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The production of vanadium nitrogen alloys (VNs) is a chemical reaction process carried out in a closed pusher plate kiln, making real-time monitoring of key parameters challenging. Traditional methods for controlling process parameters are insufficient to meet the demands of production control. And the current production line heavily depends on workers' experience and operates with a relatively low level of automation. In order to solve the above problems, this paper proposes a method for monitoring, predicting, and online controlling the production process parameters of VNs based on digital twins. Firstly, the process parameter affecting quality in the production process is experimentally selected as the target for prediction and control. Then, the ISSA-GRNN (Improved Sparrow Search Algorithm-Generalized Regression Neural Networks) fusion prediction model is constructed to predict the optimal values and intervals for the process parameter of movement interval. Finally, a digital twin system is developed to integrate the fusion prediction model to achieve real-time monitoring and online control of the production line. And the superiority of the algorithm and the feasibility of online control are verified through experiments. This paper achieves accurate prediction and online control of parameters in the VNs production process and has reduced reliance on workers' production experience. Additionally, it has effectively lowered energy consumption and failure rates, facilitated the transition from traditional kiln production to intelligent production, and thereby supported sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urban heat island (UHI) is a crucial factor in developing sustainable cities and societies. Appropriate data collection, analysis, and prediction are essential first steps in studying the effects of the UHI. This research systematically reviewed the papers related to the UHI that have used on-site data collection in the United States and Canada and the papers related to predicting and analyzing this effect in these regions. To achieve this goal, this study extracted 330 articles from Scopus and Web of Science and, after selecting the papers, reviewed 30 papers in detail from 1998 to 2023. The findings of this paper indicated a methodological shift from traditional sensors and data loggers towards more innovative and customized technologies. Concurrently, this research reveals a growing trend in using machine learning, moving from supportive to direct predictive roles and using techniques like neural networks and Bayesian networks. Despite the maturation of UHI research due to these developments, they also present challenges in technology complexity and data integration. The review emphasizes the need for future research to focus on accessible, accurate technologies. Moreover, interdisciplinary approaches are crucial for addressing UHI challenges in an era of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the global climate changes, there is an increasing focus on the oceans and their protection and exploitation. However, the exploration of the oceans necessitates the construction of marine equipment, and the siting of such equipment has become a significant challenge. With the ongoing development of computers, machine learning using remote sensing data has proven to be an effective solution to this problem. This paper reviews the history of remote sensing technology, introduces the conditions required for site selection through measurement analysis, and uses cluster analysis methods to identify areas such as machine learning as a research hotspot for ocean remote sensing. The paper aims to integrate machine learning into ocean remote sensing. Through the review and discussion of this article, limitations and shortcomings of the current stage of ocean remote sensing are identified, and relevant development proposals are put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the socio-economic development in the Tibet region of China has experienced substantial growth. However, transportation increasingly strains the region's fragile ecological environment. Most studies overlook the accurate measurement and analysis of factors influencing traffic carbon emissions in Tibet due to data scarcity. To address this, this paper applies an improved traffic carbon emissions model, using transportation turnover data to estimate emissions in Tibet from 2008 to 2020. Simultaneously, the estimated traffic carbon emissions in Tibet served as the predicted variable, and various machine learning algorithms, including Radial Basis Function Support Vector Machine (RBF-SVM), eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), Random Forest, and Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT) are employed to conduct an initial comparison of the constructed prediction models using three-fold cross-validation and multiple evaluation metrics. The best-performing model undergoes further optimization using Grid Search (GS) and Real-coded Genetic Algorithm (RGA). Finally, the central difference method and Local Interpretable Model-Agnostic Explanation (LIME) algorithm are used for local sensitivity and interpretability analyses on twelve core variables. The results assess each variable's contribution to the model's output, enabling a comprehensive analysis of their impact on Tibet's traffic carbon emissions. The findings demonstrate a significant upward trend in Tibet's traffic carbon emissions, with road transportation and civil aviation being the main contributors. The RBF-SVM algorithm is most suitable for predicting traffic carbon emissions in this region. After GS optimization, the model's R2 value exceeded 0.99, indicating high predictive accuracy and stability. Key factors influencing traffic carbon emissions in Tibet include civilian vehicle numbers, transportation land-use area, transportation output value, urban green coverage areas, per capita GDP, and built-up area. This paper provides a systematic framework and empirical support for measuring, predicting, and analyzing factors influencing traffic carbon emissions in Tibet. It employs innovative measurement methods, optimized machine learning models, and detailed sensitivity and interpretability analyses. The results can guide regional carbon reduction targets and promote green sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past years, machine learning and big data analysis have emerged, starting as a scientific and fictional domain, very interesting but difficult to test, and becoming one of the most powerful tools that is part of Industry 5.0 and has a significant impact on sustainable, resilient manufacturing. This has garnered increasing attention within scholarly circles due to its applicability in various domains. The scope of the article is to perform an exhaustive bibliometric analysis of existing papers that belong to machine learning and big data, pointing out the capability from a scientific point of view, explaining the usability of applications, and identifying which is the actual in a continually changing domain. In this context, the present paper aims to discuss the research landscape associated with the use of machine learning and big data analysis in Industry 5.0 in terms of themes, authors, citations, preferred journals, research networks, and collaborations. The initial part of the analysis focuses on the latest trends and how researchers lend a helping hand to change preconceptions about machine learning. The annual growth rate is 123.69%, which is considerable for such a short period, and it requires a comprehensive analysis to check the boom of articles in this domain. Further, the exploration investigates affiliated academic institutions, influential publications, journals, key contributors, and most delineative authors. To accomplish this, a dataset has been created containing researchers' papers extracted from the ISI Web of Science database using keywords associated with machine learning and big data, starting in 2016 and ending in 2023. The paper incorporates graphs, which describe the most relevant authors, academic institutions, annual publications, country collaborations, and the most used words. The paper ends with a review of the globally most cited documents, describing the importance of machine learning and big data in Industry 5.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an in-depth exploration of the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in enhancing the resilience of microgrids. It begins with an overview of the impact of natural events on power systems and provides data and insights related to power outages and blackouts caused by natural events in Estonia, setting the context for the need for resilient power systems. Then, the paper delves into the concept of resilience and the role of microgrids in maintaining power stability. The paper reviews various AI techniques and methods, and their application in power systems and microgrids. It further investigates how AI can be leveraged to improve the resilience of microgrids, particularly during different phases of an event occurrence time (pre-event, during event, and post-event). A comparative analysis of the performance of various AI models is presented, highlighting their ability to maintain stability and ensure a reliable power supply. This comprehensive review contributes significantly to the existing body of knowledge and sets the stage for future research in this field. The paper concludes with a discussion of future work and directions, emphasizing the potential of AI in revolutionizing power system monitoring and control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The episodes of elevated concentrations of different gaseous pollutants and particulate matter (PM) are of major concern worldwide, especially in city agglomerations. Krakow is an example of an urban–industrial agglomeration with constantly occurring PM10 air limit value exceedances. In recent years, a number of legislative actions have been undertaken to improve air quality in this area. The multitude of factors affecting the emergence of cases of very high air pollutant concentrations makes it difficult to analyze them using simple statistical methods. Machine learning (ML) methods can be an adequate option, especially when proper amounts of credible data are available. The main