Production and purification of hydrogen by biogas combined reforming and steam-iron process

Cobalt ferrite and hematite with minor additives have been tested for production and purification of high purity hydrogen from a synthetic biogas by steam-iron process (SIP) in a fixed bed reactor. A catalyst based in nickel aluminate has been included in the bed of solids to enhance the rate of the reaction of methane dry reforming (MDR). The reductants resulting from MDR are responsible for reducing the oxides based on iron that will, in the following stage, be oxidized by steam to release hydrogen with less than 50 ppm of CO. Coke minimization along reduction stages forces to operate such reactors above 700 °C for reductions, and as low as 500 °C for oxidations to avoid coke gasification. To avoid problems such as reactor clogging by coke in reductions and/or contamination of hydrogen by gasification of coke along oxidations, steam in small proportions has been included in the feed with the aim of minimizing or even avoiding formation of carbonaceous depositions along the reduction stage of SIP. Since steam is an oxidant, it exerts an inhibiting effect upon reduction of the oxide, that slows down the efficiency of the process. It has been proved that co-feeding low proportions of steam with an equimolar mixture of CH4 and CO2 (simulating a poor heating value desulphurized biogas) is able to avoid coke deposition, allowing the operation of both, reductions and oxidations, in isothermal regime (700 °C). Empirical results have been contrasted with data found in literature for similar processes based in MDR and combined (or mixed) reforming process (CMR), concluding that the combination of MDR + SIP proposed in this work, taking apart economic aspects and complex engineering, shows similar yields towards hydrogen, but with the advantage of not requiring a subsequent purification process

Babelium, migración a HTML5

El proyecto consiste en migrar una aplicación web existente (Babelium) implementada mediante flash a una que utilice HTML5 y un Framework basado en Javascript para programar la funcionalidad de la aplicación. Se parte de un prototipo que contiene gran parte de contenido de la aplicación web Flash migrado a HTML5 pero que no utiliza ningún Framework.(http://mintzabel.com) El idioma del proyecto es el Español

Biogas to high purity hydrogen by methane dry reforming in TZFBR+MB and exhaustion by Steam-Iron Process. Techno–economic assessment

A techno-economic study has been carried out with the aim of analyzing the performance (product distribution and energy yields) and estimating the production costs of high purity hydrogen obtained from biogas. For such purpose and taking advantage of empirical data developed in our laboratory, it has been proposed a system consisting of a two-zone fluidized bed reactor aided by a system of permselective (Pd/Ag) metallic membranes inserted in the fluidized bed (TZFBR+MB), and a battery of several fixed bed reactors operating cycles of reduction and oxidation (Steam-Iron Process -SIP-). The feed has always been an equimolar mixture of CH4 and CO2 simulating a sweetened biogas. The first reactor (TZFBR+MB) can produce a stream of pure hydrogen (i.e. PEMFC quality) as permeated flow through the MB, and a retentate stream rich in all species resulting from the methane dry reforming reaction (MDR) and the water gas shift equilibrium (WGS). The singularity of this kind of complex reactors is that regeneration of the catalyst is performed in the same reactor and simultaneously to the MDR reaction because of the two-zone. Due to the reductive behavior of the retentate stream, it can be fed to a bed of solid where up to two different oxygen carriers (iron oxide with additives and cobalt ferrite) can be reduced to their metallic state. Once the solid has been completely reduced, it can be reoxidized with steam releasing a high purity hydrogen stream. Both reactors (i.e. TZFBR+MB and SIP) have been coupled in different degrees. A performance (hydrogen and energy yields) as well as costs analysis (fixed assets and operating costs) have been performed with the aid of Aspen HYSYS v9.0, used for dimensioning the equipment needed to process up to 1350 kg/h of biogas. On this way, the integrated process enhances the efficiencies of every single process allowing pure hydrogen yields up to 68% at 575 °C in the TZFBR+MB and an overall energy efficiency greater than 45%. Production costs have been found to be in the range from 4 to 15 €/kg, still high but not so far away from the target of DOE fixed in 2 $/kg by 2020

Iron oxide ores as carriers for the production of high purity hydrogen from biogas by steam–iron process

