Polyfunctional Plants for Industrial Waste Disposal—Part II: Economics and Model Evaluation

ABSTRACT

This is the second part of a two-part paper dealing with the preliminary design and costing of polyfunctional waste treatment plants. In this article, we present some criteria for estimating capital investment and annual operating costs of polyfunctional plants for industrial waste treatment. The process and equipment design methods presented in Part I of this article, together with the economic approach proposed here, allow for complete technical/economic analyses. The overall mathematical model appears to be a useful tool in economic feasibility studies. The accuracy of the developed computer mathematical model has been demonstrated, referring to actual cost data from the literature.     

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Waste Gas Treatment Plants for the Glass Industry

ABSTRACT

Cost-effectiveness of different plant solutions for glass furnace waste gas cleaning is compared in the present paper. Plant arrangements based on electrostatic precipi-tator or fabric filter dust collectors and wet, semi-dry, or dry processes for acid gas removal have been considered. A critical survey of each solution's advantages and disadvantages has been presented, taking into account both effectiveness and costs resulting from each available system. Finally, a quantitative assessment has been provided with reference to a case study involving actual float glass production lines at SIV plants located in northern and central Italy.     

Economic Comparison of Emission Control Systems for Glass Manufacturing Furnaces with Heat Recovery

ABSTRACT

Glass manufacturing, like other process industries, is faced with air pollution compliance problems due to ever stricter emission limits. Several waste gas cleaning equipment options are available for air pollution control (APC) in glass plants, the most common arrangements being based on electrostatic precipitator (ESP) or fabric filter (FF) dust collectors and semi-wet or dry processes for acid gas removal. However, several counteracting aspects affect the choice of gas cleaning technologies, which are confirmed by the discrepancies encountered in actual suppliers' bids. In this paper, the main pollution control options are analyzed by carrying out a critical comparison under the cost-effectiveness point of view to select the lowest cost arrangement considering capital investment, operating expenses, and energy-saving revenues from heat recovery processes. The analysis is carried out with reference to a case study involving actual float glass production lines at Pilkington plants in Italy.     

A qualitative characterization of the competitive nonrenewable resource extracting firm

Using variational differential equations, a systematic qualitative analysis is carried out for the competitive nonrenewable resource extracting firm. The parameters of interest are the output price, variable input price, discount rate, lease length, initial resource stock, and various tax rates. The effects of changes in these parameters on the entire optimal time paths of the current shadow value of the stock, the resource stock, and the extraction rate are characterized in the perturbed phase plane.     

Economic comparison of emission control systems for glass manufacturing furnaces with heat recovery

Glass manufacturing, like other process industries, is faced with air pollution compliance problems due to ever stricter emission limits. Several waste gas cleaning equipment options are available for air pollution control (APC) in glass plants, the most common arrangements being based on electrostatic precipitator (ESP) or fabric filter (FF) dust collectors and semi-wet or dry processes for acid gas removal. However, several counteracting aspects affect the choice of gas cleaning technologies, which are confirmed by the discrepancies encountered in actual suppliers' bids. In this paper, the main pollution control options are analyzed by carrying out a critical comparison under the cost-effectiveness point of view to select the lowest cost arrangement considering capital investment, operating expenses, and energy-saving revenues from heat recovery processes. The analysis is carried out with reference to a case study involving actual float glass production lines at Pilkington plants in Italy.     

Geophysical and hydrological data assimilation to monitor water content dynamics in the rocky unsaturated zone

