Biofuels produced from lignocellulosic biomass via the fermentation platform are sustainable energy alternatives to fossil fuels. Process Systems Engineering (PSE) uses computer-based tools and methods to design, simulate and optimize processes. Application of PSE tools to the design of economic biorefinery processes requires the development of simulation approaches that can be integrated with existing, mature PSE tools used to optimize traditional refineries, such as Aspen Plus. Current unit operation models lack the ability to describe unsteady state fermentation processes, link unsteady state fermentation with in situ separations, and optimize these processes for competing factors (e.g., yield and productivity). This work applies a novel architecture of commercial PSE tools, Aspen Plus and MATLAB, to develop techniques to simulate time-dependent fermentation without and with in situ separations for process design, analyses and optimization of the operating conditions. Traditional batch fermentation simulations with in situ separations decouple these interdependent steps in a separate “steady state” reactor followed by an equilibrium separation of the final fermentation broth. A typical mechanistic system of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) describing a batch fermentation does not fit the standard built-in power law reaction kinetics model in Aspen Plus. To circumvent this challenge, a novel platform that links the batch reactor to a FORTRAN user kinetics subroutine (incorporates the ODEs) combined with component substitution (to simulate non-databank components) is utilized to simulate an unsteady state batch and in situ gas stripping process. The resulting model system predicts the product profile to be sensitive to the gas flow rate unlike previous “steady state” simulations. This demonstrates the importance of linking a time-dependent fermentation model to the fermentation environment for the design and analyses of fermentation processes. A novel platform linking the genetic algorithm multi-objective and single-objective optimizations in MATLAB to the unsteady state batch fermentation simulation in Aspen Plus through a component object module communication platform is utilized to optimize the operating conditions of a typical batch fermentation process. Two major contributions are: prior concentration of sugars from a typical lignocellulosic hydrolysate may be needed and with a higher initial sugar concentration, the fermentation process must be integrated with an in situ separation process to optimize the performance of fermentation processes. With this framework, fermentation experimentalists can use the full suite of PSE tools and methods to integrate biorefineries and refineries and as a decision-support tool to guide the design, analyses and optimization of fermentation-based biorefineries.

<p>Photosynthesis captures light from the sun and converts it into carbohydrates, which are utilised by almost all living organisms. The conversion between the different forms of carbohydrates is the basis to form almost all biological molecules.</p><p>The main intention of this thesis has been to study the role of UDP-glucose in carbohydrate synthesis and metabolism, and in particular the genes that encode UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (UGPase) and UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH) in plants and their regulation. UGPase converts glucose-1-phosphate to UDP-glucose, which can be utilised for sucrose synthesis, or cell wall polysaccharides among others. UGDH converts UDP-glucose to UDP-glucuronate, which is a precursor for hemicellulose and pectin. As model species I have been working with both Arabidopsis thaliana and poplar.</p><p>Sequences for two full-length EST clones of Ugp were obtained from both Arabidopsis and poplar, the cDNAs in Arabidopsis correlate with two genes in the Arabidopsis genomic database.</p><p>The derived protein sequences are 90-93% identical within each plants species and 80-83% identical between the two species.</p><p>Studies on Ugp showed that the expression is up-regulated by Pi-deficiency, sucrose-feeding and by light exposure in Arabidopsis. Studies with Arabidopsis plants with mutations in sugar/ starch- and Pi-content suggested that the Ugp expression is modulated by an interaction of signals derived from Pi-deficiency, sugar content and light/ dark conditions, where the signals act independently or inhibiting each other, depending on conditions. Okadaic acid, a known inhibitor of certain classes of protein phosphatases, prevented the up-regulation of Ugp by Pi-deficiency and sucrose-feeding. In poplar, sucrose also up-regulated the expression of Ugp. When poplar and Arabidopsis were exposed to cold, an increase of Ugp transcript content was detected as well as an increase in UGPase protein and activity. In poplar, Ugp was found to be expressed in all tissues that were examined (differentiating xylem, phloem, apical leaves and young and mature leaves).</p><p>By using antisense strategy, Arabidopsis plants that had a decrease in UGPase activity of up to 30% were obtained. In the antisense plants, the soluble carbohydrate content was reduced in the leaves by at least 50%; in addition the starch content decreased. Despite the changes in carbohydrate content, the growth rate of the antisense plants was not changed compared to wild type plants under normal growth conditions. However, in the antisense lines the UGPase activity and protein content in sliliques and roots increased, perhaps reflecting compensatory up-regulation of second Ugp gene. This correlates with a slightly larger molecular mass of UGPase protein in roots and siliques when compared to that in leaves. Maximal photosynthesis rates were similar for both wild type and antisense plants, but the latter had up to 40% lower dark respiration and slightly lower quantum yield than wild type plants.</p><p>Two Ugdh cDNAs from poplar and one from Arabidopsis were sequenced. The highest Ugdh expression was found in xylem and younger leaves. Expression data from sugar and osmoticum feeding experiment in poplar suggested that the Ugdh expression is regulated via an osmoticumdependent pathway.</p>

