Cleaner Production Technologies Research Articles

Peer effects, attention allocation and farmers' adoption of cleaner production technology: Taking green control techniques as an example

As a typical clean production technology, green control techniques and their adoption are influenced by peer effects. Thus, what is the formation mechanism of the peer effects? Will there be a heterogeneous impact due to differences in the social network position of farmers? Will this impact be moderated by attention allocation? To answer these questions, based on the survey data for 1109 farmers in five provinces on the North China Plain, this paper adopted the IV-Probit model and other research methods. We found peer effects in the adoption behavior of green control techniques among farmers, which only existed in core and intermediate farmers and not in marginal farmers. The peer effects of the farmers' adoption behavior of green control techniques mainly came from the learning imitation mechanism. With the enhancement of farmers' attention allocation, the peer effects of farmers' adoption behavior of green control techniques strengthened. Therefore, it is necessary to give full consideration to the positive role of peer effects on farmers, improve the attention allocation level of farmers, and provide the service resources for agricultural technology extension to marginal farmers to accelerate the diffusion of green control techniques.

The Role of Legume Crops in Improving the Ecological State of the Soil

In this article is considered the role of legumes in improving the ecological state of the soil and the problem of developing energy-efficient, inexpensive, biologically and environmentally clean production technologies for crop production. The use of valuable chemical fertilizers and pesticides in order to obtain high yields from crops increases the pollution of the environment, ie soil, air and groundwater, the products contain nitrates, herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, residues harmful to human health.

Efficient removal of chemical oxygen demand from lye wastewater by APTES-TIO2/GO mixed matrix membrane: Optimization using Box-Behnken Design

Wastewater produced from chemical industries contains high levels of inorganic and organic pollutants. The beneficial reuse of this wastewater requires the application of membrane technology to remove these organic compounds. This work aims to optimize the synthesis of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) composite membranes for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) from lye wastewater. 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane modified titanium dioxide/graphene oxide (APTES-TiO2/GO) was introduced into the PVDF solution to prepare the nanocomposite membranes via immersion precipitation. Box-Behnken Design was used to reduce the number of preparation parameters and optimize the permeate flux and COD reduction. The effects (including interacting and quadratic effects) of PVDF (wt.%), APTES molarity (mM), and APTES-TiO2/GO (wt.%) on permeate flux and COD reduction were investigated. Overall, the APTES molarity and the APTES-TiO2/GO loading had a significant effect on the permeate flux, while PVDF and APTES-TiO2/GO loading presents significant effects on the COD reduction. Under optimized conditions of PVDF (17.22 wt%), APTES (900 mM) and APTES-TiO2/GO (0.1 wt%), the permeate flux of 65.545 kg m−2 h−1 and COD reduction of 99.54% was achieved. Meanwhile, the experimental values for permeate flux and COD reduction were 66.79 kg m−2 h−1 and 99.56%, respectively. Furthermore, the optimum membrane presents a higher permeate flux and COD reduction when compared with pure membrane due to improved hydrophilicity and porosity. Additionally, the fouled membrane could be effectively regenerated by self-cleaning. This hybrid membrane offers promising application prospects for the treatment of wastewater, which is in-line with the requirements of sustainable development and thus promotes the development of cleaner production technologies.

Solid CO2 hydrates for sustainable environment: Application in carbon capture and desalination

