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The world, society and education are constantly evolving, and to respond to these changes, the main governmental institutions have been proposing different global strategies to focus efforts in the same direction. Currently, the United Nations and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) have presented a series of indicators that could help to minimise the environmental, economic and social instability we are experiencing. In this sense, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been described as a fundamental factor. Specifically, in previous work, we argued that physical education (PE) could be a good tool to contribute to SDGs. Based on this, no research analysing the voices of Physical Education Teachers (PET) on how this contribution could be made has been identified in previous literature. Therefore, the objectives of this research are: (1) to analyse the voices and opinions of active PETs in terms of the knowledge they have about Sustainable Development (SD); (2) to determine their opinions about the contribution that PE could make to SDGs; and finally, (3) to identify the challenges and limitations of pedagogical action of SD in PE. For this purpose, a qualitative analysis through a semi-structured interview with 41 active PETs was carried out. The main findings will be presented and discussed around four themes: (a) agreement on the concept of sustainability; (b) PE can contribute to the achievement of SDGs; (c) ambiguity in applying SDGs to PE lessons; and (d) teachers’ constraints on how to implement SDGs in PE. It seems to indicate that PETs do not have a multidimensional vision of sustainable development. While they recognise the potential of PE to contribute to SDGs through awareness raising and student learning, they point to its pedagogical and formative constraints as the main barriers to being able to contribute. They pointed to a lack of knowledge on how to do so, guidelines on how to integrate ESD, lack of involvement, shortage of time or resources in school physical education.

It is now environmentally desirable and legally mandatory to add renewable fuels such as ethanol or ethyl tert-butyl ether to gasoline. However, biofuels affect, among other properties, the distillation curve of gasoline, which is subject to strict regulations. This work presents a simple mathematical model capable of accurately predicting the influence that the addition of these oxygenates has on the distillation curve. In order to address this issue, it is essential to find a simple mathematical correlation between the boiling temperatures of the hydrocarbons present in gasoline and the properties (boiling temperature and volume or molar concentration of ethanol) of the corresponding azeotropic mixtures formed with ethanol. Power functions have been assumed to model the temperature composition diagrams of the vapour-liquid equilibrium. Experimental data previously published by these and other authors have been used to fit and validate the model. The results provided by the mathematical model can be of great interest to understand the process of fuel evaporation in spark-ignition engines or the adjustment of distillation cuts in refineries, in order to comply with the regulations, in terms of the distillation curve, after adding ethanol or ethyl tert-butyl ether.

The most widely used process for hydrogen production is steam methane reforming. It can be carried out using a membrane reactor in which simultaneous hydrogen production and purification occur. Mathematical modeling of these reactors plays a key role in the selection of the design and operating parameters that yield high performance for the reactor. This review study discusses, synthesizes, and compares different mathematical modeling studies on the packed bed membrane reactors for hydrogen production from methane found in the literature. Different approaches used in these modeling studies for the hydrogen permeation steps, reaction kinetic expressions, phases involved (pseudo-homogeneous and heterogeneous), and spatial dimensions (one, two, and three dimensional) are given.

Thermal performance of SS-PCM composites, simulating building envelope conditions, is difficult to asset with traditional laboratory equipment. However, in this work, the evaluation of three SS-PCM based on eutectic fatty acid mixtures of capric-myristic (CA/MA), lauric-myristic (LA/MA) and palmitic-stearic (PA/SA) was accomplished by a testing setup that allows to test samples in steady-state and dynamic conditions. Moreover, a SS-PCM-based acrylic plaster was evaluated as a fiber cement siding finish. The obtained values were used to calculate the thermal transmittance (U-value), heat storage capacity, and thermal inertia parameters under a simulated diurnal cycle. Results showed that the use of phase change materials in powder form increase thermal lag between 148% and 180% and present a decrement factor <0.2. Furthermore, building envelopes as fiber cement siding with a SS-PCM-based acrylic plaster coating decreased 20.8% the indoor temperature, increase 67.26% the thermal lag and decrease 9% of the decrement factor. The authors are pleased to acknowledge the financial assistance of the “Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación-MINCIENCIAS” through the PhD grant 758-2016-Contract 036–2016, Universidad de Antioquia and Sumicol S.A.S. The work is partially funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades de España (RTI2018-093849-B-C31—MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE) and by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades—Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) (RED2018-102431-T). This work is partially supported by ICREA under the ICREA Academia programme. Dr. Cabeza would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to her research group GREiA (2017 SGR 1537). GREiA is a certified agent TECNIO in the category of technology developers from the Government of Catalonia.

