Terms Of CO2 Emissions Research Articles

DETERMINANTS OF ENERGY AND CO2 EMISSION INTENSITIES: A STUDY OF MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN INDIA

This paper investigates determinants of energy and emission intensities of manufacturing firms in India, from 2000 to 2014. Given that Indian manufacturing sector is one of the world’s most polluting sectors in terms of CO2 emissions; we arrive at firm level determinants of energy and carbon dioxide emission intensities from consumption of three primary sources of energy, namely (1) Coal, (2) Natural Gas and (3) Petroleum. The results of the regression analysis suggest that there are inter-firm differences in energy and emission intensity. The results indicate that smaller and larger firms are both energy and emission intensive compared to medium sized firms. Similarly, firms spending more in research and development activities are found to be energy and emission efficient, compare to others. Hence, in the global competitive business environment, Government of India should carefully formulate policies suitable for the medium sized firms to make them energy and emission efficient.

Feasibility of medical stone amendment for sewage sludge co-composting and production of nutrient-rich compost

The feasibility of medical stone (MS) amendment as an innovative additive for dewatered fresh sewage sludge (DFSS) co-composting was assessed using a 130-L vessel-scale composter. To verify successful composting, five treatments were designed with four different dosages (2, 4, 6, and 10) % of MS with a 1:1 mixture (dry weight) of DFSS + wheat straw (WS). The WS was used as a bulking agent. A control without any amendment treatment was carried out for the purpose of comparison. For DFSS co-composting, the amendment with MS improved the mineralization efficiency and compost quality in terms of CO2 emissions, dehydrogenase enzyme (DE), electrical conductivity (EC), water-solubility, and total nutrients transformation. The DTPA-extractable Cu and Zn were also estimated to confirm the immobilization ability of the applied MS. Seed germination and plant growth tests were conducted to ensure the compost stability and phytotoxicity for Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa chinensis L.) growth and biomass, as well as chlorophyll content. The results showed that during the bio-oxidative phase, DOC, DON, AP, NH4+-N, and NO3−-N increased drastically in all the MS-blended treatments, except the application of 2% MS and the control treatment; significantly lower water-soluble nutrients were observed in the 2% MS and control treatments. A novel additive with 6–10% MS dosages considerably enhanced the organic matter conversion in the stable end-product (compost) and reduced the maturity period by two weeks compared to the 2% MS and control treatments. Consequently, the maturity parameters (e.g., EC, SGI, NH4+-N, DOC, and DON) confirmed that compost with 6–10% MS became more stable and mature within four weeks of DFSS co-composting. At the end of composting, significantly higher DTPA-extractable Cu and Zn contents were observed in the control treatment, and subsequently, in the very low application (10%) of MS. Higher MS dosage lowered the pH and EC to within the permissible limit compared to the control, while increased concentrations of water-soluble nutrients diminished the DTPA-extractable Cu and Zn contents. In addition, plant growth experiments demonstrated that the addition of compost with 150 kg ha−1 TKN improved the Chinese cabbage biomass and chlorophyll level. The highest dry weight biomass (2.78 ± 0.02 g/pot) was obtained with 6% MS-blended compost while the maximum chlorophyll content was found with application of 4% MS compost (41.84 SPAD-unit) for Chinese cabbage. Therefore, 6–10% MS can be recommended to improve DFSS composting and to reduce the period to maturity by two weeks when considering its composting effect on Chinese cabbage growth, biomass yield, and chlorophyll level. However, amendment with 6% MS is a more economically feasible approach for DFSS co-composting.

