IPTU Premiado: uma estratégia de arrecadação

Este trabalho trata de políticas de arrecadação voltadas para a elevação de receitas próprias municipais,o denominado IPTU Premiado, medida de incentivo à arrecadação, fundada em estímulos econômicos, com oobjetivo principal de estimular a participação desse imposto nas receitas do município. A questão que orientou ainvestigação e o estudo está centrada na seguinte indagação: A campanha “IPTU Premiado” gera mais receitaspara o município promotor? Diante do contexto de crise econômica, conhecer ações governamentais capazes deelevar as receitas próprias, torna-se de grande relevância para as funções de planejamento e gestãogovernamentais. A pesquisa dota como universo Itabuna, na Bahia, município integrante da região chamada"Costa do Cacau". Para alcançar o objetivo, inicialmente foram coletados, no sítio do Portal da Transparênciadaquele município, os valores referentes às previsões orçamentárias. De forma complementar, foram solicitadosrelatórios ao arquivo público do município, por meio do Sistema de Informação ao Cidadão Eletrônico (e-SIC).Os resultados do estudo demonstram a efetividade da medida, porquanto houve elevação das receitas própriasdo município

BIODIESEL PRODUCTION BY ETHYLIC AND METHYLIC ROUTE BASED ON FACTORIAL DESIGN

The analysis carried out in this research had as objective the development of a process for the bench-scale production of biodiesel. The reaction was produced by the alkaline transesterification method, in which the reagents were subjected to a temperature of 60 ± 2°C, maintaining constant mechanical agitation. From a factorial experimental design, we evaluated the maximum and minimum levels of three variables: catalyst, molar ratio, and reaction time, combining their effects without altering the response quality, verifying the yields, and interpreting the possible variations based on statistical treatments to justify which one has the best performance. As the main point, two alcohols were used, one imported (methanol) that underwent a high-quality process, and another with a large national production capacity (ethanol). The research emerges as a way to reinforce the statement that biodiesel is one of the solutions to mitigate environmental impacts and socioeconomically contribute to the country. However, the production cost  is higher than that of diesel derived from petroleum; thus, ensuring the best process conditions will decrease the operational costs and the costs for the end consumer. The variable with the most influence was the amount of catalyst for the synthesis of ethyl and methyl biodiesel. However, the yields for the B2 and B8 tests did not show a significant difference at the 5% level according to the Tukey test, and the highest yield was achieved by the B7 test (97.44%), using methanol at a 1:9 molar ratio and 0.5% catalyst in 90 minutes of reaction. After the research to determine the best process conditions to promote the production and use of biofuel, we concluded that the methyl route led to more satisfactory results and higher yields.A análise realizada nesta pesquisa teve como objetivo o desenvolvimento deum processo para a produção de biodiesel em escala de bancada. A reaçãofoi realizada pelo método de transesterificação alcalina, em que os reagentesforam submetidos à temperatura de 60 ± 2ºC mantendo constante agitaçãomecânica. Por meio de um planejamento experimental fatorial, avaliaramseos níveis máximos e mínimos de três variáveis: catalisador, razão molare tempo de reação, combinando seus efeitos sem alterar a qualidadeda resposta, verificando os rendimentos e interpretando com base nostratamentos estatísticos as possíveis variações para justificar o melhordesempenho. Como ponto principal, foram utilizados dois álcoois, um obtidomediante importação, com alta qualidade no processo; e outro, com grandecapacidade de produção nacional, metanol e etanol, respectivamente.A pesquisa surgiu como forma de aumentar o quantitativo quanto àafirmação de que o biodiesel é uma das soluções para amenizar os impactosambientais e contribuir socioeconomicamente para o país, entretanto ocusto de produção é superior ao processamento de diesel pelo petróleo.Assim, a verificação das melhores condições do processo diminuirá os custosoperacionais e para o consumidor final. A variável que mais influenciou foia quantidade de catalisador na síntese dos biodieseis etílicos e metílicos,porém os rendimentos para os ensaios B2 e B8 não apresentaram diferençasignificativa no nível de 5% pelo teste Tukey, e o maior rendimento foirealizado pelo ensaio B7 (97,44%), utilizando metanol em razão molar 1:9,0,5% de catalisador em 90 minutos de reação. Depois de pesquisas paradeterminar melhores condições de processo para promover a produção e ouso de biocombustíveis, concluiu-se que, na produção de biodiesel via rotametílica, os resultados são mais satisfatórios e os rendimentos são maiores