This deliverable presents the detailed design of the SunDial concentrators for two case-studies: AMTP, in Iasi (Romania), and MAN, in Corinth (Greece). The design of the concentrator is different for both cases due to two reasons: first, the location in Iasi has a high latitude that implies the need of a design specifically suited to a lower mean sun altitude; second, in order to increase the performance of the concentrator for high latitudes a two-axis tracking system has been selected, which leads to a completely different layout of mirrors and receivers within the rotating platform compared to low latitudes, where one-axis tracking is used. The size of the platforms, which resulted from the analytical studies presented in deliverables D3.1 and D3.2, is 8-9 m per collector side, too large be shipped as a whole module. Therefore, the design of the concentrators has sought a system modularity that enables an easy transportation and installation. The design of the concentrators can be divided into three sub-systems: the rotating platform, the mirrors, and the receivers. A CAD software is used in order to design all of them. The connection between the sub-systems is included in the design. Images resulting from the CAD design are used in order to describe the design concept of each subsystem, whereas the final drawings, which are the main outcome of the deliverable, are presented in the annexes. Also, the CAD design is used to provide the elements inventory of the concentrators, including the materials selected and the manufacturing process used.

Abstract The Mediterranean region is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. The majority of climate models forecast a rise in temperatures and less rainfall, which have been observed in recent decades. These changes will affect several vegetation properties, especially phenological dynamics and traits, by increasing drought intensity and recurrence. In this climate change context, the present study aims to assess the evolution of vegetation state and its relation with the climate dynamics in the Mediterranean forest region of northeast Tunisia using Land Surface Phenology (LSP) metrics and the vegetation index (NDVI) analysis from 2000 to 2017. To conduct this work, we used precipitation and temperature data from the two closest weather stations and 16-day NDVI composite images from the MODIS satellite source, with 250-m spatial resolution. Three phenological metrics— start of season (SOS), end of season (EOS), and length of season (LOS) — were obtained and compared for different vegetation types. The LSP variation in response to climatic metrics was also analyzed. The results showed that the LSP in our study area changed significantly during the 2000–2017 period, which includes an average 7.8 days delay in the SOS, an average advance in the EOS by 5 days, and LOS shortened by an average 12.8 days. Autumn (Pr_9) and spring (Pr_3 and P3_4) precipitations, as well as maximum temperature (Tx9+10), represent the best climate parameters to explain the changes in LSP. Both the NDVI and SPEI showed a significant high correlation (p

The launch traffic to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) is undergoing significant changes: instead of launching few, complex, large and expensive spacecraft, the trend is now towards the use of multitudes of small, less complex and lower-cost satellites. Large constellations, encompassing thousands of satellites in restricted regions of space, are emerging as important space assets. The intensifying commercial use of LEO and international debate regarding the stability of the space environment is a growing discussion among policy makers. Utilizing the SDM 5.0 evolutionary model developed by the Italian National Council of Research (CNR), the first step of this analysis is to estimate the growth of the space objects in LEO in the next decades. The analysis considers the space objects >10 cm, including active and defunct satellites, spent rockets bodies and fragments, along with varying future traffic, mitigation and remediation scenarios. Subsequently, the analysis focuses on the probability of collision with active satellites and on related mitigation and remediation scenarios. Based on this, the study employs a qualitative and preliminary approach to assess satellite operators' economic convenience of adopting measures that can mitigate the risk of collision by comparing their cost to the damage costs that may occur in case of collision. Finally, the study dedicate its concluding considerations to discuss if a free market setting can stimulate the formation of effective solutions to space debris challenges (namely, if it provides operators with the economic incentive to adopt or develop mitigation measures) or if public institutions' intervention is needed to finance mitigation strategies and, in particular, complex technologies development and adoption.

