Polymer substrates with microneedles for epidermis injection

Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, 2009.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 31).Injections of medicine into the body are commonplace, whether they be intravenous or capsules. The benefit of using a macroneedle for injecting cargo into the circulatory system is its simplicity. However, introduction of the needle intravenously can also include foreign matter if the needle is unsterile. Due to macroneedles ability to pierce skin and veins for effortless insertion, it can also damage unintentional areas if a patient resists the needle, or if it is poorly inserted. Thus the body can be subjected to undesirable materials beyond the intension medicine cargo. Current research reevaluates methods of introducing cargo medicine into the body. Popular models consider polymer substrates with different surface designs and medicine release. Thin polymer substrates allow flexible construction for adhering to tissue while specfic polymers with high Young's modulus create strength for rigidity. Cargo can be placed within or on top of the substrate itself for release to the epidermis or dermis in stages, which is difficult for both oral medicine and macroneedles. A spectic substrate system with microneedles can prevent irflammation or tear of the epidermis but still puncture for cargo release. Depending on the substrate contact surface area, a larger microneedle array can be utilized, for a higher success rate of release beyond individual microneedles. Microneedles can carry and release medicine either internally or externally through the epidermis. In the latter, Langerhans cells can be utilized for activating the immune system by releasing antigenes. Aims of this thesis show the effects of polymer microneedle substrates with methods for constructing the substrate arrays that are flexible adherent to the epidermis, rigid enough for puncturing the stratum corneum, but not weak enough to buckle or be brittle.by John R Pavlish.S.B

Subtask 4.24 - Field Evaluation of Novel Approach for Obtaining Metal Emission Data

Over the past two decades, emissions of mercury, nonmercury metals, and acid gases from energy generation and chemical production have increasingly become an environmental concern. On February 16, 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) to reduce mercury, nonmercury metals, and HCl emissions from coal-fired power plants. The current reference methods for trace metals and halogens are wet-chemistry methods, EPA Method (M) 29 and M26A, respectively. As a possible alternative to EPA M29 and M26A, the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) has developed a novel multielement sorbent trap (ME-ST) method to be used to sample for trace elements and/or halogens. Testing was conducted at three different power plants, and the results show that for halogens, the ME-ST halogen (ME-ST-H) method did not show any significant bias compared to EPA M26A and appears to be a potential candidate to serve as an alternative to the reference method. For metals, the ME-ST metals (ME-ST-M) method offers a lower detection limit compared to EPA M29 and generally produced comparable data for Sb, As, Be, Cd, Co, Hg, and Se. Both the ME-ST-M and M29 had problems associated with high blanks for Ni, Pb, Cr, and Mn. Although this problem has been greatly reduced through improved trap design and material selection, additional research is still needed to explore possible longer sampling durations and/or selection of lower background materials before the ME-ST-M can be considered as a potential alternative method for all the trace metals listed in MATS

Field Testing of Activated Carbon Injection Options for Mercury Control at TXU's Big Brown Station

