| 61. |
- Rootzén, Johan, 1978, et al.
(författare)
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Supply-chain collective action towards zero CO2 emissions in infrastructure construction : Mapping barriers and opportunities
- 2020
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Ingår i: IOP Conference Series. - : IOP Publishing Ltd. ; , s. 042064-
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Successful decarbonisation of the supply chains for buildings and infrastructure, including the production of basic materials, will involve the pursuit - in parallel - of measures to ensure circularity of material flows, measures to improve material efficiency, and to radically reduce CO2 emissions from basic materials production. Emphasis in this work has been on how “intangible” factors such as implicit or explicit constraints within organisations, inadequate communication between actors in the supply chain, overly conservative norms or lack of information, hinder the realisation of the current carbon mitigation potential. Although this work draw primarily from experiences in Sweden and other developed economies we believe the focus on innovations in the policy arena and efforts to develop new ways of co-operating, coordinating and sharing information between actors (SDG17) and on practices and processes that could enable more sustainable resource use in infrastructure construction may be of relevance also elsewhere. Not the least, since there are still many regions of the world where much of the infrastructure to provide basic services remains to be built (SDG6-7, SDG9, SDG11) a challenge that must be handled in parallel with efforts to reduce/erase the climate impact from infrastructure construction (in line with the Paris Agreement and SDG13).
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| 62. |
- Savvidou, Georgia, 1991, et al.
(författare)
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Material Requirements, Circularity Potential and Embodied Emissions Associated with Wind Energy
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Sustainable Production and Consumption. - 2352-5509. ; 40, s. 471-487
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Wind energy, which is often posited as a key decarbonisation option, represents one of the fastest-growing energy sources globally in recent years. Research on the material requirements for transitioning to a low-carbon electricity system at national levels, as well as research exploring the potential of the electricity system to serve as a source of secondary materials remains underexplored. We address these gaps in the knowledge by analysing the stocks and flows in a wind power system towards 2050 using Sweden as a case study, including the demands for bulk (concrete and steel) and critical materials (neodymium and dysprosium), through a dynamic material flow analysis based on policy-relevant scenarios. We demonstrate that some of the investigated scenarios generate substantial increases in the stocks and flows of bulk and critical materials. We show that, after 2045, the year by which Sweden has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero, the inflows show a decreasing trend while the outflows show an increasing trend, suggesting the beginning of the closing of the material loops, provided untapped circularity potentials transform into actual capacities. For wind power to comply with emissions targets, the steel and concrete production processes will need to be decarbonised at a rate in line with the climate targets. We show that the adoption of mitigation measures to decarbonise the concrete and steel industries aligned with Sweden's climate change mitigation agenda, has the potential to reduce embodied carbon emissions for wind power infrastructure in 2045 from corresponding to around 4 % of current total national emissions in the absence of measures to practically negligible levels. National policies need to focus on promoting the implementation of circularity strategies and decarbonising the entire value chain of the involved materials.
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| 63. |
- Selvakkumaran, Sujeetha, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Electric Vehicle (EV) Transition in Thailand: Is it Beneficial?
- 2018
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Ingår i: PROCEEDINGS OF THE 2018 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND UTILITY EXHIBITION ON GREEN ENERGY FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (ICUE 2018). - 9789748257990 ; 2018-October
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The adoption of electric vehicles (EV) is effectively a problem of socio-technical transitions and comes with its complexities. The Thai Energy Efficiency Development Plan includes the adoption of EV as a voluntary measure to increase the energy effectiveness of its transport sector and to mitigate GHG emissions. But, there are other important social, technological, economic and policy factors which need to be thoroughly investigated before the EV transition is attempted in Thailand, since the environmental cost may outweigh the benefits of the EV transition. The methodology used is based on systems thinking and called Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD). In CLD, the factors underpinning the benefits accruing from the EV transition in Thailand are characterized as causal relationships and feedback loops. Preliminary CLD investigation into the factors for EVs show the technological factor EV efficiency levels and their cost (economic factor) are important in determining the GHG reduction benefit, along with the grid emission factor.
