Search results for " Circular Economy."
showing 10 items of 50 documents
Electrodialysis with Bipolar Membranes for the Sustainable Production of Chemicals from Seawater Brines at Pilot Plant Scale
2023
Environmental concerns regarding the disposal of seawater reverse osmosis brines require the development of new valorization strategies. Electrodialysis with bipolar membrane (EDBM) technology enables the production of acid and base from a salty waste stream. In this study, an EDBM pilot plant with a membrane area of 19.2 m2 was tested. This total membrane area results much larger (i.e., more than 16 times larger) than those reported in the literature so far for the production of HCl and NaOH aqueous solutions, starting from NaCl brines. The pilot unit was tested both in continuous and discontinuous operation modes, at different current densities (200-500 A m-2). Particularly, three differe…
Techno-economic analysis of a novel hybrid system for the valorisation of SWRO brines in a minor Sicilian island
2021
In small remote islands, freshwater scarcity is an issue to which several viable solutions have already been found employing constantly evolving desalination technologies. The several RO plants in the Canary and minor Sicilian Islands are just an example . However, the beneficial application of seawater desalination is accompanied by a problematic matter: the production of high salinity brines. Not only do they compromise the aquatic ecosystem but their treatment in order to respect environmental regulations is costly too. Worth noting how these so-called “wastewater streams” present a high concentration of valuable raw materials, such as magnesium and calcium or sodium chloride, that are e…
Diffusion dialysis for the treatment of H2SO4-CuSO4 solutions from electroplating plants: Ions membrane transport characterization and modelling
2021
Diffusion dialysis (DD) is proposed to separate and recover mineral acids and transition metals from electroplating industry process waters promoting a circular approach of resources recovery. In this work, a DD module with two anionic membranes (Fumasep FAD and Neosepta AFN) are used for the separation of H2SO4 from Cu2+ containing solutions. The membrane performances with sole H2SO4 solutions (0.2–2 M) and sole CuSO4 solutions (0.8–1.1 M Cu2+) and with mixtures of H2SO4 (0.6 M) and CuSO4 (0.2–1.1 M Cu2+) as feed are studied. H2SO4 recovery efficiency decreases as the concentration of acid increases. For H2SO4 solutions, the water drag flux from the retentate to the diffusate prevails agai…
Biochar amended soils and water systems: Investigation of physical and structural properties
2021
There are significant regional differences in the perception of the problems posed by global warming, water/food availability and waste treatment recycling procedures. The study illustrates the effect of application of a biochar (BC) from forest biomass waste, at a selected application rate, on water retention, plant available water (PAW), and structural properties of differently standard textured soils, classified as loamy sand, loam and clay. The results showed that soil water retention, PAW, and aggregate stability were significantly improved by BC application in the loamy sand, confirming that application of BC to this soil was certainly beneficial and increased the amount of macropores…
Architectural technologies for life environment: Spent coffee ground reuse in lime-based mortars. A preliminary assessment for innovative green therm…
2022
Spent coffee ground, the residue obtained from the brewing process, is the primary unavoidable (inedible) waste from the coffee consumption. As coffee production and beverage consumption are increasing worldwide, a more sustainable waste management is required since the usual disposal in landfill is a liability to both humans and the environment. This paper is aimed at showing a possible alternative reuse of coffee ground wastes in novel green building materials intended for thermo-plastering applications in construction, in a circular economy context. Coffee waste was used in various percentages (up to 17.5%) to assess the engineering performance of the produced bio-composite mortars. The …
Re-cyclical Urbanism. Visions, Paradigms and Projects for the Circular Metamorphosis
2017
The European Commission has clearly stated that more intelligent, sustainable and competitive development requires a paradigm shift in which the territory is construed as a primary resource, considered the holder of “development cells”, which are too often underused or mystified with regard to their real potential for use (EC, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, 2012). Cities designed and built on land rent — on which Italy set a benchmark — need to be replaced with cities of social and cultural profitability, value creation and jobs production. Cities that recycle already-used land to avoid energy waste, smarter cities — not just technologically, but also wiser and more sentie…
Validare le pratiche collaborative per l’economia circolare urbana: il punto di vista del design.
2021
The article presents the results of the research activity carried out within the framework of the European project H2020 REFLOW, which aims to build an integrated approach for the development of innovative participatory practices dedicated to urban circular metabolisms. As a result of the survey conducted on the application of collaborative models for the urban circular economy, it emerged that there is no shared operational strategy that can be adopted for the circular development of complex systems, such as cities. Based on this premise, this paper offers a new perspective on how to build and validate a transitional pathway for the development of circular cities through the adoption of a …
RIFIUTI E CITTA' STORICA. IL PAESAGGIO URBANO E L’IMPATTO DELLE SOLUZIONI TECNOLOGICHE
2019
Circular management of resource flows is an operational problem that appears with greater severity in an historical urban landscape due to the constraints generated by road fabrics and by the need to protect its values. It often happens that the degradation generated by the irresolute nature of the technical-environmental issues related to the service management, affects both the vulnerability of the historical city characters and the involvement of different actors. Here, we present the results of a research work that, through a case study, develops the experimentation of a methodology that identifies criteria for a waste collection system planning in an urban landscape of high historical …
Energy and environmental assessment of residual bio-wastes management strategies
2021
Abstract This paper assesses the potential energy and environmental impacts of an anaerobic digester coupled with a combined heat and power plant powered with bio-wastes from the agri-food sector. The analysis is carried out through the Life Cycle Assessment methodology following a “cradle-to-grave” approach and is based mostly on primary data. The anaerobic digester - combined heat and power plant is analysed considering a twofold perspective: one more energy – oriented where the main function of the system is to generate renewable electricity and a waste – oriented one in which the main function is treating bio-wastes. In addition, the environmental indirect effects related to potential c…
From waste to resource for a sustainable future
2023
Every day we produce waste that constitutes an environmental and economic problem. A quantity of this waste is recycled, reused or composted and a quantity is sent to landfills. How can we produce less waste and using waste as a resource? Reducing waste is one of the objectives of the circular economy and their recycle asks us to rethink production and consumption models, this implies that design is a strategic element. In fact, in recent years design played a key role in the transition from a linear to a circular economy with a design based on the efficient use of materials, the reduction of the amount of waste generated, intervening on durability, repairability, the possibility of updatin…