scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Ocean Energy Technologies: A Systematic Review

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. 322 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Paredes ◽  
Alejandro Padilla-Rivera ◽  
Leonor Güereca
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Impact Category ◽  
Tidal Energy ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Ocean Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies

The increase of greenhouse gases (GHG) generated by the burning of fossil fuels has been recognized as one of the main causes of climate change (CC). Different countries of the world have developed new policies on national energy security directed to the use of renewable energies mainly, ocean energy being one of them. The implementation of ocean energy is increasing worldwide. However, the use of these technologies is not exempt from the generation of potential environmental impacts throughout their life cycle. In this context, life cycle assessment (LCA) is a holistic approach used to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product or system throughout its entire life cycle. LCA studies need to be conducted to foster the development of ocean energy technologies (OET) in sustainable management. In this paper, a systematic review was conducted and 18 LCA studies of OET were analyzed. Most of the LCA studies are focused on wave and tidal energy. CC is the most relevant impact category evaluated, which is generated mostly by raw material extraction, manufacturing stage and shipping operations. Finally, the critical stages of the systems evaluated were identified, together with, the opportunity areas to promote an environmental management for ocean energy developers.

scholarly journals Evaluating the Environmental Performance of Solar Energy Systems Through a Combined Life Cycle Assessment and Cost Analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2539 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Milousi ◽  
Manolis Souliotis ◽  
George Arampatzis ◽  
Spiros Papaefthimiou
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Economic Assessment ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
Environmental Implications

The paper presents a holistic evaluation of the energy and environmental profile of two renewable energy technologies: Photovoltaics (thin-film and crystalline) and solar thermal collectors (flat plate and vacuum tube). The selected renewable systems exhibit size scalability (i.e., photovoltaics can vary from small to large scale applications) and can easily fit to residential applications (i.e., solar thermal systems). Various technical variations were considered for each of the studied technologies. The environmental implications were assessed through detailed life cycle assessment (LCA), implemented from raw material extraction through manufacture, use, and end of life of the selected energy systems. The methodological order followed comprises two steps: i. LCA and uncertainty analysis (conducted via SimaPro), and ii. techno-economic assessment (conducted via RETScreen). All studied technologies exhibit environmental impacts during their production phase and through their operation they manage to mitigate significant amounts of emitted greenhouse gases due to the avoided use of fossil fuels. The life cycle carbon footprint was calculated for the studied solar systems and was compared to other energy production technologies (either renewables or fossil-fuel based) and the results fall within the range defined by the global literature. The study showed that the implementation of photovoltaics and solar thermal projects in areas with high average insolation (i.e., Crete, Southern Greece) can be financially viable even in the case of low feed-in-tariffs. The results of the combined evaluation provide insight on choosing the most appropriate technologies from multiple perspectives, including financial and environmental.

Life cycle assessment of asphalt pavement maintenance and rehabilitation techniques: a study for the City of St. John’s

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (12) ◽  
pp. 1320-1326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Md Rakibul Alam ◽  
Kamal Hossain ◽  
Ali Azhar Butt ◽  
Tim Caudle ◽  
Carlos Bazan
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Impact Category ◽  
Pavement Maintenance ◽  
Environmental Footprints ◽  
Maintenance And Rehabilitation ◽  
Maintenance Techniques ◽  
Acidification Potential ◽  
The City

Although pavement maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) techniques are usually examined in economic terms, there is a growing need to address their environmental footprints. The objective of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of M&R techniques. Life cycle assessment (LCA) can help in the decision-making process of selecting suitable maintenance techniques based on their environmental impacts. This study investigates: patching, rout & sealing, hot in-place recycling, and cold in-place recycling. Global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential, human health particulate, eutrophication potential, ozone depletion potential, and smog potential are estimated as environmental impacts for each maintenance activity. Materials, equipment use (for construction and M&R), and transportation were the main elements considered. A sensitivity test is performed to identify the significant factors for the LCA. The study concluded that GWP was the most important impact category. Rout & sealing and cold in-place recycling produced the lowest GWP emissions. Notably, pavement patching and hot in-place recycling showed significant detrimental environmental impacts.

