Search Results (2,603)

The increasing global demand for oil and gas, together with the depletion of shallow reservoirs, has driven exploration toward deep and ultra-deep formations characterized by high-temperature and high-pressure (HTHP) conditions. In such environments, conventional drill pipes often experience thermal stress, corrosion, and mechanical degradation, which can reduce drilling efficiency and compromise operational reliability. Thermal insulated drilling pipes (TIDPs) have therefore emerged as an effective solution to minimize heat transfer between drilling fluids and the surrounding formation. This review summarizes recent advances in TIDP materials, structural design strategies, fabrication technologies, and critical performance. Relevant studies were collected from major scientific databases, including Web of Science and Google Scholar, with a focus on insulation materials, coating technologies, and thermal management approaches used in drilling systems. The analysis indicates that advanced insulation systems, including polymer-based coatings, silica aerogels, vacuum-insulated layers, and phase-change materials, can significantly enhance thermal management in drilling operations. These technologies can reduce heat loss by approximately 40–60% (i.e., 400–600 W·m⁻²) and maintain drilling-fluid temperature differentials of 10–18 °C under HTHP conditions. In addition, fabrication techniques such as plasma spraying, composite fabrication, and additive manufacturing enable the development of multifunctional insulation systems with improved thermal, mechanical, and corrosion-resistant properties. Hybrid TIDP systems integrating nanocomposites and advanced polymers show strong potential for improving drilling safety and efficiency. However, challenges related to durability, scalability, and cost remain, highlighting the need for further research on multilayer insulation architectures and sustainable materials. Full article

Fish oil (FO) has been shown to confer beneficial effects on hepatic diseases in both humans and animals. This study aimed to investigate whether dietary fish oil (FO) supplementation alleviates deoxynivalenol (DON)-induced liver injury by modulating the ferroptosis signaling pathway in weaned piglets. Twenty-four weaned piglets were allocated to a 2 × 2 factorial design, with the main factors consisting of dietary treatment (5% corn oil or 5% FO supplementation) and DON exposure (basal diet or diet contaminated with 4 mg/kg DON). After 21 days of dietary treatment, piglets were euthanized for collection of blood and liver samples. Dietary FO significantly attenuated DON-induced hepatic structural damage and inflammatory infiltration. Specifically, FO supplementation reduced the activities of aspartate transaminase (AST) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), as well as the AST/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio following DON exposure. Dietary FO also decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations in both the liver and serum, lowered hepatic 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) level and Fe²⁺ content, and increased hepatic glutathione (GSH) content. Moreover, dietary FO ameliorated ultrastructural liver damage induced by DON. Furthermore, DON significantly downregulated the mRNA levels of multiple genes associated with iron metabolism and ferroptosis, including heat shock protein beta-1 (HSPB1), acyl-CoA synthetase long chain family member 4 (ACSL4), and arachidonate 15-lipoxygenase (ALOX15), and upregulated the mRNA levels of transferrin (TF), ferritin heavy chain (FTH), solute carrier family 7 member 11 (SLC7A11), and transferrin receptor 1 (TFR1). Dietary FO counteracted these alterations by decreasing the mRNA of SLC7A11, TFR1, FTH, and TF after DON exposure. Finally, FO significantly decreased the protein expression of SLC7A11, iron-responsive element-binding protein 2 (IREB2), and FHT1 and increased the GPX4 protein expression following DON exposure. These findings suggest that FO may ameliorate DON-induced liver injury in weaned piglets, possibly through suppressing the ferroptosis signaling pathway. Full article

