scholarly journals Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of EPA and DHA Production from Microalgae and Farmed Fish

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 699-710
Author(s):  
Sarat Chandra Togarcheti ◽  
Ramesh Babu Padamati
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Fish Oil ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Life Cycle Analysis ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Fish Feed ◽  
Farmed Fish ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
Dha Production

The present study aims at comparing the life cycle environmental impacts of polyunsaturated fatty acids production (PUFA) from microalgae and farmed fish. PUFA production from microalgae cultivated via heterotrophy and photoautotrophy was assessed and compared. The primary energy demand (PED) and environmental impacts (EI) of PUFA production from microalgae via heterotrophy were significantly lower compared to PUFA produced via photoautotrophy. Furthermore, PED and EI of PUFA production from fish farmed in marine net pens were assessed. The results indicated that the PED and EI of PUFA production from farmed fish are higher than that produced from microalgae cultivated via heterotrophy. Therefore, the results suggest that PUFA produced from microalgae via heterotrophy could substitute fish oil from an environmental perspective. Furthermore, life cycle analysis results indicate that PUFA derived from microalgae could potentially replace fish oil in the fish feed, thus reducing the pressure on oceans.

scholarly journals The Environmental Impacts of the Grassland Agricultural System and the Cultivated Land Agricultural System: A Comparative Analysis in Eastern Gansu

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 10602
Author(s):  
Huilong Lin ◽  
Yanfei Pu ◽  
Xueni Ma ◽  
Yue Wang ◽  
Charles Nyandwi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Production Capacity ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Agricultural System ◽  
Cultivated Land ◽  
Primary Energy Demand

“Introducing grass into fields”, the major approach to modern grassland agriculture, is the crucial direction of agricultural structure adjustment in the farming-pastoral zone of Northern China. However, there have been few studies on the environmental impacts of agricultural production in this pattern. We used the life cycle assessment (LCA) method for the first time from the perspective of the entire industry chain from agricultural material production to livestock marketing, which involves the combination of planting and breeding. A comparative analysis of the environmental impact processes of beef and pork, the main products of the two existing agricultural systems in Eastern Gansu, was conducted. The findings showed that based on the production capacity of the 1 ha land system, the comprehensive environmental impact benefit of the grassland agricultural system (GAS) in the farming-pastoral zone was 21.82%, higher than that of the cultivated land agricultural system (CLAS). On Primary energy demand (PED) and environmental acidification potential (AP), the GAS needs improvement because those values were 38.66% and 22.01% higher than those of the CLAS, respectively; on global warming potential (GWP), eutrophication potential (EP), and water use (WU), the GAS performed more environment-friendlily because those values were 25.00%, 68.37%, and 11.88% lower than those of the CLAS, respectively. This indicates that a change in land use will lead to a change in environmental impacts. Therefore, PED and AP should be focused on the progress of grassland agriculture modernization by “introducing grass into fields” and new agricultural technologies.

scholarly journals Environmental Performance of Soapberry (Sapindus Mukorossi Gaertn.) Cultivation in Southeast China based on a Life Cycle Assessment: A Potential Feedstock for Forest-based Biodiesel

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiqi Liu ◽  
Jiming Liu ◽  
Yuan Gao ◽  
Benye Xi ◽  
Zhong Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Potassium Fertilizer ◽  
Southeast China ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
Net Carbon Sink

Abstract Sapindus mukorossi G. has been considered as a potential feedstock for forest-based biodiesel in China. To optimize the cultivation of soapberry and ensure its sustainable supply, an environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted using a chronological approach combined with extrapolation. Soapberry plantations with two degrees of cultivation intensities were comparatively analyzed. For the studied environmental categories, nitrogen fertilization accounted for half or more of the global warming potential, primary energy demand, acidification and eutrophication potential. The main contributors to ozone depletion were pesticides and potassium fertilizer. The plantations with a relatively low cultivation intensity presented better environmental performance, mainly due to the lower input of fertilizers, but they are not a priority choice for soapberry cultivation because of low yield. Stakeholders should focus on how to reduce the environmental impacts of the plantations with a relatively high cultivation intensity in this area. Overall, classified management, increasing the yield, reducing the inputs of chemicals and decreasing the unproductive years are the key ways to improve the environmental performance of soapberry cultivation in Southeast China. Woody biomass carbon should be included in LCAs, and 3.71-5.11 t CO2 can be fixed by soapberry plantations per ha year, indicating that soapberry cultivation provides a net carbon sink.

