Search results for: emissions inventory

Authors: Gobinda Gopal Khan, Ashutosh K. Singh, Debasish Sarkar

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This study reports the facile fabrication of 1D ZnO/α-Fe2O3 semiconductor nano-heterostructures (SNHs), and we investigate the strong interfacial interactions at the heterojunction, resulting in novel multifunctionality in the hybrid structure. ZnO-coated α-Fe2O3 nanowires (NWs) have been prepared by combining electrodeposition and wet chemical methods. Significant improvement in electrical conductivity, photoluminescence, and room temperature magnetic properties have been observed for the ZnO/α-Fe2O3 SNHs over the pristine α-Fe2O3 NWs because of the contribution of the ZnO nanolayer. The increase in electrical conductivity in ZnO/α-Fe2O3 SNHs is because of the increase in free electrons in the conduction band of the SNHs due to the formation of type-II n-n band configuration at the heterojunction. The SNHs are found to exhibit enhanced visible green photoluminescence along with the UV emission at room temperature. The band-gap emission of the α-Fe2O3 NWs coupled to the defect emissions of the ZnO in SNHs can be attributed to the profound enhancement of the visible green luminescence. Ferromagnetism of the SNHs is found to be increased nearly five times in magnitude over the primeval α-Fe2O3 NWs, which can be ascribed to the exchange coupling of the interfacial spin at ZnO/α-Fe2O3 interface, the surface spin of ZnO nanolayer, along with the structural defects like the cation vacancies (VZn) and the singly ionized oxygen vacancies (Vo•) present in SNHs.

Keywords: nano-heterostructures, photoluminescence, electrical property, magnetism

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Authors: Mary L. G. S. Senna, Afonso R. Aquino

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The development of tourism causes negative impacts on the environment. It is in this context, through the Ecological Footprint (EF) method that this study aimed to characterize the impacts of ecotourism on the community of Mateiros, Jalapão, Brazil. The EF, which consisted in its original a method to construct a land use matrix, considering some major categories of human consumption such as food, housing, transportation, consumer goods and services, and six other categories from the main land use which are divided into the topics: land use, degraded environment, gardens, fertile land, pasture and forests protected by the government. The main objective of this index is to calculate the land area required for the production and maintenance of goods and services consumed by a community. The field research was conducted throughout the year of 2014 until July 2015. After the calculations of each category, these components were added according to the presented method in order to determine the annual EF of the tourism sector in Mateiros. The results show that the EF resulting from tourism in Mateiros is 2,194.22 hectares of land required for tourism activities in the region. The EF of tourism was considered high, nevertheless, if it is added the total of hectares needed annually for tourism activities, the result found would be 2,194.22 hectares needed to absorb the CO₂ emissions generated in the region directly from the tourism sector.

Keywords: sustainable tourism, tourism ecological footprint, Jalapão/TO/Brazil

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Authors: Ehsan Soltanzadeh, Hassan Zare

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This paper introduces examples of the influences of global warming on water resources and means of adaptation. The contributing causes of shortage in water resources are sophisticated and have interactions with each other. The world-scale phenomena like global warming have led to an increase in air and ocean’s mean temperature, and this has already caused adverse effects on water resources. Other factors that exacerbated this situation such as population increase, changes in farming habits, rise in city dwellers, unbalanced request for energy and aquatic resources, improved living standards, new eating habits, increasing economic growth and consequently flourishing industrial activities, and different types of pollution such as air, water, etc., are compelling more pressure on our limited water resources. The report will briefly discuss climate change and its detrimental impacts on the water resources and finally will introduce two effective solutions to mitigate the consequences or even reverse them in the near to mid-term future: utilization of molten salt technology for storing huge amounts of generated electricity in solar power plants to accommodate power grid demands, and implementing fuel cell CHPs to reduce carbon emission, and consequently, mitigate the global warming phenomenon as the major root cause of threatening water resources.

Keywords: climate change, global warming, water resources, GHG emissions, fuel cell-CHP, solar power plant, molten salt storage

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Authors: Hanbey Hazar, Hakan Gul, Ugur Ozturk

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In order to decrease the hazardous emissions of the internal combustion engines and to improve the combustion and thermal efficiency, thermal barrier coatings are applied. In this experimental study, cylinder, piston, exhaust, and inlet valves which are combustion chamber components have been coated with a ceramic material, and this earned the engine LHR feature. Cylinder, exhaust and inlet valves of the diesel engine used in the tests were coated with ekabor-2 commercial powder, which is a ceramic material, to a thickness of 50 µm, by using the boriding method. The piston of a diesel engine was coated in 300 µm thickness with bor-based powder by using plasma coating method. Pumpkin seeds oil methyl ester (PSME) was produced by the transesterification method. In addition, dimethoxymethane additive materials were used to improve the properties of diesel fuel, pumpkin seeds oil methyl ester (PSME) and its mixture. Dimethoxymethane was blended with test fuels, which was used as a pilot fuel, at the volumetric ratios of 4% and 8%. Due to thermal barrier coating, the diesel engine's CO, HC, and smoke density values decreased; but, NOx and exhaust gas temperature (EGT) increased.

