An exploratory study of rural mountain regions in Scotland and North Carolina used a matched-pair multiple case design to consider rural and small-town community planning and local governance, and to understand and compare perceived assets and strengths as well as challenges facing communities in these two regions. Key informants who sat for interviews included planning and related professionals, community leaders, and anonymous residents in 12 towns, revealing some consistent themes and distinctive differences across regions and roles. Notably, housing, employment, access to services, and traffic congestion and parking were universal concerns in these rural and small-town settings, while self-sufficiency, community identity, and attachment to the rural landscape were dominant positive themes. The commonly reported challenges (housing, employment, congestion) are often framed as urban problems—but clearly afflict these rural and small-town settlements.
Lakes provide a wide range of ecological, cultural, and economic benefits and prime opportunities for recreation, tourism, and livelihoods in the Upper Indus Basin (UIB). In the wake of growing anthropogenic actions and climate change impacts, an appraisal of the lake water quality is essential to determine the health of the ecosystem and assist resource conservation initiatives in the region. An attempt has been made to establish a preliminary physicochemical baseline for eight high-altitude lakes in the UIB, Pakistan, to characterize their spatial hydrochemical variability and identify potential water quality concerns in the region. At the time of sampling, the lakes exhibited a slightly alkaline condition with pH ranging between 7.7 and 8.2 (mean 8.0). The lower alkalinity detected in the lakes, like Sheosar (42 mg/L), may indicate limited buffering capacity and more sensitivity to nutrient pulses or potential acidification. Nitrate-N concentration was low in most lakes, with many below detection limits. The Gibbs diagram indicated seven samples in the rock dominance zone, i.e., chemical weathering of rocks as the major factor contributing ions to the lake water, while in one sample, i.e., Borith Lake, evaporation-crystallization was the main source of dissolved chemical ingredients. The Spearman correlation analysis indicated a higher positive relationship (r > 0.9) between Ca and Mg, likely due to carbonate rock weathering. The observed variations in the water quality parameters may have significant effects on both the ecosystem and human health, necessitating further research and future attention. In-depth research on glacio-hydrological dynamics and limnology can support sustainable management and conservation of the freshwater ecosystems in the region.
A functionalized polyurethane-based hole transport layer (HTL) for quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) has been developed by tailoring the redox behaviour of segmented polyurethane. The successful incorporation of ionic moieties into the hard segment was confirmed by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Sulfonation significantly improved the polymer’s electrical conductivity, electrochemical activity, and optical properties, thereby enabling efficient hole transport through favorable work-function alignment and reduced interfacial energy barriers between the photoactive layer and the Ag counter electrode. Ultrasmall spherical CuInS2 quantum dots with an average size of 3.15 nm were synthesized using a capping-assisted method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis spectroscopy, and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The HOMO-LUMO and valence/conduction band energy levels, determined by cyclic voltammetry and UV-vis spectroscopy, revealed favorable energy level alignment for efficient charge separation and hole extraction. QDSSCs were fabricated with the architectures FTO/TiO2/CuInS2/SPU-2/Ag and FTO/SnO2/TiO2/CuInS2/SPU-2/Ag. The introduction of an SnO2 interfacial electron transport layer enhanced electron extraction by improving the energy band alignment with TiO2, resulting in an increase in photocurrent density from 0.74 to 2.12 mA·cm−2. The corresponding devices exhibited high open-circuit voltages of 0.89 and 0.75 V, fill factors of 67% and 56%, and power conversion efficiencies of 0.45% and 0.89%, respectively. These results demonstrate that the functionalized polyurethane HTL, combined with a SnO2/TiO2 bilayer electron transport layer (ETL), provides an effective strategy to improve charge transport and enhance the photovoltaic performance of CuInS2-based QDSSCs.
