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Purpose This study aims to consider environmental sustainability, a global challenge under the preview of sustainable development goals, highlighting the significance of knowledge economy in attaining sustainable aggregate demand behavior globally. For this purpose, 155 countries that have data available from 1995 to 2021 were selected. The purpose of selecting these countries is to test the global responsibility of the knowledge economy to attain environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Results are estimated with the help of panel quantile regression. The empirical existence of aggregate demand-based environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) was tested using non-linear tests. Moreover, principal component analysis has been incorporated to construct the knowledge economy index. Findings U-shaped aggregate demand-based EKC at global level is validated. However, environmental deterioration increases with an additional escalation after US$497.945m in aggregate demand. As a determinant, the knowledge economy is reducing CO2 emissions. The knowledge economy has played a significant role in global responsibility, shifting the EKC downward and extending the CO2 reduction phase for every selected country. Further, urbanization, energy intensity, financial development and trade openness significantly deteriorate the environmental quality. Originality/value This study contains the empirical existence of aggregate demand-based EKC. The role of the knowledge economy is examined through an index which is calculated by using four pillars of the knowledge economy (technology, innovations, education and institutions). This study is based on a combined panel of all the countries for which the data was available.

Grid connected energy storage systems are regarded as promising solutions for providing ancillary services to electricity networks and to play an important role in the development of smart grids. Thus far, the more mature battery technologies have been installed in pilot projects and studies have indicated their main advantages and shortcomings. The main concerns for wide adoption are the overall cost, the limited number of charging cycles (or lifetime), the depth of discharge, the low energy density and the sustainability of materials used. Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries (VRFB) are a promising option to mitigate many of these shortcomings, and demonstration projects using this technology are being implemented both in Europe and in the USA. This study presents a model using MATLAB/Simulink, to demonstrate how a VRFB based storage device can provide multi-ancillary services, focusing on frequency regulation and peak-shaving functions. The study presents a storage system at a medium voltage substation and considers a small grid load profile, originating from a residential neighbourhood and fast charging stations demand. The model also includes an inverter controller that provides a net power output from the battery system, in order to offer both services simultaneously. Simulation results show that the VRFB storage device can regulate frequency effectively due to its fast response time, while still performing peak-shaving services. VRFB potential in grid connected systems is discussed to increase awareness of decision makers, while identifying the main challenges for wider implementation of storage systems, particularly related to market structure and standardisation requirements.

This chapter uses data on Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to examine the nature of climate change mitigation and adaptation actions being pursued in African countries and assesses the extent to which preferred mitigation and adaptation priorities advance the cause of sustainable development on the continent. The prospective synergies between mitigation and adaptation approaches and sustainable development are assessed. Also, the pathways through which resource constraints and institutional and policy environment affect Africa’s ability to mitigate and adapt to climate change are examined, as well as the degree to which these constraints are being addressed. It is argued that Africa’s ability to benefit from sustainable development synergies embedded in the mitigation and adaptation strategies in the INDCs will be greatly limited by institutional and policy environment that hinders funding, capacity building, and technological innovation systems development. The slow pace of efforts to address these impediments further erodes confidence that climate adaptation in Africa will be effective at sufficiently contributing to a reduction in climate change risks to the continent.

Abstract With the rapid rise of installed nuclear power in China, meeting the increasing demands on natural uranium and rationally treating the vast spent fuel are essential issues for the sustainable development of Chinese nuclear power industry. This paper discusses four most potential nuclear fuel cycle modes in China and analyzes the natural uranium requirements under these different fuel cycle modes first based on three development patterns (low-, medium-, and high-speed) of installed nuclear power capacity. Then, an optimization model including natural uranium requirements, spent fuel final disposal amounts and total cost of electricity generation is constructed and optimization problem under two scenarios of reprocessing capacity are solved and results discussed. The annual and cumulative natural uranium requirements under these two scenarios are also calculated. Finally some conclusions are put forward based on the analyses.

The macroalgal industry is expanding, and the quest for novel ingredients to improve and develop innovative products is crucial. Consumers are increasingly looking for natural-derived ingredients in cosmetic products that have been proven to be effective and safe. Macroalgae-derived compounds have growing popularity in skincare products as they are natural, abundant, biocompatible, and renewable. Due to their high biomass yields, rapid growth rates, and cultivation process, they are gaining widespread recognition as potentially sustainable resources better suited for biorefinery processes. This review demonstrates macroalgae metabolites and their industrial applications in moisturizers, anti-aging, skin whitening, hair, and oral care products. These chemicals can be obtained in combination with energy products to increase the value of macroalgae from an industrial perspective with a zero-waste approach by linking multiple refineries. The key challenges, bottlenecks, and future perspectives in the operation and outlook of macroalgal biorefineries were also discussed.

