The article presents the current state of the CNG market used as an alternative fuel for car engines. Attention was paid to European Union directives requirements and the current state of the directives’ fulfillment. The economic aspect of CNG usage was analyzed and the approximate costs of driving 10,000 km on different fuels in the last four years were presented. The PtG process which uses electric energy (hydrogen production) and carbon dioxide captured from the flue gas for the production of synthetic methane were discussed. The scheme of the SNG plant with the indication of its most important components was presented, and attention was paid to the mutual complementation of PtG technologies with carbon dioxide capture technology. The benefits of synthetic methane production are presented and the use of compressed natural gas to power engines in vehicles has been described. First, the focus was on the single-fuel use of CNG in bus and truck engines, paying particular attention to the ecological aspect of the implemented solutions. It has been shown that the use of compressed natural gas will reduce almost 100% of the particulates emission from the combustion process. The advantages and disadvantages of the alternative fuel supply are given. Next, the aspect of dual-fuel use in diesel engines was analyzed on the example of a smaller engine. The degree of reduction of harmful compounds emission from the combustion process is shown. Finally, attention was paid to the possible scale effect, referring to the number of motor vehicles in Poland.
The article presents research results of the introduction of powdery activated carbon to the existing technological system of the groundwater treatment stations in a laboratory, pilot plant and technical scale. The aim of the research was to reduce the content of organic compounds found in the treated water, which create toxic organic chlorine compounds (THM) after disinfection with chlorine. Nine types of powdery active carbons were tested in laboratory scale. The top two were selected for further study. Pilot plant scale research was carried out for the filter model using CWZ-30 and Norit Sa Super carbon. Reduction of the organic matter in relation to the existing content in the treated water reached about 30%. Research in technical scale using CWZ-30 carbon showed a lesser efficiency with respect to laboratory and pilot-plant scale studies. The organic matter decreased by 15%. Since filtration is the last process before the individual disinfection, an alternative solution is proposed, i.e. the second stage of filtration with a granular activated carbon bed, operating in combined sorption and biodegradation processes. The results of tests carried out in pilot scale were fully satisfactory with the effectiveness of 70–100%.
The removal of benzene (B) and toluene (T) from aqueous solution by multi walled, single walled, and hybrid carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs, SWCNTs, and HCNTs) was evaluated for a nanomaterial dose of 1 g/l, concentration of 10-100 mg/l, and pH 7. The equilibrium amount removed by SWCNTs (B: 9.98 mg/g and T: 9.96 mg/g) was higher than for MWCNTs and HCNTs. Toluene has a higher adsorption tendency on CNTs than benzene, which is related to the increasing water solubility and the decreasing molecular weight of the compounds. The SWCNTs performed better for B and T sorption than the MWCNTs and HCNTs. Isotherms study based on isofit program indicate that the Generalized Langmuir-Freundlich (GLF) isotherm expression provides the best fit for benzene sorption, and that Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) isotherm is the best fit for toluene adsorption by SWCNT. SWCNTs are efficient B and T adsorbents and possess good potential applications to water and wastewater treatment and maintain water of high quality that could be used for cleaning up environmental pollution.
Binary vapour-liquid equilibrium of thymoquinone and carbon dioxide at the isothermal conditions was carried out at temperature 323.15 K and pressures from 6 to 10 MPa. The experimental data were fitted to the Soave-Redlich-Kwong equation of state. Results could be used for selection of process parameters in separation of volatiles from raw oil or for evaluation of existing separation technologies.
Labile fractions of organic matter can rapidly respond to changes in soil and they have been suggested as sensitive indicators of soil organic matter. Two labile fractions of organic carbon in the soils amended with fresh municipal sewage sludge in two rates (equivalent of 60 kg P ha-1 and 120 kg P ha-1) were studied. Soils under studies were overgrown with Salix in Germany, Estonia and Poland. In Polish soils application of sewage sludge increased the content of both labile organic carbon fractions (KMnO4-C and HWC) for a period of one year. Estonian soils were stable and no distinct changes in labile organic carbon fractions occurred.
Twenty-eight two-, three-, four-, and five-component amine mixtures have been evaluated as possible activators of CO2 absorption into aqueous carbonate/bicarbonate solutions. Measurements were per- formed using a pressure autoclave with a sparger at conditions close to industrial ones. On the basis of these results, a formula for a new, more efficient amine activator named INS13 was developed. The activator was tested both in a pilot plant and on an industrial scale in an ammonia plant producing 300 tons/day of ammonia. Activator INS13 was applied in a number of ammonia plants in Poland and abroad.
