Production Of Nitrogen Oxides Research Articles

NO Formation in Combustion Engines Fuelled by Mixtures of Hydrogen and Methane

The present work addresses the production of nitrogen oxides in ICEs burning hydrogen mixed with methane. A mathematical model that allows the calculation of nitrogen oxide emissions from such combustion was built; this model uses the extended chemical kinetic mechanism of Zeldovich. Numerical simulations were carried out on the production of NO, varying the following variables: proportion of H2 to CH4, the equivalence ratio of the reactant mixture, the compression ratio, and the engine speed. The essential purpose was to assess how NO production is affected by the mentioned variables. The main assumptions were (i) Otto cycle; (ii) instantaneous combustion; (iii) chemical equilibrium reached just at the end of combustion; (iv) the formation of NO only during the expansion stroke of pistons. Results were obtained for various proportions of hydrogen and methane, various equivalence ratios, speeds of rotation, and compression ratios of an engine. In short, the results obtained in the current work show that the lowering of the equivalence ratio leads to a lower concentration of NO; that increasing the compression ratio also lowers the concentration of NO; that NO production occurs until shortly after the beginning of the expansion stroke; and finally, that the NO concentration in the engine exhaust is not very sensitive to the H2/CH4 ratio in the fuel mixture.

NO Formation in Combustion Engines Fuelled by Mixtures of Hydrogen and Methane

The present work addresses the production of nitrogen oxides in ICEs burning hydrogen mixed with methane. A mathematical model that allows the calculation of nitrogen oxide emissions from such combustion was built; this model uses the extended chemical kinetic mechanism of Zeldovich. Numerical simulations were carried out on the production of NO, varying the following variables: proportion of H2 to CH4, the equivalence ratio of the reactant mixture, the compression ratio, and the engine speed. The essential purpose was to assess how NO production is affected by the mentioned variables. The main assumptions were (i) Otto cycle; (ii) instantaneous combustion; (iii) chemical equilibrium reached just at the end of combustion; (iv) the formation of NO only during the expansion stroke of pistons. Results were obtained for various proportions of hydrogen and methane, various equivalence ratios, speeds of rotation, and compression ratios of an engine. In short, the results obtained in the current work show that the lowering of the equivalence ratio leads to a lower concentration of NO; that increasing the compression ratio also lowers the concentration of NO; that NO production occurs until shortly after the beginning of the expansion stroke; and finally, that the NO concentration in the engine exhaust is not very sensitive to the H2/CH4 ratio in the fuel mixture.

Lipid metabolites and nitric oxide production in the cerebrospinal fluid and plasma of dogs with meningoencephalitis of unknown origin and idiopathic epilepsy: a pilot study.

Idiopathic epilepsy (IE) and meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin (MUO) are common causes of brain diseases leading to seizures in dogs. In this study, the concentrations of 196 lipid metabolites and nitrogen oxide (NO) production in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma of dogs with MUO or IE were measured using a LC-MS/MS and a NOx analyzer, respectively. Nine clinically healthy dogs and 11 and 12 dogs with IE and MUO, respectively, were included in the study. Lipid analysis revealed variations in the levels of four and six lipid metabolites in CSF and plasma, respectively, between the groups. The levels of 6-keto-prostaglandin (PG) F1α (PGF1α), 20-carboxy arachidonic acid (20-carboxy-AA), 9-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid, and lyso-platelet-activating factor were high in the CSF of dogs with MUO. In addition, the plasma levels of 11,12-dihydroxyeicosatrienoic acid, 20-carboxy-AA, and oleoylethanolamide were high in dogs with IE, and those of PGF1α were high in dogs with MUO. NO production levels were high in CSF but not in plasma in dogs with MUO or IE. It remains unknown whether these changes represent the cause or effect of diseases of the central nervous system; however, lipid metabolites and NO production in CSF and plasma may be used as diagnostic biomarkers and could be exploited for treating idiopathic or inflammatory epilepsy in dogs.

Water Microdroplets in Air: A Hitherto Unnoticed Natural Source of Nitrogen Oxides.