Supramolecular oleogel lubricants construct a three-dimensional network structure within base oils through gelator-mediated non-covalent interactions, such as hydrogen bonding, van der Waals forces, and π–π stacking. These materials demonstrate unique advantages in mitigating issues inherent to traditional lubricants, including leakage, volatility, creep, and poor heat dissipation. Focusing on structural design and performance regulation, this review systematically summarizes the current development of supramolecular oleogel lubricants in the fields of green lubrication, extreme operating conditions, and nanocomposite lubrication. Specifically, it outlines the structure-property relationships between gelators and base oils in green lubrication systems, and elucidates the applications in radiation-resistant, high-load-bearing, and intelligently responsive lubrication. Strategies for utilizing nanocomposite supramolecular oleogels to resolve nanomaterial dispersion challenges are discussed, and the latest advancements in engineering applications are illustrated. By summarizing the development of supramolecular oleogel materials, this work can provide theoretical references for the future design and preparation of these lubricants. Full article

Postharvest processing plays an important role in improving the quality and storage stability of mature fresh Amomum villosum Lour. (A. villosum). We investigated the effects of seven common drying methods (electric baking drying (EBD), heat pump drying, sun drying after heat pump drying, shade drying, hot air drying, sun drying, and freeze drying) on the volatile components of Amomum villosum. To discriminate different samples and identify key markers, chemometric techniques, including principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), were applied to Chromatography–Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) data of 70 identified metabolites. As an unsupervised method, PCA was first utilized to observe the overall clustering tendency of 21 samples, showing clear dispersion among seven groups with a slight overlap in the samples from sun drying after heat pump drying and hot air drying. To improve discrimination accuracy, the OPLS-DA model was further established as a supervised method. Its reliability was verified by permutation tests and cross-validation, which confirmed the absence of overfitting (R² and Q² intercepts with the vertical axis were <1 and <0, respectively). S-plots combined with variable importance in projection (VIP) values greater than 1 were used to screen differential metabolites, and camphor, borneol, and bornyl acetate were identified as the key discriminant markers for the samples obtained by different drying methods. Consequently, camphor, borneol and bornyl acetate, which are regarded as quality markers of A. villosum, were determined by gas chromatography (GC) to identify the optimal drying method for fresh A. villosum. The results showed that the content of the quality markers in A. villosum obtained by the seven drying methods outclass the standards of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia.Comprehensively considering the experimental results and the convenience and operability of the drying process, EBD is the most suitable drying process of A. villosum for popularization and application. It is on account of the shortest drying time among the seven drying methods, which only took 21.63 h to complete the drying of fresh A. villosum. Besides that, the quality control parameters in the content of bornyl acetate, camphor, borneol and the essential oil of A. villosum obtained by EBD were far more than the standards stipulated in the pharmacopeia. Full article

Biomass, composed of natural polymers such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, can be converted into circular chemical feedstocks through thermochemical conversion processes like pyrolysis. Char conversion is the rate-limiting step in the thermochemical conversion process, and thus, char reactivity is essential for determining the overall efficiency of pellet-based thermochemical processes. Pyrolysis experiments were conducted on rice straw pellets of different sizes (i.e., 8, 10, and 12 mm) in a vertical quartz tube reactor at 700 °C, and then the chemical structure of chars sampled at different stages and locations within a 10 mm pellet was analyzed using Raman spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results indicate that increasing the pellet size facilitates the growth of polycyclic aromatic structures, as evidenced by the observed variations in the abundance of typical aromatic compounds in bio-oil. This also promotes volatile–char interactions, leading to greater deposition of large aromatic structures on the char surface, thereby enhancing char aromatization. Analogous to the spatial scale effect of pellet size on char structure, the evolution of the char structure within a single pellet exhibits distinct spatial heterogeneity during the initial devolatilization and subsequent char aromatization stages due to the location-dependent coupling of heat/mass transfer limitations and aromatization reactions during pyrolysis. Furthermore, the spatiotemporal evolution of the char structure leads to differences in the specific reactivity: during the devolatilization stage at 75 s, the center exhibits the highest reactivity, whereas the outer surface becomes the most reactive in the subsequent char aromatization stage at 300 s. Full article

