Getting value from wastewater: by-products recovery in a potato chips industry

Reducing environmental impacts and getting economic benefits, based on by-product recovery, and on reduction of both water consumption and organic load, was the aim of the implementation of an eco-efficiency process in a crispy chips industry. Separations at the source were implemented resulting in increase of business productivity, due to the added value achieved through by-product valorisation. Improvement changes were monitored through physico-chemical and ecotoxicological evaluations of the wastewater, which has favourably evolved from acutely toxic to minor acutely toxic. Evidence is provided about the formulation of cleaner production opportunities enabling the downsizing of the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) with a subsequent decrease of energy, water and chemicals input and a decrease in sludge generation.     

Cleaner production as a means for effective environmental management

Cleaner production is a strategy to prevent emissions at the source and to initiate a continuous preventive improvement of environmental performance of organizations. In terms of Cleaner production the focus of management should be on prevention rather than on cure in avoiding environmental problems. The inclusion of commitment to prevention in the environmental policy is one prerequisite of the standard ISO 14001. But how can a formalized environmental management system help to start a process of continuous improvement and voluntary self regulation? We conclude from our experience that Cleaner production and ISO 14001 go well together and support each other in helping an organization to really decrease its environmental effect. Analysing environmental management systems introduced on the basis of Cleaner production projects demonstrates, that Cleaner production supplies management and employees with systematic tools to decrease the environmental impact and at the same time save costs from inefficient use of materials and energy and motivates the organization as well by creating awareness throughout the enterprise.     

中国化石能源生命周期清单分析

利用生命周期评价方法,建立了我国化石能源的生命周期清单模型,详述了模型相关因子的确定方法,计算了原煤、原油、天然气等初级能源及汽油、焦炭等几类主要次级能源的生命周期清单,揭示了我国能源生产的环境负荷,为工业系统分析和材料、产品的生命周期评价提供基础数据.清单分析表明我国化石能源清单的主要特点为能源消耗的97%以上主要来自生产过程,运输占到3%左右的比例;通过与2002年清单相比,我国化石能源生产的总能耗和排放出现不同程度变化;通过与国外能源清单相比,我国能源投入及排放整体处于较高水平.     

Material flows and environmental impacts of manufacturing systems via aggregated input–output models

Manufacturing processes may be viewed as operational units in the overall manufacturing/production system. Changes in technology, production patterns, and process settings are typically made at the process (unit) level. Very often, environmental problems are apparent when the manufacturing/production system is viewed as a whole (many units joined together). However, with the units aggregated to form a system, it is often difficult to identify the source of an environmental problem or judge the singular effect of changes to a process unit; the changes become lost in the complexity of the system as a whole. Recent efforts have employed input–output modeling to describe the flow of materials and the environmental consequences associated with manufacturing processes. A method is introduced for aggregating process-level material input–output models to form a combined material input–output model for a manufacturing system. The resulting model serves as a bridge between unit-level changes and broader system behaviors. The model form permits identification of opportunities for reducing environmental impacts at the process level (e.g., reduction of emissions, waste generation, and material use) and driving the system toward zero emissions based on an examination of the aggregated manufacturing system level model. Case studies are used to illustrate the application of the aggregated material input–output model to minimize waste and resource consumptions.     

Farm level environmental indicators; are they useful?: An overview of green accounting systems for European farms

Green accounts or input–output accounting systems (IOA) have been developed in countries with intensive agricultural production to facilitate voluntary improvements in farm environmental performance. There is a need for an overview of indicators used and a review of results and experiences reported. Ten IOA systems covering the topics of the farm’s use of nutrients, pesticides and energy were selected from a survey of 55 systems and compared in this paper. The approaches and indicators used vary from systems based on good agricultural practices (GAP) to accounts based systems that use physical input–output units. Many IOA systems use farm gate nutrient balances, pesticide use per hectare and energy use per kilogram product. These indicators are easy to calculate but the resulting value needs separate interpretation for the farmer. Other systems include modeled emissions and rate the yearly farm results using closed scales, which allows for easy interpretation but builds on implicit normative assumptions of best practices. Participating farmers were most often reported to be motivated for the use of IOA but empirical evidence of improved environmental farm performance was scarce. IOA systems should be linked with production planning tools used by the advisory services. Farmers and advisors needs better reference values to evaluate the indicator levels (environmental performance) on the individual farm possibly based on analysis of a larger number of farms. The statistical properties of IOA indicators need to be researched regarding: (1) the relation between changed management practice and changes in indicator values on a given farm over a period of time; (2) the relative importance of systematic versus coincidental differences in environmental performance of a set of farms. It is concluded that IOA systems could become effective tools for agri-environmental improvement of European farms given further development and standardization.     

