Search Results (4,888)

Achieving a circular and climate-neutral bioeconomy by 2050 requires not only high-quality recycling but also the large-scale integration of renewable carbon from biomass and atmospheric CO₂ into material systems. Plastics represent the world’s largest and most rapidly growing carbon sink, positioning them as a critical intervention point for replacing fossil-based feedstocks with renewable alternatives. Because plastic packaging is one of the most visible material streams encountered by consumers in daily life, a transition toward sustainable, recyclable bioplastics has the potential to deliver both meaningful environmental benefits and strong societal impact, accelerating public awareness and acceptance of renewable carbon solutions. Poly(ethylene furanoate) (PEF)—a fully bio-based polyester synthesized from plant-derived 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and monoethylene glycol (MEG)—offers a promising pathway toward more sustainable packaging due to its superior mechanical strength and gas-barrier performance relative to polyethylene terephthalate (PET). This study presents a cradle to grave life cycle assessment (LCA) of PEF resin production and PEF bottle applications, using industrially relevant, at-scale process data covering biomass feedstock conversion, polymer synthesis, packaging manufacture, use phase, and end of life. Bottle applications were selected as a focal point due to their technical maturity, commercial relevance, and suitability for direct comparison with incumbent PET systems. The results indicate that PEF can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 71% and fossil resource depletion by 26% compared to PET at the resin level when biogenic carbon uptake is included. Moreover, the material’s enhanced functional properties enable lightweight, recyclable bottle designs with carbon footprint reductions of up to 88% for 500 mL formats under a baseline recycling rate scenario of 72%, with the remaining share directed to municipal solid-waste incineration with energy recovery. Sensitivity analyses reveal that virgin PEF maintains environmental advantages over PET even when PET incorporates high levels of recycled content, highlighting the complementary roles of renewable carbon and circular material strategies. Prospective scenario modeling underscores the importance of sustainable feedstock selection and process electrification, with sucrose-based routes offering the largest potential for further decarbonization. Overall, the findings demonstrate that PEF is a scalable biopolymer capable of delivering substantial climate benefits while supporting circularity objectives. By targeting a highly visible consumer application—plastic packaging—this transition amplifies the societal impact of adopting renewable carbon materials. The study provides actionable insights for policymakers, industry stakeholders, and sustainability practitioners working to advance a more resilient, renewable, and consumer-recognizable plastics economy. Full article

This editorial synthesizes the key findings from 17 original research articles featured in the Special Issue on “Intelligent and Integrated Approaches for Efficient Oil and Gas Development.” The collection demonstrates a paradigm shift from purely data-driven methods toward physics-informed, interpretable, and operationally deployable intelligent systems across the upstream lifecycle. Advances span intelligent drilling with real-time model predictive control frameworks achieving sub-20 ms execution times and bottomhole pressure fluctuations below 0.30 MPa; AI-assisted reservoir characterization using multiscale convolutional neural networks, seismic waveform-constrained inversion, and geology-informed transformers that improve sandstone thickness prediction (R² = 0.895) and stratigraphic correlation (F1 = 0.886); production optimization through hybrid decomposition-ensemble models (R² = 0.954) and improved XGBoost (R² = 0.989); and enhanced oil recovery via self-assembled foam systems and polymer injector designs. Fundamental geochemical studies on the Qiongzhusi Formation shale and tight sandstone gas in the Ordos Basin provide critical geological constraints. The editorial identifies persistent challenges, including real-time performance versus physical fidelity, interpretability and uncertainty quantification, multi-scale integration, and generalizability across diverse geological settings. Future directions highlight reinforcement learning for autonomous operations, physics-informed digital twins, generative AI for subsurface scenario modelling, and integration with carbon capture, utilization, and storage. This Special Issue advances the convergence of petroleum engineering, artificial intelligence, and Earth sciences toward intelligent, secure, and sustainable hydrocarbon development. Full article

