Sustainability Commons^™

Water Efficiency & Sustainability In The Mountain West, 2022, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Environment

This fact sheet analyzes the effectiveness of state-level policies related to water usage, conservation, and sustainability for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah in 2022. The original data are published in the “2022 State Policy Scorecard for Water Efficiency and Sustainability” report written by the Alliance for Water Efficiency.

Designing Depaul

DePaul Magazine

DePaul’s comprehensive, collaborative plan creates a road map that positions the university for monumental impact.

Experiential Humanitiesx

DePaul Magazine

DePaul University's HumanitiesX program promotes project-based learning through innovative community collaborations.

Ventilation Of Tunnels During Drilling Using A Forcing Ventilation System – A Case Study, Krzysztof Słota, Zbigniew Słota

Journal of Sustainable Mining

In Poland, more and more tunnels are being built using mining methods. Mostly ventilation systems are described for tunnels already commissioned. There are few examples of ventilation calculations for tunnels under construction. The paper shows a case study where calculations were made of the minimum air volume flow required to ventilate a tunnel during its tunnelling using four duct ventilation systems. The first system used two separate fans with a 1200 mm diameter duct line, the second system changed the diameter of the duct line to 1400 mm, the third system used one fan with two 1200 mm diameter duct …

Influence Of Explosive Maximum Instantaneous Charge On Blasting Environmental Impact, Olukemi Yetunde Odeyemi, Blessing Olamide Taiwo, Olarewaju Alaba

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Our research looked at the effect of explosive maximum instantaneous charge on ground vibrations and noise levels during blasting operations at the Calaba limestone quarry in Nigeria. Vibrock (V9000) seismograph was used to take readings related to ground vibrations and noise generated during all blasting operations that took place in the quarry for a period of one year. The results obtained indicate that the average ground vibration readings fall between 0.25mm/s to 3.6mm/s and the average noise decibel generated during the blasting operations between 35 to 158 dB. An artificial neural network (ANN) model is developed in this study for …

The Cold Side Of Connectivity: A Journey In The Southern Ocean With Antarctic Fish, Chiara Papetti

Sustainability Seminar Series

Characterizing connectivity among populations and species differences provides information on distribution of fish biodiversity, dispersal and genetic variability. This information is essential to set conservation priorities, identify scarce management resources and to monitor effectiveness of protection. This information is urgently requested by policymakers evaluating proposals for marine protected areas (MPAs) in Antarctica where fish dominate marine communities and connectivity may be driven by multiple factors affected by climate change. In this talk, I will summarize some recent results on population connectivity of Antarctic fish by looking at hydrodynamics, genetic variability and various life history traits of some species which differ …

Supply Chain Simulation Of Manufacturing Shirts Using System Dynamics For Sustainability, Gurinder Kaur, Ron Kander

School of Design and Engineering Papers

In supply chain management (SCM), goods and services flow from the raw materials stage to the end user with complexities and uncertainty at each stage. Computer modeling and simulation is a particularly useful method to examine supply chain operational issues because it can solve operational complexities that are challenging and time consuming to analyze. Manufacturing companies fear losing valuable time and assets during the manufacturing process; the inaccurate estimation of raw materials, human capital, or physical infrastructure not only leads to monetary loss for the manufacturing unit, but also has a detrimental effect on the environment. The purpose of this …

Examining The Corn Seedling Emergence–Temperature Relationship For Recent Hybrids: Insights From Experimental Studies, Sahila Beegum, Charles Hunt Walne, Krishna N. Reddy, Vangimalla Reddy, Kambham Raja Reddy

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

Corn seedling emergence is a critical factor affecting crop yields. Accurately predicting emergence is crucial for precise crop growth and development simulation in process-based crop models. While various experimental studies have investigated the relationship between corn seedling emergence and temperature, there remains a scarcity of studies focused on newer corn hybrids. In the present study, statistical models (linear and quadratic functional relationships) are developed based on the seedling emergence of ten current corn hybrids, considering soil and air temperatures as influencing factors. The data used for model development are obtained from controlled soil plant atmospheric research chamber experiments focused on …

Analysis Of Wastewater Samples To Explore Community Substance Use In The United States: Pilot Correlative And Machine Learning Study, Marie A. Severson, Sathaporn Onanong, Alexandra Dolezal, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Daniel D. Snow, Lisa M. Mcfadden

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

Background: Substance use disorder and associated deaths have increased in the United States, but methods for detecting and monitoring substance use using rapid and unbiased techniques are lacking. Wastewater-based surveillance is a cost-effective method for monitoring community drug use. However, the examination of the results often focuses on descriptive analysis.

