Artiles
Open Access
Review
04 February 2026Sustainable Economics: Systems Thinking and the More-Than-Global Pluriverse
This paper argues that since the Earth system is the organizational framework within which we find our place, and the ultimate arbitrator of ecological, social and economic sustainability and well-being, then any strategy that would deliver a prosperous, functional and flourishing future must circle around the properties of this complex system and be aware of the implications of these characteristics for our own activities and decisions. To do otherwise would be a strategy of doubtful value. The nature of the Earth system is then explored. We examine the global and the local aspects of this system, in terms of many worlds in one world, the pluriverse. The ecological, social, and economic pluriverses are seen to be nested within one another, and are each emergent entities that arise from the Earth system as a whole. The economies of the biosphere are examined across individual, population, community, and ecosystem levels, across a range of biomes, each of which is specialized in accordance with local conditions. In terms of human economic activities, it is suggested that regional strategies and policies are required, rather than global approaches such as the sustainable development goals. These must be designed to maximize ecosystem functioning and human well-being, which are themselves required for successful net economic growth. Furthermore, human economic activity in each region should resonate with the natural economies in that region. Finally, this thinking is applied to the urban setting, drawing on the work of Geddes and Magnaghi, exploring this in terms of the Earth system and its emergent local outcomes, the ecological, social, and economic pluriverse.
Open Access
Communication
04 February 2026BMAA-Producing Cyanobacteria and Fish Contamination in Italy: An Emerging One Health Concern
β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA), a non-proteinogenic amino acid produced by various cyanobacteria, has emerged as a significant concern in the context of the One Health framework due to its neurotoxic effects and potential ecological and public health implications. Cyanobacteria, found ubiquitously in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial environments, can contaminate water sources and food chains with different toxins, including BMAA, which can produce a sinergic action with other environmental neurotoxic contaminants (such as Methylmercury) and other cyanotoxins, such as Microcystins. Human exposure occurs primarily through the consumption of contaminated drinking water and aquatic food products. BMAA accumulation in neural tissues has been linked to the degeneration of motor neurons and the formation of neurofibrillary tangles, mimicking pathological features observed in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Alzheimer’s disease. This exposure is associated with a spectrum of symptoms, collectively termed ALS/parkinsonism dementia complex (ALS/PDC), characterized by progressive muscular paralysis, rigidity, cognitive decline, and ultimately, fatal outcomes. The increasing prevalence of cyanobacteria blooms, driven by climate change and anthropogenic factors, underscores the urgent need for comprehensive research into BMAA toxicity, environmental monitoring, and mitigation strategies. This work shows BMAA contamination data of fish fauna living in several Italian lakes affected by recurrent cyanobacterial blooms, quantified by Elisa Assay. It also explores the emerging issue of BMAA contamination from a One Health perspective, highlighting its multifaceted impact on ecosystems, animal health, and human well-being.
Open Access
Article
04 February 2026Analysis of Sensor Locations in Drone Aided Environmental Monitoring System Using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Studies
Recent advancements in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology have enabled flexible, high-resolution monitoring of atmospheric CO2, particularly in complex or otherwise inaccessible environments. This study employs Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to investigate the downwash flow field of a quadcopter UAV in hover condition with the objective of identifying low-disturbance regions suitable for accurate atmospheric sensor placement. A quadcopter model was simulated using the SST k-ω turbulence model. Simulations were performed at rotor speeds ranging from 1000 to 6000 rpm. Results show that the strongest downwash and turbulence occur directly beneath the rotors, while airflow above the central fuselage and regions laterally distant from the rotors remain significantly calmer. The findings strongly recommend placing gas sensors either above the drone body or sufficiently far horizontally from the rotor plane to minimize measurement errors caused by propeller-induced flow.
Open Access
Review
03 February 2026Review of Offshore Wind Power Grid Integration and Operation in New Energy Systems
Offshore wind power is a key resource for achieving low-carbon transition in power systems with high penetration of renewable energy and power electronics, and it plays an increasingly important role in the development of modern power systems worldwide. The current research work focuses on aggregation-based development and operation technologies, grid-connected operation methods, and optimal scheduling strategies for offshore wind power, aiming to achieve the stable and healthy development of the offshore wind power industry. This paper reviews the characteristics of offshore wind energy systems and the integrated utilization technology for grid-connected operation. First, the aggregation features and system characteristics of new energy systems with large-scale offshore wind power are examined. Then, the system reviews key technologies for large-scale offshore wind power grid integration based on VSC-HVDC technology and analyzes the source-load characteristics of new energy systems incorporating offshore wind power. Finally, the development trends of offshore wind energy systems and integrated utilization technologies for grid-connected operation, as well as the technical fields that require further research in the future, are prospectively discussed.
