Towards a pre-verified EPD tool with simulation capabilities for the aggregates industry

Aggregates are an indispensable component in the development of societies as they are the basic materials for most buildings and infrastructure projects. Therefore, understanding and taking actions regarding their environmental impact is necessary for the industry’s sustainable development and climate neutrality. This thesis focuses on the current challenges of the aggregates producers regarding the environmental aspects of their aggregates plants and aims at providing them with a tool for fact-based environmental decision-making. The three investigated areas are the current challenges of the aggregates producers, the potential usage of an EPD tool, and the development of such a tool. The proposed tool utilizes the LCA methodology and the standard for EPDs to calculate the environmental impact of aggregates plants. Additionally, it is coupled to process simulations as a step to enable proactive actions from the producers. To address the areas of interest two studies were conducted using a multiple and a single case study.Results suggest that challenges exist due to methodological and stakeholders’ aspects. Methodological challenges include the updated EN 15804 standard, the lack of a European PCR (Product Category Rules) specifically for aggregates, and the different processes adopted by different program operators in developing and verifying EPDs. Regarding stakeholders’ aspects, there may be difficulties with data (accessibility, availability, and quality), with knowledge transfer between LCA practitioners and plant managers, and with the varying interest of plant managers to be involved in environmental questions. The proposed tool can support the aggregate producers by simplifying the process of developing and verifying an EPD since the LCA module is locked and only the input data from the plant need verification. Additionally, such a\ua0 tool may enhance the collaboration between plant managers and LCA practitioners, improve the environmental awareness of the plant managers by involving them in the EPD and LCA processes and spark positive competitiveness among plant managers to achieve better environmental results. The aspects to be considered during the tool development are requirements by the EN 15804:A1+A2:2019 standard, the program operators, and the main customers. Additionally, data handling alternatives and the development and connection of a sector-specific LCA database are also needed.The proposed pre-verified EPD tool is not going to solve all the challenges that the aggregates producers are facing regarding environmental awareness and proactivity; however, it brings the possibility to develop an EPD easily and use the underlying work in the simulation environment

The Effect Of Colors Of E-commerce Websites On Mood, Memorization And Buying Intention

This paper aims at studying the impact of the colors of e-commerce websites on consumer memorization and buying intention. Based on a literature review we wish to introduce the theoretical and methodological bases addressing this issue. A conceptual model is proposed, showing the effects of the color of the e-commerce website and of its components Hue, Brightness and Saturation, on the behavioral responses of the consumer memorization and buying intention. These responses are conveyed by mood. Data collection was carried out during a laboratory experiment in order to control for the measurement of the colored appearance of e-commerce websites. Participants visited one of the 8 versions of a website designed for the research, selling music CDs. Data analysis using ANOVA, regressions and general linear models (GLM), show a significant effect of color on memorization, conveyed by mood. The interaction of hue and brightness, using chromatic colors for the dominant (background) and dynamic (foreground) supports memorization and buying intention, when contrast is based on low brightness. A negative mood infers better memorization but a decreasing buying intention. The managerial, methodological and theoretical implications, as well as the future ways of research were put in prospect

Compilation of a bilingual Modern Greek-Spanish medical dictionary: Problems, solutions and observations

En este artículo se presentan las etapas de elaboración y construcción de un diccionario bilingüe de términos médicos griego moderno-español. Se hace referencia en él a las especificaciones seguidas para la presentación de los lemas, las soluciones a la hora de decidir la estructura de su presentación y la aportación del griego a la terminología de las ciencias de la salud.The aim of this paper is to present the successive phases of compilation and creation of a bilingual (Modern GreekSpanish) dictionary of medical terminology. The article refers to the specifications that have been followed for presenting the lemmas, the solutions regarding the structure of their presentation and the contribution of the Greek language to the terminology of health sciences

