Search Results (3,377)

During the thermal aging process of epoxy resin, microcracks, interfacial delamination, and warpage are the key factors leading to semiconductor device damage. Here, epoxy-resin specimens (EP-Ss) and epoxy-resin/silicon-wafer composites (EP-SWs) were prepared to analyze the distribution of residual stress (RS) in epoxy resin and its thermal aging process changes. The uniaxial tensile approach and Raman spectroscopy (RAS) showed that the peak shift of aliphatic C-O in EP-Ss was negatively correlated with the external stress, and that the stress correlation coefficient was −2.76 × 10⁻² cm⁻¹/MPa. Then, RAS was used to evaluate the RS distribution of EP-SWs, obtaining a high-resolution stress-distribution image of 50 × 50 pixels and revealing a strong stress concentration at the interface between the epoxy resin and the silicon wafer. Additionally, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and RAS were used to analyze the chemical composition, molecular structure, interfacial microstructure, and RS of the epoxy resin during the thermal aging process. With the increase in the thermal aging time, the epoxy resin underwent secondary curing, the RS at the interface changed from tensile stress to compressive stress, and cracks were formed. The results illuminate the effect of the thermal aging process on the interface-failure mechanism of composite materials, aiding in the reliability evaluation and safety design of semiconductor devices. Full article

Decarbonization policies are being implemented in all EU countries where renewable energy is being developed. One of the main energy sources used for this purpose is photovoltaic energy. However, the development of photovoltaics does not only mean environmental benefits in the form of green energy and thus a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel energy production, but also energy waste. The development of photovoltaics generates energy waste, some of which cannot be recovered, which in turn has a negative impact on gas emissions. The aim of this article is to analyse the amount of energy waste from photovoltaics in European Union countries and the net impact of photovoltaics on greenhouse gas emissions. Data sources are Eurostat and Our World In Data. The analysis will be carried out for the majority of EU countries, excluding the smallest countries whose data may distort the overall results. The analysis should show the overall impact of PV in the countries analysed and the changes over the period studied. The results will also indicate whether the impact of PV on decarbonization is similar across the EU countries analysed, or whether there are clusters of countries due to the impact of PV, or a negative impact in some of them. Full article

The study of the relationship between human economic activity and the state of the environment in recent decades is reflected, among others, in the study of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis. Numerous attempts have been made to examine the existence of the EKC by correlating various measures of environmental devastation with GDP per capita indicators. In this study, the aim and research gap were to compare and confirm/exclude the obtained results with the studies previously conducted by the authors, which referred to the analysis of the EKC in relation to general GHG emissions. In this analysis, GHG emissions per capita were assumed. In recent years, in the EU countries, more and more attention has been paid to research on the EKC focused on GHG emissions, and a certain research gap has been noticed in the direction of EKC analyses for PM_2.5 and PM₁₀. In the context of PM emissions, the very negative impact on human health should be emphasized. The authors decided to analyze the EKC hypothesis based on the current available data also in relation to PM emissions. In this study, a group of socio-economic variables in the form of GDP, gross electricity production, passenger cars, and population were used in relation to GHG, PM_2.5, and PM₁₀ emissions in the EU-27 countries. The study used multiple regression analysis to test the direction of the relationship between pollutant emissions and GDP. In the case of Germany, a negative correlation was obtained for GHG, PM_2.5, PM₁₀ emissions, and GDP. The EKC approach can be successfully used both in system awareness (qualitative) and quantitative studies to prepare scenarios of changes in greenhouse gas and PM emissions and to create strategic planning, manage resources, promote innovation, and in climate policy. Full article

Global change and disturbance ecology, including the risks and benefits of wildfires for humans, sustainability of ecosystems and biodiversity, is a current research topic in applied science. Fires and their impacts are often considered in the context of climate change, carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution. Despite a significant decline in wildfires at the global scale in recent decades (cf. Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS)), it is a widespread conviction that the burned area is increasing due to global warming. In an attempt to identify how this discrepancy has arisen, we analysed IPCC reports from 2018–2023 via text mining including word frequency analyses and compared considerations about wildfires and fire weather with findings from ecology and public information on the internet. Both a negativity bias and repetition bias were identified. Numerous examples of disasters and models indicating a global increase of wildfires are composed of alarming messages. Examples of decreasing wildfires and the global decline are much less frequently communicated. Important facts are ignored, especially in summaries for policymakers. Measured against fire-ecological conditions and benefits for the nature, alarming trends and risks due to climate change are exaggerated. We therefore call for a comprising and differentiated reflection of ecological conditions and processes in the future. Full article

