Biography:

Michael received his MSc. and PhD. degrees from the Dept. of Mechanical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology in 2005 and 2010, respectively. In 2009, Michael co-founded Progression-Industry BV to commercialize various automotive technologies in the domains of waste energy recovery and biofuels. From January 2016, Michael was appointed a Fellow at the same University in the field of Designer Fuels.

Abstract:

Transport fuels like gasoline and diesel are typical commodity goods, having flexible prices and numerous traders. The commodity market is the archetypical competitive market, as it is built on the premise that each individual trader is negligible in size compared to the market as a whole and therefore exerts no influence on the market price. In such an environment, consumption tends to correlate negatively with price, with less product typically being consumed when prices are high. For example, the oil crisis of 1970’s  prompted the automotive industry to design more fuel efficient vehicles. Conversely, supply is positively correlated with price, seeing more players entering the market when prices soar. The recent fracking revolution in the US being a case in point.

It is notoriously difficult for new entrants to compete in commodity markets as demand is driven primarily by price and incumbent firms have established comfortable economies of scale. In order for a newcomer to avoid head-on competition, it is necessary to identify niche markets and disruptive them with innovative products that address the (latent) needs of said markets. To this end, a popular framework from innovation sciences, namely Blue Ocean Strategy, is applied to the transport fuel market in this study.

Two Blue Oceans, each representing a hithero uncontested marked space, have been identified, with one inhabited by consumers who would buy fuel if only the price were lower, while the other comprises more upmarket consumers who are less sentive to price.To serve these niche markets, both a low- and high-end disruptive biofuel, have been reversed engineered, respectively. Both are based on aromatic oxygenates, compounds which can be produced from lignocellulosic biomass and have been found to perform well in both compression- and spark-ignition engines.

Biography:

Prof. A. Usha Rani has completed her Ph.D at the age of 27 years from Sri Venkateswara University and Post doctoral studies with award of Research Associate fellowship from University Grants Commission (UGC) and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi. She is a senior faculty of the Dept. of Zoology Heading the Division of Environmental Biology and an active researcher. She has published more than 53 research papers in reputed journals and presented her work at several National and International conferences in India and Abroad. She is Fellow of the National Environmental Science Academy, New Delhi.

Abstract:

Cadmium (Cd) is one of the most common non-essential heavy metal causing wide range of toxic effects. The present study examines the detoxification role of zinc (Zn) and selenium (Se) against Cd induced bioaccumulation and oxidative stress in fresh water teleost Oreochromis mossambicus. After acclimatization, fish were exposed to sub lethal concentration of Cd (1/10^th of LC₅₀/48h, i.e., 5ppm) for 7, 15 and 30 days (d) period. 15d Cd exposed fish were later considered as control and  were divided into three groups. The first group were subjected to Zn (1ppm) supplementation, second received only Se (0.5ppm) and third group of fish were supplemented with combination of both Zn and Se for above said concentrations and tested again for 7, 15 and 30d time periods. After specific time intervals, liver and kidney tissues were isolated and used for Cd bioaccumulation as well as assay of oxidative stress enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST). Lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels were also measured. Bioaccumulation levels significantly increased with increased period of Cd exposure. After supplementation with Zn and Se, bioaccumulation of Cd progressively decreased. A significant elevation in LPO levels with decreased activity of CAT, SOD, GPx and GST were observed during Cd intoxication. However with Zn and/or Se supplementation, a significant reversal in the above oxidative stress enzymes was observed. Our study revealed that the combined supplementation of Zn and Se tends to detoxify the Cd induced alterations in the test tissues better than the other modes of supplementation.

Biography:

Tom Granström has acquired his expertise in bioprocess engineering both in academia and industry. He has been studying and developing production technologies for advanced biofuels, organic acids and chemicals from lignocellulose, biowaste and starch based feed stocks. Focus areas include lignocellulose biomass pretreatment, enzyme technology, fermentation, downstream processing, biogas production. Author of over 50 peer reviewed scientific articles, several book chapters, patents/patent applications, posters and public speeches.

