Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
4.5
2.7
Journals
Applied Sciences
Special Issues
Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering
share announcement

Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (27 April 2024) | Viewed by 8836

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Richard Critchley

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Cranfield Forensic Institute, Cranfield University, Bedford MK43 0AL, UK
Interests: sustainable engineering; natural materials; protective engineering; blast engineering; porous and lightweight materials
Dr. Rachael Hazael

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Cranfield Forensic Institute, Cranfield University, Bedford MK43 0AL, UK
Interests: high pressure; high temperature; hypervelocity; impact science; blast; protective materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over 130 countries have committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. Ro achieve such an ambitious goal, scientists and engineers need to drive the research and be at the forefront of this sustainability challenge, looking to embrace new materials, technologies, and manufacturing techniques to aid the worldwide drive towards this target. Therefore, this Special Issue invites papers on the current and future developments within this area across all disciplines of science and engineering. Topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

  • Natural materials and fibres
  • Sustainable design
  • Sustainable technologies and processes
  • Emerging and future challenges
  • Recycling and reuse of complex materials
  • Modelling

Dr. Richard Critchley
Dr. Rachael Hazael
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sustainable engineering
  • natural materials
  • additive manufacturing
  • recycling
  • reusable

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

16 pages, 3583 KiB  
Article
Characterization of Asphalt Binders Modified with Bio-Binder from Swine Manure
by Jaume Gasia, Teresa López-Montero, Lola Vidal, Rodrigo Miró, Christophe Bengoa and Adriana H. Martínez
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(20), 11412; https://doi.org/10.3390/app132011412 - 18 Oct 2023
Viewed by 826
Abstract
Asphalt is an essential material in the construction of asphalt pavements. Due to its high demand and dependence on petroleum, it is crucial to use greener materials that can fully or partially replace petroleum-based binders. The characteristics of asphalt cause the bio-binder obtained [...] Read more.
Asphalt is an essential material in the construction of asphalt pavements. Due to its high demand and dependence on petroleum, it is crucial to use greener materials that can fully or partially replace petroleum-based binders. The characteristics of asphalt cause the bio-binder obtained through a hydrothermal liquefaction process from swine manure to have great potential to be used as a modifier due to its similarities with asphalt, contributing to the construction of more sustainable roads. Thus, this paper characterizes an asphalt binder modified with a new bio-binder obtained from swine manure at different rates (0%, 10%, and 20%). Several characterization tests were performed, including penetration, ring and ball, Fraass, viscosity, Cleveland open cup, and the UCL method. Furthermore, the possible leaching of the bio-binder was studied, showing no environmental problems. Results from the rheological tests showed that as the content of bio-binder increases, the softening temperature, Fraass breaking point, and viscosity of the bio-modified asphalt binder decrease, indicating the lower consistency of the bio-modified binder and its greater thermal susceptibility. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

11 pages, 2942 KiB  
Article
Influence of Coating a TiO2 Electrode with DN-F05 and DN-F05-Ag on the Photovoltaic Performance of DSSC Solar Cells
by Agus Supriyanto, Diani Galih Saputri, Mohd Khairul Bin Ahmad, Artono Dwijo Sutomo and Ari Handono Ramelan
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(13), 7459; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13137459 - 24 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2044
Abstract
A DSSC’s performance depends on its working electrode. Since this working electrode functions as an electron carrier, it affects how well DSSC solar cells perform. This study focused on working electrodes that use the dye DN-F05 and the Ag ions in the hybrid [...] Read more.
A DSSC’s performance depends on its working electrode. Since this working electrode functions as an electron carrier, it affects how well DSSC solar cells perform. This study focused on working electrodes that use the dye DN-F05 and the Ag ions in the hybrid dye DN-F05 as a sensitizer. This research was conducted using the spin-coating method. Based on structural, optical, and electrical data, the results obtained were related to each other. It was determined that Ag has a significant influence on DSSC performance, and this discovery was also the main goal of this study. Previous studies have shown that the addition of Ag as a doping agent is an effective strategy for improving chemical and electronic properties. This can be proven through electrical measurements, which have shown an efficiency of 5.33%. However, when a significant amount of Ag is hybridized in the dye DN-F05, it will cause a decrease in DSSC performance due to the accumulation of Ag particles on the semiconductor’s surface, creating a barrier to light absorption and aggregation. This is what led to the selection of a hybrid material (Ag metal), as Ag is unique and offers great potential with respect to boosting solar cells’ performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 7873 KiB  
Article
Effect of Raster Angle and Infill Pattern on the In-Plane and Edgewise Flexural Properties of Fused Filament Fabricated Acrylonitrile–Butadiene–Styrene
by Hamza Qayyum, Ghulam Hussain, Muhammad Sulaiman, Malik Hassan, Aaqib Ali, Riaz Muhammad, Hongyu Wei, Tauheed Shehbaz, Muhammad Aamir and Khurram Altaf
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(24), 12690; https://doi.org/10.3390/app122412690 - 11 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1714
Abstract
Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) is a popular additive manufacturing process to produce printed polymer components, whereby their strength is highly dependent on the process parameters. The raster angle and infill pattern are two key process parameters and their effects on flexural properties need [...] Read more.
Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) is a popular additive manufacturing process to produce printed polymer components, whereby their strength is highly dependent on the process parameters. The raster angle and infill pattern are two key process parameters and their effects on flexural properties need further research. Therefore, the present study aimed to print test specimens with varying raster angles and infill patterns to learn their influence on the in-plane and edgewise flexural properties of acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) material. The results revealed that the highest in-plane and edgewise flexural moduli were obtained when printing was performed at 0° raster angle. In comparison, the lowest values were obtained when the printing was executed with a 90° raster angle. Regarding the infill pattern, the tri-hexagon pattern showed the largest in-plane modulus, and the quarter-cubic pattern exhibited the greatest edgewise flexural modulus. However, considering both the modulus and load carrying capacity, the quarter-cubic pattern showed satisfactory performance in both planes. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy was used to investigate the failure modes, i.e., raster rupture, delamination of successive layers and void formation. The failure occurred either due to one or a combination of these modes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

