Smart Cities concern a variety of domains such as information, data, energy, transport, health, etc. The ‘Information Age’, which shifts from the Industrial Revolution to information computerisation, accesses to large volumes of data explored by sophisticated computer based analytics. ICT solutions interconnect businesses and customers through the cloud while driving the global economy and development of Smart Cities. This MSc thesis aims to investigate connections between Smart Cities and cloud-based Cognitive Computing, then demonstrate with instances how the combination of Watson cognitive system and Pepper humanoid robot can enhance living experience. The investigation is based on literature review in the area of Smart Cities and ICT focusing on Internet of Things, Cloud Computing, and Cognitive Computing, observation of services on Bluemix, and interview with consultants and engineers of IBM. The services of Watson cognitive computing system enable Pepper to process unstructured information and interact with humans. The results also contain use cases of the functionality of Watson-powered Pepper, which could be further implemented for public services.

Renewable energies had accomplish to become part of a new era in the energy development area, making people able to stop relying on fossil fuels. Nevertheless the environmental impacts of these new energy sources also require to be quantified in order to review how many benefits these new technologies have for the environment. In this project the use of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) will be implemented in order to quantify the environmental impact of wave energy, an LCA is a technique for assessing various aspects with the development of a product and its potential impact throughout a product’s life (ISO 14040, 1997). Several renewables have been assessed for their environmental impact using this tool (wind power, biofuels, photovoltaic panels, among others). This project will be focused on the study of wave power, specifically devices called point absorbers.At the beginning this thesis offers a description of the Life Cycle Assessment methodology with a brief explanation of each steps and requirements according to the ISO 14000 Standard. Later a description of different wave energy technologies is explained, along with the classification of different devices depending on its location and its form of harvesting energy. After explaining the different types available at the moment, the thesis will focus on the point absorber device and explain an approach that can be taken in order to simplify the complexity of the whole system.Once the device is fully explained the thesis approaches the methodology pursued in order to evaluate the system in terms of environmental impact in the selected category, for this case global warming. After, an evaluation of the different modules from the wave energy converter in terms of its environmental impact and choosing the best conditions in order to reduce it has being done.At the end of the thesis an economical overview of building wave energy converters is considered among its monetized cost to the environment and a comparison of this new technologies among other renewables in the market is done, in order to have an overview of the potential this type of energy can have.The main research question to be answered by this master thesis is how competitive is wave energy among other renewable technologies available at the moment. Since at the moment wave energy is in its early stages a representation of how other renewables had advanced from its early stages until today is presented, and the potential of this type of energy is evaluated in environmental and economic figures showing competitive results that can further be improved.

Bioeconomy is an emerging term defined by the European Commission as ‘an economy based on biological,renewable resources to produce bioenergy, biobased products, services and food’. Unlike neighbouring countries Germany and Finland, Sweden lacks an official national bioeconomy strategy and the Swedish bioeconomical development is not mapped. Previous literature has not addressed the topic specifically and to do so, it was believed necessary to address relevant actors currently undergoing the bioeconomical development. It is investigated if the Swedish bioeconomical development is too slow and inefficiently regulated and if so, what measure can be taken. A literature study and 13 interviews with actors relevant to the bioeconomical transition were used to achieve the objective of the study. Concluded, the field of bioeconomy severely needs parameters to make its definition and quantification possible. Despite lacking a national bioeconomy strategy, Sweden’s bioeconomical development is not stalled. The government pursues the transition through specifically