Review
Ecology
Rafael Ziegler, Josephine Balzac-Arroyo, Rick Hoelsgens, Sarah Holzgreve, Fergus Lyon, Joachim H. Spangenberg, Philipp P. Thapa
Summary: This paper reviews the research on social innovation and biodiversity and highlights its importance in addressing unsustainability. The findings suggest a strong focus on civic action for changing practices, with limited attention on policy-driven and consumer/producer-driven innovations. Furthermore, there is a lack of critical perspective on the negative or unintended consequences of social innovation. The paper proposes three focal areas for future research, practice, and policy: nature-based solutions, participatory governance, and technology for tackling biodiversity loss.
ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS
(2022)
Review
Energy & Fuels
Rashid Maqbool, Stephen Arome Akubo
Summary: This study examines the relationship between solar energy projects and sustainability dimensions, finding that solar energy has a strong positive direct effect on all aspects of economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Socio-economic factors moderate the relationship between solar energy and sustainability, while technical complexities only moderate the relationship between solar energy and economic sustainability.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Sterenn Philippe, Andres Hueso, Gloria Kafuria, Jules Sow, Hermann B. Kambou, Wandoo Akosu, Lloyd Beensi
Summary: Sanitation workers play a crucial role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but often face challenges to their dignity and health due to insufficient government support. A study in Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Zambia revealed that sanitation workers in Africa are at high risk of health and safety hazards, lack adequate protective equipment and access to healthcare services, and suffer from insufficient and unstable pay. They also face little legal protection, as well as stigma and discrimination. The study suggests that governments should develop context-specific action plans in collaboration with sanitation worker groups to address these challenges.
Editorial Material
Virology
Abdullahi T. Aborode, Oluwatosin A. Olofinsao, Ekwebelem Osmond, Abiokpoyanam P. Batubo, Omowonuola Fayemiro, Onigbinde Sherifdeen, Luqman Muraina, Babatunde S. Obadawo, Shoaib Ahmad, Emmanuel A. Fajemisin
Summary: The WHO and Africa CDC in Africa are calling for the international community and countries in Africa to ensure equal access to COVID-19 vaccines, addressing issues related to poverty and other negative factors that hinder fair distribution. The African Union has endorsed the need for Africa to actively engage in easy accessibility to COVID-19 vaccines to strengthen local distribution systems and workforce skills.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
George Atisa, Aziza Zemrani, Mathew Weiss
Summary: This study examines the use of decentralization as a tool for sustainable economic development in governance levels across Africa. Findings suggest that current decentralization lacks the triple-bottom line of sustainability and fails to meet current needs without compromising the needs of future generations. Therefore, it is crucial to integrate decentralization with sustainability to minimize the short-term and long-term impacts of human actions on the local environment.
ENVIRONMENT DEVELOPMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
I Firmansyah, G. J. Carsjens, F. J. de Ruijter, G. Zeeman, M. Spiller
Summary: Resource recovery and reuse from domestic wastewater has become an important subject for the current development of sanitation technologies and infrastructures. Different technologies are combined into sanitation concepts, with various performances. In a case study conducted on the small tropical island of St. Eustatius in the Caribbean, it was found that the best sanitation concept for resource recovery and reuse is the application of Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Bed (UASB) and Trickling Filter (TF) for combined domestic wastewater treatment with subsequent reuse in agriculture.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Clement A. Cid, Francine Abiola, Markus Starkl
Summary: This article discusses the development and publication of two new voluntary product standards (ISO 30500 and ISO 31800) for nonsewered sanitation systems (NSSS) and fecal sludge treatment units (FSTUs), aiming to address severe global challenges in human health and the environment, as well as highlighting the connections between environmental emission thresholds, technical innovations, and sustainability aspects of NSSS and FSTUs.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Iddrisu Amadu, Abdul-Aziz Seidu, Kwabena Koforobour Agyemang, Francis Arthur-Holmes, Eric Duku, Iddrisu Salifu, Obasanjo Afolabi Bolarinwa, John Elvis Hagan, Bright Opoku Ahinkorah
Summary: This study assessed the combined effect of household's source of drinking water and type of toilet facility on the incidence of childhood diarrhoea in 33 Sub-Saharan Africa countries. The results showed that improving water and sanitation practices significantly reduced the occurrence of childhood diarrhoea.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Prosper Bazaanah, Raesibe A. Mothapo
Summary: Water and sanitation are crucial for community growth and development. However, local municipalities in South Africa often struggle to provide sustainable access to safe water and basic sanitation. This study examined the sustainability of water and sanitation systems in rural communities, finding that existing facilities are inadequate and pollution from various sources significantly affects water quality. To address this, initiatives such as bulk water supply, free basic water policies, and targeted assistance for poor households are necessary. Waste management efforts, including education, investments, and upgrades, can also help improve health and prevent waterborne infections.
