The main focus of this study is to optimize proposed solutions for a residential PV-based net-metering systems with the option of EV adaptation, utilizing a weighted grading system. Technical, environmental and financial parameters are assessed to develop a techno-economic and environmental evaluation model. The proposed analysis investigates the electricity consumption of a typical household and possible energy-saving interventions. Solar PV installation scenarios and their combination with solar water heating and EV adaptation are evaluated in terms of sizing and financial sustainability, as well as CO₂ emissions reduction, along with the net-metering scheme.

Packaging materials made from polypropylene (PP) can be used to protect cultural heritage objects from damage ensuring their long-life preservation. This research work concerns the assessment of recycled polypropylene hollow chamber sheets as potential packaging materials for archival collections and cultural heritage objects. It was carried out through a multidisciplinary diagnostic methodology combining mechanical methods, non-destructive imaging techniques in visible light (VIS), and ultraviolet-induced visible luminescence (UVL), as well as handheld digital microscopy, colorimetry, glossimetry, and SEM microanalysis. The results showed that the condition and mechanical performance of the specimens are affected by the ageing process.

Battery storage is nowadays considered a key component not only in off-grid applications but also in the context of grid-tied, residential-scale systems, facilitating the broader use of RES even in heavily congested distribution grids. Since batteries normally comprise the costliest part in similar configurations, their optimal sizing is a priority. Informed decisions to that end should not be limited to rough, initial-cost estimations alone; instead, they should also take into account the life-cycle costs of batteries, which, in turn, relate to battery aging mechanisms and the gradual, cycling-based fading of the batteries’ useful capacity. Acknowledging the above, the impact of battery cycling aging on the performance of typical, residential-scale, RES-based battery storage configurations is investigated herein, considering also the utilization of second-life lithium-ion EV batteries. To that end, we used a literature-informed empirical aging model and performed a simulation exercise for a broad set of different RES-battery configurations, with our results indicating the importance of the aging factor while also designating areas of optimum sizing with regard to the long-term energy and economic performance of similar solutions.