Use Of Clean Energy Research Articles

Reinforcement Learning Based Truck-and-Drone Coordinated Delivery

Coronavirus disease 2019 has brought a great challenge to the supply of daily necessities and medical items for home-quarantined people. Considering the unmanned operation, agility and use of clean energy of drones, we propose a novel truck-and-drone coordinated delivery system that does not require direct human contact during the delivery process. All final deliveries are completed by the drone while the truck acts as a movable charging station and a carrier, so that the contagion risks are reduced. Moreover, we spilt the whole delivery problem into the customer clustering problem and the routing problems of both the truck and the drone. An encoder-decoder framework combined with reinforcement learning is created to solve the routing problems without handcrafted designed heuristics. We design the different problem contexts specific to the truck routing problem and the drone routing problem. The experimental results show the proposed approach has good generality and can consequently be applied to problems of different scales with high time efficiency.

Role of Climate Change in Afghanistan’s Geopolitical Power

The most significant environmental threats today are global warming and climate change. The effects of climate change include water and food scarcity, disease, unemployment, migration, poverty, resource conflicts, and global instability. This study examines the role of climate change in Afghanistan’s geopolitical power. This study employs a descriptive-analytical approach and a survey method. The statistical research community includes experts and specialists in geopolitics, political science, climate science, and university professors. The questionnaire was distributed among them based on indicators related to climate change, development, and geopolitics. 80 questionnaires were collected. On the basis of these findings, a significant and inverse relationship exists between the impacts of climate change and development. Furthermore, the reduction in the development process has a significant and negative impact on Afghanistan’s geopolitical power. Finally, the reduction in development affects the change. Climate plays a mediating role in geopolitics. Then, the priority of parameters influencing climate change in geopolitics was discussed using Friedman’s comparison test. These parameters include 1) poverty and social anomalies, drought, and migration. In the suggestions section, it is emphasized that there is a need to implement effective methods, such as irrigation and the use of clean energy, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Role of belt and road initiative in the development of renewable energy: Mediating role of green public procurement

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) aims to advance connectivity and sustainable economic growth. This study investigates the BRI's contribution to the growth of renewable energy, concentrating on the mediating function of green public procurement (GPP). Using panel data from 1990 to 2020, we discover a favorable correlation between the BRI and the growth of renewable energy sources. Our findings demonstrate a strong positive relationship between the BRI and the growth of renewable energy, highlighting the initiative's potential to spur the use of clean energy across the BRI countries. GPP is an essential middleman in this relationship, highlighting the significance of legislative initiatives and procurement procedures. In renewable energy technologies, the BRI promotes international collaboration and knowledge exchange, while the GPP oversees adopting sustainable procurement. These results highlight the BRI and GPP's potential to speed up the world's switch to renewable energy. Decision-makers, stakeholders, and companies can use these insights to promote sustainable development along the BRI route.

Could trade protectionism reshape the nexus of energy-economy-environment? Insight from different income groups

The Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the COVID-19 pandemic have triggered trade protectionism, which further accelerates the US isolationism and European populism. This study examines the impacts of trade protection on renewable energy, economic growth, and carbon emissions. Compared to previous studies, the role of trade openness is innovatively examined and heterogeneity is analyzed for different income groups. ssioThis study analyzes the impact of trade openness on the energy-economy-environment (3E) system of 123 countries through threshold effects using a panel threshold regression (PTR) model. The results show that there is a trade openness threshold for the impact of renewable energy consumption and economic growth, and then there is an inverse effect. That is, a U-shaped relationship exists between renewable energy and economic growth with the threshold effect of trade openness. While for the nexus of renewable energy and carbon emissions, there are two structural breakpoints. The inhibiting effect of renewable energy consumption on carbon emissions decreases as trade openness crosses the breakpoint. However, the effects of structural breakpoints in trade openness vary across income economies. Specifically, as trade openness has passed the structural breakpoint, renewable energy's role in promoting the economy in the middle- and high-income groups has gradually increased, while that in the low-income groups has fallen. The study recommends effective trade measures to minimize environmental damage and promote sustainable growth through the use of clean energy.