Keywords: boriding, diesel engine, exhaust emission, thermal barrier coating

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Authors: Iyasu Eibedingil

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The construction industry is one of the major factors responsible for causing a negative impact on the environment. It has the largest share in the use of natural resources including land use, material extraction, and greenhouse gases emissions. For this reason, it is imperative to reduce its environmental impact through the construction of sustainable buildings with less impact. These days, it is possible to measure the environmental impact by using different tools such as the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. Given this premise, this study explored the environmental impact of two types of roofing systems through comparative life cycle assessment approach. The tiles were analyzed to select the most environmentally friendly roofing system for the villa at Khalifa City A, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. These products are available in various forms; however, in this study concrete roof tiles and clay roof tiles were considered. The results showed that concrete roof tiles have lower environmental impact. In all scenarios considered, manufacturing the roof tiles locally, using recovered fuels for firing clay tiles, and using renewable energy (electricity from PV plant) showed that the concrete roof tiles were found to be excellent in terms of its embodied carbon, embodied the energy and various other environmental performance indicators.

Keywords: clay roof tile, concrete roof tile, life cycle assessment, sensitivity analysis

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Authors: Sahani Rathnasiri, Pritee Ray, Sardar M. N. Isalm, Carlos A. Vega-Mejia

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This study develops a cooperative game theory-based cost-sharing contract model for a business to consumer (B2C) e-commerce supply chain to minimize the overall supply chain costs and the individual costs within an information asymmetry scenario. The objective of this study is to address the issues of strategic interactions among the key players of the e-commerce supply chain operation, which impedes the optimal operational outcomes. Game theory has been included in the field of supply chain management to resolve strategic decision-making issues; however, most of the studies are limited only to two-echelons of the supply chains. Multi-echelon supply chain optimizations based on game-theoretic models are less explored in the previous literature. This study adopts a cooperative game model to focus on the common payoff of operations and addresses the issues of information asymmetry and coordination of a three-echelon e-commerce supply chain. The cost-sharing contract model integrates operational features such as production, inventory management and distribution with the contract related constraints. The outcomes of the model highlight the importance of maintaining lower operational costs by all players to obtain benefits from the cost-sharing contract. Further, the cost-sharing contract ensures true cost revelation, and hence eliminates the information asymmetry issues among the players. Comparing the results of the contract model with the de-centralized e-commerce supply chain operation further emphasizes that the cost-sharing contract derives Pareto-improved outcomes and minimizes the costs of overall e-commerce supply chain operation.

Keywords: cooperative game theory, cost-sharing contract, e-commerce supply chain, information asymmetry

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Authors: Farnoosh Faal

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The excessive reliance on private cars has led to a range of problems, such as traffic congestion, air pollution, and carbon emissions, which have significant impacts on public health and the environment. Public open spaces have the potential to promote sustainable transportation and reduce dependence on cars by providing alternative mobility options, including walking, cycling, and public transit. This paper examines the existing research on the relationship between public open spaces and sustainable transportation. It discusses the key design principles and planning strategies that can enhance the accessibility and safety of public open spaces, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists. The paper also explores the role of public open spaces in promoting active mobility and reducing car use in urban and suburban contexts. Finally, the paper highlights the policy and institutional barriers that hinder the integration of public open spaces with sustainable transportation systems and suggests some potential solutions to overcome these barriers. Overall, the paper argues that public open spaces have immense potential to facilitate sustainable transportation and reduce car dependence, and therefore, it is important to prioritize the development and maintenance of public open spaces as a key component of sustainable urban and regional planning.

Keywords: public open space, sustainable transportation, active mobility, car dependence, urban and regional planning, traffic congestion

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Authors: Aldrin Avergas, Quennie Mariel Peñaranda, Niña Karen San Miguel, Alexis Katrina Agustin, Peralta Xusha Mae, Maria Luisa Sison

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The research is entitled “The Relationship of Socioeconomic Status and Levels of Delinquency among Senior High School Students with Secured Attachment to their Mothers”. The researchers had explored the relationship between socioeconomic status and delinquent tendencies among grade 11 students. The objective of the research is to discover if delinquent behavior will have a relationship with the current socio-economic status of an adolescent student having a warm relationship with their mothers. The researchers utilized three questionnaires that would measure the three variables of the study, namely: (1) 1SEC 2012: The New Philippines Socioeconomic Classification System was used to show the current socioeconomic status of the respondents, (2) Self-Reported Delinquency – Problem Behavior Frequency Scale was utilized to determine the individual's frequency in engaging to delinquent behavior, and (3) Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment Revised (IPPA-R) was used to determine the attachment style of the respondents. The researchers utilized a quantitative research design, specifically correlation research. The study concluded that there is no significant relationship between socioeconomic status and academic delinquency despite the fact that these participants had secured attachment to their mother hence this research implies that delinquency is not just a problem for students belonging in the lower socio-economic status and that even having a warm and close relationship with their mothers is not sufficient enough for these students to completely be free from engaging in delinquent acts. There must be other factors (such as peer pressure, emotional quotient, self-esteem or etc.) that are might be contributing to delinquent behaviors.

