Early-stage anaerobic zone formation by organic eluate from wood in soil

When separated soil (SS) generated from the Great East Japan Earthquake, which contains woodchips and others (WC), is utilized as ground material, microorganisms decompose the organic carbon in WC, and oxygen is consumed in the process. This reaction results in forming an anaerobic zone and generating methane gas. To effectively utilize SS as ground material, it is necessary to prevent anaerobic zone formation to ensure safety. This study clarified the relationship between WC content and the concentration of leached organic carbon (TOC) and the relationship between TOC concentration in the eluate and the oxygen consumption rate were clarified. We obtained the relationship between WC content and the extent of anaerobic zone formation from the results,. The anaerobic zone is formed below the oxygen penetration depth (L_O2). L_O2 rapidly decreases as the WC weight ratio increases from 0 to 1 w%, and L_O2 is almost constant, i.e., around 1 to 2 m above 1 w% WC weight ratio. An increase in WC weight ratio does not significantly decrease L_O2 determined by the aerobic decomposition of the solution. From the above, contamination with WC should be limited to 1 w% or less to prevent the formation of an anaerobic zone. If SS has WC above 1 w%, it is required to put a ventilating layer such as crushed stone every few meters or the other countermeasures when SS is utilized as ground material.     

Gas transport parameters of differently compacted granulated bentonite mixtures (GBMs) under air-dried conditions

Granulated bentonite mixtures (GBMs) have been regarded as effective buffer materials in the deep geological disposal of radioactive waste due to their operational advantages, such as ease of transportation and in-situ placement/backfilling. Many studies have been done to characterize the hydraulic and thermal properties of GBMs as well as their swelling properties. Only limited studies, however, have investigated their gas transport properties, even though these properties affect their compactness during in-situ placement/backfilling and subsequent gas diffusion and advection in the buffer zone. The aim of this study is to understand the gas transport parameters, i.e., air permeability (k_a) and gas diffusivity (D_p/D_o), of tested samples compacted at different dry densities (DDs) under air-dried conditions, linking them with the measured density distribution characteristics determined by microfocus X-ray computed tomography (MFXCT) analysis. Two types of GBMs were used in this study: 1) FE-GBM (prepared from National Standard® bentonite, Wyoming, USA): this material was used in the Full-scale Emplacement (FE) experiment at the Mont Terri rock laboratory, Switzerland) and 2) OK-GBM (prepared from a bentonite, originating from Japan, with the trade name of OK bentonite, Kunimine Industries). The tested samples were firstly packed in a 100-cm³ acrylic core with different DDs, ranging from loose to dense (1.09 to 1.75 g/cm³), and scanned by MFXCT. The weighting factors, w_f (fine fraction; lower density) and w_c (coarse fraction; higher density) (w_f + w_c = 1), were determined after the peak separation of the measured CT brightness histograms from the reconstructed three-dimensional multiplanar reconstruction (MPR) images of the MFXCT analysis. The measured k_a and D_p/D_o were highly dependent on the DDs, the k_a (?) values fitted well with a power law model, and the D_p/D_o (?) was predicted accurately by several previously proposed models. For both FE-GBM and OK-GBM, there were good linear relationships between the gas transport parameters and w_c × DD, implying that the weight of the coarse fraction controlled k_a and D_p/D_o. Moreover, the Kozeny-Carman model, incorporating the measured volumetric surfaces from the MFXCT analysis, was able to predict the k_a values well.     

Microfoundations of project portfolio regulation in joint university-industry laboratories

Joint university-industry laboratories (joint U-I labs) consist of a new, yet little understood model of academic partnership with the firms, typically involving the establishment of a collaborative research unit to conduct research and development (R&D) projects. This type of collaboration faces an ongoing challenge in dealing with the tension between the development and deployment focus in the project portfolio. While several studies have investigated project portfolio management in a given firm, little is known about the interorganizational portfolio management and how the actors manage tensions in joint U-I labs. This study aims to investigate the microfoundations of project portfolio management in joint U-I labs. By combining the multiple-case study and at-home ethnography methods, we identified that the regulation approach explains how partners in joint U-I labs dynamically adjust and manage the project portfolio. Based on the empirical findings, we propose a new framework for project portfolio management in joint U-I labs: portfolio regulation. This framework consists of four processes: dual scouting, dual matchmaking, joint selection, and bridgemaking. These microfoundations enable actors to strategically regulate the portfolio by increasing/decreasing resources related to development or deployment. Our study explores how portfolio regulation evolves within a joint U-I lab through four stages: formation, learning, reconfiguration, and joint portfolio. The proposed framework contributes to interorganizational R&D portfolio management theory and joint U-I lab portfolio management practice.     