Abstract:

St1 has built the first-of-a-kind-commercial softwood demonstration plant with the annual output of 10 ML of bioethanol in Finland. The main unit operations of St1 Cellunolix™ process are steam explosion, enzyme hydrolysis, yeast fermentation, lignin separation, turpentine and furfural recovery and waste water treatment. Lignin and evaporation residues are fed into the boiler plant. The process utilizes softwood saw dust transported from the local mills. The saw dust is a natural choice for a raw material since 75 % of the Finnish landscape is covered by wood. Softwood has an advantage of composing mainly C6 sugars enabling the use of conventional yeast fermentation. Enzyme hydrolysis and fermentation has been exclusively optimized to the pretreated softwood taking into consideration the recalcitrance of raw material and fermentation inhibitors generated. Furthermore, by upgrading the side streams the cost effectiveness of the St1 Cellunolix™ process can be increased significantly. The experiences running the demonstration plant are utilized in the 50 ML plant that will be planned next. The future process includes upgrading the lignin stream into more valuable products such as plasticizers, biofuel components or energy products. The economy of using simultaneous saccharification and fermentation and high gravity fermentation will be studied further. Recirculation of process waters and working with higher total solids concentration throughout the process will be assessed further. Finally, the raw material base will be extended to other lignocellulose material available in Nordic countries and outside Europe.

St1 is a privately owned Finnish based energy company running its own retail station chain and an oil refinery in Sweden. The revenues generated from the fossil fuel business are invested into different forms of renewable energy including wind, geothermal, biogas and bioethanol. St1 is investing on research to reduce CO2 emissions by using only wood industry waste and residues as raw materials in all renewable energy processes. Currently, the three main processes are using food based reject waste (Etanolix™), separately collected biowaste (Bionolix™) and lignocellulose waste (Cellunolix™). St1 operates 1500 retail stations in the three countries and distributes all the produced bioethanol through its own channels.

Biography:

Ernest Ohene Nkansah is an Agricultural Engineer at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ghana and is currently on a Government Scholarship for a Master’s degree program in Environmental Science in Japan. He has a publication with the Agriculture and Biology Journal of North America to his credit and is an award winner for Ghana during a training course in China on the treatment and utilization of agricultural waste for African English speaking countries in 2014.

Abstract:

In the face of the dual challenge to mitigate global climate change and ensure food security for the growing global population, biochar promises to be an option for curbing these challenges. This is due to its properties like: enhancement of soil fertility and crop productivity, soil water retention and carbon sequestration. As a new technology, the introduction of biochar into farming faces lots of challenges and uncertainty. Biochar is a carbonaceous substance and a type of charcoal created through pyrolysis of biomass which is produced with the intent to apply to soil for agricultural and environmental management. Despite the multifaceted benefits obtained from biochar, there is inadequate work on the profitability and feasibility of the technology especially in developing countries primarily due to its cost of implementation. Farmers and other stakeholders therefore have little interest in investing or buying into the technology due to inadequate information on the profitability and risks involved. Biochar advocates therefore need to give a convincing argument to farmers about the benefits of biochar application in agronomy. This research therefore seeks to compare the social and private cost against their respective benefits in a cost benefit analysis to confirm feasibility of the technology in Ghana. Based on the results obtained policy options will be suggested for sustainable and effective implementation of the technology.

Biography:

Robel Berhane Habtemariam is a Master’s student at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in the department of China-EU Institute for Clean and Renewable energy (ICARE). Wuhan, China. His current research interest is on Renewable energy resources assessment and simulation. As part of his studies, he has been to Greece to participate the internship program organized by the collaboration of ICARE and National Technical University of Athens (NTUA). He is conducting his research activity under the guidance of Dr. Yi Pengxing and Dr. George Caralis.

Abstract:

Globally, wind energy and photovoltaics (PV) solar energy are among the leading renewable energy sources (RES) in terms of installed capacity. In order to increase the contribution of RES to the power supply system, large scale energy integration is required, mainly due to wind energy and PV.

