School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing (SATM)

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Browsing School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing (SATM) by Subject "12 Responsible Consumption and Production"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Assessment of the mechanical and microstructural performance of waste kraft fibre reinforced cement composite incorporating sustainable eco-friendly additives
    (MDPI, 2024-08-30) Taiwo, Anuoluwapo S; Ayre, David S; Khorami, Morteza; Rahatekar, Sameer S
    This study investigates the influence of limestone powder and metakaolin as sustainable eco-friendly additives on the properties and behavior of cementitious composite boards, with a focus on mechanical strength, physical properties, and microstructural characteristics. The experimental investigation begins with the characterization of the raw materials, including limestone powder, and metakaolin, to assess their particle sizes, elemental composition, and microstructural features. Cement composite boards were fabricated using an innovatively developed lab-simulated vacuum dewatering process, by varying the proportions of limestone powder and metakaolin as partial replacements for cement, along with waste kraft fibres as reinforcement. Mechanical testing was conducted to evaluate the flexural strength and behaviour of the composite boards according to standardized procedures. A microstructural analysis was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to examine the effect of additives on the cementitious matrix, fibrematrix interaction, and hydration products. The findings from the experimental study reveal insights into the influence of limestone powder and metakaolin on the mechanical properties and microstructure of waste kraft fibre-reinforced cement composite boards. Our analysis of the results shows that adding 9% limestone powder as partial cement replacement produces a 24% and 50% enhancement in flexural strength at 7 and 28 days of hydration, while that of metakaolin as partial cement replacement was optimum at 6% with an enhancement of 4% and 36%, respectively, at 7 and 28 days of hydration. The implications of these findings for the development of sustainable cementitious composite are discussed, including the potential benefits of using limestone powder and metakaolin as supplementary cementitious materials in waste kraft fibre-reinforced cement composite boards. Finally, recommendations for optimizing additive proportions are also provided to enhance the understanding and application of these materials in the construction and building industries.
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    Digital twin architecture for a sustainable control system in aircraft engines
    (Springer Nature, Switzerland, 2024-08-08) Farsi, Maryam; Namoano, Bernadin; Latsou, Christina; Subhadu, Vaishnav Venkata; Deng, Haoxuan; Sun, Zhen; Zheng, Bohao; D’Amico, Davide; Erkoyuncu, John Ahmet; Karakoc, T. Hikmet; Colpan, Can Ozgur; Dalkiran, Alper
    Over the past decades, climate change has remained one of the major global challenges in the world. In the aviation and aerospace industry, the environmental sustainable development strategies towards carbon-neutral mainly focus on efficiency and demand measures, sustainable fuels, renewable energies, and removal and carbon offsetting. The carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions footprint of an aircraft is primarily determined by energy and fuel efficiency. The advanced engine control systems of an aircraft can optimise the engine performance to achieve energy efficiency, fuel optimal consumption, and emission reduction. This paper proposed a digital twin architecture of a sustainable aircraft control system that allows the system to collect, analyse, and optimise sustainability-related data and to provide insight to operators, engineers, maintainers, and designers. The required information, knowledge and insight databases across flight environment, engine specification, and gas emissions are identified. The research argued that the proposed architecture could enhance engine energy efficiency, fuel consumption, and CO2e footprint reduction and enable (near) real-time data monitoring, proactive anomaly detection, forecasting, and intelligent decision-making within an automated sustainability control system. This research suggests ontology-based digital twin as an effective approach to further develop a cognitive twin that facilitates automated decision-making within the aircraft control system.
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    Insights into sustainability and circular economy trends in luxury fashion: a LinkedIn topic modelling study
    (Elsevier, 2024-12) Abdelmeguid, Aya; Tsironis, Georgios; Afy-Shararah, Mohamed; Tsagarakis, Konstantinos P; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    The fashion industry plays a pivotal role in societal evolution and economic growth, yet it also stands as a significant contributor to environmental degradation. In response, the concept of slow fashion has been gaining increased attention in recent years, offering sustainable and circular alternatives to fast fashion. Luxury fashion, traditionally known for its heritage, exclusivity, and craftsmanship, exhibits elements similar to slow fashion, thereby exerting considerable influence on industry trends and consumer behaviour. This study explores the drivers shaping the luxury fashion landscape and the evolving circular economy and sustainability trends within the UK, a key global influencer in the luxury fashion domain. Luxury fashion's impact extends beyond its niche market, often setting benchmarks for innovation and sustainable practices that influence the broader fashion industry. Leveraging readily available qualitative and quantitative data from LinkedIn profiles, this research employs Latent Dirichlet Allocation analysis to uncover relevant topics within a dataset comprising 1115 companies registered in the “Apparel and Fashion” and “Textiles” industries. Five key drivers emerge, including Artful Creations in Fashion, Time-Honoured Craftsmanship, The Art of Style and Design, The Pinnacle of Retail Excellence, and A Personalised Style Experience. Additionally, utilising the Google Collab Platform and Python language, this study identifies circular economy and sustainability trends within luxury fashion. While approximately 20% of the companies studied actively emphasise sustainability, circular economy requires comparable attention. This research provides industry stakeholders and scholars with valuable insights into sustainable and circular practices, thus guiding innovation and informed decision-making in the fashion industry.
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    Integration of renewable energy sources in tandem with electrolysis: a technology review for green hydrogen production
    (Elsevier BV, 2024) Nnabuife, Somtochukwu Godfrey; Hamzat, Abdulhammed K.; Whidborne, James; Kuang, Boyu; Jenkins, Karl W.
