Cleaner Engineering and Technology最新文献

{"title":"Corrigendum to: “Batch-wise nitrogen fixation from atmospheric air for on-farm fertilizer production using a 10 kW microwave induction-coupled plasma (MICP) torch” [Clean. Eng. Technol. 33, 101277]","authors":"Cesar M. Moreira, Pratap Pullammanappallil, Bruce Welt","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101291","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101291","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"34 ","pages":"Article 101291"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149153839","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Corrigendum to “Experimental optimization of modified solar distillation system using black horse algorithm and 6E/HT analysis for sustainable freshwater production” [29 (2025) 101096]","authors":"Sajjad Khanjani, Shoaib Khanmohammadi, Shiva Gorjian, Maziar moradvandi","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101312","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101312","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"34 ","pages":"Article 101312"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149153479","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of cooling method and phase composition on the reactivity of ferrochrome slag as a supplementary cementitious material","authors":"Iyani Muthukuda Arachchige,&nbsp;Jenny Isaksson,&nbsp;Min Chen,&nbsp;Chuan Wang,&nbsp;Fredrik Engström,&nbsp;Anton Andersson","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101282","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101282","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ferrochrome slag (FCS), a by-product of ferrochrome production, is a largely underutilized industrial residue with strong potential as a supplementary cementitious material (SCM) to reduce clinker demand and support sustainable construction. While FCS has been widely studied as an aggregate and in geopolymer systems, research on its application as a SCM is scarce, and no study has systematically examined how cooling practices, crystalline phases, and glass structure together govern its pozzolanic reactivity. This study investigates the relationships between cooling rate, glass structure, crystalline phase content, and pozzolanic reactivity in FCS. Industrial slag samples cooled by either water granulation or ambient air, were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) with Rietveld refinement, scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), thermodynamic modeling (FactSage), and isothermal calorimetry-based R³ testing. To isolate phase-specific effects, spinel (A(II)B(III)₂O₄; MgAl₂O₄-type) and forsterite (A(II)₂C(IV)O₄; Mg₂SiO₄-type olivine) samples were synthesized and tested under the same R³ framework. For the studied ferrochrome slag system, results show that water-granulated slags contain higher amorphous content and more depolymerized glass networks, leading to enhanced pozzolanic activity, whereas spinel and forsterite behave as essentially inert phases. This study systematically quantifies the effects of crystalline phases in FCS and demonstrates that glass chemistry and network depolymerization are as influential as the amorphous fraction in controlling pozzolanic reactivity, highlighting that both the quantity and structure of the glass phase govern slag performance. These findings provide a clear understanding of the factors controlling FCS pozzolanic reactivity and offer practical guidance on slag processing to enhance its performance, supporting its potential use as a sustainable SCM in low-carbon concrete.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101282"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641604","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Advancing biohydrometallurgy: critical metals extraction from e-waste using industrial effluents and microbial by-products as low-impact lixiviants","authors":"Chiara Magrini,&nbsp;Filippo Drago,&nbsp;Marco Etzi,&nbsp;Francesca Verga,&nbsp;Candido Fabrizio Pirri,&nbsp;Annalisa Abdel Azim","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101280","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101280","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Global e-waste generation is rapidly increasing, reaching 62 Mt in 2022, and highlighting the urgent need for low-impact recovery routes for valuable and critical metals from WEEE streams. This work presents an indirect biohydrometallurgical approach based on a “treating waste with waste” strategy, in which industrial liquid wastes are converted into functional biolixiviants and directly applied to metal extraction from end-of-life (EoL) mobile-phone printed circuit boards (PCBs). Shredded PCBs were leached at 10% (w/v) pulp density using dairy whey wastewater (DWW) and fermentation effluents derived from DWW and/or digestate streams under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, including Lactobacillus-based fermentations aimed at enriching short-chain organic acids, mainly lactic acid. Lixiviant composition, metal solubilization, and solid residues were characterized by HPLC, ICP-OES, and XRD/XPS, respectively. DWW, naturally enriched in lactic acid, enabled rapid Cu mobilization, reaching 2.6–2.9 g L⁻¹ between 15 and 24 h, corresponding to a 4.4% extraction yield, while Sn, Ni, and Zn reached extraction yields of 33%, 24%, and 11%, respectively. Lactobacillus-derived effluents enhanced Cu dissolution compared with digestate-based effluents (up to ∼1.9 g L⁻¹ versus ≤0.8 g L⁻¹; 2.6% versus 0.5% extraction) and achieved markedly higher Sn extraction yields of 91–92%, together with Zn and Ni yields of 13–26% and 10–11%, respectively. pH drift toward near-neutral conditions controlled the balance between metal dissolution and secondary precipitation, reflected in residue mineralogy. Overall, waste-derived biolixiviants offer a scalable, low-chemical-input option to integrate bioprocessing and hydrometallurgy within urban mining flowsheets.