abstract: An eco-industrial park (EIP) is an industrial ecosystem in which a group of co-located firms are involved in collective resource optimization with each other and with the local community through physical exchanges of energy, water, materials, byproducts and services - referenced in the industrial ecology literature as "industrial symbiosis". EIPs, when compared with standard industrial resource sharing networks, prove to be of greater public advantage as they offer improved environmental and economic benefits, and higher operational efficiencies both upstream and downstream in their supply chain. Although there have been many attempts to adapt EIP methodology to existing industrial sharing networks, most of them have failed for various factors: geographic restrictions by governmental organizations on use of technology, cost of technology, the inability of industries to effectively communicate their upstream and downstream resource usage, and to diminishing natural resources such as water, land and non-renewable energy (NRE) sources for energy production. This paper presents a feasibility study conducted to evaluate the comparative environmental, economic, and geographic impacts arising from the use of renewable energy (RE) and NRE to power EIPs. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology, which is used in a variety of sectors to evaluate the environmental merits and demerits of different kinds of products and processes, was employed for comparison between these two energy production methods based on factors such as greenhouse gas emission, acidification potential, eutrophication potential, human toxicity potential, fresh water usage and land usage. To complement the environmental LCA analysis, levelized cost of electricity was used to evaluate the economic impact. This model was analyzed for two different geographic locations; United States and Europe, for 12 different energy production technologies. The outcome of this study points out the environmental, economic and geographic superiority of one energy source over the other, including the total carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, which can then be related to the total number of carbon credits that can be earned or used to mitigate the overall carbon emission and move closer towards a net zero carbon footprint goal thus making the EIPs truly sustainable. / Dissertation/Thesis / LCOE calculation charts / Gabi Life-cycle analysis / Masters Thesis Mechanical Engineering 2014

abstract: In vitro, or cultured, meat refers to edible skeletal muscle and fat tissue grown from animal stem cells in a laboratory or factory. It is essentially meat that does not require an animal to be killed. Although it is still in the research phase of development, claims of its potential benefits range from reducing the environmental impacts of food production to improving human health. However, technologies powerful enough to address such significant challenges often come with unintended consequences and a host of costs and benefits that seldom accrue to the same actors. In extreme cases, they can even be destabilizing to social, institutional, economic, and cultural systems. This investigation explores the sustainability implications of cultured meat before commercial facilities are established, unintended consequences are realized, and undesirable effects become reified and locked in. The study utilizes expert focus groups to explore the social implications, life cycle analysis to project the environmental implications, and economic input-output assessment to explore tradeoffs between conventionally-produced meat and factory-grown food products. The results suggest that, should cultured meat be widely adopted by consumers, food is likely to be increasingly a product of human design, perhaps becoming integrated into existing human institutions such as health care delivery and education. Environmentally, cultured meat could require smaller quantities of agricultural inputs and land than livestock. However, those avoided costs could come at the expense of more intensive energy use as biological processes are replaced with industrial systems. Finally, the research found that, since livestock production is a driver of significant economic activity, shifting away from traditional meat production in favor of cultured meat production could result in a net economic contraction. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Civil and Environmental Engineering 2014

