Scaled-up System Research Articles

A solar-driven atmospheric water extractor for off-grid freshwater generation and irrigation

Solar-driven atmospheric water extraction (SAWE) is a sustainable technology for decentralized freshwater supply. However, most SAWE systems produce water intermittently due to the cyclic nature, with adoption hindered by complex design requirements or periodic manual operations. Herein, a fully passive SAWE system that can continuously produce freshwater under sunlight is presented. By optimizing the three-dimensional architecture to facilitate spontaneous mass transport and efficient energy utilization, this system can consistently produce 0.65 L m−2 h−1 of freshwater under 1-sun illumination at 90% relative humidity (RH) and functions in arid environments with an RH as low as 40%. We test the practical performance of a scaled-up system in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia over 35 days across two seasons. The system produces 2.0–3.0 L m−2 per day of freshwater during the summer and 1.0–2.8 L m−2 per day of freshwater during the fall, without requiring additional maintenance. Intriguingly, we demonstrate the system’s potential for off-grid irrigation by successfully growing cabbage plants using atmospheric water. This passive SAWE system, harnessing solar energy to continuously extract moisture from air for drinking and irrigation, offers a promising solution to address the intertwined challenges of energy, water, and food supply, particularly for remote and water-scarce regions.

Treatment of anaerobically digested swine manure using Chlorella vulgaris and bacteria in scaled-up systems

In previous studies, an integrated process (flocculation, struvite precipitation, Chlorella vulgaris and bacteria co-treatment) was shown to be a potentially effective treatment for anaerobically digested swine manure (ADSM). To assess the feasibility of engineering application, the biological treatment (Chlorella vulgaris and bacteria) of this integrated process was scaled up and implemented in an open vertical runway treatment system in this study. With continuous analysis and improvement of natural conditions, equipment and environmental factors, the effect of biomass accumulation and pollutant removal were significantly improved in the second 100 L batch. After 7 days of treatment, the biomass accumulation reached 2.06 ± 0.11 g/L, and the removal rates of chemical oxygen demands (COD), NH4+-N, TN and TP reached 75.7 %, 99.3 %, 79.7 % and 76.9 %, respectively, in the second 100 L batch. Results showed that the integrated treatment process could become a reliable way in treating ADSM by optimizing operation conditions in scale-up system.

Tubular Cellulose Composite as a Vehicle for the Development of Meat Products with Low Nitrite Content.

Nitrite salts are among the most used preservatives in meat products as they ensure their safe consumption. Despite their positive effects on food safety and stability, many side effects on human health have been reported, leading to the need to reduce their use. Therefore, the aim of this study is to produce veal products with low nitrite content through low diffusion of potassium nitrite and to study their microbiological characteristics. Edible tubular cellulose from leaf celery was produced and KNO2 was encapsulated in this material. This was achieved in two ways: by impregnation of tubular cellulose in a KNO2 solution under stirring and using starch gel as a stabilizer. Two samples of impregnated cellulose were applied on the surface of two veal samples of which one was stored at room temperature and the other at 3 °C. Similarly, two samples of cellulose with starch gel were applied on the surface of two veal samples of which one was stored at room temperature and the other at 3 °C. The KNO2 diffusion in different depths of the meat was measured and its effect on the microbiological characteristics of the meat was evaluated. Τhe experiment was carried out in duplicate. A satisfactory percentage of about 70 % of the initially encapsulated amount of KNO2 was diffused in the meat, while the rest remained in the pores of the delignified leaf celery. The migrating amount of KNO2 proved to be effective in preserving meat, as the microbiological load decreased significantly (especially within the first 12 h, from a decrease of 0.6 log CFU/g up to 2.4 log CFU/g). The demand for meat products with low nitrite content is constantly increasing and the results of the present study are promising for the development of this technology in scale-up systems and on an industrial scale. This innovative approach could lead to products with controlled diffusion of the preservatives.