ENVIRONMENT DEVELOPMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Shrijwal Adhikari, Preeti Koirala, Amit Ghosh, Matieu Henry
Summary: The African continent is facing unprecedented pressure from population growth, urbanization, decreased agricultural productivity, and climate change, with a lack of technological advancement. A study analyzing three representative cities in Africa found specific indicators of climate risk, land degradation, and land consumption, providing support for decision-makers in planning inclusive climate adaptation measures and sustainable land-use policies.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jin Igarashi, Barbara Evans, Andrew Sleigh, Davies N. Tarkash, Ronoh Kennedy, Ruthie Rosenberg, Fiona Zakaria
Summary: This paper presents a global database that collects and aggregates reliable and comparable cost data for urban sanitation systems. The study shows that no specific mode of urban sanitation can be considered low cost compared to others. It also demonstrates that economies of scale exist for both sewerage systems and systems that transport waste from pits and sealed tanks by road. A case study example highlights the importance of comparing local costs to global benchmarks and identifies operational considerations as significant factors in determining overall cost liabilities for urban sanitation.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Obadia Kyetuza Bishoge
Summary: The study highlights the challenges facing sustainable sanitation and hygiene in sub-Saharan Africa, including lack of financial resources, rapid population growth, socioeconomic disparities, inadequate policies, and people's behaviors. It recommends political commitments, increased education and awareness, and collaboration between government, organizations, and communities to improve sanitation and hygiene services in the region.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Zi Zhang, Jie Liu, Chengyu Xiao, Guanghao Chen
Summary: Water and energy are critical to urban metabolism, but climate change-induced water scarcity and elevated temperatures pose a significant threat to human services. Hong Kong has shown the effectiveness of using seawater for toilet flushing and district cooling to save water and energy. However, there is a lack of comprehensive insights on how seawater use can be adopted by other coastal cities. To promote sustainable development, a holistic water-energy management framework is needed, which includes customized solutions, efficient resource allocation, comprehensive evaluation, and optimized tradeoffs. Breaking barriers and encouraging intermunicipal cooperation are critical to the successful use of seawater in coastal cities.
Article
Environmental Studies
Wellington Alves, Paula Ferreira, Madalena Araujo
Summary: Brazil is a key player in the global mining industry, yet the economic, social, and environmental impacts of the sector are not fully documented or understood. The research shows that sustainability assessment and communication in the Brazilian mining sector are still in the early stages, with large companies reporting more initiatives than smaller ones. Closer cooperation between government, public mining agencies, and companies is needed to raise awareness and knowledge levels towards sustainability practices and communication initiatives.
