Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-57). Also available on the World Wide Web.

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No. of bitstreams: 1 CHOGI_Marianne_2016.pdf: 34489841 bytes, checksum: 761e8dfc342c5d6b967c9d2597dd8ae1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-07-15 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Biofuels are produced from clean alternative energy sources and one example is biobutanol, a fuel that can be produced by fermentation of different raw materials. The production of butanol is carried out by fermentative metabolism of solvent-producing microorganisms, with acetone and ethanol as major byproducts (ABE fermentation). This work aims to produce biobutanol using strains Clostridium beijerinckii (ATCC 10132) and Clostridium acetobulylicum (ATCC 824) and four different inoculum: ES - swine effluent digester located in the Água Branca Farm in the municipality of Itu; LR - UASB sludge of sewage treatment plant from the city of Porto Feliz; ES - cattle manure; SL - Soil from sugarcane cultivation in Sorocaba region. Glucose and cassava wastewater were used as substrate. The biobutanol production efficiency was evaluated for each strain and inoculum in fermentation batch reactors in which the sole substrate was glucose or cassava wastewater. Both strains produced biofuel, and C. beijerinckii (ATCC 10132) was more efficient yielding 0.33±0.08 g L -1 butanol and 1.65±0.23 g L -1 of ethanol from 30 g L -1 of glucose. When cassava wastewater was used as substrate (10 g L -1 of reducing sugar), the production of butanol was 0.64±0.1 g L -1 and ethanol was 2.47±0.07 g L-1 in comparison to 0.27±0.13 g L -1 butanol and 1.72±0.18 g L -1 of ethanol produced when C. beijerinckii were fed with glucose 10 g L -1 as control. Fermentation inocula produced only butyric acid with concentrations of 0.31±0.04 g L -1 for cattle manure and 0.12±0.013 g L -1 for swine effluent. As the cattle manure showed higher production of butyric acid, this culture was chosen for fermentation with cassava wastewater at COD 5 g L-1 . First of all the inoculum´s DNA was amplified with the pair of primers Sj-F and Sj-R specific for the genus Clostridium. With the confirmation of the clostridia presence, the fermentation with cassava wastewater at 5 g L -1 of COD was performed. This fermentation was compared with the strain C.beijerinckii growing in medium without enrichment and cattle manure with and without medium enrichment. C. beijerinckii biofuel production was 0.02 g L -1 of butanol and 0.69 g L-1 of ethanol after 12 h of fermentation, while cattle manure fermentation yielded 0.168 g L -1 of ethanol after 106 h in enriched medium and 0.026 g L-1 of ethanol in medium without enrichment after 12 h. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using cassava as a substrate for the production of biobutanol, ethanol and the possibility of producing biobutanol by cattle manure and swine effluent since butyric acid is an intermediary product of the pathway leading to butanol synthesis. / O presente trabalho teve por objetivo a produção de biocombustíveis a partir de manipueira (efluente oriundo do processamento da mandioca) na presença de duas cepas Clostridium beijerinckii (ATCC 10132) e Clostridium acetobulylicum (ATCC 824), e quatro diferentes inóculos pré-tratados termicamente, sendo estes: ES - efluente de biodigestor de suinocultura situado na Granja Água Branca no município de Itu; LR – lodo anaeróbio de estação de tratamento de esgoto sanitário do município de Porto Feliz; EB - esterco bovino; SL - solo de cultivo de cana-de-açúcar da região de Sorocaba. Foram utilizados como substratos a manipueira e glicose separadamente. Ambas as cepas produziram biocombustíveis, no entanto a mais eficiente foi Clostridium beijerinckii (ATCC 10132) que produziu 0,33±0,08 g L -1 de butanol e 1,65±0,23 g L -1 de etanol a partir de 30 g L -1 de glicose. A partir desses resultados a produção de biocombustíveis foi avaliada nos dois diferentes substratos: manipueira e glicose, com a manipueira (10 g L -1 de açúcar redutor) obteve-se produção de butanol de 0,64±0,1 g L -1 e etanol de 2,47±0,070 g L -1 , enquanto nos ensaios com glicose a 10 g L -1 a produção de butanol foi de 0,27±0,13 g L-1 e etanol foi de 1,72±0,18 g L-1 . Os inóculos pré-tratados não produziram biocombustíveis com ambos os substratos, porém observou-se produção de ácido butírico de 0,31±0,04 g L -1 para o EB (esterco bovino) e 0,12±0,013 g L -1 para o ES (efluente de suinocultura). Como o inóculo EB apresentou uma maior produção de ácido butírico essa cultura foi escolhida para