Keywords: adolescents, delinquency, high school students, secured attachment style, socioeconomic status

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Authors: Javier Comes Fayos, Isabel RodríGuez Moreno, Sara Bressanutti, Marisol Lila, Angel Romero MartíNez, Luis Moya Albiol

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Given the great impact produced by gender-based violence, its comprehensive approach seems essential. Consequently, research has focused on risk factors for violent behaviour, linking various psychosocial variables, as well as cognitive and neuropsychological deficits with the aggressors. However, studies on affective processing are scarce, so the present study investigates possible emotional alterations in men convicted of gender violence. The participants were 51 aggressors, who attended the CONTEXTO program with sentences of less than two years, and 47 men with no history of violence. The sample did not differ in age, socioeconomic level, education, or alcohol and other substances consumption. Anger, alexithymia and facial recognition of other people´s emotions were assessed through the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI-2), the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and Reading the mind in the eyes (REM), respectively. Men convicted of gender-based violence showed higher scores on the anger trait and temperament dimensions, as well as on the anger expression index. They also scored higher on alexithymia and in the identification and emotional expression subscales. In addition, they showed greater difficulties in the facial recognition of emotions by having a lower score in the REM. These results seem to show difficulties in different affective areas in men condemned for gender violence. The deficits are reflected in greater difficulty in identifying and expressing emotions, in processing anger and in recognizing the emotions of others. All these difficulties have been related to the use of violent behavior. Consequently, it is essential and necessary to include emotional regulation in intervention programs for men who have been convicted of gender-based violence.

Keywords: alexithymia, anger, emotional processing, emotional recognition, empathy, intimate partner violence

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Authors: Abbas Ali Taghipoor Bafghi, Hosein Bakhoda, Fateme Khodaei Chegeni

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An experimental investigation is carried out to establish the performance characteristics of a compression ignition engine while using cerium oxide nano particles as additive in neat diesel and diesel-bio diesel blends. In the first phase of the experiments, stability of neat diesel and diesel-bio diesel fuel blends with the addition of cerium oxide nano particles are analyzed. After series of experiments, it is found that the blends subjected to high speed blending followed by ultrasonic bath stabilization improves the stability.In the second phase, performance characteristics are studied using the stable fuel blends in a single cylinder four stroke engine coupled with an electrical dynamo meter and a data acquisition system. The cerium oxide acts as an oxygen donating catalyst and provides oxygen for combustion. The activation energy of cerium oxide acts to burn off carbon deposits within the engine cylinder at the wall temperature and prevents the deposition of non-polar compounds on the cylinder wall results reduction in HC emissions. The tests revealed that cerium oxide nano particles can be used as additive in diesel and diesel-bio diesel blends to improve complete combustion of the fuel significantly.

Keywords: engine, cerium oxide, biodiesel, deposit

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Authors: Michelle Bulawan, Mei-Hua Chen

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Reading comprehension is crucial for acquiring information, analyzing critically, and achieving academic proficiency. However, there is a lack of growth in reading comprehension skills beyond fourth grade. The developmental shift from "learning to read" to "reading to learn" occurs around this stage. Factual knowledge and diverse views in articles enhance reading comprehension abilities. Nevertheless, some face difficulties due to evolving textual requirements, such as expanding vocabulary and using longer, more complex terminology. Most research on reading strategies has been conducted at the tertiary and secondary levels, while few have focused on the elementary levels. Furthermore, the use of character, ask, problem, solution (CAPS) charts in teaching reading has also been hardly explored. Thus, the researcher decided to explore the facilitation of active reading strategies through the CAPS chart and address the following research questions: a) What differences existed in elementary EFL learners' reading competency among those who engaged in active reading strategies and those who did not? b) What are the learners’ metacognitive skills of those who engage in active reading strategies and those who do not, and what are their effects on their reading competency? c) For those participants who engage in active reading activities, what are their perceptions about incorporating active reading activities into their English classroom learning? Two groups of elementary EFL learners, each with 18 students of the same level of English proficiency, participated in this study. Group A served as the control group, while Group B served as the experimental group. Two teachers also participated in this research; one of them was the researcher who handled the experimental group. The treatment lasts for one whole semester or seventeen weeks. In addition to the CAPS chart, the researcher also used the metacognitive awareness of reading strategy inventory (MARSI) and a ten-item, five-point Likert scale survey.

