Production and characterization of bio-oil from catalytic biomass pyrolysis

Biomass flash pyrolysis is a very promising thermochemical process for the production of bio-fuels and/or chemicals. However, large-scale applications are still under careful consideration, because of the high bio-liquid upgrading cost. In this paper the production of bio-liquids from biomass flash pyrolysis in a single stage catalytic process is being investigated using a novel once through fluid bed reactor. This biomass pyrolysis unit was constructed in Chemical Process Engineering Research Institute and comprises of a catalyst regenerator, a biomass-vibrating hopper, a fluidization reactor (that consists of an injector and a riser reactor), a product stripper along with a hot cyclone and a filter housing and finally a product condensation/recovery section. The unit can process up to 20 g/min. of biomass (50-800 mm) and can circulate up to 300 g/min. of catalyst or inert material. The experiments performed in the pilot plant showed that the unit operates without problems and with satisfactory mass balances in a wide range of experimental conditions both in the absence and presence of catalyst. With the incorporation of an FCC catalyst in the pyrolysis, the physical properties of the bio-oil produced changed, while more stable bio-oil was produced.

PRODUCTION AND CHARACTERISATION OF BIO-OIL FROM CATALYTIC BIOMASS PYROLYSIS by

Bio mass flash py rol y sis is a very prom is ing thermochemical pro cess for the pro duc tion of bio-fu els and/or chem i cals. How ever, large-scale ap pli ca-tions are still un der care ful con sid er ation, be cause of the high bio-liq uid up grad ing cost. In this pa per the pro duc tion of bio-liq uids from bio mass flash py rol y sis in a sin gle stage cat a lytic pro cess is be ing in ves ti gated us ing a novel once through fluid bed re ac tor. This bio mass py rol y sis unit was con-structed in Chem i cal Pro cess En gi neer ing Re search In sti tute and com-prises of a cat a lyst re gen er a tor, a bio mass-vi brat ing hop per, a fluidization re ac tor (that con sists of an in jec tor and a riser re ac tor), a prod uct strip per along with a hot cy clone and a fil ter hous ing and fi nally a prod uct con den-sa tion/re cov ery sec tion. The unit can pro cess up to 20 g/min. of bio mass (50-800 mm) and can cir cu late up to 300 g/min. of cat a lyst or in ert ma te rial. The ex per i ments per formed in the pi lot plant showed that the unit op er ates with out prob lems and with sat is fac tory mass bal ances in a wide range of ex-per i men tal con di tions both in the ab sence and pres ence of cat a lyst. With the in cor po ra tion of an FCC cat a lyst in the py rol y sis, the phys i cal prop er ties of the bio-oil pro duced changed, while more sta ble bio-oil was pro duced. Key words: biomass, catalytic pyrolysis, bio-oil characterisatio

Serious games as a means for holistically supporting Parkinson's Disease patients: The i-PROGNOSIS personalized game suite framework

Parkinson's Disease (PD) is a well-known progressive and neurodegenerative disorder, resulting in motor and non-motor symptoms that significantly reduce the quality of life. Motivated by the increased adoption of serious games in health care interventions sector in the last years, an unobtrusive approach is explored here, realised via the i-PROGNOSIS interventions platform (www.i-prognosis.eu), consisting of a game-based suite. In this way, targeting intelligent early detection and intervention in PD area, the Personalised Game Suite (PGS) design approach is presented, integrating different serious games in a unified platform. Overall, this comprehensive review gives an overview of studies examining motor and non-motor symptoms for PD along with the PGS design approach, in order to inform researchers and game designers for its consideration in the self-management of PD

On supporting Parkinson's disease patients: The i-prognosis personalized game suite design approach

The use of serious games in health care interventions sector has grown rapidly in the last years, however, there is still a gap in the understanding on how these types of interventions are used for the management of the Parkinson Disease (PD), in particular. Targeting intelligent early detection and intervention in PD area, the Personalized Game Suite (PGS) design process approach is presented as part of the H2020 i-PROGNOSIS project that introduces the integration of different serious games in a unified platform (i.e., ExerGames, DietaryGames, EmoGames, and Handwriting/Voice Games). From the methodological point of view, to facilitate the visualization of 14 game-scenarios, the system interface and the PD contexts, the storyboarding technique was adopted here. Overall, the realization of the PGS sets the basis for establishing a holistic framework that could aim at improving motor and non-motor symptoms, in order to inform health care providers and policy makers for its inclusion in routine management for PD