Innovative Green Technologies Research Articles

Effect of welding parameters on mechanical properties of dissimilar Friction Stir Processed AA 8011 and AA 5083-H321 aluminium alloys

The weight reduction and fuel economy are gaining importance in marine, defence and transportation industries to get the quality of the welded joints. The problems in fusion welding of aluminium alloys such as solidification shrinkage, hot cracking and residual stresses which degrade the strength of the welded joints. The innovative green joining technology, friction stir welding (FSW) process was implemented in addition to nanoparticles such as Al2O3 and SiC in similar and dissimilar aluminium alloys. In this work, the study was done on the effects of Friction Stir Processing (FSP) parameters on microhardness and tensile properties of AA5083-H321 and AA8011-H24 dissimilar aluminium alloy joints. The tensile test was conducted to evaluate the tensile properties of the welded joints. The Vickers microhardness test was carried out to examine the quality of the welded joints. It was observed that the similar AA8011 aluminium alloy combination with nanoparticle Al2O3 has maximum tensile properties and microhardness compared to other combination of joints.

Existing situation and prospects of green economy: evidence from Bangladesh

Economy for green is currently becoming a “buzz word” among producers, suppliers and consumers, which is also receiving impetus in Bangladesh. Based on the literature review, a number of theoretical relationships were empirically tested. An investigative query is: to what extent the green economy is flourishing with a via to extend sustainability of the state with competitive advantage? Structured questionnaire was deliberated in order to find the relationships between the demographic variables and the green ecosystem. Time period of the research was October 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018. It was empirically observed that the relationship between the respondents of both genders and usability of green production in the country exists; the connection between business type and sensitivity of any green product is easily obtainable; the linkage between business type and awareness of any green product is accessible in the market; the linkage between type of institution and encouraging goods and services of any “Green Product” in Bangladesh occurs; the relationship between different types of institutes and use of Green Product consumption is applicable in the country. Economy for Green can possibly reduce the magnitude of the worst shock of natural disasters which increasingly occur as regular variation in addition to severe problems on human being and non-human assets. Consumers and producers are essential by conscious of green concept. Green Investment Bank in Bangladesh may be established to accomplish a broad range of economic support for innovative green projects and technologies leading to increasing capacity and sustainable connections.

Food for Hope: The Role of Personal Resources in Farmers’ Adoption of Green Technology

Innovative technologies are expected to play a significant role in climate change mitigation and adaptation within the agriculture sector and in global food security. Clearly, however, the value of technological innovations in the agriculture sector is premised on their adoption. Therefore, understanding why farmers differ in their adoption of innovative green technologies is important. In the following paper, we review current literature and set the theoretical framework for suggesting that three important personal resources correlate with agricultural technology adoption: positive emotions, character strengths (including specific ones), and cognitive goal-oriented hope. This study constitutes an important theoretical basis for future practical recommendations for environmental policy, positive psychology, and innovation adoption that may help narrow some of the gaps in technology adoption rates. In addition to its theoretical innovation, the importance of this study lies in its practical value: we focus on variables that are influenced through policy, education, and communication. The theoretical connections between positive psychology and environmental studies emerging from this study should be developed and explored. We hope that this new perspective will motivate future research on these factors within diverse farming communities across different nations.

Pressurized Liquid Extraction (PLE) as an Innovative Green Technology for the Effective Enrichment of Galician Algae Extracts with High Quality Fatty Acids and Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Properties.

