Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2024-10"
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- Report 2023 : PortugalPublication . Couto, António; Simões, Teresa; Costa, Paula Silva; Estanqueiro, AnaABSTRACT: In 2023, the new installed wind power capacity amounted to 159 MW. This capacity refers to overcapacity procedures, building on existing sites. Important milestones were attained by the ministerial working group created by the Portuguese government to accelerate the offshore wind market, expecting a total installed capacity of 10 GW.
- Transição energética, recursos naturais endógenos e trajetória de desenvolvimento económico: o caso da energia eólica offshorePublication . Santos, Hélder; Fontes, Margarida; Sá Marques, Teresa; Torres, MarceloRESUMO: As alterações climáticas aceleraram o processo de descarbonização. Esta busca pela produção de energias verdes fez (re)emergir o investimento em I&D de novas gerações de tecnologias e em novos locais de exploração. A energia eólica é um destes casos. Por um lado, em Portugal este recurso abunda, com potencial de expansão para o offshore (Bento & Fontes, 2015). Ao mesmo tempo, o país está muito dependente da importação de combustíveis fósseis, pelo que esta é uma questão de aproveitamento dos recursos endógenos e de soberania nacional. Por outro lado, a produção da energia eólica gera desenvolvimento económico. A eólica onshore possibilitou a criação duma trajetória de desenvolvimento industrial. A exploração da energia eólica offshore pode introduzir perturbações nessa trajetória estabelecida. A literatura descreve uma série de pré-condições estruturais regionais para o desenvolvimento da nova trajetória: recursos naturais; conhecimento científico e tecnológico e ativos industriais, infraestruturais e institucionais.
- Bioprocess to produce biostimulants/biofertilizers based on microalgae grown using piggery wastewater as nutrient sourcePublication . Ferreira, Alice; Corrêa, D. O.; Ribeiro, Belina; Silva, Teresa Lopes da; Santos, Cláudia Marques dos; Acién, F. Gabriel; Gouveia, LuisaABSTRACT: In the present work, two downstream processes - high-pressure homogenization at 100 (HPH-100) and 1200 bar (HPH-1200), and enzymatic hydrolysis (EH) - were tested to produce biostimulant extracts from Tetradesmus obliquus grown in piggery wastewater at two concentrations (12.8 and 88.3 g/L). Extracts before and after centrifugation (C) were evaluated in four bioassays using garden cress (germination), mung bean (auxin-like activity), and cucumber (auxin- and cytokinin-like activity) relative to distilled water. The initial microalgal culture, without any treatment, had the best germination results (162 % at 0.2 g/L) and the only one that showed cytokinin-like activity (141 % at 0.5 g/L). In both auxin-like bioassays, the HPH-1200 + C and EH + C originated high values (186 and 155 % for cucumber, 290 and 285 % for mung bean, respectively). For mung bean, the HPH-1200 achieved the highest auxin-like effect (378 %). Finally, the extracted biomass contained essential nutrients for biofertilization, complementing the biostimulant extracts for sustainable agriculture application.
- Investigation of the Effect of Milling Time on Elemental Powders of Oxi-Reduction Nickel and Hydrogenation : Dehydrogenation TitaniumPublication . Teixeira, Rodolfo da Silva; Gurgel, Mônica Aline Magalhães; Rodrigues, Patricia Freitas; Freitas, Bruno Xavier de; Le Sénéchal, Naiara; Oliveira, R. V.; Neves, Filipe; Paula, Andersan dos SantosABSTRACT: Mechanical alloying (MA) is widely applied in the synthesis of blended elemental or prealloyed powders. This work evaluates the effect of milling time on elemental nickel and titanium powders produced by oxi-reduction and the hydrogenation-dehydrogenation process, respectively. The powders are characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, particle size, powder yield, and differential scanning calorimetry. It is observed that increasing the milling time promotes the formation of a structure composed of thin lamellae of nickel and titanium, which results in the beneficial effect of lowering the temperature for the formation of the intermetallic of the Ni-Ti system and in the powder yield achieved. The reduction of milling time in the MA process of NiTi alloys enhances technological efficiency by decreasing their overall processing time.
