1,720,975 research outputs found
Performance and Emissions Comparison between Biomethane and Natural Gas Fuel in Passenger Vehicles
Get PDFBio-methane as fuel in a natural gas engine is a viable solution to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The present paper illustrates the results of the first set of measurements carried out in the BiomethER project (EULIFE). BiomethER aimed to design and build two innovative bio-methane production plants, located in Emilia Romagna region (Italy), fed by different feedstock: the first one with sewage sludge and the other with landfill waste. Biogas extracted by the anaerobic digester was cleaned and upgraded to biomethane for road vehicles application. To verify the compatibility of biomethane in conventional compressed natural gas engine (CNG) vehicles, three passenger cars have been tested with two gases: conventional natural gas and bio-methane coming by BiomethER sewage sludge plant. Test concerned dynamic performances and exhaust emissions and was operated on the chassis dynamometer facility, in ENEA Casaccia Research Centre. Preliminary results showed no appreciable deviation was noticeable for fuel consumption and CO2 emissions between the two fuels, acceleration and maximum power were almost the same for the three vehicles tested. The WTW evaluation of GHG emissions for the biomethane resulted in up to 79% lower in comparison with natural gas provided by the Italian pipeline
Sustainable Business Models for Innovative Urban Mobility Services
Get PDFAny sharing mobility service aims to make urban mobility sustainable to help reduce environmental impacts and improve the quality of life for all in cities. Many transport services are not currently self-sustainable. The Life for Silver Coast (LifeSC) opened its mobility services on 22 May 2021 and offered electric mobility services during the summer for a few cities in Tuscany. E-bikes and e-scooters can be financially neutral, and even profitable, thanks to the low costs of the vehicles, but they only see a high utilization rate in winter. Shared electric cars, meanwhile, are not profitable. A new shared service that is viable must be profitable to become widely adopted and significantly contribute to sustainability. A few key characteristics have been identified, and one has been tested with a new business model that combines ride-sharing and car-sharing. The innovative Ride Sharing Algorithm (RSA) has been tested based on data from a potential city, Monterondo, where many commuters travel daily to Rome by train. The Italian census and local survey data allowed for the simulation of the scheduling of vehicle rides and an evaluation of the economic results, which could be positive if enough interest for such a system exists among the people, as at least 400 commuters from Monterotondo go to the train station daily in the morning and return in the afternoon. Such a transport demand would justify a new commercial sharing service by using the model tested with the RSA algorithm
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe 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
La piattaforma K-COM. Un sistema di comunicazione della conoscenza
Get PDFIl presente rapporto illustra la progettazione e l’implementazione del portale K-COM (Knowledge COMmunication) per la gestione della conoscenza. La piattaforma, sviluppata nell’ambito del progetto ES-PA (Energia e Sostenibilità per la Pubblica Amministrazione), mira ad organizzare la conoscenza in “oggetti” (OK) all’interno di specifici “percorsi” (PK) riguardanti i temi dell’efficienza energetica. Per “oggetto” di conoscenza si intende una risorsa di diversa tipologia (audio, video, testuale, ecc.) inserita all’interno di una specifica tematica e identificata da una scheda informativa (Card). Alcune delle tematiche presenti in piattaforma riguardano gli Attestati di Prestazione Energetica (APE), i Piani di Azione per l’Energia Sostenibile ed il Clima (PAESC) e tecnologie per la lotta al cambiamento climatico. Il sistema è pensato per stabilire una comunicazione bidirezionale verso un’utenza variegata ed in continua evoluzione. Esso, inoltre, prevede meccanismi di feedback e profilazione utente. In linea con gli scopi del progetto, le categorie di utenza scelte sono state i decisori delle amministrazioni pubbliche, gli stakeholder ed il personale tecnico e amministrativo impiegato sia nel settore pubblico che privato. Le classi di utenza saranno ampliate, nelle successive fasi di esercizio, aggiungendo ulteriori temi di interesse.This report describes the design and implementation of the K-COM (Knowledge COMmunication) web portal for knowledge management. The platform, developed as part of the ES-PA (Energy and Sustainability for Public Administration) project, aims to organize knowledge into "objects" (OK) within specific "pathways" (KP) regarding energy efficiency issues. A knowledge "object" means a resource of different types (audio, video, textual, etc.) placed within a specific topic and identified by an information card (Card). Energy Performance Certificates (EPC), Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAP) and technologies to address climate change are just some of the topics on the platform. The system is designed to establish two-way communication towards a variegated and dynamic user base. It also provides for feedback mechanisms and user profiling. In line with the aims of the project, the user categories chosen were government decision makers, stakeholders and technical and administrative staff employed in both the public and private sectors. The user classes will be expanded in subsequent phases of the exercise by adding additional topics of interest
