Evaluation of life cycle inventory data for recycling systems

This paper reviews databases on material recycling (primary as well as secondary production) used in life cycle assessments (LCA) of waste management systems. A total of 366 datasets, from 1980 to 2010 and covering 14 materials, were collected from databases and reports. Totals for CO₂-equivalent emissions were compared to illustrate variations in the data. It was hypothesised that emissions from material production and the recycling industry had decreased over time due to increasing regulation, energy costs and process optimisation, but the reported datasets did not reveal such a general trend. Data representing the same processes varied considerably between databases, and proper background information was hard to obtain, which in turn made it difficult to explain the large differences observed. Those differences between the highest and lowest estimated CO₂ emissions (equivalents) from the primary production of newsprint, HDPE and glass were 238%, 443% and 452%, respectively. For steel and aluminium the differences were 1761% and 235%, respectively. There is a severe lack of data for some recycled materials; for example, only one dataset existed for secondary cardboard. The study shows that the choice of dataset used to represent the environmental load of a material recycling process and credited emissions from the avoided production of virgin materials is crucial for the outcome of an LCA on waste management. Great care and a high degree of transparency are mandatory, but advice on which datasets to use could not be determined from the study. However, from the gathered data, recycling in general showed lower emission of CO₂ per kg material than primary production, so the recycling of materials (considered in this study) is thus beneficial in most cases.     

An energetic life cycle assessment of C&D waste and container glass recycling in Cape Town,South Africa

This study presents the results of a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) on the energy requirements and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission implications of recycling construction and demolition (C&D) rubble and container glass in Cape Town, South Africa. Cape Town is a medium sized city in a developing country with a growing population and a rising middle class, two factors that are resulting in increased generation of solid waste. The City is constrained in terms of landfill space and competing demands for municipal resources.The LCA assessment was based on locally gathered data, supplemented with ecoinvent life cycle inventory data modified to the local context. The results indicated that recycling container glass instead of landfilling can achieve an energy savings of 27% and a GHG emissions savings of 37%, with a net savings still being achieved even if collection practices are varied. The C&D waste results, however, showed net savings only for certain recycling strategies. Recycling C&D waste can avoid up to 90% of the energy and GHG emissions of landfilling when processed and reused onsite but, due to great dependence on haulage distances, a net reduction of energy use and GHG emissions could not be confidently discerned for offsite recycling. It was also found that recycling glass achieves significantly greater savings of energy and emissions than recycling an equivalent mass of C&D waste.The study demonstrated that LCA provides an important tool to inform decisions on supporting recycling activities where resources are limited. It also confirmed other researchers’ observations that strict adherence to the waste management hierarchy will not always result in the best environmental outcome, and that more nuanced analysis is required. The study found that the desirability of recycling from an energy and climate perspective cannot be predicted on the basis of whether such recycling conserves a non-renewable material. However, recycling that replaces a virgin product from an energy-intensive production process appears to be more robustly beneficial than recycling that replaces a product with little embodied energy. Particular caution is needed when applying the waste management hierarchy to the latter situations.     

水幕在隧道中灭火的数值模拟研究

利用CFD软件中的专用FDS软件对水幕在隧道产生火灾进行灭火模拟研究,模拟水幕对隧道中火灾产生的烟气流动速度、烟气浓度以及温度等特性参数的影响,模拟得到水幕能有效地减慢地下隧道中烟雾的扩散和降低烟雾的温度,为地下工事中的人员逃离提供有力的保证,为加强地下工事的防御提供了理论参考。     

A2O氧化沟缺氧区三维流场模拟及结构形式优化

以FLUENT软件为工具,选用三维RNG k-ε紊流数学模型对重庆井口污水厂A2O氧化沟缺氧区内的流场进行模拟,分析了缺氧区内流场分布不均匀及沉泥的原因,提出了水下推进器的合理设置位置与导流墙的合理设置方式,并对优化后的缺氧区进行了模拟计算。通过优化后模拟的结果可见,在相同的功率密度下,缺氧区内的流场得到了较均匀的分布,流速从原来的0.131 m/s提升到0.204 m/s,减少了能量的损失。底部的流速也从原来的0.140 m/s提升到0.226 m/s,有效的防止或减少了沟中的污泥沉积。优化的结果对实际工程的设计也有一定的指导意义。     