The world population has reached 7.9 billion and is growing, which creates the necessity to manage the water-energy nexus. India’s energy sector predominantly depends on coal-fired power, which generates ∼ 70% of electricity while utilizing ∼ 30 billion cubic meters of water (bcm) and is responsible for global warming (the increasing CO2 level) and the water crisis. In this direction, gas hydrate-based carbon capture and seawater desalination are potential technologies for clean water production while utilizing flue gas coming from coal-fired power plants. Gas or clathrate hydrates are ice-like crystalline materials that form at a suitable temperature and pressure conditions. Hydrates form a cage-like structure of water molecules while encapsulating the CO2 molecules and rejecting the salts. One mole of hydrate utilizes 85% water and 15% CO2, which is one of the motivations to develop hydrate-based desalination technology. However, sluggish kinetics of hydrate formation and low temperature or high-pressure conditions is the major bottleneck to deploying a hydrate-based approach. Therefore, in the current work, cyclopentane (CP, 6 mol%) is used as a thermodynamic promoter which shifts the hydrate forming temperature (equilibrium conditions) from 277 to 291 K at ∼ 2.0 MPa pressure compared to non-CP system. Moreover, in context to enhance the rate of hydrate formation, the performance of hydrophobic amino acid (l-leucine) is evaluated for the formation kinetics of binary CP-CO2 hydrates in saline (3.5 wt% NaCl in water) and non-saline media. The experimental results indicate that salinity suppresses the water to hydrate conversion by 50% (first 60 min data). The addition of 1000 ppm l-leucine helps to enhance the initial hydrate formation rate resulting in a higher percent of hydrate conversion in lesser process time. However, kinetic inhibition effect was observed at high content of l-leucine (5000 ppm). Our findings offer new insights into integrated hydrate-based carbon capture and seawater desalination approach.

Opportunities for thermoelectric generators in supporting a low carbon economy

Environmental pollution, global warming and increasing energy demands are urgent challenges facing society. Governments all over the world have set a national policy target for the transition to a zero or low carbon dioxide economy. As a result, scientists and engineers in industry and academia are working to develop cleaner, alternative and sustainable energy production technologies. One technology that has potential in this green technology transition is thermoelectric generators (TEGs), traditionally used off-grid and isolated from things such as stand-alone solar–thermal cells for military and aerospace applications such as missile-testing systems and space telescope cameras. However, future applications based on home entertainment, security systems and smart metering applications are imminent. Key limitations to this are low efficiency, high costs and self-heating with low thermal conductivity. Hence, this study aims to examine the current state of the art of TEGs and identify future research directions to achieve support for the green technology transition. The key findings of this study show that present successes will fulfill the future advancement of thermoelectric technology by supporting a low carbon dioxide economy.

Hydrangea like composite catalysts of ultrathin Mo2S3 nanosheets assembled on N, S-dual-doped graphitic biocarbon spheres with highly electrocatalytic activity for HER

Water electrolysis is the most clean and high-efficiency technology for production of hydrogen, an ultimate clean energy in future. Highly efficient non-noble electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are desirable for large scale production of hydrogen by water electrolysis. Especially, exposing as many active sites as possible is a vital way to improve activities of the catalysts. Herein, a series of new hydrangea like composite catalysts of ultrathin Mo2S3 nanosheets assembled uprightly and interlacedly on N, S-dual-doped graphitic biocarbon spheres were facilely prepared. The unique structure endowed the catalysts highly exposed edge active sites and prominently high activities for HER. Especially, the optimized catalyst Mo2S3/NSCS-50 exhibited as low as 106 mV of overpotential at 10 mA/cm2 (denoted as ƞ10). The catalyst also showed low Tafel slope of 53 mV/dec, low electron transfer resistance of 34 Ω and high stability evidenced by the result that the current density only attenuated 11.7% after 10 h i-t test. The catalyst has shown broad prospect for commercial application in water electrolysis.

A Review on the Use of Membrane Technology Systems in Developing Countries.

Fulfilling the demand of clean potable water to the general public has long been a challenging task in most developing countries due to various reasons. Large-scale membrane water treatment systems have proven to be successful in many advanced countries in the past two decades. This paves the way for developing countries to study the feasibility and adopt the utilization of membrane technology in water treatment. There are still many challenges to overcome, particularly on the much higher capital and operational cost of membrane technology compared to the conventional water treatment system. This review aims to delve into the progress of membrane technology for water treatment systems, particularly in developing countries. It first concentrates on membrane classification and its application in water treatment, including membrane technology progress for large-scale water treatment systems. Then, the fouling issue and ways to mitigate the fouling will be discussed. The feasibility of membrane technologies in developing countries was then evaluated, followed by a discussion on the challenges and opportunities of the membrane technology implementation. Finally, the current trend of membrane research was highlighted to address future perspectives of the membrane technologies for clean water production.

