Environmental assessment and metrics for solar: Case study of SolFocus solar concentrator systems

Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is utilized to analyze SolFocus Inc. concentrator solar systems. A hybrid LCA methodology is explained that combines process and input-output LCA techniques. The use of the greenhouse gas return on investment metric for solar technologies is discussed as a complement to energy metrics. Finally, preliminary results of a hybrid LCA for the SolFocus concentrator technology are presented. It is found that transportation and electricity consumption play a significant role in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions

Metrics for Sustainable Manufacturing

A sustainable manufacturing strategy requires metrics for decision making at all levels of the enterprise. In this paper, a methodology is developed for designing sustainable manufacturing metrics given the specific concerns to be addressed. A top-down approach is suggested that follows the framework of goal and scope definition: (1) goal- what are the concerns addressed and what is the appropriate metric type to achieve the goal (2) scope what is the appropriate geographic and manufacturing extent. In this methodology, a distinction is made between environmental cost metrics and sustainability metrics. Utilizing this methodology, metrics focused on energy use, global climate change, non-renewable resource consumption, and water consumption are developed

Development of the Supply Chain Optimization and Planning for the Environment (SCOPE) tool - applied to solar energy

A supply-chain decision tool is outlined that will assess the life-cycle greenhouse gases and energy demand of solar energy technology using a hybrid LCA structure. Energy and greenhouse gas metrics appropriate for the climate change mitigation goals of solar energy are discussed. Applying this methodology to SolFocus Inc. concentrator systems, preliminary results indicate that the energy payback time of SolFocus Panels can vary from 0.6 to 5 years depending on manufacturing locations. The greenhouse gas payback time, a new metric for energy technologies, varies from 1.1 to 64 years depending on the same factors indicating that greenhouse gas metrics are more sensitive to installation and supply chain decisions than energy metrics

Increasing Access to Surgical Services in Sub-Saharan Africa: Priorities for National and International Agencies Recommended by the Bellagio Essential Surgery Group

In this Policy Forum, the Bellagio Essential Surgery Group, which was formed to advocate for increased access to surgery in Africa, recommends four priority areas for national and international agencies to target in order to address the surgical burden of disease in sub-Saharan Africa

Comparing Notes: Recording and Criticism

This chapter charts the ways in which recording has changed the nature of music criticism. It both provides an overview of the history of recording and music criticism, from the advent of Edison’s Phonograph to the present day, and examines the issues arising from this new technology and the consequent transformation of critical thought and practice

Wider Still and Wider: British Music Criticism since the Second World War

This chapter provides the first historical examination of music criticism in Britain since the Second World War. In the process, it also challenges the simplistic prevailing view of this being a period of decline from a golden age in music criticism