A indústria da construção civil é uma das principais fontes emissoras de poluição devido ao alto consumo de energia em seu ciclo de vida. Além da energia empregada na construção do edifício, durante sua operação, diversos sistemas também a utilizam, entre os quais se destaca, o sistema de condicionamento de ar. O consumo de energia por esse sistema está relacionado, entre outras coisas, com a temperatura do ar no ambiente externo e a requerida internamente pelo edifício. As fachadas são os elementos pelos quais se dá a maior parcela de transferência de calor do ambiente externo para o interno em edifícios altos. Assim, o tipo de fachada influi no consumo de energia no ciclo de vida dos edifícios e, conseqüentemente, contribui também para a emissão de CO2 pelos edifícios, pois a emissão deste gás está diretamente ligada ao consumo de energia. Desse modo, o objetivo deste trabalho é contribuir para o desenvolvimento da metodologia de avaliação das emissões de CO2 geradas durante o ciclo de vida das fachadas de edifícios de escritório. Os resultados, para os parâmetros considerados neste trabalho, mostram que as fachadas em structural glazing com vidro incolor são as que mais emitem CO2 ao longo de seu ciclo de vida, seguidas das fachadas em alvenaria e revestidas com painéis de alumínio composto ou ACM (Aluminium Composite Material), fachadas em structural glazing com vidro refletivo e fachadas em alvenaria revestidas com argamassa. Por fim, realizou-se uma análise para se avaliar a incerteza dos resultados deste estudo. / The construction industry is one of the main sources of pollution due to high energy consumption in its life cycle. Besides the energy used in the construction of the building during its operation, many systems also use, mainly, the air conditioning system. The energy consumption of the air conditioning system is related, among others things, with the outdoor air temperature and the indoor required air temperature. The façades are the elements in which the transference of heat happens from the outdoor environment to the indoor environment in high buildings. So, the façade typologies contribute to the energy consumption in the life cycle of the buildings and to CO2 emissions, because the emission of this gas is linked directly to the energy consumption. The objective of this work is to contribute to the development of evaluation methodology of CO2 emissions generated during the life cycle of the façades of office buildings. The results for the parameters considered in this work show that the façades in structural glazing with colorless glass are those that emit more CO2 throughout its life cycle, followed by the façades in masonry and coated with ACM (Aluminium Composite Material), façades in structural glazing with reflective glass and façades in masonry coated with mortar. Finally, an analysis was made to evaluate the results uncertainty.