Managerial agency (re)producing project governance structure and context: Public-private partnerships in the Netherlands

Project managers activate their agentic powers in the (re)production of project governance structure and the institutional context of projects. By examining three ongoing Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects within the Dutch policy path, we provide evidence that managers aim to improve their working conditions when enacting three project governing practices: upscaling issues, adapting, and reproducing. Additionally, we show that public project managers mobilized as a group of interest within the public parent organization are able to influence the policy context and improve their control position for future PPP agreements. We identify "emerging associativity" and "ideological legitimization" as core processes of managerial agency, deployed in project practice and influencing institutional contexts.     

Prediction of non-woven geotextiles’ reduction factors for damage caused by the drop of backfill materials

The need for sustainable solutions in geotechnical works has encouraged the investigation of recycled construction and demolition wastes (RCDW) as backfill material. The possible damages caused by the launching (dropping) process of this “new” backfill material (RCWD) must be quantified for its combined use with geosynthetics. This study evaluated the influence of the backfill's grain-size distribution and the geotextile's mass per unit area in the damages caused by the launch of RCDW material and aimed to provide a prediction equation of the reduction factors. Five RCDW materials were launched from 1.0-m and 2.0-m height over five non-woven polyester needle-punched geotextile and specimens were exhumed to be tested under tensile. Databases were created with the results and subjected to machine learning to obtain a prediction equation for the reduction factor's values. The results show that the damages caused by the dropping height are complex. The 1.0-m increase in the drop height and the increase in the geotextile's mass per unit area cannot be associated with an increase in the damage. The geotextiles were more affected by the backfills with uniform gradation. A reduction factor's prediction equation is presented considering the three variables investigated (geotextile, drop height and backfill material classification). The artificial neural network is a more interesting solution than multiple linear regression since it does not possess several application criteria and provides more accurate predictions.     

Waste management,quality of life and natural resources utilization matter for renewable electricity generation: The main and moderate role of environmental policy

Since the last three decades, the world has been facing three consecutive challenges global warming, fuel import dependency, and rising electricity demand, and policymakers have tried their best to meet the standards of the green energy system. However, green electricity generation (REG) for daily use has received an exceptional focus from policy analysts in the development agenda. Similarly, electricity generation from waste management has shocked the world, and most economies are following the same pattern. Therefore, the current study tries to introduce the leading factors of REG: waste management, quality of life, environmental policy (EP), natural resources utilization, and population growth. The current study employs a series of estimation techniques to investigate the desired study's objectives in 15 waste-recycled economies from 2000 to 2020. Investigated outcomes show the significant contribution to REG by population, waste management, and environmental policy. In contrast, the quality of life and natural resource utilization (NRU) do not significantly contribute to renewable electricity generation. Furthermore, the moderate role of EP on waste management, quality of life, and NRU significantly promotes renewable electricity development. On behalf of outcomes, the environmental policy is being suggested as the best policy for electricity generation.     

A critical review of Korea's long-term contract for renewable energy auctions: The relationship between the import price of liquefied natural gas and system marginal price

The aim of Korea's Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and newly adopted auction system with a long-term fixed-price renewable contract was to support renewable energy providers in hedging electricity and Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) price risks. This study found a long-run positive relationship between the import price of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and System Marginal Price (SMP) in Korea, demonstrating that the fluctuations in global fuel prices are likely to increase uncertainties in renewable investments. The fixed-price contract, which cannot be revised once determined, encourages renewable energy providers' speculative decision-making, and the uncertainty caused by the contract system may discourage investment decision-making.     

Progress on sustainable development goal 6 in refugee camps in the Middle East: a comparative study

This paper examines the water and sanitation procedures taken in refugee camps to provide inclusive services, preserve the environment, and design out waste, based on empirical data collected using a questionnaire distributed in Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon. Our study finds that refugees in Lebanon were the furthest left behind compared to refugees in Jordan and Iraq. Moreover, considering the culture of refugees, installing quality WASH services, and shifting from the traditional linear approach to the circular economy approach is an advantage in refugee camps that creates more resilience opportunities for refugees and their hosts. Without the concrete Partnership between governmental institutions, NGOs, and stakeholders, SDG6 and other related ones, including SDG3, SDG4 SDG5 and SDG8 will not be accomplished by 2030.     