Do China's Urban-Environmental Quality and Economic Growth Conform to the Environmental Kuznets Curve?

The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) expresses the relationship between environmental quality and economic growth. Based on the defects of previous studies on EKC using only environmental pollution indicators, this study holds that environmental quality is the result of pollutants after treatment, absorption, and self-purification, including two dimensions of pollution and absorption. Therefore, the environmental pollution and absorption data of 74 key environmental monitoring cities in China from 2005 to 2017 were selected, and a comprehensive index of environmental quality was constructed using the vertical and horizontal grading method. Then, based on the relevant economic growth indicators of these cities, they were divided into first-tier and new first-tier, second-tier, third-tier, and below. It was found that the EKC of the total sample, the first-tier and new first-tier cities, and the second-tier cities presented an inverted N-shape and had passed the second inflection point, where environmental quality continues to improve with the deepening of economic growth. There was no EKC in the third-tier and below cities. The findings have important implications. China can cross the second inflection point of the EKC and improve environmental quality at a low income level. Therefore, by vigorously developing cleaner production technologies and raising residents’ awareness of environmental protection, it is possible to improve environmental quality at a lower income level than expected, which provides a useful reference for other developing countries.

One‐step mini‐emulsion copolymerisation of waterborne polysiloxane‐modified polyacrylate/pigment hybrid latex and its application in textile pigment printing

AbstractTextile pigment printing and dyeing is an environmentally friendly and sustainable clean production technology that has the advantages of saving water, saving energy and reducing pollution. However, the application of this technology in industry is severely limited because of the disadvantages of stiff hand feeling, poor wet rubbing fastness and other performance properties of traditional pigment‐printed fabric. To improve the pigment printing performance, a novel method of preparing hybrid pigment latex containing silicone by one‐step mini‐emulsion copolymerisation of silicone and acrylic monomers was explored in this work. Here, a comprehensive study of the effect of the ratio of silicone and acrylic, and the silicone component of alkoxysilane and cyclic siloxanes, on the properties of hybrid latex films and pigment‐printed polyester fibres, was conducted. It was found that, with an increasing amount of silicone, the hybrid pigment latex films gradually enhanced the water resistance, flexibility and thermal stability properties. Those water repellencies and smooth feeling properties were achieved by incorporating the hydrophobicity and the flexibility of the copolymer chains of silicone. The waterborne self‐adhesive hybrid pigment containing silicone can be directly applied for pigment printing of polyester fabric. Compared with the control printing system (without silicone), it not only exhibited an equivalent colour strength, but also improved the colour fastness and hand feel. Based on these results, this approach may provide insights into the rational design of waterborne self‐adhesive textile hybrid pigments for high‐quality printing performance.

Chalkboard 2 - How to Make Clean Hydrogen

Clean hydrogen is a carbon-free energy carrier that can be produced from water and sustainable energy sources such as wind, solar, and nuclear. Hence, clean hydrogen is one of the best ways to not only decarbonize the energy supply system, but also address the zero-emission challenges specific to large-carbon emitting industries that are difficult to separate from fossil fuels. To help achieve the Biden Administration’s goal of a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions by 2050, several tens of millions of metric tons of clean, low-cost hydrogen will be needed annually. The HydroGEN Advanced Water Splitting Materials (AWSM) Consortium was established in 2016 as part of the Energy Materials Network (EMN) under the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office to enhance the performance, improve the durability, and reduce the cost of clean hydrogen production technologies, and it is helping to advance the H2@Scale vision.

