Green Path Research Articles

The thorny road towards green path development: the case of bioplastics in Lower Austria

ABSTRACT This article contributes to a better understanding of how heterogeneous innovation system actors shape green industrial path development. Previous research has identified various forces of stability that reside within place-specific and non-local innovation system structures and advanced our understanding of the role of change agency in rearranging these structures to facilitate green transitions. Failures to reconfigure innovation systems have received limited attention so far. Drawing on recent insights into the role of maintenance agency, we cast light on how powerful actors undertake strategic interventions to prevent rearrangements of innovation systems from happening. Our empirical analysis of the emerging bioplastics path in the region of Lower Austria reveals how resistive incumbents from the fossil-based plastics industry, academia and support organisations preserve historically grown system configurations that favour the old unsustainable industry and create barriers to the consolidation of the bioplastics path.

Improved Genetic Algorithm for Solving Green Path Models of Concrete Trucks

In this paper, for the problem of high total fuel consumption of distribution trucks when multiple concrete-mixing plants distribute concrete together, we established a green fuel consumption model for distribution trucks and solved the model with an improved genetic algorithm to obtain a green distribution scheme for trucks. Firstly, the fuel consumption model is established for the characteristics of commercial concrete tankers; secondly, the adaptive elite retention strategy, adaptive crossover, mutation operator, and immune operation are added to the genetic algorithm to improve it; and finally, the model is solved to obtain the green distribution scheme. The total fuel consumption in this experiment was 189.6 L when the green distribution scheme was used; compared to the total fuel consumption under the original scheme (240 L), the total fuel consumption was reduced by 21.25%. The experimental results show that the total fuel consumption of delivery trucks can be significantly reduced based on the established green fuel consumption model, and the improved genetic algorithm can effectively solve the model.

Green Energy Consumption Path Selection and Optimization Algorithms in the Era of Low Carbon and Environmental Protection Digital Trade

In order to better study the chosen path of the consumption model of public green energy and more accurately predict consumers’ green energy consumer behavior, we take new energy vehicles as an example to explore the driving mechanism and internal mechanism of the public green energy consumption model from the perspective of motivation. We propose an ensemble learning model based on a stacking strategy. The model uses XGBoost, random forest and gradient lifting decision trees as primary learners to transform features, and uses logistic regression as a meta-learner to predict users’ consumer behavior. The experimental results show that this feature engineering method can significantly improve the accuracy rate in multiple model algorithms, and the prediction effect of the ensemble learning model is better than that of a single model, with the accuracy rate of 82.81%. In conclusion, the ensemble learning model based on a stacking strategy can effectively predict the public’s consumer behavior. This provides a theoretical basis and policy recommendations for promoting green energy products represented by new energy vehicles, thereby improving the practical path for proposing green energy consumption.

Research on Green Vehicle Path Planning of AGVs with Simultaneous Pickup and Delivery in Intelligent Workshop

In this study, we present and discuss a variant of the classic vehicle routing problem (VRP), the green automated guided vehicle (AGV) routing problem, which involves simultaneous pickup and delivery with time windows (GVRPSPDTW) in an intelligent workshop. The research object is AGV energy consumption. First, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of the mechanical forces present during AGV transportation and evaluate the overall operational efficiency of the workshop. Then, we construct a green vehicle path planning model to minimize the energy consumption during AGV transportation and the standby period. Hence, the problems considered in this study are modeled based on asymmetry, making the problem solving more complex. We also design a hybrid differential evolution algorithm based on large neighborhood search (DE-LNS) to increase the local search ability of the algorithm. To enhance the optimal quality of solutions, we design an adaptive scaling factor and use the squirrel migration operator to optimize the population. Last, extensive computational experiments, which are generated from the VRPSPDTW instances set and a real case of an intelligent workshop, are designed to evaluate and demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed model and algorithm. The experimental results show that DE-LNS yields competitive results, compared to advanced heuristic algorithms. The effectiveness and applicability of the proposed algorithm are verified. Additionally, the proposed model demonstrates significant energy-saving potential in workshop logistics. It can optimize energy consumption by 15.3% compared with the traditional VRPSPDTW model. Consequently, the model proposed in this research carries substantial implications for minimizing total energy consumption costs and exhibits promising prospects for real-world application in intelligent workshops.

