| 1. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Energy and resource use assessment of graphene as a substitute for indium tin oxide in transparent electrodes
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Cleaner Production. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-6526. ; 132, s. 289-297
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- One of the most promising applications of graphene is as material in transparent electrodes in applications such as liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and solar cells. In this study, we assess life cycle resource requirements of producing an electrode area of graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and compare to the production of indium tin oxide (ITO). The resources considered are energy and scarce metals. The results show that graphene layers can have lower life cycle energy use than ITO layers, with 3–10 times reduction for our best case scenario. Regarding use of scarce metals, the use of indium in ITO production is more problematic than the use of copper in graphene production, although the latter may constitute a resource constraint in the very long run. The substitution of ITO by graphene thus seems favorable from a resource point of view. Higher order effects may outweigh or enhance the energy use benefit. For example, cheaper, graphene-based electrodes may spur increased production of LCDs, leading to increased absolute energy use, or spur the development of new energy technologies, such as solar cells and fuel cells. The latter could potentially lead to larger absolute reductions in resource use if these new technologies will replace fossil-based energy systems.
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| 2. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Energy use indicators in energy and life cycle assessments of biofuels: review and recommendations
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Cleaner Production. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-6526 .- 1879-1786. ; 31, s. 54-61
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study we investigate how indicators for energy use are applied in a set of life cycle assessment (LCA) and energy analysis case studies of biofuels. We found five inherently different types of indicators to describe energy use: (1) fossil energy, (2) secondary energy, (3) cumulative energy demand, (4) net energy balance, and (5) total extracted energy. It was also found that the examined reports and articles, the choice of energy use indicator was seldom motivated or discussed in relation to other energy use indicators. In order to investigate the differences between these indicators, they were applied to a case. The life cycle energy use of palm oil methyl ester was calculated and reported using these five different indicators for energy use, giving considerably different output results. This is in itself not unexpected, but indicates the importance of clearly identifying, describing and motivating the choice of energy use indicator. The indicators can all be useful in specific situations, depending on the goal and scope of the individual study, but the choice of indicators need to be better reported and motivated than what is generally done today.
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| 3. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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How do we know the energy use when producing biomaterials or biofuels?
- 2012
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Ingår i: Proceedings of ECO-TECH 2012.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- How much fossil energy that is used in the production of biomaterials or biofuels (e.g. fuel used in harvesting) is a parameter of obvious interest when optimizing the production systems. To use more fossil fuels in the production of a biofuel than what will be available as the biofuel product is obviously a bad idea. With increasing interest in biomaterials and biofuels, a shift from a sole focus on fossil energy will be necessary. Optimized use of energy over the whole life cycle is one important parameter to ensure sustainability. However, to report and interpret values on life cycle energy use is not as straight forward as what might immediately be perceived. The impact category ‘energy use’ is frequently used but is generally not applied in a transparent and consistent way between different studies. Considering the increased focus on biofuels, it is important to inform companies and policy-makers about the energy use of biofuels in relevant and transparent ways with well-defined indicators. The present situation in how energy use indicators are applied was studied in a set of LCA studies of biofuels. It was found that the choice of indicator was seldom motivated or discussed in the examined reports and articles, and five inherently different energy use indicators were observed: (1) fossil energy, (2) secondary energy, (3) cumulative energy demand (primary energy), (4) net energy balance, and (5) total extracted energy. As a test, we applied these five energy use indicators to the same cradle-to-gate production system and they give considerably different output numbers of energy use. This in itself is not unexpected, but indicates the importance of clearly identifying, describing and motivating the choice of energy use indicator. Direct comparisons between different energy use results could lead to misinformed policy decisions.
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| 4. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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How much energy is used when producing biofuels?