Orientadores: Luis Augusto Barbosa Cortez, Marcelo Pereira da Cunha / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Agrícola / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-25T21:19:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Cardoso_TerezinhadeFatima_D.pdf: 3738702 bytes, checksum: e368bb547a1651b00f2e7c3133f1f8aa (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: A colheita de cana crua, sem queima, tem sido imposta principalmente por questões ambientais e com vistas ao aproveitamento integral da cana-de-açúcar. Questões econômicas, ambientais e sociais induzem à mecanização da colheita, o que pode proporcionar melhores condições de trabalho e o aproveitamento da palha, com a eliminação da queima prévia. Parte da palha pode ser utilizada para cobertura do solo, melhorando o reciclo de nutrientes, a retenção de água e redução da erosão. Outra parte da palha poderá ser recolhida, enviada para a indústria e utilizada para geração de eletricidade e/ou para produção de etanol de 2ª geração. Este trabalho, com auxílio da Biorrefinaria Virtual de Cana-de-açúcar (BVC/CTBE), empregou as metodologias de insumo-produto e análise de ciclo de vida (ACV) para analisar os impactos socioeconômicos e ambientais do recolhimento e aproveitamento da palha de cana-de-açúcar no setor sucroenergético, considerando (i) a tecnologia de colheita existente (colhedora Convencional) e em desenvolvimento (Estrutura de Tráfego Controlado ¿ ETC, proposta de mecanização com redução e controle do tráfego), (ii) a parcela de palha recolhida, (iii) a forma de recolhimento e transporte e (iv) seu uso. Avaliou-se, também, a viabilidade econômica de cada rota tecnológica considerada. Verificou-se que a colheita integral é economicamente vantajosa na fase agrícola e que a redução da densidade de carga pode ser compensada com menor perda de colmos, devido à redução de potência dos extratores da colhedora. O enfardamento apresenta custos elevados para pequenas frações de recolhimento devido à redução na capacidade operacional das máquinas. A análise do modelo verticalizado de produção (fase agrícola e industrial) mostrou que a baixa eficiência da estação de limpeza a seco interfere diretamente nos rendimentos da indústria, diminuindo a vantagem da colheita integral. A proposta de recolher palha através de colheita integral com palha repicada apresentou bons resultados nas simulações, reduzindo o custo de transporte e melhorando a eficiência de separação da palha na indústria. Considerando o modelo verticalizado de produção, fardos 7,5 t/ha (com colhedora convencional) e Integral sem ponteiro repicada (ETC) apresentam maiores valores para TIR, 12,0% e 14,2%, respectivamente. A fase agrícola responde por 80% a 90% dos impactos ambientais, variando de acordo com o cenário e a categoria de impacto analisada. O uso e produção de fertilizantes e corretivos são os itens que mais ocasionam os impactos ambientais, seguidos de uso de óleo diesel. Em termos socioeconômicos, a colheita integral apresenta maior valor de produção e PIB; já os cenários com fardos apresentam maior remuneração mensal média por emprego e número de empregos gerados em função do maior número de operações mecanizadas demandando mais mão de obra. O resultado principal do estudo mostra que os cenários com ETC apresentam maior eficiência econômica e a proposta de recolhimento através de colheita integral com palha sem ponteiro e repicada apresentou maior atratividade econômica com menores impactos ambientais. Esta pesquisa demonstra a importância de desenvolvimento de tecnologias que permitam melhor aproveitamento da biomassa / Abstract: Harvesting of green sugarcane, without burning, has been imposed mainly by environmental issues and aiming to take full advantage of sugarcane. Economic, environmental and social issues induce mechanical harvesting, which can provide better working conditions and the use of straw, with the elimination of the previous burning. Part of the straw can be used for soil coverage, enhancing the recycling of nutrients, water retention and reducing erosion. Another part of the straw can be collected, sent to the industry and used for bioelectricity generation or production of 2nd generation ethanol. This paper, with the support of Virtual Sugarcane Biorefinery (VSB), applied input-output and life cycle analysis methodologies to analyze the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of collection and utilization of straw sugarcane, considering (i) harvesting of sugarcane existing (conventional harvester) and developing (ETC - Controlled Traffic Structure ¿ proposed mechanization of reduction and traffic control) technologies, (ii) fraction of gathered straw, (iii) form of collection and transportation and (iv) use of straw. It was also evaluated economic viability of each technological route considered. It was found that the integral harvest system is economically advantageous in the agricultural phase, and that the load density reduction is almost matched with lower loss of stalks due to the reduced power of the harvesters¿ exhauster. The baling system shows higher costs of small fractions straw recovery due to reduction of the machines operational capacity. The verticalized production model analysis (agricultural and industry fases) showed that the low efficiency of dry cleaning station directly interferes with the industry output, reducing the advantage of the integral harvest system. The proposal to collect straw through integral harvest with chopping presented good results in simulations, reducing the cost of transport of straw and improving industrial productivity with better separation of straw. Considering the verticalized production model, 7,5 ton/ha baling (with conventional harvester) and integral harvest system chopped without tops (ETC) present higher values of IRR, 12,0% and 14,2%, respectively. Regarding environmental impacts, it was found that agricultural phase represents 80% ¿ 90% of the environmental impacts, varying according to the analyzed scene and the impact category. The use and production of fertilizers and soil correctors are the items that cause the most environmental impacts followed by the use of diesel. In socioeconomic terms the integral harvest system presents higher production value and GDP (Gross Domestic Product); the baling scenes present higher average monthly income per job and number of generated jobs due to higher number of mechanized operations requiring more manpower. The main result of this study shows that ETC scenes present higher economic efficiency and the recovery proposal of integral harvest system chopped without tops presented higher economic prospects with lower environmental impacts. This paper shows the importance of technology development which permits better use of biomass / Doutorado / Maquinas Agricolas / Doutora em Engenharia Agrícola