A2O氧化沟缺氧区三维流场模拟及结构形式优化

以FLUENT软件为工具,选用三维RNG k-ε紊流数学模型对重庆井口污水厂A²O氧化沟缺氧区内的流场进行模拟,分析了缺氧区内流场分布不均匀及沉泥的原因,提出了水下推进器的合理设置位置与导流墙的合理设置方式,并对优化后的缺氧区进行了模拟计算。通过优化后模拟的结果可见,在相同的功率密度下,缺氧区内的流场得到了较均匀的分布,流速从原来的0.131 m/s提升到0.204 m/s,减少了能量的损失。底部的流速也从原来的0.140 m/s提升到0.226 m/s,有效的防止或减少了沟中的污泥沉积。优化的结果对实际工程的设计也有一定的指导意义。     

某市南郊水源地土壤四氯化碳污染特征

含四氯化碳废水在排放的过程中沿排污渠侧壁和底部的渗漏对土壤造成污染.在对某市南郊受四氯化碳污染的水源地进行钻孔检测的过程中发现,土壤四氯化碳污染的特征:靠近排污沟的钻孔均检测出四氯化碳,而远离排污沟的钻孔则未检出;四氯化碳的垂向分布存在不连续性,且受降雨影响较大;大部分钻孔浅层土壤中基本未检测到四氯化碳,而在3 m以下的土层和基岩中检测到四氯化碳;抽水井的抽水行为导致抽水井附近土壤中四氯化碳明显高于其他钻孔点位检测结果.     

焦炉抵抗墙在热负荷状态下的破损分析及加固

针对焦炉抵抗墙在热负荷作用下的破损情况,分析了其破损原因,介绍了在不停产条件下对热状态结构的加固措施。     

气泡帷幕减弱水中冲击波强度的研究

通过对水中冲击波与气泡相互作用过程的诸现象进行分析,从能量变化角度探讨了气泡帷幕衰减水中冲击波的最佳方式。通过对水中冲击波引起挡水坞门振动的安全监测及频谱分析,讨论了挡水坞门不同方向上振动参量的变化规律。     

Study on the mechanical and environmental properties of concrete containing cathode ray tube glass aggregate

Cathode ray tube (CRT) glass is considered a hazardous material due to its lead toxicity. In addition, current disposal practices are being phased out due to their adverse environmental impacts. In this project, CRT glass was used as a fine aggregate replacement in concrete. Life-cycle material characterization was conducted by evaluating the durability and strength of the CRT-Concrete. Leaching tests were also conducted to investigate whether the material meets drinking water limits for Pb. Test results show that the plastic state of the CRT-Concrete was affected by the angularity of the glass particles. Moreover, the compressive strength of CRT-Concrete met and exceeded that of the control specimen. However, CRT-Concrete was susceptible to expansive alkali-silica reactions when more than 10% CRT replacement was used. Environmental leaching results show that lead concentrations from CRT-Concrete are below the drinking water limits depending on the CRT volume replacement and if biopolymers are used.     

Enhanced solar still productivity using transparent walls with an integral trough and organic porous absorber material

This experimental work has been conducted to compare the performance of the modified stills with that of the conventional still. Three modified stills (S1, S2, and S3) and conventional still (S4) were fabricated, each with 0.5 m² of the basin area. S1 and S3 had transparent double glass walls with air in between acting as insulation, whereas S2 has a single transparent wall. S4 has insulated plywood walls painted black from inside. A mixture of coco peat and charcoal was used in S1, S2, and S3, whereas there was no basin material for S4. Experiments were conducted by changing the water quantity in the solar still ranging from 5 to 10 kg. Maximum distillate output of 5.46 l/m²-d was obtained for S2, whereas it was 3.80 l/m²-d for S4 for an average solar radiation intensity of 675 W/m² (24.3 MJ/m²-d). Use of transparent walls with troughs to collect condensate increased the condenser area by 78.4%. The distillate water cost per liter was estimated as Rs. 0.86 (0.013 US$) and Rs. 1.61 (0.025 US$) for S2 and S4, respectively. Energy payback time for S2 was estimated as 4 months. Theoretical and experimental values showed that there is a significant loss of incoming solar radiation due to wall shadow.