Marine organisms are potentially prolific sources of high qualify fatty acids that represent useful leads in the development of new nutraceutical agents. In this work, we investigated the lipid composition of six algae species from the Northwest of Spain (Ulva intestinalis, Ulva lactuca, Fucus vesiculosus, Dictyota dichotoma, Cystoseira baccata and Himanthalia elongata) and compared the antioxidant and antibacterial activity of ethanolic extracts obtained by pressurized liquid extraction (PLE). Furthermore, Fucus vesiculosus (F. vesiculosus) PLE using five solvents of different polarities (hexane, ethyl acetate, acetone, ethanol and ethanol:water 50:50) at three temperatures (80 °C, 120 °C and 160 °C) was investigated. F. vesiculosus ethanolic PLE extract presents considerably higher capacity of inhibiting 50% of DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl) (IC50 = 7.17 μg/mL) in comparison with the rest of macroalgae studied. Moreover, the potential antimicrobial activity tested on E. coli and S. aureus shows that F. vesiculosus extract produced the best inhibition (IC50 was 2.24 mg/mL (E. coli) and 1.27 mg/mL (S. aureus)). Furthermore, regarding the different solvents and temperatures used to investigate F. vesiculosus PLE, results showed that this technique using ethyl acetate is a selective method to enrich long chain fatty acids (oleic acid, arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid) with ω-6/ω-3 ratios close to 2.7.

Innovative green-technology SMEs as an opportunity to promote financial de-risking

Abstract The authors recommend that the G20 target innovative green-technology SMEs as an opportunity to promote financial de-risking while addressing Paris Agreement commitments and UN Sustainable Development Goals. This should be achieved by creating signals for private investors through: (1) a reporting system that can help monitor the scale-up of green-technology SMEs; (2) the use of public funds to signal innovative green-technology SMEs to investors; and (3) the inclusion of SMEs in the design of green finance platforms. By implementing these recommendations, the G20 will ensure that innovative, low-carbon SMEs become attractive, low(er)-risk investment opportunities for the private sector.

Green extraction approach for the recovery of polyphenols from Croatian olive leaves (Olea europea)

Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) is shown as an innovative green technology for the effective extraction of the various phytochemicals from food by-products, therefore the aims of this study were to evaluate the application of PLE to engineer green extracts of Croatian olive leaves (Olea europaea, cv. Oblica) for potential industrial production (functional foods/pharmaceuticals). PLE was conducted under various cycle numbers (1, 2), temperature (60, 80, 100°C) and static times (5, 10, 15min). Obtained extracts were characterized in terms of: (i) total polyphenols (TP); (ii) total flavonoids (TF); hydroxycinnamic acids (HCA); and (iv) flavonols (FLA). Response surface methodology revealed optimal PLE parameters for polyphenols recovery, observing differences in the extraction conditions (number of cycles, temperature and time) according to the specific polyphenol groups. TP optimal extraction conditions (53.15mg GAE/g) were achieved after PLE (2 cycles, 80°C/5min,) while 1 cycle with 100°C/15min were selected as the optimal PLE conditions for TF recovery (16.51mg QE/g). For HCA, 2 cycle, 91°C/15-min were the conditions with highest yields (1.66mg CA/g); and for FLA extraction under 1 cycle, 87°C/5-min revealed the highest recovery (8.66mg QE/g). Results indicated PLE as a good choice for green recovering polyphenols from the olive leaves.

1180 MPa급 초고장력강판을 이용한 자동차 상부 시트트랙 개발을 위한 해석적 연구

As emission regulation of vehicles is being reinforced globally, the current requirement of the automobile industry are innovative green technologies that reduce the weight of the vehicle, thereby improving fuel consumption and the amount of exhaust gas emission. The application of ultra-high strength steel (UHSS) for vehicles has specifically been studied for light weight of vehicles. UHSS withstands greater loads than a general steel sheet of the same thickness. The spring-back and formability of the UHSS are also worse than general steel sheet due to their high elasticity and high yield strength. Various methods applied for processing UHSS include roll-forming and hot-press forming. However, these processes have not only high installation cost but also low productivity. This study therefore developed the cold-press forming method to overcome these disadvantages. The objective of this study is to determine the optimum conditions of the cold press required to form the upper seat track using UHSS. Forming analysis predicted the spring-back at each stage of the press forming. The prediction of spring-back was compared with the manufactured upper seat track by try-out, thereby reducing trial and error in the pressing process.

