A new process analytical technology soft sensor based on electrical tomography for real-time monitoring of multiphase systems.

BACKGROUND: Electrical tomography is widely recognized for its high time resolution and low cost. However, the implementation of electrical tomographic solutions has been hindered by the high computational overhead associated, which causes delays in the analysis, and numerical instability, that results in unclear reconstructed images. Therefore, it has been mostly applied offline, for qualitative tasks and with some delay. Applications requiring fast response times and quantification have been hindered or ruled out. RESULTS: In this article, we propose a new process analytical technology soft sensor that maps directly electrical tomography signals to the relevant parameter to be monitored. The data acquisition and estimation steps occur almost instantaneously, and the final accuracy is very good (R2 = 0,994). SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY: The proposed methodology opens up good prospects for real-time quantitative applications. It was successfully tested on a pilot piping installation where the target property is the interface height between two immiscible fluids.

A Review on the Use of Metal Oxide-Based Nanocomposites for the Remediation of Organics-Contaminated Water via Photocatalysis: Fundamentals, Bibliometric Study and Recent Advances.

The improper disposal of toxic and carcinogenic organic substances resulting from the manufacture of dyes, drugs and pesticides can contaminate aquatic environments and potable water resources and cause serious damage to animal and human health and to the ecosystem. In this sense, heterogeneous photocatalysis stand out as one effective and cost-effective water depollution technique. The use of metal oxide nanocomposites (MON), from the mixture of two or more oxides or between these oxides and other functional semiconductor materials, have gained increasing attention from researchers and industrial developers as a potential alternative to produce efficient and environmentally friendly photocatalysts for the remediation of water contamination by organic compounds. Thus, this work presents an updated review of the main advances in the use of metal oxide nanocomposites-based photocatalysts for decontamination of water polluted by these substances. A bibliometric analysis allowed to show the evolution of the importance of this research topic in the literature over the last decade. The results of the study also showed that hierarchical and heterogeneous nanostructures of metal oxides, as well as conducting polymers and carbon materials, currently stand out as the main materials for the synthesis of MON, with better photocatalysis performance in the degradation of dyes, pharmaceuticals and pesticides.