Open Access
Article
03 February 2026Rebuilding Community Cohesion in Migrant-Sending Villages: A Theory-of-Change Model for Social Work and Public Policy in Depopulating Rural Romania
Rural out-migration has become one of the most significant drivers of social and institutional fragility in contemporary Europe, particularly in peripheral and migrant-sending regions. Beyond demographic decline, sustained mobility generates care drain, school disengagement, elderly isolation, and erosion of interpersonal and institutional trust, ultimately leading to community fragmentation. While existing research has extensively documented these effects, far less attention has been given to how they can be systematically reversed through coordinated public policy and social intervention. This paper proposes a governance-ready Theory of Change that integrates social capital theory, social disorganization, rural migration studies, and cohesion-oriented social policy into a unified framework for restoring community cohesion in migrant-sending rural areas. The model specifies how multi-sectoral policy inputs, spanning social work, education, local government, civil society, and EU cohesion instruments, activate bonding, bridging, and linking forms of social capital, generating measurable improvements in school engagement, community participation, intergenerational solidarity, return-migrant reintegration, and institutional trust. Through two complementary visual models, a linear recovery pathway and a self-reinforcing cohesion cycle, the paper demonstrates how social recovery becomes cumulative and resilient once critical relational and institutional thresholds are reached. The proposed framework advances rural development scholarship by shifting the focus from managing migration impacts to governing social regeneration, offering a transferable policy architecture for strengthening cohesion, resilience, and sustainable development in mobility-affected rural regions.
Open Access
Perspective
03 February 2026Regularity of Human Body Temperature Change Induced by Various Aromatic Smokes
Aromatherapy is a widely used clinical complementary therapy. Incense therapy, as one of the primary methods of aromatherapy, releases volatile aromatic compounds that rapidly interact with the human body. To explore its potential mechanisms, we collected 123 common natural aromatherapy fragrances and employed infrared thermography to record human surface temperature changes after smoke inhalation. The results showed that most incense samples could induce localized temperature increases, exhibiting eight stable and distinct heating patterns. These patterns show a phenomenological correspondence with the eight extra meridians described in traditional Chinese medicine. This phenomenon suggests that natural incense smoke may induce meridian-specific warming effects, which may provide thermographic evidence for the meridian hypothesis while also offering new perspectives for modern aromatherapy research.
Open Access
Article
02 February 2026Transcriptomic Insights into Selenite Response and Biotransformation in a Novel Selenium-Enriching Lactic Acid Bacterium
Many microorganisms are capable of surviving selenium (Se)-rich environments and efficiently transforming inorganic Se into organic Se, enabling them to act as a potent biocatalyst for the synthesis of organic Se. Here, we isolated a novel selenium-enriching lactic acid bacterium, Pediococcus acidilactici 03W, from the selenium-rich soil. The growth experiment showed that glucose is the optimal carbon source for P. acidilactici 03W when grown in 1000 µg·mL−1 sodium selenite at pH 6. RNA-seq analysis revealed that a total of 761 genes exhibited altered expression in response to selenite exposure. Downregulation of the phosphate transporter operon (pstA/B/C) and TauE/SafE-type exporters signaled a flux-throttling program that curtailed transmembrane anion flow—limiting high-affinity phosphate uptake and modulating sulfur/selenite export—thereby aligning net anion influx with the cell’s available reductive capacity. In contrast, the expression of the key genes responsible for NAD(P)H or FMN-dependent oxidoreductases and thiol-based redox systems (e.g., trxA/B, tpx, gor, and garB) was induced, together with cysteine desulfurases and sulfurtransferases, supporting the enzymatic reduction of selenite. Interestingly, Fe–S cluster assembly genes (e.g., sufU) were suppressed (not induced), suggesting a shift away from de novo Fe–S biogenesis toward sulfur–selenium transfer and detoxification under oxidative stress. Also, some key genes involved in central carbon metabolism, including the glycolytic pathway (e.g., pfkA) and the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) (e.g., zwf), were downregulated, which is consistent with reallocating resources from rapid growth to redox homeostasis. Collectively, selenium assimilation in P. acidilactici 03W proceeds through anion transport, enzymatic reduction to Se0 or H2Se, and incorporation into seleno-amino acids (selenocysteine and selenomethionine). Our findings provide a basis for microbial selenium transformation and highlight the potential of P. acidilactici 03W for developing selenium-enriched probiotic foods.