aim of this paper was to examine the influence of various factors (including main gaseous pollutant concentrations and some meteorological factors) on the effect of high PM10 concentration episodes in the ambient air in Krakow (Poland) using the random forest algorithm. The original methodology based on the PM10 limit and binary classification of cases with and without the occurrence of high concentration episodes was developed. The data used were derived from routine public air quality monitoring and a local meteorological station. A range of random forest classification models with various predictor sets and for different subsets of the observations coupled with variable importance analysis were performed. The performance of the algorithm was assessed using confusion matrices. The variable importance rankings revealed, among other things, the dominant impact of the mixing layer height on elevated PM10 concentration episode formation. This research work showed the usefulness of the random forest algorithm in identifying factors contributing to poor air quality, even in the absence of reliable emission data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While it is essential to increase agricultural production to meet the needs of a growing global population, this task is becoming increasingly difficult due to the environmental challenges faced in recent decades. A promising solution to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of agricultural production is the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies, such as IoT, UAVs, AI, and Blockchain. However, despite their potential, there is a lack of comprehensive bibliometric analyses that cover the full range of these technologies in agriculture. This gap limits understanding of their integration and impact. This study aims to provide a holistic bibliometric analysis of the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies in agriculture, identifying key research trends and gaps. We analyzed relevant literature using the Scopus database and VOSviewer software (version 1.6.20, Centre for Science and Technology Studies, Leiden University, The Netherlands)and identified five major thematic clusters within Agriculture 4.0. These clusters were examined to understand the included technologies and their roles in promoting sustainable agricultural practices. The study also identified unexplored technologies that present opportunities for future research. This paper offers a comprehensive overview of the current research landscape in Agriculture 4.0, highlighting areas for innovation and development, and serves as a valuable resource for enhancing sustainable agricultural practices through technological integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The seasonal fluctuation of river depths is a critical factor in designing cargo capacity for river convoys and logistics processes used for grain transportation in northern Brazil. Water level variations directly impact the load capacities of pusher convoys navigating the Amazon rivers. This paper presents a machine learning model based on a multilayer perceptron artificial neural network developed with the aim of estimating the cargo capacities of river convoys one year in advance, which is essential for determining load capacities during dry periods. The prediction model was applied to the Tapajós River in the Amazon Basin, Brazil, where grain transportation is significant and relies on inland waterways. Navigability conditions were evaluated in terms of depth and geometric parameters. The results of this case study were satisfactory, validating the computational tool and enabling the assessment of capacity losses during dry periods and the identification of navigation bottlenecks. The main contributions of this work include optimizing river logistics, reducing costs, minimizing environmental impacts, and promoting the sustainable management of water resources in the Amazon. Conclusions drawn from the study indicate that the developed model is highly effective, with an R2 of 0.954 and RMSE of 0.095, demonstrating its potential to significantly enhance river convoy operations and support sustainable development in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate and timely risk assessment of short-term rainstorm-type flood disasters is very important for ecological environment protection and sustainable socio-economic development. Given the complexity and variability of different geographical environments and climate conditions, a single machine learning model may lead to overfitting issues in flood disaster assessment, limiting the generalization ability of such models. In order to overcome this challenge, this study proposed a short-term rainstorm flood disaster risk assessment framework under the integrated learning model, which is divided into two stages: The first stage uses microwave remote sensing images to extract flood coverage and establish disaster samples, and integrates multi-source heterogeneous data to build a flood disaster risk assessment index system. The second stage, under the constraints of Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA), optimizes the integration of random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), and logistic regression (LR) base models, and then the WRSL-Short-Term Flood Risk Assessment Model is established. The experimental results show that the Area Under Curve (AUC) accuracy of the WRSL-Short-Term Flood Risk Assessment Model is 89.27%, which is 0.95%, 1.77%, 2.07%, 1.86%, and 0.47% higher than RF, SVM, LR, XGBoost, and average weight RF-SVM-LR, respectively. The accuracy evaluation metrics for accuracy, Recall, and F1 Score have improved by 5.84%, 21.50%, and 11.06%, respectively. In this paper, WRSL-Short-Term Flood Risk Assessment Model is used to carry out the risk assessment of flood and waterlogging disasters in Henan Province, and ArcGIS is used to complete the short-term rainstorm city flood and waterlogging risk map. The research results will provide a scientific assessment basis for short-term rainstorm city flood disaster risk assessment and provide technical support for regional flood control and risk management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates optimising battery energy storage systems (BESSs) to enhance the business models of Local Energy Markets (LEMs). LEMs are decentralised energy ecosystems facilitating peer-to-peer energy trading among consumers, producers, and prosumers. By incentivising local energy exchange and balancing supply and demand, LEMs contribute to grid resilience and sustainability. This study proposes a novel approach to BESS optimisation, utilising advanced artificial intelligence techniques, such as multilayer perceptron neural networks and extreme gradient boosting regressors. These models accurately forecast energy consumption and optimise BESS reserve allocation within the LEM framework. The findings demonstrate the potential of these AI-driven strategies to improve the BESS reserve capacity setting. This optimal setting will target meeting Energy Community site owners' needs and avoiding fines from the distribution system operator for not meeting contract conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forecasting the future levels of air pollution provides valuable information that holds importance for the general public, vulnerable populations, and policymakers. High-quality data are essential for precise and reliable forecasts and investigations of air pollution. Missing observations arise when the sensors utilized for assessing air quality parameters experience malfunctions, which result in erroneous measurements or gaps in the dataset and hinder the data quality. This research paper presents a novel approach for imputing missing values in air quality data in a univariate approach. The algorithm employs the random forest (RF) algorithm to impute missing observations in a bi-directional (forward and reverse in time) manner for air quality (particulate matter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5)) data from the Republic of Serbia. The algorithm was evaluated against simple methods, such as the mean and median imputation methods, for missing observations over durations of 24, 48, and 72 h. The results indicate that our algorithm yielded comparable error rates to the median imputation method for all periods when imputing the PM2.5 data. Ultimately, the algorithm's higher computational complexity proved itself as not justified considering the minimal error decrease it achieved compared with the simpler methods. However, for future improvement, additional research is needed, such as utilizing low-code machine learning libraries and time-series forecasting techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degradation of the ecosystem and the loss of natural capital have seriously threatened the sustainable development of human society and economy. Currently, most research on Gross Ecosystem Product (GEP) is based on statistical modeling methods, which face challenges such as high modeling difficulty, high costs, and inaccurate quantitative methods. However, machine learning models are characterized by high efficiency, fewer parameters, and higher accuracy. Despite these advantages, their application in GEP research is not widespread, particularly in the area of combined machine learning models. This paper includes both a GEP combination model and an explanatory analysis model. This paper is the first to propose a combined GEP prediction model called Ada-XGBoost-CatBoost (Ada-XG-CatBoost), which integrates the Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), Categorical Boosting (CatBoost) algorithms, and SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) model. This approach overcomes the limitations of single-model evaluations and aims to address the current issues of inaccurate and incomplete GEP assessments. It provides new guidance and methods for enhancing the value of ecosystem services and achieving regional sustainable development. Based on the actual ecological data of a national city, data preprocessing and feature correlation analysis are carried out using XGBoost and CatBoost algorithms, AdaGrad optimization algorithm, and the Bayesian hyperparameter optimization method. By selecting the 11 factors that predominantly influence GEP, training the model using these selected feature