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This experimental study explores the possibility of using an existing Trombe wall as a space for year-round cultivation to increase building resource efficiency. To do so with the least cost to the building, a small 0.75 m2/5.45 m3 Trombe wall cavity space was retrofitted with shelves placed behind the glazing, additional ventilation, and a watering network to be able to grow 400 hydroponic Kratky basil plants in individual glass jars. Historical thermal observations made at the site over a year-long timespan were contrasted with the experimental readings. When fully equipped, the Trombe wall’s thermal mass increased by 51%, which had a balancing effect on the system, lowering the average daily thermal oscillations from 35.41 °C to 17.88 °C. The living plants and water have also had significant cooling (26.99 °C to 22.91 °C) and humidifying (39.88 to 47.74%) effects. The system’s energy efficiency, however, decreased from 26 to 18% (absorption) and from 85 to 46 (dissipation), lowering its energy contribution to the building by about 30%. The average plant’s lifespan within the Trombe wall was 46 days, with 15% of the specimens surpassing the 100-day mark. Over the course of a year, 20.55 kg of edible greens were grown in the Trombe wall. The experiment has shown that it is possible to grow the plants inside the Trombe wall cavity during the warmer half of the year, revealing many possible ways to improve the space’s comfort, yields, and energy efficiency.

Abstract Background Malaria remains one of the most devastating diseases globally, and the control of mosquitoes as the vector is mainly dependent on chemical insecticides. Elevated temperatures associated with future warmer climates could affect mosquitoes' metabolic enzyme expression and increase insecticide resistance, making vector control difficult. Understanding how mosquito rearing temperatures influence their susceptibility to insecticide and expression of metabolic enzymes could aid in the development of novel tools and strategies to control mosquitoes in a future warmer climate. This study evaluated the effects of temperature on the susceptibility of Anopheles gambiae sensu lato (s.l.) mosquitoes to pyrethroids and their expression of metabolic enzymes. Methods Anopheles gambiae s.l. eggs obtained from laboratory-established colonies were reared under eight temperature regimes (25, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, and 40 °C). Upon adult emergence, 3- to 5-day-old female non-blood-fed mosquitoes were used for susceptibility tests following the World Health Organization (WHO) bioassay protocol. Batches of 20–25 mosquitoes from each temperature regime (25–34 °C) were exposed to two pyrethroid insecticides (0.75% permethrin and 0.05% deltamethrin). In addition, the levels of four metabolic enzymes (α-esterase, β-esterase, glutathione S-transferase [GST], and mixed-function oxidase [MFO]) were examined in mosquitoes that were not exposed and those that were exposed to pyrethroids. Results Mortality in An. gambiae s.l. mosquitoes exposed to deltamethrin and permethrin decreased at temperatures above 28 °C. In addition, mosquitoes reared at higher temperatures were more resistant and had more elevated enzyme levels than those raised at low temperatures. Overall, mosquitoes that survived after being exposed to pyrethroids had higher levels of metabolic enzymes than those that were not exposed to pyrethroids. Conclusions This study provides evidence that elevated temperatures decreased An. gambiae s.l. mosquitoes' susceptibility to pyrethroids and increased the expression of metabolic enzymes. This evidence suggests that elevated temperatures projected in a future warmer climate could increase mosquitoes' resistance to insecticides and complicate malaria vector control measures. This study therefore provides vital information, and suggests useful areas of future research, on the effects of temperature variability on mosquitoes that could guide vector control measures in a future warmer climate. Graphical Abstract

