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A catchment and its relative coastal zone are both influenced by climate change, particularly by specific factors as precipitation, temperature and wind. In the Mediterranean predicted changes are expected to be superimposed over long-term alterations caused by both natural and anthropogenic pressures (IPCC, 2001). Therefore, climate modification will have an impact on the Po catchment and the Northern Adriatic Coastal system, affecting water resources, ecosystems, agriculture and food security, human settlements, financial services and human health. Climate pressure has the potential to exacerbate already existing problems (i.e. eutrophication, heavy metal pollution, subsidence). The connections between Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) and Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM), already studied and analysed in the EUROCAT project, have been re-analysed and the tools (models) used for the Po catchment study have been modified in relation to the climate change. In particular, this research activity aims to estimate the nutrient flux changes (using the MONERIS model) in the Po basin under possible climate change impacts. These preliminary studies have been done in order to understand and quantify direct and indirect relationships between climate change and estimated nutrient fluxes taking into consideration the specific pathways of the MONERIS model

This work numerically analyzes an innovative process layout considering a torrefaction processes followed by chemical looping combustion of biomass waste, solar hydrogen, and carbon methanation. System performances were evaluated by considering several agro-industrial residues (i.e., sugar beet pulp from sugar production, grape marc from winemaking and olive pits from olive oil production) as fuels, CuO supported on zirconia as oxygen carrier, and Ni supported on alumina as methanation catalyst. The torrefaction pre-treatment was proposed for upgrading the properties, namely heating values, moisture content as well as hydrophobicity, and storability, of the selected biomasses. To this aim, experimental runs were performed at 300 °C and 30 min in a lab-scale fixed bed reactor under an inert atmosphere of nitrogen. The study was complemented with an extensive investigation on fuel properties (i.e., ultimate analysis, proximate analysis, calorific values determination) of both the untreated and the torrefied samples, which provides useful input data for modelling their conversion processes. By considering that only electric energy from renewable sources is used, the capability of the proposed process to be used as an energy storage system was eventually assessed.

The city is the man-made structure with the largest consumption of energy. To achieve more sustainable levels of resource's use and to reduce its environmental impact, it needs to transform its way of working. For this purpose, it is necessary to act on the urban structure by ensuring that the resources necessary for its running, and for the same functional level, are less and less. To achieve the outcome we can act on the existing urban structure, improving the functioning, or on that to be planned ones, if an action of urban transformation is expected. In the latter case, it is necessary to build a plan containing elements of sustainability that, once implemented, will enable the direct achievement of the default aims. The paper wants to deepen the measurement of the effects of plans aiming to create urban areas with neutral consumption or Near Zero Neighborhoods (NZN). It is appropriate, in this regard, to define the most appropriate planning level to apply these innovative procedures. Even if the spatial dimension to be used may vary from case to case, it is possible to assume the neighbourhood/urban sector scale as the best scale, thanks to its basic features, namely the limited extension and the immediate possibility to transform the indications of plan in physical and functional elements.

FECUNDUS was a research project that focused on the co-gasification of coal, biomass and selected wastes with integrated CO2 capture and syngas cleaning. The project consortium included height beneficiaries from Italy, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, Czech Republic and Austria. Seven work-packages were foreseen dealing with management, dissemination, tailoring gasification schemes for integration with CO2 separation, development of materials for gas cleaning, char upgrading, and CO2 separation. Upon project completion, all tasks were executed and all deliverables produced. Experimental campaigns at different scales proved that both schemes, i.e. entrained flow and fluidized bed, envisaged for co-gasification are feasible under certain conditions. They are effective in order to produce a syngas to be processed for pre-combustion CO2 capture with the studied techniques. Full scale campaigns of co-gasification were successfully carried out. An economic assessment of gasification coupled with CO2 separation was executed on the basis of performances obtained from the experimental tasks. Other innovative outcomes include the development and test of new materials for the process, the integration of gasification with carbon separation for the FB option and the study the flexibility with respect to different feedstock.

This book provides an outlook on recent investigated combinations of membrane operations and renewable energy sources (solar, wind, geothermal, etc.) in the field of water desalination (seawater and brackish water), wastewater treatment and hydrogen production. The combination of a renewable energy facility with a membrane process not only solves the sanitation problem of isolated regions, but also enables a more cleaner wastewater treatment system in view of carbon emission and resource recovery. Regarding biomass, the integration of membrane reactors in the production processes of green fuels in the logic of the process intensification strategy is also considered.

Emergency building, devoted to give rapid and effective housing solutions to catastrophic and unexpected events, relies on the basic principles of construction rapidity and reversibility as well as the use of alternative energy sources. The growing need for environmental impact reduction in the building sector represents for temporary housing - especially under emergency conditions - a priority requisite, since, after given time lapses, areas occupied with emergency settlements will have to be recovered to their original use. In this case, the buildings' service life does not correspond to the life cycle of their materials and components; as a consequence, design activities will have to assure the dismantability and reusability of structures for further service cycles, making the whole process reversible: from construction to 'zero waste' de-construction. This paper aims at defining design criteria for low-impact emergency dwellings, assessing at the same time their applicability to corrugated steel pipes, obtained by assembling galvanized curved sheets - commonly used for underpasses and conduits - for which different use possibilities have been investigated. In this view, the research program has led to the definition of modular dwelling solutions. Then, technical feasibility studies have been carried out in collaboration with the industrial sector, taking advantage of consolidated production lines for innovative use purposes. Along the different research stages, a methodology has been defined for the assessment of the fundamental sustainability criteria through different simulation procedures; among these, the evaluation of the life-cycle environmental impacts with SimaPRO software and the 3D modelling for the maximization of the construction/environment integration - also in relation to the use of PV modules - have produced interesting results.

