Sustainable Energy Transformations and Storage Plants

Dear Colleagues,

The rising awareness of sustainable development has promoted the evolution of different sustainability theories over the past six decades. However, it is clear that sustainable development could not be achieved without a thorough modification of manufacturing processes, which in turn requires a strong multidisciplinary approach. Equally important as the sustainability of the industrial processes and production of materials are the sustainable transformation, storage and transport of energy, which is closely related to the use and incorporation into our modern society of technologies that make rational use of renewable sources. In fact, the use of renewable resources has contributed significantly to the sustainability of our planet, also reaffirming the necessity of constructing circular economic models and fulfilling the pillars of sustainable development. Nevertheless, the renewable energy and materials studies associated with the use and harmonization of actual consolidated processes have received growing attention from researchers, but only some specific examples are today recognized in the industrial field. The next major step forward should be the dissemination of rational sustainable approaches, criteria and heuristics in industries, in order to generate large-scale impacts, which is important from the technical point of view. Sustainability should be addressed as a permanent ongoing inquiry, which implies that sustainability is only a short- or medium-term provisional goal. Hence, the collection of actions that are taken to achieve this goal is important not just in terms of furthering the goal, but also to inform, calibrate and re-interpret the goal itself. It is a process of learning-by-doing in which actions and testing are shaped by the goals and the goals are revisited in the light of experience. Since firms and industries play a fundamental role in the transition towards a more sustainable society, it is necessary to develop theoretical and practical tools to compare, score and evaluate different technologies and materials, even for the cases in a state of infancy or under development, to evaluate the best options. This Special Issue focuses on the evaluation of sustainability criteria applied to cutting-edge developments as well as modifications of current industrial production processes, as suggested above. Theoretical and experimental analyses are welcome, since theories play a relevant role in human inquiry, helping to understand, explain, describe, and predict observed phenomena. This Special Issue also aims to present test results and successful applications on different scales, from laboratory to corporate environments, comprehending renewable energy studies, sustainable materials production, use and revalorisation, efficiency evaluation, performance and lifetime, cost-effectiveness evaluation, and impact assessment, among other relevant topics.

Prof. Bernardo Ruggeri
Dr. Carlos Enrique Gomez Camacho
Guest Editors

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