Rocio Maceiras - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Rocio Maceiras
DYNA, 2015
This paper describes a vehicle simulation toolbox developed under Matlab® environment, which can ... more This paper describes a vehicle simulation toolbox developed under Matlab® environment, which can be used to estimate the range of a vehicle battery, or a fuel cell/battery hybrid system. The model is function of mechanical and physical variables that depend not only on the vehicle but also on the ground. This toolbox can be extended to GPS tracking files by means of reading data file plug-ins. Even standard drive cycles can be simulated. Battery and hydrogen consumption, hydrogen storage tank level, battery state of charge, power consumption and fuel cell energy production, maximum range and maximum number of cycles for a real route can be determined. The model facilitates the prediction of the vehicle range and the hydrogen and energy consumption. Real route simulation gives a good approximation of the vehicle speed close to real-life services instead of using driving cycles that are quite arbitrary approximations to a real route.
Chemical Engineering Transactions
Microalgae culture is a potential source of biodiesel and one of the best alternatives as raw mat... more Microalgae culture is a potential source of biodiesel and one of the best alternatives as raw material for biodiesel production. The first objective of this work is the pilot plant design for microalgae culture of high oil content species. The design was inspired by raceway large-scale culture. Although this kind of culture is usually in outdoor ponds, the pilot plant is an indoor raceway pond, therefore, it was necessary to design the lighting system and, also, the stirring system. The designed device was tested with Isochrysis Galbana clon T-Iso semi-continuous culture. Finally, microalgae oil was extracted and this oil was suitable for biodiesel production.
Simulation of VOCs Recovery Process by Absorption
Defect and Diffusion …, 2011
Using a simulation program, an absorption process has been simulated of an air stream contaminate... more Using a simulation program, an absorption process has been simulated of an air stream contaminated with acetone using water as absorbent and the subsequent recovery of the solvent by distillation. After verifying the effectiveness of the simulated process, the next step was to carry out an economic analysis at the level of equipment to assess the economic viability of the simulated recovery plant.
Journal of Food Engineering, 2005
The carboxymethylcellulose is a typical hydrocolloid that has a wide application in many foodstuf... more The carboxymethylcellulose is a typical hydrocolloid that has a wide application in many foodstuffs due to its specific rheological properties. In this paper, the rheological properties of sodium carboxymethylcellulose solutions (0.5-2.0%) without and with sucrose (20-40%) were measured at different temperatures (25-40°C). An empirical model was developed to relate the density and the power-law parameters to both concentration and temperature.
Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data, 2003
The surface tension of aqueous binary solutions of 1-amino-2-propanol and 3-amino-1-propanol and ... more The surface tension of aqueous binary solutions of 1-amino-2-propanol and 3-amino-1-propanol and aqueous ternary solutions of these amines with diethanolamine, triethanolamine, and 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol was measured at temperatures from 298.15 K to 323.15 K. For binary mixtures, the concentration range was 0-100 mass percent alkanolamine, and for ternary mixtures, the concentration range for each amine was 0-50 mass percent. The experimental values for binary mixtures were correlated with mole fraction by an empirical equation (the maximum deviation was in both cases always less than 0.2%).
Comparison of Rheological Behaviour of Salad Sauces
International Journal of Food Properties, 2006
Seventeen commercial salad sauces, made by different manufacturers, were studied to examine their... more Seventeen commercial salad sauces, made by different manufacturers, were studied to examine their rheological properties. Rheological studies include determination of the following: (a) flow curves with a controlled shear rate or shear stress, and (b) curves showing the time and temperature dependence of apparent viscosity. Apparent viscosity was correlated using the power-law model. The flow behaviour index, n, and the consistency index, K, were calculated and their variation with the temperature (between 20 and 40°C) was studied. Their values varied between 0.19 and 0.51, for n, and between 2.39 and 60.5, for K.
