Advances in Airborne Lidar Systems and Data Processing
Presented to audience as “Airborne Laser Systems and Data Processing”, this book collects the papers in the Remote Sensing special issue “ Airborne Laser Scanning” (November 2016) and several other papers selected from recent, previous Remote Sensing issues. We were approached by Remote Sensing late 2015 to edit a special issue on Lidar remote sensing. After some literature review and careful thinking, we selected the theme for the special issue as “Airborne Laser Scanning”. Having this focus in mind, we made a call for papers and spread it well over Internet and social media. In the meantime, a number of leading experts in their fields were reached out for contribution.
MDPI - Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
Catalyst deactivation, the loss over time of catalytic activity and/or selectivity, is a problem of great and continuing concern in the practice of industrial catalytic processes. Costs to industry for catalyst replacement and process shutdown total tens of billions of dollars per year. While catalyst deactivation is inevitable for most processes, some of its immediate, drastic consequences may be avoided, postponed, or even reversed. Accordingly, there is considerable motivation to better understand catalyst decay and regeneration
Calvin H. Bartholomew (Ed.) --- Morris D. Argyle (Ed.)
Application of Bioinformatics in Cancers
This collection of 25 research papers comprised of 22 original articles and 3 reviews is brought together from international leaders in bioinformatics and biostatistics. The collection highlights recent computational advances that improve the ability to analyze highly complex data sets to identify factors critical to cancer biology. Novel deep learning algorithms represent an emerging and highly valuable approach for collecting, characterizing and predicting clinical outcomes data. The collection highlights several of these approaches that are likely to become the foundation of research and clinical practice in the future.
Biocatalysis and Pharmaceuticals: A Smart Tool for Sustainable Development
Biocatalysis, that is, the use of biological catalysts (enzymes, cells, etc.) for the preparation of highly valuable compounds is undergoing a great development, being considered an extremely sustainable approach to undertaking environmental demands. In this scenario, this book illustrates the versatility of applied biocatalysis for the preparation of drugs and other bioactive compounds through the presentation of different research articles and reviews, in which several authors describe the most recent developments in this appealing scientific area.
Compared to conventional chemical technologies and other similar industrial processes, bioprocesses represent a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly alternative for the production of fuels and platform chemicals. In biorefineries, different kinds of feedstocks, such as biomass or lignocellulosic materials in general, can be used and fermented by microorganisms
BioEnergy and BioChemicals Production from Biomass and Residual Resources
Research and technology developments in bioenergy and biochemical production systems are of the utmost importance for the development of next generation, highly efficient biomass conversion concepts, maximizing the total energy and chemical output. The utilization of non-conventional biomasses and unexploited residual resources (e.g., agriculture and agroindustry wastes), innovative solutions for online monitoring and process control, novel biochemical pathways, microbial platforms and reactor technologies are key issues to be addressed.
Dimitar Karakashev (Ed.) --- Yifeng Zhang (Ed.)
Biotechnologies for Plant Mutation Breeding: Protocols
This book offers 19 detailed protocols on the use of induced mutations in crop breeding and functional genomics studies, which cover topics including chemical and physical mutagenesis, phenotypic screening methods, traditional TILLING and TILLING by sequencing, doubled haploidy, targeted genome editing, and low-cost methods for the molecular characterization of mutant plants that are suitable for laboratories in developing countries.