A cleaner method for preparation of chromium oxide from chromite ore

To establish a cleaner production technology of chromium salt, the pressurized leaching process of chromite ore in 60 wt% NaOH solution, subsequent separation of a chromium salt from the leached solution and Cr2O3 preparation from the intermediate product BaCrO4 were systematically investigated, and a new highly efficient and economical process for the production of Cr2O3 from chromite ore was established. The results showed that the decomposition of chromate ore could be significantly improved by increasing the temperature, and the Cr leaching rate reached 99% at 240 °C for 4 h. Meanwhile, the leaching process was controlled by surface chemical reactions with activation energy (Ea) of 34.3051 kJ/mol and a pre-exponential factor (A) of 6.9560. In the leached liquor, Na2CrO4 was transformed into BaCrO4 through its reaction with Ba(OH)2, Cr separation efficiency could reach as high as 89% in the undiluted leached liquor, while the separated alkali liquor could be effectively recycled for the leaching of chromite ore. Ultimately, a new method for the preparation of Cr2O3 from the intermediate product BaCrO4 was presented by the dissolution and reduction of BaCrO4 with HCl-CH3CH2OH as the reactant. The new cleaner process for Cr2O3 preparation from chromite ore provides an attractive alternative to upgrading the current chromate salt production processes.

Electrochemical production of hydrogen in molten salt

Clean and economical production of hydrogen is a key step for the decarbonization of energy systems. Current water electrolysis technologies developed for the green hydrogen production require high voltage values of around 2.0 V, making them uneconomical for large-scale applications. The voltage required for the production of hydrogen can be substantially reduced to around 1.0 V by performing the electrolysis at high temperatures. This article concerns the low-cost and green electrolytic production of hydrogen operating at such a low voltage performed by the dissolution of steam in high temperature molten salt electrolytes, and the subsequent electrochemical reduction of the dissolved hydrogen ions. The electro-generation of hydrogen is confirmed by performing cyclic voltammetry using molten lithium chloride as the electrolyte at 660 °C under a flow of moisturized argon. Furthermore, hydrogen is generated by the electrolysis of molten salt containing hydrogen ions using a nickel foam cathode at the constant cell voltage of 1.5 V with a high Faradaic efficiency of 83.2%. The results obtained provide crucial insights for further development of molten salt technologies for clean and efficient hydrogen production.

The effect of fiscal decentralization, environmental regulation, and economic development on haze pollution: empirical evidence for 270 Chinese cities during 2007-2016.

The current discourse addresses fiscal issues, financial decentralization, and environmental quality and significantly affects economic development and sustainability. This investigation aims to address the research gap in fiscal decentralization and haze pollution for innovation and sustainable growth. This study uses the annual data of 270 Chinese cities from 2007 to 2016 for comprehensive analysis and employs spatial regression methods. The key findings imply that haze pollution in neighbouring cities causes further ecological issues. While the environmental regulations of China tend to have negative impacts on pollution, fiscal decentralization was found to be a key contributor to environmental pollution in Chinese cities. Overall, the study supports the validity of the pollution refuge hypothesis in China. Lastly, the conclusions allow us to conclude that China might need micro-level reforms regarding fiscal decentralization, environmental tax laws, and encouragement of cleaner production technologies.

Phenolic compounds recovery from pistachio hull using pressure-driven membrane process and a cleaner production of biopesticide

