Thermophilic microorganisms, capable of thriving under high temperatures, are emerging as key platforms for next-generation industrial biotechnology (NGIB), driving innovations in lignin biorefining, bioplastics synthesis, biodiesel production, and environmental remediation. Enzymes derived from thermophilic microorganisms, thermozymes, exhibit remarkable stability and efficiency under extreme conditions, making them highly suitable for diverse industrial applications. This review highlights recent advances in leveraging thermophilic microorganisms and thermozymes for high-temperature catalysis, focusing on their economic and environmental benefits. It also emphasizes progress in high-throughput screening and artificial intelligence (AI), which have revolutionized the bioprospecting, engineering, and application potential of thermozymes. Challenges and potential solutions for industrial implementation of high-temperature catalytic platforms are also discussed, highlighting their transformative impact on sustainable biotechnology.
Mitigating wave-induced motions in floating multi-body systems is a critical challenge in ocean engineering. For single floating structures, such as floating platforms or vessels, applying active control requires considerable energy. It is also a common solution to add auxiliary structures and a power take-off (PTO) device, thereby forming a multi-body system that utilises passive control. However, the effectiveness of this method is limited due to varying phase differences between control forces and motions, which change across different wave frequencies. The present work proposes a novel semi-active structural control method, which can effectively provide optimised control force to the main body within a multi-body system. The key point of this method is tuning the phases between the forces and motions of floating bodies. Proper tuning can neutralise the main floating body’s wave-induced motion by utilising the wave-induced motion of the auxiliary structure. The controller is developed under an optimal declutching control framework, adjusting the damping coefficients of the PTO system to provide discrete resistance to the target body. A floating semi-submersible (SS) platform equipped with a heave ring as an auxiliary structure is selected and analysed as the case study. The results demonstrate the method’s efficacy in reducing motion for floating wind turbine (FWT) platforms and its applicability to various types of multiple floating bodies. Interestingly, our optimal declutching control can “kill two birds with one stone”. It can simultaneously enhance motion reduction and increase power capture. In the current study, the proposed controller achieved a maximum motion reduction of 30% for the platform.
Offshore Renewable Energy Advance
Offshore renewable energy generation has become an important means to address the energy crisis and climate change, which has gained widespread attention in recent years. This article presents classic domestic and international cases that introduce the development and industrial transformation of generation technologies for offshore wind, offshore photovoltaics, ocean wave energy, tidal energy and temperature difference energy. Offshore power generation projects face challenges in design, safety, long-term operation and economic feasibility. Offshore renewable energy generation is gradually moving towards industrialization, and is expected to become a key component of global energy supply in the future with technological advancements and policy support, providing strong support for tackling climate change and achieving sustainable development goals.
This paper proposes a novel three-dimensional oscillating pendulum wave energy converter (WEC) that integrates an oscillating float dock station. The device captures wave energy by utilizing both the pitch and roll motions of its primary float and the pendular motion of a buoy. A time-domain analysis method is used to numerically evaluate the hydrodynamic behavior and energy conversion efficiency of the WEC. In ANSYS AQWA, a multi-cantilever WEC model is employed to address the fluid-solid coupling, calculating the device’s motion response and capturing the width ratio under various environmental conditions. Additionally, by modifying key geometric parameters including float radius, length, and cantilever angle, the study examines the rotation at the articulation point and the capture width ratio variation for different device configurations. Results indicate that the device achieves a maximum capture width ratio at a float radius of approximately 120 mm under T = 1.4 s, and a 130 mm for wave periods of 1.5 s and 1.6 s. The highest average capture width ratio is reached at a power take-off (PTO) damping coefficient of 400 N·s/m. The study further investigates the effect of cantilever angle and float length, aiding in the optimization of these geometric parameters.
This study presents a numerical investigation of a point absorber wave energy converter (WEC) with a focus on improving its performance through the utilization of a vertical wall and latching control in the power take-off (PTO) system. Prior to numerical evaluations, experimental data incorporating PTO considerations and numerical simulation results were examined to validate the accuracy of the numerical methodology employed in this research. This study introduces a numerical PTO model and latching control for a further investigation. Comparative analyses were carried out on the displacement, velocity, and force of the PTO, absorbed power, and capture width ratio (CWR), considering the incorporation of a vertical wall and latching control. The results confirm that the introduction of both vertical wall and latching control significantly improves the CWR of the WEC, showing the effectiveness of incorporating a vertical wall and latching control in enhancing power extraction.