datasets, and optimizing the Bayesian parameters, the error gradient is then updated to adjust the weights, achieving a combination model that minimizes errors. This approach reduces the risk of overfitting in individual models and enhances the predictive accuracy and interpretability of the model. The results indicate that the mean squared error (MSE) of the Ada-XG-CatBoost model is reduced by 65% and 70% compared to the XGBoost and CatBoost, respectively. Additionally, the mean absolute error (MAE) is reduced by 4.1% and 42.6%, respectively. Overall, the Ada-XG-CatBoost combination model has a more accurate and stable predictive performance, providing a more accurate, efficient, and reliable reference for the sustainable development of the ecological industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) have become very popular in the research community for addressing complex issues in intelligent transportation. This has resulted in many scientific papers being published across various transportation topics over the past decade. This paper conducts a systematic review of the intelligent transportation literature using a scientometric analysis, aiming to summarize what is already known, identify current research trends, evaluate academic impacts, and suggest future research directions. The study provides a detailed review by analyzing 113 journal articles from the Web of Science (WoS) database. It examines the growth of publications over time, explores the collaboration patterns of key contributors, such as researchers, countries, and organizations, and employs techniques such as co-authorship analysis and keyword co-occurrence analysis to delve into the publication clusters and identify emerging research topics. Nine emerging sub-topics are identified and qualitatively discussed. The outcomes include recognizing pioneering researchers in intelligent transportation for potential collaboration opportunities, identifying reliable sources of information for publishing new work, and aiding researchers in selecting the best solutions for specific problems. These findings help researchers better understand the application of ML and DL in the intelligent transportation literature and guide research policymakers and editorial boards in selecting promising research topics for further research and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The supply of livestock products depends on many internal and external factors. Omitting any one factor can make it difficult to describe the market patterns. So, forecasting livestock indexes such as prices and supplies is challenging due to the effect of unknown factors. This paper proposes a Stacking Forest Ensemble method (SFE-NET) to forecast pork supply by considering both internal and external factors, thereby contributing to sustainable pork production. We first analyze the internal factors to explore features related to pork supply. External factors such as weather conditions, gas prices, and disease information are also collected from different sources. The combined dataset is from 2016 to 2022. Our SFE-NET method utilizes Random Forest, Gradient Boosting, and XGBoost as members and a neural network as the meta-method. We conducted seven experiments for daily, weekly, and monthly pork supply using different sets of factors, such as internal, internal and external, and selected. The results showed the following findings: (a) The proposed method achieved Coefficient of Determination scores between 84% and 91% in short and long periods, (b) the external factors increased the performance of forecasting methods by about 2% to 12%, and (c) the proposed stacking ensemble method outperformed other comparative methods by 1% to 18%. These improvements in forecasting accuracy can help promote more sustainable pork production by enhancing market stability and resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CO2 geological storage, as a large-scale, low-cost, carbon reduction technology, has garnered widespread attention due to its safety. Monitoring potential leaks is critical to ensuring the safety of the carbon storage system. Geochemical monitoring employs methods such as gas monitoring, groundwater monitoring, tracer monitoring, and isotope monitoring to analyze the reservoir's storage state and secondary changes after a CO2 injection. This paper summarizes the recent applications and limitations of geochemical monitoring technologies in CO2 geological storage. In gas monitoring, the combined monitoring of multiple surface gasses can analyze potential gas sources in the storage area. In water monitoring, pH and conductivity measurements are the most direct, while ion composition monitoring methods are emerging. In tracer monitoring, although artificial tracers are effective, the environmental compatibility of natural tracers provides them with greater development potential. In isotope monitoring, C and O isotopes can effectively reveal gas sources. Future CO2 geological storage project monitoring should integrate various monitoring methods to comprehensively assess the risk and sources of CO2 leakage. The incorporation of artificial intelligence, machine learning technologies, and IoT monitoring will significantly enhance the accuracy and intelligence of numerical simulations and baseline monitoring, ensuring the long-term safety and sustainability of CO2 geological storage projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: E-waste management (EWM) refers to the operation management of discarded electronic devices, a challenge exacerbated due to overindulgent urbanization. The main purpose of this paper is to amalgamate production engineering, statistical methods, mathematical modelling, supported with Machine Learning to develop a dynamic e-waste supply chain model. Method Used: This article presents a multidimensional, cost function-based analysis of the EWM framework structured on three modules including environmental, economic, and social uncertainties in material recovery from an e-waste (MREW) plant, including the production–delivery–utilization process. Each module is ranked using Machine Learning (ML) protocols—Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and combined AHP-Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Findings: This model identifies and probabilistically ranks two key sustainability contributors to the EWM supply chain: energy consumption and carbon dioxide emission. Additionally, the precise time window of 400–600 days from the start of the operation is identified for policy resurrection. Novelty: Ours is a data-intensive model that is founded on sustainable product designing in line with SDG requirements. The combined AHP-PCA consistently outperformed traditional statistical tools, and is the second novelty. Model ratification using real e-waste plant data is the third novelty. Implications: The Machine Learning framework embeds a powerful probabilistic prediction algorithm based on data-based decision making in future e-waste sustained roadmaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the face of the impending challenge of feeding a growing global population, one-third of all food produced ends up as waste. A notable contributor to this problem is the wastage of a third of perfectly edible and nutritious fresh produce because they need to meet the high cosmetic standards expected by consumers. Eliminating this wastage of imperfect produce is, therefore, a crucial and sustainable means to increase the food supply for a growing global population. This can be achieved through automated sorting of good, bad and imperfect produce using automation, robotics and machine vision. A prerequisite for such automated sorting is fast and accurate machine vision algorithms for successful differentiation between good, bad and imperfect produce. Training such algorithms requires large image datasets. While much work has gone into collecting images of good and bad produce, to the best of our knowledge, no such dataset exists for imperfect produce items. In this paper, we attempt to fill this gap by developing the first publicly available dataset of good, bad and imperfect produce items. The dataset has been made publicly available on the Harvard Dataverse for use in training machine vision algorithms for sorting good, bad and imperfect produce. It is our hope that this open dataset will contribute to improving research and practice for sorting and saving imperfect produce in the food supply chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Around the world, managing and classifying solid waste is one of the most important challenges to sustaining economic growth and preserving the environment. The objective of this paper is to propose the use of Smart Ecological Points as a strategy to address the problem of solid waste management systems at the source, which has become one of the biggest problems globally, and Colombia is no exception. This article describes the current state of the problem in the country and presents a prototype of a low-cost Smart Ecological Point supported by the use of an experimental capacitive sensor and machine learning algorithms, which will reduce the time necessary for the classification of recyclable and non-recyclable waste, increasing the percentage of waste that can be reused and minimizing health risks by reducing the probability of being contaminated at the source, an aspect that is very common when waste is sorted manually. According to the results obtained, it is evident that the proposed prototype made an adequate classification of waste, generating the possibility of it being manufactured with existing technology in order to promote adequate waste classification at the source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the challenge of accurately forecasting solar power generation (SPG) across multiple sites using a single common model. The proposed deep learning-based model is designed to predict SPG for various locations by leveraging a comprehensive dataset from multiple sites in the Republic of Korea. By incorporating common meteorological elements such as temperature, humidity, and cloud cover into its framework, the model uniquely identifies site-specific features to enhance the forecasting accuracy. The key innovation of this model is the integration of a classifier module within the common model framework, enabling it to adapt and predict SPG for both