“Soon we will be able to fit the contents of the Encyclopedia Britannica on a head of a pin,” the famous physicist Richard Feynman argued back in the 1960s. Perhaps even he would be amazed at the possibilities now offered by carbon nanotubes, several hundred thousand times tinier than a pin. Their amazing properties have been exploited in an integrated circuit developed at the Karlsruhe Institut für Technologie.
The process of carbon dioxide removal from monoethanolamine (MEA) - water solution was investigated on Poly Di Methyl Siloxane (PDMS) hydrophobic tubular membrane with a ceramic support. The effects of feed temperature, liquid flow rate and MEA concentration on CO2 mass transfer and selectivity were examined and found to be with a reasonable deviation (±25%) with predictions based on the multilayer film model. The membrane resistance was evaluated in separate experiments. The measured CO2 mass fluxes (0.17-0.45 kg/(m2h)) were found to be independent of the MEA concentration in the feed.
Balance, thermodynamic and mainly kinetic approaches using methods of process engineering enable to determine conditions under which iron technology can actually work in limiting technological states, at the lowest reachable fuel consumption (reducing factor) and the highest reachable productivity accordingly. Kinetic simulation can be also used for variant prognostic calculations. The paper deals with thermodynamics and kinetics of iron making process. It presents a kinetic model of iron oxide reduction in a low temperature area. In the experimental part it deals with testing of iron ore feedstock properties. The theoretical and practical limits determined by heat conditions, feedstock reducibility and kinetics of processes are calculated.
Measurements of the absorption rate of carbon dioxide into aqueous solutions of N-methyldiethanoloamine (MDEA) and 2-ethylaminoethanol (EAE) have been carried out. On this basis a mathematical model of the performance of an absorption column operated with aqueous solution of a blend of the above amines at elevated temperatures and pressures have been proposed. The results of simulations obtained by means of this model are described. The work is a part of a wider program, aimed at the development of a new process.
It was found that the addition of carbon fibers (CFs) does not affect the crosslinking process in the microwave radiation (800 W, 2.45
GHz) of the BioCo2 binder, which is a water solution of poly(acrylic acid) and dextrin (PAA/D). It has influence on BioCo2 thermal
properties. The CFs addition improves the thermostability of a binder and leads to the reduction of gas products quantity generated in the
temperature range of 300-1100°C (TG-DTG, Py-GC/MS). Moreover, it causes the emission of harmful decomposition products such as
benzene, toluene, xylene and styrene to be registered in a higher temperatures (above 700°C). BioCo2 binder without CFs addition is
characterized by the emission of these substances in the lower temperature range. This indicates the positive effect of carbon fibers
presence on the amount of released harmful products.
The selected technological tests (permeability, friability, bending strength, tensile strength) have shown that the moulding sand with the
0.3 parts by weight carbon fibers addition displays the worst properties. The addition of 0.1 parts by weight of CFs is sufficient to obtain a
beneficial effect on the analyzed moulding sands properties. The reduction of harmful substances at the higher temperatures can also be
observed.
Extremely intense development of civilization requires from foundry casting technologies very high quality and not expensive castings. In
the foundries, there are many treatments that allow increasing of the final properties of produced castings such as refining, modification,
heat treatment, etc. One of the methods of increasing the quality of the casting by removing inclusions from the liquid alloy is filtration.
The use of ceramic-carbon foam filters in filtration process is still analysed phenomenon that allows improving the final properties of
castings. A modern method of research, testing and synthesis of innovative chemical compositions allows improving the properties of such
filters. In the paper the evaluation of application properties of developed ceramic-carbon bonded foam filters is presented. The quality of
the foam filters is evaluated by Computer Tomography and foundry trials in pouring of liquid metal in test molds. Additionally computer
simulations were made to visualize the flow characteristics in the foam filter. The analysed filters are the result of the research work of
Foundry Research Institute and the Institute of Ceramics and Building Materials, Refractory Materials Department in Gliwice.
A number of micromechanical investigations have been performed to predict behaviour of composite interfaces, showing that the detailed behaviour of the material at these interfaces frequently dominates the behaviour of the composite as a whole. The interfacial interaction is an extremely complex process due to continuous evolution of interfacial zones during deformation and this is particularly true for carbon nanotubes since the interfacial interaction is confined to the discrete molecular level. The atomic strain concept based upon Voronoi tessellation allows analyzing the molecular structure atom by atom, which may give a unique insight into deformation phenomena operative at molecular level such as interface behaviour in nanocomposites.
