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The growing adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and the expansion of their charging infrastructure offer substantial potential to advance sustainable mobility in smart cities. Nevertheless, the highly interconnected design of EV charging stations (EVCSs) renders this infrastructure vulnerable to multiple cybersecurity threats, such as false data injection, man-in-the-middle attacks, malware infections, and denial-of-service attacks. Moreover, financial threats—including fraudulent billing and credit card data theft—pose significant risks to EV users. In this study, we introduce a blockchain network built on Hyperledger Fabric tailored for EVCSs to address these vulnerabilities. The proposed network employs smart contracts to securely and transparently handle essential operations, including authentication, charging session oversight, and payment confirmation. By identifying and preventing unauthorized data alterations or access attempts, the blockchain framework enhances the robustness of EVCS networks. A before-and-after comparative evaluation of the implemented blockchain network illustrates its effectiveness in countering prevalent cyberattacks targeting EVCS infrastructure. The evaluation encompasses performance indicators derived from the Hyperledger Caliper benchmarking tool, revealing the solution’s minimal latency suitable for real-time applications and its capacity to scale in line with expanding EV infrastructure demands. Implementing this blockchain-augmented security solution is anticipated to boost user confidence and dependability in EVCS systems. 

This study explores the consequences of synchronized false data injection attacks (FDIAs) on voltage behavior in smart microgrids that rely on renewable-based distributed energy resources (DERs)—a cornerstone of modern smart city energy infrastructure. Employing both simulation-based and real-world experimental techniques, the work introduces a unified framework for analyzing and defending against coordinated threats, thereby safeguarding the reliable operation of renewable-integrated DERs, which are central to today’s urban power ecosystems. In the proposed scenario, multiple attackers independently select the most effective moments to execute two complementary cyberattacks, one producing undervoltage and the other causing overvoltage within the same smart microgrid. Each attack model is driven by an objective function that maximizes the severity of voltage deviations—either excessive undervoltage or harmful overvoltage—induced by its corresponding FDIA. Under this coordinated scheme, the adversaries construct a multi-objective optimization problem (MOOP) that simultaneously provokes significant voltage violations across the microgrid’s most exposed zones. Due to the competing objectives in this MOOP, a Pareto-front approach is applied to generate a set of non-dominated optimal solutions, along with a single best compromise solution (BCS). The potency of this combined FDIA strategy is substantiated through detailed simulation studies and laboratory-based experiments. Specifically, the well-known IEEE 13-node test feeder was reconfigured to represent a microgrid environment for the numerical simulations, while the physical validation utilized a small-scale hybrid photovoltaic/wind microgrid testbed featuring actual renewable generation sources. 

The emergence of 5G technology is revolutionizing the development of smart cities by providing unparalleled speed, ultra-low latency, and massive device connectivity. These advancements enable seamless integration of IoT devices, real-time monitoring systems, and innovative urban solutions. This paper investigates the role of 5G in addressing key urban challenges—such as network congestion, energy efficiency, and data security—while emphasizing its transformative potential for advancing smart city architectures. Particular attention is given to integrating 5G with real-time digital twins, which bridge the physical and digital worlds to optimize urban operations, improve resource allocation, and enhance public safety. Despite its promise, 5G deployment faces obstacles including high infrastructure costs, substantial energy consumption, and limited signal coverage. This study reviews current trends, existing implementations, and emerging issues surrounding 5G in smart cities, offering perspectives on its limitations and potential mitigation strategies. It underscores the importance of collaboration among stakeholders to fully unlock 5G’s capabilities and develop scalable, secure, and sustainable smart city solutions. 

Amid worsening worldwide environmental degradation and escalating carbon outputs from the construction sector, school campuses—serving as the main settings for young people’s education and daily life—hold significant importance in promoting designs that prioritize low-carbon approaches, enhanced energy conservation, and eco-friendly surroundings. This study examines the renovation of Yezhai Middle School in Qianshan, Anhui Province, as a specific example, investigating methods to improve airflow patterns and to implement facade-based energy conservation measures for hilly-terrain school facilities during upgrades to pre-existing structures. Within the broader push toward intelligent urban systems, embedding cutting-edge tools and eco-conscious methods into communal facilities has emerged as a central priority. By conducting airflow modeling and upgrading building exteriors for greater efficiency, the analysis demonstrates nonlinear increases in airflow velocity with increasing elevation, alongside notable influences of surface texture on fluctuations in wind conditions. Incorporating expanded polystyrene (EPS) boards, along with added thermal barriers, during exterior upgrades reduces heating demand in colder months and air conditioning demand in warmer months. The updated exteriors successfully block chilly drafts while minimizing unwanted solar heat absorption, resulting in energy savings of roughly 24%. These findings offer valuable technical guidance and real-world insights for implementing low-carbon, efficiency-focused upgrades across additional educational and civic structures, supporting the building sector’s shift toward sustainable, lower-emission practices within intelligent urban frameworks.