In this paper an investigation has been made on the electrical power supply systems of Taiwan and Greece in order to integrate high level of wind and photovoltaic (PV) to increase the penetration of renewable energy resources. Currently, both countries heavily depend on fossil fuels to meet the demand and to generate adequate electricity. Therefore, this study is carried out to look into the two cases power supply system by developing a methodology that includes major power units. To address the analysis, an approach for simulation of power systems is formulated and applied. The simulation is based on the non-dynamic analysis of the electrical system.  This simulation results in calculating the energy contribution of different types of power units; namely the wind, PV, non-flexible and flexible power units. The calculation is done for three different scenarios (2020, 2030, & 2050), where the first two scenarios are based on national targets and scenario 2050 is a reflection of ambitious global targets. By 2030 in Taiwan, the input of non-renewables is still significant, however, in Greece, much higher renewable energy contribution is observed for the same scenario. Moreover, it examines the ability of the power systems to deal with the variable nature of wind and PV generation. For this reason, an investigation has also been done on the use of the combined wind power with pumped storage systems (WPS) to enable the system to exploit the curtailed wind energy & surplus PV and thus increase the wind and PV installed capacity and replace the peak supply by conventional power units.  Results show that the feasibility of pumped storage can be justified in the high scenario (that is the scenario of 2050) of RES integration, especially in the case of Greece.

Biography:

Gombojav Delgermaa has awarded Bachelor of Management in Eco tourism from the International Tourism Management Institute of Mongolia in 2002. From 2002 until 2008, she worked as a research assistant in the Department of Environment of the International Tourism Management Institute of Mongolia. From 2008 until 2011, she was an Expert of Environmental Protection Association of Mongolia. She received her Master Degree in Enviromental Engineering from the University of Kitakyushu of Japan in 2016. Mrs. Delgermaa’s research area is recycling mamagement and municipal solid waste management.

Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to estimate and analyze recyclable waste amount, determine distinctive features and recyclable waste flow of households for improving waste management system in Ulaanbaatar city. Recyclable waste amount to be sold, daily burnt waste, illegal waste and municipal waste flow were estimated based on the direct interview with the citizens and questionnaire surveys. 

The study was carried out based on two methods for collecting data, a questionnaire survey and interviews of residents, industrial sites and companies, and identification of waste amounts and types in 18 households. The questionnaire survey was conducted among 400 households.

The findings of this study shows that although the total amount of households in ger (the traditional tent) area is six times larger than the waste generated by the households in apartment area, there was no any differences of monthly waste fees between ger and apartment households. Totally 2.63 tons of toxic waste produced every day and air emissions from backyard burning in ger households are released directly to the atmosphere without being treated. The maximum illegal waste amount (152 ton) occurs in winter season, due to the coal ash (122 ton) generated by the ger households. This has led to severe environmental pollution.  The study suggests that the coal ash should be recycled and the waste amount to be transported between households and landfill sites could be reduced with 8.1%.

Biography:

Ms. Cagla Cilingir is a research assistant of environmental engineering at the Hacettepe University of Ankara, Turkey. She received her bachelor’s degrees from Istanbul University and she is a master student at the Hacettepe University. Her thesis is about the alternative production mechanism of volatile organic components. Her research interests include the recovery and reuse of agricultural, municipal, and industrial waste products.

Abstract:

The increasing demand for energy industry and losing sustainability of fossil fuels has lead the world to find alternative energy sources. This trend has enables renewable energy sources to replace conventional energy sources. Today, with the search for renewable energy sources, by extending its meaning, the concept of waste has begun to take place in the energy sector as a raw material. For this purpose, the application of using methane, which is obtained by the biodegradation of renewable materials, for producing heat, electricity and fuel is becoming widespread. Wood, coal, animal waste, agricultural waste and other fuels that are derived from biological sources are used for the application of biogas obtained using renewable sources. Nowadays, animal waste is the most commonly used renewable material which has the characteristics of waste. With the aim of decreasing the effects of climate change and other environmental adverse effects that are generated from other waste, the application of utilization of animal waste for biogas production is applied frequently worldwide , especially  in  rural areas. Livestock sector, which generates the most important source of income of rural areas, necessitates turning to waste minimization. Also, poultry sector constitutes one of the most important part of the livestock sector. Rapid development of poultry sector accelerates the orientation of manufacturers’ biogas production. This paper reports on the method of application of biogas production from poultry waste. Furthermore, by means of statistics data and considering the number of poultry animals and various criteria, the amount of waste originating from poultry sectors in was calculated worldwide. Based on amount of waste, potential biogas production worldwide and the amount of energy equivalence were calculated.  Considering the findings, to what extent it will benefit the energy sector was mentioned. Lastly, how poultry manure, when applied with different manure as co-digestion, contributed to the energy sector was emphasized.

