Search Results (23,634)

As they discuss ways to make our planet a better and safer place to live, environmental preservation, and the numerous actions that must be taken to clean air, water, solid waste, and a host of other issues created by human action (mainly by industrial activities) are constantly on the agenda of different institutions. In addition to treating industrial waste, environmental treatment facilities attempt to make industrial operations more sustainable. These environmental treatment facilities are intriguing because they may be specially designed to satisfy the three fundamental ideologies of environmental control: licensing, inspection, and monitoring. For that reason, scientists set out to find innovative, reliable, and safe methods of cleaning air, water, and soil that would use less energy and money, use fewer chemicals, and have a lower negative environmental impact. Within this framework, this review aims to provide an overview of relevant studies conducted in the scientific field of environmental treatment to help professionals at environmental treatment plants develop efficient engineering plans that work in tandem with the reduction of pollution and the rationalization of natural resources, such as energy and water, to maximize the use of these facilities. Above all, it is crucial to use an instrument that adheres to both national and international environmental monitoring standards. This guarantees precise regulation of polluting agent emissions into the environment and ensures optimal resource utilization, efficient production, and waste reduction or reuse. Full article

This research assesses the practical synthesis of Building Information Modeling (BIM), Autodesk Forma and Dalux to support LEED-oriented sustainable design for a higher education building. Autodesk Revit 2025 functioned as the central BIM platform, while Autodesk Forma enabled early-stage simulations of solar exposure, daylight potential, wind conditions, microclimate, noise and solar-energy potential. Dalux supported model coordination and information management in accordance with ISO 19650 principles. The workflow links simulation outputs to BIM elements through project-defined parameters, allowing performance evidence to inform design refinement. Quantitative indicators were consolidated for daylight exposure, wind comfort, outdoor thermal stress, acoustic exposure and photovoltaic potential. The solar-energy analysis considered an area of approximately 970 m², an annual potential of 1030 kWh/m² and a theoretical yield of approximately 999,100 kWh/year. Assuming 70% roof coverage and 18% panel efficiency, the estimated photovoltaic the expected output is approximately 125,113 kWh/year. These findings demonstrate the value of combining BIM, cloud-based analysis and CDE-based coordination for early-stage sustainable design, while LEED certification, operational energy modelling and lifecycle assessment require additional specialist validation. The proposed workflow provides a consistent approach for aligning design development with sustainability objectives and can be applied to similar building types. Full article

Mobile charging stations can deliver energy at the point of demand, but their isolated battery-to-battery DC–DC stages must accommodate independent source and load battery-voltage variation. This study develops a hierarchical, domain-wide analytical framework for a fixed-hardware 20 kW silicon-carbide phase-shifted full-bridge converter with a four-diode rectifier. The independently varied terminal domain spans 586–840 V at the source and 495–738 V at the load. The framework combines rated-power coverage, constraint-resolved derating, modeled semiconductor-loss screening, analytical commutation-capacitance budgeting, deterministic sensitivity assessment, and selected-point switching-level refinement. For four screened transformer turns ratios, nominal area-based rated-power can reach 95%. However, a three-point leakage-inductance sensitivity changes the nominal ordering at −10%, showing that the sub-one-percentage-point coverage separation does not establish a robust unique ratio. Selected-point commutation-cell and full-converter simulations show that the analytical added-capacitance screening bound is useful for rapid screening but can be optimistic near difficult high-source-voltage and light-load conditions. The full-converter results also retain high-capacitance light-load cases in which target power is not reachable at the phase-shift-domain boundary. The proposed evidence hierarchy therefore supports rapid candidate screening, identifies sensitive boundaries, and directs detailed switching refinement without claiming a universal transformer-ratio optimum or replacing hardware measurements. Full article

The sustainability of buildings and the built environment extends beyond energy and environmental performance to circular resource use, health and safety, digital infrastructure, and stakeholder collaboration. This exploratory integrative literature review examines how these established but insufficiently connected domains reshape business models in the built environment. Since the built environment is a major source of global carbon emissions and waste, a primary research stream concerns the transition toward circular economy principles beyond traditional profit-maximization logics. The literature also highlights the potential of health- and safety-oriented innovations to reduce risks and improve indoor environments. Other studies highlight the potential of digital innovations to improve life-cycle management, resource efficiency, and risk mitigation. However, their widespread adoption faces systemic barriers, including data interoperability and cybersecurity issues, implementation costs, skills shortages, organizational resistance, and regulatory and governance challenges. The literature often emphasizes technical potential while paying less attention to value-capture mechanisms and the allocation of costs, risks, benefits, and responsibilities among the actors involved. Integrating sustainable practices, digital infrastructures, circular-economy principles, and collaborative governance is therefore essential to develop economically viable, organizationally feasible, and ethically responsible business models for the built environment, across the building life cycle and among public and private stakeholders. Full article

