Search Results (3,020)

Retrofit strategies to improve the energy performance of buildings have gained significant importance worldwide; however, asbestos in older residential buildings is considered a serious threat to both human health and the environment. Existing studies have generally focused on the health effects of asbestos, the properties of insulation materials, or individual aspects of energy performance, while a coherent and comparative conceptual framework for sustainable retrofit systems is limited. This review aims to systematically integrate the current scientific evidence on asbestos management, alternative insulation materials, life cycle assessment (LCA), and circular economy principles to present a literature-informed conceptual decision-support framework for sustainable retrofit. The study used the PRISMA-based literature selection approach, while the evidence from different peer-reviewed studies was comparatively organized in the context of process workflows, risk considerations, lifecycle impacts, and building-physics-related findings. The literature-based results indicate that incorporating safe asbestos management, low-carbon insulation materials, and circular retrofit strategies into an integrated approach can improve energy efficiency and environmental sustainability. However, this study is not based on a validated numerical simulation, an executed optimization model, or calibrated engineering analysis, but rather on a comparative synthesis and conceptual interpretation of the existing literature and presents a decision-support framework that can guide future low-carbon and safe construction strategies. Full article

To address transportation-related emissions, Taiwan’s 2022 net-zero strategy sets targets to increase the adoption of battery electric vehicles (BEVs). However, current policy frameworks insufficiently consider the technological diversity of low-emission alternatives, particularly hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). This study integrates a well-to-wheel life cycle assessment (LCA) with system dynamics modeling to evaluate and compare the environmental and health impacts of transitioning from internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) to BEVs and hydrogen FCEVs. The framework incorporates LCA-based carbon emissions and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) into a dynamic population simulation. Results show that, while DALY effects on life expectancy and population growth are limited, low-carbon vehicle adoption substantially reduces environmental burdens and helps moderate population decline. Projections to 2050 highlight significant emission-reduction potential, with hydrogen FCEV carbon emissions decreasing as renewable energy in hydrogen production increases. Adoption of green hydrogen could achieve a net-negative carbon balance for hydrogen FCEVs by 2049, positioning them as a sustainable long-term alternative to BEVs. Full article

The construction sector must simultaneously meet rising global demand and cut embodied carbon deeply enough to satisfy European Green Deal and Bioeconomy Strategy targets—two pressures that conventional petrochemical-derived materials are poorly placed to resolve. Bio-based alternatives offer a credible path: they sequester carbon, carry lower embodied emissions, improve indoor air quality, and fit naturally within circular economy models. Yet they remain marginal in specification practice. This paper reviews the evidence on bio-based construction materials and maps the barriers that keep them there. The analysis organises these barriers into four levels—structural, economic, technical, and enabling—and traces the conditional relationships between them, with direct consequences for how policy interventions should be sequenced. The strategic case for this transition extends beyond environmental policy: the 2026 Strait of Hormuz disruption is used here as a scenario to show how dependent European construction is on fossil-derived material inputs, and how exposed that dependence leaves the sector to geopolitical supply shocks. The principal obstacles to adoption prove to be institutional and economic rather than technical—regulatory fragmentation, absent harmonised standards, fragile supply chains, and market structures that systematically undervalue bio-based solutions. The paper concludes that meaningful scaling requires coordinated action across governance, market design, and industrial policy, and that material and performance advances alone will not deliver it. Full article

In the frame of the final analysis of the HERFUSE activities a life cycle assessment (LCA) has been planned to support the performance evaluation of the new Clean Aviation (CA) architectural concepts. The HERFUSE project is focused on designing innovative fuselage and empennages suitable for the future Hybrid-Electric Regional Aircraft (HER) that will contribute to the overall target to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. HERFUSE will study the challenges in fuselage and empennage layout, material, components, manufacturing and assembly derived from the integration of the relevant fuselage systems for HER as defined in the strategic research and innovation agenda SRIA for a Hybrid-Electric Regional Aircraft and in HER-01 topic. Full article

Climate change represents one of the most critical challenges, especially in the Mediterranean area. Using organic and localized fertilization could be an effective agroecological strategy to help mitigate the environmental impacts of climate change. Our study was carried out in an experimental field over a three-year crop succession including broccoli, sweet pepper and barley. A randomized complete block design was adopted, with two factors: (i) fertilization method (100% broadcast and 40% localized) and (ii) fertilizer type by testing: on-farm compost, two types of commercial compost and a mineral fertilizer. Environmental impacts per hectare and marketable yield were quantified using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), considering abiotic depletion (AD), acidification (AA), eutrophication (EU), global warming potential (GWP), and photochemical oxidation (PO). The localized application of fertilizers achieved marketable yields comparable to the broadcast method, despite lower fertilizer inputs, suggesting an optimal nutrient-use efficiency. The LCA demonstrated that localized fertilization also enhanced environmental sustainability, decreasing Global Warming Potential (GWP) by 20% per hectare, compared to broadcast treatments. Moreover, considering only the fertilization phase, we observed a 59% reduction in GWP under the localized strategy. Even though localized fertilization emerges as an effective climate-smart strategy without compromising productivity, future research is recommended to assess its long-term impacts in site-specific conditions. Full article