Biography:

Joanna Kulczycka is a Professor at AGH University of Mining and Metallurgy, Faculty of Management and also Head of Department of Strategic Research at Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences MEERI. She has authored of over 100 publications including 1st book about LCA in Polish, 1st Polish Minerals Yearbook, and more than 40 scientific research articles on possibilities and effectiveness of material recovery, economic evaluation of minerals and waste management, and pre-feasibility and feasibility studies.

Abstract:

Within the EU, the Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment Regulations (WEEE) is intended to reduce the amount of e-waste being disposed of and require EEE producers to pay for its reuse, recycling and recovery. In the EU-28, it is estimated that 25% of the mass of WEEE produced is collected and processed, and the remaining 75% is not recorded. The paper presents new trends in recycling and waste management, including an analysis of the technological, legal, ecological and market aspects, focusing on recovery of non-energy raw materials.  WEEE  contains many valuable metals, that can be recycled, and could provide a great amount of secondary resources for remanufacture, refurbishment and recycling – some technological case studies will be presented taking into account new trends connected with the development of  circular economy strategy - EU Commission has declared that, it will demonstrate the opportunities for moving towards a circular economy under the EU Research and Innovation Programme. The market for the recovery of WEEE is growing steadily, mainly due to the activity of SMEs, however  the existing system of waste collection with Extened Producers Responsibility (EPR) based on EU regulation, required some improvments to boost recovery and recycling of valuable materials. Additionaly, main challenge in e-waste management is curbing illegal shipments and making sure that WEEE is collected and properly treated within recycling infrastructure. Other  barriers and challenges of the e-waste management system in EU countries will be also identified.

Biography:

MARIA ATONGAJUA Maria is a final -year M.Sc. candidate in Natural Resource, and Environmental Management at the University of Buea, Cameroon. Prior to arriving at University of Buea, I was involved with research at International institute of tropical Agriculture, Cameroon  Station,(IITA) , with a focus on agricultural waste Management and recycling . I am a 2010,2011 and 2014  recipient of the  presidential award /Scholarship, and  I  earned my  bachelor’s degree in  Education  Geography from the University of Buea , Cameroon, in 2011. My Research involves integrated waste management in agriculture, REDD+ / climate change, land use/ Remote Sensing and Environmental Management.

Abstract:

The economic growth, changing consumption and production patterns have resulted into rapid increase in generation and use of plastics in the Cameroon. The Cameroon annual consumption of plastic materials has increased tremendously between 1990 to 2013. This implies that more resources are needed to meet the increased demand of plastic, and more plastic waste is being generated. In Douala alone, plastic consumption has increased much more than the other region due to rapid urbanization and economic development. Due to the increase in generation, waste plastics are becoming a major stream in solid waste. After food waste and paper waste, plastic waste is the third major constituent at municipal and industrial waste in the Cameroon. Even the rural communities in Cameroon with low economic growth have started producing more plastic waste due to increased use of plastic packaging, plastic shopping bags, PET bottles and other goods/appliances using plastic as the major component. This increase has turned into a major challenge for The Cameroon Ministry of Environment, and Nature Protection is responsible for solid waste management and sanitation. Due to lack of integrated solid waste management, most of the plastic waste is neither collected properly nor disposed of in appropriate manner to avoid its negative impacts on environment and public health and waste plastics are causing littering and choking of sewerage system. Due to extremely long periods required for natural decomposition, waste plastic is often the most visible component in waste dumps and open landfills in the Cameroon. Hence plastic waste recycling can provide an opportunity to collect and dispose of plastic waste in the most environmental friendly way and it can be converted into a useful energy. In most of the situations, plastic waste recycling could also be economically viable, as it generates resources, which are in high demand. Plastic waste recycling also has a great potential for resource conservation and GHG emissions reduction, such as producing fuel from plastic waste. This resource conservation goal is very important for The Cameroon govern, where rapid industrialization and economic development is putting a lot of pressure on natural resources.

Biography:

Jayesh is research scholar from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India and Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. He is working on bio-electrochemical system viz, power generation from microbial fuel cells, hydrogen generation from waste organic matter. Jayesh has wide research interest. He has filled patent on air conditioning technology and advanced water purification. Recently he has awarded Gandhian Young Technological Innovation award. He is also working for modernization of Indian railway with central railway.

