Resource Recycling Research Articles

Unveiling just-in-time decision support system using social media analytics: a case study on reverse logistics resource recycling

PurposeIn recent times, the field of corporate intelligence has gained substantial prominence, employing advanced data analysis techniques to yield pivotal insights for instantaneous strategic and tactical decision-making. Expanding beyond rudimentary post observation and analysis, social media analytics unfolds a comprehensive exploration of diverse data streams encompassing social media platforms and blogs, thereby facilitating an all-encompassing understanding of the dynamic social customer landscape. During an extensive evaluation of social media presence, various indicators such as popularity, impressions, user engagement, content flow, and brand references undergo meticulous scrutiny. Invaluable intelligence lies within user-generated data stemming from social media platforms, encompassing valuable customer perspectives, feedback, and recommendations that have the potential to revolutionize numerous operational facets, including supply chain management. Despite its intrinsic worth, the actual business value of social media data is frequently overshadowed due to the pervasive abundance of content saturating the digital realm. In response to this concern, the present study introduces a cutting-edge system known as the Enterprise Just-in-time Decision Support System (EJDSS).Design/methodology/approachLeveraging deep learning techniques and advanced analytics of social media data, the EJDSS aims to propel business operations forward. Specifically tailored to the domain of marketing, the framework delineates a practical methodology for extracting invaluable insights from the vast expanse of social data. This scholarly work offers a comprehensive overview of fundamental principles, pertinent challenges, functional aspects, and significant advancements in the realm of extensive social data analysis. Moreover, it presents compelling real-world scenarios that vividly illustrate the tangible advantages companies stand to gain by incorporating social data analytics into their decision-making processes and capitalizing on emerging investment prospects.FindingsTo substantiate the efficacy of the EJDSS, a detailed case study centered around reverse logistics resource recycling is presented, accompanied by experimental findings that underscore the system’s exceptional performance. The study showcases remarkable precision, robustness, F1 score, and variance statistics, attaining impressive figures of 83.62%, 78.44%, 83.67%, and 3.79%, respectively.Originality/valueThis scholarly work offers a comprehensive overview of fundamental principles, pertinent challenges, functional aspects, and significant advancements in the realm of extensive social data analysis. Moreover, it presents compelling real-world scenarios that vividly illustrate the tangible advantages companies stand to gain by incorporating social data analytics into their decision-making processes and capitalizing on emerging investment prospects.

Impact of Astragalus Root Residue on Growth Performance, Immunity and Antioxidant Capacity of Fattening Pigs

Astragalus membranaceus is a widely used Chinese medicine. To investigate the effect of Astragalus residue as a feed additive on growth performance, immune performance, and antioxidant capacity of growth finishing pigs, the daily gain, daily feed intake, immune performance, and antioxidant capacity of the experimental group and control group were measured. The results showed that the growth performance, immune performance, and antioxidant capacity of fattening pigs were improved by Astragalus residue, which indicated that Astragalus residue, as a feed additive, was safe and harmless, not only played a pharmacological role but also realized the recycling of resources, which was worthy of further study and popularization. Res. Agric. Livest. Fish. Vol. 11, No. 1, April 2024: 11-17

Chinese architecture inspired smart roof tile integrating radiation cooling, water harvesting, and energy recycling

The development of new materials for resource and energy recycling has emerged as a primary focus in addressing global energy and environmental sustainability challenges. Inspired by traditional Chinese architecture, a smart roof tile (SRT) is scientifically designed, which incorporates hierarchical micro-nanostructured polyethylene/silica/barium sulfate composites (IH-PSB), semiconductor power generation modules, and LED chips. Leveraging the combined effects of surface and interface functionalities, the IH-PSB demonstrates exceptional sub-ambient cooling capabilities, resulting in its surface and bottom temperature being 5.4 °C and 12.1 °C lower than the ambient temperature, respectively. Additionally, the precisely controlled heterogeneous wettability, with a contact angle of approximately 151° and a roll-off angle of around 32°, allows the IH-PSB to efficiently condense moisture and transport droplets. Benefiting from the excellent radiation cooling performance and precisely controlled heterogeneous wettability, the IH-PSB exhibits remarkable passive sub-dewpoint cooling efficiency coupled with efficient water harvesting performance. During a one-month outdoor experiment, the IH-PSB operated stably and continuously without any electrical input, maintaining a mass flux ranging from ∼23.2–50.0 g m−2 h−1. Interestingly, the SRT system efficiently harnesses waste heat generated by the LEDs while simultaneously regulating their temperature effectively. The development and utilization of the SRT offer a sustainable, energy-efficient, and forward-thinking solution that addresses global water scarcity and energy crises.

