Infinite/infinite analysis as a tool for an early oriented synthesis of a reactive pressure swing distillation

The study contributes to the characterization of an original reactive pressure swing distillation system. The methyl acetate (MeAc) transesterification with ethanol (EtOH) to produce methanol (MeOH) and ethyl acetate (EtAc) is shown as illustrative example. The streams outside the units are evaluated by the ∞/∞ analysis to provide insights on the process behavior. Two simpler systems with recycling stream are also presented.The ∞/∞ analysis allows checking the interrelation of the system streams without any column design consideration. Unfeasible regions, low limit values, multiplicity regions, discontinuities, control difficulties, recommendable operation conditions and column profile combinations are predicted and discussed. All these information are useful to establish an early and suitable system design strategy

MARKETING COLORADO POTATOES AS A VALUE-ADDED PRODUCT: A CASE STUDY

Potato producers in Colorado (and nationwide) have been facing a continued downward trend in potato commodity prices. In an attempt to increase demand for potatoes, these growers had Colorado State University (CSU) researchers perform a market study regarding the viability of marketing a value-added potato. A survey was performed which asked consumers to identify important potato characteristics, their willingness to pay for these characteristics, and what might prompt them to purchase more fresh or processed potatoes in the future. This paper discusses the results and recommendations that CSU made to the Colorado potato producers.Marketing,

DETERMINANTS OF BORROWER DROPOUT IN MICROFINANCE: AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION IN MALI

Repeat borrowing is critical for the long-term financial viability of microfinance institutions (MFIs), which provide financial services to low-income households in developing countries. Repeat borrowers reduce MFI administrative costs, lower risks, and increase institutional productivity. In this paper we study the determinants of borrower dropout of an MFI operating in an urban center in Mali. Specifically, we quantify the explicit and implicit costs that a borrower must incur in obtaining loans from an MFI.Financial Economics,

Assessment of Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase1 (PARP1) expression and activity in cells purified from blood and milk of dairy cattle

Poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation (PAR) is a post-translational protein modification catalysed by enzyme member of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs) family. The activation of several PARPs is triggered by DNA strand breakage and the main PARP enzyme involved in this process is PARP1. Besides its involvement in DNA repair, PARP1 is involved in several cellular processes including transcription, epigenetics, chromatin re-modelling as well as in the maintenance of genomic stability. Moreover, several studies in human and animal models showed PARP1 activation in various inflammatory disorders. The aims of the study were (1) to characterize PARP1 expression in bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and (2) to evaluate PAR levels as a potential inflammatory marker in cells isolated from blood and milk samples following different types of infection, including mastitis. Our results show that (i) bovine PBMC express PARP1; (ii) lymphocytes exhibit higher expression of PARP1 than monocytes; (iii) PARP1 and PAR levels were higher in circulating PBMCs of infected cows; (iv) PAR levels were higher in cells isolated from milk with higher Somatic Cell Counts (SCC > 100,000 cells/mL) than in cells from milk with low SCCs. In conclusion, these findings suggest that PARP1 is activated during mastitis, which may prove to be a useful biomarker of mastitis

Drivers, barriers and strategies for bioenergy dissemination in EU rural cross-border regions : a case study of the border region between Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic

A growing global energy demand resulting from an ever increasing world population and scale of economic activity poses one of the world’s main challenges for the future. The con-sequences of this rise in population and economic development include, among others, ‘excessive’ fossil fuel energy consumption and increasing greenhouse gas emissions. The use of renewable energy sources (RES) can help to mitigate this pressure on energy demand. In connection with this, the European Union`s climate policy strategy, in tandem with a reduction in greenhouse gases (GHGs), presses for the development of renewable energy. The generation of renewable energy, in particular biomass, contributes to economic development through the creation of employment opportunities. In particular, rural regions with limited development opportunities can benefit from renewable energy production and dissemination. European rural border regions are disadvantaged primarily because of their location, poor infrastructure and smaller populations. Border regions with a significant division of agricultural land and forest, however, can benefit from the increase of biomass and bioenergy generation. There are, nevertheless, many barriers associated with bioenergy development in general, and in cross-border regions in particular. Despite the fact that they are a unique category and require special consideration there is almost an academic void in respect of research focusing on renewable energy linked to border regions. This research addresses the following key aspects: the crucial factors required for bioenergy dissemination and the special characteristics of European border regions, and analyzes stakeholders´ perceptions along the bioenergy supply chain. Using the two-phase design inspired by Barton and Lazarsfeld (1984) in a mixed research design, semi-structured expert interviews and online/offline surveys were conducted with stakeholders based in the border regions between Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany, with their opinions measured using a Likert scale questionnaire. Both strands of data collection delivered similar perceptions, especially in the case of the stakeholders' motivation for biomass use and bioenergy generation, in addition to differing assessments regarding the barriers for the growing of bio-mass, and bioenergy generation – mainly prompted by the diverse economic and legal environments in each country. Among other findings, the study identified the fact that current market barriers resulting mostly from different financial incentives could be reduced if, at a European level, the various financial incentives were harmonized. In addition, common sus-tainable standards for bioenergy generation are required, in order to support the sustainable use of biomass and bioenergy generation. Moreover, the intensification of the transfer of knowledge and communication between cross-border parties, with the support of regional energy agencies, seems to be necessary, in order to improve knowledge of market opportu-nities across border regions, and hence reduce the transaction costs in relation to bioenergy cooperation

Rough Aid? An econometric analysis of Chinese development aid`s effect on good governance in Sub-Saharan Africa

