Search results for "Life cycle"
showing 10 items of 378 documents
Resource depletion of a Lithium ion battery cell technology
2018
Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are the dominating storage technology for electric vehicles (EVs). Different types of LIBs, using diverse cathode materials are available in the market, such as LiMn2O4, Li(Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3)O2. The cathodes contain a wide range of raw materials (RMs), among which e.g. cobalt is in the 2017 list of CRMs for the Europe Union (EU). CRMs are both of high economic importance for the EU, and vulnerable to supply security. In the last years, the increasing demand of LIBs has triggered a growing interest in the need to ensure the security and the sustainability of the supply of the CRMs used in LIBs and in general in EVs. In this context, lithium rich layered oxides from…
Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC): principio di funzionamento e fasi preliminari dell’analisi LCA applicata alla Smart Window-LSC
2019
Una delle tecnologie più promettenti nel panorama dei sistemi fotovoltaici integrati negli edifici è quella dei concentratori solari luminescenti (LSC - Luminescent Solar Concentrator). La peculiarità di questi dispositivi risiede nel fatto che possono essere installati in zone dell’edificio difficilmente sfruttabili da altre tecnologie fotovoltaiche, in particolare in sostituzione di aperture quali lucernari o finestre, grazie alla loro caratteristica di essere semi-trasparenti e di funzionare sia con radiazione solare diretta che diffusa. L’obiettivo del presente lavoro è stato ricostruire i percorsi di produzione dei principali componenti del pannello LSC, in modo da ottenere un parziale…
Life cycle assessment of solid oxide fuel cells and polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: A review
2017
Fuel cells (FCs) are among the key technologies that Europe will have to rely on in order to comply with the most recent environmental targets inspired by decarbonization and circular economy. The assessment of the real advantages of using FCs for producing energy must include a reliable analysis of the energy and environmental impacts during the life cycle of these systems, including the raw materials supply, production, use, and disposal. In this context, the life cycle assessment (LCA) is a well-established methodology for assessing the eco-profile of products and services and for identifying the components and the life cycle steps having the largest contribution to energy and environmen…
LCA of a solar heating and cooling system equipped with a small water–ammonia absorption chiller
2012
The development of renewable energy technologies is a critical tool for reducing climate change and the reliance on fossil fuels. However, renewable energy technologies cannot be considered totally clean because they require energy consumption and have environmental impacts that cannot be neglected during their life cycle. In this paper, the life cycle assessment methodology was applied to assess resource use and other environmental burdens related to the entire life-cycle steps of a solar cooling plant. The investigated system works with an absorption chiller assisted by a solar plant. Two back-up configurations (hot back-up and cold back-up) were examined in two localities: Palermo (south…
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…
La Life Cycle Assessment applicata alla valutazione della sostenibilità ambientale del riuso delle batterie da trazione
2019
In un’ottica di economia circolare, le batterie da trazione rimosse dalle auto elettriche possiedono una capacità residua sufficiente per essere riutilizzate in applicazioni stazionarie di seconda vita in edifici residenziali dotati di tecnologie per la produzione di energia elettrica da fonti rinnovabili, allo scopo di aumentare l’autoconsumo degli edifici e ridurre lo stress sulla rete elettrica. In questo contesto, lo studio propone un approccio metodologico che combina la modellizzazione energetica del sistema che fornisce l’energia elettrica richiesta in una specifica applicazione, l’analisi di load – match e la Life Cycle Assessment, da impiegare per identificare la configurazione del…
Combined Oxidation-Gasification system for waste treatment with supercritical water: LCA and performance analysis
2020
In this study the environmental performance of a first of a kind integrated process based on supercritical water gasification and supercritical water oxidation, was evaluated using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The process was applied to the treatment of carbon black and used oil as model waste. Mass and energy balances were performed using Aspen Plus, and the environmental assessment was carried out through SimaPro. For the analysis was chosen a “From cradle to grave” approach, considering impact categories like climate change, ozone depletion, human toxicity, particulate matter, land use, resource depletion and others relevant indicators. The environmental profile of SCW-GcO process was co…
Design of the seismic retrofit of a school in accordance to a life cycle thinking approach
2018
The public consciousness of the seismic risk is continuously increasing, although the damage on existing and older buildings due to earthquakes is still high, due to a former structural design not accounting for the latest knowledge achieved in the seismic field. This is particularly true considering the damage recorded in the last earthquakes that hit Central Italy in August and October 2016. The paper deals with the repair actions required in the elementary school of Pievebovigliana (Macerata-Italy) after the aforementioned seismic events. The school is a one-story building characterized by an irregular plan layout; masonry walls with regular blocks are the main supporting structure. An a…
Life Cycle Assessment and eco-design of building materials: the case study of a Sicilian cement plaster
2015
Buildings in the European Union (EU) account for the largest share of the total EU final energy consumption (42%), and greenhouse gas emissions (35%). Therefore, the reduction of energy use, the development of quality-oriented processes and the improvement of energy performance in the building sector are important measures needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the energy dependency of the European Union from foreign countries. In this context, it is necessary to develop sustainable building products, with low energy and environmental impacts during their life cycle, from the extraction of raw material to the manufacturing, use and end-of-life. The main goal of the study is to define…
Life Cycle Assessment della filiera di trattamento di biomasse residuali: un caso studio
2022
Il presente lavoro descrive i risultati dell’analisi di Life Cycle Assessement, sviluppata in accordo agli standard della serie ISO 14040, di un processo di trattamento di biomasse residuali di origine forestale da impiegare per la successiva valorizzazione energetica. L’analisi è riferita ad 1 kg di cippato, selezionato come unità funzionale. I confini del sistema hanno incluso le fasi di raccolta della biomassa residuale (strascico indiretto e diretto), cippatura della biomassa, raccolta e trasporto del cippato all’impianto di valorizzazione energetica. I risultati dello studio mostrano che la filiera in esame, con riferimento all’unità funzionale, causa un impatto di 0,027 kg CO2eq e det…