Geographies of green industries: The interplay of firms, technologies, and the environment

The emergence of green industries has been considered from multiple social science perspectives. Economic geographers view green industries as unevenly distributed firms forging green development paths. Sustainability transitions scholars view green industries as niche sectors struggling to mainstream green technologies in existing socio-technical systems. Political ecologists view green industries as metabolic actors whose development shapes and is shaped by the environment. Conceptualizing green industries as the interplay of green firms, socio-technical systems and the environment, this article proposes an integrative framework that synthesizes the three aforementioned perspectives for a research agenda of the geographies of green industries.

Digital Media and Green Development Path in Asia: Does Digital Financial Inclusion Matter?

We are entering a new epoch characterized by pervasive digitization, where a significant proportion of our daily activities rely on advanced digital and informational technology. Consequently, this study intends to scrutinize the repercussions of digital media and digital financial inclusion on environmentally sustainable growth across 38 selected economies. The research incorporates four distinct empirical analysis techniques: two-stage least squares (2SLS) and the generalized method of moments (GMM). The assessment reveals a meaningful and positive association between digital financial inclusion and green growth per the 2SLS and GMM methodologies. This affirms the notion that digital financial aid fosters ecological sustainability. Conversely, the metrics linked with information and communication technology (ICT) have shown positive significance across all four utilized estimation models. This suggests that an increase in ICT utilization can play a vital role in advancing green growth. In the same vein, the estimated coefficients of research and development initiatives and renewable energy consumption have demonstrated positive significance across all four models. Furthermore, the metrics associated with trade openness have exhibited a positive significance in both the 2SLS and GMM models. Meanwhile, the metric linked with education has displayed a positive significance solely with the GMM technique. Upon evaluation, it can be concluded that digital media, the consumption of renewable energy, and research and development endeavors are principal contributors to green growth.

The Financing Principles of High Carbon Enterprises Green Development Based on Double Carbon Target in China—Take MYSE as an Example

The “double carbon target” puts forward new requirements for China’s energy structure adjustment. As a leader in offshore wind power equipment, MYSE is an active practitioner of the concept of “carbon neutrality”. The company has established a green growth path and is actively experimenting with various green financial instruments to meet its rapidly growing capital needs. This paper describes in detail the “double carbon goal” to promote the intelligent green development of MYSE, as well as the diversified financing strategy based on green development. Taking the company’s experience of issuing green notes, green bonds, listing on London Stock Exchange and obtaining the “Green economy mark” as examples, this paper analyzes the conditions and strategies of green financing for high-carbon enterprises, and deeply understands the mutual support and promotion relationship between green development and green finance of companies. Deeply understand the positive significance of innovative financing channels and the use of green financing tools for the company’s green development, and provide reference and inspiration for local high-carbon enterprises to actively use green financing tools.

Z-factor of the climate crisis

The world faces twin problems of climate crisis and injustice. Countries in the global North have far exceeded their fair share in the global carbon budget, while countries in the South are well below their fair share. A simple solution would be for the North to absorb its excess emissions through net-negative emissions, which we call Z-factor. However, given the current technology, this is not possible. If the South bears the burden of adjustment by absorbing the excess emissions, it will perpetuate injustice. But if the South gets a right to burn its fair share, it would undermine the fight against the climate crisis. We argue that addressing these two issues is not mutually exclusive. If the North funds both the green path of declining emissions and the carbon removal process in the South while achieving decarbonization at the earliest, we can reach global net zero (GNZ) ahead of the current nationally determined commitments (NDCs). Nations that have exceeded their fair share will pay for their own and surplus nations’ (mostly in the South) decarbonization based on both current stock and prospective flows of overshoots. Deficit countries (in terms of carbon budget) cannot move into surplus, but high flows in the surplus camp may flip to the deficit side. After this flip, they too must start paying for their deficits, ensuring justice in a dynamic sense. There should be a base price for the accumulated Z-factor deficit nations pay, but it can be staggered over the decarbonization period. Future overshoot emissions should have a gradually increasing price to force decarbonization and limit the climate crisis. To make this work, we need an international carbon fund (ICF) to act as an arbiter and have the final say. Leaving this job to the markets is too risky.