Abstract:

Microbial fuel cells (MFC`s) are promising sustainable technology for electricity production from waste organic matter. The anode employed for this purpose plays a major role in the performance of the MFC system. The coating of graphene on stainless steel has been investigated in this study for improving the performance of an anode in a MFC system. The use of graphene coating on a stainless steel (SS-316) plate produced a maximum power density of 201mWm^-2, while a bare stainless steel plate only gave a maximum power density of 100mWm^-2. The use of graphene coating on copper foil gave even higher maximum power density of 262 mW/m^-2. The maximum open circuit potentials observed were 0.95 V, 1.0 V and 1.12 V for SS anode, SS anode with graphene and copper foil with graphene, respectively. The system internal resistance of pristine stainless steel, grapheme - stainless steel and copper – graphene anodes were 43±4Ω, 42±1Ω and 36±5Ω, respectively.

Biography:

Solomon Ofori is a final year student of the MSc. Air Quality Control, Solid Waste and Wastewater Process Engineering (WASTE) programme of the University of Stuttgart, Germany. His research interest areas include but not limited to landfill gas utilization and management, emission measurement and management from waste treatment facilities, climate change and mitigation, municipal and industrial wastewater treatment and sustainable solid waste management.

Abstract:

Landfilling is a common practice in Ghana. Almost all the existing landfills have no or non-functioning landfill gas collection or flaring systems, resulting in the emission of tonnes of landfill gas (greenhouse gases) into the atmosphere annually. This study uses Ghana as a case study for Africa to determine the viability of landfill gas to energy technology, an approach that holds great promise to reducing methane emissions and ensuring energy recovery from waste. Through reviewing of existing literatures the needed data were obtained and also the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change spreadsheet model was used in the estimation of methane generation from fills. The study showed a continuous increase in methane generation since 1950 with the least being 4Gg and the highest being 55Gg. The lowest amount of methane produced corresponds to 6.1 million m³, having the capacity of producing over 8000MWh electricity annually. Internal combustion engines (IC) are the most suitable landfill gas to energy technology option for Ghana. Their suitability stems from the fact that the cost of price per installed kilowatt is relatively cheaper, have relatively higher efficiency, and lower cost of operation and maintenance. A total of US$ 3.4 million was estimated as the installation cost for a 2MW IC engine with an annual operation and maintenance cost of $360,000 and annual cost recovery of $780,778. The study also revealed that the country is endowed with experts capable of providing the needed technical support in designing, construction and operation of the system but further training may be needed to improve their efficiency.  Considering the methane generation rate, cost of the technology and other parameters, the study concludes that landfill gas to energy generation in Ghana is viable and recommends a pilot project to be set up before a nationwide implementation.

Biography:

Juniours has completed his PhD at the age of 37 years from Rhodes University, South Africa. He is a lecturer in the Economics Department. He has published more than 5 papers in refreed journals and has been serving as a reviewer in a number of journals.

Abstract:

The paper measured and analysed multidimensional water governance poverty in corporate South Africa. It was important to carry out this research because South Africa is experiencing severe physical and economic water scarcity, with water deficits expected to reach three billion m³ by 2030. This would constrain the attainment of development and growth goals. Using the Alkire-Foster adjusted head count ratio (a multidimensional poverty measure), the paper found that corporate South Africa is multidimensionally poor in water governance terms, with lack of water governance institutions and failure to perceive water security issues correctly being the predominant dimensions of the poverty. The overall levels of multidimensional water governance poverty were at least 70% across all sectors – water risk sensitive or not and water intensive or not. The paper recommends effectively enforced mandatory disclosure structures and practices in addition to voluntary disclosure practices.

Biography:

Tadesse Getahun is Assistant prof. of hazardous and solid waste management in the Department of Environmental Health Science and Technology in Jimma University, Ethiopia. He also serves as an adviser for student research projects (MSc and PhD program). He is environmental science professional. He did his PhD study in Catholieke University of Leuven, Belgium, on Sustainable management of solid waste in medium-sized urban centers in east Africa: a case study in Jimma, Ethiopia. He also did his Msc on Land Ecology in International Training Centre, The Netherlands. He conducted several researches on municipal solid waste and published them on internationally recognized journals. He is also winner of the African Interpreunership award 2015 in the category of Environment.

Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of plastics and metallic bottle caps as contaminants on composting and compost quality. 7% waste plastics and 2% bottle caps were deliberately added to sorted compostable waste as contaminants, and the compost quality was compared with the quality of compost derived from non-contaminated organic waste, and from non-sorted municipal waste containing a significant fraction of organic material. It was found that the maturation time of the composting process was longer for contaminated organic waste, but the quality of the compost was sufficient in all cases. In some conditions, positive effects on the compost quality were even observed. The total carbon content was found to be higher in the finished product of composting with 7% plastic contaminants (22.7%) than in any of the other composting conditions, while a higher concentration of total nitrogen was produced in unsorted municipal waste turned twice a month (2.10%), and in organic waste with plastic contaminants (1.22%). This is postulated to be due to a lower loss of nutrients as CO2 and NH3.

 The concentration of heavy metals measured in composting with plastic contaminants was lower than for composting of sorted and unsorted municipal waste, while it was higher in composting with 2% metallic bottle caps than the reference (either sorted or unsorted municipal waste), turned twice a month. Nevertheless, all metal concentrations were within the acceptable range as indicated by the Canadian Standards for Compost Products.

Biography:

Mohammad Ali Takassi has obtained his Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Mississippi, Oxford Mississippi. He worked as post-doctoral research associate for one year at Sothern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas.  He is currently professor of chemistry and chair, the department of science, Petroleum University of Technology, Ahwaz, Iran.

Abstract:

Environment friendly energy and alternative energy are major area of research for sustainable energy development. CO₂ can convert into synthesis gas which it may be used as fuel in power plants. CO₂ reforming of methane and CO₂ hydrogenation reactions are shown in Eqs 1, 2:

CH₄ + CO₂ → 2CO + 2H₂     (1)

CO₂ + H₂ ↔ CO + H₂O     (2)

Most power plants are operated by fossil fuel; they produce millions of tons CO₂ annually. Combustion of fossil fuel is shown in Eq. 3.

Fuel + nO₂ → mCO₂ + pH₂O + energy   (3)

In present study iron-molybdenum/zirconia and cobalt-molybdenum/γ-alumina catalysts were prepared. The activity of Fe-Mo/ZrO₂ nano catalyst was studied for CO₂ reforming of methane in a fixed bed reactor. The effect of reaction temperatures on CH₄ conversion was investigated with CH₄:CO₂ ratio of 1:1 and total feed rate 30000 mL.h^-1(g cat)^-1. The stability experiment for Fe-Mo/ZrO₂ catalyst was conducted at 873^ok for 30 hours. 82% conversion of methane was recorded at 1073^ok. The activity of Co-Mo/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst was studied for hydrogenation of carbon dioxide. Kinetic property of this catalyst was studied in a batch reactor at a temperature of 823^ok and at a pressure of 12 bars, with CO₂: H₂ 1:3 ratio. The stability experiments were carried out in a fixed bed reactor. Using this catalyst, CO₂ was converted into CO (63%) and CH₄ less than 1% in twenty minutes of reaction time. These two reactions of CO₂ could recycle CO₂ as fuel for power plants.

Biography:

Ikhumetse agatha abamhekhelu, is a Masters student in Environmental Microbiology, working under the supervision of Dr. O.P. Abioye, in the Department of Microbiology, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Nigeria. Her research interests include Bioremediation, Public health, Occupational safety and Molecular Biology. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology from the University of Benin, Nigeria. She also currently works for ESMCS-ETISALAT, Nigeria, as a Customer Relation Officer. Her current work focuses on the use of microorganisms in the remediation of polluted water samples.