Enhanced Nitrate Nitrogen Removal from Wastewater Using Modified Reed Straw: Adsorption Performance and Resource Utilization

This paper presents a study on the efficient removal of nitrate nitrogen from wastewater using modified reed straw (MRS) and its subsequent resource utilization. The modification of the reed straw involved the introduction of branching quaternary amine groups to enhance its adsorption capacity for nitrate nitrogen. Experimental investigations were conducted to analyze the impact of packing height, flow rate, and initial solution concentration on the dynamic adsorption performance of the MRS. The results revealed that the maximum dynamic adsorption capacity of the MRS for nitrate nitrogen reached 14.76 mg/g. Furthermore, valuable nitrate nitrogen nutrient solution was successfully recovered through subsequent desorption experiments for resource recycling. Moreover, the application of the MRS led to notable enhancements in column height, fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and nitrogen content of the treated plants, indicating its efficacy in promoting plant growth. Overall, the findings demonstrate that MRS serves as a versatile adsorbent capable of efficient nitrate nitrogen removal and subsequent resource utilization.

How Indonesia’s Cities Are Grappling with Plastic Waste: An Integrated Approach towards Sustainable Plastic Waste Management

In Indonesia, plastic constitutes the second largest component of municipal solid waste; however, 58% remains uncollected. Most plastic recycling depends on informal sectors, accounting for only 10% of the total, leaving the remainder to potentially harm the environment. This paper analyzes how cities in Indonesia have tackled their plastic waste problems from the perspective of the integrated sustainable waste management framework. This study focuses on plastic waste management (PWM) in three cities: Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Magelang. Data were collected from 41 semi-structured interviews, a plastic waste composition data analysis, and site visits. The research outcomes include a comprehensive analysis of stakeholder roles, plastic waste flow, plastic waste composition data, and various challenges in PWM. This study identifies three main stakeholders in collecting plastic wastes: the Department of Environment as the main local government body, community-based waste banks, and private waste management companies. Most recyclable plastic waste is recovered through waste banks and private collection services. In 2022, the predominant types of plastic waste in Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Magelang City were soft plastics, thick plastics, and hard plastics, respectively. The challenges for the PWM stem from various aspects in political, legal, and institutional; environmental; financial and technical; and socio-cultural spheres. Positive trends towards an integrated system are observed, although full integration has not yet been achieved. The research recommends a multi-stakeholder cooperative approach involving municipal authorities, waste banks, and private collectors, responsive to local conditions and emphasizing sustainability aspects throughout waste management stages for a sustainable resource recycling in developing countries.

Agro-industrial waste management employing benefits of artificial intelligence.

By 2050, the world's population is predicted to reach over 9 billion, which requires 70% increased production in agriculture and food industries to meet demand. This presents a significant challenge for the agri-food sector in all aspects. Agro-industrial wastes are rich in bioactive substances and other medicinal properties. They can be used as a different source for manufacturing products like biogas, biofuels, mushrooms, and tempeh, the primary ingredients in various studies and businesses. Increased importance is placed on resource recovery, recycling, and reusing (RRR) any waste using advanced technology like IoT and artificial intelligence. AI algorithms offer alternate, creative methods for managing agro-industrial waste management (AIWM). There are contradictions and a need to understand how AI technologies work regarding their application to AIWM. This research studies the application of AI-based technology for the various areas of AIWM. The current work aims to discover AI-based models for forecasting the generation and recycling of AIWM waste. Research shows that agro-industrial waste generation has increased worldwide. Infrastructure needs to be upgraded and improved by adapting AI technology to maintain a balance between socioeconomic structures. The study focused on AI's social and economic impacts and the benefits, challenges, and future work in AIWM. The present research will increase recycling and reproduction with a balance of cost, efficiency, and human resources consumption in agro-industrial waste management.