created institutions and big investments. Compared to Finland, Sweden performs well within the current bioeconomical sectors (biomass production and biobased sectors were assessed). Parameters must be established to enable a better mapping of the process and to complete the bioeconomical transition within Sweden. / Bioekonomi är ett nyligen etablerat begrepp som fick fäste genom att Europeiska kommissionen publicerade sin strategi for bioekonomi år 2012. Där definieras en bioekonomi som ’en ekonomi baserad på biologiska, förnybara resurser för att producera bioenergi, biobaserade produkter, tjänster och livsmedel’. Sverige visar på ambitioner att övergå från fossilbaserad till en bio-baserad ekonomi bland annat genom den ’Forsknings-och innovations strategi for en biobaserad samhällsekonomi’ som utkom från Formas 2012. Vidare har Sveriges regering initierat projektet ”Fossilfritt Sverige” med ambitionen att bli en av värdens första fossilfria nationer. Dessa ambitioner tar sig vidare uttryck i det strategiska innovationsprogrammet BioInnovation som utreds i denna studie och vars vision är att Sverige skall ha ställt om till en bioekonomi år 2050. Grannländer såsom Tyskland och Finland föregår dock Sverige i den bioekonomiska utvecklingen genom att nationella bioekonomiska strategier publicerats. Sverige saknar ännu en generell definition for begreppet ’bioekonomi’ samt en nationell bioekonomisk strategi. Branschorganisationen IKEM (Innovations och Kemiindustrierna i Sverige) hävdar att detta indikerar en omotiverat långsam och ineffektiv reglerad bioekonomisk utveckling, speciellt då Sverige innehar ett försprång form av sin skogstillgång. Vidare har inte den svenska bioekonomiska omställningen utvärderats, till stor del som följd av dess ännu korta existens och dess ännu odefinierade karaktär. För att åstadkomma en sådan utvärdering ansågs det nödvändigt att rikta frågan till aktörer som är del av organisationer som för närvarande genomlever den bioekonomiska övergången. En litteraturstudie samt 13 intervjuer med aktörer från departement, myndigheter och industriella sektorer som anses relevanta för den svenska bioekonomiska övergången har använts för att uppnå studiens syfte. Det kan konkluderas att ett starkt behov av parametrar genom vilka en bioekonomi kan definieras och dess utveckling mätas finns. Att sådana etableras är en förutsättning för att kunna mäta den svenska bioekonomiska utvecklingen samt hur väl denna förhåller sig till andra länders utveckling i Europa. Trots att det finns lång väg att gå innan Sverige ställt om till en bioekonomi, visar studien att Sverige inte ligger nämnvärt bakom Finland i den bioekonomiska utvecklingen trots att en svensk nationell bioekonomisk strategi saknas. Satsningar i rätt riktning görs och med termens fyraåriga existens i åtanke bedöms utvecklingen inte vara nämnvärt hindrad.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att ta reda på hur dagvattenhanteringen i Norra Djurgårdsstaden är utformad, vilka föroreningar som renas bort och hur systemet är anpassat för kommande klimatförändringar. En litteraturstudie har gjorts för att få förståelse kring olika aspekter som påverkar dagvattnet samt hur växtbäddarna, som hanterar detta, fungerar. Även experter inom dagvatten på Sweco kontaktades för att få tillgång till utredningar som gjorts i Norra Djurgårdsstaden. I Norra Djurgårdsstaden, ett tidigare industriområde, hanteras mestadels av dagvattnet genom infiltration till växtbäddar med tät botten för att undvika läckage av ämnen från den förorenade marken. De bäddar som är vanligast är de som består av pimpstensjord som är en generellt beprövad metod. En annan jordart som utretts för området är biokol. Ämnen som renas bort är bland annat metaller, olja samt även fosfor och kväve. Detta leder till lägre föroreningsnivåer hos recipienterna där riktvärden för alla föroreningar, utom kvicksilver, förväntas underskridas. Växtbäddarna ska också kunna hantera ökad nederbördsmängd och högre temperaturer, där detta gjorts genom att dimensionera bäddarna för 20% högre flöden än de som vi har idag. När det kommer till eventuella perioder av torka har bäddarna inte anpassats till en acceptabel nivå i och med att de i dagsläget klarar av 10-20 dagar utan tillförsel av vatten och att torka förväntas bli allt vanligare. Gällande påverkan av klimatförändringar tyder studier som lyfts i rapporten både på oförändrad reningseffekt och försämrad rening av kväve och metaller. Sammanfattningsvis har växtbäddarna anpassas väl till dagens förutsättningar men mer studier behöver göras på lokal nivå för att utreda hur dessa kan komma att påverkas av klimatförändringarna. / The purpose of the study is to investigate how the stormwater treatment system in the urban development area Norra Djurgårdsstaden (Stockholm, Sweden) is designed, what pollutants are treated and