The implementation of the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a regional climate action intended to protect population health, but its empirical linkage to the sustainability goal of good health and well-being remains untested. Using mortality data from Hong Kong (2013–2022), we employed a two-month-lag fixed-effects model to estimate the change in years of life lost (YLL) associated with monthly AQHI warning frequency. We further assessed heterogeneity across demographic and geographic subgroups, and explored the underlying mechanisms. The findings show that monthly AQHI warning frequency is negatively associated with YLL two months later. Each additional warning per month is associated with a reduction of 0.0032 units (SE = 0.0011) in per capita YLL across districts in Hong Kong. The baseline result was further supported by extended survival analyses. Heterogeneity analyses showed that each additional AQHI warning was associated with a significant reduction in YLL among males (coef. = −0.0066, SE = 0.0001) and those with spouses (coef. = −0.0065, SE = 0.0083), but not among females or those without spouses. Mechanism analyses suggested that the effect of AQHI warning frequency on YLL reduction was significantly moderated by individual behavioral responses, including increased face mask usage (int. coef. = −0.0047, SE = 0.0016) and reduced short-term travel (int. coef.= −0.0069, SE = 0.0004), and through socio-environmental pathways such as reduced traffic accidents (int. coef. = −0.0134, SE = 0.0034) and lower carbon emissions (int. coef. = −0.0367, SE = 0.0112). Hong Kong’s AQHI forecasting experience demonstrates the viability of health risk warnings as a climate adaptation strategy in sustainable urban governance, while its observed equity gaps offer critical lessons for refining inclusive environmental health policies. Full article

Smart lighting is becoming a strategic component of intelligent and low-carbon urban infrastructure because it combines efficient illumination with connectivity, remote management, and continuous operational monitoring. This study proposes a reproducible unit-level methodological framework that transforms field records from a functional smart-lighting installation into traceable indicators of electrical performance, energy efficiency, avoided emissions, preliminary economic benefit, sensitivity, and conditional scalability. The approach treats the luminaire not only as an electrical load, but as a monitored urban energy node whose operation can be validated, characterized, and compared under planning-oriented control scenarios. The methodology integrates data preprocessing, electrical consistency assessment, representative baseline definition, scenario-based energy modeling, explicit environmental conversion, and conditional scaling to homogeneous lighting assets. The results reveal a stable electrical operating regime and show that managed operating conditions can generate sustained reductions in energy use and associated environmental impacts while preserving analytical transparency between measured variables and scenario-derived indicators. Sensitivity and multivariable analyses further support the robustness of the unit-level interpretation and highlight the value of monitored lighting data for comparative decision-making. The framework therefore provides a technically grounded reference for smart-city lighting management, energy planning, and scalable infrastructure assessment, with relevance to the objectives of SDG 7, SDG 11, and SDG 13. Overall, the study contributes an original data-driven perspective for integrating IoT-enabled lighting, remote supervision, and sustainability-oriented urban management within a common analytical structure. Full article

This work assesses the real-world performance and emission characteristics of a compression-ignition (CI) engine fuelled with a blend of conventional diesel and a bioethanol-derived higher-alcohol fuel (Catalyxx C4+), evaluated under the World Harmonized Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle (WLTC). Both cold- and hot-start conditions were analysed, corresponding to coolant temperatures of 20 °C and 70 °C, respectively, in order to capture representative operating scenarios ranging from short-distance urban driving to extended real-world use. Catalyxx C4+ is a renewable drop-in biofuel produced via the thermocatalytic conversion of bioethanol and consists of a mixture of linear and branched higher alcohols spanning C4 to C8. A fuel blend containing 20% Catalyxx C4+ by volume (80% diesel) demonstrated substantial emission benefits relative to neat diesel. Under cold-start operation, particle number (PN), particle mass (PM), and CO emissions were reduced by 61.6%, 77.8%, and 39.3%, respectively. Even greater reductions were observed under hot-start conditions, with decreases of 64.0% in PN, 78.5% in PM, and 66.9% in CO emissions. These results highlight the strong potential of bioethanol-derived higher-alcohol drop-in fuels to significantly mitigate pollutant emissions in CI engines. Furthermore, they emphasize the importance of evaluating sustainable alternative fuels under test conditions that closely reflect real-world vehicle operation, encompassing both low-temperature engine start-up and fully warmed, long-distance driving scenarios. Full article

