Search

The primary objective of this study is to investigate the effect of geothermal energy output on carbon dioxide emissions among the European countries (EU) classified as EU27 states, within the time frame 1990 to 2021. The study adopted autoregressive-distributed lag (ARDL), and the findings show that the carbon dioxide emissions mitigate with an improvement in geothermal power production. Carbon dioxide emissions were observed to be increased by some socioeconomic factors such as population density, economic growth, and fossil fuel. Findings from this study show there could be a significant reduction in carbon dioxide emission among the EU13 emerging economies leveraging on geothermal energy growth than what will be achieved among the EU14 emerged economies. Conversely, the findings from this study also show that a significant level of reduction could be attained in carbon dioxide emission among the EU14 emerged economies as a result of aging population density than we could have among the EU13 emerging economies. Also, this study established that EU14 emerging economies could attain a significant increase in carbon dioxide emissions through fossil fuel consumption and economic growth than what will be attained among the EU13 emerging economies. The three estimators adopted in the study which are the pooled mean group, mean group, and dynamic fixed effect confirmed that the projected calculations in the study are confirmed valid. This study, therefore, recommended that European nations classified as EU27 should lay more emphasis on geothermal growth to attain energy and environmental goals. Legislators in these EU countries should focus more on policies that will ensure the security and sustainability of geothermal growth. Policymakers in these EU countries should make concerted efforts toward making policies that will promote the growth and sustainability of geothermal power, thereby cutting down the need for fossil fuel and CO2 emissions in the future time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial flour served as a classical filler in wood industry for many years. However, its high-cost and competition for use as food stuff paved the way to a novel substitution tactic by using agriculture and forestry waste residues. Camellia oleifera shell and palm kernel meal are both by-products of oil-refining with advantages such as wide availability, great-reserve, renewability, and low-cost. Herein, a compound filler strategy was proposed by combining Camellia oleifera shell powder (Cosp) and palm kernel meal (PKM) to solve some drawbacks while Cosp as a single filler. The results showed that the bonding performance of plywood incorporating 20% single Cosp modified MUF was inferior with respect to MUF modified by same amount of industrial flour, due to the significantly increased viscosity, leading to a decrease in wet shear strength (1.63 MPa and 1.47 MPa for cold and hot-water soaking pretreatment, respectively). Encouraged, the overall status (including the viscosity, gel time, and solid content) of MUF modified by the compound filler displayed is regarded the best formulation for Coaps to PKM weight ratio of 5:5. Therefore, the wet shear strength for derived plywood samples with the adhesive incorporating 20% filler content, can reach 1.90 MPa and 1.88 MPa for cold and hot-water soaking pre-treatment, respectively. Interestingly, this bonding performance is similar to MUF resin modified by industrial flour. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were utilized to further confirm the potency of the compound filler modification strategy. Furthermore, the formaldehyde emission of MUF resin modified by the compound filler was effectively reduced by 8.24–14.12%, compared to industrial flour as filler. Cosp and PKM, as agricultural and forestry waste residue, exhibited the cost advantage for this approach based on calculation, which can save the cost of adhesive by over 40% for filler. The strategy for employing this compound filler provides a sustainable and environmentally friendly approach for green application of waste residues obtained from agriculture and forestry. • A fully bio-based compound filler consisted by Cosp and PKM was prepared. • The Cosp and PKM modified MUF maintained the outstanding bonding performance. • The formaldehyde release of MUF with Cosp and PKM filler was reduced by 8.24–14.12%. • The cost of filler utilized in MUF resin would go down by 40%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tiger puffer (Takifugu rubripes) is one of the most expensive farmed marine fish species in China. The high profitability of farmed tiger puffer is used to attract many new investors. However, some investments failed due to a lack of information about the tiger puffer fish farm business, poor farm and facility design, and flawed investment plans. To improve the investment efficiency and profitability of this industry, this analysis evaluated the economic performance of tiger puffer from eggs to harvest size using two different open-indoor combination aquaculture systems: a combination of recirculating aquaculture system and open net pen (RAS+ONP) and a combination of flow-through system and earth pond (FTS + EP). This analysis evaluated the financial performance of both systems using profit margin, net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), and payback period. At the same time, a sensitivity analysis was employed to measure economic risk. The results revealed that despite the RAS+ONP