how well the system is adapted to climate change. A literature study was carried out to get a general understanding of the different aspects of stormwater treatment and the function of rain gardens (also known as biofilters). Furthermore stormwater experts from Sweco were contacted in order to access documents and investigations specifically regarding stormwater treatment in the studied area. In Norra Djurgårdsstaden, a site previously occupied by gas works, the majority of the stormwater is treated through infiltration into rain gardens/biofilters with impenetrable geotextile preventing leakage of pollutants from the contaminated soil. According to previous studies rain gardens effectively remove pollutants such as N, P and PAHs, as well as Pb, Cu and Zn. Use of biofilters is expected to result in an improved water quality in nearby bodies of water and pollutant concentrations under the recommended values. The infiltration capacity of the rain gardens has been designed for a 20%-increase of precipitation, which aligns with the predictions for area at the end of the century. Furthermore the rain gardens are designed for 10-20 days without precipitation, however as dry periods and drought are expected to increase in the future the plants are presumably at risk for water stress. The treatment efficiency could be affected with a changing climate, as some studies indicate leakage of nutrients and reduced nitrogen treatment with higher temperatures and drought. On the other hand some studies show that no treatment reduction is expected with climate change. In conclusion the stormwater treatment is sufficient given today’s climate, but further studies should be made specifically for the area in order to investigate the consequences of climate change on treatment and water quality.

Global warming is a significant threat to our planet. Adopting the Paris Agreement is a global action that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. An extensive deployment of negative emission technologies (NETs) is required to achieve the targets set by the Paris Agreement. Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) is emerging as one of the most promising NETs. Among different biomass utilization processes, integrating BECCS with biomass-fired and waste-fired combined heat and power (bio-CHP and w-CHP) plants has been considered the most feasible solution. Bio/w-CHP plants are characterized by high fluctuations in operation, which can result in more dynamic variations of flue gas (FG) flowrates and compositions and available heat for CO2 capture. Such changes can clearly affect the performance of CO2 capture; therefore, doing dynamic simulations becomes crucial. This thesis aims to investigate the performance of different dynamic physical model-based approaches and provide suggestions for approach selection. In addition, the data-driven modeling approach, which is an emerging technology, has also been tested. Three physical model-based approaches include the ideal static model (IST), the dynamic approach without control (Dw/oC), and the dynamic approach with control (DwC). To compare their performance, the operating data from an actual waste CHP plant is employed. Various cases have been defined considering different critical operating parameters, including the FG flowrate, the CO2 concentration (CO2vol%), and the available heat for CO2 capture. Apparent differences can be observed in the results from different approaches. For example, when the CO2vol% drops from 15.7 % to 9.7 % (about 38 %) within 4 hours, the difference in the captured CO2 can be up to 22% between DwC and Dw/oC. It is worth noting that when there are both increases and decreases in the variations of parameters, the differences become smaller.  Based on the comparison, the recommendations on approaches have been summarized. Dw/oC is recommended for checking the boundary of safety operation by the response analysis. DwC is recommended for designing the control system, observing the flexible dynamic operation, estimating the short-term CO2 capture potential, and optimizing the hourly dynamic operation. IST is recommended for estimating the long-term CO2 capture potential, and optimizing the long-term dynamic operation when the input parameters vary not as often as hourly. A data-driven model, Informer, is developed to model CO2 capture dynamically. The dataset is generated by using a physical model. The FG flowrate, the CO2vol%, the lean solvent flowrate, and the available heat for CO2 capture are employed as input parameters, and the CO2 capture rate and the energy penalty are chosen as outputs. The results show that Informer can accurately predict dynamic CO2 capture. The mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) was found to be 6.2% and 2.7% for predicting the CO2 capture rate and energy penalty, respectively.

