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This study investigates the temporal dynamics, sources, and photochemical behaviour of key volatile organic compounds (VOCs) along Marylebone Road, London (1 January 2015–1 January 2023), a heavily trafficked urban area. Hourly measurements of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, ethene, propene, isoprene, propane, and ethyne, alongside ozone (O3) and meteorological data, were analysed using correlation matrices, regression, cross-correlation, diurnal/seasonal analysis, wind-sector analysis, PCA (Principal Component Analysis), and clustering. Strong inter-VOC correlations (e.g., benzene–ethylbenzene: r = 0.86, R2 = 0.75; ethene–propene: r = 0.68, R2 = 0.53) highlighted dominant vehicular sources. Diurnal peaks of benzene, toluene, and ethylbenzene aligned with rush hours, while O3 minima occurred in early mornings due to NO titration. VOCs peaked in winter under low mixing heights, whereas O3 was highest in summer. Wind-sector analysis revealed dominant VOC emissions from SSW (south-southwest)–WSW (west-southwest) directions; ethyne peaked from the E (east)/ENE (east-northeast). O3 concentrations were highest under SE (southeast)–SSE (south-southeast) flows. PCA showed 39.8% of variance linked to traffic-related VOCs (PC1) and 14.8% to biogenic/temperature-driven sources (PC2). K-means clustering (k = 3) identified three regimes: high VOCs/low O3 in stagnant, cool air; mixed conditions; and low VOCs/high O3 in warmer, aged air masses. Findings highlight complex VOC–O3 interactions and stress the need for source-specific mitigation strategies in urban air quality management.

Purpose: In the last three decades, thousands of companies around the world have embraced the ISO 9001 standard in their quest to improve company performance and customer satisfaction. In recent literature, a number of authors have identified different \"levels\" of ISO 9001 implementation. This study aims to analyse these implementation levels in companies from the point of view of the customer, and provide guidelines for future improvement. Design/methodology/approach: Research was conducted based on the results of the second-party audits (SPAs) of 90 suppliers, (including component suppliers, assemblers, and wind farm operation and maintenance services), to one of the wind power industry's largest wind turbine manufacturers. The audits were carried out within the ISO 9001:2008 framework and conducted by one of this study's authors in his role as the wind turbine company's Director of Global Quality. Findings: Auditing suppliers plays a unique role in helping to isolate system weaknesses, identify opportunities and suggest areas for improvement. This study shows that, in terms of management commitment and culture and the good practices of an organization, ISO 9001 certified companies implement differing degrees of the standard. From the results of this research, a \"road map\" towards improvement can be established; one that allows companies in the sector to go beyond simply being accredited with the standard and instead to take advantage of ISO 9001 certification as a catalyst for change. Research limitations/implications: This article focuses only on the wind power sector, although its findings could be extrapolated to similar sectors of high technology and high levels of customization. Originality/value: While quality audits are a customary topic for academics and researchers, few contributions are related to SPAs and their impact on the quality control process of company suppliers. Primary data from the SPAs of suppliers (objective data collected by one of the paper's authors), was used here and is one of the most valuable aspects of this paper's contribution.

Tropospheric levels of O3 have historically exceeded the official annual Mexican standards within the Monterrey Metropolitan Area (MMA) in NE Mexico. High-frequency and high-precision measurements of tropospheric O3, NOy, NO2, NO, CO, SO2, PM10 and PM2.5 were made at the Obispado monitoring site near the downtown MMA from September 2012 to August 2013. The seasonal cycles of O3 and NOy are driven by changes in meteorology and to a lesser extent by variations in primary emissions. The NOy levels were positively correlated with O3 precursors and inversely correlated with O3 and wind speed. Recorded data were used to assess the O3-Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)-NOx system’s sensitivity through an observational-based approach. The photochemical indicator O3/NOy was derived from measured data during the enhanced O3 production period (12:00–18:00 Central Daylight Time (CDT), GMT-0500). The O3/NOy ratios calculated for this time period showed that the O3 production within the MMA is VOC sensitive. A box model simulation of production rates of HNO3 (PHNO3) and total peroxides (Pperox) carried out for O3 episodes in fall and spring confirmed the VOC sensitivity within the MMA environment. No significant differences were observed in O3/NOy from weekdays to weekends or for PHNO3/Pperox ratios, confirming the limiting role of VOCs in O3 production within the MMA. The ratified photochemical regime observed may allow the environmental authorities to revise and verify the current policies for air quality control within the MMA.

A profound knowledge of pollutant emissions and transport processes is essential to better assess the impact on local air quality, which ultimately affects human health. This is of special importance in the proximity of airports, as flight activities are a major source of ultrafine aerosol particles (UFP) that are associated with adverse health effects. A quantification of the aerosol population in the horizontal and in particular in the vertical distribution has not been sufficiently characterized so far, but is of crucial relevance, as the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) is strongly interacting with aerosols. For this purpose, the fixed-wing research drone called ALADINA (Application of Light-weight Aircraft for Detecting in-situ Aerosol) was operated at a distance of approximately 4 km downwind of the German airport Berlin Brandenburg (BER) on October 11–19, 2021. During the investigation period, 140 vertical profiles of different meteorological parameters and aerosol particle sizes were obtained on six measurement days between the surface and up to a maximum altitude of 750 m above ground level (a.g.l.). The investigations indicate several features: The stability of the ABL is a key characteristic for the vertical distribution of aerosol population with highest concentrations close to ground. Inversion layers further enhance horizontal transport so that airport pollutants can be moved to a further distance away. The airborne observations of total particle number concentration (TNC) coincide with ground-based data from fix-point sites. They show a high variability depending on the distance to the plume as well as upwind position and highest concentrations of TNC related to rush hours of airport operations.

