RISE – Research Institutes of Sweden
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In-situ X-ray analysis of cold alkali dissolution of cellulose pulps of various origin
No full textThis article elucidates the dissolution of cellulose from different raw materials in NaOH aqueous solution via the combination of synchrotron-radiation-based SAXS/WAXS characterization. The X-ray measurements probed the mesostructure of the cellulose samples during the freeze-thawing cycle allowing tracking the initial swelling of the structure, the kinetics of disintegration of the cellulose crystallites as well as controlling the final state of the cellulose solution, i.e. presence or absence of cellulose aggregates. The individual SAXS and WAXS measurements were fitted and modelled to enable visualisation and tracking of the changes in the structure in relation to temperature during cooling and warming phases. To further increase the understanding of the parameters affecting dissolution different cellulose samples and solution compositions were considered. For this purpose the effect of increasing the concentration of NaOH and adding Zn2+ has been carefully investigated as well as the importance of the cellulose origin. We found consistent development that the dissolution occurs faster at higher concentrations of NaOH and with Zn2+ regardless the origin. Nevertheless, SAXS data show that materials with a larger amount of cellulose I show more apparent swelling in mesoscopic structure than bleached agricultural containing cellulose II. Despite few crystalline residues after the complete cooling-heating cycle shown by WAXS, some cellulose was not completely dissolved as some network structure remained in the samples under the test condition as suggested by SAXS. © The Author(s) 2024. Open access funding provided by RISE Research Institutes of Sweden. This project was fnanced by Vinnova (2021-03829) and the Industrial Graduate School Resourcesmart Processes under Bioinnovation (2021–0923).</p
Vallbaserade produkter för enkelmagade djur – ett steg närmare kommersialisering
No full textDetta projekt har genomförts av RISE tillsammans med Naturbruksförvaltningen i Västra Götalandsregionen (VGR), Hilmér Lantbruk samt Lantmännen.</p
Isnavigering med crowd sourcad radardata – en förstudie
No full textDenna rapport, framtagen av RISE Maritim i samarbete med Chalmers, undersöker möjligheterna att förbättra säkerheten och effektiviteten inom vintersjöfart genom att använda crowd-sourcad/kollektiva radardata och satellitbaserad radar (SAR). Förstudien adresserar de utmaningar som uppstår vid navigation i istäckta vatten, med fokus på taktisk och strategisk isnavigering. Rapporten beskriver hur insamling och fusion av data från fartygsradar och satelliter kan bidra till en gemensam, realtidsuppdaterad lägesbild. Genom att kombinera dessa datakällor kan sjöfarten få tillgång till detaljerad information om isförhållanden, såsom isdrift, råkar och isvallar, vilket stöder bättre beslutsfattande och effektivare ruttplanering. Förtudien omfattar ombordintervjuer med isbrytare, analyser av radardata och tester av tekniska koncept. Resultaten visar att delning av radardata mellan fartyg och isbrytare kan minska bränsleförbrukning, förbättra samordningen och öka tillgängligheten för isbrytarassistans. Rapporten belyser även tekniska och organisatoriska utmaningar, såsom standardisering av radarinställningar, cybersäkerhet och behovet av robusta API:er för datadelning. Slutligen presenteras en vision för ett framtida stödsystem där data från olika källor integreras och tillgängliggörs via elektroniska navigationssystem. Detta system skulle kunna revolutionera vintersjöfarten genom att öka säkerheten, minska miljöpåverkan och stärka samarbetet mellan olika aktörer inom sjöfartssektorn
Sustainable and Low-Cost Electrodes for Photocatalytic Fuel Cells
No full textWater pollutants harm ecosystems and degrade water quality. At the same time, many pollutants carry potentially valuable chemical energy, measured by chemical oxygen demand (COD). This study highlights the potential for energy harvesting during remediation using photocatalytic fuel cells (PCFCs), stressing the importance of economically viable and sustainable materials. To achieve this, this research explores alternatives to platinum cathodes in photocathodes and aims to develop durable, cost-effective photoanode materials. Here, zinc oxide nanorods of high density are fabricated on carbon fiber surfaces using a low-temperature aqueous chemical growth method that is simple, cost-efficient, and readily scalable. Alternatives to the Pt cathodes frequently used in PCFC research are explored in comparison with screen-printed PEDOT:PSS cathodes. The fabricated ZnO/carbon anode (1.5 × 2 cm2) is used to remove the model pollutant used here and salicylic acid from water (30 mL, 70 μM) is placed under simulated sunlight (0.225 Sun). It was observed that salicylic acid was degraded by 23 ±0.46% at open voltage (OV) and 43.2 ± 0.86% at 1 V with Pt as the counter electrode, degradation was 18.5 ± 0.37% at open voltage (OV) and 44.1 ± 0.88% at 1 V, while PEDOT:PSS was used as the counter electrode over 120 min. This shows that the PEDOT:PSS exhibits an excellent performance with the full potential to provide low-environmental-impact electrodes for PCFCs. This research was completely funded by The Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research (Mistra), project name MISTRA TerraClean (project no. 2015/31).</p
