scholarly journals Towards a Plastic Circular Economy: Bio-derived Plastics and their End-of-life Strategies

2021 ◽  
Vol 75 (9) ◽  
pp. 744-751
Author(s):  
Simon B. C. Verstraeten ◽  
Antoine van Muyden ◽  
Felix D. Bobbink
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Emerging Technologies ◽  
Emerging Technology ◽  
Life Strategies ◽  
Renewable Materials ◽  
The Status

Herein, we describe the status of bio-derived plastics as well as the existing and emerging technologies that are available for their post-consumer end-of-life valorization. We first present how bio-derived plastics can be produced from renewable materials such as biomass and CO2. In the second section, we present an overview of the technologies available for the end-of-life, including pyrolysis and gasification and how they can be leveraged towards a circular economy. We continue the discussion with the presentation of an emerging technology, polyolefin hydrocracking. Finally, the concepts are discussed in light of life cycle analysis that helps to assess the sustainability of manufacture (and recycling) methods.

scholarly journals A METHODOLOGY TO SUPPORT COMPANIES IN THE FIRST STEPS TOWARDS DE-MANUFACTURING

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 131-140
Author(s):  
Federica Cappelletti ◽  
Marta Rossi ◽  
Michele Germani ◽  
Mohammad Shadman Hanif
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Life Strategies ◽  
Disassembly Sequence ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Technical Solutions ◽  
First Time ◽  
Complex Activities

AbstractDe-manufacturing and re-manufacturing are fundamental technical solutions to efficiently recover value from post-use products. Disassembly in one of the most complex activities in de-manufacturing because i) the more manual it is the higher is its cost, ii) disassembly times are variable due to uncertainty of conditions of products reaching their EoL, and iii) because it is necessary to know which components to disassemble to balance the cost of disassembly. The paper proposes a methodology that finds ways of applications: it can be applied at the design stage to detect space for product design improvements, and it also represents a baseline from organizations approaching de-manufacturing for the first time. The methodology consists of four main steps, in which firstly targets components are identified, according to their environmental impact; secondly their disassembly sequence is qualitatively evaluated, and successively it is quantitatively determined via disassembly times, predicting also the status of the component at their End of Life. The aim of the methodology is reached at the fourth phase when alternative, eco-friendlier End of Life strategies are proposed, verified, and chosen.

scholarly journals Hybrid PV-TE-T modules: life cycle analysis and end of life assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 997 ◽  
pp. 012149
Author(s):  
A-G Lupu ◽  
V M Homutescu ◽  
D-T Bălănescu ◽  
A Popescu
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Life Assessment

Emerging Technology Skills among Library Professionals of Autonomous Engineering College Libraries in Karnataka

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 24-32
Author(s):  
P. Rathna ◽  
K. Divyananda
Keyword(s):  
Professional Education ◽  
Emerging Technologies ◽  
Emerging Technology ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Technology Skills ◽  
Information Centre ◽  
Library System ◽  
The Status ◽  
Workforce Skills ◽  
Library Professionals

Library and information centre are of perennial importance to professional education institutions through all ages. Success of any library system depends on its workforce. Skills and abilities of library professionals plays vital role in serving their users to make them successful in their academic endeavors. Emerging technology Skills of library professionals working in autonomous Engineering College of Karnataka are analyzed to find the status of their skills and to make further recommendations. It is found that library professionals are having better skills in handling emerging technologies. Recommendations are made to improve skills further through various suggested ways.

