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Every ophthalmic surgical supply, including intraocular lenses (IOLs), IOL cartridges, and ophthalmic viscosurgical device syringes, is packaged with instructions for use (IFU). These pamphlets are printed in multiple languages and, in the case of an IOL, significantly increase the size and weight of the packaging. To eliminate this significant and unnecessary source of waste, we recommend that manufacturers move to Quick Response codes that link to online electronic IFU (e-IFU) as a sensible alternative. In addition to reducing carbon emissions and manufacturing costs, e-IFU can be updated more easily and accessed by surgeons in the clinic, where IOL models and powers are selected. Varying and inconsistent IFU requirements between different countries are a barrier to wider adoption of e-IFU by the ophthalmic surgical industry. Regulatory agencies in every country should allow and encourage e-IFU. This position paper has been endorsed by the 3 major societies that sponsor EyeSustain, a consortium of global societies dedicated to advancing sustainability in ophthalmology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing examination table paper (ETP) use may help curb carbon emissions from health care. Six participants applied Glo Germ (DMA International) to their hands before a common physical examination (abdominal, cardiorespiratory, hip and knee) both with and without ETP. After each exam, UV light was shined on the exam table and photographs were taken. The number of hand touches on ETP-covered areas and uncovered areas were tallied and compared using t tests. Despite covering more surface area, participants touched areas without ETP significantly more than ETP-covered areas (P <.05). Despite its continued use, patients do not have much hand contact with ETP during common clinical examinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encouraged by the goal of achieving net-zero carbon emission by 2050, the exploration of insulating material becomes one of the core projects to the electrical equipment innovations. The rise of composites enables the insulating material to be endowed with more functions. By this concern, adopting the coupling agents is one of the effective methods to improve the compatibility of composites, which highly strengthens the desired properties. The functional groups of coupling agents, nevertheless, could not always show a positive impact to access enhanced properties. In this work, four types of silane coupling agents including amino-propyl, glycidyletheroxy-propyl (GP), vinyl, and methacryloxy-propyl functional groups are employed to modify the aluminum nitride (AlN) fillers, and the modification effects on the insulating and thermal conductivity of the AlN/poly(m-phenylenedicarbonyl-m-phenylenediamine) (PMIA) composite paper are systematically investigated and compared. The results show that a proper coupling agent is beneficial to the uniform dispersion of the inorganic filler in the organic matrix and highly contributes to their interface quality, where the heat transfer path is established that boosts the heat dissipation. By tailoring the trap depth and density toward deeper and higher, the carrier transport is highly confined which enhances the breakdown strength to a large extent. Therefore, high breakdown strength and thermal conductivity of 182.9 kV mm−1 and 0.302 W (m·K)−1, respectively, are achieved in the GP modified AlN/PMIA paper, which are 16.7% and 167.4% higher than that of pure PMIA paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the tragedy in Ukraine deepens, it's clear that the world should end its dependency on Russian oil. It will be ironic, however, if nations disentangling themselves from this compromised energy source instead turn to another energy source with destructive impacts: harvesting and burning forest wood for fuel, which increases carbon emissions compared to fossil fuels, and degrades forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The text provides a summary of various articles related to air quality, climate change, and environmental initiatives. It mentions a report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) highlighting record-breaking climate change indicators in 2023, the use of pulp and paper waste to reduce carbon emissions, the development of national indoor quality standards for public buildings, the establishment of a hydrogen hub in the Pilbara region of Australia, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's new tailpipe rules to reduce pollution from cars and light trucks. These articles offer insights into the current state of the environment and efforts to address climate change. [Extracted from the article]

Although there are opportunities to reduce electrical energy demand in unit processes of mechanical pulp-based paper and paperboard production, this may not be financially beneficial. This is generally because energy optimization opportunities connected to reduced refiner electricity demand in mechanical pulping systems also results in less steam available for the drying of the paper. As modern high consistency refiner systems produce approximately one ton of steam for each MWh of electricity when producing one ton of pulp, a reduction in electric energy demand leads to increased fuel demand in steam boilers to compensate for the steam shortage. In this study, we investigated what the financial and environmental situation would look like if we were to expand the system border from a paper mill to a larger system consisting of a mechanical pulp-based paper or paperboard mill, a district heating system with an incineration boiler and a chemical pulp mill. Mechanical pulp production has a wood to product yield of >90%, a high electric energy demand to separate woodchips to pulp and is a net producer of heat and steam while chemical pulp-based production has a wood to product yield of 50%, a low electric energy demand and is a net heat and electricity producer due to the combustion of dissolved wood polymers. The aim of this research is to create useful and robust models of how to use excess heat from certain industry sites to cover the steam shortage in other industry sites by means of utilizing and optimizing the district heating systems connecting these sites. For this purpose, we used a simulation tool which dynamically allows us to evaluate different scenarios. Our results shows that there is great potential to reduce both carbon dioxide emissions and production costs for industry sites and society by means of these tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the impact of incorporating lime mud (LM) as a filler material to develop sustainable, cementless ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) by replacing silica powder (SP) and silica sand (SS) at varying percentages. Flowability analysis reveals that LM, with its distinctive particle size, influences flow characteristics differently at different replacement levels. Compressive strength was improved by 5.4% with 30% SP replacement, showcasing the role of LM in nucleation, as well as its particle size advantage. The heat of hydration analysis indicates that LM likely influences the early curing stages, enhancing reactivity and nucleation. TGA analysis also confirms that LM plays a role in hydration reaction, influencing weight loss and hydration peaks. The mercury intrusion porosimeter results show the impact of LM on pore distribution, with 30% for SP and 50% for SS replacements, favoring denser matrices. Life cycle assessment (LCA) demonstrates reduced CO 2 emissions and favorable environmental performance, highlighting the sustainability potential of LM replacements. Overall, the incorporation of LM in UHPC shows promise in terms of enhancing its mechanical properties and environmental sustainability. [Display omitted] • Lime mud (LM) in UHPC boosts material strength, leading to denser, more effective concrete. • LM enhances hydration, flowability, and refines pore structure. • High LM ratios in UHPC increase sustainability and reduce CO 2 emissions. • LM's use in UHPC significantly advances its mechanical properties and eco-friendliness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The building sector contributes to 40% of the total final energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions in Europe, and these are set to increase in the coming years. International directives are pushing towards a decarbonisation roadmap to improve the quality of cities and the health of citizens. Buildings have a potentially central role in terms of energy transition as a means to produce and save energy. Photovoltaic shading devices (PVSDs) protect buildings from direct solar radiation and overheating while producing renewable electricity onsite and increasing the users' thermal comfort. Even though the potential of the PVSD is considerable, the