Low-permeability reservoirs have strong heterogeneity, and the production prediction based on traditional seepage model is not accurate enough. The dynamic capillary-force seepage model can characterize the dynamic heterogeneity of seepage and more accurately describe the oil−water flow process. In this paper, the calculation formula of the dynamic capillary force is obtained through a real low-permeability core experiment, and the seepage model of dynamic capillary force is established. Based on the model, the authors quantitatively study the effects of formation pressure, heterogeneity and production speed on dynamic capillary force through numerical solutions. It is found that compared with the traditional static capillary-force seepage model, the dynamic capillary-force seepage model makes the predicted water cut increase and the recovery factor decrease. With the increase in development time, formation pressure and production rate will make the effect of dynamic capillary force mo... [more]

In order to achieve sustainable development of mature oilfield, a series of adjustment measures should be implemented to improve production performance at the extra-high water cut stage. South Kumkol reservoir is a typical multi-layer low viscosity oil reservoir, which has the characteristics of small sandstone body, high shale volume, and strong heterogeneity. At present, the water cut of the South Kumkol reservoir is about 90%, which is on the verge of being abandoned. Multi-layer cyclic alternate injection and production (MCA-IP) is an ideal adjustment measure for multi-layer oil reservoir to improve oil recovery (IOR) at the extra-high water cut stage. In this paper, we designed the double-plate visual physical device and the MCA-IP experimental program and then calculated the sweep coefficient using image recognition method. Furthermore, the sweep coefficient was quantitatively calculated by image recognition method. The results show that the sweep area extends to both sides of th... [more]

In this work, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology is used to examine the implications of CO2 capture from a natural gas combined cycle power plant with post-combustion carbon capture (NGCC-CCS) in Iraq, taking into account two different design scenarios. In the first scenario (retrofit), the carbon capture unit is considered as an end pipe technology that can be linked to an existing power plant. The second scenario considers a grassroots design, in which a new power plant equipped with a carbon capture unit needs to be constructed. The LCA is carried out based on different impact assessment (LCIA) methodologies of ReCipe 2016 Midpoint (H), TRACI 2.1, and IMPACT 2002+ to investigate whether the chosen LCIA method influences the LCA scenario analysis for decision support in process development. The results of three impact categories applied to both scenarios reveal a 28% reduction in Global Warming Potentials (GWPs) and a 14% and 17% increase in the Particulate Matter Formation... [more]

High energy consumption is one of the main problems of drying, a critical process for many industrial sectors. The optimization of drying energy use results in significant energy saving and has become a topic of interest in recent decades. We investigate benefits of heat recovery in a convective drying system by comparing two different scenarios. The Baseline Scenario is a conventional industrial dryer, and Scenario 1 includes the preheating of drying air by exhausts from the drying chamber. We show that the energy efficiency of the drying cycle is strictly related to the properties of the dried material and operative conditions, and performance improves significantly (by 59% to 87%) when installing a heat recovery unit (Scenario 1). Additionally, the temperature of drying air affects performance. We assess both scenarios by LCA analysis, measuring the environmental impacts and externalities of four different fuels (natural gas, light fuel oil, biomethane, and hardwood chips). Our find... [more]

Many studies have evaluated CO2 emission from batteries. However, the impact of Li-ion battery (LiB) degradation on the CO2 emissions from the material through operation phases has not been sufficiently examined. This study aims to clarify the dominant CO2 emission phase and the impact of the degradation of general industrial LiBs from repetitive cycle applications. We developed a model common to general LiB composition and calculated CO2 emissions by the LCA method using the IDEA database. Our model simplifies the degradation process, including capacity decrease and internal resistance increase. We used it in a sensitivity analysis of the carbon intensity of electricity charged to a LiB. The loss mechanism was determined by experimental data for an electric bus with an industrial LiB. The results illustrate that the carbon intensity of electricity affects CO2 emissions dominance, the operation phase for mix (71.3%), and the material phase for renewables (70.9%), and that battery degra... [more]

Net-zero climate districts are gaining wide attention at the European and international levels. Urban regeneration competitions have been launched recently to stimulate development; nevertheless, the literature does not yet provide a shared scope definition (i.e., product system). Using the process-based life cycle assessment method, the authors evaluate the climate profile of a new district in Milan (14 buildings with 36,000 m2 of gross surface area in total) aiming to become the first net-zero social housing project in Italy. The authors show in the results section how climate neutrality is achieved on the part of the real estate operator by varying the scope. The most conservative scenario (including all the emission sources considered in the analysis) indicates that the net-zero climate target is reached only by purchasing voluntary carbon credits. The authors also highlight: (i) a district composed of nearly-zero energy buildings is far from the definition of a net-zero climate em... [more]

