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As natural resources are rapidly depleting and the demand of cement based products in construction industry is continuously increasing, there is a pressing need for finding alternatives without large penalties in terms of mechanical properties. Another issue to be resolved is related to current design guidelines developed for traditional cement based materials (e.g. mortar and concrete). Zeolites, either natural or synthetic, are crystalline alumina silicates with pozzolanic activity in cement based materials that...

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the role played by different wastewater treatment technologies in the dairy industry in the context of the challenges of sustainable development: water scarcity and conservation of water resources, the constant growth of the population and the costs of wastewater treatment in centralized systems, increasing constraints and stricter environmental protection regulations. In this sense, the efficiency of wastewater treatment plants belonging to a number of 8 factories was ...

The article presents a solution for solving the problems of eco-efficient combustion of pelletized or chopped and dried agricultural and forest residual biomass, using the TopLit UpDraft (TLUD) gasification process. By using this solution, thermal energy is produced, and about 10-20% residual charcoal, not transformed into gas, called biochar, too. Biochar is a good amendment for agricultural soils and reduces the concentration of CO2 in the environment by capturing carbon in the soil for long periods. Biochar act...

Climate change and global environmental challenges pose an existential threat to the world, including Europe. Dealing with the current climate and environmental challenges requires an urgent and ambitious response. The global challenges are also an opportunity for companies, especially those engaged in environmental protection, to innovate, as they both increase their competitiveness and export potential. The relevance of the research problem is additionally supported by the fact that the European Union is committ...

The main purpose of the publication was to show the differences in revenues, costs and profits when using manure directly as a fertilizer (after storage) or as a substrate for a biogas plant equipped with a cogeneration unit, and then using the digestate for fertilization purposes. The comparison includes cost, revenue and profit streams throughout the year. It also takes into account the introduction of additional co-substrates in order to increase the yield of biogas (biomethane), and thus the profits from the f...

The paper presents the results of the water quality of the St. George branch, one of three Danube River distributaries, using the combined physical and chemical analyses from June 2017. Three cutoff meander reaches (the Mahmudia, Upper Dunavat and Lower Dunavat meanders) were selected to assess the water ecological state. The cut-offs of the meanders by navigational canals since 1984-1988 caused significant changes in the distribution of the water discharge. Water samples were acquired throughout several cross-sec...

The primary purpose of environmental policy is a framework, guidance for decisionmaking and actions that lead to a better quality of the environment as a whole and its components. It is also adopted to use the principles of sustainable development, to increase economic efficiency and important social social programs and activities. The aim of this article is to provide basic research information on the causes of the emergence and development of environmental policy in the current period of circular economy. The is...

In this paper, we intended to analyze non-native plant species that spread uncontrollably and have a visible and quantifiable impact in the analyzed area. The analyzed plant species demonstrate a strong invasive character, overwhelming the native plant species. This fact leads to a loss of biodiversity at the local level, but especially to production loss of the useful biomass on the invaded land surfaces. The aim of this paper is to show a practical method of analysis and evaluation of economic losses at the loca...

As the population of metropolitan areas grows, so does the need for private and public outdoor space. In turn, in some EEA (European Economic Area) countries, urban populations are declining, reducing outdoor requirements, and increasing the potential for biodiversity or land degradation. The understanding of private property and its value is constantly evolving and improving. Private property and public outdoor space can mean both concepts or be considered separately. The aim of research on the economic value of ...

Air pollution is one of the most serious and intensively studied environmental problems of our time. Particulate matter (PM) air pollution has been shown to have adverse effects on human health, as well as the environment. The negative effects of pollutants can cause a wide range of health problems, from mild to serious illness to premature mortality. One of the sources of environmental pollution is biomass burning. During combustion, particles of different sizes and compositions are produced. Their formation depe...

Public gardens and park zones are an important and widely visited component of urban spaces worldwide, however they can be polluted and even dangerous for humans and animals visiting them. The simplest way to screen the level of pollution of those green zones is to assess their ecological toxicity. In the present study, to assess the ecotoxicity of soil and ground samples obtained in 15 parks and public gardens in the city of Kazan (Russia) with 1 Mio citizens were investigated. Two elutriate assays with Ceriodaph...

The standard procedure for fluid preservation of insects consists of two steps. First, the specimen is killed and prepared in a fixative fluid and then transferred to a storage fluid. Recommendations for using specific chemicals or mixtures differ depending on the size and anatomy of the animal and vary among the authors. However, controlled comparative studies are often missing. The ideal method should preserve the specimen-s morphology as well as its genetic information. We have investigated the effect of 12 com...

Biochar application to agriculture soil has been recommended as a strategy to reduce increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations and mitigate climate change. Significant suppression of soil CO2 emissions following biochar amendments has been demonstrated in short-term laboratory incubations by several authors, yet evidence from long-term field trials has been contradictory. This study investigates whether biochar addition to the soil could suppress soil CO2 emission under field conditions after 6-th...

