Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Dimitrios Mathioudakis, Panagiotis Karageorgis, Konstantina Papadopoulou, Thomas Fruergaard Astrup, Gerasimos Lyberatos
Summary: The aim of this paper is to examine the environmental and economic performance of alternative household fermentable waste (HFW) management scenarios. The current waste management system in Greece involves disposing HFW in landfills, while this study proposes a series of alternative approaches based on source separation. The results indicate that these alternatives outperform the existing scenario in terms of both economic and environmental performance.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Behnam Dastjerdi, Vladimir Strezov, Ravinder Kumar, Jing He, Masud Behnia
Summary: This study utilizes Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to evaluate the environmental impacts of different scenarios for residual municipal solid waste (MSW) management in New South Wales (NSW). The results suggest that treating each waste type with specific technologies can achieve the highest resource recovery and lowest environmental impacts.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Eva Queheille, Anne Ventura, Nadia Saiyouri, Franck Taillandier
Summary: A life cycle assessment (LCA) model is proposed to estimate the environmental impacts of building end-of-life. The model considers on site works, waste types and treatments, and can be instantiated for different buildings and strategies. The study shows that the best scenario varies depending on the case, demonstrating the value of the parametric model.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Giulia Borghesi, Roberta Stefanini, Giuseppe Vignali
Summary: This study investigated the environmental impact of an organic Parmigiano Reggiano cheese produced in Italy using different Life Cycle Impact Assessment methodologies. The results showed that different LCIA methods led to different impact results for the same product. Agricultural and breeding phases had a significant contribution to water and greenhouse gas emissions, but using renewable energy can help reduce water and carbon footprint.
JOURNAL OF FOOD ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Francesca Demichelis, Carola Martina, Debora Fino, Tonia Tommasi, Fabio A. Deorsola
Summary: In 2019, 45.103 Mt. of Absorbent Hygiene Product (AHP) wastes were generated globally, causing environmental and economic issues through landfilling and incineration. This study compared the environmental impacts of four AHP-waste treatments, including biological and mechanical-thermal conversion, recycling, and the baseline scenario of landfill and incineration with energy recovery. The recycling of AHP-waste was the only treatment that achieved avoided environmental impacts, mainly due to the offsetting effect of the rate of recovered material. The sensitivity analyses confirmed the trends and highlighted the importance of proper product recovery for reducing the effort required in treatment.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Brenda Rios-Fuentes, Pasiano Rivas-Garcia, Alejandro Estrada-Baltazar, Ramiro Rico-Martinez, Rita Miranda-Lopez, Jose Enrique Botello-Alvarez
Summary: ---
In Latin America, there has been an increase in the production, processing, and export of vegetables in the past decades due to the international demand for high-quality vegetables. The horticultural industry generates a large amount of waste that can be used as livestock feed and as ingredients in the food industry. This study evaluates the environmental impacts of frozen broccoli production in Mexico and explores two alternatives for utilizing broccoli stalk waste as forage or flour, using the Life Cycle Assessment methodology.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Oluwatobi Adeleke, Stephen A. Akinlabi, Tien-Chien Jen, Israel Dunmade
Summary: Proper information regarding the performance of waste management systems from an environmental perspective is significant to sustainable waste management decisions and planning toward the selection of the least impactful treatment options. This study evaluates the environmental impact of different waste management systems in South Africa, using Johannesburg as a case study, and finds that material recycling facilities are the most beneficial unit operation while landfilling without energy recovery is the most impactful. No scenario had the best performance across all impact categories, but S3 is considered the most environmentally friendly option with the lowest impact in most categories.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Levent Bilgili, Afsin Yusuf Cetinkaya
Summary: In this study, the average waste composition in Turkey was determined and the life cycle effects of different waste management scenarios were examined. The results show that incineration has a high impact on global warming and human health, while landfill is more harmful in the long term. Recycling and composting processes have significant environmental benefits, especially in land and mineral resource use.
