The main objective of this book is to evaluate alternative energy systems in buildings, regardless of their location and climatic conditions. Over the past few years, the use of passive cooling and heating technologies has become more common for reducing the energy consumption of buildings. However, for some building systems, these technologies are not used very often. Buildings intended for children or the elderly are often climatized to improve indoor thermal conditions. In this Special Issue, a cost reduction in climatization based on passive systems is expected to be conducted. Building site optimization is expected to be performed, to improve thermal behavior. To achieve this, computational fluid dynamics tools are expected to be used. These reductions are expected to be studied for conventional and renewable energy systems, showing that passive systems provide better thermal comfort and reduce the initial investment and energy consumption, making low-cost buildings feasible.
The microwave and millimeter wave frequency range is nowadays widely exploited in a large variety of fields including (wireless) communications, security, radar, spectroscopy, but also astronomy and biomedical, to name a few. This Special Issue focuses on the interaction between the nanoscale dimensions and centimeter to millimeter wavelengths. This interaction has been proven to be efficient for the design and fabrication of devices showing enhanced performance. Novel contributions are welcome in the field of devices based on nanoscaled geometries and materials. Applications cover, but not are limited to, electronics, sensors, signal processing, imaging and metrology, all exploiting nanoscale/nanotechnology at microwave and millimeter waves. Contributions can take the form of short communications, regular or review papers.
This Special Issue provides 15 research articles and 4 comprehensive review articles on various aspects of plant-metal/metalloid interactions. - Up-to-date information on plant responses to metals/metalloids are published. - Various mechanisms of plant tolerance to metals''/metalloids'' toxicity are presented. - Exogenous applications of mitigating metals''/metalloids'' toxicity are discussed. - Sustainable technologies in growing plants in metal/metalloid-contaminated environments are discussed. - Phytoremediation techniques for the remediation of metals/metalloids are discussed.
Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by the fungi of different species (mainly Aspergillus, Fusarium, and Penicillium), with toxic effects for humans and animals. These mycotoxins can contaminate food and feed. The European Union (EU) has established the maximum permitted or recommended levels for well-known mycotoxins in different foodstuffs. However, there are other mycotoxins that are not included in the regulations: the "emerging mycotoxins" (whose toxicity is still not clear), and the "modified or masked mycotoxins" (produced as a consequence of a detoxification strategy of the host plant of the fungus or during food processing). These mycotoxins could pose a risk and should also be taken into account. In order to assure consumers'' health, analytical methods for the accurate determination of mycotoxins in different food matrices and feeds are required. In this sense, liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is a powerful tool for their unique identification and quantification. Moreover, the use of high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) allows one to identify novel mycotoxins and targeted/untargeted approaches for study. This Special Issue compiles recent applications of LC-MS/MS in mycotoxin studies, as well as the development and validation of new analytical methods for their identification and quantification in different food matrices and feed, occurrence studies, and the biomonitoring of mycotoxins and their metabolites in biological fluids.
A trillion different microbial species have been evolving for some 3.5 billion years, producing ever more complex active secondary metabolites. The sea is a cauldron of a great diversity of useful and valuable compounds. This Special Issue focused on studies of marine microbe natural products for discovering compounds useful to humankind. Papers were collected that provide up-to-date information regarding the characterization of marine microbes'' metabolic diversity and the evaluation of the therapeutic potential of marine microbes'' metabolites. Most of the articles in this book deal with marine fungi, biological and chemical diversity, and their active metabolites. This may be a sign that marine fungi have been under studied to date and are perceived by many researchers as an important source of discovery in this field. A best practices guide for the isolation of marine fungi from different matrixes and their conservation is also presented. The comparison of the phylogenetic and metabolomic profiles of microalgae from different lineages provides novel insights into the potential of chemotaxonomy in marine phytoplankton, showing a good overlap of phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic signals.
Standalone (off-grid) renewable energy systems supply electricity in places where there is no access to a standard electrical grid. These systems may include photovoltaic generators, wind turbines, hydro turbines or any other renewable electrical generator. Usually, this kind of system includes electricity storage (commonly lead-acid batteries, but also other types of storage can be used). In some cases, a backup generator (usually powered by fossil fuel, diesel or gasoline) is part of the hybrid system. The modelling of the components, the control of the system and the simulation of the performance of the whole system are necessary to evaluate the system technically and economically. The optimization of the sizing and/or the control is also an important task in this kind of system.