There are different configurations selected by both industry and academia as the drivetrain for wind turbines in the power range of 10 to 16 MW. The choice of drivetrain system influences the levelized cost of energy, and, as the turbines become larger, and, therefore, costlier, there is more potential for the optimization of cost critical systems, like the drivetrain. The latter motivates the utilization of a life cycle assessment approach to profoundly influence the choice of drivetrain technology such that it offers a better compromise between the different aspects in the drivetrain life cycle. To this end, in this paper, various permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG)-based drivetrain technologies for 15 MW bottom-fixed and floating offshore wind turbine applications are designed and compared. The technologies under investigation are based on direct-drive, medium- and high-speed generators. The conceptual design of the drivetrain for the three technologies under consideration... [more]

The aim of this study is to calculate the average carbon footprint per capita from the transportation of the Ice Hockey League in Turkey and Lithuania in the 2021−2022 season. In addition, we identified the opinions of team managers of the national hockey leagues in Turkey and Lithuania regarding the problems and possible solutions related to the sustainable environment and persons’ right to a clean and safe environment in the sport sector. In this study, which was limited to the Turkish Ice Hockey Intercity Super League and the Lithuanian National Ice Hockey League in the 2021−2022 Season, eight teams from Turkey and five teams from Lithuania took part in the research. The type of vehicle used by each team and the total traveled distance were used for the collection of data. Interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview format seeking to identify problems and solutions proposed by sports managers regarding environmental sustainability and the implementation of persons’ r... [more]

With the vast majority of scientists agreeing that the only hope in mitigating the adverse effects of climate change is to drop our carbon emissions to net zero by 2050, the decarbonization of the electricity sector is an environmental emergency. Wind energy can be a leader in the energy transition to a carbon emission-free economy. However, the wind energy transition must be carefully implemented to mitigate the economic, environmental, and social consequences of this change. Blade waste from end-of-life wind turbines is the Achilles’ heel of this energy transition and the main impediment to its full acceptance. Aiming to support efficient blade waste management and therefore to ensure sustainable wind energy transition, we conduct a two-fold methodology. In the first part, we propose a novel conceptual framework of upcycling and downcycling end-of-life solutions in an urban regeneration setting. In the second part, we use the case study method to illustrate the aspects of our concept... [more]

This study approaches cyber security in industrial environments focusing on hydro power plants, since they are part of the critical infrastructure and are the main source of renewable energy in some countries. The theoretical study case follows the standard IEC 62443-2-1 to implement a cyber security management system (CSMS) in a hydro power plant with two generation units. The CSMS is composed of six steps: (1) initiate CSMS, (2) high level risk assessment, (3) detailed risk assessment, (4) establish policies, procedures, and awareness, (5) select and implement countermeasures, and (6) maintain the CSMS. To perform the high-level risk assessment, an overview of the most common activities and vulnerabilities in hydro power plants systems is presented. After defining the priorities, the detailed risk assessment is performed based on a HAZOP risk analysis methodology focusing on hackable digital assets (cyber-HAZOP). The analysis of the cyber-HAZOP assessment leads to mitigations of the... [more]

The increasing concentration of anthropogenic CO2 in the atmosphere is causing a global environmental crisis, forcing significant reductions in emissions. Among the existing CO2 capture technologies, microalgae-guided sequestration is seen as one of the more promising and sustainable solutions. The present review article compares CO2 emissions in the EU with other global economies, and outlines EU’s climate policy together with current and proposed EU climate regulations. Furthermore, it summarizes the current state of knowledge on controlled microalgal cultures, indicates the importance of CO2 phycoremediation methods, and assesses the importance of microalgae-based systems for long-term storage and utilization of CO2. It also outlines how far microalgae technologies within the EU have developed on the quantitative and technological levels, together with prospects for future development. The literature overview has shown that large-scale take-up of technological solutions for the prod... [more]

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the overall life cycle environmental impact of an adiabatic compressed air energy storage (ACAES) system, which is designed to achieve the best match between the power production of a photovoltaic (PV) power plant and the power demand from the final user. The electrical energy demand of a small town, with a maximum power load of about 10 MW, is considered a case study. The ACAES system is designed with a compressor-rated power of about 10 MW and charging and discharging times of 10 and 24 h, respectively. Different sizes of the PV plant, ranging from 20 to 40 MWp, and two different solutions for the compressed air storage, an underground cavern, and a gas pipeline, are analyzed. The aim of this analysis is to compare the impacts on human health, ecosystem quality, climate change, and resource consumption of the PV power generation plant and the integrated PV-ACAES system with those of a reference scenario in which the end user demand is met entirely... [more]

