Journal of Sustainability Research最新文献

{"title":"A Methodology for Renovation of Micro-Hydropower Plants: A Case Study Using a Turgo Turbine in Nepal","authors":"Joe Butchers, Sam Williamson, Julian Booker, Suman Raj Pradhan, Prem Bikram Karki, Biraj Gautam, Bikram Raj Pradhan, Prajwal Sapkota","doi":"10.20900/jsr20230015","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230015","url":null,"abstract":"For off-grid communities, micro-hydropower continues to provide affordable and reliable electricity access across the world. In Nepal, despite ongoing development of large-scale hydropower projects and the extension of the national grid, there remain many off-grid communities that depend on micro-hydropower plants. Over time, these systems are prone to erosion from sediment in the water, which, together with other degrading mechanical and environmental effects, may lead to reduced reliability and potential failure. Extreme weather and natural disasters can also cause catastrophic failure of the plant and its infrastructure. In such cases, Nepali micro-hydropower companies are best placed to conduct renovation works. Where renovation is required, the selection of a different turbine type could be beneficial. Recent work has demonstrated the potential of the Turgo turbine for use in Nepal due to several advantageous features. In this paper, a methodology is applied to explore the feasibility of a site for refurbishment considering environmental, social, technical, economic, and legal factors. Subsequently, a series of design and costing activities are used to demonstrate that the Turgo turbine can be implemented. A Turgo turbine design is scaled appropriately and manufactured by a Nepali company. The turbine demonstrated an increase in","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"19 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139248628","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Poly-β-Cyclodextrin Functionalized Nanocellulose for Efficient Removal of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals","authors":"Humendra Poudel, Ambar B RanguMagar, Ahona Ghosh, Shawn E. Bourdo, Fumiya Watanabe, Daoyuan Wang, Anindya Ghosh","doi":"10.20900/jsr20230010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230010","url":null,"abstract":"This study aims to develop a highly efficient adsorbent specifically designed to remove targeted organic pollutants, focusing on endocrine disruptors. The pollutants of interest included bisphenol S (BPS), triclosan (TCS), and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP), which are commonly found in aqueous solutions. The surface of nanocellulose (NC) was modified with poly-β-cyclodextrin (p-βCD) using epichlorohydrin as a cross-linker. The modified NC-p-βCD adsorbent exhibited remarkable adsorption performance due to the inclusion properties of β-cyclodextrin (βCD) and the advantages of NC. Comprehensive characterization techniques, including Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) confirmed the successful modification and provided insights into the structural features of p-βCD and NC-p-βCD. The percentage removal of the target pollutants was quantified using UV-visible spectroscopy, and their adsorption kinetics were studied. The NC-p-βCD demonstrated impressive removal efficiencies with maximum cumulative percentages of 28% for BPS, 74% for TCS, and 58% for TCP. The adsorption process followed Langmuir adsorption kinetics, suggesting monolayer adsorption on a homogeneous surface. This study presents a promising adsorbent by modifying NC with p-βCD to remove organic pollutants effectively. The findings contribute to developing sustainable water treatment methods using NC-based adsorbents.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128279382","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Birds of the National Park of Banc d’Arguin, Mauritania: A Panel on Ecosystem Services","authors":"Cindy C. Cornet, E. Trégarot, P. Failler","doi":"10.20900/jsr20230009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230009","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The National Park of Banc d’Arguin (PNBA, Mauritania) was founded in 1976 to preserve the largest West African wintering area for shorebirds. In the face of increasing pressures, the PNBA’s authorities have launched an appeal to determine the park’s socio-economic value to adjust its management plan better. Methods: In this context, we have created an exhaustive inventory of known characteristics of bird species present in the PNBA to investigate their potential in terms of ecosystem services for local populations. Two regulating and supporting services were also valued based on data availability: nutrients input and carcasses removal. Results: We found that 53% of the 233 bird species associated with the PNBA are highly dependent on the park and its coastal and marine ecosystems for their life cycle. We were also able to identify services with a high potential for the park, such as nutrient cycling and bird-watching. We finally valued nutrients input and carcasses removal at € 1.8 to € 133.7 million/year and € 2900 to € 4800/year, respectively. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of protecting the PNBA’s birds beyond the sole ornithological interest behind its creation and reinforces the argument about the importance of this protected area in terms of conservation.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"15 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127064724","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring PV Waste Management Solutions Using Circular Strategies","authors":"Alejandra Nunez Madrigal, U. Iyer-Raniga, R. Yang","doi":"10.20900/jsr20230008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230008","url":null,"abstract":"Australia’s uptake of solar (photovoltaic) energy represents a positive change towards renewable energy. However, the full impact of such energy needs to be understood. Understanding how photovoltaic (PV) panels are manufactured, used and finally managed at end of useful life in Australia, is required. PV waste represents a loss of valuable materials which can be reintroduced into the manufacturing industry, but also pose an environmental and human health hazard. This research is conducted using qualitative research methods. Interviews with academic, government, PV organizations, installers and retailer groups are compared with other text-based data, such as traditional peer review and grey literature review on overseas best practice examples to identify possible strategies to be adopted in Australia. This study presents solutions from an academic and social perspective. Solutions are sought using the 10 R’s of circularity and is complemented by the ReSOLVE framework; as these provide a comprehensive approach to minimize waste across the PV lifecycle stages. The insights of this study show the adoption of circular economy solutions for PV waste management in Australia can take place if regulations and incentives (including fiscal incentives) are established. These point towards the need for a system where tailored solutions for each stage of the lifecycle of a PV panel are designed and specified through standards, responsibilities, costs and logistics; hence, unlocking end markets for second life PV panels and its recovered materials. Such a system of solutions represents a framework that needs to be supported by government and lead by industry demand.