BRINGING THE LATEST NEWS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE


Hitting THE SPOT for controlling and monitoring the effects of air pollution on sporting events


The effects poor air quality has on all sporting events, including the competitors themselves, organisers, and spectators is a major concern for organisers and sporting bodies around the world. The problem affects all sporting organisations and must be tackled through collaboration, commitment and determination, not only between the sporting bodies but industry too.


The Air Quality and Sport Challenge has been set-up by the Sustainable Mountain Alliance, Thinksport, and the Sustainable Sport Lab with further support from high-profi le stakeholders, such as the International Olympic Committee, World Athletics, Formula E, the Union Cycliste Internationale, and ENGSO. Major efforts are being focused on air quality solutions for mountainous environments. They will be hosting a special event, THE SPOT, on 17th and 18th May, which will highlight solutions for controlling air pollution. For companies specialising in air quality monitoring, THE SPOT offers a great opportunity to have their technology and solutions on display for a whole month at the Maison du Sport International, home to more than 50 International Sport Federations and Associations.


Participants can display their solutions and technology by reserving a booth at THE SPOT and experience this unique event on the shores of Lake Geneva. Participants will be able to play their part in lessening the impact of air pollution in sport, while enabling them to create partnerships and involve themselves in


some of the leading, global sporting events. This is also a great way for exhibitors to enhance their global profi le – so it is an ideal event for both start-up companies, as well as some of the household names in air monitoring technology. NGO’s academia and municipal and public organisations will also play an important role at THE SPOT


The organisers are seeking out solutions for measuring and mitigating the effect of poor air quality on athletes. They want to ensure that relevant air quality information is available to aid decision-making in real time for recreational and professional athletes. Wearable technologies, bio health solutions and other simple solutions are welcome.


Also being highlighted are scalable and affordable solutions for cleaning polluted air and reducing air pollution at indoor and outdoor sport venues of all sizes and mobility at major sporting events and mountain resorts, for instance: zero emission vehicles, smart traffi c management, etc.


A prestigious selection panel, which will be announced soon, will include specialists from the many high profi le global sporting associations and organisations, along with scientists and professional athletes will appraise the submitted projects. Their main criteria will be based on impact, originality, feasibility, scalability and presentation.


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Crowcon enters the air quality market


Taking proven skill and expertise in gas detection, based on over 50 years of experience, Crowcon Detection Instruments Ltd has announced its entry into the air quality market.


Now is a key moment in the fi ght against air pollution. The World Health Organization’s director general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has referred to air pollution as a “a silent public health emergency”, stating that “This is a defi ning moment and we must scale up action to urgently respond to this challenge.”


Recent years have seen increased scrutiny and regulation on air quality both in the UK and worldwide, with the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) releasing their Clean Air Strategy in 2019 along with the World Health Organisation (WHO) releasing their Global Air Quality Guidelines in 2021.


Increased attention is also being given to the signifi cant health impact of air pollution. The British Lung Foundation has highlighted short term affects such as infl ammation of the lungs, and more severe long-term effects including increased chance of lung cancer and cardiovascular disease.


Air quality is a global problem, and part of the solution to that problem is air


quality monitoring. The fi rst step to solving this issue is to understand it, and air quality monitoring will provide industries and local authorities with the data and insights they need to start making decisions to improve air quality. Low- cost, easy to install monitors will play a signifi cant role moving forward as they are increasingly used to supplement the more expensive, complex networks of reference monitors such as the UK’s AURN network.


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Air quality is set to be a key pillar of Crowcon’s vision, moving forward with the aim to provide a safer, cleaner, healthier future for everyone. Ayudh Datta, Crowcon’s product manager for their air quality instrumentation commented “This represents a landmark moment for Crowcon. We have traditionally been key players in the gas detection space, protecting people and property from gas hazards for over 50 years. We are now keen on bringing that expertise into the air quality monitoring market and are committed to help create communities and industries where air pollution is adequately monitored and subsequently controlled.”


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What are biogenic fuels?