known and unknown sites based on site similarities. This approach allows for the extraction and utilization of site-specific characteristics from shared meteorological data, significantly improving the model's adaptability and generalization across diverse environmental conditions. The evaluation results demonstrate that the model maintains high performance levels across different SPG sites with minimal performance degradation compared to site-specific models. Notably, the model shows robust forecasting capabilities, even in the absence of target SPG data, highlighting its potential to enhance operational efficiency and support the integration of renewable energy into the power grid, thereby contributing to the global transition towards sustainable energy sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prediction tunnel settlement in shield tunnels during the operation period has gained increasing significance within the realm of maintenance strategy formulation. The sparse settlement data during this period present a formidable challenge for predictive Artificial Intelligence (AI) models, as they may not handle non-stationary relationships effectively or have the risk of overfitting. In this study, we propose an improved machine learning (ML) model based on sparse settlement data. We enhance training data via time series clustering, use time decomposition to uncover latent features, and employ Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) v1.5.1 with Bayesian Optimization (BO) v1.2.0 for precise predictions. Comparative experiments conducted on different acquisition points substantiate our model's efficacy, the in-training set yielding a Mean Absolute Error (MAE) of 0.649 mm, Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.873 mm, Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) of 3.566, and Coefficient of Determination (R2) of 0.872, and the in-testing set yielding a MAE of 0.717 mm, RMSE of 1.048 mm, MAPE of 4.080, and R2 of 0.846. The empirical results show the superiority of the proposed model compared to simple ML models and a complex neural network model, as it has a lower prediction error and higher accuracy across different sparse settlement datasets. Moreover, this paper underlines that accurate settlement predictions contribute to achieving some Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Specifically, preventive tunnel maintenance strategies based on predictive results can enhance tunnels' long-term operational reliability, which is in accordance with SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The critical importance of optimal substation placement intensifies as the world experiences sustained economic expansion and firmly pursues the decarbonization process. This paper develops an integrative approach to determining the optimal location for a new substation considering the evolving power framework. To this end, a projected 2% national load growth is taken into account, in accordance with the foresight of the Romanian authorities, emphasizing the need to place new substations to enhance the grid's sustainability. Leveraging the Weibull distribution, a dataset is generated to simulate the anticipated load increase, starting from real power datasets in Romania. Two algorithms are designed for optimal substation positioning: geometric (center-of-gravity-based) and machine learning (K-means clustering). The primary comparison criterion is the minimization of power losses during energy distribution. The results reveal the machine learning approach (i.e., K-means clustering) as the superior alternative, attaining a 60% success rate in minimizing the power losses. However, acknowledging computational constraints, the concurrent utilization of both algorithms is advocated for optimal substation location selection, indicating a potential improvement in outcomes. This study emphasizes the critical need for advanced algorithms, stressing their role in mitigating power losses and optimizing energy utilization in response to evolving load patterns and sustainability goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of greywater heat exchangers (GHEs) is an effective way to reduce energy consumption for heating domestic water. However, the available characteristics of this type of device are often insufficient and consider only a few selected parameters of water and greywater, which results in the need to look for tools enabling the determination of the effectiveness of GHEs in various operating conditions with incomplete input data. The aim of this paper was to determine the usefulness of artificial neural networks (ANNs). For this purpose, comprehensive experimental tests were carried out on the effectiveness of the horizontal heat exchanger, taking into account a wide range of water and greywater flow rates and temperatures of these media, as well as the linear bottom slope of the unit, which allowed for the creation of a database of 32,175 results. Then, the feasibility of implementing the full research plan was assessed using ANNs. The analysis showed that the impact of the media temperatures on the heat exchanger effectiveness values obtained using ANNs is limited, which makes it possible to significantly reduce the number of necessary experiments. Adopting only three temperature values of at least one medium allowed the generation of ANN models with coefficient values R2 = 0.748–0.999 and RMSE = 0.077–1.872. In the case of the tested GHE, the slope and the flow rate of the mixed water are of key importance. However, even in the case of parameters of significant importance, it is possible to reduce the research plan without compromising the final results. Assuming five different values for each of the four input parameters (a total of 625 combinations) made it possible to generate an ANN model (R2 = 0.993 and RMSE = 0.311) with high generalization ability on the full research plan covering 32,175 cases. Therefore, the conducted analysis confirmed the usefulness of ANNs in assessing the effectiveness of GHEs in various operating conditions. The approach described in this paper is important for both environmental and economic reasons, as it allows for reducing the consumption of water and energy, which are necessary to carry out such scientific research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advances in the field of machine learning (ML) have been reflected in the intensity of research studies exploiting these techniques for a better understanding of existing phenomena, and for predicting future ones, as a mean for promoting a more efficient and sustainable transportation system. The present study aims to understand the trends of utilizing diverse ML approaches to tackle issues within sub-domains of transportation and to identify underutilized potentials among them. This paper presents a methodology for the bi-dimensional classification of a large corpus of scientific articles. The articles are classified into six transport-related sub-domains, based on the definition of the Israeli Smart Transport Research Center, whose aim is a transportation system with zero externalities, and the ML techniques used in each of them is identified. A fuzzy KNN model is implemented for the multi-classification of articles into the transportation sub-domains and an ontology-based reasoning for identifying the share of each applied ML approach is employed. The application of these methodologies to a corpus of 1718 articles revealed, among other findings, an increasing share of artificial neural networks and deep learning techniques from 2018 until 2022, particularly in the traffic management sub-domain. A significant contribution of the development of these automatic methodologies is the ability to reuse them for ongoing exploration of trends regarding the use of ML techniques for transportation sub-domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The convergence of digitization and greening is an unavoidable path of modern economic progress. Nonetheless, the digital economy does not consistently align with the principles of green development, potentially leading to a rebound effect in urban digitalization initiatives. To investigate the correlation between the digital rebound effect and urban green development, this study utilizes panel data from Chinese prefecture-level cities spanning from 2011 to 2019. By examining the dual impact of the digital economy on green development, the paper posits a theoretical hypothesis regarding the nonlinear marginal effect of the digital economy. This research demonstrates an inverted U-shaped correlation between the digital economy and urban green development via empirical analyses employing the random forest algorithm and partial dependency plots. It supports the existence of a moderate digital resiliency effect, which eventually reaches a state of stability rather than greatly diminishing the degree of green development in urban areas. In addition, the heterogeneity analysis reveals that the positive effects of the digital economy are more popular in cities located in the eastern and central regions, as well as in the National Comprehensive Pilot Zone for Big Data. However, these effects do not vary significantly among different ranks of cities. The mechanism test found that the information effect and the capital allocation effect are the mechanisms by which the digital economy affects green development, and there is a "U-shaped" relationship between the digital economy and information asymmetry and capital mismatch. According to the study's results, improving the digital economy's governance structure continues to make more sense than merely increasing the number of digital inputs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When rockfalls hit and damage linear stakes such as roads or railways, the access to critical infrastructures (hospitals, schools, factories ...) might be disturbed or stopped. Rockfall risk management often involves building protective structures that are traditionally based on the intensive use of resources such as steel or concrete. However, these solutions are expensive, considering their construction and maintenance, and it is very difficult to protect long linear stakes. A more sustainable and effective risk management strategy could be to account for changes on rockfall activity related to weather conditions. By integrating sustainability principles, we can implement