Soot particles from shipping: Analysing emission factors

Emissions of air pollutants from shipping in Europe result in about 50 000 premature deaths every year. Soot particles, also called black carbon, are particularly hazardous to human health when inhaled. The adverse health effects are especially a danger in coastal areas, but the particles can travel further away with the wind. These soot particles also have an effect on the climate. Fresh soot particles are known to be ineffective cloud condensation nuclei for cloud droplet formation, whereas aged soot particles with condensed inorganic sulphuric acid on the particle surface may act as effective cloud condensation nuclei. This leads to changing properties of clouds, thereby changing the cloud reflection of incoming solar shortwave radiation. The particles can also deposit on surfaces of snow and ice, where they have a warming effect. The snow and ice melts, causing a reduced amount of reflected sunlight. The aim of this study was to calculate the emissions of soot particles from ships in Gothenburg. The amount of soot emissions from ships was compared to the amount of fuel used. This was done by calculating the emission factor for soot and its absorption coefficient. Calculations of the emission factors in ship plumes were made on five selected days. The initial data was gathered over a period of a month outside Gothenburg harbor in the fall of 2014. The field station containing the measurement instruments was located 500 meters downwind from the shipping lane. Plumes were just over a minute old when they reached the field station. A sliding percentile-based method was used in order to separate plumes from background concentrations of CO2 and soot particles. Subsequently, the emission factors were calculated. The total number of analysed ship plumes was 228. Some of which are the same ships arriving and leaving the harbor. When plumes were present, the amount of CO2 rose above the background levels with a minimum of 2 ppm. Plumes could increase with as much as 35 ppm. The emission factor for black carbon, or soot, was estimated at 0.57 ( ± 1.40) grams of black carbon per kilogram of fuel. This is an average number for the shipping fleet connected to Gothenburg, which should be able to be applied to the entire shipping fleet travelling in the SECA area in Europe. Additionally, it is not entirely certain how lower fuel sulphur content affect the emissions of black carbon. There are no identical studies done so far which makes it difficult to reach a conclusion whether the emissions of black carbon particles have decreased or not. When looking at individual ships, no clear difference could be observed. Oil tankers and cargo ro-ro's usually emits the most black carbon but also include vessels with lower emissions. All passenger ships have different emission factors. Not many studies have been done on the subject. It is therefore important to further study this in order to fully understand the effects on soot particles when reducing sulphur.Sotpartiklar från båtar leder till förtida dödsfall, Men hur stort är egentligen utsläppet? Emissioner av partiklar från båtar leder till 50 000 förtida dödsfall per år i Europa. Vid inandning leder det även till en ökad risk för luftvägssjukdomar, hjärt- kärlsjukdomar, samt allergier. Skeppsemissioner påverkar även klimat och miljö på olika vis, både positiva och negativa. Den största boven i dessa emissioner är de olika partiklarna som släpps ut, i synnerhet sotpartiklar. Sotpartiklarna bildas främst på grund av svavel i bränslet. I denna studie undersöks hur mycket sotpartiklar som i dagsläget släpps ut av skepp. I Sveriges vatten finns det regler om hur mycket svavel som skeppsbränsle får innehålla. År 2010 var det 1 % svavel som gällde, och år 2015 sänktes det till 0,1 %. Denna studie analyserar mätningar av emitterade sotpartiklar, och tittar även på skillnader i utsläpp mellan olika typer av skepp. Mätdata erhölls från Göteborgs hamn hösten år 2014 via en mät-kampanj. Mät-kampanjen utfördes av flera forskningsinstitutioner, bland annat Lunds universitet. Mätdata användes för att räkna ut så kallade emissionsfaktorer. Dessa faktorer visar på hur mycket sotpartiklar som släpps ut per kilogram skeppsbränsle. Ett medelvärde räknades ut för hela skeppsflottan som färdas via Göteborg. Medelvärdet bör kunna appliceras på alla skepp som färdas inom det svavelreglerade området. Den mängd sotpartiklar som släpps ut per kilogram bränsle räknades ut till 0,57 gram (med en osäkerhet på ± 1,40 gram). Detta resultat liknar de få resultat från tidigare studier, men det är svårt att jämföra på grund av olika beräkningsmetoder och instrument. På grund av denna svårighet går det inte att konstatera huruvida utsläpp av sotpartiklar har minskat eller ökat. Därför krävs det att en liknande studie utförs för att få ett jämförbart värde. En framtida studie bör helst vara så lik denna som möjligt. Fördelningen av utsläpp mellan skepp är också i behov av vidare studier. Det var 45 individuella båtar som identifierades, främst oljeskepp, lastskepp, och passerarskepp. Utsläppen mellan alla båtarna varierade. De flesta oljeskepp och lastskepp hade låga utsläpp av sotpartiklar, men de inkluderade också ett fåtal med väldigt höga utsläpp. Alla passagerarskeppen hade väldigt olika utsläpp. Trots att resultatet i denna studie visar hur mycket sotpartiklar som släpps ut, så finns det inget konkret att jämföra med. Det går därför inte att nå en slutsats huruvida sotpartiklar har minskat eller ökat. Det som behövs är vidare studier som använder sig av samma metoder och instrument som i denna. Handledare: Adam Kristensson Examensarbete 30 hp i Miljövetenskap 2015 Centrum för miljö- och klimatforskning, Lunds universite