Fossil fuel depletion has increased interest in renewable alternatives such as biodiesel derived from non-edible plant oils. Droplet evaporation is a key process influencing fuel–air mixing and combustion efficiency in diesel engines. In this study, the evaporation characteristics of diesel and two non-edible biofuels, Jatropha and Castor, are investigated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions representative of engine environments. The numerical model incorporates the conservation equations of mass, momentum, and energy, together with the k–$\epsilon$ turbulence model and a discrete phase model to simulate droplet heating, motion, and mass transfer during evaporation. A comparative CFD analysis is performed to examine how fuel properties, ambient temperature, and droplet size affect the evaporation behaviour of diesel, Jatropha, and Castor droplets under identical engine-like conditions. The evolution of droplet diameter, temperature, velocity, and lifetime is analysed, and the applicability of the classical $D^2$-law is evaluated under different operating conditions. The results indicate that biofuel droplets generally evaporate faster than diesel droplets at lower temperatures, while evaporation trends become similar at higher temperatures. These findings provide insight into the evaporation behaviour of Jatropha and Castor fuels and their potential application in diesel engines. Full article

Soybean is a vital crop supporting global food, feed, and biofuel production. Soybean yields have surged, with record yields reaching 14,678 kg/ha⁻¹, though average farm yields remain stagnant at 2770–2790 kg ha⁻¹. The persistent yield gaps leave 44% of potential production unrealized due to climate change, threatening food security. To meet future caloric demands, which are projected to rise by 46.8% by 2050, soybean breeding must prioritize climate-resilient, high-yielding varieties with minimal ecological footprints. In this comprehensive and in-depth review, we synthesized existing literature and Google Patents and reviewed the multifaceted impacts of climate-change driven eCO₂ and stresses (heat, drought, flooding, salinity, and pathogens), revealing non-linear interactions where eCO₂ may not compensate yield losses under combined stresses. We then highlight key strategies for soybean breeding under climate-change scenario. To this regard, we provide a detailed trait-by-trait breeding roadmap covering seed number, seed size, seed weight, protein-oil balance and their metabolic trade-offs, above and below ground plant architecture, nitrogen fixation and nodulation dynamics, root system architecture, water use efficiency, canopy architecture, flowering time regulation, early maturity etc., in light of specific genes and validated strategies. We explicitly discuss the novel strategies including deeper understanding of traits, abiotic stress physiology, changing pathogen dynamics, phenomics, (multi-)omics, machine learning, and modern biotechnological techniques for developing future soybean varieties. We provide a future roadmap prioritizing specific actions, including engineering climate-resilient ideotypes through gene stacking, optimizing nitrogen fixation and nutrition under stresses leveraging omics data, pan-genome, wild soybean, speeding breeding hubs, and participatory farmer-network validation, while redefining the future soybean breeder would be a hybrid orchestrator of data and dirt. This review establishes a foundational framework for translating climate-adaptive morphological, biochemical, physiological, omics, agronomic, phenomics, and biotechnological insights into actionable breeding strategies, thereby guiding policy-driven investment in soybean improvement programs targeting 2050 and beyond. Full article

The aim of this work was to evaluate the compositional, functional, antioxidant, thermal, and structural properties of faba bean flour (FBF) and a faba bean protein concentrate (FBC) elaborated by a sustainable dry fractionation method. Proximate composition was determined by analyzing the content of moisture, protein, lipids, ash, total dietary fiber, starch, and available carbohydrates. A methanolic extract was used to analyze total polyphenols and antioxidant capacity using complementary methods. The fatty acid profile was determined by gas chromatography. Techno-functional properties were assayed, determining water-holding capacity (WHC), oil absorption capacity (OAC), and retention capacity of different solvents (SRC), water activity, pH, and titratable acidity. Structural and thermal properties were studied by FTIR and DSC. The dry method produces a concentrate with a low quantity of starch (2.5 vs. 25.6%) and carbohydrates and higher amounts of proteins (61.14 vs. 23.61%). Lipids, mainly mono and polyunsaturated ones, and polyphenols with high antioxidant activity. FBC absorbed a greater proportion of lactic acid, likely due to its higher acidity, and showed higher oil absorption, but retained less water compared to FBF. FTIR and DSC results suggested that the heat-treated proteins (in FBC) exhibited some degree of protein denaturation, unlike the FBF proteins. These findings highlight the potential of dry-fractionated faba bean concentrate as a sustainable and functional food ingredient, particularly for products aimed at improving nutritional quality. Its enhanced antioxidant profile, favorable lipid composition and unique techno-functional properties make it a promising alternative for developing plant-based foods. Full article