Deadlock in transition to a net-zero socially robust knowledge

Although Taiwan proposed 2020 to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, it has encountered difficulties making this transition. This research argues that climate issues involve epistemic politics and competition and those different discourses require the construction of socially robust knowledge (SRK) in reflexive, contextual confrontation, and competition. A society with strong SRK can lead the country’s net-zero carbon emissions decision, system, and transformation. This article analyses the types of environmental movements and the strength of their production of SRK with two cases that discusses the current lag of net-zero transition.The study found that the elements of successful transition include the same object of resistance, based on rational risk knowledge debate, and multi-level social mobilisation, which constitutes a strong SRK. A solid SRK package successfully reframes the development thinking of Taiwanese society. The net-zero movement needs a transparent object of resistance; environmental groups need to familiarise themselves with the issue of climate warming, resulting in a gap in appeals, mobilisation strategies, stages, and dominance. Although the latter still presents a certain degree of SRK and constitutes a policy of confrontation or competition with the government, the issues of appeal are pretty diverse, showing scattered initiatives. Folk-focused issues and discourses cannot build a strong agora, thus failing to reframe the social development framework and create more elements or opportunities for social transformation to a green path; as a result, Taiwan’s sluggish climate governance and net-zero transition have encountered dilemmas both at home and abroad.

Sustainable Biodiesel Production from Waste Cooking Oil: A Green Path from Grease to Fuel

Sustainable Biodiesel Production from Waste Cooking Oil: A Green Path from Grease to Fuel

Preparation and Characterization of Bio-Based PLA/PEG/g-C3N4 Low-Temperature Composite Phase Change Energy Storage Materials.

As energy and environmental issues become more prominent, people must find sustainable, green development paths. Bio-based polymeric phase change energy storage materials provide solutions to cope with these problems. Therefore, in this paper, a fully degradable polyethylene glycol (PEG20000)/polylactic acid (PLA)/g-C3N4 composite phase change energy storage material (CPCM) was obtained by confinement. The CPCM was characterized by FTIR and SEM for compatibility, XRD and nanoindentation for mechanical properties and DSC, LFA, and TG for thermal properties. The results showed that the CPCM was physical co-mingling; when PLA: PEG: g-C3N4 was 6:3:1, the consistency was good. PEG destroys the crystallization of PLA and causes the hardness to decrease. When PLA: PEG: g-C3N4 was 6: 3: 1, it had a maximum hardness of 0.137 GPa. The CPCM had a high latent enthalpy, and endothermic and exothermic enthalpies of 106.1 kJ/kg and 80.05 kJ/kg for the PLA: PEG: g-C3N4 of 3: 6: 1. The CPCM showed an increased thermal conductivity compared to PLA, reaching 0.30 W/(m·K),0.32 W/(m·K) when PLA: PEG: g-C3N4 was 6: 3: 1 and when PLA: PEG: g-C3N4 was 3: 6: 1, respectively. Additionally, the CPCM was stable within 250 °C, indicating a wide appliable temperature range. The CPCM can be applied to solar thermal power generation, transportation, and building construction.