Radar-related technology is mainly processed within the time and frequency domains but, at the same time, is a multi-dimensional integrated system including a spatial domain for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic waves. As a result of the enormous technological advancements of the pioneers actively discussed in this book, research and development in multi-dimensional undeveloped areas is expected to continue. This book contains state-of-the-art work that should guide your research.
Information and communication technology (ICT) is reponsible for up to 10% of world power consumption. In particular, communications and computing systems are indispensable elements in ICT; thus, determining how to improve the energy efficiency in communications and computing systems has become one of the most important issues for realizing green ICT. Even though a number of studies have been conducted, most of them focused on one aspect-either communications or computing systems. However, salient features in communications and computing systems should be jointly considered, and novel holistic approaches across communications and computing systems are strongly required to implement energy-efficient systems. In addition, emerging systems, such as energy-harvesting IoT devices, cyber-physical systems (CPSs), autonomous vehicles (AVs), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), require new approaches to satisfy their strict energy consumption requirements in mission-critical situations. The goal of this Special Issue is to disseminate the recent advances in energy-efficient communications and computing systems. Review and survey papers on these topics are welcome. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following: ΓÇóenergy-efficient communications: from physical layer to application layer; ΓÇóenergy-efficient computing systems; ΓÇóenergy-efficient network architecture: through SDN/NFV/network slicing; ΓÇóenergy-efficient system design; ΓÇóenergy-efficient Internet of Things (IoT) and Industrial IoT (IIoT); ΓÇóenergy-efficient edge/fog/cloud computing; ΓÇónew approaches for energy-efficient computing and communications (e.g., AI/ML and data-driven approaches); ΓÇónew performance metrics on energy efficiency in emerging systems; ΓÇóenergy harvesting and simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT); ΓÇósmart grid and vehicle-to-grid (V2G); and ΓÇóstandardization and open source activities for energy efficient systems.
Unravelling an intricate network of interatomic interactions and their relations to different behaviors of chemical compounds is key to the successful design of new materials for both existing and novel applications, from medicine to innovative concepts of molecular electronics and spintronics. X-ray crystallography has proven to be very helpful in addressing many important chemical problems in modern materials science and biosciences. Intertwined with computational techniques, it provides insights into the nature of chemical bonding and the physicochemical properties (including optical, magnetic, electrical, mechanical, and others) of crystalline materials, otherwise accessible by experimental techniques that are not so readily available to chemists. In addition to the advanced approaches in charge density analysis made possible by X-ray diffraction, the information collected over the years through this technique (which is easily mined from huge databases) has tremendous use in the design of new materials for medicine, gas storage, and separation applications as well as for electronic devices. This Special Issue contains two reviews and five articles that cover very different aspects of ''composition-structure'' and ''structure-property'' relations identified by X-ray diffraction and complementary techniques (from conventional IR and Raman spectroscopies to cutting-edge quantum chemical calculations) and their use in crystal engineering and materials science.
J├╢bsis was the first to describe the in vivo application of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), also called diffuse optical spectroscopy (DOS). NIRS was originally designed for the clinical monitoring of tissue oxygenation, and today it has also become a useful tool for neuroimaging studies (functional near-infrared spectroscopy, fNIRS). However, difficulties in the selective and quantitative measurements of tissue hemoglobin (Hb), which have been central in the NIRS field for over 40 years, remain to be solved. To overcome these problems, time-domain (TD) and frequency-domain (FD) measurements have been tried. Presently, a wide range of NIRS instruments are available, including commonly available commercial instruments for continuous wave (CW) measurements, based on the modified Beer-Lambert law (steady-state domain measurements). Among these measurements, the TD measurement is the most promising approach, although compared with CW and FD measurements, TD measurements are less common, due to the need for large and expensive instruments with poor temporal resolution and limited dynamic range. However, thanks to technological developments, TD measurements are increasingly being used in research, and also in various clinical settings. This Special Issue highlights issues at the cutting edge of TD DOS and diffuse optical tomography (DOT). It covers all aspects related to TD measurements, including advances in hardware, methodology, the theory of light propagation, and clinical applications.
The principal aim of this book is to provide a wide range of information and a useful reference for researchers interested to investigate heavy mineral assemblages in different geological settings and for a variety of purposes. The methodological developments achieved in recent years for the identification of heavy minerals in a wide grain-size range are illustrated. All factors that affect heavy mineral concentration and relative proportions, including hydraulic sorting, mechanical abrasion, chemical weathering, and post-depositional dissolution, and all factors able to introduce analytical, environmental, or diagenetic bias are thoroughly addressed. A proper integration of multiple techniques including bulk sediment, multi-mineral, and single-mineral methods are discussed by renowned authors in their invited contributions.
