Search results for "Environmental impact"

Energy and environmental impact of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) demonstration plant treating urban wastewater

2020

Abstract In order to assess the environmental feasibility of anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) technology for urban wastewater (UWW) treatment at ambient temperature, a demonstration plant was operated within the LIFE MEMORY project ( http://www.life-memory.eu/en/ ). This plant incorporates full-scale hollow-fiber membrane modules and was fed with the effluent from the pre-treatment of the “Alcazar de San Juan” WWTP (Alcazar de San Juan, Ciudad Real, Spain). Because of the dimensions of this plant, the system can be regarded as a previous step to the scale-up of AnMBR technology for full-scale UWW treatment. High-energy recovery potentials were achieved treating medium-/high-loaded UWW …

Sustainable recycling technologies for thermoplastic polymers and their composites: A review of the state of the art

2022

This review article discusses the environmental and economic effects of recycling, as well as sustainable thermoplastic polymer recycling technologies. Several researchers have utilized recycled thermoplastics as matrices in the production of a variety of natural and synthetic-based composites, which is also the focus of this study. All of the industries (food and packaging, construction and building, transportation, and indoor usage) where recycled thermoplastics have a large market share (food and packaging, construction and building, transportation, and indoor usage) are covered in this review. The desirable properties of thermoplastic polymers, such as corrosion resistance, low density,…

Analysis of the relationship between chemistry composition and stable isotope signals in coastal sediments: a biogeochemistry study to assess the env…

2008

Ranking of small scale proposals for water system repair using the Rapid Impact Assessment Matrix (RIAM)

2014

Abstract Environmental impacts of small scale projects are often assessed poorly, or not assessed at all. This paper examines the usability of the Rapid Impact Assessment Matrix (RIAM) as a tool to prioritize project proposals for small scale water restoration projects in relation to proposals' potential to improve the environment. The RIAM scoring system was used to assess and rank the proposals based on their environmental impacts, the costs of the projects to repair the harmful impacts, and the size of human population living around the sites. A four-member assessment group (The expert panel) gave the RIAM-scores to the proposals. The assumed impacts of the studied projects at the Easter…

Ecological study of the wood mouse helminth community in a burned Mediterranean ecosystem in regeneration five years after a wildfire

2007

AbstractParasites are used as biological tags in environmental impact studies. However, terrestrial systems in general and small mammals in particular are rarely considered in these ecological studies. Based on the effects of a wildfire which occurred in the Spanish Serra Calderona Natural Park — a typical Mediterranean ecosystem — the regeneration process of the wood mouse population and its helminth community is analysed. A total of 217 individuals of Apodemus sylvaticus were studied in a five year period, from the second to the fifth post-fire year: 152 mice originating from the burned area and 65 from the control — non-burned — area. The helminth community for both burned and non-burned…

Life cycle methods for environmental assessment of nanotechnology

2012

Tämä tutkielma on kirjallisuuskatsaus, joka antaa yleissilmäyksen erilaisiin elinkaarimetodeihin, joilla voidaan arvioida nanoteknologiaa sisältävien tuotteiden ympäristövaikutuksia. Työssä selvitetään elinkaariajattelun tärkeys ja kuvataan erilaisia ympäristöarviointimenetelmiä. Tässä tutkielmassa tarkastellut menetelmät ovat elinkaariarvionti (LCA), hiilijalanjälki, vesijalanjälki, ekologinen jalanjälki ja ekologinen selkäreppu (MIPS). Työ käsittelee nanoteknologiaan liittyviä ympäristöasioita ja tarkastelee elinkaarimenetelmien soveltamista ja soveltuvuutta nanoteknologiaan. Työn tuloksena raportoidaan, että kuvatut ympäristöarviointimenetelmät soveltuvat nanoteknologian vaikutusten arvi…

Review on Life Cycle Assessment of Solar Photovoltaic Panels

2020

The photovoltaic (PV) sector has undergone both major expansion and evolution over the last decades, and currently, the technologies already marketed or still in the laboratory/research phase are numerous and very different. Likewise, in order to assess the energy and environmental impacts of these devices, life cycle assessment (LCA) studies related to these systems are always increasing. The objective of this paper is to summarize and update the current literature of LCA applied to different types of grid-connected PV, as well as to critically analyze the results related to energy and environmental impacts generated during the life cycle of PV technologies, from 1st generation (traditiona…

Energy and environmental assessment of retrofit actions on a residential building

2014

Energy and environmental performances of buildings strictly depend on many factors related to the choice of construction materials, technical equipment, installation and use. In the following chapter a set of retrofit actions to improve the thermal performance of an existing conventional building is presented. The energy and environmental assessment of these actions is carried out following a life cycle approach. The embodied energy and the environmental impacts arisen from the production, transportation and installation phases of the required materials and components are calculated. Further, energy saving and environmental benefits and drawbacks concerning the assessed retrofit actions are…

Comparative environmental analysis of soil sampling methods in precision agriculture for lime application in Paraná State, Brazil

2020

Precision agriculture (PA) provides techniques that favour the localized application of inputs allowing their rational use. This makes the PA a potential indicator of reduced operational costs, input volume, and environmental impacts. The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the environmental effects of three different sampling methods used in PA for the lime application. The first sampling method evaluated was the grid sampling (GS). It was performed at a density of one sample per hectare in a 100×100 m georeferenced grid. The second method was the directed sampling, that was performed after defining the management zones by soil apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) using a…

On the use of unmanned aerial systems for environmental monitoring

2018

[EN] Environmental monitoring plays a central role in diagnosing climate and management impacts on natural and agricultural systems; enhancing the understanding of hydrological processes; optimizing the allocation and distribution of water resources; and assessing, forecasting, and even preventing natural disasters. Nowadays, most monitoring and data collection systems are based upon a combination of ground-based measurements, manned airborne sensors, and satellite observations. These data are utilized in describing both small-and large-scale processes, but have spatiotemporal constraints inherent to each respective collection system. Bridging the unique spatial and temporal divides that li…