Study on the Efficiency Assessment of Green Economy Development and Carbon Emission Reduction Paths in the Yangtze River Delta Region under the "Double Carbon" Target

In the context of upgrading the "double carbon" target to a long-term national strategy, the development of a green economy is an inevitable trend for high-quality social development. As the Yangtze River Delta occupies an important position in China's economic and ecological development, assessing the efficiency of green economy development and optimizing carbon emission pathways in this region can not only promote the development of the region but also serve as a model to promote the high-quality economic development and ecological civilization construction of the whole country. Based on the above background, this project takes the green economy of each prefecture-level city in the Yangtze River Delta region as the research object takes the relationship between carbon emissions and economic growth, the assessment of green economy development efficiency and carbon emission management as the research perspective, relies on theories of sustainable development, low-carbon economy, and externality, and draws on the practice of green economy development in foreign countries, to achieve the emission reduction commitments set by the Chinese government, mitigate global The study will provide reasonable and efficient policy recommendations for achieving the Chinese government's stated commitments to reduce emissions, mitigate global climate change, and achieve high-quality economic development and the 2035 vision.

Simultaneous achievement of efficient hemicellulose separation and inhibition of lignin repolymerization using pyruvic acid treatment

The efficiency of organic acid treatment in the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass fractions has been widely recognized. In this study, a novel green pyruvic acid (PA) treatment is proposed. The higher separation efficiency of eucalyptus hemicellulose was obtained at 4.0% PA and 150 °C. The hemicellulose separation yield was increased from 71.71 to 88.09% compared to glycolic acid (GA) treatment. In addition, the treatment time was significantly reduced from 180 to 40 min. The proportion of cellulose in the solid increased after PA treatment. However, the accompanying separation of lignin was not effectively controlled. Fortunately, a six-membered ring structure was formed on the diol structure of the lignin β-O-4 side chain. Fewer lignin-condensed structures were observed. High-value lignin rich in phenol hydroxyl groups were obtained. It provides a green path for the simultaneous achievement of efficient hemicellulose separation and inhibition of lignin repolymerization using organic acid treatment.

Can Ecological Governance Policies Promote High-Quality Economic Growth? Evidence from a Quasi-Natural Experiment in China

The implementation plan of the National Ecological Civilization Pilot Zone (Jiangxi) is an experimental policy aimed at exploring the path of ecological value realization, optimizing industrial structure, and ultimately promoting the green economic development of cities in ecologically distressed areas based on good ecological protection and construction. Its policy objectives are as follows: (1) provide policy references for the development of other ecologically distressed areas in other Chinese territories, and (2) achieve a win–win situation for both ecological improvement and economic development and promote the harmonious development of humans and nature. This study considers China’s ecological governance pilot policy as a “quasi-natural experiment” based on a panel of 81 Chinese cities in Jiangxi Province, China, from 2014 to 2020. A DID model is constructed to study the impact of China’s ecological governance policies on the quality development of Chinese cities in four dimensions: economic development, economic structure, ecological environment, and the disposable income of residents. The following impacts are observed: (1) Ecological governance policies have insignificant effects on GDP promotion, and the above findings still hold after a series of robustness tests, such as the parallel trend test and PSM-DID and placebo tests. (2) Ecological governance policies can significantly improve the rationalization of the economic structure, promote the improvement of ecological environments, and increase the disposable income of residents in the pilot cities. (3) Due to the strong control of local governments over regional economies in China, the stronger the government intervention in the economy, the greater its effect on policy inhibition. (4) The economic structure of ecologically distressed regions is relatively homogeneous, and the primary industry makes up a high proportion of agricultural production. Since China abolished agricultural taxes in 2006, local governments are unable to obtain government tax revenues from agricultural production. The ecological management policy can not only protect land fertility but also reduce the over-exploitation of land resources. It can indirectly increase the scale of agricultural production per unit of land (i.e., the same land resources can create more output value), prompt the transfer of agricultural labor to secondary and tertiary industries, and promote the development of secondary and tertiary industries, which in turn improves the source of local government tax revenue. Moreover, the increase in government tax revenue can increase investment in ecological environments. This in turn increases the tax revenue of local governments, and the increase in government tax revenue can increase investments in ecological and environmental management; this eventually results in a green and high-quality development path with respect to the positive cycle of ecological protection and economic development. Therefore, the scale of agricultural production per unit of land and government tax revenue are important mediating variables for ecological environment improvements, and the mediating effect is obvious.