The use of temporal factors for improved CO2 emissions accounting in buildings

This paper is an investigation into the issues around how we calculate CO2 emissions in the built environment. At present, in Building Regulations and GHG Protocol calculations used for buildings and corporate CO2 emissions calculations, it is standard to use a single number for the CO2 emission factor of each source. This paper considers how energy demand, particularly electricity at different times of the day, season and even year can differ in terms of its CO2 emissions. This paper models three different building types (retail, office and home) using standard software to estimate a profile of energy demand. It then considers how CO2 emissions calculations differ between using the single standard emissions factor and using an hourly emissions factor based on real electrical grid generation over a year. The paper also examines the impact of considering lifetime emissions factors rather than one-year factors using UK government projections. The results show that there is a significant difference to the analysis of benefit in terms of CO2 emissions from different measures – both intra- and inter-year – due to the varying CO2 emissions intensity, even when they deliver the same amount of net energy saving. Other factors not considered in this paper, such as impact on peak generation and air quality, are likely to be important when considering whole-system impacts. In line with this, it is recommended that moves are made to incorporate intra- and inter-year emissions factor changes in methodologies for calculating CO2 emissions. (This is particularly important as demand side response and energy storage, although generally accepted as important in the decarbonisation of the energy system at present will show as an increase in CO2 emissions when using a single number.) Further work quantifying the impact on air quality and peak generation capacity should also be considered. Practical application: This paper aims to help practitioners to understand the performance gap between how systems need to be designed in order to meet regulations compared to how buildings perform in reality – both today and in the future. In particular, it considers the use of ‘real-time’ carbon factors in order to attain long-term CO2 reductions. This methodology enables decision makers to understand the impacts of different energy reduction technologies, considering each of their unique characteristics and usage profiles. If implemented, the result is a simple-to-use dataset which can be embedded into the software packages already available onto the market which mirrors the complexity of the electricity grid that is under-represented through the use of a static carbon figure.

The Comparative Economics of ICT, Environmental Degradation and Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

This study examines how information and communication technology (ICT) could be employed to dampen the potentially damaging effects of environmental degradation in order to promote inclusive human development in a panel of 44 Sub-Saharan African countries. ICT is captured with internet and mobile phone penetration rates whereas environmental degradation is measured in terms of CO2 emissions per capita and CO2 intensity. The empirical evidence is based on fixed effects and Tobit regressions using data from 2000 to 2012. In order to increase the policy relevance of this study, the dataset is decomposed into fundamental characteristics of inclusive development and environmental degradation based on income levels (low income vs. middle income); legal origins (English Common law vs. French Civil law); religious domination (Christianity vs. Islam); openness to sea (landlocked vs. coastal); resource-wealth (oil-rich vs. oil-poor) and political stability (stable vs. unstable). Baseline findings broadly show that improvement in both of measures of ICT would significantly diminish the possibly harmful effect of CO2 emissions on inclusive human development. When the analysis is extended with the above mentioned fundamental characteristics, we observe that the moderating influence of both our ICT variables on CO2 emissions is higher in the group of English Common law, middle income and oil-wealthy countries than in the French Civil law, low income countries and oil-poor countries respectively. Theoretical and practical policy implications are discussed.

How the transitions in iron and steel and construction material industries impact China’s CO2 emissions: Comprehensive analysis from an inter-sector linked perspective

CO2 emissions mitigation in iron and steel industry (ISI) and construction material industry (CMI), including cement, glass, and ceramics materials, is crucial for the realization of CO2 emission peak targets in China, given their great contributions to China’s emission structure. Great transitions have occurred in the two industries recently, including scale expansion, efficiency improvement, and changes in production and demand structures. By developing an integrated framework for inter-sector linkage analysis, we investigated the impact of recent transitions in the ISI and CMI on China’s CO2 emissions between 1992 and 2012. Results show that the CO2 emissions from ISI and CMI increased by 4.2 and 6.8 times over two decades, respectively, and the two key sectors have significantly higher backward and forward linkages than average in terms of CO2 emissions. The internal efficiency improvement of the ISI and CMI are crucial factors curbing the rising CO2 emissions in these two sectors. The total CO2 intensity of the ISI and CMI have declined by 78% and 68%, separately, cumulatively reducing 517 Mt and 704 Mt CO2 emissions during the studied period. The external final demand growth and its structure changes of the ISI and CMI have had a significant impact on their CO2 emissions. The construction sector is the greatest consumer, responsible for 53% and 86% emissions increase of ISI and CMI during 2002–2012, respectively. Emerging manufacturing and machinery also became substantial emissions sources, generating 536 Mt CO2 emissions in 2012 by consuming iron and steel products. Based on these findings, policy recommendations for CO2 emissions mitigation in the two key sectors and their related sectors are also discussed.