Winter wheat production in the extremely arid oasis region of Xinjiang relies heavily on irrigation and fertilization, but conventional high-input management can induce luxury transpiration and non-productive water consumption, limiting the coordinated improvement of grain yield, water use efficiency (WUE), and economic benefits. To identify the threshold at which water–fertilizer inputs shift from efficient use to inefficient water consumption and to define a robust management range, a two-year field experiment was conducted in southern Xinjiang during the 2022–2023 and 2023–2024 growing seasons. Four irrigation levels, corresponding to 60%, 80%, 100%, and 120% of crop evapotranspiration (ET_c), and four fertilization levels were established to evaluate the effects of water–fertilizer interactions on canopy development, leaf gas exchange, evapotranspiration, yield, WUE, and economic benefits. Appropriate water and nutrient supply promoted canopy establishment and maintained higher photosynthetic capacity, thereby increasing grain yield, WUE, and net return. However, excessive inputs weakened yield gains and failed to synchronously improve WUE and economic benefits. Linear plateau models revealed clear thresholds in both the crop-stand scale evapotranspiration (ET)–dry matter accumulation (DM) relationship and the leaf-scale transpiration rate (Tr)–net photosynthetic rate (Pn) relationship. The seasonal ET thresholds were 504.59 and 553.87 mm in the two growing seasons, respectively, and the Tr threshold was 4.83 mmol m⁻² s⁻¹. Beyond these thresholds, additional water consumption was not effectively converted into photosynthetic assimilation or biomass accumulation, indicating luxury transpiration. Year-specific response surface analysis and TOPSIS evaluation showed that I3F3, namely 100% ET_c combined with 210–195–75 kg ha⁻¹ N–P₂O₅–K₂O, together with its adjacent range, sustained high grain yield, WUE, and economic benefits, with I3F3 achieving the best overall performance in both years. The intersection of the two-year high-performance regions further defined a robust interannual feasible range with an irrigation amount of 506.21–545.09 mm and a total fertilizer input of 369.54–628.33 kg ha⁻¹. Overall, maintaining water and fertilizer inputs within the I3F3-adjacent range can reduce non-productive water consumption and luxury transpiration risk while synergistically improving grain yield, WUE, and economic benefits in winter wheat. Full article

Centralised architectures in contemporary manufacturing systems impose structural constraints on resilience, scalability, and operational transparency that existing approaches have failed to resolve. This work reports the development and empirical validation of AgentBlock, a framework integrating blockchain technology with multi-agent robotic systems to enable decentralised autonomous manufacturing. The architecture operates across three functionally decoupled layers: a React-based decentralised application interface, an Ethereum Sepolia blockchain interaction layer with Solidity 0.8.18 smart contracts following an upgradeable proxy architecture (EIP–1967) coordinated through an Industrial PoA consensus mechanism, and a physical execution layer comprising two heterogeneous robotic agents (KUKA youBot and UFactory Lite 6) and one edge validation agent on an NVIDIA Orin platform that also hosts Q-Learning optimisation, with inter-agent coordination provided by ROS Noetic Ninjemys under Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. Experimental validation conducted over 15 days across 1500 training episodes in a controlled 5 m × 3 m industrial laboratory reveals a task success rate of 95.58%, sustained throughput of 49.0 tasks per hour, average cycle time of 1.224 min, blockchain transaction latency below 15 s (mean: 11.4 s), and gas costs averaging US $0.000669 per operation. These findings establish that blockchain-enabled autonomous manufacturing is not merely theoretically sound but operationally viable, delivering immutable traceability, decentralised coordination, and transparent verification at performance levels compatible with Industry 4.0 and 5.0 production demands. Full article

The urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has driven the search for sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. In this context, cocoa residues emerge as a promising feedstock for bioethanol production. This study evaluated the influence of a catalytic biorefinery treatment on the bioethanol production potential from cocoa pod husks. Both raw and catalytically treated biomass were characterized using SEM, pore size distribution analysis, and TGA. Subsequently, enzymatic hydrolysis was performed using various cellulase and hemicellulase loadings, followed by anaerobic fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Bioethanol production was modeled using the modified Gompertz equation. The results evidenced changes in the structure and composition of the lignocellulosic matrix following catalytic treatment, increasing surface area and reducing hemicellulose content. Although total sugar release during hydrolysis was comparable between the two samples, the biomass processed via the catalytic biorefinery promoted higher sugar consumption and bioethanol concentration, reaching 3.36 g/L with a yield of 112 g kg⁻¹ of dry biomass. The kinetic model showed a strong fit (R² between 0.94 and 0.97). These findings demonstrate that the integration of catalytic biorefinery, enzymatic hydrolysis, and fermentation constitutes a viable alternative for the valorization of cocoa residues. Full article