Comparison of Rheological Behavior of Sweet and Salad Sauces
International Journal of Food Properties, 2004
A comparative study of different commercial sauces was carried out from a rheological point of vi... more A comparative study of different commercial sauces was carried out from a rheological point of view. The different sauces were divided into sweet and salad, and for each sausage the behavior was studied at different temperatures. The power-law parameters, n and k, for sauces were calculated and their variation with the temperature was studied. On the other hand, the activation energy was calculated for the sweet sauces.
Designing a flashcard with knowledge pills for learning to solve chemistry exercises
European Journal of Engineering Education, 2012
Nowadays, universities tend to promote more learner-centred learning, creating a more interactive... more Nowadays, universities tend to promote more learner-centred learning, creating a more interactive and motivational environment for students and teachers. This paper describes an expanded framework to help chemical educators to construct a quiz for solution of chemical exercises in their courses. The novelty of this contribution is that the proposed tool combines a flashcards-based method with knowledge pills. The framework
Energies, 2012
The purpose of this work is to investigate the influence of n-hexane addition on in situ transest... more The purpose of this work is to investigate the influence of n-hexane addition on in situ transesterification of a solid raw material for biodiesel production. Extraction and reaction of macroalgae oil has been performed simultaneously in a batch reactor adding n-hexane with the reactants. In order to analyze the influence of n-hexane on the transesterification, the reaction was also carried out with sunflower oil. The results show that the presence of n-hexane does not have an important effect on the transesterification. It was also observed that this method requires large quantities of methanol to carry out the reaction. The best reaction conditions for in situ transesterification of marine macroalgae were 300:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio, 1% catalyst concentration, 60 °C reaction temperature and 11 h reaction time, resulting in a methyl esters yield of 17.1%. Thus, biodiesel production from macroalgae by transesterification in situ could be feasible, using hexane for the extraction and eliminating the previous extraction. This integrated method is thus effective and technically attractive.
Journal of food engineering, 2007
The rheological behaviour of different fruits (raspberry, strawberry, peach and prune), fresh or ... more The rheological behaviour of different fruits (raspberry, strawberry, peach and prune), fresh or cooked, was determined using a rotational viscosimeter which allowed experiments to be conducted at different temperatures. The experiments were carried out at temperatures ranging from 20 to 40°C. The shear rate values ranged from 17.8 to 445 s À1. The results were analysed by employing two different rheological models; Ostwald Waele and Herschel-Bulkley, and both of them fitted reasonably well the experimental data at all temperatures (R 2 > 0.998). Linear models were proposed to correlate the rheological parameters and temperature. The experimental measurements showed that the fruit purees studied have a non-newtonian behaviour and the apparent viscosity is influenced by the cooking.
Chemical Engineering Journal, 2011
Enzymatic conversion of vegetable oils into biodiesel offers an environmentally more attractive o... more Enzymatic conversion of vegetable oils into biodiesel offers an environmentally more attractive option to the conventional processes. However, lipase can be deactivated by lower linear alcohols, such as methanol and ethanol, conventionally used in biodiesel process. In this work, transesterification reactions of waste frying oil were carried out in presence of two different acyl acceptors in order to analyze its influence on the free and immobilized lipase activity.
Applied Energy, 2013
Biodiesel production from microalgae has recently increased on interest. The objective of this wo... more Biodiesel production from microalgae has recently increased on interest. The objective of this work is to explore the potential of biodiesel production from the microalgae Isochrysis galbana (T-ISO). For that reason, this microalgae was cultivated for biodiesel production. The culture system equipment consisted of two methacrylate ponds, 11 mm thick. The pond has a base of 1.40 Â 0.40 m and a height of 0.4 m. The influence of initial concentration of inoculum, stirring and carbon dioxide supply on the growth of algae were analyzed. The obtained results indicate that stirring improves the algae growth rate. The other two factors have no significant effect on final cell density. Obtained biomass was used to produce oil by extraction to use for biodiesel synthesis by means of basic-catalyzed reaction. For transesterification, microalgae oil was mixed with methanol (12:1 methanol to oil molar ratio), and sodium hydroxide (1% g NaOH/g oil) for 3 h in a reactor at 62°C. The best harvest shows a biomass concentration of 0.305 g/L with a FAME content of 12.5%.