We describe the background and an analytical framework for a mathematical optimization model for home energy management systems (HEMS) to manage electricity demand on the smart grid by efficiently shifting electricity loads of households from peak times to off-peak times. We illustrate the flexibility of the model by modularizing various available technologies such as plug-in electric vehicles, battery storage, and automatic windows. First, the analysis shows that the end-user can accrue economic benefits by shifting consumer loads away from higher-priced periods. Specifically, we assessed the most likely sources of value to be derived from demand response technologies. Therefore, wide adoption of such modeling could create significant cost savings for consumers. Second, the findings are promising for the further development of more intelligent HEMS in the residential sector. Third, we formulated a smart grid valuation framework that is helpful for interpreting the model's results concerning the efficiency of current smart appliances and their respective prices. Finally, we explain the model's benefits, the major concerns when the model is applied in the real world, and the possible future areas that can be explored.

Although considered a current highlight, the concept of intelligent buildings (IB) has not been adopted as quickly and widely as expected. One of the reasons for this is the lack of information and knowledge support to all professionals involved at the design stage of a project. This paper provides a brief overview on the new advances of IB technologies and discusses ways of supplementing the decision making process by adopting two methods for economical and technical aspects of IB applications. It goes on to introduce an on-going research which aims to utilise knowledge based systems to provide comprehensive evaluations to alternatives and decision support to retrofit building projects, when they are being conceptualised.

Abstract The transition of energy structure to renewable energy is a social and systematic engineering that requires complex regional power interconnection as a support. Thus, an assessment of the economic viability of infrastructure investments for supporting such transmission expansion is crucial. This study presents a multi-regional power system optimization model to evaluate the potential economic benefits of infrastructure investments for the national inter-regional electricity network in China under various scenarios in the context of low-carbon transformation. Key factors influencing economic benefits are analyzed specifically and regulation barriers associated with inter-regional electricity trade are given particular attention. The results show that approximately 140 Giga Watt (GW) of infrastructure construction for the inter-regional electricity trade network is economically viable during the planning horizon. These new interconnections would lead to 250–440 billion RMB of economic benefits. Regional electricity trade barriers caused by imperfect market mechanisms have a negative impact on the economic benefits of transmission infrastructure investments, although they promote scale and utilization efficiency in the power sector of electricity-importing regions. Improving the national grid coordination mechanism to break the grid isolation between the State Grid Corporation of China and the China Southern Power Grid is crucial, because a large number of transmission lines connecting these two national-level power grids are economically viable.

Abstract A key challenge for heavy industry in emerging economies is how to meet international greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards since they are often based on the conditions and capacities of manufacturing in advanced countries. Firms in developing nations are typically cost-driven and reliant on older, less efficient technology: very few have achieved the relevant targets. Cement making underscores the point: no study to date has specifically quantified, in technical and financial terms, the gap between existing firm performance and global GHG emission standards. We examine Indonesia's largest cement manufacturing facility to investigate what needs to be done to overcome the discrepancy. The article starts by reviewing key contextual issues such as the facility's location, scale, organisational configuration, available materials, energy use, and technological capacities. The plant's direct emission intensity is 0.69 t CO2e/t cement, higher than the global target for 2030 (0.55 t CO2e/t). Analysis reveals six potential emissions reduction activities: (1) utilizing fly ash as a clinker substitute; (2) employing limestone as a clinker substitute; (3) using biomass from rice husks as an alternative fuel; (4) adding pre-heating stages in kilns; (5) waste heat recovery for power generation; and (6) using refused-derived fuel from municipal solid waste as an alternative fuel. These measures, if adopted in full, could reduce GHGs at the facility by up to 33%, or a total of 34,145,190 t CO2e over a 10-year timeframe (2020–2030). This abatement action would leave the facility's direct emissions intensity to 0.48 t CO2e/t cement. In present values, assuming a 10% discount rate, they would result in savings of US$415 million for a US$94 million outlay. Despite the apparent technical and financial advantages, all measures together are unlikely to be adopted, since the plant studied is well advanced in its lifecycle and the parent company is experiencing financial constraints common to those in developing nations.