technology (BWT) is offered as a solution to overcome these limitations. In this report, a case study using a BWT optimizer is conducted on a closed loop water circulation system. Two BWTs are added to the individual motor-controlled section of each pump that is being used on the switchboard. For the first time, a detailed example was provided on how to implement option B of the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) in China by evaluating the performance of BWT as an energy conservation measure. The evaluated periods included those of the baseline, post-installation, and actual performance of the optimizers. An average saving of energy of about 10.46% is recorded in a 5-week reporting period. On this basis, that annual electricity saved is estimated to be 66,447.18 kWh, which is equivalent to the emission of 68.94 metric tons of CO2e. This case study demonstrates in detail how option B of IPMVP can be implemented for BWTs applied on pumping systems. In addition to petrochemical production plants, other industries like textile and clothing sections, which are heavy users of water and electrical energy with fixed loads in the production processes of raw materials, fiber, yarn, and fabric, as well as textile-dyeing and final treatment, could benefit from applying this new technology

Hong Kong Renal Registry Report 2012

SummaryThis report examined the characteristics and trends of dialysis and renal transplant patients among the resident population of Hong Kong who were managed by hospitals or dialysis centers of the Hospital Authority, and accounted for approximately 95% of all patients receiving renal replacement therapies (RRTs) in the territory. Patients receiving RRTs solely in the private sector were not included in this report. Data trends from 1996 to 2011 are presented. In 2011, 1115 new patients were accepted into RRT programs, and the incident rate was 157 patients per million populations (pmp). An increasing trend was noted. The incident rate was 95.1 pmp at the commencement of the annual report in 1996. The point prevalence on December 31, 2012 was 8197 with a prevalence rate of 1152.5 pmp. Overall, there were 3573 patients (43.6%) on peritoneal dialysis (PD) and 1246 patients (15.2%) on hemodialysis (HD), and 3378 patients (41.2%) were living with a functioning renal transplant. The PD/HD ratio was 74.2:25.8. The “PD First” policy was continued. The overall mortality rate among RRT patients was 9.95 patients per 100 patient-years exposed. There was a decreasing trend in mortality among PD patients. Infection and cardiovascular complications were the most common causes of death. Renal transplant was the modality with the best survival rates. The 5 years cumulative patient survival rate for patients on transplant treatment was 89.6%, whereas the corresponding patient survival rates for PD and HD patients were 50.7% and 55.7%, respectively. More than 70% of RRT patients with reports on rehabilitation were active and had normal daily activities

A Novel Tetrameric PilZ Domain Structure from Xanthomonads

PilZ domain is one of the key receptors for the newly discovered secondary messenger molecule cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP). To date, several monomeric PilZ domain proteins have been identified. Some exhibit strong c-di-GMP binding activity, while others have barely detectable c-di-GMP binding activity and require an accessory protein such as FimX to indirectly respond to the c-di-GMP signal. We now report a novel tetrameric PilZ domain structure of XCC6012 from the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc). It is one of the four PilZ domain proteins essential for Xcc pathogenicity. Although the monomer adopts a structure similar to those of the PilZ domains with very weak c-di-GMP binding activity, it is nevertheless interrupted in the middle by two extra long helices. Four XCC6012 proteins are thus self-assembled into a tetramer via the extra heptad repeat α3 helices to form a parallel four-stranded coiled-coil, which is further enclosed by two sets of inclined α2 and α4 helices. We further generated a series of XCC6012 variants and measured the unfolding temperatures and oligomeric states in order to investigate the nature of this novel tetramer. Discovery of this new PilZ domain architecture increases the complexity of c-di-GMP-mediated regulation

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Empowering Parents' Choice of Schools: The Rhetoric and Reality of How Hong Kong Kindergarten Parents Choose Schools Under the Voucher Scheme

School choice gives parents greater power over their childrenâs education. But ever since the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme (PEVS) was introduced in Hong Kong in 2007, school choice has become a hotly debated topic. The scheme was introduced to empower kindergarten parents in choosing a school for their children by offering them direct fee subsidies that, in return, could propel education quality forward. Parents in the private kindergarten sector, however, have long enjoyed the privilege of choice, and they have been preoccupied with an intense interest in their children's academic upbringing, even if it means compromising the holistic development of their children. This runs counter to the principles of a quality education. Therefore, the urge to further promote parental kindergarten choice will likely allow parental academic interests to continue to prevail and hence invalidate the PEVS' promise to improve education quality. The result is a unique dilemma between school choice for parents and the promise of education quality within Hong Kong's unique private kindergarten sector

