The paper presents an approach to evaluating a building throughout its whole life cycle in relation to its sustainable development. It describes basic tools and techniques of evaluating and analysing the costs in the whole life cycle of the building, such as Life Cycle Assessment, Life Cycle Management, Life Cycle Cost and Social Life Cycle Assessment. The aim of the paper is to propose a model of cost evaluation throughout the building life cycle. The model is based on the fuzzy sets theory which allows the calculations to include the risks associated with the sustainable development, with the management of the investment and with social costs. Costs incurred in the subsequent phases of the building life cycle are analysed and modelled separately by means of a membership function. However, the effect of the analysis is a global cost evaluation for the whole life cycle of the building.
Accommodation tourist industry is characterized by high variability. For this category of services not only the location is crucial- that does not change, but also the standard, prices and seasonality of services. In the recent years, leisure centers performing functions only during the summer time have seen the possibility to extend their activities beyond the summer months. The reasons for this are the local investments requiring qualified staff which comes from different parts of the country, Europe and the world while creating dernand for accommodations. To meet the possible demand needs and to adapt to cold season, performing thermo-modernization works is necessary. In order to find the best solution and answer those needs, analysis of the profitability of the investrnents in a chosen holiday resort was carried out. The article presents the results of the analysis based on the payback period, LCC analysis and assessment of the investments risk.
The purpose of the present study is to demonstrate that environmental impacts exerted by manufactured products throughout their entire life cycle are major aspects to be considered, alongside their functional features and cost-effectiveness. One of the available methods to evaluate environmental impacts is known to as the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method. The study summarises the reports from the literature on the subject of environmental impact assessment. In conclusions, the authors indicate the need for assessing the environmental impact of cast products made from conventional and newly introduced alloys.
Results of life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle assessment (LCA) for septic tanks collecting domestic sewage were presented. The study included the whole life cycle: construction, use and end-of-life stages of septic tanks. The analyses were conducted basing on actual data concerning performance of 793 septic tanks in Żory. Environmental impact assessment of the life cycle of septic tanks was conducted with TRACi and ReCiPe methods. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, eutrophication, fossil fuel depletion and metal depletion indicators were calculated and determinants of LCA of septic tanks were analysed. The system boundary was from cradle to grave. It was concluded that at the construction stage, GHG emission and fossil fuel depletion indicators are determined by the amount of concrete, steel, polyester resin, polyethylene, cast iron and PCV. At the use stage, GHG emission is determined by the amount and type of electricity used to treat sewage in a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Untreated wastewater, introduced into the environment (leaking tanks and users discharging sewage), is a determinant of infl uence on eutrophication. Life cycle inventory and environmental assessment of septic tanks with life cycle perspective are presented in the literature for the fi rst time. The results highlight the importance of including each stage in the environmental assessment of elements of the urban wastewater system.
The article presents results of an input-output data inventory and life cycle assessment (LCA) for individual wastewater treatment plants (IWWTPs), considering their whole life cycle, including the stage of construction, use and end-of-life. IWWTPs located in the area of a medium-sized town in Poland, were assessed from a systemic perspective. The research was conducted basing on actual data concerning performance of 304 individual wastewater treatment plants in Żory. Environmental assessment was conducted with ReCiPe and TRACI methods. Greenhouse gases (GHG) emission, eutrophication, fossil fuel and metal depletion were calculated. The LCA was conducted basing on ISO 14040 standard with SimaPro 8 software and Ecoinvent 3 database. The system boundary ranged from cradle to grave. It was shown that, at the construction stage, GHG emission depends on the amount of used cement, polyethylene, concrete, PVC and polypropylene. At the use stage, the GHG emission is determined by the sewage treatment technology and application of a bio-reactor in IWWTPs. At the construction stage, the fossil fuel depletion is determined by the amount of used polyethylene, PVC, cement, polypropylene and concrete; while the metal depletion is determined by the amount of used stainless steel, copper and cast iron. Data inventory and LCA of IWWTPs are presented for the first time. Conclusions of the work may support decisions taken by local governments concerning wastewater management in their area and promote and support solutions of high ecological standards.
A concern about the current state of relations between industry and the environment is
often neglected. However, it is important to underline that industry and sustainability are
not mutually exclusive. There are many industrial processes to blame when analyzing the
negative impact on current socio-ecological environment. The emerging question is whether
companies nowadays are ready to face challenges in the name of sustainability, the future
of the planet and generations to come. In addition, an assessment of industrial processes
may be very time-consuming and costly in financial terms. This fact allows developing sustainability
assessment approach and its measures for keeping track on to evaluate scale of
environmental, social and economic changes. The goal of the paper is to develop a multicriteria
decision-making approach for sustainability assessment of renewable energy technology.
A sustainability assessment approach combines life cycle-based methods integrated with
multi-criteria decision-making method based on analytical hierarchy process. The resulting
assessment method allows finding a compromise between industry and the environment and
identify potential intervention points for further research. As a result of decision-making
process, string ribbon technology was considered as the most sustainable. The applicability
of the proposed method is assessed based on photovoltaic panels.
The goal of this paper is to present the author’s thoughts on the possible contribution of
quality engineering to sustainable development. It is indicated that in the product life cycle
designers have the greatest potential to support this challenge. Arguments have been presented to abandon the commonly accepted paradigm, according to which the overriding goal
of the designer is to achieve the highest market value possible measured by the prospected
level of demand for the products designed. It is postulated to include the minimization of
the risks brought to the natural environment and social relations as a criterion of product
design quality. To this goal, it is necessary for designers to pursue both environmentally
friendly materials and technologies and design concepts reducing consumers’ pressure on
continuously increasing demand. Such an approach will allow for more effective control of
consumption, the main cause of the negative effects of economic growth.
