504 research outputs found

    Systemic Circular Economy Solutions for Fiber Reinforced Composites

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    This open access book provides an overview of the work undertaken within the FiberEUse project, which developed solutions enhancing the profitability of composite recycling and reuse in value-added products, with a cross-sectorial approach. Glass and carbon fiber reinforced polymers, or composites, are increasingly used as structural materials in many manufacturing sectors like transport, constructions and energy due to their better lightweight and corrosion resistance compared to metals. However, composite recycling is still a challenge since no significant added value in the recycling and reprocessing of composites is demonstrated. FiberEUse developed innovative solutions and business models towards sustainable Circular Economy solutions for post-use composite-made products. Three strategies are presented, namely mechanical recycling of short fibers, thermal recycling of long fibers and modular car parts design for sustainable disassembly and remanufacturing. The validation of the FiberEUse approach within eight industrial demonstrators shows the potentials towards new Circular Economy value-chains for composite materials

    Exploring Design Characteristics of Data Trustees in Healthcare - Taxonomy and Archetypes

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    The use of health data can provide valuable insights for both research and industry comprising the potential to improve healthcare services and facilitate the development of innovative solutions for the healthcare sector. However, due to data protection requirements and technical challenges, access to health data is still severely inhibited. To enhance access to and utilization of health data, science and politics increasingly consider data trustee models as a conceivable solution. Yet, such concepts are still in their infancies and hardly known. At the same time, they exhibit strong differences in their design. Thus, to foster awareness about and the development of data trustee models, this study investigates their design characteristics and integrates them into a holistic taxonomy. Additionally, design patterns are explored and archetypes derived. The findings reveal that data trustee models in healthcare follow some overarching design patterns and can be assigned to four dominant archetypes

    Alternative Water Supply Systems

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    This is the final version. Available on open access from IWA Publishing via the DOI in this recordOwing to climate change related uncertainties and anticipated population growth, different parts of the developing and the developed world (particularly urban areas) are experiencing water shortages or flooding and security of fit-for-purpose supplies is becoming a major issue. The emphasis on decentralized alternative water supply systems has increased considerably. Most of the information on such systems is either scattered or focuses on large scale reuse with little consideration given to decentralized small to medium scale systems. Alternative Water Supply Systems brings together recent research into the available and innovative options and additionally shares experiences from a wide range of contexts from both developed and developing countries. Alternative Water Supply Systems covers technical, social, financial and institutional aspects associated with decentralized alternative water supply systems. These include systems for greywater recycling, rainwater harvesting, recovery of water through condensation and sewer mining. A number of case studies from the UK, the USA, Australia and the developing world are presented to discuss associated environmental and health implications. The book provides insights into a range of aspects associated with alternative water supply systems and an evidence base (through case studies) on potential water savings and trade-offs. The information organized in the book is aimed at facilitating wider uptake of context specific alternatives at a decentralized scale mainly in urban areas. This book is a key reference for postgraduate level students and researchers interested in environmental engineering, water resources management, urban planning and resource efficiency, water demand management, building service engineering and sustainable architecture. It provides practical insights for water professionals such as systems designers, operators, and decision makers responsible for planning and delivering sustainable water management in urban areas through the implementation of decentralized water recycling

    Risk in Sports and Challenges for Sports Organizations

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    Success, injuries, future career opportunities of athletes, and the societal gains of participating in sports and organizing (mega) sports events are all related to individual risk-taking behavior. Although the sports economics and management literature has broadly addressed these issues, it is surprising that less attention has been paid to the implications of risk-taking on the organization of sports in general and, more particularly, on the design and behavior of sports organization members

    PhD students´day FMST 2023

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    The authors gave oral presentations of their work online as part of a Doctoral Students’ Day held on 15 June 2023, and they reflect the challenging work done by the students and their supervisors in the fields of metallurgy, materials engineering and management. There are 82 contributions in total, covering a range of areas – metallurgical technology, thermal engineering and fuels in industry, chemical metallurgy, nanotechnology, materials science and engineering, and industrial systems management. This represents a cross-section of the diverse topics investigated by doctoral students at the faculty, and it will provide a guide for Master’s graduates in these or similar disciplines who are interested in pursuing their scientific careers further, whether they are from the faculty here in Ostrava or engineering faculties elsewhere in the Czech Republic. The quality of the contributions varies: some are of average quality, but many reach a standard comparable with research articles published in established journals focusing on disciplines of materials technology. The diversity of topics, and in some cases the excellence of the contributions, with logical structure and clearly formulated conclusions, reflect the high standard of the doctoral programme at the faculty.Ostrav

    Financialisation, regulation and the “social and moral mission” of English housing associations

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    In recent years English housing associations have faced criticism on two principal fronts. Firstly, for placing greater emphasis on commercial development as opposed to social rented housing. Secondly, for numerous cases of disrepair, damp and mould. This thesis explores the role of financialisation in explaining the purported mission creep of housing associations, with sectoral governance transformed by the increased importance of financial actors, markets and practices post-2010. The thesis adopts a mixed-methods approach, combining longitudinal clustering of balance sheet data, analysis of a natural experiment, qualitative document analysis, and semi-structured interviews. The findings suggest that several forms of financialisation exist across the sector, but organisations share a common strategic principle of accessing capital by leveraging housing and land as an asset. This asset strategy has been a key driver of commercial activity and declining social rented supply among some associations. Moreover, a regulatory framework that prioritised financial viability over consumer standards has underpinned the increased importance of private finance. These findings challenge the notion that financialisation is consigned to large landlords, or is in retreat. Rather, financialisation is variegated and dynamic. The period of low-interest rates and low landlord expenditure that characterised the early 2010s has given way to a period of constrained borrowing capacity and significant investment in existing homes. Difficulties in accessing sufficient private and public funding are contributing to delays in remediating building safety issues and decarbonising social housing, as well as placing some associations at risk of financial collapse. Furthermore, the restrictions placed upon some landlords by their loan covenants are one of the contributing factors to disrepair. Nonetheless, housing associations are responsive to changes in their funding environment, and recent increases in government capital grant in areas of ‘high affordability pressure’ have led to a nascent increase in new social rent supply

    Polyarchy/Panarchy: a paradigm

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    Collection of papers for the construction of a new cultural paradigm
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