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The pulp and paper industry has a high potential to contribute to negative emissions through carbon capture and storage (CCS) applied to existing processes. However, there is a need to investigate how CCS solutions also can be combined with implementation of other emerging technologies in pulp and paper mills. This paper investigates the integration of a novel calcination process in two kraft mills and evaluates its potential combination with capture and storage of CO2 from the calcination plant. The alternative calcination process uses electric gas-plasma technology combined with steam slaking and allows replacing the conventional fuel-driven lime kilns with a process driven by electricity. The novel calcination process generates a pure, biogenic, CO2 stream, which provides an opportunity to achieve negative emissions at relatively lower costs. The potential reduction of greenhouse gas emissions when replacing the lime kiln with the plasma calcination concept depends strongly on the emissions intensity of grid electricity, and on whether fossil fuel or biomass was used as a fuel in the lime kiln. If fossil fuel is replaced and electricity is associated with very low emissions, avoided CO2 emissions reach ~50 kt/a for the smaller mill investigated in the paper (ca 400 kt pulp per year) and almost 100 kt/a for the larger mill (ca 700 kt pulp per year). Further emission reductions could then be achieved through CCS from the electrified calcination process, with capture potentials for the two mills of 95 and 164 kt/a, respectively, and capture and storage costs estimated to 36–60 EUR/tCO2.

Synthetic organic compounds (SOCs) are reported as xenobiotics compounds contaminating the environment from various sources including waste from the pulp and paper industries: Since the demand and production of paper is growing increasingly, the release of paper and pulp industrial waste consisting of SOCs is also increasing the SOCs’ pollution in natural reservoirs to create environmental pollution. In pulp and paper industries, the SOCs viz. phenol compounds, furans, dioxins, benzene compounds etc. are produced during bleaching phase of pulp treatment and they are principal components of industrial discharge. This review gives an overview of various biotechnological interventions for paper mill waste effluent management and elimination strategies. Further, the review also gives the insight overview of various ways to restrict SOCs release in natural reservoirs, its limitations and integrated approaches for SOCs bioremediation using engineered microbial approaches. Furthermore, it gives a brief overview of the sustainable remediation of SOCs via genetically modified biological agents, including bioengineering system innovation at industry level before waste discharge.

Reject fines, a waste stream of short lignocellulosic fibers produced from paper linerboard recycling, are a cellulose-rich paper mill byproduct that can be hydrolyzed enzymatically into fermentable sugars. In this study, the use of hydrolyzed reject fines as a carbon source for bacterial biosynthesis of poly(R-3-hydroxyalkanoate) (PHA) and poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) was investigated. Recombinant Escherichia coli harboring PHA biosynthesis genes were cultivated with purified sugars or crude hydrolysate to produce both poly(R-3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) homopolymer and medium chain length-containing copolymer (PHB-co-MCL). Wild-type Bacillus licheniformis WX-02 were cultivated with crude hydrolysate to produce PGA. Both PHB and short chain-length-co-medium chain-length (SCL-co-MCL) PHA yields from crude hydrolysate were a 2-fold improvement over purified sugars, and the MCL monomer fraction was decreased slightly in copolymers produced from crude hydrolysate. PGA yield from crude hydrolysate was similarly increased 2-fold. The results suggest that sugars from hydrolyzed reject fines are a viable carbon source for PHA and PGA biosynthesis. The use of crude hydrolysate is not only possible but beneficial for biopolymer production, eliminating the need for costly separation and purification techniques. This study demonstrates the potential to divert a lignocellulosic waste stream into valuable biomaterials, mitigating the environmental impacts of solid waste disposal.

The deinking pulp (DIP) is a main resource for paper making, and the wastewater from DIP process needs to be treated. Anaerobic biochemical technique has been widely applied in DIP wastewater treatment, due to the remarkable capability in reducing high chemical oxygen demand (COD). In this study, a mathematical simulation model was established to investigate the performance of a full-scale anaerobic biochemical system for treating DIP wastewater. The model was based on Anaerobic Digestion Model No. 1 (ADM1), which was modified according to the specific anaerobic digestion process for DIP wastewater treatment. The hydrodynamic behavior of a full-scale anaerobic biochemical system was considered in this model. The characteristics of the influent DIP wastewater were assessed, and then, the substrate COD proportion was divided successfully for the necessity of ADM1 applying. The Monte Carlo technique was implemented to distinguish the most sensitive parameters that influenced the model output indicators comprising effluent COD and biogas production. The sensitive parameters were estimated and optimized. The optimized value of k_m_pro is 12.02, K_S_pro is 0.35, k_m_ac is 4.26, K_S_ac is 0.26, k_m_h2 is 16.62, and K_S_h2 is 3.21 × 10–5. The model was calibrated with 150 days operation values measured in the field. The subsequent 100 days on-site values were used to validate the model, and the results obtained by the simulations were in good agreement. This study provides a meaningful and theoretical model guidance for full-scale wastewater anaerobic biochemical treatment simulation.