Joanna Jankowicz-Cieslak --- Thomas H. Tai --- Jochen Kumlehn --- Bradley J. Till
Carbon Fibers and Their Composite Materials
To achieve good mechanical properties of carbon ﬁbre-reinforced polycarbonate composites, the ﬁbre-matrix adhesion must be dialled to an optimum level. The electrolytic surface treatment of carbon ﬁbres during their production is one of the possible means of adapting the surface characteristics of the ﬁbres. The production of a range of tailored ﬁbres with varying surface treatments (adjusting the current, potential, and conductivity) was followed by contact angle, inverse gas chromatography and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements, which revealed a signiﬁcant increase in polarity and hydroxyl, carboxyl, and nitrile groups on the ﬁbre surface. Accordingly, an increase in the ﬁbre-matrix interaction indicated by a higher interfacial shear strength was observed with the single ﬁbre pull-out force-displacement curves
Catalysts Deactivation, Poisoning and Regeneration
Catalyst lifetime represents one of the most crucial economic aspects in industrial catalytic processes, due to costly shutdowns, catalyst replacements, and proper disposal of spent materials. Not surprisingly, there is considerable motivation to understand and treat catalyst deactivation, poisoning, and regeneration, which causes this research topic to continue to grow. The complexity of catalyst poisoning obviously increases along with the increasing use of biomass/waste-derived/residual feedstocks and with requirements for cleaner and novel sustainable processes.
Catalytic soot oxidation by platinum on sintered metal filters. Influence of the platinum quantity, particle size and location, and investigation of the platinum-soot contact
The great challenge for next years concerning the emission of diesel engines is to develop diesel particle filters (DPF) with catalytic regeneration systems. This work is focused on the global understanding of the diesel soot oxidation on sintered metal filters (SMF). Platinum is studied as reference catalyst. The first objective is to determine which of platinum quantity, platinum particle size, or platinum location exhibits the preponderant influence on the catalytic.
Digital Innovations in Agriculture—Series II
Research and information Biology Technology
The significantly increased world population and accelerated climate change are strongly affecting agricultural production. These aspects, as well as the latest socio-economic limitations caused by the standoff following the COVID-19 pandemic, are part of the ongoing economic crisis bringing new challenges to modern agriculture and the need to have high production efficiency combined with high-quality products in accordance with the principles of sustainable production.
Electrofiltration of Biopolymers : Spatially Distributed Process Analysis
In biotechnology the current downstream processing trends are directed towards integrated, faster and more effective processes. Electrofiltration is a hybrid method which is a combination of membrane filtration and electrophoresis in a dead-end process. Spatially distributed process analysis together with the applicability of electrofiltration for technically important biopolymers such as PHB, chitosan and hyaluronic acid enables the implementation of the technology into industry.
Extraction and Purification of Bioactive Compounds
Bioactive compounds, which are abundant in flora, fauna, and microorganisms, can potentially be used by various industries, including pharmaceuticals, functional foods, dietary supplements, and cosmetics. Their extraction and purification, however, pose significant challenges due to the presence of impurities, interference from other compounds, and the need to maintain their stability as well as activity.
Finite Element Method (FEM) Model and Performance Analysis of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells
This work presents a numerical FEM framework, capable of predicting SOFC performance under technically relevant, planar stack contacting conditions. A high level of confidence in the model predictions is supplied by using exclusively experimentally determined material/kinetic parameters and by a comprehensive validation. The presented model aids SOFC stack development by pre-evaluating possible material choices and design combinations for cells/interconnectors without any experimental effort.
Fulfilling the Promise of Technology Transfer
Manufactures --- Chemical Engineering --- Business and Management --- Political Science
Universities and research institutes are increasingly expected to contribute to society by creating innovation from the returns of their research results and the establishment of new technologies. Toward that goal, Keio University in Japan held an international symposium titled “Fulfilling the Promise of Technology Transfer: Fostering Innovation for the Benefit of Society.” From that symposium the following contents are included in the present volume: 1) A showcase of ideas and case studies to promote future creation of innovation by universities and research institutes worldwide, including information on the R&D value chain, licensing, income generation, start-ups and mechanisms to encourage entrepreneurship, and the changing role of universities in fostering innovation. 2) Introduction of active research projects that aim to productize successful research results on an international level. For example, the book includes results of research on stem cell technologies and regenerative medicine as well as the realization and application of polymer photonics and the development of the core technology of polymer photonics. 3) Case studies from the U.K. in developing industry–academia collaboration with various business partners ranging from start-ups and spinout companies to large enterprises. 4) Reports of the achievements of the technological transfer activities at Keio University supported by the 5-year public fund, with suggestions for future prospects.