Road freight contributes over half of China’s transport carbon emissions, making its decarbonization critical for carbon neutrality. This study combines total cost of ownership (TCO) and life cycle assessment (LCA) to analyze the economic efficiency and carbon emission effects of diesel, electric, and hydrogen fuel cell trucks. Combined with the LSTM neural network and vehicle ownership model, this study predicts the fleet emission reduction potential from 2020 to 2050. The results show that all new energy trucks can achieve TCO parity with diesel trucks before 2050, and electrification shows better economic competitiveness than hydrogen fuel cell technology across all vehicle types in the Chinese context. Fuel cell trucks powered via solar-powered water electrolysis exhibit the lowest carbon intensity, and grid decarbonization can significantly improve the emission reduction effects of electric and fuel cell trucks. Freight fleet carbon emissions are expected to peak around 2030. In an ideal scenario, emission reductions of 19.5%, 41.9%, and 82.9% can be achieved by 2030, 2040, and 2050, respectively. Heavy-duty trucks are the main emission contributors (47–58%) and the main target of emission reduction strategies. Short-term reduction depends on fuel economy, while long-term reduction prioritizes new energy substitution. Policy recommendations include promoting alternative fuel trucks, upgrading emission standards, and adopting differential taxation. Full article

This study comprehensively explores the environmental implications of two feeding strategies in pig farming, focusing on three scenarios: Brazilian tables (BT-2017), NRC (NRC-2012), and AGPIC (AGPIC-2021). The comparison involves conventional phase-feeding (CON) and the daily fit model (DFM). The five-phase system provided the same diet to all pigs within a group during each proposed phase. In contrast, the DFM adjusted the diet based on the nutritional requirements of pigs, anticipating subsequent diets through daily adjustments. We employed a cradle-to-gate approach, with the functional unit defined as one barrow with an initial body weight of 20.61 ± 0.85 kg, raised to 138.94 ± 0.90 kg over a 120-day growing-finishing period. Input data were sourced from observed commercial records from pig farms in Brazil, including over 1,000,000 data points from pigs raised under standard industry conditions. We evaluated the impact of the life cycle by considering factors such as acidification, climate change, ecotoxicity, eutrophication, land use, resource use, and water use. The OpenLCA software (version 1.11.0) and the Environmental Footprint 3.0 impact assessment method were used. Our results indicate that the DFM consistently outperforms the CON strategy in terms of reducing environmental impacts. Among the three scenarios, BT-2017 results in higher environmental impact reductions compared with NRC-2012 and AGPIC-2021. This is due to the higher concentration of corn and soybean meal in diets. Notable reductions include in relation to land use-related climate change impacts (12.55%), freshwater eutrophication (6.21%), mineral and metal resource depletion (6.11%), and fossil resource use (4.88%). These findings highlight that even modest adjustments to feeding strategies can effectively reduce the environmental footprint of pig farming. Full article

Decarbonizing the building sector requires integrating on-site renewable generation with systematic energy management. Among the most widely adopted alternatives are photovoltaic (PV) systems in buildings; however, they are often implemented as a standalone technological intervention (size–install–estimate savings), without being formally incorporated into an Energy Management System (EnMS) aimed at continuous improvement. In this context, this research addresses this gap through an integrated methodological framework aligned with ISO 50001, in which PV is explicitly included in energy performance management through energy review, the definition of an Energy Baseline (EnB), and the monitoring of Energy Performance Indicators (EnPIs) within the PDCA cycle. The approach articulates the analytical sizing of the PV system based on electricity demand and solar resources; its validation through simulation to ensure operational consistency and a technical, economic, and environmental assessment that translates PV generation into a verifiable reduction in energy imported from the grid and, consequently, into traceable improvements in EnPI under an audit-compatible scheme. The methodology is demonstrated in a multi-family building in Chorrillos, Lima (Peru), where a 14.5 kWp rooftop PV system (25 modules of 580 Wp) is designed to maximize self-consumption during daylight hours. The results show technical performance consistent with the demand profile, economic viability under the conditions of the case, and environmental benefits from replacing grid electricity, along with offsets associated mainly with the manufacture of PV components. The residual gap between the Post-PV EnPIs and the ISO 50001 target confirms that PV integration is a necessary but not sufficient first-cycle action within a comprehensive building decarbonization strategy, with demand-side management and envelope improvements identified as subsequent PDCA cycle priorities. In summary, the central contribution is not the PV sizing itself, but its operational and traceable integration within ISO 50001, making PV a quantifiable, verifiable, and scalable energy improvement action for residential buildings in emerging economies. Full article

