Mitigation Strategies for Reduction of Embodied Energy and Carbon, in the Construction Systems of Contemporary Quality Architecture

The criticality related to the consumption of operational energy and related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of existing buildings is clearly decreasing in new buildings due to the strategies tested and applied in recent years in the energy retrofit sector. Recently, studies have been focusing on strategies to reduce environmental impacts related to the entire life cycle of the building organism, with reference to the reduction of embodied energy (and related greenhouse gas emissions) in building materials. As part of EEA’s European EBC project, Annex 57, a wide range of case studies have been promoted with the aim of identifying design strategies that can reduce the embodied energy and related greenhouse gas emissions of buildings. The aim of this paper is to investigate the most common construction systems in the construction industry (concrete, steel, wood) through the analysis of three contemporary architectural works, with the aim of identifying the predisposition for environmental sustainability of each technological system, thus guiding the operators in the sector towards design choices more compatible with the environmental requirements recommended by European legislation.

Download Full-text

Analysis of Embodied Energy Consumption and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions in Chinese Manufacturing Industry

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.616-618.1148 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 616-618 ◽

pp. 1148-1153

Author(s):

Dong Sun ◽

Chu Xia Tong

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Calculation Model ◽

Embodied Energy ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Electric Equipment ◽

Chinese Manufacturing Industry

This paper attempts to discuss the embodied energy consumption and embodied greenhouse gas emissions in manufacturing industry. Based the on input-output theory, this paper establishes the calculation model, which gives the calculation of embodied energy consumption and embodied greenhouse gas emissions of 2002 and 2007 respectively. By comparison, it draws the conclusion that the total direct energy consumption of 2007 is much more than the year of 2002, while the total embodied energy consumption is less than the year of 2002. However, Non-metallic mineral products, Metal smelting and pressing and Electric equipment and machinery perform otherwise. The reason accounting for the calculation results is that the embodied energy intensity is greatly decreased.

Download Full-text

The Energy Mix Dilemma and Environmental Sustainability: Interaction among Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Nuclear Energy, Urban Agglomeration, and Economic Growth

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14227703 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (22) ◽

pp. 7703

Author(s):

Abdul Rehman ◽

Hengyun Ma ◽

Magdalena Radulescu ◽

Crenguta Ileana Sinisi ◽

Loredana Maria Paunescu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Nuclear Energy ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Urban Agglomeration ◽

Causality Test ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Short Run

In this paper we examined the interaction between greenhouse gas emissions, nuclear energy, coal energy, urban agglomeration, and economic growth in Pakistan by utilizing time series data during 1972–2019. The stationarity of the variables was tested through unit root tests, while the ARDL (autoregressive distributed lag) method with long and short-run estimations was applied to reveal the linkages between variables. A unidirectional association between all variables was revealed by performing a Granger causality test under the vector error correction model (VECM) that was extracted during the short-run estimate. Furthermore, the stepwise least squares technique was also utilized to check the robustness of the variables. The findings of long-run estimations showed that GHG emissions, coal energy, and urban agglomeration have an adversative association with economic growth in Pakistan, while nuclear energy showed a dynamic association with the economic growth. The outcomes of short-run estimations also show that nuclear energy has a constructive association with economic growth, while the remaining variables exposed an adversative linkage to economic growth in Pakistan. Similarly, the Granger causality test under the vector error correction model (VECM) outcomes exposes that all variables have unidirectional association. Furthermore, the outcomes of the stepwise least squares technique reveals that GHG emissions and coal energy have an adverse association with economic growth, and variables nuclear energy and urban agglomeration have a productive linkage to the economic growth in Pakistan. GHG emissions are no doubt an emerging issue globally; therefore, conservative policies and financial support are needed to tackle this issue. Despite the fact that Pakistan contributes less to greenhouse gas emissions than industrialized countries, the government must implement new policies to address this problem in order to contribute to environmental sustainability while also enhancing economic development.

