ALBERT

Description: Rapidly growing cities often struggle with insufficient green space, although information on when and where more green space is needed can be difficult to collect. Big data on the density of individuals in cities collected from mobile phones can estimate the usage intensity of urban green space. Taking Zhengzhou’s central city as an example, we combine the real-time human movement data provided by the Baidu Heat Map, which indicates the density of mobile phones, with vector overlays of different kinds of green space. We used the geographically weighted regression (GWR) method to estimate differentials in green space usage between weekdays and weekends, utilizing the location and the density of the aggregation of people with powered-up mobile phones. Compared with weekends, the aggregation of people in urban green spaces on workdays tends to vary more in time and be more concentrated in space, while the highest usage is more stable on weekends. More importantly, the percentage of weekday green space utilization is higher in small parks and green strips in the city, with the density increasing in those small areas, while the green space at a greater distance to the city center is underutilized. This study validates the potential of applying Baidu Heat Map data to provide a dynamic perspective of green space use, and highlights the need for more green space in city centers.

Description: China’s government launched a policy in October 2017 to permit the distributed generators to peer-to-peer trade their electricity generation on the market. Several clauses in the policy document are, however, unclear and ambiguous. This work identifies three vital but not clearly detailed issues in the policy document: (1) participation eligibility, (2) the grid fee calculation method, and (3) subsidy rates. Then, we carry out a comprehensive analysis of the economic impacts of the trade policy based on a case study of an eastern city in China. Sensitivity analyses on the impacts of the subsidy rates, transmission and distribution prices (TDPs), and end-user regulated prices are conducted. The results show that the trading policy will benefit the photovoltaic (PV) generators with more revenue by 6–11%, reduce the cost for end-users by 6–12%, and decrease the revenue of the power grid company by 32–55%.

Description: To improve the heat dissipation performance of power batteries in electric racing cars in the Formula Student Electric China (FSEC), a battery cooling system was researched. A battery thermal model and a temperature experimental platform were established. The thermal model was verified by comparing the results of the ANSYS/Workbench simulations with the experimental results, and the maximum error was 7.2%. Based on the FSEC dynamic conditions, the cooling demand was analyzed according to the heat transfer theory. Then, an orthogonal method was used to optimize the position of the cooling fan and the arrangement of the cells, and a parameterized battery simulation model based on ANSYS/Icepak was established. The simulation results show that the maximum temperature difference was optimized by 38.35%. The results of the simulation were in good agreement with the experimental results, and the maximum error was less than 2 °C. This indicates that this design can ensure a car battery system that has a good heat dissipation performance in the FSEC; thus, the intended goal was achieved.

Description: Due to the current rise in concern about the challenge of global warming, stakeholders are now more conscious than in the past regarding environmental concerns. Stakeholders are more likely than ever before to support companies that are environmentally friendly. Simultaneously, companies seek to develop their social networks in such a way as to enhance their green innovation. This study investigates the influences of network embeddedness and network diversity on green innovation. In addition, this research discusses the mediation effects of green social capital. We adopt structural equation modeling for testing the research framework. A total of 330 valid questionnaires are collected. The results demonstrate that network embeddedness positively affects green social capital and green innovation performance. However, although network diversity positively affects green innovation performance, it does not significantly influence green social capital. Furthermore, the study indicates that green social capital partially mediates the relationship between network embeddedness and green innovation performance.

Description: The optical complexity of urban waters makes the remote retrieval of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration a challenging task. In this study, Chl-a concentration was retrieved using reflectance data of Landsat OLI images. Chl-a concentration in the Haihe River of China was obtained using mathematical regression analysis (MRA) and an artificial neural network (ANN). A regression model was built based on an analysis of the spectral reflectance and water quality sampling data. Remote sensing inversion results of Chl-a concentration were obtained and analyzed based on a verification of the algorithm and application of the models to the images. The analysis results revealed that the two models satisfactorily reproduced the temporal variation based on the input variables. In particular, the ANN model showed better performance than the MRA model, which was reflected in its higher accuracy in the validation. This study demonstrated that Landsat Operational Land Imager (OLI) images are suitable for remote sensing monitoring of water quality and that they can produce high-accuracy inversion results.