mitigation measures that are less resource-intensive and more adaptable to environmental changes. For instance, instead of solely relying on physical barriers, solutions could include measures such as restriction of access, monitoring and mobilization of emergency kits containing eco-friendly materials. A critical step in developing such a strategy is accurately predicting periods of increased rockfall activity according to meteorological triggers. In this paper, we test four machine learning models to predict rockfalls on the National Road 1 at La Réunion, a key road for the socio-economic life of the island. Rainfall and rockfall data are used as inputs of the predictive models. We show that a set of features derived from the rainfall and rockfall data can predict rockfall with performances very close and almost slightly better than the standard expert model used for operational management. Metrics describing the performance of these models are translated in operational terms, such as road safety or the duration of road closings and openings, providing actionable insights for sustainable risk management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming, climate change and the energy crisis are trending topics around the world, especially within the energy sector. The rising cost of energy, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and global temperatures stem from the over-reliance on fossil fuel as the major energy resource. These challenges have highlighted the need for alternative energy resources and urgent intervention strategies like energy consumption reduction and improving energy efficiency. The heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system in a building accounts for about 70% of energy consumption, and a decision to reduce energy consumption may impact the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) of the building. It is important to adequately balance the tradeoff between IEQ and energy management. Artificial intelligence (AI)-based solutions are being explored for improving building energy performance without compromising IEQ. This paper systematically reviews recent studies on AI and machine learning (ML) for building energy management and IEQ by exploring common use areas, the methods or algorithms applied and the results obtained. The overall purpose of this research is to add to the existing body of work and to highlight energy-related AI applications in buildings and the related gaps. The result shows five common application areas: thermal comfort and indoor air quality (IAQ) control; energy management and energy consumption prediction; indoor temperature prediction; anomaly detection; and HVAC controls. Gaps involving policy, real-life scenario applications, and insufficient study of the visual and acoustic comfort areas are also identified. Very few studies take into consideration the need to follow IEQ standards in the selection process and positioning of sensors in AI applications for IEQ in buildings. This study reveals a need for more systematically summarized research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) operations manage massive amounts of data that can be gathered with new Industry 4.0 technologies such as the Internet of Things and Big Data. These data are critical to allow the wastewater treatment industry to improve its operation, control, and maintenance. However, the data available need to be improved and enriched, partly due to their high dimensionality and low reliability, and the lack of appropriate data analysis and processing tools for such systems. This paper presents a visual analytics-based platform for WWTP that allows users to identify relationships among data through data inspection. The results show that the tool developed and implemented for a full-scale WWTP allows operators to construct machine learning (ML) models for water quality and other water treatment process variables. Consequently, analyzing and optimizing plant operation scenarios can enhance key variables, including energy, reagent consumption, and water quality. This improvement facilitates the development of a more sustainable WWTP, contributing to a beneficial environmental impact. Domain experts validated the variables influencing the created ML models and proved their appropriateness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Residential buildings contribute 30% of the UK's total final energy consumption. However, with less than one percent of its housing stock being replaced annually, retrofitting existing homes has significant importance in meeting energy-efficiency targets. Consequently, many physics-based and data-driven models and tools have been developed to analyse the effects of retrofit strategies from various points of view. This paper aims to develop a data-driven AI model that predicts buildings' energy performance based on their features under various retrofit scenarios. In this context, four different machine learning models were developed based on the EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) dataset for residential buildings and standard assessment procedure (SAP) guidelines in the UK. Additionally, an interface was designed that enables users to analyse the effect of different retrofit strategies on a building's energy performance using the developed AI models. The results of this study revealed the artificial neural network as the most accurate predictive model, with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.82 and a mean percentage error of 11.9 percent. However, some conceptual irregularities were observed across all the models when dealing with different retrofit scenarios. All summary, such tools can be further improved to offer a potential alternative or support to physics-based models, enhancing the efficiency of retrofitting processes in buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in the use of personal protective equipment and single-use plastics, which has exacerbated plastic littering on land and in marine environments. Consumer behaviors with regards to eco-friendly products, their acceptance, and intentions to purchase need to be explored to help businesses achieve their sustainability goals. This paper establishes the Sustainability Theory of Planned Behavior (STPB), an integration of the TPB and sustainability domains, in order to analyze the said objectives. The study employed a machine learning ensemble method and used MATLAB to analyze the data. The results showed that support and attitude from perceived authorities were the main variables influencing customers' intentions for purchasing reduced plastic products. Customers with a high level of environmental awareness were more likely to embrace reduced plastic items as a way to lessen their ecological footprint and support environmental conservation, making perceived environmental concern another important factor. This shows that authorities play a big role in the community in influencing people to choose reduced plastic products, making it the duty of governments and companies to promote environmental awareness. This study emphasizes the significance of the latent variables considered when developing marketing plans and activities meant to promote products with less plastic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tight gas, a category of unconventional natural gas, relies on advanced intelligent monitoring methods for their extraction. Conventional logging for reservoir evaluation relies on logging data and the manual setting of evaluation criteria to classify reservoirs. However, the complexity and heterogeneity of tight reservoirs pose challenges in accurately identifying target layers by using traditional well-logging techniques. Machine learning may hold the key to solving this problem, as it enables computers to learn without being explicitly programmed and manually adding rules. Therefore, it is possible to make reservoir evaluations using machine learning methods. In this paper, the reservoir quality index (RQI) and porous geometric parameters obtained from the optimized inversion of the spherical–tubular model are adopted to evaluate the reservoir. Then, three different machine learning approaches, the random forest (RF) algorithm, support vector machine (SVM) algorithm, and extreme gradient boosting (XGB) algorithm, are utilized for reservoir classification. The selected dataset covers more than 7000 samples from five wells. The data from four wells are arranged as the training dataset, and the data of the remaining one well is designed as the testing dataset to calculate the prediction accuracies of different machine learning algorithms. Among them, accuracies of RF, SVM, and XGB are all higher than 90%, and XGB owns the highest result by reaching 97%. Machine learning based approaches can greatly assist reservoir prediction by implementing the well-logging data. The research highlights the application of reservoir classification with a higher prediction accuracy by combining machine learning algorithms with NMR-logging-based pore structure characterization, which can provide a guideline for sweet spot identification within the tight formation. This not only optimizes resource extraction but also aligns with the global shift towards clean and renewable energy sources, promoting sustainability and reducing the carbon footprint associated with conventional energy production. In summary, the fusion of machine learning and NMR-logging-based reservoir evaluation plays a crucial role in advancing both energy efficiency and the transition to cleaner energy sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zero-carbon shipping is the prime goal of the seaborne trade industry at this moment. The utilization of ammonia and liquid hydrogen propulsion in a carbon-free propulsion system is a promising option to achieve net-zero emission in the maritime supply chain. Meanwhile, optimal ship voyage planning is a candidate to reduce carbon emissions immediately without new buildings and retrofits of the alternative fuel-based propulsion system. Due to the voyage options, the precise prediction of fuel consumption and carbon emission via voyage operation profile optimization is a prerequisite for carbon emission reduction. This paper proposes a novel fuel consumption and carbon emission quantity prediction method which is based on the onboard measurement data of a smart ship. The