Vineyards waste has a great importance as biomass, a renewable source of energy. In this paper eight vine shoot varieties were used for the production of pellets by densification of feedstock materials with four ranges of moisture contents (6–8%, 8–10%, 10–12% and 12–15%). A moisture content of 10% gave durability higher than 97.5% and a calorific value greater than 17 MJ kg⁻¹ and the small durability was obtained for 6–8% moisture. The study shows the significant influence of water during densification. The physicochemical and energetic properties of pellets were evaluated in accordance with ISO 17225-6 (2014). The obtained pellets were also structurally characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). SEM analysis showed the formation of carbon microsphere after pelletization, due to the increase of bulk density and durability of pellets. Also, XRD analysis revealed the crystallinity of cellulose, while TGA analysis showed a total decomposition of pellets. The obtained pellets were burned in a domestic boiler and the flue gases were measured. The preliminary results showed that the vineyard residues had higher emissions, but below the admitted limits, with the exception of carbon monoxide content. The obtained results suggested that the biomass wastes can be used for the production of pellets, aiming to enhance the research for the manufacturing of these sustainable biofuels with some remarks regarding risk of corrosion and slag formation during prolonged use.

Gastronomic tourism has emerged as a significant driver of destination competitiveness, cultural preservation, and sustainable development. This comprehensive review synthesizes the scientific literature published between 2010 and 2025, examining the evolution of gastronomic tourism research, global trends, sustainability dimensions, and emerging challenges. Through systematic analysis of 150 peer-reviewed articles from major academic databases, this paper identifies key themes including cultural heritage preservation, sustainability practices, digital transformation, and educational innovations. The findings reveal a growing recognition of gastronomy as intangible cultural heritage, increased focus on farm-to-fork practices, and the transformative role of social media in destination branding. Despite the rapid growth of gastronomic tourism research, important gaps remain. The literature lacks standardized sustainability indicators, limiting comparability across studies, while cross-cultural comparative research and interdisciplinary integration remain insufficiently developed. Addressing these gaps is essential for advancing theoretical coherence and supporting evidence-based practice in gastronomic tourism.

Unlike odorants that mask odors, natural zeolite acts as a molecular sieve that captures and eliminates odors. Different treatment methods can be applied to influence the properties of the natural zeolites. To enhance the odor adsorption capacities of the natural zeolite two types of treatment methods were applied: chemical (acid, basic) and thermal. The initial natural zeolites and the activated one were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM-EDX). Two experiments were performed to establish the odor adsorption capacity of the activated natural zeolites. The best zeolite for the adsorption of humidity, ammonia and hydrogen sulfide was the 1–3 mm zeolite activated through thermal treatment. For the adsorption of PAHs, the best zeolite was the one activated through basic treatment, with an adsorption capacity of 89.6 ng/g.

The large amount of biomass waste generated by vineyard pruning causes many environmental concerns. The production of briquettes represents an alternative to obtaining a value-added product. The transformation of vineyard wastes into briquettes could produce a densified product having high energy potential. The study investigates the production and chemical, structural, and thermal characterization of briquettes. The thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) shows that the briquettes have different stages of decomposition depending on temperature, such as drying, heating, devolatilization, and char aggregation. All the briquettes are decomposed around 600 °C. The analysis by X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows the crystallinity of briquettes. The pollutant emissions resulted from briquettes burning were measured as 444.7 mg N⁻¹m⁻¹ nitrogen oxide (NO_X), 157.0 mg N⁻¹m⁻¹ sulphur dioxide (SO₂) and 2165.0 mg N⁻¹m⁻¹ carbon monoxide (CO). The flue gases are below the admitted limits, with the exception of carbon monoxide content due to the incomplete combustion and high lignin content. Therefore, it can be concluded that briquettes produced from vineyard wastes have similar properties to briquettes produced from wood. This study demonstrates the potential of the obtained briquettes to replace the wood or charcoal through a desulphurization method.

This study aims to investigate the quality and vulnerability of surface water (Aries River catchment) in order to identify the impact of past mining activities. For this purpose, the pollution and water quality indices, Piper and Durov plots, as well vulnerability modeling maps were used. The obtained results indicate that the water samples were contaminated with As, Fe, Mn, Pb and have relatively high concentrations of SO₄²⁻, HCO₃⁻, TDS, Ca, K, Mg and high values for the electrical conductivity. Possible sources of the high content of chemicals could be the natural processes or the inputs of the mine drainage. Generally, according to the pollution indices, which were correlated to high concentrations of heavy metals, especially with Pb, Fe and Mn, the water samples were characterized by heavy metals pollution. The water quality index classified the studied water samples into five different classes of quality, namely: unsuitable for drinking, poor, medium, good and excellent quality. Similarly, medium, high and very high vulnerability classes were observed. The Durov and Piper plots classified the waters into Mg-HCO₃⁻ and Ca-Cl⁻ types. The past and present mining activities clearly change the water chemistry and alter the quality of the Aries River, with the water requiring specific treatments before use.

The human health risk associated with PM₁₀ exposure was assessed for the residents of Cluj-Napoca city, Romania, for a best case-scenario based on the monthly average PM₁₀ and for a worst-case scenario based on the monthly 90th percentile of PM₁₀ concentration. As no toxicity value for PM₁₀ was available, for the calculation of the hazard quotient, the toxicity value was considered to be equal to the annual limit value (40 µm/m³) set in the European Union (EU), and to air quality guidelines (20 µm/m³) set by the World Health Organization (WHO). The daily PM₁₀ concentrations for the period 2009–2019, at the four monitoring stations existing in Cluj-Napoca, were obtained from the National Air Quality Monitoring Network. The annual PM₁₀ values ranged between 20.3 and 29.5 µg/m³, and were below the annual limit value (40 µg/m³) set by European and national legislation, but above the annual air quality guideline (20 µg/m³) set by WHO. Generally, the monthly PM₁₀ concentrations were higher from October to March than in the rest of the year. The monthly air quality index (AQI) showed the good to moderate quality of the air during the whole decade; however, there were days when the air quality was unhealthy for sensitive population groups. The air quality was more or less constant during the warm months, and improved significantly for the cold months from 2009 to 2019. In the best-case scenario, calculated using the EU annual limit value for PM₁₀, the potential non-carcinogenic chronic health risk was present only in 2009 and 2010, but in the worst-case scenario, in each year there were periods, especially in the cold months, in which health risk was present. When considering the WHO air quality guidelines in the calculation of the health risk, the potential non-carcinogenic chronic health risk was present between October and March in each year in the best-case scenario, and in most of the months in the worst-case scenario.