Keywords: active reading, EFL learners, metacognitive skills, reading competency, student’s perception

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Authors: Andrii Biloshchytskyi, Serik Omirbayev, Alexandr Neftissov, Sapar Toxanov, Svitlana Biloshchytska, Adil Faizullin

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Kazakhstan has adopted a carbon neutrality strategy until 2060. In accordance with this strategy, it is necessary to introduce various tools to maintain the environmental safety of the environment. The use of IoT, in combination with the characteristics and requirements of Kazakhstan's environmental legislation, makes it possible to develop a modern environmental monitoring system. The article proposes a solution for developing an example of an automated system for the continuous collection of data on the concentration of pollutants in the atmosphere based on an open architecture. The Audino-based device acts as a microcontroller. It should be noted that the transmission of measured values is carried out via an open wireless communication protocol. The architecture of the system, which was used to build a prototype based on sensors, an Arduino microcontroller, and a wireless data transmission module, is presented. The selection of elementary components may change depending on the requirements of the system; the introduction of new units is limited by the number of ports. The openness of solutions allows you to change the configuration depending on the conditions. The advantages of the solutions are openness, low cost, versatility and mobility. However, there is no comparison of the working processes of the proposed solution with traditional ones.

Keywords: environmental monitoring, greenhouse gases emissions, environmental pollution, Industry 4.0, IoT, microcontroller, automated monitoring system.

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Authors: Anabel Fernandez, Leandro Rodriguez-Ortiz, Rosa RodríGuez

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Due to the negative impact of fossil fuels, renewable energies are promising sources to limit global temperature rise and damage to the environment. Also, the development of technology is focused on obtaining energetic products from renewable sources. In this study, a thermodynamic model including Exergy balance and a subsequent Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) were carried out for four subsystems of the integrated gasification-combustion of pinewood. Results of exergy analysis and LCA showed the process feasibility in terms of exergy efficiency and global energy efficiency of the life cycle (GEELC). Moreover, the energy return on investment (EROI) index was calculated. The global exergy efficiency resulted in 67 %. For pretreatment, reaction, cleaning, and electric generation subsystems, the results were 85, 59, 87, and 29 %, respectively. Results of LCA indicated that the emissions from the electric generation caused the most damage to the atmosphere, water, and soil. GEELC resulted in 31.09 % for the global process. This result suggested the environmental feasibility of an integrated gasification-combustion system. EROI resulted in 3.15, which determinates the sustainability of the process.

Keywords: exergy analysis, life cycle assessment (LCA), renewability, sustainability

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Authors: Saima Shafiq, Najma Iqbal Malik

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This study was aimed to explore the relationship of perceived stigma, perception of burden and psychological distress among parents of intellectually disabled children. The study also aimed to explore the moderating role of perceived social support on all the variables of the study. The sample of the study comprised of (N = 250) parents of intellectually disabled children. The present study utilized the co-relational research design. It consists of two phases. Phase-I consisted of two steps which contained the translation of two scales that were used in the present study and tried out on the sample of parents (N = 70). The Affiliated Stigma Scale and Care Giver Burden Inventory were translated into Urdu for the present study. Phase-1 revealed that translated scaled entailed satisfactory psychometric properties. Phase -II of the study was carried out in order to test the hypothesis. Correlation, linear regression analysis, and t-test were computed for hypothesis testing. Hierarchical regression analysis was applied to study the moderating effect of perceived social support. Findings revealed that there was a positive relationship between perceived stigma and psychological distress, perception of burden and psychological distress. Linear regression analysis showed that perceived stigma and perception of burden were positive predictors of psychological distress. The study did not show the moderating role of perceived social support among variables of the present study. The major limitation of the study is the sample size and the major implication is awareness regarding problems of parents of intellectually disabled children.

Keywords: perceived stigma, perception of burden, psychological distress, perceived social support

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Authors: B. V. Lande, Suhas Kongare

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Fuel blend of alcohol and conventional hydrocarbon fuels for a spark ignition engine can increase the fuel octane rating and the power for a given engine displacement and compression ratio. The greatest advantage of ethanol as a fuel in SI Engines is its high octane number. The efficiency of an SI engine that is the ability to convert fuel energy to mechanical energy, mainly depends on the compression ratio. It is, therefore, an advantage to increase this as much as possible. The major restraint is the fuel octane number – high octane fuels can be used with high compression ratios, thus yielding higher energy efficiency. This work investigates to suggest suitable ethanol gasoline blend and compression ratio for single cylinder four strokes SI Engine on the basis of performance and exhaust emissions. A single cylinder four stroke SI Engine was tested with different blend of ethanol – gasoline like E5 (5% ethanol +95% gasoline), E10 (10% ethanol + 90% gasoline) E15 (15% ethanol + 85% petrol) and E20 ( 20% + 80% gasoline) with Variable compression ratio. The performance parameter evaluated BSFC, Brake thermal efficiency and also exhaust emission CO2, Co & HC%. The result showed that higher compression ratio improved engine Performance and reduction in exhaust emission.