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| 64. |
- Shami, Siavash, et al.
(författare)
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Assessments of ground subsidence along the railway in the Kashan plain, Iran, using Sentinel-1 data and NSBAS algorithm
- 2022
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Ingår i: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation. - : Elsevier. - 1569-8432 .- 1872-826X. ; 112
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The 110-kilometer-long Qom-Kashan railway is one of the busiest lines in Iran, passing through the Kashan plain. The majority of Iran's plains have subsided in recent years as a result of uncontrolled groundwater extraction, and the Kashan plain is no exception. In this study, ground surface displacement in the Kashan plain region and its impact on the railway were investigated using New Small Baseline Subset (NSBAS) in up-down and east–west directions using descending and ascending Sentinel-1 data collected between 2015 and 2021. Our results indicate that the Kashan plain is subsiding more than 90 mm/year. The study of the local areas around the railway which passes through the study area revealed that the rate of vertical velocity in some locations reaches –23 mm/year, while the rate of east–west velocity is insignificant and is approximately ±2 mm/year. Additionally, a method for analyzing the railway's stability based on longitudinal profiles along the railway is presented. Our findings suggest that more than 60% of the railway line is subject to variable amounts of subsidence. Additionally, a region of approximately one kilometer of the railway has been classified as a risk zone due to relatively fast local deformation. After examining the effect of various factors, it was determined that uncontrolled groundwater extraction in agricultural areas contributed to the subsidence in this area. Our results show that the presented stability control approach in this study is highly reliable for creating hazard profiles for linear structures, such as railways.
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| 65. |
- Shavalieva, Gulnara, 1987, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental, health and safety assessment of post-combustion CO2 capture processes with phase-change solvents
- 2021
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Ingår i: Sustainable Production and Consumption. - : Elsevier BV. - 2352-5509. ; 25, s. 60-76
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A class of solvents for chemisorption-based CO2 capture, phase-change solvents, promises significant energy reductions due to liquid-liquid phase separation and partial solvent recycling before CO2 desorption. Although energy consumption is a critical aspect of the CO2 capture process sustainability, a holistic evaluation of health, safety, and environmental impacts is required to confirm the beneficial performance of processes employing phase-change solvents compared to conventional alternatives. This study outlines a method for combining the life cycle and environmental, health and safety hazard assessment. The method is applied for the first time on processes employing two different exemplary phase-change solvents, a reference aqueous solution of methylcyclohexylamine (MCA) and a novel mixture of cyclohexylpropane-1,3-diamine (S1N) and dimethylcyclohexylamine (DMCA). The results show that phase-change solvents have the potential to be a better alternative to conventional amine (i.e., MEA) solvent systems due to the reduced reboiler duty and lower impact on the environment. However, additional care might need to be taken to prevent the potential accumulation of the carcinogenic nitrosamines in the system.
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| 66. |
- Sparovek, Gerd, 1962, et al.
(författare)
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Asymmetries of cattle and crop productivity and efficiency during Brazil's agricultural expansion from 1975 to 2006
- 2018
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Ingår i: Elementa. - : University of California Press. - 2325-1026. ; 6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Brazil has global importance for food production and conservation of natural resources. The country has plans to increase yields and commitments to decrease deforestation that require higher productivity. Plans and policies for the growth of Brazilian agriculture, however, have been made without an integrated analysis of the harvest and not supported by a universal metric regarding its efficiency. Applying methods to model flows of energy and matter along food supply chains for agricultural production from 1975 to 2006, we found that crop and cattle harvests and their productivity have increased during the last four decades in consolidated and deforestation frontier regions. Yet in 2006, crop protein production was 20 times larger than cattle protein, using an area 2.6 times smaller than pastures. Crop protein productivity was 0.25 ton.ha(-1) with emissions of 2 ton GHG per ton of protein, while cattle productivity was 0.01 ton.ha(-1) with emissions of 283 ton GHG per ton of protein. From 1975 to 2006, the portion of crop protein and energy going to feed increased while the portion going to direct human consumption decreased. Our findings suggest that more efficient food systems would be achieved by a combination of intensification of cattle systems, optimization of feed-meat systems and an increase in the share of the consumption of crops as a source of protein. We suggest an initial road map to the expansion of the cultivated area and intensification of agriculture for zero deforestation, efficient and sustainable land use and food systems where cattle pasture intensification is a transition that will last until the expansion of crops replace all pasture present on suitable arable land. During this transition, pasture area will decrease until it is limited only to marginal non-arable lands. Such change could be achieved by a robust strategy that combines penalties and incentives and prevents the risks of a rebound effect for the intensification of agriculture.
