Emission characteristics of spark-ignition engine running on plastic waste pyrolysis oil and gasoline blends

The utilization of liquid products as transportation fuel derived from the thermal decomposition of different plastic waste mixtures was investigated. The production of pyrolysis oils was performed in a laboratory-scale batch reactor utilizing polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) waste blends. Two different mixtures (10% PS – 60% PP – 30% HDPE; 10% PS – 30% PP – 60% HDPE) were prepared, and the influence of reflux was also studied. The pyrolysis oils were blended to commercial gasoline in the 0-100% range. It was found that each blend could be successfully used as an alternative fuel in a traditional spark-ignition engine without any prior modifications or fuel additive. However, based on the engine tests, the presence of the reflux is vital as the composition of the pyrolysis oil is closer to the commercial gasoline. The emission measurements showed increasing NOx emissions compared to neat gasoline, but, on the other side, a decrease in CO was noticed. These changes were much smaller in cases when reflux was used during oil production. Based on the obtained results, the utilization of reflux-cooling is an effective method to enhance the gasoline range hydrocarbons in the plastic waste pyrolysis oils, and therefore blending these oils to commercial gasoline might be viable

Optimizing the combustion processes of a small scale solid fuel-fired boiler

Over the last decade, the public has been paying increasing attention to reducing greenhouse gas and acid rain emissions and reducing particulate matter, which is extremely harmful to health and the environment. To improve air quality, the European Commission has achieved a range of measures to reduce air pollutant emissions in the transport, heat and electricity, industrial and agricultural sectors. In Hungary, the amount of gas and solid air pollutants from solid fuel combustion used by the public during the heating season represents a significant percentage of the total amount present in the atmosphere. In 2016, taking into the total emission, the 29% of CO2 emissions; 85% of CO emissions; 75% of the particulate matter emissions and 21% of the NOx emissions were derived from households. It follows that the improvement of air quality can also be achieved by controlling the emissions of solid fuel combustion plants. During our research we aimed to optimize the operation of a newly purchased TOTYA S18 boiler and a pilot pellet boiler. Operating the boilers in the correct mode minimizes air pollutant emissions, and the greater part of the heat generated is actually turns to heating the home, as with poor settings, a lot of heat leaves through the chimney. The data obtained during the tests can also be used to determine whether the boilers comply with the emission values set out in Commission Regulation (EU) 2015/1185

Production of Liquid Hydrocarbons from Plastic Wastes

Thermal pyrolysis of HDPE, LDPE, PP and PS plastic wastes were performed in a batch reactor and the yields of pyrolysis oils and liquid transportation fuels prepared by atmospheric distillation were determined. The gasoline fractions were tested in a traditional spark-ignition engine without any modifications or fuel blending. Fuel consumption and exhaust gas emission (NOx, CO) were measured and compared to a commercial fuel (RON = 95). PS generated 70.5% gasoline range hydrocarbons from the solid waste, followed by PP with 42.1%, LDPE with 40.8% and HDPE with 37.3%. The fuel consumption was reduced by 9.1-9.4% in the case of PS compared to reference measurement. Reduction in fuel consumption was noticeable at HDPE, LDPE and PP as well. PS gasoline decreased by 91-96%, while HDPE, LDPE and PP more likely increased the CO emission of the engine compared to commercial gasoline. The results show that pyrolysis of plastic wastes is a promising method to generate value added liquid transportation fuels and reduce the footprint of waste accumulation in landfills