sector is still unexplored, and few studies on the topic are available in the literature. This systematic review aims to present an exhaustive overview of the current literature on state-of-the-art PVSDs by analysing the scientific framework in terms of the status of the research. It presents a performance-based approach focusing on innovative products, PVSD design strategies, and energetic performance in distinct climate conditions and configurations. In particular, 75 articles and about 250 keywords were identified, selected, and analysed. The literature review serves as a basis for further R&D activities led by both the industrial and the academic sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper industry is a high-carbon emission and energy-intensive industry. From the perspective of low-carbon trade and carbon neutrality, its energy conservation and emission reduction are worthy of attention. This study used the input-output model to calculate the embodied carbon emissions of China’s paper industry’s export trade to the United States from 2006 to 2020 and used the logarithmic mean division index (LMDI) method to analyze influencing factors of the change of embodied carbon emissions. The study found that the embodied carbon emissions of China’s paper industry’s export trade to the United States generally shows a stable downward trend after reaching the peak with the increase of export trade scale; scale effect is the main factor that causes the embodied carbon emissions, while technological progress, policy support, and environmental regulations are important driving forces to promote carbon emission reduction. The research results of this paper not only can test and guide China’s paper industry trade policies and industrial policies, but they can also provide decision-making reference for China and the United States to promote the carbon emission reduction of the paper industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerical simulations based on Computational Fluid Dynamic techniques are performed to analyze the possibility of feeding a biomass-derived syngas into the combustion chamber upstream of the hoods for tissue-paper drying, to replace fossil fuels and thus decarbonize the plant. It was observed that, in the context of Favre-Averaged Navier–Stokes equations simulation, syngas requires detailed kinetics and finite-rate approaches, as the fast-chemistry ones, largely employed in the industrial practice for conventional fuels, lead to unreliable results. The actual chamber, originally designed to be fed with liquid petroleum gas, does not operate properly when fueled with syngas, with incomplete oxidation of carbon monoxide. Numerical simulations have proven how very few modifications of the chamber can be devised to permit feeding efficiently the syngas, obtaining low pollutant emissions and meeting the desired requirements in terms of flow and thermal uniformity for the drying process. The solution proposed in the present study, with the effective use of a biomass-derived syngas to feed the drying section of a tissue paper plant, will allow saving approximately 8500 ton/y of CO 2 emissions in comparison with today's fossil fuel carbon footprint. [Display omitted] • Use of syngas from biomass gasification to decarbonize a tissue paper plant. • CFD simulations to comprehend the behavior of chamber and hood fed with bio-syngas. • Need for detailed kinetics to model with CFD the bio-syngas combustion. • Modification of the combustion system needed to limit CO with the bio-syngas. • Reduction of 8500 ton/y of CO 2 emissions in comparison to today's LPG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change and the resulting higher frequency of extreme weather events have a direct negative impact on mental health. Natural disasters are particularly associated with an increase in the prevalence of depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder. Indirect consequences of climate change, such as food shortages, economic crises, violent conflicts and forced migration, additionally represent severe psychological risk and stress factors. Climate anxiety and solastalgia, the distress induced by environmental change, are new psychological syndromes in the face of the existential threat posed by the climate crisis. Accordingly, a sustainable psychiatry must prepare for increasing and changing demands. The principles of psychiatric treatment need to focus more on prevention to reduce the overall burden on the healthcare system. Waste of resources and CO2 emissions in psychiatric treatment processes as well as infrastructure must be perceived and prevented. Psychiatric education, training and continuing education concepts should be expanded to include the topic of climate change in order to comprehensively inform and sensitize professionals, those affected and the public and to encourage climate-friendly and health-promoting behavior. More in-depth research is needed on the impact of climate change on mental health. The DGPPN becomes a sponsor and aims for climate neutrality by 2030 by committing to climate-friendly and energy-saving measures in the area of finance, in relation to the DGPPN congress as well as the DGPPN office. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetotelluric (MT) and audio-magnetotelluric (AMT) studies are sensitive to the geothermal fluids filling the faults and/or fracture zones of the geothermal system. In India, MT/AMT studies have been carried out in NW Himalayas, central, eastern, and western India. In other areas, detailed MT/AMT studies need to be expedited. This review paper presents the art of geothermal exploration in India by using MT/AMT techniques and identifies potential zones that can be exploited for power generation and direct application. Reservoir characteristics, carbon emissions reduction methods, and levelised cost factor are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is the top emitter of greenhouse gases in the world. Pulp and paper industry is one of eight the strictly regulated industries about carbon emission in China. However, estimates of carbon emissions from China's pulp and paper industry have been suffered from remarkable uncertainty. It is summarized that is aroused by the inaccuracy of factors evaluating energy consumption, and the huge gap between the calculation standards for assessing energy consumption in the production process and the actual level recorded in the factories. This paper re-evaluated the carbon emission of China's pulp and paper industry from the perspective of life cycle assessment, and applied more accurate emission factors, taking account of the actual energy consumption of the production process in factories, to estimate the actual carbon emissions in maximum. It is found that the national standards about the energy consumption quota of China's pulp and paper industry is no longer applicable, and the actual energy consumption regulated in the production process is far better than the advanced level given by the national standards. The greenhouse gas emission have been seriously overestimated approximately 12.00%–56.17% by international organizations. • Life Cycle Analysis of the China's pulp and paper Industry is conducted thoroughly. • The pulp flow of China's pulp and paper Industry is analyzed. • Energy regulated in factory is far better than the national standards' required. • Carbon emissions of China's pulp and paper Industry are overestimated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's rapid urbanization has led to the development of integrated transport networks, which requires the transport sector to pay particular attention to the integrated transport comprehensive carrying capacity (ITCCC). Concurrently, global climate change has focused the world community's attention on greenhouse gas concentrations like CO2. This study establishes an ITCCC measurement model of urban agglomerations (UAs) and measures the comprehensive carrying capacity from four factors: socio-economic, basic resources, transport facilities, and traffic environment. In particular, this paper takes carbon emission as a critical indicator of the traffic environment when considering the impact factors of ITCCC. Based on the data of China's five major UAs, this study estimates carrying capacity levels with the ITCCC model and analyses regional characteristics using the spatial-temporal differentiation method. The results show that the traffic environment significantly impacts the ITCCC. Further low-carbon transport policies and measures are recommended to achieve sustainable development of integrated transport in UAs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corporate carbon emissions accounting has become a research focus for researchers and government departments. Based on corporate production processes, this study proposes and establishes a comprehensive system for corporate carbon