The primary objective of the project was to evaluate the long-term feasibility of using activated carbon injection (ACI) options to effectively reduce mercury emissions from Texas electric generation plants in which a blend of lignite and subbituminous coal is fired. Field testing of ACI options was performed on one-quarter of Unit 2 at TXU's Big Brown Steam Electric Station. Unit 2 has a design output of 600 MW and burns a blend of 70% Texas Gulf Coast lignite and 30% subbituminous Powder River Basin coal. Big Brown employs a COHPAC configuration, i.e., high air-to-cloth baghouses following cold-side electrostatic precipitators (ESPs), for particulate control. When sorbent injection is added between the ESP and the baghouse, the combined technology is referred to as TOXECON{trademark} and is patented by the Electric Power Research Institute in the United States. Key benefits of the TOXECON configuration include better mass transfer characteristics of a fabric filter compared to an ESP for mercury capture and contamination of only a small percentage of the fly ash with AC. The field testing consisted of a baseline sampling period, a parametric screening of three sorbent injection options, and a month long test with a single mercury control technology. During the baseline sampling, native mercury removal was observed to be less than 10%. Parametric testing was conducted for three sorbent injection options: injection of standard AC alone; injection of an EERC sorbent enhancement additive, SEA4, with ACI; and injection of an EERC enhanced AC. Injection rates were determined for all of the options to achieve the minimum target of 55% mercury removal as well as for higher removals approaching 90%. Some of the higher injection rates were not sustainable because of increased differential pressure across the test baghouse module. After completion of the parametric testing, a month long test was conducted using the enhanced AC at a nominal rate of 1.5 lb/Macf. During the time that enhanced AC was injected, the average mercury removal for the month long test was approximately 74% across the test baghouse module. ACI was interrupted frequently during the month long test because the test baghouse module was bypassed frequently to relieve differential pressure. The high air-to-cloth ratio of operations at this unit results in significant differential pressure, and thus there was little operating margin before encountering differential pressure limits, especially at high loads. This limited the use of sorbent injection as the added material contributes to the overall differential pressure. This finding limits sustainable injection of AC without appropriate modifications to the plant or its operations. Handling and storage issues were observed for the TOXECON ash-AC mixture. Malfunctioning equipment led to baghouse dust hopper plugging, and storage of the stagnant material at flue gas temperatures resulted in self-heating and ignition of the AC in the ash. In the hoppers that worked properly, no such problems were reported. Economics of mercury control at Big Brown were estimated for as-tested scenarios and scenarios incorporating changes to allow sustainable operation. This project was funded under the U.S. Department of Energy National Energy Technology Laboratory project entitled 'Large-Scale Mercury Control Technology Field Testing Program--Phase II'

PILOT-SCALE EVALUATION OF THE IMPACT OF SELECTIVE CATALYTIC REDUCTION FOR NOx ON MERCURY SPECIATION

Full-scale tests in Europe and bench-scale tests in the United States have indicated that the catalyst, normally vanadium/titanium metal oxide, used in the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO{sub x}, may promote the formation of Hg{sup 2+} and/or particulate-bound mercury (Hg{sub p}). To investigate the impact of SCR on mercury speciation, pilot-scale screening tests were conducted at the Energy & Environmental Research Center. The primary research goal was to determine whether the catalyst or the injection of ammonia in a representative SCR system promotes the conversion of Hg{sup 0} to Hg{sup 2+} and/or Hg{sub p} and, if so, which coal types and parameters (e.g., rank and chemical composition) affect the degree of conversion. Four different coals, three eastern bituminous coals and a Powder River Basin (PRB) subbituminous coal, were tested. Three tests were conducted for each coal: (1) baseline, (2) NH{sub 3} injection, and (3) SCR of NO{sub x}. Speciated mercury, ammonia slip, SO{sub 3}, and chloride measurements were made to determine the effect the SCR reactor had on mercury speciation. It appears that the impact of SCR of NO{sub x} on mercury speciation is coal-dependent. Although there were several confounding factors such as temperature and ammonia concentrations in the flue gas, two of the eastern bituminous coals showed substantial increases in Hg{sub p} at the inlet to the ESP after passing through an SCR reactor. The PRB coal showed little if any change due to the presence of the SCR. Apparently, the effects of the SCR reactor are related to the chloride, sulfur and, possibly, the calcium content of the coal. It is clear that additional work needs to be done at the full-scale level

Mercury Information Clearinghouse

The Canadian Electricity Association (CEA) identified a need and contracted the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) to create and maintain an information clearinghouse on global research and development activities related to mercury emissions from coal-fired electric utilities. With the support of CEA, the Center for Air Toxic Metals{reg_sign} (CATM{reg_sign}) Affiliates, and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the EERC developed comprehensive quarterly information updates that provide a detailed assessment of developments in the various areas of mercury monitoring, control, policy, and research. A total of eight topical reports were completed and are summarized and updated in this final CEA quarterly report. The original quarterly reports can be viewed at the CEA Web site (www.ceamercuryprogram.ca). In addition to a comprehensive update of previous mercury-related topics, a review of results from the CEA Mercury Program is provided. Members of Canada's coal-fired electricity generation sector (ATCO Power, EPCOR, Manitoba Hydro, New Brunswick Power, Nova Scotia Power Inc., Ontario Power Generation, SaskPower, and TransAlta) and CEA, have compiled an extensive database of information from stack-, coal-, and ash-sampling activities. Data from this effort are also available at the CEA Web site and have provided critical information for establishing and reviewing a mercury standard for Canada that is protective of environment and public health and is cost-effective. Specific goals outlined for the CEA mercury program included the following: (1) Improve emission inventories and develop management options through an intensive 2-year coal-, ash-, and stack-sampling program; (2) Promote effective stack testing through the development of guidance material and the support of on-site training on the Ontario Hydro method for employees, government representatives, and contractors on an as-needed basis; (3) Strengthen laboratory analytical capabilities through analysis and quality assurance programs; and (4) Create and maintain an information clearinghouse to ensure that all parties can keep informed on global mercury research and development activities

