Modeling water and hydrogen networks with partitioning regeneration units

AbstractStrict environment regulations in chemical and refinery industries lead to minimize resource consumption by designing utility networks within industrial process plants. The present study proposed a superstructure based optimization model for the synthesis of water and hydrogen networks with partitioning regenerators without mixing the regenerated sources. This method determines the number of partitioning regenerators needed for the regeneration of the sources. The number of the regenerators is based on the number of sources required to be treated for recovery. Each source is regenerated in an individual partitioning regenerator. Multiple regeneration systems can be employed to achieve minimum flowrate and costs. The formulation is linear in the regenerator balance equations. The optimized model is applied for two systems, partitioning regeneration systems of the fixed outlet impurity concentration and partitioning regeneration systems of the fixed impurity load removal ratio (RR) for water and hydrogen networks. Several case studies from the literature are solved to illustrate the ease and applicability of the proposed method

Minimization of fuel costs and gaseous emissions of electric power generation by model predictive control

The purpose of this paper is to present a model predictive control (MPC) approach for the periodic implementation of the optimal solutions of two optimal dynamic dispatch problems with emission and transmission line losses. The first problem is the dynamic economic emission dispatch (DEED)which is a multi-objective optimization problem which minimizes both fuel cost and pollutants emission simultaneously under a set of constraints. The second one is the profit-based dynamic economic emission dispatch (PBDEED) which is also a multi-objective optimization problem which maximizes the profit and minimizes the emission simultaneously under a set of constraints. Both the demand and energy price are assumed to be periodic and the total transmission loss is assumed to be a quadratic function of the generator power outputs.We assume that there are certain disturbances or uncertainties in the execution of the optimal controller and in the forecasted demand. The convergence and robustness of the MPC algorithm are demonstrated through the application of MPC to the DEED and PBDEED problems with five-unit and six-unit test systems, respectively.The Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under Grant no. 115/130/D1432http://www.hindawi.com/journals/mpe/am2014ai201

Hybrid DE-SQP method for solving combined heat and power dynamic economic dispatch problem

Combined heat and power dynamic economic dispatch (CHPDED) plays a key role in economic operation of power systems. CHPDED determines the optimal heat and power schedule of committed generating units by minimizing the fuel cost under ramp rate constraints and other constraints. Due to complex characteristics, heuristic and evolutionary based optimization approaches have became effective tools to solve the CHPDED problem. This paper proposes hybrid differential evolution (DE) and sequential quadratic programming (SQP) to solve the CHPDED problem with nonsmooth and nonconvex cost function due to valve point effects. DE is used as a global optimizer and SQP is used as a fine tuning to determine the optimal solution at the final. The proposed hybrid DE-SQP method has been tested and compared to demonstrate its effectiveness.The Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabiahttp://www.hindawi.com/journals/mpe/am2013ai201

Effect of antibodies and latently infected cells on HIV dynamics with differential drug efficacy in cocirculating target cells

In this paper, we investigate the qualitative behaviors of three viral infection models with two types of cocirculating target cells. The models take into account both antibodies and latently infected cells. The incidence rate is represented by bilinear, saturation and general function. For the first two models, we have derived two threshold parameters, R0 and R1 which completely determined the global properties of the models. Lyapunov functions are constructed and LaSalle's invariance principle is applied to prove the global asymptotic stability of all equilibria of the models. For the third model, we have established a set of conditions on the general incidence rate function which are sufficient for the global stability of the equilibria of the model. Theoretical results have been checked by numerical simulations.The Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah.http://link.springer.com/journal/108192018-06-30hb2017Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineerin

Identification of Putative SNP Markers Associated with Resistance to Egyptian Loose Smut Race(s) in Spring Barley