Designing a Model for the Global Energy System—GENeSYS-MOD: An Application of the Open-Source Energy Modeling System (OSeMOSYS)

This paper develops a path for the global energy system up to 2050, presenting a new application of the open-source energy modeling system (OSeMOSYS) to the community. It allows quite disaggregate energy and emission analysis: Global Energy System Model (GENeSYS-MOD) uses a system of linear equations of the energy system to search for lowest-cost solutions for a secure energy supply, given externally defined constraints, mainly in terms of CO2-emissions. The general algebraic modeling system (GAMS) version of OSeMOSYS is updated to the newest version and, in addition, extended and enhanced to include e.g., a modal split for transport, an improved trading system, and changes to storages. The model can be scaled from small-scale applications, e.g., a company, to cover the global energy system. The paper also includes an application of GENeSYS-MOD to analyze decarbonization scenarios at the global level, broken down into 10 regions. Its main focus is on interdependencies between traditionally segregated sectors: electricity, transportation, and heating; which are all included in the model. Model calculations suggests that in order to achieve the 1.5–2 °C target, a combination of renewable energy sources provides the lowest-cost solution, solar photovoltaic being the dominant source. Average costs of electricity generation in 2050 are about 4 €cents/kWh (excluding infrastructure and transportation costs).

Carbon and Energy Saving Financial Opportunities in the Industrial Compressed Air Sector

The transition towards a more sustainable energy scenario calls for both medium-to-long and short term interventions, with CO2 reduction and fossil fuel saving as main goals for all the Countries in the World. Among all others, one way to support these efforts is the setting-up of immaterial markets able to regulate, in the form of purchase and sales quotas, CO2 emissions avoided and fossil fuels not consumed. As a consequence, the upgrade of those sectors, characterized by high energy impact, is currently more than an option due to the related achievable financial advantage on the afore mentioned markets. Being responsible for about 10% electricity consumption in Industry, the compressed air sector is currently addressed as extremely appealing, when CO2 emissions and burned fossil fuels saving are in question. In the paper, once a standard is defined for compressors performances, based on data from the Compressed Air and Gas Institute and PNEUROP, the achievable energy saving is evaluated along with the effect in terms of CO2 emissions: with reference to those contexts in which mature intangible markets are established, an estimation of the financial benefit from savings sale on correspondent markets is possible, in terms of both avoided CO2 and fossil fuels not burned. The approach adopted allows to extend the analysis results to every context of interest, by applying the appropriate emission factor to the datum on compressor specific consumption.

Carbon footprint in the ethanol feedstocks cultivation – Agricultural CO2 emission assessment

CO2 emission is a current global concern and has progressively increased due fossil fuel use, leading to climatic changes. As a workaround to this problem low carbon fuel use has been the key to mitigate it in several countries. Brazil is a leader in ethanol sugarcane production and has a high demand expected for this biofuel, which means that large areas will be cultivated to supply this demand. Although biofuels help to reduce carbon emissions, agriculture is highlighted in the emission of CO2 to the atmosphere as from the soil. Considering that the amount of soil carbon lost to the atmosphere is tightly coupled to the vegetation type, soil properties and climate conditions, the main objective of this study was to estimate and compare the CO2 emission in the agricultural phase of ethanol production, as from its main feedstocks. A model based on carbon flux of the soil-plant-atmosphere system, was used. From the five crops assessed (sugarcane, sugar-beet, corn, rice and cassava), sugarcane and corn crops presented, the less CO2 emission at nowadays and over the next 30years, in opposite of the sugar-beet crop, which was the less sustainable feedstock for ethanol production in terms of CO2 emission. The outcomes of this study contribute to develop scenarios to better understand the impact of ethanol production in the GEEs emission, both in nowadays and in the future, considering the increasing demand for biofuel. Also is presented in this study a detailed discussion regarding important environmental issues of sugarcane and corn ethanol production, which are essential to be considered in the ethanol-policy decision. To our knowledge this is the first study that compares the CO2 emitted from the main ethanol feedstocks based on field tests, under the same conditions of soil and climate.