system being more economically profitable than the FTS + EP system, the financial indicators of the FTS + EP system granted a better economic performance in terms of NPV and IRR due to lower initial investment and operating costs. Meanwhile, the sensitivity analysis revealed that the economic performance of both systems was vulnerable to the fluctuations in fish prices and feed prices. The potential risk of earning profit was higher for the RAS+ONP if the feed price fluctuated compared to the FTS + EP system, while the risk was higher for the FTS + EP if the fish price fluctuated. Hence, the FTS + EP system could represent an opportunity for new entrants to obtain a more profitable production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A bio-sourced wood adhesive derived from furfuryl alcohol and wheat gluten protein. • This strategy is inspired by furfuryl alcohol acidic-catalyzed polymerization. • A competitive reaction in the polymerization was proposed. • The resultant adhesive showed an outstanding bonding performance. • HWG-FA adhesives can satisfy the application requirement for exterior-grade plywood type I. Bio-sourced wood adhesives are an alternative of actuality for petroleum-derived binders used to-day in the timber industry. Inspired by the classical furfuryl alcohol (FA) acid-catalyzed polymerization strategy, a convenient preparation method is proposed for developing wood adhesives derived from sustainable hydrolyzed wheat gluten protein (HWG) and furfuryl alcohol (FA). The obtained HWG-FA wood adhesives show a correct non-volatiles content and initial viscosity. The interaction mechanism of HWG and FA is suggested based on the analyses of FT-IR, 13C NMR, and MALDI-TOF spectra. A competitive reaction relationship was observed between FA-catalyzed self-condensation and the crosslinking of the HWG amino group by the FA hydroxymethyl groups, central to help lengthen the storage life of the adhesives. The adhesive network built-up by FA self-polymerization presents an excellent bonding performance and retardation of water intrusion. The products obtained from the reactions between HWG and FA improve the adhesive network level of crosslinking, which enhances the performance of the adhesives. Moreover, the HWG-FA wood adhesive shows outstanding wet shear strength that exceeds the China National Standard (GB/T 9846-2015, ≥ 0.7 MPa) requirement for exterior-grade plywood type I. This result has seldom been obtained in previous research concerning high biomass content wood adhesives. This research provides a method for preparation of sustainable, eco-friendly, formaldehyde-free, wood adhesive with high-performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Aquatic products processing industry (APPI) in China has been developing for several decades and is becoming a pillar sector in China's fisheries industry. There are some problems in the development of this industry, such as significantly lower-than-world-average APP ratio, improper regional structures, weakly development in freshwater products processing, and lower profit margin from processing. Scope and approach This study aims to provide a whole picture of China's aquatic products processing (APP) Industry. It also describes an overview of the development of aquatic product industry and evolutions of policies and regulation in China. Key findings and conclusions The findings indicated China's Aquatic product industry has progressed significantly in the past decades. The total products of the APPI gradually increased from 0.6 million tons in 1978 to 20 million tons in 2014. The ratio between aquatic products processing output and aquatic products output rose from 0.13 in 1996 to 0.32 in 2014, and the number of processing firms substantially increased during this period. Since 2004, the quality of the APPI gradually improved, and the APPI value-added rate increased from 29.76% in 2004 to 37.28% in 2014. Some remarkable issues still exist in the process of APPI. Further policies need to focus on better industrial development planning, favorable tax for intensive processing sectors, as well as reinforced R&D and policy supports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquaculture is threatened by the climate change which includes changes in temperature, precipitation, drought, storms and floods. The socio-economic impacts of climate change on aquaculture are difficult to assess due to the uncertainties regarding the extent and rate of predicted changes. By including bond indexes as climate change variables, this study constructed a provincial-level panel data set to estimate the profits and productivity of the Chinese aquaculture. Results indicate that aquaculture production has heterogeneous responses to climate change. However, the majority of climate variables, including extreme weather events and long-term climate changes, strongly affect aquaculture profits. Future research needs to focus on designing suitable adaptation measures in an interdisciplinary setting to address the challenges from natural risks and economic volatility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies on food supply values, the basis of eco-service values, and their factors of different pond aquaculture ecosystems are helpful to explain the influences of the inputted factors and their variations among these ecosystems and provide information for stakeholders to adjust their decisions and behaviors to increase their total eco-service values. On the basis of continued