Four years of operational data for five hydrogen refueling stations

Worldwide about 550 hydrogen refueling stations (HRS) were in operation in 2021, of which 38%. were in Europe. With their number expected to grow even further, the collection and investigation of real-world station operative data are fundamental to tracking their activity in terms of safety issues, performances, costs, maintenance, reliability, and energy use. This paper shows and analyses the parameters that characterize the refueling of 350 bar fuel cell buses in four HRS within the 3Emotion project. The HRS are characterized by different refueling capacities, hydrogen supply schemes, storage volumes and pressures, and operational strategies. From data logs provided by the operators, a dataset of three years of operation has been created. In particular total hydrogen quantity, the fill amount dispensed to each bus, the refueling duration, the average mass flow rate, the number of refueling events and the daily number of refills, the daily profile, the utilization factor, and the availability are investigated. The results show similar hydrogen amount per fill distribution, but quite different refueling times among the stations. The average daily mass per bus is around 12.95 kg, the most frequent value 15 kg, the standard deviation 7.46. About 50% of the total amount of hydrogen is dispensed overnight and the refueling events per bus are typically every 24 hours. Finally, the station utilization is below 30% for all sites.

Information Technology in Supply Chain Management

The process of producing and selling items, from the beginning of delivering raw materials till their end of production and sale for consumers, is referred to as a supply chain. In the present era, supply chain management has also transformed according to the requirement and changing complexities. It is a netting of businesses that work together so that things like logistics, stock management, transport, etc. go as smoothly as they can, including suppliers, manufacturers, carriers, distributors, and retailers. Companies have been trying to develop ways of enhancing flexibility and reaction and competitiveness by changes in their operational strategies, processes, and technology.

ESG impact on financial corporate performance and portfolio returns: evidence of Australia and Japan

Environmental, Social, and Governance investing has undergone a radical shift; companies and investors have focused on the impact of the disclosure of the practices and policies related to the environment, social responsibility, and governance in their operational strategies and investment. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the impact that the ESG policies have on public companies' stock returns in Australia and Japan. Accounting and market-based measures are used to determine the impact ESG practices have on stock market index returns. The annual data used is of companies from Australia's S&P/ASX Index and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index, covering the period from 2005 to 2019. Fixed effect model regression was used to test the significant relationship between companies' stock returns and ESG score, accounting, and market-based measures. Portfolios were created to analyze the risk/return relationship between companies with and without ESG across countries. The findings indicate mixed results. Australia´s non-ESG portfolios outperform the S&P500 and ESG portfolios. Japan´s portfolio has positive returns but underperforms the benchmark. Low market capitalization portfolios with and without ESG outperform the higher capitalization portfolios.

REDUCING SHIP EMISSIONS: A REVIEW OF POTENTIAL PRACTICAL IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROPULSIVE EFFICIENCY OF FUTURE SHIPS

Environmental issues such as the emission of greenhouse gases, pollution, wash and noise are having an increasing impact on the design and operation of ships. These environmental issues together with economic factors, such as rising fuel costs, all ultimately lead to the need to minimise ship propulsive power. Various methods and devices for reducing propulsive power are reviewed and discussed. The most favourable methods, from a feasible and practical point of view, are identified and quantified. It is found that potential reductions in the resistance of existing good hull forms are relatively small, but optimising hull-propeller-rudder interaction offers very promising prospects for improvement. The biggest potential savings in power arise from optimised operational strategies such as the use of optimum trim, speed and weather routeing. Potential conflicts of interest when considering both economic and environmental requirements are investigated and discussed. Suitable design methodologies and procedures, taking into account economic and environmental factors, are suggested for the design of future ships.