The fashion industry, which stands out for its creativity and dynamism, has multidimensional impacts in terms of environmental sustainability from raw material extraction to waste management. The textile and fashion industries are criticized for posing significant threats to the ecosystem, biodiversity, and human health by negatively impacting air, water, and soil quality throughout the cycle, from production and distribution to consumption and disposal. By focusing on five emerging economies among the top ten textile exporters, this study focuses on an empirical examination of the nexus between the fashion and textile industry, energy consumption, economic growth, and carbon dioxide emissions. This study fills the existing quantitative research gap in the fashion sector. It provides a comprehensive review that analyzes the environmental impacts in the sector to adopt more sustainable and effective policies. After acknowledging the structural breaks in the sample covering 1980–2023, novel Fourier bootstrapping ARDL and Fourier Granger Causality methods are adopted to examine the long- and short-run interconnections and the directions of causality in a comparative setting for China, Türkiye, India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. The results confirmed the positive effects of textiles and fashion as well as energy consumption and economic growth with varying magnitudes for the countries examined. The causality tests confirmed varying and complex unidirectional and bidirectional causality and feedback effects among the variables examined depending on the country analyzed, in addition to identifying common causal effects from textile and fashion to environmental degradation. The findings are of great importance and have significant policy implications. Full article

Green agriculture represents the future of agricultural transformation in developing countries, such as China. Identifying an effective resource combination path is vital for enhancing the green quality of agriculture in these nations. This study draws on the resource spatial mismatch theory from New Economic Geography, using a “multisource heterogeneous” approach that combines qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) with the EBM-GML index measurement model. Using panel data from 2005 to 2021, the study investigated the effects and mechanisms of spatial resource combinations on improving green agricultural quality. The key findings are as follows: (1) While improving spatial resource misallocation helps boost green agricultural quality, the diversity of resource combination patterns has diminished, decreasing from five modes in 2005 to four in 2021. (2) In terms of mechanisms, reducing externalities, such as pollutant emissions, while strengthening material and human capital offers a potential pathway for improvement. (3) Negative externalities, including emissions from fertilizers and petroleum, significantly hinder improvements in green agricultural quality. (4) The absence of sufficient pesticide and fertilizer resources is a critical factor influencing the outcome. These findings provide practical insights for developing countries seeking to enhance regional resource allocation efficiency and improve agricultural green quality. Additionally, they contribute theoretical support to the enrichment of theories on resource allocation and sustainable agricultural development. Full article

Rebuilding using outdated methods and tearing down the buildings would have a negative impact on the environment without lowering carbon dioxide emissions or increasing sustainability. This study presents a novel approach to repair that considers environmental and sustainable factors. In contrast to conventional repair methods, the use of Bacillus subtilis as an external biological repair technique could offer a novel and sustainable solution, especially when used on alkali-activated slag (AAS) concrete. By breaking down urea into carbonate and ammonium, alkaliphile bacteria can precipitate calcium carbonate. In an environment rich in calcium, the bacteria’s opposing cell wall (${\mathrm{C}\mathrm{O}}_3^{2-}$) draws in positive calcium anions, which result in the formation of calcite crystals. The pores and crevices in the concrete are filled with these crystals. Incorporating bacteria into the fresh mixing of AAS ingredients is contrasted with using Bacillus subtilis culture in the water curing medium for pure AAS specimens. The effectiveness of both approaches was evaluated. Direct administration of Bacillus subtilis during mixing has a superior outcome regarding mechanical qualities rather than biological therapy, although their effective healing capability in closure of the crack width is similar. The enhancement in compressive and flexural strengths reached 51% and 128% over the control specimens. On the other hand, the healing rate reached nearly 100% for crack widths ranging from 400 to 950 µm. Furthermore, additional studies in this field led to some inferred correlations between the mechanical and durability aspects following healing. Full article

As a result of the growing global climate crisis, many countries have pledged to cut carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gas emissions to achieve net-zero emission goals. These goals can be successfully realized with the rollout of environmental regulations, utilization of green technology innovations, and a greater use of renewable energies. This study explores the influence of green technology innovations, renewable energy, financial development, environmental taxes, and economic growth on CO₂ emissions in the 19 highest emitting countries from 1994 to 2022. The results reveal that renewable energy use and environmental taxes negatively affect CO₂ emissions, reinforcing the essential role of these variables in the journey toward carbon neutrality. Green technological innovations, financial development, and economic growth have positive effects on CO₂ emissions, suggesting that appropriate regulations and policies are necessary to attain net zero carbon emissions. The findings also indicate that financial development positively affects environmental quality by promoting green technological innovations. The causality results indicate a bidirectional causal link between green technology innovations, renewable energy, environmental taxes, economic growth, and CO₂ emissions. Additionally, a unidirectional causal relationship exists between financial development and CO₂ emissions. Based on these results, the study offers policy suggestions. Full article

