Usage behaviour and related energy consumption of European consumers for washing and drying

Laundry washing has been extensively studied; laundry drying has been much less investigated. Nevertheless, there are indications that the drying process takes considerably more energy than the washing process. It is, therefore, the task of this study to gather European-wide consumer behaviour on washing and drying practices and to use this knowledge to estimate the energy consumption for the washing and drying processes. With an online questionnaire answered by over 2,000 households, the washing and drying behaviour of European consumers is analysed. The results also confirm the relevance of the drying process’ energy consumption for countries where the drying is normally seen as ‘done by the sun’!     

Die Bedeutung von Feststoffhaushalt und Sedimentdurchgängigkeit für eine nachhaltige Nutzung der Wasserkraft

The sediment regime and continuity in rivers are essential considerations from both river engineering and ecological standpoints, as can be seen e.g. in the problems concerning the riverbed degradation of the Danube east of Vienna. The imbalanced concentration of solids is caused e.g. by disruptions in flow, which include weirs and the reservoirs of hydroelectric power plants. In this context, the latter are above all affected by the problem of reservoir sedimentation, which can be detrimental to both energy production and flood protection. In order to counteract this sedimentation, measures are undertaken in the catchment area, in the reservoir or at the damming structure, which have to be optimized regarding their effectivity. In this regard, experimentation involving physical models, one-dimensional and multi-dimensional sediment transport models is becoming increasingly popular. Key questions that arise here concern the quality and availability of necessary measurement data, as well as the choice of model, and generally speaking a number of research questions remain open. From an ecological standpoint, a gravelly riverbed substrate is vital to the reproduction of certain fish species, which explains why the question of sediment continuity needs to be taken into account when new hydroelectric power plants are to be built or older ones are to be renovated. The (Austrian) national project SED_AT and the EU project SedAlp are currently working to identify key problems and research needs. One proposed approach is based on integral water resource management, in which the technical, economic and ecological optimization of reservoir management addresses the needs of the various stakeholders on the one hand, and includes the broad range of relevant natural processes (erosion, transfer, sedimentation, remobilization) on the other.     

Prenatal Exposure to Triclocarban Impairs ESR1 Signaling and Disrupts Epigenetic Status in Sex-Specific Ways as Well as Dysregulates the Expression of Neurogenesis- and Neurotransmitter-Related Genes in the Postnatal Mouse Brain

Triclocarban is a highly effective and broadly used antimicrobial agent. Humans are continually exposed to triclocarban, but the safety of prenatal exposure to triclocarban in the context of neurodevelopment remains unknown. In this study, we demonstrated for the first time that mice that had been prenatally exposed to environmentally relevant doses of triclocarban had impaired estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) signaling in the brain. These mice displayed decreased mRNA and protein expression levels of ESR1 as well as hypermethylation of the Esr1 gene in the cerebral cortex. Prenatal exposure to triclocarban also diminished the mRNA expression of Esr2, Gper1, Ahr, Arnt, Cyp19a1, Cyp1a1, and Atg7, and the protein levels of CAR, ARNT, and MAP1LC3AB in female brains and decreased the protein levels of BCL2, ARNT, and MAP1LC3AB in male brains. In addition, exposure to triclocarban caused sex-specific alterations in the methylation levels of global DNA and estrogen receptor genes. Microarray and enrichment analyses showed that, in males, triclocarban dysregulated mainly neurogenesis-related genes, whereas, in females, the compound dysregulated mainly neurotransmitter-related genes. In conclusion, our data identified triclocarban as a neurodevelopmental risk factor that particularly targets ESR1, affects apoptosis and autophagy, and in sex-specific ways disrupts the epigenetic status of brain tissue and dysregulates the postnatal expression of neurogenesis- and neurotransmitter-related genes.     