emissions. Taking Stora Enso (Guangxi) Company as an example, this paper provides a thorough analysis of the production and operational status of paper-making companies. The production process is divided into five stages: material preparation, pulping, pulp board production, papermaking, and alkali recycling. Based on these production processes, it proposes and constructs a corporate carbon emissions accounting system from an accounting perspective, which specifically includes accounting objectives, information quality characteristics, accounting recognition, accounting measurement, accounting treatments, and information disclosure. The findings show that the carbon emissions accounting system targeted at production processes can clearly awaken corporate carbon emissions responsibilities, further improve the corporate accounting system, and provide effective technical support for the government to implement environmental regulations and formulate carbon reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• RCF wastes brick achieves 24% lower thermal properties than the control brick. • RCF wastes brick requires 10% lower firing temperature than the control brick. • Utilizing as-received waste materials requires zero grinding energy, benefiting manufacturers and cutting emissions. • Lower firing temperature saved $158,460 by cutting 417 tonnes of CO 2. Building materials drive the global economy, yet face severe environmental hurdles: resource depletion, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste generation. In order to mitigate the impact from these challenges, authorities seek sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives as an urgent need. This study focuses on the utilization of as-received rejected contaminated fines (RCF) obtained from the yellow bins' waste (paper) recycling process, in brick production. Diverse tests assessed the brick performance, including compressive strength, absorption rate, thermal conductivity, 3D CT scanning for morphological analysis, and durability analysis. Additionally, a leachate analysis was performed to evaluate the environmental implications. Economic benefits, particularly the reduction of CO 2 emissions, were also evaluated. The findings confirmed that as-received waste can be utilized for fired clay brick production without the need for pulverization. The novel brick product made with as-received RCF waste exhibited superior thermal characteristics (up to a 31.25 % reduction compared to control bricks) while meeting the essential compliance requirements outlined by national standards. Moreover, each firing cycle led to a potential value of up to USD 158,460 through a reduction of 417 tonnes of CO 2 , resulting from a 9.5 % reduction in firing temperature (1000 °C). The results from this study offer valuable insights into the potential of using RCF waste as a sustainable alternative in the brick manufacturing industry. This alternative could address the soaring demand in the current market, resolve the escalating solid waste crisis, and mitigate clay shortages, while providing a sustainable solution for the brick industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Although paper production demonstrates high energy and water sensitivity in their life cycles, only a few systematic analyses have focused on these issues. Therefore, an energy and carbon coupled water footprint analysis of five types of Kraft wood pulp-based paper (i.e., specialty-, art-, household-, light coated-, and tissue paper) is conducted in this study to help improve the environmental performance of the paper industry. All investigations are conducted with an impact-oriented approach based on ISO standards. Results show that elemental-chlorine-free bleaching is more environmentally friendly than chlorination-alkaline extraction-hypochlorite bleaching, specifically for global warming, aquatic eutrophication, and human health (i.e., carcinogens and non-carcinogens). Gray water footprint along whole life cycles of each product is approximately twice of blue water footprint. Direct processes contribute approximately 50% to water scarcity, while their impact on aquatic eutrophication ranges from 0.002% to 50.72%. For other midpoints, indirect processes dominate the influences. Meanwhile, COD, BOD 5 , CO 2 , TP, Cr (Ⅵ), Ti, Hg, and As are key contributors. Finally, reusing sludge by direct burning in the recovery furnace, reclaiming organic compounds in black liquor before alkali recycling, and integrating black liquor gasification technology are expected to provide substantial environmental benefits. Amelioration of wastewater treatment, optimization of the national energy structure, and improvement of the efficiency of chemicals and freshwater are recommended. Highlights • Energy and carbon coupled water footprint analysis of Kraft pulp paper is applied. • The environmental benefit of black liquor recovery is dominated by reused alkali. • Direct processes contribute a lot to water scarcity and aquatic eutrophication. • COD, BOD, TP, and heavy metals are key substances. • Optimizing waste reuse and availability efficiency of chemicals is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paper has shaped society for centuries and is considered one of humanity's most important inventions. However, pulp and paper products can be damaging to social and natural systems along their lifecycle of material extraction, processing, transportation, and waste handling. The pulp and paper industry is among the top five most energy-intensive industries globally and is the fourth largest industrial energy user. This industry accounts for approximately 6% of global industrial energy use and 2% of direct industrial CO 2 emissions. The pulp and paper industry is also the largest user of original or virgin wood, with deleterious impacts on both human health and local flora and fauna, including aquatic ecosystems. This critical and systematic review seeks to identify alternatives for mitigating the climate impacts of pulp and paper processes and products, thus making the pulp and paper industry more environmentally sustainable. This study reviews 466 studies to answer the following questions: what are the main determinants of energy and carbon emissions emerging from the pulp and paper industry? What are the benefits of this industry adopting low-carbon manufacturing processes, and what barriers will need to be tackled to enable such adoption? Using a sociotechnical lens, we answer these questions, identify barriers for the pulp and paper industry's decarbonization, and present promising avenues for future research. •This review identifies carbon-intensive processes in the pulp and paper industry. •Presents decarbonizing practices, potential transformations and innovations. •Presents promising avenues for future research. •No agreed consensus on the most promising technologies to achieve net-zero in the pulp and paper industry. •Pulp and paper products are associated with other sociotechnical systems that create compelling interdependencies among industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-quality materials contained in separately collected (SC) packaging waste generate environmental and economic burdens associated to both sorting operations of Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) and landfilling of non-recyclable materials. In this study, based on quantification of both impurities and recyclable fractions, the quality of SC municipal packaging waste streams was determined by compositional analysis of the waste entering a MRF throughout a year. Foreign materials (% w/w) found in the monitored SC glass, paper plus cardboard and lightweight packaging waste, were on average 5.0, 14.7 and 23.0, respectively, while landfilled materials (% w/w) after MRF sorting operations were on average 4.3, 10.3 and 22.0, respectively. A Life Cycle Assessment study was conducted to determine the environmental impact of SC packaging waste streams quality of three different scenarios: current situation (CS), better (BS) and ideal (IS) scenario with reduced presence and absence, respectively, of improper materials in the three examined SC packaging waste streams. Emission of 32.1 kg CO 2 eq/t waste was calculated for the current situation with a reduction by 66.1% and 98.0% in CO 2 eq emission for BS and IS scenario, respectively. Similar emission reductions were calculated for ozone depletion, ionizing radiations, particle matter formation, fossil fuel depletion and primary energy demand impact categories. The environmental life cycle costing study demonstrated that total savings of € 35.2 and € 66.6 for each ton of SC packaging waste stream entering the MRF could be obtained for BS and IS scenario, respectively. [Display omitted] • Impurities in packaging waste streams generate environmental and economic burdens. • 23.0% of impurities were found in separately collected