Description: The Japanese automobile industry has been hit sharply by the economic downturn of recent decades. The rise in costs and decline in sales have led to serious problems in the auto industry. In order to address these issues, most companies engage in downsizing and redesigning production operations. It is crucial to investigate the time wasted by replacing assembly boards occurring in manufacturing lines. Therefore, the aim of this study was to provide an integrated approach, Teoriya Resheniya Izobreatatelskih Zadatch (TRIZ), to providing efficient solutions for the automobile industry. The first step of this methodology is to detail the technical problems using the Function and Attribute Analysis (FAA) model. Secondly, a contradiction matrix and the inventive principle were applied to find the solutions. In this study, an auto part supplier named Sumi-Hanel located in Hanoi, Vietnam, was taken as a case study; the empirical results showed that waste time had been reduced to 67%, nearly 8400 square meters was saved, and a 20% cost reduction was achieved by reusing old frames. The research proves that the combination of TRIZ and lean manufacturing successfully increases production performance and reduces waste due to technological advancements.

Description: Sustainability, Vol. 10, Pages 2111: Urban Land Revenue and Sustainable Urbanization in China: Issues and Challenges Sustainability doi: 10.3390/su10072111 Authors: Junhua Chen Fei Guo Hao Wang Zhifeng Wang Ying Wu Since urban land development launched in 1987, urban land transactions and local land leasing revenue have exploded sharply in China. Classical research on urban land use and urbanization often focuses on making decisions and enacting policies of zoning and land use regulations. Scholars from different disciplines have long been aware of this issue and have attempted to account for it with different theories of urbanization. This paper considers urbanization and the associated spatial interaction effect as an alternative factor in China’s urban land revenue. After reviewing the existing literature on China’s land reform, a dynamic panel data model with GMM estimator is established to explore the reasons for the emerging land revenue. The empirical results show that the spatial weight matrix is significant to the land leasing revenue, and the provincial level of fiscal decentralization has negative effect on the volume of urban land leasing revenue. These empirical results demonstrate that local governments have the intrinsic motivation to maximize the land leasing revenue, which is significant to expand local optional revenues. The province having higher urbanization level usually experiences the larger scale of urban land revenue. The spatial interaction effect among adjacent provinces has a significant effect on urban land revenue which is closely associated with local economic growth. However, it is essential to know that the large scale of rural land conversion and disordered urbanization force negative payoffs, such as environmental degradation, the damage of farmland, and the problem of food safety.

Description: Sustainability, Vol. 10, Pages 664: Achieving Highly Efficient Atmospheric CO2 Uptake by Artificial Upwelling Sustainability doi: 10.3390/su10030664 Authors: Yiwen Pan Long You Yifan Li Wei Fan Chen-Tung Chen Bing-Jye Wang Ying Chen Artificial upwelling (AU) is considered a potential means of reducing the accumulation of anthropogenic CO2. It has been suggested that AU has significant effects on regional carbon sink or source characteristics, and these effects are strongly influenced by certain technical parameters, the applied region, and the season. In this study, we simulated the power needed to raise the level of deep ocean water (DOW) to designated plume trapping depths in order to evaluate the effect of changing the source DOW depth and the plume trapping depth on carbon sequestration ability and efficiency. A carbon sequestration efficiency index (CSEI) was defined to indicate the carbon sequestration efficiency per unit of power consumption. The results suggested that the CSEI and the carbon sequestration ability exhibit opposite patterns when the DOW depth is increased, indicating that, although raising a lower DOW level can enhance the regional carbon sequestration ability, it is not energy-efficient. Large variations in the CSEI were shown to be associated with different regions, seasons, and AU technical parameters. According to the simulated CSEI values, the northeast past of the Sea of Japan is most suitable for AU, and some regions in the South China Sea are not suitable for increasing carbon sink.

Description: Energy storage has attracted more and more attention for its advantages in ensuring system safety and improving renewable generation integration. In the context of China’s electricity market restructuring, the economic analysis, including the cost and benefit analysis, of the energy storage with multi-applications is urgent for the market policy design in China. This paper uses an income statement based on the energy storage cost–benefit model to analyze the economic benefits of energy storage under multi-application scenarios (capacity, energy, and frequency regulation markets) in China’s future electricity market. The results show that the economic benefits of energy storage can be improved by joining in the capacity market (if it exists in the future) and increasing participation in the frequency regulation market. Nevertheless, the benefits under multi-application scenarios can hardly guarantee the cost recovery of energy storage under the current market mechanism or at the current price levels. Moreover, the economic benefits under different subsidy policies are studied, and the results show that energy storage can recover the cost with appropriate subsidy policies (the subsidy of 0.071 USD/kWh for pumped storage power stations is sufficient while the subsidy of 0.142 USD/kWh is required for electrochemical power stations). Finally, the sensitivity analysis of an energy storage power station to different price levels is carried out considering the difference in electricity price between China and the United States.