SUSTAINABILITY IN THE PRINT AND PACKAGING INDUSTRY

In the printing and packaging industry, sustainability is defined as manufacture and practices that reflect responsibility for the environment and resources to meet the needs and expectations of future generations. In this article, raw material management, cellulose resources, industrial forests, ecological and renewable alternative fiber resources were examined in the framework of the sustainability of the printing and packaging industry. The recycling of printed materials and packaging and the effects of paper-ink types and product design in this recycling have been discussed. The effect of separation and processing at the source on the efficiency of paper recycling, economy and ecology was emphasized. The greenhouse gas emissions of solvents used in inks and cleaners, the impact on climate change, water footprint and carbon footprint issues were examined. Suggestions have been made on environmental sustainability in the printing industry, what needs to be done for a competitive production, successful optimization, minimization of waste, use of existing possibilities, recycling and evaluation of alternatives and use of clean energy.

Mechanism of Nozzle Position Affecting Coalbed Methane Mining in High-Pressure Air Blasting

The use of clean energy is an important part of promoting sustainable energy development. As a clean energy source, coalbed methane, during the mining process, the position of the nozzle can influence coalbed methane extraction efficiency by affecting the cracking effect of coal. To investigate the impact of nozzles on the effect of coal fracture, a test of simulated coal by high-pressure air blasting was executed using nozzles 100 mm, 200 mm, and 250 mm from the orifice. Based on the test results and theories of fracture damage mechanics, two damage fracture models were established for the nozzles located in the middle-upper and middle-lower of the blasthole, respectively. The fracturing process and increased permeability mechanism of the coal were revealed by these two models. The results show that: when the nozzle is 100 mm from the orifice, the high-pressure air impacts the blasthole wall first, similar to a uniform expansion. Multiple longitudinal cracks are formed penetrating the coal. The permeability of the coal seam is greatly improved. When the nozzle is 200 mm and 250 mm from the orifice, the high-pressure air first impacts the bottom of the blasthole. The bottom hole angle and apex hole angle first form horizontal cracks while longitudinal cracks only appear at the same depth as the blasthole. The nozzle is 250 mm from the orifice to form a compaction zone at the bottom of the blasthole. The crack density is small and the tangential depth is shallow, which is not conducive to coalbed methane mining. The results of the research offer a theoretical framework and point of reference for the use of high-pressure air blasting technology in the extraction of coalbed methane (CBM).

Advancements in Metal Hydride Materials for Hydrogen Storage

Hydrogen energy is attracting the attention of scientists because of its high energy density and low environmental pollution in the world trend of clean energy use. In addition, the basis for the use of hydrogen energy is its secure, cost-effective, and efficient storage. After decades of devotions by experts, many high-performance hydrogen storage materials have been created. The poor hydrogen storage capacity, challenging hydrogen storage circumstances, slow hydrogen storage speed, and potential safety concerns remain, nonetheless, with the present hydrogen storage materials. Metal hydride materials, which have a high hydrogen storage density and safe reactions, have so steadily been a research focus in recent years. In this paper, magnesium-based materials and titanium-based materials are selected as the representatives of metal hydride materials, and their hydrogen storage mechanisms, common modification methods, and the advanced research progress of these methods are reviewed. Through the analysis of data, the hydrogen storage properties and the respective characteristics of each modified hydrogen storage material are rigorously presented. The key technical limitations and possible improvement directions of these materials are summarized, and the future application prospects and development trends of hydrogen storage materials are predicted at the end.

Unveiling Sustainable Potential: A Life Cycle Assessment of Plant-Fiber Composite Microcellular Foam Molded Automotive Components.