lightweight packaging waste. • Plant sorting operations generate 32.1 kg CO 2 eq for each ton of packaging waste. • € 35.2/ton of sorted packaging waste could be saved by reducing impurities content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pulp and paper industry is a high energy consuming and polluting sector, and carbon emissions emitted from this sector are worthy of attention. This article, based upon an analysis of China’s Pulp and Paper Industry (CPPI), provides estimates of each of the following: carbon emissions from energy consumption, pre-treatment sector, combustion of condensed black liquor, and methane emitted from incomplete aerobic digestion during sewage treatment of CPPI. During the study period (2005–2012), total CO 2 emissions ranged from 126.0 Mt to 155.4 Mt. Energy consumption was estimated to be the largest source of carbon emissions, however, due to the application of the local emission inventory rather than the IPCC inventory, energy consumption decreased by 4.7%, a lower percentage than was calculated in a previous study. According to this study’s estimation, the emissions caused by the recovery of biomass energy contributed 26–29% of the total CO 2 emissions. CH 4 generated from sewage treatment accounted for 9–11% of the total carbon emissions. The CO 2 intensity dropped during the study period, which reflected the improvement of energy efficiency in the pulp and paper industry. The outcome of this study provides not only detailed information about CPPI’s carbon emissions, but also a calculation framework for studying carbon emissions from pulp and paper sector in the other regions. It suggests that the local carbon emissions inventory should be used for estimating carbon emissions and to reduce the fossil fuel energy, increase energy recovery from biomass, and that promoting cleaner production is essential to achieve a low carbon development of the pulp and paper industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses carbon emissions and value-added embodied in trade between two large developed countries, South Korea and the United States, during 2000-2014. Using multi-regional input-output (MRIO) tables, our analysis reveals that carbon emissions and value-added embodied in exports grew by 19% and 101% for South Korea but shrank by 43% and 7% for the United States. As a result, South Korea experienced a 40% increase in net carbon exports and 243% increase in net valueadded exports. At the industry level, the primary drivers of changes in carbon exports were electricity and basic materials. The majority of industries in witnessed improvements in carbon intensities suggesting improved environmental efficiency. While both countries achieved a decoupling of carbon emissions from value-added exports, substantial year-to-year and sectoral variations were observed. Finally, structural decomposition analysis indicates that domestic supply-side factors played a role in decreasing emissions whereas foreign demand-side factors contributed to emissions increases. In line with the main findings, various implications for policy and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of energy technology, hydrogen is gradually becoming widely used. China is also rapidly developing its own hydrogen energy industry in an effort to accomplish the "dual carbon target'. Hydrogen from methane is one of the mainstream sources, of which hydrogen from methane cracking is the decomposition of methane into hydrogen and solid carbon, with the solid carbon also having a high economic value. In particular, this technology does not emit carbon dioxide, which is very friendly to the environment, but it cannot avoid larger energy consumption. In contrast, hydrogen production from methane cracking driven by solar energy not only combines the characteristics of no CO 2 emission, but also greatly reduces the consumption of primary energy, which is the future development trend of hydrogen production from methane. This paper provides a brief overview of the various technological pathways for methane to hydrogen production in the context of China's actual development, focusing on the current status of the development and application of solar methane cracking to hydrogen production technologies at home and abroad. Among them, this paper mainly discusses the characteristics of solar reactors of different sizes and structures, and summarizes the results of related optimization studies. Meanwhile, the application of catalysts in solar reactors and the problem of carbon deposition are analyzed, and the practical application of solar methane cracking hydrogen production system is outlined. Finally, the future development of solar methane cracking hydrogen production technology is prospected from the national situation of China. [Display omitted] • Solar methane cracking for hydrogen can reduce emissions and energy consumption. • The current state of research on solar reactors is summarized. • Solar methane cracking requires higher performing catalysts. • Providing insights into the future development of solar methane cracking in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of global carbon emission reduction, solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is experiencing rapid development. Using high-resolution remote sensing images to accurately obtain PV information over a large region, including location and size, has the advantages of high statistical efficiency and timely data update for the PV energy management. Due to the intra-class diversity of PV panels and the intricate variability in their deployment environments, existing semantic segmentation methods often have problems such as under-segmentation and mis-segmentation. To alleviate these problems, this paper proposes an improved DeepLabv3+ semantic segmentation network to more accurately extract PV panels from high-resolution remote sensing images. With the aim of alleviating under-segmentation, a multi-level context aggregation module is developed. This module can enhance the model's ability to learn the characteristics of PV panels and their surrounding environment by aggregating rich contextual information from multi-scale and semantic levels. To alleviate the problem of mis-segmentation, a hybrid attention module is introduced. This module sequentially and adaptively adjusts the weight distribution in both the channel and spatial dimensions, thus enabling the model to focus more on the feature information and spatial positions of PV objects. Experiments conducted on a self-constructed Beijing PV segmentation dataset show that the method in this paper has advantages of completeness and accuracy in extracting PV panels compared to the baseline model and current mainstream semantic segmentation network. In addition, the results of experiments on extracting PV panels in real region show that our model also has good stability and generalization capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electric power sector is the primary contributor to carbon emissions in China. Considering the context of dual carbon goals, this paper examines carbon emissions within China's electricity sector. The research utilizes the LMDI approach for methodological rigor. The results show that the cumulative contribution of economies scale, power consumption factors and energy structure are 114.91%, 85.17% and 0.94%, which contribute to the increase of carbon emissions, the cumulative contribution of power generation efficiency and ratio of power dissipation to generation factor are -19.15% and -0.01%, which promotes the carbon reduction. The decomposition analysis highlights the significant influence of economic scale on carbon emissions in the electricity industry, among the seven factors investigated. Meanwhile, STIRPAT model, Logistic model and GM(1,1) model are used to predict carbon emissions, the average relative error between actual carbon emissions and the predicted values are 0.23%, 8.72% and 7.05%, which indicates that STIRPAT model is more suitable for medium- to long-term predictions. Based on these findings, the paper proposes practical suggestions to reduce carbon emissions and achieve the dual carbon goals of the power industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Buildings are energy- and resource-hungry: their construction and use account for around 39% of global carbon dioxide emissions; they consume around 40% of all the energy produced; they are responsible for over 35% of the EU's total waste generation; and account for about 50% of all extracted (fossil) materials. Therefore, they present a significant challenge to meeting national and international Net Zero targets of reducing greenhouse emissions and fossil resource use. The CircularB Project, is at the heart of this issue, which will underpin synergies of multi-scale circular perspectives (from materials, to components, to assets and built environments), digital