The increasing demand of wood shavings (WS) and sawdust (SD) by other industries and growing concerns of potential chemical contaminants from wood products have amplified research interest in alternative bedding materials for commercial poultry. Several alternative materials—corn cob (CC), straws (ST) and hays (HA), sand (SA), shredded papers (SP), rice hulls (RH), peanut hulls (PH), and gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O2)—can replace conventional ones in poultry houses, depending on availability, cost, and ability to absorb and adsorb moisture and provide the birds enough room to exhibit their natural behaviors. Alternative materials hold a brighter future as bedding materials, but more studies about their physicochemical properties and litter management practices for optimum poultry welfare are recommended.

Biogas slurry, a byproduct of biogas plants, is considered a high-quality bio-organic fertilizer. Despite providing nutrients to crops, biogas slurry may contain a high concentration of heavy metals, leading to food safety problems and endangering human health if such metals are absorbed by plants. Therefore, biogas slurry should undergo systematic risk assessment prior to direct use on farmland to ensure its safety for soils and crops. In this study, the risk of applying biogas slurry in peanut cultivation was comprehensively evaluated. Based on nitrogen contents, different concentrations of biogas slurry were applied in peanut cultivation. The results achieved herein showed that the application of biogas slurry as a nutrient supplier in peanut cultivation would significantly affect the physical and chemical properties of soil and characteristics of the plant and the quality of peanuts. Although the heavy metal content of biogas slurry was within the permitted range, it had potential risks to human health and the environment. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that biogas slurry was the primary source of heavy metals in soil. After the application of biogas slurry, the contents of As and Hg in the soil increased significantly, which were 11.12 and 26.67 times higher than those in the control soil. The contents of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, and As in peanut kernel samples under different levels of biogas slurry application were all lower than the maximum permissible limit set by the Standardization Administration of China. In contrast, the content of Hg in peanut kernels was higher than the maximum permissible limit value of 0.02 mg/kg. Peanut had a higher enrichment capacity of Cd and Zn and a higher migration capacity of Pb. The health risk assessment showed that the long-term consumption of peanuts grown with a high dosage of biogas slurry would be harmful to the health of children aged 2–6 years with a large consumption level.

The development of large, multifunctional structures from sustainable wood nanomaterials is challenging. The need to improve mechanical performance, reduce moisture sensitivity, and add new functionalities, provides motivation for nanostructural tailoring. Although existing wood composites are commercially successful, materials development has not targeted nano-structural control of the wood cell wall, which could extend the property range. For sustainable development, non-toxic reactants, green chemistry and processing, lowered cumulative energy requirements, and lowered CO2-emissions are important targets. Here, modified wood substrates in the form of veneer are suggested as nanomaterial components for large, load-bearing structures. Examples include polymerization of bio-based monomers inside the cell wall, green chemistry wood modification, and addition of functional inorganic nanoparticles inside the cell wall. The perspective aims to describe bio-based polymers and green processing concepts for this purpose, along with wood nanoscience challenges.

Wood is a renewable resource that is mainly composed of lignin and cell wall polysaccharides. The polysaccharide fraction is valuable as it can be converted into pulp and paper, or into fermentable sugars. On the other hand, the lignin fraction is increasingly being considered a valuable source of aromatic building blocks for the chemical industry. The presence of lignin in wood is one of the major recalcitrance factors in woody biomass processing, necessitating the need for harsh chemical treatments to degrade and extract it prior to the valorization of the cell wall polysaccharides, cellulose and hemicellulose. Over the past years, large research efforts have been devoted to engineering lignin amount and composition to reduce biomass recalcitrance toward chemical processing. We review the efforts made in forest trees, and compare results from greenhouse and field trials. Furthermore, we address the value and potential of CRISPR-based gene editing in lignin engineering and its integration in tree breeding programs.

