| 1. |
- Yacout, Dalia M. M.
(author)
-
Assessing status of life cycle assessment studies in Egypt
- 2019
-
In: Current Applied Science and Technology. - 2586-9396. ; 19:2, s. 177-189
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- One of the tools used worldwide nowadays for achieving sustainable development is “Life cycle assessment.” This tool is being used to assess and compare environmental impacts of products or services through their entire lifetime. Researchers and environmental experts in both academia and industry are using Life cycle assessment (LCA) as it presents a quantitated and qualitative tool that reflects the environmental impacts. In spite of this, it was noted that limited studies employed this important tool in Egyptian cases. The goal of this review paper was to identify potential usage of LCA in Egypt. This was done by evaluating the conducted studies concerning this area in Egypt and main gaps and challenges were determinined, accordingly. Improvement options and future requirements for using LCA in Egypt would then be recommended.In order to assess the statues of the LCA studies in Egypt, the published documents by both national and international scholars related to LCA cases conducted in Egypt during the period of 2006 till 2019 were collected and reviewed. It was found that 39 documents were published concerning this area. The published documents covered seven main area of studies namely; building and construction materials, aquaculture farming, energy, industrial manufacturing, transportation, water treatment and waste handling. Top publications were in the building and construction materials field accounting for 44% of the total publications followed by energy, aquaculture farming, waste handling strategies, and industrial manufacturing of textile and packing materials (13%, 13%, 13 and 8% of the total publications, respectively). The main benefits as well as gaps of the conducted studies were discussed for each area. Current concerns, need of future studies as well as related recommendation and suggestions were also presented.
|
|
| 2. |
- Allard, Ingrid, et al.
(author)
-
Methods for energy analysis of residential buildings in Nordic countries
- 2013
-
In: Renewable & sustainable energy reviews. - : Pergamon-Elsevier Science. - 1364-0321 .- 1879-0690. ; 22, s. 306-318
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To meet the goals of the directive 2010/31/EU on the energy performance of buildings, the building sector in Europe now faces a transition towards more energy efficient buildings. Research and development of new energy solutions and technology will be necessary for the transition and the importance of analyzing building energy performance increases. This paper aims to review and evaluate different methods that are commonly used to analyze energy performance in residential buildings in Nordic countries, primarily in Sweden, Norway and Finland. A short international review of regulations is also included. The goal is to find commonly used methods and possibilities for the future. The introduced methods are summarized, categorized and compared based on their advantages and disadvantages. Although the three Nordic countries have similar climate conditions and building traditions, the review shows relatively large variations in the definitions of energy performance for residential buildings, as well as variations in how measurements and calculations are used in the methods for energy performance analysis. In the conducted review, methods, or parts of methods, are also found to be used. The methods used to analyze energy performance are found to be more similar than the concepts of energy performance itself in the three countries. These aspects may be considered in further work to develop an international policy practice for energy performance of residential buildings in cold climate.
|
|
| 3. |
- Das, Atanu Kumar, et al.
(author)
-
COVID-19 and municipal solid waste (MSW) management : a review
- 2021
-
In: Environmental Science and Pollution Research. - : Springer. - 0944-1344 .- 1614-7499. ; 28:23, s. 28993-29008
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Municipal solid waste (MSW) represents an inevitable by-product of human activity and a major crisis for communities across the globe. In recent times, the recycling of MSW has drawn attention as the process can add value through resources from the recovered waste materials and facilitates the process of circular economy. However, during the unprecedented coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the risk of infection with the highly contagious virus has proven detrimental to the continuation of MSW as a valuable resource. The volume of waste, especially household waste, is higher; face masks, PPE (personal protective equipment), and hazardous materials such as batteries and empty chlorine bottles are examples of extra waste that have arisen during the pandemic. Various countries have set up initiatives for MSW management, including safety measurements for employees in the MSW management sector. The use of disinfectant prior to sorting waste, as well as storing waste for 9 days, may help to inactivate the COVID-19 virus, ensuring an appropriate safety level for MSW management. This work aimed at studying different MSW management strategies, specific challenges, and possible solutions for better understanding for those involved in waste management, in addition to providing a possible management strategy during and post-COVID-19 pandemic.
|
|
| 4. |
- Das, Atanu Kumar, et al.
