Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Reducing Gases Emitted from Car Engines Essay Example for Free

Reducing Gases Emitted from Car Engines Essay The automobile industry has become one of the leading pollutants in most urban centers today. The emission of various gases from million of vehicles in roads has contributed to major global problem. Personal cars have emerged as the most notorious ones for this problem especially when they are moving at slow speeds or idling in traffic jams. This is the time when this man made gadgets produces the maximum emissions to the atmosphere with every body around that traffic absorbing the poison. Gasoline and diesel fuels combustion produces a mixture of hydrocarbons mainly carbon atoms, hydrogen as well as oxygen. The hydrocarbons are emitted as fragments of molecules of fuels which are burned partially. They do reactions with nitrogen oxides and in sunlight’s presence to create ground level ozone which becomes a main part of smog. This Ozone is harmful to human health as well as being toxic and sometimes causes cancer. Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) is produced in conditions of high pressure and temperature in the engine. Some nitrogen and oxygen atoms form nitrogen oxides after the reaction. NOX also contribute to creation of ozone as well as acidic rains which are harmful to the environment. NO2 which is much more potential than carbon dioxide as a green house gas is produced in the engine by catalytic conversion of heavy nitrogen gases in car exhausts systems. It contributes up about 7. 2 percent of gases responsible for global warming. Carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless and poisonous gas is emitted from car engines after incomplete combustion of hydrocarbon-based fuels. It comprises of one atom of carbon and one oxygen atom interlinked together. Jeff Cohen asserts that, these results from having too low air-to fuel ratios in the car engine during the starting process of the car or when the car is not tuned on in the proper way. 1 This also takes place in higher altitudes in which case the amount of oxygen available for burning the fuel is greatly lowered. Transportation sources especially personal cars contributes to about two thirds of carbon monoxide. Carbon dioxide has been perceived as complete combustion product but of late it has been seen as a pollutant since it is a green house gas which traps the heat from the earth resulting to global warming. Of late, Bio-diesel has come up as one of the main renewable fuels and a provider of good opportunity for getting fossil fuel alternatives that assist in reducing emission of these green gases. It is capable of creating good blends in different ratios with diesel either fresh or the used up oil. This implies that Bio-diesel when used either completely or partially with diesel fuel in deferent vehicle engines brings about some economical, environmental as well as social merits. On the other hand, while Bio-diesel contributes to these changes, it also has some challenges on the uncontrolled substances which comprises of carbonyl compounds that are released in the process of emitting the combusted bio-diesels or bio-diesel and diesel blends. Since the fuels are quite different from the normal diesel fuels, they can change the injection as well as ignition processes. Due to this, the emission of green house gases such as CO, CO2, and NOX are greatly affected. This research aims at evaluating the effects of bio-diesel on combustion of diesel fuels as well as their emissions and control in order to obtain a picture of the opportunities and challenges provided by the bio-diesel fuels. 1. Jeff, C. Does Idling Your Car Hurt Gas mileage? Solve Your Problem. com, 2007, retrieved 28 May 2009, http://www. solveyourproblem. com/save-money-on-gas/idling-car-gas-mileage. shtml. Problem statement Most the current car engines are designed to use diesel fuel which is notorious for emitting green house gases. Other engines which employ diesel and bio-diesel mixture have not indicated the most appropriate ratio of mixing the fuels and the optimum speed and rack to emit the least amount of these gases to the atmosphere. The research therefore seeks to obtain the best ration of mixing diesel with bio-diesel or waste oil and the best rack to emit the least amount of gases to the atmosphere. Theses Statement Obtaining the most appropriate ratio of mixing fuels for car engines would assist in reducing the amount of green house emitted from these cars. This would help to aviate the global challenges imposed by the foresaid problem. Objectives Main Objective The main aim of the research is to reduce the amount of green house gases emitted from car diesel engines. Specific objectives These include obtaining the best ratio of mixing several fuels; either diesel with bio-diesel, diesel with waste oil or bio-diesel with waste oil or the best engine speed and rack for this. Scope of the research The research would investigate the most appropriate ratio of mixing different fuels but it has some limitations of financial resources and time. Literature Review There is much concern all over the globe to reduce the emission of green house gases by 10% in the near future. Much emphasis has been on emissions of these gases from transportation fuels. In 