Heterogeneous Brønsted Catalysis in the Solvent-Free and Multigram-Scale Synthesis of Polyalcohol Acrylates: The Case Study of Trimethylolpropane Triacrylate.

This article presents a thorough investigation into the synthesis of trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) via the esterification reaction of trimethylolpropane (TMP) with acrylic acid using Amberlite™ 120 IR (H+), Amberlyst® 15, and Dowex™ 50WX8 resins as heterogeneous catalysts. Preliminary comparative tests explored the impact of air flow on water removal during the reaction and different acid-to-alcohol molar ratios (3:1, 6:1, or 9:1 mol:mol). The findings revealed that introducing air significantly enhances TMPTA yield and -OH group conversion, particularly at a 6:1 acid-to-alcohol molar ratio. Based on cost considerations, Amberlite™ 120 IR (H+) was selected as the preferred catalyst for further optimization. This included evaluating the effect of catalyst loading (10%, 5.0%, and 2.5% w/wtot) and assessing the impact of a pre-drying process on resin efficiency. The study concluded that optimal conditions did not necessitate drying, requiring 120 °C, a catalyst loading of 10% w/wtot, a 4 h reaction time, an acid:alcohol ratio of 6:1 mol:mol, the presence of MEHQ (0.1% mol/molAA), and air bubbling at 6 ± 1 Nl/h. Catalyst recycling was effectively implemented with a slight reduction in catalytic activity over consecutive runs. Furthermore, the study explored a scaled-up system with a mechanical stirrer, demonstrating the potential for multi-hundred grams scale-up. Considerations for optimizing the air flow stripping system are also highlighted. In summary, this study provides valuable insights into designing and optimizing the esterification process for TMPTA synthesis, laying the foundation for potential industrial applications.

Linking processing to formulation in dynamic membranes of tunable pore size for lemon oil emulsions

Lemon oil is widely used for food flavoring purposes, but due to its low water solubility and tendency to oxidation, requires encapsulation in oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions. Therefore, this study assesses the use of two natural biopolymers and a tailor-made one to encapsulate lemon oil with a dynamic membrane of tunable pore size (DMTS). This emulsification system, consisting of an outer bed layer of silica beads sitting upon a metal microporous metallic membrane, overcomes the limitations of conventional emulsification membranes, such as low throughput, complex cleaning before reuse, fixed membrane thickness and pore size, and significative protein fouling. The effects of the DMTS characteristics on the droplet size distribution and emulsion productivity were studied. The results demonstrate that mono-dispersed emulsions can be obtained using dynamic membranes for all the biopolymers studied and the productivity can reach 1000 m3 m−2h−1 pointing out the suitability of this system for scale-up.

Engineering of the hypoxia-induced Pichia stipitis ADH2 promoter to construct a promoter library for Pichia pastoris.

Hypoxia-inducible promoters of a wide range of activities are desirable for fine-tuning gene expression in response to oxygen limitation, especially for the Crabtree negative yeast Pichia pastoris (Komagataella phaffii) with a high oxygen consumption rate in large-scale fermentations. Here we constructed a hypoxia-inducible promoter library for P. pastoris through error-prone PCR of Pichia stipitis ADH2 promoter (PsADH2). The library of 30 selected promoters showing 0.4- to 5.5-fold of the PsADH2 activity was obtained through high-throughput screening in microplates using the reporter yeast-enhanced green fluorescent protein. Two strong promoters, AM23 and AM30, were further characterized in shake flask cultures at high and low dissolved oxygen levels. They responded more sensitively to the low dissolved oxygen level, achieving a 4.6-, 7.9-fold and 3.6-, 7.7-fold higher fluorescence intensity and transcript level, respectively, than the wild-type PsADH2. Their hypoxia-inducible properties were confirmed with two additional reporters: β-galactosidase and Vitreoscilla hemoglobin, to demonstrate the broad applicability of the promoter library. During the typical fermentation process in shake flasks, the promoter AM30 showed strong expression with cell growth and decreased oxygen levels, without any additional chemical inducers or operations. Since the potent industrial host P. pastoris is recognized as an easy to scale-up system, it is reasonable to expect that the obtained hypoxia-inducible promoter library may have great potential to enable convenient regulation of gene expression under industrial fermentations which are usually run under oxygen limitation due to high cell density cultivations.

