Applications of Exergy to Enhance Ecological and Environmental Understanding and Stewardship
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Biocultural Indicators to Support Locally Led Environmental Management and Monitoring
Copyright © 2019 by the author(s). Published here under license by the Resilience Alliance. DeRoy, B. C., C. T. Darimont, and C. N. Service. 2019. Biocultural indicators to support locally led environmental management and monitoring. Ecology and Society 24(4):21. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-11120-240421 Synthesis Biocultural indicators to support locally led environmental management and monitoring Bryant C. DeRoy 1,2, Chris T. Darimont 1,2 and Christina N. Service 1,2,3 ABSTRACT. Environmental management (EM) requires indicators to inform objectives and monitor the impacts or efficacy of management practices. One common approach uses “functional ecological” indicators, which are typically species whose presence or abundance are tied to functional ecological processes, such as nutrient productivity and availability, trophic interactions, and habitat connectivity. In contrast, and used for millennia by Indigenous peoples, biocultural indicators are rooted in local values and place- based relationships between nature and people. In many landscapes today where Indigenous peoples are reasserting sovereignty and governance authority over natural resources, the functional ecological approach to indicator development does not capture fundamental values and ties to the natural world that have supported social-ecological systems over the long term. Accordingly, we argue that the development and use of biocultural indicators to shape, monitor, and evaluate the success of EM projects will be critical to achieving ecological and social sustainability today. We have provided a framework composed of criteria to be considered when selecting and applying meaningful and efficacious biocultural indicators among the diverse array of potential species and values. We used a case study from a region now referred to as coastal British Columbia, Canada, to show how the suggested application of functional ecological indicators by the provincial government created barriers to the development of meaningful cogovernance. -
Energy Efficiency and Economy-Wide Rebound Effects: a Review of the Evidence and Its Implications
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews xxx (xxxx) xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/rser Energy efficiency and economy-wide rebound effects: A review of the evidence and its implications Paul E. Brockway a,*, Steve Sorrell b, Gregor Semieniuk c,d, Matthew Kuperus Heun e, Victor Court f,g a School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, UK b Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex, UK c Political Economy Research Institute & Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA d Department of Economics, SOAS University of London, UK e Engineering Department, Calvin University, 3201 Burton St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI, 49546, USA f IFP School, IFP Energies Nouvelles, 1 & 4 avenue de Bois Pr´eau, 92852, Rueil-Malmaison cedex, France g Chair Energy & Prosperity, Institut Louis Bachelier, 28 place de la Bourse, 75002, Paris, France ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Keywords: The majority of global energy scenarios anticipate a structural break in the relationship between energy con Energy efficiency sumption and gross domestic product (GDP), with several scenarios projecting absolute decoupling, where en Economy-wide rebound effects ergy use falls while GDP continues to grow. However, there are few precedents for absolute decoupling, and Integrated assessment models current global trends are in the opposite direction. This paper explores one possible explanation for the historical Energy-GDP decoupling close relationship between energy consumption and GDP, namely that the economy-wide rebound effects from Energy rebound improved energy efficiency are larger than is commonly assumed. We review the evidence on the size of economy-wide rebound effects and explore whether and how such effects are taken into account within the models used to produce global energy scenarios. -
Exergy Accounting - the Energy That Matters V
THE 8th LATIN-AMERICAN CONGRESS ON ELECTRICITY GENERATION AND TRANSMISSION - CLAGTEE 2009 1 Exergy Accounting - The Energy that Matters V. Fachina, PETROBRAS 1 Exergy means the maximum work which can be Abstract-- The exergy concept is introduced by utilizing a extracted from a control volume. Also it is the maximum general framework on which are based the model equations. An energy quantity which can be made useful after discounting exergy analysis is performed on a case study: a control volume the irreversible losses. Finally, exergy means a physical, for a power module is created by comprising gas turbine, chemical contrast level between a control volume and its reduction gearbox, AC generator, exhaustion ducts and heat nearby surroundings. regenerator. The implementation of the equations is carried out Now considering the economical realm, Fig. 1 can be by collecting test data of the equipment data sheets from the respective vendors. By utilizing an exergy map, one proposes translated as follows: the reversible losses as either business both mitigating and contingent countermeasures for maximizing productivity losses or refundable taxes; the irreversible ones the exergy efficiency. An exergy accounting is introduced by as either nonrefundable taxes or inflation; the right arrows as showing how the exergy concept might eventually be brought up product and service values; the left ones as product and to the traditional money accounting. At last, one devises a unified service investments. approach for efficiency metrics in order to bridge the gaps A word of advice: a control volume means either a between the physical and the economical realms. physical or logical reality subset bounded by our observation. -
