Future Sustainability

Technical and environmental assessment of biofuel utilization in light and heavy vehicles: implications for carbon footprint reduction on high-traffic freeway

2025-02-23T19:56:09+00:00

The global imperative to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions necessitates urgent transitions in the transportation sector, which currently accounts for approximately 40% of global emissions. This study focuses on the potential of biofuels to serve as a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels within Iran's road freight transport sector, specifically along the North Tehran Freeway, a corridor characterized by heavy traffic and significant carbon emissions. Conducted over a one-year period from October 2022 to September 2023, this research calculates the carbon footprint of vehicles using gasoline and diesel, providing a detailed analysis of fuel consumption and resulting CO₂ emissions. The study highlights the feasibility of bioethanol and biodiesel, locally available in Iran, as practical substitutes for fossil fuels, particularly given the limited availability of electric vehicles (EVs) in the region. The findings reveal that gasoline dominates fuel consumption on the Tehran-North corridor, accounting for 86% of the total fuel use, thereby underscoring the urgent need for cleaner alternatives. This research contributes to the understanding of Iran’s unique transportation challenges and offers practical solutions for reducing carbon emissions through biofuels. The study’s granular approach, assessing emissions on a monthly basis, provides nuanced insights into seasonal and behavioral factors influencing fuel use, laying the groundwork for effective policy development aimed at transitioning Iran’s transportation sector towards greater sustainability.

Integrating sustainable wind power into Nigeria’s energy system: an analysis of excess electricity, CO2 emissions reduction, and fuel demand implications

2025-02-26T06:21:44+00:00

This study explores the integration of sustainable wind power into Nigeria's energy system, focusing on its effects on Excess Electricity Production (CEEP), CO₂ emissions reduction, and fuel demand under different scenarios. Using the Energy PLAN modeling tool, the study evaluates Nigeria's energy infrastructure at an electricity demand of 32 TWh per year, incorporating both onshore and offshore wind power capacities. Three regulatory scenarios are considered: Regulation 1 (heat demand only), Regulation 2 (combined heat and electricity demand), and Regulation 3 (heat pump integration). The results indicate that increasing wind power capacity significantly affects CEEP. At maximum wind penetration, CEEP is reduced by 35% under Regulation 2 with heat pump integration, compared to Regulation 1, highlighting the importance of system flexibility. Integrating heat pumps reduces energy waste and optimizes renewable energy use by 40%. The CO₂ emissions are reduced by about 28% across all scenarios, with the most significant reductions occurring in systems incorporating heat pumps and wind energy. The study shows that primary energy savings were about 25%, driven by decreased reliance on fossil fuels. Wind energy integration leads to a 30% reduction in natural gas consumption, which remains a significant component of Nigeria’s energy mix. Sensitivity analysis reveals that variability in wind production and enhanced system flexibility can improve overall energy system efficiency by 20%. The study contributes significantly to the understanding of renewable energy integration in Nigeria, offering a comprehensive framework for incorporating intermittent wind energy sources into the national grid.

Advancing urban flood mitigation and climate resilience: a GIS-based hydrodynamic modeling approach using HEC-RAS and remote sensing data

2025-03-02T18:30:57+00:00

Over the past decades, significant adverse effects, including the resiliency of critical centers, have emerged. The negative impact has manifested in the vulnerability of critical urban centers during natural disasters and emergencies, leading to their inefficiency, heightened public dissatisfaction, and a breakdown in service delivery during crises. In order to enhance the resilience of key centers, it is essential to first identify and assess the vulnerability of these crucial urban hubs to various risks and threats. In this research, the classification was graded and assessed following the formulation of a questionnaire and the collection of results. Utilizing the arithmetic mean of sample opinions, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied through the Expert Choice software to assign weights to these criteria and sub-criteria. Subsequently, the key urban centers were identified. The hydrology within the city and its surroundings, along with the modeling of rivers during various return periods, were studied using the HEC_RAS. The results were then integrated into GIS to delineate flood risk zones in the city of Hamedan. Following the input of the arithmetic mean of sample opinions into the Expert Choice, the value of each indicator was meticulously determined. This delineation indicates that the quantitative level indicator benefits from the maximum weight, while the economics of assets hold the least weight in the assessment. Ultimately, by aligning key urban centers with flood-prone zones in the GIS framework, vulnerable centers were enumerated. The method used in this study can be extended to all cities based on their river flow modeling and urban zoning.

Developing porous copper/aluminium-chitosan biosorbent hydrogel beads for the removal of phosphate from wastewater

2025-03-19T19:02:23+00:00

Excess phosphorus is one of the principal causes of eutrophication, which causes severe ecological imbalance and harm to human health. In this study, several chitosan (CS)/copper and aluminum (CNT, ACH) hydrogel beads were created and tested for phosphorus removal. Further Microcrystalline cellulose and Cellulose Nano Fiber were also used to create stable CS/CNT - ACH hydrogel beads. The optimized CNT/CS settings with 0.2 mg CNT demonstrated outstanding removal efficacy. It effectively removed phosphate from an aqueous solution with a pH range of 4.5-5.5 using a completely mixed batch of 0.01M sodium dihydrogen phosphate, with 80% phosphate absorption achieved after 48 hours of contact time. The measured maximum adsorption capacity at pH 5.5 solution was 11.39 mg per 0.0206g of the beads (10 beads). The FTIR study revealed that all three varieties of synthesized beads have a healthy microstructure. Furthermore, the findings of the kinetic study indicated a low absorption rate at 15ºC and a moderate absorption rate at 45ºC. The adsorbent efficiently removed phosphate during 12 hours of contact time, according to a batch adsorption study, using 20 beads weighing 0.0412g. Electrostatic attraction and ion exchange can both be responsible for phosphate absorption. Furthermore, 10 of the 21 control MCC and CNF beads could remove more than 60% phosphate after 48 hours of contact time with identical solute distributions. This adsorbent might be deployed to effectively treat phosphorus-contaminated water to prevent eutrophication.

A comprehensive review of alkaline fuel cells

2025-03-25T03:51:32+00:00

The alkaline fuel cell is known as the “bacon” fuel cell. It generates electricity through the chemical reaction without the emission of greenhouse gases. This will allow it to replace fossil fuels in the future. It produced only the water for the final product. It operates at a temperature of 25˚C to 250˚C, which is relatively low compared to the internal combustion engines. It has wide application in the modern industry. This is due to the system's high efficiency, reaching up to 60%. However, the alkaline fuel cell has several disadvantages, which affect to popularize. This paper contains a review of alkaline fuel cells, an extensive study of the components that make up the fuel cells, as well as the future applications and challenges of fuel cells. A comparison of alkaline fuel cells and other types of fuel cells has also been discussed in the paper. In addition to the research paper, future trends and forecasts will also be able to accurately predict the viability of implementing this technology in the near future.