Hydrogen technologies have experienced cycles of excessive expectations followed by disillusion. Nonetheless, a growing body of evidence suggests these technologies form an attractive option for the deep decarbonisation of global energy systems, and that recent improvements in their cost and performance point towards economic viability as well. This paper is a comprehensive review of the potential role that hydrogen could play in the provision of electricity, heat, industry, transport and energy storage in a low-carbon energy system, and an assessment of the status of hydrogen in being able to fulfil that potential. The picture that emerges is one of qualified promise: hydrogen is well established in certain niches such as forklift trucks, while mainstream applications are now forthcoming. Hydrogen vehicles are available commercially in several countries, and 225 000 fuel cell home heating systems have been sold. This represents a step change from the situation of only five years ago. This review shows that challenges around cost and performance remain, and considerable improvements are still required for hydrogen to become truly competitive. But such competitiveness in the medium-term future no longer seems an unrealistic prospect, which fully justifies the growing interest and policy support for these technologies around the world.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2019/ee/c8ee01157e

The role of hydrogen and fuel cells in the global energy system

Recent advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology radically changed the way we diagnose, treat, and prevent various diseases in all aspects of human life. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are one of the most vital and fascinating nanomaterials among several metallic nanoparticles that are involved in biomedical applications. AgNPs play an important role in nanoscience and nanotechnology, particularly in nanomedicine. Although several noble metals have been used for various purposes, AgNPs have been focused on potential applications in cancer diagnosis and therapy. In this review, we discuss the synthesis of AgNPs using physical, chemical, and biological methods. We also discuss the properties of AgNPs and methods for their characterization. More importantly, we extensively discuss the multifunctional bio-applications of AgNPs; for example, as antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-angiogenic, and anti-cancer agents, and the mechanism of the anti-cancer activity of AgNPs. In addition, we discuss therapeutic approaches and challenges for cancer therapy using AgNPs. Finally, we conclude by discussing the future perspective of AgNPs.

/pdf/silver-nanoparticles-synthesis-characterization-properties-1gs52z8tm7.pdf

Silver Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Characterization, Properties, Applications, and Therapeutic Approaches

The world is fast becoming a global village due to the increasing daily requirement of energy by all population across the world while the earth in its form cannot change. The need for energy and its related services to satisfy human social and economic development, welfare and health is increasing. Returning to renewables to help mitigate climate change is an excellent approach which needs to be sustainable in order to meet energy demand of future generations. The study reviewed the opportunities associated with renewable energy sources which includes: Energy Security, Energy Access, Social and Economic development, Climate Change Mitigation, and reduction of environmental and health impacts. Despite these opportunities, there are challenges that hinder the sustainability of renewable energy sources towards climate change mitigation. These challenges include Market failures, lack of information, access to raw materials for future renewable resource deployment, and our daily carbon footprint. The ...

https://cogentoa.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/23311916.2016.1167990

A review of renewable energy sources, sustainability issues and climate change mitigation

Fossil fuel consumption in transportation system and energy-intensive sectors as the principal pillar of civilization is associated with progressive release of greenhouse gases. Hydrogen as a promising energy carrier is a perfect candidate to supply the energy demand of the world and concomitantly reduce toxic emissions. This article gives an overview of the state-of-the-art hydrogen production technologies using renewable and sustainable energy resources. Hydrogen from supercritical water gasification (SCWG) of biomass is the most cost effective thermochemical process. Highly moisturized biomass is utilized directly in SCWG without any high cost drying process. In SCWG, hydrogen is produced at high pressure and small amount of energy is required to pressurize hydrogen in the storage tank. Tar and char formation decreases drastically in biomass SCWG. The low efficiency of solar to hydrogen system as well as expensive photovoltaic cell are the most important barriers for the widespread commercial development of solar-based hydrogen production. Since electricity costs play a crucial role on the final hydrogen price, to generate carbon free hydrogen from solar and wind energy at a competitive price with fossil fuels, the electrical energy cost should be four times less than commercial electricity prices.