Download Full-text

R&D Expenditure for New Technology in Livestock Farming: Impact on GHG Reduction in Developing Countries

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11247129 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (24) ◽

pp. 7129

Author(s):

Alessia Spada ◽

Mariantonietta Fiore ◽

Umberto Monarca ◽

Nicola Faccilongo

Keyword(s):

Developing Countries ◽

Research And Development ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Data Set ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Livestock Sector ◽

Wide Range ◽

Ghg Reduction

The achievement of the objectives of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has increasingly received attention and support from decision makers and research by scholars. The livestock sector has always been one of the major sources of GHG emissions, especially in developing countries that do not have green technologies to improve the management of livestock waste. In order to achieve an absolute reduction in emissions, developed countries have applied a wide range of mitigation options; however, there are few studies from the developing world, although greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries have registered a rapid growth. Therefore, this research aims to assess and understand whether public R&D investments can affect emissions deriving from the livestock sector in developing countries. We made use of the FAOSTAT data (FAO Statistical Databases United Nations) and ASTI data set (Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators), collecting data from 29 Africa countries, in 2014 (latest data available). The data were analyzed by means of a Generalized Propensity Scores (GPS) approach, an increasingly widespread technique that is more robust than regression models, especially in small datasets. Our analysis suggests that the livestock sector in these countries shows an improvement in its relationships with the environment and GHG emission levels when the level of public R&D (Research and Development) investment on agriculture is greater. Therefore, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by investing in research and development can lead to more efficient and sustainable resource management for developing countries.

Download Full-text

Embodied greenhouse gas emissions reduction for structural elements in office buildings

Journal of Physics Conference Series ◽

10.1088/1742-6596/2042/1/012165 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2042 (1) ◽

pp. 012165

Author(s):

Nicolas Alaux ◽

Endrit Hoxha ◽

Marcella Ruschi Mendes Saade ◽

Alexander Passer

Keyword(s):

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Building Materials ◽

Mitigation Strategies ◽

Emissions Reduction ◽

Structural Elements ◽

Construction Sector ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Embodied Carbon Emissions

Abstract In order to reach the COP21 objectives, mitigation strategies must be identified in all economic sectors. In Austria, the construction sector represents one of the greatest sources of carbon intensive activities. Within this sector, buildings have a significant role to play. Through a systematic literature review, this paper identifies strategies to reduce the embodied carbon emissions of structural building materials. Then, by implementing the most promising alternatives in building case studies and performing a life cycle assessment, up to 15% reduction of the embodied greenhouse gas emissions was observed. This paper, however, intends to show that there is no technology that is intrinsically best at surpassing all others.

Download Full-text

Greenhouse gas emissions from the water–air interface of a grassland river: a case study of the Xilin River

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-81658-x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Xue Hao ◽

Yu Ruihong ◽

Zhang Zhuangzhuang ◽

Qi Zhen ◽

Lu Xixi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Dioxide ◽

Land Use ◽

Nitrous Oxide ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Nitrous Oxide Emissions ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Sand Land ◽

Very High

AbstractGreenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rivers and lakes have been shown to significantly contribute to global carbon and nitrogen cycling. In spatiotemporal-variable and human-impacted rivers in the grassland region, simultaneous carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions and their relationships under the different land use types are poorly documented. This research estimated greenhouse gas (CO2, CH4, N2O) emissions in the Xilin River of Inner Mongolia of China using direct measurements from 18 field campaigns under seven land use type (such as swamp, sand land, grassland, pond, reservoir, lake, waste water) conducted in 2018. The results showed that CO2 emissions were higher in June and August, mainly affected by pH and DO. Emissions of CH4 and N2O were higher in October, which were influenced by TN and TP. According to global warming potential, CO2 emissions accounted for 63.35% of the three GHG emissions, and CH4 and N2O emissions accounted for 35.98% and 0.66% in the Xilin river, respectively. Under the influence of different degrees of human-impact, the amount of CO2 emissions in the sand land type was very high, however, CH4 emissions and N2O emissions were very high in the artificial pond and the wastewater, respectively. For natural river, the greenhouse gas emissions from the reservoir and sand land were both low. The Xilin river was observed to be a source of carbon dioxide and methane, and the lake was a sink for nitrous oxide.

