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In previous publications/presentations at GHGT-13, a plan was outlined for the capture and storage/utilization of CO2 within the state of Illinois. This plan has evolved significantly due to a number of technical, regulatory, and financial factors that have occurred at both the state and federal level. A combination of successful implementation of large-scale storage projects, significant investment in research and development by the US DOE, and the advent of 45Q tax credits has created a significant driver for growth in Illinois for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) projects. This ability to either store or utilize the CO2 creates diverse financial opportunities for CO2 sources within the state, hence an ability to build new markets and drivers for large CO2 emitters within the state. A major cornerstone of this effort is to have a range of capture sites in the state that can accommodate the evaluation of capture technologies that are at various levels of maturity (i.e., technology readiness levels or TRLs). The net impact is an ability to assist Illinois in achieving its goals for grid decarbonization and clean energy job creation.

Background An existing computer aided detection (CAD) scheme faces major issues during subtle nodule recognition. However, radiologists have not noticed subtle nodules in beginning stage of lung cancer. Method In the proposed computer aided detection (CAD) system, this issue has been resolved by creating MTANN based soft tissue technique from the lung segmented x-ray image. X-ray images are downloaded using JSRT(Japanese society of radiological technology) image set. JSRT image set includes 233 images (140 nodule x-ray images and 93 normal x-ray images). A mean size for a nodule is 17.8 mm and it is validated with computed tomography (CT) image. Thirty percent (42/140) abnormal represent subtle nodules and it is split into five stages (tremendously subtle, very subtle, subtle, observable, relatively observable) by radiologists. Result An existing computer aided detection (CAD) scheme attained 66.42% (93/140) sensitivity having 2.5 false positives (FPs) per image. Utilizing MTANN based soft tissue technique, many nodules superimposed by ribs as well as clavicles have identified (sensitivity is 72.85% (102/140) at one false positive rate). Conclusion In particular, proposed computer aided detection (CAD) system using soft tissue technique determine sensitivity in support of subtle nodules (14/42=33.33%) is statistically higher than CAD (13/42=30.95%) scheme without soft tissue technique. A proposed CAD scheme attained tremendously minimum false positive rate and it is a promising technique in support of cancerous recognition.

The increasing demand for renewable fuels and chemicals necessitates the exploration of alternative sources to replace petroleum sources. Biomass has been viewed as the most promising source to produce sustainable fuels and chemicals. Underpinning the key advantages of microwave heating (e.g., rapid and controlled heating, energy saving, and no requirement for agitation or fluidization), microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MAP) is one of the most attractive techniques for the valorization of biomass, which are more amenable to produce three high quality products: bio-oil, gas, and bio-char. In this respect, this article reviews the biomass pyrolysis using microwave irradiation from several points of view, starting from fundamentals of microwave irradiation, types of microwave absorbers, and chemistry of non-catalytic MAP and focusing on chemistry of catalytic MAP plus various categories of catalysts. Recent progress in the experimental studies on both non-catalytic MAP and catalytic MAP of biomass is also demonstrated with emphasis on the bio-oil yield and quality. Additionally, reaction kinetics and future prospects in the light of current studies are also given in this review. Consequently, this review illustrates both the highlights of significant achievements from biomass pyrolysis using microwave irradiation and the milestones that are necessary to be obtained in the future.

The feasibility of dewatering coal tailings slurry by forward osmosis (FO) membrane process was investigated in this research. A prototype cell was designed and used for the dewatering tests. A cellulosic FO membrane (Hydration Technology Innovations, LLC, Albany, OR) was used for the dewatering studies due to its high fouling resistance. Representative samples of coal tailings slurry were collected from the thickener outflow at American Coal Company (Galatia, Illinois). Characterization studies were conducted to obtain particle size distribution (PSD), total dissolved solids (TDS) and the solids content of the slurry. The impact of the slurry properties such as solids weight percent, osmotic pressure, and particle size on the dewatering rates was determined. Furthermore, the impact of slurry conditioning by the addition of flocculant and gypsum on the rate and extent of dewatering was also investigated. Dewatering to a total solids content of more than seventy weight percent from an initial solids content of approximately thirty percent was achieved in all cases. The dewatering rate and extent were found to be a function of particle size, particle shape, TDS content, and mixing. The membrane material was shown to withstand repeated use over a period of thirty trials without deterioration of performance. The results obtained from this research suggest that osmotic dewatering of coal refuse slurry is feasible.