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101280"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641605","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Environmentally friendly pavement design integrating multilayer thermo-viscoelasticity into an optimization framework for balancing global warming indicator and economic costs","authors":"Paul Leopold,&nbsp;Quentin Félix Adam,&nbsp;João Santos,&nbsp;Alvaro García-Hernandez","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101274","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101274","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study presents an advanced Multi-Objective Optimization (MOO) framework for flexible pavement design that integrates multilayer thermo-viscoelastic material behavior. The framework automatically optimizes key pavement layer properties, specifically the material type, layer thickness, and number of layers, with respect to two conflicting and weighted objectives: economic costs and Global Warming Indicator (GWI). Pavement performance is assessed during the optimization process, considering the temperature- and time-dependent behavior of the materials. The developed framework is applied to five scenarios, four of them being synthetic, differentiating themselves by their climatic conditions, and the fifth representing a real-life project. Results demonstrate a strong influence of temperature on optimal pavement layer properties, with maximum differences in total thickness of up to 0.39 m and service life deviations of up to 7.48 years depending on climatic assumptions. Compared to a conventional pavement layer configuration chosen manually by a pavement designer, the MOO framework achieved reductions of up to 18.45 % in costs and up to 11.09 % in GWI, depending on the weight values used to aggregate the objective functions. These findings highlight the importance of accounting for thermo-viscoelastic effects in the simultaneous optimization of both GWI and costs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101274"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641082","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Performance optimization of post-consumer polypropylene recyclates by balancing sorting depth and modification","authors":"Moritz Mager,&nbsp;Martin Berschl,&nbsp;Hannah Zeilinger,&nbsp;Joerg Fischer","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101279","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101279","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Bridging the performance gap between post-consumer polypropylene (PP) recyclates and high-quality virgin grades remains a central challenge for circular packaging applications. This study investigates the interaction between sorting depth (i.e., the degree of compositional homogenization achieved through sequential separation of the waste prior to extrusion) and compounding-based modification for rigid post-consumer PP recyclates relative to a virgin benchmark grade requiring high impact strength at adequate stiffness. Two recyclates of different sorting depth were evaluated using impact modifiers and virgin blending partners. Mixing-rule-based modeling was applied to predict composition-property relationships and to derive benchmark-oriented formulations at ≥ 50 wt% recyclate content. Results demonstrate that sorting depth fundamentally determines modification efficiency and accessible performance windows. The low sorting depth recyclate exhibits intrinsic deficits in impact strength and stiffness that cannot be compensated through blending within the predefined circularity constraint. In contrast, the higher sorting depth recyclate enables mechanically viable formulations at recyclate contents up to 60 wt%, although property trade-offs remain. Overall, the findings underline that performance-oriented PP recycling requires a systemic balance between heterogeneity reduction through sorting and targeted modification within technical, economic, and environmental boundaries.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101279"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641081","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Beyond technology: Systemic dependencies in the decarbonisation of the steel industry","authors":"Marco Frara,&nbsp;Mattias Lindahl,&nbsp;Ida Kero,&nbsp;Linn Berglund,&nbsp;Pia Åkerfeldt","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101268","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101268","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The transition of the steel sector, e.g. related to decarbonisation, depends less on new technologies than on systemic coordination between energy supply, industrial infrastructure, and policy frameworks. Emerging technologies have not been systematically evaluated, something this paper aims to address by combining literature evidence with semi-structured interviews. The study identifies environmental hotspots, evaluates industry ambitions and barriers, and reviews how assessment methods are applied. Hydrogen-based direct reduction offers the greatest long-term emission reductions but demands vast renewable electricity capacity and extensive infrastructural transformation, making its large-scale adoption feasible mainly in regions such as Sweden. Scrap-based electric-arc furnace routes deliver immediate gains yet remain constrained by scrap quality, availability, and electricity mix, while carbon capture and storage serve only as a temporary bridging option. Economic costs and uneven regional energy access continue to limit transition speed across Europe. Current life cycle assessments increasingly focus on prospective, carbon-centred indicators, overlooking broader environmental dimensions such as toxicity and resource depletion. Integrated life cycle assessment, material flow analysis, and techno-economic modelling provide a more comprehensive understanding of these interlinked constraints. The study concludes that sustainable steelmaking requires systemic coordination rather than isolated technological