Photosynthesis captures light from the sun and converts it into carbohydrates, which are utilised by almost all living organisms. The conversion between the different forms of carbohydrates is the basis to form almost all biological molecules. The main intention of this thesis has been to study the role of UDP-glucose in carbohydrate synthesis and metabolism, and in particular the genes that encode UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (UGPase) and UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH) in plants and their regulation. UGPase converts glucose-1-phosphate to UDP-glucose, which can be utilised for sucrose synthesis, or cell wall polysaccharides among others. UGDH converts UDP-glucose to UDP-glucuronate, which is a precursor for hemicellulose and pectin. As model species I have been working with both Arabidopsis thaliana and poplar. Sequences for two full-length EST clones of Ugp were obtained from both Arabidopsis and poplar, the cDNAs in Arabidopsis correlate with two genes in the Arabidopsis genomic database. The derived protein sequences are 90-93% identical within each plants species and 80-83% identical between the two species. Studies on Ugp showed that the expression is up-regulated by Pi-deficiency, sucrose-feeding and by light exposure in Arabidopsis. Studies with Arabidopsis plants with mutations in sugar/ starch- and Pi-content suggested that the Ugp expression is modulated by an interaction of signals derived from Pi-deficiency, sugar content and light/ dark conditions, where the signals act independently or inhibiting each other, depending on conditions. Okadaic acid, a known inhibitor of certain classes of protein phosphatases, prevented the up-regulation of Ugp by Pi-deficiency and sucrose-feeding. In poplar, sucrose also up-regulated the expression of Ugp. When poplar and Arabidopsis were exposed to cold, an increase of Ugp transcript content was detected as well as an increase in UGPase protein and activity. In poplar, Ugp was found to be expressed in all tissues that were examined (differentiating xylem, phloem, apical leaves and young and mature leaves). By using antisense strategy, Arabidopsis plants that had a decrease in UGPase activity of up to 30% were obtained. In the antisense plants, the soluble carbohydrate content was reduced in the leaves by at least 50%; in addition the starch content decreased. Despite the changes in carbohydrate content, the growth rate of the antisense plants was not changed compared to wild type plants under normal growth conditions. However, in the antisense lines the UGPase activity and protein content in sliliques and roots increased, perhaps reflecting compensatory up-regulation of second Ugp gene. This correlates with a slightly larger molecular mass of UGPase protein in roots and siliques when compared to that in leaves. Maximal photosynthesis rates were similar for both wild type and antisense plants, but the latter had up to 40% lower dark respiration and slightly lower quantum yield than wild type plants. Two Ugdh cDNAs from poplar and one from Arabidopsis were sequenced. The highest Ugdh expression was found in xylem and younger leaves. Expression data from sugar and osmoticum feeding experiment in poplar suggested that the Ugdh expression is regulated via an osmoticumdependent pathway.

