Improving the activity of gold nanoparticles for the water-gas shift reaction using TiO2–Y2O3: an example of catalyst design

In the last ten years, there has been an acceleration in the pace at which new catalysts for the watergas shift reaction are designed and synthesized. Pt-based catalysts remain the best solution when only activity is considered. However, cost, operation temperature, and deactivation phenomena are important variables when these catalysts are scaled in industry. Here, a new catalyst, Au/TiO2–Y2O3, is presented as an alternative to the less selective Pt/oxide systems. Experimental and theoretical techniques are combined to design, synthesize, characterize and analyze the performance of this system. The mixed oxide demonstrates a synergistic effect, improving the activity of the catalyst not only at large-to-medium temperatures but also at low temperatures. This effect is related to the homogeneous dispersion of the vacancies that act both as nucleation centers for smaller and more active gold nanoparticles and as dissociation sites for water molecules. The calculated reaction path points to carboxyl formation as the rate-limiting step with an activation energy of 6.9 kcal mol 1, which is in quantitative agreement with experimental measurements and, to the best of our knowledge, it is the lowest activation energy reported for the water-gas shift reaction. This discovery demonstrates the importance of combining experimental and theoretical techniques to model and understand catalytic processes and opens the door to new improvements to reduce the operating temperature and the deactivation of the catalyst.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (CTQ2015-64669-P and ENE2015-66975- C3-2-R)Junta de Andalucía (FQM-132 and TEP-106)European Union (HT-PHOTO-DB No. 752608

Multisensory System for Fruit Harvesting Robots. Experimental Testing in Natural Scenarios and with Different Kinds of Crops

The motivation of this research was to explore the feasibility of detecting and locating fruits from different kinds of crops in natural scenarios. To this end, a unique, modular and easily adaptable multisensory system and a set of associated pre-processing algorithms are proposed. The offered multisensory rig combines a high resolution colour camera and a multispectral system for the detection of fruits, as well as for the discrimination of the different elements of the plants, and a Time-Of-Flight (TOF) camera that provides fast acquisition of distances enabling the localisation of the targets in the coordinate space. A controlled lighting system completes the set-up, increasing its flexibility for being used in different working conditions. The pre-processing algorithms designed for the proposed multisensory system include a pixel-based classification algorithm that labels areas of interest that belong to fruits and a registration algorithm that combines the results of the aforementioned classification algorithm with the data provided by the TOF camera for the 3D reconstruction of the desired regions. Several experimental tests have been carried out in outdoors conditions in order to validate the capabilities of the proposed system.The motivation of this research was to explore the feasibility of detecting and locating fruits from different kinds of crops in natural scenarios. To this end, a unique, modular and easily adaptable multisensory system and a set of associated pre-processing algorithms are proposed. The offered multisensory rig combines a high resolution colour camera and a multispectral system for the detection of fruits, as well as for the discrimination of the different elements of the plants, and a Time-Of-Flight (TOF) camera that provides fast acquisition of distances enabling the localisation of the targets in the coordinate space. A controlled lighting system completes the set-up, increasing its flexibility for being used in different working conditions. The pre-processing algorithms designed for the proposed multisensory system include a pixel-based classification algorithm that labels areas of interest that belong to fruits and a registration algorithm that combines the results of the aforementioned classification algorithm with the data provided by the TOF camera for the 3D reconstruction of the desired regions. Several experimental tests have been carried out in outdoors conditions in order to validate the capabilities of the proposed system