2005, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) New Delhi came up with a passenger car engine that operated on bio-diesel fuel. This was developed from modifications of the traditional Indica diesel engine that was made some few years ago. The engine used 10 per cent of bio-diesel fuel mixed with diesel to operate the engine. This development, however experiences some significant challenges in that it would take a lot of duration for any manufacture to come up with fully developed bio-diesel engine cars. In March 2009, United Environment and Energy LLC chemists came up with fixed-bed reactor design that was considered energy-efficient and high through in put continuous flow. It was perceived as cost-effective for production of algae oil bio-diesel. This was termed as the first economical approach in production of bio-diesel from algae oil. Although, the design has been able to reduce cost by 40% it did not reduce the emission of green house gases to an effective percentage. Tsinghua University researchers in China in May 2009 tried to use sugarcane juice as a good feedstock indented for production of bio-diesel if utilized to give support to alga Chlorella protothecoides through the process of heterotrophic fermentation. This produced oil content of about 53. 0% by weight of dry cell. In May 2009, Iowa State University Researchers presented a proposal on dissolution of waste polystyrene (PS) in bio-diesel. This aimed at making the bio-diesel for consumption in motor vehicles more so in diesel engines as an approach to recover energy from the waste plastic. The researchers pointed out that the use of polystyrene-bio-diesel blends would lead to increase in engine power thus reduced emissions of green house gases. This still intents increase polystyrene concentrations with 5% as per the study. To help reduce the emissions of green house gases, Tom Harkin and some US senators, in June 2009 proposed to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to halt inclusion of in direct land use change effects as contributor to life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions in rule making indented for carrying out updated Renewable Fuels Standard that demands all bio-fuels to meet some defined life-cycle green house gas emission reduction targets prior to qualification. This research intents to come up with a more convenient approach of reducing the gases emitted from motor car diesel engines by obtaining the most optimum ratio of mixing bio-diesel, waste oil and diesel in car engine at the optimum engine speed. Research Methodology The research is conducted by experimenting the amount of green gases released from a diesel engine when diesel, bio-diesel, and waste oil are used at different to obtain different engine torques while the engine is increases from initial speed of 1500 rpm to 3200 rpm. The three fuels are used either purely or mixed with each other at different ratios while the rack is either maintained at 50% or at 100%. The amount of gases emitted for each condition is recorded in a table. The calves for the different gases emitted obtained at different speeds and racks are then plotted in several graphs. This is used to obtain the best fuel mixture and optimum speed and rack which release the least amount of gases to the atmosphere.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Popper and Kuhn: Two Views of Science Essay example -- Science Scienti

Popper and Kuhn: Two Views of Science In this essay I attempt to answer the following two questions: What is Karl Popper’s view of science? Do I feel that Thomas Kuhn makes important points against it? The two articles that I make reference to are "Science: Conjectures and Refutations" by Karl Popper and "Logic of Discovery or Psychology of Research?" by Thomas Kuhn. In the article, "Science: Conjectures and Refutations", Karl Popper attempts to describe the criteria that a theory must meet for it to be considered scientific. He calls this puzzle the problem of demarcation. Popper summarizes his arguments by saying, "the criterion of the scientific status of a theory is its falsifiability, or refutability, or testability." Kuhn says that he and Popper often agree as to what constitutes science and non-science. He claims that he differs with Popper in the methods that he uses to arrive at his conclusions. Kuhn says that if a line of demarcation is to be sought between science and non-science, we shouldn’t look for a "sharp or decisive" one, because science is not objective, as Popper would have us believe, but subjective. Popper claims that the common answer to the problem of delineating between science and pseudo-science is that science uses an empirical method, deriving from observations and experiments. This explanation does not satisfy Popper. He has a gut feeling that areas of study like astrology are not science, and he attempts to come up with a theory to prove it. One of the problems I have with Popper is that instead of looking at a concrete problem and trying to come up with an explanation, Popper first made up his mind that astrology is not science, and then set out to prove it. By Popper’s own admissions, confirming evidence is everywhere, but means little. This could be applied all of Popper’s examples. Popper is "dissatisfied" with the Marxist theory of history, psychoanalysis, and