Reveal dynamic flows of regional e-waste: Evidence from a field research

Electronic waste (e-waste) has increased because of the rapid replacement of electrical and electronic equipment. Owing to the increased emphasis on the dual properties of environmental contamination and metal resources, accurate identification of the e-waste recycling process is crucial. In this study, a product-level material flow analysis (MFA) is performed from a macroscopic social flow of waste TV sets in order to demonstrate the material metabolism of regional e-waste recycling. Previous studies have focused on the estimation of the quantity of e-waste generated or analyzing the overall amount of recycled resource output, the results derived from the estimation may have some unreliability, and our bottom-up research investigates the material flows that occur between the generation, collection and recycling of e-waste. MFA based on questionnaires and field research present accurate quantities and proportions of the recycling process. The results reveal that accelerating the construction of regional e-waste recycling systems and data networks and accurately identifying e-waste source, flow, and destination are required in order to improve resource efficiency toward carbon neutrality.

Treatment of waste marine clay by alkaline-activated ground granulated blast-furnace slag and municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash

The construction of coastal areas generates a substantial volume of waste marine clay (WMC), which poses environmental and safety challenges during the stockpiling process. The improved preparation of WMC as roadbed materials emerges as a crucial pathway for resource utilization. However, the engineering performance and durability of roadbed materials prepared from WMC have always been a concern for scholars and engineers. This study employs alkali-activated ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBFS) and municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash (MSWIBA) to solidify WMC for preparation of the roadbed materials. The results showed that the combined utilization of alkali-activated GGBFS and MSWIBA to improve WMC can meet the environmental and mechanical requirements of roadbed materials. The incorporation of 5-20% MSWIBA could improve the water stability coefficient and California bearing ratio to more than 85% and 80%, respectively. The durability of roadbed material was significantly improved by addition of MSWIBA. After 12 dry–wet cycles, the strength of the material without MSWIBA and with 5% MSWIBA was 0 and 2.87 MPa, respectively. Following analysis of engineering properties and durability, the optimal dosage of MSWIBA was determined to be 5%. The enhanced durability can be attributed to the optimization of material gradation and pore structure achieved through the incorporation of a small quantity of MSWIBA. The carbon emission and normalized global warming potentials of roadbed material treated by MSWIBA and GGBFS were much lower than that of cementitious binders such as ordinary Portland cement. These findings indicate that MSWIBA has the potential to substitute natural aggregates like sand and gravel, effectively improving the durability of roadbed materials and promoting the safe and efficient recycling of solid waste resources.

Investigation into the Methodology and Implementation of Life Cycle Engineering under China's Carbon Reduction Target in the Process Industry

The industrial sector is the primary source of carbon emissions in China. In pursuit of meeting its carbon reduction targets, China aims to promote resource consumption sustainability, reduce energy consumption, and achieve carbon neutrality within its processing industries. An effective strategy to promote energy savings and carbon reduction throughout the life cycle of materials is by applying life cycle engineering technology. This strategy aims to attain an optimal solution for material performance, resource consumption, and environmental impact. In this study, five types of technologies were considered: raw material replacement, process reengineering, fuel replacement, energy recycling and reutilization, and material recycling and reutilization. The meaning, methodology, and development status of life cycle engineering technology abroad and domestically are discussed in detail. A multidimensional analysis of ecological design was conducted from the perspectives of resource and energy consumption, carbon emissions, product performance, and recycling of secondary resources in a manufacturing process. This coupled with an integrated method to analyze carbon emissions in the entire life cycle of a material process industry was applied to the nonferrous industry, as an example. The results provide effective ideas and solutions for achieving low or zero carbon emission production in the Chinese industry as recycled aluminum and primary aluminum based on advanced technologies had reduced resource consumption and emissions as compared to primary aluminum production.

