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22 pags., 8 figs., 1 tab., Massive stars disrupt their natal molecular cloud material through radiative and mechanical feedback processes. These processes have profound effects on the evolution of interstellar matter in our Galaxy and throughout the universe, from the era of vigorous star formation at redshifts of 1-3 to the present day. The dominant feedback processes can be probed by observations of the Photo-Dissociation Regions (PDRs) where the far-ultraviolet photons of massive stars create warm regions of gas and dust in the neutral atomic and molecular gas. PDR emission provides a unique tool to study in detail the physical and chemical processes that are relevant for most of the mass in inter-and circumstellar media including diffuse clouds, proto-planetary disks, and molecular cloud surfaces, globules, planetary nebulae, and star-forming regions. PDR emission dominates the infrared (IR) spectra of star-forming galaxies. Most of the Galactic and extragalactic observations obtained with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will therefore arise in PDR emission. In this paper we present an Early Release Science program using the MIRI, NIRSpec, and NIRCam instruments dedicated to the observations of an emblematic and nearby PDR: the Orion Bar. These early JWST observations will provide template data sets designed to identify key PDR characteristics in JWST observations. These data will serve to benchmark PDR models and extend them into the JWST era. We also present the Science-Enabling products that we will provide to the community. These template data sets and Science-Enabling products will guide the preparation of future proposals on star-forming regions in our Galaxy and beyond and will facilitate data analysis and interpretation of forthcoming JWST observations., Support for JWST-ERS program ID 1288 was provided through grants from the STScI under NASA contract NAS5-03127 to STScI (K.G., D.V.D.P., M.R.), Univ. of Maryland (M.W., M.P.), Univ. of Michigan (E.B., F.A.), and Univ. of Toledo (T.S.-Y.L.). O.B. and E.H. are supported by the Programme National “Physique et Chimie du Milieu Interstellaire” (PCMI) of CNRS/INSU with INC/INP co-funded by CEA and CNES, and through APR grants 6315 and 6410 provided by CNES. E. P. and J.C. acknowledge support from the National Science and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant program (RGPIN-2020-06434 and RGPIN-2021-04197 respectively). E.P. acknowledges support from a Western Strategic Support Accelerator Grant (ROLA ID 0000050636). J.R.G. and S.C. thank the Spanish MCINN for funding support under grant PID2019-106110GB-I00. Work by M.R. and Y.O. is carried out within the Collaborative Research Centre 956, subproject C1, funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)—project ID 184018867. T.O. acknowledges support from JSPS Bilateral Program, grant No. 120219939. M.P. and M.W. acknowledge support from NASA Astrophysics Data Analysis Program award #80NSSC19K0573. C.B. is grateful for an appointment at NASA Ames Research Center through the San José State University Research Foundation (NNX17AJ88A) and acknowledges support from the Internal Scientist Funding Model (ISFM) Directed Work Package at NASA Ames titled: “Laboratory Astrophysics—The NASA Ames PAH IR Spectroscopic Database.”

The Life-cycle Assessment (LCA) method and the Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) each play a crucial role in reducing buildings’ embodied environmental impacts. EPDs provide the validated and geographically representative data necessary to conduct an LCA. However, the development of EPDs in the European context is still irregular. Countries such as Germany and France have many EPDs for construction products, while other countries, such as Spain, have a limited number of EPDs and more than one operator programme, which is pointed out in the literature as a possible limiting factor for comparing results. This study aimed to examine the use of construction product EPDs manufactured in Spain, to then use as a data source to conduct a building LCA. We analysed the comparability of the results among the different EPD programmes and investigated to what extent the use of Spainߣs geographically representative construction product EPDs can contribute to conducting a building LCA, including all the materials and products that compose a building, and covering all the building life-cycle stages (product, construction, use, and end-of-life). The results showed that plasterboard and thermal insulation products have the highest numbers of EPDs in different EPD programmes. The case study analysis showed that 20% of the construction products that compose a building can potentially use these EPDs as a data source to conduct a building LCA, and 89% of those product categories include at least the product, use, or end-of-life stage modules. Finally, recommendations and challenges to improve LCA development in the architecture, engineering, construction, and operation industries were included.

Lecce stone is a natural material extracted from quarries in the Salento area (Lecce, Apulia, Italy), and used for building and ornamental elements. Its nature as a non-renewable resource justifies its considerable exploitation; but extraction and processing activities produce waste that creates a strong environmental impact. The Puglia region is also rich in olive trees. Usually, the pruning waste is used as firewood or for furniture. Moreover, the amount of olive wood waste available has increased with the spread of Xylella Fastidiosa. Starting from the problem of waste management and the depletion of non-renewable resources, the goal of the research was to find sustainable alternatives to give a new life to waste produced from local raw materials and creating exclusive handicraft products. Composite filaments with a polymer matrix (based on polylactic acid-PLA) were produced using different waste materials as additives and then used to create “made in Apulia” products, through the use of Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) technology. Finally, an eco-friendly coating was tested to improve the durability of PLA 3D products. This work represents a window into the possibility of creating new systems for reusing local waste materials while promoting sustainable economic growth and a circular economy.

