Green Features Research Articles

Green Buildings Amid Efficiency and Sustainability

The vast increase of energy consumption, global warming and the harm they cause to the environment, emerge to be a major obstruction that distresses the world today. The current work views one of the methods that the world focused on as means of reducing the environmental harms and that is, through green building, or in more common words sustainable buildings. Those means, covers the exercising of a wide range of applications including merging of new and specific technologies in which through fulfilling its basis, the process of evaluation of the building takes place in terms of its harmony with the environment, reduction of energy consumption, and the reduction of the environmental problems caused by the building life cycle starting from defining of location, design of the building, operation, maintenance, repairing and up to the renewal of the building. Despite the significance of green building, no profit nor implementations has yet been made in Libya. The latter is due to the lack of awareness by many Libyan social groups. From here, the idea behind this paper crystalized. It aims to spread and enhance the knowledge and techniques of green building. It also penetrates into the green building features and advantages that are considered to be a preliminary step to start its application in a wide range coinciding with the grand progress that the country has witnessed in the field of construction and housing. This paper concludes that it is possible to reduce energy consumption and the harm it causes to the environment after the implementation and merging of green building techniques and should be applied on a large scale covering the whole country.

Porous SiC electroluminescence from p–i–n junction and a lateral carrier diffusion model

Electroluminescence of porous silicon carbide is achieved in a forward-biased SiC p–i–n junction. A broad green spectral feature centered at ∼510 nm is shown to arise from porous SiC. A large SiC surface area in the vicinity of the junction is created by diamond cutting followed by an electrochemically enhanced hydrogen fluoride etch that produces a layer of porous SiC. Photoluminescence is shown not to be responsible for the green emission. This supports the model of carrier recombination at the porous region via lateral bipolar diffusion of carriers. A lateral bipolar diffusion model is presented in which mobile carriers diffuse laterally from the junction toward the porous SiC surface region driven by a lateral carrier concentration gradient. Lateral bipolar diffusion in conjunction with suitable radiative recombination centers provides a possible pathway to achieve high quantum efficiencies in future SiC p–n homojunction or double heterojunction light-emitting diodes. Competing recombination processes and associated ideality factors in 4H-SiC diodes are also examined.

Dual modulating luminescence in all-inorganic perovskite CsPbBr3 quantum dots

Abstract All-inorganic perovskite quantum dots (AIP QDs) have triggered extensive interest due to their unique optical properties in very recent years. The downconversion (DC) and upconversion (UC) luminescence corresponding to Stokes and anti-Stokes effect are two reverse luminescence phenomena. However, it is seldom to realize these two-reverse luminescence effects in individual QDs simultaneously. Therefore, it is highly desirable to develop comprehensive optical characteristics in order to achieve the multifunction in AIP QDs. Here, colloidal CsPbBr3 perovskite QDs were successfully synthesized by a convenient solution approach. The as-prepared colloidal CsPbBr3 QDs possess highly crystallinity. The DC and UC luminescence properties were studied under ultraviolet (UV) light and infrared (IR) lasers. We have demonstrated that CsPbBr3 QDs exhibited both strong green emission from DC and UC characteristic. In addition, a light-emitting diode device was demonstrated with our CsPbBr3 QDs, showing high-purity green feature. This work reveals the photoluminescence of AIP CsPbBr3 QDs excited by different excitation sources, promoting their multi-functional applications for downconversion and upconversion luminescence.

Single electrode piezoelectric nanogenerator for intelligent passive daytime radiative cooling

Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) can cool down objects by simultaneously reflecting sunlight and radiating heat to the cold external space, which has no energy consumption. Traditional PDRC design usually needs to rely on micro-nano structures, which are easily damaged and lose function. On the one hand, the mechanical strength of PDRC can be enhanced. On the other hand, by integrating self-monitoring character in the same membrane fault part can be easily distinguished for fixing or replacing. Monitoring the damage by using traditional sensors will cause additional energy loss. Therefore, an intelligent PDRC that can monitor the failure itself is urgently needed to be developed. Here we found that the polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) nanofiber membrane obtained by electrospinning technology can effectively scatter sunlight, while emitting infrared rays matching the atmospheric window to achieve effective heat dissipation. In the preparation process, the electrostatic field can effectively polarize the PVDF-HFP to obtain good piezoelectric performance, which can be used to monitoring the integrity of membrane function. Meanwhile, the membrane can be used as a nanogenerator to collect mechanical energy in the environment, such as raindrop energy when used on the roof, thereby not only reducing cooling energy loss, but also collecting energy additionally, achieving a dual energy-saving design. Its excellent self-cleaning and recyclable characteristic bring more benefits to its green and energy-saving features. Therefore, this intelligent PDRC provides ideas for new energy-saving designs. At the same time, a simple preparation method is more conducive to the promotion of this technology. • Nanogenerator realizes good passive daytime radiation cooling for the first time. • The single-electrode piezoelectric nanogenerator gives PDRC the self-monitoring function to accurately monitor the working status of each area. • Efficiently collect raindrops' mechanical energy to achieve dual energy-saving design. • Self-cleaning and recyclable capabilities bring additional benefits to energy-saving design.

Effects of trees, gardens, and nature trails on heat index and child health: design and methods of the Green Schoolyards Project

BackgroundLatinx children in the United States are at high risk for nature-deficit disorder, heat-related illness, and physical inactivity. We developed the Green Schoolyards Project to investigate how green features—trees, gardens, and nature trails—in school parks impact heat index (i.e., air temperature and relative humidity) within parks, and physical activity levels and socioemotional well-being of these children. Herein, we present novel methods for a) observing children’s interaction with green features and b) measuring heat index and children’s behaviors in a natural setting, and a selection of baseline results.MethodsDuring two September weeks (high temperature) and one November week (moderate temperature) in 2019, we examined three joint-use elementary school parks in Central Texas, United States, serving predominantly low-income Latinx families. To develop thermal profiles for each park, we installed 10 air temperature/relative humidity sensors per park, selecting sites based on land cover, land use, and even spatial coverage. We measured green features within a geographic information system. In a cross-sectional study, we used an adapted version of System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (SOPARC) to assess children’s physical activity levels and interactions with green features. In a cohort study, we equipped 30 3rd and 30 4th grade students per school during recess with accelerometers and Global Positioning System devices, and surveyed these students regarding their connection to nature. Baseline analyses included inverse distance weighting for thermal profiles and summing observed counts of children interacting with trees.ResultsIn September 2019, average daily heat index ranged 2.0 °F among park sites, and maximum daily heat index ranged from 103.4 °F (air temperature = 33.8 °C; relative humidity = 55.2%) under tree canopy to 114.1 °F (air temperature = 37.9 °C; relative humidity = 45.2%) on an unshaded playground. 10.8% more girls and 25.4% more boys interacted with trees in September than in November.ConclusionsWe found extreme heat conditions at select sites within parks, and children positioning themselves under trees during periods of high heat index. These methods can be used by public health researchers and practitioners to inform the redesign of greenspaces in the face of climate change and health inequities.

Green-Agile Maturity Model: An Evaluation Framework for Global Software Development Vendors

Agile methods are extensively adapted by software development organizations due to the competitive benefits it offers. In recent years global software development (GSD) projects practice agile methods as prominent methods to deliver the software in increments with utmost user satisfaction and affordable cost. Beside the use of agile methods, the software industry has also considered the green aspect of software, to be in line with the demands of the organizations and the world technological ecosystem. The green and sustainable feature of software should focus both the energy and resource efficiency key factors. This phenomenon of embedding the green flavor in software has emerged a new research area, green software engineering, that promises the development of eco-friendly software with minimum energy and use of less computing resources, to trim down the adverse effects on both society and environment. The principal objective of this research study is to design and develop a multi-level Green-Agile Maturity Model (GAMM) to assess the GSD vendors’ agile maturity in terms of green software development. The model has been built in four phases. In phase I and II, systematic literature review (SLR) was performed to identify the success factors and risk factors that either supports or hinders the green and sustainable software development respectively by practicing the agile methods in GSD. The results have been validated from 106 relevant experts, dealing with agile and green software projects, through questionnaire survey. The experts’ demographic represents 25 different countries. We also identified the industry practices through SLR and survey, to address our identified critical factors. Phase III of this research deals with development of the GAMM by categorizing the identified factors into seven Green-Agile maturity levels. A similar approach has been used in other models such as Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), Implementation Maturity Model (IMM) and Software Outsourcing Vendors Readiness Model (SOVRM). In phase IV of this research, five case studies were conducted at GSD organizations, to evaluate the structure and efficacy of the GAMM, while as a major contribution, this paper presents our developed model, the GAMM, which aims to assess the green-agile maturity of the GSD vendors in terms of green and sustainable software development.