Because of the electric propulsion, electric scooters could be a potential way how to decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in urban transportation sector; however, recent research has cast doubt on that. This article focuses on the effect the electric scooter use has on CO2 emissions by examining the electric scooter trip data obtained during 2021 scooter season in Riga city. As shared scooters routinely replace already existing modes of transportation, the article analyses the effect which this replacement has...

In order for life to arise and exist on earth, a number of important processes take place in it, based on various elements. One of these elements is nitrogen (N). Nitrogen is the most common element in the atmosphere approximately 78% of the atmosphere consists of nitrogen gas (N2), but in this way, the majority of the living organisms cannot absorb nitrogen. Nitrogen fixation occurs during the nitrogen cycle and results in a number of complex organic compounds required for living organisms. During the nitrogen li...

Risk communication facilitates the understanding of risks by the local communities and results in a higher acceptance degree of the people regarding the management of risks. Constant communication between all stakeholders on topics like community sustainable development (including environmental risk management) leads to a better local governance and a higher public engagement in the problems of the community, leading to improved behavior patterns. Moreover, broader and more effective community engagement is greatl...

This study presents a fertilization plan in Zadareni, Arad County, Romania, on an area of 113 ha cultivated with soybean and maize. The identified soils were mostly chernozem (108 ha) and eutricambosol (5 ha). Twenty-three soil samples were collected and, based on the soil analyses performed in the laboratory and on the specific consumption by the plants as kg/ha active substance, a series of calculations were made regarding the need for fertilizers for the two crops. A fertilisation plan was then elaborated takin...

There is an emergent trend for the protection of geographical indication (GI) of medicinal plants, herbs and teas not only in the context of intellectual property rights, but also due to multiple concerns regarding contamination from polluted air, soil and water in some source countries, climate change, quality control and traceability. The mineral content coupled with chemometrics can be used to create elemental fingerprints. Lime flower (Tilia cordata), chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), and Lady-s Bedstraw (Gal...

The European hare (Lepus europaeus) is widely spread throughout Europe, however, their numbers are declining in some countries, with parasites bearing some responsibility for this population decrease, due to their role as favouring factors. The aim of this study was to determine the gastrointestinal parasitic populations of hares (Lepus europaeus) from Romania. The study took place during the hunting seasons (November-February) of the years 2020-2022. Gastrointestinal tracts from 72 hares were subjected to a macro...

Renewable Energy Communities (REC) are slowly becoming an important driver for promoting the energy transition in Europe. This paper addresses in particular the Italian current regulation on ECs, and analyses how they can implement the application of constitutional principles to the energy sector. In order to answer this question, at present, when we look into the different studies that have addressed the issue, it is pertinent to consider the fact that they have focused on constitutional values of landscape, envi...

Environmental expenditures include all environmental protection expenditures to prevent, reduce and control environmental aspects, impacts and hazards, in addition to the costs of disposal, treatment, hygiene and cleaning. Environmental protection expenditures are defined as investments of enterprises allocated to reduce direct environmental pollution. In this scientific paper we will address the topic of environmental costs of enterprises in the mining sector in Kosovo. All enterprises of the mining industry in K...

Humanity vision regarding available odds to design and exploit different technological applications by using for this goal diverse energy resources has been and continues to be directed to steadily increasing its quality of life. Made experiences have emphasized that industrial activities can have beside positive desired impacts on humanity quality of life also negative undesired ones. Conventional energy technologies have been since long applied, their impacts being especially perceivable on environment. Chances ...

Environmental policy is a relatively young science that originated in the late 60's and early 70's. The term environmental policy is used not only to describe national, international, global, regional or local environmental policy. Today, environmental policy is formulated by a number of other entities, primarily political parties, but also entities of the business sphere or the public sector. The Industrial Revolution is considered to be a fundamental milestone in the dynamics of human society's development, scop...

The scope of environmental accounting includes waste and its neutralization. The activity is classified as a social minimum for the life of the population. The challenge is the growth of waste - household and non-household. Therefore, sustainable development, specifically - waste reduction and recovery, is identified as a center of state and municipal policy. These problems will be soEuroed by making sustainable management decisions. The solution to the problems is through the implementation of public-private part...

Because the occupational risk expressed the possibility of ending up in a (possible) danger of injury and/or occupational illness, it can represent a criterion of qualitative appreciation of the accomplishment of a human action, indicating how it may produce undesirable effects, materialized by human and material damage. The risk associated with a human action is determined by a multitude of risk factors, both of internal nature (manifested by human error) and of an external nature (technical equipment and related...