Integrated energy systems (IES) are widely recognized as a key pathway toward carbon neutrality, enabling the coupling and coordinated optimization of electricity, heat, gas, and cooling. This review provides a structured, technology-oriented overview of IES based on a unified five-subsystem framework (production, conversion, transmission, storage, and consumption). It systematically covers: (1) renewable energy utilization—solar, wind, and geothermal—supported by a global spatial distribution map and representative top-performing commercial products; (2) energy cascade utilization, where combined heat and power/combined cooling, heating and power (CHP/CCHP) raises overall efficiency from approximately 35–40% to 70–90%; (3) multi-form energy storage—electrical, electrochemical, chemical, thermal, and mechanical—distinguishing short-term balancing (e.g., lithium-ion (Li-ion), flywheels, supercapacitors, with 85–95% round-trip efficiency) from long-duration and seasonal applications (e.g., pumped hydro, hydrogen/power-to-gas (P2G), redox flow batteries); and (4) forecasting, collaborative optimization, and the bidirectional integration of IES with smart grids and grid modernization. A strategic strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats–Political, Economic, Sociological, Technological, Legal, and Environmental (SWOT–PESTLE) analysis is further presented to position IES within the global energy transition. The review highlights that IES and grid innovation are mutually enabling, and that realizing the full carbon-neutrality potential of IES requires coordinated progress in standardization, digitalization, long-duration storage, and cross-sector policy alignment. Full article

Gluten-free fermented products remain technologically challenging due to the absence of gluten, which plays a key role in stabilizing batter structure and gas retention. This study proposes a mixture design-driven approach to develop gluten-free Algerian pancakes based on rice and teff formulations enriched with legumes and seeds, aiming to restore techno-functional properties while improving nutritional quality. Two formulations, a teff-based (TBF) and a rice-based (RBF) system, were optimized using a simplex centroid mixture design and evaluated in comparison with durum wheat pancakes. The results demonstrated that formulation strongly influenced batter rheology and final structure. The TBF system exhibited superior technological performance, with higher specific volume (1.77 cm³/g), lower density (0.56 g/cm³), and enhanced porosity, associated with improved protein and fiber content. In contrast, the RBF formulation showed higher antioxidant activity. The findings highlight the critical role of component interactions in modulating batter viscosity and foam stability, which directly affected pore development and product airiness. Both optimized formulations successfully reproduced the characteristic “light and airy” structure of traditional pancakes, achieving good sensory acceptability. Overall, this study demonstrates that mixture design can effectively guide the development of gluten-free fermented systems by linking composition, rheology, and structural properties, providing a strategy for improving the quality of traditional gluten-free foods. Full article

Water scarcity has become a major challenge for agriculture, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions where irrigation is essential for sustaining crop and forage production. As freshwater supplies face growing pressure from climate change, urban growth, and industrial use, there is increasing interest in exploring alternative water sources to support sustainable agriculture. Produced water, a byproduct of oil and gas extraction, may represent an alternative water source in water-limited regions like the southwestern United States and the Middle East. However, raw produced water often contains high levels of salinity, trace metals, hydrocarbons, and naturally occurring radioactive materials, which cause risks to soils, crops, livestock, and food systems. This review synthesizes peer-reviewed studies up to January 2026 and reports on the agricultural application of treated produced water, focusing on its effects on soil properties, crop growth, yield, and forage nutritive quality. Existing research shows that treated produced water could be used for grain as well as forage crops under controlled conditions, but poorly treated and managed applications can lead to increases in soil salinity, structural degradation, reduced nutrient uptake, and hindered crop performance. In forage systems, irrigation with treated produced water has also been associated with changes in nutritive value, increasing concerns for livestock health. Several knowledge gaps remain, including limited long-term field studies, insufficient information on crop-specific contaminant thresholds, incomplete assessment of treatment and remediation strategies under different environmental conditions, and the absence of a consistent framework for classifying the chemistry of treated produced water for agricultural applications. Addressing these gaps through integrated soil, crop, and water research and the development of clear policies and guidelines is essential for determining whether treated produced water can be safely and sustainably used in agriculture under growing water scarcity. Full article

Ammonia is a key chemical for fertilizers, industrial processes, and emerging energy applications, yet its conventional production via the Haber–Bosch process is associated with high energy demand and significant greenhouse gas emissions. In this context, electrochemical routes for ammonia synthesis have attracted increasing attention as a potential sustainable alternative, enabling nitrogen conversion under milder conditions and using renewable electricity. This review examines recent advances in electrochemical ammonia production, focusing on nitrogen reduction mechanisms, catalyst development, and electrochemical system design. The main reaction pathways for nitrogen activation are analyzed, together with the role of electrocatalysts in determining activity and selectivity. Progress in catalyst engineering, electrolyte optimization, and reactor configuration is discussed, with particular emphasis on strategies to mitigate competing reactions such as hydrogen evolution. In addition, alternative approaches based on nitrate reduction are considered due to their promising performance and potential integration with wastewater treatment. Unlike many recent reviews primarily focused on catalyst development or individual reaction pathways, this review provides an integrated perspective encompassing nitrogen reduction, nitrate reduction, electrolyte engineering, reactor architectures, and techno-economic considerations, thereby highlighting the interdependence between materials design, reaction environment, and system-level integration for scalable electrochemical ammonia synthesis. Full article