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Tesfaye S. Mengistu, Resham Khatri, Daniel Erku, Yibeltal Assefa
Summary: Since 1975, Australia has achieved universal health insurance for its population, but there are still persistent challenges such as inequity. This scoping review explores the success, explanatory factors, and challenges of Primary Health Care (PHC) in Australia, guided by the key characteristics of good primary care defined by the World Health Organization (WHO). The findings show that Australian PHC has achieved comprehensive care, accessibility, quality, patient-centeredness, and service coordination, but barriers remain, including geographic and socio-economic disparities, staff dissatisfaction, low adoption of person-centered care, and inadequate infrastructure.
JOURNAL OF GLOBAL HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Arvin Sohrabi, Mousa Meratizaman, Shuli Liu
Summary: This paper simulates and discusses possible solutions to improve the economic and technical performances of a battery-less renewable energy-powered BWRO system under real climate conditions. The study finds that the photovoltaic-based system performs better in terms of specific energy consumption and unused energy ratio.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Chunlan Pan, Xiaoyin Hu, Vishal Goyal, Theyab R. Alsenani, Salem Alkhalaf, Tamim Alkhalifah, Fahad Alturise, Hamad Almujibah, H. Elhosiny Ali
Summary: This paper introduces a novel waste heat recovery method using the hot flue gas from a ship's engine to produce liquefied hydrogen while meeting the ship's air-conditioning requirement. A comprehensive feasibility assessment is conducted and an artificial neural network with a multiobjective grey wolf optimization method is used for optimization. The findings indicate the highest mean sensitivity index of the flash temperature and the best optimization scenario for exergy efficiency, CO2 emission reduction, and liquefied hydrogen cost.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Daniele Chinello, Jan Post, Louis C. P. M. de Smet
Summary: In this study, PVDF-based anion-exchange membranes were designed to selectively separate nitrate from chloride. Experimental data showed that increasing the concentration of PVDF enhanced nitrate transport but also increased the membrane electrical resistance. The selectivity of nitrate was found to be independent of the membrane thickness and mainly driven by the increased affinity between the anion and the membrane.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Umar Noor, Muhammad Fayyaz Farid, Ammara Sharif, Amna Saleem, Zubair Nabi, Muhammad Furqan Mughal, Kiran Abbas, Toheed Ahmed
Summary: Global water scarcity is increasing, and water desalination is an important solution. Multifunctional advanced materials, such as membrane materials and solar-driven desalination, play a crucial role in water desalination. Additionally, these materials can be used for water purification, wastewater treatment, and pollutant elimination.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Emrah Gumus
Summary: With growing global concerns about climate change and environmental impacts, the use of nuclear energy in naval vessels offers a cleaner and more efficient solution to reduce emissions and address water and energy supply challenges. This study explores a novel system that combines a nuclear-driven supercritical carbon dioxide power cycle with reverse osmosis cogeneration to meet the water and electricity demands in maritime operations, enhancing the sustainability, efficiency, and self-sufficiency of naval vessels. The results indicate that the system has the potential to be a viable and effective solution for naval operations.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Dao Thi Thanh Huyen, Saikat Sinha Ray, Young -Nam Kwon
Summary: This study focuses on the modification of a commercially available polyamide thin-film composite membrane with a zwitterionic material to enhance its fouling resistance. The modified membrane shows improved salt rejection and reduced permeability compared to the pristine membrane. Fouling tests demonstrate that the modified membrane has a lower fouling ratio and higher recovery ratio. The enhanced antifouling characteristics are attributed to the improved hydrophilicity resulting from the zwitterionic brushes and the salting-in effect.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Niklas Koeller, Lukas Mankertz, Selina Finger, Christian J. Linnartz, Matthias Wessling