WaveSegNet: An Efficient Method for Scrap Steel Segmentation Utilizing Wavelet Transform and Multiscale Focusing

Scrap steel represents a sustainable and recyclable resource, instrumental in diminishing carbon footprints and facilitating the eco-friendly evolution of the steel sector. However, current scrap steel recycling faces a series of challenges, such as high labor intensity and occupational risks for inspectors, complex and diverse sources of scrap steel, varying types of materials, and difficulties in quantifying and standardizing manual visual inspection and rating. Specifically, we propose WaveSegNet, which is based on wavelet transform and a multiscale focusing structure for scrap steel segmentation. Firstly, we utilize wavelet transform to process images and extract features at different frequencies to capture details and structural information in the images. Secondly, we introduce a mechanism of multiscale focusing to further enhance the accuracy of segmentation by extracting and perceiving features at different scales. Through experiments conducted on the public Cityscapes dataset and scrap steel datasets, we have found that WaveSegNet consistently demonstrates superior performance, achieving the highest scores on the mIoU metric. Particularly notable is its performance on the real-world scrap steel dataset, where it outperforms other segmentation algorithms with an average increase of 3.98% in mIoU(SS), reaching 69.8%, and a significant boost of nearly 5.98% in mIoU(MS), achieving 74.8%. These results underscore WaveSegNet’s exceptional capabilities in processing scrap steel images. Additionally, on the publicly available Cityscapes dataset, WaveSegNet shows notable performance enhancements compared with the next best model, Segformer. Moreover, with its modest parameters and computational demands (34.1 M and 322 GFLOPs), WaveSegNet proves to be an ideal choice for resource-constrained environments, demonstrating high computational efficiency and broad applicability. These experimental results attest to the immense potential of WaveSegNet in intelligent scrap steel rating and provide a new solution for the scrap steel recycling industry. These experimental results attest to the immense potential of WaveSegNet in intelligent scrap steel rating and provide a new solution for the scrap steel recycling industry.

The Application of Microbially Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation (MICP) Technology in Building Materials and its Contribution to Waste Resource Utilization

Abstract: In many countries around the world, waste generation has become an increasingly pressing issue, particularly in urban areas experiencing rapid population growth and industrialization. The volume of waste produced by human activities continues to rise, posing significant challenges to the environment, economy, and public health. Improper waste management can lead to air and water pollution, soil degradation, and the spread of diseases. Additionally, waste generation consumes substantial natural resources and energy, exacerbating resource depletion and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.To address these challenges, sustainable waste management practices are essential to reduce waste generation and promote resource recovery and recycling. In this context, the development of innovative technologies, such as Microbially Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation (MICP) in building materials, offers an effective means of converting waste into valuable and sustainable applications. MICP is an environmentally friendly biogeochemical technique that employs microorganisms and chemical agents in biological processes to produce carbonate minerals, providing an energy-efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable solution to environmental and engineering challenges.Recent research indicates that waste streams can substitute for several MICP chemical components in microbial and cementitious agent growth media. MICP technology has been found not only to be effective in handling hazardous waste streams but also to be a cost-effective and sustainable solution applicable to various waste media. This comprehensive review aims to provide insights into the environmental advantages and engineering applications of MICP technology, with a particular focus on the potential contributions of waste streams. It also offers guidance for researchers on identifying and overcoming challenges associated with using waste streams for MICP technology applications.

Investigate the mechanical behavior of alkali-activated slag mortar using sustainable waste sodium silicate-bonded sand as an alkali activator and carbon free aggregate