a fermentação com manipueira com demanda química de oxigênio (DQO) de 5 g L -1 (correspondendo a 2 g L -1 de açúcar redutor). Análises de biologia molecular foram realizadas para confirmar a presença do gênero Clostridium no inóculo EB, utilizando os primers Sj-F e Sj-R específico para o gênero Clostridium. Com a confirmação da presença desse, um novo ensaio com manipueira com DQO de 5 g L -1 foi realizado com a C. beijerinckii e com o inóculo EB visando definir a necessidade de adição de nutrientes à manipueira para obtenção de biocombustíveis. A fermentação da manipueira foi realizada com a cepa C. beijerinckii (CB) sem enriquecimento do meio e com inóculo esterco bovino com enriquecimento (EBE) e sem enriquecimento (EBS). Com a cepa padrão a produção de bicombustíveis foi de 0,02 g L-1 de butanol e 0,69 g L-1 de etanol em 12 h de fermentação. Para o EBE após 106 h de fermentação ocorreu a produção de etanol igual a 0,168 g L-1 e para o EBS após 12 h a produção para o mesmo álcool foi de 0,026 g L-1 . Esses resultados demonstraram a viabilidade da utilização da manipueira como substrato para a produção de butanol e etanol com cepas de Clostridium e a possibilidade de produção de butanol pelos inóculos, pois o ácido butírico é um produto intermediário da via que leva à síntese de butanol.

Orientador: Márcia Justino Rossini Mutton / Banca: José Paulo Stupiello / Banca: Raúl Andres Martinez Uribe / Banca: João Martins Pizauro / Banca: Leonardo Lucas Madaleno / Resumo: A cultura de sorgo sacarino apresenta características agroindustriais que torna a matéria-prima economicamente promissora para a produção de bioetanol. Destaca-se por ciclo produtivo curto, baixo custo de implantação, propagação por sementes, processo totalmente mecanizado, além de apresentar elevada eficiência energética. Esta pesquisa objetivou avaliar as características do caldo de três genótipos de sorgo sacarino, colhidos em duas épocas, com a sem panículas e a influencia da aplicação de enzimas amilolíticas sobre a produção de etanol. O experimento foi realizado na safra 2013/2014, localizada a 21°14'05'S e 48°17'09'W.O delineamento experimental foi o inteiramente casualizado, com parcelas sub-subdividas e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos primários foram os genótipos de sorgo sacarino (CV147, CV198 e BRS508), os secundários, o tipo de colheita (colmos integrais e colmos com remoção de folhas/panículas); os terciários as duas épocas de amostragem (102 e 116 dias após a semeadura- d.a.s.). Para a etapa de clarificação e preparo do mosto utilizou-se também o tratamento quartenário (com e sem aplicação de enzimas). O caldo de sorgo sacarino foi submetido a tratamento químico por calagem simples e posterior tratamento com enzimas amilolíticas alfa-amilase e amiloglucosidase, resultando no mosto. A seguir inoculou-se levedura PE-2 iniciando-se o processo fermentativo. Ao final o vinho foi recuperado e caracterizado sendo calculadas a eficiência fermentativa e produtividade de etanol (L.Mg-1). O processamento de colmos integrais reduziu a produção de etanol, as épocas de colheita afetam a qualidade tecnológica do caldo aumentando os teores de fenol, refletindo sobre o processo fermentativo. A utilização de enzimas amilolíticas possibilitou a obtenção de vinhos com menores teores de ARRT e Brix, sem afetar a eficiência fermentativa. O genótipo BRS508 foi o que apresentou... / Abstract: The cultivation of sweet sorghum has agroindustrial features that makes it an economically promising raw material for the production of bioethanol. It stands out for short production cycle, low implementation cost, seed propagation, fully mechanized process, besides present a high energetic efficiency. This research aimed evaluate three sugar sorghum genotypes juice characteristics, harvested in two different seasons with and without the panicles and also evaluate the application of amylolytic enzymes under the ethanol production. The experiment was carried out through on 2013/2014 season, at 21° 14' 05" S and 48° 17' 09' W. The experimental design was completely randomized with split-split plots and four replications. The primary treatments were the sweet sorghum genotypes (CV147, CV198, and BRS508), the secondary treatments were the, the type of harvest (whole and stalks); the tertiary treatments were two sampling epochs (102 and 116 days after sowing - d.a.s.). To the clarification and must preparation steps we also used the quaternary treatment (with and without the application of enzymes). The sweet sorghum juice was subjected to the lime clarification and then treated with alpha-amylase and amyloglucosidase amylolytic enzymes, resulting in the must. Maser the yeast PE-2 was inoculated to initialize the fermentation process. He wine was recovered and characterized, calculating the fermentation efficiency and amount of ethanol (liters) per ton of sorghum. The processing of whole stalks reduced the ethanol production. The harvest seasons affect the technological quality of the juice, reflecting on the fermentation process. The use of amylolytic enzymes allowed us to obtain wines with lower levels of TRS and Brix, without affect the fermentative efficiency. The BRS508 genotype showed the highest production of ethanol (L/t) compared to CV147 and CV198 / Doutor

