1,721,495 research outputs found
Design, implementation and assessment of a more sustainable model to manage plastic waste at sport events
Full text linkThe implementation and assessment of sustainable initiatives at sport events has a great importance for researchers and practitioners to improve the effects on the hosting territory. All three pillars of sustainability (environmental, economic and social) must be considered. In running events, such as marathons, one of the main issues is the environmental impact of the great quantity of waste, and particularly of plastic waste. A recent tendency is to shift to a “plastic-free” model. However, some single-use plastic products have unrivalled properties and their replacement with other materials may not be the most sustainable solution, at least in the short term. In this paper, a new model for managing plastic waste at a marathon is proposed. It does not aim to eliminate plastics at sport events, but to better manage waste by increasing collection, and sorting and recycling efficiency, following the circular economy paradigm. To demonstrate the sustainability of the model, a precise and quantitative methodology is applied to an innovative visualisation tool, developed by the University of Bologna, to assess circular initiatives and some key performance indicators (KPIs) to compare the sustainability of the new model to waste management in the previous editions of the same event. With this approach, it is demonstrated that a marathon can be completely sustainable: (i) from an environmental point of view, plastic collection efficiency increased by 120.5%; the recycling rate by 157.0% and the landfill rate decreased by 75.4%; (ii) from an economic point of view, it was demonstrated that, with the technological level of the involved recycling plant, the initiative is cost-effective when the virgin PET price is greater than €776/tonne; and (iii) with regard to the social impact, it was proved that the direct engagement of participants (runners and walkers) and their positive perceptions about the initiative achieved the highest score for the two selected qualitative KPIs (3/3). Moreover, some insights have been derived to improve plastic management, covering different disciplines: technical standardisation of plastics, consumer training and legislative support for technological innovation in the industrial context
Optimisation of the Melting Furnace Unit in an Italian Aluminium Foundry to Reduce Gas Methane Consumption
Full text linkThe foundry industry is one of the most energy-intensive industrial sectors. Consequently, the energy cost can reach 7–15% of the cost of the operations. Among all the types of energy used, the most significant part of energy consumption is associated in Italy with gas methane in different typologies of melting furnaces. According to the treated material (e.g., aluminium, steel, cast iron), the foundry process can vary; however, some operations characterize the entire sector, such as the metal melting phase, which is the most energy-intensive stage of the process (it can account up to 70% of the total energy consumption of the foundry). The energy crisis, which has affected companies in these years, determines instability and volatility in energy availability and costs and requires implementing some improvements to optimize energy efficiency and reduce consumption. With the aim of investigating the potential energy reduction in the foundry sector, an Italian aluminium foundry has been considered. The analysis consisted of three main activities: (i) Analysis of the process and mapping of energy and resource consumption at the factory level and in each unit; (ii) Quantification of energy and resource consumption at the factory level according to the ViVACE® method; and (iii) Addressing the critical points (energy consumption) to improve the environmental impact of the foundry. According to this methodology, the optimization of the melting furnace unit has been addressed, allowing the potential saving of gas methane up to 13%
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Engaging with European (Dis-)Integration. Russia in dialogue with Europe/s
No full textIn this chapter, the author analyses the recent evolution of relations between the European Union and the Russian Federation, stressing in particular the role played by the different member states of the EU in promoting, or disapproving, the creation
of a common space of cooperation with the Russian Federation. The research mainly concerns the study of the different outcomes for EU-Russia relations brought on by the two main crises which affected the European Union throughout 2014–17 (i.e. the 'Ukraine Crisis' in 2014 and the 'Migration Crisis' in 2015)
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
In Search of ‘New Roots’: Towards a Situational Ideology in Putin’s Russia
No full textThis chapter is focused on the framework of ideological benchmarks adopted by the Russian elite during Putin’s third mandate (2012–2018), in an attempt to understand and interpret the internal dynamics which reshaped the political discourse in the Russian Federation. In a dynamic and culturally oriented approach, the author deals with the processes which have led to political transformation and the consensus-building strategies put in place by the Russian political establishment. The research structure is built around the analysis of official documents and public speeches published and held mainly in 2014–16, and surveys and sociological research on Russian society elaborated by the main research centres in the Russian Federation throughout Putin’s third term
Wide use of sustainable energy from aquifers in Italy: Pilot plant design and implementation
No full textStoring thermal energy in aquifers and acquiring heat and/or cold from extracted groundwater has been
proven to be a popular sustainable energy technology, especially in the Netherlands, because of its cost-efficiency,
delivering on average approximately 60% less CO2-emissions and substantial savings compared to sole use of fossil
energy. Nevertheless, in the rest of Europe socio-economic, legislative and technological barriers prevent widespread
application so far. The “Europe-wide Use of Sustainable Energy from aquifers” (E-USE(aq)) project, started in June 2015 and
financed by the Climate KIC, aims to pave the way for a Europe-wide use of this new cost-efficient form of collecting
and using renewable thermal energy and thus the creation of new business strategies and new jobs. The Department
of Industrial Engineering of the University of Bologna is involved in the realization of one pilot plant in Italy, which
will act as flywheels that enhance wide application of the technology in Italy. The paper shows the site identification
and the design phase of the pilot plant, including monitoring and control systems. Moreover, the paper shows which
barriers have been faced during the development of the project and how they can be overcome
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