Various products generate different types of industrial by-products based on their production characteristics and procedures. Therefore, an accurate classification of these characteristics would contribute significantly to achieving the goals of resource recycling and environmental protection. This study focused on Waste Alkali-Activated Slag Mortar (W-AASM). In the past, inorganic aggregation technology was successfully adopted to replace conventional concrete binding materials and reduce cement usage. Besides utilizing inorganic aggregation technology, the study has introduced a novel industrial by-product known as Waste Sodium Silicate-Bonded Sand (WSSS). WSSS not only serves as a substitute for sodium silicate in alkali-activated agents but also acts as a complete replacement for fine aggregates in mortar. The experimental findings showed that, in addition to fulfilling the original strength requirements of concrete, it results in a significant reduction in cement consumption, minimizing the extraction of natural resources, and decreasing the overall cost of Alkali-activated concrete production. The study highlighted the advantage of WSSS and showed a new dimension of waste foundry sand application in the concrete industry. This method leads to the recycling of waste materials and their optimal use, and as a result, leads to a sustainable ecosystem. The results of this study can be applied to secondary structures in civil engineering and construction projects in the future, such as precast concrete products, concrete pavements, or roads.

Water Footprint Flow and Vulnerability of China’s Provincial Energy Sector

Water and energy are mutually reinforcing elements in production and consumption activities, forming an inseparable relationship. This study, conducted at the provincial level, investigates the intricate connections between energy water footprint flow, water shortage, and water pollution. It aims to elucidate the vulnerability of provincial energy sectors to water use, fostering regional coordinated management for sustainable energy and water development. Utilizing a multi-regional input–output model, the research analyzes both the quantity and quality of water resources. The water footprint of China’s provincial energy sector is quantified and scrutinized. Furthermore, an evaluation index system is constructed based on the water footprint concept. The entropy weight TOPSIS method is then applied to assess the vulnerability of inter-provincial energy sector water footprints. The key findings are as follows: (1) The energy water footprint has shifted from water resource-deficient areas, such as the northwest, North China, and northeast, to economically developed regions with relatively abundant water resources, such as East China and South China. This reveals that the transfer of water footprints in economic activities does not entirely alleviate water shortages in China and may even exacerbate shortages in certain water-deficient areas. (2) The graywater footprint of the energy sector is significantly larger than the blue water footprint and water shortage footprint. (3) The production and supply departments of power and heat emerge as the largest contributors to the transfer of energy and water footprints from water shortage areas to water-rich areas, followed by coal mining and dressing departments. (4) Top 10 Vulnerable Provinces: Tibet, Zhejiang, Ningxia, Tianjin, Jiangsu, Henan, Hunan, Beijing, Chongqing, and Hebei are identified as the top 10 provinces vulnerable to water footprints in the energy sector. This vulnerability closely correlates with the energy sector’s dependence on water footprints and production leverage. Recommendations include optimizing the energy mix and establishing stable external water footprint supply channels for provinces with high water footprint dependence. Provinces with high production leverage are advised to accelerate innovation and application of water-saving technologies in key energy sectors, increase the utilization of clean energy, and enhance resource recycling. National government departments should focus on controlling and reducing water pollutants in the energy sector across regions, addressing water shortages by purifying water bodies and improving water quality.

Activating peroxymonosulfate with Fe-doped biochar for efficient removal of tetracycline: Dual action of reactive oxygen species and electron transfer

If pharmaceutical wastewater is not managed effectively, the presence of residual antibiotics will result in significant environmental contamination. In addition, inadequate utilization of agricultural waste represents a squandering of resources. The objective of this research was to assess the efficacy of iron-doped biochar (Fe-BC) derived from peanut shells in degrading high concentrations of Tetracycline (TC) wastewater through activated peroxymonosulfate. Fe-BC demonstrated significant efficacy, achieving a removal efficiency of 87.5% for TC within 60 min without the need to adjust the initial pH (20 mg/L TC, 2 mM PMS, 0.5 g/L catalyst). The degradation mechanism of TC in this system involved a dual action, namely Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and electron transfer. The primary active sites were the Fe species, which facilitated the generation of SO4•-, •OH, O2•-, and 1O2. The presence of Fe species and the C=C structure in the Fe-BC catalyst support the electron transfer. Degradation pathways were elucidated through the identification of intermediate products and calculation of the Fukui index. The Toxicity Estimator Software Tool (T.E.S.T.) suggested that the intermediates exhibited lower levels of toxicity. Furthermore, the system exhibited exceptional capabilities in real water and circulation experiments, offering significant economic advantages. This investigation provides an efficient strategy for resource recycling and the treatment of high-concentration antibiotic wastewater.