Water microdroplets are widespread in the atmosphere. We report a striking observation that micron-sized water droplets obtained from zero-volt spray sources (sonic spray, humidifier, spray bottle, steamer, etc.) spontaneously generate nitrogen oxides. The mechanistic investigation through the development of custom-designed sampling sources combined with mass spectrometry and isotope labeling experiments confirmed that air nitrogen reacts with the water at the air-water interface, fixing molecular nitrogen to its oxides (NO, NO2, and N2O) and acids (HNO2 and HNO3) at trace levels without any catalyst. These reactions are attributed to the consequence of an experimentally detected feeble corona discharge (breakdown of air) at the air-water interface, likely driven by the high intrinsic electric field at the surface of water microdroplets. The extent of this corona discharge effect varies depending on the pH, salinity/impurity, size, speed, and lifetime of microdroplets in the air. Thus, this study discloses that the air-water interface of microdroplets breaks the strong chemical bond of nitrogen (N2), producing nitrogen oxides in the environment, while lightning strikes and microbial processes in soil are considered their dominant natural sources. As nitrogen oxides are toxic air pollutants, their spontaneous formation at the air-water interface should have important implications in atmospheric reactions, requiring further investigations.

Detonation properties and nitrogen oxide production in ammonia–hydrogen–air mixtures

Ammonia is a promising compound for chemical storage of renewable energy produced from non-continuous sources. However, the low reactivity of ammonia requires to use ammonia–hydrogen blends as a fuel for combustion applications. The present study corresponds to a first numerical assessment of the potential of ammonia–hydrogen–air mixtures as reactive mixtures for detonation engine applications. Both ideal and curved detonation models were employed to calculate the detonation properties, entropy production, and NOx production for mixtures with varying amounts of ammonia and hydrogen under a wide range of initial thermodynamics conditions. Interestingly, our calculations show that the entropy production and the amount of nitrogen oxides produced at the Chapman–Jouguet state respectively decreases and increases with the proportion of hydrogen in the ammonia–hydrogen blend. These aspects could have a great impact on engine efficiency and air pollution and should be considered with care. Our results also demonstrate that only mixtures with relatively low amounts of ammonia, i.e., XNH3 lower than 0.25 of the fuel blend, can be employed for detonation engine applications.

Numerical Investigation of a Hydrogen–Air Flame for NOx Prediction

Abstract Sustainable aviation fuels are a major candidate to reduce pollutant emissions in future aeronautical engines. Recently, the use of hydrogen as a fuel has gained a high interest partly because its combustion is free from carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, and produces few pollutants, mainly nitrogen oxides (NOx). Over the last decades, efforts on numerical methods for combustion simulation in aero-engines have largely been focused on kerosene-air combustion. However, the current transition may have a significant impact on the computational methodologies for combustor design. Hydrogen defines novel modeling issues and challenges the current state of art on numerical methodologies. The current study presents a numerical investigation of a hydrogen–air burner using large-eddy simulations (LES) with a focus on NOx prediction. The considered configuration is a two-staged combustor, similar to the well-known RQL (Rich-Quench-Lean) technology, supplied by a single coaxial injector characterized experimentally. Two combustion models are investigated: (i) tabulated chemistry based on premixed flamelets (ii) transported chemistry description by using a 21-species chemical scheme. Numerical results are compared with experimental data (NOx concentrations, temperature distributions, pressure losses). A focus on model predictions is carried out. Results show a good agreement to predict the main flow characteristics and the premixed flame position over different operating points and geometries for both frameworks. In contrast, NOx emissions are more sensitive: while the overall trend is well captured, the quantification is more scattered. Finally, an in-depth analysis is proposed to link NOx production with the nonpremixed flame size.

Co-cultures from Plants and Cyanobacteria: A New Way for Production Systems in Agriculture and Bioprocess Engineering.

Due to the global increase in the world population, it is not possible to ensure a sufficient food supply without additional nitrogen input into the soil. About 30-50% of agricultural yields are due to the use of chemical fertilizers in modern times. However, overfertilization threatens biodiversity, such as nitrogen-loving, fast-growing species overgrow others. The production of artificial fertilizers produces nitrogen oxides, which act as greenhouse gases. In addition, overfertilization of fields also releases ammonia, which damages surface waters through acidification and eutrophication. Diazotrophic cyanobacteria, which usually form a natural, stable biofilm, can fix nitrogen from the atmosphere and release it into the environment. Thus, they could provide an alternative to artificial fertilizers. In addition to this, biofilms stabilize soils and thus protect against soil erosion and desiccation. This chapter deals with the potential of cyanobacteria as the use of natural fertilizer is described. Possible partners such as plants and callus cells and the advantages of artificial co-cultivation will be discussed later. In addition, different cultivation systems for studying artificial co-cultures will be presented. Finally, the potential of artificial co-cultures in the agar industry will be discussed.

