| 1. |
- Thollander, Patrik, 1976-
(författare)
-
Towards Increased Energy Efficiency in Swedish Industry : Barriers, Driving Forces & Policies
- 2008
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Industrial energy efficiency is one of the most important means of reducing the threat of increased global warming. A higheruse of electricity than their European competitors, together with increased energy costs due to increasing energy prices in Swedish industry have negative impacts on results and competitiveness. Of great importance are thus different means which promote energy efficiency such as industrial energy policy instruments. However, cost-effective energy efficiency measuresare not always undertaken. In order to formulate and adopt accurate industrial energy end-use polices, it is thus of importanceto identify the barriers that inhibit the implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures. It is also of importance to identify the factors which promote the implementation. The aim of this thesis is to analyze industrial energy systems andmore specifically study factors that promote or inhibit energy end-use efficiency in Swedish industrial companies.Results from this thesis show that the implementation of technical energy efficiency measures is a major means for both energy-intensive and non-energy-intensive Swedish companies to overcome the threat of rising energy prices, for example for electricity. While energy efficiency measures in the non-energy-intensive industry are related mainly to support processes, measures in the studied energy-intensive Swedish foundry industry are related to both support and production processes.In the various case studies of barriers and driving forces, the most significant barriers to energy efficiency - with largevariations for some of the barriers among the studied cases - were found to be: technical risk such as risk of productiondisruptions; lack of time or other priorities; lack of access to capital; cost of production disruption/hassle/inconvenience; other priorities for capital investments; technology considered inappropriate at the site; difficulty/cost of obtaininginformation about the energy use of purchased equipment; and lack of budget funding. The largest driving forces, apart fromcost reductions resulting from lowered energy use, were found to be the existence of a long-term energy strategy and peoplewith real ambition. These driving forces did not, unlike the results of barriers to energy efficiency, vary widely across thestudied sectors.Investment decision support such as optimization has shown to add more information for larger capital-intensive investmentsin energy-intensive industrial SMEs. The thesis also showed that energy audits are an effective means, in terms of publicmoney spent per kWh saved, of providing the industry with information on potential energy efficiency measures.Based on the results presented in this thesis, a policy approach towards non-energy-intensive companies and industrial SMEsshould primarily include providing energy audits free of charge and involve the local authority energy consultants.
|
|
| 2. |
- Rohdin, Patrik, 1977-
(författare)
-
Energy efficiency and ventilation in Swedish industries barriers, simulation and control strategy
- 2008
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The energy issue is presently in focus worldwide. This is not only due to increasing environmental concern regarding energy related emissions, but also due to the trend of increasing energy prices. Energy usage in the industrial sector in Sweden today represents about one third of the national energy use. A substantial part of that is related to support processes such as heating, ventilation and cooling systems. These systems are important as they are related both to energy cost and indoor climate management as well as to the health of the occupants.The purpose of this thesis is to reach a more comprehensive view on industrial energy efficiency and indoor environment issues related to industrial ventilation. This has been studied in three themes where the first part addresses barriers to energy efficiency in Swedish industries, the second theme discuss simulation as decision support, and the third studies the variable air volume system in industrial facilities.In the first theme three different studies were made: the first studies non-energy intensive companies in Oskarshamn in Sweden, the second studies the energy intensive foundry industry and the third study was part of an evaluation of a large energy efficiency program called Project Highland. These studies had several findings in common, such as the importance of a strategic view on the energy issue and the presence of a person with real ambition with power over investment decisions related to energy issues at the company. The studies also show that several information related barriers are important for decision makers at the studied companies. This shows that information related barriers are one reason in why energy efficient equipment is not implemented.In the second theme the use of simulation in the form of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Building Energy Simulation (BES) are used as decision support for industrial ventilation related studies at two different industries, one foundry is investigated and one dairy. BES has mainly been used to simulate energy and power related parameters while CFD was used to give a detailed description of the indoor and product environment. Together these methods can be used to better evaluate the energy, indoor and product environment and thus enable the implementation of more efficient heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems.In the third theme the use of Variable Air Volume (VAV) systems was evaluated, and was found to be an efficient way to reduce energy use at the studied sites. At the studied foundry the VAV system is predicted to reduce space heating and electricity use by fans by about 30%, and in the dairy case by about 60% for space heating and 20% for electricity.