This thesis attempts to estimate the effect of Chinese development aid on good governance in Sub-Saharan Africa over time. The motivation of this thesis is the growing importance of China as a donor, and the many assumptions about China`s negative effect on Governance. China follows the principles of non-interference and South-South cooperation their development aid allocations, and as a consequence, they are criticized for being motivated by their own economic and diplomatic interest, rather than the needs of recipients. Chinese aid is therefore characterized as “rough aid”. However, China discloses very little information of their aid allocations. As such, few quantitative empirical studies confront the various claims about Chinese rough aid. The research lab AidData has recently introduced a new open-source methodology for collecting data on Chinese aid, and created a database on Chinese development finance to Africa between 2000 and 2013. Now that data is available, it is both possible and needed to fill the gap in the literature. The analysis compares the effect of Chinese aid on good governance to the effect of Western aid. The thesis analyzes the effect within 29 Sub-Saharan African countries between 2000 and 2013, using panel data regression models. I find that China does not have a positive effect on good governance, but it is not possible to say with certainty that the general effect is negative either. I do not find any effect of Western aid on good governance over time. Additionally, I find no evidence that China harms the effectiveness of Western aid. The results are robust to several changes in the model specifications. The sharpest critique of Chinese aid is that is that it will diminish the effectiveness of Western aid, which in turn will lead to worse governance in recipient countries. The finding that China does not harm the effectiveness of Western aid can therefore have important implication on policy and the debate on Chinese “rough aid”. The findings suggest that the intensions of donors may not have any general impact on good governance, and that it might be other factors that determine the success of development aid.MasteroppgaveSAMPOL35

Los Ángeles, la metrópolis radical de Reyner Banham

El libro Los Ángeles – la arquitectura de cuatro ecologías, del autor Reyner Banham (1922-1988) publicado en 1971 ha sido, desde su primera edición, obyecto de mucha controversia. Algunos lo ven como un texto seminal, con mucha ascendencia sobre los arquitectos que se han dedicado al análisis de otras realidades urbanas desde esa década. Sin embargo, su fortuna crítica también incluye severas críticas académicas, y no rara vez, devastadoras. Las disputas emprendidas en ese momento, sobre el inevitable examen de los dogmas del Movimiento Moderno, están presentes en el libro de forma reflexiva, valiente, y, a veces provocativa. No obstante, después de cuatro décadas, es interesante mirar detenidamente el libro para apreciar sus tesis a partir del desarrollo de las metrópolis contemporáneas, que probablemente serían nombradas por el autor como las metrópolis capitalistas de la cuarta edad de la máquina. El artículo trata también de destacar la fuerza y la legitimidad de la innovación metodológica que el autor ha forjado para articular su tesis y su objeto – el gran Los Ángeles.O livro Los Angeles – a arquitetura de quatro ecologias de Reyner Banham (1922-1988) publicado em 1971 tem sido desde sua primeira edição objeto de muita controvérsia. Há quem veja nele um texto seminal, com muita ascendência sobre arquitetos que se lançaram em análises de outras realidades urbanas a partir daquela década. Mas, sua fortuna crítica inclui também críticas acadêmicas severas e, não raramente, demolidoras. As disputas que se travavam naquele momento, em torno do incontornável exame dos dogmas do Movimento Moderno, estão presentes no livro de forma reflexiva, corajosa e, algumas vezes, provocativa. Porém, passadas quatro décadas é interessante debruçar-se sobre o livro buscando apreciar as suas teses a partir do desenvolvimento das metrópoles contemporâneas, estas que, provavelmente, teriam sido designadas pelo autor como metrópoles capitalistas da quarta era da máquina. O artigo busca salientar também a força e a legitimidade da inovação metodológica que o autor forjou para articular a sua tese e seu objeto – a grande Los Angeles.The book Los Angeles – the architecture of four ecologies by Reyner Banham (1922-1988) has been very controversial ever since it was first published back in 1971. There are those who see a seminal text in it, very influential to architects who have engaged in analyses of other urban realities since that decade. However, its critical fortune also includes severe academic, and not rarely, demolishing criticisms. The disputes waged on that moment, over the unavoidable examination of the Modern Movement dogmas, are reflexively, bravely, and sometimes provocatively present in the book. However, after four decades, it is interesting to carefully look at the book in order to appreciate its theses based on the development of the contemporary metropoles, which would probably be named by the author as the capitalistic metropoles of the fourth machine age. The article also tries to highlight the strength and the legitimacy of the methodological innovation the author has forged to articulate his thesis and his object – the Greater Los Angeles

Vertical Integration in Produce Markets: A Colorado Cooperative’s Strategic Response to Change

An evolving produce industry has placed vegetable growers in northern Colorado at a competitive disadvantage. The Colorado producers’ strategic response is to form a value-added, cold storage processing cooperative in the hopes of establishing a better position for marketing their vegetables on a year-round basis. This case study discusses the results of both a market demand and processing feasibility study conducted for these vegetable growers.cooperative, feasibility study, vegetable processing plant, Crop Production/Industries, Marketing,

Interstate Vibronic Coupling Constants Between Electronic Excited States for Complex Molecules

In the construction of diabatic vibronic Hamiltonians for quantum dynamics in the excited-state manifold of molecules, the coupling constants are often extracted solely from information on the excited-state energies. Here, a new protocol is applied to get access to the interstate vibronic coupling constants at the time-dependent density functional theory level through the overlap integrals between excited-state adiabatic auxiliary wavefunctions. We discuss the advantages of such method and its potential for future applications to address complex systems, in particular those where multiple electronic states are energetically closely lying and interact. As examples, we apply the protocol to the study of prototype rhenium carbonyl complexes [Re(CO)$_3$(N,N)(L)]$^{n+}$ for which non-adiabatic quantum dynamics within the linear vibronic coupling model and including spin-orbit coupling have been reported recently.Comment: 36 pages, 7 figures, 4 table