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126667663","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Combining Building Simulation and Sensitivity Analysis for the Evaluation of Passive Design Approaches for Residential Buildings in Nigeria","authors":"Iko Tambaya","doi":"10.20900/jsr20230007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230007","url":null,"abstract":"This research investigates different passive design measures to improve residential buildings’ energy efficiency and mitigate the effects of climate change. To identify the best passive design strategy for the climate under study, a four-Bedroom one-storey modern residential building for singlefamily was picked within the hot-dry climate zone of Nigeria as a case study. A questionnaire survey was adopted to ascertain the thermophysical properties of the building envelope, energy consumption by taking meter readings, occupancy behaviour and electricity supply schedule. The base case model was then designed in IES VE software, and the construction materials and profiles were made to conform to the standard regulations and guidelines of Nigeria. The base model was subjected to two different scenarios (Traditional building envelope and thermal insulation of Modern building envelope) and the results of the simulation were analysed and compared to the actual energy consumption using ASHRAE 2014 standard guidelines. A sensitivity analysis was carried out using visual PROMETHEE II software to ascertain the robustness and stability of the results. The results of the study show that an average of 9– 10 h of electricity is supplied to residential buildings per day. Additionally, the base case building’s actual and simulated electricity consumption is 10.43 kWh/m2 year and 45.1 kWh/m2 year respectively and cooling load accounts for 35.6% (14.5 kWh/m2 year) of the total annual energy consumption of the building. There was a reduction in annual electricity consumption and cooling load by 20.4% (35.9 kWh/m2 year) and 36.6% (9.2 kWh/m2 year) respectively when the use of a traditional building envelope (strategy 1) was adopted. Similarly, the adoption of thermal insulation of the modern building envelope (strategy 2) leads to a reduction in annual energy consumption and cooling load by 21.3% (35.5 kWh/m2 year) and 47.6% (7.6 kWh/m2 year) respectively. Strategy 2 performed better when compared to the base model and strategy 1 as 50% of the months achieved a PPD of less than 15%. Additionally, the sensitivity analysis result shows the use of thermal insulation in the modern building envelope (strategy 2) is the best compared to the traditional building envelope (strategy 1). The adoption of any of these approaches in the design of residential buildings in Nigeria can not only lead to comfortable indoor environments and energy savings associated with cooling but can also cause a reduction in Open Access Received: 28 February 2023 Accepted: 10 May 2023 Published: 19 May 2023 Copyright © 2023 by the author(s). Licensee Hapres, London, United Kingdom. This is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Journal of Sustainability Research 2 of 46 carbon-dioxide emissions by 23.2% and 28.4% when strategy 1 or 2 is used respectively and cost of electricity savings by 20.4% and 25.7% when strat","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"19 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127243296","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"US Legal Frameworks: A Path to Product Longevity?","authors":"P. White, A. Fellmeth, Dallin Robinson","doi":"10.20900/jsr20210016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20210016","url":null,"abstract":"Legal actions to increase product lifespans and reduce environmental damage have been explored for many regions around the world. However, little research has focused on the ways that the extant legal system affects product lifespans and product repair in the US market. Our research reviewed the network of statutes and standards on the Federal level and sampled laws from some of the fifty States, noting unique qualities of the US legal system. Literature implied the longstanding acceptance of planned obsolescence and its justification as a profitable business practice. We reviewed the scope of the well-established product warranties in US commerce, noting substantive limitations as well as their untapped potential to support of longer product lifespans. Lawyers who counsel firms that sell consumer products in the US market were surveyed, and the survey results corroborated several initial findings. While the client firms all sold some products with express warranties, most of their products relied on implied warranties, and the respondents unanimously agreed that mandatory regulations would most effectively motivate their firms to develop and sell products with longer lifespans and greater capacity for repair. We suggest a path to product longevity—mandating the labeling of all hardgoods with accurate estimates of average product lifespan and capacity to be repaired. If properly structured, the framework could push industry, government, and product owners to all accept more obligation for the materials and products that we use, while stimulating competition based on product repairability and longevity.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"46 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123845363","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Design for Product Care—Development of Design Strategies and a Toolkit for Sustainable Consumer Behaviour","authors":"L. Ackermann, M. Tuimaka, A. Pohlmeyer, R. Mugge","doi":"10.20900/JSR20210013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/JSR20210013","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Taking care of products is a relevant approach to prolong products’ lifetimes and retain their desired level of performance, and is thus an important aspect of sustainable consumer behaviour. Although consumers have a general motivation to take care of their products, previous research has shown that they struggle to repair, maintain or treat their products carefully in daily life. Design has the potential to increase consumers’ product care activities, but designers need more knowledge and distinct strategies to evoke this product care behaviour with consumers. \u0000Methods: By the means of a multi-method