Cancer is a great challenge to efficient therapy due to biological diversity. Disturbed oxidative homeostasis in cancer cells certainly contributes to differential therapy response. Further, one of the hallmarks of cancer cells is adaptation which includes fine tuning of the cellular metabolic and signalling pathways as well as transcription profiles. There are several factors which contribute to the tumor diversity and therapy response, and oxidative stress is certainly one of them. Changes in oxygen levels due to hypoxia/reoxygenation during tumor growth modulate antioxidative patterns finally supporting increased cell diversity and adaptation to stressing conditions. Additionally, cancer chemotherapy based on ROS production can also induce also adaptation. To counteract these negative effects natural products are often used for their antioxidant activities as well as photodynamic therapy supported by novel chemosensitizers. Understanding of possible pathways which can trigger antioxidant defence at a certain time during cancer development can also provide possible strategies in fighting cancer.
Carbohydrate-active enzymes are responsible for both biosynthesis and the breakdown of carbohydrates and glycoconjugates. They are involved in many metabolic pathways; in the biosynthesis and degradation of various biomolecules, such as bacterial exopolysaccharides, starch, cellulose and lignin; and in the glycosylation of proteins and lipids. Carbohydrate-active enzymes are classified into glycoside hydrolases, glycosyltransferases, polysaccharide lyases, carbohydrate esterases, and enzymes with auxiliary activities (CAZy database, www.cazy.org). Glycosyltransferases synthesize a huge variety of complex carbohydrates with different degrees of polymerization, moieties and branching. On the other hand, complex carbohydrate breakdown is carried out by glycoside hydrolases, polysaccharide lyases and carbohydrate esterases. Their interesting reactions have attracted the attention of researchers across scientific fields, ranging from basic research to biotechnology. Interest in carbohydrate-active enzymes is due not only to their ability to build and degrade biopolymers-which is highly relevant in biotechnology-but also because they are involved in bacterial biofilm formation, and in glycosylation of proteins and lipids, with important health implications. This book gathers new research results and reviews to broaden our understanding of carbohydrate-active enzymes, their mutants and their reaction products at the molecular level.
Passive vibration control plays a crucial role in structural engineering. Common solutions include seismic isolation and damping systems with various kinds of devices, such as viscous, viscoelastic, hysteretic, and friction dampers. These strategies have been widely utilized in engineering practice, and their efficacy has been demonstrated in mitigating damage and preventing the collapse of buildings, bridges, and industrial facilities. However, there is a need for more sophisticated analytical and numerical tools to design structures equipped with optimally configured devices. On the other hand, the family of devices and dissipative elements used for structural protection keeps evolving, because of growing performance demands and new progress achieved in materials science and mechanical engineering. This Special Issue collects 13 contributions related to the development and application of passive vibration control strategies for structures, covering both traditional and innovative devices. In particular, the contributions concern experimental and theoretical investigations of high-efficiency dampers and isolation bearings; optimization of conventional and innovative energy dissipation devices; performance-based and probability-based design of damped structures; application of nonlinear dynamics, random vibration theory, and modern control theory to the design of structures with passive energy dissipation systems; and critical discussion of implemented isolation/damping technologies in significant or emblematic engineering projects.
The world''s energy demand is still growing, partly due to the rising population, partly to increasing personal needs. This growing demand has to be met without increasing (or preferably, by decreasing) the environmental impact. One of the ways to do so is the use of existing low-temperature heat sources for producing electricity, such as using power plants based on the organic Rankine cycle (ORC) . In ORC power plants, instead of the traditional steam, the vapor of organic materials (with low boiling points) is used to turn heat to work and subsequently to electricity. These units are usually less efficient than steam-based plants; therefore, they should be optimized to be technically and economically feasible. The selection of working fluid for a given heat source is crucial; a particular working fluid might be suitable to harvest energy from a 90 Γäâ geothermal well but would show disappointing performance for well with a 80 Γäâ head temperature. The ORC working fluid for a given heat source is usually selected from a handful of existing fluids by trial-and-error methods; in this collection, we demonstrate a more systematic method based on physical and chemical criteria.