The growth of wind power in some power systems is hampered by the system requirement for emergency reserve to cover loss of the biggest infeed. The study demonstrates that reserve provision from the wind sector itself has economic and operational benefits. A heuristic algorithm has been developed that can model the relevant aspects of emergency reserve provision in a system with both thermal and wind generations. The proposed algorithm is first validated by comparing its performance with established economic scheduling methods applied to a representative power system. The algorithm is then used to demonstrate the economic benefit of reserve provision from the wind sector. It is shown that such provision reduces wind energy curtailment and thermal unit ramping. Finally, it is shown that a wind sector capable of providing emergency reserve can expand economically beyond the capacity limit that would otherwise apply.

Technological innovation is paramount for accelerating climate change mitigation efforts within sectors characterized by low technological diffusion. This study examines the role of self-citation and technological novelty on the technological impact of wind energy technologies (2010–2023). Using USPTO patent data and a negative binomial regression analysis, the results reveal an inverse relationship between self-citation and technological impact and a positive relationship between technological originality and technological impact. Specifically, a 1% increase in the self-citation rate is associated with an 11.2% decrease in technological impact, while a 1% increase in technological originality leads to a 5.2% increase in technological impact. These findings highlight the need for policies that incentivize technological diversity and foster knowledge exchange and collaboration among firms to enhance innovation diffusion. By providing insights into firms’ innovation strategies, this study offers practical guidance for policymakers aiming to accelerate renewable energy adoption and achieve long-term sustainability goals.

India has 150GW of renewable energy potential, about half in the form of small hydropower, biomass, and wind and half in solar, cogeneration, and waste-to-energy. Developing renewable energy can help India increase its energy security, reduce the adverse impacts on the local environment, lower its carbon intensity, contribute to more balanced regional development, and realize its aspirations for leadership in high-technology industries. This study aims to answers critical questions on why renewable energy development is relevant in Indian context, on how much development is economically feasible, and on what needs to be done to realize the potential. The Report is based on data from nearly 180 wind, biomass, and small hydropower projects in 20 states, as well as information from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).The Report suggests that about 3GW of renewable energy ? all from small hydropower is conomically feasible, when the avoided cost of coal-based generation of Rs 3.08/kWh is considered. About 59GW of renewable energy in wind, biomass, and small hydropower is available at less than Rs 5/kWh. The entire cumulative capacity of 68GW in these three technologies can be harnessed at less than Rs 6/kWh. About 62GW?90 percent of cumulative renewable capacity in wind, biomass, and small hydropower?is economically feasible when the environmental premiums on coal are brought into consideration. Realizing the need to bridge this gap, the government has set an ambitious target of installing at least 40GW of additional capacity of renewables in the next 10 years. India has made tremendous strides in establishing overarching policy framework and institutions to bring renewable in the mainstream of energy mix, but significant financial, infrastructure and regulatory barriers to renewable energy development remain which the report sheds light on and suggests possible solutions.

The wind regime in Colombia has been rated among the best in South America. However, under the current circumstances, and on its own, the interconnected system would not likely promote wind power. This report is targeted to analysts, planners, operators, generators and decision makers in Colombia and other countries in the region and provides a set of policy options to promote the use of wind power. The potential instruments assessed in this study include financial instruments, government fiscal mechanisms, and adjustments to the regulatory system. The single most effective policy instrument to promote wind power in Colombia consists on valuing the firm energy offered by wind, its potential complementarity to the hydrological regime and enabling wind power an access to reliability payments.

Usually, wind energy assessment on a new windfarm is conducted with maximum effort prior to the installation of the turbines by using both numerical and experimental investigations. Yet, often the windfarm performances during operation are not as good as expected. This issue can be investigated with a deep analysis of the operational conditions of the windfarm. The large amount of data collected by the SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems installed on the turbines can be very helpful. In the present study, the performances of a windfarm were analysed through the elaboration of the SCADA data from a windfarm in southern Italy; in this site, Sorgenia Green installed nine aerogenerators with a rated power of 2 MW each, on a hilly area with gentle slopes. A systematic approach is proposed to isolate the downtime because of malfunctioning and a manifold investigation is applied to the operational phase: several methods (polar efficiency plot, multidimensional graphical analysis, sectorial power curve and misalignment index, respectively) are suggested and applied for unveiling the sectors where the production output is most affected by the wake interactions. Numerical windflow modelling is performed in the wind rose sectors where underproduction is highlighted by a SCADA data analysis: finally, a SCADA database is employed for testing the goodness of the simulations.

From 1996 to 1997, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) conducted an air quality study known as the Lower Rio Grande Valley Transboundary Air Pollution Project (TAPP). The study was a US–Mexico Border XXI program project and was developed in response to local community requests on a need for more air quality measurements and concerns about the health impact of local air pollutants; this included concerns about emissions from border-dependent industries in Mexico, known as maquiladoras. The TAPP was a follow-up study to environmental monitoring done by EPA in this area in 1993 and incorporated scientific and community participation in development, review of results, and public presentation of findings. In spite of this, critical remarks were leveled by community activists against the study's preliminary “good news” findings regarding local air quality and the influence of transboundary air pollution. To resolve these criticisms and to refine the findings to address these concerns, analyses included comparisons of daily and near real-time measurements to TNRCC effects screening levels and data from other studies along with wind sector analyses. Reassessment of the data suggested that although regional source emissions occurred and outliers of elevated pollutant levels were found, movement of air pollution across the border did not appear to cause noticeable deterioration of air quality. In spite of limitations stated to the community, the TAPP was presented as establishing a benchmark to assess current and future transboundary air quality in the Valley. The study has application in Border XXI Program or other air quality studies where transboundary transport is a concern since it involved interagency coordination, public involvement, and communication of scientifically sound results for local environmental protection efforts.