Despite a significant drop in mortality rates, cardiovascular diseases remain the number-one cause of death in Poland. Funding for novel procedures, such as transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), is nevertheless insufficient, compared to the scale of the problem in Poland and average implantation rates in Europe. That is one of the factors motivating the European Society of Cardiology's and European Association for Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions "Valve for Life" Initiative.

The two dimensional steady and unsteady flow field at midspan in a low speed axial flow compressor stage has been investigated experimentally, using two systems, based on totally different principles: a 2-sensor fast response straight and 90° triple split fiber probes (TSFP) and two dimensional LOA system with an emphasis on the interaction of the inlet guide vane (IGY) wake with the rotor flow field. To account for the uniformity of the rotor absolute inlet flow field, measurements has been made at eight tangential locations in the absolute frame equally spaced over one IGY pitch. The time resolved investigation, done by TSFP and LOA allows to presenting velocity fields, flow angles and turbulence data at different [GY-rotor positions during one blade passing period. The velocity measurements are decomposed into a time averaged velocity, a periodic velocity component and a unresolved velocity component. Using two measurement systems, one being intrusive and the other non-intrusive, in the same complex flow field, gives the opportunity for a critical comparison of results and opens the view for further improvements. Averaging these results, enabled also comparison with the pneumatic five-hole probe measurement.

The aim of this paper is to analyze various CO2 compression processes for post-combustion CO2 capture applications for 900 MW pulverized coal-fired power plant. Different thermodynamically feasible CO2 compression systems will be identified and their energy consumption quantified. A detailed thermodynamic analysis examines methods used to minimize the power penalty to the producer through integrated, low-power compression concepts. The goal of the present research is to reduce this penalty through an analysis of different compression concepts, and a possibility of capturing the heat of compression and converting it to useful energy for use elsewhere in the plant.

Eighty five faecal samples of the Svalbard reindeer inhabiting the coastal terrace of the northern side of Hornsund were collected in July 2005 and analyzed coprologically. The standard flotation method revealed a 97.6% prevalence of infection at an average intensity of 20 eggs in a single subsample. The quantitative, modified McMaster method helped to estimate the mean number of eggs in a gram of faeces (EPG) at 134.7. In the studied samples eggs of nematodes representing two species, i.e. Ostertagia gruehneri (97.6%, on average 20 eggs in a sample) and Marshallagia marshalli (2.3%, single eggs), were identified.

A commercially available ASPEN PLUS simulation using a pipe model was employed to determine the maximum safe pipeline distances to subsequent booster stations as a function of carbon dioxide (CO2) inlet pressure, ambient temperature and ground level heat flux parameters under three conditions: isothermal, adiabatic and with account of heat transfer. In the paper, the CO2working area was assumed to be either in the liquid or in the supercritical state and results for these two states were compared. The following power station data were used: a 900 MW pulverized coal-fired power plant with 90% of CO2recovered (156.43 kg/s) and the monothanolamine absorption method for separating CO2from flue gases. The results show that a subcooled liquid transport maximizes energy efficiency and minimizes the cost of CO2transport over long distances under isothermal, adiabatic and heat transfer conditions. After CO2is compressed and boosted to above 9 MPa, its temperature is usually higher than ambient temperature. The thermal insulation layer slows down the CO2temperature decrease process, increasing the pressure drop in the pipeline. Therefore in Poland, considering the atmospheric conditions, the thermal insulation layer should not be laid on the external surface of the pipeline.

The paper presents a research program carried out to improve understanding of the fluid dynamics mechanisms that lead to rotating stall in the axial flow low speed compressor stage. The stalling behavior of this compressor stage was studied by measuring unsteady casing pressure by means of a circumferentially and axially spaced array of high frequency pressure transducers. Another probe used was a disc static pressure probe, with the pressure transducer, for in-flow and out-flow measurements along the blade span. It was expected that understanding of the fluid dynamics will facilitate at least two important tasks. The first was to accurately predict of when and how a particular compressor would stall. The second was to control, delay, or eventually suppress the rotating stall and surge. In consequence, one could extend the useful operating range of the axial compressor. Another motivation for the research was to compare the results from the three applied analysis techniques by using a single stall inception event. The first one was a simple visual inspection of the traces, which brought about a very satisfactory effect. The second one was application of spatial Fourier decomposition to the analysis of stall inception data, and the third method of analysis consisted in application of wavelet filtering in order to better understand the physical mechanisms which lead to rotating stall. It was shown that each of these techniques would provide different information about compressor stall behavior, and each method had unique advantages and limitations.

Diatomaceous ooze sampled from near the Mariana Trench sediment surface by gravity corer (Core JL7KGC05) revealed a high sedimentary abundance of Ethmodiscus rex (Rattray, 1890) Wiseman and Hendey, 1953 fragments and tropical open ocean planktonic diatom taxa including Azpeitia nodulifera (Schmidt, 1878) Fryxell and Watkins in Fryxell, Sims and Watkins, 1986 and Alveus marinus (Grunow, 1880) Kaczmarska and Fryxell, 1996. Subsurficial sediments from the ooze are assigned a Marine Isotope Stage 2 age, approximately at the Last Glacial Maximum. The occurrence of Ethmodiscus ooze suggests massive late Pleistocene blooms in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean and provides a plausible link to paleoceanographic and paleoclimatic changes related to Antarctic Intermediate Water mass, which carried a high dissolved silica content as silicon leakage that reduced dissolution rate of diatom frustules. Northward flow of Antarctic Intermediate Water was probably related to surface current migration and southward shift of the Northwest Pacific Gyre to form oligotrophic conditions that triggered Ethmodiscus rex blooms under unusual nutrient recycling conditions within the ocean system. This bloom hypothesis may help explain differential silica dissolution during the last glacial stage.

Three commercially available intercooled compression strategies for compressing CO2 were studied. All of the compression concepts required a final delivery pressure of 153 bar at the inlet to the pipeline. Then, simulations were used to determine the maximum safe pipeline distance to subsequent booster stations as a function of inlet pressure, environmental temperature, thickness of the thermal insulation and ground level heat flux conditions. The results show that subcooled liquid transport increases energy efficiency and minimises the cost of CO2 transport over long distances under heat transfer conditions. The study also found that the thermal insulation layer should not be laid on the external surface of the pipe in atmospheric conditions in Poland. The most important problems from the environmental protection point of view are rigorous and robust hazard identification which indirectly affects CO2 transportation. This paper analyses ways of reducing transport risk by means of safety valves.

The paper presents experimental investigations of pressure fluctuations near the tip clearance region of the rotor blades of the axial-flow low-speed compressor stage in stable and unstable parts of the overall performance characteristic. In this investigation, unsteady pressure was measured with the use of high frequency pressure transducers mounted on the casing wall of rotor passage. The pressure signals and their frequency characteristics were analyzed during the steady-state processes, before the rotating stall, during the transition from the steady-state process to the rotating stall, and during a stabilized phenomenon of low-frequency rotating stall. As the operating point moves to the unstable region of flow characteristic, an inception of the rotating stall can be observed, which rotates with a speed of about 41.4% of the rotor speed. The results of this study confirm that in the low-speed axial compressor stage operating in a rotating stall regime there appears one stall cell that spreads over to adjacent rotor blade channels. As the flow rate is reduced further, the frequency of the rotating stall decreased to 34.8% of the rotor speed and the number of blade channels with the stall cell increases.