Assessing CO2 emissions of electric vehicles for e-sharing and home care. Two cases developed at Valencian region

[EN] Assessing the environmental impact of transport has been an issue over the last decade. The general framework is established and the followings factors must be considered to obtain results as accurate as possible. Among others (a) the study should considered the entire life cycle if possible: building & materials, usage phase and waste treatment and (b) usage phase assessment must be developed under real conditions in addition to lab tests. When the object of study is urban private transport, some extra lines can be taken into account considering the high impact that environmental initiatives makes in society. The information that local authorities and community receives about the initiative is as relevant as the environmental benefits obtain of the implementation of the project. In this paper, we present the methodology developed to assess CO2 emissions of electric vehicles intendent to car-sharing and home care; two projects developed at Valencian region. We deepen in the relevance and type of information obtain and manage for both studies with a life cycle vision. As a result of usage phase assessment, field test proves to be revealing giving a more realistic vision of the benefits of the project. Theoretical assessments were useful to consider the implementation of a certain project and the necessary support complementing the entity of the study. Resources needed to develop field test might skew results by biasing the study. Attention need to be paid in order to manage resources to set up field tests and avoid setting up field tests due to available resources. Bibliographic studies have shown building, materials and waste treatment depends on available data. Life cycle assessment seems to be the most adequate tool to obtain accurate results although the cost of the assessment is high and might not show significant differences between cars of similar characteristics.Authors would like to thank MOVUS S.L, Juan Sans Hospital of Alcoy, Sagunto Town Council and Univeristat Politècnica de València for their participation and trust in this project.Lo Iacono Ferreira, V.; Torregrosa López, J.; Colomer Ferrandiz, JV. (2016). Assessing CO2 emissions of electric vehicles for e-sharing and home care. Two cases developed at Valencian region. En XII Congreso de ingeniería del transporte. 7, 8 y 9 de Junio, Valencia (España). Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 1939-1946. https://doi.org/10.4995/CIT2016.2016.3430OCS1939194

Dynamic tests and adaptive control of a bottoming organic Rankine cycle of IC engine using swash-plate expander

This paper deals with the experimental testing of a bottoming Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) integrate in a 2 l turbocharged gasoline engine using ethanol as working fluid. The main components of the cycle are a boiler, a condenser, a pump and a swash-plate expander. Both steady and transient tests were performed in three engine operating points to understand the behavior and inertia of the system. Pressure-Volume diagram during these transients were presented and analyzed. Operating parameters of the expander, such as expander speed and boiler power, were shifted. The objective of these tests is to understand the inertia of the system and to have a robust control in all the possible transient tests. New European Driving Cycle was tested with and without the expander because it is supposed to represent the typical usage of a car in Europe. It was used to validate the control of the ORC in realistic dynamic conditions of the engine. The importance of each parameter was analyzed by fixing all the parameters, changing each time one specific value. The main result of this paper is that using a slightly simple and robust control based on adaptive PIDs, the two dynamic effects of an ORC could be taken into account, i.e. high inertia effects (boiler and condenser) and low inertia effects (pump and volumetric expander).This work is part of a research project called "Evaluation of bottoming cycles in IC engines to recover waste heat energies" funded by a National Project of the Spanish Government with reference TRA2013-46408-R. The authors thank also to Raul Lujan and Rafael Carrascosa for their contribution in the testing process. Authors want to acknowledge the "Apoyo para la investigacion y Desarrollo (PAID)" grant for doctoral studies (FPI S2 2015 1067).Torregrosa, AJ.; Galindo, J.; Dolz Ruiz, V.; Royo-Pascual, L.; Haller, R.; Melis, J. (2016). Dynamic tests and adaptive control of a bottoming organic Rankine cycle of IC engine using swash-plate expander. Energy Conversion and Management. 126:168-176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2016.07.078S16817612

BaFe1−xCuxO3 Perovskites as Active Phase for Diesel (DPF) and Gasoline Particle Filters (GPF)