水源中央空调环境影响的生命周期评价

从原材料获取、生产加工、运行使用和废弃后处理处置 4个阶段 ,对水源中央空调按污染排放和资源能源消耗2种类型进行输入、输出清单参数以及相应生命周期环境影响潜值的统计计算与分析。以水资源和燃煤发电为基础的水源空调运行使用阶段的环境影响明显突出。水源中央空调环境影响的生命周期评价可为该产品环境绩效的改进设计提供有效的信息支持     

碳源类型对A2O系统脱氮除磷的影响

采用52.5 L的A²O反应器,以乙酸和丙酸分别作为进水唯一碳源,系统研究了进水碳源类型对脱氮除磷和代谢过程的影响.结果表明,在进水COD为250 mg/L左右,NH⁺₄-N为52 mg/L左右的条件下,原水碳源类型对TN的去除影响不大,系统TN去除率均在65%左右.进水碳源类型对TP的去除及相应污泥中PHA的类型、含量和代谢及糖原的变化影响较大.乙酸为唯一碳源时,厌氧区放磷浓度较高,污泥中PHA的成分主要为PHB和PHV,两者在厌氧区的合成量差别不大,PHB在随后的反应过程中变化较大,对除磷代谢过程起主要作用,而PHV的变化较小.丙酸作为进水唯一碳源时,厌氧区的放磷浓度偏低,主要合成PHV,几乎不含PHB,PHV在随后吸磷过程中浓度变化较大,对除磷代谢起主要作用,而且出水TP浓度偏低.碳源类型对污泥中糖原的代谢也有影响,乙酸为碳源时糖原的含量高,变化范围也较大,丙酸为碳源时糖原的变化幅度较小.在同步脱氮除磷系统中,与乙酸相比,丙酸是一种更合适的碳源.     

Industrial symbiosis and the policy instruments of sustainable consumption and production

Industrial symbioses (ISs) and eco-industrial parks (EIPs) are key concepts of industrial ecology (IE). The aim of ISs and EIPs is to minimise inefficient material and energy use by utilising local by-product and energy flows. Industrial symbioses tend to develop through spontaneous action of economic actors, for gaining of economic benefit, but these systems can be designed and promoted via policy instruments as well. A literature review showed that national programmes for eco-industrial parks can be found in different parts of the world. In the action programmes and other sustainable consumption and production (SCP) policy documents of the EU, on the other hand, industrial symbioses gain less recognition as a path to enhanced sustainable production. In this article, we consider this and also analyse how the evolution and environmental performance of an industrial symbiosis system centred on a Finnish pulp and paper mill have been affected by SCP policy instruments. With regard to the system forming the subject of the case study, and Finnish industrial systems in general, policy instruments have succeeded in reducing emissions but not in systematically encouraging operators toward symbiosis-like activities. All in all, few studies exist on the overall impact of policy instruments promoting design of eco-industrial parks. It is not self-evident that symbiosis-like production systems would be sustainable in every case, as the background assumptions for political promotion of EIPs suggest. We concluded that industrial symbioses should be analysed and developed on a life cycle basis, with documentation of the real environmental benefits due to efficient resource use and decreased emissions in comparison to standalone production. ISs can then bring eco-competitiveness to companies in relation to SCP tools, such as environmental permits, ecolabels, and future product regulation based on the Ecodesign Directive in Europe. Indirect encouragement of symbiosis through land-use regulation and planning, in such a way that material fluxes between companies are possible both in operations and in financial terms, may prove effective. The same holds for waste policies that encourage increased reuse of a company’s waste by other enterprises.     