Universities and research institutes are increasingly expected to contribute to society by creating innovation from the returns of their research results and the establishment of new technologies. Toward that goal, Keio University in Japan held an international symposium titled “Fulfilling the Promise of Technology Transfer: Fostering Innovation for the Benefit of Society.” From that symposium the following contents are included in the present volume: 1)
Universities and research institutes are increasingly expected to contribute to society by creating innovation from the returns of their research results and the establishment of new technologies. Toward that goal, Keio University in Japan held an international symposium titled “Fulfilling the Promise of Technology Transfer: Fostering Innovation for the Benefit of Society.” From that symposium the following contents are included in the present volume: 1) A showcase of ideas and case studies to promote future creation of innovation by universities and research institutes worldwide, including information on the R&D value chain, licensing, income generation, start-ups and mechanisms to encourage entrepreneurship, and the changing role of universities in fostering innovation. 2) Introduction of active research projects that aim to productize successful research results on an international level.
Grain-based Foods: Processing, Properties, and Heath Attributes
The Special Issue aims to provide a complete exploration of the scientific principles related to processing, fermentation/malting, and nutrition of cereal grains. It also describes their physical and chemical characteristics and explains how these properties relate to health and nutritional value of the final grain-based products. Indeed, while grains remain the world’s largest food yield—with more than 2.4 billion metric tons produced annually—consumer demands are on the rise for grain products sustainable from an environmental, social and economic viewpoint, in order to meet the growing demand for healthy and nutritious foods.
Emanuele Zannini (Ed.) --- Raffaella di Cagno (Ed.)
Impact of Bioactive Peptides on Human Health
Food-derived bioactive peptides or dietary peptides are increasingly becoming recognized as major food compounds for human health promotion, which prevent the occurrence of chronic diseases through their impacts on the gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, immune, and nervous systems. Further bioactive peptide discoveries are essential for maintaining human health and commercial development in the area of functional foods and nutraceuticals.
Influence of fully miscible lubrication oil on flow boiling of CO? inside horizontal evaporator tubes
Flow boiling heat transfer, pressure drop and flow pattern of CO?-POE oil mixtures were experimentally investigated in smooth and micro-fin tubes. The POE oil used features full miscibility in the range of operation investigated. The experimental data was evaluated based on mixture properties, used to evaluate and improve established predictive methods. The knowledge obtained contributes to understanding the influence of oil, which is essential for achieving an efficient evaporator design.
Innovative Extraction Techniques and Hyphenated Instrument Configuration for Complex Matrices Analysis
The present Special Issue, “Innovative Extraction Techniques and Hyphenated Instrument Configuration for Complex Matrices Analysis”, aims to collect and to disseminate some of the most significant and recent contributions in the interdisciplinary area of innovative extraction procedures from complex matrices followed by validated analytical methods using hyphenated instrument configurations to support the optimization of the whole process and the scale-up possibility
Locatelli, Marcello --- Carradori, Simone --- Mocan, Andrei
Integration of 2D Materials for Electronics Applications
Two-dimensional (2D) materials and their vertical/lateral heterostructures are currently the subject of massive research interests, both for fundamental science and for technological applications in diverse fields, such as electronics, optoelectronics, quantum metrology, spintronics, membranes, energy conversion/storage, and sensing. Integration of 2D materials within real device structures currently represents the main challenge to move from the laboratory stage to industrial applications, especially in the fields of electronics/optoelectronics.
Filippo Giannazzo (Ed.) --- Samuel Lara Avila (Ed.) --- Jens Eriksson (Ed.) --- Sushant Sonde (Ed.)
In this Special Issue, you will find new directions in the research on liquid crystal applications. To be honest, we were surprised to find 10 papers covering a variety of application areas, with no overlap between them. The only important application without a related article was “display”! This was exactly the situation we hoped for. In this Special Issue, you can find 10 articles discussing the applications of LC devices or LC materials.