In recent years, the expansive pastoralist landscapes in southern Kenya have undergone rapid transformation, the key being a change in the land-tenure system from communal to individual ownership. However, little is known about the complexities influencing these changes and how the changes impact the local people. This study employed qualitative inductive approaches and ethnographic methods, such as participant observation and in-depth interviews. It examined how local and international formal and informal institutions have impacted land tenure changes among the Maa pastoralists living near Chyulu and Tsavo-West national parks. Despite the expected benefits of individual land ownership, the changes have not addressed significant social barriers. These include norms and power structures that disadvantage the poor in the community, as well as women and youth within households. People with higher levels of poverty and fewer or no political connections are marginalized during land adjudication at the community level. At the same time, traditions and customs deny women and youth entitlement to property at the household level. Such groups thus experience land privatisation differently. This article argues that expropriation and unequal abilities to control, access and benefit from land profoundly impact social differentiation among pastoralists. Further, the article illuminates a more-than-human achievement, with wildlife shaping people’s lives through conservation-induced land expropriation, and a more-than-human vulnerability that livestock and wildlife face in the wake of land fragmentation and fencing that restrict their free movement. The article contributes to more significant debates on pastoralist land tenure, property relations, ongoing changes in land control processes, and more-than-human achievements and vulnerabilities.
We consider a remote sensing system in which fixed sensors are placed in a region, and a single drone flies over the region to collect information from cluster heads. We assume that the drone has a fixed maximum range and that the energy consumption for information transmission from the cluster heads increases with distance according to a power law. Given these assumptions, we derive local optimum conditions for a drone path that either minimizes the total or maximum energy required by the cluster heads to transmit information to the drone. We show how a homotopy approach can produce a family of solutions for different drone path lengths so that a locally optimal solution can be found for any drone range. We implement the homotopy solution in Python and demonstrate the tradeoff between drone range and cluster head power consumption for several geometries. Execution time is sufficiently rapid for the computation to be performed in real time so that the drone path can be recalculated on the fly. The solution is shown to be globally optimal for sufficiently long drone path lengths. A proof of concept implementation in Python is available on GitHub. For future work, we indicate how the solution can be modified to accommodate moving sensors.
This paper investigates the potential benefits of a bidirectional multi-port power electronic transformer (MPPET) to interface multiple microgrids with utility distribution networks in terms of power quality and stability. The main concept is based on the interaction between the utility grid, the connected microgrids, and the MPPET in controlling the disturbances that lead to grid instability and power quality issues. The proposed MPPET does not require any serious communication infrastructure for operation. In addition, the MPPET can respond to reverse power flow caused by excess power generation on the grid. Due to the intermittent nature of the renewable energy sources and the different stages involved in the design of the proposed MPPET, the system is liable to internal DC voltage fluctuation, causing grid instability; thus, an energy storage system (ESS) is incorporated to avert the challenges. The networks under investigation and the proposed MPPET are designed and simulated using MATLAB and Simulink software. The electrical isolation capability of the proposed bidirectional MPPET is verified through simulation. Several case studies have been carried out to evaluate the behavior of the system under different operating conditions and to check the feasibility of MPPET for power quality improvements. It was observed that the MPPET is proficient in regulating power quality issues, thus enhancing grid stability. It is also varied that the proposed MPPET prevents the escalation of the impact of faults or disturbances all over the grid. At the same time, it is verified that the proposed bidirectional energy storage systems enhance energy transfer between the utility grid and microgrids, which improves the system’s stability.
This article explored aspects of the community sport policy process in rural New South Wales, Australia, focusing on the views of community sport club (CSC) officials relating to policy matters. Community sport represents a complicated policy arena, and rural communities face a level of disparity compared with better-resourced urban CSCs, particularly concerning policy implementation and advocacy issues. Officials at CSCs from ten different sports (n = 10) in a rural setting participated in semi-structured interviews to pinpoint themes common in the community sport policy process. Further, the research identified aspects of the connections that impact CSCs, including those with government and National Sporting Organisations (NSOs). To highlight the beliefs and attitudes of the CSC officials, the interviews had two key thematic foci—implementation and advocacy—and the findings highlighted sub-themes relating to the fundamental interests of CSCs. Overall, the research accentuated the hierarchical nature—a power imbalance—of sport policy processes, the potential for CSCs to have a bottom-up role in policy creation, and the consideration of a policy analysis and evaluation structure such as the Advocacy Coalition Framework. Finally, the outcome points to enthusiasm for strengthening community sport by giving CSCs a voice through localized advocacy.
This study seeks to conceptualize ‘Informational Sustainability’ by examining the dynamic relationship between Sustainable Development and the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Revolution through the exploration of two prominent urban theories—Lefebvre’s ‘Right to the City’ and Castells’ ‘Rise of the Network Society’—to underscore the importance of knowledge integration in the development of informed, sustainable communities. Conducting a cross-country comparison between developed and developing nations, the study underscores the critical role of informational transformation in enabling resource efficiency, knowledge sharing, innovation, and informed decision-making—key for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while also highlighting potential risks associated with resisting ICT adoption, including hindered growth, increased inequalities, and reduced social engagement and environmental stewardship. The core focus of this conceptual framework is to validate the precursor role of ICT in building sustainable cities and communities by identifying synergies in Sustainable Development, defining dimensions for effective ICT application within the dynamic interplay of global and local levels, and identifying implementation gaps and necessary presumptions for its effective use.