Experimental Investigation of Pervaporation Membranes for Biobutanol Separation

Biotechnological production of chemical building blocks is one important step towards a more sustainable production. Unfortunately, the products to be separated are often highly diluted. Pervaporation has received increasing attention for the separation of small amounts of organic compounds from aqueous solutions, especially in the separation of butanol from water or from fermentation broth. To evaluate the potential of pervaporation for biobutanol recovery a consistent database is required, describing the dependency of permeate fluxes and selectivities on process variables like temperature, permeate pressure as well as feed concentrations and compositions. Therefore, within this work we investigated the separation behaviour of a commercially available polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane and membranes based on poly(ether block amide) (PEBA) fabricated in our own laboratory. The membranes were tested under varying operating conditions. Fermentation by-products or impurities may affect the pervaporation separation performance. Therefore, in addition, the permeate fluxes and the influence of acetone, ethanol, acetic and butyric acid and 1,3-propanediol have been investigated in detail as well. Several differences in the permeability and selectivity of PDMS and PEBA were observed during the experimental study. Swelling experiments were applied to further analyse the separation behaviour of PDMS and PEBA more in detail. Finally the influence of the observed separation performances on the overall butanol pervaporation process is discussed. It was found that especially well permeating by-products like acetone can drastically influence the subsequent downstreaming process

Development of an LC-MS method for determination of nitrogen-containing heterocycles using mixed-mode liquid chromatography

N-containing heterocycles (NCHs) are largely used as precursors for pharmaceuticals and can enter the environment. Some NCHs have been shown to be toxic, persistent, and very mobile in the environment. Thus, they have received increasing attention in the past years. However, the analysis of these polar compounds in environmental samples is still a challenge for liquid chromatography. This paper investigates the use of mixed-mode liquid chromatography (MMLC), which has reversed-phase and ion exchange characteristics for measurements of NCHs in water. NCHs with low pKa (i.e.,  5) interact by a mixture of reversed-phase/ion exchange/HILIC mechanism. It was also shown that the presented method performs well in the quantification of the majority of the selected NCHs in surface water with MDLs between 3 and 6 μg/L, a low matrix effect and recoveries in the range of 77–96% except for pyridazine exhibiting 32% were achieved. The method was successfully employed to follow the degradation of NCHs in ozonation

Increased risk of venous thromboembolism in patients with acute leukaemia

Patients with malignancies have an increased risk for venous thromboembolisms (VTE), but data on patients with acute leukaemia are very limited so far. We found VTE in 12% of 455 patients with acute leukaemia, half of which occurred in association with central venous catheters, with equal risk of ALL and AML

Sur les solutions périodiques du mouvement plan de libration des satellites et des planètes

Ce papier présente une étude analytique du mouvement plan de rotation des satellites (et des planètes) dans leurs mouvements orbitaux. Les trois familles des solution périodiques sont obtenues par la méthode du prolongement analytique de Poincaré. Ensuite, la stabilité de ces solutions périodiques est discutée, et les équations approchées des courbes limites de stabilité sont données jusqu'au quatrième ordre. This paper presents an analytical study of the rotational motion of the satellites (and the planets) in their orbital planes. The three families of periodic solutions are obtained by the method of analytical continuation as formulated by Poincaré. The stability of these solutions are analyzed, and the approximate equations of the transition curves are obtained to the fourth order.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42563/1/10569_2005_Article_BF01227807.pd

(Table 1) Population density and biomass of the foraminifer Rupertina, and grain size of cores from the Norwegian continental slope

Rupertina stabilis occupies a depth restricted biotope of suspension feeding animals situated at the Norwegian continental margin. It extends from the Voring plateau northwards for at least 200 - 300 km, in depths between 600 and 800 m. This slope position is known for relatively strong bottom currents and shifting watermass boundaries. - The species is attached to hard substrates, mainly stones or hydroid stalks and obviously prefers an elevated position. It is building a permanent cyst of sponge spicules and debris at the apertural region. The spicules are used to support a pseudopodial network similar to that described from Halyphysema (LIPPS 1983). It is believed to serve as a filter apparatus. - A review of known occurences in the Atlantic is given, suggesting a temperature adaption of the species ranging from 0°C to a maximum of 8°C. Specimens were successfully cultured for about 2-3 weeks

Modelling Porous Cementitious Media with/without Integrated Latent Heat Storage: Application Scenario

This paper presents a methodological approach for the evaluation of the thermal behavior of cementitious porous media with/without integrated latent-heat thermal energy storage (LHTES). To achieve this goal, the Lewis-Nielsen model has been calibrated to predict the insulation properties of mineralized foamed concretes. Two pore-related microstructural fitting parameters, A and Φm, are presented according to the available data in the literature. In this regard, new findings are implemented for the classification of pore structure and prediction of the homogenized thermal conductivity of two-phase cementitious foams with or without phase change materials. The calibration and predictive analyses have been extended to a wide range of experimental data, including variation of binder types, porosities, and latent components. The presented analytical approach appears to agree well with experimental results and can be employed in the design of two-phase mineral foam materials. Then, to assess the thermal behavior of the predicted insulating envelopes, a one-dimensional (1D) enthalpy-based model is used which combines Fourier’s law of heat conduction, the first law of thermodynamics, Lewis-Nielsen conductivities, and the mixture theory for LHTES additions. The results demonstrated the importance of volumetric heat capacity for the thermal inertia of building envelopes