Keywords: blend, compression ratio, ethanol, performance, blend

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Authors: Anil Khanal, Ali Osareh, Gary Lebby

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Wind energy offers a significant advantage such as no fuel costs and no emissions from generation. However, wind energy sources are variable and non-dispatchable. The utility grid is able to accommodate the variability of wind in smaller proportion along with the daily load. However, at high penetration levels, the variability can severely impact the utility reserve requirements and the cost associated with it. In this paper, the impact of wind energy is evaluated in detail in formulating the total utility cost. The objective is to minimize the overall cost of generation while ensuring the proper management of the load. Overall cost includes the curtailment cost, reserve cost and the reliability cost as well as any other penalty imposed by the regulatory authority. Different levels of wind penetrations are explored and the cost impacts are evaluated. As the penetration level increases significantly, the reliability becomes a critical question to be answered. Here, we increase the penetration from the wind yet keep the reliability factor within the acceptable limit provided by NERC. This paper uses an economic dispatch (ED) model to incorporate wind generation into the power grid. Power system costs are analyzed at various wind penetration levels using Linear Programming. The goal of this study shows how the increases in wind generation will affect power system economics.

Keywords: wind power generation, wind power penetration, cost analysis, economic dispatch (ED) model

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Authors: Morteza Raei Dehaghi, Seyed Mohammad Mirhashemi

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The current study explored the effect of economic development, financial development and institutional quality on environmental destruction in upper-middle income countries during the time period of 1999-2011. The dependent variable is logarithm of carbon dioxide emissions that can be considered as an index for destruction or quality of the environment given to its effects on the environment. Financial development and institutional development variables as well as some control variables were considered. In order to study cross-sectional correlation among the countries under study, Pesaran and Friz test was used. Since the results of both tests show cross-sectional correlation in the countries under study, seemingly unrelated regression method was utilized for model estimation. The results disclosed that Kuznets’ environmental curve hypothesis is confirmed in upper-middle income countries and also, financial development and institutional quality have a significant effect on environmental quality. The results of this study can be considered by policy makers in countries with different income groups to have access to a growth accompanied by improved environmental quality.

Keywords: economic development, environmental destruction, financial development, institutional development, seemingly unrelated regression

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Authors: Laura Dembovska, Ina Pundiene, Diana Bajare

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Alkali-activated aluminium-silicate composites (AASC) can be used in the production of innovative materials with a wide range of properties and applications. AASC are associated with low CO₂ emissions; in the production process, it is possible to use industrial by-products and waste, thereby minimizing the use of a non-renewable natural resource. This study deals with the preparation of heat-resistant porous AASC based on chamotte for high-temperature applications up to 1200°C. Different fillers, aluminium scrap recycling waste as pores forming agent and alkali activation with 6M sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution were used. Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is widely used for the synthesis of AASC compared to potassium hydroxide (KOH), but comparison of using different activator for geopolymer synthesis is not well established. Changes in chemical composition of AASC during heating were identified and quantitatively analyzed by using DTA, dimension changes during the heating process were determined by using HTOM, pore microstructure was examined by SEM, and mineralogical composition of AASC was determined by XRD. Lightweight porous AASC activated with NaOH have been obtained with density in range from 600 to 880 kg/m³ and compressive strength from 0.8 to 2.7 MPa, but for AAM activated with KOH density was in range from 750 to 850 kg/m³ and compressive strength from 0.7 to 2.1 MPa.

Keywords: alkali activation, alkali activated materials, elevated temperature application, heat resistance

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Authors: Georgii Emelianov, Mikhail Polikarpov, Fabian Hübner, Jochen Deuse, Jochen Schiemann

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Recycling refrigerating appliances plays a major role in protecting the Earth's atmosphere from ozone depletion and emissions of greenhouse gases. The performance of refrigerator recycling plants in terms of material retention is the subject of strict environmental certifications and is reviewed periodically through specialized audits. The continuous collection of Refrigerator data required for the input-output analysis is still mostly manual, error-prone, and not digitalized. In this paper, we propose an automated data collection system for recycling plants in order to deduce expected material contents in individual end-of-life refrigerating appliances. The system utilizes laser scanner measurements and optical data to extract attributes of individual refrigerators by applying transfer learning with pre-trained vision models and optical character recognition. Based on Recognized features, the system automatically provides material categories and target values of contained material masses, especially foaming and cooling agents. The presented data collection system paves the way for continuous performance monitoring and efficient control of refrigerator recycling plants.