Production of high purity hydrogen (<50 ppm CO) by steam–iron process (SIP) from a synthetic sweetened biogas has been investigated making use of a natural iron ore containing up to 81 wt% of hematite (Fe2O3) as oxygen carrier. The presence of a lab-made catalyst (NiAl2O4 with NiO excess above its stoichiometric composition) was required to carry out the significant transformation of mixtures of methane and carbon dioxide in hydrogen and carbon monoxide by methane dry reforming reaction. Three consecutive sub-stages have been identified along the reduction stage that comprise A) the combustion of CH4 by lattice oxygen of NiO and Fe2O3, B) catalyzed methane dry reforming and C) G–G equilibrium described by the Water-Gas-Shift reaction. Oxidation stages were carried out with steam completing the cycle. Oxidation temperature was always kept constant at 500 °C regardless of the temperature used in the previous reduction to minimize the gasification of eventual carbon deposits formed along the previous reduction stage. The presence of other oxides different from hematite in minor proportions (SiO2, Al2O3, CaO and MgO to name the most significant) confers it an increased thermal resistance against sintering respecting pure hematite at the expense of slowing down the reduction and oxidation rates. A “tailor made” hematite with additives (Al2O3 and CeO2) in minor proportions (2 wt%) has been used to stablish comparisons in performance between natural and synthetic iron oxides. It has been investigated the effect of the reduction temperature, the proportion of methane to carbon dioxide in the feed (CH4:CO2 ratio) and the number of repetitive redox cycles

Producción y purificación de hidrógeno mediante "steam-iron" a partir de fracciones ácidas de bio-oil

En el presente proyecto se ha investigado la producción y purificación de hidrógeno mediante el proceso "steam-iron" a partir del ácido acético como componente modelo de la fracción ácida del bio-oil o líquido de pirólisis. Éste compuesto supone un 5% en base húmeda del líquido de pirólisis, siendo uno de los compuestos mayoritarios. Este trabajo forma parte de un estudio más amplio para determinar la viabilidad de producción y purificación conjunta de hidrógeno a partir de bio-oil, mediante el estudio de compuestos característicos de cada una de sus fracciones. Los modelos cinéticos obtenidos serán una base excelente para el dimensionado de equipos a nivel industrial en caso de demostrarse su viabilidad económica. El proceso "steam-iron" se basa en la generación de hidrógeno a partir de ciclos de dos etapas. La primera consiste en la reducción del óxido de hierro (III) hasta su estado de oxidación mínimo como hierro metálico (Fe). Posteriormente, se alimenta vapor de agua para reoxidar el hierro metálico donde se produce hidrógeno de alta pureza (al ser separable el agua mediante condensación). La parte experimental del estudio ha sido llevada a cabo en un reactor de lecho fijo, utilizando como sólido reaccionante una mezcla de óxido de hierro (III) aditvado con cera y alúmina conocido como óxido "triple". Al mismo se le ha añadido un catalizador de NiO sobre NiAl2O4. Todos ellos han sido sintetizados en el laboratorio. El estudio consiste en la búsqueda de las condiciones óptimas de operación. Para ello se han realizado estudios a diferentes temperaturas (650º-800ºC) y diferentes presiones parciales de reactivo (0.05-0.15 bar). Se ha analizado la influencia de dichas variables en la distribución de productos de reacción, tanto en la reducción como en la oxidación, de condiciones de operación tales como la temperatura de reducción, presión parcial del ácido acético alimentado, (0.05-0.15 bar), y la evolución a lo largo de los ciclos. Así mismo se ha llevado a cabo la caracterización de diferentes muestras de de sólido, tanto reaccionado como fresco mediante espectroscopía Raman, difractometría de rayos X (XRD), micoscopía de transmisión (TEM) y espectrofotometría (XPS). El resultado mmás remarcable de la caracterizacón es que las deposiciones carbonosas a lo largo de los ciclos se comportan como inertes en las condiciones utilizadas y aseguran un hidrógeno de alta pureza. Por último se ha llevado a cabo el ajuste cinético integral de los datos experimentales cuando se utiliza una mezcla de óxido "triple" y catalizador, tanto en la etapa de reducción como en la etapa de oxidación. El esquema de reacción propuesto para la etapa de reducción permite justificar el comportamiento de los gases de forma heurística y para la oxidación también se obtienen valores que explican la evolución de la composición de los gases

Tackling the biological meaning of the human olfactory bulb dyshomeostatic proteome across neurological disorders: an integrative bioinformatic approach

