The rapid urbanization and rural-urban migration trends have led to an increase in building construction activities, shifting from traditional practices to modern concrete structures. However, this transition has imposed significant environmental pressures, including heightened resource and energy demands, resulting in increased emissions. To gauge the environmental impact of construction, a thorough examination of each phase is crucial. This study used the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool, based on ISO 14040:2006, ISO 14044:2006, and EN 15978:2011, to evaluate the carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-eq) emissions throughout the complete life cycle of a modern single-family residential building. The findings reveal a total energy use of 6411.33 MJ per square meter and emissions of 718.35 kg CO2-eq per square meter over the building's lifespan of 50 years. Notably, the production of building materials and the construction phase contribute to the highest percentage (60.29%) of the total life cycle emissions owing to 49.51% of energy use. In contrast, emissions during the operational phase are relatively lower, attributed to increased electricity usage for cooking and minimal energy consumption for heating and cooling. Additionally, the study suggests that achieving complete electricity sufficiency within the country could reduce building emissions by 39.30%, as fossil fuel-based imports from India would be replaced with cleaner hydroelectricity.
Managing municipal solid waste (MSW) is becoming a more pressing global issue that requires creative and long-lasting solutions due to population expansion and changing consumption habits. Given its capacity to transform organic waste into useful resources like biogas and fertilizers, anaerobic digestion (AD) presents a viable solution to the urgent problems related to waste management in this context. This study investigates the potential of AD, and more specifically the two-stage anaerobic digestion (TSAD) process, as a game-changing technique for the treatment of organic fraction municipal solid waste (OFMSW). The efficiency of TSAD is thoroughly examined in this study, which takes into account a number of variables including temperature, pH, solid retention time, hydraulic retention time, organic loading rate, and carbon to nitrogen ratio. Though TSAD is a promising approach, there is still a significant knowledge gap about its stability, ideal operating parameters, and widespread application, especially when it comes to MSW management. The study highlights the necessity for more investigation to close this knowledge gap and realize TSAD's full promise for handling the difficulties involved in energy production and municipal waste treatment.
The features of hospital wastewater (HWW) are identical to domestic wastewater in general, but a subset of HWW includes toxic, nonbiodegradable, infectious contaminants. The hospital effluents include a wide range of chemicals utilized in medical, laboratory, and study settings, as well as patient excreta. Antibiotics, lipid inhibitors, among other medications and their metabolites are among the wastes. This book will help in understanding through the case studies from around the globe how to deal with HWW effectively, as well as help Governments to modify laws relating to it.ISBN: 9781789062618 (paperback)ISBN: 9781789062625 (eBook)ISBN: 9781789062632 (ePUB)
Projected quantities of greenhouse gas emissions from onsite sanitation systems vary considerably depending on the methods used. There is a need to use empirical field data to form the base of more robust, global estimates. Current methods are laboratory heavy and require expensive equipment, thus limiting the amount of data that can be collected in rural areas, and by those in low- and middle-income countries. These methods were evaluated, and a key piece of equipment, the flux chamber, was redesigned. Through both laboratory work and field trials, the new flux chamber, which repurposes landfill and contaminated land portable gas analysers, was able to deliver real-time results for carbon dioxide and methane from onsite sanitation systems. This paper successfully demonstrates these new field methods for evaluating GHG emissions from onsite sanitation systems, including tanks and pit latrines.
Hydraulic Retention Time (HRT) and Solid Retention Time (SRT) are two major parameters for the performance of the activated sludge process. The present study was aimed at studying the performance of the activated sludge process with varying SRT and HRT using a laboratory-scale plant. The wastewater was synthesized at the laboratory. HRT of 1, 2, 4, 8 and 12 hours were used and SRT of 5 days, 7.5 days and 10 days were used for the study. The performance was found to increase with increasing HRT and SRT. An Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) test was used to confirm the variation. For SRT of 5 days, the performance for Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) removal increased from 12.9% to 88.4% for an increase in HRT from 1 hr. to 12 hrs. Similarly, for Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN), the removal increased from 10.8% to 72.1%. Likewise, the performance for COD removal increased from 12.5% to 90.9%, whereas the removal of TKN increased from 10.1% to 85.2% for SRT of 7.5 days. The COD removal increased from 13.8% to 93.4% and TKN removal increased from 9.6% to 90.2% for SRT of 10 days.
An interconnected approach for the quantitative analysis of different sectors including energy, water, and food for their footprints is important for promoting a balance between these sectors at a community scale. In this study, a conceptual analytical framework on water footprint (WF) is developed to assess the interaction of energy, food, and water resources in Kathmandu University (KU), Dhulikhel, Nepal. The total WF of KU is found to be 628,375.55 m3/yr and the per-capita total WF is calculated to be 513.19 L/day. The analysis results reveal that food consumption within KU is the key sector contributing to the high WF (65% of the total WF). The residential sector of the university has the highest direct WF of 28,800 m3/yr indicating high water usage in the residential buildings. The WF associated with electricity was found to be 155,764.80 m3/yr, which was the highest among all the energy source types. Possible scenarios for WF reduction measures that include installing water-efficient technologies, operation of a wastewater treatment plant, promotion of responsive behavior towards food consumption, collection of all the food waste for energy generation from anaerobic digestion and prioritizing the development of alternative sources of energy has been discussed. The findings could serve as a reference for other institutions that will help to plan and operation of sustainable universities and campuses.
Solid waste management is becoming a major environmental and public health concern in emerging municipalities in Nepal. In this study, the life-cycle assessment (LCA) approach is used to address the environmental impacts of potential waste-treatment scenarios in Dhulikhel Municipality in Nepal. The assessment was based on four different scenarios – namely, scenario 1, landfilling; scenario 2, composting combined with landfilling; scenario 3, recycling, composting and landfilling; and scenario 4, recycling, anaerobic digestion and landfilling. The LCA methodology was developed, including the benefits and impact potentials of different unit processes in each scenario, also taking into consideration emissions from energy use. The environmental impacts from the scenarios were compared in terms of global warming potential, acidification potential and eutrophication potential. Among the four scenarios, scenario 4 (i.e. with anaerobic digestion) showed the most environmental advantage. Scenarios without biological treatment facilities are the least preferred option, as their impact is significantly greater than those of other options. Therefore, organic waste is recommended not to be disposed of in landfill sites even if the transportation activity increases, because the magnitude of methane avoidance increases with an increased amount of waste diversion to the biological treatment units.
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