Neutron-Induced Scintillation in Organics

Neutrons are widely used as probes of matter to study materials in a broad range of fields from physics, chemistry and medicine to material sciences. Any application utilizing neutrons needs to employ a well-understood and optimized neutron-detector system. This thesis is centered on fundamental aspects of neutron-detector development, including the establishment of the Source Testing Facility at Lund University, experimental methods for the in-depth characterization of scintillator-based neutron detectors and analytical and computational methods for the precise interpretation of results. It focuses on the response of liquid organic scintillators to fast-neutron and gamma-ray irradiations, specifically for NE 213A, EJ 305, EJ 331 and EJ 321P. A simulation-based method for detector calibration was developed which allowed for the use of polyenergetic gamma-ray sources in this low energy-resolution environment. With an actinide/beryllium neutron source and a time-of-flight setup, beams of energy-tagged neutrons were used to study the energy-dependent behaviour of the intrinsic pulse-shape of NE 213A and EJ 305 scintillators. The results demonstrated the advantages of the neutron-tagging method and how the combination of neutron tagging and pulse-shape discrimination can give deeper insight into backgrounds resulting from inelastic neutron scattering. A comprehensive characterization of the neutron scintillation-light yield for NE 213A, EJ 305, EJ 331 and EJ 321P was also performed. It employed the simulation-based calibrations to confirm existing light-yield parametrizations for NE 213A and EJ 305, and resulted in light-yield parametrizations for EJ 331 and EJ 321P extracted for the first time from data. In addition to the development of a simulation-based framework for the study of neutron-induced scintillation in organic scintillators, the methods and results presented in this thesis lay the foundation for future source-based neutron-tagging efforts and scintillator-detector research and development

Uppföljning av energi- och klimatrådgivning hos företag och organisationer - Grund för kommande energitillsynsprojekt i Hässleholms, Osby och Östra Göinge kommun

