Hydrogen as an energy product from agriculturally produced sugars and starches in South Africa

Includes synopsis.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 111-120).Bio-fuels have a significant role to play in the South African energy economy. They have a potential to impact positively on the quality of life of a large number of people while providing environmental gains geared at addressing environmental challenges such as global warming. Technologies to produce bio-fuels are well established and processes mature, however energy yields are low to modest in relation to land used. More efficient technologies, the so called ‘second generation bio-fuels technologies’ are being developed in response to this challenge. On a parallel track, research to enable the ‘hydrogen economy’ is also being stimulated. This dissertation investigates the potential transfer of a ‘second generation bio-fuel technology’ developed elsewhere into the South African industry. The technology of interest is called Aqueous Phase Reforming (APR) and it is claimed to provide an efficient route for hydrogen production from intermediate process sugar streams

Knowledge and skills transfer between emerging and established contractors

This study focuses on emerging contractors in the South African construction industry and the lack of knowledge and skills to develop into sustainable businesses.Emerging contractors in the South African construction industry, owned and managed by HDIs, lack the knowledge and skills to develop into sustainable businesses; underlying most factors, contributing to the hindrance of growth and development among emerging contractors, is a general lack of knowledge. (Martin, 2010) A study by Martin 2010 was conducted where insight to interactions between emerging and established contractors was provided. Despite the transfer of knowledge however, concern remains over the ability of emerging contractors to develop. This research determines the progress of the respondents previously surveyed by Martin 2010 in order to analyse the effect of skills and knowledge transfer between emerging and established contractors. An electronic survey is conducted, the results of which are used to deduce the degree to which the emerging contractor has progressed as a result of skills and knowledge transfer, as well as the interaction with emerging contractors yielding the most effective transfer of skills and knowledge.RM201

Waste-Based Bioenergy: operationalising Technology Innovation System analysis to go beyond assessments of potential into implementation

Includes bibliographical references.Clean modern energy and improved waste management are two well-recognised challenges in the global transition to sustainable development. There exist synergistic opportunities in simultaneously tackling the two issues via the generation of bioenergy from suitable waste streams. This potential has been successfully exploited elsewhere in the world; however, South Africa, despite having significant potential, lags behind in the implementation of these technologies and the respective conditions to use them. To understand slowly evolving technology trajectories and how to facilitate the pace of implementation, sustainability transition approaches such as the Technology Innovation System (TIS) framework have been found to be useful. The aim of this thesis is to explore the utility of a TIS approach to investigate how the potential of waste-based bioenergy in South Africa can be unlocked to recover energy from waste using anaerobic digestion technology (EfWviaAD). Going beyond previous TIS studies, this thesis also aims to experiment with aspects of the TIS approach, so as to observe steps towards implementation. Key to the TIS approach is the notion of critical activities and processes around an emerging technology called system functions. Seven of these system functions detailed in Chapter 2 are proposed. These include knowledge development and diffusion, market forming activities, mobilisation of resources etc

Genetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains circulating in Botswana

Molecular typing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb) isolates can inform Tuberculosis (TB) control programs on the relative proportion of transmission driving the TB epidemic. There is limited data on the M. tb genotypes that are circulating in Botswana. The aim of this study was to generate baseline data on the genetic diversity of M.tb isolates circulating in the country.; A total of 461 M.tb isolates received at the Botswana National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory between March 2012 and October 2013 were included in this study. Drug susceptibility testing was conducted using the BD BACTEC MGIT 960 System. M.tb strains were genotyped using spoligotyping and spoligotype patterns were compared with existing patterns in the SITVIT Web database. A subset of drug resistant isolates which formed spoligo clusters (n = 65) was additionally genotyped with 12-loci MIRU. Factors associated with drug resistance and clustering were evaluated using logistic regression.; Of the 461 isolates genotyped, 458 showed 108 distinct spoligotype patterns. The predominant M.tb lineages were Lineage 4 (81.9%), Lineage 2 (9%) and Lineage 1 (7.2%). The predominant spoligotype families within Lineage 4 were LAM (33%), S (14%), T (16%), X (16%). Three hundred and ninety-two (86%) isolates could be grouped into 44 clusters (2-46 isolates per cluster); giving a clustering rate of 76%. We identified 173 (37.8%) drug resistant isolates, 48 (10.5%) of these were multi-drug resistant. MIRU typing of the drug resistant isolates allowed grouping of 46 isolates into 14 clusters, giving a clustering rate of 49.2%. There was no association between age, sex, treatment category, region and clustering.; This study highlights the complexity of the TB epidemic in Botswana with multiple strains contributing to disease and provides baseline data on the population structure of M.tb strains in Botswana