Introduction: Ceres is the largest object of the Solar System main belt with a complex geological and chemical history, which experienced extensive water related processes and geochemical differentiation [1]. Ceres’ surface is characterized by dark materials, phyllosilicates, ammonium-bearing minerals, carbonates, water ice, and salts. In addition to a global presence of carbon-bearing chemistry, local concentration of aliphatic organics has been detected by Dawn mission [2]. The mission, thanks to the data collected by the Italian instrument VIR [3], showed clear evidence of a high amount of aliphatic organic material on the surface of Ceres [4, 5, 6]. This has raised new questions about the origin and preservation of this material, especially when considering its high estimated abundance (Fig 1). We started a series of laboratory studies on physicochemical evolution of organic material interacting with minerals thought to be present on Ceres. The goal is to understand the transformations induced on these samples by processing with ultraviolet radiation. Fig. 1 Ceres spectra of the organic-rich area in Ernutet crater (label “Organics”); of a background organic-poor area from a region southeast of Ernutet (label “Background”); and Occator bright material (label “Carbonate”) [4]. Results: In this study, we mixed organic material with a mixture of minerals considered a spectral analog of the Ceres surface. Specifically, we mixed undecanoic acid and solid material made of serpentine, magnetite, carbonate and ammonium bearing montmorillonite with a ratio of 1:80 (organic:mineral). Diffuse FTIR reflectance spectra were acquired in vacuum. Spectra of simulant are resembling the Ceres surface composition (Fig. 2) organic rich area, even if the proportions between the bands of clays, carbonates and organics are not the same as seen on Ceres. We irradiated the sample in the vacuum chamber at room temperature using an UV lamp to simulate the solar radiation. The photon flux was 2.75x1017 ph. cm-2s-1 in the 200-400 nm spectral range as measured through a single monochromator Spectro 320 spectrometer. The simulant was irradiated at increasing fluence up to irradiation time of about 7 hours and the degradation process was monitored in real time with FTIR spectroscopy by measuring the changes in the spectral features (band areas). In Fig. 4 the reflectance spectra of the simulant as prepared and after UV irradiation at 180, 2280, and 21180 s are showed. The bands area of NH3 at 3 μm and aliphatic CH2/CH3 at 3.4 μm are decreasing as the irradiation fluence increases with time. Fig. 2 Average spectrum of Ceres Ernutet organic-rich ares (black) compared to laboratory simulant (blue). Spectra are normalized at 2.6 μm. Each band area, which is proportional to the number of functional groups, was evaluated at different irradiation time and the degradation rate was obtained by fitting the band areas vs irradiation time using an exponential function. This method permits to determine the degradation cross section of each band, which is the probability that chemical bonds are broken by UV radiation. In particular, for the aliphatic band at 3.4 μm it was possible to obtain the degradation cross section of the whole band, 5.85x10-21 cm2. and of every single band component distinguishing between CH2 and CH3 bonds behavior under irradiation. In presence of mineral simulant, the degradation rate of aliphatic compounds extrapolated to the estimated UV flux at the surface of Ceres gives a half-lifetime of 215 days. This result coupled with resurfacing process time scale of million years could justify the absence of detectable organics on most of the Ceres’ surface. However, this result would not be able to explain the presence of organics in the organic-rich area in Ernutet crater. Furthermore, as can be seen from Fig. 3, UV radiation not only degrades the CH bonds but also affects the NH bonds present in the ammoniated silicates. In this latter case the degradation cross section for the whole band is 2.05x10-21 cm2 which is responsible of a less effective photodegradation process giving a degradation half-lifetime of about 613 days. This result also seems to be in contrast with the ubiquity of the presence of ammoniated silicates on Ceres. We have to recall that the experiments reported in this work have been done at room temperature. It is not excluded that photoprocessing at cryogenic temperature typical of Ceres surface can be less effective further reducing the degradation cross sections of CH and NH bonds. Discussion: As showed by VIR, the ammoniated band is ubiquitous on Ceres, which is in contrast with the fact that we expected the ammoniated band to be completely degraded. However, photodegradation acts on the first molecular layers of the surface exposed to the radiation. Furthermore, the visible and near infrared spectra detected by VIR are diffused by the first millimeters of the surface at a depth that cannot be affected by UV radiation. Therefore, the spectra are a combination of processed superficial material and underlying layers of the Ceres surface, which may retain the primitive characteristics of material rich in organic. However, it should be noted that in addition to UV, the surface is constantly bombarded by solar energetic particles (SEP) and galactic cosmic rays (GCR). This radiation also has the effect of breaking chemical bonds such as UV photons, but penetrating meters into the surface can alter deeper layers. These results suggest that there must be a resurfacing mechanism able to expose organic rich material that acts on a much shorter time scale than the geological one. Fig. 3 Diffuse reflectance spectra of the simulant as prepared (0 s) and after UV irradiation at 180, 2280, and 21180 s. Acknowledgements: This work is supported by INAF Main Stream program, grant “Evolution and alteration of organic material on Ceres”. References: [1] De Sanctis et al., 2016, Nature 536, 54–57 [2] Marchi et al., 2019, Nature Astr. 3, 140-145 [3] De Sanctis et al., 2011, Space Science Reviews 163, 329-369. [4] De Sanctis et al., 2017, Science 355, 719-722 [5] Pieters et al., 2018, Meteoritics and Planetary Science 53 (9), 1983-1998 [6] De Sanctis et al., 2019, MNRAS 482 (2), 2407–2421

The decarbonization of the construction sector, which is one of the most impactful sectors worldwide, requires a significant paradigm shift from a linear economy to a circular, future-proofed and sustainable economy. In this transition, the role of designers and structural engineers becomes pivotal, and new design objectives and principles inspired by Life Cycle Thinking (LCT) should be defined and included from the early stages of the design process to allow for a truly sustainable renovation of the built environment. In this paper, an overview of LCT-based objectives and principles is provided, critically analyzing the current state of the art of sustainability and circularity in the construction sector. The effectiveness of applying such design principles from the early stages of the design of retrofit interventions is then demonstrated with reference to a case study building. Four seismic retrofit alternatives made of timber, steel and concrete, conceived according to either LCT principles or traditional, were designed and compared to a demolition and reconstruction scenario on the basis of five common environmental impact indicators. The indicators were calculated adopting simplified LCA analyses based on Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), considering the product and End of Life stages of the building. The results of the comparative analyses confirm that LCT-based retrofit solutions are less impactful than both the traditional seismic retrofit interventions and the demolition and reconstruction scenario.