International Journal of Engineering Pedagogy (iJEP), 2013
Chemical engineering laboratory practices based in mini-projects were design and applied the stud... more Chemical engineering laboratory practices based in mini-projects were design and applied the students of forestry engineering in chemical subject. This way of practice reveals a more cooperative learning and a different style of experimentation. The stated goal was to design practices that motivate students and to enable them to develop different skills, including cross teamwork and communication. This paper describes how these practices were developed and the advantages and disadvantages of using this methodology of teaching.
European Journal of Engineering Education Reviewers 2012
European Journal of Engineering Education, 2012
Reda Abdulaal Nidhal Abdulaziz Wisam Abu Jadayil James Abulencia Araceli Adam Olusola Adesope Ped... more Reda Abdulaal Nidhal Abdulaziz Wisam Abu Jadayil James Abulencia Araceli Adam Olusola Adesope Pedro Luis Aguado Alison Ahearn Aoife Ahern Tony Ahfock Ali Al-Bahi Firoz Alam Katariina Alha Esat Alpay Burkhard Alpers Anabela Alves José Jaílson Alves Catherine Amelink Jane Andrews Nana Kofi Annan Arif Anwar Alireza Asgari Giuliano Augusti Aris Avdelas Robert Ayres Barbara Bagilhole Balamuralithara Balakrishnan Moshe Barak Sarah Barnard Ricardo Barros Raphaël Bary Adnan Bashir Samuel Bassetto Ipshita Basu Hoda Baytiyeh Frank Becker Kacey Beddoes Robert Benavente Jens Bennedsen Ineke Berq Anders Berglund Enrique Berjano Jonte Bernhard Ragbir Bhathal Manpreet Bhatti Zhuming Bi Sylvio Bistafa Aaron Blicblau Wim Blokzijl Cyril Boateng Maartje Van Den Bogaard Steffen Bohrmann Alejandra Boni Jose Borges Maura Borrego Brian Bowe Lyn Brodie Erik Brogt Christian Byrge Edmond Byrne C.R. Rachana Angel Cámara Rascón
DYNA, 2015
This paper describes a vehicle simulation toolbox developed under Matlab® environment, which can ... more This paper describes a vehicle simulation toolbox developed under Matlab® environment, which can be used to estimate the range of a vehicle battery, or a fuel cell/battery hybrid system. The model is function of mechanical and physical variables that depend not only on the vehicle but also on the ground. This toolbox can be extended to GPS tracking files by means of reading data file plug-ins. Even standard drive cycles can be simulated. Battery and hydrogen consumption, hydrogen storage tank level, battery state of charge, power consumption and fuel cell energy production, maximum range and maximum number of cycles for a real route can be determined. The model facilitates the prediction of the vehicle range and the hydrogen and energy consumption. Real route simulation gives a good approximation of the vehicle speed close to real-life services instead of using driving cycles that are quite arbitrary approximations to a real route.
Chemical Engineering Transactions
Microalgae culture is a potential source of biodiesel and one of the best alternatives as raw mat... more Microalgae culture is a potential source of biodiesel and one of the best alternatives as raw material for biodiesel production. The first objective of this work is the pilot plant design for microalgae culture of high oil content species. The design was inspired by raceway large-scale culture. Although this kind of culture is usually in outdoor ponds, the pilot plant is an indoor raceway pond, therefore, it was necessary to design the lighting system and, also, the stirring system. The designed device was tested with Isochrysis Galbana clon T-Iso semi-continuous culture. Finally, microalgae oil was extracted and this oil was suitable for biodiesel production.
Simulation of VOCs Recovery Process by Absorption
Defect and Diffusion …, 2011
Using a simulation program, an absorption process has been simulated of an air stream contaminate... more Using a simulation program, an absorption process has been simulated of an air stream contaminated with acetone using water as absorbent and the subsequent recovery of the solvent by distillation. After verifying the effectiveness of the simulated process, the next step was to carry out an economic analysis at the level of equipment to assess the economic viability of the simulated recovery plant.