Integrating contractor and property developer for product system innovations

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to explain why construction groups facing opportunities for product system innovations, such as green buildings, may choose to integrate construction and property development, taking on facilities management (FM) for a limited period.Design/methodology/approachConceptual analysis based on prior literature and illustrated by a single case of integration.FindingsFor product system innovations, an in-house developer should be more able to reduce uncertainty than independent developers, due to unobservable long-term technological quality for customers, because the property becomes associated with lower risk after having been owned and operated. Alternatives such as building certification systems support incremental innovations, warranties suffer from double moral hazard in the long run and risk allocation in public–private partnership projects often fails to encourage system innovations. Integration allows the contractor to work continuously with innovative projects, developing new capabilities, which allow the firm to signal proficiency to the market, employees and the investment community.Research limitations/implicationsThe phenomenon is new, and further empirical surveys are needed to confirm the hypothetical conclusions drawn here.Practical implicationsThe value of close collaboration between those who develop innovative green building technologies and facilities managers is outlined.Originality/valueThe relation between the scope of corporate activities in construction groups, technological innovations and FM has not been studied before.

The integrative omics of white-rot fungus Pycnoporus coccineus reveals co-regulated CAZymes for orchestrated lignocellulose breakdown.

Innovative green technologies are of importance for converting plant wastes into renewable sources for materials, chemicals and energy. However, recycling agricultural and forestry wastes is a challenge. A solution may be found in the forest. Saprotrophic white-rot fungi are able to convert dead plants into consumable carbon sources. Specialized fungal enzymes can be utilized for breaking down hard plant biopolymers. Thus, understanding the enzymatic machineries of such fungi gives us hints for the efficient decomposition of plant materials. Using the saprotrophic white-rot fungus Pycnoporus coccineus as a fungal model, we examined the dynamics of transcriptomic and secretomic responses to different types of lignocellulosic substrates at two time points. Our integrative omics pipeline (SHIN+GO) enabled us to compress layers of biological information into simple heatmaps, allowing for visual inspection of the data. We identified co-regulated genes with corresponding co-secreted enzymes, and the biological roles were extrapolated with the enriched Carbohydrate-Active Enzyme (CAZymes) and functional annotations. We observed the fungal early responses for the degradation of lignocellulosic substrates including; 1) simultaneous expression of CAZy genes and secretion of the enzymes acting on diverse glycosidic bonds in cellulose, hemicelluloses and their side chains or lignin (i.e. hydrolases, esterases and oxido-reductases); 2) the key role of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMO); 3) the early transcriptional regulation of lignin active peroxidases; 4) the induction of detoxification processes dealing with biomass-derived compounds; and 5) the frequent attachments of the carbohydrate binding module 1 (CBM1) to enzymes from the lignocellulose-responsive genes. Our omics combining methods and related biological findings may contribute to the knowledge of fungal systems biology and facilitate the optimization of fungal enzyme cocktails for various industrial applications.

CO-DESIGN FOR A CIRCULAR APPROACH IN GREEN TECHNOLOGIES: ADAPTATION OF REUSED BUILDING MATERIAL AS GROWING SUBSTRATE FOR SOILLESS CULTIVATION OF LETTUCE (Lactuca sativa var. capitata)