An Injectable Puerarin Depot Can Potentiate Chimeric Antigen Receptor Natural Killer Cell Immunotherapy Against Targeted Solid Tumors by Reversing Tumor Immunosuppression.

Chimeric antigen receptor natural killer (CAR-NK) cell therapy represents a potent approach to suppressing tumor growth because it has simultaneously inherited the specificity of CAR and the intrinsic generality of NK cells in recognizing cancer cells. However, its therapeutic potency against solid tumors is still restricted by insufficient tumor infiltration, immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments, and many other biological barriers. Motivated by the high potency of puerarin, a traditional Chinese medicine extract, in dilating tumor blood vessels, an injectable puerarin depot based on a hydrogen peroxide-responsive hydrogel comprising poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate and ferrous chloride is concisely developed. Upon intratumoral fixation, the as-prepared puerarin depot (abbreviated as puerarin@PEGel) can activate nitrogen oxide production inside endothelial cells and thus dilate tumor blood vessels to relieve tumor hypoxia and reverse tumor immunosuppression. Such treatment can thus promote tumor infiltration, survival, and effector functions of customized epidermal growth factor receptor (HER1)-targeted HER1-CAR-NK cells after intravenous administration. Consequently, such puerarin@PEGel-assisted HER1-CAR-NK cell treatment exhibits superior tumor suppression efficacy toward both HER1-overexpressing MDA-MB-468 and NCI-H23 human tumor xenografts in mice without inducing obvious side effects. This study highlights a potent strategy to activate CAR-NK cells for augmented treatment of targeted solid tumors through reprogramming tumor immunosuppression.

In Situ Sampling of NOx Emissions from United States Natural Gas Flares Reveals Heavy-Tail Emission Characteristic.

Natural gas flaring is a common practice employed in many United States (U.S.) oil and gas regions to dispose of gas associated with oil production. Combustion of predominantly hydrocarbon gas results in the production of nitrogen oxides (NOx). Here, we present a large field data set of in situ sampling of real world flares, quantifying flaring NOx production in major U.S. oil production regions: the Bakken, Eagle Ford, and Permian. We find that a single emission factor does not capture the range of the observed NOx emission factors within these regions. For all three regions, the median emission factors fall within the range of four emission factors used by the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality. In the Bakken and Permian, the distribution of emission factors exhibits a heavy tail such that basin-average emission factors are 2-3 times larger than the value employed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Extrapolation to basin scale emissions using auxiliary satellite assessments of flare volumes indicates that NOx emissions from flares are skewed, with 20%-30% of the flares responsible for 80% of basin-wide flaring NOx emissions. Efforts to reduce flaring volume through alternative gas capture methods would have a larger impact on the NOx oil and gas budget than current inventories indicate.

The impact of hydrogen addition and OH concentration on NO emissions in high-pressure NH3/air combustion

The addition of hydrogen to ammonia enhances combustion stability and widens the flame limits. However, it also brings the drawback of increased nitrogen oxide (NO) emissions. Therefore, this study employs a chemical kinetics simulation system to investigate the effects of OH concentration and hydrogen addition on NO emissions in a laminar premixed hydrogen/ammonia/air swirling flame at high pressures. The research reveals a distinct positive linear correlation between NO emissions and the peak mole fraction of OH radicals. Within the range of 1.0≤φ ≤ 1.1 and 0≤XH2≤0.5, as hydrogen content (0≤XH2≤0.5) increases, the promoting effect of max(OH) on NO emissions continuously intensifies. Pressure, on the other hand, has virtually no impact on their correlation.Furthermore,the analysis of production rates, sensitivity, and reaction pathways indicates that NH3 primarily transforms into NO through three pathways: NH3→NH2(NH)→HNO→NO, NH3→NH2→NH→NO, and NH3→NH2→NH→N→NO. The HNO intermediate pathway is the major route for NO generation, with OH radicals significantly promoting NO production via the NH→HNO intermediate pathway. This theoretically validates the correlation between max(OH) and NO emissions. Data analysis using MATLAB yields the relationship between max(OH) and NO emissions, providing a theoretical basis for the practical application of OH chemiluminescence detection. Additionally, NNH proves to be a crucial radical in ammonia oxidation chemistry and is involved in the NO formation process in reaction R69 NNH + ONH + NO. This study sheds light on the complex interplay between OH, hydrogen content, and NO emissions, providing valuable insights into combustion dynamics and emissions control.