Analyzing the Environmental Impact of Chemically-Produced Protein Hydrolysate from Leather Waste vs. Enzymatically-Produced Protein Hydrolysate from Legume Grains

Protein hydrolysates are largely used as plant biostimulants for boosting crop growth, and improving crop tolerance to abiotic stresses and fruit quality. Protein hydrolysate-based biostimulants are mostly produced by chemical hydrolysis starting from animal wastes. However, an innovative process of enzymatic hydrolysis of legume-derived proteins has been recently introduced by few companies. The objective of this study was to evaluate the energy use and environmental impact of the production processes of enzymatically-produced protein hydrolysate starting from lupine seeds and protein hydrolysate obtained from chemical hydrolysis of leather wastes through the application of life cycle assessment (LCA). The LCA method was applied through the software GEMIS “Global Emission Model for Integrated Systems”, elaborated at L’Oko-Institute in Germany, and the parameters taken into account were: CO2 emissions in g per kg of protein hydrolysate; the consumption of fossil energy expressed in MJ per kg of protein hydrolysate; and water consumption reported in kg per kg of protein hydrolysate. In the case of legume-derived protein hydrolysate, the evaluation of the energy use and the environmental impact started from field production of lupine grains and ended with the industrial production of protein hydrolysate. In the case of animal-derived protein hydrolysate, the LCA method was applied only in the industrial production process, because the collagen is considered a waste product of the leather industry. The type of hydrolysis is the step that most affects the energy use and environmental impact on the entire industrial production process. The results obtained in terms of CO2 emissions, fossil energy consumption and water use through the application of LCA showed that the production process of the animal-derived protein hydrolysate was characterized by a higher energy use (+26%) and environmental impact (+57% of CO2 emissions) in comparison with the enzymatic production process of lupine-derived protein hydrolysate. In conclusion, the production of legume-derived protein hydrolysate by enzymatic hydrolysis is more environmentally friendly than the production of animal-derived protein hydrolysate through chemical hydrolysis.

Residential planning, driver mobility and CO2 emission: a microscopic look at Borlänge in Sweden

ABSTRACTIn a city there are hotspots that attract citizens, and most of the transportation arises when citizens move between their residence and primary destinations (i.e. hotspots). However, an ex ante evaluation of energy-efficient mobility and urban residential planning has seldom been conducted. Therefore, this paper proposes an ex ante evaluation method to quantify the impacts, in terms of CO2 emissions induced by intra-urban car mobility, of residential plans for various urban areas. The method is illustrated in a case study of a Swedish midsize city, which is presently preoccupied with urban planning of new residential areas in response to substantial population growth due to immigration. In general, CO2 emissions increase from the continued urban core area (CUCA), to the sub-polycentric area (SPA), to the edge urbanization area (EUA), where CO2 emission of EUA is twice that of the CUCA. The average travel distances also increase in the same pattern, though the relative increase is more than four times. Apartment buildings could be more effective in meeting residential needs and mitigating CO2 emissions than dispersed single-family houses.

Territorial capital, smart tourism specialization and sustainable regional development: Experiences from Europe

This study analyses the contribution of territorial sensitive resources related to natural and cultural features (environmental dimension), innovation capabilities and specialization patterns (smart specialization) to regional sustainable development (spatial sustainability). In the context of a fast and continuous expansion of tourism activities, particular attention is given to their impacts. The results of our path model suggest that different patterns of tourism dynamics coexist in European regions and that, for those where this sector assumes larger socio-economic importance, the contribution to the achievement of the “Millennium Goals”, as proposed by the United Nations, is relatively poor. Regions particularly endowed in natural resources reveal a weak socio-economic performance, while showing high levels of specialization in tourism, based on large scale and low value-added products and services, suggesting that new approaches to territorial design are required. This also leads to important spatial unbalances, with the most tourism-dependent European regions revealing relatively low levels of regional gross domestic product and high levels of unemployment. Despite their relatively good performance in terms of CO2-emissions, it seems important for those regions' sustainable development to increase the value added in tourism, by reinforcing the linkages with other relevant regional economic sectors. Information and communication technologies can contribute to these achievements, through the integration of knowledge and innovations into the products and services comprising the smart tourism experiences (smart development) and their connections with related sectors (smart specialization).