Investigating the efficiency of a novel offshore pumped hydro energy storage system: Experimental study on a scale prototype

We introduce a novel offshore pumped hydro energy storage system, the Ocean Battery, which can be integrated with variable renewable energy sources to provide bulk energy storage. Its working principle is based on that of conventional pumped hydro storage with notable differences: the Ocean Battery is installed on the seabed, is powered by the hydrostatic pressure at the depth of deployment, and uses conditioned water as a working fluid within a closed hydraulic system to minimize the effects of corrosion and biofouling on the internal system. Herein we focus on the novel aspects of the Ocean Battery to investigate their effects on performance relative to that of conventional pumped hydro storage. Specifically, we present an analytical model that accounts for energy losses in the hydraulic system to predict pressures and flow velocities under different operating conditions and validate model predictions with measurements performed on an experimental small-scale prototype deployed in a relevant sea environment. Following validation, we use the model to estimate the round-trip efficiency of a scaled-up hydraulic system connected to pumps and turbines working at peak efficiencies, with the latter adopted from literature. The round-trip efficiency of such a scaled-up system is shown to be comparable to that of conventional pumped hydro storage.

Impact of Flexible Circuit Bonding and System Integration on Energy Resolution of Cross-Strip CZT Detectors.

Cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) detectors enable high spatial resolution and high detection efficiency and are utilized for many gamma-ray and X-ray spectroscopy applications. In this article, we describe a stable bonding process and report on the characterization of cross-strip CZT detectors before and after bonding to flexible circuit. The bonding process utilizes gold stud bonding and polymer epoxy technique to bond the flexible circuits to two CZT crystals and form a detector module in an anode-cathode-cathode-anode (ACCA) configuration. The readout electronics is optimized in terms of shaper setting and steering electrode voltage. The average full-width half maximum (FWHM) energy resolution at 662 keV of 110 CZT crystals tested individually was 3.5% ± 0.59% and 4.75% ± 0.48% prebonded and post-bonded, respectively. No depth correction was performed in this study. The average FWHM energy resolution at 662 keV of the scaled-up system with 80 CZT crystals was 4.40% ± 0.53%, indicating the scaled-up readout electronics and stacking of the modules does not deteriorate performance. The proper shielding and grounding of the scaled-up system slightly improved the system-wide performance. The FWHM energy resolution at 511 keV of the scaled-up system was 5.85% ± 0.73%.

Scaling-up integrated type-2 diabetes and hypertension care in Cambodia: what are the barriers to health system performance?

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as type-2 diabetes (T2D) and hypertension (HTN) pose a massive burden on health systems, especially in low- and middle-income countries. In Cambodia, to tackle this issue, the government and partners have introduced several limited interventions to ensure service availability. However, scaling-up these health system interventions is needed to ensure universal supply and access to NCDs care for Cambodians. This study aims to explore the macro-level barriers of the health system that have impeded the scaling-up of integrated T2D and HTN care in Cambodia. Using qualitative research design comprised an articulation between (i) semi-structured interviews (33 key informant interviews and 14 focus group discussions), (ii) a review of the National Strategic Plan and policy documents related to NCD/T2D/HTN care using qualitative document analysis, and (iii) direct field observation to gain an overview into health system factors. We used a health system dynamic framework to map macro-level barriers to the health system elements in thematic content analysis. Scaling-up the T2D and HTN care was impeded by the major macro-level barriers of the health system including weak leadership and governance, resource constraints (dominantly financial resources), and poor arrangement of the current health service delivery. These were the result of the complex interaction of the health system elements including the absence of a roadmap as a strategic plan for the NCD approach in health service delivery, limited government investment in NCDs, lack of collaboration between key actors, limited competency of healthcare workers due to insufficient training and lack of supporting resources, mis-match the demand and supply of medicine, and absence of local data to generate evidence-based for the decision-making. The health system plays a vital role in responding to the disease burden through the implementation and scale-up of health system interventions. To respond to barriers across the entire health system and the inter-relatedness of each element, and to gear toward the outcome and goals of the health system for a (cost-)effective scale-up of integrated T2D and HTN care, key strategic priorities are: (1) Cultivating leadership and governance, (2) Revitalizing the health service delivery, (3) Addressing resource constraints, and (4) Renovating the social protection schemes.