Effect of geogrid reinforcement on the load transfer in pile-supported embankment under cyclic loading

This paper investigated effects of geogrid reinforcement on the load transfer in pile-supported embankment under cyclic loading using self-moving trapdoor tests. In the self-moving trapdoor test setup, the trapdoor between two stationary portions (which were equivalent to the piles) was supported by compression springs to simulate the subsoil. Quartz sand and a biaxial geogrid were used as the test fill and reinforcement material, respectively. Tests results show that soil arching above the geogrid reinforcement and load transfer to the stationary portions (caused by the soil arching and tensioned membrane effect) experienced a process of “relatively enhancing - relatively degrading” with an increase in the number of cycles and maintained similar degrees within each complete cycle of cyclic loading. Moreover, the inclusion of geogrid reinforcement reduced the mobilization of soil arching, but increased the degree of load transfer to the stationary portions. In addition, cyclic loading with a higher frequency tended to mobilize more soil arching and induce a higher degree of load transfer to stationary portions. Also observed was that a higher frequency cyclic loading tended to decelerate the degradation of load transfer to stationary portions and caused less surface settlement, which indicating increased load-carrying capacity of pile-supported embankment.     

Communication breakdowns during business process change projects – Insights from a sociotechnical case study

Despite an acknowledgment of the importance of communication in project management, communication breakdowns still occur with a negative influence on project success. In existing literature, communication is usually reduced to an instrument for ensuring employee buy-in and overcoming user resistance towards the end of the project. The purpose of this study is to examine the communication breakdowns occurring at multiple levels during a business process change project. This study employs a qualitative longitudinal case study design embedded within a sociotechnical systems lens, focussing on the work-system, organisational, and macrosocial levels. Based on the findings of the case study of a new blood labelling system implementation in a national blood bank service, this study empirically illustrates the occurrence of communication breakdowns during a project. The study suggests that the occurrence of these communication breakdowns can be avoided by change communication in relation to the context, process, and content of change respectively at the macrosocial, organisational, and the work-system levels. The study also demonstrates the contextual influence of the health sector, and in so doing, establishes the requirement towards system flexibility to accommodate diverse solutions when planning and executing a project.     

3D numerical study of the performance of geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported embankments

Geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported (GRPS) systems provide an economic and effective solution for embankments. The load transfer mechanisms are tridimensional ones and depend on the interaction between linked elements, such as piles, soil, and geosynthetics. This paper presents an extensive parametric study using three-dimensional numerical calculations for geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported embankments. The numerical analysis is conducted for both cohesive and non-cohesive embankment soils to emphasize the fill soil cohesion effect on the load and settlement efficacy of GRPS embankments. The influence of the embankment height, soft ground elastic modulus, improvement area ratio, geosynthetic tensile stiffness and fill soil properties are also investigated on the arching efficacy, GR membrane efficacy, differential settlement, geosynthetic tension, and settlement reduction performance. The numerical results indicated that the GRPS system shows a good performance for reducing the embankment settlements. The ratio of the embankment height to the pile spacing, subsoil stiffness, and fill soil properties are the most important design parameters to be considered in a GRPS design. The results also suggested that the fill soil cohesion strengthens the soil arching effect, and increases the loading efficacy. However, the soil arching mobilization is not necessarily at the peak state but could be reached at the critical state. Finally, the geosynthetic strains are not uniform along the geosynthetic, and the maximum geosynthetic strain occurs at the pile edge. The geosynthetic deformed shape is a curve that is closer to a circular shape than a parabolic one.     

Public-private partnerships in the water sector: A review

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) offer possible solutions for governments seeking to achieve better value for money and fund the investments needed to provide infrastructure and manage public services. Water-sector projects demand extensive, up-front and sunk investments, and inefficiency levels are often significant. This study conducted a systematic review of previous research on water sector PPP projects. The research design is innovative in that it relied on a hybrid methodology combining systematic quantitative, semantic network and narrative analyses. The literature review protocol applied found 122 relevant studies published in top journals. Five key topics within water-related PPP studies were identified: risk management, PPP contractual arrangements, financing and tariffs, infrastructure, and governance. The most important topic is risk management, within which individual scholars’ contributions were tracked. However, a consensus has not been reached about the best risk matrix for improving PPP contracts in the water sector.     

