| 1. |
- Abraham-Nordling, Mirna, et al.
(författare)
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Incidence of hyperthyroidism in Sweden
- 2011
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Ingår i: European Journal of Endocrinology. - 0804-4643 .- 1479-683X. ; 165:6, s. 899-905
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: The incidence of hyperthyroidism has been reported in various countries to be 23-93/100000 inhabitants per year. This extended study has evaluated the incidence for similar to 40% of the Swedish population of 9 million inhabitants. Sweden is considered to be iodine sufficient country. Methods:All patients including children, who were newly diagnosed with overt hyperthyroidism in the years 2003-2005, were prospectively registered in a multicenter study. The inclusion criteria are as follows:clinical symptoms and/or signs of hyperthyroidism with plasma TSH concentration below 0.2 mIE/l and increased plasma levels of free/total triiodothyronine and/or free/total thyroxine. Patients with relapse of hyperthyroidism or thyroiditis were not included. The diagnosis of Graves' disease (GD), toxic multinodular goiter (TMNG) and solitary toxic adenoma (STA), smoking, initial treatment, occurrence of thyroid-associated eye symptoms/signs, and demographic data were registered. Results:A total of 2916 patients were diagnosed with de novo hyperthyroidism showing the total incidence of 27.6/100 000 inhabitants per year. The incidence of GD was 21.0/100 000 and toxic nodular goiter (TNG=STA+TMNG) occurred in 692 patients, corresponding to an annual incidence of 6.5/100 000. The incidence was higher in women compared with men (4.2:1). Seventy-five percent of the patients were diagnosed with GD, in whom thyroid-associated eye symptoms/signs occurred during diagnosis in every fifth patient. Geographical differences were observed. Conclusion:The incidence of hyperthyroidism in Sweden is in a lower range compared with international reports. Seventy-five percent of patients with hyperthyroidism had GD and 20% of them had thyroid-associated eye symptoms/signs during diagnosis. The observed geographical differences require further studies.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Baaz, Mikael, 1966, et al.
(författare)
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Farligt med ökad vilja att agera utanför FN
- 2010
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Ingår i: Pax (Svenska Freds- och Skiljedomsföreningens tidning). - 0048-3087. ; :2/10
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)
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| 5. |
- Baaz, Mikael, 1966, et al.
(författare)
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Svagt FN hinder för afghansk fred
- 2010
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Ingår i: Svenska Dagbladet, Brännpunkt. ; :2010-04-19
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Börjesson, Pål, et al.
(författare)
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Life Cycle Assessment of Biofuels in Sweden
- 2010
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The purpose of this study is to carry out updated and developed life cycle assessments of biofuels produced and used in Sweden today. The focuses are on making the assessments as relevant and transparent as possible and to identify hot spots which have significant impacts on the environmental performance of the specific biofuel production chains. The study includes sensitivity analyses showing the impact on changed future conditions. The results should be seen as current and average environmental performance based on updated calculation methods. Thus individual systems developed by specific companies may have somewhat different performances. The biofuels analysed are ethanol from wheat, sugar beet and sugar cane (imported from Brazil), RME from rapeseed, biogas from sugar beet, ley crops, maize and organic residues, such as municipal waste, food industry waste and liquid manure. The study also includes co-production of ethanol and biogas from wheat. Final use in both light and heavy duty vehicles, and related emissions, are assessed. Environmental impact categories considered are climate change, eutrophication, acidification, photochemical oxidants, particles and energy balances. The calculations include emissions from technical systems, e.g. energy input in various operations and processes, and biogenic emissions of nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide from direct land use changes (LUC). The potential risk of indirect land use changes (ILUC) is also assessed. By-products are included by three different calculation methods, system expansion, energy allocation and economic allocation. The results are presented per MJ biofuel, but the alternative functional unit per hectare cropland is also used regarding the greenhouse gas performance of crop-based biofuels. Finally, estimations are carried out regarding the current environmental performance of the current various biofuel systems based on system expansion, recommended by the ISO-standardisation of LCA, and energy allocation, utilised in the standardisation of biofuels within the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED).
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| 9. |
- Börjesson, Pål, et al.
(författare)
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Livscykelanalys av svenska biodrivmedel
- 2010
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Syftet med detta projekt är att göra uppdaterade och utvecklade livscykelanalyser för biodrivmedel som är aktuella i Sverige idag. Fokus ligger på att göra så transparenta och relevanta jämförelser som möjligt och att lyfta fram de steg i livscykeln som signifikant påverkar respektive biodrivmedels miljöprestanda. I studien görs känslighetsanalyser som visar effekterna av t ex framtida förändrade produktions-förutsättningar. Studiens resultat ska tolkas som aktuell och genomsnittlig miljöprestanda för respektive biodrivmedel utifrån de utvecklade beräkningsmetoder som tillämpas idag, d v s det kan finnas vissa skillnader mot specifika produktionssystem som olika företag utnyttjar idag. De biodrivmedelssystem som inkluderas är etanol från vete, sockerbetor och sockerrör (import från Brasilien), RME från raps, biogas från sockerbetor, vall, majs samt från restprodukter i form av hushållsavfall, industriavfall och gödsel. Dessutom ingår samproduktion av etanol och biogas från vete. Utsläpp från såväl tunga som lätta fordon inkluderas. De miljöeffektkategorier som ingår är klimatpåverkan, övergödning, försurning, fotokemiska oxidanter (marknära ozon), partiklar samt energibalans. I beräkningarna beaktas utsläpp från tekniska system, framför allt från den insatsenergi som krävs, men också biogena utsläpp av lustgas och koldioxid från en direkt förändrad markanvändning. En analys görs av eventuella indirekta markeffekter utanför Sveriges gränser. Vid hantering av de restprodukter och biprodukter som fås i de olika systemen tillämpas tre olika beräkningsmetoder; systemutvidgning, energiallokering samt ekonomisk allokering. Resultaten presenteras per MJ drivmedel men en alternativ funktionell enhet, per hektar åkermark, redovisas också för klimatprestanda för drivmedel baserade på grödor. Avslutningsvis görs en bedömning av vilken miljöpåverkan respektive biodrivmedel ger upphov till idag, dels utifrån systemutvidgning som rekommenderas i ISO-standarden för LCA, dels utifrån energiallokering som utnyttjas som beräkningsmetod i EU´s Renewable Energy Directive (RED).
