Performance analysis and working fluid selection for geothermal energy-powered organic Rankine-vapor compression air conditioning

AbstractBackgroundTo utilize geothermal energy from hot springs, an organic Rankine cycle/vapor compression cycle (ORC/VCC) system was employed for air conditioning and a thermodynamic model was developed.MethodsSix working fluids, R123, R134a, R245fa, R600a, R600 and R290, were selected and compared in order to identify suitable working fluids which may yield high system efficiencies.ResultsThe calculated results show that because of high system pressure for R290 and R134a, R600a is the more suitable working fluid for ORC in terms of expander size parameter, system efficiency and system pressure. In addition, R600a is also the most appropriate working fluid for VCC in terms of pressure ratio and coefficient of performance. R600 and R600a are more suitable working fluids for ORC/VCC in terms of overall coefficient of performance, refrigerating capacity per unit mass flow rate and chilled water yield from per ton hot water.ConclusionsIn sum, R600a is the most suitable working fluid for ORC/VCC through comprehensive comparison of ORC efficiency, expander size parameter, pressure ratio, coefficient of performance, system pressure and chilled water yield from per ton hot water for six different working fluids. However, the flammability of R600a should attract enough attention

Transcriptome and proteomic analysis of mpox virus F3L-expressing cells

BackgroundMonkeypox or mpox virus (mpox) is a double-stranded DNA virus that poses a significant threat to global public health security. The F3 protein, encoded by mpox, is an apoenzyme believed to possess a double-stranded RNA-binding domain (dsRBD). However, limited research has been conducted on its function. In this study, we present data on the transcriptomics and proteomics of F3L-transfected HEK293T cells, aiming to enhance our comprehension of F3L.MethodsThe gene expression profiles of pCAGGS-HA-F3L transfected HEK293T cells were analyzed using RNA-seq. Proteomics was used to identify and study proteins that interact with F3L. Real-time PCR was used to detect mRNA levels of several differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in HEK293T cells (or Vero cells) after the expression of F3 protein.ResultsA total of 14,822 genes were obtained in cells by RNA-Seq and 1,672 DEGs were identified, including 1,156 up-regulated genes and 516 down-regulated genes. A total of 27 cellular proteins interacting with F3 proteins were identified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), and 19 cellular proteins with large differences in abundance ratios were considered to be candidate cellular proteins. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses showed that the DEGs were significantly enriched in immune-related pathways, including type I interferon signaling pathway, response to virus, RIG-I-like receptor signaling pathway, NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, etc. Moreover, some selected DEGs were further confirmed by real-time PCR and the results were consistent with the transcriptome data. Proteomics data show that cellular proteins interacting with F3 proteins are mainly related to RNA splicing and protein translation.ConclusionsOur analysis of transcriptomic and proteomic data showed that (1) F3L up-regulates the transcript levels of key genes in the innate immune signaling pathway, such as RIGI, MDA5, IRF5, IRF7, IRF9, ISG15, IFNA14, and elicits a broad spectrum of antiviral immune responses in the host. F3L also increases the expression of the FOS and JNK genes while decreasing the expression of TNFR2, these factors may ultimately induce apoptosis. (2) F3 protein interacts with host proteins involved in RNA splicing and protein translation, such as SNRNP70, POLR2H, HNRNPA1, DDX17, etc. The findings of this study shed light on the function of the F3 protein

Spin Crossover in a Series of Non-Hofmann-Type Fe(II) Coordination Polymers Based on [Hg(SeCN)3]-; or [Hg(SeCN)4]2-; Building Blocks

