Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a novel bio-electrochemical system that can use various organic substances as energy source. Computational models of MFC are needed for prediction and optimization of the MFC performance. A comprehensive computational modeling of a membraneless single-chamber MFC, in which bacteria consumed molasses as a substrate, is reported here. The simulated...
Abstract Instantaneous solar irradiance profiles or solar irradiation data collected with small time intervals (e.g., minutes) are usually required for the energy simulation of photovoltaic systems, especially as concerns the estimation of the cell temperature. However, meteorological stations and technical standards often provide just monthly average values of the horizontal...
Optimal reconfiguration and capacitor placement are used to reduce power losses and keep the voltage within its allowable interval in power distribution systems considering voltage, current, and radial condition constraints. It is needed to solve two nonlinear discrete optimization problems simultaneously, so an intelligent algorithm is used to reach an optimum solution for...
In this paper, the solar radiation on diversely oriented surfaces and optimum tilts for solar absorbers were assessed. The KT solar radiation model was coded in the MATLAB-based environment to compute the monthly solar radiation values. Seven years data of monthly average daily solar radiation on a horizontal surface in Bangi, Malaysia (latitude = 3° N) was adopted as input in...
Abstract In the last years, the thermoacoustic phenomena had intensified the scientific community’s interest due to its implications in thermodynamics, heat transfer, and acoustic matters that make possible the conversion between sound and heat. This work is aimed at exploring the Russell-Weibull refrigerator, analyzing the behavior of the different parts in order to achieve a...
Biohydrogen production could be generated from organic wastes - food and beverage processing wastewater, restaurant food waste, and raw starch waste. Fermentative hydrogen production from food and beverage processing wastewater by sewage microflora was optimized in terms of pH (4.5 to 7.0), mesophilic condition (35°C ±2°C), and thermophilic condition (50°C ±2°C). Low initial pH...
As the use of photovoltaics expands, with more and more commercial and residential users investing on solar energy systems around the globe, there is substantial demand for relatively simple, easy-to-use software packages for the planning and performance estimation of photovoltaic installations by installers and architects. In this paper, the calculative accuracy of TRNSYS...
The study investigated the economic value of biodiversity attributes that could provide policy makers reliable information to estimate welfare losses due to biodiversity reductions and analyze the trade-off between biodiversity and economics. To obtain the non-market benefits of biodiversity conservation, an indirect utility function and willingness to pay for biodiversity...
Instantaneous solar irradiance profiles or solar irradiation data collected with small time intervals (e.g., minutes) are usually required for the energy simulation of photovoltaic systems, especially as concerns the estimation of the cell temperature. However, meteorological stations and technical standards often provide just monthly average values of the horizontal daily solar...
In the last years, the thermoacoustic phenomena had risen the scientific community interest due to its implications in thermodynamics, heat transfer and acoustic matters, that make possible the conversion between sound and heat. This work aimed at exploring the Russell–Weibull refrigerator, analyzing the behavior of the different parts to achieve a good level of thermal...
Biohydrogen production could be generated from organic wastes: food and beverage processing wastewater, restaurant food waste and raw starch waste. Fermentative hydrogen production from food and beverage processing wastewater by sewage microflora was optimized in terms of pH (4.5–7.0), mesophilic condition (35 ± 2 °C) and thermophilic condition (50 ± 2 °C). Low initial pH (6.5...
As the use of photovoltaics expands, with more and more commercial and residential users investing on solar energy systems around the globe, there is substantial demand for relatively simple, easy-to-use software packages, for the planning and performance estimation of photovoltaic installations by installers and architects. In this paper, the calculative accuracy of TRNSYS...
In this paper, a functional remote experimentation system tested for long-term use stability and under real weather conditions is presented. The proposed system offers the ability to students and anyone interested to remotely conduct experiments with a real PV module from anywhere on the planet, as long as an Internet connection is available. This innovative system is based on a...
The use of phase change materials (PCMs) for the building sector is increasingly attracting attention from researchers and practitioners. Several research studies forwarded the possibility of incorporating microencapsulated PCM in plastering mortars for building façades, in pursuit of increased energy efficiency associated with the heat storage capacity of PCM. However, most of...
The residual forest biomass (RFB) sector has been experiencing strong development at European level and particularly in Portugal mainly due to the increase of energy production from renewable sources. The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of eucalyptus RFB chips production chain in Portugal. The environmental and economic impact comparison of the processes...
Optimal reconfiguration and capacitor placement are used to reduce power losses and keep the voltage within its allowable interval in power distribution systems considering voltage, current, and radial condition constraints. It is needed to solve two nonlinear discrete optimization problems simultaneously, so an intelligent algorithm is used to reach an optimum solution for...
In this paper, the solar radiation on diversely oriented surfaces and optimum tilts for solar absorbers were assessed. The KT solar radiation model was coded in the MATLAB-based environment to compute the monthly solar radiation values. Seven-year data of monthly average daily solar radiation on a horizontal surface in Bangi, Malaysia (latitude = 3°N) were adopted as input in the...
Cooling buildings in summer is one of the main environmental problems for architects and occupants in many hot dry countries. The summer temperature during these countries reaches peaks of more than 40°C in some. Mechanical air conditioners can solve the problem, but they put a heavy strain on the electricity consumption. Egypt in general has rich sunny and clear skies. Therefore...
Pen surface amendments for mitigating emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), such as nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), and carbon dioxide (CO2), from beef cattle feedlots, were evaluated under controlled laboratory conditions. Amendments were organic residues (i.e., sorghum straw, prairie grass, woodchip), biochar from those organic residues and from beef cattle manure, and...
This article studies the use of animal by-products and derived products not intended for humans as possible fuels in residential oil burning facilities. We first offer a chemical and physical description of the various types of animal by-products and derived products not intended for humans with a view to their possible use as fuels. Animal by-products and derived products not...
Densification of biomass waste materials has provided a great boost to the utilization of wood and agricultural waste for domestic and industrial fuel. However, the processes involved in the production of this fuel make it more expensive than fossil fuel. This is because densification of wood waste into fuel briquettes is not simple. This paper reports the results of research...
Wind turbines operate mostly in yaw conditions that give rise to cyclic variations in aerodynamic forces applied on the blade. This induced load fluctuation is closely related to the upstream velocity field of the rotor and can be a significant source of fatigue and vibration. An accurate prediction of blade loading is considered the key in designing reliable and efficient wind...
Nowadays, different sectors of the economy are being significantly affected by the weather vagaries. Electricity market is one of the most sensitive sectors, due to the fact that electricity demand is connected to the numerous climatic variables, especially the atmospheric temperature. In this paper we have deduced the link between electricity consumption and mean monthly maximum...
This paper reports the findings of densifying ground maize cobs and Ceibapentandra sawdust at room temperature using low compacting pressurewithout a binder. The maize cobs were crushed using a hammer mill. Particlesizes of maize cobs and C. pentandra used for the study were≤1 mm. The two materials were combined at mixing percentages of90:10, 70:30 and 50:50 (C. pentandra/maize...
Among renewable energy sources, the electrical generation from micro-wind turbines has not yet disclosed its huge potential especially in urban settings. Increasing the spread of micro-wind turbines not only promotes the decentralized generation of energy, but also helps tackle fuel poverty and to achieve reductions in the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). This work proposes...