Wood is a complex material and the mechanical properties are influencedby a number of structural parameters. The objective of this study has been toinvestigate the relationship between the structure and the mechanical propertiesof hardwood. Two levels were of special interest, viz. the cellular structureand morphology of the wood, and the ultra-structure of the cell wall. In thenext step, it was of interest to examine how the mechanical properties ofhardwood change with spontaneous/induced changes in morphology and/orchemical composition beyond the natural variation found in nature. Together, this constituted the framework and basis for two larger projects,one on European aspen (Populus tremula) and hybrid aspen (Populus tremulax Populus tremuloides), and one on European oak (Quercus robur). Amethodology was developed where the concept of relative density and compositemechanics rules served as two useful tools to assess the properties ofthe cell wall. Tensile testing in the longitudinal direction was combined withchemical examination of the material. This approach made it possible to revealthe mechanical role of the lignin in the cell wall of transgenic aspen trees,and investigate the consequences of holocellulose degradation in archaeologicaloak from the Vasa ship. The study on transgenic aspen showed that a major reduction in lignin inPopulus leads to a small but significant reduction in the longitudinal stiffness.The longitudinal tensile strength was not reduced. The results are explainableby the fact that the load-bearing cellulose in the transgenic aspen retained itscrystallinity, aggregate size, microfibril angle, and absolute content per unitvolume. The results can contribute to the ongoing task of investigating andpinpointing the precise function of lignin in the cell wall of trees. The mechanical property study on Vasa oak showed that the longitudinaltensile strength is severely reduced in several regions of the ship, andthat the reduction correlates with reduced average molecular weight of theholocellulose. This could not have been foreseen without a thorough mechanicaland chemical investigation, since the Vasa wood (with exception fromthe bacterially degraded surface regions) is morphologically intact and witha micro-structure comparable to that of recent oak. The results can be usedin the ongoing task of mapping the condition of the Vasa wood. / QC 20110420

Accurate and reliable predictions of site index (height of dominant trees at a reference age, usually 50 years at breast-height) for timber crop species is essential for silvicultural site-specific decision making. Site index can be predicted from site quality once the relationship between site index and site quality has been quantified. Site quality is defined as the sum of all environmental factors affecting the biotic community, such as the factors directly influencing the growth of vascular plants (light, heat, soil moisture, soil nutrients, and soil aeration). Since these factors vary greatly in time, indirect estimates of site quality have widely been used as predictors for site index in various multiple regression models. Trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) is the most widely distributed broadleaf species in British Columbia, especially in the Boreal White and Black Spruce (BWBS) biogeoclimatic zone. Growing this species for sustainable timber production requires a good understanding of its productivity attributes and accurate predictions of its growth. This extension note presents (1) relationships between trembling aspen site index and some indirect measures of site quality, and (2) site index prediction models using the indirect measures of site quality as predictors.

The boreal forest is confined to the Northern Hemisphere and is the most continuous and extensive forest in the world. In North America boreal forest extends from the Pacific to Atlantic coast spanning over 10° latitude. White spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), black spruce (P. mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) are among the dominant tree species. Black spruce and trembling aspen may form pure stands and occupy similar sites as their edaphic amplitudes overlap; however, spruce is rare on water-deficient sites and aspen does not tolerate excess water. Despite many studies conducted in the North American boreal forest, little is known about relationships between the boreal understory vegetation and softwood or hardwood canopy species in different climate regions. Furthermore, the variation in species diversity and succession between the stands dominated by coniferous trees and those dominated by broadleaved trees within the same region is unknown. The objectives of this study are to determine (1) the difference in the species diversity and floristic composition of understory vegetation between black spruce and trembling aspen stands within the same climatic region, and (2) how the species diversity and floristic composition of understory vegetation in each stand type vary with climate, and soil moisture and soil nutrient conditions.

No description available.

No description available.

