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Abstract As a type of solid waste, the used cigarette filters (UCF) were utilized to produce ester-rich bio-oil via a cleaner production process, namely, microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MAP). The pyrolysis efficiency was significantly enhanced owing to the high heating rate under MAP conditions with assistance of microwave absorber silicon carbide (SiC) in reactor and adding methanol into N2 carrier gas. Compared with the traditional tubular muffle furnace heating method yielding 0% of bio-oil, the MAP heating method obtained 29.17% of bio-oil from UCF. The bio-oil yield from UCF increased from 29.17% to 46.71% due to the introduction of methanol. Results of the gas chromatography/mass spectrometry showed that esters were the main components in the bio-oils (over 40%), especially of methyl acetate (over 12%). The aromatic compounds of phenols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were also produced from the MAP of UCF. The bio-char from MAP of UCF exhibited the mesoporous property (e.g., over 500 m2/g of specific surface area). It is expected to produce over 350000 metric tons ester-rich bio-oil if the proposed technology can be scaled up globally. It will be a preeminent contribution for the conversion of UCF to the cleaner production and our environments.

Traditionally, a ``low-energy`` house has been one that used little energy for space heating. But space heating typically accounts for less than half of the energy used by new US homes, and for low heating energy homes, space heating is often the third largest end use, behind water heating and appliances, and sometimes behind cooling. Low space heat alone cannot identify a low-energy house. To better understand the determinants of a low-energy house, we collected data on housing characteristics, incremental costs, and energy measurements from energy-efficient houses around the world and in a range of climates. We compare the energy required to provide thermal comfort as well as water heating, and other appliances. We do not have a single definition of a low-energy house, but through comparisons of actual buildings, we show how different definitions and quantitative indicators fail. In comparing the energy use of whole houses, weather normalization can be important, but for cases in which heating or cooling energy is surpassed by other end uses, other normalization methods must be used.

Uranium is a pollutant of concern to both human and ecosystem health. Uranium's redox state often dictates its partitioning between the aqueous- and solid-phases, and thus controls its dissolved concentration and, coupled with groundwater flow, its migration within the environment. In anaerobic environments, the more oxidized and mobile form of uranium (UO2 2+ and associated species) may be reduced, directly or indirectly, by microorganisms to U(IV) with subsequent precipitation of UO2. However, various factors within soils and sediments may limit biological reduction of U(VI), inclusive of alterations in U(VI) speciation and competitive electron acceptors. Here we elucidate the impact of U(VI) speciation on the extent and rate of reduction with specific emphasis on speciation changes induced by dissolved Ca, and we examine the impact of Fe(III) (hydr)oxides (ferrihydrite, goethite and hematite) varying in free energies of formation on U reduction. The amount of uranium removed from solution during 100 h ...

Airflow measurement techniques are necessary to determine the most basic of indoor air quality questions: ''Is there enough fresh air to provide a healthy environment for the occupants of the building?'' This paper outlines airflow measurement techniques, but it does not make recommendations for techniques that should be used. The airflows that will be discussed are those within a room or zone, those between rooms or zones, such as through doorways (open or closed) or passive vents, those between the building and outdoors, and those through mechanical air distribution systems. Techniques that are highlighted include particle streak velocimetry, hot wire anemometry, fan pressurization (measuring flow at a given pressure), tracer gas, acoustic methods for leak size determination, the Delta Q test to determine duct leakage flows, and flow hood measurements. Because tracer gas techniques are widely used to measure airflow, this topic is broken down into sections as follows: decay, pulse injection, constant injection, constant concentration, passive sampling, and single and multiple gas measurements for multiple zones.

AbstractPlanetary health provides a perspective of ecological interdependence that connects the health and vitality of individuals, communities, and Earth's natural systems. It includes the social, political, and economic ecosystems that influence both individuals and whole societies. In an era of interconnected grand challenges threatening health of all systems at all scales, planetary health provides a framework for cross‐sectoral collaboration and unified systems approaches to solutions. The field of allergy is at the forefront of these efforts. Allergic conditions are a sentinel measure of environmental impact on human health in early life—illuminating how ecological changes affect immune development and predispose to a wider range of inflammatory noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This shows how adverse macroscale ecology in the Anthropocene penetrates to the molecular level of personal and microscale ecology, including the microbial systems at the foundations of all ecosystems. It provides the basis for more integrated efforts to address widespread environmental degradation and adverse effects of maladaptive urbanization, food systems, lifestyle behaviors, and socioeconomic disadvantage. Nature‐based solutions and efforts to improve nature‐relatedness are crucial for restoring symbiosis, balance, and mutualism in every sense, recognizing that both personal lifestyle choices and collective structural actions are needed in tandem. Ultimately, meaningful ecological approaches will depend on placing greater emphasis on psychological and cultural dimensions such as mindfulness, values, and moral wisdom to ensure a sustainable and resilient future.