In 2004, a digital terrain model (DTM) was created in Serbia. It was obtained by vectorizing isohypses on topographic maps with a scale of 1: 25000. The resolution of the digital model of Serbia is 30 m, and the vertical accuracy, as the authors claim, is 10 m. From December 2021, the global model FABDEM (Forest And Buildings removed Copernicus DEM) is available to the public. It was created based on the data of the Copernicus GLO30 model so that data on forests and buildings were removed from it. Important featur...

The importance of land assessment activity consists in the fact that the data provided by these studies constitute the basic documentation for establishing the most appropriate practical measures for protection, improvement and rational use of soils for biomass production in an optimized and rigorous dynamics. correlated with the growing demands of environmental protection. The evolution and fertility of soils is conditioned by a large number of their individual properties and by many specific processes that take ...

Hydrological extremes (drought-flood) are a phenomenon that is occurring more and more frequently because of climate change. The human-altered landscape cannot sufficiently withstand these extreme phenomena. For this reason, society feels pressure on the design, and assessment, but especially the implementation of adaptation and mitigation measures in the landscape. For best-designed measures, it is crucial to determine where the given problem arises and what are the possibilities of its solution with subsequent q...

Humanity currently faces the great challenge of achieving a safe and sustainable future to give future generations the opportunity to experience the quality of life they deserve; all inside the development of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations that define the world we want with ensure that no one is left behind. This objective implies an inescapable commitment to sustainability, which only can achieved if during the training of our new generations they receive an environmental education that f...

The soils potential is the result of interdependence between the characteristics of the vegetation and the natural environment, also the level of production is the result of the influence of determining factors: natural environmental factors and technological factors. The influence of biotope relief factors on the above-ground vegetation is a direct consequence of the altitudinal differentiation of climatic conditions, a vegetation layer and implicitly a rather varied and complex area soil cover. It is unanimously...

The paper presents an analysis of the impact of the enterprise on the state of the soil layer. The impact was considered as a complex of separate physical and physico-chemical processes. To do this, we used the method of determining the cleaning efficiency indicators developed by the author, which is based on a simulation experiment. The algorithm for conducting a simulation experiment on a set of models was used, taking into account the established coefficients, and 10,000 of its implementations were carried out....

The aim of this paper was to evaluate the influence of some sweeteners adding on sensorial characteristics (appearance, consistency, colour, smell and taste), and some physico-chemical indicators (acidity, total soluble solids, total polyphenols content and antioxidant activity) of the chamomile soft drinks. The parameters were evaluated at 7 and 14 days respectively. These fermented soft drinks were obtained from chamomile flowers, bran, lemon juice and four types of sweeteners: white sugar, brown sugar, bee hone...

Used the specialized software solution regarding to the thermochemical facilities, we can predict detonation (e.g. detonation velocity, pressure, energy, heat end temperature, etc.) and combustion (e.g. specific impulse, force, pressure, etc.) performance of energetic materials. The calculation of detonation parameters is based on the chemical equilibrium steady-state model of detonation. The equilibrium composition of detonation and combustion products is calculated by applying modified White, Johnson, and Dantzi...

Climate and weather play significant role in the urban areas function. They impact on the social and economy life, on the environment and infrastructure, on the biodiversity. That`s why the occurrence of extreme or untypical events is a challenge. Droughts are part of these processes. They are prolonged events that can lead to serious harmful impacts. For this purpose of importance is the becoming of reliable knowledge about such behaviour that can serve as a base for the selection of appropriate prevention and mi...

The purpose of the paper is to perform a topographic lifting and traction of an architectural project for the execution of a Tyrolean that is arranged on various relief forms, in a hilly area, halfway between Timisoara and Lugoj, Timis County, Romania. The development of an adventure park in an area so close to urban settlements has a great impact on the public of all age categories. Children are the main beneficiaries of such objectives because they test their minds and, at the same time, implement an active and ...

The paper presents an exergy analysis of a heat pump with a steam injection. Different refrigerants as R290, R152A and R1234yf are considered. Constructive schemes such as two-stage heat pumps or cascade couplings are known and used to reduce the temperature at the compressor discharge level, but the presence of two or more compressors increases the cost of the initial investment of the equipment. This paper presents the design of a steam injection heat pump that has the advantage of a simple construction and can ...

Due to the rising demand of energy, in the last years is a growing interest to develop new equipment-s and to improve the existing, to produce as much as possible energy from renewable sources. Therefore, in this article are studied the effects of two shrouds geometries over the patterns of flow and over the velocity-s distributions. This study was performed experimentally in the laboratory using an experimental stand a with closed-circuit trough water was recirculated and a Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) system...