Still just a matter of taste? : Sensorial appreciation of seafood is associated with more frequent and diverse consumption
No full textImproving health and sustainability outcomes in WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrial, Rich, Democratic) nations necessitates a reduction in red meat consumption. Seafood is often overlooked in achieving this goal. However, simply consuming more of familiar fish species places high stress on production of these species. For this reason, diversification of seafood consumption is also critical. Here the motives for seafood consumption (frequency and diversity) are investigated across two studies by adapting the 4Ns survey to the seafood category. This 16-item survey measures four factors underpinning meat consumption: namely that it is ‘Natural’, ‘Necessary’, ‘Normal’ and ‘Nice’. Swedish consumers’ hedonic and sensory expectations of two herring concepts (traditional pickled contra novel minced and presented as a burger) are also evaluated in relation to the 4Ns. Study 1 (N = 304) revealed that the seafood 4Ns scale had a similar underlying structure to that of meat and had good test-retest reliability. Study 2 (N = 514) showed that consumers expected to like the pickled herring (associated with being ‘seasoned’, ‘salty’, ‘sweet’, ‘firm’, ‘juicy’, ‘chewy’, and ‘slimy’) more than the minced herring (associated with being ‘mushy’, ‘fishy’, ‘grainy’, ‘dry’ and having ‘small bones’), and that ‘Nice’ scores affected expectations of both herring concepts. Food neophobia correlated inversely with seafood consumption frequency, expected liking, the ‘Nice’ subscale, and food agency. Critically, in both studies, enjoyment of seafood (higher ‘Nice’ scores) predicted more frequent and diverse seafood consumption, whilst agreeing that seafood is ‘Necessary’ for health predicted only consumption frequency, not diversity. Communicating the positive sensory attributes of seafood and developing novel product concepts in ways that disconfirm sceptical consumers’ negative sensory expectations may increase acceptance of both familiar and unfamiliar seafood concepts. © 2024 The AuthorsThe project has been funded by Blue Food - Centre for future seafood, with contributions from Formas - a Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development (grant number 2020-02834) and Region Västra Götaland (grant number RUN 2020-00352).</p
Reviewing the climatic impacts of product service systems : Implications for research and practice
No full textProduct service systems (PSS) are an example of a novel business model billed as having the potential to significantly reduce the environmental burdens of production and consumption processes. However, despite widespread interest in PSS, consensus regarding their actual environmental impacts, particularly with regard to salient issues such as global warming, is lacking. Hence this paper explores existing research to investigate the state of the art regarding the climatic impacts of PSS, alongside the set of factors that influence climatic impacts. The paper comprises a systematic review of peer-reviewed academic literature, quantifying the extent to which different types of PSS have the capacity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across multiple product categories. Our study shows that significant reductions in climatic emissions are possible, but PSS are in many cases associated with more modest reductions and, in some cases, increased emissions. Further, we observe no clear differences in climatic impacts according to the type of PSS model that is deployed. Rather, differences in climatic impact are influenced by factors such as production and design alongside use-phase impacts and contextual factors such as transportation and the energy mix. The study argues that further research is needed to establish a more robust baseline upon which to draw conclusions regarding the sources of climatic impacts, and outlines fruitful ways for companies to tackle the complexities of climatic emissions that are beyond their control. This study is part of the PROSPERITY (Product-Services for Promoting Resource Efficiency and Sustainability) project. The authors would like to express their gratitude to The Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development (FORMAS) for funding the project (grant nr. 2021-02459 ).</p
Theorizing reactive policy entrepreneurship : A case study of Swedish local emergency management