Green library: An overview

The green library is a novel concept that is growing in popularity. ibraries are vital statistics assets for elevating recognition approximately environmental issues due to the fact they're lifelong gaining knowledge of centre for humans of every age and communities. They aren't the simplest repositories of understanding however additionally vital statistics assets for elevating recognition approximately environmental issues. The paper summarizes green or sustainable libraries, including the environment, their effects on society, standards for the betterment, green library features, important initiatives around the world, including India, and the role of librarians in making the Green Libraries.

INTELLECTUAL CONTENT OF GREEN GROWTH IN CONDITIONS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The article is devoted to the analysis of the essence of the intellectual content of green growth in the framework of the global course of mankind for sustainable development. The gradual transition in scientific works from information economy and knowledge economy to intellectual economy, which is characterized by directing human intellectual activity to environmentally friendly activities aimed at achieving global goals of sustainable development, has been analyzed. It has been noted that the intellectual economy is the foundation of green growth and the importance of knowledge, skills, theoretical and practical competencies, creativity, which act as a driver of development of green sectors of the economy has been highlighted. It has been determined that there are nine types of human capital, of which the intellectual plays a leading role at the present stage of development of socio-economic processes. In the conditions of building a green economy, capital acquires green features, which is manifested through green intellectual capital, the main components of which are green human capital, green organizational capital and green relational capital. The interaction of green human and green organizational capital forms green relational capital, which is expressed in the form of green jobs, inclusiveness and gender equality. It has been noted that in the long run the development of green intellectual capital leads to the effect of decoupling, which is manifested in the gap between indicators of economic prosperity and environmental degradation. That is why strategies for the development of green intellectual capital should be the basis for the development of countries around the world to achieve global goals of sustainable development in terms of green growth.

Recognition and location of crop seedlings based on image processing

With the development of digital image technology, we can easily obtain a large number of crop growth images. Through effective analysis of the image, the growth information of crops can be obtained, which can better direct agricultural production. The efficiency of traditional seedling growth monitoring is low, especially in large-scale farmland, which takes a lot of time. Artificial method timely restricts scientific decision-making of cultivation crops. The progress of machine vision and image processing technology provides a new way for harmlessly monitoring of crop seedling growth .The results of image analysis can help agricultural producers to understand the growth of crop seedlings quickly and accurately, so as to take effective management as soon as possible. In this paper, the images of sunflower seedling collected in farmland environment are taken as the research object. The main research content is to segment green crops from soil background. Segmentation method of sunflower seedling image based on color features and Ostu threshold segmentation is proposed. The method is simple in calculation, and can adapt to the segmentation of farmland environment images, which lays the foundation for crop recognition process. Based on the image recognition results, the algorithm locates the seedlings. Through the rapid identification of sunflower seedlings, it is possible to fill the gaps with seedlings where the seedlings are less distributed. On the contrary, if the seedlings are too dense, the number of seedlings needs to be reduced. The algorithm provides a basis for precise management. The results show that the algorithm with extra green feature can quickly and effectively identify sunflower seedlings from background, and locate the seedlings based on the image recognition results. This algorithm is not sensitive to soil moisture and light conditions, and is less affected by crop residual coverage, so it can adapt to different soil environment which realize the non-destructive monitoring of sunflower seedlings.