(author)
-
COVID-19 pandemic and healthcare solid waste management strategy – A mini-review
- 2021
-
In: Science of the Total Environment. - : Elsevier BV. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 778
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Healthcare waste comprises the waste generated by healthcare facilities, medical laboratories and biomedical research facilities. Improper treatment of this waste poses serious risks of disease transmission to waste pickers, waste workers, health workers, patients, and the community in general through exposure to infectious agents. Poor management of the waste emits harmful and deleterious contaminants into society. However, contamination of highly contagious agents such as the COVID-19 virus has created enormous instability in healthcare waste handling and subsequent recycling because of the volume of the waste generated and its contagious nature. Several countries have adopted safety measures to combat this contamination and manage healthcare waste; however, these measures are insufficient and vary depending on the context of the country. In addition, the WHO has set out guidelines for management of healthcare waste. These guidelines are helping to manage the highly contagious healthcare waste resulting from the current pandemic. Proper healthcare waste management may add value by reducing the spread of the COVID-19 virus and increasing the recyclability of materials instead of sending them to landfill. Disinfecting and sorting out healthcare waste facilitates sustainable management and allows their utilization for valuable purposes. This review discusses the different healthcare solid waste management strategies practiced in different countries, the challenges faced during this management, and the possible solutions for overcoming these challenges. It also provides useful insights into healthcare solid waste management scenarios during the COVID-19 pandemic and a possible way forward.
|
|
| 5. |
- Gandla, Madhavi Latha, et al.
(author)
-
Analytical Enzymatic Saccharification of Lignocellulosic Biomass for Conversion to Biofuels and Bio-Based Chemicals
- 2018
-
In: Energies. - : MDPI. - 1996-1073. ; 11:11
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Lignocellulosic feedstocks are an important resource for biorefining of renewables to bio-based fuels, chemicals, and materials. Relevant feedstocks include energy crops, residues from agriculture and forestry, and agro-industrial and forest-industrial residues. The feedstocks differ with respect to their recalcitrance to bioconversion through pretreatment and enzymatic saccharification, which will produce sugars that can be further converted to advanced biofuels and other products through microbial fermentation processes. In analytical enzymatic saccharification, the susceptibility of lignocellulosic samples to pretreatment and enzymatic saccharification is assessed in analytical scale using high-throughput or semi-automated techniques. This type of analysis is particularly relevant for screening of large collections of natural or transgenic varieties of plants that are dedicated to production of biofuels or other bio-based chemicals. In combination with studies of plant physiology and cell wall chemistry, analytical enzymatic saccharification can provide information about the fundamental reasons behind lignocellulose recalcitrance as well as about the potential of collections of plants or different fractions of plants for industrial biorefining. This review is focused on techniques used by researchers for screening the susceptibility of plants to pretreatment and enzymatic saccharification, and advantages and disadvantages that are associated with different approaches.
|
|
| 6. |
- Lázaro-González, Alba, et al.
(author)
-
Revegetation through seeding or planting : a worldwide systematic map
- 2023
-
In: Journal of Environmental Management. - : Elsevier. - 0301-4797 .- 1095-8630. ; 337
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Roughly 2 billion ha of land are degraded and in need of ecological restoration worldwide. Active restoration frequently involves revegetation, which leads to the dilemma of whether to conduct direct seeding or to plant nursery-grown seedlings. The choice of revegetation method can regulate plant survival and performance, with economic implications that ultimately feed back to our capacity to conduct restoration. We followed a peer-reviewed protocol to develop a systematic map that collates, describes and catalogues the available studies on how seeding compares to planting in achieving restoration targets. We compiled a database with the characteristics of all retrieved studies, which can be searched to identify studies of particular locations and habitats, objectives of restoration, plant material, technical aspects, and outcomes measured. The search was made in eight languages and retrieved 3355 publications, of which 178 were retained. The systematic map identifies research gaps, such as a lack of studies in the global South, in tropical rainforests, and covering a long time period, which represent opportunities to expand field-based research. Additionally, many studies overlooked reporting on important technical aspects such as seed provenance and nursery cultivation methods, and others such as watering or seedling protection were more frequently applied for planting than for seeding, which limits our capacity to learn from past research. Most studies measured outcomes related to the target plants but avoided measuring general restoration outcomes or economic aspects. This represents a relevant gap in research, as the choice of revegetation method is greatly based on economic aspects and the achievement of restoration goals goes beyond the establishment of plants. Finally, we identified a substantial volume of studies conducted in temperate regions and over short periods (0–5 y). This research cluster calls for a future in-depth synthesis, potentially through meta-analysis, to reveal the overall balance between seeding and planting and assess whether the response to this question is mediated by species traits, environmental characteristics, or technical aspects. Besides identifying research clusters and gaps, the systematic map database allows managers to find the most relevant scientific literature on the appropriateness of seeding vs. planting for particular conditions, such as certain species or habitats.
|
|
| 7. |
- Martin, Carlos, et al.
