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We recently introduced an amperometric, temperature-independent, and calibration-free method for the measurement of the state-of-charge (SOC) of redox flow battery (RFB) electrolytes. In the study at hand, the measurement accuracy of the method is re-evaluated and significantly improved. The absolute root-mean-square deviation (RMSD) is reduced from ∼ 5% to below 0.5% over the complete SOC range. Based on this enhanced measurement accuracy, a new approach for the online co-estimation of an electrolyte’s capacity and its state-of-health (SOH) is proposed and experimentally evaluated. In an operating RFB, relative RMSDs of 0.7 and 1.4% are obtained for the capacities of the catholyte and the anolyte, respectively. Utilizing this capacity measurement, SOH values with absolute RMSDs between 0.6 and 2.1% can be achieved. Furthermore, a low-cost microcontroller-based measurement unit (MMU) prototype was constructed and characterized. Based on the component prices and possible cost optimizations, total material costs of below 40 EUR ($49) for two MMUs are calculated. In addition, a preliminary investigation of a low-cost bipolar, backfilled microelectrode (BBME) for material costs of below 2 EUR ($2) is presented, its working principle demonstrated, and pathways for mitigating its stability issues are discussed. The methodological enhancements proposed in this study result in unprecedented measurement accuracies for the simultaneous SOC and SOH monitoring of both electrolytes in an operating RFB. The improved amperometric method stands out for its wide applicability, viable implementation costs, temperature as well as concentration independence, and excellent accuracy level. It, thus, has the potential to facilitate the RFB electrolyte development, improve the operational safety of RFBs, and optimize their operational performance.

The topic of whether globalization, energy consumption and financial development can substantially reduce emissions during the globalization era remains unanswered. In this context, this research highlights empirical indications supporting this theoretical discord; assessing the effect of globalization, energy consumption and financial development on the CO2 emissions in Japan (utilizing a dataset that spans between 1990 and 2019). The study employed the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) technique and frequency domain causality to probe these relationships. Unlike other conventional causality tests, the frequency domain causality test can capture causality at different frequencies. The findings from the ARDL analysis disclosed that globalization and renewable energy contribute to the mitigation of CO2 emissions while fossil fuel, economic growth and financial development caused an upsurge in CO2 in Japan. Furthermore, the frequency domain demonstrated that all the exogenous variables can forecast CO2 mostly in the long-term which implies that any policy initiated based on the exogenous variables will impact emissions of CO2. Based on the results obtained, Japan has to improve its financial systems and increase its use of renewable energy. Furthermore, Japan needs to restructure its policy regarding globalization owing to the fact that it contributes to the degradation of the environment. Since globalization is a major driver of economic growth, the government should concentrate on luring and licensing investors that use environmentally beneficial (net-zero) technology.

After considering significant literature on sustainable supply chain management (SSCM), it is evident that research has neglected the social dimension and still lacks in highlighting the role of sourcing intermediaries in supply chains. The apparel supply chain has increased enormously in length and complexity, driving apparel retailers to employ sourcing intermediaries who manage their sourcing activities with suppliers from developing countries overseas. Thus, the purpose of this study is to enrich existing findings on SSCM by exploring the management of social sustainability when sourcing intermediaries are in between the focal company and the respective developing country factories. More specifically, this study aims to understand the role of apparel sourcing intermediaries for the implementation of social management strategies based on the perception of multiple supply chain actors. Qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews conducted in Vietnam and Europe. Ultimately ten propositions are presented, all explicitly concentrating on the apparel intermediary’s role as a significant enabler for social sustainability in apparel supply chains. The roles are social sustainability, supplier developer and coordinator, gatekeeper and safeguard, cultural broker, and social risk manager. The social sustainability roles assumed by the apparel sourcing intermediary offer great opportunities to both apparel retailers and developing country factories.

AbstractReducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD) has been proposed as an economic and extensive source of emission abatement to supplement other long-term climate policies. However, critics suggest an excess supply of REDD credits may disrupt emerging carbon markets and raise north–south equity concerns. In this context, we investigate the economic implications of REDD regulations and future emissions reduction commitments. Numerical model simulations show that unrestricted exchange of REDD units reduces the international carbon price by half and cuts compliance costs by roughly one-third. Developed nations’ requirements for policy supplementarity, which restrict demand for REDD credits, reduce such price impacts but go at the expense of both economic efficiency and benefits to rainforest areas. Instead, unlimited REDD access facilitates climate policy targets to be tightened by almost a quarter at constant compliance cost, tripling the environmental ambition of the Kyoto Protocol and providing considerable wealth transfers to developing countries.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many governments enforced epidemic policies of social distancing, restrictions of professional practice, and the prohibition of cultural live performances. Because such policies dried up important sources of income in the cultural and tourism industries, this paper examines how cultural institutions coped with this crisis. Drawing on the case of the Mannheim Philharmonic Orchestra in Germany, we collected original data and employed a regional economic impact analysis to determine both the financial resilience of the Orchestra and its impact on the urban economy. Because the Orchestra could not reduce costs during the COVID-19 pandemic, public subsidies were crucial to fill the income gap of missed live concerts. In turn, the regional impact analysis suggests that the Orchestra maintained its positive effect on the economic demand for goods and services in the urban economy. When balancing the city’s subsidies with the rental (city concert halls) and tax incomes generated by the Orchestra’s local impact, the Orchestra managed to induce surplus revenue for the city’s treasury.

Soluble or instant espresso coffee in capsules with added values is a product that is increasingly recognized as a healthy lifestyle habit, which often goes together with the expansion of spa centers and spa hotels. In addition to the theoretical and empirical examination of sustainable drinking habits regarding different types of instant espresso coffee in Serbia, the aim was to define, by applying the theory of planned behavior, the relationship between certain factors that influence instant espresso coffee beverage reselection. The research model was developed using a sample of 1385 soluble/instant espresso coffee consumers. Structural equation modeling was applied to test the conceptual model and research hypotheses. The results indicate a statistically significant influence of certain predictors on the intention of consumers to rechoose soluble/instant coffee. One exception is perceived behavioral control, where statistical significance exceeds the allowed values, which indicate that the offer of functional soluble/instant espresso solutions should be extended outside high-quality service hotels and spa centers to be available to all consumers with healthy lifestyle habits. Defining the factors that influence instant espresso coffee reselection can help to understand influences on certain consumer behaviors and improve sustainability on the market.

Until three or four decades ago, humanity was no longer constrained by the depletion of certain natural resources (especially energy) and the intensified degradation of the natural environment. The consequences of these major crises—such as the economic, financial, and social upheaval of the world, dramatic climate change, and the entry of politics into a Brownian sarabande—necessitate the transition of civilization to another viable formula. Adequate, timely, and sustainable solutions are being sought, from the subsistence ones to those of economic efficiency. Thus, the mobility revolution is credited as one of the most important levers of change. Starting from the reality that most cars in traffic are not occupied at their maximum capacity, some ideas have already been advanced and even put into practice—“inspired”—which would improve the efficiency in this regard. For example, the reduction in the number of seats in cars and, correspondingly, the considerable reduction in the dimensions of cars are already found in the design of mini-cars and the correlation of identical interests of the self-movement of several people and the integration of this coincidence in a single concurrent mobility formula is already functional through the ride sharing system. Along with intelligent mobility management and the transition to electric and autonomous mobility, streamlining the occupancy of moving cars is seen as a great potential of the mobility revolution. Within the limits of the methodology of data collection in economic statistics, this study proposes a complex technique associated with a convincing tactic of empirical measurement of specific indices of urban traffic issues. The special method is characterized by the simultaneity and plurality of observation points followed by the correlation of the values obtained from the measurement thus performed, with the results from the video recordings taken at the same time. This method will increase the methodological accuracy of data collection in economic statistics. By advancing this method, this study aims to capture the occupancy rates of people in urban vehicle traffic, in different cities, using a combined method.