transformation solutions, data-driven and complexity science, stakeholder behavioral science, and interdisciplinary capabilities towards achievable, affordable and marketable circular solutions for both new and existing buildings, for sustainable urban design, and for circular built environments across Europe. This paper contributes to the project by deriving new insights into the stakeholders' influences, inter-relationships, and obstacles in the implementation of circular economy concepts on existing building stocks in Europe, which represent over 90% of whole building assets. In order to identify and derive the insights, our study is rigorously based on (i) a robust critical literature review of key documentations such as articles, standards, policy reports, strategic roadmaps and white papers; and (ii) interviews with relevant stakeholders and decision makers. Uniquely, our work spans across all scales of CE implementation from materials, to products and components, to existing building stocks, and to living built environments. The findings point out the current challenges and obstacles required to be tackled. Inadequacies of financial incentives and governmental enforcement (via policy, legislation, or directive) are commonly found to be the most critical obstacles found throughout Europe. Circular economy is the global challenge and not just a single country can resolve the climate issue without the cooperation of other countries. The insights thus highlight the essential need for harmonized actions and tactical/pragmatic policies promoted and regulated by the European Commission, national and local governments who can dominate the influence, promote inter-relationship, and overcome the barriers towards circular economy much more effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of fifth-generation (5G) mobile networks leads to an increase in energy consumption and higher operational costs for mobile network operators (MNOs). Consequently, the optimization of 5G networks' energy efficiency is crucial, both in terms of reducing MNO costs and in terms of the negative environmental impact. However, many aspects of the 5G mobile network technology itself have been standardized, including the 5G network slicing concept. This enables the creation of multiple independent logical 5G networks within the same physical infrastructure. Since the only necessary resources in 5G networks need to be used for the realization of a specific 5G network slice, the question of whether the implementation of 5G network slicing can contribute to the improvement of 5G and future sixth-generation networks' energy efficiency arises. To tackle this question, this review paper analyzes 5G network slicing and the energy demand of different network slicing use cases and mobile virtual network operator realizations based on network slicing. The paper also overviews standardized key performance indicators for the assessment of 5G network slices' energy efficiency and discusses energy efficiency in 5G network slicing lifecycle management. In particular, to show how efficient network slicing can optimize the energy consumption of 5G networks, versatile 5G network slicing use case scenarios, approaches, and resource allocation concepts in the space, time, and frequency domains have been discussed, including artificial intelligence-based implementations of network slicing. The results of the comprehensive discussion indicate that the different implementations and approaches to network slicing pave the way for possible further reductions in 5G MNO energy costs and carbon dioxide emissions in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the problem of global warming caused by the massive emission of carbon dioxide has attracted the attention of all countries in the world. As the world's largest carbon dioxide emitter. China is under great pressure to conserve energy and reduce emissions. How to effectively control carbon dioxide emissions has become one of the important issues that needs to be solved in China's economic and social development. The digital economy is characterized by technological innovation, environmental friendliness and green development providing new opportunities for carbon emission reduction. However, the existing literature has not reached a consensus on the study of the impact of China's digital economy development on carbon emissions, and the study of the internal mechanism of China's digital economy development on carbon emissions is not deep enough, and the study of the spatial spillover effect of China's digital economy development on carbon emissions is relatively few. Based on the extended Cobb-Douglas production function, this paper analyzes the impact of digital economy development on carbon emissions by using Chinese urban panel data. The results show that the development of the digital economy can significantly reduce the level of carbon emissions, and this result is still valid after a series of robustness tests. In terms of its mechanism, digital economy can reduce carbon emissions by strengthening environmental regulation, improving human capital level and promoting industrial agglomeration. After further considering the spatial correlation characteristics of the emission reduction effect of digital economy, it is found that the development of digital economy can not only promote carbon emission reduction in the region, but also help reduce carbon emissions in neighboring regions. Heterogeneity test shows that the development of digital economy significantly reduces carbon emissions in central cities and high-innovation cities, but the carbon emission reduction effect of digital economy in peripheral cities is not significant, and the development of digital economy in low- innovation cities significantly increases carbon emissions. The development of digital economy in eastern and central and western cities has significantly reduced carbon emissions, and the carbon emission reduction effect is decreasing from the central and western regions to the eastern regions. The possible marginal contributions of this paper are as follows: first, a theoretical model is built to analyze and empirically test the impact of digital economy on carbon emission by incorporating digital elements into Cobb-Douglas production function and introducing carbon emission equation, which deepens the understanding of the relationship between digital economy development and carbon emission. Second, three intermediary variables, i. e. industrial agglomeration, environmental regulation and human capital are included, which enriches the mechanism of the impact of digital economy development on carbon emissions from a new perspective based on multiple paths. A multidimensional index evaluation system is constructed to measure intermediary variables, which can reflect the characteristics of intermediary variables more completely and comprehensively than a single indicator measurement. Third, two spatial weight matrices of adjacency and inverse distance were constructed, and bidirectional fixed effect spatial Durbin model was adopted to test the spatial spillover effect of digital economy development on carbon emissions from a more subtle urban scale. Three intermediary variables of industrial agglomeration, environmental regulation and human capital were included in the model successively, and the spatial spillover effect of different intermediary variables on carbon emissions was investigated. It provides an empirical basis for the national planning of carbon emission reduction policies. The research in this paper deepens the understanding of the relationship between digital economy development and carbon emission to a certain extent, reveals the internal logic of China's digital economy development affecting carbon emission, clarifies the path and method of carbon emission reduction, and provides theoretical support for government departments to formulate more targeted policies on digital economy development and carbon emission reduction under the constraint of "dual carbon" goal. This will help promote the development of digital economy and carbon emission reduction, and better achieve China's carbon emission reduction targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance the utilization of clean energy sources, such as wind power and photovoltaic within virtual power plants, and mitigate carbon emissions, this paper proposes a virtual power plant participation in the electricity carbon joint market optimization operation model based on ensemble empirical mode decomposition–improved bat algorithm (IBA)–Markov chain new energy output prediction. First, complementary set empirical mode decomposition is performed on historical data to construct a Markov chain based wind power and photovoltaic prediction model optimized by IBA. Second, this prediction model is used to predict the daily generation power of wind