Suchergebnisse

AbstractGravity‐driven rainwater harvesting (RWH) system showcases a promising alternative solution to reduce energy consumption in rainwater recycling. However, the economic efficiency is one of the most concerns with regard to the adoption of this green infrastructure. In this study, a commercial official building has a rooftop area of 1600 m2 and with 560 inhabitants was assumed to apply two configurations of RWH system (i.e., gravity system and pressure system), and comparative study was conducted to evaluate the economic performance of two RWH systems. The potential water saving quantity of the RWH system was simulated based on a daily water balance model and their expected economic efficiency were discussed in terms of benefit cost ratio and net present value. Results shown that only when the building height is higher than 102 m or the property rent is less than 0.4 CNY (China Yuan) per square metre per day, can make the gravity system economically attractive. This study provides an innovative approach to utilize roof rainwater in a more low‐energy mode; it is of great significance to promote building energy‐saving and carbon reduction.

AbstractSince its first confirmed case in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a worldwide pandemic with more than 90 million confirmed cases by January 2021. Countries around the world have enforced lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the virus, introducing a temporal change of air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) that are strongly related to transportation, industry, and energy. In this study, NO2 variations over regions with strong responses to COVID-19 are analysed using datasets from the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment-2 (GOME-2) sensor aboard the EUMETSAT Metop satellites and TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) aboard the EU/ESA Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite. The global GOME-2 and TROPOMI NO2 datasets are generated at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) using harmonized retrieval algorithms; potential influences of the long-term trend and seasonal cycle, as well as the short-term meteorological variation, are taken into account statistically. We present the application of the GOME-2 data to analyze the lockdown-related NO2 variations for morning conditions. Consistent NO2 variations are observed for the GOME-2 measurements and the early afternoon TROPOMI data: regions with strong social responses to COVID-19 in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America show strong NO2 reductions of $\sim $
∼
30–50% on average due to restriction of social and economic activities, followed by a gradual rebound with lifted restriction measures.

AbstractMaritime trade and associated emissions are dynamic in nature. Although shipping emissions contribute significantly to air quality and climate change, their trade-governed dynamics remain less explored due to the lack of observational evidence. Here, we use satellite measurements to capture the redistribution of shipping nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from Shanghai port, the world's busiest port, during a natural experiment posted by the localized COVID-19 lockdown in 2022. Viewing the ports as nodes in a network linked by ship journeys, we quantify a lockdown-induced −42% reduction in shipping NOx emissions for Shanghai port. We further identify an emission transfer to its neighboring connected ports, confirmed by comprehensive vessel activity observations. Our study highlights the socioeconomic drivers of shipping emissions, which may add additional layers of complexity to air quality management.