The development and utilization of new plant-fiber composite materials and microcellular foam molding processes for the manufacturing of automotive components are effective approaches when achieving the lightweight, low-carbon, and sustainable development of automobiles. However, current research in this field has mainly focused on component performance development and functional exploration, with a limited assessment of environmental performance, which fails to meet the requirements of the current green and sustainable development agenda. In this study, based on a life cycle assessment, the resource, and environmental impacts of plant-fiber composite material automotive components and microcellular foam molding processes were investigated. Furthermore, a combined approach to digital twinning and life cycle evaluation was proposed to conduct resource and environmental assessments and analysis. The research results indicate that under current technological conditions, resource and environmental issues associated with plant-fiber composite material automotive components are significantly higher than those of traditional material components, mainly due to differences in their early-stage processes and the consumption of electrical energy and chemical raw materials. It is noteworthy that electricity consumption is the largest influencing factor that causes environmental issues throughout the life cycle, especially accounting for more than 42% of indicators such as ozone depletion, fossil resource consumption, and carbon dioxide emissions. Additionally, the microcellular foam molding process can effectively reduce the environmental impact of products by approximately 15% and exhibits better overall environmental performance compared to chemical foaming. In future development, optimizing the forming process of plant-fiber composite materials, increasing the proportion of clean energy use, and promoting the adoption of microcellular foam injection molding processes could be crucial for the green and sustainable development of automotive components.

Research on low‐carbon evaluation of clean energy use in rural residential buildings based on Analytic Hierarchy Process method

AbstractAs an important part of the construction industry, rural residential buildings are characterized by low energy utilization, unreasonable structure, and low consumption level, so it is particularly important to study the low carbon transformation and evaluation system. In this study, the coefficient of variation method was used to identify the important factors affecting the low‐carbon transformation of rural residential buildings, and the evaluation system of low‐carbonization of rural residential buildings was determined by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), and the system was used in a rural residential building low‐carbonization evaluation study. The results show that “Energy utilization,” “Envelope structure,” and “Economic factors” have obvious influence on the low carbonization of buildings, with the weights of 36.4%, 24.5%, and 19.5%, respectively. Among the secondary indicators, the top four weightings are “clean energy utilization rate” (0.152), “external wall insulation system” (0.090), “window performance” (0.088), and “electricity consumption” (0.084), which are the most critical factors influencing the low carbonization level of clean energy utilization in rural residential buildings. Finally, based on the constructed low‐carbonization evaluation system, we propose targeted solution strategies to provide a theoretical basis for establishing an effective assessment system for the low‐carbonization of clean energy in rural residential buildings.

Risk-assessment of carbon-dioxide recycling in a gas-fired power plant using CVaR-based convex optimization

With the rise of renewable resources’ penetration, the use of clean excessive renewable energy as the primary source of a Power to Gas (PtG) system for the reduction of CO2 pollution is quite advantageous. This paper presents a mixed integer linear formulation for modeling the optimal operation of a gas-fired power plant (GFPP)-PtG system that utilizes an excessive renewable resource, wind power, as the primary mover of the proposed PtG system for capturing and recycling the produced CO2 pollution. CO2 and CH4 gas storages are considered in the proposed PtG system to boost the operational efficiency of the system. Additionally, the scenario generation method models both wind power generation and electrical demand. The effective conditional value at risk (CVaR) method, which is a convex risk modeling approach, models the risks imposed by the generated scenarios for wind power and electrical demand. Due to the convexity of the proposed formulation for the PtG system and the risk modeling method, the ultimate model can be simply solved by using any available LP solver. To evaluate the outcomes of an optimization problem based on CVaR, a comparative analysis is conducted with chance constraints programming, which demonstrates the optimality and computational efficiency of the CVaR results due to convexity. The effectiveness of the proposed model is approved by modeling a test system based on real data, and the obtained numerical results are discussed comprehensively.

How to decouple income growth from household carbon emissions: A perspective based on urban-rural differences in China

As the Chinese living standards rising, the share of household carbon emissions is rapidly increasing. According to Maslow's hierarchy of demand theory, this paper linked household carbon emissions with living standards. Based on urban and rural household carbon emission data from 30 provinces in China and results of group-based trajectory model, we analyzed the convergence of Chinese household carbon emissions. The non-linear driving effect of disposable income on household carbon emissions was confirmed. We draw the following conclusions: First, conditional β and club convergence exist. Second, increasing income is the primary driver of household carbon emissions, and the extent to which income drives household carbon emissions in urban areas decreases as living standards rise. However, the result is not significant in rural. Finally, we confirmed two driving channels of income on household carbon emissions. Increasing income can promote use of clean energy and optimize consumption structure, thus slowing down household carbon emissions. The ultimate solution to controlling household carbon emissions is to develop the economy and decouple income growth from household carbon emissions.