The mechanical recycling of solid plastic waste on a small-scale level can be accomplished with the correct approaches. Thermoplastics are the types of plastic mostly considered for mechanical recycling because of their physical properties and ease of reprocessing. This paper reviews the mechanical reprocessing techniques of selected thermoplastics (polyethylene terephthalate and polyolefins), since they constitute a significant proportion of the plastics used commercially. Furthermore, necessary considerations for the effective operation of small-scale plants, including energy requirements of machinery and optimisation in order to improve efficiency and product quality, are discussed. A clearer understanding and addressing of the process-related challenges will lead to the successful establishment and management of small-scale mechanical recycling facilities to benefit communities. Efficient small-scale mechanical reprocessing establishments have become essential in reducing the envir... [more]

The Mobile Ad-hoc Network is a self-configuring decentralized network, where the network topology is dynamically modifiable. The IoT (Internet of Things) based Wireless Sensor Network contains more sensors and shares information over the Internet to a cloud server. However, the IoT-based wireless sensor network channel has moderate security is poor compared to MANET and packet loss is increased due to attackers. In IoT, all the sensors forward the detected data frequently to the internet gateway, so the energy saving in the network is low compared to MANET. In this work, the smart environment of IoT, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) and MANET make a great heterogeneous network in IT Technology; the combination of this heterogeneous network has new challenging issues. In this heterogeneous network, MANET provides a trusted route between the sensor to gateway nodes into the IoT environment using Energy Saving Optimization Techniques [MANET-ESO in IoT]. It saves energy for each node and red... [more]

Climate change and global warming, caused by excessive carbon emissions from transportation and other environmentally hazardous activities, are serious problems for many countries nowadays. Therefore, while some countries are not making optimal use of their resources, others are working hard to preserve a green and clean environment in order to foster long-term growth. Governments and policymakers throughout the world are finally starting to take the risks of climate change and global warming seriously. This paper extends previous literature related to environmental design practices by investigating the impacts of environmental innovation and the deployment of green energy on decreasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions for Saudi Arabia during the period 1990−2018. Different CO2 emission measures are incorporated in the analysis, namely per capita CO2 emissions, CO2 intensity, CO2 emissions from liquid fuel use, and CO2 emissions from heat and electricity generation. Overall, the outcomes... [more]

The conversion to renewable energy can be achieved when cities and communities start to depend on sustainable resources capable of providing for the basic needs of the community, along with a reduction in the daily problems and issues that people face. These issues, such as poverty, hunger, sanitation, and economic difficulties are highlighted in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to limit and eradicate these problems along with other environmental obstacles including climate change and Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). These SDGs, containing 17 goals target each sector and provide propositions to solve such devastating problems. Hydrogen contributes to the targets of these sustainable developments, since through its implementation in different industries the levels of GHG will drop and thus contribute to the climate change which Earth is facing. Further, through the usage of such resources, many job opportunities will also be developed, thus enhancing the economy, and lifting... [more]

The area of a Microgrid (μG) is a very fast-growing and promising system for overcoming power barriers. This paper examines the impacts of a microgrid system considering Electric Vehicle Grid Integration (EVGI) based on stochastic metaheuristic methods. One of the biggest challenges to slowing down global climate change is the transition to sustainable mobility. Renewable Energy Sources (RESs) integrated with Evs are considered a solution for the power and environmental issues needed to achieve Sustainable Development Goal Seven (SDG7) and Climate Action Goal 13 (CAG13). The aforementioned goals can be achieved by coupling Evs with the utility grid and other RESs using Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technology to form a hybrid system. Overloading is a challenge due to the unknown number of loads (unknown number of Evs). Thus, this study helps to establish the system impact of the uncertainties (arrival and departure Evs) by proposing Stochastic Monte Carlo Method (SMCM) to be addressed. The mai... [more]

The electric power industry is one of the major industries in terms of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and it is necessary to explore low-carbon green power generation models. In recent years, more research has focused on the difference in carbon emissions in fossil energy versus renewable energy but ignored the impact of energy on human well-being. The life cycle assessment (LCA) method is a better method for assessing the impact of the low-carbon model on human well-being. In this paper, the carbon footprints of coal power plants and photovoltaic power (PV) plants generating 1 Kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity are compared to analyze the degree of carbon emissions at different stages of the two models, and the environmental impact potential of the two models is analyzed using the LCA method. The differences between the two models in terms of human well-being were analyzed through questionnaires and quantified using the hierarchical analysis method. The impact of the different models... [more]

Solar energy is a long-established technology, which has zero CO2 emissions, and provides low-cost energy for a given area of land. The concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) has been given preference over the photovoltaic due to its high efficiency. In a CPV system, most of the solar cell area has been replaced with an optical concentrator. Various parabolic trough based CPV systems have been presented where a concentration of <300 is achieved. In the current research, a design is presented to achieve a high concentration of 622×. The design consists of two stages of concentration including parabolic trough as a main concentrator and nonimaging reflective grooves as a secondary concentrator. The trough reflects the incident light towards the secondary reflector where the light is redirected over the solar cell. Design of the two-stage concentrator, ray-tracing simulation, and results are presented. The system achieved an optical efficiency of 79%. The system would also be highly acceptabl... [more]

