Performance of Anaerobic Digestion Systems: A Review

Anaerobic digesters contain extreme environments that change drastically during the production cycle. Organic material is broken down first into amino and fatty acids, then into volatile fatty acids, ammonia, CO2, H2S and other by-products. These acids and alcohols are converted to acetic acid as well as CO2 and H2, which is then used to create methane. All these biological processes mean that the pH, temperature and type of bacteria vary, creating conditions outside the scope of current standards, such as a concentration of ammonium ions 8 times greater than the upper limit of the XA3 class of highly aggressive chemical attack for concrete in BS EN 206-1:2000. Depending on the source, the concrete may be exposed to heavy metals, antibiotics or surfactants, which are not even considered by current standards. Anaerobic digestion is a growing industry, with 576 plants currently in the UK using organic wastes for biogas generation and reduction in the volume of waste going to landfill. £160m was invested in the UK sector between 2013 and the start of 2015, $2 billion was invested across Europe in 2015, with an estimated$8 billion European investment by 2024. This means that anaerobic digestion has sizable economic value as well as positive environmental effects. However, as part of maximising these benefits, it is necessary to better understand the chemical and biological attack the concrete that is used to build these digesters undergoes, so that steps can be taken towards limiting premature deterioration. This article will show the current gaps in both knowledge and legislation, with the aim of promoting further research into the aforementioned areas

Adapting the FlexiArch for widening a complex arch bridge

The 1840's Teewell Hill arch bridge, in the suburbs of Bristol, UK, was no longer adequate for increasing local traffic levels and needed to be widened. Several widening options were considered and it was concluded that the innovative ‘FlexiArch’ would best accommodate the complex geometry of the existing structure while minimising social and economic impacts. In order to elegantly accommodate the raked spandrel walls of the existing bridge Macrete and WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff worked collaboratively to produce a custom-designed, high-quality, precast concrete FlexiArch, which matched the contours of the existing bridge. As the FlexiArch system has no corrodible reinforcement, it is highly sustainable and will result in reduced maintenance, as for the existing bridge. The elimination of centring and speed of construction (hours not months) minimised disruption to road traffic and to cyclists on the cycle network below the bridge – a key project criterion required by the client. Thus, in addition to addressing an accident black spot, the FlexiArch solution provided South Gloucestershire Council (the client) with an aesthetically pleasing and fully functional solution at a competitive cost

Multimode hybrid gold-silicon nanoantennas for tailored nanoscale optical confinement

High-index dielectric nanoantennas, which provide an interplay between electric and magnetic modes, have been widely used as building blocks for a variety of devices and metasurfaces, both in linear and nonlinear regimes. Here, we investigate hybrid metal-semiconductor nanoantennas, consisting of a multimode silicon nanopillar core coated with a gold layer, that offer an enhanced degree of control over the mode selection and confinement, and emission of light on the nanoscale exploiting high-order electric and magnetic resonances. Cathodoluminescence spectra revealed a multitude of resonant modes supported by the nanoantennas due to hybridization of the Mie resonances of the core and the plasmonic resonances of the shell. Eigenmode analysis revealed the modes that exhibit enhanced field localization at the gold interface, together with high confinement within the nanopillar volume. Consequently, this architecture provides a flexible means of engineering nanoscale components with tailored optical modes and field confinement for a plethora of applications, including sensing, hot-electron photodetection and nanophotonics with cylindrical vector beams.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Microbial Ecology and Geo-electrical Responses across a Groundwater Plume

