Removing ammonium from water and wastewater using cost-effective adsorbents: A review

Ammonium is an important nutrient in primary production; however, high ammonium loads can cause eutrophication of natural waterways, contributing to undesirable changes in water quality and ecosystem structure. While ammonium pollution comes from diffuse agricultural sources, making control difficult, industrial or municipal point sources such as wastewater treatment plants also contribute significantly to overall ammonium pollution. These latter sources can be targeted more readily to control ammonium release into water systems. To assist policy makers and researchers in understanding the diversity of treatment options and the best option for their circumstance, this paper produces a comprehensive review of existing treatment options for ammonium removal with a particular focus on those technologies which offer the highest rates of removal and cost-effectiveness. Ion exchange and adsorption material methods are simple to apply, cost-effective, environmentally friendly technologies which are quite efficient at removing ammonium from treated water. The review presents a list of adsorbents from the literature, their adsorption capacities and other parameters needed for ammonium removal. Further, the preparation of adsorbents with high ammonium removal capacities and new adsorbents is discussed in the context of their relative cost, removal efficiencies, and limitations. Efficient, cost-effective, and environmental friendly adsorbents for the removal of ammonium on a large scale for commercial or water treatment plants are provided. In addition, future perspectives on removing ammonium using adsorbents are presented.     

Carbon Dioxide Emission Reduction Scenarios in Mexico for Year 2005: Industrial Cogeneration and Efficient Lighting

An analysis of the impacts on Mexican energy demand and associated carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in the year 2005 due to efficient lighting in the commercial and residential sectors and cogeneration in the industrial sector is presented. Estimation of CO₂ abatement costs and an incremental cost curve for CO₂ mitigation options are considered. These technologies are cost effective opportunities, and together are projected to reduce CO₂ emissions in 2005 by nearly 13 percent. Implementation of efficient lighting is already part of the demand side management (DSM) programs of the Mexican state-owned utility. However, there are important barriers that may hinder the implementation of large scale cogeneration plants.     

Carbon Dioxide Emission Reduction Scenarios in Mexico for Year 2005: Industrial Cogeneration and Efficient Lighting

An analysis of the impacts on Mexican energy demand and associated carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in the year 2005 due to efficient lighting in the commercial and residential sectors and cogeneration in the industrial sector is presented. Estimation of CO₂ abatement costs and an incremental cost curve for CO₂ mitigation options are considered. These technologies are cost effective opportunities, and together are projected to reduce CO₂ emissions in 2005 by nearly 13 percent. Implementation of efficient lighting is already part of the demand side management (DSM) programs of the Mexican state-owned utility. However, there are important barriers that may hinder the implementation of large scale cogeneration plants.     

Minimizing greenhouse gas emissions through the application of solar thermal energy in industrial processes

The analysis of industrial energy usage indicates that low temperature processes (20 ≈ 200 °C) are used in nearly all industrial sectors. In principle there is the potential to use solar thermal energy in these lower temperature processes thus, reducing the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels. Using the model of an Austrian dairy plant, this research investigated the potential for, and the economic viability of, using solar energy heat processes in industry.Some industrial sectors such as food, chemistry, plastic processing, textile industry, building materials industry and business establishments can be identified as potential sectors for the application of solar energy heat processes. When assessing the (economic) feasibility of solar thermal energy, the investigation of these industries’ energy systems has to focus on an integrated analysis of cooling and heating demands and to take into account competing technologies. Amongst these are heat integration, cogeneration, new technologies and heat pumps. Pinch analysis was used to investigate industrial energy systems and heat integration possibilities and proved to be a viable tool. Working from the basis of energy balances, Sankey diagrams, pinch analysis and environmental cost accounting, a newly developed investigation tool was applied in the case study of an Austrian dairy plant. This enabled a fast optimization of the system. Two different options for the integration of solar thermal energy into the production line were calculated, option 1 with a solar field of 1000 m² and option 2 with a solar field of 1500 m². Natural gas savings of 85,000 for option 1 and 109,000 m³/a for option 2 can be achieved, resulting in a reduction of 170 tons of CO₂ per year, or 218 tons for options 1 and 2 respectively. Based upon option 1, return on investment is realised after less than three years of implementation. This research thus, indicates promising technical and economical feasibility of using solar thermal energy for industrial processes and provides an important step towards sustainable zero emission production in industry.     