scholarly journals Environmental Impacts of a Solar Dish Coupled With a Micro-Gas Turbine for Power Generation

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Agostini ◽  
C. Carbone ◽  
M. Lanchi ◽  
A. Miliozzi ◽  
M. Misceo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Energy Mix ◽  
Micro Gas Turbine ◽  
Primary Energy Demand

Concentrated solar power (CSP) systems are regarded as a renewable energy source technology that can contribute to decoupling the energy mix from fossil fuel combustion and related environmental impacts. However, current small-scale CSP technologies (e.g., Dish-Stirling) have not entered the market yet due to high costs, complexity, and poor reliability. The EU-funded OMSoP (Optimised Microturbine Solar Power) project aimed at solving the small-scale CSP shortcomings by coupling a solar dish with the consolidated and relatively cheap technology of the micro gas turbine (MGT). In this study, an environmental life cycle assessment analysis of the production and operation of a CSP-MGT system is performed following an eco-design approach, thus identifying the environmental hotspots and how the system can be improved in terms of environmental impacts. The results of the analysis, per unit of electricity produced, were compared to other renewable technologies with the same level of dispatchability to better evaluate strengths and weaknesses of the system under exam. With regard to climate change, the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the CSP-MGT system resulted in the same range as those generated by photovoltaic systems. However, the system can substantially be optimized and the GHG emissions per kWh can be reduced up to 73% with respect to the built prototype. The GHG emissions are much lower than the current Italian energy mix (by up to 94%). To reduce the environmental burden of CSP-MGT plants, the system design here considered should be revised by improving the component’s performance and significantly reducing the reflective surface and therefore the structural materials for the dish foundation and frame. The replacement of steel in the dish frame with aluminum increases all the environmental impact parameters and primary energy demand (17%–27% depending on the environmental category considered) but slightly reduces abiotic element depletion (by 9%).

Life Cycle Assessment of Typical Rubber-Plastic Sponge Production in China

2018 ◽  
Vol 913 ◽  
pp. 991-997
Author(s):  
Chun Zhi Zhao ◽  
Yi Liu ◽  
Shi Wei Ren ◽  
Yan Jiao Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Product Life Cycle ◽  
Material Selection ◽  
Fire Retardant ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Insulation Material ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
The Impact

As a kind of high-grade flexible insulation and energy-saving material, rubber-plastic sponge insulation material is produced by taking butadiene-acrylonitrile rubber and polyvinyl chloride as main materials, together with auxiliary materials such as fire retardant, plasticizer, foaming agent and filler, through production processes as weighing stock, pre-smelting, mixing, extrusion, foaming and cutting and packaging. By taking 1m3 rubber-plastic sponge as the functional unit, this paper quantitatively obtains that the impact of the product on primary energy demand, greenhouse effect, acidification potential, photochemical ozone formation potential and respirable inorganics is 2,100MJ/m3, 74.9kg CO2 equivalent/m3, 0.356kg SO2 equivalent/m3, 0.244kg NMVOC/m3 and 0.0642kg PM2.5 equivalent/m3 respectively. This paper provides reference for enterprise's cleaner production and consumer's green material selection by making life cycle assessment for rubber-plastic insulation material, quantifying the environmental load of the product, identifying the environment hot spots in product life cycle and illustrating the environment compatibility of product.

scholarly journals Scalable Life-Cycle Inventory for Heavy-Duty Vehicle Production