Keywords: automation, data collection, performance monitoring, recycling, refrigerators

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Authors: Melissa Lubitz

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Water scarcity is one of the crucial challenges of our time. There needs to be a focus on creating a society where people and nature flourish, regardless of climatic conditions. One of the solutions we can look to is decentralized greywater recycling. The vision is simple. Every building has its own water source being greywater from the bath, shower, sink and washing machine. By treating this in the home, you can save 25-45% of potable water use and wastewater production, a reduction in energy consumption and CO2 emissions. This reusable water is clean, and safe to be used for toilet flushing, washing machine, and outdoor irrigation. Companies like Hydraloop have been committed to the greywater recycle-ready building concept for years. This means that drinking water conservation and water reuse are included as standards in the design of all new buildings. Sustainability and renewal go hand in hand. This vision includes not only optimizing water savings and waste reduction but also forging strong partnerships that bring this ambition to life. Together with regulators, municipalities and builders, a sustainable and water-conscious future is pursued. This is an opportunity to be part of a movement that is making a difference. By pushing this initiative forward, we become part of a growing community that resists dehydration, believes in sustainability, and is committed to a living environment at the forefront of change: sustainable living, where saving water is the norm and where we shape the future together.

Keywords: greywater, wastewater treatment, water conservation, circular water society

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Authors: Mohamed Amine El Hameur, Lyes Tarabet, Mahfoudh Cerdoun, Boubkr Zebiri, Giovanni Ferrara

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Due to the drastic environmental and energy regulations regarding the reduction of exhaust emissions and fuel consumption, added to the increasing demand for powerful performance, several automotive manufacturers are constantly obliged to redesign their existing products and/or develop novel powertrain techniques to respond to the aforementioned restrictions. In this aspect, an implemented approach is proposed in the present work to boost a 1.5 L, three-cylinder Diesel engine with a new turbocharger, based on 1D preliminary design codes, 3D design, and numerical assessment of a suitable radial turbine followed by an accurate selection procedure of an adequate centrifugal compressor. Furthermore, to investigate the effect of the turbine’s rotor position on the simulation convergence, stability, and calculation time; two combinations (rotor blade- volute) have been assessed. Consequently, significant results are obtained when comparing the original turbocharged engine and the new one at the engine’s full load and rated speed (@4500rpm) conditions. A maximum improvement in terms of brake-specific fuel consumption, thermal efficiency, total-to-static turbine efficiency, and total-to-total compressor efficiency equal 6.5% (corresponding to a decrease of 2.3 litre/hr in fuel consumption), 7%, 10.9%, and 19.9%, respectively.

Keywords: CFD investigation, engine boosting, turbine design, turbocharger, rotor blade positioning

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Authors: Rahul Paul, Kedar Nath Das

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The paradigm of Reinforcement Learning (RL) has become prominent in training intelligent agents to make decisions in environments that are both dynamic and uncertain. The primary objective of RL is to optimize the policy of an agent in order to maximize the cumulative reward it receives throughout a given period. Nevertheless, the process of optimization presents notable difficulties as a result of the inherent trade-off between exploration and exploitation, the presence of extensive state-action spaces, and the intricate nature of the dynamics involved. Evolutionary Optimization Methods (EOMs) have garnered considerable attention as a supplementary approach to tackle these challenges, providing distinct capabilities for optimizing RL policies and value functions. The ongoing advancement of research in both RL and EOMs presents an opportunity for significant advancements in autonomous decision-making systems. The convergence of these two fields has the potential to have a transformative impact on various domains of artificial intelligence (AI) applications. This article highlights the considerable influence of EOMs in enhancing the capabilities of RL. Taking advantage of evolutionary principles enables RL algorithms to effectively traverse extensive action spaces and discover optimal solutions within intricate environments. Moreover, this paper emphasizes the practical implementations of EOMs in the field of RL, specifically in areas such as robotic control, autonomous systems, inventory problems, and multi-agent scenarios. The article highlights the utilization of EOMs in facilitating RL agents to effectively adapt, evolve, and uncover proficient strategies for complex tasks that may pose challenges for conventional RL approaches.

Keywords: machine learning, reinforcement learning, loss function, optimization techniques, evolutionary optimization methods

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Authors: Enrique Moliner, Alba Lafarga, Isaac Herraiz, Evelina Castellana, Mihaela Mirea

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NENU2PHAR (GA 887474) is an EU-funded project aimed at the development of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) from micro-algae. These biobased and biodegradable polymers are being tested and validated in different high-volume market applications including food packaging, cosmetic packaging, 3D printing filaments, agro-textiles and medical devices, counting on the support of key players like Danone, BEL Group, Sofradim or IFG. At the moment the project has achieved to produce PHAs from micro-algae with a cumulated yield around 17%, i.e. 1 kg PHAs produced from 5.8 kg micro-algae biomass, which in turn capture 11 kg CO₂ for growing up. These algae-based plastics can therefore offer the same environmental benefits than current bio-based plastics (reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and fossil resource depletion), using a 3rd generation biomass feedstock that avoids the competition with food and the environmental impacts of agricultural practices. The project is also dealing with other sustainability aspects like the ecodesign and life cycle assessment of the plastic products targeted, considering not only the use of the biobased plastics but also many other ecodesign strategies. This paper will present the main progresses and results achieved to date in the project.