Life cycle analysis: end of life analysis of two contact lens replacement modalities

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. e21
Author(s):  
Sarah L. Smith ◽  
Neil B. Chatterjee ◽  
Gary N. Orsborn ◽  
Philip B. Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Contact Lens ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Life Analysis

Establishing Project Feasibility for Emerging Technology Projects: An Independent Engineer’s Perspective

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C. Demme
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Development Process ◽  
Emerging Technologies ◽  
Emerging Technology ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
New Approaches ◽  
The Status ◽  
Alternate Fuels ◽  
Specific Project

Technology suppliers, waste system managers and project developers across North America are endeavoring to find and implement new approaches to converting the energy in waste to electricity or alternate fuels. These entities, as well as potential financiers and communities that might benefit from these emerging technologies, often retain an independent engineer to assist in establishing the status and risks of the technology itself or the feasibility a specific project that has been proposed. Although independent engineering assessments are a well-established element of the non-recourse finance process, individuals and organizations new to the development process are often unfamiliar with the usefulness and content of these assessments. In the context of emerging technology-based projects, this paper will provide an overview of the role of an independent engineer in the development process, explain the typical assessment process, and discuss the content of a typical independent engineering report (“IE Report”).

Life Cycle Analysis of Solar Module Recycling Process

2005 ◽  
Vol 895 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Müller ◽  
Karsten Wambach ◽  
Erik Alsema
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Silicon Wafers ◽  
Environmental Aspects ◽  
Recycling Process ◽  
Solar Module ◽  
Reusable Components ◽  
Photovoltaic Modules ◽  
Life Phase

AbstractSince June 2003 Deutsche Solar AG is operating a recycling plant for modules with crystalline cells. The aim of the process is to recover the silicon wafers so that they can be reprocessed and integrated in modules again. The aims of the Life Cycle Analysis of the mentioned process are (i) the verification if the process is beneficial regarding environmental aspects, (ii) the comparison to other end-of-life scenarios, (iii) the ability to include the end-of-life phase of modules in future LCA of photovoltaic modules. The results show that the recycling process makes good ecological sense, because the environmental burden during the production phase of reusable components is higher than the burden due to the recycling process. Moreover the Energy Pay Back Time of modules with recycled cells was determined.

scholarly journals Life Cycle Analysis of Disposed and Recycled End-of-Life Photovoltaic Panels in Australia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 11025
Author(s):  
Jasleen Kaur Daljit Singh ◽  
Georgina Molinari ◽  
Jonathan Bui ◽  
Behdad Soltani ◽  
Gobinath Pillai Rajarathnam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Pv System ◽  
Pv Systems ◽  
Hypothetical Scenario ◽  
Single Score ◽  
Circular Design

This study presents a life cycle analysis (LCA) of end-of-life (EoL) photovoltaic (PV) systems in Australia. Three different EoL scenarios are considered for 1 kWh of electricity generation across a 30-year PV system lifespan: (i) disposal to landfill, (ii) recycling by laminated glass recycling facility (LGRF), and (iii) recycling by full recovery of EoL photovoltaics (FRELP). It is found that recycling technologies reduce the overall impact score of the cradle-to-grave PV systems from 0.00706 to 0.00657 (for LGRF) and 0.00523 (for FRELP), as measured using the LCA ReCiPe endpoint single score. The CO2 emissions to air decrease slightly from 0.059 kg CO2 per kWh (landfill) to 0.054 kg CO2 per kWh (for LGRF) and 0.046 kg CO2 per kWh (for FRELP). Increasing the PV system lifespan from 30 years to 50 and 100 years (a hypothetical scenario) improves the ReCiPe endpoint single-score impact from 0.00706 to 0.00424 and 0.00212, respectively, with corresponding CO2 emissions reductions from 0.059 kg CO2 per kWh to 0.035 and 0.018 kg CO2 per kWh, respectively. These results show that employing recycling slightly reduces the environmental impact of the EoL PV systems. It is, however, noted that recycling scenarios do not consider the recycling plant construction step due to a lack of data on these emerging PV panel recycling plants. Accounting for the latter will increase the environmental impact of the recycling scenarios, possibly defeating the purpose of recycling. Increasing the lifespan of the PV systems increases the longevity of the use of panel materials and is therefore favorable towards reducing environmental impacts. Our findings strongly suggest that PV recycling steps and technologies be carefully considered before implementation. More significantly, it is imperative to consider the circular design step up front, where PV systems are designed via circular economy principles such as utility and longevity and are rolled out through circular business models.

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