MERCURY STABILITY IN THE ENVIRONMENT

The 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAAs) require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine whether the presence of mercury and 188 other trace substances, referred to as air toxics or hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), in the stack emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric utility power plants poses an unacceptable public health risk (1). The EPA's conclusions and recommendations were presented in two reports: Mercury Study Report to Congress and Study of Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions from Electric Utility Steam Generating Units-Final Report to Congress. The first congressional report addressed both human health and the environmental effects of anthropogenic mercury emissions, while the second report addressed the risk to public health posed by emissions of HAPs from steam electricity-generating units. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is also required by the CAAAs to investigate mercury and determine a safe threshold level of exposure. Recently the National Academy of Sciences has also been commissioned by Congress to complete a report, based the available scientific evidence, regarding safe threshold levels of mercury exposure. Although the EPA reports did not state that mercury controls on coal-fired electric power stations should be required given the current state of the art, they did indicate that EPA views mercury as a potential threat to human health. It is likely that major sources of mercury emissions, including fossil-fired combustion systems, will be controlled at some point. In fact, municipal waste combustion units are already regulated. In anticipation of additional control measures, much research has been done (and continues) regarding the development of control technologies for mercury emitted from stationary sources to the atmosphere. Most approaches taken to date involve sorbent injection technologies or improve upon removal of mercury using existing technologies such as flue gas desulfurization scrubbers, fabric filters, and electrostatic precipitators. Depending on the fly ash chemistry and the form of mercury present in the flue gas, some of these existing technologies can be effective at capturing vapor-phase mercury from the flue gas stream. Although much research has been done on enhancing the removal of mercury from flue gas streams, little research has focused on what happens to the mercury when it is captured and converted and/or transferred to a solid or aqueous solution. The stability (or mobility) of mercury in this final process is critical and leads to the questions, What impact will the increased concentration of mercury have on utilization, disposal, and reuse? and Is the mercury removed from the flue gas really removed from the environment or rereleased at a later point? To help answer these questions, the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) as part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Base Cooperative Agreement did a series of experiments using thermal desorption and leaching techniques. This report presents the results from these tests

Mercury Emission Measurement at a CFB Plant

In response to pending regulation to control mercury emissions in the United States and Canada, several projects have been conducted to perform accurate mass balances at pulverized coal (pc)-fired utilities. Part of the mercury mass balance always includes total gaseous mercury as well as a determination of the speciation of the mercury emissions and a concentration bound to the particulate matter. This information then becomes useful in applying mercury control strategies, since the elemental mercury has traditionally been difficult to control by most technologies. In this instance, oxidation technologies have proven most beneficial for increased capture. Despite many years of mercury measurement and control projects at pc-fired units, far less work has been done on circulating fluidized-bed (CFB) units, which are able to combust a variety of feedstocks, including cofiring coal with biomass. Indeed, these units have proven to be more problematic because it is very difficult to obtain a reliable mercury mass balance. These units tend to have very different temperature profiles than pc-fired utility boilers. The flexibility of CFB units also tends to be an issue when a mercury balance is determined, since the mercury inputs to the system come from the bed material and a variety of fuels, which can have quite variable chemistry, especially for mercury. In addition, as an integral part of the CFB operation, the system employs a feedback loop to circulate the bed material through the combustor and the solids collection system (the primary cyclone), thereby subjecting particulate-bound metals to higher temperatures again. Despite these issues, CFB boilers generally emit very little mercury and show good native capture. The Energy & Environmental Research Center is carrying out this project for Metso Power in order to characterize the fate of mercury across the unit at Rosebud Plant, an industrial user of CFB technology from Metso. Appropriate solids were collected, and flue gas samples were obtained using the Ontario Hydro method, mercury continuous emission monitors, and sorbent trap methods. In addition, chlorine and fluorine were determined for solids and in the flue gas stream. Results of this project have indicated a very good mercury mass balance for Rosebud Plant, indicating 105 {+-} 19%, which is well within acceptable limits. The mercury flow through the system was shown to be primarily in with the coal and out with the flue gas, which falls outside of the norm for CFB boilers

