Hydrogen is an energy vector capable of storing and supplying large amounts of energy, maximizing the benefits of renewable and sustainable energy sources. Hydrogen is usually stored as compressed hydrogen gas or liquid hydrogen. However, the former requires high pressure and the latter cryogenic temperatures, being a huge limit to the widespread adoption of these storage methods. Thus, new materials for solid-state hydrogen storage shall be developed. Here, we show that an α-MoO₃ thin film, grown via atomic layer deposition, is a material with potential for reversibly storing hydrogen. We found that hydrogen plasma is a convenient way to hydrogenate - at room temperature and relatively low pressures (200 mTorr) - layered α-MoO₃ thin films. Density functional theory calculations of stepwise hydrogen insertion into α-MoO₃ reveal that hydrogen atoms preferentially form covalent bonds with monovalent oxygen atoms located within the van der Waals gaps separating the [010]-oriented layers. The hydrogen absorption process has been found to be totally reversible, with desorption of hydrogen effective at 350 °C/4 h under a nitrogen atmosphere, and recoverable after repeated cycles. Furthermore, a nominal 13 nm Al _<i>x</i> O _<i>y</i> capping layer, grown via atomic layer deposition, has been shown to be efficient in preventing hydrogen release. The volumetric hydrogen storage capacity of 28 kg·m^-3 achieved in our films is comparable to that of pressurized steel cylinders, highlighting their potential for practical applications. Our essay could be a starting point to a transition from conventional (gas and liquid) to more advantageous solid-state hydrogen storage materials.

Sustainable energy systems demand energy-dense, scalable, manufacturable, and readily integrable lithium-ion batteries, yet available literature provides fragmented comparisons of commercial cell formats. Here we report a unified, industrially grounded benchmarking framework for cylindrical, pouch, and prismatic cells using parameters selected for high-fidelity derivability across formats and direct relevance to manufacturing and system integration. At cell level, active/inactive volume allocation, gravimetric and volumetric energy densities, and assembly complexity are quantified. At pack level, we evaluate nominal voltage and capacity, pack energy, gravimetric cell-to-pack ratio, cooling, and structural integration descriptors. Chemistry-dependent single-cell and pack-scaled costs are estimated from prospective cost trajectories. Fast-charging capability, resistance growth and aging, and quantitative thermal performance are excluded due to noncomparable datasets; pack thermal implications are discussed qualitatively. The framework shows cylindrical lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide cells maximizes cell-level energy density but increases structural overhead, whereas lithium iron phosphate blade designs maximize cell-to-pack ratio, pack volumetric energy, and cost competitiveness.

It is shown that a CRDID (Common Rail Direct Injection Diesel) turbo compound design is a highly over constrained problem. Very few options are available to the designer, even from the metallurgical point of view. The process of the preliminary design is fully described and the preliminary performance evaluation is fully described. A comparison with the original turbo shaft installation of a Hercules C130J aircraft is performed and the results are analyzed. The CRDID turbo compound seems an extremely convenient option since it can halve the fuel consumption, with increased safety and reduced logistical problems. CRDID emissions, with SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) may easily reach the automotive Euro 6 standard. ©2006-2015 Asian Research Publishing Network (ARPN).

As one of the fastest growing industries tourism is in increasing need for well educated and skillful employees on both operational and managerial level. Institutions of higher education are requested by tourism industry to produce quality human resources able to respond immediately to their needs and to be involved in working processes as fast as possible with low or without any additional costs for future employees' initial job training. With inclusion of training and internship programs into, primarily vocational, but also, into bachelor studies students will be trained for their future jobs through real business situations and environment. This paper focuses on students' perceptions of internship and training programs as part of their formal education. Through analysis of the survey distributed among students of the College of Tourism it will be shown how students perceive the internship programs and importance of these programs for their future employment. Also, it will be shown the level of their satisfaction with tourism companies where they are performing internship programs and the level of their satisfaction with activities of the College of Tourism in communications during the internship, program management and implementation of the internship programs.