The incorporation of recycled materials in concrete as a partial replacement of cement is becoming an alternative strategy for decreasing energy-intensive and CO2 emissions imputable to the cement manufacture, while investigating new potential uses of such multifunctional materials for environmental sustainability opportunities. Therefore, low-cost and worldwide availability of by-products materials is being assessed for sensible heat thermal energy storage applications based on cementitious materials. A greater concern is especially required focusing on the thermal stability of cement paste under high temperature cycled conditions. Moreover, compatibility between cement type and supplementary cementitious materials is determinant for the proper performance reliability. In this study, benchmark cement types were selected, i.e., ordinary Portland and calcium aluminate. Six supplementary cementitious materials were added to both types of cement in a content of 10 % and 25 %. Thermo-mechanical properties were studied before and after 10 thermal cycles from 290 to 650 ◦C. Results after thermal cycling showed that calcium aluminate cement paste mixtures maintained their integrity. However, most ordinary Portland cement paste mixtures were deteriorated: only mixtures with 25 % cement replacement with chamotte, flay ash, and ground granulated blast furnace slag remained without cracks. Calcium aluminate cement paste mixtures obtained the highest compressive strength, for partial replacement of cement with 10 % of chamotte, ground granulated blast furnace slag, and iron silicate. The incorporation of supplementary cementitious materials did not increase the thermal conductivity. This work was partially funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades de España (RTI2018-093849-B-C31 - MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE) and by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades - Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) (RED2018-102431-T). The authors at University of Lleida would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to their research group (2017 SGR 1537). GREiA is certified agent TECNIO in the category of technology developers from the Government of Catalonia. This work is partially supported by ICREA under the ICREA Academia programme and by the Italian project ‘SOS-CITTA’ supported by Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Perugia under grant agreement No 2018.0499.026. Laura Boquera acknowledgments are due to the PhD school in Energy and Sustainable Development from University of Perugia. Laura Boquera would like to acknowledge the financial support provided by UNIPG – CIRIAF InpathTES project. The authors also thank the companies that provided the material to make possible this experimental research: Arciresa, Abrasivos Mendiola EDERSA—Masaveu Industria, General Admixtures S.p.A, Mapei, Ciments Molins industrial, and Promsa for the material supplied in this research. Financial support of the UNIPG-CIRIAF team has been achieved from the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) in the framework of the Project FISR 2019: “Eco Earth” (code 00245) and it is gratefully acknowledged.

La transizione energetica e lo sviluppo sempre più capillare delle energie da fonti rinnovabili stanno suscitando un interesse sempre più crescente, favorendo la nascita di comunità per la produzione di energia e l'autoconsumo collettivo, al fine di ridurre drasticamente le emissioni e poter così raggiungere definitivamente l'obiettivo di decarbonizzazione prefissato per il 2050 dall'Unione Europea. Nel nostro Paese, le comunità energetiche potranno diventare il volano per le energie da fonti rinnovabili, permettendo ai cittadini di partecipare alla generazione, alla distribuzione, alla fornitura, al consumo, all'aggregazione ed allo stoccaggio dell'energia. Proprio attraverso una maggiore consapevolezza del fenomeno che si sta sviluppando, i cittadini possono associarsi ed effettuare scelte comuni per produrre localmente l'energia elettrica necessaria al proprio fabbisogno, anche condividendola, avendo così accesso a servizi di efficienza energetica. Queste nuove forme di mobilitazione collettiva, già note nei movimenti comunitari legati alla filiera alimentare, cominciano a diventare sempre più presenti nella costituzione delle comunità energetiche, con il fine ultimo, non solo di ridurre l'uso di fonti fossili ed emissioni, in favore di un sistema energetico basato sull'impiego di risorse energetiche rinnovabili, ma anche di poter produrre innovazione sociale in termini di empowerment delle persone, inclusività ed impatto di lunga durata, incoraggiando il cambiamento di pratiche sociali e valori collettivi; il mutamento tecnologico, quanto quello sociale, può essere soddisfatto solo da un forte coinvolgimento degli attori sociali.