Improving the Sustainability of Office Partition Manufacturing: Balancing Options for Reducing Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds

Options are examined to improve the sustainability of office partition manufacturing by reducing volatile organic compounds (VOC) emissions. Base VOC emissions for a typical plant are estimated using a mass balance approach. Pollution prevention and sustainability measures are assessed using realistic criteria and weightings. Sustainability has been considered from an industry perspective, considering factors like economics, environmental impact, quality, health and safety. Through a case study, it is demonstrated that several advantageous options are available for reducing VOC emissions in manufacturing office furniture partitions, and thereby enhancing the sustainability of that industrial operation. The measures deemed most viable include implementing several best management practices, not painting of non-visible parts, switching gluing processes, recycling solvent and modifying attachments. The results are intended to be balanced so as to improve their acceptability and adoptability by industry. It appears that it would be advantageous for manufacturers of office panels to evaluate the feasibility of these measures and to implement the most appropriate. The results are likely extendable to other operations in the wood furniture industry, and would improve their sustainability

Emissions and Furnace Gas Temperature for Electricity Generation via Co-firing of Coal and Biomass

The emissions of carbon dioxide and nitrogen and sulphur oxides for electricity generation with coal and biomass co-firing are investigated and the furnace gas temperature assessed. The study uses simulation and considers fuel combinations based on two coals (bituminous coal, lignite) and four types of biomass (rice husk, sawdust, chicken litter, refused derived fuel). With increasing biomass, net CO2 emissions are seen to decline significantly for all types of selected biomass, while gross carbon dioxide emissions increase for all blends except bituminous coal/refuse derived fuel, lignite/chicken litter and lignite/refuse derived fuel. The reductions in emissions of nitrogen and sulphur oxides are dependent on the contents of nitrogen and sulphur in the biomass. The results also show for all fuel combinations that increasing the biomass proportion decreases the furnace exit gas temperature

Thermodynamic Optimization of a Geothermal Power Plant with a Genetic Algorithm in Two Stages

Due to the harmful effects and depletion of non-renewable energy resources, the major concerns are focused on using renewable energy resources. Among them, the geothermal energy has a high potential in volcano regions such as the Middle East. The optimization of an organic Rankine cycle with a geothermal heat source is investigated based on a genetic algorithm having two stages. In the first stage, the optimal variables are the depth of the well and the extraction flow rate of the geothermal fluid mass. The optimal value of the depth of the well, extraction mass flow rate, and the geothermal fluid temperature is found to be 2100 m, 15 kg/s, and 150 °C. In the second stage, the efficiency and output power of the power plant are optimized. To achieve maximum output power as well as cycle efficiency, the optimization variable is the maximum organic fluid pressure in the high-temperature heat exchanger. The optimum values of energy efficiency and cycle power production are equal to 0.433 MW and 14.1%, respectively

Energy Benefits Of Integrating Transportation Energy With A Net Zero Energy Solar Building Using Captured Waste Hydrogen From Electrochemical Plants And Bio-Gas From Various Bio-Gasification Processes

When considering a net zero energy building, the transportation energy sector is often viewed as a separate entity. Currently, hydrocarbons are the main source of energy used in the transportation sector. In an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, more automotive manufacturers are moving towards alternatively fueled vehicles that are electric or fuel cell powered. Electrochemical and other process industries frequently vent or flare hydrogen into the atmosphere and most community municipal waste is buried underground (landfill) or burned to generate electricity resulting in greenhouse gas emissions. Energy benefits and the methods of achieving net zero energy status for a solar building and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions through the integration of these waste streams and transportation energy are discussed