In transient multiphase seepage, soil water retention behaviour deviates from equilibrium, leading to dynamic nonequilibrium effects in which suction and water content change asynchronously. This yields flow-rate-dependent soil water retention curves that critically affect predictions of fluid and solute transport in vadose zone and undermine the safety assessment of unsaturated soil slope stability. This brief review synthesises advances and challenges in understanding this behaviour through examining microscale multiphase physical mechanisms and macroscale influences of soil type and hydraulic history. Key experimental techniques, from instrumented soil columns to advanced electromagnetic and imaging methods, are evaluated alongside their limitations. There is also an analysis of continuum- and pore-scale numerical models, including those incorporating dynamic capillary coefficients, pore network models, and multiphase computational fluid dynamics. Despite progress, major challenges persist, including the empirical nature and scale-dependence of model parameters, path-dependent hysteresis, and the lack of a unified theoretical framework that couples dynamic capillarity with soil deformation. Future interdisciplinary efforts integrating advanced experimentation, multiscale numerical modelling, and multiphase physics-based constitutive theories are essential to develop predictive tools for more accurate vadose-zone hydrology and related engineering applications. Document Type: Invited review Cited as: Yan, G., Liu, B., Bore, T., Torres, S. A. G., Li, L., Scheuermann, A. Advances in dynamic soil water retention behaviour and implications for vadose zone hydrology. Capillarity, 2026, 19(1): 26-38. https://doi.org/10.46690/capi.2026.04.03

Hydroacoustic remote sensing represents a non-invasive, repeatable approach to monitoring benthic communities, supporting sustainable management, conservation efforts, and the detection of environmental change. Mussel clusters on a sandy seafloor in the Oder Bank area (10 to 15 m water depth, southwestern Baltic Sea) were detected in high-frequency backscatter data recorded with a Norbit STX multibeam echosounder in 2019. The blue mussel ( Mytilus edulis ) complexes appear as narrow bands in backscatter mosaics, showing average backscatter intensity increases between 0.2 and 1.0 dB, with localized peaks of up to 2 dB compared to the surrounding sand. Mussel coverage, verified by underwater video sledge observations, reaches up to 50% in isolated patches but typically remains below 15%. The acoustic response of the mussel clusters shows a weak to moderate yet significant correlation with mussel cover, independent of frequency (tested at 200, 400, and 700 kHz). This response is observed at incidence angles greater than 40°. A persistent shell hash layer found at 8 cm depth in sediment cores was not detected acoustically at any frequency. Comparison with data from 2024 suggests that these mussel clusters are ephemeral. Due to the shallowness of the Oder Bank they are influenced by natural processes such as wind and current-driven circulation. This causes the Mytilus bands to roll back and forth on the sand, but can also lead to the dissolution and dispersal of the clusters. The mussel complexes cannot be reliably captured using point-based sampling and short video transects. • Mytilus edulis clusters on sand are detectable in multibeam backscatter data. • Change in mussel abundance explains changes in backscatter intensity. • The clusters are short-lived features and not detected in repeated surveys.

Designing armor units that can withstand harsh marine environments while remaining cost-effective is a central challenge in modern breakwater engineering. This study introduces a newly designed artificial armor unit and evaluates its performance in comparison with established alternatives such as the accropode, core-loc, and conventional rock armor. The findings reveal that the new unit achieves a lower packing density, reducing the number of units required and thereby improving overall cost-effectiveness. Armor layers formed from the newly designed unit exhibited higher porosity than accropode but lower than core-loc, effectively avoiding the slender geometries that compromise durability. Structural analysis using STAAD.Pro confirmed that the new unit developed lower tensile stresses, with reductions of 15% compared to accropode and 35% compared to core-loc under flexure, torsion, and combined loading, demonstrating superior integrity. Hydraulic stability tests showed that the randomly placed newly designed units resisted failure at a stability number (Ns) of 1.4, lowering run-up by 50% and overtopping by 59%, while the uniformly placed newly designed units reached 1.5 without failure, with run-up and overtopping reductions of 30% and 37%, respectively. Collectively, these outcomes highlight the clear hydraulic and structural advantages of the new design over conventional systems, establishing it as a stronger and more resilient solution for breakwater protection.

In mountain areas, long linear transport infrastructures (roads, motorways, railways, etc.) are exposed to numerous natural hazards, especially hydrological and gravity-driven events such as slope instabilities, rockfalls, or torrential hazards. These phenomena can damage infrastructure, or even lead to the destruction of large sections, causing a risk for users and a deterioration of service. Infrastructure managers face several difficulties in handling these risks. One of them is identifying and representing them, due to the scale of the infrastructure, which is composed of numerous structures and exposed to multiple hazards. In this context, a model is proposed to represent all potential failure scenarios for such infrastructures. This model is based on system reliability analysis methods: functional analysis, failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA), and fault tree analysis (FTA). It is intended to be applied to a linear infrastructure, several kilometres long, exposed to various hazards. The proposed approach allows for the identification of all possible failure modes, including damage to structures and its functional consequences. Its applicability is being tested on a simple case study.