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore community substance use in the United States by analyzing wastewater samples. Geographic differences and commonalities of substance use were explored.

Methods: Wastewater was sampled across the United States (n=12). Selected drugs with misuse potential, prescriptions, and over-the-counter drugs …

A New Physics-Informed Method For The Fracability Evaluation Of Shale Oil Reservoirs, Li Yuwei, Li Zijian, Shao Lifei, Tian Fuchun, Tang Jizhou

Coal Geology & Exploration

The accurate evaluation of reservoir fracability is an essential prerequisite for the fracturing design and post-fracturing productivity evaluation of reservoirs. Rock mechanical parameters have been applied to the fracability evaluation of shales presently, exhibiting great field application performance. Accordingly, it is crucial to obtain accurate rock mechanical parameters. This study developed a physics-informed neural network (PINN) model. Driven by data and physical information, the PINN model can accurately predict rock mechanical parameters using only a small amount of data. To verify its performance, the PINN model was compared with the artificial neural network, random forest, and XGBoost models. The comparison …

An Attention Mechanism-Based Cnn-Bilstm Real-Time Transient Electromagnetic Method, Gu Yao, Xie Haijun, Zhou Zipeng, Li Lu

Coal Geology & Exploration

The one-dimensional transient electromagnetic (TEM) method is time-consuming and suffers other drawbacks such as difficult parameter adjustment and heavy dependence on the initial model. Therefore, this study proposed a real-time TEM inversion method—the Attention mechanism-based convolutional neural network (CNN) - bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) (AC-BiLSTM). By fully utilizing the time difference, the AC-BiLSTM performed model training in non-observation time and the real-time inversion of the collected data in observation time. With the measured data mixed with a certain proportion of data obtained from forward modeling as the dataset, the sampling time and apparent resistivity as the input features in …

Research Progress Of Rotary Steerable System And Its Control Methods, Li Wei, Mou Lei, Zhou Xiancheng, Tan Xianhui, Fu Quan

Coal Geology & Exploration

Rotary steerable system is a shining pearl in directional drilling technology and an important technical means to realize the low-cost and efficient development of oil and gas resources. First of all, the basic structure of the rotary steerable system was introduced. According to the different steering modes and bias effects, the rotary steerable system is divided into five categories: static push-the-bit type, dynamic push-the-bit type, static pointing type, dynamic point-the-bit type and mixed type, for which the steering principle was analyzed one by one. Secondly, according to the research and application of rotary steerable system technology at home and abroad, …

Table Of Contents, The Editors

Coal Geology & Exploration

No abstract provided.

Gas Expansion Energy Of Coals With Different Metamorphic Degrees: Evolutionary Characteristics And Their Implications For The Outburst Prediction, Liu Gaofeng, Li Baolin, Zhang Zhen, Liu Huan, Guan Wenbo, Si Nian

Coal Geology & Exploration

To achieve an elevated accuracy in the prediction of coal and gas outbursts, this study conducted mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) tests and isotherm adsorption experiments on selected six coal samples with different metamorphic degrees. Furthermore, it calculated the gas expansion energy of coals and analyzed the evolutionary characteristics of the gas expansion energy of coals with different metamorphic degrees, as well as their relationships with the prediction indices of coal and gas outbursts. The results of this study are as follows: (1) The differences in the pore structures and adsorptivity of coals with different metamorphic degrees led to different …

Water-Blocking Performance Of Laterite In Weak Deposition Areas Of Neogene Baode Formation And Its Significance Of Resource Exploitation, Zeng Yifan, Bao Han, Wu Qiang, Meng Shihao, Hua Zhaolai, Miao Yanping, Zhang Ye, Bu Wenyang