We have used geophysics, microbiology, and geochemistry to link large-scale (30+ m) geophysical self-potential (SP) responses at a groundwater contaminant plume with its chemistry and microbial ecology of groundwater and soil from in and around it. We have found that microbially mediated transformation of ammonia to nitrite, nitrate, and nitrogen gas was likely to have promoted a well-defined electrochemical gradient at the edge of the plume, which dominated the SP response. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that the plume fringe or anode of the geobattery was dominated by electrogens and biodegradative microorganisms including Proteobacteria alongside Geobacteraceae, Desulfobulbaceae, and Nitrosomonadaceae. The uncultivated candidate phylum OD1 dominated uncontaminated areas of the site. We defined the redox boundary at the plume edge using the calculated and observed electric SP geophysical measurements. Conductive soils and waste acted as an electronic conductor, which was dominated by abiotic iron cycling processes that sequester electrons generated at the plume fringe. We have suggested that such geoelectric phenomena can act as indicators of natural attenuation processes that control groundwater plumes. Further work is required to monitor electron transfer across the geoelectric dipole to fully define this phenomenon as a geobattery. This approach can be used as a novel way of monitoring microbial activity around the degradation of contaminated groundwater plumes or to monitor in situ bioelectric systems designed to manage groundwater plumes

An experimental and numerical study of moisture transport and moisture-induced strain in fast-grown sitka spruce

The use of fast-grown timber in the manufacture of engineered wood products is increasing; however, the fast growth rate results in a low-density timber that is susceptible to significant swelling and shrinkage deformations under changing moisture content. The current study focuses on the characterisation of the moisture diffusion and swelling/shrinkage of fast-grown Sitka spruce and the prediction of the moisture-induced strain development in Sitka spruce glulam beams under variable humidity cycles. Moisture content evolution and swelling/shrinkage coefficients were measured and the longitudinal swelling/shrinkage was found to be significantly greater than for slow-grown timber. Sitka spruce glued-laminated beams were subjected to controlled relative humidity cycling for 52 weeks and the moisture distribution and moisture-induced strains were measured continuously. Coupled moisture-displacement numerical models, incorporating the experimentally measured material parameters were developed. The effect of the glue-line was found to have an insignificant effect on moisture transport, however, the material orientation greatly influenced the predicted moisture-induced strain. Accurately mapping the material orientation produced significantly better predictions of the experimental results over the 52-week period

An experimental and numerical study of moisture transport and moisture-induced strain in fast-grown sitka spruce

The use of fast-grown timber in the manufacture of engineered wood products is increasing; however, the fast growth rate results in a low-density timber that is susceptible to significant swelling and shrinkage deformations under changing moisture content. The current study focuses on the characterisation of the moisture diffusion and swelling/shrinkage of fast-grown Sitka spruce and the prediction of the moisture-induced strain development in Sitka spruce glulam beams under variable humidity cycles. Moisture content evolution and swelling/shrinkage coefficients were measured and the longitudinal swelling/shrinkage was found to be significantly greater than for slow-grown timber. Sitka spruce glued-laminated beams were subjected to controlled relative humidity cycling for 52 weeks and the moisture distribution and moisture-induced strains were measured continuously. Coupled moisture-displacement numerical models, incorporating the experimentally measured material parameters were developed. The effect of the glue-line was found to have an insignificant effect on moisture transport, however, the material orientation greatly influenced the predicted moisture-induced strain. Accurately mapping the material orientation produced significantly better predictions of the experimental results over the 52-week period

Mode Engineering in Large Arrays of Coupled Plasmonic–Dielectric Nanoantennas

Strong electromagnetic field confinement and enhancement can be readily achieved in plasmonic nanoantennas, however, this is considerably more difficult to realize over large areas, which is essential for many applications. Here, dispersion engineering in plasmonic metamaterials is applied to successfully develop and demonstrate a coupled array of plasmonic–dielectric nanoantennas offering an ultrahigh density of electromagnetic hot spots (10 cm ) over macroscopic, centimeter scale areas. The hetero-metamaterial is formed by a highly ordered array of vertically standing plasmonic dipolar antennas with a ZnO gap and fabricated using a scalable electrodeposition technique. It supports a complex modal structure, including guided, surface and gap modes, which offers rich opportunities, frequently beyond the local effective medium theory, with optical properties that can be easily controlled and defined at the fabrication stage. This metamaterial platform can be used in a wide variety of applications, including hot-electron generation, nanoscale light sources, sensors, as well as nonlinear and memristive devices. 11 −