Cities encounter increasing risks and challenges under new development patterns, and digital economy (DE) can drive cities’ improved resilience to natural and social uncertainties. Based on data collected on the Yangtze River Economic Belt from 2011 to 2021, the development situation of the regional DE and urban resilience (UR) was measured, and the impact mechanisms of the DE on UR were analysed theoretically and empirically using a benchmark regression model. The findings are as follows: The benchmark test revealed that the DE development contributed significantly to UR in the region. The mediating effect test revealed that the DE improved UR through two pathways: industrial structure upgradation and energy restructuring. The moderating effect test suggested that environmental pollutant emissions had a negative moderating effect between the impact mechanisms of the DE, industrial structure, and energy structure and between the effects of industrial structure, energy structure, and UR, whereas CO₂ emissions had a positive moderating effect between the impact mechanisms of DE and industrial structure. Heterogeneity analysis indicated that the DE contributed positively to the UR except in the upstream region, where the coefficient of the DE was insignificant. Overall, this study highlights the crucial role of the DE in improving UR and elucidates the theoretical impact mechanisms of environmental pollution control and carbon reduction measures on UR. Full article

Ammonia (NH₃) volatilization caused by urea application has negative implications for human health, environmental quality, and the value of nitrogen fertilizers. It remains to be investigated how management strategies should be adopted to not only reduce NH₃ volatilization but also improve nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in the agriculture industry at present. Hence, a two-year field trial, including subplots, was conducted to simultaneously evaluate the effects of mulching treatments (NM: non-mulching; SM: straw mulching) and different fertilizer treatments (U: urea; U + NBPT: urea plus 1% N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide; U + CRU: the mixture of urea and controlled-release urea at a 3:7 ratio; U + OF: urea plus commercial organic fertilizer at a 3:7 ratio) on NH₃ volatilization, crop production, and NUE in an oilseed rape–maize rotation system in the sloping farmland of purple soil in southwestern China between 2021 and 2023. Compared with NM + U, NH₃ volatilization losses under the NM + U + NBPT, NM + U + CRU, and NM + U + OF treatments decreased, on average, by 64.13%, 17.39%, and 15.09% during the oilseed rape growing season but by 64.01%, 11.67%, and 10.13% during the maize growing season, respectively. An average increase in NH₃ volatilization of 35.65% for the straw-mulching treatment was recorded during the oilseed rape season, while during the maize season, this parameter showed an increase of 10.69%, in comparison to NM + U. With the combination of urea with NBPT, CRU, and organic fertilizer, contrastingly, a reduction in NH₃ volatilization was achieved under the SM + U + NBPT, SM + U + CRU, and SM + U + OF treatments. When compared with NM + U, the difference in the NUE between the NM + U + NBPT, NM + U + CRU, and NM + U + OF treatments was not significant in the oilseed rape season. The NUE was around 4.27% higher under NM + U + NBPT during the maize season (p < 0.05). Compared with NM + U, under the NM + U + NBPT, NM + U + CRU, and NM + U + OF treatments, consistently lower values of yield-scaled NH₃ volatilization were noted: 13.15–65.66% in the oilseed rape season and 10.34–67.27% in the maize season. Furthermore, SM + U, SM + U + NBPT, SM + U + CRU, and SM + U + OF showed average annual emission factors (AEFs) of 14.01%, 5.81%, 12.14%, and 11.64%, respectively. Overall, straw mulching, along with the application of the mixture of NBPT and urea, was found to be the optimal strategy to effectively reduce the NH₃ emissions in the purple soil areas of southern China. Full article

The responses of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions to nitrogen (N) application in acidic, perennial agricultural systems, and the factors driving these emissions, remain poorly understood. To address this gap, a 12-year field experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different N application rates (0, 112.5, 225, and 450 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) on N₂O emissions, tea yield, and the associated driving factors in a tea plantation. The study found that soil pH significantly decreased with long-term N application, dropping by 0.32 to 0.85 units. Annual tea yield increased significantly, by 148–243%. N application also elevated N₂O emission fluxes by 33–277%, with notable seasonal fluctuations observed. N₂O flux was positively correlated with N rates, water-filled pore space (WFPS), soil temperature (T_soil), and inorganic N (NH₄⁺-N and NO₃⁻-N), while showing a negative correlation with soil pH. Random forest (RF) modeling identified WFPS, N rates, and Tsoil as the most important variables influencing N₂O flux. The cumulative N₂O emissions for N112.5, N225, and N450 were 1584, 2791, and 45,046 g N ha⁻², respectively, representing increases of 1.33, 2.34, and 3.77 times compared to N0. The N₂O-N emission factors (EF) were 0.35%, 0.71%, and 0.74%, respectively, and increased with higher N rates. These findings highlight the importance of selecting appropriate fertilization timing and improving water and fertilizer management as key strategies for mitigating soil acidification, enhancing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and reducing N₂O emissions in acidic tea-plantation systems. This study offers a theoretical foundation for developing rational N fertilizer management practices and strategies aimed at reducing N₂O emissions in tea-plantation soils. Full article

