Electrochemical synthesis of ammonia from wet nitrogen via a dual-chamber reactor using La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3−δ-Ce0.8Gd0.18Ca0.02O2−δ composite cathode

A La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3−δ-Ce0.8Gd0.18Ca0.02O2−δ composite cathode was used to investigate the electrochemical synthesis of ammonia from wet nitrogen. Wet nitrogen was flown through a dual chamber reactor under atmospheric pressure leading to the successful synthesis of ammonia. Ammonia was synthesised at a rate of 1.5 × 10−10 mol s−1 cm−2 at 400 °C when applying a dc voltage of 1.4 V, which is the highest reported to date. This rate is twice that of the observed ammonia formation rate (7 × 10−11 mol s−1 cm−2) when Co-free cathode, La0.6Sr0.4FeO3−δ-Ce0.8Gd0.18Ca0.02O2−δ was used as the cathode catalyst. A higher catalytic activity for ammonia synthesis may be obtained when using a catalyst with high oxygen vacancies, with the introduction of oxygen vacancies at the cathode being a good strategy to improve the catalytic activity of ammonia synthesis

Policy making under uncertainty in electric vehicle demand

The introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) into the passenger vehicle market has, in recent years, become viewed as a primary solution to the significant carbon dioxide emissions attributed to personal mobility. Moreover, EVs offer a means by which energy diversification and efficiency can be improved compared to the current system. The UK government and European Commission have played an active role in steering the development and market introduction of EVs. However, a great deal of uncertainty remains regarding the effectiveness of these policies and the viability of EV technology in the mainstream automotive market. This paper investigates the prevalence of uncertainty concerning the demand for EVs. This is achieved through the application of a conceptual framework that assesses the locations of uncertainty. UK and EU documents are assessed through a review of the published policy alongside contributions from academia to determine how uncertainty has been reduced. This assessment offers insights to decision makers in this area by evaluating the work done to date through a landscape analysis. Results have identified six different locations of uncertainty covering: consumer, policy, infrastructure, technical, economic and social issues

Non-hispanic whites have higher risk for pulmonary impairment from pulmonary tuberculosis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Disparities in outcomes associated with race and ethnicity are well documented for many diseases and patient populations. Tuberculosis (TB) disproportionately affects economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic minority populations. Pulmonary impairment after tuberculosis (PIAT) contributes heavily to the societal burden of TB. Individual impacts associated with PIAT may vary by race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We analyzed the pulmonary function of 320 prospectively identified patients with pulmonary tuberculosis who had completed at least 20 weeks standard anti-TB regimes by directly observed therapy. We compared frequency and severity of spirometry-defined PIAT in groups stratified by demographics, pulmonary risk factors, and race/ethnicity, and examined clinical correlates to pulmonary function deficits.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Pulmonary impairment after tuberculosis was identified in 71% of non-Hispanic Whites, 58% of non-Hispanic Blacks, 49% of Asians and 32% of Hispanics (<it>p </it>< 0.001). Predictors for PIAT varied between race/ethnicity. PIAT was evenly distributed across all levels of socioeconomic status suggesting that PIAT and socioeconomic status are not related. PIAT and its severity were significantly associated with abnormal chest x-ray, <it>p </it>< 0.0001. There was no association between race/ethnicity and time to beginning TB treatment, <it>p </it>= 0.978.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Despite controlling for cigarette smoking, socioeconomic status and time to beginning TB treatment, non-Hispanic White race/ethnicity remained an independent predictor for disproportionately frequent and severe pulmonary impairment after tuberculosis relative to other race/ethnic groups. Since race/ethnicity was self reported and that race is not a biological construct: these findings must be interpreted with caution. However, because race/ethnicity is a proxy for several other unmeasured host, pathogen or environment factors that may contribute to disparate health outcomes, these results are meant to suggest hypotheses for further research.</p

Impact of large-scale climatic oscillations on snowfall-related climate parameters in the world's major downhill ski areas: a review

Skiers are passionate about finding the best snow conditions. Snow conditions in thousands of ski resorts around the world depend mainly on natural snowfall, particularly in the case of backcountry skiing. In various mountain ranges popular among skiers, snowfall is strongly linked to large-scale climatic oscillations. This paper reviews existing information on the impacts of several of these phenomena, such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, North Atlantic Oscillation, and North Pacific Index, on snowfall-related climate parameters in the world's major ski areas. We found that in each of the studied areas, one or more large-scale climatic oscillations affected snowfall-related climate parameters. Understanding the predictability of such oscillations is high on the climate research agenda. If this research leads to improved predictability in the coming years, this could be combined with the knowledge summarized in our paper on the relationships between climatic oscillations and snow-related parameters to provide useful information for winter sports and other snow-related fields. © 2012 International Mountain Society

The short-term health and psychosocial impacts of domestic energy efficiency investments in low-income areas: a controlled before and after study