不同碳源对EBPR启动期聚磷菌的影响研究

以实验室序批式反应器(SBR)为强化生物除磷工艺(EBPR)载体,接种具有初步除磷功能的污泥后,以乙酸∶丙酸=1∶1(按各自折算的COD计)为混合碳源(以下简称混酸),厌氧初始pH 7.6±0.1,富集聚磷菌(PAO)。启动30 d后,EBPR反应器中为PAO和聚糖菌(GAO)的混合菌属,此时从反应器中取泥样进行批式试验,分别考察乙酸、丙酸及混酸对聚磷菌的富集和厌氧释磷的影响。结果表明:在EBPR启动期内,乙酸作为单一碳源时释磷量最大,但混酸碳源释磷效率最高,最有利于PAO富集;丙酸作为单一碳源时降解率最大而释磷量最小,不适合EBPR启动期的PAO富集。     

丙酸的加入对厌氧-低氧同时生物除磷脱氮系统的影响

2个实验室规模的序批式反应器（SBRs）在厌氧-低氧（0.15～0.45 mg·L^-1）条件下运行,以比较丙酸的加入对同时生物除磷脱氮系统的影响.结果表明,无论是丙酸与乙酸的混合酸（碳摩尔比为1.5/1）作为碳源（SBR1）,还是乙酸作为单独碳源（SBR2）,系统都发生同步硝化反硝化和磷的去除（SNDPR）,并且氨氮被全部氧化,系统中没有亚硝酸盐的大量累积.与SBR2相比,SBR1中厌氧阶段磷释放量少,聚羟基戊酸（PHV）合成量高,好氧末磷剩余量少,硝态氮累积少,因此SBR1中总氮和总磷的去除率（分别为68%和95%）比SBR2（分别为51%和92%）高,加入丙酸有助于SNDPR系统保持较好的除磷、脱氮效果.     

The energy consumption and environmental impacts of a color TV set in China

The present study analyses the different processes followed during color TV set production along with the energy consumption and the environment emissions in each stage. The purpose is to identify “hot-spots”, i.e. parts of the life cycle important to the total environmental impact. The analysis is performed using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, which is a method used to identify and quantify in the environmental performance of a process or a product from “cradle to grave”. LCA methodology provides a quantitative basis for assessing potential improvements in the environmental performance of a system throughout the life cycle. The system investigated includes the production of manufacturing materials, transport of manufacturing materials, color TV set manufacturing, transport of color TV sets, use of color TV sets, discarding color TV sets and partial plastic waste energy utilization. The environmental burdens that arise from color TV sets are mainly due to air emissions derived from fossil fuel utilization.     

Forest biorefineries - A business opportunity for the Finnish forest cluster

Bioenergy and biomass-based products offer the greatest new opportunities for diversifying business in the forest cluster. In particular, biorefineries, which can be integrated into the pulp and paper industry, seem to have immense future potential. This article aims to explore the biorefinery concept and related new products and business operations, as well as new business strategies and company models, which are part of the biorefinery value chain. These factors, which contribute to the establishment and success of forest biorefineries, were examined using internet survey responses and compared between Scandinavia, North America and South America. This article looks at the results of the survey - primarily from the Finnish perspective - to help identify competitive advantages upon which successful business operations in the Finnish forest cluster can be built.According to the survey, the outlooks for technical and raw material choices, as well as barriers to biorefinery diffusion, are very similar in all the studied areas. Biorefineries and related energy products are considered the way to sustainably guarantee the forest cluster’s success. An increase in the price of oil motivates the development of forest biorefineries and wood-based biofuels; however, it is obvious that there is a need to revaluate from a fresh perspective the utilisation of wood and the wood-refining chain in the forest cluster.The survey respondents consider wood-based biofuel and chemical production a serious business opportunity for the forest cluster. In Finland, there is a strong confidence in the production of biofuels. However, all the countries included in the study trust in their own national strengths and in their chance to be a leading actor in the forest biorefinery business worldwide. The forest biorefinery business seems to have market potential, and global competition can thus be expected.     