7 pages, 1141 KiB  
Article
Preliminary Study on the Mechanical Activation and High-Temperature Treatment of Saponite-Containing Tailings Generated during Kimberlite Ore Dressing
by Tatiana Drozdyuk, Maria Frolova, Arkady Ayzenshtadt, Rajnish Kaur Calay and Ashfaque Ahmed Jhatial
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(10), 4957; https://doi.org/10.3390/app12104957 - 13 May 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1222
Abstract
This study investigates transformations of a pre-mechanically activated saponite-containing material with subsequent high-temperature treatment. The thermogravimetric analysis confirmed that the mechanical activation of saponite leads to the destruction of its layered structure, accompanied by the release of silicon dioxide and magnesium oxide in [...] Read more.
This study investigates transformations of a pre-mechanically activated saponite-containing material with subsequent high-temperature treatment. The thermogravimetric analysis confirmed that the mechanical activation of saponite leads to the destruction of its layered structure, accompanied by the release of silicon dioxide and magnesium oxide in free form. The values of surface activity for mechanically activated saponite-containing material are also calculated. It is shown that when mechanically activated saponite-containing material is mixed with water, minerals of the serpentine group are formed, and further high-temperature treatment leads to the formation of minerals of the olivine group. It is experimentally shown that high-temperature treatment leads to the creation of a more durable structure of the saponite-containing material. This is due to decreased porosity and pore size, and sorption of moisture from the environment is also reduced. The study showed that saponite-containing waste materials can be effectively treated to create composite materials based on magnesia binders. Thus, with this method, the waste is effectively recycled into various green building material and can be used as supplementary cementitious material or fine aggregate replacement in concrete. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

14 pages, 989 KiB  
Review
Soft Tissue Simulants for Survivability Assessment—A Sustainability Focussed Review
by James Read, Rachael Hazael and Richard Critchley
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(10), 4954; https://doi.org/10.3390/app12104954 - 13 May 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2073
Abstract
Traditionally, human cadavers and porcine tissue have been used as means to replicate elements of the human body; however, because of the differences in biomechanical properties from the porcine limbs/organs and the potential for degradation of mechanical properties caused by ageing, they do [...] Read more.
Traditionally, human cadavers and porcine tissue have been used as means to replicate elements of the human body; however, because of the differences in biomechanical properties from the porcine limbs/organs and the potential for degradation of mechanical properties caused by ageing, they do not provide accurate material for either lethality or survivability assessment. In the 21st century and with more ethical ways of working being employed, the use of soft tissue analogues to undertake ballistic testing has become routinely accepted. However, gaps in the literature exist that have identified a difference in material characterisation. Procedurally, every researcher manufactures the gelatine differently, which, when combined with a lack of calibration procedures, can cause inconsistencies in output data, and additional concerns exist surrounding the repeatability of re-mouldable simulants, such as Perma-Gel®. Further, limited information is available on the environmental impact of ‘1 shot’ items, such as ballistic gelatine, which has become a well-known and widely accepted material for survivability assessment. This review identifies key inconsistencies within the literature, the risk associated with survivability assessment, and potential solutions to the issues identified within, with outcomes showing that the current methodologies for survivability assessment do not align with the wider UK government ambition of being Net Zero by 2050 unless changes are made. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Sustainable Materials for Engineering)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-5
Back to TopTop