Lateral and Longitudinal Control System for the Automation of an Articulated Bus

This paper presents several results regarding the lateral and longitudinal control systems that have been applied for the automation of an articulated bus, using a rolling wheeled box system with special design that moves inside a guide rail. Nowadays, transport systems are achieving major advances by the incorporation of automation based technologies. Recent developments of electronic instrumentation and actuation systems and the increasing speed of processors allows for the implementation of real-time systems. The automation of an articulated bus provides combined advantages of both conventional bus and train, because it can ascend slopes of 15% and turn on curves of low radius. This transport modality is an interesting, low cost and friendly option. In this paper an experimental setup for the development of lateral and longitudinal control of the articulated bus is presented. Comprised by an experimental mobile platform (articulated bus) fully instrumented and a ground test area of asphalt roads inside CSIC installations, this experimental facility allows full testing of automatic driving systems.This paper presents several results regarding the lateral and longitudinal control systems that have been applied for the automation of an articulated bus, using a rolling wheeled box system with special design that moves inside a guide rail. Nowadays, transport systems are achieving major advances by the incorporation of automation based technologies. Recent developments of electronic instrumentation and actuation systems and the increasing speed of processors allows for the implementation of real-time systems. The automation of an articulated bus provides combined advantages of both conventional bus and train, because it can ascend slopes of 15% and turn on curves of low radius. This transport modality is an interesting, low cost and friendly option. In this paper an experimental setup for the development of lateral and longitudinal control of the articulated bus is presented. Comprised by an experimental mobile platform (articulated bus) fully instrumented and a ground test area of asphalt roads inside CSIC installations, this experimental facility allows full testing of automatic driving systems

Sistema de percepción de alta precisión para sistemas inteligentes de transporte

Robocity2030 7th Workshop. Móstoles. Spain. Oct, 2010. Visión en Robótica (2010).Este trabajo describe el sistema de percepción de alta precisión implementado sobre un autobús articulado para su conducción automática a través de un carril guía. Entre las infraestructuras de transporte más prometedoras de los sistemas de transporte automáticos, el bus articulado presenta un costo bajo relacionada con la cantidad de pasajeros que puede transportar, además del confort de los mismos relacionados con otros medios de transporte masivo. La plataforma experimental que se presenta en este trabajo consiste en un vehículo móvil y un circuito privado dentro de las instalaciones del CSIC. El sistema de percepción que se presenta en este trabajo está basado en dos escáneres láser 2D, donde la principal objetivo radica en la detección de un carril guía construido en el circuito, mediante un algoritmo híbrido eficiente de extracción de líneas, y la detección de obstáculos posibles sobre el recorrido del circuito.Este trabajo ha sido realizado en el marco del proyecto Robocity2030-II S2009/DPI-1559 subvencionado por la Dirección General de Investigación de la Consejería de Educación y Cultura de la Comunidad de Madrid e IMADE PIE/62/2008 (Comunidad de Madrid, ALDESA CONSTRUCCIONES SA, MAXIMASDE), y la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID) en el marco del proyecto FORTUNA D/026706/09. El Dr. Héctor Montes agradece el apoyo recibido de la Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá y del CSIC bajo el Programa JAE-Doc.Peer reviewe

Evaluation of a Sensory Tracking System for Hand-held Detectors in Outdoor Conditions

This paper presents the experimental results obtained throughout the outdoor testing of a sensory tracking system specifically designed as part of a training tool for improving the utilisation of hand-held detectors. The proposed system is able to acquire information in two different scenarios: when the expert’s skills are studied in order to quantify some critical performance variables and when the deminers’ performance is evaluated during the close- in-detection training tasks, in order to give the operator significant feedback for improving their competences. Additionally to previously studied variables such as the safety distance to advance the detector search-head on each sweep, the sweep velocity, the scan height, the inclination of the hand-held detector head with respect to the ground and the coverage area, a special emphasis related to the geo-referencing of the hand-held detector head in real-time is provided.This paper presents the experimental results obtained throughout the outdoor testing of a sensory tracking system specifically designed as part of a training tool for improving the utilisation of hand-held detectors. The proposed system is able to acquire information in two different scenarios: when the expert’s skills are studied in order to quantify some critical performance variables and when the deminers’ performance is evaluated during the close- in-detection training tasks, in order to give the operator significant feedback for improving their competences. Additionally to previously studied variables such as the safety distance to advance the detector search-head on each sweep, the sweep velocity, the scan height, the inclination of the hand-held detector head with respect to the ground and the coverage area, a special emphasis related to the geo-referencing of the hand-held detector head in real-time is provided