The important advances achieved over the past years in all technological directions (industry, energy, and health) contributing to human well-being are unfortunately, in many cases, accompanied by a threat to the environment, with photochemical smog, stratospheric ozone depletion, acid rain, global warming, and finally climate change being the most well-known major issues. These are the results of a variety of pollutants emitted through these human activities. The indications show that we are already at a tipping point that might lead to non-linear and sudden environmental change on a global scale. Aiming to tackle these adverse effects in an attempt to mitigate any damage that has already occurred and to ensure that we are heading toward a cleaner (green) and sustainable future, scientists around the world are developing tools and techniques to understand, monitor, protect, and improve the environment. Emissions control catalysis is continuously advancing, providing novel, multifunctional, and optimally promoted using a variety of methods, nano-structured catalytic materials, and strategies (e.g., energy chemicals recycling, cyclic economy) that enable us to effectively control emissions, either of mobile or stationary sources, improving the quality of air (outdoor and indoor) and water and the energy economy. Representative cases include the abatement and/or recycling of CO2, CO, NOx, N2O, NH3, CH4, higher hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), particulate matter, and specific industrial emissions (e.g., SOx, H2S, dioxins aromatics, and biogas). The "Emissions Control Catalysis" Special Issue has succeeded in collecting 22 high-quality contributions, included in this MDPI open access book, covering recent research progress in a variety of fields relevant to the above topics and/or applications, mainly on: (i) NOx catalytic reduction from cars (i.e., TWC) and industry (SCR) emissions; (ii) CO, CH4, and other hydrocarbons removal, and (iii) CO2 capture/recirculation combining emissions control with added-value chemicals production.
In a world dominated by uncertainty, modeling and understanding the optimal behavior of agents is of the utmost importance. Many problems in economics, finance, and actuarial science naturally require decision makers to undertake choices in stochastic environments. Examples include optimal individual consumption and retirement choices, optimal management of portfolios and risk, hedging, optimal timing issues in pricing American options, and investment decisions. Stochastic control theory provides the methods and results to tackle all such problems.This book is a collection of the papers published in the Special Issue "Applications of Stochastic Optimal Control to Economics and Finance", which appeared in the open access journal Risks in 2019. It contains seven peer-reviewed papers dealing with stochastic control models motivated by important questions in economics and finance. Each model is rigorously mathematically funded and treated, and the numerical methods are employed to derive the optimal solution. The topics of the book''s chapters range from optimal public debt management to optimal reinsurance, real options in energy markets, and optimal portfolio choice in partial and complete information settings. From a mathematical point of view, techniques and arguments of dynamic programming theory, filtering theory, optimal stopping, one-dimensional diffusions and multi-dimensional jump processes are used.
MEMS devices are found in many of today''s electronic devices and systems, from air-bag sensors in cars to smart phones, embedded systems, etc. Increasingly, the reduction in dimensions has led to nanometer-scale devices, called NEMS. The plethora of applications on the commercial market speaks for itself, and especially for the highly precise manufacturing of silicon-based MEMS and NEMS. While this is a tremendous achievement, silicon as a material has some drawbacks, mainly in the area of mechanical fatigue and thermal properties. Silicon carbide (SiC), a well-known wide-bandgap semiconductor whose adoption in commercial products is experiening exponential growth, especially in the power electronics arena. While SiC MEMS have been around for decades, in this Special Issue we seek to capture both an overview of the devices that have been demonstrated to date, as well as bring new technologies and progress in the MEMS processing area to the forefront. Thus, this Special Issue seeks to showcase research papers, short communications, and review articles that focus on: (1) novel designs, fabrication, control, and modeling of SiC MEMS and NEMS based on all kinds of actuation mechanisms; and (2) new developments in applying SiC MEMS and NEMS in consumer electronics, optical communications, industry, medicine, agriculture, space, and defense.
This book is the result of a Special Issue of the journal Resources. The Special Issue was initiated to identify promising solutions and specific challenges in the context of underused resources in urban environments. Authors focus on two main areas: the establishment of circular economy schemes based on valorizing wastes that occur in urban areas and the exploitation of renewable energies. The circular economy and renewable resources hold key potential for increasing the sustainability of cities, and the presented studies enhance our understanding of how to unlock this potential. Effective regulatory frameworks and policymaking processes that balance the power between stakeholders are required to successfully manage energy transition and the transition to more circular economies. The positive role of community engagement merits high attention. To recover valuable resources from household waste, a focus on technology and infrastructure is required but is insufficient; motivational factors and knowledge of citizens are the most essential elements. The need to more reliably quantify and better characterize recyclable material streams also evidently remains, especially where population numbers are further growing. This book provides a rich source to explore promising solutions, challenges, and research needed for the sound management of resources in urban settings.
