Environmental impact of tsipouro production by life cycle assessment

The study of the environmental impact of agricultural products has significantly grown in recent years, as consumers now demand more information about the product’s footprint in the environment. The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impact of the life cycle phases of tsipouro production, which is one of the traditional products of Greece produced mainly from viticulture. The environmental analysis was performed through the study of eutrophication, global warming, photochemical oxidation and acidification, using the life cycle assessment methodology. The system was studied through fifteen subsystems and a 250 ml bottle of tsipouro, which was the basis of the calculations, was defined as a functional unit. From the results it appears that the process of tsipouro production is the subsystem with the highest energy consumption and the grape cultivation the one with the highest water consumption. In environmental impact the subsystem with the highest contribution is the cultivation of grapes. Also the subsystems production/transportation and use of fertilizers, bottle production/transportation and the process of tsipouro production have a significant contribution. In addition, some literature-based solutions are suggested. Some of the solutions are the use of clearer energy sources, the use of biodiesel and alternative cultivation methods without synthetic fertilizers. The results of this research can be used by tsipouro or similar industries to minimize the environmental impact and focus on the phases that are most involved in it.

Life Cycle Assessment of Two Alternative Plastics for Bottle Production

The article characterizes selected issues related to the method of performing environmental impact analyses. Particular attention was paid to the need for identifying environmental effects associated with the process of shaping beverage bottles. This study concerns the analysis of selected stages of the machine’s life cycle environmental impact in the specific case of the blow molding machine used in the production of bottles. Life cycle assessment analysis was performed using the SimaPro 8.4.0 software (The Dutch Company Pre Consultants). The CML 2 and ReCiPe2016 methods were chosen to interpret the lists of chemical emissions. Impact categories specific to the CML 2 model are: abiotic depletion, acidification, eutrophication, global warming, ozone layer depletion, human toxicity, fresh water aquatic ecotoxicity, marine aquatic ecotoxicity, terrestrial ecotoxicity, and photochemical oxidation. Among all the considered impact categories, marine aquatic ecotoxicity was characterized by the highest level of potential harmful effects occurring during the bottle production process. A new aspect of the research is to provide updated and more detailed geographic data on Polish bottle production.

Circularity Study on PET Bottle-To-Bottle Recycling

With the European Green Deal, the importance of recycled products and materials has increased. Specifically, for PET bottles, a high content of recycled material (rPET) is demanded by the industry and consumers. This study was carried out in a lab environment replicating real-life industrial processes, to investigate the possible impacts on rPET quality over eleven recycling loops, aiming to use high amounts of rPET repetitively. A cycle included extrusion, solid state polycondensation (SSP), a second extrusion to simulate bottle production, hot wash and a drying step. 75% rPET and 25% virgin PET were extruded in eleven cycles to simulate a recycling and production process. Samples underwent chemical, physical and biological analysis. The quality of the rPET material was not adversely affected. Parameters such as coloring, intrinsic viscosity, concentration of critical chemicals and presence of mutagenic contaminants could be positively assessed. The quality of the produced material was likely influenced by the input material’s high standard. A closed loop PET bottle recycling process using an rPET content of up to 75% was possible when following the proposed process, indicating that this level of recycled content can be maintained indefinitely without compromising quality.

Evaluating the greenhouse gas emissions of the Ontario craft beer industry: an assessment of challenges and benefits of greenhouse gas accounting

Ontario, Canada’s cap and trade program, a provincial tool for carbon regulation, came into effect January 1, 2017. While larger companies are targeted from this policy, both large and small companies have a responsibility to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). Craft brewing in Ontario is growing, however industry GHGs have not been comprehensively studied. The purpose of this research is to measure the GHGs of an Ontario craft brewery, investigate the challenges and benefits to calculating GHGs, and evaluate Ontario craft brewers’ perceptions of carbon pricing policy. This research found that indirect sources account for the majority of GHGs, particularly from barley agriculture, malted barley transportation, and bottle production. Direct emissions account for the least GHGs. This research found that the main challenges in calculating Ontario brewery GHGs are secondary data availability, technical knowledge, and finances. The main benefits for breweries include sustainability marketing, and preserving the environment.