Improving the awareness of the responsibility of our actions is the basis of achieving the ambitious aim of waste management and prevention established by the European Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/CE and the most recent Circular Economy Package. Circular Economy is connected both to improve manufacturing technologies and also educate people towards responsible consumption and waste reduction. Due to its educational and institutional role, universities provide a context to rethink not only at our technological system through the adoption of eco-innovation, but also to reconsider the entire system of our values through the education of the society in many aspects of sustainability. Most sustainability education courses co-generate knowledge in an explorative way through inter- and trans-disciplinary methodologies. A Living-lab of sustainability called Terracini in Transizione is ongoing at the School of Engineering and Architecture of University of Bologna. This Living-lab offers new opportunities and useful feedback to research and teaching, as well as contributing to the engagement of engineering students. As a result of the Living-lab, various experimental green technologies for Urban Resilience have been co-designed by students, researchers and professors. In order to strengthen the sustainability of the proposed solutions, some of them are being constructed using recycled materials. The aim is to close the cycle of utilized materials, and the hereby presented experiment focuses on testing the water and rooting capacity of innovative recycled materials as substrates for edible plants cultivation in innovative green technologies (e.g. soilless cultivation). Tested substrates include a control (mix of perlitevermiculite) and recycled substrates, either made of crushed plasterboard panels, synthetic wadding or panels of rockwool. The present study addresses the definition of the hydraulic properties of the substrates and their effect on the yield of hydroponically grown lettuce (Lactuca sativa).

Green Roofs: Standardization and Quality Control of Processes in Green Construction

The article considers the problems of standardization and quality control of processes in the construction, improvement of integrated safety of buildings and the implementation of innovative green building technologies, the use of national standards as well as international rating systems for green buildings evaluation. This is one of the priority directions in development of the modern construction. The aim of this study is the analysis of the green roof systems and international standards, which were carried out in the green building industry. The authors have studied traditional and innovative solutions of rational using natural resources and energy, the green roof system with integration of supported solar and wind energy collecting and converting devices and of irrigation system. Some studies provide evidence for the benefits of the modular green roof system in urban green space with microclimate differences. This article presents a new research which advances our knowledge of the economic and environmental services provided by the green roof system. Research reported here also considers the analysis of the Russian and international legislation of the quality control of processes in green construction.

Megacities 2050: from Urbanization Threats to Sustainable Urban Development

Urbanization is a global land-use change tendency, responsible for substantial environmental changes. At the same time urban ecosystems are vulnerable to global changes, and their adaptation is necessary to maintain sustainable functionality and important ecosystem services. Sustainable urban development demands for integration of innovative green technologies and natural-based solutions in urban management, which is only possible through a collaboration of scientists, landscape designers, civil engineers and policy-makers.

Extraction of Collagen/Gelatin from the Marine Demosponge Chondrosia reniformis (Nardo, 1847) Using Water Acidified with Carbon Dioxide – Process Optimization

Marine sponges are a rich source of natural bioactive compounds. One of the most abundant valuable products is collagen/gelatin, which presents an interesting alternative source for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. We have previously proposed an innovative green technology for the extraction of collagen/gelatin from marine sponges based in water acidified with carbon dioxide. In this work, we have optimized the process operating conditions toward high yields and collagen quality as well as to reduce extraction procedure duration and energy consumption. The process extraction efficiency is higher than 50%, corresponding to a yield of approximately 10% of the sponge dry mass, obtained for mild operating conditions of 10 bar and 3 h. The extracted material was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), rheology, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), circular dichroism (CD), amino acid analysis, and SDS-PAGE. The extracts were found to be composed of highly pure mixtures of co...

DESIGN OF EXTENSIVE GREEN ROOFS FOR THE MAJOR SCHOOL PLANTS OF PIRAEUS

Despite the increase of global awareness regarding environment related issues and the development of relevant international policies; effective activities to conserve open space remain inconsistent in Mediterranean cities. Additionally as urban areas continue to expand and free space at street level becomes more and more limited there is a greater need for innovative green technologies which could contribute to the creation of sustainable urban ecosystems. Green roofs on buildings have already proved valuable for storm water management, energy conservation, microclimate mitigation, pollution remediation and biodiversity restoration, but their spreading in Mediterranean cities is still very limited. The shallow-substrate extensive type of green roofs is of great interest for massive application, which would lead to great scale positive effects in urban ecosystems. In Greece, in the framework of a relevant initiative called “Green roofs on public buildings”, pilot extensive green roofs for the four major school plants of the city of Piraeus were designed. These green roofs which have a total area of about 0.6 ha are located in highly populated districts with negligible green spaces. This presentation is focusing on the decision making processes during the design and the selection of the growing medium and the planting material. The methods and the parameters of the relevant landscape, bioclimatic, hydrologic, irrigation and drainage studies are also presented. It is expected that the construction of these green roofs will improve the life quality of the school communities and more generally of the citizens of Piraeus.