power and photovoltaic power. Finally, with the optimization goals of maximizing the benefits and minimizing the carbon costs of virtual power plants, a virtual power plant system participating in the electricity carbon joint market model based on wind power and photovoltaic output prediction results is constructed. At the same time, demand response factors are introduced and solved using the NSGA-II algorithm. Taking a certain park as an example for simulation analysis, the research results show that the combined effect of carbon market and demand response can achieve 99.82% of new energy consumption in virtual power plants without significantly reducing profits, basically achieving complete new energy consumption, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed model in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With China's rapid industrialization and urbanization in the process of socio-economic development, the extensive use of energy has resulted in a large amount of CO2 emissions, which puts great pressure on China's carbon emission reduction task. Through multivariate socio-economic data, this paper proposes an extraction and screening method of multivariate variables based on land-use types, and the downscaled spatial decomposition of carbon emissions at different scales was carried out by using the spatial lag model (SLM). This paper makes up for the shortcomings of previous studies, such as an insufficient modeling scale, simple modeling variables, limited spatio-temporal span of spatial decomposition, and no consideration of geographical correlation. Based on the results of the spatial decomposition of carbon emissions, this paper explores the spatial and temporal dynamics of carbon emissions at different scales. The results showed that SLM is capable of downscaling the spatialization of carbon emissions with high precision, and the continuity of the decomposition results at the provincial scale is stronger, while the differences of the decomposition results at the municipal scale are more obvious within the municipal units. In terms of the spatial and temporal dynamics of CO2 emissions, carbon emissions at both scales showed a significant positive correlation. The dominant spatial correlation types are "Low–Low" at the provincial level, and "Low–Low" and "High–High" at the municipal level. The smaller spatial scope is more helpful to show the geographic dependence and geographic differences of China's carbon emissions. The findings of this paper will help deepen the understanding of the spatial and temporal changes of carbon emissions in China. They will provide a scientific basis for the formulation of feasible carbon emission reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environmental issues within the transport industry need to be given priority attention. Optimizing the transport structure and promoting low-carbon transport are essential measures for achieving carbon emission reduction. However, the rail-water multimodal transport scale is currently limited. The government has to intervene in the market through incentive policies, so how to expand the revenue of carriers and enhance the volume has become a major dilemma. Our paper constructs a transport system that includes road, water, and railway, and examines the impact of incentive policies on separate stakeholders. It is discovered that incentive policies can increase the revenue of carriers and simultaneously attract more shippers to elect rail-water multimodal transport. Subsidy policy can hasten the structural transformation of inland transport, making railway transport volume rise. Unfortunately, although the dry port policy may enhance the revenue of railway carriers, it leads to an apparent decline in the revenue of road-water multimodal transport participants. However, the subsidy policy can create a win-win scenario for multiple carriers while achieving carbon emission reduction, but to the detriment of social welfare. Additionally, the paper compares the interactions between diverse incentive policies and pivotal factors such as transport time. The conclusions of our research serve strategic recommendations for maximizing carriers revenues and provide support for government decision-making. • The impact of incentive policies on the rail-water multimodal transport is inspected. • Subsidy policy can make carriers better off, but may have adverse effects on social welfare. • Subsidy policy expands carrier volume and stimulates transport structure transformation. • Although dry port is conducive to social welfare, it hurts the revenue of carriers. • The dry port is beneficial for achieving long-distance carbon emissions reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization and the release of carbon emission are two significant features of contemporary economic and social progress in China. However, there are few studies that consider how urbanization policy goals affect carbon emission. This paper aims to study the nonlinear effects of urbanization policy goals on carbon emission in 13 cities of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. In this paper, a multi-dimensional spatial disturbance grey model is proposed. Based on matrix perturbation theory, this paper explores the spatial perturbation bounds of the novel model and verifies that the spatial property of the model is consistent with the viewpoint of the First Law of Geography. Then, the novel model is used to predict the urban carbon emission under different urbanization policy goal scenarios. The results showed that the novel model has spatial regional correlation in spatial region prediction. With the development of urbanization level, carbon emissions show a downward trend in more than 50% of cities from 2022 to 2025. In addition, the improvement of urbanization policy goals will promote the carbon peak time of most cities. The carbon emission intensity will exhibit an inverted U-shaped trend distribution in space. The research results are conducive to providing scientific guidance for the formulation of new-type urbanization policies and helping to achieve the dual carbon goals. • A multi-dimensional spatial disturbance grey model is proposed. • The novel grey model is consistent with the viewpoint of the First Law of Geography. • The spatial distribution of carbon intensity showed an inverted U-shaped pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many regions or countries seek to transition to a low-carbon economy, but there is ambiguity about how carbon emissions change with economic growth. This paper captures characteristics of carbon emissions in China using the Tapio Method. To detect driving factors of carbon emissions in economic growth, we adopt the Log-Mean Divisia Index decomposition method. The results of the paper are as follows: (1) Economic growth in most regions of China has outpaced the growth rate of carbon emissions, showing the characteristics of decoupling. (2) Metropolitan cities have a greater impact on the level of decoupling in neighboring provinces and municipalities. (3) The decoupling of carbon emissions from economic growth is caused by declining energy intensity in China. (4) The energy mix and industrial structure have little impact on the growth rate of carbon emissions. In addition, some policy implications are summarized according to the findings of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence technology is constantly developing and changing. Due to the continuous development of technology and production of carbon emissions, various problems have occurred, forcing various regions to start promoting low‐carbon work. What kind of method can effectively and quickly improve the performance of carbon emissions has become one of the current research topics that has attracted much attention. In response to this problem, it is of great significance to study in the field of carbon emission performance improvement methods. With the in‐depth research on carbon emissions, the research on the intervention of water conservancy policies in carbon emissions has gradually been carried out, and its functional effects are of great significance to solve the problem of improving carbon emissions performance. This paper has aimed to study the impact and mechanism of water conservancy policy on carbon emission performance in the context of artificial intelligence. Through the analysis and research of the water conservancy policy under artificial intelligence, the double difference model (DID) is used to evaluate it, so that it can show the impact and mechanism on carbon emission performance, so as to solve the problem of improving carbon emission performance. This paper has analysed water policy, carbon emission performance and DID model under artificial intelligence. Its influence and mechanism have been experimentally analysed, and related theoretical formulas have been used to explain. The results