Research on Spatiotemporal Changes in Carbon Footprint and Vegetation Carbon Carrying Capacity in Shanxi Province

The climate and ecological problems caused by excessive carbon dioxide emissions are attracting more and more attention, and the need for carbon reduction has reached a consensus. Carbon peak and carbon neutrality is a solemn commitment made by China to the world and a strategic arrangement to achieve economic and social transformation. This study focused on Shanxi Province, a base of power source and heavy chemical industry in China. Based on energy consumption data, carbon emission data set at the county level, land use data and socioeconomic data, we built a carbon ecological pressure index in order to analyze the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the carbon footprint, carbon carrying capacity and carbon ecological security status of each county in Shanxi Province from 2000 to 2020. The results showed that: (1) the total carbon footprint of Shanxi Province increased, and the number of high carbon emission counties showed an increasing trend. The largest part of carbon footprint was coal. (2) The vegetation carbon-carrying capacity showed an increasing trend in general, and forest land was the main contributor to the carbon-carrying capacity. (3) The carbon deficit of Shanxi Province was greater than 0 and behaved as a carbon source. The carbon ecological security decreased from a relatively safe level to a general safe level. (4) The carbon ecological pressure index gradually increased. It was predicted that the carbon ecological security level of each county will remain basically unchanged by 2025 and some will still be at a carbon ecological insecurity level. In general, the carbon ecological pressure index of some counties was still large. It is necessary to strengthen the use of clean energy, optimize the industrial structure and increase the carbon sink of forest land in order to reduce carbon emissions and increase the carbon sink, so as to ensure carbon ecological security and realize the goal of a low-carbon economy.

Health Promotion Interventions for Reducing Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Developing Countries: a case study of India

NCDs are responsible for a significant proportion of premature deaths in developing countries. NCDs can have significant economic costs for individuals, families, and communities in developing countries. These costs can include healthcare expenses, lost productivity, and reduced quality of life. In many developing countries, people do not have access to the healthcare services they need to prevent and manage NCDs. There are several studies conducted on health promotion interventions for reducing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in developing countries. Some key findings from the studies included community-based interventions which have been found to be effective in reducing NCDs in developing countries. These interventions typically involve engaging community members in health education and awareness programs, providing access to healthy foods and exercise facilities, and promoting healthy lifestyles. It was concluded that effective health promotion interventions include education, improving access to healthcare and healthy food, promoting physical activity, improving water and sanitation, reducing tobacco and alcohol use, and working with communities to develop culturally appropriate strategies. Implementing these interventions requires collaboration between governments, non-governmental organizations, and community groups. Addressing NCDs in developing countries requires a comprehensive and multi-sectoral approach. By implementing effective health promotion interventions, it is possible to prevent and manage NCDs. The study recommended that governments should invest in improving water and sanitation facilities to reduce the risk of NCDs. This can include building new water and sanitation facilities, improving hygiene practices, and promoting the use of clean water and sanitation facilities. Policies should be put in place to lower the usage of fossil fuels, promote the use of clean energy, and regulate industrial and transportation emissions to improve air quality. Keywords: Non-Communicable Diseases, Health Promotion Interventions, Developing Countries, India

Selective and Light-Enhanced Au(III) Recovery by a Porphyrin-Based Metal–Organic Framework: Performance and Underlying Mechanisms

Recovering gold from unconventional sources, such as electronic waste, offers significant environmental and economic benefits. Exploiting materials and methods with high efficiency and selectivity is demanding. Herein, we reported a novel light-enhanced Au(III) recovery process using a porphyrin-based metal–organic framework (PCN-224). Our results showed that PCN-224 exhibited a remarkable Au(III) recovery capacity of up to 2613 mg/g when exposed to visible light irradiation, which was 3 times higher than that in the dark. Furthermore, light irradiation also improved the Au selectivity of PCN-224 against coexisting ions, including Zn2+, Mg2+, Cd2+, Ni2+, Hg2+, Cu2+, Pb2+, Al3+, and Fe3+. Based on characterization and kinetic analysis, an adsorption–reduction mechanism was proposed for the light-enhanced Au recovery, and porphyrin linkers played an essential role as active sites for both adsorption and reduction. To further protect the porphyrin linkers in PCN-224, acetic acid was introduced as a representative electron donor molecule in electronic waste, which could further enhance the Au(III) recovery capacity to 4946 mg/g. In addition, we demonstrated that PCN-224 and its light-enhanced feature also performed effectively in the actual leaching solution of waste electrical and electronic equipment, and the framework was successfully reused for at least six cycles. Overall, our discoveries could inspire the design of more outstanding materials and the artful use of clean energy to recover precious metals while minimizing the environmental impact.