Pocket Modification of ω-Amine Transaminase AtATA for Overcoming the Trade-Off Between Activity and Stability Toward 1-Acetonaphthone

Amine transaminases (ATAs) catalyze the asymmetric amination of prochiral ketones or aldehydes to their corresponding chiral amines. However, the trade-off between activity and stability in enzyme engineering represents a major obstacle to the practical application of ATAs. Overcoming this trade-off is important for developing robustly engineered enzymes and a universal approach for ATAs. Herein, we modified the binding pocket of ω-ATA from Aspergillus terreus (AtATA) to identify the key amino acid residues controlling the activity and stability of AtATA toward 1-acetonaphthone. We discovered a structural switch comprising four key amino acid sites (R128, V149, L182, and L187), as well as the “best” mutant (AtATA_D224K/V149A/L182F/L187F; termed M4). Compared to the parent enzyme AtATA_D224K (AtATA-Pa), M4 increased the catalytic efficiency (kcat/Km1-acetonaphthone, where kcat is the constant of catalytic activities and is 10.1 min−1, Km1-acetonaphthone is Michaelis-Menten constant and is 1.7 mmol·L–1) and half-life (t1/2) by 59-fold to 5.9 L·min−1·mmol−1 and by 1.6-fold to 46.9 min, respectively. Moreover, using M4 as the biocatalyst, we converted a 20 mmol·L–1 aliquot of 1-acetonaphthone in a 50 mL scaled-up system to the desired product, (R)-(+)-1(1-naphthyl)ethylamine ((R)-NEA), with 78% yield and high enantiomeric purity (R > 99.5%) within 10 h. M4 also displayed significantly enhanced activity toward various 1-acetonaphthone analogs. The related structural properties derived by analyzing structure and sequence information of robust ATAs illustrated their enhanced activity and thermostability. Strengthening of intramolecular interactions and expansion of the angle between the substrate-binding pocket and the pyridoxal 5′-phosphate (PLP)-binding pocket contributed to synchronous enhancement of ATA thermostability and activity. Moreover, this pocket engineering strategy successfully transferred enhanced activity and thermostability to three other ATAs, which exhibited 8%–22% sequence similarity with AtATA. This research has important implications for overcoming the trade-off between ATA activity and thermostability.

Reliability Optimization of a Mars Oxygen Production Plant

The Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment (MOXIE) is an instrument onboard NASA’s Perseverance rover. On April 20th, 2021, MOXIE generated oxygen on Mars from the carbon dioxide present in the Martian atmosphere, demonstrating, for the first time, in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) on the surface of another celestial body. Learnings from MOXIE on Mars have aided in the design of a scaled-up version of MOXIE. Oxygen generated from this scaled-up system would be used as propellant in a Mars Ascent Vehicle that would enable the crew to return to Earth once their mission was complete, as well as in life support systems. Failure of any of its subsystems would result in a loss of mission due to the inability of the crew to return to Earth. Accordingly, risk analysis is one of the most crucial steps in the design of the scaled-up MOXIE that must be completed and understood before building and launching the system to Mars. The intent of this paper is to present a comprehensive, quantitative analysis of the operational risks associated with this Mars ISRU plant. We then present an approach to optimize the reliability of each subsystem using a modified probabilistic risk assessment and heuristics-based optimization algorithm.