The origin of organic compounds detected in meteorites and comets, some of which could serve as precursors of life on Earth, still remains an open question. The aim of the present study is to make one more step in revealing the nature and composition of organic materials of extraterrestrial particles by comparing infrared spectra of laboratory-made refractory organic residues to the spectra of cometary particles returned by the Stardust mission, interplanetary dust particles, and meteorites. Our results reinforce the idea of a pathway for the formation of refractory organics through energetic and thermal processing of molecular ices in the solar nebula. There is also the possibility that some of the organic material formed already in the parental molecular cloud before it entered the solar nebula. The majority of the IR "organic" bands of the studied extraterrestrial particles can be reproduced in the spectra of the laboratory organic residues. We confirm the detection of water, nitriles, hydrocarbons, and carbonates in extraterrestrial particles and link it to the formation location of the particles in the outer regions of the solar nebula. To clarify the genesis of the species, high-sensitivity observations in combination with laboratory measurements like those presented in this paper are needed. Thus, this study presents one more piece of the puzzle of the origin of water and organic compounds on Earth and motivation for future collaborative laboratory and observational projects., accepted for publication in ApJ

The embodied impacts calculation is increasing attention in research, and the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is the most widely recognised method for that purpose. To support architects and engineers in the use of LCA and to overcome the complexity of calculations in design stage practice, different frameworks for assessing building sustainability propose to conduct simplified LCA methods. Nevertheless, LCA implementation in these frameworks is not completely harmonised, causing problems of inaccuracy and incomplete assessments that generate incomparability among case studies and even possible deviations to achieve carbonneutral scenarios. There, the system boundary definition is a key step. The present paper aimed to illustrate its implications, analysing the implementation of the LCA in a building envelope of a certified passive house located in Italy. Two building sustainability frameworks, DGNB and Level(s), are used to identify how the system boundary definition influences the impact assessment results. The study keeps LCA methodological assumptions (data sources, impact categories, characterisation methods, and indicators) constant to allow a comparison focused on the system boundary implications (such as the modularity principle of LCA). The results show the margins and reduction percentages that can be achieved by the two different assessment frameworks. Finally, limitations and challenges related to methodological aspects in the use of simplified LCA to calculate the impacts of a Passive House building are addressed.

Summary Ceres is the largest object in the Solar System main belt. Clearly, Ceres experienced extensive water-related processes and geochemical differentiation and nowadays it is a body with a complex geological and chemical history [1]. Its surface is characterized by dark materials, phyllosilicates, ammonium-bearing minerals, carbonates, water ice, and salts. In addition to a global presence of carbon bearing chemistry, local concentration of aliphatic organics has been detected by Dawn [2]. In this context, we have started a series of laboratory spectroscopy measurements targeted to study the physicochemical interactions between organic material and minerals possibly present on Ceres. The goal is to understand the transformations induced on these samples by ultraviolet radiation, neutral atoms, and fast ions, under experimental conditions that simulate the environment of Ceres. The spectroscopic data obtained in laboratory experiments allow, through the comparison with the observations of the VIR spectrometer aboard the Dawn mission, to clarify the nature and origin of organic material identified on Ceres. Introduction Organic material in the minor bodies of the Solar System is an important component to understand planetary evolution and, eventually, the origin of life. Nevertheless, our knowledge on the subject is still limited. Recently the Dawn mission, thanks to the data collected by the Italian instrument VIR [3], showed clear evidence of a high amount of aliphatic organic material on the surface of Ceres [4, 5, 6] (Fig 1). This evidence has raised new questions about the origin and preservation of this material, especially when considering its high estimated abundance and the mineralogical context. Fig 1 Ceres spectra of the organic-rich area in Ernutet crater (label “Organics”); of a background organic-poor area from a region southeast of Ernutet (label “Background”); and of Occator bright material (label “Carbonate”) [4]. In order to understand the organic chemical species and in particular their abundance on Ceres, laboratory studies were performed [7]. The importance of having a direct comparison between laboratory and remote sensing data can provide a further investigation clues to shed light on the origin and evolution of Ceres. Through this project, we intend to study, through dedicated experiments, the interaction between minerals, water, and organic concerning the environmental conditions of Ceres. Making a synergistic use of complementary and indispensable skills present within INAF (Italian National Institute of Astrophysics) laboratories we investigated a complex issue such as that concerning the origin and preservation of organic molecules on planetary surfaces. Within INAF, complementary and unique realities coexist which, thanks to joint and coordinated work, can give a new interpretation of the physical-chemical processes active on Ceres. Project development and results In this study, we prepare mixtures of materials resembling the Ceres surface composition [8, 9] adding organic molecules in order to: (i) understand how organic molecules behave and eventually degrade on Ceres, in particular, how aliphatic molecules degrade by energetic processing with fast ions (keV-MeV) and UV photons [10, 11]. Moreover, the physico-chemical properties of the materials exposed to a flux of neutral atoms are investigated [12, 13]. (ii) evaluate the interaction between ammoniated minerals and simple organic molecules that may lead to the synthesis of complex compounds. In the presence of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, these minerals present on the surface of Ceres can show photocatalytic effects accelerating the photo-reactions, which generally destroy the original organic molecule and in the synthesis of new complex organic molecules [14]. (iii) evaluate the role of minerals in the protection or degradation of organic compounds. Some studies indicated a fundamental role of clays in the catalysis and preservation of organic materials [15]. Ceres is rich in clays and other hydrated minerals, making the interactions with the observed organics of particular interest. The project is carried out by several INAF institutes and laboratories. In detail: INAF-IAPS Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali prepared the analog mineral mixtures taking into account the compositional information gained by VIR observations. INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri subsequently doped the mixture with several organic investigating UV photostability in Ceres analog conditions and the influence of temperature. INAF -Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte studied irradiation with atoms and temperature effect while INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania performed irradiation with fast ions. Finally, results of laboratory measurements were compared with data obtained by VIR instrument onboard Dawn mission. AcknowledgementsThis work is support by INAF Main Stream programme, grant 1.05.01.86.08 Evoluzione ed alterazione del materiale organico su Cerere (ref. Maria Cristina De Sanctis). References [1] De Sanctis et al., 2016, Nature 536, 54–57 [2] Marchi et al., Nature Astr., 2019 [3] De Sanctis et al., 2011, Space Science Reviews 163, 329-369. [4] De Sanctis et al., science 2017 355, 719 [5] Pieters et al., 2018, Meteoritics and Planetary Science 53 (9), 1983-1998 [6] De Sanctis et al., 2019, 482 (2), 2407–2421 [7] Vinogradoff et al., 2021 [8] Ferrari et al., 2019, Icarus 321, 522-530 [9]De Angelis et al., 2021 JGR Planets doi: 10.1029/2020JE006696 [10] Baratta et al. 2002, A&A, 384, 343-349 [11] Brucato et al. 2006, A&A, 455, 395-399 [12] Mennella et al. 2003, ApJ, 587, 727-738 [13] Palumbo et al 2004, Ad. Sp. Res., 33, 49-56 [14] Fornaro et al. 2013, Icarus, 226(1), 1068–1085 [15] Fornaro et al 2018, Astrobiology, 18, 989-1007