Biogas is an attractive renewable energy source, which could give an important contribution to drive the global energy system to a sustainable scenario [1]. Because of the main problems related to the direct use of biogas, a promising alternative consists in the production of syngas by reforming processes, i.e. Dry Reforming (DR), Steam Reforming (SR) and Oxy-Steam Reforming (OSR) [2]. Based on the composition of the syngas, it can be used for the synthesis of chemicals, with special reference to Gas-to-Liquids technologies [3]. In this study, the catalytic activity of Me/CeO2-based structured cordierite monoliths (Me=Rh, Pt, Ni) was preliminary probed in the SR of biogas (CH4/CO2=1.5), varying temperature (700-900°C) at fixed S/C (3) and weight space velocity (WSV=72,000 Nml gcat-1 h-1). Structured catalysts were lined by combining the Solution Combustion Synthesis with the Impregnation Technique [4] and characterized by XRD, XRF, SEM, TEM, TPR and CO-Chemisorption. Tab. 1 summarizes the results obtained at 900°C, highlighting the highest performance of the Rh-CeO2-MO system, with a methane conversion of ca. 99.8% and negligible CH4 content in the product mixture. Then, the addition of oxygen (O/C=0.5) was evaluated on the same system in the OSR of biogas at 900°C in order to have a syngas composition (CO:CO2=1:1; H2/(CO+CO2)=1.3) suitable for Fischer-Tropsch conversion (Tab. 1).

Historically, water resources have allowed the development of urban settlements and water forms and availability - such as surface water or underground water (springs, rivers and streams, aquifers, lakes), have influenced the urban environment either in connection to danger and risk connected to the proximity of the water body, either for the functional and aesthetic value. The educational project Daylighting Rivers -co-funded by the European Union in 2017 (Project number 2017-1-IT02- KA201-036968), takes its cue from such theme to develop a teaching methodology that aims to facilitate STEM learning and at the same time to raise teachers' and students' awareness on the importance and vulnerability of water bodies, especially in a urban context. The project was implemented in Italy, Spain and Greece, countries with similar environmental characteristics and urban sprawl processes that have been emphasizing water issues especially in time of climate change. Over the first two years, the project involved three pilot secondary schools that tested an innovative, multidisciplinary and participatory teaching methodology, based on a model of Inquiry Based Learning. From the pedagogical point of view, the methodology fosters the students' centrality and curiosity for investigating the local river in own town or province. Twenty learning units were developed on specific topics connected to macro-themes that can be implemented in different school disciplines. The promotion of innovative digital tools such as Location Based Games have also allowed students to approach and work with georeferenced information, but also combine technical-scientific aspects and language to historical-humanistic-artistic aspects and storytelling. Students could also reflect on a variety of aspects related to rivers in town such as social, ecological, cultural and economic well-being aspects.

The main results, in the frame of co-gasification in fluidized bed reactor, obtained at IRC/CNR - in the last years are reported. The results confirm that co-gasification is a suitable strategy for end-life plastic waste conversion and this in turn may contribute on the reduction of plastic landfill disposal as well as to realize a plastic sustainable life cycle

It is recognised that several constraints such as the lack of knowledge and expertise of farmers, land users and policy makers concerning agroforestry systems establishment and management hamper the adoption of agroforestry systems (Camilli et al. 2017). AFINET project acts at EU level in order to direct research results into practice and promote innovative ideas to face challenges and solve practitioners' problems. AFINET proposes an innovative methodology based on the creation of a European Interregional Network, linking different Regional Agroforestry Innovation Networks (RAINs). RAINs represent different climatic, geographical, social and cultural conditions and enclose a balanced representation of the key actors with complementary types of expertise (farmers, policy makers, advisory services, extension services, etc.). The Italian RAIN is focused on the Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) value chain, with the main aim to promote agroforestry management of local olive orchards. Olive trees are still managed traditionally, often in marginal sites, with minimal mechanization and relatively low external inputs such as chemical treatments in comparison to other crops. The presence of permanent crops (olive trees) guarantees a partially tree cover reducing hydrogeological risk. Soil management usually keeps natural grassing reducing soil carbon emission and increasing soil fertility (Bateni et al. 2017). Intercropping with cereals and/or fodder legumes and livestock can also be practiced in olive orchards, increasing the complexity of the olive tree multifunctional system. Moreover, olive orchards can be managed as agroforestry systems since they can be intercropped with arable crops (cereals, legumes) and/or combined with livestock (sheep, poultry). The RAIN process, involving local stakeholders, highlighted the main bottlenecks of the EVOO value chain related to communication and dissemination of knowledge, technical and management aspects, market and policy. In order to contrast bottlenecks and exploit opportunities of the olive oil supply chain, the identified innovations are: i) adoption of best practices: testing and experimenting innovative agroforestry systems introducing different crop/animals species and varieties; ii) improve the management of the olive orchards: encouraging and increasing the organic production; iii) valorisation of olive processing residues: identifying and testing innovative products (bio-materials, olive paste as example); iv) arise the awareness among consumers: educating people about the benefits of olive oil consumption, creating networks among stakeholders, improving marketing and commercialization. Creating a Bio-district, defined as a geographical area where farmers, citizens, tourist operators, associations and public authorities enter into an agreement for the sustainable management of local resources, emerged a powerful tool to implement the innovation in the local EVOO value chain.