BaFe1−xCuxO3 perovskites (x = 0, 0.1, 0.3 and 0.4) have been synthetized, characterized and tested for soot oxidation in both Diesel and Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) exhaust conditions. The catalysts have been characterized by BET, ICP-OES, SEM-EDX, XRD, XPS, H2-TPR and O2-TPD and the results indicate the incorporation of copper in the perovskite lattice which leads to: (i) the deformation of the initial hexagonal perovskite structure for the catalyst with the lowest copper content (BFC1), (ii) the modification to cubic from hexagonal structure for the high copper content catalysts (BFC3 and BFC4), (iii) the creation of a minority segregated phase, BaOx-CuOx, in the highest copper content catalyst (BFC4), (iv) the rise in the quantity of oxygen vacancies/defects for the catalysts BFC3 and BFC4, and (v) the reduction in the amount of O2 released in the course of the O2-TPD tests as the copper content increases. The BaFe1−xCuxO3 perovskites catalyze both the NO2-assisted diesel soot oxidation (500 ppm NO, 5% O2) and, to a lesser extent, the soot oxidation under fuel cuts GDI operation conditions (1% O2). BFC0 is the most active catalysts as the activity seems to be mainly related with the amount of O2 evolved during an. O2-TPD, which decreases with copper content

The pleiotropic effects of paricalcitol: Beyond bone-mineral metabolism

Secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) is a common complication in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) that is characterised by elevated parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels and a series of bone-mineral metabolism anomalies. In patients with SHPT, treatment with paricalcitol, a selective vitamin D receptor activator, has been shown to reduce PTH levels with minimal serum calcium and phosphorus variations. The classic effect of paricalcitol is that of a mediator in mineral and bone homeostasis. However, recent studies have suggested that the benefits of treatment with paricalcitol go beyond PTH reduction and, for instance, it has a positive effect on cardiovascular disease and survival. The objective of this study is to review the most significant studies on the so-called pleiotropic effects of paricalcitol treatment in patients with CK

Vitamin D, vitamin D receptor and the importance of its activation in patients with chronic kidney disease

El déficit de vitamina D se asocia a distintas patologías, siendo especialmente significativa con la morbimortalidad en pacientes con enfermedad renal crónica (ERC). La pérdida progresiva de la función renal conduce a una reducción de calcitriol y alteración de la homeostasis de calcio, fósforo, FGF-23 y PTH, entre otros, los cuales influyen a su vez sobre la activación del receptor de vitamina D (RVD) y el desarrollo de hiperparatiroidismo secundario (HPS). El RVD media las acciones biológicas tanto de la vitamina D como de sus análogos sintéticos, actuando sobre distintos genes; existe una estrecha asociación entre niveles bajos de calcitriol y la prevalencia del HPS. Así, la activación de los RVD y la restricción de fósforo, entre otros, desempeñan un papel importante en el tratamiento de la «alteración óseo-mineral asociada a la ERC». La Sociedad Española de Nefrología, dada la uniforme e importante asociación con mortalidad y niveles altos de fósforo, aconseja su normalización, así como la de los niveles de calcidiol. Igualmente considera que, aparte de la utilización de activadores selectivos/no selectivos de RVD para la prevención y tratamiento del HPS, se podría asegurar la activación de los RVD en pacientes en diálisis, con vitamina D nativa o incluso bajas dosis de paricalcitol, independientemente de la PTH, dado que algunos estudios de cohortes y un metaanálisis reciente han observado una asociación entre el tratamiento con vitamina D activa y la disminución de la mortalidad en pacientes con ERC. En general, se considera que es razonable utilizar toda esta información para individualizar la toma de decisionesVitamin D deficiency has been linked to many different pathologies, especially with morbimortality in patients with chronic kidney disease. The progressive loss of renal function leads to calcitriol deficiency and homeostatic changes in calcium, phosphorus, FGF- 23 and PTH, among others. All these changes can also influence vitamin D receptor (VDR) activation and the development of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT). The biologic actions of both vitamin D and its synthetic analogues are mediated by binding to the same VDR, acting on different genes. There is a narrow relationship between low levels of calcitriol and SHPT. The combined approach of VDR activation and phosphate restriction, among others, plays an important role in the early treatment of the chronic kidney disease-mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD). The Spanish Society of Nephrology, in order to reduce the uniform and significant association with CKD-associated mortality, calcidiol and high phosphate levels suggests normalization of phosphate as well as calcidiol levels in both CKD and dialysis patients. Moreover, it considers that, in addition to selective/non selective activation of VDR for the prevention and treatment of SHPT, VDR could be activated in dialysis patients by native vitamin D or even low paricalcitol doses, independently of PTH levels, as some cohort studies and a recent metaanalysis have found an association between treatment with active vitamin D and decreased mortality in patients with CKD. In general it is considered reasonable to use all this information to individualise decision makin

BaTi0.8B0.2O3 (B = Mn, Fe, Co, Cu) LNT Catalysts: Effect of Partial Ti Substitution on NOx Storage Capacity