Open Access
Article
02 February 2026Effect of Aluminum and Aluminum Nitride on Some Thermophysical Properties of Polyamide 6/High-Density Polyethylene and Styrene-Ethylene-Butadiene-Styrene/Polypropylene Blends
The structure and physical-mechanical properties of non-compatibilized and compatibilized blends of polyethylene with polyamide 6 and polypropylene with styrene-ethylene-butadiene-styrene, containing heat-conducting modifiers (aluminum and aluminum nitride) in their composition, were studied. Data were obtained on the influence of the ratio of polymer components in the blend and the functionalization of one of them, as well as the type of heat-conducting filler, on the mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties of composites and their thermal conductivity. Using SEM, no selective distribution of aluminum and aluminum nitride in the two-component polymer matrix was found when composites were obtained by extrusion compounding. It was found that the reinforcing effect of the filler (change in shear modulus) is largely determined by the presence of a polar polymer in the blend matrix. Both heat-conducting modifiers affect the position of the glass transition temperature maxima of the polymers used. The prospect of creating an interpenetrating polymer network structure to achieve additional thermal conductivity gain while maintaining the proportion of the conductive modifier is demonstrated.
Open Access
Article
02 February 2026Alkaline Leaching Lithium from Spent Carbon Anode and Coupling of Extraction-Carbonization for Cryolite Regeneration
This paper proposes an integrated coupling process of alkali leaching, HBTA-TOPO synergistic extraction, and carbonation for the resource utilization of spent carbon anode (SCA), a typical lithium-bearing industrial solid waste from electrolytic aluminum production, whose lithium content exceeds the ore grade. Compared with conventional acid leaching methods, the adopted alkaline leaching approach features mild reaction conditions, low equipment corrosion risk, and eliminates the volatilization of toxic hydrogen fluoride (HF) gas, thus showing prominent environmental safety advantages. Under the optimal alkaline leaching conditions (NaOH concentration of 10 mol/L, reaction temperature of 90 °C, liquid-to-solid ratio of 10:1, and reaction time of 120 min), the maximum Li+ leaching rate reaches 89.46%. As the leaching process proceeds, lithium in the carbon slag rapidly migrates to the alkaline leaching solution. The Na–Al–F bonds of cryolite (Na3AlF6) and lithium cryolite (Na2LiAlF6) present in the SCA gradually break, and soluble ions such as Na+, Li+, Al3+, and F− enter the solution. High-concentration Na+ reacts with free F− to form sodium fluoride (NaF), which adheres to the SCA, leading to an increase in the sodium-aluminum ratio (Na/Al) of the SCA. The HBTA-TOPO synergistic extraction system is proposed for the extraction and enrichment of lithium in the lithium alkaline leaching solution, and the extraction residue is used to repair and regenerate cryolite. The extraction efficiency of Li+ reaches and the yield of cryolite reaches 81.54% and 76.54%. The molecular ratio of sodium fluoride to aluminum fluoride in synthetic cryolite products is relatively high. This integrated process realizes the efficient recovery of lithium and the high-value regeneration of cryolite from SCA, providing a sustainable technical route for the clean utilization of electrolytic aluminum solid waste. This integrated closed-loop process realizes the simultaneous recovery of lithium and high-value regeneration of cryolite from SCA, which not only mitigates the environmental pollution caused by SCA stacking and the scarcity of lithium resources, but also provides a sustainable technical route for the clean and high-value utilization of electrolytic aluminum solid waste.
Open Access
Article
02 February 2026Topology Optimization for Drone Structure: Comprehensive Workflow Including Conceptual Modeling, Components Preparation and Additive Manufacturing
Payload drones are often limited more by frame weight than by motor power. This work aims to design, optimize, and validate a flat octocopter frame with eight independently driven rotors arranged symmetrically on separate arms. The drone frame design in SOLIDWORKS uses Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and topology optimization to remove material from low-stress regions while keeping the main load paths intact. The final design cuts the frame mass by 37.3% compared to the baseline model and reduces the 3D printing time by about five hours using a Creality K1C printer with Polylactic Acid (PLA) filament. These changes increase the available thrust-to-weight margin for payload without exceeding the allowable stress or deformation limits of the material. The electronic components also identified compatible flight controllers, ESCs, motors, and radio systems to show that the proposed frame can be integrated into a complete multirotor platform. Overall, this work demonstrates a practical approach to designing lighter octocopter frames that are easier to 3D print and can be used more effectively for delivery and inspection missions.