One of the most important studies from historic mortars is the binder:aggregate ratio, which is usually obtained through wet chemical analysis. Instrumental techniques and benchtop equipment have become increasingly important tools in the characterization of historic materials. The analysis of such materials has become more practical, faster and more accurate, and the sample preparation methods require less and less material. Thus, this article aims to investigate the validity of the results obtained by some of the methods and techniques used in historic materials analysis and determine the possibility of estimating the binder:aggregate ratio with adequate accuracy and precision. For this purpose, historic mortars from Belém do Pará, in northern Brazil, were selected, and the following quantification techniques were employed: wet chemical analysis, XRD, DSC and XRF. The results showed that the amounts of the components in the mortars could be quantified with the use of approximately 3 g of sample, thus providing one of the main pieces of information needed for the production of a restoration mortar: the binder:aggregate ratio.

Shrub willows are being developed as a short rotation woody crop (SRWC) that can grow on marginal agricultural land. Willow has a high net energy ratio (energy produced/ fossil fuel energy consumed), low greenhouse gas footprint and high carbohydrate production potential. Willow biomass can be combined with forest biomass, but willow often has a higher proportion of bark that creates challenges because it increases the ash content and decreases the melting point. Hot water extraction is a pretreatment that has been shown to improve the quality of chipped material while producing a marketable stream of byproducts. This study evaluated how the amount of bark (0%, 33%, 66% and 100%) on three willow cultivars and sugar maple impact the output of hot water extraction in terms of mass removal and extract composition, as well as its influence on the heating value, ash and elemental content. The hot water extraction process resulted in ash content up to 50% for sugar maple and willow, but there was variation among the willow varieties. The heating value after hot water extraction was about 5% higher because of the removal of mostly hemicelluloses, which have relatively low heating value. HWE led to significant reductions of calcium, potassium, magnesium and sulfur contents. The hot water extraction provides a fermentable sugar stream and other co-products after multiple separation and treatment steps, and improves the characteristics of willow and sugar maple biomass for combined heat and power. This paper demonstrates how biomass with higher bark content can generate a useable sugar stream while improving the quality of the biomass for combined heat and power by managing its ash content while simultaneously producing other valuable products.

Drill cuttings from petroleum exploration and production sites can cause diverse environmental problems. Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) are a major pollutant from the use of polyolefin-based mud. As an alternative to incineration, this study investigated the application of surfactant-enhanced washing technology prior to bioremediation. The washing step was necessary because the initial TPH concentrations were quite high at approximately 15% w/w. Washing agents were formulated by varying the concentration of lipopeptide biosurfactant (in foamate or cell-free broth), Dehydol LS7TH (fatty alcohol ethoxylate 7EO, oleochemical surfactant) and butanol (as a lipophilic linker) at different salinities. The most efficient formula produced a Winsor Type I microemulsion (oil-in-water microemulsion) with polyolefin and contained only 20% (v/v) foamate and 2% (v/v) Dehydol LS7TH in water. Due to the synergistic behavior between the anionic lipopeptides and nonionic Dehydol LS7TH, the formula efficiently removed 92% of the TPHs from the drill cuttings when applied in a jar test. To reduce the cost, the concentrations of each surfactant should be reduced; thus, the formula was optimized by the simplex lattice mixture design. In addition, cell-free broth, at a pH of 10, containing 3.0 g/L lipopeptides was applied instead of foamate because it was easy to prepare. The optimized formula removed 81.2% of the TPHs and contained 72.0% cell-free broth and 1.4% Dehydol LS7TH in water. A 20-kg soil washing system was later tested where the petroleum removal efficiency decreased to 70.7% due to polyolefin redeposition during separation of the washing solution. The remaining TPHs (4.5%) in the washed drilled cuttings were further degraded by a mixture of Marinobacter salsuginis RK5, Microbacterium saccharophilum RK15 and Gordonia amicalis JC11. To promote TPH biodegradation, biochar and fertilizer were applied along with bacterial consortia in a microcosm experiment. After 49-day incubation, the TPHs were reduced to 0.9% by both physical and biological mechanisms, while the TPHs in the unamended samples remained unaffected. The treated drill cuttings contained less than 1% TPHs. With the use of the formulated bio-based washing agent and bioremediation approach, the on-site treatment of drill cuttings could be conducted with an acceptable cost and low environmental impacts.

