A Reliable Solution to the Environmental Problem: The Hydrogen Engine

1970 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard G. Murray ◽  
Roger J. Schoeppel
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Saripah Abdul Latif ◽  
Mohd Shukri Omar

The rapid increase in solid waste is a major environmental problem and recycling is argued to be a better solution to the problem. However, there is a broad agreement that there is a gap between the increasing awareness for recycling and the recycling behaviour among the consumers. The aim of this study is to investigate the recycling behaviour among 62 residents of Tioman Island. A structured questionnaire that included 33 items is used to obtain the data. The findings show a significant relationship between recycling behaviour and collectivism; a positive, weak relationship with recycling attitudes; and a negative relationship with materialism. Keywords: recycling behaviour; recycling attitudes; materialism and collectivism. eISSN 2514-7528 © 2017 The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK . This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.


Author(s):  
Alexander Gillespie

This book examines the idea of sustainable development, made up of economic, social, and environmental parts over the period of human history. This work suggests humanity has been unsustainable in all three areas for most of its history, although in the last few hundred years the scale of unsustainability has increased, while, simultaneously, answers have started to emerge. This conclusion can be seen in two parts, namely the economic and social sides of sustainable development and then the environmental ones. This work suggests that, with the correct selection of tools, solid and positive foundations for the economic and social sides of sustainable development is possible as the world globalizes. This is not, however, a foregone conclusion. Despite a number of recent positive indicators in this area, there are still very large unanswered questions with existing mechanisms and other gaps in the international architecture which, if not fixed, could quickly make problems of economic and social sustainability worse, not better. With the third leg of sustainable development, that for the environment, the optimism is not as strong. The good news is that science, laws, and policies have evolved and expanded to the level that, in theory, there is no environmental problem which cannot be solved. In many areas, especially in the developed world, success is already easy to measure. Where it is not easy to measure, and pessimism creeps in, is in the developing world, which is now inheriting a scale and mixture of environmental difficulties which are simply unprecedented.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 4748
Author(s):  
Monika Balázsová ◽  
Miloslav Feistauer ◽  
Jaromír Horáček ◽  
Adam Kosík

This study deals with the development of an accurate, efficient and robust method for the numerical solution of the interaction of compressible flow and nonlinear dynamic elasticity. This problem requires the reliable solution of flow in time-dependent domains and the solution of deformations of elastic bodies formed by several materials with complicated geometry depending on time. In this paper, the fluid–structure interaction (FSI) problem is solved numerically by the space-time discontinuous Galerkin method (STDGM). In the case of compressible flow, we use the compressible Navier–Stokes equations formulated by the arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian (ALE) method. The elasticity problem uses the non-stationary formulation of the dynamic system using the St. Venant–Kirchhoff and neo-Hookean models. The STDGM for the nonlinear elasticity is tested on the Hron–Turek benchmark. The main novelty of the study is the numerical simulation of the nonlinear vocal fold vibrations excited by the compressible airflow coming from the trachea to the simplified model of the vocal tract. The computations show that the nonlinear elasticity model of the vocal folds is needed in order to obtain substantially higher accuracy of the computed vocal folds deformation than for the linear elasticity model. Moreover, the numerical simulations showed that the differences between the two considered nonlinear material models are very small.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 1333-1342
Author(s):  
Núria Boix Rodríguez ◽  
Marco Marconi ◽  
Claudio Favi ◽  
Giovanni Formentini

AbstractFace masks are currently considered essential devices that people must wear today and in the near future, until the COVID-19 pandemic will be completely defeated through specific medicines and vaccines. Such devices are generally made of thermoplastic polymers, as polypropylene and polyethylene and are single use products. Even if in this period the sanitary emergency must have the maximum priority, the world society should not completely forget the environmental problem that are causing more and more obvious climate changes with correlated damages to ecosystems and human health. Despite the well-known correlation among anti-COVID protective equipment (or more generally medical devices) and environmental issues, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and eco-design-based studies in this field is very scarce. The present study aims to derive the most important environmental criticalities of such products, by using LCA and product circularity indicators of five different common masks. The final aim is to provide eco-design guidelines, useful to design new face masks by preventing negative impact on the environment.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakub Ważny ◽  
Michał Stefaniuk ◽  
Adam Cygal

AbstractArtificial neural networks method (ANNs) is a common estimation tool used for geophysical applications. Considering borehole data, when the need arises to supplement a missing well log interval or whole logging—ANNs provide a reliable solution. Supervised training of the network on a reliable set of borehole data values with further application of this network on unknown wells allows creation of synthetic values of missing geophysical parameters, e.g., resistivity. The main assumptions for boreholes are: representation of similar geological conditions and the use of similar techniques of well data collection. In the analyzed case, a set of Multilayer Perceptrons were trained on five separate chronostratigraphic intervals of borehole, considered as training data. The task was to predict missing deep laterolog (LLD) logging in a borehole representing the same sequence of layers within the Lublin Basin area. Correlation between well logs data exceeded 0.8. Subsequently, magnetotelluric parametric soundings were modeled and inverted on both boreholes. Analysis showed that congenial Occam 1D models had better fitting of TM mode of MT data in each case. Ipso facto, synthetic LLD log could be considered as a basis for geophysical and geological interpretation. ANNs provided solution for supplementing datasets based on this analytical approach.


Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 242
Author(s):  
Pablo Bordón ◽  
Rubén Paz ◽  
Carolina Peñalva ◽  
Gisela Vega ◽  
Mario Monzón ◽  
...  

Bags used to protect and accelerate the ripening of bananas are a clear example of the environmental problem of packaging waste. Small pieces of these non-biodegradable bags are frequently disposed on the soil by accident (environmental conditions and poor handling during the harvest) and remain there for years. This work focuses on the development of protective biodegradable bags reinforced with banana fiber, obtained from waste of the banana plants, thus promoting a circular economy and a more environmentally friendly process. To achieve this, different bio-based composites were tested (processability) by compounding extrusion (biopolymer and banana fiber with different process steps) and blown film extrusion. The bags produced were tested in field and sequentially improved in three generations of biofilms. The results showed that the maximum processable fiber content was 5 wt %. Additionally, the micronizing of the compounds was crucial to simplify the blown film extrusion and improve the smoothness of the bags (scratches avoidance on the banana surface). The final bags (Mater-Bi biopolymer, 5% combed and sieved banana fiber, and 2.5 wt % TiO2 for ultraviolet light filtration), performed better than the conventional ones (faster maturing, i.e., earlier harvest, and easier handling) and fulfilled the biodegradability, composting and ecotoxicity test requirements.


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