The Use of Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine in Cancer: Data-Mining Study of 1 Million Web-Based Posts From Health Forums and Social Media Platforms

BackgroundPatients with cancer are increasingly using forums and social media platforms to access health information and share their experiences, particularly in the use of traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine (TCIM). Despite the popularity of TCIM among patients with cancer, few related studies have used data from these web-based sources to explore the use of TCIM among patients with cancer. ObjectiveThis study leveraged multiple forums and social media platforms to explore patients’ use, interest, and perception of TCIM for cancer care. MethodsPosts (in English) related to TCIM were collected from Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and 16 health forums from inception until February 2022. Both manual assessments and natural language processing were performed. Descriptive analyses were performed to explore the most commonly discussed TCIM modalities for each symptom and cancer type. Sentiment analyses were performed to measure the polarity of each post or comment, and themes were identified from posts with positive and negative sentiments. TCIM modalities that are emerging or recommended in the guidelines were identified a priori. Exploratory topic-modeling analyses with latent Dirichlet allocation were conducted to investigate the patients’ perceptions of these modalities. ResultsAmong the 1,620,755 posts available, cancer-related symptoms, such as pain (10/10, 100% cancer types), anxiety and depression (9/10, 90%), and poor sleep (9/10, 90%), were commonly discussed. Cannabis was among the most frequently discussed TCIM modalities for pain in 7 (70%) out of 10 cancer types, as well as nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, anxiety and depression, and poor sleep. A total of 7 positive and 7 negative themes were also identified. The positive themes included TCIM, making symptoms manageable, and reducing the need for medication and their side effects. The belief that TCIM and conventional treatments were not mutually exclusive and intolerance to conventional treatment may facilitate TCIM use. Conversely, TCIM was viewed as leading to patients’ refusal of conventional treatment or delays in diagnosis and treatment. Doctors’ ignorance regarding TCIM and the lack of information provided about TCIM may be barriers to its use. Exploratory analyses showed that TCIM recommendations were well discussed among patients; however, these modalities were also used for many other indications. Other notable topics included concerns about the legalization of cannabis, acupressure techniques, and positive experiences of meditation. ConclusionsUsing machine learning techniques, social media and health forums provide a valuable resource for patient-generated data regarding the pattern of use and patients’ perceptions of TCIM. Such information will help clarify patients’ needs and concerns and provide directions for research on integrating TCIM into cancer care. Our results also suggest that effective communication about TCIM should be achieved and that doctors should be more open-minded to actively discuss TCIM use with their patients

Improving the Energy Efficiency of Petrochemical Plant Operations: A Measurement and Verification Case Study Using a Balanced Wave Optimizer

The Chinese petrochemical industry is facing pressure to meet strict targets of energy consumption and carbon emission reductions. Water pumps are the primary equipment used in most chemical and agrochemical industries sectors since water is commonly used for cooling and heating purposes, but these pumps also consume a large amount of energy. Other uses of water pumps in these industries include producing steam for heating, preparing reaction media or absorptive reagents, rinsing products, and distilling. As for the electrical components of the water pump systems, current technologies of variable frequency drives and superconducting transmission lines are unable to increase the energy efficiency of these systems with a fixed load. However, the Balanced Wave Technology (BWT) is offered as a solution to overcome these limitations. In this report, a case study using a BWT optimizer is conducted on a closed loop water circulation system. Two BWTs are added to the individual motor-controlled section of each pump that is being used on the switchboard. For the first time, a detailed example was provided on how to implement option B of the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) in China by evaluating the performance of BWT as an energy conservation measure. The evaluated periods included those of the baseline, post-installation, and actual performance of the optimizers. An average saving of energy of about 10.46% is recorded in a 5-week reporting period. On this basis, that annual electricity saved is estimated to be 66,447.18 kWh, which is equivalent to the emission of 68.94 metric tons of CO2e. This case study demonstrates in detail how option B of IPMVP can be implemented for BWTs applied on pumping systems. In addition to petrochemical production plants, other industries like textile and clothing sections, which are heavy users of water and electrical energy with fixed loads in the production processes of raw materials, fiber, yarn, and fabric, as well as textile-dyeing and final treatment, could benefit from applying this new technology