Search results for "Chemical engineering"
showing 10 items of 5892 documents
comparing two start-up strategies for MBRs: experimental study and mathematical modelling
2012
Abstract The performance of a membrane bioreactor (MBR), and mechanisms of fouling formation, may differ due to the start-up. Therefore, the start-up can constitute an aspect that critically influences MBR performance during its lifespan. Indeed, the start-up can influence the mechanisms of membrane fouling, which is of paramount importance in an MBR. In order to gain insights on the effects of the start-up, both experimental and mathematical modelling studies were carried out on an MBR pilot plant. The MBR pilot plant constituted of a hollow fibre membrane module, in a submerged configuration, was fed by real wastewater. Two experimental periods were carried out, lasting 65 days each, char…
Selective recovery of gold from electronic waste using 3D-printed scavenger
2017
Around 10% of the worldwide annual production of gold is used for manufacturing of electronic devices. According to the European Commission, waste electric and electronic equipment is the fastest growing waste stream in the European Union. This has generated the need for an effective method to recover gold from electronic waste. Here, we report a simple, effective, and highly selective nylon-12-based three-dimensional (3D)-printed scavenger objects for gold recovery directly from an aqua regia extract of a printed circuit board waste. Using the easy to handle and reusable 3D-printed meshes or columns, gold can be selectively captured both in a batch and continuous flow processes by dipping …
Comparison between laboratory and pilot biotrickling filtration of air emissions from painting and wood finishing
2010
BACKGROUND: Painting and wood finishing is one industrial sector affected by the European Union environmental regulations on volatile organic compound (VOC) air emissions. The painting process typically results in high flow rates with low VOC concentrations, so biotrickling filtration could be an economical alternative for controlling air emissions. This study analyses the operation of a pilot unit installed in a furniture facility, and compares its performance with the removal efficiency obtained in the laboratory using a synthetic feed composed of n-butyl acetate, toluene and m-xylene to simulate industrial air emissions. RESULTS: Laboratory studies showed that fluctuating and oscillating…
An imprecise Fault Tree Analysis for the estimation of the Rate of OCcurrence Of Failure (ROCOF)
2013
Abstract The paper proposes an imprecise Fault Tree Analysis in order to characterize systems affected by the lack of reliability data. Differently from other research works, the paper introduces a classification of basic events into two categories, namely Initiators and Enablers . Actually, in real industrial systems some events refer to component failures or process parameter deviations from normal operating conditions ( Initiators ), whereas others refer to the functioning of safety barriers to be activated on demand ( Enablers ). As a consequence, the output parameter of interest is not the classical probability of occurrence of the top event, but its Rate of OCcurrence (ROCOF) over a s…
A novel hybrid polygeneration system supplying energy and desalinated water by renewable sources in Pantelleria Island
2017
Abstract In this paper a thermoeconomic analysis of a novel hybrid Renewable Polygeneration System connected to a district heating and cooling network is presented. The plant is powered simultaneously by solar and geothermal sources, producing electricity, desalinated water, heat and cooling energy. System layout includes Parabolic Through Collector (PTC) field, geothermal wells, Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) unit and a Multi-Effect Desalination (MED) system. Cooling and thermal demands are calculated by suitable building dynamic simulation models, calibrated for Pantelleria Island. Electrical demand is obtained by measured data. A detailed control strategy has been implemented in order to pr…
Global sensitivity analysis of a filtration model for submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBR)
2014
The results of a global sensitivity analysis of a filtration model for submerged anaerobic MBRs (AnMBRs) are assessed in this paper. This study aimed to (1) identify the less- (or non-) influential factors of the model in order to facilitate model calibration and (2) validate the modelling approach (i.e. to determine the need for each of the proposed factors to be included in the model). The sensitivity analysis was conducted using a revised version of the Morris screening method. The dynamic simulations were conducted using long-term data obtained from an AnMBR plant fitted with industrial-scale hollow-fibre membranes. Of the 14 factors in the model, six were identified as influential, i.e…
Industrial Dynamics Involving Electrochemical Processes
1985
Many industrial activities are based on electrochemical technologies, and several other receive from electrochemical methodologies useful or even decisive contributions for their development. There are important electrochemical industries in the fields of inorganic and organic chemical production, the treatment of metals, such as extraction, refining, finishing and processing, and the production of the various battery systems. Furthermore some electrochemical technologies are dependent on, and integrated with other industrial activities, and are related to corrosion control, water treatments, and environmental protection. Like physicians with their patients, these last applications have a p…
Reliable estimates in the anisotropic heat conduction problems
2014
Abstract The heat conduction problems for anisotropic bodies are studied taking into account the uncertainties in the material orientation. The best estimations of the upper and lower bounds of the considered energy dissipation functional are based on developing new approach consisting in solution of some optimization problems and finding the extremal internal material structures, which realize minimal and maximal dissipation. The motivation of this study comes from paper making processes, and more precisely, drying process, which consumes about 50% of the energy fed into the paper machine. The understanding of the effect of uncertainties in the process arises from structural properties of …
Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis of an integrated membrane bioreactor model
2015
Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis, although can be of primarily importance in mathematical modelling approaches, are scarcely applied in the field of membrane bioreactor (MBR). An integrated mathematical model for MBR is applied with the final aim to pin down sources of uncertainty in MBR modelling. The uncertainty analysis has been performed combining global sensitivity analysis (GSA) with the generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE). The model and methodology were applied to a University Cape Town pilot plant. Results show that the complexity of the modelled processes and the propagation effect from the influent to the effluent increase the uncertainty of the model predicti…
Thermoeconomic analysis of a coupled municipal solid waste thermovalorization–MSF desalination plant: an Italian case study
2006
Abstract A thermoeconomic analysis of a cogenerative system with steam bleedings produced starting from the thermal energy recovered in a municipal solid waste thermovalorization plant is presented. The authors assume that the bled steam is used to feed a seawater multi-stage flash (MSF) desalination plant. A case study was carried out for the desalination plant, which operates in Raffineria di Gela (Sicily). In particular, the MSF process is described and the most significant features of the plant are presented. Besides, an economic analysis of a hypothetically coupled MSW thermovalorization–MSF plant was carried out to estimate the capital and operating costs and the gain derived from the…