Olfactory dysfunction is considered an early prodromal marker of many neurodegenerative diseases. Neuropathological changes and aberrant protein aggregates occur in the olfactory bulb (OB), triggering a tangled cascade of molecular events that is not completely understood across neurological disorders. This study aims to analyze commonalities and differences in the olfactory protein homeostasis across neurological backgrounds with different spectrums of smell dysfunction. For that, an integrative analysis was performed using OB proteomics datasets derived from subjects with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson´s disease (PD), mixed dementia (mixD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD-TDP43), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with respect to OB proteome data from neurologically intact controls. A total of 80% of the differential expressed protein products were potentially disease-specific whereas the remaining 20% were commonly altered across two, three or four neurological phenotypes. A multi-level bioinformatic characterization revealed a subset of potential disease-specific transcription factors responsible for the downstream effects detected at the proteome level as well as specific densely connected protein complexes targeted by several neurological phenotypes. Interestingly, common or unique pathways and biofunctions were also identified, providing novel mechanistic clues about each neurological disease at olfactory level. The analysis of olfactory epithelium, olfactory tract and primary olfactory cortical proteotypes in a multi-disease format will functionally complement the OB dyshomeostasis, increasing our knowledge about the neurodegenerative process across the olfactory axis.This work was funded by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Ref. PID2019-110356RB-I00/ AEI / 10.13039/501100011033 to JF-I and ES) and the Department of Economic and Business Development of the Government of Navarra (Ref. 0011-14112020-000028 to ES).The Proteomics Platform of Navarrabiomed, member of Proteored (PRB3ISCIII), was supported by grant PT17/0019/009, of the PE I+D+I 2013-2016 funded by ISCIII and FEDER to JF. The Clinical Neuroproteomics Unit of Navarrabiomed is member of the Spanish Olfactory Network (ROE) (supported by grant RED2018-102662-T funded by Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation) and the Global Consortium for Chemosensory Research (GCCR)

Purificación de mezclas H2-CO2 mediante el proceso "Steam-Iron" con óxidos de hierro

Es un estudio del comportamiento reactivo de la purificación de corrientes de hidrógeno procedentes del proceso de reformado de gas natural con vapor de agua mediante el proceso "Steam-Iron" usando óxidos de hierro sintéticos como transportadores de oxígeno. Dicho proceso se lleva a cabo en un reactor de lecho fijo en un rango de temperaturas comprendido entre 650-850 ºC y presión cercana a la atmosférica

Sex-divergent effects on the NAD+-dependent deacetylase sirtuin signaling across the olfactory–entorhinal–amygdaloid axis in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases

BackgroundSmell impairment is one of the earliest features in Alzheimer's (AD) and Parkinson's diseases (PD). Due to sex differences exist in terms of smell and olfactory structures as well as in the prevalence and manifestation of both neurological syndromes, we have applied olfactory proteomics to favor the discovery of novel sex-biased physio-pathological mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets associated with olfactory dysfunction.MethodsSWATH-MS (sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragment ion spectra mass spectrometry) and bioinformatic workflows were applied in 57 post-mortem olfactory tracts (OT) derived from controls with no known neurological history (n = 6F/11M), AD (n = 4F/13M) and PD (n = 7F/16M) subjects. Complementary molecular analyses by Western-blotting were performed in the olfactory bulb (OB), entorhinal cortex (EC) and amygdala areas.Results327 and 151 OT differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were observed in AD women and AD men, respectively (35 DEPs in common). With respect to PD, 198 DEPs were identified in PD women, whereas 95 DEPs were detected in PD men (20 DEPs in common). This proteome dyshomeostasis induced a disruption in OT protein interaction networks and widespread sex-dependent pathway perturbations in a disease-specific manner, among them Sirtuin (SIRT) signaling. SIRT1, SIRT2, SIRT3 and SIRT5 protein levels unveiled a tangled expression profile across the olfactory-entorhinal-amygdaloid axis, evidencing disease-, sex- and brain structure-dependent changes in olfactory protein acetylation.ConclusionsAlteration in the OT proteostasis was more severe in AD than in PD. Moreover, protein expression changes were more abundant in women than men independent of the neurological syndrome. Mechanistically, the tangled SIRT profile observed across the olfactory pathway-associated brain regions in AD and PD indicates differential NAD (+)-dependent deacetylase mechanisms between women and men. All these data shed new light on differential olfactory mechanisms across AD and PD, pointing out that the evaluation of the feasibility of emerging sirtuin-based therapies against neurodegenerative diseases should be considered with caution, including further sex dimension analyses in vivo and in clinical studies