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Questioning the standardized cavitation erosion test
Mechanical engineers often rely on standardized procedures when testing materials. Since the standardized cavitation erosion test ASTM G32 has repeatedly been shown to be inaccurate in the past, researchers at the Laboratory for Water and Turbine Machines (LVTS) at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ljubljana, have closely examined it and uncovered its shortcomings.
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Improving the Quality of Life in Arid Areas with a System for Generating Electricity and Fresh Water
In parts of the world where water is increasingly scarce, it is crucial to establish effective and sustainable systems for energy and water supply. The interdisciplinary project PV-W2WFresh is changing the way we think about solar energy and water scarcity, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 6 and 7) by promoting clean energy and water availability in rural and underserved regions. This cutting-edge research combines concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) technology with an innovative evaporation desalination process, creating a system that not only generates electricity but also provides a continuous source of clean drinking water.
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New methods for removing algae from drinking water
How to remove algae from drinking water? Since traditional methods, such as coagulation and sedimentation, are usually ineffective, Prof. Dr. Matevž Dular from the Laboratory for Water and Turbine Machines (LVTS) at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, together with colleagues from Yangzhou University, sought a solution in the use of ultrasound and advanced carbon-based materials.
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How to Reduce Drop-out Rates in Music Schools?
What factors contribute to music school drop-out, and which impact it most significantly? What creates an optimal supportive environment for a child to persist in music school? Researchers from the University of Ljubljana, Academy of Music: Dr. Ana Kavčič Pucihar, Dr. Katarina Habe, Dr. Branka Rotar Pance, and from the University of Maribor, Faculty of Education, Dr. Maruša Laure, addressed these topics in their paper "The key reasons for dropout in Slovenian music schools - a qualitative study," published in the Frontiers in Psychology (2024).
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Wild animals are a good indicator of environmental pollution
Wild animals are a good indicator of environmental pollution that affects the entire ecosystem. Therefore, the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Ljubljana, in collaboration with the Faculty of Economics and the Biotechnical Faculty, has decided to conduct a study to examine the amount of toxicants in the tissues of certain animal species in Slovenia.
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UNI.MINDS Festival 2024 is here!
Join us at this year's UNI.MINDS, Slovenia's largest festival for building innovation community, which will take place from 14-22 October 2024.
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Comprehensive Overview of Plasma Electrolytic Polishing
Additive technologies are increasingly used for the production of metal components as they allow for efficient shape customization in a short time and with reduced material consumption. However, the lower surface quality of printed parts limits their direct industrial use. The growing demand for post-processing of metal parts produced by additive technologies highlights the potential of PeP technology as an environmentally friendly and efficient polishing method.
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Developing sustainability communication is the key to a better future
Sustainability communication is becoming increasingly important in addressing pressing environmental and social issues. If done effectively, it can contribute to the faster adoption of sustainable practices and the improvement of public awareness. In doing so, it should not only focus on avoiding greenwashing but also on how to effectively engage stakeholders in complex sustainability challenges.
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Sustainable Use of Soil with E-MOTIKA
Tillage machines are a necessity in agriculture, but they compact the soil and do not allow smaller farmers and growers to till and weed in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner. Researchers from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Ljubljana, together with project partners on the Accelerated Vegetable Hoeing project - "MOTIKA," addressed this challenge by developing a hoeing machine specifically for smaller farmers and crop growers.
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LIFE Lynx project - preventing the extinction of the lynx in the Dinaric Mountains and the South-Eastern Alps
How to save the Eurasian lynx population in the Dinarides and the South-Eastern Alps from extinction again? This is the challenge that the LIFE Lynx project, in which the Biotechnical Faculty of UL participated as a partner, has successfully tackled. Before the start of the project, there were 20 adult lynx in Slovenia, which were threatened by inbreeding. A total of 14 animals were introduced from the Romanian and Slovakian Carpatian Mountains, 9 of them in Slovenia and 5 in the Croatian Dinaric Mountains. This not only saved the population, but also set an example of good practice for all future attempts to reintroduce lynx or similar large carnivore species in Europe.
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Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Successful in MSCA Doctoral Networks Call
The University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, has been successful in the Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Doctoral Networks call with the project UPCYCLE – Dissemination of Advanced Conversion Routes for Hard-to-Recycle Biogenic Waste. As part of the project, 15 doctoral candidates will be trained, three of whom will be based in Slovenia. The project is coordinated by Politecnico di Milano, with UL FS participating as a partner.