|
|
| 3. |
- Högström, Magnus, 1956-
(författare)
-
Vitamins, fatty acids, physical activity and peak bone mass
- 2007
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by low bone mineral density, deteriorated bone microstructure and increased fracture risk. About 50% of all women and 25% of all men will have an osteoporotic fracture. Given that there is no effective cure in established osteoporosis, prevention is of high importance. Bone mineral density (BMD) is accumulated during childhood and adolescence with a peak at about 20 years of age. Peak BMD has been suggested to explain at least half of the variation in BMD up to old age. Thus, to increase peak BMD could decrease the risk of later fractures. The purpose of the present thesis was to investigate the influence of physical activity, vitamins A and D, and fatty acids on peak bone mass in men. The influence of physical activity on bone accrual was studied in two cohorts. In the first cohort 46 ice hockey players, 18 badminton players and 27 controls, all 17 years of age at baseline, were followed for four years. During the follow up the badminton players gained more bone mass at the hip compared to both the ice hockey players and controls. In the second cohort the associations between physical activity and BMD were investigated in 62 female and 62 male young medical students. The estimated high impact activity per week was associated with bone mass at all sites in the male medical students (r=0.27-0.53, p<0.05). In the female cohort different estimates of physical activity were not related to bone mass at any site. In both males and females correlations between bone mass and body constitution parameters were observed. Levels of vitamin D3, vitamin D2, retinol, retinol-binding-protein-4 (RBP-4) and fatty acids were measured in 78 young men with a mean age of 22.6 years. BMD at various sites were measured using Dual-Energy X-ray absorptiometry. Levels of vitamin D3 showed a significant positive association with all BMD sites and also lean body mass (r=0.23-0.35, p<0.05). Levels of vitamin D2, however, showed a significant negative correlation with BMD of the total body (r=-0.28, p=0.01) and spine (r=-0.27, p=0.02). There was also a significant negative relationship between levels of vitamin D3 and D2 (r=-0.31, p=0.006). Concentrations of n-3 (omega-3) fatty acids showed a positive association with BMD at the total body (r=0.27, p=0.02) and spine BMD (r=0.25, p=0.02). There was also a positive association between levels of n-3 fatty acids and changes in BMD of the spine between 16 and 22 years of age (r=0.26, p=0.02). The significant associations found seemed to be related mostly to the concentration of the n-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid. Levels of retinol and RBP-4 were not related to BMD but to levels of osteocalcin, which is a marker of bone formation. This association disappeared when adjusting for the influence of abdominal fat mass. In summary, the present thesis suggests that many modifiable factors may influence the accumulation of peak bone mass in males, such as physical activity, vitamins, and fatty acids. Further studies are needed to investigate whether optimizing these factors in youth may decrease the risk of osteoporosis later in life.
|
|
| 4. |
- Karlsson, Lisa, 1980-
(författare)
-
Differentiation of Human Dermal Fibroblasts : a New Tool in Vascular Tissue Engineering
- 2009
-
Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Tissue engineering is an expanding field, which focuses on the development of func-tional substitutes for damaged tissues. A limitation in this field is difficulties with obtaining autologous cells. Recent research has shown the presence of cells with multilineage-potential within the connective stroma of the skin. In line with this, a potential plasticity inherent in human dermal fibroblasts has been demonstrated. The overall aim of this study was to investigate if human dermal fibroblasts can be used as a cell source for vascular tissue engineering. Differentiation towards an endothelial cell-like phenotype was induced by culturing dermal fibroblasts in endothelial growth medium. By utilizing in vitro cell culture models, the capacity of different types of serum and serum constituents in inducing a phenotypic shift in fibroblasts was investi-gated. To clarify the mechanisms behind this phenotypic shift and to eliminate the risk of having growth of residual endothelial cells in the cultures, both normal dermal fibroblasts and single-cell clone fibroblasts were used. Our results demonstrated that presence of human serum caused fibroblasts and single-cell clone fibroblasts to express vWf, to incorporate fluorochrome-labeled low-density lipoprotein, and to start form-ing capillary-like networks. As an initial step in using these cells in tissue engineering, their ability to endothelialize a surface in vitro was studied. Cells cultured in either fibroblast or endothelial growth medium were seeded on scaffolds. Differentiation was confirmed by western blotting and immunohistochemistry using antibodies directed towards vWf, ve-cadherin, eNOS, and bradykinin receptor B2. The results revealed that endothelial differentiated fibroblasts cultured on scaffolds showed histological resem-blance to endothelial cells, and expressed molecules indicative of an endothelial phenotype. In conclusion, the results presented in this study indicate a possibility to induce differentiation of human dermal fibroblasts towards an endothelial cell-like phenotype. Consequently, these data suggests that human dermal fibroblast may be a novel cell source for vascular tissue engineering.