Download Full-text

Prospects for land-use sustainability on the agricultural frontier of the Brazilian Amazon

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rstb.2012.0171 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 368 (1619) ◽

pp. 20120171 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Gillian L. Galford ◽

Britaldo Soares-Filho ◽

Carlos E. P. Cerri

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

State Government ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Forest Restoration ◽

Brazilian Amazon ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Non Governmental Organizations

The Brazilian Amazon frontier shows how remarkable leadership can work towards increased agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability without new greenhouse gas emissions. This is due to initiatives among various stakeholders, including national and state government and agents, farmers, consumers, funding agencies and non-governmental organizations. Change has come both from bottom-up and top-down actions of these stakeholders, providing leadership, financing and monitoring to foster environmental sustainability and agricultural growth. Goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from land-cover and land-use change in Brazil are being achieved through a multi-tiered approach that includes policies to reduce deforestation and initiatives for forest restoration, as well as increased and diversified agricultural production, intensified ranching and innovations in agricultural management. Here, we address opportunities for the Brazilian Amazon in working towards low-carbon rural development and environmentally sustainable landscapes.

Download Full-text

Remotely sensed temperature is a proxy of greenhouse gas emissions in intact and managed peatlands

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-4474 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ain Kull ◽

Iuliia Burdun ◽

Gert Veber ◽

Oleksandr Karasov ◽

Martin Maddison ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Temperature ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Water Table ◽

Ecosystem Respiration ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Remotely Sensed ◽

Water Table Depth ◽

Gas Emissions

Besides water table depth, soil temperature is one of the main drivers of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in intact and managed peatlands. In this work, we evaluate the performance of remotely sensed land surface temperature (LST) as a proxy of greenhouse gas emissions in intact, drained and extracted peatlands. For this, we used chamber-measured carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) data from seven peatlands in Estonia collected during vegetation season in 2017&#8211;2020. Additionally, we used temperature and water table depth data measured in situ. We studied relationships between CO2, CH4, in-situ parameters and remotely sensed LST from Landsat 7 and 8, and MODIS Terra. Results of our study suggest that LST has stronger relationships with surface and soil temperature as well as with ecosystem respiration (Reco) over drained and extracted sites than over intact ones. Over the extracted cites the correlation between Reco CO2 and LST is 0.7, and over the drained sites correlation is 0.5. In natural sites, we revealed a moderate positive relationship between LST and CO2 emitted in hollows (correlation is 0.6) while it is weak in hummocks (correlation is 0.3). Our study contributes to the better understanding of relationships between greenhouse gas emissions and their remotely sensed proxies over peatlands with different management status and enables better spatial assessment of GHG emissions in drainage affected northern temperate peatlands.

Download Full-text

Energy Consumption and Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Nickel Products

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13215664 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (21) ◽

pp. 5664

Author(s):

Wenjing Wei ◽

Peter B. Samuelsson ◽

Anders Tilliander ◽

Rutger Gyllenram ◽

Pär G. Jönsson

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Process Model ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Primary Energy ◽

Nickel Metal ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Nickel Smelting ◽

Ore Grade

The primary energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from nickel smelting products have been assessed through case studies using a process model based on mass and energy balance. The required primary energy for producing nickel metal, nickel oxide, ferronickel, and nickel pig iron is 174 GJ/t alloy (174 GJ/t contained Ni), 369 GJ/t alloy (485 GJ/t contained Ni), 110 GJ/t alloy (309 GJ/t contained Ni), and 60 GJ/t alloy (598 GJ/t contained Ni), respectively. Furthermore, the associated GHG emissions are 14 tCO2-eq/t alloy (14 tCO2-eq/t contained Ni), 30 t CO2-eq/t alloy (40 t CO2-eq/t contained Ni), 6 t CO2-eq/t alloy (18 t CO2-eq/t contained Ni), and 7 t CO2-eq/t alloy (69 t CO2-eq/t contained Ni). A possible carbon emission reduction can be observed by comparing ore type, ore grade, and electricity source, as well as allocation strategy. The suggested process model overcomes the limitation of a conventional life cycle assessment study which considers the process as a ‘black box’ and allows for an identification of further possibilities to implement sustainable nickel production.

