Environmental impact assessment of non-wood based pulp production by soda-anthraquinone pulping process

Paper pulp manufacturing is the main non-food industrial utilization of plant biomass. Non-wood and agricultural residues are potential raw materials in the production of specialty papers. This chapter aims to quantify the environmental impacts associated with non-wood high quality paper pulp manufacture via soda-anthraquinone (AQ) cooking process by means of the application of LCA methodology in a cradle-to-gate analysis. Hemp (Cannabis sativa) and Flax (Linum usitatissimum) were evaluated as raw materials for the production of high quality non-porous pulp. A specialty paper pulp mill was analysed in detail and process chain was divided in six subsystems: agricultural activities, chemicals production, electricity production, transport, pulp production and waste treatment. Inventory data came from interviews and surveys (on-site measurements). When necessary, the data were completed with bibliographic resources.Abiotic resources depletion (AD), global warming (GW), ozone layer depletion (OLD), human toxicity (HT), ecotoxicity, photochemical oxidant formation (POF), acidification (A) and eutrophication (E) were the impact categories analysed in this study. According to the results, the environmental impact is mainly caused by the production of chemicals, electricity and fibres (agricultural activities) due to greenhouse gases emissions, phosphorous and nitrogen compounds emissions. The activities inside the pulp mill present minor contribution to almost all impact categories, excluding GW (15%) and E (6%) as well as OLD (25%). This study provides useful information for non-wood based industries related not only to pulp manufacture but also to panels or biorefineries with the aim of increasing their sustainability.     

The pollution release and transfer register system in the U.S. and Japan: an analysis of productivity

This study analyzes Total Factor Productivity (TFP), which includes all categories of productivity. Our measure investigates productivity in the context of the provision and dissemination of environmental information policies. We investigated data on the emission of toxic chemical substances for the U.S. and Japanese manufacturing firms, including 386 firms for the period 1999-2007 and 466 firms for the period 2001-2008. The results show that productivity improved in all nine industrial sectors and that pollution levels were high in the U.S. and Japan from 2001 to 2007. In particular, the electronics industry improved rapidly after 2002 in both countries, which may be attributed to the enforcement of RoHS and the REACH directive in Europe. As a result of these stringent policies on toxic chemical emissions, the U.S. and Japanese firms, many of which export to the European market, have strong incentives to reduce their toxic chemical emissions.     

上海市电力CO_2排放特征及减排途径分析

电力作为一种二次能源,不同发电方式和发电技术的电力CO2排放系数差别很大。研究发现,上海市2009年电力消费侧的CO2排放高于电力生产侧1 551万t,即上海市净调入电力的CO2排放为1 551万t,可见外来电CO2排放的正确测算对全市及各终端消费部门的CO2排放有重要影响。从排放系数来看,消费侧的CO2排放系数只有生产侧排放系数的81%,得益于外来电中可再生能源比例高于本地电力。2009年由于外来电的引入,上海市电力消费避免了178万t的CO2排放。就火力发电而言,上海市单位发电能耗和CO2排放略低于华东电网平均值,远高于世界先进水平,还有很大下降空间。基于以上研究,从提高火力发电的能效、发展可再生能源、发展分布式供能和其他新能源技术、建设智能电网等方面提出上海市减缓电力CO2排放的途径。     

Measuring the environmental performance of IPPC industry: I. Devising a quantitative science-based and policy-weighted Environmental Emissions Index

This paper describes the derivation of an Environmental Emissions Index (EEI) intended to quantify the environmental performance of Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) installations and sectors. Characterisation and normalisation methods used in lifecycle analyses were applied to 20 routinely reported emissions parameters, pertaining to six environmental impact categories. Distance to policy targets for relevant emissions were used to weight impact categories, and link the EEI to policy priorities. Ireland and the EU15 were considered as scales of context. The European Pollutant Emission Register was a convenient source of normalisation data, but restricted the context of the EEI to industrial emissions, and distorted outputs. Using national and EU15 total loading estimates for normalisation resulted in an EEI that better reflected the relative contribution of reported emissions towards overall environmental pressures. Using Ireland's pharmaceutical sector as a case study indicated that weighting factors, and the toxicity range of NMVOC emissions, were the largest sources of EEI uncertainty. Through the integration of inventory data, scientific characterisation, and policy targets, the EEI translates reported emissions data from IPPC installations and sectors into a benchmark of environmental performance. It may be regarded as an evolving tool of potential utility to regulators and policy makers.     