In order to extend ecological footprint analysis (EFA) to electronic products, new methods had to be developed which associate the world average bioproductive space per capita and year - the fair Earth share - with an individual product. The problem analysed in this thesis is the need for an environmental assessment tool for electronic products, which uses natural capital accounting. This need arose because so far, electronic products were mainly assessed using life cycle analysis with a focus on toxicity. Since the ecological footprint (EF) is a sustainability indicator, the sustainability discussion and in particular its relevance and implications with regard to the EF is reviewed. The electronic products assessed in this thesis are a personal computer (PC) in an exploratory study, and three mobile phones (two main case studies and one updated case study). To establish the land areas used by the mined materials used in electronic products, a database was developed based on site specific data found in the literature, and on approximations from the density of materials and their overburden. A life cycle energy approach was used to determine the burdens from producing and using a mobile phone. In order to estimate energy requirements for materials for which no data was available, the relationship between abundance and rucksack / overburden values was used in a regression analysis. Direct land use data and results from the energy analysis were used as an inventory for the subsequent EFA. An EF time series was applied to represent a more accurate picture of PC and phone use. This was also necessary since the EF reflects the instantaneous rate (a snapshot) of resource consumption. Key results are that the EF of electronic products are much larger than their actual size and that different electronic products have different EF. Our methodology proved sensitive enough to reveal differences even in small electronic products, given the high benchmark of a fair Earth share, and useful in monitoring space-efficient technology.

Liquid biofuels are being produced to displace fossil fuels for transportation, with bioethanol and biodiesel being the primary biofuels produced for this purpose in the world today. While there is consensus on the need for a sustainable biofuels industry, there is little consensus on how to proceed to avoid environmental and social degradation with global biofuel production. A literature review of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) data, and the generic Strategic Life-Cycle Management (SLCM) and Template for Sustainable Product Development (TSPD) approaches, helped to inform the creation of a specific tool for sustainable industrial biofuels development, called the TSPD for biofuels. Other data collection involved expert and industry dialogue, as well as stakeholder feedback, on the content of the TSPD. Results showed a variety of sustainability challenges and opportunities, the most significant of which concerns agricultural production. Compelling measures for a sustainable biofuels industry include: cooperation among all stakeholders using a systems approach based on strategic sustainable development, sustainable biofuels certification; and government policies to stimulate research into new technologies and feedstocks, as well as to reduce consumption and increase efficiency. / <p>skiingkyle@yahoo.ca, csrlevy@terra.com.br, Kate_maddigan@yahoo.com</p>

Water is the essential part of every organism and it is also a vital constituent of healthy living and diet. Unfortunately water contamination over the past decade has increased dramatically leading to various diseases. As technology advances, we are detecting many pollutants at smaller levels of concentrations. Arsenic (As) is one of those major pollutants, and Arsenic poisoning is a condition caused due to excess levels of arsenic in the body. The main basis for Arsenic poisoning is from ground water which naturally contains high concentrations of arsenic. A case study from 2007 states that over 137 million people in 70 countries were affected by arsenic poisoning from drinking water [1]. This thesis work is motivated by this study and investigates the fabrication, characterization, and testing of Opuntia ficus-indica mucilage nanofiber membranes formed using a mucilage, polystyrene (PS) and iron oxide (Fe2O3) solution by an electrospinning process. Cactus mucilage is a jelly-like substance, which is extracted from the cactus pad, and is an inexpensive, biodegradable and biocompatible material. It is also an abundant material available in nature. Polystyrene is a synthetic aromatic polymer prepared from monomer styrene. Polystyrene is further dissolved using D-Limonene as a solvent. D-Limonene is a non-toxic solvent and is a citrus extract of orange peelings. In an effort to enhance adsorption capacity for the mucilage nanofiber membranes, iron oxide nanopowder is incorporated into the polymeric solution. A mucilage and polystyrene-iron oxide solution is mixed in different ratios and electrospun to obtain nanofibers. The fibers will be characterized by certain techniques such as Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), contact angle measurements, viscosity and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The fibers obtained from mucilage and PS-Fe2O3 will be further tested under Atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS) for testing the removal of arsenic from water. Also, a life cycle analysis (LCA) is conducted to evaluate the environmental impacts of the fabrication of the membranes by using SimaPro® software.