records from 2011 to 2012 of 18 ponds of three pond aquaculture ecosystems, namely Litopenaeus vannamei, Macrobrachium nippponensis and carp fresh water pond aquaculture ecosystems in Qingpu, Fengxian, and Jiading, three suburban districts of Shang, this paper analyzed the costs, returns, net food supply values and their regional and temporal fluctuations. The results showed that: (1) the net food supply values of the three ecosystems are 143252.4, 135883.7, and 52623.1Yuan/Ha in 2011 correspondently, with the Litopenaeus vannamei pond aquaculture ecosystem (LVPAE) ranking highest and the carp pond aquaculture ecosystem (CPAE) lowest among them, and the trend was same in 2012, but the values decreased than that of 2011 with the rate of 30.0%( LVPAE), 38.0 %( Macrobrachium nippponensis pond aquaculture ecosystem, MNPAE) and 13.7 %( CPAE). (2)The dominant factors of the net food supply values of these ecosystems are the produce price and variable costs; fry and feed costs are the main variable factors producing the noticeable difference among the ecosystems. (3) The cost-benefit ratio of per unit product of the CPAE, LVPAE and MNPAE changed from 27.5%,91.7%,129.0% in 2011 to 23.0%,73.8% and 63.8% in 2012, with the CPAE ranked lowest among them in both years.(4) For all the three ecosystems, their net food supply values may not always change in same trends with their net eco-service values, if stakeholders want to keep an balance between these two types of values, MNPAE should be encouraged in these districts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offshore aquaculture plays an important role in alleviating the pressure of coastal aquaculture and promoting the sustainable development of fisheries. And changes in ocean conditions caused by climate change will have a huge impact on mariculture. Considering the conditions of climate change, this study took the main mariculture fishes in China as the research object, used a species distribution model (SDM) to predict the potential mariculture areas of each fish under the current and different future (2040–2050) climate scenarios, divided the mariculture areas into three potential levels by natural breaks classification method, and calculated the area of different levels potential areas of each fish through the grid number and grid unit area. Additionally, this paper compares the potential area variation of different fishes under different climate scenarios. The results indicate that: (1)In the current climate, the potential area of Yellowtail kingfish(Seriola lalandi) is the largest among seven fishes, estimated at 1,288,500 km2. And the number of varieties suitable for aquaculture in the East China Sea and the South China Sea is more than that in the Bohai and Yellow Seas. (2)Compared with the high potential area of current and future climate scenarios, Large yellow croaker(Larimichthys crocea) has the largest increase, Yellowtail kingfish(Seriola lalandi) decreases under all four future climate scenarios, and both Cobia(Rachycentron canadum) and Allied Kingfish(Seriola dumerili) has small changes. (3)In the future climate scenarios, the number of species potentially suitable for culturing increases significantly in the Bohai and Yellow Sea area, and in the South China Sea, the suitable areas for cultured Large yellow croaker(Larimichthys crocea), gold pompanos(Trachinotus ovatus), Cobia(Rachycentron canadum) and Allied Kingfish(Seriola dumerili) decrease significantly. Overall, the potential areas of each fish show a northward trend. • We forecasted the potential areas of offshore finfish aquaculture in China • Mapping the distribution of offshore finfish aquaculture in China under current and future climate scenarios • Provides information for the selection of the offshore aquaculture species and the sea area planning in China • Provides information on the development direction for China's offshore aquaculture in response to climate change [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lignocellulosic biomass is mainly composed of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, which can be valorized into myriad fuels and chemicals. Most developed processes for its valorization focused on the utilization of only one or two components, incurring waste of resources and weakening the economic competitiveness. Fractionation of lignocellulosic biomass into individual components, viz. cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, facilitates their conversion and enables full biomass utilization. Pretreatment employing biphasic solvent systems represents a promising pathway for biomass fractionation. Here, we summarized the performance of different biphasic solvent systems for biomass fractionation, and factors governing their performance were discussed. The properties of fractionated streams and valorization potentials were reviewed, and strategies to tune properties were proposed. Finally, techno-economics of biphasic solvent systems enabled pretreatment were examined and future perspectives on improving their economic viability were provided. • Biphasic solvent systems enable clean biomass fractionation. • Cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin can be easily recovered with high yield. • Cellulose recovered in the solid phase shows high digestibility. • Lignin with appealing properties could be recovered in organic phase. • The economic viability of biphasic systems should be considered and improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]