/ Une analyse de fiabilité des structures consiste à tenir compte des incertitudes en modélisant les chargements et les propriétés des matériaux d'un ouvrage par des variables aléatoires, lesquelles sont intégrées dans les calculs de stabilité afin d'évaluer l'incertitude associée aux résultats de ces calculs. La résistance au cisaillement des discontinuités rocheuses joue un rôle essentiel dans la stabilité des massifs rocheux, notamment dans le cas d'une analyse de stabilité au glissement des fondations rocheuses de barrages-poids. Cette communication propose une méthodologie d'analyse de la variabilité spatiale de la résistance au cisaillement le long des discontinuités des fondations rocheuses, permettant de prendre en compte les effets de réduction de variance. Cette démarche vise à évaluer la réduction de variance des paramètres mobilisés à grande échelle à l'aide de l'identification d'une tendance déterministe variant en profondeur et d'une corrélation spatiale déduite d'une analyse géostatistique. La méthodologie est illustrée sur le cas réel d'une fondation d'un barrage-poids en béton. Une analyse de fiabilité a été conduite pour ce cas d'étude afin d'illustrer l'intérêt de la prise en compte de la réduction de variance dans l'évaluation de la probabilité de défaillance.

Natural forest regeneration offers economic, ecological, and environmental advantages over artificial regeneration; however, its application is often constrained by uncertainties in stand development and management outcomes. Pre-commercial thinning (PCT), a key assisted natural regeneration practice, is widely used to regulate stand density and improve early stand development. Nevertheless, empirical evidence remains limited regarding how post-thinning residual density influences both tree growth and operational performance in high-density naturally regenerated Pinus densiflora stands. This study evaluated three residual density treatments (RD2000, RD3000, and RD5000) following PCT in naturally regenerated pine stands with an initial density of approximately 30,000 stems ha−1. Diameter at breast height, tree height, and crown area were monitored annually over three years, while thinning productivity and operational costs were quantified during treatment implementation. Residual density significantly affected both biological and operational outcomes. The intermediate residual density (RD3000) showed the most consistent growth responses, whereas the lowest residual density (RD2000) resulted in suppressed growth. The highest residual density (RD5000) achieved the highest productivity and lowest operational costs despite moderate growth performance. These results indicate a trade-off between growth performance and operational efficiency and suggest that an intermediate residual density may provide a balanced strategy for managing naturally regenerated pine stands.

This paper offers a case study-based analysis of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) implemented in the museums located in the city of Brasov, Romania. Through direct, on-site observation conducted in several key cultural institutions within the city, the study examines the types of digital tools used in museum environments. The research focuses on how technologies such as interactive displays, digital kiosks, virtual tours, and mobile applications contribute to visitor accessibility, and educational functions. While some museums have successfully incorporated digital elements into their exhibits and outreach, others remain limited by infrastructural and financial constraints. Based on the findings, the paper outlines practical recommendations for enhancing ICTs use in Brasov�s museum sector. This case study contributes to the broader discourse on digital transformation in the cultural sector and offers insights for museum professionals, local authorities, and technology providers seeking to support innovation in cultural heritage interpretation.

This study proposes a measurement selection and optimization method based on the joint evaluation of mutual information and Fisher information to address the problem of global optimal estimation degradation caused by quality differences in measurement information within cooperative positioning (CP) systems. First, an information entropy function for state estimation is constructed through Shannon's theorem, and a conditional entropy constraint model is established by integrating multi-source measurement data from the leader drones. This derivation yields a mutual information expression characterizing measurement contribution. Subsequently, a Fisher information matrix is formulated using second-order partial differential operations to enable dynamic credibility assessment of measurements. Building on this foundation, an optimized objective function is developed by fusing mutual information and Fisher information criteria, effectively mitigating inconsistent positioning accuracy induced by environmental interference and equipment failures. Simulation results demonstrate that when the leader's positioning accuracy or ranging sensor measurement precision degrades, the optimal measurement selection strategy enhances the global optimal estimation of CP algorithms. Experiments with drones equipped with MTI-630R inertial measurement unit (IMU) reveal that the proposed method compensates for the followers' positioning errors. This research establishes a novel information fusion framework for multi-agent cooperative measurement in dynamically uncertain environments, with optimization strategies extendable to distributed sensing systems such as drone swarms and intelligent transportation networks. The framework demonstrates significant potential for enhancing measurement consistency in complex operational scenarios.