This study presents a comprehensive thermo-energetic and exergetic assessment of a 250 MW steam boiler in a Cuban thermal power plant, operating under partial load conditions (plant: 62–66%; boiler: 58–61%). An integrated diagnostic methodology was developed and implemented in Mathcad 15 to evaluate key performance indicators, including thermal efficiency (η_tGV); exergetic efficiency (η_ExGV); exergy destruction ratio (γ_ExGV); steam generation index (IG_v); and specific fuel consumption (B_Esp). The methodology was applied to two fuels with contrasting thermophysical and chemical properties: fuel oil and Enhanced Crude Oil 650. The results indicate superior performance with fuel oil due to its higher heating value; however, efficiency losses were mainly attributed to operational factors such as excessive air supply (22.7–26.4%), heat transfer surface fouling, and inadequate maintenance. The analysis revealed significant deviations from design values—thermal efficiency (90.27–90.59%) and exergetic efficiency (<60%)—highlighting an untapped potential for energy savings. Quantitative estimates indicate potential annual fuel cost savings of approximately 1.2 million USD through optimized combustion and maintenance practices. The proposed framework enables accurate diagnostics of complex boiler systems and provides actionable indicators to support combustion optimization and energy efficiency strategies in conventional thermal power plants. Full article

Heat and mass transfer behaviour of frozen cylindrical potato croquettes was investigated during the deep-fat frying process at different oil temperatures (150, 160, 170, and 180 °C) and times (540, 420, 300, and 240 s), using the product’s actual geometry to better represent real frying conditions. The apparent effective heat transfer coefficient (h_e), effective moisture diffusivity (D_e), and effective mass transfer coefficient (k_e) were estimated experimentally. Increasing oil temperature led to a gradual decrease in h_e, whereas D_e and k_e increased consistently across the investigated range. The calculated h_e values ranged from 82.980 to 119.86 W m⁻² °C⁻¹, while D_e and k_e varied between 1.237 × 10⁻⁶–1.331 × 10⁻⁶ m²s⁻¹ and 6.189 × 10⁻⁶–13.312 × 10⁻⁶ m s⁻¹, respectively. The time-dependent behaviour of the transport parameters was further analyzed using pseudo-first-order (PFO) and pseudo-second-order (PSO) kinetic models. Statistical evaluation based on R² and RMSE showed that PFO best described h_e, whereas PSO provided superior agreement for D_e and k_e. These results demonstrate that heat and mass transport during frying are dynamic processes that can be quantitatively characterized using simplified kinetic formulations, offering a practical engineering tool for process prediction and optimization. Full article