AIR QUALITY: MERCURY, TRACE ELEMENTS, AND PARTICULATE MATTER CONFERENCE

This final report summarizes the planning/preparation, facilitation, and outcome of the conference entitled ''Air Quality: Mercury, Trace Elements, and Particulate Matter'' that was held December 1-4, 1998, in McLean, Virginia (on the outskirts of Washington, DC). The goal of the conference was to bring together industry, government, and the research community to discuss the critical issue of how air quality can impact human health and the ecosystem, specifically hazardous air pollutants and fine airborne particles; available and developing control technologies; strategies and research needs; and an update on federal and state policy and regulations, related implementation issues, and the framework of the future

JV Task 124 - Understanding Multi-Interactions of SO3, Mercury, Selenium, and Arsenic in Illinois Coal Flue Gas

This project consisted of pilot-scale combustion testing with a representative Illinois basin coal to explore the multi-interactions of SO{sub 3}, mercury, selenium and arsenic. The parameters investigated for SO{sub 3} and mercury interactions included different flue gas conditions, i.e., temperature, moisture content, and particulate alkali content, both with and without activated carbon injection for mercury control. Measurements were also made to track the transformation of selenium and arsenic partitioning as a function of flue gas temperature through the system. The results from the mercury-SO{sub 3} testing support the concept that SO{sub 3} vapor is the predominant factor that impedes efficient mercury removal with activated carbon in an Illinois coal flue gas, while H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} aerosol has less impact on activated carbon injection performance. Injection of a suitably mobile and reactive additives such as sodium- or calcium-based sorbents was the most effective strategy tested to mitigate the effect of SO{sub 3}. Transformation measurements indicate a significant fraction of selenium was associated with the vapor phase at the electrostatic precipitator inlet temperature. Arsenic was primarily particulate-bound and should be captured effectively with existing particulate control technology

Enhancing Carbon Reactivity in Mercury Control in Lignite-Fired Systems

This project was awarded through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory Program Solicitation DE-PS26-03NT41718-01. The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) led a consortium-based effort to resolve mercury (Hg) control issues facing the lignite industry. The EERC team-the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI); the URS Corporation; the Babcock & Wilcox Company; ADA-ES; Apogee; Basin Electric Power Cooperative; Otter Tail Power Company; Great River Energy; Texas Utilities; Montana-Dakota Utilities Co.; Minnkota Power Cooperative, Inc.; BNI Coal Ltd.; Dakota Westmoreland Corporation; the North American Coal Corporation; SaskPower; and the North Dakota Industrial Commission-demonstrated technologies that substantially enhanced the effectiveness of carbon sorbents to remove Hg from western fuel combustion gases and achieve a high level ({ge} 55% Hg removal) of cost-effective control. The results of this effort are applicable to virtually all utilities burning lignite and subbituminous coals in the United States and Canada. The enhancement processes were previously proven in pilot-scale and limited full-scale tests. Additional optimization testing continues on these enhancements. These four units included three lignite-fired units: Leland Olds Station Unit 1 (LOS1) and Stanton Station Unit 10 (SS10) near Stanton and Antelope Valley Station Unit 1 (AVS1) near Beulah and a subbituminous Powder River Basin (PRB)-fired unit: Stanton Station Unit 1 (SS1). This project was one of three conducted by the consortium under the DOE mercury program to systematically test Hg control technologies available for utilities burning lignite. The overall objective of the three projects was to field-test and verify options that may be applied cost-effectively by the lignite industry to reduce Hg emissions. The EERC, URS, and other team members tested sorbent injection technologies for plants equipped with electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) and spray dryer absorbers combined with fabric filters (SDAs-FFs). The work focused on technology commercialization by involving industry and emphasizing the communication of results to vendors and utilities throughout the project