Hydrothermal treatment of wood pulp at 150–225°C prior to acid hydrolysis was investigated in the context of isolating cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). The objective was 2-folds as follows: (a) generating furfural as a value–added co–product; and (b) concentrating and forming new CNC precursors through thermal re–orientation of para–crystalline cellulose chains that will in turn improve CNC recovery and yield. Furfural yields up to 19 and 21% xylan conversion were obtained at 200 and 225°C hydrothermal treatments, respectively. In addition, these hydrothermal treatment conditions increased the crystallinity index of the pulp (77%) to 84 and 80%, respectively. Consequently, the CNC yield from hydrothermally treated wood pulp, when compared to untreated wood pulp, improved by up to 4- and 2-folds, respectively. An efficient acid hydrolysis process with yield improvements can translate to reduced CNC isolation and purification costs and increased production capacity. The qualities of the CNCs in terms of particle size and crystallinity were not affected due to hydrothermal treatment. However, the zeta potential, sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen content of the CNCs were significantly lower at 225°C while carbon composition increased, and dark brown coloration was observed that indicates caramelization. This study demonstrates for the first time a novel biorefinery strategy that introduces hydrothermal treatment prior to acid hydrolysis to co–generate furfural and CNC with improved efficiency.

In order to speed up the process of landscape garbage composting and reduce environmental pollution, the static composting method of landscape garbage was studied in depth. The spring landscape garbage in Beijing Xiangshan Park was used as the main raw material, and an appropriate amount of dried chicken manure was added for high-temperature composting experiments. Furfural residue was added to landscape waste compost, and the dynamic changes of compost quality, total nitrogen, carbon-nitrogen ratio, and plant inhibitors were studied. Through orthogonal experiments, chicken manure was used as a C / N regulator, and bacteria and wood vinegar were used as additives. The total volume of each treatment, changes in pH and EC values, and seed germination index were analyzed and compared. The results show that this method reduces the bulk density of 39 mg / kg, increases the total porosity by 11.6%, and increases the water holding porosity by 7.74%, which can significantly increase the N, P, and K content of landscape waste compost products and reduce the product. The bulk density of the fertilizer has increased the total porosity and water holding porosity of the fertilizer, and the quality of the fertilizer has been significantly improved.

Apples are among the most consumed fruits world-wide. They represent a source of direct human exposure to bacterial communities, which is less studied. We analyzed the apple microbiome to detect differences between tissues and the impact of organic and conventional management by a combined approach of 16S rRNA gene amplicon analysis and qPCR, and visualization using fluorescence in situ hybridization and confocal laser scanning microscopy (FISH-CLSM). Each apple fruit harbors different tissues (stem, peel, fruit pulp, seeds, and calyx), which were colonized by distinct bacterial communities. Interestingly, fruit pulp and seeds were bacterial hot spots, while the peel was less colonized. In all, approximately 108 16S rRNA bacterial gene copy numbers were determined in each g apple. Abundances were not influenced by the management practice but we found a strong reduction in bacterial diversity and evenness in conventionally managed apples. In addition, despite the similar structure in general dominated by Proteobacteria (80%), Bacteroidetes (9%), Actinobacteria (5%), and Firmicutes (3%), significant shifts of almost 40% of bacterial genera and orders were monitored. Among them, especially bacterial signatures known for health-affecting potential were found to be enhanced in conventionally managed apples. Our results suggest that we consume about 100 million bacterial cells with one apple. Although this amount was the same, the bacterial composition was significantly different in conventionally and organically produced apples.

Ash in biomass is believed to damage biorefinery equipment due to its abrasive properties, and is undesirable in thermal and biological conversion reactions as it cannot be converted into fuels, can catalyze undesirable side reactions, and poisons catalysts. All biomass contains at least some ash, or inorganic content, as a result of normal physiological processes. The concentration of biogenic ash in biomass is largely species dependent; however it can also be affected by weather patterns, irrigation, soil type, and fertilizer applications. Ash concentrations in harvested biomass can also be elevated due to the incorporation of soil and dust during the harvest and collection processes. While ash concentration in biomass is important, so also is the mineral form of the ash. Certain mineral forms of ash can be much harder than the steels used to construct biorefinery equipment and cause excessive wear. In this perspective, the relative concentrations of ash elements, mineral forms of ash, and the hardness of these minerals are considered to identify ash components of concern to biorefinery operators. Strategies are suggested to remove ash from harvested biomass to reduce the risk of excessive wear on biomass processing equipment.