Structure and NOx Emissions of Stratified Hydrogen-Air Flames Stabilized on a Coaxial Injector

Abstract In recent years, the need for low-carbon power has seen hydrogen emerge as a potential fuel to replace conventional hydrocarbons in combustion to limit CO2 emissions in several sectors, including aeronautics. The challenges posed by hydrogen combustion are similar to the issues of kerosene flames but more challenging, like nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and flame flashback. One potential solution to address these problems is to burn a rich mixture of hydrogen and air in globally lean conditions on a coaxial injector to obtain a stable and staged combustion and attempt to reduce emissions. In this article, the evolution of NOx production as more air is mixed into the fuel is studied, as well as the changes in flame size and structure. In particular, the appearance of a secondary flame front is observed and increasing the proportion of air in the fuel mixture both shortens the flame and reduces the NOx emission index. Additionally, the effect of the global equivalence ratio and flame thermal power is studied. Finally, existing models for NOx emission of hydrogen flames on a coaxial injector based on average flame residence time and strain rate are tested and shown to have promising results.

Study on Mechanisms of NOx Formation and Inhibition during the Combustion of NH3/CH4 and NH3/CO Mixtures

Ammonia is an ideal renewable, carbon-free fuel and hydrogen carrier, which produces nitrogen and water after complete combustion in the presence of oxygen. However, ammonia has low reactivity, slow flame-propagation speed, and carries risks of high nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. Co-firing ammonia with an industrial by-product gas (with CH4 and CO being the main combustible materials) is a cost-effective and convenient method of improving the combustion characteristics of ammonia, but attention still needs to be paid to the NOx generation. Currently, the research on NOx formation during co-firing of ammonia with other fuel gases is still insufficient. In this study, a high-temperature furnace reaction system was used to investigate the NOx formation and inhibition mechanisms during the combustion of NH3/CH4 and NH3/CO mixtures. By varying the ammonia blending ratio, excess air coefficient (α), temperature, residence time, and fuel concentration, the key factors influencing NOx generation and inhibition were further analyzed. The results showed that when α was no less than 1, the production of NOx initially increased and then decreased with an increasing proportion of ammonia in the fuel gas. Within the temperature range of 900 °C to 1500 °C, the amount of NOx generated during the combustion of the mixed gas gradually decreased with the increase in temperature. Under the conditions of NH3/CH4 and NH3/CO, the emissions of NOx were higher than those during pure ammonia combustion.

Performance and Emissions Benefits of Cooled Ceramic Matrix Composite Vanes for High-Pressure Turbines

Abstract Ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) offer great potential for developing lighter and more efficient aero-engines. Due to their high-temperature capability, CMCs are mainly used in the hot gas section in order to replace cooled metallic components and thus save cooling air. Especially CMC vanes for high-pressure turbines (HPTs) have been researched and tested in the past. A realistic design approach for cooled CMC vanes is the so-called shell and spar concept. The application of such vanes in HPTs as inlet guide vanes (IGVs) at constant rotor inlet temperature (T41) enables performance and emissions benefits which are assessed by means of a reference engine in this paper. Compared to metallic IGVs, more temperature-resistant CMC IGVs require significantly less cooling air and generate lower cooling losses. A quantitative comparison will be presented. Consequently, the redesign of the reference engine to the setting of a hybrid HPT leads to a reduction in thrust specific fuel consumption (TSFC) by 0.23% at cruise conditions. Additionally, there is potential to extract the IGV cooling air at a lower pressure level, increasing the cruise TSFC gain to 0.41%. In the course of the redesign process, the turbine inlet temperature (T4) is reduced by 50 K in order to reach the same T41 with a lower IGV coolant mass flow. Regarding emissions, this leads to a decreased production of nitrogen oxides (NOx). Hence, several NOx emissions parameters can be reduced by more than 4%.

Analytical Formulations for Nitrogen Oxides Emissions Estimation of an Air Turbo-Rocket Engine Using Hydrogen

