Sheep's wool insulation: A sustainable alternative use for a renewable resource?

Material selection in manufacturing may be characterized as a series of trade-offs between characteristics, properties, environmental impacts, sustainability, availability, and economics. Societal concerns about the environmental impacts of construction practices and materials have been expressed through an increase in the demand, production and use of “green” building products. This, combined with a desire to integrate more bioproducts and natural and renewable resources into the construction industry, has extended to the production and promotion of insulation made from sheep's wool.Although substantial literature exists on the insulation properties and other benefits of wool, less is known about the economics and manufacturing processes of sheep's wool insulation at varying scales of production. This paper contributes to this field of enquiry through presentation of the preliminary results of a wool insulation manufacturing pilot project, in which the scale and economics of the production of sheep's wool insulation were considered. Processing techniques, the impact of sheep breed, yield, energy use, and manufacturing costs were also examined. The results of the pilot project indicate that, while sheep's wool insulation produced at a smaller, or artisanal scale shows some potential, scale of operation and volume of production need to be carefully considered in order to ensure long-term sustainability of the operation. Using the least expensive sheep's wool available for the manufacture of wool batt insulation (and thereby reducing production costs) did not, in this pilot study, have a negative impact on productivity or product performance. Diversion of this waste stream of currently less marketable, and consequently less valuable wool, into the production of a green building material may offer small but significant benefit to sheep producers and the broader agricultural community, as well as consumers.     

Mixed methodology to analyze the relationship between maturity of environmental management and the adoption of green supply chain management in Brazil

The aim of this research is to verify the relationship between the maturity levels of environmental management and the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices by electro-electronic companies in Brazil. In this work a two-phase research was conducted, with one quantitative and the other qualitative. The quantitative phase aimed to test whether a relationship between the maturity levels of environmental management and GSCM exists, while the qualitative phase tried to detail the characteristics of this relationship. The quantitative phase was conducted through a survey with 100 Brazilian electro-electronic companies and the collected data were processed using Structural Equation Modeling. For the qualitative phase, a multiple case study was conducted with three companies located in Brazil. The results indicate that: (1) The main hypothesis was confirmed and considered statistically valid, indicating that, indeed, the maturity level of environmental management influences the adoption of GSCM practices; (2) a coevolution tends to occur between the environmental maturity and the GSCM practices; that is, the more developed is the company's environmental management, more complex GSCM practices are adopted; and (3) the GSCM internal practices tend to present a greater relative adoption than the external practices; these external practices of GSCM tend to be adopted when the company is inserted in a higher environmental stage and/or operates under a scenario of stronger normative environmental pressure. By the way, this is the first research mixing survey and case studies on GSCM in Brazil.     

天然沸石结构对合成分子筛吸附脱氮性能影响

针对污水厂尾水深度脱氨问题,从国内几个典型的天然沸石矿床中选取了4种天然沸石（记为A、B、C、D）,运用直接碱溶-水热晶化合成工艺制备分子筛,测定了各自的氨氮吸附性能;并采用XRF、XRD等表征方法,对比分析了4种天然沸石在元素组成及矿物含量方面的差异,结合4种合成产物的晶体结构、元素组成、表面形貌分析结果,探讨了天然沸石材料特性对合成产物吸附性能的影响.结果表明：与沸石原料相比,4种合成产物的氨氮吸附性能均得到明显提升,其中C和A沸石合成产物的氨氮吸附量较高,均达到15mg/g以上;合成产物的氨氮吸附性能与沸石原料的碱溶性硅溶出量有正相关关系;碱溶性硅主要来自于天然沸石原料中的方石英、斜发沸石、丝光沸石、透长石等矿物组分,而结构稳定的石英不易被碱溶活化利用.合成产物为含有不同类型分子筛及其它矿物成分的混合物,碱溶性硅溶出量高的C和A沸石均合成了A型、X型分子筛,氨氮吸附性能较好;而B和D沸石合成产物主要为孔径小于铵根离子粒径的方钠石分子筛,其氨氮吸附性能较差.因此,利用天然沸石合成分子筛用于污水脱氨时,应尽量选择石英矿物含量少、碱溶性矿物占比高的沸石原料.     

One-pot synthesis of Fe/Cu-SSZ-13 catalyst and its highly efficient performance for the selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxide with ammonia

Series of Fe/Cu-SSZ-13 catalysts with different Fe loading content were synthesized by simple one-pot strategy. The obtained catalysts were subjected to selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO_x with NH₃ and were characterized by various techniques. The results show that Fe_0.63/Cu_1.50-SSZ-13 catalyst with proper Fe content exhibits excellent catalytic activity with widest operation temperature window from 160 to 580°C, excellent hydrothermal stability as well as good resistance to sulfur poisoning when compared with Cu-SSZ-13, signifying its great potential for practical applications. Further characterizations reveal that the synthesized Fe/Cu-SSZ-13 catalysts present typical chabazite (CHA) structure with good crystallinity, while isolated Cu²⁺ and monomeric Fe³⁺ are revealed as the predominant copper and iron species. At low temperatures, isolated Cu²⁺ species act as primary active sites for SCR reaction, while monomeric Fe³⁺ species provide sufficient active sites for sustain the SCR activity at high temperature. Moreover, Fe over doping would lead to the damage of zeolite structure, destruction of isolated Cu²⁺ site, as well as the formation of highly oxidizing Fe₂O₃, thus causing deterioration of catalytic performances.     