Journal of Food Engineering, 2005
The carboxymethylcellulose is a typical hydrocolloid that has a wide application in many foodstuf... more The carboxymethylcellulose is a typical hydrocolloid that has a wide application in many foodstuffs due to its specific rheological properties. In this paper, the rheological properties of sodium carboxymethylcellulose solutions (0.5-2.0%) without and with sucrose (20-40%) were measured at different temperatures (25-40°C). An empirical model was developed to relate the density and the power-law parameters to both concentration and temperature.
Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data, 2003
The surface tension of aqueous binary solutions of 1-amino-2-propanol and 3-amino-1-propanol and ... more The surface tension of aqueous binary solutions of 1-amino-2-propanol and 3-amino-1-propanol and aqueous ternary solutions of these amines with diethanolamine, triethanolamine, and 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol was measured at temperatures from 298.15 K to 323.15 K. For binary mixtures, the concentration range was 0-100 mass percent alkanolamine, and for ternary mixtures, the concentration range for each amine was 0-50 mass percent. The experimental values for binary mixtures were correlated with mole fraction by an empirical equation (the maximum deviation was in both cases always less than 0.2%).
Comparison of Rheological Behaviour of Salad Sauces
International Journal of Food Properties, 2006
Seventeen commercial salad sauces, made by different manufacturers, were studied to examine their... more Seventeen commercial salad sauces, made by different manufacturers, were studied to examine their rheological properties. Rheological studies include determination of the following: (a) flow curves with a controlled shear rate or shear stress, and (b) curves showing the time and temperature dependence of apparent viscosity. Apparent viscosity was correlated using the power-law model. The flow behaviour index, n, and the consistency index, K, were calculated and their variation with the temperature (between 20 and 40°C) was studied. Their values varied between 0.19 and 0.51, for n, and between 2.39 and 60.5, for K.
Comparison of Rheological Behavior of Sweet and Salad Sauces
International Journal of Food Properties, 2004
A comparative study of different commercial sauces was carried out from a rheological point of vi... more A comparative study of different commercial sauces was carried out from a rheological point of view. The different sauces were divided into sweet and salad, and for each sausage the behavior was studied at different temperatures. The power-law parameters, n and k, for sauces were calculated and their variation with the temperature was studied. On the other hand, the activation energy was calculated for the sweet sauces.
Designing a flashcard with knowledge pills for learning to solve chemistry exercises
European Journal of Engineering Education, 2012
Nowadays, universities tend to promote more learner-centred learning, creating a more interactive... more Nowadays, universities tend to promote more learner-centred learning, creating a more interactive and motivational environment for students and teachers. This paper describes an expanded framework to help chemical educators to construct a quiz for solution of chemical exercises in their courses. The novelty of this contribution is that the proposed tool combines a flashcards-based method with knowledge pills. The framework
Energies, 2012
The purpose of this work is to investigate the influence of n-hexane addition on in situ transest... more The purpose of this work is to investigate the influence of n-hexane addition on in situ transesterification of a solid raw material for biodiesel production. Extraction and reaction of macroalgae oil has been performed simultaneously in a batch reactor adding n-hexane with the reactants. In order to analyze the influence of n-hexane on the transesterification, the reaction was also carried out with sunflower oil. The results show that the presence of n-hexane does not have an important effect on the transesterification. It was also observed that this method requires large quantities of methanol to carry out the reaction. The best reaction conditions for in situ transesterification of marine macroalgae were 300:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio, 1% catalyst concentration, 60 °C reaction temperature and 11 h reaction time, resulting in a methyl esters yield of 17.1%. Thus, biodiesel production from macroalgae by transesterification in situ could be feasible, using hexane for the extraction and eliminating the previous extraction. This integrated method is thus effective and technically attractive.