In this investigation, the influence of the application of Pulsed Electric Fields (PEF) of different intensities (3-7 kV/cm and 0-300 μs) on the carotenoid extraction from tomato peel and pulp in a mixture of hexane:acetone:ethanol was studied with the aim of increasing extraction yield or reducing the percentage of the less green solvents in the extraction medium. According to the cellular disintegration index, the optimum treatment time for the permeabilization of tomato peel and pulp at different electric field strengths was 90 µs. The PEF permeabilization of tomato pulp did not significantly increase the carotenoid extraction. However, a PEF-treatment at 5 kV/cm improved the carotenoid extraction from tomato peel by 39 % as compared with the control in a mixture of hexane:ethanol:acetone (50:25:25). Further increments of electric field from 5 to 7 kV/cm did not increase significantly the extraction of carotenoids. . The presence of acetone in the solvent mixture did not positively affect the carotenoid extraction when the tomato peels were PEF-treated. Response surface methodology was used to determine the potential of PEF for reducing the percentage of hexane in a hexane:ethanol mixture. The application of a PEF-treatment allowed reducing the hexane percentage from 45 to 30 % without affecting the carotenoid extraction yield. The antioxidant capacity of the extracts obtained from tomato peel was correlated with the carotenoid concentration and it was not affected by the PEF-treatment.

Coal mine fire has always been the main disasters in coal mining in various countries around the world, and several attempts have been made to develop many kinds of fire extinguishing materials and technology. Because of the salient features: high foaming factor(that means a small amount of raw materials can produce large-volume of foam concrete), widely source, eco-friendly and economical raw materials, cement-based inorganic foam concrete for engineering filling and coal mine fire extinguishing has become the first choice. But the shortcomings of traditional foamed concrete are obvious, short curing time, poor water retention capacity, foam burst easily, and can not be kept in the spontaneous combustion cavity area for a long time to accumulate and solidify; at the same time after the foam burst, the formation of cracks in the solidified body is sometimes not strict, and so on. So, traditional foamed concrete should be optimized and the aforementioned deficiencies could be overcome. The objective of this paper goes to propose quick-solidifying foamed concrete by laboratory test and to test these materials properties. The stability of the solidified body of the quick-solidifying foamed concrete, foamed concrete slurry fluidity, curability, shrinkage and cracking during solidifying, high temperature resistance and water resistance were tested and the laws and values of these characteristics were got. The results finally show the quick-solidifying foamed concrete developed in the paper with a good performance in implementation of high filling and fire prevention in big space of mine.

In 2016, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded a multi-institution interdisciplinary team to develop and operate the Natural Hazards Reconnaissance Facility (known as the "RAPID") as part of the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) program. During the following 2 years, the RAPID facility developed its instrumentation portfolio and operational plan with input from the natural hazards community, the facility's leadership team, and an external steering committee. In September 2018, the RAPID began field operations, which continue today and include instrumentation, software, training, and support services to conduct reconnaissance research before, during, and after natural hazard and disaster events. Over the past 2 years, the RAPID has supported the data collection efforts for over 60 projects worldwide. Projects have spanned a wide range of disciplines and hazards and have also included data collection at large-scale experimental facilities in the United States and abroad. These projects have produced an unprecedented amount of high-quality field data archived on the DesignSafe cyberinfrastructure platform. This paper describes the RAPID facility's development, instrumentation portfolio (including the mobile application RApp), services and capabilities, and training activities. Additionally, overviews of three recent RAPID-supported projects are presented, including descriptions of field data collection workflows, details of the resulting data sets, and the impact of these project deployments on the natural hazard fields. NSFNational Science Foundation (NSF) [1904653, 1904327, CMMI: 1611820]; NSF through GEER [1826118]; Oregon DOT; FHWA [SPR807] The RAPID Facility operates under a cooperative agreement with the NSF under Award No. CMMI: 1611820. Research on the performance of LRLVBs in Hurricane Michael was supported by the NSF under award nos. 1904653 and 1904327. Research on the flow slide during the Palu, Indonesia earthquake was supported by the NSF through GEER under award number 1826118. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations presented in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Funding for the Hooskadaden Landslide case study were provided by Oregon DOT and FHWA (SPR807).