Comparison of Life Cycle Assessment of Two Toasters

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raghunathan Srinivasan ◽  
Gaurav Ameta
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Recovery Phase ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Energy Impact ◽  
Household Products ◽  
Use Phase ◽  
One Year

The objective of this paper is to determine and compare the environmental impacts of two toasters: standard and eco-friendly. The most rapidly growing sector for the e-waste world comes from Electronic household products. More than 2 million tons of electronic products are disposed off as solid waste to landfills in the US alone. The demand for energy supplies has been rapidly increasing in the past decade. Strict legislative measures should be enforced to protect the environment by making industries collect back the manufactured products at the End-of-Life (EOL) from the users and recycle the products. If these necessary steps are not taken, then these e-wastes will impose serious threat to society and the environment. In order to re-design environmentally friendly products and facilitate sustainable take-back planning, current products need to be evaluated for their environmental impacts. One of the widely used methodologies to assess the environmental impacts of a product is called Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). LCA is a cradle to grave approach for assessing the environmental impacts of a product. The cradle to grave approach includes raw material phase, manufacturing and assembly phase, use phase, recovery phase and disposal phase. The system boundary for LCA presented in this paper includes material phase, manufacturing phase, use-phase and disposal phase. The functional unit for the LCA is entire life of the toaster which is one year based on manufacturer’s warranty which also includes the rate of usage. The environmental impacts from the two toasters as presented in this paper include eutrophication, acidification, energy-use and global warming. The use phase energy impact is experimentally determined.

scholarly journals An Environmental Evaluation of the Cut-Flower Supply Chain (Dendranthema grandiflora) Through a Life Cycle Assessment

Revista EIA ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (31) ◽  
pp. 27-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Alicia Parrado Moreno ◽  
Ricardo Esteba Ricardo Hernández ◽  
Héctor Iván Velásquez Arredondo ◽  
Sergio Hernando Lopera Castro ◽  
Christian Hasenstab --
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Cut Flowers ◽  
Environmental Evaluation ◽  
Fertilizer Use ◽  
Transport Phase

Colombia is a major flower exporter of a wide variety of species, among which the chrysanthemum plays a major role due to its exporting volume and profitability on the international market. This study examines the major environmental impacts of the chrysanthemum supply chain through a life cycle assessment (LCA). One kg of stems export quality was used as the functional unit (FU). The study examines cut-flowers systems from raw material extraction to final product commercialization for two markets (London and Miami) and analyzes two agroecosystems: one certified system and one uncertified system. The transport phase to London resulted in more significant environmental impacts than the transport phase to Miami, and climate change (GWP100) category was significant in both cities, generating values of 9.10E+00 and 2.51E+00 kg CO2-eq*FU for London and Miami, respectively. Furthermore, when exclusively considering pre-export phases, the uncertified system was found to have a greater impact than the certified system with respect to fertilizer use (certified 1,448E-02 kg*FU, uncertified 2.23E-01 kg*FU) and pesticide use (certified 1.24 E-04 kg*FU, uncertified 2.24E-03 kg*FU). With respect to the crop management, eutrophication (EP) and acidification (AP) processes imposed the greatest level of environmental impact. Strategies that would significantly reduce the environmental impact of this supply chain are considered, including the use of shipping and a 50% reduction in fertilizer use.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Environmental Impact of Cement Production in Algeria Using Life Cycle Assessment

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 79-84
Author(s):  
S. Boughrara ◽  
M. Chedri ◽  
K. Louhab
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Cement Production ◽  
Dry Process ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Inputs And Outputs

The aim of this study is the use of Life Cycle Assessment, to evaluate the impact generated by cement manufactory situated in Sour EL Ghozlane town in Algeria country, which use the dry process to produce cement Portland. The LCA method is used for compiling and examining the inputs and outputs of energy, raw material and environmental impacts directly attributable to the manufacture and functioning of a product throughout its life. It is also used to determine element and energy contributing to each impact evaluated. Potentials impacts are evaluated using the SimaProV.7.1 software and IMPACT2000+ method in this study.

Life Сycle Аssessment of Management and Disposal of Oil-containing Wastes from Refineries

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (12) ◽  
pp. 38-43
Author(s):  
E.V. Kalinina ◽  
L.V. Rudakova
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Waste Treatment ◽  
Human Toxicity ◽  
Cobalt Chromium ◽  
Treatment And Disposal ◽  
Cancer Diseases

The results of the life cycle assessment (LCA) of oil waste (OW) management and disposal of refineries are presented, which include environmental impacts beyond the implementation of the techniques themselves, but also the production of the necessary material (reagents, materials) and energy (electricity, fuel, steam). LCA demonstrated that the most significant impacts of oil-containing waste treatment and disposal methods are in the categories Ecotoxicity (for freshwater)" and "Human toxicity" (cancer and non-cancer diseases)" resulting from the burning of fossil fuels and the emission of heavy metals (zinc, copper, vanadium, cobalt, chromium, nickel and lead).