Keywords: NENU2PHAR, Polyhydroxyalkanoates, micro-algae, biopolymer, ecodesign, life cycle assessment

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Authors: Syed Tahir Shah, Fazal Muhammad, Syed Kashif Shah, Maleeha Gul

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In recent days, natural gas has become a relatively clean and quality source of energy, which is recovered from deep wells by expensive drilling activities. The recovered substance is purified by processing in multiple stages to remove the unwanted/containments like dust, dirt, crude oil and other particles. Mostly, gas utilities are concerned with essential objectives of quantity/quality of natural gas delivery, financial outcome and safe natural gas volumetric inventory in the transmission gas pipeline. Gas quantity and quality are primarily related to standards / advanced metering procedures in processing units/transmission systems, and the financial outcome is defined by purchasing and selling gas also the operational cost of the transmission pipeline. SNGPL (Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited) Pakistan has a wide range of diameters of natural gas transmission pipelines network of over 9125 km. This research results in answer a few of the issues in accuracy/metering procedures via multiple advanced gadgets for gas flow attributes after being utilized in the transmission system and research. The effects of good pressure management in transmission gas pipeline network in contemplation to boost the gas volume deposited in the existing network and finally curbing gas losses UFG (Unaccounted for gas) for financial benefits. Furthermore, depending on the results and their observation, it is directed to enhance the maximum allowable working/operating pressure (MAOP) of the system to 1235 PSIG from the current round about 900 PSIG, such that the capacity of the network could be entirely utilized. In gross, the results depict that the current model is very efficient and provides excellent results in the minimum possible time.

Keywords: natural gas, pipeline network, UFG, transmission pack, AGA

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Authors: M. Fette, J. P. Wulfsberg, A. Herrmann, R. H. Ladstaetter

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Present and future lightweight design represents an important key to successful implementation of energy-saving, fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly means of transport in the aerospace and automotive industry. In this context the use of carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) which are distinguished by their outstanding mechanical properties at relatively low weight, promise significant improvements. Due to the reduction of the total mass, with the resulting lowered fuel or energy consumption and CO2 emissions during the operational phase, commercial aircraft and future vehicles will increasingly be made of CFRP. An auspicious technology for the efficient and economic production of high performance thermoset composites and hybrid structures for future lightweight applications is the combination of carbon fibre sheet moulding compound (SMC), tailored continuous carbon fibre reinforcements and metallic components in a one-shot pressing and curing process. This paper deals with a new hybrid composite technology for aerospace industries, which was developed with the help of a universal innovation and development system. This system supports the management of idea generation, the methodical development of innovative technologies and the achievement of the industrial readiness of these technologies.

Keywords: development system, hybrid composite, innovation system, prepreg, sheet moulding compound

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Authors: Esma Birisci, Ronald McGarvey

Abstract:

One of the common problems in food service industry is demand uncertainty. This research presents a multi-criteria optimization approach to identify the efficient frontier of points lying between the minimum-waste and minimum-shortfall solutions within uncertain demand environment. It also addresses correlation across demands for items (e.g., hamburgers are often demanded with french fries). Reducing overproduction food waste (and its corresponding environmental impacts) and an aversion to shortfalls (leave some customer hungry) need to consider as two contradictory objectives in an all-you-care-to-eat environment food service operation. We identify optimal production adjustments relative to demand forecasts, demand thresholds for utilization of leftovers, and percentages of demand to be satisfied by leftovers, considering two alternative metrics for overproduction waste: mass; and greenhouse gas emissions. Demand uncertainty and demand correlations are addressed using a kernel density estimation approach. A statistical analysis of the changes in decision variable values across each of the efficient frontiers can then be performed to identify the key variables that could be modified to reduce the amount of wasted food at minimal increase in shortfalls. We illustrate our approach with an application to empirical data from Campus Dining Services operations at the University of Missouri.

Keywords: environmental studies, food waste, production planning, uncertain and correlated demand

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Authors: Mădălina Elena Mavrodin, Gabriela Andreea Despescu, Gheorghe Lăzăroiu

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Long term trend of global warming has brought a very deep interest in climate change, which is due most likely to increasing concentrations of anthropogenic greenhouse gases. 0f these, particular attention is paid to carbon dioxide, which has led in desire for obtaining carbon footprint products. Automotive industry is one of the world’s most important economic sectors with a great impact over the environment through all range of activities. Its impact over the environment has been studied, researcher trying as much as possible to reduce it and to offer environmental friendly solution for the using, but also manufacturing cars. In the global endeavour to meet the international commitments in order to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, many companies integrate environmental issues into their management systems, with potential effects in their entire production chains. Several tools and calculators have been developed to measure the environmental impact of a product in the life cycle perspective of the whole product chain. There were a lot of ways to obtain the carbon footprint of driving a car, but the total carbon footprint of a car includes also the carbon footprint of all the components and accessories. In the automotive industry, one of the challenges is to calculate the carbon footprint of a car from ‘cradle to grave’; this meaning not only for driving the car, but also manufacturing it, so there can be an overview over the entire process of production.