Climate change mitigation and international finance: the effectiveness of the Clean Development Mechanism and the Global Environment Facility in India and Brazil

This study analyzes the effectiveness and efficiency of the two principal United Nations (UN) climate change mitigation finance mechanisms, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). The realised abatement and costs of the two mechanisms in India and Brazil (using data from 28 GEF and 233 CDM project documents) are compared with theoretical marginal abatement cost curves, based on bottom-up technology studies. We find that both mechanisms have focused on negative and low-cost abatement potential but still leave substantial theoretical potential in this cost range untapped. CDM has more effectively harvested abatement potential of industrial gases and methane emissions, whereas GEF has more successfully targeted demand-side energy efficiency (EE) and transport emission reduction opportunities. CDM has excelled at capturing abatement potential in areas with a limited understanding of abatement, highlighting the shortcomings of theoretical estimates (such as Marginal Abatement Cost Curves) and the benefits of a market mechanism. In some sectors and technologies (particularly renewable energy), the two mechanisms overlapped, which suggests a need for better coordination in the future.     

炼油企业水资源调研及综合利用

通过开展炼油系统的水平衡工作和对污水分布的调研，制定出相应的节水策略，详细介绍了该单位炼油系统的节水减排方案。方案的实施，不仅有效地降低生产成本，减少环境污染，而且也为该单位的进一步发展打下基础。     

Potential and Cost of Carbon Sequestration in the Tanzanian Forest Sector

The forest sector in Tanzania offers ample opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and sequester carbon (C) in terrestrial ecosystems. More than 90% of the country's demand for primary energy is obtained from biomass mostly procured unsustainably from natural forests. This study examines the potential to sequester C through expansion of forest plantations aimed at reducing the dependence on natural forest for wood fuel production, as well as increase the country's output of industrial wood from plantations. These were compared ton conservationoptions in the tropical and miombo ecosystems. Three sequestrationoptions were analyzed, involving the establishment of short rotation and long rotation plantations on about 1.7 × 10⁶ hectares. The short rotation community forestry option has a potential to sequester an equilibrium amount of 197.4 × 10⁶ Mg C by 2024 at a net benefit of 79.5 × 10⁶, while yielding a NPV of 0.46 Mg^-1 C. The long rotation options for softwood and hardwood plantations will reach an equilibrium sequestration of 5.6 and 11.8 × 10⁶ Mg C at a negative NPV of 0.60 Mg^-1 C and 0.32 Mg^-1 C. The three options provide cost competitive opportunities for sequestering about 7.5 × 10⁶ Mg C yr^-1 while providing desired forest products and easing the pressure on the natural forests in Tanzania. The endowment costs of the sequestration options were all found to be cheaper than the emission avoidance cost for conservation options which had an average cost of 1.27 Mg^-1 C, rising to 7.5 Mg^-1 C under some assumptions on vulnerability to encroachment. The estimates shown here may represent the upper bound, because the actual potential will be influenced by market prices for inputs and forest products, land use policy constraints and the structure of global C transactions.     

Adaptation to the Impacts of Sea Level Rise in Egypt

Assessment of the vulnerability and expected socioeconomic losses over the Nile delta coast due to the impact of sea level rise is carried out in details. Impacts of sea level rise over the Governorates of Alexandria and Port Said in particular, are evaluated quantitatively. Analysis of the results at Alexandria Governorate indicate that, if no action is taken, an area of about 30% of the city will be lost due to inundation. Almost 2 million people will have to abandon their homeland; 195,000 jobs will be lost and an economic loss of over $3.5 Billion is expected over the next century. At Port Said Governorate results indicate that beach areas are most severely affected (hence tourism), followed by urban areas. The agriculture sector is the least affected sector. It is estimated that the economic loss is over $ 2.0 Billion for 0.50 m SLR and may exceed $ 4.4 Billion for 1.25 m SLR. Options and costs of adaptation are analyzed and presented. Multi-criteria and decision matrix approaches, based on questionnaire surveys are carried out to identify priorities for the two cases. Analysis of these techniques of two options; the current policy (hard protection measures on some vulnerable areas) and no action (stopping these activities) have the lowest scores. Beach nourishment and integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) have the highest scores, however ICZM has high cost measures. The most cost-effective option is the land-use change, however with relatively very high cost measure. It is recommended that an ICZM approach be adopted since it provides a reasonable trade off between costs and cost effectiveness.     

On zero water discharge solutions in the process industry

This paper presents a mathematical programming approach to analyze the feasibility of zero liquid discharge option in different industries. Mathematical programming methodologies are applied to four industrial cases—a tricresyl phosphate plant, an ethyl chloride plant, a paper mill and a refinery. In each case study various end of pipe and regeneration configurations using different treatment technologies are explored to determine the possibility of zero liquid discharge and its economical feasibility. The results show that the relationship between the cost of regeneration and the cost of freshwater as well as the discharge concentration of the treatment is the determining factor for the feasibility of zero liquid discharge.     