Decoupling the lock-in effect between economic growth and CO2 emissions by structure adjustment: A final demand perspective

This study incorporates demand emission sensitivity into a programming model to explore the issue of decoupling the lock-in effect between economic growth and CO2 emissions through structure adjustment from a final demand perspective. As a demonstration, the proposed methodology is applied to data from China for the year 2012, the most relevant productive linkages and the most sensitive components of final demand in terms of CO2 emissions were identified. The results indicate that to formulate better carbon mitigation policies, we should pay more attention to the main internal linkages in terms of CO2 emissions within the economy.

A linguistic group decision-making framework for bid evaluation in mega public projects considering carbon dioxide emissions reduction

Green construction is to conserve the resources and reduce the negative impact of construction activities on the environment to the maximum extent, with scientific management and technological progress under the premise of ensuring the quality, safety and other basic requirements. Recent years, accompanied by the rapid development of construction industry, a considerable proportion of energy and resources, particularly high-carbon materials, is consumed in the construction activities, emitting mass greenhouse gases, which have a damaging impact on the environment. This is especially for the mega public projects. Therefore, under the green and sustainable perspective, actions to control carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the construction industry are imperative. In this case, if CO2 emissions reduction can be considered beforehand during the bid evaluation stage, contractors will be guided by bid evaluation indicators and therefore improve their construction schemes, enabling the construction phase to be green, energy saving and sustainable. This is because bid evaluation indicators can serve as guiding effect on the contractors. Given that CO2 emissions are rarely given sufficient consideration in traditional bid evaluation, this study conducts a systematic analysis to identify major sources of CO2 in construction phase and attempts to develop a conceptual computational model in terms of CO2 emission. Then, a linguistic group decision-making framework for bid evaluation in mega public projects considering CO2 emissions reduction is developed. In this framework, entropy, relative entropy, the standard deviation method and weighted aggregation operators are applied to determine the indicator weights, the expert weights and the information aggregation in bid evaluation decision-making. Finally, a scenario comparison between the proposed linguistic group decision-making bid evaluation framework and the traditional framework is made through a case study, and the scientific basis and reliability of this new framework are validated. The establishment of this framework can enrich the decision-making methods in construction management field. And it can provide meaningful reference for owners to choose the most qualified contractors and spur contractors to improve their construction schemes, enabling construction phase to be green, energy saving and sustainable.

A techno-economic analysis of EU renewable electricity policy pathways in 2030

The aim of this paper is to assess several pathways of a harmonised European policy framework for supporting renewable electricity (RES-E) in a 2030 horizon according to different criteria. The pathways combine two main dimensions: degrees of harmonisation and instruments and design elements. A quantitative model-based analysis with the Green-X model is provided. The results of the simulations show that there are small differences between the evaluated cases regarding effectiveness. All the policy pathways score similarly with respect to RES-E deployment, i.e., with different degrees of harmonisation and whether using a feed-in tariff, a feed-in premium, a quota system with banding or a quota without banding scheme. In contrast, the policy costs clearly differ across the pathways, but the differences can mostly be attributed to the instruments rather than to the degrees of harmonisation. This is also the case with other criteria (static and dynamic efficiency and the socioeconomic and environmental benefits in terms of CO2 emissions and fossil fuels avoided). Both the degree of harmonisation and the choice of instrument influence the distribution of support costs across countries. Finally, our findings suggest that keeping strengthened national support leads to similar results to other policy pathways.

Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) for Inland Vessels in Bangladesh

This paper attempts to evaluate EEDI for inland vessels in Bangladesh. To assess the present situation of inland class vessels in terms of CO2 emission, 526 cargo ships, 247 passenger ships, 70 oil tankers and 36 ferries have been taken in this study. The formulated baseline equations based on the study of different types of Inland vessels have been compared with the IMO evaluated baseline equations for International Shipping. The effect of EEDI with respect to vessels draft, type of fuel, block coefficient, specific fuel consumption (SFC) and power has also been investigated. Finally, some viable recommendations have been proposed to reduce the detrimental effects of C02 emission by optimizing hull shape of some existing vessels.