Studies of the mass composition of cosmic rays and proton-proton interaction cross-sections at ultra-high energies with the Pierre Auger Observatory

In this work, we present an estimate of the cosmic-ray mass composition from the distributions of the depth of the shower maximum (Xmax) measured by the fluorescence detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory. We discuss the sensitivity of the mass composition measurements to the uncertainties in the properties of the hadronic interactions, particularly in the predictions of the particle interaction cross-sections. For this purpose, we adjust the fractions of cosmic-ray mass groups to fit the data with Xmax distributions from air shower simulations. We modify the proton-proton cross-sections at ultra-high energies, and the corresponding air shower simulations with rescaled nucleus-air cross-sections are obtained via Glauber theory. We compare the energy-dependent composition of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays obtained for the different extrapolations of the proton-proton cross-sections from low-energy accelerator data

Study of downward Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flashes with the surface detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The surface detector (SD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory, consisting of 1660 water-Cherenkov detectors (WCDs), covers 3000 km2 in the Argentinian pampa. Thanks to the high efficiency of WCDs in detecting gamma rays, it represents a unique instrument for studying downward Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flashes (TGFs) over a large area. Peculiar events, likely related to downward TGFs, were detected at the Auger Observatory. Their experimental signature and time evolution are very different from those of a shower produced by an ultrahigh-energy cosmic ray. They happen in coincidence with low thunderclouds and lightning, and their large deposited energy at the ground is compatible with that of a standard downward TGF with the source a few kilometers above the ground. A new trigger algorithm to increase the TGF-like event statistics was installed in the whole array. The study of the performance of the new trigger system during the lightning season is ongoing and will provide a handle to develop improved algorithms to implement in the Auger upgraded electronic boards. The available data sample, even if small, can give important clues about the TGF production models, in particular, the shape of WCD signals. Moreover, the SD allows us to observe more than one point in the TGF beam, providing information on the emission angle

Investigating multiple elves and halos above strong lightning with the fluorescence detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory

ELVES are being studied since 2013 with the twenty-four FD Telescopes of the Pierre Auger Observatory, in the province of Mendoza (Argentina), the world’s largest facility for the study of ultra-high energy cosmic rays. This study exploits a dedicated trigger and extended readout. Since December 2020, this trigger has been extended to the three High levation Auger Telescopes (HEAT), which observe the night sky at elevation angles between 30 and 60 degrees, allowing a study of ELVES from closer lightning. The high time resolution of the Auger telescopes allows us to upgrade reconstruction algorithms and to do detailed studies on multiple ELVES. The origin of multiple elves can be studied by analyzing the time difference and the amplitude ratio between flashes and comparing them with the properties of radio signals detected by the ENTLN lightning network since 2018. A fraction of multi-ELVES can also be interpreted as halos following ELVES. Halos are disc-shaped light transients emitted at 70-80 km altitudes, appearing at the center of the ELVES rings, due to the rearrangement of electric charges at the base of the ionosphere after a strong lightning event

Combined fit to the spectrum and composition data measured by the Pierre Auger Observatory including magnetic horizon effects

The measurements by the Pierre Auger Observatory of the energy spectrum and mass composition of cosmic rays can be interpreted assuming the presence of two extragalactic source populations, one dominating the flux at energies above a few EeV and the other below. To fit the data ignoring magnetic field effects, the high-energy population needs to accelerate a mixture of nuclei with very hard spectra, at odds with the approximate E$^{-2}$ shape expected from diffusive shock acceleration. The presence of turbulent extragalactic magnetic fields in the region between the closest sources and the Earth can significantly modify the observed CR spectrum with respect to that emitted by the sources, reducing the flux of low-rigidity particles that reach the Earth. We here take into account this magnetic horizon effect in the combined fit of the spectrum and shower depth distributions, exploring the possibility that a spectrum for the high-energy population sources with a shape closer to E$^{-2}$ be able to explain the observations