Loose smut (LS) disease is a serious problem that affects barley yield. Breeding of resistant cultivars and identifying new genes controlling LS has received very little attention. Therefore, it is important to understand the genetic basis of LS control in order to genetically improve LS resistance. To address this challenge, a set of 57 highly diverse barley genotypes were inoculated with Egyptian loose smut race(s) and the infected seeds/plants were evaluated in two growing seasons. Loose smut resistance (%) was scored on each genotype. High genetic variation was found among all tested genotypes indicating considerable differences in LS resistance that can be used for breeding. The broad-sense heritability (H2) of LS (0.95) was found. Moreover, genotyping-bysequencing (GBS) was performed on all genotypes and generated in 16,966 SNP markers which were used for genetic association analysis using single-marker analysis. The analysis identified 27 significant SNPs distributed across all seven chromosomes that were associated with LS resistance. One SNP (S6_17854595) was located within the HORVU6Hr1G010050 gene model that encodes a protein kinase domain-containing protein (similar to the Un8 LS resistance gene, which contains two kinase domains). A TaqMan marker (0751D06 F6/R6) for the Un8 gene was tested in the diverse collection. The results indicated that none of the Egyptian genotypes had the Un8 gene. The result of this study provided new information on the genetic control of LS resistance. Moreover, good resistance genotypes were identified and can be used for breeding cultivars with improved resistance to Egyptian LS

Impact of plant density of pea intercropped with flax under different nitrogen fertilizer levels on crop productivity

A field experiment was established to analyze the effect of different plant densities of pea (12.5, 25.0, 37.5 and 50.0% of the recommended plant density "RPD") intercropped with 100% flax under nitrogen fertilization levels (60, 85 and 110 kg N/ha) on yield of both crops, their competitive relationships and economic evaluation. A Split-plot design with three replications was used, where the main-plots were assigned to nitrogen fertilization levels and the sub-plots for intercropping patterns. Application of 85 kg N/ha significantly increased all studied characters of both crops. Sowing flax with pea with 12.5%  from the RPD resulted in highest values of flax stem diameter, straw yield/ha, number of capsules/plant, seeds/plant, seed index and seed yield/ha. For pea higher values were also observed for number of leaves, branches and pods/plants, pod length and diameter, green pod weight and number of seeds/pod. The highest values of total green pods yield/ha of pea was produced when flax is sown with the RPD and pea with 37.5% RPD. It can be concluded that the maximum LER, RCC, total income and economic return were obtained from sowing flax with the RPD and pea with 37.5% RPD and fertilizing with 85 kg N/ha. Keywords: Flax, pea, intercropping system, plant densities, nitrogen fertilizer levels, competitive relationship

Discovery of novel oxazole-based macrocycles as anti-coronaviral agents targeting SARS-CoV-2 main protease

Peer reviewedPostprin

Citraconate inhibits ACOD1 (IRG1) catalysis, reduces interferon responses and oxidative stress, and modulates inflammation and cell metabolism

Although the immunomodulatory and cytoprotective properties of itaconate have been studied extensively, it is not known whether its naturally occurring isomers mesaconate and citraconate have similar properties. Here, we show that itaconate is partially converted to mesaconate intracellularly and that mesaconate accumulation in macrophage activation depends on prior itaconate synthesis. When added to human cells in supraphysiological concentrations, all three isomers reduce lactate levels, whereas itaconate is the strongest succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) inhibitor. In cells infected with influenza A virus (IAV), all three isomers profoundly alter amino acid metabolism, modulate cytokine/chemokine release and reduce interferon signalling, oxidative stress and the release of viral particles. Of the three isomers, citraconate is the strongest electrophile and nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) agonist. Only citraconate inhibits catalysis of itaconate by cis-aconitate decarboxylase (ACOD1), probably by competitive binding to the substrate-binding site. These results reveal mesaconate and citraconate as immunomodulatory, anti-oxidative and antiviral compounds, and citraconate as the first naturally occurring ACOD1 inhibitor

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4 (62.3 (55.1�70.8) million) to 6.4 (58.3 (47.6�70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization�s Global Nutrition Target of <5 in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2 (30 (22.8�38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0 (55.5 (44.8�67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic. © 2020, The Author(s)