Renewable energy is electricity generated by fuel sources that restore themselves over a short period of time and do not diminish. Although some renewable energy technologies impact the environment, renewables are considered environmentally preferable to conventional sources and, when replacing fossil fuels, have significant potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This book focuses on the environmental and economic benefits of using renewable energy, which include: (i) generating energy that produces no greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels and reduces some types of air pollution, (ii) diversifying energy supply and reducing dependence on imported fuels, and (iii) creating economic development and jobs in manufacturing, installation, and more. Local governments can dramatically reduce their carbon footprint by purchasing or directly generating electricity from clean and renewable sources. The most common renewable power technologies include: solar (photovoltaic (PV), solar thermal), wind, biogas (e.g., landfill gas, wastewater treatment digester gas), geothermal, biomass, low-impact hydroelectricity, and emerging technologies such as wave and tidal power. Local governments can lead by example by generating energy on site, purchasing green power, or purchasing renewable energy. Using a combination of renewable energy options can help to meet local government goals, especially in some regions where availability and quality of renewable resources vary. Options for using renewable energy include: generating renewable energy on site, using a system or device at the location where the power is used (e.g., PV panels on a state building, geothermal heat pumps, biomass-fueled combined heat and power), and purchasing renewable energy from an electric utility through a green pricing or green marketing program, where buyers pay a small premium in exchange for electricity generated locally from green power resources.
Due to properties differing from those of larger materials, nanomaterials have been extensively used in different areas including nanomedicine, drug delivery, theragnosis, and bioimaging in recent years. Evaluating the toxicity profile (i.e., biocompatibility) of nanomaterials and their impact on health is essential to support the potential biomedical applications. This book deals with the two faces of nanomaterials, toxicity and bioactivity, hoping to aid with their development for clinical applications, reducing the possible risks associated with their use.
Recently, great attention has been paid to materials that can be used in the human body to prepare parts that replace failed bone structures. Of all materials, Ti-based materials are the most desirable, because they provide an optimum combination of mechanical, chemical, and biological properties. The successful application of Ti biomaterials has been confirmed mainly in dentistry, orthopedics, and traumatology. Titanium biocompatibility is practically the highest of all metallic biomaterials; however, new solutions are being sought to continuously improve their biocompatibility and osseointegration. Thus, the chemical modification of Ti results in the formation of new alloys or composites, which provide new perspectives for Ti biomaterials applications. This book covers broad aspects of Ti-based biomaterials concerning the design of their structure, mechanical, and biological properties. This book demonstrates that the new Ti-based compounds and their surface treatment provide the best properties for biomedical applications.
Antimicrobial packaging has recently attracted a great deal of interest from the food industry due to the boost in consumer demand for minimally-processed, preservative-free products. Antimicrobial polymeric packaging systems can be considered an emerging technology that could have an important impact on shelf life extension and food safety. Novel polymeric-based packaging materials are continually being developed. This book collects carefully chosen examples of the most recent and relevant advances in the preparation and characterization of antimicrobial composites for food packaging applications. Different polymer nanocomposites with improved packaging properties are discussed along with their mechanisms of action. Further, future perspectives for antimicrobial polymeric nanomaterials are provided.
As it is a goal to eliminate human African trypanosomiasis (HAT; sleeping sickness) as a public health problem by 2020 and interrupt transmission by 2030, this is a good moment to reflect on what we have achieved, what we want to achieve, and what could get in our way. HAT has a reputation for spectacular reappearances, and the latest peak of 40,000 reported and over 300,000 estimated cases only dates back to 1998. Efforts of the WHO and partners as well as the development of simpler and much better-tolerated treatments, improved diagnostics, and vector control tools made it possible to reduce this number by 95%. Case identification and confirmation remain complex and require specific skills, treatment remains error-prone and reports on long-term survivors have emerged, and the relevance of the animal reservoir for T. b. gambiense HAT needs clarification. In addition, to win the "end game" against this massively stigmatized disease, the human factor will play a key role. This Special Issue addresses many of the burning topics about disease elimination in its 12 research and 7 review articles and one case study. The papers critically reflect the approaches used, investigate the mentioned challenges, and propose novel approaches and interventions from various points of view.