This paper presents an analysis of indoor air quality (IAQ) and occupant perception under different mechanical ventilation operational modes in a university amphitheater. Indoor environmental parameters, including air temperature, relative humidity, indoor air velocity, and CO₂ concentration, were measured in accordance with ISO 7726. Ventilation performance and outdoor air supply requirements were evaluated according to BAS EN 16798-1 and ASHRAE 62.1, while thermal comfort interpretation followed ISO 7730. In parallel, a questionnaire survey was conducted to assess occupants’ perceptions of indoor air quality and its influence on concentration under different ventilation operating conditions. The results showed that CO₂ concentrations occasionally exceeded 1000 ppm during extended occupancy periods but remained below 800 ppm for more than 60% of the measurement time. According to BAS EN 16798-1, the indoor environment was predominantly classified as Category I based on the indoor–outdoor CO₂ concentration difference. Survey responses indicated that most students perceived the indoor air as clean, while 67% reported that IAQ influenced their ability to concentrate. The findings highlight the importance of occupancy-related ventilation control strategies in large educational spaces and demonstrate the potential for balancing indoor air quality and energy efficiency through appropriate ventilation system operation. The presented methodology may support future development of data-driven approaches for optimizing mechanical ventilation performance in university buildings. Full article

This research presents a straightforward and detailed method for calculating the cost of recycling solar panels and the associated economic benefits. The contribution of this research is to estimate the impact of the recycling process on the cost of energy and the payback period. The Full Recovery End-of-Life Photovoltaic (FRELP) method was utilized to assess the PV recycling process. Calculations were made for every 1000 kg of solar panels and converted to calculate the cost and revenue per square meter of panels. Calculations showed that the cost of recycling in Saudi Arabia reached 9.46 $/m² based on the geographical environment, fuel prices, and the various materials used in recycling processes, while the revenue was approximately 24.6 $/m² according to the current prices of materials resulting from the recycling process, especially the price of silver. The study results were applied to a 400 MW solar power plant to determine the feasibility of recycling the energy price and the payback period. The solar power plant was designed using variable-sized solar panels with capacities of 255, 330, and 580 watts. The recycling revenue for the plant with the smaller panels was the highest, being $2.6 M as an annual rate. Full article

Double-skin façades (DSFs) can moderate heat transfer and airflow between the outdoor environment and the building interior; however, their performance in hot-arid climates is highly dependent on cavity geometry, ventilation arrangement, and the interaction between the airflow and any active cooling surfaces. The objective of this study is to establish, under a single idealised extreme hot-arid design point, how sealed, ventilated and actively cooled double-skin façade cavities differ in their predicted temperature, velocity and turbulent kinetic energy fields, and which arrangements merit controlled follow-up study. The four configurations are treated as an idealised comparative case study rather than as validated building-performance predictions. This exploratory study uses computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to compare the aerothermal behaviour of four DSF cavity configurations under prescribed external air and outer-wall temperatures of 50 °C, an inner-wall temperature of 24 °C, and an external inlet velocity of 3.06 m/s. The configurations comprise a sealed 0.4 m cavity (M1), a wind-driven ventilated 0.4 m cavity (M2), the same ventilated cavity with six 25 mm cooling pipes at 10 °C (M3), and a concept-stage lateral-flow arrangement combining a 0.10 m cavity, a 0.025 m slit and four 80 mm cooling pipes at 10 °C (M4). The simulations employ the standard k-ε turbulence model with fixed thermal boundary conditions. Along the reported sampling lines, M1 exhibited a nearly uniform air temperature of approximately 45.7 °C, whereas M2 remained close to the imposed 50 °C external-air temperature. M3 produced lower temperatures in the immediate vicinity of the cooling pipes, but most of the sampled profile remained near ambient conditions. M4 exhibited a broader spanwise temperature range of approximately 26.9–50 °C, with local pipe-adjacent air temperatures approaching 24 °C and cooler regions developing along parts of the lateral flow path. The findings provide preliminary concept-screening evidence and support further controlled parametric analysis, higher-fidelity modelling, and experimental validation. Full article