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| 10. |
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| 11. |
- Ersson, Carolina
(författare)
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Conditions for resource-efficient production of biofuels for transport in Sweden
- 2014
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Transportation has continued to increase worldwide and fossil-fuel dependency is strong which leads to a number of problems, e.g. increased emissions of green-house gases (GHG) and risks related to energy security. Biofuels have until now been one of the few renewable alternatives which have been able to replace fossil fuels on a large scale. The biofuel share in relation to the total use of fuel in the transportation sector is still small, but in many places in the world political targets are set to increase the share of renewable fuels, of which biofuels are supposed to be an important part. Within the European Union targets for renewable energy have been set, including within the transportation sector, where 10% shall come from renewable sources by 2020 according to the EU Renewable Energy Directive (EU RES). Biofuels also need to fulfill the sustainability criteria in the EU RES, to be regarded as renewable. Depending on how biofuels are produced their resource efficiency varies, and the differences in environmental and economic performance can for instance be significant.The aim of this thesis is to describe and analyze conditions for a development towards increased and more resource-efficient production of biofuels in Sweden. The conditions have been studied from a regional resource perspective and from a biofuel producer perspective since it has been assumed that the producers are in possession of important knowledge, and potentially will play an important role in future biofuel development. The concept of resource efficiency used in this thesis includes an environmental and economic perspective as well as an overall societal dimension to some extent. The region of Östergötland in Sweden was used for the assessment of the resourcefocused biofuel potential for the year 2030, where two scenarios based on assessments regarding socio-technical development in relation to regional resources were used. The scenarios were based on semi-structured interviews with biofuel actors, literature studies and information from experts in the field. In the EXPAN (Expansion) scenario a continued development in line with the current one was assumed, but also an increased availability of feedstock primarily within the agricultural and waste sectors (also including byproducts from industry) for biofuel production. In the INNTEK (Innovation and Technology development) scenario greater technological progress was assumed to also enable the use of some unconventional feedstock besides increased available arable land and improved collection/availability of certain feedstock. Biomass feedstock from four categories was included in the potential: waste, agriculture, forestry and aquatic environments. One important feedstock which was not included in this study, but which is often included in studies of potential, is lignocellulosic material from the forest. This choice was also supported by the regional actors who judged it as less probable that there will be any large-scale use of such feedstock for biofuels in this region within the given timeframe. Regarding arable land available for biofuel production a share of 30% was assumed at maximum in the region, of which 15% is already used for cereal production for ethanol fuel. On these additional 15% assumed to be available for biofuel production year 2030, ley cropping for production of biogas was assumed in this study. Aquatic biomass is often not included in biofuel potentials. Here, algae were assumed to be a potentially interesting substrate for biogas production since harvesting algae in for instance the Baltic Sea could be seen as a multifunctional measure, i.e., contributing additional environmental benefits such as reducing eutrophication. Based on the assumption that the energy need in the transportation sector will be the same in 2030 as in 2010, up to 30% could be substituted with biofuels in the EXPAN scenario and up to 50% in the INNTEK scenario, without seriously conflicting with other interests such as food or feed production. In the study of potential, production systems for biogas production were prioritized since such systems were judged to have a large potential for resource efficiency. This is because they have a big capacity to utilize by-products and waste as feedstock, and also because they can contribute to closing the loops of plant nutrients, seen as an important goal in society, if the digestate is returned to arable land.The utilization of by-products and waste however in many cases requires cooperation between different actors in society. Within the research field of industrial symbiosis, cooperation regarding material and energy flows is studied from different perspectives, e.g. how such cooperation between actors evolves and to what extent such cooperation can contribute to improving the environmental and economic performance of systems. Both these perspectives are interesting in relation to biofuels since production often involves a large number of energy- and material flows at the same time as resource efficiency is important. How the producers organize the production when it comes to feedstock, energy, by-products and products and what influences this is therefore interesting to study. In this thesis four biofuel producers of three different biofuels (ethanol, biodiesel and biogas) on the Swedish market were studied, focusing on how they organize their biofuel production in terms of e.g. their material and energy flows, and how they intend to organize it in the future. The study is based on semi-structured interviews with the biofuel producers as well as literature studies. In all the cases, a number of areas of material and energy flow cooperation were identified and it could also be concluded that there had been some change regarding these patterns over time. Looking into the future a clear change of strategy was identified in the ethanol case and partly also in the biodiesel case where a development towards improved valorisation and differentiation of by-product flows was foreseen. If such a “biorefinery” strategy is realized, it can potentially improve the economic viability and resource efficiency in these biofuel producers. In the biogas cases, instead a strategy to lower the costs for feedstock through the use of lower quality feedstock was identified. This strategy also has a potential to increase economic viability and improve the resource efficiency. However, the success of this strategy is to a large extent dependent on how the off-set of the biofertilizer can be arranged regarding the economic challenges that the biogas producers’ experience, and yet no strategy for implementation regarding this was identified. The EU Renewable Energy Directive was mentioned in relation to most cooperation projects and therefore regarded as an important critical factor. All of the studied companies also struggle to be competitive, for which reason the importance of the direct economic aspects of cooperation seems to increase.