This study aims to investigate phenolic compounds recovery from pistachio hull using cleaner production technology. The effects of solvent type (acetone, n-hexane, ethanol, methanol, and deionized water), solvent temperature (25, 50, 75 °C), and extraction time (0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 24 h) were optimized for maximum phenolic compounds extraction from the hull. The maximum phenolic compounds extraction (30.8 mg/g) was obtained for water at 75 °C temperature and 4 h extraction time. The pressure-driven membrane process was used to concentrate phenolic compounds from water used as a solvent. UP150, UP005, NF270, and NF90 membranes were used to concentrate the phenolic compounds. The contents of phenolic compounds in permeate and concentrate streams were determined by LC-MSMS. Moreover, the biopesticide properties of the recovered phenolic compounds were also investigated, which are carried out by researching their bactericidal and fungicidal properties. The extracted phenolic compounds, UP150 permeate, UP150 concentrate, NF270 permeate, and NF270 concentrate showed excellent antioxidant activity. DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate) scavenging activity, ferrous chelating activity, antimicrobial activity, bacterial viability inhibition test, and biofilm inhibition activity were tested to investigate the biopesticide properties of the recovered phenolic compounds which displayed moderate antimicrobial activity. UP150 concentrate and NF270 concentrate inhibited 29% and 33% biofilm formation of P. aeruginosa and S. aureus , respectively. • Phenolic compounds were recovered from pistachio hull using cleaner technology. • The maximum phenol extraction (30.8 mg/g) was obtained for water at 75 °C and 4 h. • The bactericidal and fungicidal properties of the recovered phenol was investigated. • NF270 concentrate inhibited 33% biofilm formation of S.aureus .

Green self-assembly of CuCe2(MoO4)4/montmorillonite-K10 nanocomposites; a promising solid-state hydrogen storage profile

Rapid scale-up of the technologies for clean energy production, conversion and storage have been adopted by many countries in order to reduce demand for fossil fuels. Primary renewable energy such as solar, wind, and hydro are developed for energy production particularly for electricity generation. However, there are still some deficiencies in direct use of primary renewable energy sources; therefore, secondary energy sources (or carriers) have been recently established as clean energy sources. Hydrogen is a type of secondary energy sources with almost low density and light weight; therefore, it must be stored in the form of liquid or gas. The storage of hydrogen in the form of liquid requires very low temperature. Solid-state hydrogen storage on the surfaces of solids or within solids is a promising solution to above shortcomings for high-density energy storage. Herein, multi-layers solid-state materials with ability of hydrogen adsorption are presented, for the first time, including “mixed metal oxide (MMO) nanostructures” and “silicate layers”. The MMO is CuCe2(MoO4)4 nanostructures which synthesized via Pechini method in front of various chelating agents such as trimesic acid, maleic acid, succinic acid, and malonic acid, while the silicate layer is nanoclay montmorillonite K10. In this study, the experimental observations reveal a pure formation of CuCe2(MoO4)4 nanostructures in malonic acid at 500 °C, with almost regular nanosized morphology of 20–25 nm. The selected sample is then used for nanocomposite formation by dispersing the CuCe2(MoO4)4 nanostructures into the montmorillonite K10 solution. The final nanocomposites exhibit a superior electrochemical hydrogen storage performance, in terms of “maximum discharge capacity of ∼ 3750 mAh/g)” and “efficiency of about 70%” in an alkaline medium. It must be mentioned that though the maximum discharge capacity of the CuCe2(MoO4)4 nanostructures is higher than nanocomposites (for example ∼ 6000 mAh/g), but the efficiency (discharge/charge) is lower (∼48%). It can be emphasized that this nanocomposite can be applied as promising host in an electrochemical hydrogen storage system, which can meet the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hydrogen storage targets.

TNT/LaFeO3 composite as novel condition catalyst for ameliorating hydrogen evolution reaction

Electrochemical water splitting has been regarded as one of the most promising technologies for efficient and clean hydrogen production. The development of superior electrocatalysts, based on hybrid materials, plays a critical role in the future. In this work, TNT/LaFeO3 composite is designed as an electrocatalyst for the hydrogen production in an aqueous acidic solution. The morphology and structure of the individual TNT and LaFeO3 catalysts are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrocatalytic activities of TNT, LaFeO3 and TNT/ LaFeO3 composite for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 0.1 mol.L-1 H2SO4 solution are studied by potentiodynamic polarization. TNT/LaFeO3 composite shows a superior electrocatalytic activity as compared to those of individual components. Two aspects can contribute to this performance, first, the nano porous structure of TNT and LaFeO3; and the second is the pn-junction developed at TNT-LaFeO3 interface, which is responsible for the enhanced reducing performance of the composite catalyst.