Experimental research on combustible gas/air explosion inhibition by dry water

The carbon reduction policy to address environmental change has increased the storage, transportation, and use of clean energy represented by hydrogen (H2) and natural gas (mainly composed of methane, CH4). However, its risk of ignition and explosion also brought significant safety risks. Although many previous studies have studied the effect of traditional detonation inhibitors, the inhibition effect of composite explosion inhibition materials still needs further research, especially for H2 explosion inhibition. In this paper, the effect of dry water (DW), a new type of core-shell structure material, in inhibiting the explosion of combustible gases (mainly H2 and CH4) has been experimentally studied using a typical 20L spherical apparatus. The results shows that DW can significantly reduce the characteristic parameters during the ignition and explosion process of H2 and CH4. However, its ignition and explosion inhibition effect is related to the type of combustible gas. The maximum explosion pressure of CH4 is significantly reduced, but the maximum pressure reduction rate of H2 is more significantly reduced. Compared with typical dry powder inhibitors, the effect of DW inhibition in characteristic parameters during the H2 ignition and explosion is related to concentration. Moreover, the inhibition effect of DW at higher concentrations is significantly better than BC and ABC dry powders at the same concentration. The inhibition mechanism of DW on the ignition and explosion of combustible gases results from a comprehensive synergy of cooling, dilution, homogeneous radical catalytic inhibition, and heterogeneous radical annihilation. The research conclusions can provide a data basis and theoretical guidance for developing explosion inhibition technology and preventing and controlling H2 explosions.

Installation of solar power plant as power supply for street lighting in livestock area

Sajen Village, in Pacet District, Mojokerto, already has a Village-Owned Enterprise (BUMDes) that is primarily involved in the management of livestock and agricultural products because has village treasury land. Farms with cows and goats are administered by cooperatives of farmers. Even though there is always a livestock supervisor on guard, one of the farm locations closest to the village hall uses makeshift lighting and has a low level of security. This is due to the limited electrical energy which is still sourced from the village hall. In addition, human resources in Sajen village also need to improve their soft skills and hard skills to develop the village and keep abreast of current issues. This initiated the idea of building an independent power plant in the livestock area as a useful energy source for village lighting and security. Off-grid system was built in the livestock area and has been successfully utilized to supply energy for the lighting and security sector in the livestock area. Off-grid systems refer to energy sources that are different from those used by the state power utility. Solar power plant also contributes a percentage of clean energy use in village areas and can be a pilot for further development.

High contribution of anthropogenic combustion sources to atmospheric inorganic reactive nitrogen in South China evidenced by isotopes

Abstract. Due to the intense release of reactive nitrogen (Nr) from anthropogenic activity, the source layout of atmospheric nitrogen aerosol has changed. To comprehensively clarify the level, sources, and environmental fate of NH4+ and NO3-, their concentrations and stable isotopes (δ15N) in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were measured in a subtropical megacity of South China. The inorganic nitrogen (NH4+ and NO3-) was an essential part of atmospheric nitrogen aerosol, and the N-NH4+ and N-NO3- contributed 45.8 % and 23.2 % to total nitrogen (TN), respectively. The source contributions of NH4+ and NO3- were estimated by δ15N, suggesting that the dominant sources were from anthropogenic combustion activities, including coal combustion, biomass burning, and vehicles, contributing 63.2 % and 88.3 % to NH4+ and NO3-, respectively. In particular, biomass burning was the predominant source of NH4+ (27.9 %), whereas coal combustion was the dominant source of NO3- (40.4 %). This study emphasized the substantial impacts of human activities on inorganic Nr. With the rapid development of industry and transportation, nitrogen emissions will be even higher. The promotion of clean energy and efficient use of biomass would help to reduce nitrogen emissions and alleviate air pollution.