Data Storage in Internet of Things: A Proposed Distributed Model

In Internet of Things (IoT), numerous devices are able to collect and report data while they can execute simple processing tasks to produce knowledge. IoT Nodes exhibit limited computational re-sources, thus, they can only perform a limited number of tasks and store a short version of the collected data. In this paper, we propose a scheme that focuses on a distributed model for data storage in a group of IoT nodes. Nodes cooperate each other exchanging statistical information for their data. Our work aims to provide a model for the selection of the node where the incoming data should be stored irrelevantly of the node in which they are initially reported. The selection process involves a decision making process that adopts a statistical similarity model of the incoming data with the datasets present in the group, the estimation of the load of each node and the in-network communication cost. All these parameters are fed into a multi-class classification scheme for the final decision. Our aim is to have a view on the statistics of the available datasets beforehand, thus, facilitating the post-processing and the production of knowledge. We report on the evaluation of our scheme and present experimental results towards the presentation of pros and cons of our model

Trust Formation and Relationship Building in Electronic Servicescapes

Trust is the key enabling factor for any relationship – commercial or not. Although it has been extensively studied in various disciplines, information systems researchers have focused on trust in the context of short-term transactional exchanges failing thus to address its evolutionary nature and associated complexities. Addressing this limitation we present a model and define a set of testable hypotheses. A measurement instrument is also developed for the empirical testing of the model and the subsequent theory development. This is deemed essential in order to inform the design of electronic servicescapes that can truly enable and support lasting relationships in virtual commercial settings

Book-app as course literature in CDIO-based project courses- Students\u27 perspectives

Course literature should aim to provide relevant information regarding the fulfillment of course objectives and be adjacent to students’ needs and preferences. The course literature in the “Integrated Design and Manufacturing” (PPU175) course at Chalmers University of Technology consisted of a printed book, which was used as a guide to projects’ implementation. However, the high price and low transferability of the book pinpointed the need of an alternative option. The solution was a book-app created by digitizing and adjusting the content of the existing book.This paper follows the development of the book-app and it examines its applicability as course literature in a CDIO-based project course considering students’ perspectives and preferences. The first version of the book-app was similar to a PDF whereas the second was enhanced with navigational features. Students’ attitudes towards the use of the book-app instead of a printed book as well as their opinions and suggestions about content formulation and app\u27s features were collected after completion of the course through a dedicated survey and a focus group interview.The outcomes supported that although students were positively predisposed regarding the use of a book-app as course literature, they were not satisfied with the first version of the book-app due to its delayed response and low navigation capabilities. Regarding the second version, they were satisfied with its content and depth of the explanations but they encountered compatibility and navigational issues which affected their overall opinion. The paper concludes that students are ready to use a book-app as their course literature and it suggests design and content features that will enhance the usability and students\u27 satisfaction with the book-app

Utilization of environmental simulations in the design and operation of coarse comminution and classification circuit

Finding and evaluating approaches to lower the environmental impact of their processes is an immediate aim for the mining companies as a part of their sustainability strategies. When only the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology is used, the analysis does not consider the dynamic nature of the process, which leads to lower accuracy of the results. Therefore, there is a need to combine process simulations with LCA. This paper describes how environmental simulations based on LCA can be used to inform plant design and operations of coarse comminution and classification circuits. A conceptional framework is introduced that shows the architecture of the simulation tool and how the different stakeholders, such as plant designers, engineers, equipment manufacturers, operators and educators, can use it in decision-making, education, and training. This simulation tool aims to increase understanding between production and environmental impact by reviewing, improving, and evaluating different choices in the coarse comminution and classification circuit. Its use can assist in lowering the environmental impact of the whole process by configuring the coarse comminution part so that it reduces the need for the more energy-intensive milling part and by regulating the material transportation within the plant to avoid unnecessary emissions

COLORING IN THE LINES: USING COLOR TO CHANGE THE PERCEPTION OF QUALITY IN E-COMMERCE SITES

E-commerce sites, like their brick-and-mortar cousins, are designed to draw in potential customers and encourage purchases and brand loyalty. Currently, E-commerce website designs are often rejected by their user community, which costs money through wasted development and lost customers. User acceptance is the goal of every design choice – and yet little work has extrapolated from the known affective responses users have to color to website design. We posit that a better understanding of user reactions to color will increase user perceptions of quality. We hypothesize that color saturation and brightness cause an affective reaction in the user, which can change the user\u27s trust in the site, and through this their perception of a site\u27s quality. In an experimental lab study, we find support for our hypotheses, providing suggestions for future website design to improve customer acceptance