- Late Famennian (latest Strunian) palynomorph assemblages and their role in the Neves Formation depositional environment -The Neves-Corvo mine case study (Iberian Pyrite Belt, Portugal)Publication . Mendes, Márcia; Pereira, Zélia; Matos, João Xavier; Albardeiro, Luis; Morais, Igor; Araújo, VitorABSTRACT: This research examines palynomorph assemblages preserved in sediments of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) that host the Neves-Corvo massive sulfide deposit and its importance for mineral exploration. The sediments belong to the Neves Formation, characterized by black shales and minor occurrences of siltstones and cherts, indicative of reduced environmental conditions, favorable to sulfide deposition in a hydrothermal context dominated by submarine felsic volcanism and graben structures. Analysis was performed in barren drill holes (e.g., Monte Novo), as opposed to productive sectors with massive sulfide mineralization and/or stockwork vein networks (e.g., Lombador, Corvo and Semblana deposits) and favorable sectors like Algar & eacute;. The recovered palynological assemblages are assigned to the LN Miospore Biozone, indicating a Late Famennian (latest Strunian) age. Several characteristic species of this age are identified, such as Retispora lepidophyta and Verrucosisporites nitidus in close association with Densosporites spitbergensis, Dictyotriletes fimbriatus, Retusotriletes cf. incohatus, Retusotriletes crassus, Vallatisporites spp. (including V. pusillites, and V. verrucosus). ) . Despite some palynomorphs showing signs of breakage, folding, and indistinctness, no significant preservation or diversity differences were noted between barren and mineralized areas. The high abundance of marine phytoplankton in all studied black shales indicates ecologically stressed setting, dominated by dysoxic to anoxic conditions in a distal marine setting with active felsic volcanism and hydrothermal mineralizing events during Late Famennian time. This geologic context correlates with other IPB deposits and the global latest Devonian anoxic Hangenberg event.
- Opportunities and Constraints of the Adsorption of Rare Earth Elements onto Pyrolytic Carbon-Based Materials: A Mini-ReviewPublication . Nogueira, Miguel; Bernardo, Maria; Ventura, Márcia; Matos, Inês; Pinto, Filomena; Lapa, NunoABSTRACT: Rare earth elements (REEs), comprising seventeen metallic elements, including lanthanides, scandium, and yttrium, are indispensable for modern technological industries due to their unique properties. However, their supply is critically risky for the European Union, with 95% of global production concentrated in China, Brazil, Vietnam, Russia, India, and Australia. This mini-review examines the adsorption of REEs onto pyrolytic carbon-based materials as a sustainable recovery method from secondary raw materials. The review covers different types of carbon-based adsorbents used in several research works, such as activated carbon, chars, and biochar, and discusses their adsorption mechanisms and influencing factors. Comparative analyses of adsorption capacities highlight the significance of surface area and functionalization in enhancing adsorption efficiency. Despite promising results, the variability in adsorption performance due to experimental conditions and the scarcity of real-world application studies are noticed. This review underscores the need for further research using real e-waste leachates to validate the practical applicability of pyrolytic carbon-based adsorbents for REEs' recovery, aiming for an economically and environmentally sustainable solution.
- Design for Sustainability Tools: Definition and criteria towards practical usePublication . Vicente, José; Camocho, DavidABSTRACT: The evolution of design to meet the growing sustainability challenges has led to the development of knowledge expressed in different approaches, principles and strategies. To be able to operationalize this knowledge, several design for sustainability (DfS) tools have been created. However, these tools have not been the target of massive and systematic practical use by designers, nor have they been the subject of many studies that allow analyzing, classifying and understanding their capabilities in a real context to improve application rates. With the end goal of supporting designers in using DfS tools more systematically, this research work aims to establish two essential foundations that can lay the ground for the practical selection and application of tools in the future: 1) a clear and comprehensive definition of what constitutes a DfS tool from the designer's perspective, including its scope and boundaries; 2) a list, hierarchization, and evaluation of criteria for classifying, organizing, and selecting tools based on project and designer needs. The methodology used in this research incorporates three main methods: 1) literature review to establish the state-of-the-art, basis for constructing a definition of DfS tool and for identifying and selecting criteria; 2) survey for designers to validate the main components of the DfS tool definition; 3) value analysis methodology for classifying and valuing the classification criteria by designers. Based on this process, it was possible to construct a comprehensive definition of what a DfS tool is and to establish and organize a set of criteria that can facilitate the classification and organization of tools. This allows for better identification of their characteristics, demands and functionalities to align the tools with the design process and its needs.