Submitted by Jesiel Ferreira Gomes (jesielgomes@ufcg.edu.br) on 2018-04-20T20:53:07Z No. of bitstreams: 1 SHIRLENE KELLY SANTOS CARMO – TESE (PPGEQ) 2015.pdf: 3441674 bytes, checksum: 2a66c0c04d01e56f10189d8b206ebc1c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-20T20:53:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SHIRLENE KELLY SANTOS CARMO – TESE (PPGEQ) 2015.pdf: 3441674 bytes, checksum: 2a66c0c04d01e56f10189d8b206ebc1c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-06 / Capes / Grande parte das indústrias apresenta complexidade no que diz respeito ao seu modo de operação. A fim de reduzir os problemas relacionados ao forte acoplamento existente nesses processos, a busca pela incorporação de dispositivos de inteligência artificial vem apresentando uma tendência crescente nos últimos anos. Devido à complexidade de operação e controle em processos multivariáveis, o diagnóstico e monitoramento de falhas nos processos tornaram-se cada vez mais difícil, com isso a aplicação destes dispositivos tem alcançado resultados satisfatórios em relação aos procedimentos executados com operadores humanos. A análise de componentes independentes (ICA) é uma técnica de separação de sinais que se baseia no uso de estatísticas de ordem superior para estimar cada uma das fontes desconhecidas por meio da observação de diversas misturas geradas a partir destas fontes. Embora sejam encontrados trabalhos recentes sobre a utilização do ICA em processos industriais, apenas dois trabalhos até o presente momento, foram aplicados em processos envolvendo colunas de destilação. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo propor uma estratégia de controle a uma coluna de destilação de alta pureza. A estratégia é baseada na técnica de separação de sinais ICA, tornando as malhas de controle desacopladas e facilitando assim o desempenho do controle. O desempenho do sistema de controle utilizando a técnica apresentou excelentes resultados em relação a uma estrutura convencional sem desacoplamento. As estruturas de controle foram implementadas em ambiente Aspen Plus DynamicsTM e Simulink/ Matlab®. O processo foi estruturado em ambiente Aspen Plus Dynamics™ e os controladores foram implementados no Simulink. / Much of the industry presents complexity with regard to its mode of operation. In order to reduce the problems related to existing strong engagement in these processes, the search for the incorporation of artificial intelligence devices has shown an increasing trend in recent years. Due to the complexity of operation and control in multivariate processes, the diagnosis and fault monitoring in the processes have become increasingly difficult, thus the application of these devices has achieved satisfactory results in relation to procedures performed with human operators. The independent component analysis (ICA) is a signal separation technique that is based on the use of higher order statistics to estimate each of the unknown source by observing various mixtures generated from these sources. Although found recent work on the use of the ICA in industrial processes, only two studies to date, have been applied in cases involving distillation columns. This paper aims to propose a control strategy to a high purity distillation column. The strategy is based on the ICA signal separation technique, making decoupled control loops, thus facilitating control performance. The performance of the control system using the technique showed excellent results compared to a conventional structure without decoupling. The control structures have been implemented in Aspen Plus Dynamics™ and Simulink / Matlab® environment. The process was structured environment Aspen Plus Dynamics™ and the controls were implemented in Simulink.