According to the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on climate change, aviation contributes to only about 2% to anthropogenic global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, in view of the growing market demand and the dramatic reductions in other transport sectors, including maritime and automotive, the aviation sector’s percentage impact on global GHG emissions is expected to reach 50% of the transport share by 2040. High-speed aviation exploiting liquid hydrogen as the propellant can represent a valuable solution toward the decarbonization of the sector. However, to avoid jeopardizing the dream of a new generation of high-speed aircraft, it will be necessary to introduce non-CO2 emissions estimations beginning with the design process. To unlock the possibility of anticipating the nitrogen oxides emissions estimation, the authors developed the hydrogen and high-speed P3-T3 methodology (H2-P3T3), an evolution of the widely used P3-T3 method, properly conceived to support (i) innovative air-breathing propulsive systems for supersonic and hypersonic flights and (ii) greener fuels, such as hydrogen. This paper presents a step-by-step approach to developing novel analytical formulations customized for an Air Turbo-Rocket engine and discusses the discovered correlation of nitrogen oxides production with the fuel-to-air ratio (FAR), the Mach number, and the Damköhler number (Da), the last being a nondimensional variable directly related to hydrogen/air combustion, considering the matching between the residence time and the ignition delay times. The most complete formulation allows for reduction in the prediction errors below 5%.

Environmental and second law analysis of a turbojet engine operating with different fuels

Fuels such as kerosene, diesel No. 2, and JP-4 are extensively utilized in aviation engines. This study conducts a comprehensive comparison of these fuels within the context of a turbojet engine modeled using GasTurb. While key operational parameters like Mach numbers and total pressure ratios are held constant, variations are introduced in the fuel-air equivalence ratio (ϕ) and the pressure ratio of the high-pressure compressor in the turbojet engine. The results of these analyses show that kerosene exhibits the most favorable operational range, resulting in the lowest production of nitrogen oxides (NO). Conversely, diesel fuel displays a broader operational range with higher NO production. Moreover, diesel fuel yields greater CO2-equivalent emissions during combustion due to elevated levels of both CO2 and NO emissions. On the other hand, kerosene consistently produces the lowest CO2-equivalent emissions across all scenarios. Despite kerosene exhibiting relatively lower exergy efficiency and the highest exergy destruction among the three fuels, it emerges with the lowest total and specific environmental pollution costs. By analyzing a range of parameters and incorporating environmental considerations, this study identifies kerosene as the optimal choice for minimizing emissions and mitigating the environmental impact in aviation applications.

The methodology of decoupling fuel and thermal nitrogen oxides in multi-dimensional computational fluid dynamics combustion simulation of ammonia-hydrogen spark ignition engines

Under the paradigm of carbon neutrality, ammonia-hydrogen (NH3–H2) blended fuel presents itself as a zero-carbon alternative to petroleum-based fuels, effectively reducing carbon emissions originating from internal combustion engines. In the combustion process of conventional hydrocarbon fuels, the production of nitrogen oxides (NOX) predominantly arises from nitrogen present in the atmosphere, which occurs through the Zeldovich mechanism under high-temperature conditions. These NOX species, commonly referred to as thermal NOX, rely on inert nitrogen. However, the utilization of ammonia fuel activates the reactivity of nitrogen element, leading to the nitrogen-containing species formation, including NOX, termed as fuel NOX. Consequently, the combustion of ammonia-hydrogen fuel entails the coupling of thermally formed nitrogen oxides and fuel-derived nitrogen oxides. The generation of NOX is significantly influenced by the physicochemical environment, while the transient combustion conditions within the engine combustion chamber further complicate the process of NH3–H2 combustion and NOX formation. As a consequence, comprehensively investigating the NOX emission characteristics in NH3–H2 engines presents a considerable challenge. By decoupling fuel NOX and thermal NOX, a more profound understanding of NOX emission control strategies for ammonia-hydrogen engines can be attained. This research paper accomplishes the decoupling of fuel nitrogen elements and atmospheric nitrogen elements in three dimensional computational fluid dynamics engine combustion simulations. The results indicate that this decoupling methodology disregards the differentiation between the fuel NOX pool and the thermal NOX pool, resulting in a slight modification in NOX concentration. Nevertheless, this approach has minimal impact on the combustion process, ensuring that the NOX formation environment remains largely unchanged. Furthermore, it successfully demonstrates the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of thermal NOX and fuel NOX, thereby furnishing an effective analytical tool for the comprehensive study of NOX emission characteristics in NH3–H2 engines.

Myo-inositol enhances the resistance and alleviates inflammation of Cyprinus carpio to Aeromonas hydrophila infection

The metabolic state is closely related to the host's anti-infection ability, and metabolic modulation has been proved as a powerful strategy to improve the therapy for bacterial infection. The present study investigated the metabolic profiling between susceptible and resistant Cyprinus carpio upon Aeromonas hydrophila infection based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) metabolomics approach, and myo-inositol as a metabolite with the most significant change, may be a candidate biomarker for host anti-infection ability. Consistent with our expectations, exogenous myo-inositol potentiated C. carpio against A. hydrophila infection in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, myo-inositol pre-treatment could inhibit the inflammatory response and alleviate oxidative damage of liver caused by bacterial infection. Furthermore, the underlying mechanism of myo-inositol enhances the resistance was investigated. Exogenous myo-inositol triggered metabolic shift, including alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism and arginine biosynthesis, and myo-inositol remarkably induced iNOS expression, iNOS activity and promote the production of nitrogen oxide (NO). The study disclosed a metabolic approach to enhance a host's ability to fight bacterial infection.