Semi-solid metal (SSM) processing, as a viable alternative manufacturing route to those of conventional casting and forging, has not yet been fully exploited despite nearly half a century since its introduction to the metal industry. The slow pace of adopting SSM routes may be due to various reasons, including capital costs, profit margins, and, most importantly, the lack of detailed analysis of various SSM processes in open literature to confidently establish their advantages over more conventional routes. Therefore, the SSM community must disseminate their findings more effectively to generate increased confidence in SSM processes in the eyes of our industrial leaders. As such, we have embarked on the task to invite the leaders in SSM research to share their findings in a Special Issue dedicated to semi-solid processing of metals and composites. SSM processing takes advantage of both forming and shaping characteristics usually employed for liquid and solid materials. In the absence of shear forces, the semi-solid metal has similar characteristics to solids, i.e., easily transferred and shaped; by applying a defined force, the viscosity is reduced and the material flows like a liquid. These unique dual characteristics have made SSM routes attractive alternatives to conventional casting on an industrial scale. With the intention of taking full advantage of SSM characteristics, it is crucial to understand SSM processing, including topics such as solidification and structural evolution, flow behavior through modelling and rheology, new processes and process control, alloy development, and properties in general. This Special Issue focuses on the recent research and findings in the field with the aim of filling the gap between industry and academia, and to shed light on some of the fundamentals of science and technology of semi-solid processing.
The 5th IEEE International Conference on Applied System Innovation 2019 (IEEE ICASI 2019, https://2019.icasi-conf.net/), which was held in Fukuoka, Japan, on 11-15 April, 2019, provided a unified communication platform for a wide range of topics. This Special Issue entitled "Selected Papers from IEEE ICASI 2019" collected nine excellent papers presented on the applied sciences topic during the conference. Mechanical engineering and design innovations are academic and practical engineering fields that involve systematic technological materialization through scientific principles and engineering designs. Technological innovation by mechanical engineering includes information technology (IT)-based intelligent mechanical systems, mechanics and design innovations, and applied materials in nanoscience and nanotechnology. These new technologies that implant intelligence in machine systems represent an interdisciplinary area that combines conventional mechanical technology and new IT. The main goal of this Special Issue is to provide new scientific knowledge relevant to IT-based intelligent mechanical systems, mechanics and design innovations, and applied materials in nanoscience and nanotechnology.
This special volume offers a snapshot of the latest developments in mineral exploration, in particular, geophysical, geochemical, and computational methods. It reflects the cutting-edge applications of geophysics and geochemistry, as well as novel technologies, such as in artificial intelligence and hyperspectral exploration, methods that have profoundly changed how exploration is conducted. This special volume is a representation of these cutting-edge and pioneering methods to consider and conduct exploration, and should serve both as a valuable compendium of the most innovative exploration methodologies available and as a foreshadowing of the form of future exploration. As such, this volume is of significant importance and would be useful to any exploration geologist and company
With pore sizes up to 100 nm, the term "nanoporous" covers a wide range of material classes. A broad field of applications has arisen from the diversity of unique structures and properties of nanoporous materials. Recent research spans the range from fundamental studies of the behavior of atoms and molecules in confined space, creative synthetic pathways for novel materials, to applications in high-performance technologies. This Special Issue collects current studies about the progress in the development, characterization, and application of nanoporous materials, including (but not restricted to) mesoporous silica, carbon and metal oxides, porous coordination polymers, metal organic frameworks (MOFs), and covalent organic frameworks (COFs), as well as materials exhibiting hierarchical porosity. Their functionalities show promise for fields such as energy storage/conversion (e.g., photocatalysis and battery electrodes), sensing, catalysis, and their sorption properties for N2, CO2, NOx, or H2O, to name just a few.
Global crop production must substantially increase to meet the needs of a rapidly growing population. This is constrained by the availability of nutrients, water, and land. There is also an urgent need to reduce the negative environmental impacts of crop production. Collectively, these issues represent one of the greatest challenges of the twenty-first century. Sustainable cropping systems based on ecological principles are the core of integrated approaches to solve this critical challenge. This special issue provides an international basis for revealing the underlying mechanisms of sustainable cropping systems to drive agronomic innovations. It includes review and original research articles that report novel scientific findings on improvement in cropping systems related to crop yields and their resistance to biotic and abiotic stressors, resource use efficiency, environmental impact, sustainability, and ecosystem services.
This Special Issue collects the latest results on differential/difference equations, the mathematics of networks, and their applications to engineering and physical phenomena. It features nine high-quality papers that were published with original research results. The Special Issue brings together mathematicians with physicists, engineers, as well as other scientists.
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