Life Cycle Assessment of an Innovative Microalgae Cultivation System in the Baltic Region: Results from SMORP Project

Abstract Microalgae cultivation at biogas plants creates joint benefits for using liquid digestate and exhaust gas from the CHP unit as nutrient and carbon sources for microalgae growing. This circular approach increases biogas production’s sustainability towards a bioeconomy and zero-waste perspective. This study aims to evaluate the potential environmental impacts in connection to a novel microalgae growing technology named Stacked Modular Open Raceway Pond (SMORP) as a side-stream process coupled with centrate and exhaust gases from a biogas plant. A comparative LCA according to ISO 14044 is performed between the innovative SMORP concept at the pilot level and a hypothetical scaled-up system. Primary data for the inventory are directly gathered from the microalgae growing test performed at the biosystems laboratory of the Institute of Energy Systems and Environment of the Riga Technical University. Secondary data are collected from literature mostly in terms of mass and energy balances considering the SMORP pilot project design. The results of the LCA include the main findings both at mid and endpoint categories according to the IMPACT 2002+ method. In addition, a sensitivity analysis for several different parameters has been investigated. Results show the feasibility of the coupled system and the possibility of having benefits once the system is scaled up. Nevertheless, the results show a critical dependency of the environmental performance on the local conditions, potentially affecting too high cultivation costs.

Technoeconomic and Environmental Assessment of Alternative Biorefineries for Bioenergy and Polyphenolic Production from Pomace Biomass

Pomace is generated during fruit processing and is regarded as a highly polluting waste stream due to its high moisture content, biological instability, and acidic properties. To facilitate pomace management, this study has applied the biorefinery concept to develop systems that facilitate value extraction. To this regard, alternative scenarios for the production of polyphenolic compounds and bioenergy from apple pomace were investigated using ASPEN Plus for process modeling, simulation, and analysis. Systems facilitating the production of polyphenols via the use of the green solvents (i.e. subcritical water in scenario (a) and ethanol in scenario (b)), while also co-producing bioenergy, were compared to a system that produced only bioenergy (i.e. scenario (c)). Comparisons of profitabilities and environmental performances were achieved via considerations of the net present values (NPVs) and potential environmental impacts (PEIs) of all scenarios. The study was able to show that scenario (a) constituted the only economically viable strategy, with a NPV of US$ 19.86 million, while scenarios (b) and (c) were determined to have NPVs of US$ − 88.12 million and US$ − 4.05 million respectively. Scenario (b) was also determined to have the poorest environmental performance with a PEI of 148 kPEI/h. Notably, although scenario (c) (PEI of 0.21 kPEI/h) was determined to present a better environmental performance than scenario (a) (PEI of 47 kPEI/h), its economic infeasibility indicated that it will be impractical to consider it as a viable pomace valorization strategy in a scaled-up system. This study therefore proposed that scenario (a) may constitute a preferred pomace valorization strategy provided technological innovations, i.e., use of alternative energy sources and gas filters, are explored to reduce the major existing challenge of enhanced global warming potential due to greenhouse gas emissions. This study therefore provides information regarding the sustainability implication of executing different biorefinery scenarios for pomace management in the fruit processing industry.

