A digital twin is a virtual representation of a physical object or process capable of collecting information from the real environment to represent, validate and simulate the physical twin’s present ...and future behavior. It is a key enabler of data-driven decision making, complex systems monitoring, product validation and simulation and object lifecycle management. As an emergent technology, its widespread implementation is increasing in several domains such as industrial, automotive, medicine, smart cities, etc. The objective of this systematic literature review is to present a comprehensive view on the DT technology and its implementation challenges and limits in the most relevant domains and applications in engineering and beyond.
The thermoresponsive optical properties of Au nanorod-doped poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (Au NR–pNIPAM) microgels with different Au NR payloads and aspect ratios are presented. Since the volume phase ...transition of pure pNIPAM microgels is reversible, the optical response reversibility of Au NR–pNIPAM hybrids is systematically analyzed. Besides, extinction cross-section and near-field enhancement simulations for Au NR–microgel hybrids are performed using a new numerical method based on the surface integral equation method of moments formulation (M3 solver). Additionally, the Au NR–microgel hybrid systems are expected to serve as excellent broadband surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates due to the temperature-controlled formation of hot spots and the tunable optical properties. The optical enhancing properties related to SERS are tested with three laser lines, evidencing excitation wavelength-dependent efficiency that can be easily controlled by either the aspect ratio (length/width) of the assembled Au NR or by the Au NR payload per microgel. Finally, the SERS efficiency of the prepared Au NR–pNIPAM hybrids is found to be stable for months.
Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) microfluidic chips for label-free and ultrasensitive detection are fabricated by integrating a plasmonic supercrystal within microfluidic channels. This ...plasmonic platform allows the uniform infiltration of the analytes within the supercrystal, reaching the so-called hot spots. Moreover, state-of-the-art simulations performed using large-scale supercrystal models demonstrate that the excellent SERS response is due to the hierarchical nanoparticle organization, the interparticle separation (IPS), and the presence of supercrystal defects. Proof-of-concept experiments confirm the outstanding performance of the microfluidic chips for the ultradetection of (bio)molecules with no metal affinity. In fact, a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 10–19 M was reached for crystal violet. The SERS microfluidic chips show excellent sensitivity in the direct analysis of pyocyanin secreted by Pseudomonas aeruginosa grown in a liquid culture medium. Finally, the further integration of a silica-based column in the plasmonic microchip provides charge-selective SERS capabilities as demonstrated for a mixture of positively and negatively charged molecules.
Cellulases play a key role in enzymatic routes for degradation of plant cell-wall polysaccharides into simple and economically-relevant sugars. However, their low performance on complex substrates ...and reduced stability under industrial conditions remain the main obstacle for the large-scale production of cellulose-derived products and biofuels. Thus, in this study a novel cellulase with unusual catalytic properties from sugarcane soil metagenome (CelE1) was isolated and characterized. The polypeptide deduced from the celE1 gene encodes a unique glycoside hydrolase domain belonging to GH5 family. The recombinant enzyme was active on both carboxymethyl cellulose and β-glucan with an endo-acting mode according to capillary electrophoretic analysis of cleavage products. CelE1 showed optimum hydrolytic activity at pH 7.0 and 50 °C with remarkable activity at alkaline conditions that is attractive for industrial applications in which conventional acidic cellulases are not suitable. Moreover, its three-dimensional structure was determined at 1.8 Å resolution that allowed the identification of an insertion of eight residues in the β8-α8 loop of the catalytic domain of CelE1, which is not conserved in its psychrophilic orthologs. This 8-residue-long segment is a prominent and distinguishing feature of thermotolerant cellulases 5 suggesting that it might be involved with thermal stability. Based on its unconventional characteristics, CelE1 could be potentially employed in biotechnological processes that require thermotolerant and alkaline cellulases.
In this paper, we present Q-U-I JOint Tenerife Experiment (QUIJOTE) 10–20 GHz observations (194 h in total over ≈250 deg2) in intensity and polarisation of G159.6-18.5, one of the most widely studied ...regions harbouring anomalous microwave emission (AME). By combining with other publicly available intensity data, we achieve the most precise spectrum of the AME measured to date in an individual region, with 13 independent data points between 10 and 50 GHz being dominated by this emission. The four QUIJOTE data points provide the first independent confirmation of the downturn of the AME spectrum at low frequencies, initially unveiled by the COSMOlogical Structures On Medium Angular Scales experiment in this region. Our polarisation maps, which have an angular resolution of ≈1° and a sensitivity of ≈ 25 μK beam−1, are consistent with zero polarisation. We obtain upper limits on the polarisation fraction of Π < 6.3 and <2.8 per cent (95 per cent C.L.), respectively, at 12 and 18 GHz (ΠAME < 10.1 and <3.4 per cent with respect to the residual AME intensity), a frequency range where no AME polarisation observations have been reported to date. The combination of these constraints with those from other experiments confirm that all the magnetic dust models based on single-domain grains, and most of those considering randomly oriented magnetic inclusions, predict higher polarisation levels than is observed towards regions with AME. Also, neither of the two considered models of electric dipole emission seems to be compatible with all the observations together. More stringent constraints of the AME polarisation at 10–40 GHz are necessary to disentangle between different models, to which future QUIJOTE data will contribute.
