Engineering aspects of hydrothermal pretreatment: From batch to continuous operation, scale-up and pilot reactor under biorefinery concept.

Different pretreatments strategies have been developed over the years mainly to enhance enzymatic cellulose degradation. In the new biorefinery era, a more holistic view on pretreatment is required to secure optimal use of the whole biomass. Hydrothermal pretreatment technology is regarded as very promising for lignocellulose biomass fractionation biorefinery and to be implemented at the industrial scale for biorefineries of second generation and circular bioeconomy, since it does not require no chemical inputs other than liquid water or steam and heat. This review focuses on the fundamentals of hydrothermal pretreatment, structure changes of biomass during this pretreatment, multiproduct strategies in terms of biorefinery, reactor technology and engineering aspects from batch to continuous operation. The treatise includes a case study of hydrothermal biomass pretreatment at pilot plant scale and integrated process design.

Evaluating urban surface water quality in Luton.

Using a single numerical value to indicate the quality of water, a so-called Water Quality Index (WQI) is a well-established way of rating the overall water quality status of a given water body. During the last few years, researchers in the water sector have developed different such indices to address their specific needs. In this study, we attempt to obtain a WQI formula suited for evaluating the water quality of the River Lea. We have selected four different sites on the River Lea and explore the possibility of monitoring using a minimum number of parameters only. The results obtained are very encouraging and provide a strong indication that only three parameters are enough to indicate water quality of a water body.