Low-cost solar tracker to maximize the capture of solar energy in tropical countries

The trend towards shift in electric powered systems is increasing the demand for greener sources of energy supply such as renewable energy. In comparison to wind, tidal and hydropower sources of renewable energy, solar derived energy provides an extra advantage for countries located in the tropical regions where solar resource is in abundance. The purpose of this study is to devise a low-cost and portable solar tracker to maximize the capture of solar energy per square meter of photovoltaic cells by considering an innovative ball-joint device for the tracking mechanism. The design specifications of the solar tracker was determined following thorough analysis of existing components on the market, namely the tracking device and solar panel. The methodology section involved key stages of setting up of the solar tracking device, namely the design, sizing, manufacturing, and assembly phase. From results of system-testing, the ball-joint operated solar tracker proved to be effective to precisely orient the solar panels in accordance with the earth’s rotation. The energy consumed by the solar tracking device as a percentage of energy produced was approximately 0.15%, hence demonstrating a system of high efficiency. In terms of performance, panels from the solar tracker outperformed those in the static ones as they generated significantly higher current by up to 37%. The proposed device is projected to have a larger impact in terms of cost saving in scaled-up system. The low-cost, solar-tracking device with innovative tracking mechanism, have shown the potential to maximize the capture of solar power in tropical countries by using small-to medium size solar panels.

Industrial carbon monoxide production by thermochemical CO2 splitting – A techno-economic assessment

This research presents the splitting of carbon dioxide (CO2) by Ba2Ca0.66Nb0.34FeO6 (BCNF1) at the 100 g scale and the techno-economic assessment of a carbon-neutral carbon monoxide (CO) production facility based upon this perovskite. BCNF1 was found to convert 10.1 % of CO2 to CO with 100 % selectivity at 800 °C, which was sustained for five thermochemical cycles showing little sign of degradation. This oxidation reaction was found to proceed via a zero order reaction mechanism at 800 °C, with an activation energy of 46.6 kJ/mol. This activation energy for CO2 splitting is lower than all bar one of the perovskites investigated in the literature, explaining the lower oxidation temperature required and higher CO yields of this material. Economic evaluation of an industrial scale-up system based on this data suggested profitability despite high sensitivity to electricity prices, as expected. A 150 m3/hr plant would produce CO at $0.15 per kg at the average industrial US electricity price of $0.068/kWh. This is significantly cheaper than reported costs of electrochemically produced CO in the literature. As electricity prices fall due to abundant renewables, larger production volumes become optimal, with $1.3 million a year profits for a 500 m3/hr plant at $0.05/kWh.

Investigation of a methanol processing system comprising of a steam reformer and two preferential oxidation reactors for fuel cells

Methanol steam reforming is able to produce hydrogen-rich syngas onsite for fuel cells and avoids the problems of hydrogen storage. Nevertheless, CO in the reformate needs to be further removed to ppm level before it can be fed into proton exchange membrane fuel cells. In this study, a methanol processing system consisting of a methanol reformer and two-stage preferential oxidation reactors is developed. The hydrogen production performance and scalability of the reformer are experimentally investigated under various operating conditions. The methanol reformer system shows stable methanol conversion rate and linearly increased H2 flow rate as the number of repeating unit increases. Methanol conversion rate of 96.8% with CO concentration of 1.78% are achieved in the scaled-up system. CO cleanup ability of the two-stage preferential oxidation reactors is experimentally investigated based on the reformate compositions by varying the operating temperature and O2 to CO ratios. The results demonstrate that the developed CO cleanup train can decrease the CO concentration from 1.6% to below 10 ppm, which meets the requirement of the fuel cell. Finally, stability of the integrated methanol processing system is tested for 180 h operation.

Photocatalytic Methane Conversion: Insight into the Mechanism of C(sp 3 )–H Bond Activation

Photocatalytic Methane Conversion: Insight into the Mechanism of C(sp ³ )–H Bond Activation

Accelerated degradation of sulfadiazine by wet mechanochemical synthesized nano-pyrite FeS2 based Fenton system: Performance, mechanism and applicability