A stakeholder driven process to reduce vulnerability to climate change in Hermosillo,Sonora, Mexico

While there is a growing body of knowledge on potential impacts of climate change on water availability, there has been much less empirical research on exploring the viability of particular adaptation options. The participation of stakeholders in defining appropriate adaptation strategies is increasingly recognized as a critical element in the translation of climate change impact research into effective actions to reduce future vulnerability, yet the process by which stakeholders are included in such initiatives is not well-defined. This article presents the results of a pilot project in which a participatory approach was employed to identify and evaluate adaptation options to climate change scenarios for Sonora’s capital city, Hermosillo. In an iterative process, stakeholders representing different water users and managers in the city met to discuss climate change scenarios, identify specific adaptation options, and evaluate a subset of options for possible future implementation. This process enabled the focus of the investigation on those adaptations that addressed not only concerns with the potential future impacts of climate change but also the immediate and pressing concerns about development patterns and water use in the city. Two of the adaptations to climate change identified by stakeholders would also reduce energy demand. The simplicity of the approach makes it a feasible model for adaptation initiatives in other regions of Mexico and in other countries in Latin America.

中国水泥行业二氧化碳减排技术及成本研究

为降低水泥行业碳减排成本,确定最优碳减排技术路径,研究基于经济-能源模型,核算中国水泥行业最新碳减排技术的边际减排成本,使用情景分析方法,研究了与未实施减排技术相比,2020年17项技术的碳减排潜力,并将其作为基准情景,和2025,2030,2035年3个未来情景的碳减排潜力作比较,从而得出不同情景下的边际减排成本曲线。结果表明:1）2020年我国水泥行业17项减排技术的平均减排成本为124元/tCO₂,2020年实现总减排量3043万t,总减排成本为10.3亿元;在保持技术水平和排放水平不变的情况下,2035年17项减排技术可实现总减排量21307万t,总减排成本为103.4亿元。2）在各项减排技术中,集成模块化窑衬节能技术与水泥熟料烧成系统优化技术,具有较高减排潜力和较低减排成本,适合广泛推广;CO₂捕集利用与封存（CCUS）技术虽具有较高减排成本,但是未来减排潜力较大,应给予重视。3）技术普及率与熟料产量是决定减排潜力的重要因素,因此未来水泥行业应注重节能减排政策技术推广与产业结构调整,可进一步实现减排目标。     

Advancing Towards a Hydrogen Energy Economy: Status,Opportunities and Barriers

Performance reliability advances and cost reductions have been achieved with hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in both the transportation and distributed energy sectors. This paper reviews the status of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, identifies key business and policy drivers for the hydrogen economy, critically examines key barriers to implementing the hydrogen economy, identifies and discusses key national initiatives to advance the hydrogen economy, and identifies and discusses key intergovernmental initiatives and activities to advance the hydrogen economy. Hydrogen and fuel cell technology advances, coupled with a reduction in costs and improvements in performance reliability, present new opportunities for developed and developing countries to achieve energy, economic and environmental security. Substantial national research and development investments in hydrogen production, storage, transport, end-use technologies (e.g., fuel cells), safety and public education underscore future opportunities. Intergovernmental bodies such as Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), International Energy Agency (IEA) and the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy (IPHE) provide a multilateral framework for development of a global hydrogen economy. While the pathway forward for the hydrogen economy is precarious alternative energy options offer substantially fewer public benefits.     

含砷(Ⅲ)水处理技术的回顾及展望

为了应对新的饮用水水质标准,传统的共沉积、离子交换、膜处理、电絮凝、吸附等技术取得了新的进展。通过回顾这些新技术采用的新材料及工艺研究的现状,分析了其处理含砷(Ⅲ)水质的局限性。新材料的稳定性、高选择性、廉价性是未来新技术研究与开发值得关注的重要研究方向。     

清洁生产的无费和低费方案评述

无／低费方案着重于企业内部生产管理和小的工艺改进，具有投资少、见效快和易操作的特性。从目前的情况来说，清洁生产方案中大约有60％以上为无／低费方案，而其实施比例均在80％以上，由此可见，无／低费方案的重要性。通过3则实例证明了无／低费方案良好的环境效益和经济效益。     

Assessment of tomato Mediterranean production in open-field and standard multi-tunnel greenhouse,with compost or mineral fertilizers,from an agricultural and environmental standpoint

This study presents detailed and comprehensive inventories on the horticultural production of tomato using compost (CM) or mineral fertilizers (M), in both open-fields (OF) and greenhouses (GH), providing information on the environmental impacts and assessing the agronomic viability of the four cultivation options. Life cycle assessment (LCA) was used to calculate the potential environmental impacts of the tomato production cycle per ton of product. The stages in the assessment included: mineral and organic fertilizers production, fertilizers transport, cultivation stage and greenhouse stage. The data were obtained experimentally in pilot fields and in an industrial composting facility using municipal organic waste, both located in the Mediterranean area. The results indicate that replacing a fraction of the mineral fertilizers dosage with compost is a good option, as this did not alter yield or fruit size parameters. Greenhouse protection increased infrastructure materials requirements but enhanced harvest by almost 50% and reduced the water and pesticides requirement. Compost production and greenhouse stages were the most impacting stages. Without subtracting the avoided burdens by composting and not dumping organic waste, the cultivation option OF_M had the lowest and OF_CM the highest impact. When avoided burdens were taken into consideration, the environmental impacts of the four cultivation options varied, depending on the impact category, with bigger differences due to fertilization as a variable rather than the production system.     