International audience; We describe the results obtained on a set of organic samples that have been part of the experiment "Photochemistry on the Space Station (PSS)" on the EXPOSE-R2 mission conducted on the EXPOSE-R facility situated outside the International Space Station (ISS). The organic samples were prepared in the Catania laboratory by 200 keV He+ irradiation of N2:CH4:CO icy mixtures deposited at 17 K, on vacuum UV (VUV) transparent MgF2 windows. This organic material contains different chemical groups, including triple CN bonds, that are thought to be of interest for astrobiology. It is widely accepted that materials similar to that produced in the laboratory by ion irradiation of frozen ices could be present in some astrophysical environments such as comets. Once expelled from comets, these materials are exposed to solar radiation during their interplanetary journey. In the young Solar System, some of these processed materials could have reached early Earth and contributed to its chemical and prebiotic evolution. The samples were exposed for 16 months to the unshielded solar UV photons. It was found that, if an interplanetary dust particle (IDP) containing organic material (50% vol) is large enough (>20-30 μm), relevant chemical groups, such as those containing the CN triple bond, can survive for many years (>104 years) in the interplanetary medium.

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is expected to be launched in 2021. The JWST’s science instruments will provide high quality spectra acquired in the line of sight to young stellar objects whose interpretation will require a robust database of laboratory data. With this in mind, an experimental work is in progress in the Laboratory for Experimental Astrophysics in Catania to study the profile (shape, width, and peak position) of the main infrared bands of molecular species expected to be present in icy grain mantles. Our study also takes into account the modifications induced on icy samples by low-energy cosmic ray bombardment and by thermal processing. Here we present some recent results on deuterium hydrogen monoxide (HDO), N-bearing species, and carbon dioxide (CO2).

Sustainability 13(11), 6143 (2021). doi:10.3390/su13116143 special issue: "Special Issue "Sustainable Construction and Interior Comfort" / Special Issue Editors: Prof. Dr. Ana Teresa Vaz Ferreira, Guest Editor ; Dr. Pedro Miguel Vaz Ferreira, Guest Editor ; Prof. Dr. Marco D’Orazio, Guest Editor", Published by MDPI, Basel

The simultaneous detection of organic molecules of the form C$_2$H$_{\text{n}}$O, such as ketene (CH$_2$CO), acetaldehyde (CH$_3$CHO), and ethanol (CH$_3$CH$_2$OH), toward early star-forming regions offers hints of shared chemical history. Several reaction routes have been proposed and experimentally verified under various interstellar conditions to explain the formation pathways involved. Most noticeably, the non-energetic processing of C$_2$H$_2$ ice with OH-radicals and H-atoms was shown to provide formation routes to ketene, acetaldehyde, ethanol, and vinyl alcohol (CH$_2$CHOH) along the H$_2$O formation sequence on grain surfaces. In this work, the non-energetic formation scheme is extended with laboratory measurements focusing on the energetic counterpart, induced by cosmic rays penetrating the H$_2$O-rich ice mantle. The focus here is on the H$^+$ radiolysis of interstellar C$_2$H$_2$:H$_2$O ice analogs at 17 K. Ultra-high vacuum experiments were performed to investigate the 200 keV H$^+$ radiolysis chemistry of predeposited C$_2$H$_2$:H$_2$O ices, both as mixed and layered geometries. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor in situ newly formed species as a function of the accumulated energy dose (or H$^+$ fluence). The infrared (IR) spectral assignments are further confirmed in isotope labeling experiments using H$_2$$^{18}$O. The energetic processing of C$_2$H$_2$:H$_2$O ice not only results in the formation of (semi-) saturated hydrocarbons (C$_2$H$_4$ and C$_2$H$_6$) and polyynes as well as cumulenes (C$_4$H$_2$ and C$_4$H$_4$), but it also efficiently forms O-bearing COMs, including vinyl alcohol, ketene, acetaldehyde, and ethanol, for which the reaction cross-section and product composition are derived. A clear composition transition of the product, from H-poor to H-rich species, is observed as a function of the accumulated energy dose., Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables

Ceramic facing bricks are construction materials used to produce an attractive aspect to building walls and provide protection from external exposure. The purpose of this research is twofold: first, to conduct a comparative cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate environmental impacts of manufacturing options available for obtaining different colours and appearance of facing bricks, and second, basing on LCA results, to examine recent literature and environmental product declaration (EPD) items (ISO 14025:2006) to verify if current EU best available techniques (BATs) in ceramic manufacturing industry that are dated 2007 are still relevant today, especially in the light of current technological progresses. The considered manufacturing options are necessary to obtain three different final appearances of the facing brick. In the first option, the brick is left in its natural colour. The second and third options include the applications of two type of coatings, which are the engobing and the glazing solutions. The analysis of life cycle stages was performed according to the cradle-to-gate approach (ISO 14040:2006b UNI EN ISO 14040:2006—environmental management-life cycle assessment-principles and framework; ISO 14044:(2006c) ISO 14044:2006/Amd 1:2017 environmental management-life cycle assessment-requirements and guidelines-amendment 1/Amd 1:2017). The software tool used is SimaPro® version 9.0.0.31, and inventories are based on ecoinvent v.3.5. LCA was performed basing on ceramic BATs and literature data, assuming the German energy mix. The consistency of results and the evaluation of ceramic BATs were discussed on the basis of a comparison of results with recent LCA studies and application of sensitivity analysis. One of the results of this study is that coating options entail significant environmental impacts. As instance, the application of both engobe and glaze coatings increases the global warming potential (GWP) up to 7.2% and human toxicity (HT) up to 143.1%. Finally, results confirm the importance of implementing existing saving technologies for the firing stage, being the main contributor to climate change among production activities. Moreover, environmental impacts that have been obtained assessing the product life cycle with BATs are generally higher if compared with current literature, in a range up to + 240%. In conformity with ISO standards, this LCA analyses the potential environmental impacts of facing bricks, considering three manufacturing options. The evidences provided by this study demonstrate the importance to include coating materials in LCA studies involving facing bricks. Finally, results let the authors to conclude that a revision of BATs is necessary in order to update technology requirements that are contained in the document to the current state of the art.

The construction sector plays an important role in moving towards a low-carbon economy. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is considered one of the most effective methods of analytically evaluating environmental profiles and an efficient tool for calculating the environmental impacts in building design-oriented methodologies, such as building information modelling (BIM). At early design stages, generic LCA databases are used to conduct the life cycle inventory (LCI), while detailed stages require more detailed data, such as environmental product declarations (EPDs), namely documents that provide accurate results and precise analyses based on LCA. Limitations are recognized when using EPDs in BIM elements at different levels of development (LOD) in the design stages, especially related to the data consistency and system boundaries of the LCA. This paper presents a method of achieving accurate LCA results, that helps with decision-making and provides support in the selection of building products and materials. The method is validated by its application in the structural concrete of an office building located in Germany. The method defines a safety factor adopted for embodied impacts (&ldquo, cradle-to-gate&rdquo, ), based on EPD results to predict the environmental impact of BIM elements at different LODs. The results obtained show that by integrating the method to conduct the LCA, the range of errors and possible inconsistencies in the LCA results can be reduced.

More than 70% of the European population live in cities, which are affected by several critical issues, such as the depletion of energy and material resources, decreasing of food security, increasing of greenhouse gas emissions levels with relevant environmental impacts and management issues (e.g. waste treatment). Urban areas emit about 80% of the global CO2 emissions and they are responsible for about 80% of global energy consumption. Therefore, cities offer a possible action field for decisive local initiatives to address sustainability challenges, especially in terms of policy and societal actions, inspiring specific projects, which could be translated into more systematic programs at higher levels of governance. In order to mitigate climate change effects, the European energy policy is focused on buildings’ energy efficiency due to its substantial savings’ potential. This paper describes the integrated design approach developed by the Research Unit of the Department of Architecture of the University of Bologna, (RU) with the aim to identify scenarios of resilient actions for renovating existing buildings and districts, as well as for framing effective refurbishment design criteria at district level. This integrated approach combines energy efficient solutions and technologies, which have positive and sustainable impact on the environment with customer oriented strategies in order to ensure gains and customers’ expectations and requirements at the same time. The paper highlights: the link between mitigation strategies and the built environment; the application of the proposed Integrated Design Approach (IDA) inside the real context of Bolognina neighbourhood (Bologna, IT); the link between life cycle assessment (LCA), mitigation measures and IDA; analysis of results, impacts and potentialities of replication.

Optimized Ge-rich Ge x Sb y Te z materials with improved crystallization temperature have been proven to guarantee code integrity after soldering thermal profile and data retention in extended temperature range for automotive application. Together with higher crystallization temperature, these materials show also peculiar characteristics of the crystalline state with respect to conventional GST (Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 ). In particular integrated memory cell shows a very high virgin resistance and needs an electrical activation as last operation of the fabrication process. In this paper we investigate for the first time the role of this electrical activation we named forming operation. In particular we show that the level of the maximum current flowing into the cell at the first electrical activation ( forming level ) has an impact on cell programmability. An explanation of this behavior based on physical analysis is provided suggesting that it is related to the modulation of cell thermal efficiency. Finally it is shown how forming level can be used in order to optimize cell reliability with respect to requested specifications for high temperature data retention (HTDR) and endurance.