Global automotive industries have recently switched development trends from the traditional powertrain mechanical components into the digital transformation of the electrification components in advanced propulsion vehicles. This industrial impact on global development trend into automotive electrification designs has created an emerging technology for new propulsion systems such as hybrid electrical vehicles (HEV) or electrical vehicles (EV). Advanced propulsion systems rising from global guidelines are meant to improve vehicle fuel efficiency and minimize pollution emissions from transportation vehicles. In many HEV or EV advanced system designs, automotive lubricants such as drivetrain fluids or thermal coolants comes into contact with the integrated electric motor (e-motor) and thermal management devices. This leads to the addition of electrical and thermal properties, which must be taken into account on top of conventional lubricant properties. The introduction of electrification components has been targeted for energy efficiency and long-term durability. Automotive industries have asked for the implementation of specialized automotive lubricants or driveline fluids to allow for appropriate thermal cooling specifications, present bearing protection, ensure corrosion protection, and offer oxidation and sludge control. This review paper will provide with global insights on future automotive electrification growth trends with respect to innovative driveline lubricants and thermal cooling liquids used in Hybrid/EV vehicles. Coming research activities in innovative driveline fluids will be focused on minimizing friction loss and maximizing hybrid component durability. The major goal of this paper is to underline the future electrification development trends and the required lubricants for advanced Hybrid/EV vehicles. The major section of this paper will be focused on the most important progress of automotive lubrication in the areas of energy conversion effectiveness, driveline trustworthiness, cooling system design and thermal management control. In this review paper, new developments in thermal management fluids have been described to help promote the high-performance cooling system on electrical batteries, motors, and power electronics. In addition, global research activities using novel nanofluids for thermal cooling have the high potential for application to EV/Hybrid technologies. This paper has reviewed the state-of-art thermal management technology used for extending driving range and durability of EV/Hybrid vehicles. At the end of this paper, using high promising nanofluids for thermal cooling in fuel cell components will be illustrated to demonstrate this potential application in EV/Hybrid vehicles.

The growing concerns about the environment and energy have driven the widespread adoption of new lightweight materials such as polymer composites in many industrial sectors, crucial issues being performance, cost efficiency, and multifunctionality (Krawczak, 2019). Among them, thermosetting matrix composites offer not only many advantages such as high specific stiffness and strength and their consolidated use in primary aircraft structures but also technical issues such as long processing times, limited fracture toughness, reduction of mechanical properties in the presence of water and solvents, and difficulty of end-of-life treatment (Krawczak, 2011). A key cultural problem is associated with the need of a chemical reaction during part fabrication performed in mechanical/aerospace/naval industries. Although the use of thermoplastic matrix composites in aeronautic structures has been proposed since the second half of the 80s (Nguyen and Ishida, 1987; Maffezzoli et al., 1989), their first application was at the beginning of the third millennium with the wing leading edge of Airbus A380 (Offringa, 2005). Their demand is continuously increasing (JEC Observer, 2020) since they offer many advantages such as high toughness, long storage time, easy repairing and recycling, higher performances in hot-wet conditions, and ability to be thermoformed and heat-welded. However, manufacturing issues such as high processing temperature, fiber impregnation, and warpage still need a deeper knowledge (Advani and Hsiao, 2012). Thermoplastic composites can play a key role in the 21st century industry as new materials are emerging day by day, as manufacturing processes are evolving to meet the severe industrial requirements of performance, production, and multifunctionality (Advani and Hsiao, 2012; Boisse, 2015), and as sophisticated numerical simulation tools are making virtual prototyping and engineering more reliable than ever (Binetruy et al., 2015; Boisse, 2015). In that field, innovation is multifaceted and may come either from the constitutive materials (high-performance engineering thermoplastic matrices, commingled semipreg of fibers/thermoplastics, self-healing, bio-based or biodegradable matrices, natural or thermoplastic fibers, 3D textile reinforcement…) or from the manufacturing processes (automated out-of-autoclave processes, hybridization/coupling of technologies, additive manufacturing, hybrid welding…). Moreover, thermoplastic composites allow for automated, high-speed mass production with reduced need for secondary operations (Mafeld, 2014), creating increased interest in the industry for various applications: aerospace and defense, automotive and rail transportation, construction and building, energy, oil and gas, sporting goods, drones, etc. Also, thermoplastic composites offer an interesting recycling potential using mechanical, thermal, or chemical processes (Oliveux et al., 2015). As thermoplastics, it is quite easy to recycle them by regrinding, compounding/blending, and reprocessing; additionally, they are at the forefront of current industrial scale-up attempts of chemical recycling, making it possible to recover not only fibers but also feedstock or original monomers which can eventually be re-polymerized to produce new polymers. This Research Topic focuses on the latest advances and developments of fiber-reinforced thermoplastics, mainly referring to continuous fiber-reinforced composites and of related processing technologies. A collection of seven articles addresses some challenging issues related to advanced manufacturing processes, such as consolidation by compression molding (Ayadi et al.), injection-overmolding (Akkerman et al.), reactive pultrusion (Zoller et al.), joining by ultrasonic (Villegas) or induction (Scarselli et al.) welding, as well as solid-state drawing (Walker et al.) or electrospinning (Sessini et al.) of fibers. Numerical modeling and simulation, and performance assessment through advanced characterization techniques, correlating microstructure and properties, are also addressed. These papers highlight how thermoplastic matrix composites can be processed, adopting a completely different paradigm in comparison to thermosetting matrix ones, the former not requiring a reaction to set the properties but complex thermal cycles, often performed in a short time span. The Guest Editorial team is confident that this collection of papers will benefit a large community in research and application of advanced thermoplastic composite materials so as to further advance along the pathway toward sustainability, performance, and competitiveness.

