Effects of Torrefaction on Particle Size Distribution of Corn Stover

Mild pyrolysis, or torrefaction, is a thermochemical pretreatment for biomass used to address these issues. In this process, biomass is heated in an oxygen-free environment at temperatures of 200-300°C. Torrefaction of biomass increases the brittleness of the material, thus reducing the energy requirements for grinding it. Grinding of biomass is important for applications such as pyrolysis and gasification, where particle size is critical for efficiency. In this study, torrefied corn stover and untreated corn stover were ground using a ball mill reactor. The ground material was then sieved to determine the particle size distribution of the respective materials. The particle size distribution was used to quantify the effect of torrefaction on grinding biomass. The torrefaction process increased the brittleness of the corn stover, yielding a more finely ground material than the untreated biomass. The final objective was to combine the torrefaction and particle size reduction stages into a single process. A limiting factor in the torrefaction process is heat transfer through large particles. By combining the torrefaction and particle size reduction stages, a more uniform final product can be created

Understanding management practices for biomass harvest equipment for commercial scale operation

As second generation biofuels approach commercial scale production, a large fleet of harvesting equipment is required to meet feedstock demand. In the Midwest United States, agricultural residue, such as corn stover, has been identified as a readily available feedstock. Multi-pass corn stover harvest requires the in-field operations of shredding, baling, and stacking. Proper management practices are required to keep machines running at maximum efficiency in order to reduce cost and harvest enough material to meet processing demand. This need for management becomes increasing important as production levels reach commercial scale levels. This study looked at management practices of several individual harvest crews across an entire harvest season. Data was collected from multiple machines, including balers, shredders, and stackers during the 2013 and 2014 fall harvests. The controller area network (CAN) bus system was utilized to record machine data that was linked to specific GPS coordinates within a given field. The information was then analyzed to identify controllable metrics, such as machine productivity, daily bale production, and bale density. Recognizing these controllable metrics will improve overall logistics as production reaches full scale and reduce overall costs. A techno-economic analysis was executed to quantify cost as performance and quality changed

Review of housing options for gestating sows

Housing options for gestating sows is an important topic affecting livestock producers, consumers, and policy makers. Producers seek to provide high quality products at affordable prices while meeting increasing public demands for animal wellbeing. Several studies have been conducted over the years to compare group and individual housing options for gestating sows. The object of this paper was to review these studies and to look specifically at the areas of animal wellbeing and economic impact of housing type. Several types of housing and feed management plans were examined from previous studies and the impact of housing type was explored. Overall, studies show that group housing can maintain animal wellbeing while still remaining economically feasible. Legislation has already been passed by the European Union to ban individual stalls starting in 2013. The future of gestation housing in the US pork industry is uncertain, but it appears that changes are coming quickly

Potential energy surface of the 2A' Li2+Li doublet ground state

The lowest doublet electronic state for the lithium trimer (2A') is calculated for use in three-body scattering calculations using the valence electron FCI method with atomic cores represented using an effective core potential. It is shown that an accurate description of core-valence correlation is necessary for accurate calculations of molecular bond lengths, frequencies and dissociation energies. Interpolation between 2A' ab initio surface data points in a sparse grid is done using the global interpolant moving least squares method with a smooth radial data cutoff function included in the fitting weights and bivariate polynomials as a basis set. The Jahn-Teller splitting of the 2E' surface into the 2A1 and 2B2 states is investigated using a combination of both CASSCF and FCI levels of theory. Additionally, preliminary calculations of the 2A'' surface are also presented using second order spin restricted open-shell Moller-Plesset perturbation theory.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Cushing’s disease

Cushing’s disease, or pituitary ACTH dependent Cushing’s syndrome, is a rare disease responsible for increased morbidity and mortality. Signs and symptoms of hypercortisolism are usually non specific: obesity, signs of protein wasting, increased blood pressure, variable levels of hirsutism. Diagnosis is frequently difficult, and requires a strict algorithm. First-line treatment is based on transsphenoidal surgery, which cures 80% of ACTH-secreting microadenomas. The rate of remission is lower in macroadenomas. Other therapeutic modalities including anticortisolic drugs, radiation techniques or bilateral adrenalectomy will thus be necessary to avoid long-term risks (metabolic syndrome, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease) of hypercortisolism. This review summarizes potential pathophysiological mechanisms, diagnostic approaches, and therapies

Utilizing Generative Artificial Intelligence in the Online Counselor Education Classroom

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has created a buzz in education, particularly with fears that students will plagiarize information and their work will not be representative of their own capabilities. Programs such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Microsoft’s Copilot are becoming increasingly popular sources for content generation and virtual assistance. Colleges and universities have scrambled to develop policies around the use of generative AI programs for student work. The reality is that generative AI tools will continue to develop, and educators have choices to make about embracing the potential use for this technology or avoiding it altogether. Counselor educators can develop assignments that utilize generative AI programming to help students learn critical thinking and produce rationale for AI output. Students in online programs who utilize technology more consistently are good candidates for experimenting with the benefits of generative AI in the field of counseling. Faculty must include discussion and guidance around ethics and use of AI in clinical contexts

A Man of Many: Mainer Frank Lowell and White-Native Marriages in Territorial Alaska

Born into a well-known and influential New England family, Frank Lowell left his home in Maine and moved to Alaska soon after the territory was purchased by the United States in 1867. His upbringing in a shipbuilding and seafaring family from Maine prepared Frank well for his new life. His life in sparsely-settled Alaska was quite different, though, from his old life in coastal Maine. During his more than fifty years in Alaska, Frank married three Native women and fathered fifteen children. There were practical reasons for Frank to form such unions, but it also demonstrates that racial boundaries were much more fluid in frontier Alaska than in much of the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The author is a retired National Park Service employee. During her career she worked in six park units across the country, including Kenai Fjords National Park in Seward, Alaska. In 2006, she completed a master’s degree in history at Alaska Pacific University, under the direction of Polly Welts Kaufman. This article is extracted from her master’s thesis, which examined the role of Alaskan Native women during the northwestern fur trade period

Eco-Pietism vs. Eco-Piety

Good intentions undergird each practice and authentic faith formation has emerged from even our most legalistic practices. Posting about true Christian piety from In All Things - an online hub committed to the claim that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has implications for the entire world. http://inallthings.org/eco-pietism-vs-eco-piety

Punch Line

God takes everything Abraham says, including the laughter, and turns it all into the promise. Posting about God\u27s sense of humor from In All Things - an online hub committed to the claim that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has implications for the entire world. http://inallthings.org/the-punch-line

Power Failure: Christianity in the Culture of Technology (Book Review)

Reviewed Title: Power Failure: Christianity in the Culture of Technology by Albert Borgmann (Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2003) 144 pp