Exergy As a Measure of Resource Use in Life Cyclet Assessment and Other Sustainability Assessment Tools
resources Article Exergy as a Measure of Resource Use in Life Cyclet Assessment and Other Sustainability Assessment Tools Goran Finnveden 1,*, Yevgeniya Arushanyan 1 and Miguel Brandão 1,2 1 Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Science and Engineering (SEED), KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm SE 100-44, Sweden; [email protected] (Y.A.); [email protected] (M.B.) 2 Department of Bioeconomy and Systems Analysis, Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation, Czartoryskich 8 Str., 24-100 Pulawy, Poland * Correspondance: goran.fi[email protected]; Tel.: +46-8-790-73-18 Academic Editor: Mario Schmidt Received: 14 December 2015; Accepted: 12 June 2016; Published: 29 June 2016 Abstract: A thermodynamic approach based on exergy use has been suggested as a measure for the use of resources in Life Cycle Assessment and other sustainability assessment methods. It is a relevant approach since it can capture energy resources, as well as metal ores and other materials that have a chemical exergy expressed in the same units. The aim of this paper is to illustrate the use of the thermodynamic approach in case studies and to compare the results with other approaches, and thus contribute to the discussion of how to measure resource use. The two case studies are the recycling of ferrous waste and the production and use of a laptop. The results show that the different methods produce strikingly different results when applied to case studies, which indicates the need to further discuss methods for assessing resource use. The study also demonstrates the feasibility of the thermodynamic approach. -
Ascendency As Ecological Indicator for Environmental Quality Assessment at the Ecosystem Level: a Case Study
Hydrobiologia (2006) 555:19–30 Ó Springer 2006 H. Queiroga, M.R. Cunha, A. Cunha, M.H. Moreira, V. Quintino, A.M. Rodrigues, J. Seroˆ dio & R.M. Warwick (eds), Marine Biodiversity: Patterns and Processes, Assessment, Threats, Management and Conservation DOI 10.1007/s10750-005-1102-8 Ascendency as ecological indicator for environmental quality assessment at the ecosystem level: a case study J. Patrı´ cio1,*, R. Ulanowicz2, M. A. Pardal1 & J. C. Marques1 1IMAR- Institute of Marine Research, Department of Zoology, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, 3004-517, Coimbra, Portugal 2Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, Center for Environmental and Estuarine Studies, University of Maryland, Solomons, Maryland, 20688-0038, USA (*Author for correspondence: E-mail: [email protected]) Key words: network analysis, ascendency, eutrophication, estuary Abstract Previous studies have shown that when an ecosystem consists of many interacting components it becomes impossible to understand how it functions by focussing only on individual relationships. Alternatively, one can attempt to quantify system behaviour as a whole by developing ecological indicators that combine numerous environmental factors into a single value. One such holistic measure, called the system ‘ascen- dency’, arises from the analysis of networks of trophic exchanges. It deals with the joint quantification of overall system activity with the organisation of the component processes and can be used specifically to identify the occurrence of eutrophication. System ascendency analyses were applied to data over a gradient of eutrophication in a well documented small temperate intertidal estuary. Three areas were compared along the gradient, respectively, non eutrophic, intermediate eutrophic, and strongly eutrophic. Values of other measures related to the ascendency, such as the total system throughput, development capacity, and average mutual information, as well as the ascendency itself, were clearly higher in the non-eutrophic area. -
Sustainability Indicators for the Use of Resources—The Exergy Approach
Sustainability 2012, 4, 1867-1878; doi:10.3390/su4081867 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability Article Sustainability Indicators for the Use of Resources—The Exergy Approach Christopher J. Koroneos 1,*, Evanthia A. Nanaki 2 and George A. Xydis 3 1 Unit of Environmental Science and Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Heroon Polytechneiou Street, Zografou Campus, 15773 Athens, Greece 2 University of Western Macedonia, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Bakola and Sialvera, 50100 Kozani, Greece; E-Mail: [email protected] 3 Technical University of Denmark, Department of Electrical Engineering, Frederiksborgvej 399, P.O. Box 49, Building 776, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark; E-Mail: [email protected] * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +30-210-772-3085; Fax: +30-210-772-3285. Received: 17 July 2012; in revised form: 25 July 2012 / Accepted: 2 August 2012 / Published: 20 August 2012 Abstract: 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. -
ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT AN]) Appropriathd CARRYING CAPACITY: a TOOL for PLANNING TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY
ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT AN]) APPROPRIAThD CARRYING CAPACITY: A TOOL FOR PLANNING TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY by MATHIS WACKERNAGEL Dip!. Ing., The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ZUrich, 1988 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (School of Community and Regional Planning) We accept this thesis as conforming to the r ired standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA October 1994 © Mathis Wackernagel, 1994 advanced In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an Library shall make it degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the that permission for extensive freely available for reference and study. I further agree copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. (Signature) ejb’i’t/ Pios-ii’ii &toof of C iwivry Gf (i l r€dva k hi di’e The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada Date O 6) ) DE-6 (2/88) ABSThACT There is mounting evidence that the ecosystems of Earth cannot sustain current levels of economic activity, let alone increased levels. Since some consume Earth’s resources at a rate that will leave little for future generations, while others still live in debilitating poverty, the UN’s World Commission on Environment and Economic Development has called for development that is sustainable. The purpose of this thesis is to further develop and test a planning tool that can assist in translating the concern about the sustainability crisis into public action. -
Exergy Analysis As a Tool for Addressing Climate Change
European Journal of Sustainable Development Research 2021, 5(2), em0148 e-ISSN: 2542-4742 https://www.ejosdr.com Research Article Exergy Analysis as a Tool for Addressing Climate Change Marc A. Rosen 1* 1 Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, Ontario, L1G 0C5, CANADA *Corresponding Author: [email protected] Citation: Rosen, M. A. (2021). Exergy Analysis as a Tool for Addressing Climate Change. European Journal of Sustainable Development Research, 5(2), em0148. https://doi.org/10.21601/ejosdr/9346 ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Received: 1 Oct. 2020 Exergy is described as a tool for addressing climate change, in particular through identifying and explaining the Accepted: 3 Oct. 2020 benefits of sustainable energy, so the benefits can be appreciated by experts and non-experts alike and attained. Exergy can be used to understand climate change measures and to assess and improve energy systems. Exergy also can help better understand the benefits of utilizing sustainable energy by providing more useful and meaningful information than energy provides. Exergy clearly identifies efficiency improvements and reductions in wastes and environmental impacts attributable to sustainable energy. Exergy can also identify better than energy the environmental benefits and economics of energy technologies. Exergy should be applied by engineers and scientists, as well as decision and policy makers, involved in addressing climate change. Keywords: exergy, climate change, environment, ecology, energy impacts. Exergy can also identify better than energy ways to INTRODUCTION improve environmental benefits and economics. Consequently, many researchers suggest that the impact of The relationship between energy and economics, such as energy use on the environment, the achievement of increased the trade-offs between efficiency and cost, has almost always efficiency, and the economics of energy systems are best been important. -
Energy, Exergy, and Thermo-Economic Analysis of Renewable Energy-Driven Polygeneration Systems for Sustainable Desalination
processes Review Energy, Exergy, and Thermo-Economic Analysis of Renewable Energy-Driven Polygeneration Systems for Sustainable Desalination Mohammad Hasan Khoshgoftar Manesh 1,2,* and Viviani Caroline Onishi 3,* 1 Energy, Environment and Biologic Research Lab (EEBRlab), Division of Thermal Sciences and Energy Systems, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Technology & Engineering, University of Qom, Qom 3716146611, Iran 2 Center of Environmental Research, Qom 3716146611, Iran 3 School of Engineering and the Built Environment, Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh EH10 5DT, UK * Correspondence: [email protected] (M.H.K.M.); [email protected] (V.C.O.) Abstract: Reliable production of freshwater and energy is vital for tackling two of the most crit- ical issues the world is facing today: climate change and sustainable development. In this light, a comprehensive review is performed on the foremost renewable energy-driven polygeneration systems for freshwater production using thermal and membrane desalination. Thus, this review is designed to outline the latest developments on integrated polygeneration and desalination systems based on multi-stage flash (MSF), multi-effect distillation (MED), humidification-dehumidification (HDH), and reverse osmosis (RO) technologies. Special attention is paid to innovative approaches for modelling, design, simulation, and optimization to improve energy, exergy, and thermo-economic performance of decentralized polygeneration plants accounting for electricity, space heating and cool- ing, domestic hot water, and freshwater production, among others. Different integrated renewable Citation: Khoshgoftar Manesh, M.H.; energy-driven polygeneration and desalination systems are investigated, including those assisted Onishi, V.C. Energy, Exergy, and by solar, biomass, geothermal, ocean, wind, and hybrid renewable energy sources. -
Exergy As a Tool for Sustainability