Journal of food engineering, 2007
The rheological behaviour of different fruits (raspberry, strawberry, peach and prune), fresh or ... more The rheological behaviour of different fruits (raspberry, strawberry, peach and prune), fresh or cooked, was determined using a rotational viscosimeter which allowed experiments to be conducted at different temperatures. The experiments were carried out at temperatures ranging from 20 to 40°C. The shear rate values ranged from 17.8 to 445 s À1. The results were analysed by employing two different rheological models; Ostwald Waele and Herschel-Bulkley, and both of them fitted reasonably well the experimental data at all temperatures (R 2 > 0.998). Linear models were proposed to correlate the rheological parameters and temperature. The experimental measurements showed that the fruit purees studied have a non-newtonian behaviour and the apparent viscosity is influenced by the cooking.
Chemical Engineering Journal, 2011
Enzymatic conversion of vegetable oils into biodiesel offers an environmentally more attractive o... more Enzymatic conversion of vegetable oils into biodiesel offers an environmentally more attractive option to the conventional processes. However, lipase can be deactivated by lower linear alcohols, such as methanol and ethanol, conventionally used in biodiesel process. In this work, transesterification reactions of waste frying oil were carried out in presence of two different acyl acceptors in order to analyze its influence on the free and immobilized lipase activity.
Applied Energy, 2013
Biodiesel production from microalgae has recently increased on interest. The objective of this wo... more Biodiesel production from microalgae has recently increased on interest. The objective of this work is to explore the potential of biodiesel production from the microalgae Isochrysis galbana (T-ISO). For that reason, this microalgae was cultivated for biodiesel production. The culture system equipment consisted of two methacrylate ponds, 11 mm thick. The pond has a base of 1.40 Â 0.40 m and a height of 0.4 m. The influence of initial concentration of inoculum, stirring and carbon dioxide supply on the growth of algae were analyzed. The obtained results indicate that stirring improves the algae growth rate. The other two factors have no significant effect on final cell density. Obtained biomass was used to produce oil by extraction to use for biodiesel synthesis by means of basic-catalyzed reaction. For transesterification, microalgae oil was mixed with methanol (12:1 methanol to oil molar ratio), and sodium hydroxide (1% g NaOH/g oil) for 3 h in a reactor at 62°C. The best harvest shows a biomass concentration of 0.305 g/L with a FAME content of 12.5%.
International Journal of Engineering Pedagogy (iJEP), 2013
Chemical engineering laboratory practices based in mini-projects were design and applied the stud... more Chemical engineering laboratory practices based in mini-projects were design and applied the students of forestry engineering in chemical subject. This way of practice reveals a more cooperative learning and a different style of experimentation. The stated goal was to design practices that motivate students and to enable them to develop different skills, including cross teamwork and communication. This paper describes how these practices were developed and the advantages and disadvantages of using this methodology of teaching.
European Journal of Engineering Education Reviewers 2012
European Journal of Engineering Education, 2012
Reda Abdulaal Nidhal Abdulaziz Wisam Abu Jadayil James Abulencia Araceli Adam Olusola Adesope Ped... more Reda Abdulaal Nidhal Abdulaziz Wisam Abu Jadayil James Abulencia Araceli Adam Olusola Adesope Pedro Luis Aguado Alison Ahearn Aoife Ahern Tony Ahfock Ali Al-Bahi Firoz Alam Katariina Alha Esat Alpay Burkhard Alpers Anabela Alves José Jaílson Alves Catherine Amelink Jane Andrews Nana Kofi Annan Arif Anwar Alireza Asgari Giuliano Augusti Aris Avdelas Robert Ayres Barbara Bagilhole Balamuralithara Balakrishnan Moshe Barak Sarah Barnard Ricardo Barros Raphaël Bary Adnan Bashir Samuel Bassetto Ipshita Basu Hoda Baytiyeh Frank Becker Kacey Beddoes Robert Benavente Jens Bennedsen Ineke Berq Anders Berglund Enrique Berjano Jonte Bernhard Ragbir Bhathal Manpreet Bhatti Zhuming Bi Sylvio Bistafa Aaron Blicblau Wim Blokzijl Cyril Boateng Maartje Van Den Bogaard Steffen Bohrmann Alejandra Boni Jose Borges Maura Borrego Brian Bowe Lyn Brodie Erik Brogt Christian Byrge Edmond Byrne C.R. Rachana Angel Cámara Rascón