(author)
-
Spent substrate from mushroom cultivation : exploitation potential toward various applications and value-added products
- 2023
-
In: Bioengineered. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2165-5979 .- 2165-5987. ; 14:1
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Spent mushroom substrate (SMS) is the residual biomass generated after harvesting the fruitbodies of edible/medicinal fungi. Disposal of SMS, the main by-product of the mushroom cultivation process, often leads to serious environmental problems and is financially demanding. Efficient recycling and valorization of SMS are crucial for the sustainable development of the mushroom industry in the frame of the circular economy principles. The physical properties and chemical composition of SMS are a solid fundament for developing several applications, and recent literature shows an increasing research interest in exploiting that inherent potential. This review provides a thorough outlook on SMS exploitation possibilities and discusses critically recent findings related to specific applications in plant and mushroom cultivation, animal husbandry, and recovery of enzymes and bioactive compounds.
|
|
| 8. |
- Matsakas, Leonidas, et al.
(author)
-
Green conversion of municipal solid wastes into fuels and chemicals
- 2017
-
In: Electronic Journal of Biotechnology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0717-3458. ; 26
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Presently, the society is facing a serious challenge for the effective management of the increasing amount of produced municipal solid wastes. The accumulated waste has caused a series of environmental problems such as uncontrolled release of greenhouse gases. Moreover, the increasing amount of wastes has resulted in a shortage of areas available for waste disposal, resulting in a nonsustainable waste management. These problems led to serious public concerns, which in turn resulted in political actions aiming to reduce the amount of wastes reaching the environment. These actions aim to promote sustainable waste management solutions. The main objective of these policies is to promote the recycling of municipal solid waste and the conversion of waste to energy and valuable chemicals. These conversions can be performed using either biological (e.g., anaerobic digestion) or thermochemical processes (e.g., pyrolysis). Research efforts during the last years have been fruitful, and many publications demonstrated the effective conversation of municipal solid waste to energy and chemicals. These processes are discussed in the current review article together with the change of the waste policy that was implemented in the EU during the last years.
|
|
| 9. |
- Muelbert, Jose H., et al.
(author)
-
ILTER : The International Long-Term Ecological Research Network as a Platform for Global Coastal and Ocean Observation
- 2019
-
In: Frontiers in Marine Science. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 2296-7745. ; 6
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Understanding the threats to global biodiversity and ecosystem services posed by human impacts on coastal and marine environments requires the establishment and maintenance of ecological observatories that integrate the biological, physical, geological, and biogeochemical aspects of ecosystems. This is crucial to provide scientists and stakeholders with the support and knowledge necessary to quantify environmental change and its impact on the sustainable use of the seas and coasts. In this paper, we explore the potential for the coastal and marine components of the International Long-Term Ecological Research Network (ILTER) to fill this need for integrated global observation, and highlight how ecological observations are necessary to address the challenges posed by climate change and evolving human needs and stressors within the coastal zone. The ILTER is a global network encompassing 44 countries and 700 research sites in a variety of ecosystems across the planet, more than 100 of which are located in coastal and marine environments (ILTER-CMS). While most of the ILTER-CMS were established after the year 2000, in some cases they date back to the early 1900s. At ILTER sites, a broad variety of abiotic and biotic variables are measured, which may feed into other global initiatives. The ILTER community has produced tools to harmonize and compare measurements and methods, allowing for data integration workflows and analyses between and within individual ILTER sites. After a brief historical overview of ILTER, with emphasis on the marine component, we analyze the potential contribution of the ILTER-CMS to global coastal and ocean observation, adopting the "Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threats (SWOT)" approach. We also identify ways in which the in situ parameters collected at ILTER sites currently fit within the Essential Ocean Variables framework (as proposed by the Framework for Ocean Observation recommendations) and provide insights on the use of new technology in long-term studies. Final recommendations point at the need to further develop observational activities at LTER sites and improve coordination among them and with external related initiatives in order to maximize their exploitation and address present and future challenges in ocean observations.
|
|
| 10. |
- Nair, Gireesh, et al.
(author)
-
A review on technical challenges and possibilities on energy efficient retrofit measures in heritage buildings
- 2022
-
In: Energies. - : MDPI. - 1996-1073. ; 15:20
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- For heritage buildings, energy-efficient retrofitting cannot be applied with the same range of possibilities as with existing buildings. Applying such improvements to heritage buildings can be challenging due to their historic and/or cultural significance and non-standard construction methods. This paper reviews the technical challenges and potential of applying energy efficient retrofit elements in heritage buildings. The retrofitting measures reviewed are draught-proofing, windows, insulation, ventilation, heating, solar photovoltaics and phase change materials. It is possible to significantly reduce energy use in heritage buildings with such retrofits. However, there is no universal way to apply energy-efficient retrofitting in heritage buildings, which is apparent in the literature, where case studies are prevalent.
|
|
