Search results for "fossil"
showing 10 items of 412 documents
Distribution of biomass and site location of combustion and gasification power plants in western Sicily
2012
The substitution of conventional fossil fuels with biomass for energy production results both in the reduction of greenhouse gases emissions and in the replacement of non-renewable energy sources. The use of biomass for energy production responds to the growing pressure of government policies towards the achievement of better environmental sustainability of power generation processes. This is particularly true for the agricultural areas of Sicily, where the realization of new economic dynamics can lead to development of a local economic system. However, at present, generating energy from biomass is rather expensive due to both technological limits related to low conversion efficiencies, and…
Characterization of petroleum-based products by infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics
2012
Abstract The role of fossil fuels in providing the energy required for automobiles, factories and daily life has seriously concerned the authorities. Consistency of the quality of petroleum-based products is an important aspect of social and environmental criteria in a developed society. High-quality petroleum-based fuels would have several benefits (e.g., reduction in rate of consumption, less environmental pollution and durability of hardware). We review recent advances in the application of infrared spectroscopy in the petroleum industry. We focus on the methods proposed for the determination of a wide range of characteristics in petroleum-based products. We discuss methods based on the …
Flexibility Services in a Mediterranean Small Island to Minimize Costs and Emissions Related to Electricity Production from Fossil Fuels
2020
In last years, the energy efficiency in non-interconnected islands became an important topic, since the electricity production is often based on diesel generators, thus contributing to the global warming. Italian government recently emitted two decrees to promote the introduction of renewable energy technologies in 21 non-interconnected islands, both for electrical and thermal uses. In this paper, the economic and environmental feasibility of the introduction of renewable energies in the island of Pantelleria was assessed adopting an optimization approach. Furthermore, the flexibility provided from the local desalination plant and the domestic water heaters was evaluated. The final demands …
Supplying small islands with solar, wind and sea wave. An economic approach to find the best energy share
2019
The progressive installation of power plants based on renewable energy sources is improving the sustainability of the energy sector. Despite the availability of commercial solutions, most of the small islands in the world are nowadays affected by a deep dependence on fossil fuels. In this context, the paper investigates the feasibility of an energy mix composed by solar, wind and sea wave, suggesting a sizing approach based on the minimization of the Levelized Cost of Electricity of the entire energy mix. As case study, the Aeolian Islands are presented.
Bioenergy Production and Social Sustainability on Finnish Farms
2011
Problems related to energy production have become a significant social issue, also regarding rural areas. There is an apparent need to establish a model for sustainable energy production that would encompass economic, environmental and social sustainability (Elliott 2000). One important solution to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, as well as addressing the depletion of fossil fuel resources, lies in the renewable natural resources that exist in rural areas. However, sustainable and reasonable utilization of these resources is not simple and requires specific analysis of different production models (Mol 2007). Simultaneously, one must consider how these rural resources can be utilized and …
Integrated stratigraphy of the Oxfordian global stratotype section and point (GSSP) candidate in the Subalpine Basin (SE France).
2014
44 pages; International audience; An integrated biostratigraphic approach, based on ammonites, calcareous nannofossils, dinoflagellates, combined with sedimentology, carbon-isotope and physical stratigraphy, is proposed for the Subalpine Basin (Thuoux and Saint-Pierre d'Argençon sections). Within the expanded marl deposits of the Terres Noires Fm., the Callovian-Oxfordian boundary is particularly well defined by ammonite taxa from different families (i.e. Cardioceratidae, Oppeliidae, Aspidoceratidae and Perisphinctidae), calcareous nannoplankton (first occurrence of large-sized Stephanolithion bigotii) and dinoflagellate cysts (first occurrence of Wanaea fimbriata). This precise biostratigr…
Oxygen isotopes in mammal bone phosphate: A new tool for paleohydrological and paleoclimatological research?
1984
Abstract Oxygen isotope analyses of water in blood of humans and domestic pigs indicate that the oxygen isotope fractionation effects between ingested water and body water are the same in all specimens of the same species. The δ 18 O of body water has been shown to vary linearly with the mean δ 18 O of local meteoric water. This conclusion also holds for the bone phosphate. Thus, δ 18 O ( PO 3− 4 ) values of unaltered fossil bones from humans and domestic pigs can be used to reconstruct the δ 18 O values of local meteoric waters during the life-times of the mammals. Such data can be used for paleohydrological and paleoclimatological studies both on land and at sea.
BIOMASS UTILIZATION AS A RENEVABLE ENERGY SOURCE IN POLISH POWER INDUSTRY – CURRENT STATUS AND PERSPECTIVES
2015
The depletion of the conventional energy sources, as well as the degradation and pollution of the environment by the exploitation of fossil fuels caused the development of renewable energy sources (RES), including biomass. In Poland, biomass is the most popular renewable energy source, which is closely related to the obligations associated with the membership in the EU. Biomass is the oldest renewable energy source, and its potential, diversity and polymorphism place it over other sources. Besides, the improvement in its parameters, including an increase in its calorific value, resulted in increasing use of biomass as energy source. In the electric power industry biomass is applied in the p…
A new replacement name for the fossil spider Veterator Petrunkevitch, 1963 (Arthropoda: Arachnida: Araneae)
2021
A junior homonym was detected in the genera of fossil Araneae and the following replacement name is proposed within the family Trochanteriidae: Neoveterator Ceccolini & Cianferoni nom. nov. pro Veterator Petrunkevitch, 1963 nec Laws, 1944. Eight new combinations (comb. nov.) are proposed.
Consistent phenological shifts in the making of a biodiversity hotspot: the Cape flora
2011
Abstract Background The best documented survival responses of organisms to past climate change on short (glacial-interglacial) timescales are distributional shifts. Despite ample evidence on such timescales for local adaptations of populations at specific sites, the long-term impacts of such changes on evolutionary significant units in response to past climatic change have been little documented. Here we use phylogenies to reconstruct changes in distribution and flowering ecology of the Cape flora - South Africa's biodiversity hotspot - through a period of past (Neogene and Quaternary) changes in the seasonality of rainfall over a timescale of several million years. Results Forty-three dist…