This study aims to investigate the feasibility of ethanol-digested calcium oxide (CaO-E) as a novel dechlorination sorbent for the efficient removal of hydrogen chloride (HCl) from coal-fired flue gas and further evaluate its influence on mercury speciation and transformation in flue gas, thereby addressing the low efficiency and limited multi-pollutant control capability of conventional dry dechlorination technologies. Based on a laboratory-scale injection reaction system, ethanol-digested calcium-based sorbents were injected into simulated coal-fired flue gas to systematically examine the effects of key factors, including Ca/Cl molar ratio, SO₂, and fly ash, on dechlorination efficiency. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were further employed to elucidate the reaction mechanisms. Meanwhile, mercury-laden flue gas was introduced to investigate the removal characteristics of elemental mercury (Hg⁰) and oxidized mercury (Hg²⁺) by CaO-E. The experimental results demonstrated that ethanol-digested CaO exhibited significantly superior performance compared with untreated samples, and the formation of a porous calcium hydroxide structure was identified as the key factor responsible for its high dechlorination efficiency. When the Ca/Cl molar ratio reached 4.0, the dechlorination efficiency could be stably maintained above 80%. SO₂ showed a pronounced inhibitory effect on the dechlorination process, whereas fly ash exhibited a slight promoting effect. Mercury removal experiments revealed that CaO-E had limited removal capability toward Hg⁰ but effectively reduced the concentration of Hg²⁺. Specifically, when the Ca/Cl molar ratios were 3 and 5, the Hg²⁺ concentrations decreased to 1.4 and 0.6 μg/m³, respectively. This behavior can be attributed to the fact that Hg²⁺ mainly exists in chlorinated forms such as HgCl₂, which possess strong polarity and can be readily adsorbed by the alkaline active sites on the CaO-E surface. In addition, as the dechlorination process proceeded, chlorine-containing species in the flue gas were gradually consumed, suppressing the oxidation conversion of Hg⁰ to Hg²⁺ and thereby further reducing the Hg²⁺ concentration. Theoretical calculations indicated that both HCl and SO₂ could undergo chemisorption on calcium active sites, while HCl possessed a lower reaction energy barrier and therefore dominated the competitive adsorption process, exhibiting preferential reactivity. Overall, ethanol-digested calcium oxide not only demonstrates excellent HCl removal performance, but also shows the capability to regulate mercury speciation in flue gas to a certain extent, providing both theoretical insights and technical support for the synergistic control of multiple pollutants in coal-fired flue gas. Full article

Organic–inorganic hybrid crystalline materials formed in multicomponent aqueous systems are of interest because their phase behavior and physicochemical properties can be controlled by composition and crystallization conditions. In this study, the phase equilibria and crystallization behavior of the ternary aqueous Ca(ClO₃)₂·2CO(NH₂)₂–CH₂ClCOOH·(C₂H₄OH)₃N–H₂O system were investigated over the temperature range of −24 to 60 °C using the visual-polythermal method. Experimental data obtained for the two boundary binary subsystems and eight internal sections were used to construct the polythermal phase diagram. The diagram revealed distinct crystallization fields corresponding to ice, Ca(ClO₃)₂·2CO(NH₂)₂·2H₂O, CH₂ClCOOH·(C₂H₄OH)₃N, and a separate crystallization region associated with a previously unreported crystalline phase with the proposed composition ClCH₂COOH·Ca(ClO₃)₂·(C₂H₄OH)₃N. The solid phase was isolated from its crystallization region, washed with cold distilled water, dried to constant mass, and characterized by complementary Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM–EDS), thermogravimetric analysis, derivative thermogravimetry, and differential scanning calorimetry (TG–DTG–DSC), and powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD). The experimentally determined Ca²⁺ and ClO₃⁻ contents were reasonably consistent with the proposed composition, while FT-IR spectroscopy revealed characteristic chlorate vibrations and changes in the vibrational environment of the organic component. SEM showed predominantly prismatic and plate-like crystalline morphologies, and EDS confirmed the presence of Ca, Cl, O, C, and N. Thermal analysis demonstrated multistage decomposition, with comparatively good thermal stability below approximately 150 °C. PXRD revealed a diffraction fingerprint distinct from those of the starting components and the corresponding physical mixture. Preliminary indexing of 19 principal reflections was consistent with a tetragonal candidate lattice with a = b = 7.7411(5) Å, c = 24.7182(10) Å, V = 1481.2(5) ų, and M₂₀ ≈ 23.0. The crystallographic analysis is considered preliminary because the diffraction profile was reconstructed from the available pattern and was not subjected to complete structure refinement. Overall, the combined phase-equilibrium, compositional, spectroscopic, morphological, thermal, and diffraction data support the isolation of a distinct organic–inorganic crystalline phase with the proposed composition. Full article