optimisation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101268"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148656941","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Batch-wise nitrogen fixation from atmospheric air for on-farm fertilizer production using a 10 kW microwave induction-coupled plasma (MICP) torch","authors":"Cesar M. Moreira,&nbsp;Pratap Pullammanappallil,&nbsp;Bruce Welt","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101277","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101277","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates a novel method for synthesizing nitric acid (HNO₃) from air using a 10-kW microwave induction-coupled plasma torch. The experimental setup integrated a plasma torch, gas residence columns (oxidizing columns), and water absorption columns containing 60 L of water. Therefore, various torch operation durations (i.e., 30, 60, 90, and 300 min) and gas replenishment intervals were evaluated. Notably, the reaction rate decreased significantly when the oxygen concentration in the oxidizing columns dropped below 6%, rendering continuous torch operation inefficient. Importantly, after the torch was deactivated, HNO₃ formation persisted, highlighting the importance of absorbing residual NOx in the liquid phase. The highest yield was achieved by operating the torch for 60 min, followed by 30 min of gas recirculation and replenishment, resulting in a maximum HNO₃ concentration of 0.162 M and an energy consumption of 6.82 MJ per mole.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101277"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148656852","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A blockchain-enabled framework for transparent carbon accounting in global supply chains using multi-regional input–output (MRIO) analysis","authors":"Pratyush Kumar Patro,&nbsp;Adolf Acquaye,&nbsp;Khaled Salah,&nbsp;Raja Jayaraman","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101272","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101272","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Supply chain activities account for up to 50% of global carbon emissions. Effective carbon accounting is critical for efforts to transition to net zero and the decarbonization agenda. However, carbon accounting is challenging due to complexities in reliable data collection and transparency, which may lead to greenwashing and raise concerns about the accountability of emissions. Therefore, to address these challenges, this paper proposes, designs, and implements a novel blockchain-powered smart contract to enhance transparency, traceability, and accountability in carbon accounting across global supply chains. The proposed solution comprises a comprehensive system architecture, sequence diagrams, algorithms, and cost and security analysis using smart contracts, detailing transparent processes for production and consumption-based carbon accounting. The prototype is developed and demonstrated through an illustrative multi-regional supply chain case study to validate the feasibility and functionality of the proposed framework; the case study is intended as a proof-of-concept demonstration rather than a full-scale global deployment. The solution ensures transparency of carbon accounting by effectively managing supply chain emissions. The smart contract codes are made publicly available on GitHub.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101272"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641078","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Repairable photovoltaic modules: Repairability assessment and reliability-based design optimization under uncertain loading","authors":"A.G. Timmers Verhoeven,&nbsp;Z. Fung-A-Jou,&nbsp;S. Brinksma,&nbsp;O. Nejadseyfi","doi":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101266","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.clet.2026.101266","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As the solar industry continues to grow, the accumulation of photovoltaic (PV) module waste highlights the pressing need for more circular, modular and repairable designs. Conventional laminated modules are difficult to disassemble, which limits not only their repairability but also material recovery and component reuse during recycling. While avoiding the lamination improves disassembly, it also compromises the module’s mechanical integrity. This trade-off demands a careful redesign to maintain structural requirements without sacrificing key criteria such as repairability, weight, and cost. Existing repairability assessment methods are generally not tailored to PV modules and are rarely integrated with reliability-based design optimization to balance repairability, structural performance, weight, and cost during the early design phase. This study presents a semi-quantitative relative repairability assessment method, tailored specifically for PV modules, to quantify the impact of design changes on repairability. Additionally, a reliability-based optimization approach is presented to redesign the PV module. Using Robustimizer software, reliability-based optimization is incorporated to account for uncertain scenarios during the life cycle of the product. As a case study, the proposed methodologies are applied to a laminate-free open-source PV module developed by Biosphere Solar. Finite element analysis and experimental testing on a prototype demonstrate compliance with IEC61215 standard. The optimized design achieved a 51% improvement in repairability compared to the baseline design, together with a 6% reduction in cost, albeit at the expense of a 45% increase in module mass. The proposed approach provides a scalable framework for advancing sustainable design practices in the PV industry.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34618,"journal":{"name":"Cleaner Engineering and Technology","volume":"33 ","pages":"Article 101266"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148641603","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}