Abstract:

The study was conducted to examine the metal biosorbing ability of Lead and chromium-resistant bacteria isolated from water samples collected from Shikira Community, Rafi Local Government Area, Niger State, Nigeria. Bacterial isolates were screened for heavy metal tolerance by cultivating on nutrient broth supplemented with 5.50 mg/L lead concentration and 3.0 mg/L chromium concentration. Based on the result of heavy metal screening, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Micrococcus luteus were then selected and inoculated to determine their potential for biosorption of lead and chromium from two different water sources viz. borehole and hand-dug well. Biosorption study was conducted for a period of 28 days, after which the bacterial cells were separated from solutions by centrifugation and the supernatants were analyzed for residual metals in solution using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). The effect of pH on the biosorption potential of the bacterial isolates was also determined. The optimum removal efficiency of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was 99.73 % for lead and 95.84 % for chromium at pH 2.8, while the optimum removal efficiency of Micrococcus luteus was 98.21 % for lead at pH 4.2, and 90.13 % for chromium at pH 4.7. The present study indicates that Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Micrococcus luteus removes lead and chromium efficiently from heavy metal-contaminated water, and therefore can be exploited for further research with reference to treatment of water contaminated with heavy metals.

Biography:

ASHOKE KARMOKAR is currently a Fellow (Manager) in the Innovation Division of Birdestone Corporation. He completed B. Sc. (Tech) graduation degree from Calcutta University in 1985 and M. Text post-graduation degree from Bombay University in 1988. He joined Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi as Research Scholar and spent about 3 years before shifting to Japan for higher studies in 1991. He received Dr. Eng. degree from the Faculty of Technology of Tokyo University of Agriculture & Technology, Japan in 1996 and then served as Assistant Professor in the same University for over 3 years. He joined Technical Center of Bridgestone Corporation, Japan in 1999 for research and development of various environmentally friendly technologies. He promoted to Fellow (Manager) position in 2009 and worked all along in the Central Research Division before moving to Innovation Division in 2015. Among others, he published several technical papers and received environmental award from the academic society.

Abstract:

Scrap tires constitute a large volume of solid waste in many countries. As per the scrap tires management scenario available in many parts of the world, the share of material recycling sector  s very limited though  a high percentage of scrap tires generated is being recycled1. With  the aim of increasing the share of scrap tires in material recycling sector, attempt has been made to explore the use of scrap tire derived materials as geomaterials in civil and/or geotechnical engineering applications2-3. The present paper deals with with the research studies on developing cement treated  clay-rubber  geomaterials,  including    acorresponding field trial undertaken in Japan.

Biography:

A. Ramesh is a chair professor of mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He has over 26 years of teaching, research and industrial experience and has over 130 research publications. His research interests include renewable fuels, gasoline direct injection, homogeneous charge compression ignition, engine management, new and innovative engine designs. He has undertaken several projects for leading automotive industries and government agencies. His development activities have resulted in devices for which patents have been obtained or applied.  J. Narayana Reddy obtained his M.S by research from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He then worked in M/s Mahindra and Mahindra before joining the engine R and D of M/s Ashok Leyland, which is a leading truck manufacturing company in India. He has published research papers in the area of alternate fuels and his interests include alternative fuels, engine emission control and engine design.

Abstract:

Biogas can be produced by anaerobic digestion of a variety of biomass along with simultaneous generation of fertilizer [1]. Thus it is a very viable fuel for rural decentralized power production using internal combustion engines. Biogas is normally used in dual fuel engines wherein a small amount of diesel or biodiesel can used as the ignition source [2-4]. This experimental work demonstrates that straight vegetable oil - biogas dual fuel combination with engine modifications can enable power production using completely renewable fuels that are locally available in rural areas with little or no post processing. Biogas the main fuel was inducted along with air in a diesel while a small amount of Jatropha oil was injected for ignition.

Experiments were conducted under different load conditions while the biogas to Jatropha oil ratio was changed to study its effect. Advancing the injection timing for compensating for the increased ignition delay of jatropha oil along with biogas induction and increasing the injection rate to enhance atomization of the highly viscous vegetable oil resulted in improvements (Fig.1). Thermal efficiency was enhanced; smoke and HC emissions were reduced. The low flame speed of biogas due to the high CO₂ [5] was increased by intensifying the air swirl which elevated the combustion rate and further lowered HC emission (Fig.2 and 3). On the whole the biogas – Jatropha dual fuel mode of operation with simple engine modifications opens a new way to produce decentralized power from available renewable sources for rural areas. Detailed experimental results of performance, emissions like HC, CO, NO, smoke and combustion parameters like heat release rate and rate of pressure rise will be presented and discussed in the paper. Comparisons of the experimental results will be made with the conventional biogas – diesel dual fuel mode.