Woody biochar monolith with ultra-high carbon content and highly ordered macropores has been prepared via one-pot pyrolysis and carbonization of red cedar wood at 750 °C without the need of post-treatment. Energy-dispersive spectroscope (EDX) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies show that the original biochar has a carbon content of 98 wt% with oxygen as the only detectable impurity and highly ordered macroporous texture characterized by alternating regular macroporous regions and narrow porous regions. Moreover, the hierarchically porous biochar monolith has a high BET specific surface area of approximately 400 m 2 g −1 . We have studied the monolith material as supercapacitor electrodes under acidic environment using electrochemical and surface characterization techniques. Electrochemical measurements show that the original biochar electrodes have a potential window of about 1.3 V and exhibit typical rectangular-shape voltammetric responses and fast charging–discharging behavior with a gravimetric capacitance of about 14 F g −1 . Simple activation of biochar in diluted nitric acid at room temperature leads to 7 times increase in the capacitance (115 F g −1 ). Because the HNO 3 -activation slightly decreases rather than increases the BET surface area of the biochar, an increase in the coverage of surface oxygen groups is the most likely origin of the substantial capacitance improvement. This is supported by EDX, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Raman measurements. Preliminary life-time studies show that biochar supercapacitors using the original and HNO 3 -activated electrodes are stable over 5000 cycles without performance decays. These facts indicate that the use of woody biochar is promising for its low cost and it can be a good performance electrode with low environmental impacts for supercapacitor applications.

Thermochemical conversion is a promising route for recovering energy from algal biomass. Two thermochemical processes, hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL: 300 °C and 10-12 MPa) and slow pyrolysis (heated to 450 °C at a rate of 50 °C/min), were used to produce bio-oils from Scenedesmus (raw and defatted) and Spirulina biomass that were compared against Illinois shale oil. Although both thermochemical conversion routes produced energy dense bio-oil (35-37 MJ/kg) that approached shale oil (41 MJ/kg), bio-oil yields (24-45%) and physico-chemical characteristics were highly influenced by conversion route and feedstock selection. Sharp differences were observed in the mean bio-oil molecular weight (pyrolysis 280-360 Da; HTL 700-1330 Da) and the percentage of low boiling compounds (bp

Chemically activated fiber (CAF) for removal of trace atrazine from water was prepared by coating fiberglass assemblies with a phenolic resin along with a chemical activation agent of ZnCl2, then stabilization and heat treatment in N2 at 500 °C. The carbon on the CAF shows similar BET surface area and volumes of narrow micropores (

The effect of calcium on the stability of a commercial MWF is characterized through the experimental determination of the stability ratio, W. Three experimental methods of stability ratio evaluation are investigated. (1) The initial slope of the absorbance versus time curve is used to estimate the rate of coagulation. (2) Absorbance measurements are used to estimate N 0 / N with time. The stability ratio is determined from the slope of N 0 / N versus time. (3) Photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) measurements of the volume distribution with time are used to estimate N 0 / N with time. Electrophoretic mobility was also measured and used to determine the fast coagulation concentration of the MWF. The accuracy of the experimentally determined stability ratios is evaluated using a population balance coagulation model. The model predicts the population distribution of a coagulating dispersion with time based on an initial particle size distribution and stability ratio. The model results were compared with the PCS-measured distributions to determine which stability ratio evaluation method best describes the stability of the MWF emulsion studied. Using the initial slope of the absorbance versus time curve to determine the fast coagulation concentration correlates well with electrophoretic mobility measurements. However, using absorbance measurements to determine the rate of coagulation underestimates the stability ratio of the MWF studied by orders of magnitude. N 0 / N values calculated from absorbance measurements provide a reasonable estimate of the stability ratio but inconsistencies in the method decrease its reliability. The stability ratio derived from PCS measurements appears to provide the most accurate, reliable description of MWF stability.

This study presents the complete utilization of spent coffee grounds to produce biodiesel, bio-oil, and biochar. Lipids extracted from spent grounds were converted to biodiesel. The neat biodiesel and blended (B5 and B20) fuel properties were evaluated against ASTM and EN standards. Although neat biodiesel displayed high viscosity, moisture, sulfur, and poor oxidative stability, B5 and B20 met ASTM blend specifications. Slow pyrolysis of defatted coffee grounds was performed to generate bio-oil and biochar as valuable co-products. The effect of feedstock defatting was assessed through bio-oil analyses including elemental and functional group composition, compound identification, and molecular weight and boiling point distributions. Feedstock defatting reduced pyrolysis bio-oil yields, energy density, and aliphatic functionality, while increasing the number of low-boiling oxygenates. The high bio-oil heteroatom content will likely require upgrading. Additionally, biochar derived from spent and defatted gro...