This book presents sustainable synthetic pathways and modern applications of ammonia. It focuses on the production of ammonia using various catalytic systems and its use in fuel cells, membrane, agriculture, and renewable energy sectors. The book highlights the history, investigation, and development of sustainable pathways for ammonia production, current challenges, and state-of-the-art reviews. While discussing industrial applications, it fills the gap between laboratory research and viable applications in large-scale production.
Techno-Economic Challenges of Green Ammonia as an Energy Vector presents the fundamentals, techno-economic challenges, applications, and state-of-the-art research in using green ammonia as a route toward the hydrogen economy. This book presents practical implications and case studies of a great variety of methods to recover stored energy from ammonia and use it for power, along with transport and heating applications, including its production, storage, transportation, regulations, public perception, and safety aspects. As a unique reference in this field, this book can be used both as a handbook by researchers and a source of background knowledge by graduate students developing technologies in the fields of hydrogen economy, hydrogen energy, and energy storage. - Includes glossaries, case studies, practical concepts, and legal, public perception, and policy viewpoints that allow for thorough, practical understanding of the use of ammonia as energy carrier - Presents its content in a modular structure that can be used in sequence, as a handbook, in individual parts or as a field reference - Explores the use of ammonia, both as a medium for hydrogen storage and an energy vector unto itself
This book provides an interdisciplinary, integrative overview of environmental problem-solving using mild reaction conditions, green reagents, waste free and energy efficient synthesis in both industry and academic world. Discussions include a broad, integrated perspective on sustainability, integrated risk, multi-scale changes and impacts taking place within ecosystems worldwide. Features: This book serves as a reference book for scientific investigators who need to do greener synthesis of organic compounds, drugs and natural products under mild reaction condition using green reagents, eco-friendly catalysts and benign reaction mediums over traditional synthetic processes which is a key driving force of scientists. Greener synthesis of multiple value-added heterocycles opens up a new horizon towards the organic catalysis and for this purpose, development of natural resources acts as an effective catalyst. Using environmentally friendly reaction medium e.g. ACC, WETSA, WEBSA have been used for the synthesis of some crucial heterocyclic scaffolds such as bisenols and 2-amino-4H-pyrans, tetraketones, pyrans, and biaryls. This book can also be used as a textbook for graduate and post graduate level courses for students. Furthermore, the problems with answers in book will add better understanding for students.
This book is for anyone interested in renewable energy for a sustainable future of mankind. Batteries, fuel cells, capacitors, electrolyzers and solar cells are explained at the molecular level and at the power plant level, in their historical development, in their economical and political impact, and social change. Cases from geophysics and astronomy show that electrochemistry is not confined to the small scale. Examples are shown and exercised.
This contributed volume explores how plant growth-promoting rhizobacterias (PGPR) provide a wide range of benefits to the plant. Further, it discusses the key roles PGPR play in nutrient acquisition and assimilation, improved soil texture, secreting, and modulating extracellular molecules. The book outlines how plant secondary metabolites are natural sources of biologically active compounds used in a wide range of applications, and surveys the significant role of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in plant communication by mediating above- and below-ground interactions between plants and the surrounding organisms. This volume compiles research from leading scientists from across the globe, linking the translation of basic knowledge to innovative applied research. The book focuses on the following three categories: 1) understanding the secondary metabolites produced by PGPR, the signaling mechanisms and how they affect plant growth, 2) the plausible role of volatile organic compounds produced by PGPR, their role and the signaling mechanism for plant growth promotion, and 3) Applications of VOCs and secondary metabolites of PGPR for seed germination, plant growth promotion; stress tolerance and in-plant health and immunity.