基于IWCPA模型的工业节水关键技术选择

通过建立工业节水潜力分析和技术综合评价模型(IWCPA模型),筛选了影响高耗水行业用水的关键技术.选定2002年为基准年,在2010年和2020年高耗水行业取水零增长的情景设定下,进行了分行业和行业耦合的技术综合评价及技术选择,确定了重要工业用水技术实施的优先序,建立了高耗水行业重要用水技术的优选清单.结果表明,未来15a内是否能够在若干工业用水关键技术的研究、应用和推广方面取得突破,是挖掘工业节水潜力、提高工业用水效率的关键.     

京津冀化工场地地下水污染修复治理对策研究

京津冀化工场地地下水污染问题突出,严重威胁当地饮水安全和可持续发展,亟待开展修复治理.针对京津冀化工场地地下水污染现状,分析了化工场地地下水污染修复面临的挑战,提出了分区分级的修复治理对策.结果表明:①针对可能存在NAPL(非水相液体污染物)的高风险污染源区,采取高强度修复措施,以实现污染物总量的快速削减;②针对中度污染区,采取单位能耗强度更低的长效修复措施,降低修复成本和二次污染风险;③针对低风险的轻度污染区,采取风险管控措施.结合对典型化工场地地下水污染修复技术的分析,提出的分区分级修复治理对策具有以下特点:①多技术耦合,形成互补效应,可提高修复效率;②节约修复成本,降低二次环境影响;③体现基于风险的原则,避免过度修复.      

Climate change scenarios to facilitate stakeholder engagement in agricultural adaptation

To prepare agricultural systems for climate change, scientists need to be able to effectively engage with land managers and policy makers to explore potential solutions. An ongoing challenge in engagement is to distil the complexity of climate-change-management-change interactions in agro-ecological systems to identify responses that are most important for adaptation planning. This paper presents an approach for selecting climate change scenarios to provide a focal point for engaging with stakeholders to evaluate adaptation options and communicate assessment outcomes. We illustrate how scenarios selected with the approach can be used by evaluating climate change impacts and an adaptation option for livestock industries in the north-east Australian rangelands. Climate change impacts on forage production, animal liveweight gain and soil loss are found to track projected climate changes in four pasture communities; increasing by up to 50% and declining by up to 110% in response to doubled atmospheric carbon-dioxide (CO₂), 4°C warming, and +20% to ?40% changes in mean annual rainfall. The effectiveness of reducing grazing pressure as an adaptation option shows a similar response; resulting in higher forage production (up to 40%), animal liveweight gains (up to 59%) and gross margins (up to 40%), and reduced soil erosion (down by 91%) per hectare relative to the baseline management. The results show that a few key scenarios may be selected to represent the range of global climate model (GCM) projections for use in assessing and communicating impacts and adaptation; simplifying the assessments and allowing limits to the effectiveness of adaptation options to be explored. The approach provides a framework for capturing and communicating trends in climate change impacts and the utility of options, which are required for successful engagement of stakeholders in finding viable adaption responses.     

Integrating mitigation and adaptation into climate and development policy: three research questions

The potential for developing synergies between climate change mitigation and adaptation has become a recent focus of both climate research and policy. Presumably the interest in synergies springs from the appeal of creating win–win situations by implementing a single climate policy option. However, institutional complexity, insufficient opportunities and uncertainty surrounding their efficiency and effectiveness present major challenges to the widespread development of synergies. There are also increasing calls for research to define the optimal mix of mitigation and adaptation. These calls are based on the misguided assumption that there is one single optimal mix of adaptation and mitigation options for all possible scenarios of climate and socio-economic change, notwithstanding uncertainty and irrespective of the diversity of values and preferences in society. In the face of current uncertainty, research is needed to provide guidance on how to develop a socially and economically justifiable mix of mitigation, adaptation and development policy, as well as on which elements would be part of such a mix. Moreover, research is needed to establish the conditions under which the process of mainstreaming can be most effective. Rather than actually developing and implementing specific mitigation and adaptation options, the objective of climate policy should be to facilitate such development and implementation as part of sectoral policies. Finally, analysis needs to focus on the optimal use and expected effectiveness of financial instruments, taking into account the mutual effects between these instruments on the one hand, and national and international sectoral investments and official development assistance on the other.