Download Full-text

Consumer Readiness to Reduce Meat Consumption for the Purpose of Environmental Sustainability: Insights from Norway

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10093058 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 3058 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Marthe Austgulen ◽

Silje Skuland ◽

Alexander Schjøll ◽

Frode Alfnes

Keyword(s):

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Environmental Impacts ◽

Food Consumption ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Food Choices ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Environmentally Sustainable ◽

Consumption Practices ◽

Group Interviews

Food production is associated with various environmental impacts and the production of meat is highlighted as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. A transition toward plant-based and low-meat diets has thus been emphasised as an important contribution to reducing climate change. By combining results from a consumer survey, focus group interviews and an in-store field experiment, this article investigates whether Norwegian consumers are ready to make food choices based on what is environmentally sustainable. We ask how consumers perceive the environmental impacts of food consumption, whether they are willing and able to change their food consumption in a more climate-friendly direction, and what influences their perceptions and positions. The results show that there is uncertainty among consumers regarding what constitutes climate- or environmentally friendly food choices and that few consumers are motivated to change their food consumption patterns for climate- or environmental reasons. Consumers’ support to initiatives, such as eating less meat and increasing the prices of meat, are partly determined by the consumers’ existing value orientation and their existing consumption practices. Finally, we find that although providing information about the climate benefits of eating less meat has an effect on vegetable purchases, this does not seem to mobilise consumer action any more than the provision of information about the health benefits of eating less meat does. The article concludes that environmental policies aiming to transfer part of the responsibility for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to food consumers is being challenged by the fact that most consumers are still not ready to make food choices based on what is best for the climate or environment.

Download Full-text

Urban greenhouse gas emissions from the Berlin area: A case study using airborne CO2 and CH4 in situ observations in summer 2018

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-3363 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Theresa Klausner ◽

Mariano Mertens ◽

Heidi Huntrieser ◽

Michal Galkowski ◽

Gerrit Kuhlmann ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Capital City ◽

Detailed Knowledge ◽

Emission Flux ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Mixing Ratios

Urban areas are recognised as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). The total amount of urban GHG emissions, especially for CH4, however, is not well quantified. Here we report on airborne in situ measurements using a Picarro G1301-m analyser aboard the DLR Cessna Grand Caravan to study GHG emissions downwind of the German capital city Berlin. In total, five aircraft-based mass balance experiments were conducted in July 2018 within the Urban Climate Under Change [UC]2 project. The detection and isolation of the Berlin plume was often challenging because of comparatively small GHG signals above variable atmospheric background concentrations. However, on July 20th enhancements of up to 4 ppm CO2 and 21 ppb CH4 were observed over a horizontal extent of roughly 45 to 65 km downwind of Berlin. These enhanced mixing ratios are clearly distinguishable from the background and can partly be assigned to city emissions. The estimated CO2 emission flux of 1.39 &#177; 0.75 t s-1 is in agreement with current inventories, while the CH4 emission flux of 5.20 &#177; 1.61 kg s-1 is almost two times larger than the highest reported value in the inventories. We localized the source area with HYSPLIT trajectory calculations and the high resolution numerical model MECO(n) (down to ~1 km), and investigated the contribution from sewage-treatment plants and waste deposition to CH4, which are treated differently by the emission inventories. Our work highlights the importance of a) strong CH4 sources in the surroundings of Berlin and b) a detailed knowledge of GHG inflow mixing ratios to suitably estimate emission rates.

Download Full-text