individual psychology. He sets out to describe why his gut tells him that these are unscientific theories. He argues against theories that have explanatory power. Popper has a problem with Marxists because no matter what happens in the world, they can explain the event in light of their theory. When a person believes a theory to be true, everything that happens is a verification of the truthfulness of the theory. Popper’s example is how a Marxists can’t... ...ctly what it was besides an instinct that it was different from more traditional sciences like chemistry or physics. Why was he so determined to separate empirical science from pseudo-science? If I could talk to Popper, I would ask him, "why bother trying to draw a line at all?" It would be more fruitful to try and distinguish between what is or isn’t true and what is or isn’t significant. I have a tendency to lean towards Kuhn over Popper. It don’t think that Popper’s ideal of proper science is useful, and he seems to agree with me ("neither a problem of meaningfulness or significance, nor a problem of truth or acceptability.") Kuhn looks at how the world really works, a far more significant area of study. Popper thinks that he has all of the answers. I distrust people who think that they know everything. I agree with Socrates, who said something like, "The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing." Kuhn doesn’t make rules about how science should be done, he makes suggestions. Popper wants to draw a line down the middle between science and non-science. The more I look at the problem, the more it becomes obvious that the line is not sharp, if it can be drawn at all.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Racism in America Today Essay

Racism has been a terrible problem in American society for hundreds of years. Racism issues are not limited to one specific race, but include all races. It is the responsibility of the people of this nation to address racism and learn to accept and embrace each other for our differences, and allow this great nation to become even more united for our sake and the sake of future generations. To eliminate racism it is imperative to know first, where racism started and how it has developed, why it continues to be present in our nation today, and what we must do as a people to overcome this major problem. History The Middle Passage was the system set up as a form of triangular trade that forced millions of innocent humans from their homes in Africa, and forced them to become slaves as part of the Atlantic slave trade. These people were essentially traded as slaves for materials, food, supplies etc. Many of the enslaved Africans were shipped to the Caribbean and the Americas. The Middle Passage route began in Europe where they left with the manufactured goods and headed to Africa. The goods were then traded for the slaves, and then the ships set off for the Americas and Caribbean islands (Stoddard). After the trading was done there the ships would return back to Europe. According to Elizabeth Mancke, and Carole Shammas authors of, â€Å"The Creation of the British Atlantic World,† they write, â€Å"An estimated 15% of the Africans died at sea, with mortality rates considerably higher in Africa itself in the process of capturing and transporting indigenous peoples to the ships. The total number of African deaths directly attributable to the Middle Passage voyage is estimated at up to two million; a broader look at African deaths directly attributable to the institution of slavery from 1500 to 1900 suggests up to four million African deaths. † Historian Lisa Vox expounds on the origin of slavery in North America in her article â€Å"The Start of Slavery in North America. † Vox states that, â€Å"Historians normally date the start of slavery in the North American colonies to 1619. That year, a Dutch ship carrying African slaves docked at Point Comfort, which served as Jamestown’s checkpoint for ships wanting to trade with the colonists. The crew of the Dutch ship was starving, and as John Rolfe noted in a letter to the Virginia Company’s treasurer Edwin Sandys, the Dutch traded 20 African slaves for food and supplies. † It was not until the early nineteenth century that this practice was banned with a hefty penalty for those individuals that were found participating in it. Other groups of people were affected by racism as well. When Christopher Columbus landed in the Americas in 1492, he discovered the Native American Indians which he referred to as â€Å"savages. † The Europeans deemed the Native Americans as uneducated, uncivilized creatures, and treated them as such. Native Americans were manipulated and taken advantage of by the European people, and treated more like animals than human beings. This was another historical beginning of racism in America. As America began to flourish in the mid nineteenth century, many immigrants (Irish, Chinese, Norwegians, and the Italians to name a few) flocked to the New World to seek fortune and freedom. The accumulation of many different cultures, beliefs, and ethnicities resulted in nicknaming the United States as the â€Å"melting pot. † While they were all united in their resolve to be free and determined to live the â€Å"American dream,† prejudices began to form as one race considered itself superior to the others. Americans