Climate change-induced abiotic stress, particularly heat and drought during olive oil accumulation, significantly threatens the productivity and oil quality of olive trees (Olea europaea L.). This study investigated the efficacy of pre-harvest elicitation using the biostimulants harpin and chitosan (both as commercially available products) under summer conditions in Greece, in commercially productive rainfed groves of cv. ‘Megaritiki’. Multivariate analysis (PCA and factor analysis) revealed that pre-harvest application of these elicitors successfully balanced the trade-off between oil yield and quality. Both harpin and chitosan maintained hydrolytic (free acidity—0.25 and 0.29 g oleic acid 100 g⁻¹, respectively, compared to 0.56 g oleic acid 100 g⁻¹ in the control) and primary oxidative markers (peroxides—4.16 and 4.16 meq O₂ kg⁻¹, respectively, compared to 5.20 meq O₂ kg⁻¹ in the control) at exceptionally low levels compared to untreated trees. The treatments induced a distinctive metabolic shift regarding volatile compounds governed by the lipoxygenase (LOX) pathway. Harpin application was strongly associated with complex floral and fruity volatile compounds (2-hexen-1-ol and trans-2-hexenal) and a high α-tocopherol concentration (38.58 mg kg⁻¹ compared to 23.12 mg kg⁻¹ in the control), suggesting an enhanced physiological response in favor of oil quality attributes. Conversely, chitosan elevated the oxidative stability of the oil by increasing total phenol concentration (by almost 97% compared to the control) and prioritizing the accumulation of the stable monounsaturated fatty acids (oleic acid—increased by 12.5% compared to the control) over polyunsaturated ones (linoleic acid), while endowing the oil with desirable “green freshness” aromas (cis-3-hexenal). These results demonstrate that elicitation with harpin and chitosan is a potent tool for sustainably enhancing extra virgin olive oil quality under rainfed conditions in Greece, steering fruit metabolism toward a premium nutraceutical and sensory profile and enhancing the functional properties of the oil (phenol content, antioxidant capacity, monounsaturated fatty acids, α-tocopherol and squalene). Full article

The growing demand for clean and efficient fuels, along with the need to reduce environmental impacts and operational risks, has driven the development of sustainability strategies in refining processes such as gas oil hydrocracking. This paper evaluates the sustainability of an industrial gas oil hydrocracking process with mass and energy integration, using the Safety and Sustainability Weighted Return on Investment (SWROIM) metric. This metric integrates economic, energy, environmental, technical, and safety criteria into a single quantitative indicator. The process was modeled and simulated considering heat exchange networks and direct water recycle to improve the overall system efficiency. The main objective was to calculate the SWROIM of the integrated process and analyze the relative influence of each sustainability indicator through a sensitivity study based on varying weighting factors. The results show that the process achieves an SWROIM value of 127.39%, significantly higher than the return on investment (ROI), demonstrating favorable sustainable performance. This behavior is attributed to high exergy efficiency, a reduction in potential environmental impact, improvements in water management, and a decrease in the inherent risk of the process. Sensitivity analysis confirmed that the energy indicator has the greatest influence on SWROIM, while the technical criterion has a relatively minor impact. Overall, the results demonstrate that mass and energy integration, evaluated using advanced metrics such as SWROIM, is a robust tool to support decision-making in the sustainable design and optimization of hydrocracking processes, opening opportunities for future applications in other complex systems within the refining industry. Full article

Wax deposition occurs to varying degrees in most oil and gas wells. The basic data of existing wax precipitation prediction models are mainly single-component wax experimental data based on the melting process of wax crystals during heating, which is quite different from the cooling crystallization process of wax in oil and gas production. Moreover, the published solubility test data of binary n-alkanes are mainly concentrated in the range of nC10–nC36, leaving existing thermodynamic models without available data for predicting the behavior of high-carbon alkanes. Based on the idea of wax crystallization and precipitation during cooling, this study experimentally determined the solid–liquid equilibrium solubilities of high-carbon n-alkanes (nC38, nC40, nC44, nC48 and nC50) with different concentrations in n-heptane, n-nonane and n-dodecane, as well as the crystallization parameters of pure substances, by using a DSC instrument. This effectively fills the gap in the basic physical property data of long-chain alkanes (more than nC36) and the cooling process in existing studies. In addition, we measured the crystallization parameters of pure high-carbon n-alkanes (nC38, nC40, nC44, nC48 and nC50) during cooling, including crystallization temperature, transition temperature, crystallization enthalpy and transition enthalpy under cooling conditions. The experimental data are in good agreement with the solubility predicted by the ideal solution model for the cooling process, with an average absolute percentage error of less than 10% and average solubility deviation generally within 0.078 mol%. This indicates that the ideal solution model has good accuracy for predicting the precipitation of n-alkane wax and n-alkane solvents. This study provides basic data for the prediction theory of paraffin precipitation. Full article