have shown that the water conservancy policy has a significant and continuous driving effect on the reduction of carbon emission intensity, and its interaction coefficient under the control variable is −0.934, which is significantly negative. Further analysis of variables has shown that the energy intensity coefficient is 0.714, and the secondary industry coefficient is 0.924, which are both positive and significant. Water conservancy policies mainly reduce carbon intensity through the improvement of energy efficiency and industrial structure upgrading. It can be seen that water conservancy policies under artificial intelligence can meet the needs of improving carbon emission performance, and the level of economic growth and green development has been greatly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digitalization and greening are key themes in global development, the manufacturing industry, as a major sector of energy consumption and carbon emissions, is in urgent need of transformation to realize energy conservation and emission reduction, digital transformation provides an opportunity for its green development. However, whether digital transformation can restrain the carbon emission intensity (CEI) of enterprises is still controversial. Based on the data of China's A‐share manufacturing listed companies from 2013 to 2020, this paper uses fixed effect model and intermediary effect model to explore the relationship between digital transformation and enterprise CEI and the influence path. the results show that: (1) Digital transformation has significantly reduced the CEI of manufacturing enterprises. (2) Mechanism analysis indicates that green technological innovation and resource allocation efficiency play a chain mediating role in this relationship. (3) Heterogeneity analysis shows that the carbon emission reduction effect of digital transformation is more significant when enterprises belong to an energy‐intensive manufacturing industry or face strong environmental regulations and industry competition. The analysis of this paper not only deepens enterprises' understanding of digital transformation and green development but also provides a policy basis for China to advocate the coordinated development of the digital economy and green economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incorporation of net-zero technology into preexisting energy networks is crucial for facilitating the shift toward an ecologically conscious and sustainable energy infrastructure. The primary objective of this integration is to effectively decrease carbon footprints and to provide a comprehensive understanding of the current approaches and trends related to the design and management frameworks of integrated energy networks. The initial section of this study establishes the foundation for a comprehensive examination of the particular challenges associated with decarbonization in the strategic and operational aspects of integrated energy networks. The subsequent analysis proceeds to elucidate the fundamental framework and technological architecture upon which these energy networks are constructed. This provides significant insights into the operational complexity and efficacy of the system. In addition, the paper provides a concise examination of prominent frameworks and alternative approaches that tackle the issue of low-carbon design and administration. The degree of accuracy facilitates individuals when selecting systems that align with the specific requirements of unique circumstances. Furthermore, this study provides explicit suggestions for future research based on an examination of the distinct attributes and framework of integrated energy networks. The anticipated outcome of implementing these recommendations is to enable the advancement of sustainable development and expedite the shift toward energy infrastructure with reduced carbon emissions. This will make a significant contribution to the collaborative endeavor of mitigating climate change and fostering a sustainable energy future. This study further elucidates the significant contribution of integrated energy networks in addressing climate change and enhancing energy efficiency. It achieves this by synthesizing a complete range of concepts sourced from many academic papers, industry reports, and case studies. This statement offers an examination of the multifaceted technological, legislative, and planning factors that contribute to the attainment of net-zero objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A global transition to low-carbon, resource-efficient economies is occurring in response to risks posed by climate change and environmental degradation. Hydrogen is proposed as a zero-carbon substitute for natural gas with the potential to reduce carbon emissions in homes and businesses. Trades, including gasfitting, will be affected by the transition to a low-carbon economy and require upskilling to develop competencies to work with hydrogen to ensure safety and support domestic uptake. Understanding the training needs of trades practitioners is essential to the successful transition to a zero-carbon economy. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study of Australian gasfitters, exploring what motivates gasfitters to participate in training, what informs their ongoing learning and what their preferences are for hydrogen training. Most gasfitters are either self-employed or work in small businesses, and, as such, this context presents both challenges and opportunities to consider in upskilling strategies. Drawing on interview findings and literature on small business learning, the paper presents considerations to inform training approaches and policies in the transition to hydrogen and also, more broadly, for upskilling other small trade businesses similarly affected by a shift to low-carbon and green technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive uncertainty can affect the efficiency and fairness of consensus in the consensus reaching process (CRP), but few scholars have studied consensus modeling that focuses on fairness and efficiency in uncertain environments. Additionally, the weight of the decision maker (DM) in the CRP is influenced by multiple factors. Therefore, this paper proposes robust consensus models (EFCMs) focusing on fairness and efficiency under uncertain costs to address these issues. Firstly, this paper constructs multiple uncertainty sets to describe the uncertainty of the unit adjustment cost. Secondly, the fair utility level and opinion adjustment distance are used to measure the fairness and efficiency of reaching consensus, respectively. Furthermore, this paper uses a data-driven method based on the KDE method combined with trust propagation in social networks to determine the DMs' weights jointly. Finally, this paper also applies the proposed models to the carbon emission reduction negotiation process between the government and enterprises. The experimental results and sensitivity analysis show that the consensus cost budget and the DMs' jealous preference behavior particularly affects the efficiency of reaching consensus, which provides a theoretical basis for solving practical decision making problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we develop a two-level supply chain model with low carbon emissions for defective deteriorating items under learning in fuzzy environment by using the double inspection process. Carbon emissions are a major issue for the environment and human life when they come from many sources like different kinds of factories, firms, and industries. The burning of diesel and petrol during the supply of items through transportation is also responsible for carbon emissions. When any company, firm, or industry supplies their items through a supply chain by using of transportation in the regular mode, then a lot of carbon units are emitted from the burning of petrol and diesel, etc., which affects the supply chain. Carbon emissions can be controlled by using different kinds of policies issued by the government of a country, and lots of companies have implemented these policies to control carbon emissions. When a seller delivers a demanded lot size to the buyer, as per demand, and the lot size has some defective items, as per consideration, the demand rate is uncertain in nature. The buyer inspects the received whole lot and divides it into two categories of defective and no defective deteriorating items, as well as immediately selling at different price. The fuzzy concept nullifies the uncertain nature of the demand rate. This paper covers two models, assuming two conditions of quality screening under learning in fuzzy environment: (i) the buyer shows the quality screening and (ii) the quality inspection becomes the seller's responsibility. The carbon footprint from the transporting and warehousing the deteriorating items is also assumed. The aim of