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (13) ◽  
pp. 5396
Author(s):  
Sebastian Wolff ◽  
Moritz Seidenfus ◽  
Karim Gordon ◽  
Sergio Álvarez ◽  
Svenja Kalt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Life Cycle Inventory ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Lithium Ion ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Heavy Duty ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
Vehicle Production

The transportation sector needs to significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions. European manufacturers in particular must develop new vehicles and powertrains to comply with recent regulations and avoid fines for exceeding C O 2 emissions. To answer the question regarding which powertrain concept provides the best option to lower the environmental impacts, it is necessary to evaluate all vehicle life-cycle phases. Different system boundaries and scopes of the current state of science complicate a holistic impact assessment. This paper presents a scaleable life-cycle inventory (LCI) for heavy-duty trucks and powertrains components. We combine primary and secondary data to compile a component-based inventory and apply it to internal combustion engine (ICE), hybrid and battery electric vehicles (BEV). The vehicles are configured with regard to their powertrain topology and the components are scaled according to weight models. The resulting material compositions are modeled with LCA software to obtain global warming potential and primary energy demand. Especially for BEV, decisions in product development strongly influence the vehicle’s environmental impact. Our results show that the lithium-ion battery must be considered the most critical component for electrified powertrain concepts. Furthermore, the results highlight the importance of considering the vehicle production phase.

scholarly journals Investigation of the BNB Building Certification for the Further Development of the Energy Performance Certificate

2021 ◽  
Vol 2069 (1) ◽  
pp. 012233
Author(s):  
Manuela Walsdorf-Maul ◽  
Laura Dommack ◽  
Michael Schneider
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Technical Quality ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
German Speaking ◽  
Environmentally Sound ◽  
Further Development

Abstract In this study, a life cycle oriented planning of buildings is proposed to support future building developers and planners in making environmentally sound decisions on the basis of comprehensive information. The study, in which the building certification BNB (Bewertungssystem Nachhaltiges Bauen, or “Assessment System for Sustainable Building”) is carried out on the example of an office building, is applicable to German-speaking countries. In addition to meeting the requirements of the 2020 German Energy Act for Buildings (GebäudeEnergieGesetz, GEG), the aim is to optimize the building with regard to sustainability criteria of the BNB by revising and expanding the existing planning so that the “gold” quality label can eventually be achieved. The biggest influence on this optimization process is, among other things, the life cycle costs, the adaptability of the building, the primary energy demand as well as the technical quality. Based on these findings, this research paper details the further development of the energy performance certificate, before in a final step the building assessment can be graphically presented with regard to both aspects – energy efficiency (final energy) and sustainability (in terms of ecological, economic, socio-cultural, functional and technical quality, process quality and location characteristics) – from the production phase through the usage phase up to the disposal phase.

scholarly journals Analysis and comparison of passive and climate-unadapted design in terms of resources, energy demands and thermal comfort by means of building simulation and life cycle assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 2069 (1) ◽  
pp. 012032
Author(s):  
A J Mayer ◽  
T Jürgens
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Embodied Energy ◽  
Indoor Climate ◽  
Additional Measure ◽  
Primary Energy Demand ◽  
Passive Design

Abstract The aim of passive design is to respond to the external climate using primarily structural means to achieve a comfortable indoor climate. The use of building technology is an additional measure. This paper compares the demand for resources, primary energy, and thermal and air-hygienic comfort of passive and climate-unadapted designs to determine the most energy-efficient and sustainable design. It also analyses whether user comfort suffers from reduced use of technical building equipment. For this purpose, a representative passive building model is compared with a climate-unadapted one. Comfort, primary and embodied energy are determined and compared by way of a simulation and life cycle assessment. The passive design presents a lower primary energy demand than the climate-unadapted one, even when embodied energy is taken into account. While the requirements of air-hygienic comfort are fulfilled equally in both types of buildings, the passive design displays better thermal comfort. This indicates that energy can be saved by employing a passive design.

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