不同产酸发酵菌群产氢能力的对比与分析

重点对乙醇型发酵菌群和丙酸型发酵菌群的产气及产氢能力进行了对比研究,并对发酵菌群由丙酸型演替为乙醇型过程中的产氢速率变化进行了分析.在有机负荷相同的条件下,乙醇型发酵菌群表现出较高的产氢速率和比产氢速率,最大产氢速率为14.99L/d,最大比产氢速率为3586.45mmol/(kg·d).而丙酸型发酵菌群产氢速率和比产氢速率都较低,分别为3.62L/d,196.46mmol/(kg·d)生物制氢反应器在运行中维持乙醇型发酵更有利于获得较高的氢气产量,应尽量避免丙酸型发酵的发生.     

固定化酶酸化/UASB两相厌氧有机酸代谢特征

以固定化酶酸化相和UASB产甲烷相为两相厌氧系统进行连续流实验,研究了酸化相和产甲烷相中的有机酸和乙醇的变化特征、变化速率,挥发性有机酸组成,发酵类型以及对COD去除率的影响.结果表明:酸化相的酸化率为28.2%,水解产物组成中乙醇>乙酸>丁酸>丙酸,其中乙醇占44.8%,乙酸占38.4%,丙酸为6.9%,丁酸为9.8%,为乙醇型发酵类型.在产甲烷相中乙醇被去除99.8%,乙酸为92.0%,丙酸为59.1%,丁酸为46.2%,呈乙醇>乙酸>丙酸>丁酸;比较有机酸和乙醇的去除速率呈乙醇>乙酸>丁酸>丙酸,其中乙醇在产甲烷相中去除速率最快为0.21h^-1.系统运行稳定,COD去除率达到90%以上,其中对COD去除贡献率顺序为乙醇>乙酸>丁酸>丙酸,     

Life cycle analysis and choice of natural gas-based automotive alternative fuels in Chongqing Municipality,China

Road transport produces significant amounts of emissions by using crude oil as the primary energy source. A reduction of emissions can be achieved by implementing alternative fuel chains. The objective of this study is to carry out an economic, environmental and energy (EEE) life cycle study on natural gas-based automotive fuels with conventional gasoline in an abundant region of China. A set of indices of four fuels/vehicle systems on the basis of life cycle are assessed in terms of impact of EEE, in which natural gas produces compressed natural gas (CNG), methanol, dimethylether (DME) and Fischer Tropsch diesel (FTD). The study included fuel production, vehicle production, vehicle operation, infrastructure and vehicle end of life as a system for each fuel/vehicle system. A generic gasoline fueled car is used as a baseline. Data have been reviewed and modified based on the best knowledge available to Chongqing local sources. Results indicated that when we could not change electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles into commercial vehicles on a large scale, direct use of CNG in a dedicated or bi-fuel vehicle is an economical choice for the region which is most energy efficient and more environmental friendly. The study can be used to support decisions on how natural gas resources can best be utilized as a fuel/energy resource for automobiles, and what issues need to be resolved in Chongqing. The models and approaches for this study can be applied to other regions of China as long as all the assumptions are well defined and modified to find a substitute automotive energy source and establish an energy policy in a specific region.     

Multi-level energy analysis of emerging technologies: a case study in new materials for lithium ion batteries

A range of new nanomaterials to replace the active materials in lithium ion batteries are currently being studied and employed in an attempt to overcome various performance limitations of previous technologies. Nanomaterial production and manufacturing techniques appear to fit into a general trend towards more energy intensive production methods for high-tech goods. This does not necessarily imply an increase in lifecycle energy use; artefacts that consume or transform energy during use could possibly regain this increased initial input via increased efficiency in use. In particular, this paper highlights that larger gains could be possible if the artefact in question allows a given service to be provided via an alternative and more efficient system entirely.The lifecycle energy efficiencies of lithium ion batteries constructed from several new advanced materials are analysed with several different system boundaries. Although nanomaterials require more energy input to produce, the implications of nanomaterials for energy flows in the use phase (i.e. driving), and higher levels such as the architecture of future transport fuel production systems are much larger in magnitude than the initial lifecycle inputs for producing the materials in question.     