Vanadium dioxide (VO₂)-based thermochromic films are highly attractive for smart window applications due to their ability to dynamically modulate solar radiation in response to ambient temperature. However, their practical deployment is significantly hindered by poor long-term stability in outdoor environments, vulnerability to surface contamination, and insufficient mechanical durability. Herein, we propose a novel strategy to obtain self-cleaning and durable VO₂ composite films, consisting of a VO₂ thermochromic layer covered by either a SiO₂ or TiO₂ overcoat and further modified by a transparent and matter-repellent surface. Multifunctional VO₂ composite films are rationally designed to exhibit superior repellence towards various liquids, thereby imparting excellent anti-fouling property. Crucially, the VO₂ composite film is engineered for high optical transparency to ensure it does not compromise the solar modulation ability of the underlying VO₂ layer. Furthermore, the robust mechanical properties of the SiO₂ or TiO₂ overcoat with matter-repellent modification provide effective protection against abrasion and scratch damages. The resulting VO₂-based composite films demonstrate significantly enhanced environmental stability and operational reliability while maintaining desirable thermochromic performance. This work presents a promising strategy to overcome the stability and durability challenges facing VO₂ smart windows, paving the way for their real-world application in energy-efficient buildings. Full article

Traditional bone plates provide reliable fracture fixation; however, their high stiffness can cause stress shielding, thereby reducing mechanical stimulation of the bone tissue and slowing its regeneration. The biomechanical performance of a titanium plate with a localized porous structure for osteosynthesis of the radial shaft was investigated in this study. Three designs were considered: a solid plate and two plates with localized porous regions measuring 10 × 10 mm and 10 × 15 mm. The finite element analysis of the bone–plate system was performed using MSC Patran/Nastran, with rigid fixation of the proximal end of the bone and sequential application of an axial compressive load of 100 N, bending, and torsion with a moment of 1 N·m. Biomechanical performance was evaluated based on von Mises equivalent stress, fragment displacement (FD), interfragmentary movement (IFM), interfragmentary strain (IFS), and strain energy density (SED). To confirm the manufacturability of the design, the plate was fabricated from Ti–6Al–4V alloy using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF), and the geometry of the porous structure was verified by scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that the localized porous structure altered the load distribution between the plate and the bone, resulting in an increase in local stresses in the bone under the investigated loading conditions. These changes indicate an alteration in the mechanical environment within the bone, which may potentially affect conditions related to fracture healing. Among the investigated configurations, the plate with a 10 × 10 mm porous insert demonstrated the most balanced mechanical characteristics in terms of stresses in the implant, stress distribution in the bone, and structural stability. Full article

Traditional grid-forming converter (GFC) control faces fundamental challenges in maintaining DC bus stability during rapid power transients, primarily due to the limited dynamic response capability of source-side energy storage devices. To address this, this paper proposes a hybrid control strategy integrating long short-term memory (LSTM) networks with a joint GFC and storage converter (SC) control scheme. The LSTM detects short-term voltage trends from historical DC bus data to generate a feedforward compensation signal, while the joint SC-GFC control dynamically incorporates the GFC’s inertial power demand into the SC’s power reference. Hardware-in-the-loop experiments show that, compared to traditional independent control under the same step transient conditions, the proposed method can reduce power overshoot by approximately 79.2%. The LSTM-enhanced joint control maintains stable power flow and significantly suppresses low-frequency oscillations, validating the necessity of data-driven trend prediction for achieving superior inertial support in practical constrained environments. This work provides a communication-free, practical solution for enhancing GFC performance. Full article