Submitted by Automa??o e Estat?stica (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2016-03-02T22:55:04Z No. of bitstreams: 1 HerbertSenzanoLopes_DISSERT.pdf: 1964831 bytes, checksum: a1f3b710808bf3ed42490612f2700bca (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-03-04T00:31:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 HerbertSenzanoLopes_DISSERT.pdf: 1964831 bytes, checksum: a1f3b710808bf3ed42490612f2700bca (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-04T00:31:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 HerbertSenzanoLopes_DISSERT.pdf: 1964831 bytes, checksum: a1f3b710808bf3ed42490612f2700bca (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-12-23 / A parte pesada do petr?leo pode ser utilizada para in?meras finalidades, uma delas ? a obten??o de ?leos lubrificantes. Com base nesse contexto, muitos pesquisadores v?m estudando alternativas de separa??o desses constituintes de petr?leo bruto, entre elas pode ser citada a destila??o molecular, uma t?cnica de evapora??o for?ada diferente dos outros processos convencionais presentes na literatura. Este processo pode ser classificado como um caso especial de destila??o a alto v?cuo com press?es que chegam a atingir faixas extremamente baixas da ordem de 0,1 Pascal. As superf?cies de evapora??o e de condensa??o devem apresentar uma dist?ncia entre si da ordem de grandeza do percurso livre m?dio das mol?culas evaporadas, isto ?, as mol?culas evaporadas facilmente atingir?o o condensador, pois as mesmas encontrar?o um percurso sem obst?culos, o que ? desej?vel. Logo, a principal contribui??o deste trabalho consiste na simula??o do processo de destila??o molecular de filme descendente do petr?leo. O petr?leo bruto foi caracterizado utilizando o UniSim? Design R430 e o Aspen HYSYS? V8.5. Com os resultados desta caracteriza??o foram efetuados, em planilhas de c?lculo no Microsoft? Excel?, os c?lculos das propriedades f?sico-qu?micas dos res?duos de uma amostra de petr?leo, i.e., termodin?micas e de transporte. De posse dessas propriedades estimadas e das condi??es de contorno sugeridas pela literatura, foram resolvidas as equa??es dos perfis de temperatura e concentra??o atrav?s do m?todo de diferen?as finitas impl?cito utilizando a linguagem de programa??o Visual Basic? (VBA) for Excel?. O resultado do perfil de temperatura apresentou-se coerente com os reproduzidos pela literatura, havendo em seus valores iniciais uma leve distor??o em consequ?ncia da natureza do ?leo estudado ser mais leve que o da literatura. Os resultados dos perfis de concentra??o mostraram-se eficientes permitindo perceber que as concentra??es dos mais vol?teis diminuem e as dos menos vol?teis aumentam em fun??o do comprimento do evaporador. De acordo com os fen?menos de transporte presentes no processo, o perfil de velocidade tende a aumentar at? um ponto m?ximo e em seguida diminui e a espessura do filme diminui, ambos em fun??o do comprimento do evaporador. Conclui-se que o c?digo de simula??o em linguagem Visual Basic? (VBA) ? um produto final do trabalho que permite aplica??o para a destila??o molecular do petr?leo e de outras misturas similares. / The heavy part of the oil can be used for numerous purposes, e.g. to obtain lubricating oils. In this context, many researchers have been studying alternatives such separation of crude oil components, among which may be mentioned molecular distillation. Molecular distillation is a forced evaporation technique different from other conventional processes in the literature. This process can be classified as a special distillation case under high vacuum with pressures that reach extremely low ranges of the order of 0.1 Pascal. The evaporation and condensation surfaces must have a distance from each other of the magnitude order of mean free path of the evaporated molecules, that is, molecules evaporated easily reach the condenser, because they find a route without obstacles, what is desirable. Thus, the main contribution of this work is the simulation of the falling-film molecular distillation for crude oil mixtures. The crude oil was characterized using UniSim? Design and R430 Aspen HYSYS? V8.5. The results of this characterization were performed in spreadsheets of Microsoft? Excel?, calculations of the physicochemical properties of the waste of an oil sample, i.e., thermodynamic and transport. Based on this estimated properties and boundary conditions suggested by the literature, equations of temperature and concentration profiles were resolved through the implicit finite difference method using the programming language Visual Basic? (VBA) for Excel?. The result of the temperature profile showed consistent with the reproduced by literature, having in their initial values a slight distortion as a result of the nature of the studied oil is lighter than the literature, since the results of the concentration profiles were effective allowing realize that the concentration of the more volatile decreases and of the less volatile increases due to the length of the evaporator. According to the transport phenomena present in the process, the velocity profile tends to increase to a peak and then decreases, and the film thickness decreases, both as a function of the evaporator length. It is concluded that the simulation code in Visual Basic? language (VBA) is a final product of the work that allows application to molecular distillation of petroleum and other similar mixtures.