    The global shift toward sustainable energy solutions emphasises the urgent need to harness renewable sources for green hydrogen production, presenting a critical opportunity in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Despite its potential, integrating renewable energy with electrolysis to produce green hydrogen faces significant technological and economic challenges, particularly in achieving high efficiency and cost-effectiveness at scale. This review systematically examines the latest advancements in electrolysis technologies—alkaline, proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell (PEMEC), and solid oxide—and explores innovative grid integration and energy storage solutions that enhance the viability of green hydrogen. The study reveals enhanced performance metrics in electrolysis processes and identifies critical factors that influence the operational efficiency and sustainability of green hydrogen production. Key findings demonstrate the potential for substantial reductions in the cost and energy requirements of hydrogen production by optimising electrolyser design and operation. The insights from this research provide a foundational strategy for scaling up green hydrogen as a sustainable energy carrier, contributing to global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and advance toward carbon neutrality. The integration of these technologies could revolutionise energy systems worldwide, aligning with policy frameworks and market dynamics to foster broader adoption of green hydrogen.
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    Mapping the path to decarbonised agri‐food products: a hybrid geographic information system and life cycle inventory methodology for assessing sustainable agriculture
    (Wiley, 2024-09) Martindale, Wayne; Saeidan, Ali; Tahernezhad‐Javazm, Farajollah; Hollands, Tom Æ; Duong, Linh; Jagtap, Sandeep
    The development of a decarbonised food industry will depend on a sustainable agricultural system where embodied food product greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) can be associated with agricultural production. The method presented demonstrates how mapping agri‐production can be used to calculate regional carbon footprints so GHG emission reduction is geographically strategic. Different agronomic and husbandry outcomes are mapped using Geographic Information Systems (GIS's) and carbon footprints are calculated using Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) libraries. The hybridised GIS‐LCI approach reports unique insights for decarbonisation, demonstrating how farming practices can be further integrated to best deliver food security. We use the GIS‐LCI method to show; (1), geography limits crop and livestock production types; (2), agri‐product density data can be used to calculate a food system carbon footprint; and (3), GIS's can be used to focus food policy for sustainability.
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    Navigating barriers to reverse logistics adoption in circular economy: an integrated approach for sustainable development
    (Elsevier BV, 2024-09-01) Sonar, Harshad; Dey Sarkar, Bishal; Joshi, Prasad; Ghag, Nikhil; Choubey, Vardhan; Jagtap, Sandeep
    Achievement of sustainability goals is an epic task for developing economies that still strive to fulfil their basic needs. The availability of limited resources in the developing world vis-à-vis the ever-increasing demand poses further challenges to developing economies willing to transition into circular economies. Reverse logistics (RL) can facilitate this transition towards a circular economy (CE) by maximising resource utilisation and minimising waste, contributing to sustainability goals. This paper contributes to emerging literature by analysing the development and comprehensive potential of reverse logistics as a sustainability tool. It explores the significant barriers to the adoption of reverse logistics towards a circular economy, considering long-term sustainability. In the first phase, thirteen barriers have been identified from the past academic literature. Three barriers with a defuzzification number less than the threshold limit are excluded, and the final ten barriers are then prioritised using the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. The findings suggest that a lack of strategic plans for returns is crucial for RL adoption towards a circular economy, followed by a lack of visibility for recycling/reuse. Organisations can increase customer satisfaction, promote environmental sustainability, and gain a competitive edge in the market by creating a strategic plan for reverse logistics. Organisations may lower costs and contribute to a more sustainable and ecologically responsible supply chain by improving visibility across the reverse logistics process. The results serve as a framework for decision-making in RL towards sustainable development. Managers and policymakers can formulate more robust and realistic decisions that align with “maximising profits,” “saving the planet,” “social concerns,” and, most importantly, “consumer concerns” in the circular economy ecosystem. Several implications are derived, leading to increased competitiveness and resilient business strategies. The novelty of this work lies in the identification of barriers to reverse logistics adoption towards a circular economy using an integrated fuzzy Delphi-DEMATEL approach, considering long-term sustainability. This approach is studied for the first time in a developing economy context, proposing social, economic, and environmental effects and actions to be taken by organisations for sustainable development.
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    On the chemical composition, microstructure and mechanical properties of a Nitrogen-contaminated Ti-6Al-4V component built by Wire-Arc Additive Manufacturing
    (IOP Publishing, 2024-08-01) Hu, D; Biswal, R; Sahu, VK; Fellowes, JW; Zadehkabir, A; Williams, SW; Davis, AE
    Additive manufacturing (AM) using recycled Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64) feedstock material from wrought waste streams is a novel process that can reduce the overall energy cost and carbon (CO2) footprint when compared to primary-production routes. The potential contamination of recycled feedstock material (e.g. C, O, N and Fe) can affect the microstructure and mechanical properties of the component. In this work, a Ti64 test wall built using wire arc AM (WAAM) was studied, where the top half only was contaminated by N through the shielding gas during deposition. This allowed a direct comparison of Ti64 WAAM material with high and low N content, deposited under otherwise identical conditions, to replicate the worst-case scenario of N contamination from using recycled swarf. The hardness of the N-contaminated section was found to be 25% higher than the uncontaminated section of the wall, demonstrating the N solid solution strengthening in Ti64. The room temperature transformed microstructure was found to have a 25% coarser α-lath thickness, which was proposed to be an effect of the AM cyclical heating and increasing of the β-transus temperature due to a higher level of N. Additionally, the outer layer of the N-contaminated sample section was found to have a refined parent β grain structure.