No full textIn this article, we examine public policy change at the local level of governance in the aftermath of an extraordinary event. Using the case study of a Swedish municipality after the sweeping forest fire of 2014, we contend that policy entrepreneurship, like its market counterpart, may under certain conditions take on a wider range of behaviors that are not underpinned by the proactive quest for opportunities. Rather, a sense of urgency and necessity, professional norms, and some keen technical skills make for a different kind of entrepreneurship, which we label reactive policy entrepreneurship. Funding: FORMAS, Sweden, FR‐2019/0002</p
Dietary fatty acids modulate oxidative stress response to air pollution but not to infection
No full textAnthropogenic changes to the environment expose wildlife to many pollutants. Among these, tropospheric ozone is of global concern and a highly potent pro-oxidant. In addition, human activities include several other implications for wildlife, e.g., changed food availability and changed distribution of pathogens in cities. These co-occurring habitat changes may interact, thereby modulating the physiological responses and costs related to anthropogenic change. For instance, many food items associated with humans (e.g., food waste and feeders for wild birds) contain relatively more ω6-than ω3-polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Metabolites derived from ω6-PUFAs can enhance inflammation and oxidative stress towards a stimulus, whereas the opposite response is linked to ω3-derived metabolites. Hence, we hypothesized that differential intake of ω6-and ω3-PUFAs modulates the oxidative stress state of birds and thereby affects the responses towards pro-oxidants. To test this, we manipulated dietary ω6:ω3 ratios and ozone levels in a full-factorial experiment using captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). Additionally, we simulated an infection, thereby also triggering the immune system’s adaptive pro-oxidant release (i.e., oxidative burst), by injecting lipopolysaccharide. Under normal air conditions, the ω3-diet birds had a lower antioxidant ratio (GSH/GSSG ratio) compared to the ω6-diet birds. When exposed to ozone, however, the diet effect disappeared. Instead, ozone exposure overall reduced the total concentration of the key antioxidant glutathione (tGSH). Moreover, the birds on the ω6-rich diet had an overall higher antioxidant capacity (OXY) compared to birds fed a ω3-rich diet. Interestingly, only the immune challenge increased oxidative damage, suggesting the oxidative burst of the immune system overrides the other pro-oxidative processes, including diet. Taken together, our results show that ozone, dietary PUFAs, and infection all affect the redox-system, but in different ways, suggesting that the underlying responses are decoupled despite that they all increase pro-oxidant exposure or generation. Despite lack of apparent cumulative effect in the independent biomarkers, the combined single effects could together reduce overall cellular functioning and efficiency over time in wild birds exposed to pathogens, ozone, and anthropogenic food sources. This research has been funded by FORMAS to CI (2015-00526 and 2016-00329).</p
Fatal fires in Norway from 2015-2020 : Characteristics of fatal fires in Norway
No full textThis project is funded by The Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB) and The Norwegian Building Authority(DiBK).</p
LES of Biomass Syngas Combustion in a Swirl Stabilised Burner : Model Validation and Predictions
No full textIn this work, numerical investigations were performed using large eddy simulations and validated against detailed measurements in the CeCOST swirl stabilised burner. Both cold and reactive flow have been studied and the model has shown a good agreement with experiments. The verification of the model was done using the LES index of quality and a single grid estimator. The cold flow simulations predicted results closely to experiments setting baseline for the reactive simulations. Coherent structures like the vortex rope above the swirler and a precessing vortex core in the combustion chamber were identified. The reactive conditions were modelled with the Flamelet generated manifold and artificially thickened flame models. Simulations were performed for an experimental syngas composition from black liquor gasification at three different CO2 dilution levels. Three different Reynolds numbers were investigated with the model matching closely to experimentally detected 2D flow field and OH for the most CO2 diluted mixture. It was found that the opening angles of the flames differ by a maximum of 13% between experiments and simulations. The most diluted fuel investigated experienced a liftoff distance of 23.5 mm at the Re 25 k. This was also the highest liftoff distance experienced in this cohort of fuels. The same fuel also proved to have the thickest flame annulus at 78.5 mm. Overall, in cases with no experimental data available the predictions made by the model follow the same trends which hints its applicability to higher Re cases