Evaluating the greenhouse gas emissions of the Ontario craft beer industry: an assessment of challenges and benefits of greenhouse gas accounting

Ontario, Canada’s cap and trade program, a provincial tool for carbon regulation, came into effect January 1, 2017. While larger companies are targeted from this policy, both large and small companies have a responsibility to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). Craft brewing in Ontario is growing, however industry GHGs have not been comprehensively studied. The purpose of this research is to measure the GHGs of an Ontario craft brewery, investigate the challenges and benefits to calculating GHGs, and evaluate Ontario craft brewers’ perceptions of carbon pricing policy. This research found that indirect sources account for the majority of GHGs, particularly from barley agriculture, malted barley transportation, and bottle production. Direct emissions account for the least GHGs. This research found that the main challenges in calculating Ontario brewery GHGs are secondary data availability, technical knowledge, and finances. The main benefits for breweries include sustainability marketing, and preserving the environment.

Manufacturing System Modeling and Performance Analysis of Mineral Water Production Line using ARENA Simulation

Today’s scenario all manufacturing organizations are moving rapidly to adopt new process modeling, performance analysis through simulation, in order to design a new costeffective system. Organizations made several changes in their manufacturing systems to increase profit and to sustain their significance in global markets. Simulation modeling is a well accepted technique for improving process performance. In this study, the mineral water company operates the production line with less throughput, long cycle times, frequent machine failures and insufficient utilization of its resources. A simulation model is developed for the successful bottling and packaging of the production line by using Arena simulation software. The model is developed for AMWSC packaging process for returnable glass bottle Production Line. This model eliminates the bottlenecks in production line and provides optimal performance. By applying Effective Preventive Maintenance Strategy, the production line throughput is increased from 21.12% to 54.03% and the cycle time is reduced by 33.33%.

Managing the Uncertainty and Accuracy of Life Cycle Assessment Results for the Process of Beverage Bottle Moulding

Using environmentally friendly materials in the technological process of bottle production fits perfectly into the idea of sustainable development. The use of natural raw materials as well as conscious energy consumption are strategic aspects that should be considered in order to improve the effectiveness of the bottle moulding process. This paper presents a new and structured approach to the analysis of uncertainty and sensitivity in life cycle assessment, one developed in order to support the design process of environmentally friendly food packaging materials. With regard to this “probabilistic” approach to life cycle assessment, results are expressed as ranges of environmental impacts, and alternative solutions are developed while offering the concept of input uncertainty and the effect thereof on the final result. This approach includes: (1) the evaluation of the quality of inputs (represented by the origin matrix); (2) the reliability of results and (3) the uncertainty of results (the Monte Carlo method). The use of the methodology is illustrated based on an experiment conducted with real data from the technological process of bottle production. The results provide insight into the uncertainty of life cycle assessment indicators regarding global warming, acidification and the use of arable fields and farmland.

Technology’s Tools

The evolution from farmer-miller craft distilling to large-scale commercial industrial distilling was abetted by inventions and innovations that were related either directly or indirectly to the distilling process. Some inventions that were directly applicable to the distilling process included the high-capacity column still, developed through several iterations in the 1820s. In 1828 European inventor Aeneas Coffey patented an improved design, and it was later refined by American inventors. Other inventions beneficial to industrial distilling included grain elevators, slop dryers, hoists, and the barrel storage rack developed by Frederick Stitzel. Steam-powered railroads and boats, farm equipment, glass bottle production, and improved grain varieties also influenced distilling. Many inventions required changes in structures or transport and thereby modified the distilling landscape with new forms and placements.

Applying Technology

The evolution from farmer-miller craft distilling to large-scale industrial distilling was abetted by inventions and innovations. Some inventions were directly applicable to the distilling process; others involved cognate areas such as steam-powered railroads and boats, farm equipment, glass bottle production, and improved grain varieties. The high-capacity column still went through several iterations in the 1820s, and in 1828 European inventor Aeneas Coffey patented an improved design. It underwent further improvements by American inventors. Other inventions beneficial to industrial distilling included grain elevators, slop dryers, hoists, and the barrel storage rack developed by Frederick Stitzel. Many inventions required changes in structures or transport and thereby modified the distilling landscape. For instance, the use of brick and iron in distillery buildings decreased the fire risk and permitted greater structure size and stability.