• Energy Research
• civil engineering close
• 12. Responsible consumption close
• 6. Clean water close
• Transport Research close

Riverine bridges are under a substantial threat of scour due to the magnitude and frequency of floods arising due to climate change. Infrequent inspections, inadequate data on foundation depths, and the lack of consideration of hydrologic and climate parameters often result in uncertainties within current scour risk assessments. This paper presents an approach for assessing the risk progression of local scour in peak flow conditions that consider uncertainties associated with location, downscaling of climate predictions, and hydrologic, hydraulic and scour prediction models. A rational scour risk rating based on warning time to failure is introduced that can provide a useful addition to the existing bridge condition indexes. The case study on a set of railway bridges in Southeast England shows that climate change could accelerate the scour risk progression, even in the low-emission scenario. The approach and results form a vital basis for scour risk mitigation and climate adaptation planning.

Riverine bridges are under a substantial threat of scour due to the magnitude and frequency of floods arising due to climate change. Infrequent inspections, inadequate data on foundation depths, and the lack of consideration of hydrologic and climate parameters often result in uncertainties within current scour risk assessments. This paper presents an approach for assessing the risk progression of local scour in peak flow conditions that consider uncertainties associated with location, downscaling of climate predictions, and hydrologic, hydraulic and scour prediction models. A rational scour risk rating based on warning time to failure is introduced that can provide a useful addition to the existing bridge condition indexes. The case study on a set of railway bridges in Southeast England shows that climate change could accelerate the scour risk progression, even in the low-emission scenario. The approach and results form a vital basis for scour risk mitigation and climate adaptation planning.

The dependence of road transport on fossil fuels and its contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) and pollutant emissions are main concerns leading to the need for shifting toward alternative energy sources and, namely, electromobility. The current paper aims to identify the key determinants affecting the consumer adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), focusing on private passenger cars. Toward this purpose, a systematic review of recent international literature is conducted in order to identify motivators and barriers, which are then categorized following the PESTLE (Political–Economic–Social–Technological–Legal–Environmental) approach. Based on the review results, main policy implications and recommendations are discussed. A main conclusion is that the recent literature highlights a wide array of determinants, without converging as to which ones are the most influential regarding EV adoption by consumers. Another conclusion is that the environmental aspects are less important for consumers than anticipated, despite the concerns about climate change and renewable energy transition.

The dependence of road transport on fossil fuels and its contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) and pollutant emissions are main concerns leading to the need for shifting toward alternative energy sources and, namely, electromobility. The current paper aims to identify the key determinants affecting the consumer adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), focusing on private passenger cars. Toward this purpose, a systematic review of recent international literature is conducted in order to identify motivators and barriers, which are then categorized following the PESTLE (Political–Economic–Social–Technological–Legal–Environmental) approach. Based on the review results, main policy implications and recommendations are discussed. A main conclusion is that the recent literature highlights a wide array of determinants, without converging as to which ones are the most influential regarding EV adoption by consumers. Another conclusion is that the environmental aspects are less important for consumers than anticipated, despite the concerns about climate change and renewable energy transition.

RESUMEN Cada vez más, las empresas desean conocer la huella de carbono de los productos que fabrican o comercializan. Una de las actividades que más impacto tiene en las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles a un producto es la del transporte y particularmente el transporte marítimo. El objetivo del trabajo es presentar una guía para calcular las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles a un producto al ser transportado por vía marítima. La metodología que se ha seguido es revisar la literatura, detectar las cuestiones no resueltas, proponer alternativas para solventarlas y contrastarlas con expertos. Los resultados del trabajo son en primer lugar, la propuesta de una guía para calcular las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles al transporte marítimo de un producto. La guía es útil para las compañías que deseen saber la huella de carbono de sus productos. Las novedades que aporta esta guía son las siguientes: plantea seis etapas para realizar el cálculo, es independiente de la cantidad de fuentes emisoras que se quieran tener en cuenta, pone de manifiesto los aspectos más críticos del cálculo y el resultado del cálculo es la cantidad emitida por unidad de producto. El segundo resultado es la identificación de las dificultades más importantes que deben tenerse en cuenta al calcular las emisiones. El tercer resultado es la constatación de la utilidad de la guía, mediante dos casos prácticos planteados por el puerto de Barcelona.