Sensitivity analysis of China’s energy-related CO2 emissions intensity for 2012 based on input–output Model

This paper employed a sensitivity analysis based on the input-output model to identify the key sectors and main productive linkages between activity branches in terms of CO2 emissions in China. In particular, we established the Chinese energy-input-output table for 2012. Based on the input-output data, sensitivity analysis, is introduced to probe into two major drivers, i.e., the emissions intensity coefficient (c) and technology coefficient (B). The results show that (1) Regarding the driver c, the top six emissions-intensity sectors are tested to be the key sectors which will cause the highest emissions. (2) For B, the emissions intensity is the most sensitive to the technology change of the Production and supply of electric power and heat industry (n4) with direction transaction relation. (3) With respect to the values of two elasticity indicators for B, these sectors with a higher “structure-relevant” have a lower “technology-relevant”. This implied that the technology coefficient has more influence on the CO2 emission intensity of n4 after considering the structural impact of final demand. Emphatically, the analytical method used in this study can provide valuable information for planners and decision makers to formulate feasible and practical industrial policies with implications for CO2 emissions.

Designing a Global Energy System Based on 100% Rwables for 2050: GENeSYS-MOD: An Application of the Open-Source Energy Modelling System (OSeMOSYS)

This paper develops a path for the global energy system up to 2050, presenting a new application of the open source energy systems model OSeMOSYS to the community. It allows quite disaggregate energy and emission analysis: GENeSYS-MOD (Global Energy System Model) uses a system of linear equations of the energy system to search for lowestcost solutions for a secure energy supply, given externally defined constraints, mainly in terms of CO2-emissions. The General Algebraic Modeling System (GAMS) version of OSeMOSYS is updated to the newest version and, in addition, extended and enhanced to include e.g. a modal split for transport, an improved trading system, and changes to storages. The model can be scaled from small-scale applications, e.g. a company, to cover the global energy system. The paper also includes an application of GENeSYS-MOD to analyze decarbonization scenarios at the global level, broken down into 10 regions. Its main focus is on interdependencies between traditionally segregated sectors: electricity, transportation, and heating. Model calculations suggests that in order to achieve the 1.5°-2° C target, a combination of renewable energy sources provides the lowest-cost solution, solar photovoltaic being the dominant source. Average costs of electricity generation in 2050 are about 4 €cents/kWh (excluding infrastructure and transportation costs).

Exploring environmentally sustainable traffic signal warrant for planning application

ABSTRACTWith the concerns over the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the surface transportation, the environmentally sustainable traffic signal warrant is essential to provide guidelines for making environmentally conscious decisions about control types at intersections. This research conducted a pilot study on developing CO2 emissions-oriented traffic signal warrants. Intersection control types that were analyzed for this research include two-way stop, four-way stop, traffic signal, and roundabout. Two environmentally sustainable traffic signal warrants were proposed: Type I (without roundabout) and Type II (with roundabout). The proposed traffic signal warrants were compared with the existing mobility-oriented traffic signal warrant of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) in terms of CO2 emissions and total delay. The measurements were collected and estimated using a microscopic traffic simulation tool, Verkehr In Stadten—SIMulationsmodell (VISSIM). The environmentally sustainable traffic signal warrants show that the annual CO2 emissions of the ground transportations in the USA were reduced by 7.2% with Type I warrant and 13.9% with Type II warrant.

The Economic and Environmental Assessment of Electricity Storage Investments. Any Need for Policy Incentives?

This study contributes to the current discussion on the economic viability of new investments in electricity storage technologies, its environmental impact in terms of CO2 emissions and level of renewables in the system and some policy related questions. The analysis is based upon a price-taker model under perfect price forecast simulating the dispatch of a marginal pumped-hydro storage (PHS) plant. The operation of a PHS, despite being costs minimizing, does not guarantee optimality in terms of environmental impact. Policy support should be granted if the social value of the investment would at least compensate the negative results of the private profits.

Bridging new and old energy

Bridging new and old energy