Agricultural residue gasification for low-cost, low-carbon decentralized power:An empirical case study in Cambodia

Abstract not availableJohn L. Field, Paul Tanger, Simon J. Shackley, Stephan M. Haefel

Detection of Second Line Drug Resistance among Drug Resistant Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Isolates in Botswana

The emergence and transmission of multidrug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR); Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb); strains is a threat to global tuberculosis (TB) control. The early detection of drug resistance is critical for patient management. The aim of this study was to determine the proportion of isolates with additional second-line resistance among rifampicin and isoniazid resistant and MDR-TB isolates. A total of 66; M.tb; isolates received at the National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory between March 2012 and October 2013 with resistance to isoniazid, rifampicin or both were analyzed in this study. The genotypes of the; M.tb; isolates were determined by spoligotyping and second-line drug susceptibility testing was done using the Hain Genotype MTBDR; sl; line probe assay version 2.0. The treatment outcomes were defined according to the Botswana national and World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Of the 57 isolates analyzed, 33 (58%) were MDR-TB, 4 (7%) were additionally resistant to flouroquinolones and 3 (5%) were resistant to both fluoroquinolones and second-line injectable drugs. The most common fluoroquinolone resistance-conferring mutation detected was; gyrA; A90V. All XDR-TB cases remained smear or culture positive throughout the treatment. Our study findings indicate the importance of monitoring drug resistant TB cases to ensure rapid detection of second-line drug resistance

Energy Efficiency Analysis: Biomass-to-Wheel Efficiency Related with Biofuels Production, Fuel Distribution, and Powertrain Systems

BACKGROUND: Energy efficiency analysis for different biomass-utilization scenarios would help make more informed decisions for developing future biomass-based transportation systems. Diverse biofuels produced from biomass include cellulosic ethanol, butanol, fatty acid ethyl esters, methane, hydrogen, methanol, dimethyether, Fischer-Tropsch diesel, and bioelectricity; the respective powertrain systems include internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles based on gasoline or diesel ICEs, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, sugar fuel cell vehicles (SFCV), and battery electric vehicles (BEV). METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We conducted a simple, straightforward, and transparent biomass-to-wheel (BTW) analysis including three separate conversion elements--biomass-to-fuel conversion, fuel transport and distribution, and respective powertrain systems. BTW efficiency is a ratio of the kinetic energy of an automobile's wheels to the chemical energy of delivered biomass just before entering biorefineries. Up to 13 scenarios were analyzed and compared to a base line case--corn ethanol/ICE. This analysis suggests that BEV, whose electricity is generated from stationary fuel cells, and SFCV, based on a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle with an on-board sugar-to-hydrogen bioreformer, would have the highest BTW efficiencies, nearly four times that of ethanol-ICE. SIGNIFICANCE: In the long term, a small fraction of the annual US biomass (e.g., 7.1%, or 700 million tons of biomass) would be sufficient to meet 100% of light-duty passenger vehicle fuel needs (i.e., 150 billion gallons of gasoline/ethanol per year), through up to four-fold enhanced BTW efficiencies by using SFCV or BEV. SFCV would have several advantages over BEV: much higher energy storage densities, faster refilling rates, better safety, and less environmental burdens