The desired properties of surface components include the improvement of different properties, such as aesthetic appearance, oxidation resistance, wear resistance, mechanical properties, electronic or electrical properties, thermal insulation, wear, triboemission and corrosion resistance through barriers. These properties can be enhanced using different methods, such as by adding a coating. Nevertheless, the bulk of the material or substrate cannot be considered independent of the surface treatment.
Micro/Nano Devices for Chemical Analysis
Since the concept of micro total analysis systems (µ-TAS) has been advocated, various kinds of micro/nano devices have been developed by researchers in many fields, such as in chemistry, chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, electric engineering, biology, and medicine, among others. The analytical techniques for small sample volumes, using the micro/nano devices, heavily impacted the fields of biology, medicine and biotechnology, as well as analytical chemistry.
Manabu Tokeshi (Ed.) --- Kiichi Sato (Ed.)
Microbial Community Modeling: Prediction of Microbial Interactions and Community Dynamics
It has the potential to resolve many issues in the realms of energy, food, human health, the environment, and biotechnology. Scientists are trying to understand, in a fundamental way, how microbes influence each other and how they organize into interaction networks. These are the keys to predicting and engineering community function and properties of the microbiome. In this regard, mathematical modeling and computational analysis play an increasing role. This book is a collection of contributions from lead scientists in the field.
Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Structural Metals and Alloys
The papers collected in this special issue clearly reflect the modern research trends in materials science. These fields of specific attention are high-Mn TWIP steels, high-Cr heat resistant steels, aluminum alloys, ultrafine grained materials including those developed by severe plastic deformation, and high-entropy alloys. The major portion of the collected papers is focused on the mechanisms of microstructure evolution and the mechanical properties of metallic materials subjected to various thermo-mechanical, deformation or heat treatments.
Model-Driven Development and Operation of Multi-Cloud Applications: The MODAClouds Approach
This book summarizes work being undertaken within the collaborative MODAClouds research project, which aims to facilitate interoperability between heterogeneous Cloud platforms and remove the constraints of deployment, portability, and reversibility for end users of Cloud services. Experts involved in the project provide a clear overview of the MODAClouds approach and explain how it operates in a variety of applications. While the wide spectrum of available Clouds constitutes a vibrant technical environment, many early-stage issues pose specific challenges from a software engineering perspective
Novel Biocomposite Engineering and Bio-Applications
The engineering and utilization of biocomposites is a research field of major scientific and industrial interest worldwide. The biocomposite area is extensive and spans from structured and solid biocomposites (e.g., reinforced bioabsorbable polymers), films (e.g., antimicrobial barriers), to soft biocomposites (e.g., use of alginates, collagen and nanocellulose as components in bioinks for 3D bioprinting). Key aspects in this respect are the appropriate engineering and production of biomaterials, nanofibres, bioplastics, their functionalization enabling intelligent and active materials, processes for effective manufacturing of biocomposites and the corresponding characterization for understanding their properties.
Optics and Spectroscopy for Fluid Characterization
All over the world, there is a huge and ever-increasing interest in the development and application of optical and spectroscopic techniques to characterize fluids in engineering and science. The large number of review articles that are frequently published in these areas is evidence of this. Recent examples have focused on applications of optical diagnostics to gas phase environments, liquids, and multiphase systems. A key feature of such light-based methods is that they are usually non-intrusive, and hence they do not notably affect the system under investigation.
Plasma catalysis is gaining increasing interest for various gas conversion applications, such as CO2 conversion into value-added chemicals and fuels, N2 fixation for the synthesis of NH3 or NOx, methane conversion into higher hydrocarbons or oxygenates. It is also widely used for air pollution control (e.g., VOC
Plasma Science and Engineering is a multidisciplinary area encompassing some of the most exciting fundamental applied research themes in today's scientific landscape, having an extraordinarily broad impact on science, technology and industry.