厨余垃圾厌氧发酵失稳调控及微生物群落分析

针对厨余垃圾厌氧发酵过程中容易积累丙酸和丁酸导致反应体系酸化失稳的问题,驯化了富集耐丙酸和耐丁酸厌氧发酵菌群的接种菌泥,探究利用其对厨余垃圾干式厌氧发酵酸化失稳体系进行调控后对甲烷产量和微生物群落的影响.酸化失稳厌氧体系中添加耐丙酸菌泥调控后,与空白对照组相比反应体系中丙酸浓度削减6900.81mg/L,累积甲烷产量提...     

Life Cycle Assessment of fossil energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in Chinese pear production

A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was performed to analyze environmental consequences of different pear production chains in terms of fossil energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in China. The assessment identified hotspots that contributed significantly to the environmental impacts of pear production from the cradle to the point of sale. The results showed that GHG emissions and fossil energy use varied in the different production chains because the environmental performance does not associate with the farming systems (i.e. organic vs. conventional), but is co-determined by farm topography and thus machinery use, by market demands to seasonality of products and thus the need for storage, and by local farming practices including manure management. The LCA could be used as a tool to guide selections of agricultural inputs with the aim of reducing environmental impacts. The results of the LCA analysis indicate that a list of choices are available to reduce energy use and GHG emission in the pear production chain, namely substitution of the traditional storage systems by an efficiently controlled atmosphere storage system, using manure for biogas production, conversion from the conventional farming to organic farming, and reduction of mechanical cultivation.     

Development and environmental improvements of plastics for hydrophilic catheters in medical care: an environmental evaluation

Single-use medical devices have been under close scrutiny for several years, especially the choice of plastic materials. Many different requirements such as medical safety, treatment functionality and efficiency, environmental performance, etc. have to be fulfilled. Today, the most commonly used materials for hydrophilic urinary catheters are polyvinylchloride (PVC) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). In this research study, these two materials' environmental performance was evaluated. In light of the knowledge gained in that study a new plastic material for use in urinary catheters was developed. The aim of the development of this new material was to design a high performance material with superior environmental performance. The newly developed plastic material is a polyolefin-based elastomer. The ecological environmental performance of the new material was evaluated and compared to the existing plastic materials. The study focused exclusively on the choice of plastic materials and their ecological environmental performance.The analysis has been performed using a system perspective and a life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The functional unit has been set to the treatment of one patient during one year. The results from the LCA models have been presented both in terms of direct inventory data, such as energy use and formed emissions, and in terms of the results from four different impact assessment methods. Analysis of the results based on direct inventory data, i.e. common inventory results such as energy resource uses and emissions of CO₂, NO_x and SO₂ show an overall better environmental performance for the new polyolefin-based elastomer compared to the existing PVC and TPU plastic materials. The normalization and weighting steps in the analyzes have indicated the importance of energy resource uses and global warming as indicator for the environmental performance even if other impact categories also can play a role. In the environmental impact assessment, the polyolefin-based elastomer showed a clearly better environmental performance than the TPU material. Compared to PVC plastic material the new polyolefin-based elastomer showed an almost equivalent environmental performance. This can be mainly explained by the different materials' energy use. The new material has thus also shown to be an environmentally good alternative to PVC if a PVC-free material is requested. Basing the plastic formula, on simple bulk plastics with low energy use in the production of single-use medical devices, has been shown to be a successful method of producing high quality products with superior environmental performance.     

A mathematical programming tool for LCI-based product design and case study for a carpet product

Products are produced by a series of energy-intensive transformations of raw materials such as crude oil. The life cycle inventory (LCI) of mass and energy usage in these supply chains is one measure of overall environmental performance. In this paper, we present a methodology to examine the life cycle choices available for a product and optimize these choices based on criteria derived from mass and energy efficiency. A two-phase framework for production path construction followed by optimal path selection was developed. This framework can be applied to improve the overall LCI energy characteristic of a product when there are different production and recycling options for different product constituents. The scope of the life cycle is from raw material extraction through the production system and does not include the use and disposal phases. The approach is illustrated in a case study of the EcoWorx™ carpet system of Shaw Industries, which includes the inclusion of several recycled material options.