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Solar and wind energy are the two most available renewable energy resources in the world. In this paper, a high-resolution analysis that allows sizing a hybrid photovoltaic-wind turbine-battery banks has been carried out. The analysis aims to minimize the annualized cost of the systems satisfying two reliability constraints. The solution has been obtained numerically by means of an iterative technique. The decision variables are the photovoltaic area, wind turbine radius, and battery capacity. A high-resolution model, based on fuzzy logic inference system, has been developed to evaluate the number of active occupants and the domestic electricity consumption. In order to allow a more accurate sizing of the system, a new reliability parameter named seasonal loss of load probability ratio that takes into account the seasonality of data has been defined. Seasonal loss of load probability ratio has been used in the iterative process in addition to the most common loss of load probability. Compared with traditional processes, the obtained results demonstrate that the introduction of the new parameter to iterative process causes a meaningful improvement of the system's reliability and a slight increase of its cost on the other hand. The simulation, conducted in MATLAB® environment, has been carried out to supply power for a domestic dwelling located in three different locations of Sicily. Compared to reliability values arising from the traditional procedure, the obtained results show that a reliability improvement of 75% is reached by using the new sizing procedure. Therefore, the proposed methodology gives an important advancement on the current state of the art since it allows at designing renewable plants in a more efficient way.

The issue of food waste is increasingly attracting scientific and public interest due to the magnitude of the problem (in terms of quantity and global reach) and the growing attention to healthy and sustainable food production and consumption. As a consequence, an increasing number of initiatives aim to reduce the food discarded in each stage of the supply chain, from production and storage down to cooking and consumption. Still, food waste remains an unsolved issue, and many initiatives struggle to move from the design stage to full-scale implementation. This research paper focuses on a successful food waste reduction project in a school canteen in northern Italy. The case study illustrated in this paper demonstrates how it is possible to implement an effective initiative to reduce food waste with limited investment by leveraging the involvement of stakeholders.

The reduction of environmental impact and the achievement of economic advantages based on by-product recovery is the aim of applying methodologies for phenolic compounds extraction from Olive Oil Mill Wastewater. Volume reduction of Olive Oil Mill Wastewater could generate important advantages in terms of waste disposal cost abatement and, in addition, reuse in the production of foods with health properties could lead to economic benefits. Despite the fact that literature shows that several techniques have been developed, few economic approaches have been presented. This paper assesses the economic feasibility of a system based on membrane filtration and reverse osmosis processes for phenolic compound extraction, considering their subsequent reuse to enrich Extra Virgin Olive Oil during the malaxation phase. In particular, an analysis of investment profitability was presented to establish the break-even point in terms of the incremental cost of olive oil enriched in polyphenols. Results confirm the sustainability of the process, showing a reduction of the waste product greater than 90%, and feasible solutions for the incremental cost of enriched Extra Virgin Olive Oil, considering a positive Net Present Value and a Payback Time not greater than four years.

An increasing number of textile firms are adopting sustainability strategies for achieving long-term competitive advantage. In this paper, a new decision-making process for the textile sector, exploiting the Organisational Life Cycle Assessment methodology, is proposed. It provides a management system able to support companies in monitoring and evaluating environmental performances with a dynamic perspective and identify which activity and/or mechanical plant needs to be improved or changed in order to reduce the environmental impact, enabling cost savings, and at the same time, developing the business case for sustainability. In particular, for each Organisational Life Cycle Assessment phase, an operational tool was established. The tools were developed both by reviewing specific literature and by conducting in-depth semi-structured interviews in six textile companies. Across firms, informants included the Managing Director, the Plant Manager, shop floor supervisors and workers, and representatives from Corporate Social Responsibility Committee, Manufacturing, Quality, and Accounting. Additionally, direct observation (e.g., plant tours) was also used as data collection method. A case study of a spinning company reveals the potential benefits of this decision-making process.

Energy has recently become one of the key aspects that companies should improve and keep monitoring, due to the related economic costs and the significant environmental impacts, to which today’s society is paying more and more attention. An Energy Management System could offer many advantages, such as energy consumption and cost reductions, improvement of corporate image, environmental impact reduction. Organizations have therefore developed more comprehensive approaches to Energy Management, aiming at reducing energy waste, but also at managing energy use by applying specific focused programs. Maturity Models are tools used to assess the level of maturity of an organization, providing a systematic framework for carrying out benchmarking and performance improvement. With regards to Energy Management, existing tools are still not well-structured and do not allow a deep analysis of the level of maturity of an organization and of how this maturity develops along with its dimensions. In this article the described general Maturity Model tools are implemented, providing an innovative method in order to apply those concepts to the Energy Management field, aiming at bridging the aforementioned gaps. A user-friendly tool, focused on the company and its organization, is provided to allow practitioners to easily and autonomously assess their company’s maturity level, drawing a first growth plan draft. This method represents a new way to lead the organization to a proper management of its energy needs, and is alternative or complementary to the certification of the Energy Management System of the organization, being consistent with the ISO 50001 standard.