Study on Multi-Objective Optimization of Logistics Distribution Paths in Smart Manufacturing Workshops Based on Time Tolerance and Low Carbon Emissions

In the Industry 4.0 environment, an ideal smart factory should be intelligent, green, and humanized, and the logistics transportation from raw materials to final products in the factory should be completed by smart logistics. In order to address the problems of low efficiency, poor workstation service satisfaction, high distribution costs, and non-greening during the logistics distribution processes in discrete smart manufacturing workshops are required. A mathematical model of optimized multi-objective green logistics distribution paths in a smart manufacturing workshop has been constructed in this study, with low costs, high efficiency, and workstation service satisfaction taken into consideration. Then, this mathematical model was solved with an improved ant colony optimization algorithm. A “time window span” was introduced in the basic ant colony optimization algorithm to prioritize the services to workstations with a relatively high urgency in material demand, with the aim of improving workstation service satisfaction. Lastly, in order to verify the effectiveness of the model and algorithm proposed in this study, a simulation experiment has been conducted on the workstation logistics distribution system in a smart manufacturing workshop to provide convincing evidence for optimizing workstation logistics distribution paths in workshops of discrete manufacturing enterprises.

Research on Green and Low-Carbon Development Path of the Electric Power Industry

In the analogy where achieving the “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality” goals (the “dual carbon” goals) is compared to a battle, energy is the main battlefield, and electric power the main force. The low-carbon transformation path of the electric power industry exerts fundamental impact on progress towards carbon peaking and carbon neutrality of the whole society. Therefore, this paper first analyzes challenges and opportunities faced by the electric power industry to achieve the “dual carbon” goals; secondly, on the basis of deep low-carbon, zero-carbon and negative-carbon scenarios of the electric power industry, this paper quantifies and delves into the consumption structure of primary energy and final energy, as well as the future development positioning and trend of different categories of energy. Based on the research results, this paper proposes low-carbon transformation path of the electric power system at the stages of carbon peaking, deep low-carbon and carbon neutrality, and analyzes the trend of power supply cost changes in different scenarios. On this basis, a series of implementation key points and measures are proposed to adapt to green and low-carbon transformation of the electric power industry, covering areas such as coal-fired electric power development positioning, new energy development and utilization, diversified supply and demand, new energy industry chain, and power supply costs, and so forth.

Sustainable Development of Lithium-Based New Energy in China from an Industry Chain Perspective: Risk Analysis and Policy Implications

Lithium-based new energy is identified as a strategic emerging industry in many countries like China. The development of lithium-based new energy industries will play a crucial role in global clean energy transitions towards carbon neutrality. This paper establishes a multi-dimensional, multi-perspective, and achievable analysis framework to conduct a system analysis for determining the potential risks involved in the sustainable development of lithium-based new energy industries in China and other countries towards a carbon-neutral future. The results show that critical risk points including resource supply risks, overcapacity risks, environmental impact risks, and regulation absence risks have emerged with the large-scale development of the lithium-based new energy industry in China. These will not be helpful for the sustainable development of the lithium-based new energy industry, which will play a vital role in attaining the goal of carbon neutrality. Based on our risk identification, a policy implication analysis was performed to investigate potential policy countermeasures including promoting the exploration and development of domestic lithium resources, improving the coordination degree of the lithium-based new energy industry, adopting green and low-carbon development paths, and improving the quality of industry regulation. Based on our findings, recommendations are proposed to optimize policy formulation and implementation for stimulating the sustainable development of the lithium-based new energy industry towards a carbon-neutral future.

