• Energy Research
• LT close

This dataset entails various structural material data that was used to provide additional evidence for arguments presented in publication "Deposition of Sn-Zr-Se precursor by thermal evaporation and PLD for the synthesis of SnZrSe3 thin films". Mainly data consists of: SEM, XRD, Raman, Auger and TGA raw data. Summary of results is provided in Extended_data.pdf file

The formation and decay of excited states of light‐harvesting bacteriochlorophyll (BChl) molecules and primary charge separation in reaction centres (RCs) of pigment‐protein complex B890 of the purple bacterium Chromatium minutissimum were studied as a function of excitation wavelength by means of picosecond absorbance difference spectroscopy. Selective excitation in the RC absorption band (at 800 nm) induced rapid bleaching of the absorption band of the RC BChl dimer (τ ∼ 1 ps) without absorption changes due to excited light‐harvesting BChl. It is concluded that excitation energy transfer from the BChl dimer of the RC to light‐harvesting BChl molecules is considerably slower than RC charge separation. Therefore, energy transfer from the light‐harvesting antenna to the RC in bacterial photosynthesis may be described as a ‘migration‐limited model’.

Sustainability has emerged, arguably, as the premiere mission of contemporary architecture. Green assessment tools abound, consultancy services flourish, buildings are marketed on the basis of sustainability performance, and government, media, and corporations seem preoccupied with assessing the quality of the built environment through a green lens. Yet for all the effort, and indeed for all the progress made, fundamental issues resistant to the structural change that is essential for genuine sustainability remain. This paper reviews the state of play of sustainability across the urban landscape. It considers the road travelled so far, and points out some of the major challenges that lie ahead.

High power Langevin piezoelectric transducers have large dielectric and piezoelectric losses. Most of these losses are converted into accumulating internal heat that increases the temperature of the transducer. In this paper we analyze how to minimize heat generation and reduce temperature of the transducer. The modification of transducer design is proposed by separating piezoceramic elements and adding a metal block between the elements. Analytical and numerical modeling of the Langevin transducer was carried out to find the dependence of the oscillation amplitudes and temperatures on the location of the separated piezoceramic elements and thermal properties of the additional metal part. Two prototypes of the Langevin transducer with two different locations of the piezoceramic elements were fabricated. Measurements of the vibration amplitudes of the contact point and temperature distribution along the transducers were done. Measurement results are compared with the numerical results.

The soil contamination of petroleum hydrocarbons is a widespread problem requiring an environmentally friendly and cost-effective solution. This study aimed to test the leguminous plant resistance to heavy fuel oil (HF) soil contamination and to evaluate their phytoremediation efficiency and potential to maintain the soil nutrient content. Eight legume species were selected for the study. The selected legumes were grown in a growth chamber in HF-contaminated soil (2.5 and 4 g kg−1) for 90 days. After the soil treatment, the changes in the soil HF contamination, nutrient concentrations, and plants morphology were monitored. The HF pollution significantly affected the dry weight of the shoots and roots of seven of the eight tested plant species. M. sativa, M. albus, and L. corniculatus had the highest phytoremediation potential with the efficiency of the HF removal up to 95 %. The leguminous plant-assisted HF remediation resulted in an increase in the ammonium and inorganic phosphorous soil content, with the highest increase in the case of L. corniculatus and O. viciifolia. The cultivation of Phaseolus vulgaris, L. corniculatus, and M. albus helped to maintain the soil nitrates close to the constant level. The study demonstrated that M. sativa, L. corniculatus, and M. albus were the most efficient in HF removal.

Before being put to use, wooden railway sleepers are impregnated with creosote to increase their longevity and protect them from any adverse environmental impact. Creosote consists of a number of chemical substances, and some of those substances, namely, the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, phenolic compounds and heterocyclic aromatic compounds, are potent carcinogens. Apart from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and phenolic compounds, during their use, sleepers are mostly contaminated with heavy metals and petroleum products. Upon railway reconstruction, wooden railway sleepers become the waste, which must be handled by the current legislation of the European Union. After determining the concentration of contaminants with laboratory research, it is possible to identify their hazard level and classify them as hazardous or non-hazardous waste. After conducting laboratory research on the waste of wooden railway sleeper analysed, they are classified as hazardous waste.

AbstractWith the acceleration of social life, people's interest and demand for forestry recreation activities is increasing. However, with this increase, it is inevitable that negative environmental effects will occur. Particularly mass participation poses an important risk for environmental sustainability. In this context, the aim of this study is to determine the recreational activities organized in forest areas in Turkey and Lithuania, the environmental effects of these activities and the precautions to be taken. In Turkey and Lithuania, interviews were conducted to determine the attitudes of experts involved in recreational activity processes towards a clean environment and environmental sustainability. A semi-structured interview form was used in the interviews with forest operators and other experts. The sample group of the research consists of 17 experts from Turkey and Lithuania. According to the results of the research, recreational activities are organised in forest areas in both countries, but the most important problem related to these activities is waste production. In addition, there is also damage to the natural environment. Although there are legal regulations in both countries, there are no definite results in solving environmental problems. It can be said that necessary measures such as raising awareness of people and ecological education should be taken in order to ensure the right of individuals to live in a safe and clean environment and at the same time to ensure sustainability in forest areas. as the improvement of legal regulation.

In this paper, a statistical analysis of low voltage customers' load power profiles is carried out aiming to suggest a remote non-invasive energy meter error monitoring technique. The synthesized open access 1 s resolution load power profiles are used for the analysis. A detection procedure for power steps in a sampled load power profile is defined. Power steps are classified into overlapping and non-overlapping. It is shown that the probability distribution function of the differences of power step magnitudes acquired by a meter under test and a reference sum meter is sensitive to the errors of the meter despite the presence of overlapping power steps at other meters in the grid. A noninvasive error monitoring technique is found possible by acquiring, comparing and statistically processing simultaneous power steps at the energy meter under monitoring and reference sum meter.