Search results for "efficiency"
showing 10 items of 1430 documents
Second-harmonic generation in surface periodically poled lithium niobate waveguides:On the role of multiphoton absorption
2008
Second harmonic generation is investigated in lithium niobate channels realized by proton exchange and quasi-phase-matched by surface periodic-poling. The reduction in conversion efficiency at high powers is interpreted in terms of multi-photon absorption via two-color terms, yielding an estimate of the dominating three-photon process.
Backcasting for desirable futures in Finnish forest-based firms
2020
Purpose In Finland, new forest-based sector (FBS) businesses are seen as important for the transition to the circular bioeconomy. The purpose of this study is to explore the transition of Finnish FBS companies to new business models. The aim is to understand how FBS companies define their ideal future states and related business models for the year 2030. Design/methodology/approach This study uses thematic interviews with managers from various FBS firms and companies from interfacing sectors. In the interviews, the key idea of backcasting was pursued when respondents discussed the desirable future states of their business. Findings The effort to achieve growth of the business and the appea…
Managing Sustainability with Eco-Business Intelligence Instruments
2014
Abstract In response to increasing concerns of society about environmental degradation and increasing demands for a transition to a more sustainable society, the business companies are increasingly active in aligning their processes and services with a sustainability agenda. Production, distribution and supply of goods and services require material and energy consumption, having an impact on natural resources both quantitatively and qualitatively, generating waste, pollution and disrupting ecosystems. Ecobusiness intelligence is the capacity of people, processes and applications/tools to organize business information, to facilitate consistent access to them and analyse them in order to impr…
Liberalising European electricity markets: opportunities and risks for a sustainable power sector
2003
The process of liberalising European electricity markets, encompassing a wide range of restructuring activities, has mainly been spurred by the attempt to increase the economic efficiency of the whole sector. This process might be used to trigger a development towards a sustainable power sector by increasing the use of renewable energy sources and enhancing energy efficiency on the supply and demand side. However, by taking a closer look at the current trends of the European electricity markets, it becomes obvious that the liberalisation not only implies opportunities but also risks for the creation of a sustainable power sector. Many of these risks are due to market distortions and imperfe…
SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE: THE ECO-EFFICIENCY EARTH CONSTRUCTION
2017
The appropriate choice of building materials can contribute decisively to reduce the energy consumption of the building sector. The increasing worries for the environmental impact of construction materials is witnessed by a lot of studies The mentioned worries has brought again the attention towards natural materials. The use of more sustainable construction materials and construction techniques represent a major contribution to the eco-efficiency of the construction industry and thus to a more sustainable development. Within this frame the renewed interest for a natural material such as the rammed earth is included; the interest has been in continuous growth from the 80s till today. The ra…
Tax benefits for the energy requalification of Italian real estate assets
2020
The need for energy-efficient buildings has emerged since the onset of the first energy crises in the 1970s. It's in this decade that the concepts of sustainable development and energy saving have been introduced in the construction sector. Currently, the greatest energy saving potential for buildings does not lie in new buildings, but in the energy redevelopment of existing buildings. In order to promote interventions for building restoration, which are often costly and not economically convenient, Italian legislation has made a series of economic incentives available to the sector. This work reviews the main incentive systems for the energy requalification of buildings.
Steps of Sustainable Development Implementation into Enterprise Activities
2015
Abstract Nowadays, principles of the sustainable development concept are present in almost all areas of life, play a key role in efforts to protect the environment, activities for the community and economic development. One of the "beneficiaries" of this concept are the enterprises, both small local as well as those with a global reach. In almost every operating company, in a greater or lesser extent, pillars of sustainable development are used, but before this happened - these companies have to go through a few steps, that led to the full implementation of the sustainable development concept and its application in practical terms. This article presents and describes in detail, the various …
A Win-Win Scheme for Improving the Environmental Sustainability of University Commuters’ Mobility and Getting Environmental Credits
2022
European Union Member States are called upon to meet internationally proposed environmental goals. This study is based, in particular, on the recommendation of the European Union (EU), which encourages Member States to pursue effective policies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions, including through appropriate changes in the behavioral habits of citizens. In this respect, among the main sectors involved, transport and mobility should certainly be mentioned. National institutions should be adequately involved in order to achieve the objectives set; in this regard, universities must certainly be considered for their educational value. These latter, for instance, could commit to improvin…
Municipal Building Regulations for Energy Efficiency in Southern Italy
2014
The building sector is still one of the most energy consuming sectors in Italy, like developed countries in Europe. At European level, the main policy driver related to the energy use in buildings is the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD, 2002/91/EC) and its recast. Through the EPBD in- troduction, requirements for certification, inspections, training or renovation are now imposed in Member States. In order to fulfill the expected changes, local regulations are a key factor aiming at sustainable territorial planning. It is thus required support the issue of local rules at municipal level in order to guide local administrators and technicians and to limit discretional power of …
Embryo culture: can we perform better than nature?
2010
Culture of preimplantation-stage embryos has always been a key element of laboratory embryology and has contributed substantially to the success of many assisted reproduction procedures. During the past decade, its importance has increased as extended in-vitro embryo culture and single blastocyst transfer have become indispensable parts of the approach to decreasing the chance of multiple pregnancy while preserving the overall efficiency of the treatment. However, in spite of the scientific and commercial challenge stimulating research worldwide to optimize embryo culture conditions, a consensus is missing even in the basic principles, including composition and exchange of media, the requir…