Water ice exists on many objects in space. The most abundant icy species, among them water, are present in the icy satellites of the outer Solar System giant planets. The nuclei of comets, which are mainly composed of water ice, give another example of its abundance. In the interstellar medium (ISM), ice mantles, formed by molecular species sticking on dust grains, consist mainly of water ice. All these objects are exposed to ionizing radiation like ions, UV photons, and electrons. Sputtering of atoms, molecules, ions, and radicals from icy surfaces may populate and maintain exospheres of icy objects in the Solar System. In other respects, ionized hydrides such as OH+, H2O+, and H3O+ have been detected in the gas phase in star-forming regions. Interactions with cosmic rays could be an additional explanation to the current models for the formation of those species. In fact, laboratory simulations showed that the main components of the sputtered ionic species from water ice are oxygen hydrides. In this work, water ice targets were irradiated at several temperatures (10-200 K) by 90 keV O6+ ions, yielding an electronic stopping power of about 12 eV/A, when the nuclear stopping power is comparable to the electronic stopping power. Sputtering of secondary ions after bombardment of the ice target was analyzed by time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS). Besides hydrogen ions (H+, H2+, H3+), also O+, O2+, OH+, (H2O)+, and clusters of (H2O)nH+ with n = 1-8 are emitted. Our results show a progressive yield decrease with increasing temperature of all of the detected species. This is related to the structure of the ice: the ionic sputtering yield for crystalline ice is much lower than for an amorphous ice. For instance, amorphous ice at 10 K exhibits a yield of the order of 2 × 10-6 secondary (H2O)nH+ hydride ions/projectile (with n = 1-8). As the temperature is increasing toward the phase transition to crystalline ice, the yields decrease by about one order of magnitude.

Context. Reliable, directly measured optical properties of astrophysical ice analogues in the infrared and terahertz (THz) range are missing from the literature. These parameters are of great importance to model the dust continuum radiative transfer in dense and cold regions, where thick ice mantles are present, and are necessary for the interpretation of future observations planned in the far-infrared region. Aims: Coherent THz radiation allows for direct measurement of the complex dielectric function (refractive index) of astrophysically relevant ice species in the THz range. Methods: We recorded the time-domain waveforms and the frequency-domain spectra of reference samples of CO ice, deposited at a temperature of 28.5 K and annealed to 33 K at different thicknesses. We developed a new algorithm to reconstruct the real and imaginary parts of the refractive index from the time-domain THz data. Results: The complex refractive index in the wavelength range 1 mm-150 μm (0.3-2.0 THz) was determined for the studied ice samples, and this index was compared with available data found in the literature. Conclusions: The developed algorithm of reconstructing the real and imaginary parts of the refractive index from the time-domain THz data enables us, for the first time, to determine the optical properties of astrophysical ice analogues without using the Kramers-Kronig relations. The obtained data provide a benchmark to interpret the observational data from current ground-based facilities as well as future space telescope missions, and we used these data to estimate the opacities of the dust grains in presence of CO ice mantles. The data plotted in Fig. 6 are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/cat/J/A+A/629/A112

Context. C2O and C3O belong to the carbon chain oxides family. Both molecules have been detected in the gas phase towards several star-forming regions, and to explain the observed abundances, ion-molecule gas-phase reactions have been invoked. On the other hand, laboratory experiments have shown that carbon chain oxides are formed after energetic processing of CO-rich solid mixtures. Therefore, it has been proposed that they are formed in the solid phase in dense molecular clouds after cosmic ion irradiation of CO-rich icy grain mantles and released in the gas phase after their desorption. Aims. In this work, we contribute to the understanding of the role of both gas-phase reactions and energetic processing in the formation of simple carbon chain oxides that have been searched for in various low-mass star-forming regions. Methods. We present observations obtained with the Noto-32m and IRAM-30 m telescopes towards star-forming regions. We compare these with the results of a gas-phase model that simulates C2O and C3O formation and destruction, and laboratory experiments in which both molecules are produced after energetic processing (with 200 keV protons) of icy grain mantle analogues. Results. New detections of both molecules towards L1544, L1498, and Elias 18 are reported. The adopted gas phase model is not able to reproduce the observed C2O/C3O ratios, while laboratory experiments show that the ion bombardment of CO-rich mixtures produces C2O/C3O ratios that agree with the observed values. Conclusions. Based on the results obtained here, we conclude that the synthesis of both species is due to the energetic processing of CO-rich icy grain mantles. Their subsequent desorption because of non-thermal processes allows the detection in the gas-phase of young star-forming regions. In more evolved objects, the non-detection of both C2O and C3O is due to their fast destruction in the warm gas.

This work presents an optimized model for resistance evolution in PCM cells with Ge-rich GeSbTe (GST) alloy as active material. Unlike conventional Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 , the low-resistance (set) state of Ge-rich GST shows a resistance drift to high resistance R, similar to the high resistance (reset) state, which could be a potential risk for data reliability. We develop a Monte Carlo (MC) model which predicts the time evolution of R at the statistical level of a memory array at various temperature T. The model is validated against variable temperature annealing, such as the soldering profile in embedded PCM, supporting the good reliability of Ge-rich GST at high T.

Transition towards a net zero carbon built environment : SBE19 Graz : Sustainable Built Environment D-A-CH Conference 2019 : 11-14 September 2019, Graz University of Technology, Graz, Austria : conference proceedings / in cooperation with University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna; ETH Zürich; KIT, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology ; editors: Alexander Passer (Graz University of Technology), Thomas Lützkendorf (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology), Guillaume Habert (ETH Zürich), Helga Kromp-Kolb (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna), Michael Monsberger (Graz University of Technology) Sustainable Built Environment D-A-CH Conference, SBE19, Graz, Austria, 11 Sep 2019 - 14 Sep 2019; London [u.a.] : Institute of Physics, IOP conference series. Earth and environmental science 323, 012095, 1-12 (2019). doi:10.1088/1755-1315/323/1/012095, Published by Institute of Physics, London [u.a.]