Summary: This study presents a methodology to scale up Flow-electrode Capacitive Deionization (FCDI) technology from lab-scale to pilot-scale systems. By increasing membrane area and using a stacking approach, the FCDI modules were successfully scaled up and achieved a salt transfer rate comparable to lab-scale systems. This provides a foundation for future assessments of energy demand and economics.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Mona Gulied, Sifani Zavahir, Tasneem Elmakki, Hyunwoong Park, Guillermo Hijos Gago, Ho Kyong Shon, Dong Suk Han
Summary: This study introduces a novel hybrid system that combines direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) and electrically switched ion exchange (ESIX) to facilitate seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) brine enrichment and selective lithium recovery.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Zhiqiang Zhang, Ruifeng Deng, Jiao Zhang, Lu She, Guangfeng Wei, Renyong Jia, Pengyu Xiang, Siqing Xia
Summary: A transmembrane electro-chemisorption system with authigenic acid and base was developed for enhancing ammonia recovery from strong ammonia wastewater. The system efficiently transformed ammonium into free ammonia, which was then adsorbed and recovered through transmembrane chemisorption. This system yielded pure (NH4)2SO4 product and produced valuable byproducts of pure hydrogen and oxygen. Higher applied voltage resulted in better ammonia recovery.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Alena Popova, Sandrine Boivin, Takuji Shintani, Takahiro Fujioka
Summary: This study aimed to produce a high-integrity RO membrane by forming a polyamide skin layer on a TE support layer, in order to enhance the integrity of the membrane and improve the microbiological safety of potable water reuse.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Sanjana Yagnambhatt, Saber Khanmohammadi, Jonathan Maisonneuve
Summary: This study investigates the concept of using heat to enhance reverse osmosis (RO) desalination. The effect of temperature on water permeate flux, specific energy, permeate quality, and applied operating pressures is evaluated using an analytical model. The results suggest that under specific conditions, the tradeoff between savings in mechanical pump work and thermal energy input in thermally-enhanced RO can be favorable, leading to overall energy savings.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Jiangju Si, Chenrui Xue, Shun Li, Linchao Yang, Weiwei Li, Jie Yang, Jihong Lan, Ningbo Sun
Summary: To meet the huge demand for lithium resources, there is an urgent need to develop a new efficient technology for lithium recovery from salt-lake brines. In this study, a selective membrane capacitive deionization system is reported, which achieves high lithium recovery capacity and rate through the use of materials with efficient intercalated pseudo-capacitance and a high specific area porous carbon. The use of a modified thin-coated membrane allows for selective Li+ recovery, and adjusting the concentrations of Li+ and Mg2+ in the feed solution enables higher Li+/Mg2+ selectivity.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Mohamed R. Salem, R. Y. Sakr, Ghazy M. R. Assassa, Omar A. Aly
Summary: This research proposes a new method of using wasted thermal energies as an additional heating source for solar still distillation units (SSDUs) to increase productivity and reduce pollution and global warming. By testing two SSDUs, the study shows that heating airflow can raise temperatures, enhance freshwater production, and improve system thermal efficiency.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Qimeng Sun, Miao Sun, Linyan Yang, Yuan Gao, Xinghai Zhou, Lihua Lyu, Chunyan Wei
Summary: This study presents an innovative design and fabrication of a fabric-based conical roll (FCR) evaporator, which enables low-temperature evaporation and achieves high evaporation efficiency with excellent thermal management ability. The evaporator has demonstrated advanced light-harvesting capability and can produce freshwater that meets drinking water standards, showing great potential for applications in desalination and sewage treatment.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Yidong Zhang, Wangfang Deng, Meiyan Wu, Chao Liu, Guang Yu, Qiu Cui, Pedram Fatehi, Chunlin Xu, Bin Li
Summary: In this study, a novel polydopamine-functionalized lignin-containing pulp foam evaporator with high-efficiency desalination and multi-contaminant adsorption capabilities was designed. The foam evaporator showed excellent light absorption, water absorption, thermal conductivity, and chelation abilities, allowing for solar evaporation and contaminant adsorption synergistically. It also exhibited potential applications in metal ion concentration and contaminated seawater treatments, and demonstrated superior biodegradability compared to poly-styrene foam. This foam material holds promise for developing multifunctional photo-thermal systems for solar-driven water purification.