As an alternative to conventional wastewater treatment, the use of source-separating wastewater systems is growing in popularity. This study evaluated processes at RecoLab, a source-separating wastewater treatment and recovery plant, which treats blackwater, greywater and food waste streams from the nearby residential area of Oceanhamnen, in Helsingborg, Sweden. The focus of the study was on the blackwater stream which included the biogas production and the struvite precipitation and ammonia stripping processes which recovered nutrients in the form of phosphorus and nitrogen. The objectives were to analyse the variation in quantity and quality of incoming blackwater to RecoLab during 2023 and to quantify the mass flows of total solids, chemical oxygen demand, phosphorus, and nitrogen throughout the blackwater treatment process. Furthermore, the end products, including biogas, sludge, and recovered nutrients were analysed in terms of quantity and quality and then compared with products from conventional wastewater treatment plants. Data collected during 2023, including water samples and flow measurements at various points in the blackwater treatment process, were used to calculate mass balances of the investigated parameters. From the results, it was seen that the anaerobic digestion in RecoLab produced more biogas than most conventional wastewater treatment plants (150 m3 CH4/week or approximately 88 kWh/PE/year), with the biogas having a large impact on the total solids and chemical oxygen demand mass balances. The digestion yielded a sludge with low heavy metal concentrations (13 mg Cd/kg P), making it safe for agricultural use. Low metal concentrations were also found in the struvite (0.68 mg Cd/kg P), although decreasing metal concentrations over time point to a diffuse source of leaching in the equipment. The nutrient recovery as sludge and struvite, a recovery of 27% of the total phosphorus and 2.5% of the total nitrogen, was impacted by the struvite precipitation process showing a low collection grade. Substantial total phosphorus and total solids losses were found over the struvite precipitation process in the mass balances. Total nitrogen loss over the struvite precipitation process was mainly deemed to be due to aeration, though a possible overestimated value. Hypothetical calculations of the ammonia stripper showed great potential for nitrogen recovery in the form of ammonium sulphate, where a fully working ammonia stripper would contribute with the largest fraction of nutrient recovery in the RecoLab plant. Overall, the thesis presents an alternative to conventional wastewater treatment methods by possibilities to enhance nutrient recovery and support circular economy principles. However, the study highlights several areas for improving the blackwater treatment at RecoLab, such as optimizing the hydrocyclone to increase the struvite recovery and conducting direct measurements of the aeration process to better understand nitrogen pathways. The implementation of source-separating systems, as demonstrated by RecoLab, can serve as a model for future urban developments, aiming for resource efficiency and minimal environmental impact.

Oil spills can cause significant damage to living organisms and the environment. Oil spills have historically had devastating consequences for the environment and wildlife. Both the oil itself and its by-products such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are harmful for living organisms and wildlife. This work investigated the possibility of cleaning oil pollution in an arctic wetland using electrokinetic remediation in combination with a permeable reactive barrier.   Three experimental setups were compared to evaluate the degree of remediation. One cell contained only oil-contaminated soil and was used a control, one cell contained contaminated soil and a reactive barrier filled with thermally treated peat granulate (FloatAbsorb) and the third cell was filled the contaminated soil, the barrier and was complemented with electrodes inserted directly into the soil and the barrier for electrooxidation. Deionized water was pumped through the cells to simulate the natural groundwater flow. The percolated water was collected over nine weeks and analyzed every two weeks for aliphatic and aromatic compounds, PAH and oil index. The soil was analyzed before the experiment started and in all three cells after the experiment for aliphatic and aromatic compounds, PAH and oil index.    The water analysis showed that most analytes were below detectable levels throughout the entire study period. pyrene and some aliphatic compounds could be detected.  The soil analysis after the experiment showed that none of the analyzed aromatic compounds could have been detected in any of the three cells. For both aliphatic fraction >C12-16 and >C16-35, the highest concentration was found in cell with soil and reactive barrier and the lowest concentration in cell with electrooxidation treatment. The concentration in fraction >C12-C16 varied between 494 mg/kg and 578 mg/kg, and in fraction >C16-C35 between 3890 mg/kg to 4620 mg/kg. Concerning the total concentration of oil in the fraction >C10-C40, the highest concentrations were in the control cell without treatment with a concentration of 18900 mg/kg. The cell with permeable reactive barrier had a concentration of 10800 mg/kg and the cell with permeable reactive barrier and electrokinetic treatment 6530 mg/kg. The total oil concentration was reduced by 65.4% in the cell with permeable reactive barrier and electrokinetic treatment compared to the control cell. The results showed a higher degree of remediation compared to the expected the results. The method needs to be tested in situ but are promising for remediation of oil contaminated artic wetlands.