Improving eco-efficiency in the steel industry: The ArcelorMittal Gent case

In addition to CO₂ released by the combustion of fossil fuel and leading to climate change, large steelworks emit pollutants that have other environmental impacts. ArcelorMittal Gent, an integrated steelwork producing ca. 5 × 10⁶ tons of steel per year, not only decreased its specific energy consumption and CO₂-emissions, but also reduced the environmental impact of its other emissions. This is illustrated by means of the evolution of 6 partial eco-efficiency indicators for the impact categories acidification, photo-oxidant formation, human toxicity, freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity, eutrophication and water use. The partial eco-efficiency indicators are eco-intensities, defined as the environmental impact in the respective impact category, divided by the amount of liquid steel produced. In the period 1995 – 2005 these indicators decreased by 45, 4, 52, 9, 11 and 33% respectively, whereas the steel production increased by 17%. The net impact of discharges of wastewater is negligible for human toxicity and is negative (concentrations lower than in the canal water used) for freshwater aquatic toxicity and eutrophication. For acidification, human toxicity (only emissions to air) and water use, the decoupling between environmental impact and production was absolute; for photo-oxidant formation, freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity (only emissions to air) and eutrophication, it was relative.     

广东电力生产的温室气体排放趋势和演变特征

通过文献调研收集广东电力生产最新的能源消费数据和排放因子,采用“自上而下”方法估算1995—2011年广东电力行业的直接和间接GHG(温室气体)排放量,量化直接排放量的不确定性,绘制GHG排放流向图,并且根据GHG排放特征提出减排建议. 结果表明:①虽然受经济、环境和能源政策的影响,与1995年相比,2011年广东电力生产的GHG总排放量仍增长438%,达3.44×108 t,其中直接排放量达2.78×108 t,不确定性为±11%. ②从发电能源结构角度考虑,燃煤发电是电力生产的最大GHG排放源,2011年其排放量占总排放量的76%;而从用电终端考虑,工业用电是最大的GHG排放源,2011年其排放量占电力生产GHG总排放量的66%. ③1995—2011年,用电终端总体电力GHG排放强度下降了16%,居民用电人均GHG排放量上升了260%,单位综合发电量的GHG排放系数微升了1%. ④发电能源结构和终端产业结构的低碳化以及控制居民用电的GHG排放量等措施可减排2011年广东电力生产GHG总排放量的44%.      

Life cycle assessment of offset printed matter with EDIP97: how important are emissions of chemicals?

Existing product life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on offset printed matter all point at paper as the overall dominating cause of environmental impacts. All studies focus on energy consumption and the dominating role of paper is primarily based on the energy-related impact categories: global warming, acidification and nutrient enrichment. Ecotoxicity and human toxicity, which are related to emissions of chemicals, etc., are only included to a limited degree or not at all. In this paper we include the impacts from chemicals emitted during the life cycle of sheet fed offset printed matter. This is done by making use of some of the newest knowledge about emissions from the production at the printing industry combined with knowledge about the composition of the printing materials used. In cases with available data also upstream emissions from the production of printing materials are included. The results show that inclusion of the chemical emission-related impacts makes the EDIP97 impact profile of sheet fed offset products much more varied, as well for the normalised profiles as for the profiles weighted by distance to political environmental targets. Especially the ecotoxicity impact potential related to the production stage may contribute significantly, and the use of paper no longer becomes the overall dominating factor driving the environmental impacts.     

Environmental life-cycle impacts of CRT and LCD desktop computer displays

Final impact results from an industry-wide environmental life-cycle assessment of cathode ray tube (CRT) and liquid crystal display (LCD) computer monitors are presented for 20 environmental impact categories. Considering the entire life cycle of each monitor, water eutrophication and aquatic ecotoxicity impacts for the baseline analysis were greater for the LCD while all other impact categories (e.g., resource use, energy, ozone depletion, landfill space use, human health toxicity) were greater for the CRT. Energy inputs from CRT glass manufacturing, for which there was some uncertainty in the data, drive many of the CRT impacts. Modifying the glass energy data based on comparison to secondary data resulted in nine of the 20 impact categories having greater relative life-cycle impacts for the LCD than the CRT. When comparing the manufacturing stages of each monitor type in the baseline scenario, the LCD has greater relative burdens on the environment in eight categories. Energy, global warming, and human health toxicity impacts are also presented in greater detail, showing contributions from each life-cycle stage. This study's results can allow industry to focus on frit manufacturing, PWB manufacturingimprovements can be made.     