The green spillover effect of the inward foreign direct investment: Market versus innovation

Little work has focused on whether or under which conditions foreign direct investment (FDI) can spill cleaner-production technologies. To explore the complicated effects of FDI's technical spillover on the green innovation effort of host countries, this paper develops a multi-stage decision-making model in which abatement treatments of firms are described. It is found that marketization level and innovation capacity of the host country are two key factors impacting FDI's green spillovers. The results show there are preconditions in terms of green spillovers, i.e., FDI can improve or has no impact on the environmental performance of local firms under different conditions. Moreover, there are double threshold effects: the degree of FDI's green spillover varies with the different levels of the two threshold variables of marketization and innovation capacity. An increase in innovation capacity always motivates cleaner-technology diffusion in host countries. In addition, a moderate tax system is conducive to the green spillovers of FDI. This paper provides a theoretical support for the pollution halo hypothesis that FDI can promote cleaner development of host countries. Finally, from a perspective of cleaner-production practice, the policy implications are discussed to make production cleaner and ensure environmental sustainability.

Sulfonated Phthalocyanine Redox Flow Cell for Electrochemical Water Desalination

A reliable clean water supply is now one important and challenging issue for the human society. With the facts that only 0.4% of the water on earth is readily drinkable and 98% of the water is saltwater, water desalination for clean water production has become a key strategic solution to satisfy the increasing global water demand. Over the years, different saltwater desalination technologies were researched and developed, including reverse osmosis membrane desalination (RO), electrodialysis (ED), capacitive desalination (CDI) and multi-effect distillation (MED). However, some inherent technical issues, like high operation cost, large capital cost and/or low desalination capacity, associate with these existing technologies that lead to a high clean water production cost and limit their applications. Thus, there is a need of new water desalination technology that can purify saltwater with low cost and high efficiency.In this work we report a new water-soluble nickel phthalocyanine tetrasulfonic acid tetrasodium salt (NiPcTATS)-based redox flow desalination battery (RFDB) for safe, effective and efficient water-salt separation. The fabricated RFDB cell exhibited a high desalination rate at 3.4 gNaCl/(molNiPcTATS∙hr) even with a low 0.5 V cell voltage and required as low as 11.5 kJ/mol salt in energy consumption. The cell showed excellent reversibility and durability for long-term operation, benefiting from the fast-redox kinetics and chemical stability of the redox couple. With no consumption of the redox couple and energy recovery during the salination process, this new method provides a continuous desalination capability with unlimited salt removal capacity. We also demonstrated the use of simple solar panel for effectively driving the RFDB cell, proving it a promising and practical technology for clean water production in remote places like islands and ships.

Graphene Derivatives As Carbon Support Material in Alkaline Direct Ethanol Fuel Cells