- 2012
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Ingår i: World Bioenergy 2012, Jönköping, Sweden.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Considering the increased focus on biofuels, it is important to inform companies and policy-makers about the energy use for production of biofuels in relevant and transparent ways, using well-defined indicators. The amount of fossil energy used in the production of a biofuel (e.g. diesel fuel used in harvesting) is a parameter of obvious interest when comparing different biofuels or when optimizing the production systems. With increasing worldwide production of different biofuels, a shift in focus from fossil energy to the entire energy use will also be necessary. In that context, not only reducing the use of fossil fuels in biofuel production, but also optimizing the use of all energy sources over the whole life cycle becomes an important to ensure the sustainability of biofuels. However, to report and interpret values on life cycle energy use is not straight forward due to methodological difficulties. The impact category ‘energy use’ is frequently used in life cycle assessment (LCA). But the term ‘energy use’ is generally not applied in a transparent and consistent way between different LCA studies of biofuels. It is often unclear whether the total energy use, or only fossil energy, has been considered, and whether primary or secondary energy has been considered. In addition, it is often difficult to tell if and how the energy content of the fuel or the biomass source was included in the energy use. This study presents and discusses the current situation in terms of energy use indicators are applied in LCA studies on biofuels. It was found that the choice of indicator was seldom motivated or discussed in the examined reports and articles, and five inherently different energy use indicators were observed: (1) fossil energy, (2) secondary energy, (3) cumulative energy demand (primary energy), (4) net energy balance, and (5) total extracted energy. As an illustration, we applied these five energy use indicators to the same cradle-to-gate production system (production of palm oil methyl ester), resulting in considerably different output numbers of energy use. This in itself is not unexpected, but indicates the importance of clearly identifying, describing and motivating the choice of energy use indicator. All five indicators can be useful in specific situations, depending on the goal and scope of the individual study, but the choice of indicator needs to be better reported and motivated than what is generally done today. Above all, it is important to avoid direct comparisons between different energy use results calculated using different indicators, since this could lead to misinformed policy decisions.
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| 5. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Towards transparent and relevant use of energy use indicators in LCA studies of biofuels
- 2012
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Ingår i: 6th SETAC World Congress / SETAC Europe 22nd Annual Meeting in Berlin.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The use of energy has led to resource crises during the history of mankind, such as the deforestation of the Mediterranean during antiquity, and of Great Britain before the 19th century, and the oil crisis in the 20th century and continuing. Considering this, the frequent use of the impact category ‘energy use’ in the environmental assessment tool life cycle assessment (LCA) is not surprising. However, in a previous study, some of the authors noted that the term ‘energy use’ was not applied in a transparent and consistent way in LCA studies of biofuels. In this work we investigate how energy use indicators are applied in a set of life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of biofuels. In the examined reports and articles, the choice of indicator was seldom motivated or discussed and we observed five inherently different energy use indicators: (1) fossil energy, (2) secondary energy, (3) cumulative energy demand, (4) net energy balance, and (5) total extracted energy. These five energy use indicators were applied to the same cradle-to-gate production system of palm oil methyl ester (PME), giving considerably different output results. This is in itself not unexpected, but indicates the importance of clearly identifying, describing and motivating the choice of energy use indicator. All five indicators can all be useful in specific situations, depending on the goal and scope of the individual study, but the choice of indicators need to be better reported and motivated than what is generally done today. Authors of LCA studies should first define the purpose of their energy use indicator (fossil scarcity, energy scarcity, energy efficiency, cost/benefit comparison) and may then make a motivated choice of the energy use indicator.