Life Cycle Assessment and Eco-Design of a Wireless TV/VCR Remote

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Hu ◽  
Gaurav Ameta
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Waste Treatment ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
The United States ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Alkaline Batteries ◽  
Improve Product

The focus of this paper is to present life-cycle assessment (LCA) of a TV/VCR remote, including alkaline batteries, and to compare the environmental impacts with a redesigned remote consisting of a solar cell. LCA is a very helpful tool in identifying the most important factors for improving product sustainability. The remote considered in this study can control both television and video cassette recorder. This remote is manufactured in Malaysia and exported to the United States. Its life-cycle system includes raw material, parts, shipment, use phase and waste treatment; its life-cycle impact assessment (LCIA) is performed using SimaPro 7.1 and employing the TRACI method. LCA uncertainty analyzing is performed for both remotes utilizing Monte Carlo simulation in SimaPro 7.1. LCA result shows use of alkaline battery affects most obviously in environmental impacts. In Eco-design remote model, both energy type and raw materials changed. Environmental impacts reduce in five categories in redesigned remote. This paper: 1) presents a prototype design for product using solar cell; 2) presents a novel method for designers to determine raw materials to improve product sustainability in designing stage; 3) provides suggestions for manufacturers to improve product sustainability through reuse of solar cell or a leasing strategy.

scholarly journals Environmental Profile Study of Ozone Decolorization of Reactive Dyed Cotton Textiles by Utilizing Life Cycle Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1225
Author(s):  
Ajinkya Powar ◽  
Anne Perwuelz ◽  
Nemeshwaree Behary ◽  
Le Vinh Hoang ◽  
Thierry Aussenac ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Impact Category ◽  
Resource Depletion ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Relative Value ◽  
Cotton Textiles ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Profile Study

Research approaches on the use of ecotechnologies like ozone assisted processes for the decolorization of textiles are being explored as against the conventional alkaline reductive process for the color stripping of the cotton textiles. The evaluation of these ecotechnologies must be performed to assess the environmental impacts. Partial “gate to gate” Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was implemented to study the ozone based decolorization process of the reactive dyed cotton textiles. Experiments were performed to determine input and output data flows for decolorization treatment of reactive dyed cotton textile using the ozonation process. The functional unit was defined as “treatment of 40 g of reactive dyed cotton fabric to achieve more than 94% color stripping”. Generic and specific data bases were also used to determine flows, and International Life Cycle Data system (ILCD) method was selected to convert all flows into environmental impacts. The impact category “Water resource depletion” is the highest for all the ozonation processes as it has the greatest relative value after normalization amongst all the impact indicators. Electricity and Oxygen formation were found to be the major contributors to the environmental impacts. New experimental conditions have been studied to optimize the impacts.

scholarly journals Dampak Lingkungan dan Kesehatan Pemanfaatan Limbah Cat Sebagai Produk Material Bangunan

METANA ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-32
Author(s):  
Ari Dina Permana Citra ◽  
Hargianti Dini Iswandari
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Management Model ◽  
Environmental Media ◽  
Soil Media

Limbah cat yang tidak mempunyai nilai ekonomis dan memerlukan biaya untuk pengolahannya, dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai bahan baku menjadi produk yang berguna. Limbah cat digunakan sebagai bahan baku campuran pembuatan produk bata beton (paving block) agar dapat mencegah dampak negative lingkungan. Penelitian yang dilakukan bertujuan untuk mengkaji dampak lingkungan dan kesehatan dari limbah cat dan pemanfaatannya sebagai campuran bata beton.  Dampak lingkungan sebagai ekotoksisitas dan dampak kesehatan berupa toksisitas dihitung menggunakan perangkat kajian daur hidup LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) pada variasi kadar limbah cat sebesar 1,2,3,4 dan 5% pada bata beton. Hasil kajian menunjukkan penurunan potensi dampak lingkungan dan kesehatan produk bata beton dibandingkan limbah cat padat. Ekotoksisitas limbah cat terendah pada media tanah dan tertinggi pada media perairan air tawar. Toksisitas pada manusia jauh lebih tinggi dibanding pada media lingkungan, dipakai sebagai dasar penanganan limbah cat. Pemanfaatan limbah cat sebagai bahan baku campuran bata beton dapat mengurangi ekotoksisitas dan toksisitas secara signifikan, dapat digunakan sebagai model pengelolaan limbah. Paint waste that has no economic value and requires a cost for its processing can be used as raw material to become a useful product. Waste paint is used as a raw material for the manufacture of concrete brick products (paving blocks) in order to prevent negative environmental impacts. The research carried out aims to assess the environmental and health impacts of paint waste and its use as a concrete brick mixture. Environmental impacts as ecotoxicity and health impacts in the form of toxicity are calculated using the LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) life cycle assessment tool on the variation of paint waste content of 1,2,3,4 and 5% in concrete bricks. The results of the study show a decrease in the potential environmental and health impacts of concrete brick products compared to solid paint waste. The lowest paint waste ecotoxicity in soil media and highest in freshwater waters media. Toxicity in humans is much higher than in environmental media, used as a basis for handling paint waste. The use of paint waste as raw material for concrete brick mix can significantly reduce the ecotoxicity and toxicity, it can be used as a waste management model.

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