Reconfiguration of a climbing robot in an all-terrain hexapod robot

This work presents the reconfiguration from a previous climbing robot to an all-terrain robot for applications in outdoor environments. The original robot is a six-legged climbing robot for high payloads. This robot has used special electromagnetic feet in order to support itself on vertical ferromagnetic walls to carry out specific tasks. The reconfigured all-terrain hexapod robot will be able to perform different applications on the ground, for example, as inspection platform for humanitarian demining tasks. In this case, the reconfigured hexapod robot will load a scanning manipulator arm with a specific metal detector as end-effector. With the implementation of the scanning manipulator on the hexapod robot, several tasks about search and localisation of antipersonnel mines would be carried out. The robot legs have a SCARA configuration, which allows low energy consumption when the robot performs trajectories on a quasi-flat terrain.Peer reviewe

Gold Nanoparticles on Yttrium Modified Titania: Support Properties and Catalytic Activity

A series of titanium oxide catalysts modified with yttrium has been prepared by sol¿gel method and their structural properties have been studied. The incorporation of yttrium in the titania lattice favors the formation of oxygen vacancies while at low Y loadings the anatase structure is preserved. The catalytic activity of these solids for CO oxidation is found to be significantly dependent on their physical properties. In particular the amount of dopant controls the number of surface oxygen vacancies created as well as the gold particle size, which directly affects the catalytic activity. Also, a linear relationship between the catalytic activity and the band gap values, which depend on the Y loading, is observed. Density functional theory based calculations show that Y atoms are incorporated at the TiO2 surface at substitutional positions only, while the preferred oxygen vacancies arise by removing the bridge surface oxygen atoms. These O-vacancies are the preferential adsorption sites for Au atoms and nanoparticles, acting as nucleation centers that favor the dispersion of the catalyst active phase over the support surface. In agreement with experiment, Y doping is found to decrease the band gap of the support due to a destabilization of the valence band of the oxide.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación ENE2009-14522-C05-01, MAT2008-04918, CSD-00023Junta de Andalucía P08-FQM-0366

Amphibia, Anura, Hylidae, Dendropsophus microcephalus (Boulenger, 1898): distribution extensions

Non

Efecto del reparto de macronutrientes sobre los factores determinantes del Síndrome Metabólico

En la actualidad, en los países desarrollados y en vías de desarrollo, se ha observado un aumento de la prevalencia de obesidad con otras enfermedades asociadas denominada síndrome metabólico. Las recomendaciones dietéticas, vigentes desde hace 3 décadas y media, están basadas en altos consumos de HdC y bajos en grasa, y precedieron en una década al reconocimiento del SM como entidad clínica. Recientemente han aparecido dos estudios que han analizado la relación potencial entre la ingesta de carbohidratos y factores asociados al síndrome metabólico y/o la obesidad. Estos estudios han desvelado relaciones contraintuitivas de algunos parámetros lipídicos y recomendaciones dietéticas vigentes, que sugieren efectos beneficiosos de las dietas bajas en HdC. Por ello se decidió realizar una búsqueda y análisis de intervenciones dietéticas en humanos, que evaluasen los parámetros de riesgo asociados al síndrome metabólico con el contenido de HdC de la dieta. Se localizaron 35 artículos que cumplían los criterios de inclusión y exclusión. El análisis de los resultados presentados en estos artículos, permite describir unas directrices generales sobre los efectos de las dietas bajas en HdC en los factores de riesgo cardiovascular asociados al SM. Así parece que las dietas bajas en HdC: i) son al menos tan efectivas como las convencionales para la pérdida de peso, ii) mejoran los niveles de TG y HDL respecto a las intervenciones convencionales, iii) no tienen efectos adversos sobre los niveles de LDL y CT y, por último, iv) parecen ser seguras como alternativa a las dietas convencionales, al menos a corto plazo