Background Research suggests that living in fuel poverty and cold homes contributes to poor physical and mental health, and that interventions targeted at those living in poor quality housing may lead to health improvements. However, little is known about the socio-economic intermediaries and processes that contribute to better health. This study examined the relationship between energy efficiency investments to homes in low-income areas and mental and physical health of residents, as well as a number of psychosocial outcomes likely to be part of the complex relationship between energy efficiency measures and health outcomes. Methods A quasi-experimental field study with a controlled pretest-posttest design was conducted (intervention n = 364; control n = 418) to investigate the short-term health and psychosocial impacts of a domestic energy efficiency programme that took place across Wales between 2013 and 2015. Survey data were collected in the winters before and after installation of energy efficiency measures, including external wall insulation. The study used a multilevel modelling repeated measures approach to analyse the data. Results The energy efficiency programme was not associated with improvements in physical and mental health (using the SF-12v2 physical and mental health composite scales) or reductions in self-reported respiratory and asthma symptoms. However, the programme was associated with improved subjective wellbeing (B = 0.38, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.65), as well as improvements in a number of psychosocial outcomes, including increased thermal satisfaction (OR = 3.83, 95% CI 2.40 to 5.90), reduced reports of putting up with feeling cold to save heating costs (OR = 0.49, CI = 0.25 to 0.94), fewer financial difficulties (B = −0.15, 95% CI -0.25 to -0.05), and reduced social isolation (OR = 0.32, 95% CI 0.13 to 0.77). Conclusion The study showed that investing in energy efficiency in low-income communities does not lead to self-reported health improvements in the short term. However, investments increased subjective wellbeing and were linked to a number of psychosocial intermediaries that are conducive to better health. It is likely that better living conditions contribute to improvements in health outcomes in the longer term. Better understanding of the impacts on recipients of energy efficiency schemes, could improve targeting of future fuel poverty policies

Concentrations of organic contaminants in industrial and municipal bioresources recycled in agriculture in the UK

Many types of bioresource materials are recycled in agriculture for soil improvement and as bedding materials for livestock and have potential for transfer into plant and animal foods. Representative types of industrial and municipal bioresources were selected to assess the extent of organic chemical contamination, including: (i) land applied materials: treated sewage sludge biosolids), meat and bone meal ash (MBMA), poultry litter ash (PLA), paper sludge ash (PSA) and compost-like-output (CLO), and (ii) bedding materials: recycled waste wood (RWW), dried paper sludge (DPS), paper sludge ash (PSA) and shredded cardboard. The materials generally contained lower concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-pdioxins/dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) relative to earlier reports, indicating the decline in environmental emissions of these established contaminants. However, concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) remain elevated in biosolids samples from urban catchments. Polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) were present in larger amounts in biosolids and CLO compared to their chlorinated counterparts and hence are of potentially greater significance in contemporary materials. The presence of non-ortho-polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in DPS was probably due to non-legacy sources of PCBs in paper production. Emerging flame retardant compounds, including: decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE)and organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs), were detected in several of the materials. The profile of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) depended on the type of waste category; perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA) was the most significant PFAS for DPS, whereas perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) was dominant in biosolids and CLO. The concentrations of polychlorinated alkanes (PCAs) and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) were generally much larger than the other contaminants measured, indicating that there are major anthropogenic sources of these potentially hazardous chemicals entering the environment. The study results suggest that continued vigilance is required to control emissions and sources of these contaminants to support the beneficial use of secondary bioresource materials

Decomposing the growth in residential land in the United States

This paper decomposes the growth in land occupied by residences in the United States to give the relative contributions of changing demographics versus increases in the land area used by individual households. Between 1976 and 1992 the amount of residential land in the United States grew 47.5% while population only grew 17.8%. At first glance, this suggests an important role for per-household increases. However, the calculations in this paper show that only 24.3% of the growth in residential land area can be attributed to State level changes in land per household. 37.5% is due to overall population growth, 5.9% to the shift of population towards States with larger houses, 22.7% to an increase in the number of households over this period, and the remaining 9.5% to interactions between these changes. There are large differences across states and metropolitan areas in the relative importance of these components

Analysis of Oil and Gas Ethane and Methane Emissions in the Southcentral and Eastern United States Using Four Seasons of Continuous Aircraft Ethane Measurements

In the last decade, much work has been done to better understand methane (CH4) emissions from the oil and gas (O&G) industry in the United States. Ethane (C2H6), a gas that is co-emitted with thermogenic sources of CH4, is emitted in the US predominantly by the O&G sector. In this study, we perform an inverse analysis on 200 h of atmospheric boundary layer C2H6 measurements to estimate C2H6 emissions from the US O&G sector. Measurements were collected from 2017 to 2019 as part of the Atmospheric Carbon and Transport (ACT) America aircraft campaign and encompass much of the central and eastern United States. We find that for the fall, winter, and spring campaigns, C2H6 data consistently exceeds values that would be expected based on EPA O&G leak rate estimates by more than 50%. C2H6 observations from the summer 2019 data set show significantly lower C2H6 enhancements in the southcentral region that cannot be reconciled with data from the other three seasons, either due to complex meteorological conditions or a temporal shift in the emissions. Combining the fall, winter, and spring C2H6 posterior emissions estimate to an inventory of O&G CH4 emissions, we estimate that O&G CH4 emissions are larger than EPA inventory values by 48%–76%. Uncertainties in the gas composition data limit the accuracy of using C2H6 as a proxy for O&G CH4 emissions. These limits could be resolved retroactively by increasing the availability of industry-collected gas composition data