this study is to minimize the whole inventory cost for supply chains with respect to lot size and the number of orders per production cycle. Jointly optimizing the delivery lot size and number of orders per production cycle will minimize the whole fuzzy inventory cost for the supply chain and also reduce the carbon emissions. We take two numerical approaches with authentic data (from the literature reviews) for the justification of the proposed model 1 and model 2. Sensitivity observations, managerial insights, applications of these proposed models, and future scope are also included in this paper, which is more beneficial for firms, the industrial sector, and especially for online markets. The impact of the most effective parameters, like learning effect, fuzzy parameter, carbon emissions parameter, and inventory cost are shown in this study and had a positive effect on the total inventory cost for the supply chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses the biomass of livestock, poultry manure and straw to study the resource utilization and integration technology by division and classification. The SPSS regression analysis and integration were applied to analyze the economic benefits of the base period (2018) and the audit period (2020). The analysis gives an opportunity in rural areas to reduce chemical fertilizers, pesticides, electricity and coal cost in planting, and this paper opens a novel window for utilizing renewable energy resources and reducing carbon dioxide emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to the inherent requirements of low-carbon land spatial planning in Jiangxi Province and the lack of existing research, this paper explored the mechanism of spatial form elements of Poyang Lake urban agglomeration on urban carbon emissions. Based on generalized linear regression and geographically weighted regression models, this paper analyzed the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of carbon emissions, the spatiotemporal relationship between urban form index and carbon emissions, and the spatial differentiation of the intensity of dominant factors from 63 county-level administrative units in the Poyang Lake city group from 2005 to 2020. The results showed that: ① The carbon emissions of urban agglomerations around Poyang Lake are generally increasing, and the spatial distribution of carbon emissions is characterized by high-value concentration in the middle and low-value agglomeration in pieces; ② The main driving factor for the spatial heterogeneity of carbon emissions was the expansion of built-up area; ③ Improving urban compactness and optimizing urban form could effectively reduce urban carbon emissions. The results showcased the correlation between urban spatial landscape pattern and the spatiotemporal distribution of carbon emissions, which could make the lowcarbon land spatial planning in the Poyang Lake city group more reasonable and practical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has represented a watershed in people's lifestyle. One important consequence has been the change in how people buy groceries online/offline that represent the most frequent shopping-related trip any household performs. Since this has substantially different transport and environmental implications, it is crucial to investigate what are the COVID-19-induced variations. This paper estimates both travel and environmental impacts grocery channel choice implies by comparing, in a diachronic fashion, the pre and during COVID-19 situation in Norway, considering alternative scenarios describing different service configurations for each channel considered. Stated preferences are used to estimate market shares for grocery purchase distinguishing between different channels: in-store, home delivery and click&pick. The robust comparative analysis between the two time periods is guaranteed by the use of the same methodological approach in the same geographical context. Results show that total emissions are lower during the pandemic and adopting a free delivery strategy not only increases home delivery market shares but also produces the lowest level of CO2 emissions regardless of COVID-19. The results obtained are particularly relevant in the "new normal" the world is experiencing both from a public policymaking perspective, when promoting transport-related interventions to curb emissions, and from a private standpoint, when customising market strategies to increase sales and profits. • COVID-19 has represented a watershed in people's lifestyle. • Investigating changes in how people buy groceries online/offline is important. • Stated preferences are used to estimate grocery market shares for different channels. • The paper estimates travel and environmental impacts pre and during COVID-19 via scenario analysis. • Results are particularly relevant for both the public and private sector in the "new normal" conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scale of multi-microgrid (MMG) and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (HFCVs) is increasing dramatically with the increase in the new energy penetration ratio, and developing an integrated energy system containing a multi-microgrid for hydrogen fuel vehicles brings great challenges to power grid operation. Focusing on the difficulties of the access of multiple microgrids for the low-carbon and economic operation of the system, this paper proposes an optimal interconnected heterogeneous multi-microgrid power–heat–carbon scheduling strategy for hydrogen-fueled vehicles. Firstly, an HFCV model is established, and then an optimal scheduling model is constructed for the cooperative trading of power–heat–carbon in a multi-microgrid, on the basis of which the low-carbon economic operation of the multi-microgrid is realized. The results of the case study show that the scheduling strategy in this paper reduces carbon emissions by about 7.12% and costs by about 3.41% compared with the independent operation of the multi-microgrid. The degrees of interaction of each multi-microgrid are also analyzed under different HFCV penetration rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the serious problems with energy efficiency, carbon emissions, and thermal comfort of rural residences in northern China, an optimization of active and passive heating technologies for rural residences is necessary. In this paper, an optimization for rural residences in northern China is conducted with four objectives: the whole life cycle carbon emission; the annual energy consumption through heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems; the annual cost; and thermal comfort. In addition, the optimization model with active–passive heating technology synergy is resolved by NSGA-II genetic algorithm. The active and passive design variables, including the type of air source heat pump, orientation, the type and thickness of envelope insulation, the layer of window glass, the window-to-wall area ratio, as well as sunspace parameters are preferred to obtain the optimal solution. The results indicate that the optimal solution obtained by the ideal point method gives the most outstanding performance. Compared with the prototype, the optimized carbon emissions in severe cold and cold regions decreased by 56.1% and 54.6%, respectively. The annual energy consumption decreased by 59.7% and 62.2%. Finally, the roof insulation thickness is the most sensitive design variable in Pareto-optimal solution sets. This paper offers significant guidance in the application of the optimization method of active–passive technology synergy to the energy-saving design of buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low or even zero carbon dioxide emissions will be an essential requirement for energy supplies in the near future. Besides transport and electricity generation, industry is another large carbon emitter. Hydrogen produced by renewable energy provides a flexible way of utilizing that energy. Hydrogen, as an energy carrier, could be stored in a large capacity compared to electricity. In Sweden, hydrogen will be used to replace coal for steel production. This paper discusses how the need for electricity to produce hydrogen will affect the electricity supply and power flow in the Swedish power grid, and whether it will result in increased emissions in other regions. Data of the Swedish system will be used to study the feasibility of implementing the hydrogen system from the power system viewpoint, and discuss the electricity price and emission issues caused by the hydrogen production in different scenarios. This paper concludes that the Swedish power grid is feasible for accommodating the additional electricity capacity requirement of producing green hydrogen for the steel industry. The obtained results could be references for decision makers, investors, and power system operators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]