As an emerging oilseed crop in China, peony seed oils account for 0.41% of the annual production of Chinese edible vegetable oils, and the oil-type peony seed is rich in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Moisture content and temperature are key factors in the storage of oilseeds. In this study, the adsorption and desorption isotherms of ten species of peony seeds and one species of cake were determined in the range of 20–30 °C and 10–90% equilibrium relative humidity (ERH). The adsorption and desorption isotherms of peony seeds and cake were type II (sigmoidal) or type III curves. Nine equilibrium moisture content (EMC) equations were used to fit the isotherms of peony samples, with the optimal equations being our developed 7-parameter polynomial (Poly), modified Halsey equation (MHAE), and modified Oswin equation (MOE). For Poly, the fitting parameter determination coefficient (R²) was 0.9816–0.9986, and the mean relative error (MRE) was 0.83–6.52%; for MHAE, R² was 0.7815–0.9973, and MRE was 4.18–17.84%. Poly contains the terms of temperature and ERH interaction; therefore, Poly could analyze the safe moisture content of peony seeds and cake during storage and transportation, and the three-parameter reversible MHAE could be used for calculating the sorption isosteric heats. The adsorption monolayer moisture content (M₀) in peony seeds and cake estimated by MGAB were 3.64 ± 0.42% and 4.28%, respectively, while their desorption M₀ values, respectively, were 6.21 ± 0.47% and 4.83%. At ERH ≤ 65%, for preventing the growth of storage pests and fungi, the absolutely safe storage moisture content (MC) predicted by Poly at 25 °C and 65% ERH was 12.48% wet basis (w.b.) for seeds and 11.92% for cake. The heat of sorption of peony seeds and cake approached that of pure water at about 11% and 15% w.b. MC estimated by the MHAE model, respectively. Microstructure analysis showed that the rich liposomes in peony seeds were attached to the inner surface of the cell wall and the outer surface of the protein storage vacuole, and the rich protein bodies and hydrophilic polysaccharides explained why the safe storage moisture for yellow peony seeds was higher than for Ziyan Feishuang seeds. This study provides the basic data for drying simulation, and the safe storage and transportation of peony seed and cake products. Full article

For irregularly shaped 820CrMnTi carburizing and nitriding parts, the challenges of high reflectivity-induced overexposure, low surface contrast, and interference from minute burrs in industrial online inspection are addressed in this paper. An innovative precision detection method integrating adaptive imaging and a dual-drive heterogeneous coupling model (RGFCN) is proposed. Such parts, due to surface photovoltaic characteristic changes caused by carburizing and nitriding heat treatment and the complex on-site lighting environment, are prone to local overexposure and “false out-of-tolerance” measurements caused by outlier sensitivity in traditional inspections. First, an innovative programmatic adaptive exposure control algorithm based on grayscale histogram feedback is introduced, which dynamically adjusts imaging parameters in real time to effectively suppress high-brightness overexposure under specific working conditions. Second, a novel adaptive main-axis scanning strategy is designed to construct a dynamic follow-up coordinate system, eliminating projection errors introduced by random positioning from a geometric perspective. Additionally, Gaussian gradient energy fields are combined with the Huber M-estimation robust fitting mechanism to suppress thermal noise while automatically reducing the weight of burrs and oil stains, achieving “immunity” to non-functional defects. Meanwhile, a data-driven innovative compensation approach is introduced. Based on sample training, gradient boosting decision trees (GBDTs) are integrated to explore the nonlinear mapping relationship between multidimensional feature spaces and system residuals, achieving implicit calibration of lens distortion and environmental coupling errors. By simulating factory conditions with drastic 24 h day–night lighting fluctuations and strong oil stain interference, statistical analysis of over 1000 mass-produced parts shows that this method exhibits excellent robustness in complex environments. It reduces the false out-of-tolerance rate caused by burrs by over 90%, and the standard deviation of repeated measurements converges to the micrometer level. This effectively addresses the visual inspection challenges of irregular, highly reflective parts on dynamic production lines. Full article