中国大气汞排放变化的社会经济影响因素

基于投入产出模型,从生产和最终需求角度计算了1997~2017年中国大气汞排放量;并结合结构分解分析方法,定量分析了各种社会经济因素对大气汞排放变化的相对贡献.结果表明：生产端大气汞排放较多的行业主要是水泥、石灰和石膏制造业（135t）、有色金属冶炼及压延加工业（86t）等重工业;消费端对大气汞排放贡献较多的行业主要是建筑业（219t）、汽车制造业（16t）等.各种社会经济因素对不同排放源和不同行业的相对贡献存在差异.人均最终需求水平提高是大气汞排放增加的最大驱动因素,其中,有色金属冶炼及压延加工业,电力、热力的生产和供应业,水泥、石灰和石膏制造业是其推动排放增加的主要行业.排放强度降低是大气汞排放减少的最大驱动因素,对有色金属冶炼及压延加工业,电力、热力的生产和供应业,水泥、石灰和石膏制造业的减排贡献最大.生产结构、最终需求行业结构和最终需求类别结构变化导致大气汞排放略有增加,但1997~2017年间因这3种结构性因素变化而减少汞排放的排放源和行业数量增多.根据研究结果,本文从生产全过程管控、优化社会经济结构等角度提出相关政策建议.     

A process systems approach to life cycle inventories for minerals: South African and Australian case studies

In this paper, we present a process synthesis approach to the development of Life Cycle Inventories (LCIs) for production of minerals from primary ore bodies, based on a heuristics-driven flowsheeting methodology. Technologies are specified to a level of detail consistent with information availability and mass balance closure. This approach enables the creation of flowsheets for all minerals processing activities using a “cradle-to-gate” system boundary, from which it is possible to generate LCIs using accepted practices for the mapping of resource flows and emissions onto a profile of environmental burdens. In this work, LCIs are presented only for the foreground system (i.e. the flows from background systems, such as electricity generation, are documented but their environmental burden profile is not included in the LCIs reported). This method allows for the detailing of these inventories on a commodity, sector, or geographic (regional) basis. The approach has been demonstrated for all sub-sectors of the Australian and the South African minerals processing industries. A case study of the gold sub-sector in each region is presented in some detail, in order to highlight the key features of the approach and the usefulness of the LCI profiles generated. The potential for this approach to support comparative technology assessment and sub-sectoral performance is demonstrated for the copper sub-sector. Some indication of the value of the approach to assist in company benchmarking is presented. The performance of all key sectors, namely coal, gold, non-ferrous metals, ferrous metals, uranium, platinum group metals and mineral sands, though not detailed here, is available on our on-line data-base.¹. This information is used to develop an aggregated picture of minerals LCIs for the minerals processing activity in Australian and South Africa.     

基于生命周期的循环农业系统评价

针对"循环经济系统是低碳经济的实现途径之一"的观点,在国内外研究的基础上,改进LCA模型,以湖南某典型的循环鸭业产业进行实证研究.整个鸭产业生命周期中耗用的不可再生资源、土地、水资源分别为48.629MJ、2.36m2和1321.41kg,潜在的温室气体、环境酸化、富营养化、人体毒性、水体毒性、土壤毒性分别为11543.26g(CO2eq)、52.36g(SO2eq)、25.83g(PO4eq)、1.26、60.74、24.65g(1,4-DCBeq),加权评估后,富营养化、水体毒性、土壤毒性潜在威胁均高于温室气体.结果表明,建立在传统生产模式上的循环农业适宜"适度循环";循环农业不能盲目追求低碳发展,在降低碳排放的同时还须考虑土壤和生物固碳,才能全面评价碳排放问题;循环经济和循环农业在评估碳排放的同时,还需对环境酸化、富营养化、生态毒性等其他生态指标进行评估,建立系统评价体系;LCA能够较好地对循环农业进行整体评价,值得进一步研究.     

Potential impacts of 316(b) regulatory controls: on economics,electricity reliability,and the environment

Nearly half of the utility-owned steam electric generating capacity in the United States is cooled by once-through cooling systems. These plants withdraw cooling water primarily from surface water bodies. Section 316(b) of the Clean Water Act requires that the location, design, construction, and capacity of cooling water intake structures reflect the best technology available (BTA) for minimizing adverse environmental impacts. At present, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has not yet promulgated implementing regulations governing intake structures; however, the agency is required by a Consent Decree to develop such regulations. EPA has introduced several draft tiered regulatory framework approaches that, depending on site-specific factors, may impose various regulatory burdens on affected utilities. Potential new requirements could range from compiling and submitting existing data to demonstrate that existing conditions at each unit represent BTA to retrofitting plants with closed-cycle cooling systems (primarily cooling towers). If the final regulations require installation of cooling towers or implementation of other costly plant modifications, utilities may elect to close some generating units rather than invest the funds necessary to upgrade them to meet the Section 316(b) requirements. Potentially, some regions of the country may then have a higher proportion of closed units than others. This may raise concerns over the reliability of electricity supply in those regions. If a significant number of plants are converted from once-through cooling systems to cooling towers, the environment will face secondary adverse impacts, such as additional fuel usage, air emissions, and water evaporation, and utilities will need to construct additional generating capacity. This paper describes a study that Argonne National Laboratory had proposed to conduct for the US Department of Energy to explore some of the potential outcomes of EPA’s Section 316(b) regulatory process and associated effects on economics, electricity supply reliability, and the environment.     