We present a novel experimental study on solid CH2DOH pure and in astrophysical relevant mixtures. Solid samples were accreted under ultra high vacuum conditions at 17 K and were analyzed by mid-infrared transmission spectroscopy. Refractive index, density, and mid-IR band strength values were measured for pure solid CH2DOH. The refractive index was also measured for CH2DOH:H2O, CH2DOH:CO, and CH2DOH:CH3OH mixtures. For all samples, the thermal evolution of the main band profile was studied. We used the interference laser technique (He Ne laser, λ = 543.5 nm) to measure the samples thickness and a numerical method to measure the refractive index starting from the amplitude of the interference curve. We obtained the ice density through the Lorentz-Lorenz relation. To calculate the band strength values we used the linear fit of the integrated band intensities with respect to the column densities. Samples deposited at 17 K were warmed up to their sublimation temperature. Spectra were taken at selected temperatures to study their thermal evolution. The results are discussed in view of their relevance for the interpretation of astronomical IR spectra.

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3) is known to suppress NF-kB activity by interfering with its pathways. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of 1,25(OH)2D3 in reducing the reactivation of the HIV virus J-LAT cells, an established model of latently infected cells, which were treated with TNFalpha (100 ng/ml) for 2 h with or without 24 h 1,25(OH)2D3 (100 nM) pretreatment. Reactivation of HIV RNA in J-LAT was evaluated in terms of green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression. The same experimental setting was repeated on T cells from HIV-infected patients. Treatment with TNFalpha was associated with a 16 % increase in GFP+ cells and a five-fold increase in unspliced HIV RNA expression (p

Astronomical observations towards star-forming regions have revealed the presence of molecules with the N-O bond such as NO, N2O, and HNO. These species are considered potential precursors of prebiotic molecules. Thus, understanding nitrogen and oxygen chemistry may help us to better understand the origin and evolution of prebiotic molecules in space. However, species with the N-O bond are poorly studied and laboratory works on the effects induced on them by solar wind and galactic cosmic rays are still scarce. For this, we wanted to study the effects of ion bombardment on molecules with the N-O bond. We focus here on N2O ices and NO2:N2O4 = 1:1 ice mixtures (at 16 and 50/60 K) irradiated with 200 keV protons. Infrared transmission spectroscopy (8000-500 cm-1; 1.25-20 μm) was used to analyse the samples. Irradiation of N2O ices and NO2:N2O4 ice mixtures produces comparable effects independent of the irradiation temperature, NO being the main product. Moreover, we show that the maximum amount of N2O and N2O4 destroyed by irradiation, at the highest dose reached in our experiments, is equal to about 98 and 70 {{ per cent}}, respectively. The dose range covered in the experiments has been compared with the astrophysical time-scale of surface processing in space, showing that irradiation of N2O and NO2:N2O4 mixtures can produce, within 105-108 yr, amounts of solid NO ice detectable towards star-forming regions by the James Webb Space Telescope.

The comparison between astronomical spectra and laboratory experiments is fundamental to spread light on the structure and composition of ices found in interstellar dense molecular clouds and in Solar system bodies. Water is among the most abundant solid-phase species observed in these environments, and several attempts have been made to investigate the presence of its solid-phase isotopologues. In particular, the detection of the O-D stretching mode band at 4.1 μm due to both D2O and HDO within icy grain mantles is still under debate, and no detection has been reported about the presence of these species within icy bodies in the Solar system yet. In the near future, an important contribution could derive from the data acquired in the O-D stretching mode spectral range by the sensitive instruments on board the James Webb Space Telescope. With this in mind, we performed several laboratory experiments to study the O-D stretching mode band in solid mixtures containing water and deuterated water deposited in the temperature range between 17 and 155 K, in order to simulate astrophysical relevant conditions. Furthermore, samples have been studied at various temperature and irradiated with energetic ions (200 keV H^+) in order to study the effects induced by both thermal and energetic processing. Our results provide some constraints on the detection of the 4.1 μm band in astronomical environments.

Icy grain mantles are the main reservoir for volatile elements in star-forming regions across the Universe, as well as the formation site of pre-biotic complex organic molecules (COMs) seen in our Solar System. Through the IceAge Early Release Science program, we will trace the evolution of pristine and complex ice chemistry in a representative low-mass star-forming region through observations of a: pre-stellar core, Class 0 protostar, Class I protostar, and protoplanetary disk. Comparing high spectral resolution (R~1500-3000) and sensitivity (S/N~100-300) observations from 3 to 15 micron to template spectra, we will map the spatial distribution of ices down to ~20-50 AU in these targets to identify when, and at what visual extinction, the formation of each ice species begins. Such high-resolution spectra will allow us to search for new COMs, as well as distinguish between different ice morphologies, thermal histories, and mixing environments.The analysis of these data will result in science products beneficial to Cycle 2 proposers. A newly updated public laboratory ice database will provide feature identifications for all of the expected ices, while a chemical model fit to the observed ice abundances will be released publically as a grid, with varied metallicity and UV fields to simulate other environments. We will create improved algorithms to extract NIRCAM WFSS spectra in crowded fields with extended sources as well as optimize the defringing of MIRI LRS spectra in order to recover broad spectral features. We anticipate that these resources will be particularly useful for astrochemistry and spectroscopy of fainter, extended targets like star forming regions of the SMC/LMC or more distant galaxies.

