The future position of the European Union in free markets for sustainable fuel ethanol : a normative approach for evaluating the feasability of EU policy objectives

Biocarburants et éthanol en particulier jouent un rôle de plus en plus important en tant que carburants alternatifs. Néanmoins, ils dépendent du soutien gouvernemental afin d'avoir le même niveau de coûts que les carburants basés sur le pétrole. Comme plusieurs d'autres pays, l'U.E. protège son marché agro-alimentaire, et donc le marché interne d'éthanol contre les importations plus compétitives. Quant au bioéthanol, ce protectionnisme implique des mesures différentes au niveau de la production des matières premières et au niveau du produit final (tarifs douaniers et subventions). En conséquence, la situation actuelle est désavantageuse pour le développement d'un marché durable. En fait, une situation de marché libre est plus favorable au niveau économique ainsi qu'au niveau des gaz à effet de serre. C'est pourquoi le commerce libre d'éthanol durable est le scénario souhaitable pour l'avenir. Dans le cadre de ce mémoire, le but est d'examiner si les stratégies politiques de l'Union Européenne soutiennent le marché libre et la production durable d'éthanol. La recherche suggère que la politique de l'Union Européenne est partiale vers l'augmentation du revenu des fermiers et du développement rural. Ce but politique n'est pas en accord avec le commerce libre. De plus, le développement durable des marchés d'éthanol force l'U.E. d'adapter la notion "capacité concurrentielle" consignée dans la politique énergétique. Bien que l'U.E. possède des nombreux instruments d'intervention dans un tel scénario, il est un défi extraordinaire pour atteindre les buts politiques. La recherche suggère qu'il est impossible pour l'U.E. de promouvoir un marché libre et durable sans perturber l'atteinte des buts actuels de sa politique en faveur d'éthanol. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLÉS DE L’AUTEUR : Biocarburants, Commerce international, Politique de promotion des énergies renouvelables, Protection du climat

Noninclusion theorems: some remarks on a paper by J. A. Fridy

In 1997, J. A. Fridy gave conditions for noninclusion of ordinary and of absolute summability domains. In the present note, these conditions are interpreted in a natural topological context thus giving new proofs and also explaining why one of these conditions is too weak. Also an open question posed in Fridy's paper is answered

Comparison of long term tropospheric ozone trends measured by lidar and ECC ozonesondes from 1991 to 2010 in Southern France

International audienceECC (Electrochemical Concentration Cell) ozonesondes and UV DIAL (DIfferential Absorption Lidar) measurements have been carried out simultaneously at OHP (Observatoire de Haute Provence, 44°N, 6.7°E, 690 m) since 1991. A unique long-term trend assessment by two different instruments operated routinely at the same location is possible. Air mass trajectories have been calculated for all the ozone observations available at OHP. The bias between the seasonal mean calculated with lidar and ECC ozone vertical profiles for 4 time- periods of 5 years is 0.6 ppbv in the free troposphere (4-8 km). Larger differences (> 10 ppbv) are explained by the need for clear sky conditions during lidar observations. The measurements of both instruments have been combined to decrease the impact of short-term atmospheric variability on the trend estimate

Analysis of a 7 year tropospheric ozone vertical distribution at the Observatoire de Haute Provence

A seven year (1984-90) climatology of tropospheric vertical ozone soundings, performed by electrochemical sondes at the OHP (44 deg N, 6 deg E, 700 m ASL) in Southern France, is presented. Its seasonal variation shows a broad spring/summer maximum in the troposphere. The contribution of photochemical ozone production and transport from the stratosphere to this seasonal variation are studied by a correlative analysis of ozone concentrations and meteorological variables, with emphasis on potential vorticity. This analysis shows the impact of dynamical and photochemical processes on the spatial and temporal ozone variability. In particular, a positive correlation (r = 04.0, significance greater than 99.9 percent) of ozone with potential vorticity is observed in the middle troposphere, reflecting the impact of stratosphere-troposphere exchange on the vertical ozone distribution

Multiple symptoms of total ozone recovery inside the Antarctic vortex during austral spring