Pool boiling in porous media has been applied in various thermal management systems by using latent heat and increasing the heat transfer area and thermal conduction path to improve the heat transfer performance. In mechanical equipment, vibration is an inevitable problem due to reasons such as engine operation and high-speed relative motion between transmission system components, which causes the system components to be affected by vibration forces or vibration accelerations. This study focuses on a review of published articles about the effects of mechanical vibration on the characteristics of boiling process in porous media by two aspects: heat transfer performance and bubble dynamics. Heat transfer coefficient (HTC) and critical heat flux are two main parameters used to measure the boiling heat transfer characteristics of porous media. For bubble dynamics investigations, properties such as migration, fragment, coalescence, departure diameter and frequency are the focus of research attention. Different mechanical vibration parameters, i.e., direction, frequency, and amplitude, will have different effects on the above characteristics. It is worth mentioning that the greatest influence occurs under resonance conditions, and this has been verified through experimental and simulation calculations. This review highlights the importance of considering mechanical vibrations in the design and optimization of porous media systems for efficient heat transfer applications. Further research is warranted to explore the detailed mechanisms and optimize the vibration parameters for enhanced heat transfer performance in thermal management systems using porous media.

Comfort temperature and sleep quality involving 20 participants were determined in two cases: Case A (arbitrary, controlled air-conditioner setting) and Case B (adjustment of 3 °C higher than the setting of Case A with cool bed linen). Data of indoor thermal comfort and electricity consumption were collected every night throughout the measurement period. Questionnaires on thermal comfort and sleep quality were distributed twice a night for a duration of three nights for each case; the first night was for respondents’ adaptation and the following two nights were for measurement. The sleep quality of the respondents was objectively measured using a commercially available activity tracker. Results found that most respondents were thermally comfortable in both cases, with 39% lower energy consumption reported for Case B compared to Case A. The thermal conditions of Case B were found to be more tolerable than those of Case A. Most respondents reported to have a calm and satisfied sleep for both cases. Comfort temperature and Sleep Efficiency Index (SEI) were found to be maintained in both cases.

Abstract In this paper, the prevention of negative technogenic impact on the environment of oil sludge by using it as a secondary resource is considered. Oil sludge from various objects of oil fields in Kazakhstan (Mangystau region) has been studied. The possibilities of using oil (after its separation from oil sludge by bioremidiation) as a partial substitute for bitumen base in the production of modified bitumen are considered. The main physical and mechanical characteristics of modified bitumen are determined. The results confirm that the modified bitumen prepared with oil sludge and oil separated by bioremiation method meets the requirements for polymer-bitumen binder to Kazakhstan standards and is suitable for the production of modified bitumen in its physico-chemical characteristics.

Abstract Fractures along interfaces between host rock and wellbore cement have long been identified as potential CO2 leakage pathways from subsurface CO2 storage sites. As a consequence, cement alteration due to exposure to CO2 has been studied extensively to assess wellbore integrity. Previous studies have focused on the changes to either chemical or mechanical properties of cement upon exposure to CO2-enriched brine, but not on the effects of loading conditions. This paper aims to correct this deficit by considering the combined effects of the fracture pathway and changing effective stress on chemical and mechanical degradation at conditions relevant to geologic carbon storage. Flow-through experiments on fractured cores composed of cement and tight sandstone caprock halves were conducted to study the alteration of cement due to exposure to CO2-enriched brine at 3, 7, 9, and 12 MPa effective stress. We characterized relevant reactions via solution chemistry; fracture permeability via changes to differential pressure; mechanical changes via micro-hardness testing, and pore structure changes via x-ray tomography. This study showed that the nature and the rates of the chemical reactions between cement and CO2 were not affected by the effective stress. The differences in the permeability responses of the fractures were attributed to interactions among the geometry of the flow path, the porosity increase of the reacted cement, and the mechanical deformation of reacted asperities. The suite of observed chemical reactions contributed to change in cement mechanical properties. Compared to the unreacted cement, the average hardness of the amorphous silica and depleted layers was decreased while the hardness of the calcite layer was increased. Tomographic imaging showed that preferential flow paths formed in some of the core-flood experiments, which had a significant impact on the permeability response of the fractured samples. We interpreted the observed permeability responses in terms of competition between dissolution of cement phases (leading to enhanced permeability) and mechanical deformation of reacted regions (leading to reduced permeability).