Modeling of Rice Bran Oil Yield and Bioactive Compounds Obtained Using Subcritical Carbon Dioxide Soxhlet Extraction (SCDS)

Subcritical carbon dioxide Soxhlet extraction (SCDS) is an innovative green technology that has been proven capable of extracting 10 times more bioactive compounds than hexane in rice bran oil extraction. As this technology has commercialization potential, understanding the extraction behavior and modeling the extraction curves are essential. In this study, the extraction kinetics of rice bran oil and its bioactive compounds, namely, α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol; α-, γ-, and δ-tocotrienol; and γ-oryzanol, are discussed and modeled using the diffusion model (DM), logistic model (LM), and simple single plate model (SSPM). Overall, the extraction rate of the oil yield and bioactive compounds was halved after 7 h of extraction. After 15 h of extraction, up to 94.24% of the extractable total tocopherol and 91.79% of the extractable total tocotrienol were extracted. The SSPM is recommended for modeling oil yield and oryzanol, while LM is suitable to model tocopherols and tocotrienols.

Global Competitiveness in the EU Through Green Innovation Technologies and Knowledge Production

In information age,technological innovation rather than investment per se become the main source of increased productivity,the major tool of economic competition in the world market.From the public perspective,government programs can rely on technological innovation in order to increase the quality of goods produced.However this introduces another types of market failure since the distribution of production costs is not efficient.Thus, a public firm may be a useful policy instrument,although with certain limitations.On the other hand;knowledge can be created by individual or group action.Technological knowledge accumulation is commonly accepted as a vital force of economic development. This paper presents a research related to the knowledge production processe as the basic requirements of the green innovation activities especially and the international competitiveness. Quality of products is considered as the best guarantee for long-term competitiveness of firms and countries. Innovations are much more regionally concentrated than other economic activities and they are clustered within certain sectors and locations.The main aim of the work is to draw a picture of the EU countries performances at the sector level in terms of innovative green technology, economic productivity and environmental efficiency. In addition,the paper draws a conclusion that competitiveness factors change according to type of sectors or economic structures of the EU countries. This gives us some clues; why the green innovation and technologies considered as the important stages for the companies that seek to gain international the competitiveness in global markets. Now that EU integration is entering its ultimate economic and monetary union phase, we conclude that EU policy should start to reassess the needs for a green technology policy institutional framework more directly aimed at removing the remaining European barriers to knowledge distribution.Finally,specific sector performances such as innovative, environmental, and economic, are crucial to the future competitiveness and achievement of environmental targets in the EU

Emerging Ultrasound Assisted Extraction (UAE) Techniques as Innovative Green Technologies for the effective extraction of the active phytopharmaceuticals

Emerging Ultrasound Assisted Extraction (UAE) Techniques as Innovative Green Technologies for the effective extraction of the active phytopharmaceuticals

Supercritical Fluid Extraction (SFE) Techniques as an Innovative Green Technologies for the Effective Extraction of the Active Phytopharmaceuticals