Households' participation in energy transition and sustained use of clean energy: Evidence from China's clean heating program

Household energy transition is a critical tool for air pollution mitigation and energy inequality reduction. The effectiveness of the transition largely relies on not only households' decision to participate but also their sustained use of clean energy after participation. However, the sustained use of clean energy has not yet received sufficient attention in policy making and in literature. This study examines China's Household Clean Heating program, which has switched millions of households' heating energy sources from coal to electricity and gas. We focus on both households' adoption and coal substitution behavior in the program. Based on the large-scale household survey conducted in rural areas of Northern China, we find that both high subsidies and compulsory measures effectively increased the household adoption rate; however, the latter did not guarantee sustained use of clean energy. We also find that In-person and repeated dissemination of program information had a better effect on involvement than passive announcements. Moreover, lower-income households were less likely to participate. Our findings suggest effective implementation approaches and supplementary measures to promote household energy transition, with fewer negative consequences for participants, particularly for the participants with lower income.

Evaluation on key technologies for the construction of low-carbon index of electric power based on “double carbon”

Abstract At a time when global climate change poses a major challenge to human survival and development, all countries believe that people must actively deal with green and low-carbon (LC) development. As one of the hot topics in recent years, the concepts of “carbon neutral” and “carbon peak” have a significant impact on the construction of New Energy (NE) systems. The construction of NE systems with NE as the main component is an important way to achieve the “double carbon” goal. Affected by the “double carbon” goal, the energy system has shifted to a low carbon and high intensity system, reducing the dependence on fossil fuel power generation, accelerating the use of clean energy, and promoting the supply system of low carbon and clean energy. In order to improve the LC construction of electric power, this article studied the key technologies of LC index construction of electric power under the background of “double carbon”. This article first introduced the LC construction of urban electric power, including the connotation of LC electric power, the current situation of NE development and the difficulties of LC construction of electric power in the context of “double carbon”. Then this article constructed a new type of LC Power System (PS) on the basis of double carbon, and introduced the framework of the system and the key technologies included in the system. Finally, this article verified the effectiveness of the new LC PS in LC construction through experiments, and put forward suggestions for the realization of LC power construction. The experiment showed that the new LC PS can greatly promote the construction of the LC index of power, and is conducive to the development of urban power. The proportion of urban non-fossil energy and the new installed capacity of non-fossil energy power generation have been significantly increased. Among the four cities studied in this article, the proportion of non-fossil energy in two cities has increased from less than 50 % to more than 50 %, which has greatly promoted the construction of LC index of electricity.

Household air pollution from solid fuel use and depression among adults in rural China: evidence from the China Kadoorie Biobank data

BackgroundSolid fuels are still widely used for cooking in rural China, leading to various health implications. Yet, studies on household air pollution and its impact on depression remain scarce. Using baseline data from the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between solid fuel use for cooking and depression among adults in rural China.MethodsData on exposure to household air pollution from cooking with solid fuels were collected and the Chinese version of the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview short-form (CIDI-SF) was used to evaluate the status of major depressive episode. Logistic regression analysis was performed to investigate the association between solid fuel use for cooking and depression.ResultsAmongst 283,170 participants, 68% of them used solid fuels for cooking. A total of 2,171 (0.8%) participants reported of having a major depressive episode in the past 12 months. Adjusted analysis showed that participants who had exposure to solid fuels used for cooking for up to 20 years, more than 20 to 35 years, and more than 35 years were 1.09 (95% CI: 0.94–1.27), 1.18 (95% CI: 1.01–1.38), and 1.19 (95% CI: 1.01–1.40) times greater odds of having a major depressive episode, respectively, compared with those who had no previous exposure to solid fuels used for cooking.ConclusionThe findings highlight that longer exposure to solid fuels used for cooking would be associated with increased odds of major depressive episode. In spite of the uncertainty of causal relationship between them, using solid fuels for cooking can lead to undesirable household air pollution. Reducing the use of solid fuels for cooking by promoting the use of clean energy should be encouraged.