Context. Multi-year laboratory experiments have demonstrated that frozen icy mixtures containing simple organic and inorganic molecules (such as H2O, N2, CH4, CO, CO2, C2H6, etc.), if exposed to a flux of energetic ions or UV photons, give rise to new more complex molecules at low temperatures (10–50 K). A fraction of the new synthesized molecules is volatile while the remaining fraction is refractory and therefore it is preserved after the warm-up of the substrate to room temperature. Moreover, a part of the refractory material is formed during the annealing to room temperature, when molecules and radicals into the processed ice become mobile and react to form non-volatile molecules. By means of similar mechanisms, complex organic materials may be formed on the icy surfaces of some objects in the outer solar system, such as trans-Neptunian objects, comets and some satellites of the giant planets: in fact the interaction with solar wind and solar flares ions, solar photons and galactic cosmic rays could produce more refractory materials, analogous to those produced in the laboratory. In some cases, the materials thus synthesized may contain functional groups considered relevant to the pre-biotic chemistry in the hypothesis that interplanetary dust particles, comets and meteoroids contributed to seed the early Earth with the building blocks of life. Aims. The aim of this work is to investigate the chemical similarities and differences between some organic residues left over after ion bombardment (200 keV H+) of different ice mixtures followed by subsequent warm up under vacuum to room temperature. Methods. Seven organic residues have been prepared in our laboratory following a procedure involving the proton irradiation of seven different icy mixtures and their warm-up to room temperature. All the organic samples were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy with measurements performed in situ, in the ultra-high vacuum condition preventing any sample degradation. Three of them were selected to be characterized by XPS spectroscopy as well. Results. Among the organic residues presented in this paper, only those containing nitrogen and carbon exhibit the multi-component band centred at 2200 cm−1. This multi-component band presents interest from the astrobiological point of view due to its attribution to nitriles (–C≡N) and isonitriles (–N≡C). Our results demonstrate that this band is present in the IR spectra of organic nitrogen residues regardless the use of oxygen-bearing species in the icy mixture. This finding is of interest since the 2200 cm−1 band has been observed in some extraterrestrial samples (micro-meteorites) collected in the Antarctica.

HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders are common in HIV-infected individuals, even in the combination antiretroviral therapy (c-ART) era. Several mechanisms are involved in neuronal damage, including chronic inflammation immune activation. Mammalian 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase (OAS) genes are produced in response to interferon (IFN), mainly by monocytes, and exert their antiviral functions by activation of RNase L that degrades viral and cellular RNAs. In this study, we aimed at exploring OAS gene family RNA expression in simian immunodeficiency virus encephalitis (SIVE), in HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND), and in HIV-associate dementia (HAD). We analyzed three microarray datasets obtained from the NCBI in order to assess the expression levels of OAS gene family network in brain biopsies of macaques with SIVE vs uninfected animals, as well as post-mortem brain of individuals with HAND (on or off ART) vs uninfected controls and three brain regions of HIV-infected individuals with both neurocognitive impairment (HAD) and encephalitis (HIVE). All OAS genes were upregulated both in SIVE and in HAND. OAS expression was significantly higher in high-viremic individuals; increased expression levels persisted in cART subjects when compared to healthy controls. OAS gene network analysis showed that several genes belonging to the type I IFN pathway, especially CXCL10 and IFIT3, were similarly upregulated in SIVE/HAND. Furthermore, we identified a significant upregulation of OAS gene family RNA expression in basal ganglia, white matter, and frontal cortex of HIV-1, HAD, and HAD/HIVE patients compared to healthy subjects. OAS gene family expression is increased in brain sections from individuals with HAND, HAD, and HIVE as well as macaques with SIVE. OAS family expression is likely to be induced by IFN as a consequence of viral replication in the CNS. Its long-term upregulation may contribute to the chronic inflammatory status and neurocognitive impairment we still observe in virologically suppressed individuals on c-ART.

Phase Change Memory technology can be a real breakthrough for process cost saving and performances for embedded applications. The feasibility at 90 nm technology node has been solidly proven in an industrial environment and the added value of this solution demonstrated. Nevertheless, for specific applications some improvement in High Temperature Data Retention (HTDR) characteristics is needed. In this work we present the engineering of chalcogenide materials in order to increase the stability of RESET state as a function of temperature. This goal has been achieved by exploring Ge-rich compounds in the Ge–Sb–Te ternary diagram. In particular, an optimized Ge x Sb y Te z Phase Change material, able to guarantee code integrity of the memory content after soldering thermal profile and data retention in extended temperature range has been obtained. Extrapolation of data retention at 10 years for temperatures higher than 150 °C cell-level has been demonstrated, thus enabling automotive applications.

Sulfur appears to be depleted by an order of magnitude or more from its elemental abundance in star-forming regions. In the last few years, numerous observations and experiments have been performed in order to to understand the reasons behind this depletion without providing a satisfactory explanation of the sulfur chemistry towards high-mass star-forming cores. Several sulfur-bearing molecules have been observed in these regions, and yet none are abundant enough to make up the gas-phase deficit. Where, then, does this hidden sulfur reside? This paper represents a step forward in our understanding of the interactions among the various S-bearing species. We have incorporated recent experimental and theoretical data into a chemical model of a hot molecular core in order to see whether they give any indication of the identity of the sulfur sink in these dense regions. Despite our model producing reasonable agreement with both solid-phase and gas-phase abundances of many sulfur-bearing species, we find that the sulfur residue detected in recent experiments takes up only ~6 per cent of the available sulfur in our simulations, rather than dominating the sulfur budget., Comment: 13 pages, 6 colourful figures, accepted by MNRAS