Port decarbonization strategies often prioritize emissions under direct port authority control while overlooking dominant indirect sources. This study proposes an approach that combines Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) and expert elicitation. While existing studies often rely on descriptive emission inventories, this paper demonstrates the value of combining quantitative life-cycle data with expert judgment. The methodology is applied to the Port of Sines, Portugal’s largest port by cargo volume and handling capacity. The LCA revealed that Scope 3 emissions account for over 99% of total greenhouse gas emissions, with ocean-going vessels as the main contributors. The expert elicitation process prioritized energy-related measures such as renewable energy, alternative fuels, electrification, and energy efficiency, while onshore power supply and ship–port interface measures received lower priority. By comparing the results, the study reveals a misalignment between the most significant emission sources (Scope 3 emissions, particularly ocean-going vessels) and commonly prioritized decarbonization measures (measures addressing Scopes 1 and 2). The main contribution lies in combining LCA findings and expert inputs to actively inform strategic decision making, helping ports realign decarbonization strategies toward high-impact measures and providing transferable insights for other ports pursuing net-zero objectives. Full article

The evaluation of intervention strategies for the existing building stock, within the context of energy transition and increasing attention being given to sustainability, requires approaches capable of systematically integrating economic and environmental dimensions over the entire building life cycle. From this perspective, the present study develops and applies an integrated Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) model aimed at comparing two alternative intervention strategies for traditional residential buildings: conservative retrofit of the existing structure and demolition with reconstruction according to Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) criteria. The methodological framework, compliant with ISO 15686-5 and based on a simplified LCA-oriented approach inspired by EN 15978 principles, is applied to a representative case study of Swedish vernacular wooden architecture (röd stuga) located in the municipality of Falun. The assessments are carried out over 50- and 100-year time horizons, adopting Net Present Value (NPV) as the primary economic indicator and Global Warming Potential over 100 years (GWP100) and Cumulative Energy Demand (CED) as environmental indicators. The results show that the NZEB scenario, despite higher initial investment costs, achieves a significant reduction in life-cycle environmental impacts, with a decrease of approximately 20–25% in terms of GWP100 and about 45–50% in terms of CED compared to the retrofit scenario. The analysis also highlights a differentiated behavior of environmental indicators—while operational energy use remains dominant in cumulative energy demand, embodied impacts become increasingly significant in the GWP balance, particularly in high-performance scenarios. From an economic perspective, conservative retrofit results in lower global costs over the considered time horizons, although the economic gap tends to narrow in the long term. The integrated LCC–environmental assessment approach highlights the economic–environmental trade-offs and provides a replicable decision-support framework for sustainable regeneration policies targeting the existing residential building stock. Full article

The healthcare sector is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Little is known about the impact of individual clinical practices on overall emissions; more granular healthcare emissions data are needed to identify opportunities for resource stewardship. Our objective was to deploy an interdisciplinary team to perform Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) comparing carbon emissions attributable to a novel home-care program for premature infants to those attributable to routine care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). We used LCA methodology to compare the carbon footprint of two weeks of traditional care of infants in our NICU to that of those enrolled in an institutional alternative care program known as “Hope Grows at Home,” which transitions eligible infants requiring nasogastric feeds to the home setting with ongoing NICU team support. Our analysis showed that in-home care produces 77 kg of CO₂ emissions (kgCO₂e) per infant over a 14-day period, as compared to in-hospital care, which produced 338 kgCO₂e. Transportation to a healthcare facility accounted for the majority of emissions in both groups (292 kgCO₂e for NICU care and 58 kgCO₂e for home care). This finding is likely impacted by our facility’s rural location. Home care reduced solid waste emissions by approximately 94% relative to NICU care (1.74 vs. 26.97 kgCO₂e per term), reflecting the home setting’s reuse of feeding syringes and bottles that are routinely single-use in the hospital. Prospective data collection strategies for infants enrolled in home care will further refine our results. Exploring additional interdisciplinary collaborations may facilitate similar analyses, offering more insight into environmental stewardship opportunities within healthcare. Full article

This study aims to investigate the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and environmental footprint of BOCOM Petroleum, a mid-sized downstream oil company operating in Douala, Cameroon. In response to the critical need for empirical data on industrial emissions in Sub-Saharan Africa, a mixed-methods approach combining Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), carbon accounting, and stakeholder interviews was adopted. Emissions were categorised following the GHG Protocol into Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (energy-related), and Scope 3 (value chain). Results reveal total annual emissions of 51,734 CO₂, kg/year, with Scope 3 accounting for 38%, Scope 2 for 33%, and Scope 1 for 29%. Major emission sources include stationary combustion, laboratory processes, and the use of electricity-intensive heat-generating machines. An Environmental Management Plan (EMP) was developed, proposing actionable measures such as process optimisation, adoption of energy-efficient equipment, electrification of vehicle fleets, and improved waste management. Findings underscore the need for systemic decarbonisation strategies among mid-sized oil firms and highlight the alignment of corporate initiatives with Cameroon’s climate commitments. This study contributes a replicable methodological framework for emission auditing in industrial enterprises across the region and calls for further integration of environmental and financial planning in corporate sustainability strategies. Full article