This report summarizes the work performed by an Ames-led project team under a 4-year DOE-ITP sponsored project titled, 'Advanced Wear-resistant Nanocomposites for Increased Energy Efficiency.' The Report serves as the project deliverable for the CPS agreement number 15015. The purpose of this project was to develop and commercialize a family of lightweight, bulk composite materials that are highly resistant to degradation by erosive and abrasive wear. These materials, based on AlMgB{sub 14}, are projected to save over 30 TBtu of energy per year when fully implemented in industrial applications, with the associated environmental benefits of eliminating the burning of 1.5 M tons/yr of coal and averting the release of 4.2 M tons/yr of CO{sub 2} into the air. This program targeted applications in the mining, drilling, machining, and dry erosion applications as key platforms for initial commercialization, which includes some of the most severe wear conditions in industry. Production-scale manufacturing of this technology has begun through a start-up company, NewTech Ceramics (NTC). This project included providing technical support to NTC in order to facilitate cost-effective mass production of the wear-resistant boride components. Resolution of issues related to processing scale-up, reduction in energy intensity during processing, and improving the quality andmore » performance of the composites, without adding to the cost of processing were among the primary technical focus areas of this program. Compositional refinements were also investigated in order to achieve the maximum wear resistance. In addition, synthesis of large-scale, single-phase AlMgB{sub 14} powder was conducted for use as PVD sputtering targets for nanocoating applications.« less

The first intensive observation period (IOP) to simultaneously measure diffuse horizontal shortwave irradiance (scattered solar radiation that falls on a horizontal surface) with a wide array of shaded pyranometers suggested that a consensus might be reached that would permit the establishment of a standard with a smaller uncertainty than previously achieved. A second IOP has been held to refine the first IOP measurements using a uniform calibration protocol, offset corrections for all instruments and validation of those corrections, improvements in some of the instruments, and better data acquisition. The venue for both IOPs was the Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement central facility in northern Oklahoma. The 9 days of measurements in October 2003 included a better mixture of clear and overcast conditions than during the first IOP and revealed considerable differences among the instruments' responses for different cloud conditions. Four of the 15 instruments were eliminated as candidates to be included in the standard because of noisy signals, inadequate offset correction, or instability with respect to the majority of the measurements. Eight pyranometers agreed to within ±2% for clear‐sky conditions. Three others have a high bias on clear days relative to these eight, but all 11 agree within ±2% on overcast days. The differences and causes of this behavior under clear and cloudy skies are examined.

AbstractSince the mid‐20th century, the so‐called Great Acceleration (sensu Steffen et al., 2007, https://doi.org/10.1579/0044-7447(2007)36[614:TAAHNO]2.0.CO;2) has amplified processes of ecosystem degradation, extinction of biological species, displacement of local peoples, losses of languages, and cultural diversity. These losses are still underperceived by the academic community, and by a global society that is disconnected from biocultural diversity. To reconnect society with biocultural diversity, we integrate temporal and spatial dimensions of seasonal cycles, by combining two conceptual frameworks: ecological calendars and the “3Hs” model of the biocultural ethic (sensu Rozzi, 2012, https://doi.org/10.5840/enviroethics20123414). The latter values the vital links between human and other‐than‐human co‐inhabitants, their life habits (e.g., cultural practices of humans or life cycles of other‐than‐human species), and the structure and processes of their shared habitats. This integration enhances an understanding of links between cultural practices and the life cycles of biocultural keystone species. As a synthesis, we use the term biocultural calendars to emphasize their co‐constitutive nature that result from interactions between dynamic biophysical and cultural processes embedded in specific ecosystems and cultures. These calendars link astronomical, biological, and cultural seasonal cycles that sustain life and enhance the integration of Indigenous and scientific knowledge to confront challenges of climate change faced from local to global scales. To illustrate this integration, we examine cultural practices and socio‐environmental changes across four contrasting ethnolinguistic communities in southwestern South America, from southern to northern Chile along a marked climatic gradient to show the broad application of the concept of biocultural calendars.