approach—individual and group brainstorming sessions as well as an analysis of existing solutions—we created a large number of ideas on how to stimulate product care among consumers. \u0000Results: We were able to summarize these ideas in a clustering session into eight strategies and 24 sub-strategies that can foster product care through design. These eight strategies are: social connections, informing, enabling, appropriation, control, awareness, antecedents & consequences, and reflecting. The integration of the consumer perspective into strategies for product care extends currently known design strategies for repair and maintenance. To support designers in the implementation of these strategies, we developed a toolkit that can be used in the product development process of different product categories. \u0000Conclusions: This paper identifies product care strategies that have a distinct focus on the consumers’ perspective of sustainable behaviour and that can be stimulated through design. These rather psychologically-driven strategies thereby complement existing technology- and product-oriented design strategies. Furthermore, to facilitate implementation, a design toolkit has been developed that points to key requirements in practice.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"38 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-04-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125553545","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Research Update: How Decent Wages Transform Qualities of Living—By Affording Escape from Working Poverty Trap","authors":"S. Carr, A. Young-Hauser, Darrin Hodgetts, Wiebke Schmidt, Lauren E Moran, J. Haar, J. Parker, J. Arrowsmith, Harvey Jones, Siautu Alefaio","doi":"10.20900/JSR20210012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/JSR20210012","url":null,"abstract":"Research in this journal has suggested that job satisfaction and other job attitudes in New Zealand undergo a quantitative shift upwards once wages cross a pivotal wage range. However, the focus did not extend to actual changes in qualities of living beyond work. A fresh analysis of additional qualitative responses to the question, “How well does your wage work for you?”, from the same survey of N = 1011 low-income workers across New Zealand, content-analysed diverse qualities of living along a wage spectrum from Minimum to Living Wage, crossed with household income net of own pay (using median wage as a splitting factor). Converging with the quantitative research reported earlier, there was a reliable pivot range upwards in qualities of living as wages first rose from Minimum Wage, to become transformational after crossing the Living Wage value. This transformational effect of a Living Wage was most clearly pivotal when there was no buffer from any other incomes in the same household. A further, more idiographic analysis of case “outliers” from the wage-wellbeing curve (lower wage-higher satisfaction, plus higher wage-lower satisfaction) revealed additional contextual factors that moderated and mediated qualities of living. Examples included acute sense of a workplace injustice and reduced mental wellbeing. Such factors further inform the ILO’s and UN’s 2016–30 Decent Work Agenda, which includes justice and wellbeing at work.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133327570","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Leading European Retailers and the Sustainable Development Goals","authors":"P. Jones, D. Comfort","doi":"10.20900/jsr20210001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20210001","url":null,"abstract":"The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed at a United Nations General Assembly in 2015 embrace an ambitious and wide-ranging set of global environmental, social and economic issues designed to effect a transition to a more sustainable future. The United Nations called on all governments to pursue these ambitious goals but also acknowledged the important role of the private sector in addressing the SDGs. The aim of this paper is to offer an exploratory review of if, and how, Europe’s leading retailers publicly claim to be committed to addressing the SDGs. The paper reveals that seven of Europe’s top ten retailers reported their commitment to contribute to the SDGs, though the scale and the extent of their commitment varied. The paper also suggests that if the leading European retailers are to make a substantial contribution towards the achievement of the SDG’s then they may have to face up to four sets of challenges, namely the prioritisation of SDGs, issues about measurement and metrics, reporting and communication, and fundamental tensions between sustainability and economic growth. The paper concludes by outlining a number of avenues for future research.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"84 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-11-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125122903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"“It Might Be Rubbish, but It’s My Rubbish”: How the Makers of Cigar Box Guitars Resist Throwaway Culture","authors":"P. Atkinson","doi":"10.20900/jsr20200038","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20200038","url":null,"abstract":"This paper analyses ethnographic research carried out into the activities of a particular group of makers whose DIY activities are centred on the creation, dissemination and performance of home-made musical instruments in the form of cigar box guitars. From a series of semi-structured, in-depth interviews, it emerged that these objects are almost exclusively based on notions of recycling, reuse and repurposing, and as such extend the life of component parts that would otherwise be discarded. Also, as hand-crafted labours of love, the resulting instruments are often the focus of strong emotional bonds to their makers, and are used for extended periods, being added to, altered and reconfigured over time as new components become available and the makers’ skills improve. For many makers, partaking in this activity has been their first foray into creative production of any kind, and often, they need to find solutions to problems they encounter in the process of making of their instruments. As a consequence of the usually very solitary nature of the activity, these makers make extensive use of online forums and networks to become part of a community of practice, openly sharing their knowledge and experience to help each other, and to celebrate their achievements of productive labour. It is argued that the “magic” of the instruments produced and the support of a social media network is directly linked to the extension of product lifetimes of the objects made.","PeriodicalId":275909,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainability Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127235114","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}