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Construction involves the use of significant quantities of raw materials and entails high-energy consumption. For the sake of choosing the most appropriate solution that considers environmental and sustainable concepts, tools such as the integrated value model for sustainable assessment (Modelo Integrado de Valor para una Evaluación Sostenible, MIVES) used in Spain, plays a key role in obtaining the best solution. MIVES is a multi-criteria decision-making method based on the value function concept and the seminars delivered by experts. Such tools, in order to show how they may work, require application to case studies. In this paper, two concrete slabs manufactured with differing reinforcements during the construction of the La Canda Tunnels are compared by means of MIVES. The two concrete slabs were reinforced with a conventional steel-mesh and with polyolefin fibres. This research was focussed on the main aspects affecting the construction. That is to say, the environmental, economic, and social factors were assessed by the method, being of special impact the issues related with maintenance of the structure. The results showed that from the point of view of sustainability, the use of polyolefin fibres provided a significant advantage, mainly due to the lower maintenance required.

The major goal of this research paper is to determine the long-run linkage among variables and the impact of civil aviation, energy productivity (efficiency), economic growth (GDP), on ecological footprint through conducting the multivariate regression method, Phillips‑Ouliaris and Engle‑Granger, Jarque – Bera Normality, and Cusum tests from 1970 to 2020. According to results of multivariate regression method, civil aviation, energy efficiency, and economic growth affect the ecological footprint from 1970 to 2020 in France which is coincide with Phillips‑Ouliaris and Engle‑Granger tests. On the contrary, there is no effect of independent variables on dependent variable (ecological footprint) in Finland which is consistent with Phillips‑Ouliaris and Engle‑Granger tests. In this respect, The long-run relation of the model is verified by the cointegration test of Engle-Granger and Phillips-Ouliaris for France. However, there is no long-run co-integration among variables for Finland from 1970-2020. To sum up, empirical results of France is verified EKC hypothesis. However, EKC hypothesis is not verified for Finland.

In this study, levulinic acid (LA) was produced from rice straw biomass in co-solvent biphasic reactor system consisting of hydrochloric acid and dichloromethane organic solvent. The modified protocol achieved a 15% wt LA yield through the synergistic effect of acid and acidic products (auto-catalysis) and the designed system allowed facile recovery of LA to the organic phase. Further purification of the resulting extractant was achieved through traditional column chromatography, which yielded a high purity LA product while recovering ∼85% wt. Upon charcoal treatment of the resultant fraction generated an industrial grade target molecule of ∼99% purity with ∼95% wt recovery. The system allows the solvent to be easily recovered, in excess of 90%, which was shown to be able to be recycled up to 5 runs without significant loss of final product concentrations. Overall, this system points to a method to significantly reduce manufacturing cost during large-scale LA preparation.

Abstract As a burgeoning theoretical framework, energy justice has been mostly focused on the energy transition in Western countries, where socio-political settings are largely featured by liberalism and democracy, leaving an obvious gap in its application in other socio-political contexts. As a major energy consumer and a leader of the global low-carbon transition, China is characterized by a distinctive socio-political regime. An array of grand strategies to transform its coal-dominant energy structure have been initiated to ameliorate deteriorating environmental crises in particular and materialize a low-carbon transition in general. Based on extensive evidence, this article incorporates the energy justice framework into the analysis of an ongoing energy transition project in rural Northern China. It contributes to the related research in three dimensions. First, empirically, it demonstrates that the coal-to-gas heating transition project has been swamped with social injustices; the absence of measures to address these would lead this mega-project to profound failure. Second, theoretically, it illustrates that the concerns of justice are even more paramount in an authoritarian context where policy processes are characterized by strong political-administrative intervention and the pursuit of efficiency at all cost. In light of this, it stresses the indispensable role of restorative justice as a core tenet in achieving energy justice in authoritarian socio-political contexts, such as China. Third, this study advocates expanding the evaluation parameters of authoritarian environmentalism to include social consequences.