全产业链视角下建筑碳排放路径模拟:基于RICE-LEAP模型

从社会经济活动的角度出发,创新性地构建包含中国终端部门的新型综合评估模型—RICE-LEAP模型,并通过情景设置动态模拟2020~2050年建筑全产业链碳排放的发展路径及其结构性特征.结果表明:①与参考情景相比,考察期内1.5℃情景下中国碳排放总量的额外累计减排量将达到129.74Gt CO₂,而建筑全产业链碳排放的额外累计减排量为57.53Gt CO₂,占比44.28%.②建筑业是典型的“表观低碳、隐含高碳”的行业.建筑业直接碳排放占建筑物化碳排放的比例较小,仅占9.46%~11.75%.③3个动态情景下,建筑物化碳排放的下降速率均快于建筑运行碳排放.这是由于建筑物化碳排放主要依赖工业等终端部门的脱碳进程,在实现碳达峰过程中具有先发优势.④现阶段,建筑全产业链能耗仍以煤炭消费为主,但煤炭的消费占比在3个动态情景中均呈现出不同程度的下降,而电力的消费占比则呈现出明显的上升趋势.     

人工纳米颗粒对水生生物的毒性效应及其机制研究进展

随着纳米科技的飞速发展和纳米产品的普及,人工纳米颗粒(NPs)的生物毒性效应研究逐渐成为国内外关注的热点.以水环境和水生生物为对象,综述了近几年来NPs对水生生物的毒性效应、毒性机制等方面的研究进展.文中按NPs的分类总结了NPs对微生物、藻类、原生动物和鱼类等水生生物的毒性效应,着重论述了NPs的可能毒性机制及其与NPs的独特物理化学性质之间的关系,并在细胞和分子水平上探讨了NPs的摄取、跨膜运输等方面的可能机制.在自然水体中,NPs因其化学行为受水化学条件等影响而表现出不同于实验室研究中的生物毒性效应,本文也对这方面的研究进行了讨论和总结.最后分析了目前水生生物纳米毒性研究中的瓶颈和方法、技术方面的问题,并对以后应注重开展的研究进行了展望.     

中国铝冶炼行业二氧化碳排放达峰路径研究

铝冶炼行业是高耗能、高排放行业,也是有色金属行业中CO₂排放量最大的领域,在全国2030年碳达峰背景下,铝冶炼行业将面临巨大的减排压力. 统筹考虑社会经济发展、能源结构、工艺结构、技术进步、进出口影响等因素,采用回归分析和情景分析等方法,对2021—2035年我国铝冶炼行业碳排放趋势及影响因素进行分析,识别碳减排的主要驱动因素,提出推动碳达峰的关键举措,为制定碳达峰目标背景下的铝冶炼行业碳排放控制路径提供参考. 结果表明:①实现铝冶炼行业碳达峰任务艰巨,在严格落实电解铝产能总量控制以及多项措施实施的前提下,预计可实现铝冶炼行业“十四五”末期至“十五五”初期达峰,峰值在5.3×108~6.4×108 t之间,达峰后保持2年左右平台期,产能控制是削峰的关键. ②提高再生铝利用水平是决定铝冶炼行业能否快速达峰的关键,到2030年其对行业碳减排的贡献率为77.3%. ③推进清洁能源替代,鼓励电解铝产能向可再生电力富集地区转移是铝冶炼行业碳减排的重要手段,到2030年其对行业碳减排的贡献率为21.5%. ④提高短流程比例也是铝冶炼行业碳减排的重要方向,到2030年其对行业碳减排的贡献率为1.2%. 研究显示,铝冶炼行业碳减排工作重点聚焦于推进严控产能总量、调整优化产业结构、加强清洁能源替代、强化技术降碳等方面.      