The growing challenges of climate change, the depletion of fossil fuel reserves, and the urgent need for carbon-neutral energy solutions have intensified the focus on renewable energy. In this perspective, the generation of green hydrogen from renewable sources like biogas/landfill gas (LFG) offers an intriguing option, providing the dual benefits of a sustainable hydrogen supply and enhanced waste management through energy innovation and valorization. Thus, this review explores the production of green hydrogen from biogas/LFG through four conventional reforming processes, specifically dry methane reforming (DMR), steam methane reforming (SMR), partial oxidation reforming (POX), and autothermal reforming (ATR), focusing on their mechanisms, operating parameters, and the role of catalysts in hydrogen production. This review further delves into both the environmental aspects, specifically GWP (CO₂ eq·kg⁻¹ H₂) emissions, and the economic aspects of these processes, examining their efficiency and impact. Additionally, this review also explores hydrogen purification in biogas/LFG reforming and its integration into the CO₂ capture, utilization, and storage roadmap for net-negative emissions. Lastly, this review highlights future research directions, focusing on improving SMR and DMR biogas/LFG reforming technologies through simulation and modeling to enhance hydrogen production efficiency, thereby advancing understanding and informing future research and policy initiatives for sustainable energy solutions. Full article

In recent years, extreme rainfall and related disasters, including floods and landslides, have led to significant property damage and loss of life globally. Southeast Asia (SEA) is particularly impacted by these rainfall-driven events. This study reviews research development and approaches to understand the current status of monsoonal extreme rainfall in SEA, with the importance of the impacts of natural and anthropogenic factors. Natural factors, including the individual and combined effects of various climatic phenomena, such as Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO), El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and cold surges (CSs), have significant impacts on rainfall patterns. Anthropogenic factors, including emissions and changes in land use, also play a crucial role in producing extremes. This review identifies key challenges, such as the uncertainty in both available rainfall datasets and climate models, emphasising the needs for climate model improvement and better adaptation to complex regional climatic and geographical environments. The findings enhance understanding and response strategies to extreme rainfall events and mitigate the associated negative impacts. Full article

As industrialization accelerates, China’s industrial development pace has been rapidly increasing. However, this growth has been accompanied by an increase in high-pollution and high-emission industries, leading to the release of a significant amount of air pollutants and exacerbating haze pollution nationwide. This article utilizes the spatial dynamic Durbin model and panel threshold regression model to analyze the impact of the thermal power industry and other high-haze-pollution industries on atmospheric environmental quality. The results indicate a negative correlation between the thermal power industry and other high-haze pollution industries and atmospheric environmental quality. There is a spatial spillover effect of the thermal power industry and other high-haze-pollution industries on air pollution. Environmental regulations have a single-threshold characteristic in their impact on atmospheric quality in the thermal power industry and other high-haze-pollution industries, as does green technology innovation. Additionally, cumulative rainfall has a significant single-threshold effect on the atmospheric environmental quality in regions with the thermal power industry and other high-haze-pollution industries. The article suggests policies for severely polluted areas, including reducing high-haze-pollution enterprises, optimizing industrial structures rationally, strengthening regional cooperation, enhancing regional haze pollution prevention and control coordination mechanisms, increasing the intensity of environmental regulations, utilizing the threshold effect of environmental regulations, promoting green technological innovation and application in heavily polluted areas, and exploring options to improve air pollution through increased rainfall. These recommendations aim to provide reference points for China to further optimize its industrial structure and comprehensively manage haze pollution. Full article

The focus of this investigation was to examine the effects of energy consumption, agricultural commerce, and productivity on CO₂ emissions in Nigeria using quantile regression. Time series data from 1960 to 2021 were used. The findings revealed that the impact of agricultural raw materials imports (AGRIMs) and exports on carbon footprints is positive. There is a prevalence of a set of notable percentile differences in the conditional distribution of the variables on CO₂ emissions. Initially, the coefficient of energy consumption (EnCons) was high, but constantly nosedived from the 25th quantile until it reached the 90th quantile when it picked up again, and the same was true in the case of AGRIM. Thus, a 1% increase in agricultural imports will bring about 0.0047—a significant unit increase in CO₂ emissions in Nigeria from the 0.382946 coefficient in the 10th quantile to the 0.264392 coefficient in the 50th quantile, and thereafter, the effects become insignificant. Profound significant variance across disparate percentiles in the conditional spread of AGRIM, food production index (FPI), CPI, and FDI was found. It further showed that the effects of the regressors on carbon emissions differ over the quantiles. Overall, AGRIM and EnCons have positive and significant effects on carbon emission. However, the agricultural raw material export has significant negative effects on CO₂ emissions as the movement (transportation) of goods within a country prior to export involves a huge level of carbon release. This study provides recommendations and policy implications. Full article