Markedly Improved Catalytic Dehydration of Sorbitol to Isosorbide by Sol-Gel Sulfated Zirconia: A Quantitative Structure-Reactivity Study.

Isosorbide, a bicyclic C6 diol, has considerable value as a precursor for the production of bio-derived polymers. Current production of isosorbide from sorbitol utilizes homogeneous acid, commonly HSO, creating harmful waste and complicating separation. Thus, a heterogeneous acid catalyst capable of producing isosorbide from sorbitol in high yield under mild conditions would be desirable.

Microwave synthesized magnetic tubular carbon nanocomposite fabrics toward electrochemical energy storage.

Contrary to the helical carbon structure from pure cotton fabrics under microwave heating and radical oxidized ignition of nanoparticles from conventional heating, magnetic carbon tubular nanocomposite fabrics decorated with uniformly dispersed Co-Co(3)O(4) nanoparticles were successfully synthesized via a microwave heating process using cotton fabric and inorganic salt as precursors, which have shown better anti-corrosive performance and demonstrated great potential as novel electrochemical pseudocapacitor electrode.

Photolytic treatment of atrazine-contaminated water: products, kinetics, and reactor design.

This study investigates the products, kinetics, and reactor design of atrazine photolysis under 254-nm ultraviolet-C (UVC) irradiation. With an initial atrazine concentration of 60 microg/L (60 ppbm), only two products remain in detectable levels. Up to 77% of decomposed atrazine becomes hydroxyatrazine, the major product.

A comparative study of US EPA 1996 and 1999 emission inventories in the west Gulf of Mexico coast region, USA.

Emission inventory is one of the required inputs to air quality models. To assist in the urban and regional modeling efforts, United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has compiled a National Emission Inventory (NEI) for criterion pollutants, and the precursors of ozone and particulate matter (PM). In December 2002, EPA released the 1999 NEI estimates (NEI99), which represent the most recent national emission data.

Sensitivity analysis of ground-level ozone concentration to emission changes in two urban regions of southeast Texas.

Air pollutant emission is one of the predominant factors affecting urban air quality such as ground-level ozone formation. This paper assesses the impact of changing emission inventory scenarios, based on combinations of point, mobile, area/non-road and biogenic sources, on the tropospheric ozone concentration in two southeast Texas urban areas, i.e.