基于USEtox的焦化行业优先污染物筛选排序研究

针对焦化污染物的毒性影响,以山西省清徐市某焦化厂为研究对象,通过采样分析、文献调研,构建了焦化厂污染物排放清单,采用生命周期影响评价(LCIA)模型USEtox计算焦化污染物排放的人体及生态毒性影响,对结果进行排序筛选,分析并识别了焦化行业优先污染物、污染优先控制工段以及焦化厂选址对毒性排放的影响,为区域人体健康及生态环境保护提供了科学依据.结果表明,焦化行业排放的人体毒性优先污染物为苯并[a]芘、锌等,生态毒性优先污染物为芘、蒽等;在装煤、焦炉烟囱、推焦和熄焦这4个工段的排放中,有机毒性排放集中于装煤工段,优先污染物为苯并[a]芘、苯、萘、二苯[a,h]蒽等,金属毒性排放集中于熄焦工段,优先污染物为锌、砷、锑、汞等;焦化污染物毒性受排放地区的影响,厂区从城市迁至农村的过程可以大幅降低有机物的毒性影响,但是对于金属毒性的降低并无积极作用,并且会增加农村土壤和水体受重金属污染的风险.     

浅谈农药生态毒性试验的设计思路及评价方法

从试验周期、剂量和控制水平三方面探讨了农药生态毒性试验的设计思路以及试验结果与安全性评价的衔接．按照试验持续的时间，农药生态毒性试验可分为急性和慢性二种类型．由于实际当中农药的急性和慢性毒害往往同时存在，相应地，急性和慢性毒性试验亦需要同时进行．农药生态毒性试验在选择剂量时可以考虑，也可以不考虑田间污染水平．两种设计的评价方法也不相同．室内试验、半田间试验和田间试验构成农药生态毒性试验的三个阶段．     

2006~2009年工业COD和SO2减排分解研究

通过运用分解模型,将工业COD和工业SO2减排分解为规模效应、结构效应、清洁技术效应和污染治理效应,并根据模型测算了2006~2009年各种效应的大小.结果表明:规模效应值为58.68%,即经济规模扩张增加工业COD和工业SO2排放,结构效应、清洁技术效应和污染治理效应效应值分别为-0.63%、-49.34%和-29.79%,即促进工业COD和工业SO2减排;分行业来看,农副食品加工业和非金属矿物制品业发展迅速,需要严格控制其发展速度;化学纤维制造业的COD产生强度和电力、热力的生产和供应业、有色金属矿采选业、石油加工、炼焦及核燃料加工业的SO2产生强度升高,需要加强清洁生产控制;燃气生产和供应业、皮革毛皮羽毛(绒)及其制品业的COD去除率和非金属矿采选业、非金属矿物制品业和燃气生产和供应业的SO2去除率降低,需要加强污染治理控制.     

Life cycle assessment of electricity generation from bagasse in Mauritius

This paper presents the findings of a life cycle assessment (LCA) of electricity generated from the combustion of sugar cane bagasse in Mauritian sugar mills. The study arose from the identification of the need for to provide data for the development of an LCA profile for the electricity mix in Mauritius. The system is limited geographically to the island of Mauritius and is intended to be the representative of current agricultural techniques practiced and current manufacturing processes used by Mauritian sugar mills. The unit operations that make up the system are the growing and harvesting of sugar cane, the transport of the harvested cane to sugar mills, the production of bagasse as a by-product from the sugar milling process, and the combustion of bagasse to generate heat and electricity. The functional unit of the study is the generation of 1 GWh of electricity exported to the national electricity grid. The characterised data for 1 GWh of bagasse-derived electricity were compared with data for 1 GWh of coal-derived electricity, using the same set of characterisation factors. The results of this comparison indicate that bagasse-derived electricity performs well in the areas of greenhouse gas emissions, acidification, and non-renewable energy inputs, but performs poorly in relation to water consumption and eutrophication.     

Toxicity assessment of the main pesticides used in Costa Rica

The impacts of the 30 active substances, most used in Costa Rica (reference year 1998), are evaluated using two models originally developed to support comparative assertions in the context of the life cycle assessment: the multimedia fate, exposure and effect model Impact Assessment of Chemical Toxics 2002 (IMPACT 2002), and the Dynamic Model for Pesticides Residues in Plants. Results show that only five active substances – namely diazinon, mancozeb, chlorothalonil, terbutylazine and ethoprophos – contribute to more than 75% of the aquatic ecotoxicity and yet represent less than 40% of the amount used. More than 90% of the human toxicity is generated by only two active substances – namely terbufos and chlorothalonil – whereas they represent less than 10% of the total amount used. Overall, it would be possible to achieve a 90% reduction of human toxicity and a 75% reduction of aquatic ecotoxicity due to pesticide used in Costa Rica, focusing on only a few active substances. For instance, propiconazole or tridemorph could potentially be replaced by chlorothalonil; ametryn, diuron or paraquat by glyphosate; terbufos by cypermethrin; methyl bromide by metam sodium.