JOURNAL OF MATERIAL CYCLES AND WASTE MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Marleine Boutros, Sabine Saba, Rima Manneh
Summary: Decision making for environmental issues should be based on modeling tools like life cycle assessment (LCA). The study compares the environmental impacts of PET and returnable glass packaging for carbonated beverages, finding that PET has lower impacts in the waste scenario but glass becomes more favorable when open-burning is considered. It emphasizes the importance of sound waste management policies and promoting the use of LCA in industries to reduce life cycle impacts.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Kevin Jia Le Lee, Sook Fun Wong
Summary: Proper end-of-life management of mixed plastic waste is a global challenge, and current pathways are designed based on geographical conditions and environmental regulations. This study assesses the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of different plastic EOL pathways in Singapore, emphasizing the need to redesign waste-to-resource taxonomy and maximize mechanical recycling to reduce reliance on thermal energies and improve performance.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Songyan Jiang, Ling Zhang, Hui Hua, Xuewei Liu, Huijun Wu, Zengwei Yuan
Summary: The study estimated the waste of end-of-life EV batteries in China and highlighted the economic benefits of battery recycling for material recovery and energy storage. It also emphasized the spatial mismatch of energy storage capacity supply and demand between eastern and western regions in China.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Bhupendra K. Sharma, Munish K. Chandel
Summary: This study quantifies and compares the cost of municipal solid waste (MSW) management systems under different scenarios using life cycle cost (LCC) analysis approach. The study found that the scenario combining recycling and sanitary landfill was the most economically viable option, while the incineration-based scenario was the most cost-intensive. Sensitivity analysis showed that O&M cost was the most sensitive parameter affecting the net LCC of scenarios.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Muhammad Hammad Mushtaq, Fahad Noor, M. A. Mujtaba, Salman Asghar, Abdulfatah Abdu Yusuf, Manzoore Elahi M. Soudagar, Abrar Hussain, Mohamed Fathy Badran, Kiran Shahapurkar
Summary: The growing population in urban areas exacerbates the issue of hospital waste management in developing countries. This study evaluates the environmental impacts of different hospital waste management scenarios using life cycle assessment approach. The findings suggest that implementing an integrated approach can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and recover materials for reuse. Therefore, implementing an integrated approach is crucial for advancing sustainable hospital waste management. The results of this study can be utilized for future research and policymaking.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Carmen Ferrara, Paola Scarfato, Raffaella Ferraioli, Annalisa Apicella, Loredana Incarnato, Giovanni De Feo
Summary: Resource recovery through waste recycling promotes a business model with minimal waste residue and supports the circular economy by reducing energy and resource consumption and pollutant emissions. However, the sustainability of this approach depends on the valorization potential of the waste and the lower environmental impact of recycling compared to other end-of-life scenarios. Evaluations need to be done on a case-by-case basis due to the diversity and complexity of waste streams.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yasmani Alba-Reyes, Ernesto L. Barrera, Yaima Brito-Ibarra, Felix Orestes Hermida-Garcia
Summary: This study aimed to compare cleaner production alternatives for pig production in Cuba using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. The results showed that utilizing anaerobic digestion (AD) process and substituting solid fodder with food waste liquid fodder (LF) can significantly improve the environmental performance of pig production, reducing various environmental impacts such as global warming and freshwater eutrophication.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yan Zhao, Anders Damgaard, Shan Liu, Huimin Chang, Thomas H. Christensen
RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
(2020)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Trine Henriksen, Thomas F. Astrup, Anders Damgaard
Summary: A novel framework is proposed for the evaluation of representativeness of LCI data, including an analysis of data importance and modification of quality criteria based on unit process characteristics. The framework involves analyzing temporal, geographical, and technological characteristics to ensure data relevance, as demonstrated in a case study on household waste incineration in Denmark. Although time demanding, the method provides unique data quality criteria for waste incineration unit processes.
JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Vinay Yadav, M. A. Sherly, Pallav Ranjan, Rafael O. Tinoco, Alessio Boldrin, Anders Damgaard, Alexis Laurent
RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
(2020)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
T. H. Christensen, A. Damgaard, J. Levis, Y. Zhao, A. Bjorklund, U. Arena, M. A. Barlaz, V Starostina, A. Boldrin, T. F. Astrup, V Bisinella
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Concetta Lodato, Bahram Zarrin, Anders Damgaard, Hubert Baumeister, Thomas Fruergaard Astrup
Summary: This study introduces four novel LCA modeling features that can provide critical insights into areas such as circular economy and waste management. The case-study demonstrates that the new modeling approach for physical flows significantly affects both results and interpretation of the LCA modeling.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Hanwen Guo, Yan Zhao, Anders Damgaard, Qian Wang, Hongtao Wang, Thomas H. Christensen, Wenjing Lu
Summary: Biorefining of Chinese food waste into transport fuels can result in savings in Global Warming Potential, with different combinations of biogas, biomethane, bioethanol and biodiesel producing varying results. The electricity production, biodiesel and biomethane production have significant impacts on GWP.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Valentina Bisinella, Tore Hulgaard, Christian Riber, Anders Damgaard, Thomas H. Christensen
Summary: The effects of integrating carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology into municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) differ depending on the air pollution control technologies and energy recovery systems. Despite reductions in electricity output and energy penalties, CCS can lower the climate change impact of MSWI, with greater benefits in cleaner energy systems. The main factor affecting the overall results is the capture efficiency, with increasing importance in non-fossil fuel-based energy systems.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Maria Farago, Anders Damgaard, Jeanette Agertved Madsen, Jacob Kragh Andersen, Dines Thornberg, Mikkel Holmen Andersen, Martin Rygaard
Summary: Operators of wastewater treatment plants are retrofitting existing facilities to implement new technologies for resource recovery. This study combines life cycle assessment and economic evaluations to quantify the environmental and economic impacts of transitioning existing wastewater treatment plants into water resource recovery facilities. The implementation of real-time N2O control, biological biogas upgrading, and pre-filtration technologies showed promising results in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving resource recovery.