prediction performance of the proposed method was investigated and compared to machine learning and LSTM-model-based fuel consumption and gas emission prediction methods. The results had an accuracy of 81.5% in diesel mode and 91.2% in gas mode. The SHAP (Shapley additive explanations) model, an XAI (Explainable Artificial Intelligence), and a CO2 consumption model were employed to identify the major factors used in the predictions. The accuracy of the fuel consumption calculated using flow meter data, as opposed to power load data, improved by approximately 21.0%. The operational and flow meter data collected by smart ships significantly contribute to predicting the fuel consumption and carbon emissions of vessels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As increasingly stringent environmental regulations are put into effect, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) concepts are being seamlessly integrated into the core of corporate innovation strategies. Due to the quasi-public product perspective of green innovation, the performance of enterprises as a result of green innovation activities exhibits significant heterogeneity. This heterogeneity exists not only between corporate value and financial performance but also among individual enterprises. This paper is based on a sample of 1510 listed Chinese companies examined from 2013 to 2020 and uses machine learning algorithms and quasi-natural experiments to precisely estimate the causal relationship and mechanisms between green innovation and corporate performance. The findings elucidate several critical aspects of green innovation within the corporate sphere: Firstly, rather than attracting green incentives from financial markets, green innovation activities inadvertently stifle the enhancement of corporate value. Secondly, these activities markedly bolster corporate financial performance, primarily by diminishing operational costs, which in turn elevates the return on assets (ROA). Lastly, of all corporate characteristics examined, enterprise size and equity concentration stand out as key determinants influencing the variability in outcomes of green innovation performance. The above findings provide information on the significant implications of enhancing green technology innovation systems and green incentive mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shield tunnel segment uplift is a common phenomenon in construction. Excessive and unstable uplift will affect tunnel quality and safety seriously, shorten the tunnel life, and is not conducive to the sustainable management of the tunnel's entire life cycle. However, segment uplift is affected by many factors, and it is challenging to predict the uplift amount and determine its cause accurately. Existing research mainly focuses on analyzing uplift factors and the uplift trend features for specific projects, which is difficult to apply to actual projects directly. This paper sorts out the influencing factors of segment uplift and designs a spatial-temporal data fusion mechanism for prediction. On this basis, we extract the key influencing factors of segment uplift, construct a prediction model of segment uplift amount based on Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) v2.0.3, and use SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) v0.44.0 to locate factors affecting uplift, forming an Auxiliary Decision-making System for Segment Uplift Control (ADS-SUC). An ADS-SUC not only detects the sudden change of the segment uplift successfully and predicts the segment uplift in practical engineering accurately, it also provides a feasible method to control the uplift in time, which is of great significance for reducing the construction risk of the tunnel project and ensuring the quality of the completed tunnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an umbrella term that encompasses different fields of study, and topics related to these fields are addressed separately or within the scope of AI. Multi-agent systems (MASs) and machine learning (ML) are the core concepts of AI that are taught during AI courses. The separate explanation of these core research areas is common, but the emergence of federated learning has triggered their combined usage. This paper describes a practical scenario in the energy domain where these technologies can be used together to provide a sustainable energy solution for predicting wind turbine active power production. The projects in the AI course were assigned prior to the step-by-step learning of MASs and ML. These concepts were applied using a wind turbine energy dataset collected in Turkey to predict the power production of wind turbines. The observed performance improvements, achieved by applying various agent architectures and data partitioning scenarios, indicate that boosting methods such as LightGBM yield better results even when the settings are modified. Additionally, a questionnaire about the assignments was filled out by the student groups to assess the impact of learning MASs and ML through project-based education. The application of MASs and ML in a hybrid way proves valuable for learning core concepts related to AI education, as evidenced by feedback from students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a fundamental role in the global economy. However, SMEs usually have different characteristics from larger enterprises, e.g., essential resource restrictions, lower performance, and higher environmental impacts. This requires them to search for strategies to be more competitive and sustainable. A possible solution relies on introducing Lean-Green practices. Previous research indicated that digitalization could be an enabler of Lean. Lean can also help to achieve increased environmental performance using the Lean-Green approach. In this study, this important yet under-studied area is investigated as we consider digitalization as an enabler for implementing lean in SMEs, with a focus on Lean-Green practices. A systematic literature review is executed, following a new framework based on topic modelling for extracting the papers. The topic modelling is executed through latent dirichlet allocation (LDA) which is a machine learning technique. In methodological means, this paper represents an example of the frontier of digitalization for research activities. Regarding the investigated focus, the main findings revealed that digitalization is an enabler to Lean and to Lean-Green. As digitalization supports information sharing, it consequently fosters performance measurement systems, improvements, and value chain integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The collection of reliable data is an important and time-consuming part of the life cycle inventory (LCI) phase. Automation of individual steps can help to obtain a higher volume of or more realistic data. The aim of this paper is to survey the current state of automation potential in the scientific literature published between 2008 and 2021, with a focus on LCI in the area of process engineering. The results show that automation was most frequently found in the context of process simulation (via interfaces between software), for LCI database usage (e.g., via using ontologies for linking data) and molecular structure models (via machine learning processes such as artificial neural networks), which were also the categories where the highest level of maturity of the models was reached. No further usage could be observed in the areas of automation techniques for exploiting plant data, scientific literature, process calculation, stoichiometry and proxy data. The open science practice of sharing programming codes, software or other newly created resources was only followed in 20% of cases, uncertainty evaluation was only included in 10 out of 30 papers and only 30% of the developed methods were used in further publication, always including at least one of the first authors. For these reasons, we recommend encouraging exchange in the LCA community and in interdisciplinary settings to foster long-term sustainable development of new automation methodologies supporting data generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is generating new horizons in one of the biggest challenges in the world's society—poverty. Our goal is to investigate utilities of AI in poverty prediction via finding answers to the following research questions: (1) How many papers on utilities of AI in poverty prediction were published up until March, 2022? (2) Which approach to poverty was applied when AI was used for poverty prediction? (3) Which AI methods were applied for predicting poverty? (4) What data were used for poverty prediction via AI? (5) What are the advantages and disadvantages of the created AI models for poverty prediction? In order to answer these questions, we selected twenty-two papers using appropriate keywords and the exclusion criteria and analyzed their content. The selection process identified that, since 2016, publications on AI applications in poverty prediction began. Results of our research illustrate that, during this relatively short period, the application of AI in predicting poverty experienced a significant progress. Overall, fifty-seven AI methods were applied during the analyzed span, among which the most popular one was random forest. It was revealed that with the adoption of AI tools, the process of poverty prediction has become, from one side, quicker and more accurate and, from another side, more advanced due to the creation and possibility of using different datasets. The originality of this work is that this is the first sophisticated survey of AI applications in poverty prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landslide susceptibility prediction (LSP) is the basis for risk management and plays an important role in social sustainability. However, the modeling process of LSP is constrained by various factors. This paper approaches the effect of landslide data integrity, machine-learning (ML) models, and non-landslide sample-selection methods on the accuracy of LSP, taking the Yinghu Lake Basin in Ankang City, Shaanxi Province, as an example. First, previous landslide inventory (totaling 46) and updated landslide inventory (totaling 46 + 176) were established through data collection, remote-sensing interpretation, and field investigation. With the slope unit as the mapping unit, twelve conditioning factors, including