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| 12. |
- Gissén, Charlott, et al.
(författare)
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Comparing energy crops for biogas production Yields, energy input and costs in cultivation using digestate and mineral fertilisation
- 2014
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Ingår i: Biomass & Bioenergy. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-2909 .- 0961-9534. ; 64, s. 199-210
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Analyses of six crops grown in southern Sweden for biogas production (hemp, sugar beet, maize, triticale, grass/clover ley, winter wheat) showed varying performance regarding methane yield per hectare and energy input and costs in the production and supply of crops as biogas feedstock. The highest biomass and biogas yield was observed for sugar beet. Crops with lower risk of negative environmental impact in cultivation, such as ley and hemp, produced less than half the methane energy yield per hectare. Triticale, also having less risk of negative environmental impact, gave an energy yield similar to that of winter wheat grain and maize. Replacing most of the mineral fertiliser with biogas digestate did not, with the exception for hemp, influence crop yields per hectare, but energy input in cultivation decreased by on average 34% for the six crops tested. For hemp and sugar beet the biogas feedstock costs for the freshly harvested crop per GJ methane were close to that of the economic reference crop, winter wheat grain. For maize, beet tops and first and second year ley, the feedstock costs were lower, and for triticale much lower. When ensiled crops were used for biogas the feedstock costs increased and only those of triticale silage remained slightly lower than the cost of dried wheat grain. However, all feedstock costs were so high that profitable biogas production based solely on ensiled crops would be difficult to achieve at present Swedish biogas sales prices. (c) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 13. |
- Gustafsson, Rita, et al.
(författare)
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A cross-sectional study of subclinical and clinical thyroid disorders in women with microscopic colitis compared to controls.
- 2013
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1502-7708 .- 0036-5521. ; 48:12, s. 1414-1422
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Abstract Background and aims. Microscopic colitis (MC), predominantly affecting women, is associated with thyroid disorders, although purely defined of which type, or compared with controls. Its association with subclinical thyroid disorders, and related increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, has never been examined. The aim was to examine the prevalence of autoantibodies and subclinical and clinical thyroid dysfunction in female patients with MC compared with controls. Methods. Women younger than 73 years old with biopsy-verified MC from the Department of Gastroenterology in Skåne, during 2002-2010, were invited. Out of 240 identified, 133 were finally included. A questionnaire about medical history was completed and blood samples were collected. Serum was analyzed for free thyroxin and triiodothyronine, thyroid-stimulating hormone and anti-thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO) antibodies. A population-based group of 737 women served as controls. Result. The prevalence of thyroid disorders in patients was higher compared to controls [odds ratio (OR) = 2.98, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.78-4.99], but the prevalence of subclinical disorders was not different (OR = 1.18, 95% CI = 0.48-2.85). Anti-TPO antibodies were present in 10.6% of MC patients and 18.6% of controls. Twenty-five MC patients had hypothyroidism: 15 with Hashimoto´s hypothyroidism, 6 with completed treatment of thyrotoxicosis and 4 with completed surgery after nontoxic goiter. Conclusion. Thyroid disorders, autoimmune hypothyroidism being most frequent, are more prevalent in patients with MC than in controls, whereas the prevalence of subclinical thyroid disorders in MC patients does not differ significantly from controls.
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| 14. |
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| 15. |
- Johansson, Håkan T, 1977, et al.
(författare)
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The unbound isotopes He-9,He-10
- 2010
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Ingår i: Nuclear Physics A. - Elsevier : Elsevier BV. - 0375-9474 .- 1873-1554. ; 842:1-4, s. 15-32
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The unbound nuclei He-9 and He-10 have been produced in proton-knockout reactions from a 280 MeV/u Li-11 beam impinging on a liquid hydrogen target at the ALADIN-LAND setup at GSI. Information on their nuclear structure has been obtained from the relative-energy spectra, He-8 + n and He-8 + 2n, employing reaction models incorporating the structure of Li-11. The (8H)e + n relative-energy spectrum is dominated by a strong peak-like structure at low energy, which may be interpreted within the effective-range approximation as the result of an s-wave interaction with a neutron scattering length of -3.17(66) fm. This spectrum also shows evidence for resonance states at 1.33(8) MeV and at 2.4 MeV above the He-8 + n threshold. It is argued that the s-state might not be the He-9 ground state. For He-8 + n + n, the analysis of the relative-energy spectrum gives two alternative possibilities for an interpretation: either a narrow resonance at 1.42(10) MeV (Gamma = 1.11(76) MeV) superimposed on a correlated background, or two overlapping resonances, a ground state at 1.54(11) MeV (Gamma = 1.91(41) MeV) together with an excited state at 3.99(26) MeV (Gamma = 1.64(89) MeV). The two possible interpretations are discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 16. |
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| 17. |
- Kreuger, Emma, et al.