Abstract Environmental stress is a fundamental facet of life and a significant driver of natural selection in the wild. Gene expression diversity may facilitate adaptation to environmental changes, ...without necessary genetic change, but its role in adaptive divergence remains largely understudied in Neotropical systems. In Amazonian riparian forests, species distribution is predominantly influenced by species' waterlogging tolerance. The flooding gradient delineates distinct wetland forest types, shaping habitats and species characteristics. Here we investigated the molecular basis of environmental stress response in a tropical ground‐herb species ( Ischnosiphon puberulus ) to environmental variation in Amazonian riparian forests. We compared environmental variables and gene expression profiles from individuals collected in two forest types: Igapó and Terra firme in the Amazonian riparian forests. Predictable seasonal flooding poses a significant challenge in Igapó compared to Terra firme environments, with the former presenting higher water column height and longer flooding duration. Our findings suggest that contrasting environmental conditions related to flooding regimes are important drivers of population genetic differentiation and differential gene expression in I. puberulus . Enriched gene ontology terms highlight associations with environmental stresses, such as defence response, water transport, phosphorylation, root development, response to auxin, salicylic acid and oxidative stress. By uncovering key environmental stress response pathways conserved across populations, I. puberulus offers novel genetic insights into the molecular basis of plant reactions to environmental constraints found in flooded areas of this highly biodiverse neotropical ecosystem.
•Development of a novel method for process sustainability assessment.•Demonstration of practical guidelines to calculate several performance indicators.•Design and simulation of improved THF-etanol ...separation technologies.•Design and simulation of utility plants.•Sensitivity and uncertainty analyses to test the robustness of the proposed method.
Governmental and commercial institutions have been developing new frameworks aimed to provide useful information on potential environmental, social and economic effects of their operations and, hence, assist in decision-making tasks. Nevertheless, most methodologies either rely on quality data that may not be promptly available or fail to quantify the sustainability of processes. In light of this, in this paper we propose a computer-aided systematic method for quantitatively assessing and comparing the overall sustainability of process systems on the basis of weighted performance metrics. The proposed framework consists in defining the required steps for gathering information, assigning weights, calculating and aggregating indicators in a volumetric composite evaluation index. The functionality of our methodology is demonstrated through its application to different tetrahydrofuran-ethanol separation technologies, which are compared in terms of 24 sustainability metrics. Finally, an uncertainty and sensitivity analysis was performed in order to test the robustness of the proposed framework.
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Wickerhamomyces anomalus LBCM1105 is a yeast isolated from cachaça distillery fermentation vats, notable for exceptional glycerol consumption ability. We report its draft genome with 20.5x in-depth ...coverage and around 90% extension and completeness. It harbors the sequences of proteins involved in glycerol transport and metabolism.
•Simulation of six different cumene production processes including their utility plants for more realistic results.•Development of seven different categories of eco-indicators.•Eco-indicators lumping ...in a single index for global eco-efficiency comparison.•Economic analysis by estimating the processes’ gross annual profits.•The heat integrated process proved to be the most economical and sustainable.
The need for mitigating environmental impacts has been heading towards the development of new technologies that could lead the industries to a greater ecological efficiency. Countless methodologies for evaluating processes’ efficiency in relation to their respective ecological footprint have been employed, among which the concept of eco-efficiency has stood out. In this context, this work aims to compare six different cumene production plants, namely conventional, transalkylation, heat-integrated, dividing wall column, reactive distillation and double-effect distillation technologies, with regard to their economics and environmental efficiencies. The economic analysis was performed by estimating their respective Gross Annual Profit (GAP) and determining the specific production costs indicator, whereas the environmental assessment was carried out by calculating seven eco-indicators, namely raw materials consumption, fuel consumption, energy use, CO2 emissions, water consumption, specific production costs and wastewater generation. The processes’ environmental performances were then compared through the Eco-efficiency Comparison Index (ECI) method. The study showed that the intensified processes are not only more economically attractive but also more environmentaly friendly.
Many Amazonian fish' reproduction is associated to seasonality and to the conditions of habitat integrity. In a Neotropical floodplain lake of the Amazon region, the temporal structure of ...ichthyoplankton was investigated and the hypothesis that the density of fish eggs and larvae and the diversity of species vary between two areas with different levels of environmental changes occurred was tested. The sampling occurred monthly between September 2017 and August 2018. Six sampling stations were used, distributed in locations close to and far from the altered area. 195 eggs and 1,785 larvae from nine orders and 27 species were captured. The eggs were from non-migratory fish species and occurred during two moments. The larvae presented different abundance peaks during the sample months and all the initial stages of development occurred. Clupeiformes was the most abundant and Characiformes the species richest. The density of the ichthyoplankton and the diversity of species presented temporal variation. However, only the larval density varied between the areas of the lake. The Lake Juá is a spawning area for resident fish and is a nursery and growth area for larvae of species with different ecological categories and socioeconomic importance during different periods of the year.
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