A Brief Report of Hotel Collapse Causing Casualties in Suzhou, China

The collapse of a 30-year-old hotel building in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province on 12 July 2021 raised legitimate questions about the identification of old buildings’ condition and risks stemming from remedial operations. This short communication reports and investigates the causes of this accident, which led to 17 deaths and 5 injuries. Subsequently, it describes the rescue actions undertaken, including logistic means, operational strategies, and procedure sequencing. The causes of the accident were attributed to: (i) the poor quality and fragility of the building, (ii) illegal renovations and extensions, as well as (iii) the laxism of relevant departments that failed to timely check the risk level of the building before these renovations. Thanks to efficient organization and management, the rescue operations were completed within 42 h. Based on this preliminary analysis, some recommendations are proposed to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Impact of extreme weather events in Indian agriculture : Enhancing the coping capacity of farm families

In the context of climate change, extreme weather events are emerging as a potential threat to food security and farmers livelihoods. Considerable proportion of the revenue is being spent in addressing the damages caused due to these intense events. Extreme precipitation (both flood and drought) and temperature are crucial in causing detrimental impact on crop yield and production. Particularly, the impacts of extreme events will be more in rainfed agriculture due to interannual precipitation variability over the growing season in terms of crop yield and yield quality. Several studies have forecasted its increased occurrence and estimated its impact on agricultural productivity. Nevertheless, field level operational strategies to address these risks are easily not accessible to men and women farmers in that specific context. Since these events are localized in geographical scale, decentralised approach in the framework of ‘preparedness and recovery’ is suggested to combat the loss of lives, livelihoods and assets of men and women farmers. In this backdrop, the paper suggests few simple practical decentralised strategies to support the vast majority of small holders in our country.

Empathy or perceived credibility? An empirical study of Muslim donating behaviour through online charitable crowdfunding in Indonesia

Purpose This study aims to analyse the factors influencing Indonesian Muslims’ donation behaviour through online charitable donation-based crowdfunding. Design/methodology/approach The study uses the stimulus-organism-response framework, with technological characteristics, campaign characteristics and religiosity as the stimulus; empathy, perceived credibility and quality of relationship as the organism; and intention to donate as the response variables. In analysing the data, it used the structural equation modelling approach with the partial least squares method. The study involved 405 Muslim respondents who have donated through the largest online charitable crowdfunding platform in Indonesia. Findings The main findings suggest that empathy and perceived credibility are key determinants influencing the intention to donate through crowdfunding. Both factors are subsequently affected by initiator reputation, campaign popularity, content quality, transaction convenience and website quality. Such intention also goes hand in hand with the improved quality of relationships between the organisation and the donors, subsequently influenced by their religiosity. Practical implications The main findings imply that fundraising campaigns and technology’s characteristics play a significant role in the intention to donate. Such findings are expected to enhance understanding of individuals’ philanthropic behaviour in Indonesia and to suggest appropriate operational strategies to facilitate individuals’ donation behaviour in charitable crowdfunding. Originality/value Despite the high potential of charitable crowdfunding, studies regarding the factors influencing charitable donations made through such organisations remain scarce. This study contributes to the literature by taking the case of the largest online charitable crowdfunding platform in Indonesia.

MMX geodesy investigations: science requirements and observation strategy

In order to investigate the origin of Phobos and Deimos, the Japanese Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission is scheduled for launch in 2024. MMX will make comprehensive remote-sensing measurements of both moons and return regolith samples from Phobos to Earth. Geodetic measurements of gravity, shape, and rotation parameter of a body provides constraints on its internal structure reflecting its origin and evolution. Moments of inertia are important parameters to constrain the internal mass distribution, but they have not been well determined for the Martian moons yet. We discuss the mission requirements related to the moments of inertia to detect a potential heterogeneity of the mass distribution inside Phobos. We introduce mission instruments and operational strategies to meet the mission requirements. We present a preliminary imaging strategy from a quasi-satellite orbit for a base shape model that is expected to be created at the early stage of the mission. Geodetic products including ephemeris, gravity field, rotation parameter of Phobos, and spacecraft orbit are of importance not only for the geodetic study, but also for interpreting data from various mission instruments and selecting possible landing sites. Graphical Abstract

L’Osservatorio della Provincia autonoma di Trento

The Landscape Observatory of the Autonomous Province of Trento has been active since 2010. Over the decade, the Observatory has established new forms of landscape management, starting from the assumption that a pleasant landscape is the result of responsible individual actions and collective initiatives. The experiences presented in this short essay describe the outcomes of an activity aimed at citizens, public administrators, and professionals in the field, with the purpose of encouraging an increasing awareness through the development of operational strategies and effective technical approaches.