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AMOCO PROCESS ACTIVATED CARBONS HAVE BEEN FOUND TO HAVE HIGH STORAGE CAPACITY FOR ALTERNATE FUEL VEHICLE ENERGY SOURCES SUCH AS HYDROGEN AND METHANE. NEARLY ALL OF THE GAS THESE CARBONS CAN STORE IS ADSORBED IN MICROPOROUS REGIONS WHERE PORE DIAMETERS ARE LESS THAN 40 A. HOWEVER, THE MICROPORES ONLY ACCOUNT FOR SOMEWHAT MORE THAN HALF OF THE TOTAL PORE VOLUME IN THESE MATERIALS. THE BLANCE OF T ...

THE POTENTIAL ADVANTAGES OF MEMBRANE PROCESSES FOR SEPARATIONS ARE WELL KNOWN. HOWEVER, CURRENT MEMBRANE SYSTEMS HAVE CAPTURED ONLY A SMALL FRACTION OF THE POTENTIAL MARKET, PRIMARILY BECAUSE THEY ARE MADE FROM POLYMERS THAT ARE NOT DURABLE ENOUGH FOR MANY APPLICATIONS, AND THEY DO NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT SELECTIVITY FOR CLEAN SEPARATIONS. PLASMA-POLYMER MEMBRANES OFFER A SOLUTION TO BOTH PROBLEMS. TH ...

DOMESTIC NATURAL GAS PROVIDES AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT PORTION OF THE U.S. ENERGY SUPPLY. ESTIMATED U.S. GAS RESERVES ARE ABOUT 1000 TRILLON STANDARD CUBIN FEET (SCF)--OR ABOUT 1000 QUADS. FULLY 25% OF THE ESTIMATED U.S. NATURAL GAS RESERVES ARE CONTAMINATED WITH NITROGEN (N2) TO THE EXTENT THAT THE GAS CANNOT BE USED WITHOUT PROCESSING TO REDUCE THE N2 CONCENTRATION. NO TECHNOLOGY EXISTS TODAY F ...

SEPARATION PROCESSES TO RECOVER AND PURIFY PRODUCTS ACCOUNT FOR MORE THAN 40% OF THE ENERGY DEMAND IN THE CHEMICAL PROCESS INDUSTRY (CPI), BUT MEMBRANE PROCESSES HAVE GAINED ONLY A SMALL SHARE OF THIS MAJOR MARKET. CONVENTIONAL MEMBRANES HAVE HAD LIMITATIONS THAT HAVE PRECLUDE THEIR WIDESPREAD ACCEPTANCE IN THE CPI AND OTHER INDUSTRIAL SETTINGS. SPECIFICALLY, MEMBRANES EITHER COULD NOT WITHSTAN ...

AMONG THE STATED GOALS OF THE HUMAN GENOME PROJECT IS A DRAMATIC IMPROVEMENT IN DNA SEQUENCING TECHNOLOGIES AND CORRESPONDING REDUCTION IN COST PER FINISHED BASE SEQUENCED. RELATIVELY LITTLE ATTENTION, HOWEVER, HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE PROBLEM OF ASSURING THE QUALITY OF THE RISING TIDE OF MASS-PRODUCED DATA AS GENOMIC SEQUENCING BECOMES EVER MORE AUTOMATED AND PRODUCTION-ORIENTED. AT A VERY MINIMUM ...

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ALL PHOTOVOLTAIC (PV) SYSTEMS REQUIRE POWER ELECTRONICS TO CONVERT VARIABLE VOLTAGE DC FROM THE PV PANELS TO USABLE, REGULATED POWER WITH HIGH QUALITY. AT HIGH RATINGS, AC IS GENERALLY REQUIRED. CONVENTIONAL CONVERTERS HAVE SEVERAL PROBLEMS, INCLUDING HIGH COST, EXCESSIVE HARMONICS, EXCESSIVE LOSSES, SAFETY ISSUES, POOR POWER FACTOR, VULNERABILITY OF THE POWER SWITCHES, AUDIBLE NOISE, AND ELECTR ...

TWO BROAD DEFICIENCIES IN CONTROLS ARE APPARENT IN THE WIND INDUSTRY. THE FIRST IS THAT A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF ADVANCED WIND TURBINE DESIGNERS SIMPLY DO NOT HAVE CONTROLS THAT ARE ADEQUATE TO COMPETE IN THE WIND INDUSTRY. THIS IS UNDERSTANDABLE SINCE THE STRENGTHS OF MOST WIND TURBINE DESIGNERS FALL IN THE AREA OF MACHINES, STRUCTURES, AND AERODYNAMICS. THE SECOND IS THAT MOST WIND TURBINE CON ...

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