• Energy Research
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The problems of environmental pollution in the conditions of high dust content in the air during the development of coal mines in the territory of the Czech Republic are considered. A mechanism for making managerial decisions was developed using an integrated approach using the new technological process Nastup Tušimice (DNT) aimed at eliminating pollutant emissions and managing workers in dusty conditions in mining operations. The recommendations of active and passive measures aimed at reducing dustiness in the process of coal mining have also been developed.

Abstract A cost-effective procedure for hydrophobization of commercial silica nanoparticles by octadecyltrichlorosilane or trichloro (1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyl) silane was developed. The functionalized nanoparticle solution could easily be applied on a glass surface by Langmuir-Schaefer deposition or spincoating to create a superhydrophobic surface with the contact angle above 170°. A hydrophobization driven formation of nanoparticle clusters resulted in multiscale hierarchical surface roughness as evidenced by the stylus profilometry and atomic force microscopy. Consequently, optical measurements in the vis-NIR region revealed enhanced forward diffuse scattering and reduced reflectance in a broad interval of the incidence angles. A small sliding angle far below 1° suggests additional coating functionalities such as the self-cleaning and anti-icing. The coating was tested on a front surface of an organic photovoltaic device. A more than 6% enhancement of the photoconversion efficiency comparing with the uncoated device was achieved which may be even larger in real operation conditions considering the air pollution and humidity.

The rational choice of pumping units and the effective usage of the corresponding pumping equipment are urgent problems in terms of ensuring the energy efficiency of up-to-date enterprises. The research aims to develop an energy efficiency indicator for torque flow pump usage to improve the decision-making procedure for choosing the corresponding pumping equipment for specific production conditions. Based on a study of the requirements of international standards for energy efficiency, a methodology for evaluating torque flow pumps according to the energy efficiency indicators is proposed, as the ratio between the values of the average compensated network power and the reference pump inlet power can determine the degree of reduced energy equipment operation efficiency in terms of the energy efficiency of pumping liquids. It was proposed to apply the base point method to determine the so-called compromise point of energy consumption for liquid pumping. This is a point for which another point, by the Pareto compromise, is likely to have a more significant (worse) value for energy consumption than the rest of the set of possible values.

The relevance of the analysis of Sustainable Development Goals is based on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The purpose of the study is to create a model of management/regulation of the quality of education and scientific research systems based on Sustainable Development Goals. The data of the ratings that reflect certain tasks of the Sustainable Development Goals, including those related to educational and scientific activities, are analyzed. The methodology of calculating the index of the success of realization of separate purposes of sustainable development is used. Bibliometric analysis as a research tool is used to create a quality of education management model. The example of the roadmap for achieving SDGs within the relationship chain “quality of education and science + partnership and networks–innovation–socio-economic impact–sustainable development goals” is provided. The suggested methodology for determining the index of success in achieving Sustainable Development Goals includes managing education systems, implementing scientific research, and managing/regulating the economy on micro-(university), meso-(regional), and macro-(national) levels. The tool in this case is a strategy for achieving KPIs, which can be fundamentally implemented in the form of a roadmap, with detailing of its elements using other tools. The “management/regulation” stage of the process of achieving Sustainable Development Goals is concretized by a mind map.

Utilization of landfill gas for electricity generation should be an attractive option for Ukraine in light of the country’s rapidly growing municipal solid waste problem, the influx of intermittent renewable electricity into the national grid, and renewable energy adoption commitments. However, the deployment of landfill gas power plants has been slow vis-à-vis other alternative energy technologies despite the existing government incentives. This article aims to help understanding this trend by investigating the economic feasibility of landfill gas power plants. The research focuses on determining the Levelized Cost of Electricity of these electricity generation facilities and comparing it to the feed-in tariff available to landfill gas electricity producers. The results show making an investment into a landfill gas-fired power plant is an appealing strategy due to a potential high and quick return on investment at 5.1 years. This leads to the ultimate conclusion that economic feasibility is not a cause for the slow adoption of landfill gas as a source of renewable electricity generation in Ukraine. In addition, the article identifies several potential barriers to landfill gas electricity generation deployment to be investigated in future research.

The present study provides the overview of Maisotsenko Cycle (M-Cycle) applications for gas cooling in compressor systems. Various schemes of gas cooling systems are considered regarding to their thermal efficiency and cooling capacity. Preliminary calculation of M-cycle HMX has been conducted. It is found that M-cycle HMX scheme allows to brake the limit of the ambient wet bulb temperature for evaporative cooling. It has demonstrated that a compact integrated heat and moisture exchange process can cool product fluid to the level below the ambient wet bulb temperature, even to the level of dew point temperature of the incoming air with substantially lower water and energy consumption requirements.

The article deals with the theoretical description and experimental study of the hydrodynamic and heat transfer properties regarding the operation of multistage gravitational devices of the fluidized bed with inclined perforated shelves. The peculiarities of the work and the implementation field of the multistage shelf units are described. A theoretical model to define the solubilizer’s velocity above the perforation holes, in the above-shelf space of the device and in the outloading gap, as well as the residence time of the dispersed phase at the stage (perforated shelf contact) of the device is presented. The results of experimental studies regarding the influence, made by the structural parameters of the perforated shelf contacts, on the distribution pattern of single-phase and gas-dispersed flows in the workspace of the device, on the intensity of interphase heat transfer are presented. The conditions to create active hydrodynamic operating modes of multistage gravitational shelf devices, which provide higher efficiency of heat-mass transfer processes, and with lower gas consumption and hydraulic resistance compared to typical fluidized bed devices, are proved. Peculiarities regarding the implementation of heat-mass transfer processes in multistage devices are described using heat treatment and drying processes as examples.

Innovation is the engine and accelerator that drives high-quality economic and enterprise development. In recent years, the output of scientific and technological innovation in China has been high, but the phenomenon of low efficiency and low quality of innovation occurs frequently. In this study, first, technological innovation efficiency (TIE) was measured. Then, a dynamic evaluation and analysis of spatial-temporal characteristics of efficiency were performed. Lastly, the driving factors of innovation efficiency were explored. TIE was calculated dynamically in 30 provinces of China from 2011 to 2019 based on the improved super-efficiency SBM-DEA model. Then, the kernel density estimation method was adopted to analyse the spatial-temporal differentiation characteristics and dynamic evolution process of provincial efficiency. The findings confirm that from 2011 to 2019, the top five provinces for TIE in China were Beijing (1.0), Shanghai (0.96), Hainan (0.96), Jilin (0.94) and Tianjin (0.91). The provinces with lowest average efficiency were Qinghai (0.77), Ningxia (0.73) and Inner Mongolia (0.73). The significant differences in the level of technological innovation in different regions were caused by the long-term and in-depth implementation of the government’s strategy of revitalising science and driving innovation in parts of areas. The findings of kernel function confirm that the TIE in most parts of China was gradually polarised. Furthermore, the results show that for every 1 unit of government R&D funding support, the average marginal utility of the expected TIE will reach 0.192, which is more significant in the central and western regions. On this basis, combined with environmental factors of innovation market, infrastructure, financing and enterprise innovation potential, the article also extracts the driving factors that affect the differences in provincial efficiency. The findings provide a reference for guiding provinces to carry out innovation activities independently and improve innovation quality and efficiency.