This paper describes the Horizon 2020 project Space@Sea (www.spaceatsea-project.eu) which started in November 2017. This project aims to provide a concept of affordable and flexible floating islands. With increasing population and rising sea level there is a scarcity for space on land for the people to live, grow food and harvest renewable energy. Moreover, a large number of people live in areas that are exposed to the risk of flooding in case of sea level rise. These trends call for a solution at sea that creates a new perspective. Previous projects on floating habitation such as the TROPOS project (www.Troposplatform.eu) have delivered artist impressions. Technical solutions are yet to be provided. In the Space@Sea project a conceptual study is done to develop a standardized floating solution for offshore space. Four applications focusing on energy hub, living, aquaculture and maritime transport will be demonstrated. For two locations a business case of a combination of these applications will be examined. The present paper discusses the Space@Sea project background and approach of the collaborative research. First results regarding the basic design and societal acceptance are discussed at a high level. Throughout the Space@Sea project results will be published on Frontiers in Marine Science.

After the 2005 M7.6 Kashmir earthquake (Pakistan), field observations reported that several buildings manufactured with local traditional techniques resisted well to that strong seismic event. In this paper the attention is focused on a typical vernacular construction technique commonly named as “Bhatar”, still practiced in the Himalayan regions of India and Pakistan. It is grounded upon the "timber lacing" or "timber reinforcement masonry" concept, i.e. the combination of dry-stacked loose stones with timber beams to increase the wall confinement. Despite its good seismic performances, it has still not been deeply studied from a structural engineering point of view. This paper represents a first attempt to fill this gap. It presents a full analytical study on the structural behaviour of a simple one-storey building unit characterized by a 3.6 m x 3.6 m square plan covered by an heavy wooden roof with 20 cm thick earth coverage, in order to investigate its response under gravity and seismic inertial loadings. Materials properties, static analysis and seismic analysis are discussed. In detail, Shorea Robusta wood and limestone rocks are identified as the most used construction materials for the Bhatar buildings. The Barton's model is applied to characterise the shear strength of the rubble stone layers in the wall. Static analysis reveals that normal stresses at the ground level are around 92 kPa, which can be considered acceptable for common soils. With respect to earthquake, the Bhatar technique can absorb wall cracking and distortion mechanisms, and can dissipate energy through friction between stones. Under the assumption of no vertical ground motion, the acceleration which activates in-plane sliding mechanisms is found to be around 0.5 g, being dependent on the interface friction between adjacent layers. Some preliminary considerations about the out-of-plane seismic behaviour are also provided concerning overturning and bending failure mechanisms. The results are based on assumptions taken by several authors and have not been verified with experimental tests. Nevertheless, some practical suggestions can be derived to improve the seismic shear strength and to ensure friction also in the case of significant vertical component of earthquake ground motions.