were not happy that there were others so willing to take low pay for the jobs that they were scarcely available. There was low tolerance for different cultures and beliefs. Immigrants sought refuge and segregated themselves from one another by forming their own communities, thus resulting in â€Å"Little Italy† and â€Å"Chinatown† etc. Prejudices dissolved somewhat with the initiation of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States, along with the Bill of Rights. The Emancipation Proclamation was released in 1863 at the conclusion of the Civil War; however, slavery was not made illegal everywhere in the U. S. until the Thirteenth Amendment took effect in December 1865. Even though slavery was outlawed, there continued to be a strong segregation between the whites and African Americans. Although the Constitution states that â€Å"all men are created equal,† Latinos, Native Americans, African Americans, and other ethnicities were not receiving this kind of treatment. During the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s, many groups were formed to combat this problem of inequality. Groups such as the Black Panthers, and the Japanese American Citizens League sought to protest to gain equal rights. Such Civil Rights leaders like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. participated in nonviolent protesting to fight for these rights. In Alabama Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white person and was arrested for it, this lead to the Montgomery Bus Boycott where African Americans refused to use the buses for almost a year, and then the state ruled that it was unconstitutional to have segregated buses. It was through leaders and acts like the one just mentioned that have ended segregations and given equal rights to all Americans. Post- Racial In 2008 after Barack Obama was elected president, during the time leading up to his inauguration, it was said that many people heard for the first time, the term post-racial. The term post-racism represented a new era initiated by putting the first African-American president in office. Several people expected, believed, hoped or wanted that this new presidency would change how racism was viewed and experienced in this land of the free and home of the brave. Many individuals wanted to be able to come to this country and be a part of the great opportunity that is presented in America. They wanted to embrace a country with freedom and with a democratic government. These are a few of the things that people from other countries can only hope for and dream that someday they might make the money for the documentation and be able pay for the trip over to this land of opportunity. There are many who make the trip with expectations in their heads of how wonderful it will be upon arrival to the United States. Unfortunately not all of these individuals receive a warm welcome upon entry to this country. Racism happens to every race. Depending on what race someone might be, or what town or city that person may go it is very possible that they will feel that they are not wanted there. In the following example Kevin Merida, a writer for the Washington Post, writes about an incident in his article, â€Å"Racist Incidents Give Some Obama Campaigners Pause. † While campaigning for Barack Obama in Indiana, Danielle Ross and her group experienced a horrible response that none of them expected. Ross recalled on that day that, â€Å"The first person I encountered was like, ‘I’ll never vote for a black person. † This does not sound like racism is out of our mists. On a National Public Radio broadcast, Rebecca Roberts interviews Ralph Eubanks author of â€Å"The House at the End of the Road. † Roberts asks Eubanks to define post-racial and his response is as follows, â€Å"I think there are two popular definitions of post-racial. I think the first definition is that we are – it’s where race is no longer an issue or an impediment to progress in American society. I think that’s one way that it is often defined. Another way that it is defined is that moving – that post-racial means a color-blind society where race is not an issue. We are all Americans, and we’re just completely color blind. So, there are issues with both of those definitions, and where we’re actually moving is somewhere in between those. † For a majority of Americans, this is the goal that is in the back of their minds. Every man is created equal; everyone has the same rights, and is not judged by the color of skin they were born with. This great nation has taken steps in that direction. America is not the same place as it was in the 1950’s. Members of minority groups are not invisible like they were back then. Eubanks talks more about how he does not think that there will ever be a post-racial society because of our demographics. He believes that a post-racial society is something to always hope for, and strive towards, but pictures a multi-racial society with many different components to it. And a lot of that depends on, over the next 20 years, where our demographics take us (Roberts). Striving towards the ideal of having a color blind society will not come to past by evading the issue. Stopping racism When the topic of racism comes up many may think, â€Å"Oh no, here we go again, someone else complaining about racism. Or, why do we have to talk about