This open access textbook introduces the emerging field of Development Engineering and its constituent theories, methods, and applications. It is both a teaching text for students and a resource for researchers and practitioners engaged in the design and scaling of technologies for low-resource communities. The scope is broad, ranging from the development of mobile applications for low-literacy users to hardware and software solutions for providing electricity and water in remote settings. It is also highly interdisciplinary, drawing on methods and theory from the social sciences as well as engineering and the natural sciences. The opening section reviews the history of “technology-for-development” research, and presents a framework that formalizes this body of work and begins its transformation into an academic discipline. It identifies common challenges in development and explains the book’s iterative approach of “innovation, implementation, evaluation, adaptation.” Each of the next six thematic sections focuses on a different sector: energy and environment; market performance; education and labor; water, sanitation and health; digital governance; and connectivity. These thematic sections contain case studies from landmark research that directly integrates engineering innovation with technically rigorous methods from the social sciences. Each case study describes the design, evaluation, and/or scaling of a technology in the field and follows a single form, with common elements and discussion questions, to create continuity and pedagogical consistency. Together, they highlight successful solutions to development challenges, while also analyzing the rarely discussed failures. The book concludes by reiterating the core principles of development engineering illustrated in the case studies, highlighting common challenges that engineers and scientists will face in designing technology interventions that sustainably accelerate economic development. Development Engineering provides, for the first time, a coherent intellectual framework for attacking the challenges of poverty and global climate change through the design of better technologies. It offers the rigorous discipline needed to channel the energy of a new generation of scientists and engineers toward advancing social justice and improved living conditions in low-resource communities around the world.
Plasma catalysis is gaining increasing interest for various gas conversion applications, such as CO2 conversion into value-added chemicals and fuels, N2 fixation for the synthesis of NH3 or NOx, methane conversion into higher hydrocarbons or oxygenates. It is also widely used for air pollution control (e.g., VOC remediation). Plasma catalysis allows thermodynamically difficult reactions to proceed at ambient pressure and temperature, due to activation of the gas molecules by energetic electrons created in the plasma. However, plasma is very reactive but not selective, and thus a catalyst is needed to improve the selectivity. In spite of the growing interest in plasma catalysis, the underlying mechanisms of the (possible) synergy between plasma and catalyst are not yet fully understood. Indeed, plasma catalysis is quite complicated, as the plasma will affect the catalyst and vice versa. Moreover, due to the reactive plasma environment, the most suitable catalysts will probably be different from thermal catalysts. More research is needed to better understand the plasma–catalyst interactions, in order to further improve the applications.
This book provides a review of worldwide developments in ammonia synthesis catalysts over the last 30 years. It focuses on the new generation of Fe1-xO based catalysts and ruthenium catalysts — both are major breakthroughs for fused iron catalysts. The basic theory for ammonia synthesis is systematically explained, covering topics such as the chemical components, crystal structure, preparation, reduction, performance evaluation, characterization of the catalysts, the mechanism and kinetics of ammonia synthesis reaction. Both theory and practice are combined in this presentation, with emphasis on the research methods, application and exploitation of catalysts.The comprehensive volume includes an assessment of the economic and engineering aspects of ammonia plants based on the performance of catalysts. Recent developments in photo-catalysis, electro-catalysis, biocatalysis and new uses of ammonia are also introduced in this book.The author, Professor Huazhang Liu, has been engaged in research and practice for more than 50 years in this field and was the inventor of the first Fe1-xO based catalysts in the world. He has done a lot of research on Fe3O4 based- and ruthenium based-catalysts, and has published more than 300 papers and obtained 21 patents during his career.
The phenomenon of catalysis is found in many homogeneous and heterogeneous systems undergoing chemical change, where it effects the rates of approach to the equilibrium state in processes as diverse as those found in the stars, the earth's mantle, living organisms, and the various chemistries utilized by industry. The economies and the living standards of both developed and developing countries depend to varying degrees upon the efficacy of their chemical industries. Con sequently, this century has seen a wide exploration and expansion of catalytic chemistry together with an intensive investigation of specific, essential processes like those contributing to life-supporting agricultures. Prime among the latter must surely be the "fixation" of atmospheric nitrogen by catalytic hydrogenation to anhydrous ammonia, still the preferred synthetic precursor of the nitrogenous components of fertilizers. In each decade contemporary concepts and techniques have been used to further the understanding, as yet incomplete, of the catalyst, the adsorbates, the surface reactions, and the technology of large-scale operation. The contributors to the present volume review the state of the art, the science, and the technology; they reveal existing lacunae, and suggest ways forward. Around the turn of the century, Sabatier's school was extending the descriptive catalytic chemistry of hydrogenation by metals to include almost all types of multiple bond. The triple bond of dinitrogen, which continued to be more resistant than the somewhat similar bonds in carbon monoxide and ethyne, defied their efforts.
Ammonia is one of the 10 largest commodity chemicals produced. The editor, Anders Nielsen, is research director with one of the largest industrial catalyst producers. He has compiled a complete reference on all aspects of catalytical ammonia production in industry, from thermodynamics and kinetics to reactor and plant design. One chapter deals with safety aspects of ammonia handling and storage.