Orientador: Jackson Antonio Marcondes Souza / Banca: Manoel Victor Franco Lemos / Banca: Maria de lourdes Teixeira de Moraes Polizeli / Banca: María Eugenia Guazzaroni / Banca: Alessandro de Mello Varani / Resumo: A comunidade mundial busca pela obtenção de biocombustível celulósico, embora ainda seja um grande desafio a desconstrução do arranjo lignocelulósico para obtenção de açúcares livres de forma eficiente e economicamente viável. A fim de superar tais desafios, avanços conquistados pela metagenômica ressaltam sua aplicação como alternativa para compreender e desvendar o grande potencial metabólico presente nos ambientes, buscando encontrar em tais ambientes novas enzimas que atuem de forma eficiente na desconstrução do material lignocelulósico. Neste trabalho utilizou-se, a abordagem metagenômica para caracterização de genes com potencial para degradar biomassa vegetal e também para avaliação da diversidade taxonômica do ambiente ruminal bovino (Cow_1), bem como comparar os dados coletados com outros metagenomas disponíveis. Amostras de conteúdo ruminal de três bovinos machos da raça Nelore foram coletadas para a obtenção da amostra de DNA metagenômico, que posteriormente foi sequenciada pelo sequenciador HiScan SQ (Illumina). Foram obtidas aproximadamente 63 milhões de sequências (Cow _1), 2 x 100 pb. Dentre os 26 filos encontrados o filo Bacteroidetes foi o mais abundante, seguido de Firmicutes e Proteobacteria. Para a anotação gênica foi utilizado os bancos de dados Pfam, GO, KEGG e CAZy. Foram associadas ORFs relacionadas a 86 famílias de Glycoside Hydrolases (GHs), 52 famílias de Carbohydrate-Binding Modules (CBMs), 4 famílias de Auxiliary Activities (AAs), 16 famílias de C... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The world community search to obtain cellulosic biofuel; however the deconstruction of the lignocellulosic arrangement to obtain free sugars in an efficient and economically viable way is still a great challenge. Advances achieved through the metagenomic emphasize its application as an alternative to unfold the great metabolic potential present in the environments in order to overcome such challenges. Thus, a metagenomic approach was used to characterize genes with potential to degrade plant biomass and to evaluate the taxonomic diversity of the Nelore bovine ruminal environment. Samples were collected from three bovine males to obtain the DNA sample, which were sequentially sequenced by the HiScan SQ (Illumina) sequencer. About 63 million sequences, 2 x 100 bp, were obtained. Among the 26 phyla found, Bacteroidetes was the most abundant, followed by Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. For gene annotation was used the Pfam, GO, KEGG and CAZy databases. A total of 86 families of Glycoside Hydrolases (GHs), 52 families of Carbohydrate Binding Modules (CBMs), 4 families of Auxiliary Activities (AAs), 16 Esterase Carbohydrate (CEs), 55 GlycosylTransferases (GTs) Polysaccharide Lyases (PLs), 1 S-homology homology (SLH) domain and 1 family of cohesin and dockerine was associated. these genes are related to the formation of the enzymatic complex for deconstruction of plant biomass (cellulosome). The cow_1 metagenome presented a greater number of genes related to deconstruction of plant b... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering: Chemical Engineering, Durban University, Durban, South Africa, 2018. / Thermochemical catalytic conversion of ethanol-waste cooking oil (eth-WCO) mixtures was studied over synthesised aluminosilicate catalysts HZSM-5, FeHZSM-5 and NiHZSM-5. The thermochemical reactions were carried out at temperatures of 400° and 450°C at a fixed weight hourly space velocity of 2.5 h-1 in a fixed bed reactor system. Successful conversion of the eth-WCO mixtures was carried out over the synthesised catalyst systems and in order to fully understand the influence of the catalysts, several techniques were used to characterise the synthesised materials which include XRD, SEM, EDS, BET techniques. Results of the catalyst characterisation showed that highly crystalline solid material had been formed as evidenced by the high relative crystallinity in comparison with the commercial HZSM-5 catalyst at 2θ peak values of 7°- 9° and 23°- 24°. The introduction of metals decreased the intensity of the peaks leading to lower values of relative crystallinity of 88% and 90% for FeHZSM-5 and NiHZSM-5, respectively. However this was even slightly higher than the commercial sample which had a value of 86% with respect to HZSM-5 synthesised catalyst taken as reference material. There was no significant change in XRD patterns due to the introduction of metal. Elemental analysis done with energy dispersive spectroscopy showed the presence of the metal promoters (Fe, Ni) and the Si/Al ratio obtained from this technique was 38 compared to the target ratio of 50 set out initially in the synthesis. From the SEM micrographs the morphology of the crystals could be described as regular agglomerated sheet like material. Surface area analysis showed that highly microporous crystals had been synthesised with lower external surface area values ranging from 57.23 m2/g - 100.82 m2/g compared to the microporous surface area values ranging from 195.96 m2/g to 212.51 m2/g. For all catalyst employed in this study high conversions were observed with values of over 93 %, almost total conversion was achieved for some samples with values as high as 99.6 % with FeHZSM-5 catalysts. Despite the high level of conversion the extent of deoxygenation varied with lower values recorded for FeHZSM-5 (25%WCO) at 400°C and NiHZSM-5 (75%WCO) at 450°C with oxygenated hydrocarbons of 19.5% and 19.33% respectively. The organic liquid product yield comprised mostly of aromatic hydrocarbon (toluene, p-xylene and naphthalene) decreased with the introduction of metal promoters with NiHZSM-5 producing higher yields than FeHZSM-5. For the pure waste cooking oil (WCO) feedstock the parent catalyst HZSM-5 had a liquid yield of 50% followed by NiHZSM-5 with 44% and lastly FeHZSM-5 had 40% at 400°C which may be seen to follow the pattern of loss of relative crystallinity. An increase in operating temperature to 450°C lowered the quantity of organic liquid product obtained in the same manner with the HZSM-5 parent catalyst still having the highest yield of 38% followed by Ni-HZSM-5 with 36% and Fe-HZSM-5 having a value of 30% for pure waste cooking oil feedstock which may be attributed to thermally induced secondary cracking reactions. For all catalyst systems with an increase in the content of waste cooking oil from 25% to 100% in the feed mixture there was a linearly increasing trend of the liquid product yield. HZSM-5 catalyst increased from 14% to 50% while FeHZSM-5 increased from 16% to 40% and NiHZSM-5 increased from 12% to 44% at a temperature setting of 400°C with lower values observed at 450°C.Results obtained in this study show the potential of producing aromatics for fuel and chemical use with highly microporous zeolite from waste material such as waste cooking oil forming part of the feedstock. / M

Orientador: Eliana Gertrudes de Macedo Lemos / Coorientador: Luciano Takeshi Kish / Banca: Mariana Carina Frigieri Salaro / Banca: Daniel Guariz Pinheiro / Resumo: RESUMO- Os biocombustíveis são uma alternativa atraente para a substituição de combustíveis fósseis que impulsionaram o interesse global na conversão de biomassa lignocelulósica. Diversos trabalhos são realizados para otimização das etapas para produção de etanol de segunda geração em termos de custo global para o processo. A demanda pela busca de enzimas específicas utilizadas em processos industriais tem impulsionado a prospecção de novas enzimas microbianas com capacidade de desconstruir biomassa vegetal. Dentre elas, as enzimas do grupo das carboidrases são as principais atuantes envolvidas no processo de conversão de biomassa. Diante disso, foi realizada a caracterização de uma comunidade microbiana denominada CB10b, que tem potencialidade em degradar a biomassa. Os estudos foram realizados a partir do sequenciamento total do DNA obtido da comunidade e da prospecção de genes úteis nos processos de conversão de biomassa vegetal. Foram isoladas 6 bactérias pertencentes aos respectivos gêneros: Chitinophaga (que apresentou atividade enzimática em carboximetilcelulose), Pandoraea e Labrys, identificado pelas análises do gene 16S rRNA e da região espaçadora intergênica (ITS) entre os genes 16S-23S rRNA. Por meio das análises dos genes foi possível identificar 16.340 ORFs, sendo anotadas 624 ORFs associadas ao banco de dados do CAZy, distribuídas entre as classes glicosil hidrolases (GHs) com 37,98% (237 ORFs); glicosil transferases (GTs) com 21,63% (135 ORFs); polissacarídeo ... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: ABSTRACT- Biofuels are an attractive alternative for replacing fossil fuels, bringing the world's attention to the conversion processes of lignocellulosic biomass. Multiple works are currently being done with to optimize the steps in second-generation ethanol production, seeking to reduce the global costs in this process. Demand for specific microbial enzymes is driving the prospection of novel ones able to degrade plant biomass. Among those, carbohydrases are the protagonists in these processes. In this context, we characterized a microbial community called CB10b and tested it's potential to degrade biomass. We performed studies on this community by total DNA sequencing followed by prospecting genes related to conversion of plant biomass. Six bacteria were isolated, belonging to the genera: Chitinophaga, who presented enzymatic activity on for carboxymethyl cellulose; Pandoraea and Labrys, identified through 16S rRNA and 16S-23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene analysis. Some 16,340 ORFs were identified, of which 624 were associated with CAZy database, 37.98% (237 ORFs) classified as glycosyl hydrolases (GHs); 21.63% (135 ORFs) as glycosyltransferases (GTs); 17.00% (106 ORFs) were carbohydrate esterases (CEs); 15.38% (96 ORFs) as carbohydrate-binding modules; 4.81% (30 ORFs) as auxiliary activities (AAs) and 3.18% (20 ORFs) as polysaccharide lyase. In addition, it was possible to recover by metagenome analysis the partial genome of a bacterium of the genus Pandora... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Orientador: Elisabete Maria Macedo Viegas / Banca: Leonardo Tachibana / Banca: Giuliana Parisi / Resumo: Devido ao maior interesse por biocombustíveis, indústrias brasileiras iniciaram, recentemente, a produção de etanol também a partir de grãos de milho, gerando um resíduo com potencial de uso como ingrediente em rações para animais, o DDGS (grãos secos de destilaria com solúveis). Por resultar de processos de fermentação de grãos de milho por leveduras e enzimas, este resíduo possui um elevado teor proteico e baixo teor de carboidratos solúveis, o que o torna boa fonte de proteína vegetal em rações para animais. Além do baixo custo, possíveis benefícios relacionados aos resíduos de leveduras e enzimas restantes da fermentação também contribuem para seu potencial de mercado. Desta forma, com este trabalho, objetivou-se avaliar a viabilidade de inclusão do DDGS do milho em dietas para juvenis de Piaractus mesopotamicus em substituição ao farelo de soja. Para tal, foram realizados três ensaios experimentais. No primeiro ensaio avaliaram-se os coeficientes de digestibilidade aparente (CDA) de nutrientes do DDGS para juvenis de P. mesopotamicus (13±0.3 gramas), distribuídos, em delineamento inteiramente casualizado (DIC), em seis tanques de fibra de vidro, na densidade de 35 peixes tanque -1 em sistema de recirculação contínuo de água. A coleta das fezes foi realizada em sistema de Guelph modificado. Após obtenção dos CDAs, foram formuladas dietas contendo cinco diferentes níveis de inclusão de DDGS (0, 10, 20, 30 e 40%) utilizadas nos ensaios posteriores. O segundo ensaio consisti... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Due to the increased interest in biofuels, Brazilian companies started recently, the production of ethanol from corn, generating a waste with potential for use as an ingredient in animal feed, the DDGS (dried distillers grain with soluble). As its processes results from fermentation of corn grain by yeast and enzymes, this residue has high protein and low soluble carbohydrates, which makes it good source of vegetable protein for animal feed. Besides the low cost, possible benefits related to yeast residues and other enzymes from fermentation may also contribute to DDGS market potential. Thus, this work aimed to evaluate the feasibility of inclusion of corn DDGS in diets for Piaractus mesopotamicus juveniles to replace soybean meal. To this end, there were three experimental runs. In the first assay we evaluated the apparent digestibility coefficients (ADC) of DDGS nutrients for P. mesopotamicus (13 ± 0.3 grams), distributed in a completely randomized design (CRD) in six fiberglass tanks, at density of 35 fish tank-1 in a continuous recirculating water system. The collection of feces was carried out in modified Guelph system. After obtaining the ADCs, diets were formulated with five different levels of DDGS inclusion (0, 10, 20, 30 and 40%) used in subsequent assays. The second test was the evaluation of ADCs of nutrient in the diets containing 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40% DDGS where P. mesopotamicus juvenile (27 ± 1.4 g) were distributed in five fiberglass tanks at density of 30 fis... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Orientador: Wanderley Jose de Melo / Banca: Marcela Midori Yada / Banca: Celso Antonio Jardim / Resumo: O crambe tem se destacado no cenário bioenergético como uma opção na rotação de culturas para a safrinha, visando à produção de óleo e posteriormente de biodiesel. No entanto, pouco se sabe sobre suas necessidades nutricionais. Objetivou-se avaliar a resposta das plantas de crambe ao efeito residual da adubação orgânica com lodo de esgoto (LE) na produtividade agrícola, conteúdo de macro e micronutrientes nos grãos e na planta inteira, além do teor de óleo. O experimento foi instalado em Latossolo Vermelho eutroférrico (LVef), que recebeu 18 aplicações anuais de lodo de esgoto, no município de Jaboticabal-SP. Os tratamentos foram: 0 (controle, sem aplicação de LE e com fertilização mineral); 5 Mg ha-1 LE; 10,0 Mg ha-1 LE; e 20,0 Mg ha-1 LE base seca. O crambe foi semeado em sucessão ao milho, cultura utilizada no ciclo 2014/2015, sem nova adubação. O acúmulo de nutrientes na planta inteira e a massa seca foram analisados em três épocas de amostragem (50, 64 e 78 dias após a semeadura - DAS), além da produtividade, porcentagem de óleo e concentração de nutrientes nos grãos. O acúmulo de N, P, B e Zn na planta inteira e a massa seca de crambe apresentaram diferença significativa entre os tratamentos somente aos 50 DAS, com valores maiores no tratamento de 10 Mg ha-1 quando comparado ao tratamento controle. Para as demais variáveis analisadas, não houve diferença significativa em nenhuma época de coleta. A maior produção de massa seca ocorreu aos 78 DAS, atingindo 23,22 g kg-1 n... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Crambe has stood out in the bioenergetic scenario as an option in the rotation of crops for the safrinha, aiming at the production of oil and later of biodiesel. However, little is known about their nutritional needs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the response of crambe plants to the residual effect of organic fertilization with sewage sludge (SS) on agricultural productivity, macro and micronutrient content in grains and whole plant, as well as oil content. The experiment was carried out in Eutroferric Red Latosol (LVef), which received 18 annual applications of sewage sludge, in the municipality of Jaboticabal-SP. The treatments were: 0 (control, without application of SS and with mineral fertilization); 5 Mg ha-1 SS; 10.0 Mg ha-1 SS; and 20.0 Mg ha-1 SS dry basis. The crambe was sown in succession to corn, a crop used in the 2014/2015 cycle, with no new fertilization. The accumulation of nutrients in the whole plant and the dry mass were analyzed in three sampling times (50, 64 and 78 days after sowing - DAS), besides the productivity, percentage of oil and concentration of nutrients in the grains. The accumulation of N, P, B and Zn in the whole plant and the dry mass of crambe showed a significant difference between the treatments only at 50 DAS, with higher values in the treatment of 10 Mg ha-1 when compared to the control treatment. For the other variables analyzed, there was no significant difference in any collection season. The highest dry mass producti... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

This research was established due to an increase of interest in renewable energy sources and utilisation of various wastes and biomass. Gasification is currently one of the most promising thermal-chemical conversion techniques for recovering energy from waste, and the pyrolytic behaviour of secondary refuse fuel (SRF) briquettes and biomass-derived fuels is the starting point for the process. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pyrolytic characteristics of SRF briquettes and biomass materials, suggest a kinetic model for simulating the pyrolytic process and obtaining the kinetic parameters, and then predict the yield of volatile products in pyrolysis. Knowledge of the chemical composition, the thermal behaviour and the reactivity of SRF briquettes and their blends with other materials, such as biomass and plastic during pyrolysis is very important for the effective design operation of gasification units. The kinetics of the pyrolysis of simulated SRF briquettes, SRF briquettes and pulverised biomass samples was successfully modelled by a scheme consisting of two independent general order parallel reactions of the main components which were hemicellulose, cellulose, lignin and plastic. The kinetic parameters estimated through the model were comparable with those reported in the literature. In this research, activation energy values varied between 30 – 70 kJ/mol for lignin pyrolysis, 96 – 137 kJ/mol for hemicellulose and cellulose pyrolysis, and about 260 kJ/mol for plastic pyrolysis. Biomass has a very high volatile content. Adding biomass into SRF briquettes could increase the volatile yield. Increasing the plastic content of SRF briquettes could increase the volatile yield, the derivative thermogravimetric (DTG) peak height and the repeatability of pyrolysis. Inorganic component could shift the cellulose pyrolysis to a lower temperature and cause the hemicellulose pyrolysis and the cellulose pyrolysis highly overlapped, but it could have a positive effect by acting as catalysts and lower the activation energy in the pyrolysis of hemicellulose and cellulose. Molasses used as a binder could improve the DTG peak height and restrain the curve shifting effect of inorganic component on the hemicellulose and cellulose pyrolysis, but couldn’t restrain the lignin pyrolysis at low temperatures during the hemicellulose and cellulose pyrolysis. Molasses could restrain the effect of the lignin pyrolysis at high temperatures on the plastic pyrolysis. Mechanical biological treatment (MBT) process could highly improve the volatile yield and improve the DTG peak height of SRF briquettes.

Wastewater treatment is an energy intensive process and sustainable processes/technologies for the treatment of wastewaters need to be considered. One such contender might be the microbial fuel cell (MFC), a subset of bioelectrochemical system (BES) which generates electricity in the process of electrogenic (generating electrons) degradation of soluble organic contaminants present in the water (or wastewater) by electrogens (electron producing bacteria) at the anode in absence of oxygen. Several issues related to the power performance (also somewhat linked to the cost) of MFCs exist causing barriers in the deployment of up-scaled MFC system and the continual research from a multitude of discipline is focusing on overcoming these issues. Implementation of an MFC system for wastewater treatment would require a large array of MFCs to meet the treatment capacity of the wastewater treatment plant. Commissioning and continual operation of such MFCs would require rapid and cost-effective start-up and improvement in their performance. Optimisation of the power performance is addressed through a systems approach in this study, where improvement in the performance is sought through the system design and control strategies applied to the MFCs. The start-up rate of MFCs has been reduced by 45% using maximum power point tracking (MPPT), which is believed to be cost-effective as exogenous energy (such as in the case of poised-potential) is not required for the rapid start-up. The control of MFC power would need to be considered when up-scaled MFC system is realised. The controller implementation benefits from linearised system models. The viability of such piecewise linearisation of the nonlinear MFC system was demonstrated and the data were shown to be reasonably represented by the 1st order process models throughout its operating range. The occurrence of voltage reversal during stack operation of MFCs is a concern in large arrays particularly, and has been shown to be avoidable by adopting the hybrid stack connectivity. Further enhancement of the performance was sought through the detailed design and fluid dynamics modeling to obtain highly mixed anolyte at low input power, using improved helical anodes which increased the MFC performance at all the tested flow rates (1, 3 and 8 mL min-1) compared to previously studied helical anodes. The up-scaling of MFCs by modularisation was demonstrated and it was shown that the use of improved helical anodes can increase the modular length of the MFC without compromising the power performance. Aggregated power produced from the multi-module MFC (containing 5 modules) was 28.05 ± 3.5 mW (19.75 ± 2.47 W m-3) with an PhD Thesis – Hitesh Chandubhai Boghani 2014 V individual MFC power of 5.61 ± 0.7 mW, when fed with 10 mM sodium acetate at 3 mL min-1 flow rate and at 22 ± 3 °C. So, this thesis presents the strategies for improvement in the performance of MFCs for their applications in wastewater treatment and such strategies may also be transferable to their other applications.