Engineering Commons^™

Enabling A Sustainable Economy Through Energy Systems Modeling: Solar-Centric, Efficient, Integrated And Continuous Process Synthesis And Optimization, Emre Gencer

Open Access Dissertations

The expected increase in food, energy and water demand due to increase in population and change in consumption habits in conjunction with diminishing fossil fuel reserves and increasing greenhouse gas emissions urge the development and implementation of alternative energy conversion techniques using renewable energy for a sustainable economy. Among renewable energy sources, solar energy is prominent due to its abundance. A sustainable economy can be created by producing building blocks foundational to meeting all basic human needs of daily existence. However, intermittencies and limitations on land area dedicated to harness solar energy are the major obstacles on widespread implementation of …

Targeted Products From Fast-Hydropyrolysis And Hydrodeoxygenation Of Biomass, Ian Tad Smith

Open Access Theses

Previously, the H2Bioil process was proposed as a possible way to convert sustainably available intact biomass into liquid fuels. The optimization of this process and possible synergies with other biomass conversion processes are presented in this thesis.

The selectivity of the PtMo hydrodeoxygenation catalyst was tuned using two different hydrogen partial pressures: 25 bar, and 2.5 bar. This effect was studied on cellulose and intact biomass samples to determine the effect that hydrogen has upon the retention of aromatic compounds found in intact biomass. These experiments show that it is possible for the hydrogenation activity of the PtMo catalyst to …

Using Mixtures Of Fatty Acid Methyl Esters As Phase Change Materials For Concrete, Leah Christine Liston

Open Access Theses

Phase change materials (PCMs) are an effective way of storing/releasing thermal energy via phase transformations. Incorporating PCMs into concrete pavements at airports has been suggested as a means to reduce the accumulation of snow and ice on runways. This thesis reports on the development of two phase change materials composed of binary mixtures of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) which provide a solid-liquid transition slightly above 0°C with a high enthalpy of fusion. Current findings of this study indicate that these mixtures have the necessary properties to be a high performance PCM with the potential to reduce the levels of …