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Huimin Chang, Yan Zhao, Silan Zhao, Anders Damgaard, Thomas H. Christensen
Summary: Thermal treatment of sewage sludge has gained significant attention in recent years. Numerous papers have discussed the mass flows, energy, and emissions data related to incineration, gasification, and pyrolysis of sewage sludge. Incineration is an established technology, but there is limited data on flue gas cleaning and air emissions. Gasification and pyrolysis are experimental technologies with varying output data.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Maria Farago, Anders Damgaard, Morten Rebsdorf, Per Henrik Nielsen, Martin Rygaard
Summary: Wastewater treatment is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, and we investigated the accounting of emissions in three advanced wastewater treatment facilities. The results showed the importance of electricity consumption and direct emissions, and we proposed recommendations for accurate reporting and accounting. The facilities have made progress in offsetting emissions, and our study provides guidance for wastewater operators in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Maria Farago, Anders Damgaard, Ivana Logar, Martin Rygaard
Summary: In Europe, sewage sludge is commonly used in agriculture or incinerated. However, emerging technologies like sludge pyrolysis have the potential to transform wastewater treatment plants into water resource recovery facilities. A life cycle assessment and cost-benefit analysis were conducted to evaluate the environmental and economic impacts of sludge pyrolysis. The results showed that pyrolysis reduced environmental impacts and had positive economic net present value compared to using sludge in agriculture, but pyrolysis with biochar production was not as beneficial as incineration.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Huimin Chang, Yan Zhao, Ankun Xu, Anders Damgaard, Thomas H. Christensen
Summary: System modelling of sewage sludge treatment is an important area of research for comparing and optimizing technologies. A review of literature on relevant parameters revealed significant variations in the compositional data of thickened and dewatered sludge, but most of the data followed a lognormal distribution. The average total solid content was 3.3% for thickened sludge and 21.0% for dewatered sludge. Other important parameters included ash content, lower heating value, and biochemical methane potential. These data provide valuable insights for modelling sewage sludge treatment systems, but further characterization of sludge is needed in the future.
WASTE MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH
(2022)
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Huimin Chang, Yan Zhao, Ankun Xu, Anders Damgaard, Thomas H. Christensen
Summary: Technological comparison and system modelling of sewage sludge treatment are crucial for sustainable development and climate change mitigation. Dewatering and drying processes play a significant role in reducing volume and are essential for further sludge treatment. However, the scarcity of data limits the detailed analysis of the relationships between inputs and outputs for these technologies. Nevertheless, the available data can serve as a starting point for planning sludge management. Additional data on energy consumption and water composition from full-scale plants are strongly needed to improve the inventory and support future studies.
WASTE MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Ana Rosa Aon Cardoso Fernandes, Bruno Eduardo Lobo Baeta, Anders Damgaard
Summary: The goal of neutrality in greenhouse gas emissions has led to increased exploration of renewable fuels. This study suggests using life-cycle assessment (LCA) to identify critical areas in hydrothermal pretreatment of biomass and evaluate its potential as a renewable fuel. The assessment revealed limitations in lab assumptions. In Brazil, the two-stage co-digestion of hydrothermal pretreated biomass showed promising results, reducing CO2 emissions compared to the business-as-usual scenario. Only Brazil and Spain demonstrated potential for exploring this proposal among top beer-producing countries.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Huimin Chang, Yan Zhao, Valentina Bisinella, Anders Damgaard, Thomas H. Christensen
Summary: We quantified the potential climate change impacts of eight conventional technology configurations for sewage sludge treatment and disposal, considering different energy exchanges. The results showed that all configurations had large climate change loads and savings when using fossil-based energy systems, while the impacts were approximately three times lower when using renewable energy systems. Landfilling had the greatest climate change impact, while thermal drying with incineration had the highest probability of better climate change performance.