(författare)
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Biogas från Skånsk betblast - potential, teknik och ekonomi
- 2014
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Rapport (populärvet., debatt m.m.)abstract
- Sammanfattning I Skåne odlas 34 500 ha sockerbetor för sockerutvinning och i Sverige 36 000 ha (Jordbruksstatistik årsbok 2014). Vid insamling och rötning av blasten från betorna i Skåne skulle drygt 200 GWh biogas kunna produceras per år och driva minst 19 000 bilar eller 1000 bussar. Men idag lämnas den i fält. Tidigare studier har visat att betblast från sockerproduktion är på gränsen till lönsamt att skörda och använda för biogasproduktion (Lantz, 2013b). I det här projektet har flera forskare, en biogasproducent och en representant för betodlarna gemensamt tagit fram och undersökt ett par förslag för hur skörd, lagring och rötning av betblast kan genomföras och hur olika tillvägagångssätt påverkar kostnader och klimatpåverkan. Dessa innefattar en jämförelse av två olika skördekedjor och undersökning av effekterna av att fraktionera betblast före lagring och rötning på; biogasproduktion, ekonomi och klimatpåverkan. För dessa beräkningar antogs att endast betblast rötades i en biogasanläggning med en årlig produktion om 172 TJ (48 GWh) metan. Effekterna av att introducera icke fraktionerad och fraktionerad betblast i en samrötningsanläggning analyserades också. Dessutom arrangerades en skördedemonstration i oktober 2013 i samarbete med Skånska Biobränslebolaget (länk till video). Analysen av skördeteknik har begränsats till skörd av blast från betor odlade för sockerproduktion, vilket är det som görs i Sverige idag. Om sockerbetor odlas endast för biogasproduktion kan andra skördetekniker för betor och blast vara aktuella. Studien har visat att när biogas från betblast ersatte fossil energi som drivmedel så sänktes utsläppen av klimatgaser kraftigt, med 80 %. Därmed uppfylldes EUs hållbarhetskriterier för biodrivmedel, både enligt dagens direktiv (35 % reduktion) och föreslagna framtida (60 % reduktion). Viktigt i detta sammanhang är att blasten är en restprodukt och den konkurrerar inte om åkermark för livsmedelsproduktion. I Skåne skulle ca 200 GWh biogas kunna produceras från betblast vid dagens sockerbetsproduktion. Men, även för den andel av blasten som skördas under september (motsvarande ca 40 GWh), då det är mer gynnsamt än vid senare skörd, är det svårt att hitta ekonomisk hållbarhet. Studien tyder på att kostnader och klimatpåverkan är de samma om betblast fraktioneras eller ej. I fallstudien framkom att fraktionering av betblasten gav praktisk möjlighet att ta emot mer material i den studerade samrötningsanläggningen. Vätskefraktionen kunde då ersätta vatten i förbehandlingen och mera torrsubstans (TS) kunde tas emot med den fasta fraktionen innan uppehållstiden begränsade mängden i rötningsprocessen. Att ersätta vatten i förbehandlingsanläggningen ger mindre kapitalkostnader per producerad MWh jämfört med om man skulle röta denna fraktion i en dedikerad anläggning. Men, inte heller i fallstudien medförde fraktionering lägre kostnader per producerad mängd metan. Blastskörden visade sig vara högre i september, 3,6 ton torrsubstans per hektar (t TS/ha), än i oktober, 3,2 t TS/ha, vilket gör det fördelaktigare att samla in blast i september än oktober. Av de skörde- och transportkedjor som teoretiskt utvärderades i projektet var det ekonomiskt mest fördelaktigt med en skördekedja där en mindre mängd blast samlades in (55 % av tillgänglig mängd) för att minimera maskinernas väntetider. Alternativet har dock nackdelen att en större andel kvarlämnad blast gör att en större andel av fältets ytafår ojämn förfruktseffekt i efterföljande gröda jämfört med ett scenario då större andel av blasten samlas in. Priset för skörd (i september) och lagring beräknades till 1,7–2,1 kr/kg TS både med och utan fraktionering. Detta är högre än det pris som tidigare beräknats (Gissén et al. 2014), vilket bedöms som underskattat. Tester av fraktionering av betblast gjordes i liten skala med en äppeljuicepress. Metanpotentialtester gjordes på de olika fraktionerna. Pressning av strimlad blast (13 % TS) gav en vätskefraktion (7 % TS) motsvarande en fjärdedel av våtvikten och 3 fjärdedelar återstod som fast fraktion (15 % TS). Den fasta fraktionen gav dubbelt så högt metanutbyte per kg våtvikt som vätskefraktionen, men ingen signifikant skillnad i metanutbyte per kg organiskt material. Ingen inverkan av sortval på betblastskörden eller metanutbyte per kg organiskt material kunde hittas vid test av fem sockerbetssorter som förädlats fram för sockerproduktion. När fraktionerad blast används kan möjlighet finnas att dubbelanvända lager för den våta fraktionen och rötrest. Det gäller även för andra flytande substrat som behöver lagras. Studien visar att dubbelanvändning kan påverka investeringskostnaderna för rötrestlagret signifikant och en närmare undersökning av om det är praktiskt möjligt vore intressant. När flera positiva faktorer samspelar kan det finnas möjlighet att med dagens förhållanden producera biogas som biodrivmedel från betblast på ett ekonomiskt hållbart sätt. Exempel på identifierade positiva faktorer är: högt blastutbyte, användning av underutnyttjade jordbruksredskap, rötning i befintliga anläggningar för att fylla ut substratluckor, korta transportsträckor och direktanvändning av färsk betblast utan lagring. Det är troligtvis endast för en liten del av den totala mängden blast som tillräckligt många positiva faktorer samspelar för att den idag ska kunna vara ekonomiskt intressant att använda för biogasproduktion.