Comparing the Sustainability of Different Powertrains for Urban Use
Get PDFThe real environment impacts the fuel and energy consumption of any vehicle: technology, physical and social phenomena, traffic, drivers’ behaviour, and so on; many of them are difficult to quantify. The authors’ methodology was used to test the real impact of vehicles in “standard” urban conditions, and many generations of hybrid powertrains are compared. One of the latest performance indexes is the percentage of time the vehicle runs with zero emissions (ZEV). For example, the hybrid vehicle tested ran up to 80% with no emissions and fuel consumption below 3 L per 100 km. A few energy performance indicators were compared between five vehicles: one battery electric vehicle (BEV), two hybrid gasoline–electric vehicles (HEVs), and two traditional vehicles (one diesel and one gasoline). Their potential to use only renewable energy is unrivalled, but today’s vehicles’ performances favour hybrid power trains. This paper summarises the most sustainable powertrain for urban use by comparing experimental data from on-road testing. It also evaluates the benefits of reducing emissions by forecasting the Italian car fleet of 2025 and three use cases of the evolution of car fleets, with a focus on Rome
Experimental data comparison of an electric minibus equipped with different energy storage systems
Get PDFAs electric mobility becomes more important every day, scientific research brings us new solutions that increase performance, reduce financial and economic impacts and increase the market share of electric vehicles. Therefore, there is a necessity to compare technical and economic aspects of different technologies for each transport application. This article presents a comparison of three bus prototypes in terms of dynamic performance. The analysis is based on the collection of real data (acceleration, maximum speed and energy consumption) under different settings. Each developed prototype uses the same bus chassis but relies on different energy storage systems. Results show that the dynamic bus performance is independent on the three energy storage technologies, whereas technologies affect the management costs, charging time and available range. An extensive experimental analysis reveals that the bus equipped with a hybrid storage (lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors) had the most favorable net present value, in comparison with storage composed of only lead-acid or lithium-ion batteries. This result is due to the greater life of lithium-ion batteries and to the capability of supercapacitors, which reduce both batteries depth of discharge and discharge rate
The smart ring experience in l'Aquila (Italy): Integrating smart mobility public services with air quality indexes
Get PDFThis work presents the "City Dynamics and Smart Environment" activities of the Smart Ring project, a model for the smart city, based on the integration of sustainable urban transport services and environmental monitoring over a 4-5-km circular path, the "Smart Ring", around the historical center of l'Aquila (Italy). We describe our pilot experience performed during an experimental on-demand public service electric bus, "SmartBus", which was equipped with a multi-parametric air quality low-cost gas electrochemical sensor platform, "NASUS IV". For five days (28-29 August 2014 and 1-3 September 2014), the sensor platform was installed inside the SmartBus and measured air quality gas compounds (nitrogen dioxide, carbon oxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide) during the service. Data were collected and analyzed on the bases of an air quality index, which provided qualitative insights on the air status potentially experienced by the users. The results obtained are in agreement with the synoptic meteorological conditions, the urban background air quality reference measurements and the potential traffic flow variations. Furthermore, they indicated that the air quality status was influenced by the gas component NO2, followed by H2S, SO2 and CO. We discuss the features of our campaign, and we highlight the potential, limitations and key factors to consider for future project designs
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“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
Design and Development of a Prototype of Flash Charge Systems for Public Transportation
No full textAs a part of a National research program (Ricerca di Sistema 2015 and 2017), ENEA has proposed an innovative hybrid storage system that allows a fast recharge of electric public transportation vehicles. In order to demonstrate the feasibility of this idea, researchers of University of Florence have implemented the proposed system on a existing electric bus in order to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed system. In this work authors introduce main features of the proposed prototype
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