elevation, slope, aspect, topographic relief, elevation variation coefficient, slope structure, lithology, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), normalized difference built-up index (NDBI), distance to road, distance to river, and rainfall were selected. Next, the initial landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) was obtained using the K-means algorithm, and non-landslide samples were determined using two methods: random selection and semi-supervised machine learning (SSML). Finally, the random forest (RF) and artificial neural network (ANN) machine-learning methods were used for modeling. The research results showed the following: (1) The performance of supervised machine learning (SML) (RF, ANN) is generally superior to unsupervised machine learning (USML) (K-means). Specifically, RF in the SML model has the best prediction performance, followed by ANN. (2) The selection method of non-landslide samples has a significant impact on LSP, and the accuracy of the SSML-based non-landslide selection method is controlled by the ratio of the number of landslide samples to the number of mapping units. (3) The quantity of landslides has an impact on how reliably the results of LSM are obtained because fewer landslides result in a smaller sample size for LSM, which deviates from reality. Although the results in this dataset are satisfactory, the zoning results cannot reliably anticipate the recently added landslide data discovered by the interpretation of remote-sensing data and field research. We propose that the landslide inventory can be increased by remote sensing in order to achieve accurate and impartial LSM since the LSM of adequate landslide samples is more reasonable. The research results of this paper will provide a reference basis for uncertain analysis of LSP and regional landslide risk management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regional demand for electric power is influenced by a variety of factors, such as fluctuations in business cycles, dynamic linkages among regional development, and climate change. The valid quantification of the impacts of these factors on the demand for electric power poses significant challenges. Existing methods often fall short of capturing the inherent complexities. This paper addresses these limitations by proposing a framework, which integrates machine-learning techniques into regional electricity demand forecasting. Regional electricity generation firms could then leverage the power of machine learning and improve the accuracy and robustness of electric power forecasting. In this paper, we conduct extensive numerical experiments using an actual dataset from a large utility firm and other public data sources. The analysis indicates that the support vector regression model (the SVR model) has high accuracy in predicting the demand. The results show that socio-economic development is the major driver of growth in electricity demand, while weather variability is a key contributor to the seasonal fluctuations in electricity use. Furthermore, linkages among regional development and the status of development of the green economy become increasingly important influencing factors. The proposed forecasting approach helps the regional electricity generation firms reduce a large amount of carbon dioxide emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green cities worldwide are converting to renewable clean energy from natural sources such as sunlight and wind due to the lack of traditional resources and the significant increase in environmental pollution. This paper presents an approach of two stages for photovoltaic (PV) potential estimation of solar panels mounted on buildings' rooftops. The first stage is rooftop detection from satellite images using a series of image pre-processing algorithms, followed by applying machine learning algorithms, namely Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Naïve Bayes (NB). The second stage is the solar PV potential estimation using the PVWatts calculator, PVGIS, and ArcGIS. Satellite images for the B6 division of Madinaty City in Egypt were evaluated in this paper. The precision, recall, and F1-score of rooftop detection were 91.2%, 98.6%, and 94.7% from SVM, while those from NB were 86.6%, 98.3%, and 92.2%, respectively. About 290 rooftops were extracted, with a total area of 150,698 m2 and a relative root mean square error of 10.6%. The usable area of rooftops was utilized to estimate the annual PV potential of 21.1, 24.9, and 22.9 GWh/year from the PVWatts calculator, PVGIS, and ArcGIS, respectively. According to the estimated PV potential, replacing traditional energy sources reduced the amount of CO2 by an annual average value of 62%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different kinds of techniques are evaluated and analyzed for various classification models for the detection of diseases of citrus fruits. This paper aims to systematically review the papers that focus on the prediction, detection, and classification of citrus fruit diseases that have employed machine learning, deep learning, and statistical techniques. Additionally, this paper explores the present state of the art of the concept of image acquisition, digital image processing, feature extraction, and classification approaches, and each one is discussed separately. A total of 78 papers are selected after applying primary selection criteria, inclusion/exclusion criteria, and quality assessment criteria. We observe that the following are widely used in the selected studies: hyperspectral imaging systems for the image acquisition process, thresholding for image processing, support vector machine (SVM) models as machine learning (ML) models, convolutional neural network (CNN) architectures as deep learning models, principal component analysis (PCA) as a statistical model, and classification accuracy as evaluation parameters. Moreover, the color feature is the most popularly used feature for the RGB color space. From the review studies that performed comparative analyses, we find that the best techniques that outperformed other techniques in their respective categories are as follows: SVM among the ML methods, ANN among the neural network networks, CNN among the deep learning methods, and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) among the statistical techniques.This study concludes with meta-analysis, limitations, and future research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supercapacitors (SCs) are gaining attention for Internet of Things (IoT) devices because of their impressive characteristics, including their high power and energy density, extended lifespan, significant cycling stability, and quick charge–discharge cycles. Hence, it is essential to make precise predictions about the capacitance and lifespan of supercapacitors to choose the appropriate materials and develop plans for replacement. Carbon-based supercapacitor electrodes are crucial for the advancement of contemporary technology, serving as a key component among numerous types of electrode materials. Moreover, accurately forecasting the lifespan of energy storage devices may greatly improve the efficient handling of system malfunctions. Researchers worldwide have increasingly shown interest in using machine learning (ML) approaches for predicting the performance of energy storage materials. The interest in machine learning is driven by its noteworthy benefits, such as improved accuracy in predictions, time efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. This paper reviews different charge storage processes, categorizes SCs, and investigates frequently employed carbon electrode components. The performance of supercapacitors, which is crucial for Internet of Things (IoT) applications, is affected by a number of their characteristics, including their power density, charge storage capacity, and cycle longevity. Additionally, we provide an in-depth review of several recently developed ML-driven models used for predicting energy substance properties and optimizing supercapacitor effectiveness. The purpose of these proposed ML algorithms is to validate their anticipated accuracies, aid in the selection of models, and highlight future research topics in the field of scientific computing. Overall, this research highlights the possibility of using ML techniques to make significant advancements in the field of energy-storing device development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis and modeling of parameters influencing parents' decisions regarding school travel mode choice have perennially been a subject of interest. Concurrently, the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) can effectively contribute to generating reliable predictions across various topics. This paper begins with a comprehensive literature review on classical models for predicting school travel mode choice, as well as the diverse applications of AI methods, with a particular focus on transportation. Building upon a published questionnaire survey in the city of Thessaloniki (Greece) and the conducted analysis and exploration of factors shaping the parental framework for school travel mode choice, this study takes a step further: the authors evaluate and propose a machine learning (ML) classification model, utilizing the pre-recorded parental perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes as inputs to predict the choice between motorized or non-motorized school travel. The impact of potential changes in the input values of the ML classification model is also assessed. Therefore, the enhancement of the sense of safety and security in the school route, the adoption of a more active lifestyle by parents, the widening of acceptance of public transportation, etc., are simulated and the impact on the parental choice ratio between non-motorized and motorized school commuting is quantified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable solutions in the building construction industry have emerged as a new method for retrofitting applications in the last two decades. Fiber-reinforced polymers (FRPs) have garnered much attention among researchers for improving reinforced concrete (RC) structures. The existing design guidelines for FRP-strengthened RC members were developed using empirical methods that are based on specific databases, limiting the accuracy of the predicted