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Inorganic Chemistry, copyright © American Chemical Society after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work see https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.1c00802.[EN] Self-assembly of [Hg(SeCN)(4)](2)-tetrahedral building blocks, iron(II) ions, and a series of bis-monodentate pyridyltype bridging ligands has afforded the new heterobimetallic Hg-II-Fe-II coordination polymers {Fe[Hg(SeCN)(3)](2)(4,4'-bipy)(2)}(n) (1), {Fe[Hg(SeCN)(4)](tvp)}(n) (2), {Fe[Hg(SeCN)(3)](2)(4,4'-azpy)(2)}(n) (3), {Fe[Hg(SeCN)(4)](4,4'-azpy)(MeOH)} n (4), {Fe[Hg(SeCN)(4)](3,3'- bipy)} n (5) and {Fe[Hg(SeCN)4](3,3'-azpy)}(n) (6) (4,4-bipy = 4,4'-bipyridine, tvp = trans-1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethylene, 4,4'-azpy = 4,4'-azobispyridine, 3,3-bipy = 3,3'bipyridine, 3,3'-azpy = 3,3'-azobispyridine). Single-crystal X-ray analyses show that compounds 1 and 3 display a two-dimensional robust sheet structure made up of infinite linear [(FeL)n]2n+ (L = 4,4'-bipy or 4,4'-azpy) chains linked by in situ formed {[Hg(L)(SeCN)(3)](2)}(2)-anionic dimeric bridges. Complexes 2 and 4-6 define three-dimensional networks with different topological structures, indicating, in combination with complexes 1 and 3, that the polarity, length, rigidity, and conformation of the bridging organic ligand play important roles in the structural nature of the products reported here. The magnetic properties of complexes 1 and 2 show the occurrence of temperature-and light-induced spin crossover (SCO) properties, while complexes 4-6 are in the high-spin state at all temperatures. The current results provide a new route for the design and synthesis of new SCO functional materials with non-Hofmann-type traditional structures.This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (21671121and 21773006), the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (MICINN) and FEDER funds (PID2019-106147GB-I00), and Unidad de Excelencia Maria de Maeztu (CEX2019-000919-M).Cao, T.; Valverde-Muñoz, FJ.; Duan, X.; Zhang, M.; Wang, P.; Xing, L.; Sun, F.... (2021). Spin Crossover in a Series of Non-Hofmann-Type Fe(II) Coordination Polymers Based on [Hg(SeCN)3]-; or [Hg(SeCN)4]2-; Building Blocks. Inorganic Chemistry. 60(15):11048-11057. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.1c008021104811057601

Reduced binding activity of vaccine serum to omicron receptor-binding domain

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination regimens contribute to limiting the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, the emergence and rapid transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron raise a concern about the efficacy of the current vaccination strategy. Here, we expressed monomeric and dimeric receptor-binding domains (RBDs) of the spike protein of prototype SARS-CoV-2 and Omicron variant in E. coli and investigated the reactivity of anti-sera from Chinese subjects immunized with SARS-CoV-2 vaccines to these recombinant RBDs. In 106 human blood samples collected from 91 participants from Jiangxi, China, 26 sera were identified to be positive for SARS-CoV-2 spike protein antibodies by lateral flow dipstick (LFD) assays, which were enriched in the ones collected from day 7 to 1 month post-boost (87.0%) compared to those harvested within 1 week post-boost (23.8%) (P < 0.0001). A higher positive ratio was observed in the child group (40.8%) than adults (13.6%) (P = 0.0073). ELISA results showed that the binding activity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody-positive sera to Omicron RBDs dropped by 1.48- to 2.07-fold compared to its homogeneous recombinant RBDs. Thus, our data indicate that current SARS-CoV-2 vaccines provide restricted humoral protection against the Omicron variant

Multi-objective optimization of Binary Flashing Cycle (BFC) driven by geothermal energy

The binary flashing cycle (BFC) has been demonstrated to be a promising technology for geothermal energy utilization due to higher net power output. Considering both thermodynamic and economic factor simultaneously, the multi-objective optimization on the BFC has been investigated using non-dominated sorting algorithm-II. Two conflicting objectives including net power output and heat exchanger area of the system are taken into account to build a set of Pareto optimal solutions. The results show that the system achieve the maximum net power output with maximum heat exchanger area, and the minimum net power output with the minimum heat exchanger area. The relationships between the net power output and heat exchanger area in the Pareto frontier solution are fitted. TOPSIS method (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Situation) is applied to select the final solution on the Pareto frontier. The effects of weight factor for net power output on the objectives and decision variables have also been investigated, which are good references to the decision makers. The recommended weight factor for net power output is in the range of 0.1-0.6