Biofuels have been identified as one of several GHG emission strategies to reduce the use of fossil fuels in the transport sector. Fast pyrolysis of biomass is one approach to producing second generation biofuels. The bio-oil product of fast pyrolysis can be upgraded into essential gasoline and diesel range products with conventional refinery technologies. Thus, it is important to assess their techno- economic and environmental performance at an early stage prior to commercialisation. This research was conducted with the goal of evaluating and comparing the techno-economic and environmental viability of the production of biofuels from fast pyrolysis of biomass and upgrading of bio-oil via two refinery technologies, viz. hydroprocessing and zeolite cracking. In order to achieve this aim, process models of fast pyrolysis of biomass and bio-oil upgrading via hydroprocessing and zeolite cracking were developed. The fast pyrolysis model was based on multi-step kinetic models. In addition, lumped kinetic models of the hydrodeoxygenation reactions of bio-oil were implemented. The models were verified against experimental measurements with good prediction and formed the foundation for the development of a 72 t/day fast pyrolysis plant model in Aspen Plus®. Several strategies were proposed for the two pathways to enhance energy efficiency and profitability. All in all, the results revealed that the hydroprocessing route is 16% more efficient than the zeolite cracking pathway. Moreover, the hydroprocessing route resulted in a minimum fuel selling price of 15% lower than that from the zeolite cracking pathway. Sensitivity analysis revealed that the techno-economic and environmental performance of the both pathways depends on several process, economic and environmental parameters. In particular, biofuel yield, operating cost and income tax were identified as the most sensitive techno-economic parameters, while changes in nitrogen feed gas to the pyrolysis reactor and fuel yield had the most environmental impact. It was concluded that hydroprocessing is a more suitable upgrading pathway than zeolite cracking in terms of economic viability, energy efficiency, and GHG emissions per energy content of fuel produced.

In this research three waste scenario’s for polystyrene plastic are analysed and compared from an environmental perspective. Incineration, recycling and biodegradation by mealworms (Tenebrio Monitor Linnaeus) of polystyrene are to be compared through a gate to grave Life Cycle Analysis. This LCA is conducted through the International Standard Organisation, 14040 Standard. The biodegradation facility is non existing and based on assumption backed up by peer reviewed literature. Incineration and recycling are based on facts and figures from national authorities and supplemented and peer reviewed literature. All three processes are analysed using IPCC Global Warming Potential (GWP) 2013 GWP 100a &amp; 1.03 ReCipe 2016 Midpoint (H) 1.02 within SimaPro 9. Results show that the biodegradation of polystyrene by mealworms is inferior to the two already existing methods of recycling and incineration from an environmental perspective. The environmental preference of recycling or incineration cannot be clearly defined. From an energy perspective (GWP) recycling is highly preferred over incineration. From ReCiPe 2016 methods incineration is highly favourable compared to most impact categories. However results are not likely to represent realistic values valid today due to lack of (accurate) data within this LCA. It is unlikely that without supplemented data results from this research can be used in any form. Nevertheless this lack of information shows the need for further investigation on biodegradation by mealworms. / <p>2020-06-05</p>

Industrial ecology is a field of study that encourages the use of closed-loop material cycles to achieve sustainability. Loop closing requires the movement of materials over space, and has long been practiced in the iron and steel industry. Iron and steel (ferrous) scrap generated in the U.S. is increasingly exported to countries in Asia, lengthening the transportation distance associated with closing the loop on the iron and steel life cycle. In order to understand the environmental cost of transporting this commodity, an activity-based maritime transportation model and a theoretical in-land transportation model are used to estimate emissions generated. Results indicate that 10.4 mmt of total emissions were generated, and emissions increased by 136 percent from 2004 to 2009. Increases in the amount of emissions generated are due to increases in the amount of scrap exported and distance it is transported.