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The project between tthe Deutsche Biomasseforschungszentrum (DBFZ) and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) focuses on the pr rovision of alternative fuels by thermochemical conversion. Biogenic residues and wastes which are not used yet or which could be utilised more efficiently are studied. The selection of possible feedstock was supported by a techhnical potential analysis including the competition to th he food industry. The technical suitability of raw materials for the fast pyrolysis (FP) process was of special in nterest. As a possible feedstock following types of biomass were studied: corn stover, corn cobs, biogenic floating re efuse (river Rhine and Baltic Sea), scrap wood, bark, rape s straw, sunflower straw, draff, diverse residues of flour production and hay. A process development unit (PDU) with a biomass feeding rate of 10 kg/h and a twin screw m mixer reactor was used for all experiments. It was found that different types of biomass form different char, condensate e and gas yields due to varying ash levels and lignocellulosic composition. Elemental formulas for feedstock, char, organic condensate and gas were estimated independent on t the feedstock due to similar elemental compositions. Pyrolysis gas analysis during the experiments gave information on the mass yields. A CO/CO2-ratio of 1 (i.e. wood) corresponds to organic condensate yields of about 50 wt.-%%, whereas a ratio of 0.3-0.7 (straw) corresponds to 18-32 wt. .-% respectively. Proceedings of the 20th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition, 18-22 June 2012, Milan, Italy, pp. 973-977

The United Nations has named 2005-2014 as the decade of education for sustainable development, thereby highlighting that 'education is critical for promoting sustainable development and improving the capacity of the people to address environment and development issues‘ (Agenda 21, UN, 1992, p. 363). In light of the above, this paper provides insights into two sustainability courses taught at an Australian university in 2009. The paper differs from prior studies in sustainability accounting education which focus on business programs (see for example, Nowak et al., 2008) or on the incorporation of sustainability into accounting degrees (see for example, Haigh and Hazelton, forthcoming). A personal account of my experiences in lecturing an undergraduate and graduate course provides insights into the design of sustainability accounting courses. The paper also highlights the critical need for accounting students to be aware of one of the most difficult challenges that needs to be addressed by governments, the business community and other institutions, and individuals; sustainable development. If accountants are to play a role in addressing sustainability, it is essential that the educational process provides the necessary skills to students which would equip them to handle an area that goes beyond the basic fundamentals of mainstream accounting. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Numerous state, provincial, and federal governments in the United States, Canada, and Australia have created guidelines, legislation, and/or regulations (or are in the process of doing so) in response to public concerns about water contamination from hydraulic fracturing. This article will compare and analyze three national regimes in the leading states and provinces in which laws have been amended, proposed, or adopted to address public concerns about the chemicals and additives in hydraulic fracturing fluids used to produce unconventional hydrocarbons. New regulations, recent legislative amendments, and, in some cases, new statutes have been proposed or adopted in the past few years. Most of the state and provincial laws require public disclosure of some information about the contents of hydraulic fracturing fluids. At the same time, governments interested in attracting investment capital to develop their shale oil and gas resources recognize the importance of protecting the intellectual property rights (trade secrets) of those parties that have developed hydraulic fracturing fluids.

Trends within Northern Hemisphere surface waters indicate that natural organic matter (NOM) concentrations are rising not only due to historical, acid-deposition based influence, but more recently due to climate change. The accumulation of NOM in reservoirs is detrimental to potable water supply and erodes the success and capacity of existing treatment infrastructure. In recent years, the Australian East Coast has experienced a rapid succession of high temperatures, rainfall deficiencies, drought, fire, intense rainfall, and flooding. Such events have the ability to convey changes to the way NOM is fluxed to aquatic systems and how NOM is cycled and stored within reservoirs. The aim of this thesis was to assess the role of climatic variation on the susceptibility for reservoirs in Greater Sydney to accumulate NOM. An assessment of the historical record of all six major surface water storage reservoirs in Greater Sydney using a combined hierarchical clustering and principal component analysis technique, has indicated for the first time that these systems are browning from accumulating DOC. Subsequent determinations of changepoints in this historical record combined with extensive temporal cross examination of climatological drivers, deduced browning was influenced by intensive precipitation events which translated to intense and rapid reservoir recharge. A comprehensive assessment of the physical and chemical properties of NOM within the Nepean catchment (Sydney, Australia, n = 656) by fluorescence spectroscopy and liquid-chromatography with organic carbon detection (LC-OCD), deduced only minor NOM compositional change occurred across drought and intensive rainfall events. A similar assessment of the fire impacted Warragamba catchment (Sydney, Australia) concluded that fire impacted particulate organic matter held significant quantities of leachable dissolved organic matter. Overall, it was concluded that climate driven increases in precipitation intensity will drive an increased frequency and observance of browner reservoir systems due to higher NOM concentrations, but this will not equate to large compositional shifts in the underlying physical and chemical properties of NOM within a catchment system.

The Biorefinery and Bioenergy Center BIO2C, is a semi-industrial pilot scale test facility able to develop production, processes for bioproducts, solid biofuels, advanced liquid and gaseous biofuels, as well as biorefinery concepts integrating different valorization routes, as an intermediate step between laboratory and the industrial scale-up of these technologies. BIO2C constitutes an integrated trial and demonstration platform designed to develop processes, equipment and specific, components, new bio-products or biofuels and biorefinery concepts.

This deliverable contains the raw data that constitutes the database of microbial diversity and organic compounds in geothermal fluids used for electricity production generated during the project.

In the Meyer-Burger labs, pilot production of its proprietary 6''-Heterojunction (HJT) cells has been conducted on full-scale production tools (Roth & Rau Helia PECVD & Helia PVD). Overall, close to 10.000 cells have been manufactured with efficiencies up to 21,1%. From theses HJT cells, 60-cell modules have been produced. Temperature coefficient measurements of both cells and modules have been conducted by independent institutes, resulting in outstanding -0,20%/K and -0,22%/K, respectively. The modules have been deployed on an outdoor test field in Mid-European climate conditions for over 1 year. The results demonstrate the durability of the HJT modules and comparison with standard crystalline modules show an increase of energy yield of up to 7% on sunny days already in spring time. Under hot climate conditions in southern regions this increase is supposed to be even higher, making HJT modules extremely suitable for southern climates and low LCOE´s. 28th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 1887-1889

The main contribution of this paper lies in the development of a novel front-to-rear axle brake force distribution strategy for the regenerative braking control of a vehicle with a high-speed electric drive unit at the front axle. The strategy adapts the brake proportioning to provide extended room for energy recuperation of the electric motor when the vehicle drivability and safety requirements permit. In detail, the strategy is adaptive to cornering intensity enabling the range to be further extended in real-world applications. The regenerative braking control features a brake blending control algorithm and a powertrain controller, which are decisive for enhancing the braking performance. Lastly, the regenerative braking control is implemented in the highfidelity simulation environment Simcenter Amesim, where system efficiency and regenerative brake performance are analysed. Results confirm that the designed regenerative braking greatly improves the effectiveness of energy recuperation for a front-wheel driven electric vehicle with a high-speed drive at the front axle. In conclusion, it is shown that it is feasible to use the high-speed drive with the proposed control design for regenerative braking.