Combustion synthesis mechanism of the Ni(NO3)2 + hexamethylenetetramine solutions to prepare nickel nanomaterials

This work reports the combustion synthesis mechanism in a system with hexamethylenetetramine (C6H12N4) as the fuel and nickel nitrate (Ni(NO3)2) as the oxidizer. Detailed investigations using combustion diagnostic methods, thermal analysis, and mass spectroscopy measurements allow us to propose that the process includes the multistage decomposition of the oxidizer and sublimation of the fuel. The latter decomposes at the gas phase and releases nitrogen (N2), hydrazine (N2H4), and methane (CH4). The nitrogen oxides (NO, NO2, N2O) emitted at the decomposition of Ni(NO3)2·2Ni(OH)2·4H2O intermediate, react with CH4 and N2H4. These highly exothermic reactions determine the maximum temperature of combustion. Comparative kinetic consideration allows us to attribute the Ni(NO3)2·2Ni(OH)2·4H2O decomposition producing nitrogen oxides and nickel oxide (NiO) as the rate-limiting stage of the process. Excessive amounts of N2H4 and CH4 in the fuel-rich system reduce NiO to nanoscale Ni. The synthesized Ni readily consolidates into samples with relative densities above 90%, even at 773 K during fast processing.

Impact of thunderstorm activities on tropospheric NOx adversely affecting the climate change over Bagmati province of Nepal

Lightning is a complex electrical discharge that occurs in the atmosphere. Huge currents associated with the lightning discharge raises the ambient temperature resulting in the change in atmospheric chemistry. The extreme temperatures within lightning channels break apart molecular nitrogen (N2) and oxygen (O2) to produce nitrogen oxides (NOx). NOx act as indirect greenhouse gases by producing the tropospheric Ozone. Likewise, NOx gases also affect the global greenhouse gas budget through the change in concentration of hydroxyl radical (OH) and Methane. This study analyzes the association of lightning stroke density with the tropospheric NOx over the Bagmati province (central region) of Nepal, during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon for 3 years (2018 to 2020). The tropospheric NOx was examined by utilizing the data from Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), whereas the lightning stroke data was obtained from VAISALA’s Global Lightning Detection (GLD-360) Network. The lightning stroke density for each season were plotted against the corresponding average value of NOx to obtain the correlation coefficient over the period of study. Strong positive correlations between lightning and NOx production during per-monsoon periods were obtained for all the three years of study period, whereas, comparatively weak correlations are obtained for the post-monsoon seasons. Nevertheless, the NOx production due to lightning is found to be strong, during the pre-monsoon period, a relatively dry season over the Bagmati province. This clearly indicates that lightning is a big source of tropospheric NOx,that in turn produces greenhouse gases and hence contributes to the climatic changes over the central region on Nepal.

Development and Characterization of Antioxidant and Antibacterial Films Based on Potato Starch Incorporating Viola odorata Extract to Improve the Oxidative and Microbiological Quality of Chicken Fillets during Refrigerated Storage.

In this research, the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of active films based on potato starch containing Viola odorata extract (VOE) were investigated both in vitro and in chicken fillets. The VOE was added to the starch film formulation at 0, 1, 2, and 3% (w/v). The results showed that by increasing the extract level, the total phenol content and antioxidant and antibacterial activity of the films against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella typhimurium improved remarkably. The results of the meat tests indicated the significant antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of active films containing different levels of VOE in chicken fillets, and a direct relationship was observed between the concentration of the extract and the functional activity of the films, so with the increase in the concentration of the extract in the films, the rate of lipid oxidation and growth of microorganisms in the chicken fillets decreased significantly during the storage period, and less volatile nitrogen bases, metmyoglobin, and oxidation products were produced in the fillets. In general, the results of this research demonstrated that an active film based on potato starch containing VOE (especially 2 and 3% levels) has the ability to extend the oxidative and microbiological shelf life of chicken fillets during cold storage for at least eight days.