Healthy ageing in Europe: prioritizing interventions to improve health literacy

Background: Health literacy (HL) is low for 40-50% of the population in developed nations, and is strongly linked to many undesirable health outcomes. Older adults are particularly at risk. The Intervention Research on Health Literacy in Ageing populations project systematically created a large inventory of HL interventions targeting adults age 50+, to support practical production of policy and practice guidelines for promoting health literacy in European populations. Methods: We comprehensively surveyed international scientific literature, grey literature and other sources (published 2003+) for implemented HL interventions that involved older adults. Studies were screened for eligibility criteria and further selected for aspects important in European public health policy, including priority diseases, risk factors and vulnerable target groups. Interventions were prioritised using a multiple criteria tool to select final interventions that also featured strong evidence of efficacy and a broad range of strategies. Results: From nearly 7000 written summaries, 1097 met inclusion criteria, of which 233 were chosen for scoring and ranking. Of these, 7 had the highest multi-criteria scores. Eight more articles were selected based on rounded criteria including a high multi-criteria score as well as elements of innovation. Final selections were 18 articles describing 15 programmes, which feature strong evidence of efficacy among important diseases or risk factors and vulnerable groups, or that had success with elements of innovation were identified. Most programmes tried to increase skills in communication, self-management and understanding healthcare or lifestyle choices. Conclusions: These programmes have multiple positive attributes which could be used as guidance for developing innovative intervention programmes to trial on European older adults. They provide evidence of efficacy in addressing high priority diseases and risk factors

Szén alapú nano-kompozitok előállítása és komplex szerkezeti jellemzése = Preparation and complex characterisation of carbon based nano-composites

A gyorsuló műszaki-technológiai fejlődés növekvő igényeket támaszt az új, különleges tulajdonságú anyagok iránt. Ezek között kitüntetett helyet foglalnak el a szénalapú rendszerek, és különösen azok vékonyrétegei. A szén kémiai kötésviszonyaitól függően igen változatos szerkezetű, mely a gyémánt, és gyémántszerű (DLC), grafit és fullerén-szerű módosulatokig terjedhet, melyek kialakulása befolyásolható az előállítás körülményeivel és adalékanyagokkal. Az elvégzett kutatások eredményként megvalósítottuk a szén-alapú nanokompozitok vékonyrétegeinek plazmás-ionsugaras aktivációval, magnetronos porlasztással és plazmaimmerziós ionimplantációval való előállítását. Feltártuk a rétegnövesztés egyes paramétereinek hatását a rétegek összetételére, kémiai kötés- és elektronszerkezetére. Modellrendszereken kimutattuk, hogy a DLC rétegek különböző kémiai kötésszerkezetű nanométeres klaszterekből épülnek fel és így szerkezeti nanokompozitoknak tekinthetők. A különböző prekurzorokból előállított Si adalékot tartalmazó DLC rétegek amorf szerkezetűek. A szilícium befolyásolja a szénklaszterek kötésszerkezetét, a Si eloszlása atomi szinten nem egyenletes, ugyanakkor nem képez többatomos elemi Si-Si és Si-C klasztereket. A rétegek alkalmazási szempontból előnyös nanomechanikai tulajdonságokkal rendelkeznek. Az átmeneti fém (W, Cr, Ni) tartalmú szénrétegek közül a Si tartalmúak 1-5 nm-es klasszterekből álló amorf, míg a csak Ni tartalmúak részben kristályos szerkezetűek. | Novel materials with exceptional properties are required by the accelerating technical development. In this project carbon based systems, especially their thin layers, have outstanding importance. The chemical bonding structure of the carbon may have a great variety, ranging from the diamond and diamond like systems to the graphitic and fullerene like systems, development of which can be influenced by the preparation conditions and additives. The preparation facilities and conditions for deposition of carbon based thin layers were developed by plasma and ion beam activation, by magnetron sputtering, and also by plasma immersion ion implantation. It was established that the DLC layers are built of nanometre size clusters of different chemical bonding environments. The Si containing DLC layers prepared from various precursors are amorphous. The Si additive influences the chemical bond structure of the carbon clusters; the distribution of Si is not homogeneous, however, it does not form multi-atomic Si-Si or SiC clusters. The layers posses beneficial nanomechanical properties. The carbon layers doped with transition metals (W, Cr, Ni) are also amorphous with 1-5 nm sized clusters, while the Ni containing layers are partially crystalline