Facile Prepared MOF-OH-PAN Nanofiber for Separation Co(II) from Waste Batteries.

Recovering cobalt from waste batteries is crucial for resource recycling and environmental protection. Here, MOF-OH, a Zr-based MOF, was synthesized and merged into a polyacrylonitrile (PAN) matrix to create MOF-OH-PAN nanofibers (NFs). These NFs showed a high cobalt ion adsorption capacity of 33.1 mg/g, retaining over 90% of the capacity after six cycles. The adsorption mechanism involves Co(II) surface diffusion followed by strong bonding with functional groups. This technology enables efficient cobalt recovery from waste batteries, supporting reuse and reducing resource depletion and environmental pollution. The study provides insights into waste battery resource management, highlighting environmental and economic benefits and contributing to green resource recovery and circular economy initiatives.

Biochar as a highly efficient adsorption carrier for sewage sludge-derived nutrients and biostimulants: component fixation and mechanism

Production of liquid fertilizers containing nitrogenous nutrients and biostimulants from sewage sludge (SS-NB) has been attracting increasing attention due to its excellent fertilization effect and resource recycling attributes. To better understand the functional effects of nutrients and biostimulants in SS-NB on soil, the adsorption capacity and mechanism of straw biochar (SB) and wood chip biochar (WCB) for alkaline and neutral SS-NB components were investigated. The adsorption of total organic carbon (TOC) from alkaline and neutral SS-NB by WCB was 61.14% and 89.73%, respectively, higher than that by SB, which was 56.25% and 83.36%. Moreover, TOC from neutral SS-NB was more readily adsorbed, especially for fulvic and humic acids. SB had a strong adsorption capacity for calcium ions and nitrogen (TKN, nitrate N, protein, amino acid) and released large amounts of P. In addition, WCB and SB showed a strong affinity for macromolecules (proteins) and reducing substances (lignin and lipids) and excellent fixation ability for phytohormones and allelochemicals. However, WCB adsorbed more types of molecular substances than SB while maintaining a high immobilization rate. Analysis of the adsorption mechanism showed that surface amino groups of the biochar were involved in adsorption, while WCB had additionally high adsorption efficiencies through pore adsorption, hydrogen bonding adsorption and pore size-exclusion effects. The study revealed that biochar can be used as an efficient adsorption carrier for SS-NB to improve soil fertility management.Graphical

Research on the Implementation Plan of Urban and Rural Sanitation Integration in County Towns in China

This paper deeply discusses the implementation plan of the integration of urban and rural sanitation in county towns in China. First of all, the main problems facing urban and rural sanitation in the county are analyzed, including inadequate sanitation facilities, scattered management and low efficiency of resource utilization. Then, it puts forward the necessity and importance of urban and rural sanitation integration, pointing out that it helps to improve the county's environmental health level, promote resource conservation and recycling, and promote the coordinated development of urban and rural areas. In the implementation of the program, this paper puts forward a series of concrete measures. It includes strengthening the construction of sanitation infrastructure, improving the system of garbage collection, transfer and treatment; Promoting the reform of the environmental sanitation management system to realize the unification and coordination of urban and rural sanitation management; Strengthen environmental sanitation technology innovation and personnel training, improve the quality and efficiency of environmental sanitation services; At the same time, pay attention to the combination of policy guidance and market mechanism to attract social capital to participate in the cause of environmental sanitation. Through this study, the aim is to provide a scientific implementation plan and reference for the integration of urban and rural environmental sanitation in the county, and promote the healthy development of environmental health undertakings in the county.