The oil crisis in the 1970’s made countries realize their dependence on oil; and with it a dependence of other countries. To be self-sufficient and to be able to decrease the impact of economic crises, such as the oil crisis, some countries have started searching for renewable alternatives for fossil fuels. In the same process the importance of saving energy has become another vital action towards a sustainable society. The European Union took action and put forward a growth-strategy for making Europe more sustainable, called Europe 2020. Sweden has developed and set forward national goals, one of which is regarding energy and climate, for the year 2020. In Sweden energy has not until recently been seriously considered as an environmental aspect by the environmental offices of municipals and the environmental inspectors. While this includes every energy aspect in the society this study is focusing only on industries and organizations. Not previously having a systematic way to deal with the energy-subject, Sweden has put forward several measures to fix the current situation. One of these measures is the energy- and climate-advisors, whom is offering free advice to companies, organizations and inhabitants across the land. The study evaluates the effects of the service energy- and climate advising, following up on whether companies and organizations have responded to the advise and implemented energy efficient changes. It also follows up on the amount of energy companies and organizations are using in the municipals Hässleholm, Osby and Östra Göinge. Heavy energy-users above 500 megawatt hours, and those who still use fossil fuels as an energy-source for heating are also established. Of the responding businesses 13 out of 25 have an energy use above 500 megawatt hours, or 52 percent. 7 out of 29 companies currently use fossil fuels for heating, or 24 percent. Energy- and climate advisors are useful tools to inform companies and organizations of the advantages of becoming more energy efficient. A majority of the responding companies and organizations have listened to the advisor and thereby taken some proposed actions, ranging from exchanging lightning to getting rid of old boilers. However, the interaction between businesses and advisors could improve by having a more structural feedback from the companies and organizations. This would allow the advisors to better follow up on the previous visit. In the current situation it can be helpful to primarily use energy and climate advisors to spread awareness and information regarding energy efficiency. However, advisors alone might not be enough to reach our national goals.Ett hållbart samhälle är en fras som blir allt mer aktuell i dagens samhälle. I arbetet mot en hållbar utveckling innefattar det att människan bör lära sig att hantera begränsade resurser, så som olja eller fosfor, på ett sådant sätt att framtida generationer inte blir lidande av dagens användning. En av många viktiga åtgärder mot ett hållbart samhälle är minska användandet av energi. Denna studie följer upp och undersöker utfört arbete av kommunala så kallade energi- och klimatrådgivare, med syfte att se om deras arbete har någon effekt i kampen mot ett energieffektivare samhälle. Rådgivningen som följs upp har utförts i kommunerna Hässleholm, Osby och Östra Göinge i Skåne. Studiens undersökning visar att rådgivare lämpar sig väl som verktyg för att informera företag och organisationer om fördelar med energieffektivisering, främst i form av ekonomiska besparingar. Det är viktigt att verksamheter inser de besparingar som kan göras inom deras respektive bransch. Att övertyga verksamheter och visa på energieffektiva åtgärder som kan göras är något som just energi- och klimatrådgivare är bra lämpade för. Majoriteten av undersökta företag och organisationer har enligt rådgivarens förslag utfört energibesparande åtgärder, allt från att byta ut belysning till att göra sig av med oljepannor. Ett mindre användande av fossila bränslen går hand i hand med en hållbar utveckling. Uppföljning av utgiven rådgivning är dock något som bör förbättras, exempelvis genom ett bättre samspel mellan verksamhet och rådgivare i form av återkopplande feedback från rådgivna verksamheter. En större satsning på energi- och klimatrådgivning kan lämpligen hjälpa Skåne på traven inför kommande mål om energianvändning samt användandet utav fossila bränslen. Tillsammans med studien gjordes även en kartläggning över företag och organisationers energianvändning, samt identifiering av de som fortfarande använder fossila bränslen för uppvärmning. Detta med avseende för att hjälpa kommande energieffektiviseringsprojekt inom kommunerna. I Sverige har energi tidigare inte ansetts som en miljöaspekt av miljöinspektörer samt miljökontoren i kommuner. Eftersom det tidigare inte har funnits ett systematiskt sätt att hantera energifrågan har Sverige lagt fram flera åtgärder för att rätta till denna situation. En av dessa är energi- och klimatrådgivning som ger ett incitament för företag, organisationer och privatpersoner att eftersträva en effektivare energianvändning. Vare sig om det är med syfte att värna om miljön eller att spara pengar spelar inte så stor roll, eftersom de båda ofta är sammankopplade. Rådgivningen i sig själv är dock inte tillräcklig för att driva oss mot ett hållbart samhälle, men det är ändå ett stadigt steg i rätt

Looking west: Three Essays on Swedish-American Life

Excerpt from preface: This book contains three essays on Swedish and Swedish-American topics by Jules Mauritzson, professor of Swedish language and literature at Augustana College from 1901 until his untimely death in 1930. Table of Contents: Preface / Dag Blanck, Ann Boaden -- Introduction / Dag Blanck -- The Swedish-American: at Work and Play, at Home and Away (Svensk-amerikanen i helg och söcken, hemma och borta) -- Chicago: From Open Prairie To a City of One Million in Fifty Years (Chicago: från öde prairie till million-stad på femtio år) -- Christmas Customs, Old and New (Julseder: gamla och nya)https://digitalcommons.augustana.edu/ahsbooks/1014/thumbnail.jp