The supercritical fluid extraction is a separation method in which separation of chemicals, flavours from the products such as coffee, tea, hops, herbs, and spices which are mixed with supercritical fluid to form a mobile phase. In this process, the mobile phase is subjected to pressures and temperatures near or above the critical point for the purpose of enhancing the mobile phase solvating power. The process begins with CO2 in vapour form. The use of supercritical fluids, especially carbon dioxide, SFE is a simple, inexpensive, fast, effective and virtually solvent-free sample pre treatment technique. SFE is usually performed with pure or modified carbon dioxide, which facilitates off-line collection of extracts and on-line coupling with other analytical methods such as gas, liquid and supercritical fluid chromatography. In this review, we showed that a number of factors influence extraction yields, these being solubility of the solute in the fluid, diffusion through the matrix and collection process. Finally, SFE has been compared with conventional extraction methods in terms of selectivity, rapidity, cleanliness and possibility of manipulating the composition of the extract. The principle of supercritical fliud extraction is the optimization of the solubility of materials to be extracted (lipids, heavy metals, natural products) in supercritical CO2 and the improvement of the fractionation with respect to a particular lipid species, natural products Supercritical fluid extraction facilitates the detachment of the extract from the supercritical fluid solvent by simple expansion.

Emerging Pressurized Liquid Extraction (PLE) Techniques as an Innovative Green Technologies for the Effective Extraction of the Active Phytopharmaceuticals

Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) is a process that pools temperature and pressure with liquid solvents to accomplish rapid and efficient extraction of analytes from several matrices. PLE is a more recent extraction technique proposed to obtain bioactive compounds. It uses less solvent, in a shorter period of time, is automated, and involves retaining the sample in an oxygen and light-free environment in contrast to traditional organic solvent extraction. PLE is based on the use of conventional solvent set controlled temperatures and pressures and has been well established for extraction of valuable compounds from natural sources. A major benefit of PLE above conventional solvent extraction methods conducted at atmospheric pressure is that pressurized solvents remain in the liquid state, even above their normal atmospheric pressure boiling points allowing hightemperature. PLE is used for the extraction of many compounds in vegetal oil as lipids and fatty acids owing to its short time extraction. It also can be used in the extraction of minor components, such as anthocyanins, carotenoids, phenols, sterols, phospholipids, tocopherols, free fatty acids, and glycerides, because these compounds may be degraded during long extractions at higher temperatures. In the present study we have highlighted the recent findings associated with the PLE.

Emerging Microwave Assisted Extraction (MAE) techniques as an innovative green technologies for the effective extraction of the active phytopharmaceuticals

This study investigate the use of ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE), the present work describes the application of ultrasound to improves the extraction efficiency of the classical solvent extraction techniques such as maceration and soxhelt extraction to extract various bioactive compound from natural source like plant and animals. In this review extraction of various compounds i.e.β carotene, flavonoids, anthraquinones, isoflavones, cepharanthine, melanin, ursolic acid, from various plants i.e. morinda citrifolia, mitragyna speciosa, oscimum sanctum, polygonum cuspidatum, auricularia auricula, stephania rotunda lour, iris tectorum maxim, heterophyllaea pustulata hook, hawthorn seed, spirulina platensisand their therapeutic acivities like antiinflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-oxidant, cardioprotective action, immunomodulatory, anti-diabetic, antirheumatic, anti-bacterial, anthelmintic, anti-depressant, hepatoprotective, radioprotective properties was extracted at different temperature 25o, 45o, 90°C, power setting 3, 6, 9 types of solvent used like ethanol methanol, acetone, acetonitrile in different composition and time 15, 30, 45, 60, 90 minute. The effect of various factors such as extraction solvent, solvent concentration, temperature, solvent to solid ratio, ultrasound power, extraction time, and particle size, on the yield of target components were investigated. Under the optimum conditions the extraction process is carried out and the yield obtained with UAE has been compared with batch and soxhelt extraction the result indicated that UAE was an alternative method for extraction. UAE is based upon acoustic cavitation. Cavitation produces physical effects such as liquid circulation currents and turbulence which results in significant increase in the mass transfer rates and thus increased extraction yield. To achieve the same recovery as that achieved by UAE, soxhelt extraction and maceration extraction required much longer time.