Diary of a bad year

 Let's consider the reaction from the plant to CO2 reduction based on the book*1). Before moving on to the reactions, the chloroplast of a plant is shown in the figure below. Photosynthesis consists of reactions that occur in thylakoids and reactions that occur in the stroma*2). Reactions occurring in thylakoids 　Chlorophyll in chloroplasts is activated by the absorption of light energy. From this absorbed energy, H2O is decomposed into [H]*3) and oxygen (O2), and the oxygen is discharged from the cell. The hydrogen H is divided into hydrogen ions H+ and electrons e-, and only the electrons are transferred between enzymes. In this process, ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is synthesized. The electron e-, which loses its energy, combines with the hydrogen ion H+ to form hydrogen [H], which is used in the rest of the reaction. 12H2O → 6O2 + 24[H] ④ Reactions occurring in the stroma (Calvin-Benson circuit) 　Carbon dioxide CO2 taken in from the outside is taken up by ribulose (pentose suga...

  I will transcribe this from a chemical engineering journal*1) for my own understanding. 　Let's consider the reaction of a plant that reduces CO2 to oxygen. First, a water molecule is "photo-oxidized" to produce one mole of oxygen molecules, and at the same time, two moles of "hydride" (H-) are produced, and these two moles of "hydride" reduce CO2. In short, the equation for the photo-oxidation of water is ② from ①. H- = H+ + 2e-   ① 2H2O+4hν → O2+4e- + 4H+ → O2+2H- + 2H+   ② The "conversion of photons (hν) to electron energy (e-)" in equation ① above is achieved by the catalytic function of chlorophyll in plants. Artificially, it is done by photocatalysts. The author of this article has succeeded in "CO2 reduction to methanol" *2). The principle is the reduction of CO2 by 3 moles of "hydride" ③. 3H- + CO2 + 3H+ → CH3-OH (methanol) + H2O   ③ *1)Production Engineering Journal, Chemical Equipment, April 2021, p63 *2)Y. Mats...

 Here is a note on glauber's salt and ammonium sulfate, which are sometimes found in wastewater from chemical plants.  Sodium sulfate is the IUPAC name , and sodium sulfate decahydrate is called sodium glauber. A solution of sodium hydroxide neutralized with sulfuric acid yields crystals of sodium sulfate decahydrate. NaOH + H2SO4 -> Na2SO4 + 2H2O The solubility curve of sodium sulfate is bent at 32.4°C as shown in the figure below*1, and this point is called the transition point.                                              Solubility of sodium sulfate (water) *1) The solubility of sodium sulfate increases with increasing temperature up to 32.4℃, but decreases above 32.4℃. This is because the solubility of the hydrate is -56.0 kJ (endothermic), while the heat of dissolution of the anhydride is +2.34 kJ (exothermic).  Ammonium sulfate i...

 In the anime "Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Double O)", which I watched when I was a student, there was a space solar power generation system* with towers jutting out from the earth into space, and when I saw it, I thought, "Wow, it must be very efficient to generate solar power in the vastness of space. But I soon forgot about it, and the time went by. *) In the setting of the anime, in 2307 A.D., humanity had commercialized a space solar power generation system and an orbital elevator as an alternative energy source to depleted fossil fuels (Wikipedia).  Today, more than 10 years have passed, and I remembered the above when Obayashi Corporation's "Space Elevator Construction Concept" came up in a magazine I saw without thinking.  宇宙エレベーター建設構想｜季刊大林 (obayashi.co.jp)  I was shocked to see that what was only an ideal in an anime is now being considered as a real corporate vision (in 2050 A.D.).  In the magazine, the idea was raised from a dream to a reality by the ...

 I heard that another company was making acrylamide, a chemical product , using bacteria to synthesize it (no byproducts), so out of curiosity, I went to see the production process of sake, which is made using bacteria. C 6 H 12 O 6 　　→　　                2C 2 H 5 OH　　+　　2CO 2 ↑ (glucose)　　bacteria                (ethanol) 1. Rice malt is grown on steamed rice to encourage  aspergillus  growth. 2.  Rice malt,  Yeast, steamed rice, and water are added to the tank in several times and maintained at low temperature (unrefined). ※ The quality of the water is most important. 3) Squeeze out the  unrefined , let the liquid stand, and filter out the supernatant liquid.

I am Chemical process engineer. In one of the meetings of Chemical products company, my technical supervisor made a comment about the factors that caused serious quality problems for equipment damage, and I wrote it down because it was different from what I thought. My supervisor's comment -Change the sensitivity to quality depending on the type of product (food, semiconductor, or industrial). -Raise the skill level of engineers. My thoughts -Sensitivity to quality is almost the same regardless of the type of product. For food products, be especially careful. -Since the skill of a technician (i.e. a single person) is limited, seek the opinion of an expert. Comments from third party -Leave the basis of judgment for measures against abnormal phenomena so that it can be understood even if it is verified later. -Do not arbitrarily decide the boundary with other departments among those in charge. -Clarify the drawings of the equipment as much as possible and determine the specifications...