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| 18. |
- Lantz, Mikael
(författare)
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Biogas in Sweden - Opportunities and challenges from a systems perspective
- 2013
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Addressing today’s challenges of reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and related emissions of greenhouse gases requires measures such as increased energy efficiency and replacement of fossil energy carriers with renewable ones. Biogas is one of the fastest growing renewable energy sources in the world and the overarching purpose of the research presented in this doctoral thesis is to explore the prospects of an increased production and utilization of biogas in a Swedish context. Biogas can be produced from various kinds of organic material such as municipal and industrial waste, which dominate the current production. This is driven by existing policy incentives, which also promote the use of biogas as vehicle fuel. However, the lion’s share of the Swedish biogas potential remains essentially untapped within the agricultural sector, including feedstock such as manure, crop residues and dedicated biogas crops. If fully utilized, biogas from wastes and residues only could replace 10% of the vehicle fuels or 50% of the natural gas used in Sweden today. This implies that existing incentives must be strengthened to overcome today’s barriers, especially regarding the limited profitability in biogas production based on agricultural feedstock as identified in this thesis. In addition, the techno-economic performance needs to be improved, for example by reduced feedstock costs and increased methane yields. For low-cost feedstock, such as manure, measures to reduce the cost of capital and the related cost of operation and maintenance are especially important. In the environmental assessment presented in this thesis, it was found that biogas produced in an existing, representative co-digestion plant, reduced emissions of greenhouse gases by approximately 90% when replacing fossil vehicle fuels. Based on the current structure of the Swedish energy system, the replacement of fossil vehicle fuels with biogas would normally render the highest reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, followed by the replacement of natural gas and other fossil energy carriers, indicating that these utilization options should be prioritized. However, given the additional greenhouse gas benefits of biogas produced from manure, regardless of how the biogas is utilized, such production should also be promoted. In conclusion, the overall findings in this thesis show that there are substantial opportunities to increase the production and utilization of biogas in Sweden, which would reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly. However, current challenges, including the limited profitability in biogas production based on agricultural feedstock, should be met by further technology development combined with adequate and focused policy instruments.
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| 19. |
- Lantz, Mikael, et al.
(författare)
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Greenhouse gas and energyassessment of the biogas from co-digestion injected into the natural gas grid: A Swedish case-study including effects on soil properties
- 2014
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Ingår i: Renewable Energy. - 0960-1481. ; 71, s. 387-395
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study, a large, farm-based, co-digestion plant in southern Sweden, using manure and various food industry wastes is investigated concerning its use of energy and its emissions of greenhouse gases from a life cycle perspective based on measured, site-specific data. The biogas is upgraded and utilized as a vehicle fuel, distributed via the natural gas grid. The case-study also includes a novel approach in which potential changes in soil compaction and soil carbon levels are assessed, based on farm-specific conditions, when digestate replaces mineral fertilizer. An additional objective is to identify potential technical improvements leading to further GHG reductions, and the cost of such measures. According to this case-study, biogas produced from food industry waste and manure in a modern co-digestion plant could reduce GHG emissions by approximately 90% compared to conventional fossil fuels. The corresponding energy input:output ratio is calculated to be about 25%, where the use of electricity in the biogas process, upgrading and pressurisation is the dominating energy input. Finally, several possible technical improvements to further reduce GHG emissions were identified. The economic prerequisites of the specific improvements varied, from profitable from a business perspective to unprofitable from a socio-economic point-of-view. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 20. |
- Lantz, Mikael, et al.
(författare)
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Increased TRAb and/or Low Anti-TPO Titers at Diagnosis of Graves' Disease are Associated with an Increased Risk of Developing Ophthalmopathy after Onset.
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Experimental and Clinical Endocrinology & Diabetes. - : Georg Thieme Verlag KG. - 1439-3646 .- 0947-7349. ; 122:2, s. 113-117
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Patients with low thyroid peroxidase antibodies (anti-TPO) and increased TSH-receptor antibodies (TRAb) at diagnosis of Graves' disease (GD) have been suggested to have an increased risk to develop Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO). The aim was to evaluate if GO development can be predicted.This is an observational study with registration of possible GD and GO risk factors.399 patients with GD were registered 2003-2008 in Malmö, Sweden and out of these 310 were retrospectively followed up to 6 years. The main outcome measures were anti-TPO titer, TRAb titer, smoking habits, radioiodine treatment and GO development.TRAb was assessed with a third generation assay at GD diagnosis in 231 patients. The proportion of patients with GO increased above the median 6.3 IU/L both at diagnosis of GD (p=0.001) and at follow-up (p=0.0001).The distribution of GO patients anti-TPO above or below 20 kIU/L at diagnosis of GD was similar between groups (p=0.239). However at follow-up anti-TPO<20 kIU/L was associated with an increased proportion of newly developed GO as compared to the cohort with anti-TPO>20 kIU/L (p=0.018).87% of patients who developed GO after GD diagnosis had TRAb above 6.3 IU/L and/or anti-TPO below 20 kIU/L. The proportion of GO was doubled in GD patients treated with radioiodine but could not explain the described findingsAnti-TPO<20 kIU/L and/or TRAb>6.3 IE/L at the time of GD diagnosis were associated with an increased risk to develop GO after diagnosis of GD.