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| 67. |
- Wasserbaur, Raphael, 1989-, et al.
(författare)
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What if everyone becomes a sharer? A quantification of the environmental impact of access-based consumption for household laundry activities
- 2020
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Ingår i: Resources, Conservation and Recycling. - : Elsevier BV. - 0921-3449 .- 1879-0658. ; 158
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In order to meet the EU's climate and resource efficiency targets, changes in our daily-life behaviours, as well as business models, are urgently necessary. More insights are needed to make real changes based on research with a systems perspective. We developed a system dynamics model to analyse the environmental benefits of a transition from ownership-based to access-based household laundry activities. The model considers demographic, technological and behavioural aspects and thereby assesses the environmental impact of laundry activities. The model is applied to the Swedish as well as the European context and allows cross-country comparisons. The results indicate a significant potential of the sharing economy. The higher utilisation of shared machines and extended lifespans of the machines can cut greenhouse gas emissions by a third and lower raw material usage overall and lower primary raw material in production due to higher recycling rates. The carbon intensity of the energy mix is a crucial factor for the environmental consequences that arise through changes in energy usage due to sharing economy practices. This case study shows the value of adopting policies that could promote sharing and extended life spans.
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| 68. |
- Wickerts, Sanna, 1992, et al.
(författare)
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Energy storage with less metal scarcity? Prospective life cycle assessment of lithium-sulfur batteries with a focus on mineral resources.
- 2021
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In order to reduce the global dependency on fossil fuels by adopting renewable energy technologies and advancing electromobility, batteries are a key technology. Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are currently the dominant rechargeable battery technology, mainly due to their high energy density. However, most LIBs contain a number of geochemically scarce metals, e.g.cobalt, lithium and nickel. The production of LIBs is furthermore associated with considerable environmental impacts. Battery researchers and companies therefore try to develop the next generation batteries (NGBs) with the same or even higher energy densities than LIBs, while requiring less of scarce metals and causing lower environmental impacts. One promising NGB technology is the lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery, with a potential to significantly improve energy density as compared to current state-of-the-art LIBs. Although Li-S batteries still face a number of scientific and technical challenges, they have a significant advantage over LIBs from a resource point of view: the cells do not require any scarce metals besides lithium. Using prospective life cycle assessment, we will assess the life-cycle environmental impacts of Li-S batteries and compare them to those of LIBs, both modeled at large-scale production. In order to investigate the effect of using less scarce metals on resource impacts, the mineral resource impact category will be given extra attention. We will therefore include a range of mineral resource impact assessment methods, e.g. the abiotic depletion indicator, the surplus ore indicator, and the recently developed crustal scarcity indicator, which takes an explicit long-term perspective on elemental resources in the Earth’s crust. The overall aim is thus to compare the prospective life-cycle impacts of this particular NGB to those of LIBs, with a focus on mineral resources.