Metamorphic graphite from Szendrőlád (Szendrő Mts., NE-Hungary) detected by simultaneous DTA-TG

Graphite, one of the polymorphic forms of carbon, has become a versatile industrial material of nowadays due to its particular attributes. It is used mainly in the automobile industry, metal extractive industry and in the high-tech industry. Moreover, it is also included in the list of critical raw materials for the EU. Our aim was to prove the presence of graphite by thermal analysis beyond X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. Thermogravimetry yields comparable results with quantitative XRD. The formation conditions are described by Raman spectrometry and microscopy examinations of drill core samples from Szendrőlád (Szendrő Mts, NE-Hungary; (Szendrőlád Limestone Formation, middle-late Devonian, shelf-basin facies). Polished rock slabs were made for optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM–EDS) and Raman spectroscopy. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and thermal analysis (DTA-TG) measurements were made on powders. Based on our results, the graphite is epigenetic; its quantity varies between 1.5–3 mass% in the samples. It was developed in 20–50 μm sized flakes, which are often arranged in > 300 μm sized aggregates. Graphite was formed during regional metamorphism from the organic matter-rich shales. The average formation temperature, calculated from the results of Raman spectroscopy, is around 410 °C (± 30 °C). The Raman measurements also indicated the presence of a partially graphitized (disordered graphite) material beside graphite

Iskolás- és serdülőkorúak droghasználata: kockázati és védő faktorok egy reprezentatív vizsgálat tükrében

Absztrakt Elméleti háttér: A drogok használatának széles körű elterjedtsége és a kipróbálás egyre korábbi időpontra kerülése miatt napjaink fontos kutatási célja a szerekhez kapcsolódó rizikó- és védő faktorok azonosítása. Az „Iskolai Egészségfejlesztés és Univerzális Drogmegelőzés” (IEUD) elnevezésű kutatást a Nemzeti Család- és Szociálpolitikai Intézet kutatócsoportja indította. Reprezentatív adatok alapján hiteles képet kívántunk nyerni a 6—18 éves iskolás generáció mentálhigiénés állapotáról, ezen belül a szerhasználatról (dohányzás, alkohol- és kábítószer-fogyasztás), a kockázati tényezőkről, illetve a védő (preventív, protektív) faktorokról. Elemzésünkben elsősorban a szerek kipróbálásának és használatának környezeti-kapcsolati összefüggéseit tártuk fel. Módszerek: A vizsgálatban 7623, 1., 3., 5., 7., 9. és 11. osztályos tanuló vett részt. Kérdőíves (tanórai) adatfelvételt végeztünk egy olyan komplex tesztbattériával, amely a szerhasználati szokásokon kívül rákérdezett a kapcsolati mintákra és modellekre, felmért továbbá számos pszichés faktort (pl. Big Five személyiségjegyek, deviancia, hangulati változók). Eredmények: A szerfogyasztási mutatók a Magyarországon készült korábbi reprezentatív vizsgálatok eredményeihez hasonlóan alakultak. A Globális Szerhasználati Mutató mintegy 51 százalékát lehet pszichoszociális változókkal magyarázni, ezen belül erősen meghatározónak találtuk a devianciát, az anyai nevelést, a családból és kortárs közösségből származó modelleket, egyes személyiségjegyeket (pl. extraverzió, neuroticizmus) és a másik nem körében való észlelt népszerűséget. Következtetések: Vizsgálatunk tanulságait a drogprevenció célkitűzéseinek és módszereinek kijelölésénél lehet alkalmazni. Álláspontunk szerint a célzott prevenció során fokozott figyelemmel kell kísérni a deviáns magatartásra veszélyeztetett csoportokat; továbbá egyes kockázatot jelentő személyiségjegyekkel bíró (pl. érzelmileg labilisabb) serdülőket. Adataink tükrében ígéretes eredményeket hozhatnak a családra fókuszáló, például szülői monitoring technikákat erősítő és a kortárscsoportokat bevonó intervenciók