Urban green infrastructure features influence the type and chemical composition of soil dissolved organic matter

In urban areas, green infrastructure (GI) has been widely developed utilizing different types of engineered soil to enhance ecosystem functions to interact with soil dissolved organic matter (DOM). However, there remains a lack of urban studies that have examined the link between GI features and soil DOM. This study, which was conducted in a typical heavily industrialized and urbanized area (Ningbo City, East China), aimed to characterize the chemical variation and composition of DOM in the engineered soil of four GI types (enhanced tree tips, ETP; street-side infiltration swales, SSIS; vegetated swales, VS; urban forests, UF). The results showed that soil organic carbon varies among the four GI types with significantly lower content in SSIS and ETP compared to VS and UF. Smaller variation was observed in the water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) content, with UF having significantly higher content than ETP. Three humic-like substances and one protein-like substance were derived using the parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) model. These fluorescent compositions and their spectral parameters displayed specific distributions among GI features with VS having the highest proportion of humic-like substances (C1) and the lowest proportion of protein-like substances (C4). The distribution of spectral indices indicated terrigenous sources of DOM in these GI engineered soils. Significant positive correlations were found between protein-like substances and the population density and nightlight index, while negative correlations were found between humic-like substances (C1) and these two indices. These results demonstrate significant human disturbance of the chemical composition and characteristics of GI features. Our findings suggest that the overall design and management of GI features have a fundamental influence on soil DOM that is vital for carbon cycling in urban ecosystems.

Determinants of residents’ preferences for Urban Green infrastructure in Nigeria: Evidence from Lagos Metropolis

Understanding preferences for urban green infrastructure (UGI) and the factors responsible for these are very important for adequate provision and effective management of these vital components of the urban environment. There are however very few studies that provide insight into residents’ preferences for UGI in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was to examine residents’ preferences for the different forms of UGI with green, tree, water and other features and the factors that influence these in Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria. The data were obtained via a questionnaire survey of 1560 participants in the study area and analysed using descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal Wallis tests and multiple regression analysis. The results indicate that the participants generally showed more preferences for UGI with green features including green corridors, lawns, sports fields, parks and gardens than others. Variation in the participants’ preferences for UGI was mainly due to differences in their local government area of residence. Nevertheless, the four top determinants of participants’ preferences for the different forms of UGI were the environmental and health benefits and quality of UGI as well as the respondents’ involvement in pro-green infrastructure activities in their neighbourhoods. The study conclude that urban planners should focus on strategies that maximise the environmental and health benefits and quality of green infrastructure and foster citizens’ participation in the development and management of UGI in cities in Nigeria and others countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Transparent Antenna for Green Communication Feature: A Systematic Review on Taxonomy Analysis, Open Challenges, Motivations, Future Directions and Recommendations

Recent years have illustrated the significantly pervasive interest in transparent antennas. The number and the popularity of transparent antenna applications have escalated dramatically. Although antenna applications are diverse and available across multiple platforms, some of these antennas are unsuitable for practical usage, particularly in cases associated with renewable energy. As such, this study presents the review of related articles pertaining to transparent antennas across a range of platforms to identify their best practices. The methods applied in prior research work within this domain were identified. Relevant articles published between 2015 and September 2020 were gathered from four major databases: Science Direct, Web of Science (WOS), IEEE Xplore, and Scopus. The identified indicators were considered as broad and reliable to cover this field of literature. The articles (n=81) were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. This paper concentrates on the present views and opportunities to further understand the research segment of transparent antenna.

Researches on green features and category architecture of green strategies of renewable-resource-based enterprises: a case study of forestry enterprise

Researches on green features and category architecture of green strategies of renewable-resource-based enterprises: a case study of forestry enterprise

Managing green innovation investment in a Co-opetitive supply chain under capital constraint

Responding the increasing concerns on environment and green consumerism, many firms found specialized environmental foundations to invest in green technology innovators (GTIs) and achieve green features in their products to attract consumers. However, facing increasing financial pressure during the economic downturn in recent years, they may have limited capital for green investments. In this paper, we investigate, in the presence of limited environmental foundation sizes, whether a pair of co-opetitive supply chain players (consisting of an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and a Contract Manufacturer (CM) that serves as both a supplier and a competitor in downstream market for the OEM) should co-invest in a joint GTI. We consider two scenarios, Scenario N where the OEM and CM respectively invest in two independent GTIs, and Scenario Y where the two firms co-invest in a joint GTI. We analyze both the exogenous or endogenous reward rates cases for the promoting of green innovation efforts of the GTIs. Under both exogenous and endogenous reward rates, we find that although Scenario Y always yields higher greenness level than Scenario N for both the OEM and CM, the OEM doesn’t always have incentive to do so due to the CM’s strategic use of wholesale price or reward rate decision responses, while the CM is always better off in Scenario Y when the reward rate is exogenous. We also find that the market size and competitive intensity will post significant impacts on the green innovation outcomes, wholesale price and reward rates decisions in the co-opetitive relationship. Intensified downstream quantity competition can motivate upstream innovation investment. However, greener technology may result in worse environmental performance for the whole supply chain because of increased total quantity.