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Liquid Crystals Represent a New Generation of Quantum Light Sources
Liquid crystals are present in our daily lives in our TVs and phone displays. On one hand, they possess the properties of liquids, but on the other hand, they exhibit molecular-level order similar to that found in crystals. This makes them extremely useful for manipulating light. Researchers Aljaž Kavčič and Dr. Matjaž Humar from the Jožef Stefan Institute and the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at the University of Ljubljana, in collaboration with colleagues from the Jožef Stefan Institute and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Germany, were the first to demonstrate that liquid crystals can also be used to generate quantum light with numerous advantages over existing sources.
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Call for research papers on technology transfer and IP at the 17. International Technology Transfer Conference (ITTC)
Are you employed at a public research organisation and have an inventive and innovative idea or technology that you are looking to bring to the market? We invite you to submit research papers on the topics of technology transfer and intellectual property rights. Selected papers will be presented at the International Technology Transfer Conference (ITTC) on October 9th at the Jožef Stefan Institute.
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Transforming food waste into sustainable soil improvers
Food waste is a major challenge of modern times. How to reduce it and use it usefully? This challenge will be faced by the partners on the Waste4Soil project. The living laboratories will look for new technological solutions and products to reduce the amount of food waste by recycling it into soil improvers and biostimulants.
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Artificial intelligence for predicting process condition variations in laser powder bed fusion of metals
Assistant professor Dominik Kozjek, a researcher in the Laboratory for Mechatronics, Production systems, and Automation (LAMPA) at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, UL, in cooperation with researchers from Northwestern University (Illinois, United States), the United States Army Research Laboratory, and the company DMG MORI Advanced Solutions, developed a new method of predicting meltpool temperature variations in the laser-powder bed fusion of metals (PBF-LB/M) process.
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Restoration of wetland and meadow ecosystems
Meadow and wetland ecosystems fulfil various functions that are essential for the life of different plant and animal species and for human activities. These ecosystems are highly efficient carbon sinks and habitats for animal and plant species of European importance in Natura 2000. They are rapidly being lost due to climate change (drought, evaporation, erosion, cracking, sward damage, etc.) and land use change, as well as the introduction of invasive alien plant and animal species. How can wetlands and meadow ecosystems be better managed to help mitigate the climate crisis and conserve biodiversity?
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Reorganization of Social Work Centers Between Declared and Actual
How successful was the reorganization of Social Work Centers (SWC), implemented in 2018 by the Ministry of Labor, Family, Social Affairs, and Equal Opportunities? The ministry, SWC employees, and users have different opinions. This was found in the doctoral dissertation "Evaluation of the Reorganization of Social Work Centers in the Republic of Slovenia from the Perspective of Selected Public Governance Models" by Dr. Matej Babšek from the Faculty of Public Administration at the University of Ljubljana. This exceptional work earned him the Mzia Mikeladze award, presented by the Network of Institutes and Schools of Public Administration in Central and Eastern Europe (NISPAcee) for outstanding doctoral dissertations in the field of public administration and public policies.
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New Ways of "Recognizing" Biological Molecules
For the normal course of all life processes, the cooperation of multiple biomolecules is required, such as various proteins, DNA molecules, etc. It is crucial that specific molecules form mutual 'contacts' to execute a particular biological process. But how do different molecules "know" which ones should meet?
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EUTOPIA Review
The publication EUTOPIA Review is a meeting point of ideas, a platform that gives space to different voices and schools of thought, as well as a forum for interdisciplinary scientific discussions. The publication contains the papers of the most promising researchers in the EUTOPIA Alliance, and the honor of writing the first chapter of the first edition belonged to Slovenian scientist and Nobel lavreate, prof. dr. Lučka Kajfež Bogataj. She wrote about the role of the city in reducing global pressures on the environment.
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LANDLABS - Landscape Laboratories: Design Strategies for Sustainable and Beautiful Landscapes of the Anthropocene
How can landfills, mining areas or transportation infrastructure corridors that are part of our urban landscape be transformed into sustainable and beautiful places? How can we create a coexistence between humans, animals, plants, water, soil and technical elements in these areas? These are the questions addressed by LANDLABS, a doctoral research project in the field of landscape planning and design, which was successfully funded in April 2024 as part of the call for Marie Sklodowska-Curie Doctoral Networks.