Predicting the Effects of Future Climate Change on the Potential Distribution of Eolagurus luteus in Xinjiang

Eolagurus luteus (yellow steppe lemming Eolagurus luteus Eversmann, 1840) is a keystone species in the desert steppe of northern Xinjiang, one of the regions most affected by global climate change. Their behavior of eating grassland vegetation and digging holes has resulted in the reduction of grassland vegetation and soil erosion in northern Xinjiang, which has seriously affected the ecological balance of the grassland in northern Xinjiang, and pathogens carried by E. luteus pose a great threat to human health. Climate change exacerbates the uncertainty of the outbreak of E. luteus. Predicting the suitable habitat area of this species under climate change scenarios will help farmers and herders deal with the potential threat of an E. luteus outbreak. In this study, 117 actual occurrence points of E. luteus were used, and 24 climate models, 6 soil factors and 3 topographic factors from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) were taken into account. Combining the MaxEnt model and the overlay analysis function of ArcGIS software, the potential geographic distribution of E. luteus in 2030 and 2050 for the green development path (SSP126), the intermediate development path (SSP245), the regional competition path (SSP370), and the high development path (SSP585) was predicted. The change trend of the suitable area and distribution pattern of E. luteus in Xinjiang under future climate conditions was analyzed, and the main environmental factors affecting the distribution of E. luteus are discussed. The results show that the average area under curve (AUC) and true skill statistics (TSS) of the MaxEnt model are 0.993 and 0.8816, respectively, indicating that the model has a good prediction effect. The analysis of environmental factors showed that the main environmental factors affecting the potential geographical distribution of E. luteus are average annual temperature, isotherm, average temperature in the wettest quarter, average temperature in the driest quarter, and precipitation variation coefficient. With the increase of radiation intensity and time, the suitable areas of E. luteus will continue to decrease. Especially in the 2050s under the SSP585 scenario, the middle and high suitable areas will decrease by 2.58 × 104 km2 and 1.52 × 104 km2, respectively. Although the potential habitat area of E. luteus is shrinking, the future threat of E. luteus to grassland ecological security and human health should not be underestimated due to ecological adaptation of the community and the frequent occurrence of extreme weather. Therefore, studying changes in the potential geographic distribution of E. luteus under climate change scenarios and developing appropriate monitoring programs are of great importance for grassland ecological security and human health. This study fills in the gaps in the study of the potential geographical distribution of E. luteus and provides methodological and literature support for the study of the potential geographical distribution of other rodents.

Efficient Photo-Oxidation Leaching of Ni and Co in a Spent Lithium-Ion Battery Cathode by Homogeneous UV/H2O2

Existing lithium-ion battery (LIB) leaching and recycling techniques have been widely applied in industrial production despite problems, such as difficult operation, high cost, and heavy pollution. Herein, we propose a novel photochemical oxidation method to leach Co and Ni ions in spent LIB cathodes, achieving leaching efficiencies of 99.73 and 97.54% when irradiated with hydrogen peroxide as the oxidant in acetonitrile and dichloromethane as the solvent under UV light for 4 h. The oxidation mechanism of the reaction was investigated by a series of tests. Three free radical oxidation pathways that functioned together with the reaction mechanism were proposed. This study is the first to combine the UV/H2O2 photo-oxidation reaction with spent LIB recycling to achieve a universal, green, and simple operation path for metal recycling field in the future.

Marketing Strategy and "Green Path" of Honda

Honda is a multinational company mainly engaged in manufacturing and selling cars, motorcycles, and electric vehicles. It was created in 1948 by Japanese Soichiro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa. The company has grown to become the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer and one of the largest automakers, operating in more than 150 countries. Honda is known for its innovative and quality products, including the popular Civic and Accord cars and the Gold Wing motorcycle. The company is also a pioneer in the development of hybrid and fuel cell vehicles, and its Insight and Clarity models are leaders in environmentally friendly transportation. In addition to its automobile and motorcycle business, Honda manufactures a variety of electrical equipment, including lawn mowers, lawn mowers, and snow throwers. Working to reduce its environmental impact through initiatives such as energy efficiency and waste reduction programs, the company's commitment to sustainability continues from its products to its activities. Overall, Honda is a company that strives to provide its customers with reliable, innovative and environmentally friendly products. Its dedication to quality and safety has helped it become a trusted and respected brand worldwide.