Pyrolysis characteristics of waste tire particles in fixed-bed reactor with internals

This study investigated the characteristics of pyrolysis for waste tire particles in the newly developed fixed-bed reactor with internals that are a central gas collection channel mounted inside reactor. And a few metallic plates vertically welded on the internal wall of the reactors and extending to the region closing their central gas collection pipe walls. Experiments were conducted in two laboratory fixed bed reactors with or without the internals. The results shown that employing internals produced more light oil at externally heating temperatures above 700 °C due to the inhibited secondary reactions in the reactor. The oil from the reactor with internals contained more aliphatic hydrocarbons and fewer aromatic hydrocarbons, leading to its higher H/C atomic ratios as for crude petroleum oil. The char yield was relatively stable for two beds and showed the higher heating values (HHVs) of about 23 MJ/kg. The gaseous product of pyrolysis mainly consisted of H2 and CH4, but the use of internals led to less pyrolysis gas through its promotion of oil production. Keywords: Pyrolysis, Waste tire, Fixed bed, Internals, Secondary reaction

RCN1 induces sorafenib resistance and malignancy in hepatocellular carcinoma by activating c-MYC signaling via the IRE1α–XBP1s pathway

The increasing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is of great concern globally, but the molecular pathogenesis of these tumors remains unclear. Sorafenib is a first-line drug for the treatment of advanced HCC. However, the efficacy of sorafenib in improving patient survival is limited, and most patients inevitably develop resistance to this drug. Recent studies have demonstrated that the activation of the IRE1α–XBP1s pathway might play a protective role in the response to sorafenib and contribute to malignancy in HCC. Here, we found that RCN1, an endoplasmic reticulum resident protein, is significantly upregulated in sorafenib-resistant HCC cells and promotes tumor progression. Our analysis showed that RCN1 may be an independent predictor of tumor recurrence and overall survival. Mechanistically, RCN1 promotes the dissociation of GRP78 from IRE1α in sorafenib-resistant cells by interacting with GRP78 through its EFh1/2 domain. Subsequently, the IRE1α–XBP1s pathway, a branch of the unfolded protein response, is sustainably activated. Interestingly, IRE1α–XBP1s pathway activity is required for c-MYC signaling, one of the most highly activated oncogenic pathways in HCC. These results suggest that RCN1-targeted therapy might be a feasible strategy for the treatment of HCC

Quantitative Analysis of Pore Structure and Its Impact on Methane Adsorption Capacity of Coal

Better understanding of the storage and transportation characteristics of methane in coal seams is important to further develop and utilize the methane resources in the coalbed. This study is devoted to investigating the relationship between methane adsorption performance and pore structure by analyzing twelve coal samples derived from the typical methane-rich coalbeds in China. To eliminate the influence of inorganic components such as ash in different coal samples, a specific fixed-bed reactor with internals was employed for the coal treatment. Based on N-2/CO(2)adsorption analysis at low-pressure condition, the pores in coal were classified into three types in this study: ultra-micropore (pore width ultra-micropore surface area (0.8976) > fractal dimension D-1(0.8862) > N-2-BET surface area (0.7915) > micropore volume (0.5035) > micropore surface area (0.5006). This study shows the influence of parameters of pore structure on methane adsorption of coal and clarifies the order importance of these parameters by the GRA method

Correlating micro/meso pore evolution and chemical structure variation in a mild thermal treatment of a subbituminite

This work investigates the evolution of micro/meso pores during a mild thermal treatment of subbituminous coal based on the observation of coal structure changes with the gradual detachment of organic matter from the coal. Pores in coal can be described as super-micropores (d < 1 nm), micropores (1 nm < d < 2 nm) and mesopores (2 nm < d < 50 nm). The decomposition of the carboxyl group at 200 degrees C decreases the super-micropore volume. A mild and sustained reaction takes place at 300 degrees C to gradually change the aromaticity and CH2/CH3 ratio of the treated coal. The amount of micropore structure sharply decreases in the early stages of heating, while the amount of mesopore structure continuously decreases during the whole process. A dramatic reaction takes place at 400 degrees C to sharply change the aromaticity and CH2/CH3 ratio of the treated coal, while the detachment of volatile compounds from the coal matrix caused an evident variation in the mesopore structure of the coal. The aromaticity and CH2/CH3 ratio of coal organics are found to correlate with the volumes of super-micropores and mesopores, respectively. The super-micropores are identified as comprising the inter-layer distance between stacks of aromatic rings, and mesopores are the spaces between macromolecular aromatic rings which are inter-connected via aliphatic chains