- Municipal and industrial wastewater blending: Effect of the carbon/ nitrogen ratio on microalgae productivity and biocompound accumulationPublication . Pereira, Alexia Saleme Aona de Paula; Magalhães, Iara; Silva, Thiago; Reis, Alberto; de Aguiar do Couto, Eduardo; Calijuri, Maria LuciaABSTRACT: Municipal wastewater (MW) and industrial wastewater from juice processing (IWJ) were blended in different proportions to assess the effect of the carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio on pollutant removal, microalgal biomass (MB) cultivation, and the accumulation of carotenoids and biocompounds. MB development was not observed in treatments with higher C/N ratios (>30.67). The wastewater mixture favored the removal of dissolved organic carbon (75.61 and 81.90%) and soluble chemical oxygen demand (66.78-88.85%), compared to the treatment composed exclusively of MW (T7). Treatments T3 and T6 (C/N ratio equal to 30.67 and 7.52, respectively) showed higher Chlorophyll-a concentrations, 1.47 and 1.54 times higher than T7 (C/N ratio 1.75). It was also observed that the C/N ratio of 30.67 favored the accumulation of carbohydrates and lipids (30.07% and 26.39%, respectively), while the C/N ratio of 7.52 improved protein accumulation (33.00%). The fatty acids C16:0, C18:1, C18:2, and C18:3 had the highest concentrations. Additionally, increasing the C/N ratio can be an efficient strategy to improve the production of fatty acids for biofuels, mainly due to the increased concentration of shorter-chain fatty acids (C16:0). These findings suggest that blending wastewater not only enhances treatment performance but also increases the accumulation of valuable carbohydrates and lipids in MB, and optimizes fatty acid production for biofuel applications. This research represents significant progress towards feasibility of using MB produced from wastewater.
- Hydrogen storage in PortugalPublication . Simoes, Sofia; Amorim, Filipa; Portillo, Juan C. C.; Machado, Susana; Carvalho, João; Dias, Ruben Pereira; Sampaio, José; Picado, Ana; Catarino, Justina; Rangel, C. M.; Lopes, Tiago; Gírio, Francisco; Ponce Leao, Maria TeresaABSTRACT: This Policy Brief provides an overview of the technologies and challenges associated with hydrogen storage, a fundamental link in the hydrogen value chain. Portugal reached an electricity share of about 70% from renewable energy sources in 2023 (APREN, 2024). It is an outstanding historical achievement. The electricity share from wind energy was 27.3%, followed by hydropower generation with 24.7%, solar with 12.1%, and biomass with about 6%. The Portuguese energy mix has undoubtedly been diversified, but to achieve the national goal of becoming carbon-neutral, it is necessary to increase the efforts to decarbonise our industries, transport, residential, and agricultural sectors. The revised Energy and Climate National Plan (PNEC) 2030 states that about 3 GW of electrolysers shall be installed by 2030, and this will require renewable energy electricity generation capacity in the order of 8.6 GW from different onshore and offshore sources. Solar and wind energy are the technologies expected to grow the most in the next decade. The increase in such renewable energy power plants implies greater integration challenges due to their variability in time. Therefore, incorporating energy carriers that can absorb the excess energy and supply it back when necessary is paramount to guarantee the flexibility needed to maintain our grids operating smoothly and continuously. This could be achieved through hydrogen (H2) production, storage, distribution, transformation into other compounds, and use in different sectors. However, the hydrogen market is incipient. To develop it, it is necessary to rely on emerging technologies that must be tested and then upscaled, counting on the support and involvement of public and private actors.
- Mapeamento “áreas menos sensíveis” / GTAER [Comunicação oral]Publication . Simoes, Sofia; Barbosa, Juliana; Oliveira, Paula; Simões, Teresa; Quental, Lídia; Costa, Paula; Picado, Ana; Catarino, Justina; Patinha, Pedro