The replacement of hydrocarbon fuels by ammonia in industrial systems is challenging due to its low burning velocity, its narrow flammability range, and a large production of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide when burned close to stoichiometric conditions. Cracking a fraction of ammonia into hydrogen and nitrogen prior to injection in the combustion chamber is considered a promising strategy to overcome these issues. This paper focuses on evaluating how different levels of ammonia cracking affect the overall burning velocity, the lean blow-off limit, the concentration of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, and the flame response to acoustic perturbations. Swirl stabilized premixed flames of pure ammonia−air and ammonia−hydrogen−nitrogen−air mixtures mimicking 10%, 20%, and 28% of cracking are experimentally investigated. The results show that even though ammonia cracking is beneficial for enhancing the lean blow-off limit and the overall burning velocity, its impact on pollutant emissio... [more]

Carbon emissions reduction is crucial to global climate governance and sustainable development. By 2060, China envisioned being carbon-neutral, and it has adopted a series of policies and measures for environmental management, especially in the main stream of Yangtze River basin, where China’s carbon emissions are centered. The spatial distribution characteristics and agglomeration effects of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the main stream of Yangtze River basin are analyzed from 2010 to 2019 based on the perspective of local (city and state) administrative regions, and uses the spatial Durbin model to examine the influencing factors and spatial spillover effects of carbon emissions. The findings discovered from the extensive research are as follows: First, carbon emissions in the main stream of Yangtze River basin present a fluctuating upward trend, and CO2 emissions in the lower reaches are significantly higher than those in the middle and upper reaches, which are closely related t... [more]

In this work, we have studied how the vertical illuminance of the human eye position, illuminance of the horizontal work surface, and the brightness of the computer screen in the office space lighting are correlated under an energy-saving environment. This investigation was conducted in a full-scale laboratory that simulates an office space with 20 adults. It was found that when the indoor ambient lighting illuminance changes, the vertical illuminance of the subject’s eye position is affected accordingly, and the two factors are strongly correlated. On the other hand, when the surrounding environment is brighter and the vertical illuminance increases, the illuminance of the horizontal working surface adjusted by the subject during the visual display terminal (VDT) operation is significantly reduced. The horizontal illuminance value can even be lower than the value frequently employed in various countries around the world, since the computer screen brightness will be adjusted accordingl... [more]

The process of looking for alternative energy sources is driven by the increasing demand for energy and environmental contamination caused by using fossil fuels. Recent investigations reported the efficiency of microalgae for biofuel production due to its low cost of production, high speed of growth, and ability to grow in harsh environments. In addition, many microalgae are photosynthetic, consuming CO2 and solar light to grow in biomass and providing a promising bioenergy source. This review presents the recent advances in the application of microalgae for biofuel production. In addition, cultivation and harvesting systems and environmental factors that affect microalgae cultivation for biofuel production have also been discussed. Moreover, lipid extraction and conversion technologies to biofuel are presented. The mixotrophic cultivation strategy is promising as it combines the advantages of heterotrophy and autotrophy. Green harvesting methods such as using bio-coagulants and floccu... [more]

Climate change and natural disasters have brought threats to humanity greater than ever. The built environment is a critical part of the climate action plan in terms of its resilience and sustainability. The growing awareness of sustainability in the built environment has led to the increased uptake of sustainable buildings and infrastructure projects. However, a growing number of studies reported some forms of performance gaps in achieving sustainability, in which the actual outcomes and performance of buildings were far from the expected goals. Researchers started to question the alleged benefits of the sustainable built environment. Apart from being overoptimistic in setting the environmental goals, some studies suggested that the gaps could arise from a negligence of the interplay between humans and the environment for delivering the sustainability goals. Hence, this paper intends to highlight opportunities in optimizing sustainability performance in the built environment via human... [more]

The classic Photovoltaic system maximum power point tracking technique cannot concurrently take into account the dynamic response speed and steady-state accuracy when the light intensity changes. To address this issue, a new composite variable step MPPT control algorithm is developed in this study. Based on the three-stage variable step incremental conductance method, the algorithm adds the Kalman filtering algorithm to pre-process the photovoltaic cells output signal, and uses a new calculation approach to adjust the variable step coefficient. As a result, the perturbation step can be automatically modified according to changes in the external environment, which resolves the issues with poor dynamic reaction speed when the classic variable step algorithm started and the light changed. Compared to conventional MPPT control algorithms, the improved MPPT strategy can be easily realized using a hardware control system since it has a simplified control logic and requires less data to be ca... [more]