The Mysterious Green Streaks Below STEVE

Strong thermal emission velocity enhancement (STEVE) is an optical phenomenon of the subauroral ionosphere arising from extreme ion drift speeds. STEVE consists of two distinct components in true‐color imagery: a mauve or whitish arc extended in the magnetic east–west direction and a region of green emission adjacent to the arc, often structured into quasiperiodic columns aligned with the geomagnetic field (the “picket fence”). This work employs high‐resolution imagery by citizen scientists in a critical examination of fine‐scale features within the green emission region. Of particular interest are narrow “streaks” of emission forming underneath field‐aligned picket fence elements in the 100‐ to 110‐km altitude range. The streaks propagate in curved trajectories with dominant direction toward STEVE from the poleward side. The elongation is along the direction of motion, suggesting a drifting point‐like excitation source, with the apparent elongation due to a combination of motion blur and radiative lifetime effects. The cross‐sectional dimension is <1 km, and the cases observed have a duration of ∼20–30 s. The uniform coloration of all STEVE green features in these events suggests a common optical spectrum dominated by the oxygen 557.7‐nm emission line. The source is most likely direct excitation of ambient oxygen by superthermal electrons generated by ionospheric turbulence induced by the extreme electric fields driving STEVE. Some conjectures about causal connections with overlying field‐aligned structures are presented, based on coupling of thermal and gradient‐drift instabilities, with analogues to similar dynamics observed from chemical release and ionospheric heating experiments.

Green Finance Performance and Role of Sustainability Engineers in the Greater Bay Area

To encourage the implementation of sustainable green features, large scale infrastructure and transportation projects, the Central Government and HKSAR government is keen to promote green finance, determined to develop Hong Kong as the leading hub in the Greater Bay Area region [1]. Since 2016, a series of green finance developments accelerated, including the setting up of Hong Kong Green Finance Association (HKGFA) and the launching of Green Finance Certification Scheme. The green finance development in the Greater Bay Area, in particular Hong Kong, is outlined using a case study of the New World Development Company Limited (“the Group”) approach to green financing and their recently completed project – K11 ATELIER King’s Road. The paper discusses the role of sustainability engineer in green finance project throughout the four components of green finance project by providing technical support to quantify and assess the environmental impacts and benefits. In particular, sustainability engineers can contribute in green finance by developing a standardized benchmarking system on green building environmental impacts and benefits. The need of benchmarking system is discussed using the first green loan project in Hong Kong, K11 ATERLIER King’s Road, as case study. The harmonious collaboration between financial experts and engineering professionals is encouraged in order to push the boundary of sustainability technology. The authors discuss an effective collaboration approach delivered by sustainability engineering professionals to support and create a greater impact of the green finance development in the Greater Bay Area.

Green Design Studio: A modular-based approach for high-performance building design

A modular-based Green Design Studio (GDS) platform has been developed in this study for fast and accurate performance analysis for early stage green building design. The GDS platform aims to simplify the design and analysis process by embedding performance parameters into design elements in modules and employing near-real-time model for whole building performance simulation as well as by providing an easy-to-use and intuitive user interface to assist users without extensive knowledge on building physics. The platform consists of building modules as fundamental building blocks, performance predicting models, and a user interface for visualization and interactive design. In the platform, a whole building is composed of modules organized in a hierarchical structure, including spaces, enclosures, service systems, sustainable resource systems and sites. Both physics-based and data-driven models can be used to simulate the building performance and optimize building systems. A simplified physics-based model, the Resistance–Capacitance (RC) model, has been proposed as a generic simulation model for the flows of heat, air, moisture and pollutants, which is significantly faster than conventional simulation tools such as EnergyPlus, and hence more practical for use in real-time design interaction and optimization. A pilot case study is conducted to illustrate the modular-based design approach using a section of an office building. Compared to conventional building performance analysis tools, the GDS platform can provide fast and reliable feedback on performance prediction for early design. The modular approach makes it easier to modify the building design and evaluate the potentials and contributions of various green design features and technologies.