Ultra High Efficiency ESP for Fine Particulate and Air Toxics Control

Nearly ninety percent of U.S. coal-fired utility boilers are equipped with electrostatic precipitators (ESP). Cost effective retrofittable ESP technologies are the only means to accomplish Department of Energy's (DOE) goal of a major reduction in fine particulate and air toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants. Particles in the size range of 0.1 to 5 {micro}m typically escape ESPs. Metals, such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, molybdenum and antimony, concentrate on these particles. This is the main driver for improved fine particulate control. Vapor phase emissions of mercury, selenium and arsenic are also of major concern. Current dry ESPs, which operate at temperatures greater than 280 F, provide little control for vapor phase toxics. The need for inherent improvement to ESPs has to be considered keeping in perspective the current trend towards the use of low sulfur coals. Switching to low sulfur coals is the dominant approach for SO{sub 2} emission reduction in the utility industry. Low sulfur coals generate high resistivity ash, which can cause an undesirable phenomenon called ''back corona.'' Higher particulate emissions occur if there is back corona in the ESP. Results of the pilot-scale testing identified the ''low temperature ESP'' concept to have the biggest impact for the two low sulfur coals investigated. Lowering the flue gas temperature to 220 F provided the maximum impact in terms of decreased emissions. Intermediate operating temperatures (reduction from 340 to 270 F) also gave significant ESP performance improvement. A significant reduction in particulate emissions was also noted when the flue gas humidity was increased (temperature held constant) from the baseline condition for these moderately high resistivity ash coals. Independent control of flue gas humidity and temperature was an important and a notable element in this project. Mercury emissions were also measured as a function of flue gas temperature. Mercury emissions decreased as the flue gas temperature was lowered, indicating the native ability of ash to capture the mercury. Pulsed operation of the ESP with the SIR module provided a 2 to 3-fold reduction in emissions at the higher operating temperatures. In light of the positive results from Phase I, we propose proof of concept testing in the field in Phase II. The main objective of the Phase II testing would be to determine the ESP performance improvement as a function of flue gas temperature and humidity for a range of low-sulfur coals being fired by utilities. Equally important will be the long-term evaluation of the risk of corrosion and plugging (due to acid condensation) associated with low temperature operation. The impact of higher flue gas velocities (lower SCA-specific collection area), compared to the laboratory pilot program, would also need to be evaluated. A secondary objective would be to examine mercury capture by the ESP at the different temperatures and with sorbent injection

Simulation of the Response of the Solid State Neutron Detector for the European Spallation Source

The characteristics of the Solid-state Neutron Detector, under development for neutron-scattering measurements at the European Spallation Source, have been simulated with a Geant4-based computer code. The code models the interations of thermal neutrons and ionising radiation in the 6Li-doped scintillating glass of the detector, the production of scintillation light and the transport of optical, scintillation photons through the the scintillator, en route to the photo-cathode of the attached multi-anode photomultiplier. Factors which affect the optical-photon transport, such as surface finish, pixelation of the glass sheet, provision of a front reflector and optical coupling media are compared. Predictions of the detector response are compared with measurements made with neutron and gamma-ray sources, a collimated alpha source and finely collimated beams of 2.5 MeV protons and deuterons.Comment: Preprint 22 pages, 12 figures, published in NIM

TPO, but not soluble-IL-6 receptor, levels increase after anagrelide treatment of thrombocythemia in chronic myeloproliferative disorders

Anagrelide is often used in the treatment of thrombocythemia in myeloproliferative disease (MPD), but information concerning effects of treatment on cytokines involved in regulation of blood platelet levels is limited. Here, we investigated serum levels of thrombopoietin (TPO) and soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R) in relation to response to treatment with and plasma concentrations of anagrelide. Samples from 45 patients with thrombocythemia due to MPD (ET=31, PV=14), being treated with anagrelide for 6 months, were analyzed for TPO, sIL-6R and anagrelide levels. The mean baseline platelet count was 983x10(9)/L. A reduction of platelets to &lt;600 in asymptomatic or &lt;400 x 10(9)/L in symptomatic patients was defined as a complete remission (CR), a reduction with &gt;50% of baseline as partial remission, and &lt;50% reduction as failure. At 6 months, 35 patients were in CR, 1 had a partial remission and 9 were treatment failures. For all patients, there was an increase in TPO of 44% from baseline; this change was more pronounced for patients with partial remission and failure. sIL-6R levels did not change significantly. There was no correlation between levels of anagrelide and cytokine levels at 6 months, and changes of cytokine levels did not relate to changes of platelet counts. Thus, a pronounced increase of TPO levels after 6 months of anagrelide treatment indicated that this treatment affected a major regulatory mechanism for megakaryocyte and platelet formation in MPD.</p