According to the renewable energy directive 2009/28/EC, the European Union Member States should increase by 2020 the use of renewable energy to 20% of gross final energy consumption and to reach a mandatory share of 10% renewable energy in the transport sector. This study aims to quantify the impact of 2020 bioenergy targets on the land use in the EU, based on the projections of the National Renewable Action Plans in four scenarios: Scenario 1. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs; Scenario 2. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, no second generation biofuels; Scenario 3. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, reduced import of biofuels and bioliquids; Scenario 4. Bioenergy targets according to NREAPs, high imports of biofuels and bioliquids. This study also considers the credit for co-products generated from biofuel production. The analysis reveals that the land used in the EU for bioenergy would range between 13.5 Mha and 25.2 Mha in 2020. This represent between 12.2% and 22.5% of the total arable land used and 7.3% and 13.5% of the Utilised Agricultural Area (UAA). In the NREAPS scenario, about 17.4 Mha would be used for bioenergy production, representing 15.7% of arable land and 9.4% of UAA. The increased demand from biofuels would lead to an increased generation of co-products, replacing conventional fodder for animal feed. Considering the co-products, the land used for bioenergy would range between 8.8 Mha and 15.0 Mha in 2020 in the various scenarios. This represent between 7.9% and 13.3% of the total arable land used in the EU and 4.7% and 8.0% of the UAA. In the NREAPS scenario, when co-products are considered, about 10.3 Mha would be used for biofuels, bioliquids and bioenergy production, representing 9.3% of arable land and 5.6% of agricultural land. This study further provides detailed data on the impact on land use in each Member State.

Microalgae have tremendous potential for producing liquid renewable fuel. Many methods for converting microalgae to biofuel have been proposed; however, an economical and energetically feasible route for algal fuel production is yet to be found. This paper presents a review on the comparison of the most promising conversion pathways of microalgae to liquid fuel: hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL), wet extraction and non-destructive extraction. The comparison is based on important assessment parameters of product quality and yield, nutrient recovery, GHG emissions, energy and the cost associated with the production of fuel from microalgae, in order to better understand the pros and cons of each method. It was found that the HTL pathway produces more oil than the wet extraction pathway; however, higher concentrations of unwanted components are present in the HTL oil produced. Less nutrients (N and P) can be recovered in HTL compared to wet extraction. HTL consumes more fossil energy and generates higher GHG emissions than wet extraction, while the production cost of fuel from HTL pathway is lower than wet extraction pathway. There is considerable uncertainty in the comparison of the energy consumption and economics of the HTL pathway and the wet extraction pathway due to different scenarios analysed in the assessment studies. To be able to appropriately compare methodologies, the conversion methods should be analysed from growth to upgradation of oil utilising sufficiently similar assumptions and scenarios. Based on the data in available literature, wet oil extraction is the more appropriate system for biofuel production than HTL. However, the potential of alternative extraction/conversion technologies, such as, non-destructive extraction, need to be further assessed.

The influence of ethanol on the degradation kinetics of linear alkyl benzene sulfonate (LAS) and organic matter was investigated using batch experiments with different initial LAS concentrations (8.3 mg L-1 to 66.9 mg L-1) and biomass immobilized on sand. Data were fitted with a substrate inhibition model. Concentrations of 2.4 mg LAS L-1 and 18.9 mg LAS L-1 (without and with ethanol) provided the maximum LAS utilization rate by the biomass (Sbm). For LAS degradation, ethanol addition favored a lower decrease in the specific substrate utilization rate (robs), even at the LAS concentration usually reported as inhibitory (> 14.4 mg L-1). For organic matter degradation, robs was higher with ethanol. Higher biomass differentiation was observed at higher LAS concentrations. With ethanol, microbial selection occurred at LAS concentrations near Sbm. At higher LAS concentrations, the dominance and diversity values did not change significantly with ethanol, whereas without ethanol, their behaviors were irregular.

Progressive urban density affects city centers especially and results in growing congestion, lack of parking spaces, and increasing environmental costs of transportation, causing increased air pollutant emissions and noise. These phenomena reduce the attractiveness of the city and result in a degradation of the quality of life for its residents. In light of these phenomena, there is a clear need for intelligent management of urban space using new technologies that would be complementary to existing intelligent transportation systems. Expanding information resources obtained from mobile cameras will have a positive impact on increasing the efficiency of transportation management and use of limited space in city centers. It will also have an impact on reducing external transport costs and increasing the quality of logistics services provided in the city. The main aim of the paper is to develop a concept of a transport management system in cities using mobile vision systems mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles. The model will concern the cases of lane occupation by freight vehicles and the analysis of parking spaces in the city in order to improve their management. The results of the developed model will contribute to the automation of the parking space management process and increase the efficiency of the use of city parking space resources.