this? Isn’t it time we moved on? † This may be a very uncomfortable the topic for countless American, but this is a conversation that needs to happen and continue to happen until this problem ceases to exists. It won’t disappear just because we choose not to mention it. Tim Wise, writer for timwise.org, talks about the problem of racism here in America in his article â€Å"Denial, Evasion Won’t Solve Racism. † Wise says that, â€Å"Indeed, the problem is not talking about racism but racism itself: Contrary to popular belief, race is not merely a card played by those who wish to stir up resentment. Instead it is a real and persistent determiner of who has what and why in this country. † Nobody can help what family they are born into, or what color their skin might be. Looking at the issue of race from a spiritual stand point, we are all sons and daughters of a loving Heavenly Father. Why would one human being think less of the other? The golden rule says that we do unto others like you would want them to do unto you. These are simple solutions to a giant problem. Like mentioned earlier, many are tired of hearing about these things, but however tired many are of hearing about this, people of color are more sick and tired of living it. Conclusion To eliminate racism it is imperative to know first, where racism started and how it has progressed so that mistakes from the past can be avoided. By understanding why it continues to be present in our nation today, one can understand that there are significant changes that need to take place in order for this problem to be overcome. In concurrence with Wise, â€Å"until whites join with our black and brown brothers and sisters to put an end to the kind of racial inequity described above, we’ll continue to be confronted with the uneasy conversations, as well we should be. † It will take courage, consistency, and time just as it has already, but we are making progress and in due time this nation will become all that our founding fathers dreamed it would be. Works Cited Mancke, Elizabeth and Shammas, Carole. The Creation of the British Atlantic World. 2005, page 30-1. Merida, Kevin. â€Å"Racist Incidents Give Some Obama Campaigners Pause. † Washingtonpost. com. Web. 13 May 2008. Roberts, Rebecca. The ‘Post-Racial’ Conversation, One Year In. Interview with Ralph Eubanks. National Public Radio: 2010. Print. Stoddard, B. , Murphy, D. Ph. D. â€Å"The Issue of Slavery†. Netplaces. com. Web. 25 April 2012 Wise, Tim. â€Å"Denial, Evasion Won’t Solve Racism. † Lexington Herald-Leader. 10 Nov. 2003.

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Corporal Punishment with Respect to the Private and Public...

1 Introduction Corporal punishment is the unlawful intentional act of causing harm by physically inflicting punishment on the body of an offender or severely criticising the offender. There is a distinction in common-law between corporal punishment in the public sphere and in the private sphere. Corporal punishment on children in the private sphere is administered by parents. It is legally accepted in South Africa, provided that the requirements are met. The public sphere’s position is much different in the sense that the government along with all schools have no authority to physically discipline school children anymore. Authority to exercise corporal punishment often leads to abuse of power, child abuse and feelings of superiority. All†¦show more content†¦Rex v Janke Janke (‘Janke’) clarifies the rights parents have when corporally punishing their children with the intention of teaching them a valuable lesson. The requirements for this defence are for it to be moderate and reasonable. The reasonable requirement refers to the child having to wrongfully do something or threaten to do so. The moderate requirement states that the punishment must be in proportion to the age, build, health and gender of the child. Corporal punishment by parental authority can only succeed as a defence if it meets these requirements, as well as having the intention to discipline or educate the child. 3 1 Arguments against parent’s right of chastisement The harm inflicted on a child when punishing him/her, violates the human rights of the child, which states that every child should be protected from abuse or degradation in section 28(d) of the Constitution. Another point of inconsistency the legalisation of corporal punishment in the private sphere, is set out in section 39(3) of the Constitution that states: â€Å"The Bill of rights does not deny the existence of any other rights or freedoms that are recognised or conferred by common law, customary law or legislation, to the extent that they are consistent with the Bill†. The current position of the private sphere is not in correspondence with the public sphere, even though they both deal with corporal punishment. Confusion could be raised asShow MoreRelatedThe Common Law Defence Of Reasonable Disciplinary Chastisement Essay2223 Words   |  9 Pagesacademic opinions and disputes, as a secondary source of evaluative analysis. Disciplinary chastisement: Background The previous common law interpretation regarding (â€Å"CP†) was significantly influenced by English law, employing an approach of moderate corporal chastisement as permissible towards those under their care. 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