Biogenic fuels are those which are produced from combusting organic matter. Often shortened to biofuels, they are theoretically better for the environment due to the fact that any carbon emitted at the point of combustion will be absorbed over the course of the lifetime of the plant which replaces them. They also do not damage the environment in their extraction, they’re widely available and extremely aff ordable.


If that sounds like it’s too good to be true, it should be acknowledged that there are certain fl ies in the ointment. For one thing, biogenic fuels can only be considered carbon neutral if they are indeed replenished, which sadly often does not occur. Even then, the time it takes for the replacement plant to absorb the equivalent amount of carbon that is emitted during combustion is far longer than the combustion time itself, making the ratio unequal. Finally, and perhaps most crucially of all, the land used for biofuel cultivation can displace forested areas or that set aside for food production, potentially negatively impacting biodiversity and food security.


DIFFERENT TYPES OF BIOGENIC FUELS


Generally speaking, there are two types of biogenic fuels: primary biofuels or fi rst generation (1G) agrofuels, and secondary biofuels or second generation (2G) biogenic fuels. How do


THE ISSUE WITH BIOGENIC FUELS


At their inception, biogenic fuels were touted as something of a cure-all to the world’s energy issues. However, research into


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these diff er? Well, the former have been grown with the express purpose of serving as biomass for energy production. These types of fuels are normally comprised of crops such as corn, maize, rapeseed, palm and sugarcane, among others, and are converted into fuel alternatives such as bioethanol and biodiesel.


By contrast, 2G biogenic fuels are by-products of other processes, such as scrap timber from the construction and manufacturing industries, residual wood left over from forestation eff orts or sawmill waste. Meanwhile, novel feedstocks such as straw, clippings from beside major roadways, algae and seaweed can serve as 2G fuels, as can food wastage and the parts of edible plants which are not fi t for human consumption.


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QED Environmental Systems Ltd Celebrates its 50th Anniversary


This February, QED Environmental Systems Ltd is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Originally operating as Geotechnical Instruments Ltd, the company began by manufacturing and supplying instrumentation equipment for the civil engineering industry out of its original site in Hatton Locks in England’s heartland, in 1972. It was acquired by QED Environmental Systems Inc in 2016, rebranding to QED Environmental Systems Ltd two years later.


Its fi rst foray into gas analysis instrumentation was in 1990, following the development of its pioneering GA-90 series for the waste management industry. This system paved the way for some of QED’s current product ranges, including the Huberg Laser One and Geotech SEM5000, which deploy laser spectroscopy technology to provide unrivalled levels of speed and accuracy during gas detection.


The company’s geotechnical products have been used on a number of prestigious architectural and infrastructure projects, including the Channel Tunnel, the British Library, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building, Singapore Changi Airport, the Petronas Towers, and Thailand’s North-South Expressway.


Dean Kavanagh, Managing Director at QED Environmental Systems, said: “It’s incredibly exciting to see just how far the business has come since the acquisition. The past 50 years has seen the company launch a number of market-leading geotechnical products, and contribute to a number of world- renowned feats of engineering, becoming one of the world’s leading providers of gas analysis, detection and environmental solutions in the process.


“Looking to the future, we’re ready to help our customers navigate the emerging challenges facing the renewable energy industry in the coming years. With the potential for a mass transition to a hydrogen economy, gas detection and analysis is set to play a key role in the next phase of global energy supply, and we have invested heavily in R&D to ensure we have the technological expertise to deliver the necessary solutions.”


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NEWS


their consumption of resources and the emissions they engender has revealed that 1G biofuels in particular might not be as environmentally friendly as fi rst posited. That’s because they are consuming both land and food produce that could go towards sustaining a global populace that is projected to reach almost 10 billion by 2050, thus potentially jeopardising food security.


2G biofuels are, on the whole, deemed to be far more sustainable, since they do not inhibit other industries or objectives. However, they currently account for a mere 2% of all biogenic fuel consumption and large-scale production of 2G biogenic fuels is still many years (if not decades) away. The EU are currently promoting the uptake of 2G biofuels by attributing them double weighting in a company’s environmental profi le and disincentivising 1G agrofuels by capping their composition of biofuel products.


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IET MARCH / APRIL 2022


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