SARS-CoV-2 researchers faced the problem of specificity for ACE-2 receptors. In mice and rats, ACE-2 has a low affinity for this virus. In contrast, the Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) when infected with SARS-CoV-2 show clinical signs of infection with this virus. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the severity of pathological lesions and immune response for relevance to preclinical new drugs against SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we studied blood counts, serum levels of Il-6, TNF-?, IFN-? and IFN-? and the hi...

The data from three solar thermal collector systems installed in dormitories of the University of Latvia in Riga are analysed in detail to obtain parameters that characterise the operation of such systems in real operation conditions in Riga, Latvia. All the systems were installed in 2019-2020 and the data for one full year is available for the study. The area and the power output for the observed solar thermal collectors are similar-63 m2 with 51 kW for each. The differences exist only in the orientation of the c...

The research, which is carried out in cooperation with the Technical University of Liberec, the Klokner Institute of the Czech Technical University in Prague and the company Cervenka Consulting s.r.o., deals with the use of 3D printing of cement composites in architecture and construction. The research develops original equipment for 3D printing of mixtures with cement-based binders, including the original design of printing mixtures and original software for printing data processing and machine control. The ambit...

Three photovoltaic (PV) systems with the identical solar panels, the same charge controllers, and similar loads, but with different used battery types: AGM deep-cycle, LiFePO4 and lead-carbon were installed in Riga, Latvia for a long-term monitoring and analysis of the operation efficiency and potential energy losses in batteries under real operation conditions. Results of one full year of monitoring are analysed in this paper resulting quantitative indicators during different seasons. During the wintertime with l...

Traditional building materials based on primary natural resources can be used for green housing concepts with energy eco-efficiency and the health of the living space, representing a special group of innovative materials for the construction industry. They are developed by using and improving the local, traditional technologies and concepts applied on basic, natural raw materials (clay and sand, wood, straw, wool, etc.), for the general purpose of creating the living space in a sustainable, environmentally friendl...

Asphalt mixtures are the most commonly used material in road construction. It is necessary to know the properties of the mixtures and their constituents, as well as the changes in properties that occur during their service life. The demands on road durability are constantly increasing. The main problem with asphalt mixtures is degradation. Due to the effects during asphalt pavement production and service, there is a gradual degradation of properties. One of the degradation factors is the impact of traffic, climate...

In order to protect the structural steel sheet from the impact of the blast wave, the steel sheet was covered with a composite material consisting of aramid fabrics with a surface density of 200 g/m2 (3 layers) and 350 g/m2 (3 layers). The total thickness of these layers was 2.4 mm. Turkish produced BRE 450 polyester resin was used to connect the layers. The composite was coated on top with the same resin filled with crumb rubber 1.5 mm in size. The thickness of this coating is 2.2 mm. The protective agent thus ob...

In recent years, natural wastewater treatment wetland plants have been gaining more attention from researchers and the public due to their low operating costs and efficient way of treating wastewater. Treatment wetland plants with pulse-fed vertical flow filters are one of the most efficient treatment technologies. For optimum operation, intermittent loading of wastewater onto the filter surface is necessary, for which various types of automatic siphons can be used in addition to pumps. This kind of automatic siph...

The global development of society requires constant updating of the objectives that education pursues and how they are achieved. Science education is an area undergoing advanced transformation, both at the level of objectives and methodologies, with a strong social, economic, and knowledge impact. Research-based education is a well-established term, especially in the higher education system. More studies and key policy documents argue that education must be based on cutting-edge research. Essential in this equatio...

The Eastern pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens (L.) Mill.) is considered as an endangered species in all European countries where it is found, including Latvia. An important factor for the survival of P. patens - a species with low competitiveness is not only the conditions suitable for germination and further growth, but also the indicators of seed viability. This is particularly important as there is no persistent soil seed bank for this species. Only limited data is available on the factors affecting seed viabilit...

Agricultural activities account for about a third of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Most of the GHG in the atmosphere are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). The aim of this study is to measure N2O isotopes in two differently managed agricultural soils. One soil is with organic farming and the other with conventional. Samples were collected in 32 experimental plots as well as a control plot. The samples are thus weighed in 3 l buckets, each 1.8 kg in total. Two samples were made from each...

The transition to mining benches with transverse panels from top to bottom within the boundaries of steeply inclined layers does not allow transforming the results of mininggeometric analysis sequentially for each individual stage of mining into a calendar schedule of mining operations. Therefore, a model is offered for converting the results of mining-geometric analysis into a calendar schedule of mining operations with sequential mining of benches from top to bottom using phased volumes of overburden rocks and o...

The mechanism for the selective adsorption of zirconium ions in a highly acidic medium by sodium-modified titanium dioxide was proposed. The mechanism of adsorption of zirconium ions in an acidic medium by this adsorbent is similar to the mechanism of adsorption of strontium ions in a neutral medium. The selectivity of Na-TiO2 is due to the positively charged surface of the adsorbent in the highly acidic medium.