Search results for "Circular economy"

Exploitation of food processing discards as main ingredients of sustainable feeds for the aquaculture of Paracentrotus lividus

2022

Sea urchin gonads are considered a delicacy in many parts of the world, leading to an increase of fishing pressure and resulting in the decline of natural stock of commercially valuable species. Aquaculture could be the best solution to fill the gap between market demand and natural supply, but in a context of Sustainable Development and Blue Growth, aquaculture sector is called to reduce its ecological footprint. Aquaculture feeds are produced using ingredients obtained from natural resources already overexploited by human activities, such as fish meal and fish oil that are considered the best source of lipids, or cereal meals that are included as protein sources. In this context, in order…

Hemp flour, from waste to nutritional and nutraceuticals reuse

2023

One of the main objectives of recent years is to characterize and valorize by-products of agri-food industries, as new sources of bioactive components, from the perspective of a circular economy and a biorefinery approach both for environmental and economic reasons. Hemp flour, obtained from Cannabis sativa seeds, is an example of promising bio-sustainability raw material with a high nutritional value that can be obtained from industrial by-products. From C. sativa seeds is obtained an oil rich in fatty acids, mainly linoleic and α-linolenic acids [1]. After oil extraction, seeds can be ground to obtain edible flour. Foods fortified with these “non-wheat flours” would have an additional sup…

Architectural technologies for life environment: spent coffee ground reuse, a novel way to intend architectural and engineering products?

2021

Green architecture is the novel trend in construction that considers innovative materials and solutions to architectural design and engineering build. Then the use of advanced organic materials and renewable energy resources are the new path followed by “bio-designers”. In this context, particularly important are the novel economic and social criteria, often related to ethical issues, whose aim is generating a low environmental impact. In fact, bio-architectural construction contemplates the reuse of industrial bio-wastes to manufacture novel green materials with enhanced performances. The main approach behind a green building is that the whole construction life cycle must be eco-sustainabl…

Packaging and plastic are synonymous with waste: But is that really the case?

2022

The paper presents the value of packaging and misconceptions about plastic. In addition to shedding light on clichés and fake news about plastic and packaging, it outlines opportunities to consider the use and management of packaging for responsible waste collection; and new forms of consumption and supply chains to facilitate the transition from the current linear consumption model to one that is more responsible and open to a circular economy.

Sine cura. Verso il ri-ciclo dell'architettura del secondo Novecento

2019

Gli argomenti discussi nel saggio interrogano il destino che il Codice dei Beni Culturali (2004- 2011) determina per le opere del secondo Novecento. Nella costruzione del futuro di questi manufatti, che per funzione, tecnologia e cicli d’uso sono spesso segnati dall’obsolescenza e dall’abbandono, le ambiguità e le incongruenze delle attuali procedure legislative sollecitano profondamente il ruolo culturale delle esperienze di ricerca che usano metodologie meta progettuali. Il confronto fra alcuni casi italiani ed altri europei rimarca il ruolo del progetto nella costruzione di una prospettiva di tutela trasformativa per il costruito del secondo Novecento. Nel quadro di azione marcato dall’o…

Città, economia circolare e pianificazione urbanistica

2019

Il progressivo sviluppo delle interdipendenze economiche a scala globale ha influenzato anche la rapida crescita della produzione d’inquinanti e rifiuti di ogni sorta, richiamando l’attenzione della comunità europea e delle nazioni unite sulle politiche urbane, la loro efficacia e la loro integrazione. Le città e le regioni urbane costituiscono le maggiori aree di criticità dove si concentra la maggiore produzione di rifiuti urbani con impatti negativi sulla salute umana e sull’ambiente. Per lungo tempo l’aumento dei rifiuti urbani è stato considerato, come altri inquinanti, un problema alla coda di ogni processo produttivo e di consumo ed è stato affrontato con strumenti settoriali, come d…

Sprawl Design Industries

2017

Il contributo presenta un caso studio imprenditoriale rilevante dal punto di vista della disciplina urbanistica annoverabile come modello in funzione della possibile replicabilità e diffusione anche in contesti “isolati” come quello sicano. La scheda è parte di una raccolta di casi studio che dimostrano come nel territorio siciliano, "a fronte di un’inadeguatezza delle istituzioni a rispondere ai bisogni delle comunità locali e nonostante la progressiva perdita di capitale umano che impoverisce il dinamismo imprenditoriale, siano presenti germogli di innovazione e scintille di creatività da parte di soggetti protagonisti di piccole/grandi trasformazioni sociali, anche in contesti rurali e u…

Energy and environmental benefits of circular economy strategies: The case study of reusing used batteries from electric vehicles

2019

Abstract According to recent literature and technical analyses, used batteries from electric vehicles can still be used, before the final treatment at the end-of-life, in stationary applications that are usually less stressing than the automotive ones. In this framework, a circular economy inspired pathway is emerging between the building and the transportation sector, generally called “second life” of batteries. Used batteries from electric vehicles can be re-used in residential buildings together with renewable electricity generation technologies to improve the matching between the highly variable electricity generation from renewables and the electricity demand in buildings. This study a…

Reuse of electric vehicle batteries in a residential stationary application: an integrated load match analysis and life cycle assessment approach

Life cycle analysis of innovative building materials based on circular coffee ground supply chain

2022

The construction sector is widely recognized as one of the most polluting mainly due to its intensive exploitation of natural resources and large energy consumption to produce traditional building materials. In the last years, alternative building materials have been developed with the aim to reduce the environmental burden of this sector. In particular, the use of geopolymer mortars as alternative cementitious materials is gaining increasing acceptance among scientists. Numerous laboratory studies demonstrate their suitability for construction applications, highlighting the potential environmental benefits that can be obtained from their large-scale production. This study aims to perform a…