No description available.

When evaluating and comparing household waste collection systems, various aspects are relevant to consider, e.g. environmental objectives, technical function, operating cost, types of recycling materials collected separately, property-close collection or drop-off system, economic incentives, information strategies, residential structure, social codes, etc. Data describing the actual waste flow is the basic input to evaluating the function of source-sorting programs. The questions raised are: How can household waste quantities and composition be measured? How can waste flow data from different collection systems be interpreted and compared? What factors influence the output of source-sorting programs? The usefulness and weaknesses of solid waste composition studies are discussed. Multivariate data analysis is applied in order to obtain an overview of collection and composition data, and identify influential variables, clusters and trends. In a case study, curbside collection of recyclables and weight-based billing respectively led to increased source-sorting activities. Other influential factors are listed and discussed. Eight indicators are proposed for facilitating comparisons of collection systems in an easily comprehensible way. / <p>Godkänd; 2005; 20061214 (haneit)</p>

Syfte med studien är att undersöka om nudging är en effektiv metod för att förändra beteende hos studenter på Högskolan i Gävle. Studien kommer att undersöka om två nudgingmetoder (informationskampanj och nudge) kan förändra studenternas beteende, samtidigt jämföra vilken metod som ger bättre effekt till att förändra beteende och minska köttkonsumtion. Först undersöks genom en litteraturstudie om kött påverkar klimat och hur mycket växthusgasutsläpp från kött potentiellt kan reduceras hos studenter på högskolan i Gävle med hjälp av informationskampanjer och nudge. För att vidare besvara syfte har två enkätstudier och två nudgingmetoder utförts på Högskolan i Gävle. Första enkätstudie har genomförts för att mäta hur mycket kött och vilken typ av kött som konsumeras av studenter, sedan har två nudging metoder använts i syfte till att förändra beteende och minska eller förändra val av kött hos studenter. Den andra enkätstudien har genomförts för att undersöka om kampanjerna har förändrat beteende och minskat eller förändrat val av kött hos studenter. Resultat visar att nudging har gett effekt då beteende har förändrats. Nudge har gett effekt till att reducera köttkonsumtion och koldioxidutsläpp. Enkätstudien innehöll 6 frågor där endast fråga 1 visade sig vara signifikant och kan kopplas till att nudge vid interaktion är en bidragande orsak till denna förändring. / Abstract The purpose of the study is to investigate whether nudging is an effective method for changing behavior among students at Gävle University. The study will investigate whether two nudging methods (information campaign and nudge) can change the students' behavior, while comparing which method gives better effect to changing behavior and reducing meat consumption. First, a literature study will investigate wheater meat affects the climate and how much greenhouse gas emissions from meat can potentially be reduced by students at the Högskolan i Gävle using information campaigns and nudge. To further answer the purpose, two surveys and two nudging methods have been conducted at the Högskolan i Gävle. The first survey study was conducted to measure how much meat and the type of meat consumed by students, then two nudging methods have been used in order to change behavior and reduce or change the choice of meat among students. The second survey study was conducted to investigate whether the campaigns have changed behavior and reduced or changed the choice of meat among students. Results show that nudging has had an effect and behavior has changed. Nudge has reduced meat consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. The survey study contained 6 questions where only question 1 turned out to be significant and can be linked to nudge [KH1] in the interaction, information campaign is a contributing factor to this change.