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is widely used to evaluate the environmental impacts of agricultural production systems with four phases. The first phase (Phase 1) is an important phase describing the goal and scope of the entire LCA. However, data on existing and potential goals and scope are scattered across studies and not available at a single location, making it hard to reuse and compare them. The objective of this study is to create a dataset of Phase 1 information (goals, products, and scopes) for agricultural LCA. The dataset was generated from a systematic review of 184 published agricultural LCA studies, including peer-reviewed journal articles and selected conference papers, published between 1999 and 2025, following PRISMA guidelines. Studies were identified through keyword searches on Google Scholar and screened for relevance and availability. Only studies that clearly reported Phase 1 information were included. Data was collected manually and organized using standard IDs. The dataset has 41 goals, 65 products, and 7 scopes; each was assigned an ID (Goal_ID, Product_ID, Scope_ID, and Stage_ID) to support consistency and traceability. The dataset supports comparisons across studies, assists users in selecting appropriate goals, products, and system boundaries, and can support the development of LCA tools, databases, and decision-support frameworks. Full article

Tropical lignocellulosic residues are increasingly relevant feedstocks for lignin-containing nanocellulose composites, but their performance cannot be predicted from botanical origin or bulk lignin percentage alone. This review defines the interface as the geometrical boundary between phases and the interphase as the finite, compositionally graded region in which lignin distribution, nanocellulose morphology, adsorbed water, and the surrounding matrix jointly govern stress transfer and mass transport. Using an evidence-weighted framework, the literature is organized into the following categories: residual-lignin nanofibrils, redeposited-lignin systems, lignin nanoparticle assemblies, compatibilized thermoplastic hybrids, and all-lignocellulosic sheets. Representative quantitative observations show that controlled residual lignin can the increase water contact angle from approximately 35 degrees to 78 degrees and reduce oxygen permeability by up to 200-fold in nanopapers, while selected PLA/LCNF systems show tensile-strength and modulus increases of 37% and 61%, respectively; however, high or poorly distributed lignin can suppress fibrillation, lower viscosity, weaken gel networks, and reduce reproducibility. The most defensible near-term product windows are packaging layers, grease/oil barrier papers, coatings, paper-like multilayers, and selected porous media. Thermoplastic matrices remain process-sensitive, and biomedical, additive-manufacturing, nano-reactor, and energy-material claims require stronger validation of the extractables, rheology, humidity history, TEA/LCA metrics, and end-of-life behavior. This review, therefore, provides a critical, application-backward roadmap for tropical biorefineries in which interfacial function, wet handling, drying energy, and process integration are assessed together rather than treated as independent variables. The abbreviations used in the abstract are defined as follows: CNFs, cellulose nanofibrils; CNC, cellulose nanocrystals; LCNF, lignin-containing cellulose nanofibrils; LCNCs, lignin-containing cellulose nanocrystals; PLA, poly(lactic acid); PHB, polyhydroxybutyrate; PHAs, polyhydroxyalkanoates; PVA, poly(vinyl alcohol); DESs, deep eutectic solvents; TEA, techno-economic analysis; LCA, life-cycle assessment; ML, machine learning. Full article

Road freight transport is an important driver of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Decarbonizing this sector demands a comprehensive assessment of emerging powertrain technologies, which are currently lacking in the literature. To fill this knowledge gap, we performed a life cycle assessment (LCA) on 10 impact categories to evaluate road freight transport in the Netherlands of four truck alternatives, assuming similar performance: fuel-cell electric (FCEV), hydrogen internal combustion engine (HICEV), battery electric (BEV), and diesel internal combustion engine (DICEV). We compared locally produced green hydrogen, according to EU regulations, with electricity and diesel as alternative fuel chains, while also considering the environmental impact of road infrastructure. We found that FCEV and HICEV trucks achieve the lowest global warming impact when green hydrogen is used. We identified discrepancies between the transport alternatives, highlighting key factors influencing NO_x and particulate matter emissions. Our research also showed that water consumption (WC) for green hydrogen is strongly influenced by upstream processes, with solar-powered electricity emerging as a crucial contributor. Our results highlight the need for more exploration on the environmental impact of green hydrogen and can be used by researchers and practitioners to further understand the complexity of reducing emissions in road freight transport. Full article