The increasing global demand for energy and the associated rise in CO2 emissions due to the use of fossil fuels require the development and use of renewable energy sources. In this context, fuel cells are identified as one of the key technologies for clean energy production. Nevertheless, there are three critical technical barriers for fuel cells that limit their commercialization: performance (activity), durability (stability) and cost. Alkaline fuel cells, particularly alkaline direct ethanol fuel cells (ADEFCs), have attracted much attention in recent decades because ethanol fuel is easy to handle, store, and transport, has low cost, and is environmentally friendly.ADEFCs are limited by their slow kinetics, especially the electrochemical reaction at the anode. Currently, no catalyst is available that cleaves the carbon-carbon bond of ethanol, resulting in a CO2 efficiency of 100% (C1 pathway). The ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) in alkaline media is incomplete and predominantly follows the C2 pathway. Ethanol is oxidized by hydroxide ions to acetate as the main oxidation product and 4e- instead of 12e-, CO2 and water are released during the complete oxidation. During EOR, acetate is adsorbed on the catalyst surface as the active species. Nevertheless, various reaction intermediates deactivate the catalyst due to poisoning of the active sites, thus reducing the EOR performance. Palladium is currently the most suitable catalyst to replace platinum in ADEFCs. Palladium precursor salts are also cheaper than platinum salts and Pd/C catalysts show higher EOR activity (ethanol oxidation reaction) than Pt/C under alkaline conditions. This can be attributed to the higher oxophilic properties and the inherent ability of Pd to cleave C-C bonds. This positive effect also results in higher stability and lower susceptibility to poisoning of the active sites of the Pd catalyst during EOR. In addition, many non-precious metal co-catalysts are available for palladium, which further reduce the material cost while improving the catalytic activity, by-product tolerance and stability for alkaline EOR [1,2].The development of new anode catalysts with high activity and stability towards alkaline EOR is essential to improve the performance of direct ethanol fuel cell. Carbon materials, especially N-doped or reduced graphene oxides (rGO), are a promising catalyst support due to their low cost, high electrical conductivity, large surface area, and reasonable stability [3]. The deposition of the metal nanoparticles on the graphene oxide support generates a higher active surface area of the catalysts, which increases the electrocatalytic activity while reducing the cost.In the current studies, palladium-based catalysts are synthesized with different graphene oxide (GO) support materials (N-doped GO and rGO) by the modified instant method. The prepared catalysts were characterized ex-situ by the thin film rotating disk electrode technique using a standard three-electrode setup. To determine the electrochemical active surface area and EOR activity, cyclic voltammetry and EOR measurements were recorded in N2 purged potassium hydroxide and alkaline ethanol solution (1 M), respectively. Chronoamperometry was performed to investigate the stability of the catalysts. The cyclic voltammograms (CV) of the two catalysts compared show minor differences in peak current density, onset potential and by-product tolerance for the alkaline EOR. Further details will be discussed in the poster presentation.The authors acknowledge the financial support by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF): I 3871-N37 and by the Slovenian Research Agency (ARRS) through the Research Funding Programme P1-0175 and Bilateral Research Funding Project N2-0087.[1] B.Cermenek, J.Ranninger, V.Hacker; In Ethanol: Science and Engineering, A.Basile, A.Iulianelli, F.Dalena, N.T.Veziroglu, Eds.; Elsevier Inc.: Amsterdam, 2019, 383-405.[2] B.Cermenek, J.Ranninger, B.Feketeföldi, I.Letofsky-Papst, N.Kienzl, B. Bitschnau, V. Hacker, Nano Research, 2019, 12 (3), 683-693.[3] M. Nosan, M. Löffler, I. Jerman, M. Kolar, I. Katsounaros, and B. Genorio, ACS Appl. Energy Mater. 2021 Figure 1

Investment in environmental innovation with environmental regulation and consumers’ environmental awareness: A dynamic analysis

This paper investigates the effects of environmental regulation and consumers’ environmental awareness on the optimal investment strategies of a monopolist’s environmental innovation. We develop a dynamic optimal control model in which two kinds of environmental innovation are considered (i.e., end-of-pipe and cleaner production technologies innovation), and the installed abatement capacity and green performance of the product are state variables. We explore the monopolist’s optimal investment strategies and find that there exists a complementarity or substitutability relationship between the monopolist’s steady-state investments in end-of-pipe and cleaner production technologies innovation, which depends on the value of consumers’ environmental awareness. Further, we consider the optimal investment strategies from the perspective of social planner. By comparing investment strategies under the monopolist and social planner optimum cases, we show that the monopolist can achieve socially optimal innovation investment levels under a given environmental policy. Finally, we relax the assumption of a given policy and characterize the first-best and second-best policies, respectively, then compare R&D incentives of the two policies by numerical examples. We find that the first-best policy generates higher end-of-pipe and cleaner production technologies innovation incentives than the second-best emission tax policy.