Keywords: carbon footprint, global warming potential, greenhouse gases, manufacture, plastic air ducts

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Authors: Marimuthu Gurusamy

Abstract:

In vibration analysis (with accelerometers) of rotating machines with rolling element bearing, the customers are interested to know the failure of the machine well in advance to plan the spare inventory and maintenance. But in real world most of the machines fails before the prediction of vibration analyst or Expert analysis software. Presently the prediction of failure is based on ISO 10816 vibration limits only. But this is not enough to monitor the failure of machines well in advance. Because more than 50% of the machines will fail even the vibration readings are within acceptable zone as per ISO 10816.Hence it requires further detail analysis and different techniques to predict the failure well in advance. In vibration Analysis, the velocity spectrum is used to analyse the root cause of the mechanical problems like unbalance, misalignment and looseness etc. The envelope spectrum are used to analyse the bearing frequency components, hence the failure in inner race, outer race and rolling elements are identified. But so far there is no correlation made between these two concepts. The author used both velocity spectrum and Envelope spectrum to analyse the machine behaviour and bearing condition to correlated the changes in dynamic load (by unbalance, misalignment and looseness etc.) and effect of impact on the bearing. Hence we could able to predict the expected life of the machine and bearings in the rotating equipment (with rolling element bearings). Also we used process parameters like temperature, flow and pressure to correlate with flow induced vibration and load variations, when abnormal vibration occurs due to changes in process parameters. Hence by correlation of velocity spectrum, envelope spectrum and process data with 20 years of experience in vibration analysis, the author could able to predict the rotating Equipment and its component’s deterioration and expected duration for maintenance.

Keywords: vibration analysis, velocity spectrum, envelope spectrum, prediction of deterioration

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Authors: Wee Akina Sia Seng Lee, Shabeshan Rengasamy, Lim Boon Hooi, Chandrakalavaratharajoo, Mohd Ibrahim K. Azeez

Abstract:

This study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of Teaching Games For Understanding (TGFU) in improving the hockey tactical skills and state self-confidence among 16-year-old students. Two hundred fifty nine (259) school students were selected for the study based on the intact sampling method. One class was used as the control group (Boys=60, Girls=70), while another as the treatment group (Boys=60, Girls=69) underwent intervention with TGFU in physical education class conducted twice a week for four weeks. The Games Performance Assessment Instrument was used to observe the hockey tactical skills and The State Self-Confidence Inventory was used to determine the state of self-confidence among the students. After four weeks, ANCOVA analysis indicated the treatment groups had significant improvement in hockey tactical skills with F (1, 118) =313.37, p < .05 for school boys, and F (1, 136) =92.62, p < .05 for school girls. The Mann Whitney U test also showed the treatment groups had significant improvement in state self-confidence with U=428.50, z= -7.22, p < .05, r=.06 for school boys. ANCOVA analysis also showed the treatment group had significant improvement in state self-confidence with F (1, 136) =74.40, p < .05 for school girls. This indicates that TGFU in a 40 minute physical education class conducted twice a week for four weeks can significantly improve the hockey tactical skills and state self-confidence among 16-year-old students. The findings give new knowledge to PE teachers to implement the TGFU method as it enhances the hockey tactical skills and state self-confidence among 16-year-old students. Some recommendation was suggested for future research.

Keywords: Teaching Games For Understanding (TGFU), traditional teaching, hockey tactical skills, state self-confidence

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Authors: Tawfig Falani, Abdulalaziz Saleh

Abstract:

Air pollution has become a major environmental issue with definitive repercussions on human health. Global concerns have been raised about the health effects of deteriorating air quality due mainly to widespread industrialization and urbanization. To assess the quality of air in Brega, air quality indicators were calculated using the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency procedure. Air quality was monitored from 01/10/2019 to 28/02/2021 with a daily average measuring six pollutants of particulate matter <2.5µm (PM2.5), and <10µm (PM₁₀), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), ozone (O₃), and carbon monoxide (CO). The result indicated that air pollution at general air quality monitoring sites for sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, PM₁₀ and PM2.5 and nitrogen dioxide are always within the permissible limit. Referring to a monthly average of Pollutants in the Brega Industrial area, all months were out of AQG limit for NO₂, and the same with O₃ except for two months. For PM2.5 and PM₁₀ 7, 5 out of 17 months were out of limits, respectively. Relative AQI for ozone is found in the range of moderate category of general air pollution, and the worst month was Nov. 2020, which was marked as Very Unhealthy category, then the next two months (Dec. 2020 and Jan. 2021 ) were Unhealthy categories. It's the first time that we have used the AQI in SOC, and not usually used in Libya to identify the quality of air pollution. So, I think it will be useful if AQI is used as guidance for specified air pollution. That dictate putting monitoring stations beside any industrial activity that has emissions of the six major air pollutants.

Keywords: air quality, air pollutants, air quality index (AQI), particulate matter

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