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| 21. |
- Lantz, Mikael, et al.
(författare)
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Styrmedel för en ökad produktion av gödselbaserad biogas - En fallstudie för Skåne och Västra Götalands län
- 2014
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Produktion av biogas från gödsel har i flera studier visat sig leda till stora positiva miljöeffekter, i synnerhet vad gäller emissioner av växthusgaser, jämfört med andra förnybara energibärare. Skälet är att produktionen av biogas, utöver att ersätta fossila bränslen, också ger en minskad miljöpåverkan från konventionell hantering av stallgödsel. Trots dessa positiva miljöeffekter utnyttjas dock endast ett par procent av biogaspotentialen från gödsel, som i Sverige uppgår till cirka 3 TWh per år. Skåne och Västra Götaland är de två län som har störst potential och syftet med föreliggande studie har bland annat varit att på regional nivå beräkna miljönyttan och det samhällsekonomiska värdet av att producera biogas från gödsel samt att beskriva nuvarande och planerad produktion. Syftet har också varit att analysera behovet av ytterligare ekonomiska incitament och huruvida sådana styrmedel skulle kunna införas på regional nivå. År 2012 producerades endast cirka 10 GWh gödselbaserad biogas i de två länen. Baserat på den sammanställning som genomförts här kan det dock konstateras att produktionen kan komma att öka betydligt de närmaste åren om alla planerade projekt genomförs. Sett till den totala potentialen är det trots detta inte mer än drygt 20 % respektive 10 % av potentialen som skulle utnyttjas i Skåne respektive Västra Götaland. Samtidigt menar flera aktörer att de ekonomiska förutsättningarna är mycket begränsade och en stor del av projekten har ännu inte fattat några investeringsbeslut. I de intervjuer som genomförts har regionala och nationella branschaktörer bland annat fått svara på om de ser ett behov av ytterligare styrmedel för att främja en gödselbaserad produktion av biogas och vilken typ av styrmedel de i sådana fall skulle föredra utifrån sin situation. Med något undantag menar samtliga aktörer att man föredrar ett produktionsstöd framför ett investeringsstöd. Merparten av de större bolagen ser dock gärna stöd i form av ett klimatcertifikat som också gynnar andra substrat utöver gödsel. De lantbruksanknutna aktörerna för istället fram det så kallade metanreduceringsstödet som tidigare föreslagits av Energimyndigheten och är kopplat endast till biogasproduktion från gödsel. Utöver önskemålen om direkta stöd är det också flera aktörer som nämner ett fortsatt behov av satsning på infrastruktur och de offentliga aktörernas betydelse som användare av i första hand fordonsgas. Baserat på dessa intervjuer och de litteraturstudier som genomförts presenteras ett antal olika styrmedel som direkt eller indirekt skulle kunna förbättra förutsättningarna för en ökad gödselbaserad produktion av biogas. När arbetet med denna studie inleddes fanns det inte några förslag på nationella styrmedel för att främja en gödselbaserad produktion av fordonsgas. I september 2013 kom dock besked om att regeringen avsätter medel till ett sådant stöd i form av ett pilotprojekt på 10 år. Som en del i denna studie inkluderades därför en beräkning av hur olika avgränsningar i detta stöd skulle kunna påverka produktionen i respektive region. Avgränsningar som analyserats är bland annat krav på hur biogasen ska användas och krav på andelen gödsel i biogasanläggningen. Resultatet visar att merparten av biogasproduktionen, så som projekten är utformade nu, kommer att ske i anläggningar som tar emot minst 80 % gödsel och som producerar fordonsgas. Sådana avgränsningar kommer därmed att ha relativt liten betydelse för kostnader och utfall förknippade med stödsystemet. Däremot kan det ha stor betydelse för enskilda anläggningar. Förutsättningarna för att införa nya styrmedel på regional nivå tycks vara något mer begränsade. De alternativ som ligger närmast tillhands bedöms därför vara satsningar som gynnar biogasutvecklingen i stort, utan att offentliga medel riktas mot en enskild aktör, samt att ställa krav som gynnar gödselbaserad biogas i den regionala upphandlingen av varor och tjänster.
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| 22. |
- Lantz, Mikael
(författare)
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The economic performance of combined heat and power from biogas produced from manure in Sweden - A comparison of different CHP technologies
- 2012
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Ingår i: Applied Energy. - : Elsevier BV. - 1872-9118 .- 0306-2619. ; 98, s. 502-511
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Interest in the generation of biogas from agricultural residues is increasing rapidly due to its climate benefits. In this study, an evaluation of the economic feasibility of various technologies, also on different scales, for the production of combined heat and power from manure-based biogas in Sweden is presented. The overall conclusion is that such production is not profitable under current conditions. Thus, the gap between the calculated biogas production cost and the acceptable cost for break-even must be bridged by, for example, different policy instruments. In general, efficiency of scale favors large-scale plants compared to individual farm-scale ones. However, a large, centralized biogas plant, using manure from numerous farms, is not always more cost efficient than a large, farm-scale plant treating manure from a few neighboring farms. The utilization of the produced heat, electricity prices, and political incentives, all have a significant impact on the economic outcome, whereas the value of the digestate as fertilizer is currently having a minor impact. Utilization of heat is, however, often limited by the lack of local heat sinks, in which case the implementation of a biogas process operating under thermophilic conditions could increase the profitability due to a more efficient utilization of reactor volume by using more process heat. The results from this study could be utilized by policy makers when implementing policy instruments considering biogas production from manure as well as companies involved in production and utilization of biogas. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 23. |
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| 24. |
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| 25. |
- Planck, Tereza, et al.