Coal Geology & Exploration

The in-depth study on the water-blocking performance of laterite in the weak deposition areas of the key aquiclude is of significant importance for mine production safety and ecological water resource protection. Specifically, the borehole data were re-optimized based on the regional sedimentary characteristics, the thickness distribution pattern of laterite deposit in Yushen mining area was studied, and the micro-engineering characteristics and control factors related to the water-blocking performance of laterite were explored. The results show that the deposition thickness of laterite gradually increases from northwest to southeast, the distribution of laterite becomes extremely uneven with the evolution of rivers, and …

Prediction Of Rockburst Intensity Grade Based On Convolutional Neural Network, Li Kangnan, Wu Yaqin, Du Feng, Zhang Xiang, Wang Yiqiao

Coal Geology & Exploration

Rockburst is one of the urgent problems to be addressed in the process of deep resource extraction. In order to predict the rockburst disasters safely and efficiently, a rockburst intensity grade prediction model (MICE-CNN) based on the Multiple Imputation by Chained Equations (MICE) and Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) was proposed. Specifically, a predictive indicator system was established based on the main influencing factors and the acquisition conditions of rockburst. A total of 120 sets of raw data from rockburst cases were collected, with the outliers processed by pauta criterion. Then, the missing data were interpolated with the four interpolation models …

Status And Development Of Intelligent Drilling Tools For Coal Mine, Gao Xiaoliang

Coal Geology & Exploration

As an important part of intelligent drilling, the intelligence of drilling tool system plays a crucial role in the intelligent development of coal mine underground drilling. In order to deeply explore the development direction of intelligent drilling tools, the research results and technical characteristics of intelligent drilling tools in coal mines were systematically sorted out from the aspects of directional drilling tools, measurement while drilling (MWD) system, intelligent drilling pipes and drill bits with reference to the experience in development of oil and gas industry, and the existing shortcomings were also summarized. It is pointed out that screw motor is …

Methods For Estimating Carbon Emissions From Coals In Underground Mines: A Case Study Of The Western Fukang Mining Area, Peng Rendong, Wei Bo, Li Xin, Zhang Ji, Zhang Zizhao, Wang Bo, Zhang Na, Cui Deguang

Coal Geology & Exploration

Carbon emissions have come into sharp focus of human society. The carbon emissions from coals rank as the most predominant part of China’s total carbon emissions. Presently, there is no available study on the accurate calculation of carbon emissions from coals in typical underground mines in Xinjiang, with the CH₄ emission even overlooked. This study centers on the carbon emissions from coals in underground mines in the western Fukang mining area. As per the occurrence laws of CH₄ and CO₂ in coal seams, as well as coal mining plans, this study classified the sources of carbon emissions …

A Method For Identifying Faults Within Mining Faces Based On Spatial Statistics, Feng Yajie, Wen Guangchao, Wu Bingjie, Hu Zudong

Coal Geology & Exploration

Minor faults within mining faces of coal mines severely affect gas drainage and coal seam mining. Accurately identifying parameters such as positions, throws, and attitudes of these faults is of great significance for the safe production of coal mines. To effectively reduce gas emissions, prevent gas explosions, and exploit and utilize gas resources, many gas drainage holes have been drilled during the construction of coal mines, providing favorable engineering conditions for identifying minor faults within coal seams. Compared with the conventional fault identification methods, which rely on the expertise of geologists, the identification model based on mathematical statistics and space …

An Improved Automated Testing Model For Maceral Groups In Coals Based On Deeplabv3+, Hu Jinwei, Xi Zhenghao, Xu Guozhong, Li Zhongfeng, Liu Xiang

Coal Geology & Exploration

The identification of maceral groups in coals plays a critical role in analyzing the chemical properties of coals. However, manual identification is laborious and requires high expertise. Existing computer-assisted identification methods, mostly adopting deep learning-based semantic segmentation models, fail to accurately identify maceral groups in coals due to complex compositions of microscopic coal images and the presence of transitional components. Therefore, this study proposed an improved DeeplabV3+ semantic segmentation model integrating the Swin Transformer backbone network and the SkNet. First, to deal with the challenge of feature extraction caused by the intertwined maceral groups and the presence of transitional components …