Success of local flexibility market implementation: A review of current projects

The development of distributed energy sources will challenge the management of the electrical system. Local flexibility markets (LFMs) are a promising solution to coordinate the dispatch of distributed energy sources. The LFM development is in its infancy, and numerous challenges should be addressed. This study focuses on four topics for LFM success: the governance model, coordination issues, inc-dec gaming, and competition. Based on a review of current projects, we identify challenges related to the four topics and discuss solutions to overcome these challenges. The proposed solutions are crucial to achieving market efficiency and cannot be considered independently.     

Toward consumer-centric energy network regulation: Australia's experience

Understanding the objective of economic regulation as mimicking the process of competition, rather than the outcome of theoretical competitive markets, recognises the need for regulated energy transmission and distribution network service providers to respond to consumer preferences. The regulator, network service providers, and consumer advocates in Australia have conducted experiments on ways consumer preferences can shape regulatory proposals. These experiments demonstrate that agreements about regulatory proposals between the network service provider and a counterparty representing the interests of consumers are effective in ensuring that the proposal reflects consumer preferences. The paper demonstrates that in this process, consumers can also design output-oriented incentive schemes proposed by performance-based regulation.     

Does vertical integration facilitate coordination between infrastructure management and train operating units in the rail sector? Implications for Japanese railways

We investigate why vertical integration facilitates coordination between infrastructure management and train operating units in a railway system. An analysis of three Japanese rail companies shows that informal communication is significant for overall coordination, and mechanisms enhancing informal communication are observed mainly at the task group and individual levels. In contrast, mechanisms enhancing formal communication are observed mainly at the organisational level. Although these mechanisms mitigate coordination problems observed in vertical separation, their employment requires a transition to vertical integration, which can be an option in high-density areas where close coordination is required.     

How should price-responsive electricity tariffs evolve? An analysis of the German net demand case

This research proves, using daily data, that net demand has a higher impact on the German wholesale market price than the traditional concept of electricity demand. The aim of this paper is to develop a broader framework for the design of new tariffs for German consumers, taking net demand as its primary reference. To accomplish this, a classification of net demand by level was developed. The findings of this research provide new insights about the occurrence of net valley and net peak periods, something which is useful for designing tariffs, affecting how the price should be differentiated during the day.     

A sustainability assessment of decentralized water supply systems in Bandung City,Indonesia

Decentralized water supply systems (DWSS) are a form of community-based water supply infrastructure common in developing countries. These systems address the limitations of centralized water supply systems (CWSS), but one issue of DWSSs is their sustainability. Therefore, it is urgent to identify the inhibiting factors for their sustainability. This study assesses the level of sustainability of two prevalent types of DWSS in Bandung City: public wells and communal networks. The article shows that three critical factors must be considered to ensure the sustainability of DWSSs, namely structured organizations, community participation, and financial resources. This study also finds informal practices in the management of DWSSs that contribute to the system's sustainability. The study offers policy recommendations to improve the sustainability of existing and future DWSSs. Specifically, the study recommends forming DWSS institutions, improving community participation, implementing a tariff system as a source of funding and a way to conserve water, and lastly, integrating DWSSs and CWSSs.     

Governance choices and policy outcomes in the Latin American and caribbean electricity sector

The paper first provides, for Latin America and the Caribbean, country-specific synthetic quantitative measures of the degree of adoption of governance reforms in the electricity sector, focusing on four key dimensions (market structure, private sector participation (PSP), regulatory autonomy and operational organization). These measures are then correlated with standard policy performance outcomes measures. The findings suggest that, the reforms, considered jointly, were statistically significantly associated with higher technical and process quality but not with social or service improvements. Considered individually, increased regulatory autonomy enjoyed the highest positive correlation with desirable outcomes, but PSP has no significant correlation with any of the outcomes. In sum, as of 2018, governance reforms, considered jointly, had still not delivered on some promised payoffs, notably in addressing energy poverty, although the sensitivity analysis suggests that, for some indicators, the relationships are stronger for larger than for smaller countries.     

Combining wind and solar energy sources: Potential for hybrid power generation in Brazil

Wind and solar energy have stood out in recent years because of the growth of global installed capacity. This work aims to present wind and solar photovoltaic energy development and its regulatory framework in Brazil, and demonstrate the potential for centralized hybrid generation. Official studies, research reports, and thematic maps were consulted, and two pilot hybrid plants were studied. Results indicate that there is great potential for centralized hybrid generation in the Brazilian Northeast region. However, there is a need for the regulatory framework to evolve to enable its development.