(författare)
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ASSOCIATION OF BTG2, CYR61, ZFP36, AND SCD GENE POLYMORPHISMS WITH GRAVES' DISEASE AND OPHTHALMOPATHY.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Thyroid. - : Mary Ann Liebert Inc. - 1557-9077 .- 1050-7256. ; 24:7, s. 1156-1161
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Environmental and genetic factors predispose an individual to the development of Graves' disease (GD). In an expression study of intraorbital tissue, adipocyte-related immediate early genes (IEGs) and immunomodulatory genes were found to be overexpressed in patients with Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO). We hypothesized that genetic variations in these genes could be associated with GD and/or GO. Methods: A total of 98 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in twelve genes were genotyped in 594 GD patients with (n=267) or without (n=327) GO and 1147 sex- and ethnicity-matched controls from Malmö, Sweden. Results: Ten SNPs in four genes (BTG family, member 2 [BTG2], cysteine-rich, angiogenic inducer, 61 [CYR61], zinc finger protein 36, C3H type, homolog mouse [ZFP36], and stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase [SCD]) showed an association with GD and/or GO. SNPs rs12136280 (OR 1.29, p=0.002), rs6663606 (OR 1.26, p=0.004), and rs17534202 (OR 1.21, p=0.02) in BTG2 and rs3753793 (OR 1.21, p=0.03) in CYR61 were associated with GD. An association with GO was shown for SNPs rs3753793 (OR 1.45, p=0.008), rs6682848 (OR 1.55, p=0.03), rs12756618 (OR 1.77, p=0.049), and rs1378228 (OR 1.29, p=0.049) in CYR61, rs1057745 (OR 1.56, p=0.03) and rs11083522 (OR 1.32, p=0.04) in ZFP36, and rs1393491 (OR 1.38, p=0,048) in SCD. Smoking and CYR61 rs12756618 interacted to increase the risk of GO. Conclusions: We found associations of SNPs in IEGs and SCD with GD and/or GO; however, confirmation in a different population is required.
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| 26. |
- Planck, Tereza, et al.
(författare)
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Gene Expression in Graves' Ophthalmopathy and Arm Lymphedema: Similarities and Differences.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Thyroid. - : Mary Ann Liebert Inc. - 1557-9077 .- 1050-7256. ; 21, s. 663-674
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) and lymphedema share some pathogenetic mechanisms, such as edema, inflammation, and adipogenesis. The aim of this study was to examine similarities and differences between chronic GO and chronic lymphedema. Methods: Intraorbital adipose tissue was collected from patients with active (n = 10) or chronic GO (n = 10) and thyroid-healthy controls (n = 10). Arm subcutaneous adipose tissue was obtained from patients with chronic arm lymphedema (n = 10), where the unaffected arm served as a control. Gene expression was studied using microarray and real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: The following genes were significantly upregulated (p < 0.05) in lymphedema but not in GO and have functions in wound healing, fibrosis, fat metabolism, inflammation, differentiation, development, adhesion, and the cytoskeleton: ATP-binding cassette, sub-family G (WHITE), member 1 (ABCG1), actin, alpha 2, smooth muscle, aorta (ACTA2), secreted frizzled-related protein 2 (SFRP2), tenascin C (TNC), pentraxin-related gene, rapidly induced by IL-1 beta (PTX3), and carboxypeptidase X (M14 family), member 1 (CPMX1). In chronic GO, but not in lymphedema, adipocyte-related immediate early genes known to be overexpressed in patients with active GO were upregulated but at a lower level than previously shown for the active phase. Genes of the Wnt pathway, such as secreted frizzled-related protein 1, 2, and 3, were up- and downregulated in both chronic GO and lymphedema. Parathyroid hormone-like hormone (PTHLH) was downregulated (p = 0.01) and apolipoprotein L domain containing 1 (APOLD1) was upregulated (p = 0.05) in both active and chronic GO. Conclusions: There are more differences than similarities between chronic ophthalmopathy and chronic lymphedema, but both conditions exhibit less inflammation and adipogenesis compared to the active phases. In lymphedema, fibrosis dominates. PTHLH, which can inhibit adipogenesis, is downregulated both in active and chronic ophthalmopathy, indicating the possibility of an increased risk of adipogenesis.
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| 27. |
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| 28. |
- Planck, Tereza, et al.