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| 69. |
- Willskytt, Siri, 1989
(författare)
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How can consumables be made more resource efficient? Environmental and resource assessment of measures
- 2018
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The global population growth paired with increasing consumption per capita puts resource efficiency and sustainability on the political agenda. Consequently, the need for resource-efficient and sustainable products, including consumables, is expected to increase in the future. Strategies and measures for resource-efficient products are being developed, however, with less focus on consumables. This thesis aims to investigate how consumables can be made more resource efficient. The research was carried out in two parts. First, a life cycle assessment was carried out on a selected consumable, namely an incontinence product. The aim was to investigate the potential to improve the resource efficiency of incontinence products by assessing four different resource efficiency (RE) measures which could be applied within a short time frame using current technology. The measures included reduce losses in production, change material composition to a larger proportion of renewables, shift to a partly multiple-use product and improve the use of the product through customisation. The second part of this thesis focused on synthesising learnings from a number of assessment studies. The analysis was based on typologies formulated for mapping resource efficiency measures and product characteristics. This resulted in a number of findings detailing under which circumstances resource efficiency measures yield environmental and resource benefits, as well as when there are possible trade-offs. The assessment studies of consumables were selected for a more detailed analysis in this thesis. Based on the review of cases and the typology of RE measures, the following RE measures were found applicable to consumables: reduce losses in production, reduce material use in products, change material in product, use effectively, shift to multiple-use products, reduce use of auxiliary materials and energy, recycle, digest anaerobically or compost, recover energy, and landfill. These are more measures which could potentially be applied to consumables than commonly discussed in the circular economy literature. Moreover, the identified measures among the cases all showed potential to improve resource efficiency. For the measure shift to multiple-use product, it was important for the product to last enough times to outweigh the environmental impact from production. In addition, an efficient maintenance system using electricity with low fossil content was an important element for achieving RE. When changing the material in a product, a risk of burden shifting between environmental impact categories was identified. Moreover, the measures applied to the incontinence products were found to be widely combinable, which could ultimately lead to greater resource efficiency. Others findings were that some measures are interdependent and that many, if not most, are dependent on design.
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| 70. |
- Zackrisson, Mats, et al.
(författare)
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Case study LCA on automotive light-weighting, using different datasets
- 2019
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Ingår i: The 9th International Conference on Life Cycle Management Abstract book.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Goal(s) Practitioners need quick but accurate methods for decision making when choosing materials in e.g. car chassis components. Simplified LCA is commonly used for this but choice of database, impact assessment method, material source and system boundaries can distort results and decision-making. This case study investigating steel versus aluminium in a cars roof evaluates effects from making lighter vehicles and demonstrates how the calculation results differ depending on choice of datasets. The impact of sourcing recycled or virgin material and depending on carbon intensity of energy source is assessed. Implications regarding future development and LCA modelling of e.g. light-weighting of electric cars is discussed. Method(s) The model considers manufacturing of a car roof from two optional materials, aluminium and steel, and the difference in fuel/electrical consumption for 10 years. The LCA system model compares the environmental impact of the material production with the weight-induced incremental fuel consumption impact of carrying the roof. The system boundary includes all life cycle phases, but in line with EPD system rules, end of life recycling is considered at the input material level. Cars are regulated to 85% material recycling, with near 100% for metal chassis.[MZ1] Also, from overview analysis of component production plants (stamping and joining) the chassis production difference was omitted. The functional unit is use of a car roof during car life cycle. A 17 kg steel roof is compared to a 7 kg aluminium roof, where the requirement of functionality stays the same for the roof regardless of the material chosen. In this study the following impact categories are used: -Climate impact -Acidification -Ground-level ozone (Photochemical oxidation) -Overfertilization (Eutrophication) Cost impact is also calculated to compare with literature. The evaluation only considers the effect of light-weighting a car depending on its energy source. It cannot be used to compare cars using different energy sources. The system boundaries and functional unit does not include the production of engines nor anything else of the car except the roof. Thus, the study is limited to comparing differences in the material production with the weight-induced energy consumption changes. Results. The study validates earlier studies on climate, eutrophication and economic gains in changing car body. For photochemical oxidation and acidification, the result differs depending on database, no robust conclusion can be. One dataset always gives reduced environmental impact on the chosen categories. The reason is that these data incorporates the effects of future recycling. This could be interpreted as in a system with effective end-of-life recycling and a high use of recycled materials, all investigated impacts would be reduced by light-weighting. For electric cars, light-weighting of chassis can minimise battery size and/or increase drive range. Adaptions for other materials must consider that the assumption of negligible impact changes in the car manufacturing plant is only true for metal plate in a mixed model line, thus the component plant has to be accounted for. Also, many reinforced plastic compounds are not recycled but incinerated, thus EoL combustion need to be accounted for.
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