The reports of Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change indicate that the growing emission of greenhouse gases, produced from the combustion of fossil fuels, mainly carbon dioxide, leads to negative climate changes. Therefore, the methods of mitigating the greenhouse gases emission to the atmosphere, especially of carbon dioxide, are being sought. Numerous studies are focused on so-called geological sequestration, i.e. injecting carbon dioxide to appropriate geological strata or ocean waters. One of the methods, which are not fully utilized, is the application of appropriate techniques in agriculture. The plant production in agriculture is based on the absorption of carbon dioxide in the photosynthesis process. Increasing the plant production directly leads to the absorption of carbon dioxide. Therefore, investigation of carbon dioxide absorption by particular crops is a key issue. In Poland, ca. 7.6 mln ha of cereals is cultivated, including: rye, wheat, triticale, oat and barley. These plants absorb approximately 23.8 mln t C annually, including 9.8 mln t C/yr in grains, 9.4 mln t C/yr in straw and 4.7 mln t C/yr in roots. The China, these cereals are cultivated on the area over 24 mln ha and absorb 98.9 mln t C/yr, including 55 mln tC/yr in grains, 36 in straw, and 7.9 mln t C/yr in roots. The second direction for mitigating the carbon dioxide emission into the atmosphere involves substituting fossil fuels with renewable energy sources to deliver primary energy. Cultivation of winter cereals as cover crops may lead to the enhancement of carbon dioxide removal from the atmosphere in the course of their growth. Moreover, the produced biomass can be used for energy generation.
The influences of various operating conditions including cathode inlet air flow rate, electrolyte temperature and fuel particles size on the performance of the direct carbon fuel cell DCFC were presented and discussed in this paper. The experimental results indicated that the cell performance was enhanced with increases of the cathode inlet gas flow rate and cell temperature. Binary alkali hydroxide mixture (NaOH-LiOH, 90-10 mol%) was used as electrolyte and the biochar of apple tree origin carbonized at 873 K was used as fuel. Low melting temperature of the electrolyte and its good ionic conductivity enabled to operate the DCFC at medium temperatures of 723-773 K. The highest current density (601 A m−2) was obtained for temperature 773 K and air flow rate 8.3×106 m3s−1. Itwas shown that too low or too high air flow rates negatively affect the cell performance. The results also indicated that the operation of the DCFC could be improved by proper selection of the fuel particle size.
The paper deals with numerical modelling of carbon dioxide capture by amine solvent from flue gases in post-combustion technology. A complex flow system including a countercurrent two-phase flow in a porous region, chemical reaction and heat transfer is considered to resolve CO2 absorption. In order to approach the hydrodynamics of the process a two-fluid Eulerian model was applied. At the present stage of model development only the first part of the cycle, i.e. CO2 absorption was included. A series of parametric simulations has shown that carbon dioxide capture efficiency is mostly influenced by the ratio of liquid (aqueous amine solution) to gas (flue gases) mass fluxes. Good consistency of numerical results with experimental data acquired at a small-scale laboratory CO2 capture installation (at the Institute for Chemical Processing of Coal, Zabrze, Poland) has proved the reliability of the model.
Microporous carbon molecular sieves of extremely narrow pore size distribution were obtained by carbonization of a novel raw material (Salix viminalis). The precursor is inexpensive and widely accessible. The pore capacity and specific surface area are upgradable by H3PO4 treatment without significant change of narrowed PSD. The dominating pore size indicates that these molecular sieves are a potential competitor to other nanoporous materials such as opened and purified carbon nanotubes.
In this study, the synthesis of lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) powder was conducted by a carbonation process using carbon dioxide gas (CO2) from waste acidic sludge based on sulfuric acid (H2SO4) containing around 2 wt.% lithium content. Lithium sulfate (Li2SO4) powder as a raw material was reacted with CO2 gas using a thermogravimetric apparatus to measure carbonation conditions such as temperature, time and CO2 content. It was noted that carbonation occurred at a temperature range of 800℃ to 900℃ within 2 hours. To prevent further oxidation during carbonation, calcium sulfate (CaO4S) was first introduced to mixing gases with CO2 and Ar and then led to meet in the chamber. The lithium carbonate obtained was examined by inductively coupled plasma–mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and it was found that of lithium carbonate with a purity above 99% was recovered.
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