Electrochemical nitrate reduction (eNO₃⁻RR) to NH₃ is a sustainable solution. However, it faces challenges like poor selectivity and competitive hydrogen evolution (HER). We report a novel Ga@FeGa₃ catalyst for efficient eNO₃⁻RR. Its unique rough, flaky morphology provides abundant active sites. The optimized electron structure enhanced the nitrogen intermediate binding. The catalyst also shows exceptional hydrophilicity. This aids reactant access, rapid product desorption, and suppresses HER. These effects give Ga@FeGa₃ outstanding eNO₃⁻RR performance. It achieves an NH₃ Faradaic efficiency of 97.84% at −1.4 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) and a 3.87 mg h⁻¹ cm⁻² yield at −1.5 V. It also maintains high selectivity and stability for over 12 h. This work highlights rational intermetallic design. Such design optimizes active sites, electronic structure, and surface wettability. This is crucial for multi-electron transfer reactions. It offers a general strategy for high-performance electrocatalysts. Full article

Background: An original pre-column derivatisation strategy combining liquid chromatography, supported by gas chromatography, was developed for the determination of malondialdehyde (MDA), formaldehyde (FA), and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) in selected plant oils and model edible animal tissues (i.e., muscle, adipose tissue, liver, and brain). Methods: In oils, direct derivatisation with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH) was applied to quantify the target aldehydes (as hydrazones) without prior saponification. In the analysed animal tissue samples, MDA and FA were released by saponification and subsequently derivatised with DNPH, whereas 4-HNE was extracted from these samples and subsequently derivatised with DNPH. Derivatised aldehydes were quantified using C18 ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (C18-UHPLC) with photodiode array detection (DAD) under binary-gradient elution conditions, supported by gas chromatography (GC) with flame ionisation detection (FID). Results: The combination of the original binary gradient elution programme, selective DAD, and a high-performance C18 column (150 mm, 1.6 µm particle size) resulted in excellent baseline stability, good linearity, and satisfactory repeatability and specificity in the determination of MDA, FA, and 4-HNE. C18-UHPLC–DAD enabled satisfactory separation of MDA, FA and 4-HNE hydrazones from endogenous matrix components in solutions of processed oils and animal tissues, while the addition of acetonitrile to these sample solutions further reduced background interference. C18-UPLC-DAD provided satisfactory symmetrical peak shapes, peak purities, and recoveries of MDA, FA, and 4-HNE in analysed plant oils and ovine tissues, compared with GC–FID. Compared with GC–FID, C18-UHPLC-DAD provided superior resolution of derivatised aldehydes in matrices of analysed biological samples. Conclusions: The determination of lipid peroxidation biomarkers in oils and animal tissues using our novel C18-UHPLC-DAD method may contribute to the optimisation of breeding practices, helping to minimise animal stress and enhance the health-promoting properties of food products. Full article

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) straw-return can improve soil carbon (C) sequestration, but its adoption in intensive rice systems is limited by short fallow periods (<30 days), which likely lead to incomplete straw decomposition and increase methane emissions under continuous flooding (CF). Brittle rice straw, characterized by lower recalcitrant fiber content and rapid decomposition, may overcome this constraint; however, its environmental performance under alternate wetting and drying (AWD) remains unclear, such as broader C allocation. This 150-day microcosm study evaluated the interaction of straw type (brittle vs. non-brittle) and water management (CF vs. AWD) on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, dissolved C production, soil C storage, and aggregate formation in two contrasting paddy soils (sandy loam vs. silty clay loam). Compared with non-brittle straw, brittle straw returns reduced net GHG emissions by approximately 28.4% under CF and 39.6% under AWD. The combination of brittle straw with AWD produced the lowest net GHG emissions (0.61 kg CO₂-eq m⁻²), indicating that intermittent oxygen input effectively mitigated the early decomposition-related emission risk. Brittle straw also increased the concentrations of dissolved inorganic C by 14.2% and nitrate by 64.3% under AWD, suggesting enhanced mineralization and potential inorganic C stabilization. Regardless of straw type, straw return improved soil C stocks by 27.3% in sandy loam and 29.6% in silty clay loam, while also promoting macroaggregate formation. Overall, this study demonstrated that coupling brittle rice straw with AWD can reduce GHG emissions while maintaining soil C benefits, offering a promising residue management strategy for intensive rice cultivation. Full article