Secondary cracking of volatile and its avoidance in infrared-heating pyrolysis reactor

This study aims to compare the pyrolysis behavior of Huadian oil shale in two infrared heating fixed bed reactors with different directions of infrared beam. Our previous work has shown that fast pyrolysis of oil shale conducted in the shallow fixed bed infrared heating reactor (co-current) presented the massive secondary reactions, which lowered the shale oil production (Siramard et al., 2017). Conversely, the cross-current infrared achieved shale oil yields higher than the Fischer Assay oil yield (13.07 wt% of dry basis), such as 117.7% of the Fischer Assay yield at our realized highest heating rate of 7 °C/s under a specified pyrolysis temperature of 550 °C. The shale oil from the cross-current infrared heating reactor was obviously heavier than the oil obtained from the co-current heating reactor. Thus, the infrared cross heating evidently suppressed the secondary reactions toward volatile. Our realized shale oil yield could reach 13.67 wt% or 122.5% of the Fischer Assay yield under reducing pyrolysis pressure of 0.6 atm, indicating that lower pressure is also beneficial to the release of volatile and reduction of the secondary cracking reactions. This work shows essentially that the infrared cross heating provides an effective merge of the advantages from quick heating and minimization of secondary cracking reactions to enable the shale oil yields being higher than the Fischer Assay oil yield. Keywords: Pyrolysis, Secondary cracking, Volatile, Infrared heating, Oil shal

China biomass-to-heat market evaluation and policy recommendations of development

This research focused on comparative analysis on the economic efficiency of biomass-to-heat with that of traditional modes of heat production by coal, oil and natural gas in a bid to determine the competitiveness, and potential for scaling up and commercialization. The research showed that BMF-to-heat is competitive and its cost is equivalent to coal in some regions in China, especially where with a higher demand for clean energy, BMF will become the best alternative. However, in regions where coal price is low, BMF is less competitive and supportive government policies are required to further promote its application. Biomass gasification and biomethane/biogas are slightly less competitive than coal, but slightly more than gas. They are relatively promising to commercialize. Based on the market evaluation research results, this paper proposes the policy recommendations for the large-scale and commercial development of biomass energy heating in China

Quick pyrolysis of a massive coal sample via rapid infrared heating

There are few studies about pyrolysis with the a massive sample at high heating rates to obtain liquid and gas products. This study adopted a newly designed small fixed bed reactor mounted with infrared heating to minimize secondary reactions to volatiles and further to investigate the pyrolysis of Xinjiang Naomaohu coal in terms of pyrolysis products characterization at different temperatures and heating rates. Infrared heating has good penetrability to heat the inner layer of the sample at a quick rate of up to 1723 degrees C/min in the particle bed. For the tested reactor at 700 degrees C, raising the heating rate decreased the yields of gas and char and increased the yield of tar. The realized tar yield was higher than that in Gray-King (G-K) assay at heating rates above 18 degrees C/min. For the heating rate of 667 degrees C/min at the pyrolysis temperature of 700 degrees C, the obtained maximum yield of tar was 134% of the G-K assay oil yield. Overall, increasing the heating rate decreased char yield and increased the production of total volatiles. At higher heating rates, the tar became heavier, while at higher pyrolysis temperatures, it produced more light tar. The extraction rate of hydrogen from coal was found to be subject to a linear relationship with pyrolysis gas yield

Extension of Drosophila Lifespan by Astragalus polysaccharide through a Mechanism Dependent on Antioxidant and Insulin/IGF-1 Signaling

Historical literature and pharmacological studies demonstrate that Astragalus polysaccharide (APS) has anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects. Studies into the longevity effects of APS are limited, and the molecular mechanism of lifespan extension by APS is not elucidated yet. Here, the longevity effect of APS was investigated in Drosophila melanogaster by feeding dose-dependent APS. APS significantly extended the lifespan and improved the reproduction. Meanwhile, APS increased locomotion, TAG level, and starvation resistance and reduced the mortality rate induced by hydrogen peroxide. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were increased in flies treated with APS diet. Moreover, APS significantly enhanced expressions of antioxidant genes (Sod1, Sod2, and Cat), dFoxO, and 4E − BP, decreased the expressions of insulin-like peptides (dilp2, dilp3, and dilp5), and longevity gene MTH. Together, these results indicate that APS can prolong the lifespan by regulating antioxidant ability and insulin/IGF-1 signaling and also enhance the reproduction ability in Drosophila. APS may be explored as a novel agent for slowing the aging process and improving reproduction