3rd IASME/WSEAS Int. Conf. on Energy & Environment, University of Cambridge, UK, February 23-25, 2008 Exergy as a Tool for Sustainability MARC A. ROSEN Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science University of Ontario Institute of Technology 2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 7L7 CANADA Abstract: Although we conventionally use energy analysis to assess energy systems, exergy analysis has many advantages. Exergy analyses provide useful information, which can directly impact process designs and improvements because exergy methods help in understanding and improving efficiency, environmental and economic performance as well as sustainability. Exergy’s advantages stem from the fact that exergy losses represent true losses of potential to generate a desired product, exergy efficiencies always provide a measure of approach to ideality, and the links between exergy and both economics and environmental impact can help develop improvements. Exergy analysis also provides better insights into beneficial research in terms of potential for significant efficiency, environmental and economic gains. An illustration of nuclear power generation and of a country’s energy system and its electrical utility sector helps clarify the benefits and advantages of exergy. Exergy analysis should prove useful to engineers, scientists, and decision makers. Key-Words: exergy, sustainability, efficiency, energy conservation, entropy, environment, economics, nuclear power 1 Introduction Here, we describe exergy and its application through We conventionally assess energy systems using energy, exergy analysis. The breadth of energy systems assessed which is based on the first law of thermodynamics which with exergy analysis is presented. The ties between exergy states the principle of energy conservation. But energy and economics, the environmental implications of exergy analysis has many weaknesses that can be overcome with and the links between exergy and sustainability are an alternative thermodynamic analysis method. -
The Influence of Thermodynamic Ideas on Ecological Economics: an Interdisciplinary Critique
Sustainability 2009, 1, 1195-1225; doi:10.3390/su1041195 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability Article The Influence of Thermodynamic Ideas on Ecological Economics: An Interdisciplinary Critique Geoffrey P. Hammond 1,2,* and Adrian B. Winnett 1,3 1 Institute for Sustainable Energy & the Environment (I•SEE), University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK 2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK 3 Department of Economics, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK; E-Mail: [email protected] * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +44-12-2538-6168; Fax: +44-12-2538-6928. Received: 10 October 2009 / Accepted: 24 November 2009 / Published: 1 December 2009 Abstract: The influence of thermodynamics on the emerging transdisciplinary field of ‗ecological economics‘ is critically reviewed from an interdisciplinary perspective. It is viewed through the lens provided by the ‗bioeconomist‘ Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen (1906–1994) and his advocacy of ‗the Entropy Law‘ as a determinant of economic scarcity. It is argued that exergy is a more easily understood thermodynamic property than is entropy to represent irreversibilities in complex systems, and that the behaviour of energy and matter are not equally mirrored by thermodynamic laws. Thermodynamic insights as typically employed in ecological economics are simply analogues or metaphors of reality. They should therefore be empirically tested against the real world. Keywords: thermodynamic analysis; energy; entropy; exergy; ecological economics; environmental economics; exergoeconomics; complexity; natural capital; sustainability Sustainability 2009, 1 1196 ―A theory is the more impressive, the greater the simplicity of its premises is, the more different kinds of things it relates, and the more extended is its area of applicability. -
Energy, Entropy and Exergy in Communication Networks
Entropy 2013, 15, 4484-4503; doi:10.3390/e15104484 OPEN ACCESS entropy ISSN 1099-4300 www.mdpi.com/journal/entropy Article Energy, Entropy and Exergy in Communication Networks Slavisa Aleksic Institute of Telecommunications, Vienna University of Technology, Favoritenstr. 9-11/E389, 1040 Vienna, Austria; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +43-158801-38831; Fax: +43-158801-938831 Received: 3 June 2013; in revised form: 2 October 2013 / Accepted: 11 October 2013 / Published: 18 October 2013 Abstract: The information and communication technology (ICT) sector is continuously growing, mainly due to the fast penetration of ICT into many areas of business and society. Growth is particularly high in the area of technologies and applications for communication networks, which can be used, among others, to optimize systems and processes. The ubiquitous application of ICT opens new perspectives and emphasizes the importance of understanding the complex interactions between ICT and other sectors. Complex and interacting heterogeneous systems can only properly be addressed by a holistic framework. Thermodynamic theory, and, in particular, the second law of thermodynamics, is a universally applicable tool to analyze flows of energy. Communication systems and their processes can be seen, similar to many other natural processes and systems, as dissipative transformations that level differences in energy density between participating subsystems and their surroundings. This paper shows how to apply thermodynamics to analyze energy flows through communication networks. Application of the second law of thermodynamics in the context of the Carnot heat engine is emphasized. The use of exergy-based lifecycle analysis to assess the sustainability of ICT systems is shown on an example of a radio access network.