(författare)
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Smoking induces overexpression of immediate early genes in active Graves' ophthalmopathy.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Thyroid. - : Mary Ann Liebert Inc. - 1557-9077 .- 1050-7256. ; 24:10, s. 1524-1532
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Cigarette smoking is a risk factor for the development of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO). In a previous study of gene expression in intraorbital fat, adipocyte-related immediate early genes (IEGs) were overexpressed in patients with GO compared to controls. We investigated whether IEGs are upregulated by smoking and examined other pathways that may be affected by smoking. Methods: Gene expression in intraorbital fat was studied in smokers (n=8) and non-smokers (n=8) with severe active GO as well as in subcutaneous fat in thyroid-healthy smokers (n=5) and non-smokers (n=5) using microarray and real-time PCR. Results: With microarray, eight IEGs were upregulated more than 1.5-fold in smokers compared to non-smokers with GO. Five were chosen for confirmation and were also overexpressed with real-time PCR. Interleukin-1 beta /IL-1B/ (2.3-fold) and interleukin-6 /IL-6/ (2.4-fold) were upregulated both with microarray and with real-time PCR in smokers with GO compared to non-smokers. Major histocompatibility complex, class II, DR beta 1 /HLA-DRB1/ was upregulated with microarray (2.1-fold) and with borderline significance with real-time PCR. None of these genes were upregulated in smokers compared to non-smokers in subcutaneous fat. Conclusions: IEGs, IL-1B, and IL-6 were overexpressed in smokers with severe active GO compared to non-smokers suggesting that smoking activates pathways associated with adipogenesis and inflammation. This study underlines the importance of IEGs in the pathogenesis of GO and provides evidence for possible novel therapeutic interventions in GO. The mechanisms activated by smoking may be shared with other conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
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| 29. |
- Prade, Thomas, et al.
(författare)
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EU sustainability criteria for biofuels potentially restrict ley crop production on marginal land for use as biogas substrate
- 2013
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Ingår i: Grassland Science in Europe. ; 18, s. 528-530
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ley crops can be grown to provide a substrate for biogas vehicle-fuel production on a range of soils including marginal land. According to EU regulations, such biofuel currently has to achieve an emission reduction of 35%, but tightened goals of 50 and 60% will come into effect as early as 2017. In two field trials (one on marginal soil, one on productive soil) ley crop mixtures were tested and the biomass DM yield was determined. In a life-cycle assessment approach, the emissions of the production chain for biogas-vehicle-fuel were estimated for a range of biomass DM yields. The results show that the emission intensity per energy unit of fuel produced is an asymptotic function of the DM yield. Currently, marginal lands not competing with food production can provide biofuels fulfilling the emission reduction requirements. However, a tightening of the goals to 50 or 60% is likely to cause a shift in biomass production towards better soils, potentially causing competition with food and feed production. Alternatively, the CO2 emissions from biomass production of marginal soils need to be further reduced, e.g. by increased nitrogen fixation or reduced machinery use.
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| 30. |
- Svensson, J, et al.
(författare)
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Maternal Autoimmune Thyroid Disease and the Fetal Immune System.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Experimental and Clinical Endocrinology & Diabetes. - : Georg Thieme Verlag KG. - 1439-3646 .- 0947-7349. ; 119:7, s. 445-450
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: Several studies indicate that in utero exposure to maternal autoimmune diseases and transplacental passage of autoantibodies affect the risk of autoimmunity in the offspring, e. g., maternally derived GAD65 autoantibody correlates with decreased risk of type 1 diabetes, whereas thyroid peroxidase autoantibody (TPOAb) positivity at birth is associated with increased incidence of autoimmune thyroid disease later in life. The aim of this study was to identify immunological changes in children born to mothers with thyroid autoimmunity that may be related to in utero exposure to autoantibodies. DESIGN AND METHOD: Open label prospective analysis of cord blood lymphocytes and serum cytokines by Flow Cytometry in children born to mothers with autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) (n=31) and to healthy mothers (n=76) and titers of thyroid autoantibodies were determined in cord blood and in maternal peripheral blood at delivery. RESULTS: We found an increase (almost 30%) in the frequency of cord blood natural killer (NK) cells (p=0.0016) and a minor increase in the subset of T cells expressing NK markers (p=0.028), in children born to AIT mothers. There were no detectable differences in the phenotype or frequency of cord blood memory/activated T cells, including CD4 (+)CD25 (+) T cells, between the 2 groups. The levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-10, IL-12p70, IFN-γ and IL-1β were significantly decreased in offspring of AIT mothers as compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal thyroid autoimmunity and transplacental passage of autoantibodies against thyroid antigens may affect the generation or expansion of cells with NK activity and the secretion of inflammatory cytokines.
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| 31. |
- Tufvesson, Linda, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental performance of biogas produced from industrial residues including competition with animal feed - life-cycle calculations according to different methodologies and standards
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Cleaner Production. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-6526. ; 53, s. 214-223
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Today incentives for an increased use of biofuels exist, one being the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED). In this article the environmental performance of biogas systems using industrial residues from biofuel and food industries as substrates are analysed using a life-cycle perspective. These substrates are interesting since they do not compete directly with agricultural land for food production. The environmental performance is calculated using both the method described in the ISO-standard for life cycle assessment and the method presented in the EU RED. Furthermore, two perspectives are included, one where the residues are not utilised for other purposes today and one where the residues are utilised as animal feed, here presented as systems expansion. The results show that biogas from all residues investigated leads to a reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to fossil fuels. When system expansion is applied, however, the benefit will be significantly smaller since the alternative utilisation of the substrates as animal feed is considered and included in the system. This might also lead to an indirect land-use competition since additional protein feed crops must be cultivated. Thus, all residues studied are well suited for biogas production if there is no demand for them as animal feed today. Otherwise, it is often more efficient to grow dedicated biogas crops directly. Similar to other studies of bio-based systems the results also show that emissions related to acidification and eutrophication will be higher compared to a fossil fuel based system. A conclusion is that the calculation method in RED has a limited systems perspective, which could lead to a sub optimisation of the utilisation of industrial waste from a GHG perspective depending on the current alternative utilisation of the residues. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 32. |
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| 33. |
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