RESUMEN Cada vez más, las empresas desean conocer la huella de carbono de los productos que fabrican o comercializan. Una de las actividades que más impacto tiene en las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles a un producto es la del transporte y particularmente el transporte marítimo. El objetivo del trabajo es presentar una guía para calcular las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles a un producto al ser transportado por vía marítima. La metodología que se ha seguido es revisar la literatura, detectar las cuestiones no resueltas, proponer alternativas para solventarlas y contrastarlas con expertos. Los resultados del trabajo son en primer lugar, la propuesta de una guía para calcular las emisiones de CO2 atribuibles al transporte marítimo de un producto. La guía es útil para las compañías que deseen saber la huella de carbono de sus productos. Las novedades que aporta esta guía son las siguientes: plantea seis etapas para realizar el cálculo, es independiente de la cantidad de fuentes emisoras que se quieran tener en cuenta, pone de manifiesto los aspectos más críticos del cálculo y el resultado del cálculo es la cantidad emitida por unidad de producto. El segundo resultado es la identificación de las dificultades más importantes que deben tenerse en cuenta al calcular las emisiones. El tercer resultado es la constatación de la utilidad de la guía, mediante dos casos prácticos planteados por el puerto de Barcelona.

One of the short-term operational measures for fuel savings and reducing CO2 emissions from ships at sea is sailing at reduced speed, i.e., slow steaming, while the gasification of the ship represents an important mid-term technical measure. In this study, the energetic and ecological benefits of slow steaming and gasification are studied for a container ship sailing between Shanghai and Hamburg. Resistance and propulsion characteristics in calm water are calculated using computational fluid dynamics based on the viscous flow theory for a full-scale ship, while the added resistance in waves is calculated by applying potential flow theory. The propeller operating point is determined for the design and slow steaming speeds at sea states with the highest probability of occurrence through the investigated sailing route. Thereafter, the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions are calculated for a selected dual fuel engine in fuel oil- and gas-supplying modes complying with IMO Tier II and Tier III requirements. The results demonstrate a significant reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for various slow steaming speeds compared to the design speed at different sea states, and for the gasification of a container ship. For realistic weather conditions through the investigated route, the potential reduction in CO2 emissions per year could be up to 11.66 kt/year for fuel oil mode and 8.53 kt/year for gas-operating mode. CO2 emission reduction per year due to gasification under realistic weather conditions could be up to 22 kt/year.

One of the short-term operational measures for fuel savings and reducing CO2 emissions from ships at sea is sailing at reduced speed, i.e., slow steaming, while the gasification of the ship represents an important mid-term technical measure. In this study, the energetic and ecological benefits of slow steaming and gasification are studied for a container ship sailing between Shanghai and Hamburg. Resistance and propulsion characteristics in calm water are calculated using computational fluid dynamics based on the viscous flow theory for a full-scale ship, while the added resistance in waves is calculated by applying potential flow theory. The propeller operating point is determined for the design and slow steaming speeds at sea states with the highest probability of occurrence through the investigated sailing route. Thereafter, the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions are calculated for a selected dual fuel engine in fuel oil- and gas-supplying modes complying with IMO Tier II and Tier III requirements. The results demonstrate a significant reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for various slow steaming speeds compared to the design speed at different sea states, and for the gasification of a container ship. For realistic weather conditions through the investigated route, the potential reduction in CO2 emissions per year could be up to 11.66 kt/year for fuel oil mode and 8.53 kt/year for gas-operating mode. CO2 emission reduction per year due to gasification under realistic weather conditions could be up to 22 kt/year.