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Inclusive Workforce Development for an Equitable Low-Carbon Transition
No full textThe shift to a low-carbon economy will require a massive build out of low-carbon technologies, which in turn will require millions of new laborers with specific skills. Similarly, the decline of fossil-fuel industries will require retraining and new job opportunities for laborers in these fields. At the same time, there is an emerging scholarly focus on a “just transition” to a low-carbon economy. This essay conceptualizes inclusive workforce development as a key component of a just transition. Inclusive workforce development promotes policies that reach and effectively serve the broadest possible range of people and communities. In particular, inclusive workforce development policies reach and effectively serve marginalized and disadvantaged communities that are often “left behind.” Using New Mexico as a case study, this essay identifies research questions for further work in this nascent sub-field, including: 1) developing new conceptual frameworks of workforce development that move beyond traditional tools of retraining workers or preparing workers for careers in expanding industries in green energy; 2) research to evaluate the effectiveness of recent federal and state workforce policy innovations; 3) research to understand why worker participation, especially among difficult-to-reach workers, is low in current workforce programming and governance; and 4) assessing the facilitators and barriers of current workforce development systems in attracting additional industries, including the green sector, to more fully participate in their efforts
A Concise Formalization of Partial Falsifiability, Water Logic, and Neither Nor Logic with Neutrosophic logic
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A Comprehensive Approach for Performance Evaluation in Petrochemical Industry: Integrating Sustainable Balanced Scorecard, Dynamic Network DEA, and DEMATEL in a Neutrosophic Environment
No full textSustainable Cost Management and Risk Evaluation in Prefabricated Infrastructure Projects under the Neutrosophic Bonferroni Mean Operator
No full textNanostructured Transition Metal Oxides for Electrochemical CO2 and Methane Conversion
No full textRising atmospheric CO₂ and CH₄ drive climate change, prompting research into their electrochemical conversion to valuable products. This study investigates electrodeposited nanostructured transition metal oxides (TMOs), unary (CuO, Co₃O₄) and dual (Cu-Co oxide) as catalysts for CO₂ reduction and CH₄ oxidation under ambient conditions. Fabricated on various substrates (Cu foil, SS316, carbon paper) and characterized by SEM, their electrochemical performance was evaluated via cyclic voltammetry.
Cu-Co oxide showed superior CO₂ reduction, leveraging the strengths of individual oxides. Co₃O₄ exhibited higher current densities for CH₄ oxidation, with SS316 proving the best substrate. Catalyst composition, morphology, and substrate significantly influenced efficiency. While Cu-Co oxide balanced CO₂ reduction, Co₃O₄ excelled in CH₄ oxidation despite competing reactions. Identified limitations, such as low current densities and mass transport, suggest avenues for improvement, including optimized catalyst loading and reactor designs.
This research highlights the potential of cost-effective nanostructured TMOs for sustainable greenhouse gas conversion, contributing to mitigating climate change and valuable feedstock generation. Future efforts will focus on refining catalyst properties, exploring ternary oxides, and overcoming mass transport limitations for enhanced performance and scalability
Mg AND Fe CO-DOPED PEROVSKITES FOR THE ELECTROCHEMICAL OXIDATIVE COUPLING OF METHANE IN SOLID OXIDE ELECTROLYZERS
No full textMore efficient usage of shale gas reserves and natural gas resources will allow for higher olefin yields and lower greenhouse gas emissions. The oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) is a direct pathway for converting methane to ethylene at temperatures \u3e700 °C. The OCM process is typically regulated via the choice of catalyst, reactor conditions, temperature range and gas mixing. The electrochemical oxidative coupling of methane (E-OCM) is a modification to the OCM reaction by controlling the oxygen content via externally applied potentials to an SOEC. Perovskite oxide catalysts are useful for E-OCM due to their flexible bond networks and desired properties (conductivity, selectivity, surface area) based on synthesis/doping. This work aims to illustrate the utility of the co-doped perovskite BaMg0.33Nb0.67-xFexO3-δ (BMNF, x=0.17,0.25,0.33) for E-OCM. Validation is completed by E-OCM/OCM reaction testing and a mechanism for the unique stability of these co-doped barium niobate perovskites is determined via XPS. There is a unique tendency in BMNF for lattice incorporated Fe to remain in 3+ oxidation state with resultant Nb oxidation state accommodations occurring. The crystal structure of the BMNF material as well as its chemical stability were further explored using a computational inexpensive methodology featuring the bond-valence bond-length method which can predict a variety of material properties
A Dynamically Efficient Predictive Controller for Voltage Stability in a DC to DC Boost Converter
No full textReliable voltage regulation has become a critical issue with increase demand in modern power electronic applications. This study presents a Model Predictive Controller (MPC) for voltage regulation in DC-to-DC boost converters. A closed loop analytical MPC framework is created with the purpose of computing optimal duty cycles to maintain a stable output voltage under varying load conditions, input changes, and disturbances.
To evaluate the performance of the MPC we set the controller against a comparative analyzing with a traditional cascading proportional integral (PI) controller. The proposed controller design is specifically targeted to improve dynamic efficiency during the converter’s transient events. It allows the use of input duty cycle constraints, as well as predicted state trajectory constraint. Results showcase the control dynamic efficiency performance of both controllers under different scenarios regarding change in input voltage, voltage output regulation, and measured inductor current ripple