In recent years, geophysics is increasingly used to study the flow and transport processes in the vadose zone. Particularly, when the vadose zone is made up of rocks, it is difficult to install sensors in the subsurface to measure hydrological state variables directly. In these cases, the electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) represents a useful tool to monitor the hydrodynamics of the infiltration and to estimate hydraulic parameters and state variables, such as hydraulic conductivity and water content. We propose an integrated approach aimed at predicting water content dynamics in calcarenite, a sedimentary carbonatic porous rock. The uncoupled hydrogeophysical approach proposed consists in 4D ERT monitoring conducted during an infiltrometer test under falling head conditions. Capacitance probes were installed to measure water content at different depths to validate the estimations derived from ERT. A numerical procedure, based on a data assimilation technique, was accomplished by combining the model (i.e., Richards’ equation) with the observations in order to provide reliable water content estimations. We have used a new data assimilation method that is easy to implement, based on the ensemble Kalman filter coupled with Brownian bridges. This approach is particularly suitable for strongly non-linear models, such as Richards’ equation, in order to take into account both the model uncertainty and the observation errors. The proposed data assimilation approach was tested for the first time on field data. A reasonable agreement was found between observations and predictions confirming the ability of the integrated approach to predict water content dynamics in the rocky subsoil.     

Investigating the role of smartness for sustainability: insights from the Smart Grid domain

Over the past decades, information and communication technologies (ICT) established themselves as the key force towards more effective and efficient usage of resources in our society, namely via better use of available information, automation, stakeholder involvement, and decision support. By analyzing recent advancements in knowledge offered by ICT, it is possible to identify their strong correlation with the principles, aims, and interests of sustainability science, which can be highly inspired by ICT-intensive domains. In this paper, we study the theoretical background on system thinking as an interpretative lens able to support better understanding of dimensions and dynamics involved in the domain of sustainability, and examine the role of ICT in advancing sustainability goals. Then, we analyze the domain of the Smart Grid as a prominent example of complex technological contribution in face of the challenges of sustainability, and present the insights from this domain, which are turned into sustainability guidelines for other domains, linking smartness, and sustainability in the light of systems thinking and Smart Grid experience. In summary, the core recommendation of this work is the employment of information technology to widen the scope of the sustainability “game” by sliding activities in time and space, and in engaging more “players” in the game, which is now made possible thanks to the advancement in ICT.     

Polyfunctional Plants for Industrial Waste Disposal—Part I: Process and Equipment Design

ABSTRACT

This article is the first of two papers dealing with development of a design and costing procedure for polyfunctional waste treatment plants. Part I reviews equipment sizing aspects. Part II defines and validates the cost estimation procedure. In this article, the structure of a general purpose polyfunctional plant for liquid and solid industrial waste treatment is discussed, highlighting the high level of process integration obtainable and the consequent benefits. The plant comprises an incineration section, a section for chemical/physical/biological treatments, and a stabilization/solidification section. Each section is briefly described, and an overview of the sizing procedure for main equipment is presented. Such a procedure forms the basis of a computer model for process and equipment preliminary design to be used in economic feasibility evaluation studies.     

Genetic variation in seven goby species (Perciformes: Gobiidae) assessed by electrophoresis and taxonomic inference

Data on the electrophoretic patterns of 20 enzyme loci were used to investigate relationships among seven Mediterranean goby species. The study evidenced different levels of genetic variability among the species. On the whole, the degrees of genetic differentiation were consistent with the current taxonomic recognition of species and genera. Phenetic and phylogenetic analyses agreed in clustering the samples in three groups, i.e. the Gobius (including Zosterisessor ophiocephalus), the Lesueurigobius species and Pomatoschiarua minutus. The taxa analysed probably evolved following the complex geological and climatic events that have been affecting the Mediterranean basin ever since the Miocene. Received: 20 June 1998 / Accepted: 5 February 1999     

Health response to a large and rapid influx of Albanian refugees in southern Italy, 1991

Over a two-day period in March 1991, more than 23,000 Albanian refugees arrived without warning in the southern Italian port of Brindisi. A simple surveillance system was established within days of their arrival to monitor health problems that were expected to have a high frequency, were of concern to the Italian health care system because of potential spread to the local population, and were susceptible to therapeutic or preventive measures. The most commonly encountered health problems were pediculosis and scabies. Despite poor sanitary conditions, only one outbreak of gastrointestinal disease was reported. Obstetric events were common, and many resulted in adverse outcomes. Hospitalization rates were high, although in the early weeks of the emergency, many were unwarranted. This experience demonstrates the value of a simple, rapid surveillance system in prioritizing health problems and preventing rumors. In future, greater emphasis should be placed on outpatient management of simple medical problems.