Pyrite have been recognized as a promising Fenton reagent to degrade multitudinous organic contaminants. However, the dominating contribution of heterogeneous and homogeneous Fenton reaction to degradation in pyrite Fenton system is ambiguous. In this work, pyrite FeS2 nanoparticles were newly prepared by a wet ball milling method with iron, sulfur and ethanol without protective gas. A subsequent heat-treatment was used to optimize the pyrite crystallinity. The degradation performance of synthesized FeS2 Fenton system for sulfadiazine were systematically investigated for the first time. The synthesized FeS2 Fenton system exhibited ultra-fast and superior degradation ability at wide pH range (3–9) compared with current pyrite Fenton system and 100% sulfadiazine was removed in 4 min with 0.4 g/L FeS2, 2.5 mmol/L H2O2 and initial pH of 7. It’s found that ball milling process and heat-treatment affect the performance of synthesized FeS2 Fenton system. The pH self-adjustment induced by accelerated dissolution of amorphous FeS2 and the Fe2+/Fe3+ cyclic regeneration ability resulted in the dominating homogeneous Fenton reaction to degrade sulfadiazine. The maintained excellent degradation ability of synthesized FeS2 after reused three times, in scale-up system, exposed in air for 5 weeks or in real water system (tap water and river water) indicated its promising application possibility and the possible degradation pathways of sulfadiazine by synthesized FeS2 Fenton system were also proposed.

Approach of resource expenditure estimation toward mechanization in the manufacturing of cell-based products.

Recent developments for the manufacturing of cell-based products have focused on the advancement of products to clinical trials or commercialization, with awareness of the importance of cost-based effectiveness in cell manufacturing. The mechanization of cell-processing operations is advantageous for the reproducibility and stability of product quality and is thought to reduce the cost-of-goods through the life cycle of the product in a scale-up system; however, few cases of the implementation exist. This study developed an estimation method for the resource expenditure of cell-processing operations in the manufacturing of cell-based products. To estimate resource expenditures, we evaluated the manufacturing processes by operations involving entering into the surrounding area of cell processing zone, materials loading, cell-processing operation, cleaning, and leaving from the surrounding area. The cell-processing operation is applicable to manual or robotic cell manufacturing system in a biosafety cabinet or an isolator system. In cases of low annual batch numbers of manufacturing (batch number <33), the resource expenditure of cell-processing operations in a robotic operation system installed in the isolator system is estimated to be higher compared with a manual operation system in the isolator system due to additional initial costs for design and fabrication of the robotic operation system containing robot arms. With increasing numbers of annual batches, the resource expenditure decreases for robotic operating system, leading to an advantageous juncture where the resource expenditure of a robotic operation system is equivalent to that of a manually operated system, whereby the labor cost for cell-processing operations rises. In addition, the expertise of operations required for cell manufacturing is suggested to foster potential risks associated with the operation skills or turnover of operators, and the cost of education and training increases due to the necessity of persistent human resource development. Collectively, revealing the approach for installation of robotic operation system in cell manufacturing.

Barrel electroplating of Zn-Ni alloy coatings from a modified deep eutectic solvent

ABSTRACT Here the authors report the electroplating of Zn-Ni alloy on mild steel components from a modified deep eutectic solvent (DES), Ethaline, through a combination of barrel-plating and pulse-plating processes. The Ethaline electrolyte, a eutectic mixture of choline chloride (ChCl) and ethylene glycol (EG), was modified with propylene carbonate (PC) as a co-solvent together with the addition of boric acid to control deposit morphology and to suit the barrel plating system. A coating of γ-phase Zn-Ni alloy with 12–16% Ni was formed uniformly on mild steel screws and small components and the coating performed well as a sacrificial anti-corrosion layer. These findings are reported as part of an Innovate UK funded collaboration between university and industry partners, and included here are also the results of a scale-up pilot demonstrator system installed at E.C. Williams Ltd. (UK). It is concluded that the barrel plating of components using these materials and methods is very effective on a medium-scale and that the specification and performance of the coating is comparable with that from aqueous media. However, further development of this process may be limited by low current efficiency and the high relative cost of DES media.