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Byline: Christopher J. Koroneos, Aris Th. Dompros The basic targets of the modern cement and concrete production industry are the reduction of energy costs and minimisation of environmental effects. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a useful tool for the evaluation of the environmental performance of a production system. The objective of this work is to provide a very clear analysis and quantification of all the parameters of the process that make a major contribution to environmental impact. The system investigated includes raw material acquisition, industrial production, packaging and transportation, use of the product, demolition and its final disposal. The cement production stage contributes the most to the environmental pollution.

Byline: Christopher J. Koroneos, Yanni Koroneos High energy consumption and the world population increase will lead to shrinking reserves of fossil fuels. Concern about carbon dioxide emissions may discourage widespread dependence on fossil fuels and encourage the development and use of renewable energy systems employing a variety of technologies Renewable energy systems have themselves an environmental impact. Land use and material employed are two areas that may have an adverse impact on the positive environmental picture of the renewable energy systems. The objective of this paper is to analyse these impacts with the use of a very powerful tool, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

Electrifying transportation is a promising approach to alleviate climate change issues arising from increased emissions. This study examines a system for the production of hydrogen using renewable energy sources as well as its use in buses. The electricity requirements for the production of hydrogen through the electrolysis of water, are covered by renewable energy sources. Fuel cells are being used to utilize hydrogen to power the bus. Exergy analysis for the system is carried out. Based on a steady-state model of the processes, exergy efficiencies are calculated for all subsystems. The subsystems with the highest proportion of irreversibility are identified and compared. It is shown that PV panel has exergetic efficiency of 12.74%, wind turbine of 45%, electrolysis of 67%, and fuel cells of 40%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lignite is by far the most used fuel in Greece for the production of electricity as there are large reserves in the country. The high emissions of global warming gases have led to the need for the adaptation of measures and initiatives to reduce emissions in the Greek energy system for the period up to 2030. It is imperative that an environmental policy and measures are implemented to limit CO2 emissions towards the Kyoto targets. The objective of this work is to analyze the environmental impacts associated with the atmospheric emissions and other wastes that are produced during the extraction, transportation, and use of lignite for electricity production in Greece using the methodology of life cycle assessment. The results presented here indicate that the most significant emission's reduction can be made from technology substitution. The introduction of advanced fossil fuel technologies can also lead to improvements in life-cycle GHG emissions. NOx, SO2, and PM emissions from the lignite life cycle, contributing to the respiratory effects impact category (21.1-28.3%), have a bigger impact than the climate change (10-32.7%) and acidification/eutrophication effects (2.17-3.82%). As per Greece's National Renewable Energy Policy the penetration of renewable energy sources in country's energy mix is investigated. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 35: 1868-1875, 2016 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smart energy regions are defined as regions that offer maximal quality of living to their inhabitants with a minimal consumption of energy by intelligently joining of infrastructure (energy, mobility, transport, communication, etc.) on different hierarchical levels (building, district, city). The development of insular energy systems into smart energy regions, due to their special character, is presented with some challenges. The focus of this article is on presenting the potential of insular energy systems transforming into smart energy regions. Insular energy systems are defined based on data retrieved from Energy Information Administration (EIA) and classified according to their size and the nature of their isolation. In terms of this study, two novel indexes are introduced: the necessity index, which quantifies the need, and the ability index, which represents the capability of an insular energy system to develop into a smart one. These indexes are defined for those insular systems that are considered potentially upgradable. The analysis revealed that the main prerequisites to achieve the development of insular energy systems into smart ones are the reduction of GHG emissions, the introduction of political obligation toward promoting environmentally friendly policies, and the increase of RES utilization for energy production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reached an all-time high in 2010, rising 45% in the past 20 years. The rise of peoples' concerns regarding environmental problems such as global warming and waste management problem has led to a movement to convert the current mass-production, mass-consumption, and mass-disposal type economic society into a sustainable society. The Rio Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, and other similar environmental milestone activities and happenings, documented the need for better and more detailed knowledge and information about environmental conditions, trends, and impacts. New thinking and research with regard to indicator frameworks, methodologies, and actual indicators are also needed. The value of the overall indicators depends on the production procedure of each material, and indicates their environmental impact. The use of "exergy indicators" based on the exergy content of materials and the use of the second law of thermodynamics in this work presents the relationship between exergy content and environmental impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The words "Sustainable Development" are frequently used by very lightly, to the extent that they have lost their meaning. There is a presumption that for any perspective analysis or any development proposal, these two words are the most appropriate. Sustainability has been incorporated in the objectives of many studies. The historical model of industrialized societies in the 19th and 20th centuries served as the central notion of what constitutes development in both the cost-effectiveness and equity perspectives. According to some analysts, this path represents the model for global prosperity. However, a number of growing parallel literatures recognize the importance of diverse development pathways in achieving an environmentally and socio-economically better world. The term sustainable development does not bring forward all aspects of development. A new term that incorporates the wellbeing of all citizens through economic development and the preservation of the environment is needed. A "Worth-living Integrated Development" could be a term that combines economic development, social development and environmental protection. A Worth-living Integrated Development may be achieved only when human societies decide to create necessary presuppositions-at the educational, research, economic, social, political, technical/technological and environmental levels-for a better world, based on the human values of peace, justice, solidarity, political, economic and social democracy and ethics, respect for nature and for the variety of cultures of all human beings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peach production as well as the fruit canning industry is one of the most important agricultural supply chain sectors in Greece. In 2016 Greek canned peach production reached 300,000 tones. In this study we perform an environmental analysis of a peach compote production system in Greece, using Life Cycle Assessment. The system studied includes the stages of cultivation, transportation of peaches to the peach compote plant, the canning and finally packaging. The data used were collected directly from an orchard located in Larissa, in central Greece, and covers the production year of 2016. The functional unit adopted is the production of one paper box containing 24 cans of peach compotes. The Life Cycle Analysis results indicate that 48.41%, 25% and 20.98% of the environmental burdens are attributed to the acidification potential, global warming potential and particular matter formation impact categories, respectively; whereas eutrophication impact potential and photochemical oxidation formation impact accounted for 5.38% and 0.23%, respectively. The results of this study provide an understanding of the key environmental impact issues related to peach compote production in Greece. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]