results. Therefore, the use of innovative and efficient prediction tools to predict the behavior of FRP-strengthened RC members has become essential. During the last few years, efforts have been progressively focused on the use of machine learning (ML) as a feasible and effective technique for solving various structural engineering problems. Its capability to predict the behavior of complex nonlinear structural systems while considering a wide range of parameters offers a distinctive opportunity to make the behavior of RC members more predictable and accurate. This paper aims to evaluate the current state of using various ML algorithms in RC members strengthened with FRP to enable researchers to determine the capabilities of current solutions as well as to find research gaps to carry out more research to bridge revealed knowledge and practice gaps. Scopus databases were searched using predefined standards. The search revealed ninety-six articles published between 2016 and 2023. Consequently, these articles were analyzed for ML applications in the field of FRP retrofitting, including flexural and shear strengthening of RC beams, flexural strengthening of slabs, confinement and compressive strength of columns, and FRP bond strength. The results reveal that 32% of the reviewed studies focused on the application of ML techniques to the flexural and shear strengthening of RC beams, 32% on the confinement and compressive strength of columns, 6.5% on the flexural strengthening of slabs, 22% on FRP bond strength, 6.5% on materials, and 1% on beam–column joints. This research also revealed that the application of various ML algorithms has shown a significant improvement in resistance prediction accuracy as compared with the existing empirical solutions. Supervised learning techniques were the most favorable learning method due to their good generalization, interpretability, adaptability, and predictive efficiency. In addition, the selection of suitable ML algorithms and optimization techniques is found to be mainly dictated by the nature of the problem and the characteristics of the dataset. Nonetheless, selecting the most appropriate ML model and optimization algorithm for each specific application remains a challenge, given that each algorithm is developed with different principles and methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the decreasing availability of virgin materials coupled with an increased awareness of environmental sustainability issues, many researchers have focused their efforts on investigating innovative technological solutions in the civil engineering domain. This paper aims to evaluate the suitability of construction and demolition waste (C and DW) and reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) reused within asphalt mixtures (AMs) prepared for the binder layer of road pavements. Both hot and cold mixing methodologies were investigated. The technical assessment was based on the volumetric and mechanical suitability, according to saturated surface dry voids (SSDV) and indirect tensile strength (ITS) tests carried out at 10 °C, respectively. Laboratory findings showed that all the hot AMs matched the desired target SSDV at the design gyrations number at different optimum bitumen content levels, alternatively showing a non-significant variation or a significant increase in ITS compared to conventional hot mix asphalt. Conversely, the cold AMs with cement and emulsion bitumen showed a greater volume of voids and moisture sensitivity, and lower temperature susceptibility compared to hot AMs, reaching, on average, 11% lower ITS when using coarse C and DW aggregates and 43% lower ITS when using filler from C and DW. These volumetric and mechanical properties were modeled by means of support vector machines and categorical boosting (CatBoost) machine learning algorithms. The results proved to be satisfactory, with CatBoost determination coefficients R2 referring to SSDV and ITS equal to 0.8678 and 0.9916, respectively. This allowed for the mechanical performance of these sustainable mixtures to be predicted with high accuracy and implemented within conventional mix design procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban transportation systems, particularly underground interchanges, present significant challenges for sustainable and resilient urban design due to their complex road geometries and dense traffic signage. These challenges are further compounded by the interaction of diverse road users, which heightens the risk of accidents. To enhance both safety and sustainability, this study integrates advanced driving simulation techniques with machine learning models to improve driving safety and comfort in underground interchanges. By utilizing a driving simulator and 3D modeling, real-world conditions were replicated to design key traffic safety features with an emphasis on sustainability and driver well-being. Critical safety parameters, including speed, acceleration, and pedal use, were analyzed alongside comfort metrics such as lateral acceleration and steering torque. The LightGBM machine learning model was used to classify safety and comfort grades with an accuracy of 97.06%. An important ranking identified entrance signage and deceleration zones as having the greatest impact on safety and comfort, while basic road sections were less influential. These findings underscore the importance of considering visual cues, such as markings and wall color, in creating safer and more comfortable underground road systems. This study's methodology and results offer valuable insights for urban planners and engineers aiming to design transportation systems that are both safe and aligned with sustainable urban mobility objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landslides threaten human life, property, and vital infrastructure in most mountainous regions. As climate change intensifies extreme weather patterns, the landslide risk is likely to increase, resulting in challenges for disaster management, sustainability development, and community resilience. This study presents a comprehensive framework for assessing landslide risk, integrating advanced machine learning models with the Iyengar–Sudarshan method. Our case study is Son La province, the Northwest region of Vietnam, with data collected from 1771 historical landslide occurrences and fifteen influencing factors for developing landslide susceptibility maps using advanced ensemble machine learning models. The Iyengar–Sudarshan method was applied to determine the weights for landslide exposure, vulnerability, and adaptive capacity indicators. The resulting landslide risk map shows that the highest-risk districts in Son La province are located in the central and northeastern regions, including Mai Son, Phu Yen, Thuan Chau, Yen Chau, Song Ma, and Bac Yen. These districts experience high landslide hazards, exposure, and vulnerability, often affecting densely populated urban and village areas with vulnerable populations, such as young children, the elderly, and working-age women. In contrast, due to minimal exposure, Quynh Nhai and Muong La districts have lower landslide risks. Despite having high exposure and vulnerability, Son La City is situated in a low-susceptibility zone with high adaptive capacity, resulting in a low landslide risk for this region. The proposed framework provides a reference tool for mitigating risk and enhancing strategic decision making in areas susceptible to landslides while advancing our understanding of landslide dynamics and fostering community resilience and long-term disaster prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, fossil fuels have been the backbone of reliable energy systems, offering unmatched energy density and flexibility. However, as the world shifts toward renewable energy, overcoming the limitations of intermittent power sources requires a bold reimagining of energy storage and integration. Power-to-X (PtX) technologies, which convert excess renewable electricity into storable energy carriers, offer a promising solution for long-term energy storage and sector coupling. Recent advancements in machine learning (ML) have revolutionized PtX systems by enhancing efficiency, scalability, and sustainability. This review provides a detailed analysis of how ML techniques, such as deep reinforcement learning, data-driven optimization, and predictive diagnostics, are driving innovation in Power-to-Gas (PtG), Power-to-Liquid (PtL), and Power-to-Heat (PtH) systems. For example, deep reinforcement learning has improved real-time decision-making in PtG systems, reducing operational costs and improving grid stability. Additionally, predictive diagnostics powered by ML have increased system reliability by identifying early failures in critical components such as proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Despite these advancements, challenges such as data quality, real-time processing, and scalability remain, presenting future research opportunities. These advancements are critical to decarbonizing hard-to-electrify sectors, such as heavy industry, transportation, and aviation, aligning with global sustainability goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a safety management model for hydrogen refueling stations, integrating digital twin technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance operational safety. Given the risks associated with high-pressure gas handling and potential fires from hydrogen leaks, real-time safety monitoring is crucial. The proposed model is based on a digital twin, a virtual replica of the physical system using real-time data, including temperature, pressure, and state of charge, collected from an actual hydrogen refueling station in Samcheok, Gangwon Province. Out of nine tested machine learning and deep learning algorithms, the convolutional neural network (CNN) demonstrated the highest performance (accuracy: 1, F1 score: 0.993) for risk prediction. Using AI libraries like Scikit-Learn and TensorFlow, the model achieved prediction times of 68 milliseconds, enabling decision-making at intervals of 1 s. Developed with the Unity 3D modeling tool, the digital twin visualizes predicted risk situations, allowing users to quickly identify and respond to potential hazards. This approach offers a robust solution for improving the safety of hydrogen refueling stations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]