The long-term evolution of total ozone column inside the Antarctic polar vortex is investigated over the 1980-2016 period. Trend analyses are performed using a multilinear regression (MLR) model based on various proxies (heat flux, QBO, solar flux, AAO and aerosols). Annual total ozone column corresponding to the mean monthly values inside the vortex in September and during the period of maximum ozone depletion from September 15th to October 15th are used. Total ozone columns from combined TOMS-N7, SBUV-N9, TOMS-EP and OMI-TOMS satellite datasets and the Multi-Sensor Reanalysis (MRS-2) dataset are considered in the study. Ozone trends are computed by a piecewise trend model (PWT) before and after the turnaround in 2001. In order to evaluate total ozone within the vortex, two classification methods are used, based on the potential vorticity gradient as a function of equivalent latitude. The first standard one, considers this gradient at a single isentropic level (475K or 550K), while the second one uses a range of isentropic levels between 400K and 600K. The regression model includes a new proxy that represents the stability of the vortex during the studied month period. The determination coefficient (R2) between observations and modeled values increases by ~0.05 when this proxy is included in the MLR model. The higher R2 (0.93-0.95) and the minimum residuals are found for the second classification method in the case of both datasets and months periods. Trends in September are statistically significant at 2 sigma level with values ranging between 1.85 and 2.67 DU yr-1 depending on the methods and data sets. This result confirms the recent studies of Antarctic ozone healing during that month. Trends after 2001 are 2 to 3 times lower than before the turnaround year as expected from the response to the slowly ODS decrease in Polar regions.Estimated trends in the 15Sept-15Oct period are smaller than in September. They vary from 1.15 to 1.78 DU yr-1 and are hardly significant at 2 level. Ozone recovery is also confirmed by a steady decrease of the relative area of total ozone values lower than 150 DU within the vortex in the 15Sept-15Oct period since 2010. Comparison of the evolution of the ozone hole area in September and October show a decrease in September, confirming the later formation of the ozone hole during that month.Fil: Pazmino, Andrea. Universidad Paris Saclay; FranciaFil: Godin Beekmann, Sophie. Universidad Paris Saclay; FranciaFil: Hauchecorne, Alain. Universidad Paris Saclay; FranciaFil: Claud, Chantal. Ecole Polytechnique; FranciaFil: Khaykin, Sergey. Universidad Paris Saclay; FranciaFil: Goutail, Florence. Universidad Paris Saclay; FranciaFil: Wolfram, Elian Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas para la Defensa. Centro de Investigación en Láseres y Aplicaciones; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa. Ministerio de Defensa. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa; ArgentinaFil: Salvador, Jacobo Omar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas para la Defensa. Centro de Investigación en Láseres y Aplicaciones; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa. Ministerio de Defensa. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; ArgentinaFil: Quel, Eduardo Jaime. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas para la Defensa. Centro de Investigación en Láseres y Aplicaciones; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa. Ministerio de Defensa. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégico para la Defensa; Argentin

Ozone transport during a cut-off low event studied in the frame of the TOASTE program

A study of ozone transfer to the troposphere has been performed during two phases of the evolution of a cut-off low using both ozone vertical profiles and objective analysis of the ECMWF to compute potential vorticity distributions and air mass trajectories. Ozone profiles were measured by a ground based lidar system at the Observatoire de Haute Provence (OHP, 43 deg 55 N, 5 deg 42 E). A stratospheric ozone transport into the troposphere has been observed during a tropopause fold which occurred at the beginning of the cut-off low formation and during the erosion phase of the cut-off low. From the estimate of the maximum ozone content transferred to the troposphere, both mechanisms have the same order of magnitude of influence on the ozone flux to the troposphere. On a time scale of a few days, the correlation is very good between the potential vorticity and the ozone time evolution in the vicinity of the upper level frontal system

In situ Formation of Polymer Microparticles in Bacterial Nanocellulose Using Alternative and Sustainable Solvents to Incorporate Lipophilic Drugs

Bacterial nanocellulose has been widely investigated in drug delivery, but the incorporation of lipophilic drugs and controlling release kinetics still remain a challenge. The inclusion of polymer particles to encapsulate drugs could address both problems but is reported sparely. In the present study, a formulation approach based on in situ precipitation of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) within bacterial nanocellulose was developed using and comparing the conventional solvent N -methyl-2-pyrrolidone and the alternative solvents poly(ethylene glycol), Cyrene TM and ethyl lactate. Using the best-performing solvents N -methyl-2-pyrrolidone and ethyl lactate, their fast diffusion during phase inversion led to the formation of homogenously distributed polymer microparticles with average diameters between 2.0 and 6.6 µm within the cellulose matrix. Despite polymer inclusion, the water absorption value of the material still remained at ~50% of the original value and the material was able to release 32 g/100 cm 2 of the bound water. Mechanical characteristics were not impaired compared to the native material. The process was suitable for encapsulating the highly lipophilic drugs cannabidiol and 3-O-acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid and enabled their sustained release with zero order kinetics over up to 10 days. Conclusively, controlled drug release for highly lipophilic compounds within bacterial nanocellulose could be achieved using sustainable solvents for preparation

Approaches to healthcare personnel exemption requests from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination: Results of a national survey

OBJECTIVE: Although a growing number of healthcare facilities are implementing healthcare personnel (HCP) coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination requirements, vaccine exemption request management as a part of such programs is not well described. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. PARTICIPANTS: Infectious disease (ID) physician members of the Emerging Infections Network with infection prevention or hospital epidemiology responsibilities. METHODS: Eligible persons were sent a web-based survey focused on hospital plans and practices around exemption allowances from HCP COVID-19 vaccine requirements. RESULTS: Of the 695 ID physicians surveyed, 263 (38%) responded. Overall, 160 respondent institutions (92%) allowed medical exemptions, whereas 132 (76%) allowed religious exemptions. In contrast, only 14% (n = 24) allowed deeply held personal belief exemptions. The types of medical exemptions allowed varied considerably across facilities, with allergic reactions to the vaccine or its components accepted by 145 facilities (84%). For selected scenarios commonly used as the basis for religious and deeply held personal belief exemption requests, 144 institutions (83%) would not approve exemptions focused on concerns regarding right of consent or violations of freedom of personal choice, and 140 institutions (81%) would not approve exemptions focused on introducing foreign substances into one\u27s body or the sanctity of the body. Most respondents noted plans for additional infection prevention interventions for HCP who received an exemption for COVID-19 vaccination. CONCLUSIONS: Although many respondent institutions allowed exemptions from HCP COVID-19 vaccination requirements, the types of exemptions allowed and how the exemption programs were structured varied widely