A mixed methodology for evaluating use of evidence in conservation planning

Conservation practitioners widely recognize the importance of making decisions based on the best available evidence. However, the effectiveness of evidence use in conservation planning is rarely assessed, which limits opportunities to improve evidence-based practice. We devised a mixed methodology for empirically evaluating use of evidence that applies social science tools to systematically appraise what kinds of evidence are used in conservation planning, to what effect, and under what limitations. We applied our approach in a case study of the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), a leading land conservation organization. We conducted qualitative and quantitative analyses of 65 NCC planning documents (n = 13 in-depth) to identify patterns in evidence use, and surveyed 35 conservation planners to examine experiences of and barriers to using evidence. Although claims in plans contained a wide range of evidence types, 26% of claims were not referenced or associated with an identifiable source. Lack of evidence use was particularly apparent in claims associated with direct threats, particularly those identified as low (71% coded as insufficient or lacking evidence) or medium (45%) threats. Survey participants described relying heavily on practitioner experience and highlighted capacity limitations and disciplinary gaps in expertise among planning teams as barriers to using evidence effectively. We found that although time-intensive, this approach yielded actionable recommendations for improving evidence use in NCC conservation plans. Similar mixed-method assessments may streamline the process by including interviews and refining the document analysis frames to target issues or sections of concern. We suggest our method provides an accessible and robust point of departure for conservation practitioners to evaluate whether the use of conservation planning reflects in-house standards and more broadly recognized best practices.     

松香基三烯丙酯交联聚合树脂的合成及其对水中Pb（II）、Cd（II）和Cu（II）的吸附性能与机制

以自制的松香基三烯丙酯（triallyl maleopimarate， TAMP）为交联剂，通过悬浮聚合法合成了一种松香基三烯丙酯交联聚合树脂（triallyl maleopimarate-acrylic copolymer， TAMPA），采用红外光谱（FTIR）、扫描电镜（SEM）、N₂吸附脱附曲线和热重（TG）分析等方法对其物理化学结构及热稳定性等进行表征，采用批量吸附实验探讨了TAMPA投加量、溶液pH、温度、接触时间和离子强度等因素对TAMP树脂对Pb（II）、Cd（II）和Cu（II）重金属离子吸附性能的影响.结果表明，当pH值为2.0~5.0，TAMPA树脂对Pb（II）、Cu（II）和Cd（II）吸附量呈先增大后平缓的趋势，pH=5.0为最大值.随着离子溶液的增加对TAMP树脂去除重金属离子有抑制作用；吸附动力学符合准二级模型；Freundlich等温吸附模型可以较好地描述TAMPA对3种重金属的吸附；吸附热力学结果表明其能自发对相关金属离子进行吸附.以EDTA为洗脱剂，重复再生3次后TAMPA仍有可观的吸附性能.结合XPS和量子化学计算模拟结果，提出了TAMPA对Pb（II）、Cd（II）和Cu（II）的吸附作用机制，主要为重金属离子与材料基体中的C?O氧配位螯合作用.     

Evaluation of alternative water sources for commercial buildings: A case study in Brisbane,Australia

Commercial buildings are central to cities and contribute significantly to the urban demand for natural resources, including freshwater. Green building benchmarking tools include more efficient water use as key indicator of sustainability. This paper explores options for substituting mains drinking water with an alternative, non-potable water source on a fit for purpose basis. The research findings are based on a monitoring study of a commercial building in Brisbane, Australia that is harvesting rainwater for meeting non-potable water demand. The results demonstrated that the system is only achieving moderate reliability in meeting demand due to operational problems. The case study analysis has highlighted the need to include validation and monitoring to ensure the system is operating as per design intent. The paper also investigates the potential of other local, non-potable water sources for high-rise commercial buildings, in particular air conditioning condensate and groundwater inflow to a basement wet well. The paper concludes by comparing the advantages and disadvantages of different local water sources which highlights the need to undertake a site specific investigation to identify a suitable alternative water source, which considers O&M complexity and the capacity of facilities management.     

Strategies and measures for implementing eco-labelling schemes in Singapore's construction industry

The issue of sustainability in the construction industry is very prominent, as the industry often causes adverse impacts on the environment through its use of large amounts of natural resources and by clearing large areas of their natural habitats. After the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro proposed the use of eco-labels to attain sustainable development, the growth and use of eco-labelling schemes have increased significantly. This study focuses on eco-labelling schemes, particularly the Singapore Green Labelling Scheme (SGLS) and the Singapore Green Building Product Certification Scheme (SGBPCS), and their contributions to the Singapore construction industry. The effectiveness of the schemes and of their drivers is determined through the analysis of survey results from two groups of samples (suppliers and architects) and interviews with some of the key stakeholders involved. It can be observed that the both the supplier and architect groups have some knowledge and awareness of eco-labelling schemes in the Singapore context. However, in terms of implementation, both schemes are only moderately effective in advocating the use and production of eco-labelled building products. It was also found that, out of several factors, “environmental rating” appears to be the only one that significantly influences the decision to use eco-labelled schemes. Furthermore, the results show that SGBPCS was not as heavily promoted in the architect group as in the supplier group. The architects perceived the SGBC advertisements to be less convincing than did the suppliers, and therefore they considered the SGBC's measures to promote the use of eco-labelled materials to be less effective. From the empirical results, strategies and measures are proposed for industry stakeholders to enhance the effectiveness of the eco-labelling schemes in the construction industry.