Process Simulation of Technical Precipitation Processes - The Influence of Mixing
This work develops and shows up methods to tackle multi-scale challenges in particle formation during precipitation crystallization. Firstly, molecular, micro- and meso-scale interactions in confined impinging jet mixers are investigated and simulatively predicted. Secondly, to build up on developed methods, macroscale as present for instance in stirred tank reactors is added to the considerations.
In any engineering field (including manufacturing, construction, transportation, aerospace, food and agriculture, oil and gas, etc.), ensuring product quality is fundamental to achieving success. Quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) are integral components of managing quality. According to the American Society for Quality (ASQ), QA is defined as the part of quality management that focuses on instilling confidence in meeting quality requirements, while QC is concerned with fulfilling those requirements.
Science and Technology Governance and Ethics: A Global Perspective from Europe, India and China
This book analyzes the possibilities for effective global governance of science in Europe, India and China. Authors from the three regions join forces to explore how ethical concerns over new technologies can be incorporated into global science and technology policies. The first chapter introduces the topic, offering a global perspective on embedding ethics in science and technology policy. Chapter Two compares the institutionalization of ethical debates in science, technology and innovation policy in three important regions: Europe, India and China. The third chapter explores public perceptions of science and technology in these same three regions.
Miltos Ladikas --- Sachin Chaturvedi --- Yandong Zhao --- Dirk Stemerding
Soil Mechanical Systems and Related Farming Machinery
The mechanization of agricultural works has greatly contributed to an improvement in agricultural productivity and a reduction in production costs. Since the beginning of mechanization, various kinds of agricultural machinery related to soil preparation, sowing, harvesting, post-harvesting, etc., have been developed. Moreover, customized agricultural machines that are suitable for the cultivation types and soil characteristics of each country and region have been developed.
Sulfur-tolerant natural gas reforming for fuel-cell applications
An attractive simplification of PEM-FC systems operated with natural gas would be the use of a sulfur tolerant reforming catalyst, but such a catalyst has not been available thus far. In this work it is demonstrated that a tailor made rhodium catalyst retains useful activity for typical sulfur levels in the feed. A brief economic comparison showed however that this alternative process is still less economical than the traditional process employing removal of sulfur components by adsorption.
The Impact of Food Bioactives on Health: In Vitro and Ex Vivo Models
Infogest' (Improving Health Properties of Food by Sharing our Knowledge on the Digestive Process) is an EU COST action/network in the domain of Food and Agriculture. Infogest aims at building an open international network of institutes undertaking multidisciplinary basic research on food digestion gathering scientists from different origins (including food scientists, gut physiologists and nutritionists). The network gathers 70 partners from academia, corresponding to a total of 29 countries.
Kitty Verhoeckx --- Paul Cotter --- Iván López-Expósito --- Charlotte Kleiveland --- et al.
Thin Films for Energy Harvesting, Conversion, and Storage
Efficient clean energy harvesting, conversion, and storage technologies are of immense importance for the sustainable development of human society. To this end, scientists have made significant advances in recent years regarding new materials and devices for improving the energy conversion efficiency for photovoltaics, thermoelectric generation, photoelectrochemical/electrolytic hydrogen generation, and rechargeable metal ion batteries.
Chen, Zhong --- Tang, Yuxin --- Zhao, Xin
Transport of Fluids in Nanoporous Materials
Fluid transport in narrow pores is central to the design and optimization of nanoporous materials in industrial applications, such as catalysis, nanofluids, electrochemical batteries, and membrane separation. However, due to the strong potential field in nanopores, conventional models and methods have become inadequate for predicting the transport behavior of molecules confined in the pore space. In addition, the inherent complexity of the pore structure in nanomaterials requires consideration of local or nanoscale transport at the single pore level, and averaging over the macroscale, which further impedes the application and validation of the formulated mechanical models
Suresh K. Bhatia (Ed.) --- David Nicholson (Ed.) --- Xuechao Gao (Ed.) --- Guozhao Ji (Ed.)