高传热和传质性能复合吸附剂的研发

为解决吸附剂强化传热和强化传质之间的矛盾,以氯化钙和木屑为原料,采用炭化活化造孔的方法强化传质,通过加入膨胀石墨强化传热,考察了炭化活化温度和膨胀石墨加入比例对复合吸附剂性能的影响。宏观的吸氨性能测试以及微观的参数表征表明炭化活化法制备的吸附剂孔隙发达,氯化钙含量高而且分布均匀,强化了吸附氨气过程中的传质速率;炭化活化温度对样品的氯化钙含量和结晶度,吸附量以及吸附速率都有重要的影响。膨胀石墨的加入强化了吸附剂的传热,提高了吸附速率。实验结果表明,500℃温度下制备的吸附剂,在膨胀石墨含量为30%时,其在0.5h内的吸附速率较快,在吸附时间分别为10,20和30min时,其吸附量达到0.37, 0.47和0.53 g/g,而且解决了氯化钙吸氨过程中的膨胀结块问题

Thermo-economic Investigation of an Enhanced Geothermal System Organic Rankine Cycle and Combined Heating and Power System

As a potentially viable renewable energy, Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGSs) extract heat from hot dry rock (HDR) reservoirs to produce electricity and heat, which promotes the progress towards carbon peaking and carbon neutralization. The main challenge for EGSs is to reduce the investment cost. In the present study, thermo-economic investigations of EGS projects are conducted. The effects of geofluid mass flow rate, wellhead temperature and loss rate on the thermo-economic performance of the EGS organic Rankine cycle (ORC) are studied. A performance comparison between EGS-ORC and the EGS combined heating and power system (CHP) is presented. Considering the CO2 emission reduction benefits, the influence of carbon emission trading price on the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) is also presented. It is indicated that the geofluid mass flow rate is a critical parameter in dictating the success of a project. Under the assumed typical working conditions, the LCOE of EGS-ORC and EGS-CHP systems are 24.72 and 16.1 cents/kWh, respectively. Compared with the EGS-ORC system, the LCOE of the EGS-CHP system is reduced by 35%. EGS-CHP systems have the potential to be economically viable in the future. With carbon emission trading prices of 12.76 USD/ton, the LCOE can be reduced by approximately 8.5%

Optimum Design of a Composite Optical Receiver by Taguchi and Fuzzy Logic Methods

This paper investigates a composite optical receiver for an indoor visible light communication (VLC) system. The optical gain, received power, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) are considered to be optimized. However, it is difficult to find a balance between them in general design and optimization. We propose the Taguchi and fuzzy logic combination method to improve multiple performance characteristics effectively in the optical receiver. The simulated results indicate that the designed receiver has the characteristics of an optical gain of 10.57, a half field of view (HFOV) of 45°, a received power of 6.4635 dBm, a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 89.8874 dB, and a spot size of 2 mm. The appropriate weights of the three performance characteristics for the inputs of the fuzzy controllers increase the optical gain by 13.601 dB, and the received power and SNR by 11.097 dB and 0.373 dB, respectively. Therefore, the optical receiver optimally designed by the Taguchi and fuzzy logic methods can significantly meet the requirements of an indoor VLC system

Optimum performance of a double absorption heat transformer

Double absorption heat transformer (DAHT) is a promising device in reducing the use of fossil fuels since it can utilize renewable sources or waste heat to provide high temperature energy. The absorber evaporator is an important component in the DAHT system, and there exists an optimum absorber evaporator temperature (OAET) at which the maximum coefficient of performance (COP) and exergy efficiency (ECOP) can be obtained simultaneously. In this paper, an optimization study is carried out by means of a parametric analysis, using a mathematical model developed in the software Engineering Equation Solver. The effects of the operating parameters such as the absorber, condenser, evaporator and generator temperatures and design parameters including the first and second economizer efficiencies on the OAET and corresponding maximum COP and ECOP have been analyzed in detail. Besides, some suggestions derived from the results are also given. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Preparation of composite adsorbent with high performance of heat and mass transfer

To develop a new composite adsorbent with high performance, fir sawdust and CaCl2 are selected as raw materials. The mass transfer is enhanced by carbonizing and activating the sawdust and heat transfer is enhanced by adding expanded graphite into the adsorbent. The effect of the preparation temperature and the expanded graphite content on the adsorption performance is investigated. The results show that the new adsorbent exhibits a high adsorption performance due to its high porosity, uniform distribution and high content of CaCl2 and high thermal conductivity. Also, the experimental results indicate that the rate of ammonia adsorption on the adsorbent depends on the expanded graphite content and the carbonization and activation temperature. The adsorbent prepared at 500A degrees C and with the expanded graphite content of 30% has the best performance in terms of the adsorption refrigeration, which adsorbs ammonia as high as 0.37 g g(-1) at 10 min