The effect of partial Ti substitution by Mn, Fe, Co, or Cu on the NOx storage capacity (NSC) of a BaTi0.8B0.2O3 lean NOx trap (LNT) catalyst has been analyzed. The BaTi0.8B0.2O3 catalysts were prepared using the Pechini’s sol–gel method for aqueous media. The characterization of the catalysts (BET, ICP-OES, XRD and XPS) reveals that: i) the partial substitution of Ti by Mn, Co, or Fe changes the perovskite structure from tetragonal to cubic, whilst Cu distorts the raw tetragonal structure and promotes the segregation of Ba2TiO4 (which is an active phase for NOx storage) as a minority phase and ii) the amount of oxygen vacancies increases after partial Ti substitution, with the BaTi0.8Cu0.2O3 catalyst featuring the largest amount. The BaTi0.8Cu0.2O3 catalyst shows the highest NSC at 400 °C, based on NOx storage cyclic tests, which is within the range of highly active noble metal-based catalysts.This research was funded by Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2018/076 and Ph.D. grant ACIF 2017/221), Spanish Government (MINECO Project CTQ2015-64801-R) and EU (FEDER Founding)

BaFe1-xCuxO3 Perovskites as Active Phase for Diesel (DPF) and Gasoline Particle Filters (GPF)

BaFe1-xCuxO3 perovskites (x = 0, 0.1, 0.3 and 0.4) have been synthetized, characterized and tested for soot oxidation in both Diesel and Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) exhaust conditions. The catalysts have been characterized by BET, ICP-OES, SEM-EDX, XRD, XPS, H2-TPR and O2-TPD and the results indicate the incorporation of copper in the perovskite lattice which leads to: i) the deformation of the initial hexagonal perovskite structure for the catalyst with the lowest copper content (BFC1), ii) the modification to cubic from hexagonal structure for the high copper content catalysts (BFC3 and BFC4), iii) the creation of a minority segregated phase, BaOx-CuOx, in the highest copper content catalyst (BFC4), iv) the rise in the quantity of oxygen vacancies/defects for the catalysts BFC3 and BFC4, and v) the reduction in the amount of O2 released in the course of the O2-TPD tests as the copper content increases. The BaFe1-xCuxO3 perovskites catalyze both the NO2-assisted diesel soot oxidation (500 ppm NO, 5% O2) and, to a lesser extent, the soot oxidation under fuel cuts GDI operation conditions (1% O2). BFC0 is the most active catalysts as the activity seems to be mainly related with the amount of O2 evolved during an. O2-TPD, which decreases with copper content.This research was funded by the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2018/076 and Ph.D. Grant ACIF/2017/221 for V.Torregrosa-Rivero), Spanish Government (MINECO Project CTQ2015-64801-R), and EU (FEDER Founding)

Adiciones y correcciones a la orquidoflora valenciana, VII

Se aportan datos sobre algunos táxones de Orchidaceae que resultan escasos en la Comunidad Valenciana o en determinadas de sus comarcas; a destacar la presencia de Ophrys santonica y O. × pseudospeculum en Alicante.It is shown some data about rare taxa of Orchidaceae at the Valencian Community (E Spain) or expansions of area to new shires; to emphasize the presence of Ophrys santonica and O. × pseudospeculum in Alicante

¿Qué opina el alumnado del TFG?

El curso 2014-15 ha sido el segundo año en que los alumnos han tenido que realizar un Trabajo de Fin de Grado (TFG) para finalizar su carrera universitaria. Por ese motivo, hemos realizado un estudio para analizar la satisfacción de los alumnos con su TFG. Para lograr este objetivo, se ha realizado una encuesta dirigida a los alumnos de TFG de las siguientes titulaciones de la Universidad de Alicante: Administración y Dirección de Empresas, Derecho-ADE, Turismo-ADE, Gestión de Administraciones Públicas, Relaciones Laborales y Recursos Humanos, y Turismo. Los resultados que hemos obtenido muestran la opinión del alumnado con respecto al TFG, su grado de satisfacción en cuanto a su propio trabajo y en cuanto a la labor del tutor y los aspectos que consideran susceptibles de mejora. En este sentido, podemos resaltar que los alumnos están, en general, bastante contentos con su propio trabajo y con la labor realizada por su tutor. Sin embargo, piensan que es necesario recibir información más clara a principios del curso académico y simplificar más la aplicación que se utiliza para la gestión del TFG (UAProject)