[en] Several viewgraphs were used to illustrate trends in the propane marketplace, including prices, short term outlook, producer's economics, and Canadian supply and demand. It was shown that propane prices have always been, and still are, closely tied to crude oil. Since 1997, propane prices have been falling because of warm weather, poor international markets, weakening petro-chemical demand, increasing Canadian supplies, declining crude and petroleum prices and high inventory levels. Four graphs were included which illustrated how propane prices and inventories have fluctuated in the Mt. Belvieu, Conway, Edmonton and Sarnia markets. 8 figs

[en] Data on rearrangements of monoterpenoids with the bicyclo[4.1.0]heptane skeleton occurring by ionic, radical and concerted mechanisms are generalised and analysed.

No abstract available

[en] Highlights: • Utility supply network and future global hydrogen supply network are integrated. • Steam methane reforming process is selected as a linkage process. • A two-stage stochastic programming under demand uncertainty is used. • An optimal design is suggested by an integrated network model. - Abstract: Existing energy-efficient management and development of alternative energy infrastructure are the most important issues in modern industry. The former has been mainly studied in terms of optimal design of utility supply network. The latter has been consistently researched in the field of strategic planning of future global hydrogen supply network. In this work, we develop an integrated network model of huge chemical industrial complexes to combine various utility supply networks with a global hydrogen supply network. To construct an integrated network model, the steam methane reforming process is used as a linkage between the two networks. The developed model is a two-stage stochastic mixed integer linear programming that optimizes total cost and also considers demand uncertainty about water, electricity, steam, and hydrogen that are consumed in each network. Finally, a case study in South Korea is conducted to validate the proposed model; it suggests reasonable scenarios to decision makers.

[en] A series of experiments has recently been carried out in EAST under different plasma conditions to investigate the basic divertor performance, divertor and SOL screening efficiency and radiative divertor effect. Detached divertor plasmas have been achieved by density ramp-up. It is found that CIII emission from the low-field side (LFS) exhibits a strong dependence on poloidal locations and plasma operation regimes from methane (CH₄) puffing experiments. In addition, the radiative divertor experiments by injection of mixed Ar (5.7% Ar in D₂) into the outer divertor chamber reduce the peak heat flux by 50% at the outer target plate, which also reduce the divertor plasma temperature. The in-out heat flux distribution asymmetry is improved.

[en] Conditions for ignition of fast chain process of recombination of radicals in solid methane and water ice under irradiation are formulated. Based on the hypothesis of probabilistic character of the phenomenon, proposed by the author, the relation for the mean expectation time of the ignition of the process is derived. By invoking experimental facts, the limits of values of parameters, which may be used in the relation, are estimated

[en] A report is given on the use of biogas at dust tips. In the frame of a research programme of the Energie-Versorgung Schwaben AG (EVS) 22 dust tip have been checked so far according the different possibilities of utilising dust tip gas. (HW)

[en] An overview is presented of the North American propane supply and demand situation. Propane has a distribution network in place and a well established market. North America is virtually self-sufficient in propane with a market of over 1,000,000 bbl/d. Approximately 80% of Canada's propane supply is produced at gas plants in western Canada as a byproduct of natural gas production. The expansion in natural gas markets will mean that propane supply will rise further, unlike crude oil. Canada's daily supply of nearly 160,000 bbl is used for heating (30%), transport (12%), petrochemicals (7.8%), and enhanced oil recovery (4.7%), with the remainder being exported. Propane surpluses are expected to grow, between 70,000 and 100,000 bbl/d in the next 5 years. Nearly 30% of North America's demand for propane is in the petrochemical industry, for which various other feedstocks can be substituted. An availability of over 400,000 bbl/d could fuel ca 5 million vehicles. Only natural gas has a comparable infrastructure and this suffers from high utilization pressure and poor energy density. Wholesale propane is now available at under 9 cents/liter, significantly below the projected ethanol price of 18 cents/liter, which excludes grain feedstock or capital cost. 8 refs., 6 figs

[en] A novel method for event-by-event determination of the gas amplification factor in a uniform electric field has been developed. The method is based on the digital waveform analysis of signals from an avalanche counter and offers several advantages such as independence from determination of the primary ionization and total charge, and it is immune to the space charge effect that can seriously affect the gas amplification process.

[en] A new type of packed bed biofilm reactor was developed and research was started as a part of the new bioprocess system for anaerobic biofilm (BPSab). The present paper is dedicated to the investigations of the behavior of the new BPSab with this reactor as its major part. The new device passed a long period of incessant functioning under tough operational conditions. This was a good proof of the suitability of the new bioreactor as a laboratory tool for anaerobic biofilm investigations. It ensured stable experimental conditions for investigations of the influence on the intensity of mixing and the temperature on the BPSab productivity of biogas. Study of the mixing intensity on the bioreactor productivity showed an indifferent behavior to this factor in a rather large interval of changes of its values. As to the temperature, the reaction was similar to that of the chemical process systems following the Arrhenius rule in some part of the interval of its changes.