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Connected and automated vehicles have the potential to deliver significant environmental, safety, economic and social benefits. The key advancement for automated vehicles with higher levels of automation (SAE Level 4 and over) is fail-operational. One possible solution for the failsafe mode of automated vehicles is a 5G-enabled teleoperation system controlled by remote drivers. However, knowledge is missing regarding understanding of the human–machine interaction in teleoperation from the perspective of remote drivers. To address this research gap, this study qualitatively investigated the acceptance, attitudes, needs and requirements of remote drivers when teleoperating a 5G-enabled Level 4 automated vehicle (5G L4 AV) in the real world. The results showed that remote drivers are positive towards the 5G L4 AV. They would like to constantly monitor the driving when they are not controlling the vehicle remotely. Improving their field of vision for driving and enhancing the perception of physical motion feedback are the two key supports required by remote drivers in 5G L4 AVs. The knowledge gained in this study provides new insights into facilitating the design and development of safe, effective and user-friendly teleoperation systems in vehicle automation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rate of urbanization in Europe is increasing rapidly. Traffic congestion has become one of the biggest challenges for cities. Additionally, thousands of people die each year in accidents on European roads. In addition, road transport is one of the biggest reasons for the increase in air pollution and greenhouse gases in Europe. To solve these problems, cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) have accelerated in Europe, after more than ten years of research and development. The European Commission has carried out significant work in this field in recent years and has prepared a strategy document for the deployment of C-ITS services in Europe. The Commission considers that C-ITS have significant potential in reducing the negative effects of road traffic and expects these systems to deploy rapidly in European cities. However, in order to achieve this, it is imperative to clearly identify the needs of cities in implementing and managing these systems, the extent to which these systems will respond to different mobility problems of the cities, and the important barriers to widespread deployment. This study focused on qualitatively examining the C-ITS deployment from the stakeholder perspective. The knowledge generated is useful to facilitate the large-scale future deployment of C-ITS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anaerobic digestion (AD) of microalgae is a sustainable process to produce methane‐rich biogas for bioenergy production. However, the rigid cell walls of microalgae protect them against the attack from hydrolytic bacteria, and consequently prevent efficient biodegradability and lower methane production. In this study, the effects of low energy demand enzymatic and low‐temperature thermo‐alkaline pre‐treatments on microalgae AD were investigated in batch biochemical methane potential tests. The results found that methane yields were significantly enhanced by both pre‐treatments. Microalgae Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris) after enzymatic pre‐treatment enhanced methane yields the most, by 22–162%, whilst C. vulgaris pre‐treated by thermo‐alkaline pre‐treatment improved methane yields by 4–26%. In enzymatic pre‐treatment, C. vulgaris pre‐treated with mixed enzymes showed higher methane yields compared to single enzymes. In low‐temperature thermo‐alkaline pre‐treatment, the level of enhancement in methane yields depended on the alkaline dosage and pre‐treatment temperature, but the high alkaline dosages were associated with limitations such as a prolonged lag phase in the digestion process. From an energy viewpoint, both pre‐treatments showed positive energy balances for the majority of experimental conditions, and therefore both pre‐treatments are considered to be energetically efficient methods to pre‐treat microalgae for methane production via AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Anaerobic co-digestion of microalgae with potato process waste was evaluated. • Methane yields were enhanced by up to 47% under co-digestion conditions. • Addition of high proportions of potato waste significantly enhanced methane yields. • Potato discarded parts produced higher methane yields than potato peel. • High SIR limited the methane yields due to elevated concentrations of soluble COD. Abstract This investigation aimed to evaluate the feasibility of potato processing waste (PPW) as a co-substrate for Chlorella vulgaris in batch biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests. Three parameters were examined: C. vulgaris and PPW mixing ratios (100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75 and 0:100), PPW type (potato discarded parts (PPW dp) and potato peel (PPW p)), and substrate to inoculum ratio (0.5 and 1.0 SIRs). The mixing ratio was a significant factor with higher methane yields obtained with 25:75 C. vulgaris : PPW. The type of PPW also affected methane yield, as C. vulgaris co-digested with PPW dp increased methane yield by 22–47%, versus a 12–32% enhancement with PPW p. Moreover, a SIR of 1.0 led to an accumulation of soluble COD, resulting in decreased methane yield relative to a SIR of 0.5. Overall, the current study showed that PPW are suitable feedstocks for co-digestion with microalgae, with the enhanced methane yields attributed to a balance C/N ratio. However, the extra nitrogen in the seed inoculum of the BMP test may have obscured the full benefits and hidden some synergistic effects. Therefore, the follow-up studies should be carried out in continuous anaerobic digesters to verify the full potential of PPW as co-digestion substrate for microalgae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warning system for pedestrians (WSP), one of cooperative intelligent transport system (C-ITS) applications, is designed to increase safety for pedestrians but also for drivers and other road users. The evaluation of end-user acceptance and perceptions of this technology is crucial before deploying it in transportation systems. Five WSP human–machine interfaces (HMIs) were designed and simulated using a driver's first-view video footage of driving through a pedestrian crossing in Newcastle upon Tyne. The five WSP designs were evaluated with 24 younger end users (35 years old and younger). This study first evaluated the usefulness of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) in modelling end-user acceptance in terms of behavioural intentions to use WSP. The results suggest that the UTAUT can be applied to investigate the end-user acceptance of WSP, with performance expectancy and effort expectancy influencing the behavioural intentions to use WSP. Furthermore, we investigated end-user attitudes towards various WSP human–machine interface (HMI) designs. Participants showed more positive attitudes towards visual-only interfaces than towards audio-only and multi-modal (combinations of visual and audio) interfaces. Above all, the findings of this research increase our understanding of public acceptance and perceptions of this C-ITS application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]