Hydrogen production from renewable and sustainable energy resources: Promising green energy carrier for clean development

Currently, fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas represent the prime energy sources in the world. However, it is anticipated that these sources of energy will deplete within the next 40–50 years. Moreover, the expected environmental damages such as the global warming, acid rain and urban smog due to the production of emissions from these sources have tempted the world to try to reduce carbon emissions by 80% and shift towards utilizing a variety of renewable energy resources (RES) which are less environmentally harmful such as solar, wind, biomass etc. in a sustainable way. Biomass is one of the earliest sources of energy with very specific properties. In this review, several aspects which are associated with burning biomass in boilers have been investigated such as composition of biomass, estimating the higher heating value of biomass, comparison between biomass and other fuels, combustion of biomass, co-firing of biomass and coal, impacts of biomass, economic and social analysis of biomass, transportation of biomass, densification of biomass, problems of biomass and future of biomass. It has been found that utilizing biomass in boilers offers many economical, social and environmental benefits such as financial net saving, conservation of fossil fuel resources, job opportunities creation and CO 2 and NO x emissions reduction. However, care should be taken to other environmental impacts of biomass such as land and water resources, soil erosion, loss of biodiversity and deforestation. Fouling, marketing, low heating value, storage and collections and handling are all associated problems when burning biomass in boilers. The future of biomass in boilers depends upon the development of the markets for fossil fuels and on policy decisions regarding the biomass market.

A review on biomass as a fuel for boilers

A new method for assessing domino effect in chemical process industry.

Biodegradable wastewaters contribute as much as 6% of all anthropogenic methane emissions. High-rate anaerobic digesters have the potential to treat such wastewaters efficiently as well as enable capture of methane for use as a relatively clean energy source. This paper traces the evolution of high-rate anaerobic digester technology and provides an overview of its present capabilities. It also makes out a case for an accelerated shift from energy-intensive aerobic processes to anaerobic processes which are not only more energy-efficient but enable global warming control by methane capture.

Energy recovery from wastewaters with high-rate anaerobic digesters

Anaerobic reactors have acquired a new relevance in recent years due to their ability to generate methane from biodegradable wastewaters—thereby producing clean energy. Methane capture in this manner also prevents the escape of the greenhouse gas to the atmosphere which otherwise occurs when anaerobic conditions develop in drains and outfalls carrying wastewater. Of all the different types of anaerobic reactors in vogue – anaerobic filter, downflow fixed-film reactor, expanded fluidized-bed anaerobic reactor, etc. – the upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor is arguably the most widely used. Nearly 80% of the world's anaerobic wastewater treatment systems are estimated to be based on the UASB technology. The functioning of a UASB reactor revolves round its sludge bed which gets expanded as the wastewater is made to flow vertically upwards through it. It is the microflora attached to the sludge particles which acts upon the wastewater. Hence the quality of biofilms sported by the sludge particles, and the intimacy of the sludge–wastewater contact are the factors which, principally, govern the success of a UASB reactor. Very early in the development of UASB technology it was realized that granular sludge of appropriate particle size, particle density, and microfilm characteristics enhances the reactor efficiency in terms of the rate as well as the extent of wastewater treatment. From then onwards efforts have been made by scientists across the world to understand the factors which shape the granules and the manner in which the granules contribute to wastewater treatment. The state-of-the-art is presented in this paper.

Formation and impact of granules in fostering clean energy production and wastewater treatment in upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors

With the world reaching near-total consensus on the seriousness of the global warming impacts, and on the urgency to halt further warming, R & D efforts have intensified many-fold to find ways and means of global warming control. One of the avenues being explored is ‘decarbonization’ of fossil fuel use by either decarbonizing the fuels before they are burnt or by capturing the CO2 they emit on combustion.

In this paper the various available options are reviewed in the context of their economic and environmental viability. It emerges that even as the goal is very enchanting, the possibility of it's realization appears remote. It also follows that the only sure method of reducing greenhouse gas emissions presently available to humankind is by reducing consumption of energy and other resources.

Decarbonization of fossil fuels as a strategy to control global warming

Contrary to the popular perception that rainwater harvested from rooftops is nearly as clean as pure water, a number of contaminants can be present in such a water—this is borne out by numerous studies reviewed by the authors. Once this fact is acknowledged, it is possible to control the water quality and to bring it within acceptable levels with simple and inexpensive devices. The authors address these issues. Besides reviewing the status of the quality of harvested rainwater, they trace the pathways by which pollutants can enter in a rainwater harvest. In this backdrop the authors discuss the strategies to manage the water quality at preharvest as well as postharvest stages.

Tasneem Abbasi

Papers

A new method for assessing domino effect in chemical process industry.

Energy recovery from wastewaters with high-rate anaerobic digesters

Formation and impact of granules in fostering clean energy production and wastewater treatment in upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors

Decarbonization of fossil fuels as a strategy to control global warming

Sources of Pollution in Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting Systems and Their Control