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| 6. |
- Diamond, Miriam, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring the planetary boundary for chemical pollution
- 2015
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier BV. - 0160-4120 .- 1873-6750. ; 78, s. 8-15
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Rockström et al. (2009a, 2009b) have warned that humanity must reduce anthropogenic impacts defined by nine planetary boundaries if “unacceptable global change” is to be avoided. Chemical pollution was identified as one of those boundaries for which continued impacts could erode the resilience of ecosystems and humanity. The central concept of the planetary boundary (or boundaries) for chemical pollution (PBCP or PBCPs) is that the Earth has a finite assimilative capacity for chemical pollution, which includes persistent, as well as readily degradable chemicals released at local to regional scales, which in aggregate threaten ecosystem and human viability. The PBCP allows humanity to explicitly address the increasingly global aspects of chemical pollution throughout a chemical's life cycle and the need for a global response of internationally coordinated control measures. We submit that sufficient evidence shows stresses on ecosystem and human health at local to global scales, suggesting that conditions are transgressing the safe operating space delimited by a PBCP. As such, current local to global pollution control measures are insufficient. However, while the PBCP is an important conceptual step forward, at this point single or multiple PBCPs are challenging to operationalize due to the extremely large number of commercial chemicals or mixtures of chemicals that cause myriad adverse effects to innumerable species and ecosystems, and the complex linkages between emissions, environmental concentrations, exposures and adverse effects. As well, the normative nature of a PBCP presents challenges of negotiating pollution limits amongst societal groups with differing viewpoints. Thus, a combination of approaches is recommended as follows: develop indicators of chemical pollution, for both control and response variables, that will aid in quantifying a PBCP(s) and gauging progress towards reducing chemical pollution; develop new technologies and technical and social approaches to mitigate global chemical pollution that emphasize a preventative approach; coordinate pollution control and sustainability efforts; and facilitate implementation of multiple (and potentially decentralized) control efforts involving scientists, civil society, government, non-governmental organizations and international bodies.
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| 7. |
- Furberg, Anna, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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Assessing impacts of tungsten carbide: A substance and particle flow analysis
- 2015
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Ingår i: International Society for Industrial Ecology Biennial Conference, 7-10 July, Surrey, United Kingdom.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tungsten carbide (WC) is an extremely hard material used in industrial machinery, abrasives, missiles, tire studs and jewelry. Produced by reacting tungsten metal, produced from ammonium paratungstate with carbon at high temperature, WC carry a number of potential environmental and resource problems. First, tungsten is a critical material since resources are very unevenly distributed and it is sometimes produced from so-called conflict minerals. Second, although being a hard material, WC is torn into small, nano-sized particles which are emitted to the environment during various uses due to dissipative applications. Third, WC has high life cycle energy use due to high production temperatures, in a production chain with many steps. The aim of an ongoing project is to assess all these three impacts. As a first step, particle emissions are assessed. By applying substance flow analysis (SFA), along with a related method developed by Arvidsson et al. (2011, 2012) called particle flow analysis (PFA), global extraction rates, flows, stocks, and emissions of WC were estimated. By combining SFA and PFA, estimations were conducted both in terms of mass and in terms of particle number. From an environmental fate and ecotoxicological point of view, particle number has been suggested to be more relevant than mass for subsequent assessment of nanoparticle risks. Particle emissions are compared to previously estimated emissions of engineered nanoparticles made from silver, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, and carbon. Preliminary results indicate that the emissions of WC are in the same order of magnitude as some of the most emitted engineered nanoparticles globally. Life cycle energy use assessment and resource criticality assessment will be persued later in the project in order to also assess other impacts of WC.
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| 8. |
- Furberg, Anna, 1990, et al.