The antifoaming performance of natural gas desulfurization solvents is critical for maintaining product gas quality and ensuring the safe operation of processing units. Hydrocarbon impurities can enter amine solutions through feed-gas entrainment, wellhead flowback carryover, and leakage of equipment lubricants. These contaminants may gradually accumulate in the solvent system and become a significant contributor to foaming. To address the industrial demand for rapid quantitative determination of hydrocarbon contaminants in desulfurization solvents, this study investigates in-service UDS-series solvents and representative samples collected from a natural gas purification plant in western Sichuan. NMR spectroscopy and GC-MS analyses reveal that the impurities are predominantly n-alkanes in the C₁₃-C₁₈ range, based on which a corresponding reference standard oil was prepared. COSMO-RS calculations combined with molecular interaction analysis identify n-hexane as the optimal extraction solvent. The ultraviolet spectrophotometric method commonly used to determine hydrocarbons in environmental water samples shows limited sensitivity to long-chain n-alkanes and requires strong acid pretreatment that disrupts the amine solvent matrix, rendering it unsuitable for UDS solvents. In contrast, the n-hexane extraction-GC-FID method showed good linearity, precision, and accuracy, meeting engineering analytical requirements for monitoring hydrocarbon contamination in MDEA-based UDS desulfurization solvents. Full article

Solanum lycopersicum is highly sensitive to water deficits, which negatively affect photosynthesis and increase oxidative stress. Although chitosan nanoparticles (ChNPs) offer a sustainable solution, research on their effects on this species is scarce. This study evaluated whether ChNPs mitigate the physiological and biochemical effects of water deficit on S. lycopersicum seedlings. Thirty-day-old seedlings were grown under greenhouse conditions, and two irrigation levels were established: 80% of substrate water-holding capacity (well-watered, WW), and 50% of water-holding capacity (mild-to-moderate water deficit, WD). Spherical ChNPs with a size of 39.52 ± 10.9 nm were suspended in 1% acetic acid and foliar-applied at 0, 60, or 120 mg L⁻¹. After 10 days, biomass accumulation, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (F_v′/F_m′, ΦPSII, and ETR), gas exchange, and non-enzymatic antioxidant traits were determined. Even under this early-stage stress regime, water deficit significantly reduced shoot and root biomass, net photosynthesis, and stomatal conductance, while increasing lipid peroxidation. Foliar application of ChNPs, particularly at 60 mg L⁻¹, restored dry matter production and improved photochemical efficiency and electron transport rate by 14%; likewise, net CO₂ assimilation increased by 11.7%. In addition, this dose enhanced antioxidant activity and total phenols by 66% and 1.6-fold, respectively. ChNPs at 60 mg L⁻¹ mitigated the effects of WD in S. lycopersicum by increasing antioxidant and photosynthetic performances. Nevertheless, additional molecular studies, including enzymatic antioxidant characterization and compatible solute profiling, are required to elucidate the mechanisms involved. Full article

Programmed Cycle Pruning (PCP) in Arabica coffee can positively influence plant physiology by modifying plant architecture, promoting a more uniform distribution of branches and leaves, and altering microclimatic conditions within the canopy, particularly light incidence. These structural changes may contribute to improvements in plant performance and productivity. The objective of this study was to evaluate growth, yield, and physiological responses of Arabica coffee plants managed under PCP at different stem densities per hectare. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with four replications. Treatments were arranged in a 4 × 2 factorial scheme with an additional treatment representing the traditional pruning system. The factorial combination included four stem densities (4000, 8000, 12,000, and 16,000 stems ha⁻¹) and two data collection positions on the plant (lower and upper canopy strata). The evaluated variables included canopy diameter, plagiotropic branch length, number of inflorescences per branch, net photosynthetic rate (Anet), stomatal conductance (gs), leaf transpiration (E), vapor pressure deficit between leaf and air (VPDleaf/air), SPAD index, anthocyanin and flavonoid contents, and grain yield. PCP promoted greater uniformity in leaf gas exchange within the canopy and prevented the occurrence of “girdling”, which under traditional pruning reduced Anet in the upper canopy. Net photosynthesis increased with stem density under PCP. Although growth variables were similar between pruning systems, yield was higher under PCP, with a nonlinear response to stem density, indicating improved canopy gas-exchange uniformity and productivity in Arabica coffee cultivation. Full article