Effect of phase evolution and pyroplastic formation behavior on glass-ceramic foam derived from silicomanganese slag and feldspar tailings

Utilizing solid waste to produce foam material has become a significant direction in resource recycling. This study focuses solely on using silicomanganese slag and feldspar tailings as raw materials, utilizing a powder sintering process to produce autocatalytic foaming glass–ceramic foam. We formulated four mix ratios based on the compositional characteristics of the silicomanganese slag and feldspar tailings. The study then explored the evolution of phase formation and macroscopic pore morphology under varying preparation temperatures. Moreover, through multi-phase co-melting experiments, this work unveiled the high-temperature molten mass generation mechanism between silicomanganese slag and feldspar tailings. Our findings reveal that the glass melt generated from silicomanganese slag particles and the 'solid–liquid erosion behavior' of feldspar particles play pivotal roles in the formation of high-temperature co-melt substances. As the sintering temperature increases, the mixed powder exhibits three different states of high-temperature molten mass, which are the reasons for the evolution of the macroscopic pore structure. It is suggested that the addition of silicomanganese slag should be less than 50 %, and the heat treatment temperature should be below 1145 °C in preparing glass–ceramic foam with silicomanganese slag and feldspar tailings. The sample with 40 % silicomanganese slag and 60 % feldspar tailings, treated at 1140 °C, yielded glass–ceramic foam with a compressive strength of 1.68 MPa, apparent density of 0.279 g/cm3, porosity of 81.7 %, and thermal conductivity of 0.074 W·m−1·K−1. In summary, this study provides a novel approach for the high-value utilization of silicomanganese slag and offers an economical route for developing lightweight, eco-friendly structural materials.

Intelligent and sustainable waste classification model based on multi-objective beluga whale optimization and deep learning.

Resource recycling is considered necessary for sustainable development, especially in smart cities where increased urbanization and the variety of waste generated require the development of automated waste management models. The development of smart technology offers a possible alternative to traditional waste management techniques that are proving insufficient to reduce the harmful effects of trash on the environment. This paper proposes an intelligent waste classification model to enhance the classification of waste materials, focusing on the critical aspect of waste classification. The proposed model leverages the InceptionV3 deep learning architecture, augmented by multi-objective beluga whale optimization (MBWO) for hyperparameter optimization. In MBWO, sensitivity and specificity evaluation criteria are integrated linearly as the objective function to find the optimal values of the dropout period, learning rate, and batch size. A benchmark dataset, namely TrashNet is adopted to verify the proposed model's performance. By strategically integrating MBWO, the model achieves a considerable increase in accuracy and efficiency in identifying waste materials, contributing to more effective waste management strategies while encouraging sustainable waste management practices. The proposed intelligent waste classification model outperformed the state-of-the-art models with an accuracy of 97.75%, specificity of 99.55%, F1-score of 97.58%, and sensitivity of 98.88%.

Circular Economy and Contributions to Sustainable Development in the Organizational Context

Objective: To analyze the contributions of the circular economy to sustainable development in the organizational context. Methodology: The research used an integrative literature review to investigate the relationship between circular economy and sustainable development in organizations. The studies were selected based on relevant keywords in academic databases, focusing on Brazilian articles published between 2023 and 2024. After the selection, a qualitative analysis of the data was conducted to identify patterns and trends, contributing to a deeper understanding of the topic. Results and data analysis: The analysis of the studies highlights the importance of the circular economy in the contemporary organizational context, highlighting its relevance to promote sustainable development and mitigate negative impacts on the environment and society. The transition from the traditional linear model to the circular one redefines not only supply chain dynamics, but also challenges the culture of consumption and unrestricted disposal by promoting resource reuse, recycling and remanufacturing. However, its implementation requires operational changes and the support of organizational leaders, tax and legislative incentives, as well as greater awareness and dissemination of information about its practices and benefits. The need for more in-depth studies, especially in the Brazilian context, is highlighted, as is the importance of consumer education on sustainable packaging and the integration of reverse logistics practices. Such an approach not only promotes environmental sustainability, but can also generate significant economic benefits for businesses. The studies also highlight the adaptation of circular economy concepts to different sectors, such as textiles and clothing, highlighting their tangible benefits, such as reducing waste and creating sustainable business opportunities. However, the journey towards the circular economy faces challenges such as effective waste management and stakeholder awareness. Conclusion: Thus, the conclusions emphasize the need for continued engagement of businesses, governments and consumers to promote a successful transition. By adopting this approach, organizations contribute not only to the preservation of the environment and social well-being, but also to a more sustainable and economically prosperous future.