Substrate-induced coagulation (SIC) of nano-disperse carbon black in non-aqueous media: a method of manufacturing highly conductive cathode materials for Li-ion batteries by self-assembly

Substrate-induced coagulation (SIC) is a coating process based on self-assembly for coating different surfaces with fine particulate materials. The particles are dispersed in a suitable solvent and the stability of the dispersion is adjusted by additives. When a surface, pre-treated with a flocculant e.g. a polyelectrolyte, is dipped into the dispersion, it induces coagulation resulting in the deposition of the particles on the surface. A non-aqueous SIC process for carbon coating is presented, which can be performed in polar, aprotic solvents such as N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP). Polyvinylalcohol (PVA) is used to condition the surface of substrates such as mica, copper-foil, silicon-wafers and lithiumcobalt oxide powder, a cathode material used for Li-ion batteries. The subsequent SIC carbon coating produces uniform layers on the substrates and causes the conductivity of lithiumcobalt oxide to increase drastically, while retaining a high percentage of active battery material.     

Influence of a Natural Plant Antioxidant on the Ageing Process of Ethylene-norbornene Copolymer (Topas)

In the field of polymer technology, a variety of mainly synthetic additives are used to stabilize the materials during processing. However, natural compounds of plant origin can be a green alternative to chemicals such as synthetic polyphenols. An analysis of the effect of hesperidin on the aging behavior of ethylene-norbornene copolymer was performed. The evaluation of changes in the tested samples was possible by applying the following tests: determination of the surface energy and OIT values, mechanical properties analysis, colour change measurements, FT-IR and TGA analyses. The obtained results proved that hesperidin can be effectively used as natural stabilizer for polymers. Furthermore, as a result of this compound addition to Topas-silica composites, their surface and physico-mechanical properties have been improved and the resistance to aging significantly increased. Additionally, hesperidin can act as a dye or colour indicator and only few scientific reports describe a possibility of using flavonoids to detect changes in products during their service life, e.g., in food packaging. In the available literature, there is no information about the potential use of hesperidin as a stabilizer for cycloolefin copolymers. Therefore, this approach may contribute not only to the current state of knowledge, but also presents an eco-friendly solution that can be a good alternative to synthetic stabilizers.     

Lipid class separation by HPLC combined with GC FA analysis: Comparison of seed lipid compositions from different <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica napus</Emphasis> L. varieties

A reliable HPLC method was established to evaluate the lipid composition of useful plants modified by breeding techniques. This study focused on the polar lipid distribution and polar lipid FA compositions of four rapeseed varieties. Structure and quantity of the distinct lipid classes were compared by HPLC using ELSD followed by a GC FA analysis. A baseline separation of 14 lipid classes could be achieved within one step by using an eluent gradient of hexane, tert-methylbutyl ether, isopropanol, acetonitrile, chloroform, triethylamine, acetic acid, and water supplemented with ammonium sulfate with a polyvinyl alcohol column. After automatic fractionation, the FA compositions of the distinct lipid classes were characterized by a subsequent complementary GC FA analysis through direct acetylchloride methylation. The rape varieties analyzed showed diversity in polar lipid content and distribution, dominated by PC, PE, PI, monoglycosyldiacylglycerols, and phytosterols. Extensive variations were detected in FA within the lipid classes of rape varieties with predominantly oleic acid, linoleic acid, and α-linolenic acid observed followed by palmitic acid and gondoic acid. Oleic acid was mainly connected to PC and linoleic acid to PE, whereas α-linolenic acid and γ-linolenic acid were predominantly linked to PI in all varieties.     

Digital Product Passports as Enabler of the Circular Economy

Governments and corporations are increasingly adopting circular economy strategies to meet the need of decoupling growth from resource consumption. However, the world economy is far from being circular, with some of the reasons including lack of transparency, standardization, and data sharing. Digitalization can help overcome these challenges, thus making it a key enabler of the circular economy. This review looks at the concept of a digital product passport as a tool for implementing and scaling the circular economy. It discusses opportunities and challenges related to further development and adoption of digital product passports. Finally, it examines the battery passport, drafted in the EU Battery regulation, as one of the first examples of a digital product passport required by law.