|
|
| 5. |
- Rydell-Karlsson, Monica
(författare)
-
Knowledge Acquisition in Patients with Heart Disease
- 2007
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The general aim was to evaluate different aspects of the knowledge acquisition process in patients with heart disease. Three different education programs were evaluated.In Paper I 208 patients with systolic heart failure (HF) aged >60 years, were included. They were randomized to the nurse-based outpatient clinic or to the patients´ general practitioners (GP). The aim was to assess effects of a nurse-based management program – intended to increase the knowledge of the HF disease and its self-care – and relate the results to gender and cognitive function. The results showed that the nurse-based outpatient clinic has an important role in patient education, and increases patients´ knowledge about self-care and the disease. The results indicate that females have more to gain than men from such management programs. Patients demonstrating signs of cognitive dysfunction when in hospital did also benefit.In Paper II 224 patients, aged <75 years suffering from an acute AMI or who had underwent coronary artery by-pass grafting, were randomized to intervention (an expanded cardiac rehabilitation program) or to control (usual care). The aim was to investigate the effect of an expanded cardiac rehabilitation program on psychosocial characteristics including depression, anxiety, and quality of life (QoL) in type D and non-type D coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. The results show that an expanded rehabilitation program significantly reduces type D score, improves QoL, and decreases self-estimated depression and anxiety in CAD patients in the highest quartile of type D score.In Paper III and IV 182 patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) were included and referred to the nurse-based outpatient clinic. They were randomized to intervention (patients decided on how they should be informed and by which information technique) or to control (the nurse decided according to usual routine).The aim in Paper III was to compare patient-based selection of information with nurse-based selection of information in patients with HF and to evaluate the effects on knowledge acquisition, QoL, visits to the outpatient clinic, drug therapy and readmissions. Patients had fewer visits to the nurse-based outpatient clinic and a trend to a more flexible diuretic regimen, if patients were involved in the decision on how to be informed. Both groups increased QoL, knowledge their doses of relevant medication, and readmissions did not differ between the two groups.The aim in Paper IV was to compare patient-based and nurse-based New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification and its relation to grade of depression and knowledge acquisition in patients with HF. The results show a mismatch between the NYHA classifications performed by patients respectively by the nurse. Furthermore, patients in a depressed mood at baseline had more clinical events during the first year after hospitalization due to CHF. However, there was no difference in knowledge acquisition between patients in a depressed mood as compared to patients in a normal mood.The conclusion is that information given at a nurse-based outpatient clinic has an important role in patient education. Females and patients with in-hospital cognitive dysfunction had the greatest gains Patients who are involved in the decision on how to be informed had fewer visits to the nurse-based outpatient clinic. The fewer visits did not affect knowledge, QoL, readmissions, or medical treatment in a negative way. Patients assessed a higher NYHA class than a nurse. Patients who were depressed had an increased incidence of clinical events during the first year after hospitalisation due to HF. There was no difference in knowledge acquisition between patients in a depressed mood as compared to patients in a normal mood. An expanded rehabilitation program significantly reduces type D score, improves quality of life, and decreases self-estimated depression and anxiety in patients with CAD in the upper quartile of type D score.
|
|
| 6. |
- Wolf, Anna, 1976-
(författare)
-
Industrial Symbiosis in the Swedish Forest Industry
- 2007
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Forskningen som presenteras i denna avhandling anknyter till forskningsfältet Industriell Ekologi och då särskilt den gren som kallas Industriell Symbios (IS). Inom IS förordas att ett företag kan öka produktionen och samtidigt minska resursanvändningen genom att effektivt integrera energi och materialflöden i ett större system. Utbyte av tex spillvärme och biprodukter mellan olika industrier kan minska behovet av primärvärme och råmaterial. Syftet med avhandlingen är att undersöka hur det teoretiska ramverk som byggts upp inom IS kan appliceras på den svenska skogsindustrin. Detta leder till empiriskt material som kan bidra till vidare teroriutveckling, samt ger en insikt om hur IS kan bidra till resurseffektiviteten inom skogsindustrin. Avhandlingen behandlar teman som existens, utveckling och utvärdering av integrerade system. Främst baseras resultaten på fallstudier, bl a från Kisa, Mönsterås, Värö och Forssjöbruk. För att utvärdera ekonomiska och miljömässiga aspekter (främst CO2 utsläpp) har ven ett optimeringsprogram använts (MIND).Resultaten visar att flera fall av industriell symbios existerar inom svensk skogsindustri redan idag och att samarbetena betraktas som gynnsamma av de ingående parterna. Det visas även att förutsättningarna för att implementera IS varierar beroende på vilken typ av system som avses. De viktigaste gemensamma nämnarna för alla system är en positiv attityd från företagens sida, en vilja att agera, och maktrelationer i företagen. Brist på resurser, bristfällig miljölagstiftning, tidsramar för investeringar samt risker med att satsa på ny teknik är de viktigaste hindren som identifierats. Resultaten från utvärderingen indikerar att IS kan ha fördelar både ur ett ekonomiskt och miljömässigt perspektiv. Dock visas tydligt att resultaten varierar avsevärt beroende på vilka antaganden som görs och slutsatsen är därför att ett noggrannt val av metod, systemgräns och randvillkor är av yttersta vikt och varierar beroende på studiens syfte.
|
|