(författare)
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Quantifying emissions and environmental risks of cemented carbide (WC) nanoparticles from tire studs
- 2016
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Ingår i: 11th International Conference on the Environmental Effects of Nanoparticles and Nanomaterials (ICEENN), 14-18 August, Golden, Colorado, USA.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tire studs, with pins typically made out of cemented carbide with cobalt (WC-Co), are used in several countries to improve the gripping power during winter. Throughout their use, the tire studs are worn. This leads to emissions of particles, of which some are nano-sized. Until now, WC-Co nanoparticles have seldom been included in environmental risk assessments of nanomaterials. The aim of this study is to assess the magnitude of emissions of WC-Co (nano)particles from tire studs on a national level, compare WC-Co emissions to those of other nanomaterials, and conduct a screening risk assessment of the WC-Co emissions. The country in focus was Sweden, where 66% of the passenger cars use studded tires during winter. Substance flow analysis (SFA) was used to quantify the mass flows related to tire studs from the raw material extraction phase to the waste management phase. Furthermore, particle flow analysis (PFA) was used to quantify particle number flows in the use phase, where emissions of W-containing nanoparticles have been observed. As part of these quantifications, use phase emissions of WC-Co nanoparticles were calculated using a leaching-type model based on the number of km driven by the Swedish car fleet and experimental measurements of W-emission rates. Two scenarios – a low-emission and a high-emission scenario – were employed. Preliminary results show annual WC-Co emissions of 10-10^3 kg/year and 10^15-10^20 particles/year. These estimated emissions were then compared to estimated emissions of some other nanomaterials in Sweden, including silver, titanium dioxide, cerium oxide, fullerenes and carbon nanotubes. This comparison indicated that the emissions of WC-Co nanoparticles from tire studs are in the same range as estimated emissions of some of these other nanomaterials. Our estimation of the predicted environmental concentration (PEC) of WC-Co nanoparticles in road runoff was in the same order of magnitude as measured environmental concentrations (MEC) of W-containing particles. The limited existing ecotoxicity data indicate that much higher concentrations are required in order to reach toxic levels, but further studies are needed to confirm this. Overall, the notable emissions of WC-Co nanoparticles during the use of tire studs support the further study and inclusion of this material in risk-related studies of nanoparticles.
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| 9. |
- Hagman, Johan, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Do biofuels require more water than do fossil fuels? Life cycle-based assessment of jatropha oil production in rural Mozambique
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Cleaner Production. - : Elsevier BV. - 0959-6526. ; 53, s. 176-185
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Biofuels are advanced to replace fossil fuels in order to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other environmental impacts. Yet freshwater scarcity is another growing concern and increased production of biofuels may increase this problem. In order to assess whether biofuels truly have a higher water use than do fossil fuels, a life cycle assessment study of a low input jatropha plantation in northern Mozambique was conducted. In addition to different water use indicators, the fossil energy use and global warming potential were assessed for 1 MJ of jatropha oil. The analysis compares results for jatropha oil with fossil diesel, generally showing lower global warming potential and fossil energy use for jatropha oil. However, aspects related to land use may alter the global warming potential of jatropha oil. Regarding water use, the choice of the water use indicator strongly influences the results. Specifically the indication of (1) so-called green water flows, (2) formation of so-called blue water and (3) water scarcity show crucial influences on the comparison. Depending on these specific features, jatropha oil may have higher or lower water use than fossil diesel. A number of uncertainties, such as the jatropha oil yield, are also shown to have a considerable impact on the results.
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| 10. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental Assessment of Emerging Technologies: Recommendations for Prospective LCA
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Industrial Ecology. - : Wiley. - 1530-9290 .- 1088-1980. ; 22:6, s. 1286-1294
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The challenge of assessing emerging technologies with life cycle assessment (LCA) has been increasingly discussed in the LCA field. In this article, we propose a definition of prospective LCA: An LCA is prospective when the (emerging) technology studied is in an early phase of development (e.g., small-scale production), but the technology is modeled at a future, more-developed phase (e.g., large-scale production). Methodological choices in prospective LCA must be adapted to reflect this goal of assessing environmental impacts of emerging technologies, which deviates from the typical goals of conventional LCA studies. The aim of the article is to provide a number of recommendations for how to conduct such prospective assessments in a relevant manner. The recommendations are based on a detailed review of selected prospective LCA case studies, mainly from the areas of nanomaterials, biomaterials, and energy technologies. We find that it is important to include technology alternatives that are relevant for the future in prospective LCA studies. Predictive scenarios and scenario ranges are two general approaches to prospective inventory modeling of both foreground and background systems. Many different data sources are available for prospective modeling of the foreground system: scientific articles; patents; expert interviews; unpublished experimental data; and process modeling. However, we caution against temporal mismatches between foreground and background systems, and recommend that foreground and background system impacts be reported separately in order to increase the usefulness of the results in other prospective studies.
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