Green building, pro-environmental behavior and well-being: Evidence from Singapore

This paper incorporates environmental psychology insights into a well-being framework related to the built environment to predict the relations between green buildings and their residents in terms of pro-environmental behavior and well-being. To test our predictions, we apply a generalized structural equation modelling technique to a household survey dataset collected from the Singapore private housing market. We find that green building residents have a higher assessment of their residential environment. This increases the level of their residential satisfaction, which subsequently enhances their quality of life and reduces their intention to move. We demonstrate that green buildings provide a supportive and educational environment for motivating and educating their residents to behave in a pro-environmental manner. Residents' improved pro-environmental behavior and enhanced well-being are attributed to some, though not all, green features. We find that tangible green features (i.e., greenery, ventilation, indoor environments, and waste facilities) have greater impacts on residents than intangible ones (i.e., energy efficiency and accessibility to public transport). The findings contribute ideas and solutions to the future development of green buildings by taking a social perspective to pursue urban sustainability. This paper also inspires future multi-disciplinary research at the intersection of urban studies, psychology, and behavioral science.

Research on term extraction technology in computer field based on wireless network technology

Wireless technology allows one or more devices to communicate without the need for a physical connection. Wireless technology and wired technology applications use a wireless frequency transmission device for transmitting data while using a cable. In the case of wireless medical data transmission, it can cover a large area of the home and domestic users. This guide evaluates and compares, and defines specific application scenarios for Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPAN), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), and Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WAN) operating in a moderate computer field. The extraction of standard terms in the computer field provides a measurement and control network protocol for the home and residential communities that enables them to achieve green and smarter features. It specifies the data format of the interaction between the device and the system and provides a standardized definition of sensors, actuators, and devices, along with data communication processing. This standard includes method definition test configuration and management capabilities, deployment and orientation control-related features, conformance testing, and data format definitions for interoperability. Independent protocol is defined for discovering and establishing media access methods. This standard supports between ports connected to the same access network, including intercommunication between ports and ports General support specified in secure communication Architectural, functional elements, and protocols. Authentication with IEEE 802.1AE ™ MAC (Mobile Access Control) uses security associations securely.

Soil nitrogen accumulation, denitrification potential, and carbon source tracing in bioretention basins

Bioretention basins are one of the most commonly used green stormwater features, with the potential to accumulate significant levels of nitrogen (N) in their soil and to permanently remove it through denitrification. Many studies have investigated the N removal potential of bioretention basins through the assessment of inflow and outflow concentrations. However, their long-term N removal through soil accumulation and denitrification potential is less known. This study investigated the temporal variation of total N (TN) accumulation and denitrification potential in soils of 25 bioretention basins within a 13-year soil chronosequence, in a subtropical climate in Australia. The denitrification potential of a subset of seven bioretention basins was investigated in accompaniment with nutrient and soil characteristics. Additionally, stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) were used to assess temporal changes in the soil composition as well as to identify the sources of carbon (C) into these basins. Over 13 years of operation, TN accumulated faster in the top 5 cm of soil than deeper soils. Soil TN density was highest in the top 5 cm with an average of 1.4 kg N m−3, which was about two times higher than deeper soils. Site age and soil texture were the best predictors of soil TN density and denitrification (1 to 9.7 mg N m−2 h−1). The isotope values were variable among basins. Low δ15N values in young basins (-1.02‰) suggested fixation as the main source of N, while older basins had higher δ15N, indicating higher denitrification. Bioretention plants were the primary source of soil C; although the occurrence of soil amendment also contributed to the C pool. To improve the performance of these bioretention basins, we recommend increasing vegetation at initial years after construction, and enhancing more frequent anaerobic conditions in the high soil profile. These two conditions can improve denitrification potential, and thus the performance of these basins for improving water quality.