Life cycles,number of eggs per female,minimal adult female length and reproductive costs are presented for 18 species of Amphipoda from the West Spitsbergen area, 77 79 °N. Fifteen species incubated eggs during the polar night and released their offspring in early April. Three species incubated eggs from late spring till late summer. The appearance of the youngest juveniles, indicating the hatching period, is presented for 63 species. Most of the species studied were K strategists, with large eggs of over 1 mm diameter; only one species (Hyperoche medusarum ) was r strategist.
The model for estimating the whole life costs of the building life cycle that allows the quantification of the risk addition lets the investor to compare buildings at the initial stage of planning a construction project in terms of the following economic criteria: life cycle costs (LCC), whole life costs (WLC), life cycle equivalent annual costs (LCEAC) and cost addition for risk (ΔRLCC). The subsequent stages of the model development have been described in numerous publications of the authors, while the aim of this paper is to check the accuracy of the model in the case of changing the parameters that may affect the results of calculations. The scope of the study includes: comparison of the results generated by the model with the solutions obtained in the life cycle net present value method (LCNPV) for time and financial input data, not burdened with the risk effect; the analysis of the variability of results due to changes in input data; analysis of the variability of results as a consequence of changing the sets of membership functions for input data and methods for defuzzification the result.
In this paper, the analysis of carbon footprint values for children’s footwear was conducted. This group of products is characterized by similar small mass and diversity in the used materials. The carbon footprint is an environmental indicator, which is used to measure the total sets of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the atmosphere caused by a product throughout its entire lifecycle. The complexity of carbon footprint calculation methodology is caused by multistage production process. The probability of emission greenhouse gases exists at each of these stages. Moreover, a large variety of footwear materials – both synthetic and natural, give the possibility of the emission of a lot of waste, sewage and gases, which can be dangerous to the environment. The diversity of materials could be the source of problems with the description of their origins, which make carbon footprint calculations difficult, especially in cases of complex supply chains. In this paper, with use of life cycle assessment, the carbon footprint was calculated for 4 children’s footwear types (one with an open upper and three with full uppers). The life cycles of the product were divided into 8 stages: raw materials extraction (stage 1), production of input materials (stage 2), footwear components manufacture (stage 3), footwear manufacture (stage 4), primary packaging manufacture (stage 5), footwear distribution to customers (stage 6), use phase (stage 7) and product’s end of life (stage 8). On these grounds, it was possible to point out the life cycle stages, where the optimization activities can be implemented in order to reduce greenhouse gases emissions. The obtained results showed that the most intensive corrective actions should be focused on the following stages: 3 (the higher emissivity), 4 and 8.
In this study we investigate why bequests are left using a life course approach. Planned post mortem wealth transfers to children are linked with inter vivos transfers and inheritances left by the parents of the plan-makers. Individual decisions concerning wealth accumulation and bequeathing can be understood better if adjacent generations are taken into account. Moreover, particular events from an individual life history (widowhood, divorce, disease, and others) affect bequest decisions. A life course perspective proved fruitful in better understanding bequest behavior.
The occurence of the crustacean Branchinecta gaini was observed in the fresh-water ponds on King George Island. Morphological structure of the following developmental stages was described: nauplius, metanauplius, adult males, adult females, and gravid females with egg-sacs filled with eggs. The active phase of the life cycle of this species lasts 6 months (November-May). During that time one generation of Branchinecta develops. The reproductive season lasts from January until the freezing of the ponds.
This paper investigates the life cycle profiles of income and consumption and relative income mobility in Poland – a transition economy facing rapid structural economic and social changes. According to my results, and in line with the empirical evidence for advanced economies, the age-profiles of average income and consumption in Poland exhibit a hump. The inequality of income over the life cycle is found to flatten relatively quickly in Poland, which contrasts with the approximately linear shape observed in the US. When individual income process is fitted to match the Polish inequality profile, it exhibits less persistence than in the US. Past earnings turn out to affect current income more strongly for the group of more educated individuals. Moreover, and in contrast to the permanent income hypothesis as well as findings for other economies, no evidence of an increase in consumption inequality for households older than 30 years is found. Finally, the obtained estimates of relative income mobility in Poland are higher than those for developed countries.
The development of a novel design for the toothed segment of drive transmission in longwall shearer is expected to significantly reduce
the cost of individual components of the feed system and the related work of repair and renovations, increasing at the same time the safety
of mine repair teams.
The conducted experimental and numerical analysis of the state of stress and strain in the innovative design of the toothed segment has
enabled estimating the maximum effort of the developed structure. Based on the results of fundamental mechanical studies of the cast
L20HGSNM steel and fatigue tests combined with the numerical stress/strain analysis, the fatigue life curve was plotted for the examined
casting of the rack.
This paper focuses on the analysis of selected risks as part of investments in the power
engineering at the initial (tender) stage of the life cycle in the context of the method of
project management by the Contractor. The study was carried out on the basis of an
analysis of over 500 tenders in the power engineering, from the last 5 years, taking into
account future forecast data. The analysis carried out in this article was aimed at achieving
specific and unique goals and results aimed at creating a useful product, which is the
Contractor’s offer in the power engineering, taking into account the most significant risks.
The result of this article is to support the project team in implementing risk management
in the project at the tender stage. For this purpose, the risks with their basic parameters
were defined, which allowed for the development of a risk matrix taking into account the
data obtained in the tender procedures of leading electric power distributors. Based on
the proposed risk quantification criteria, a list of remedial actions was prepared for all risk
types listed in this article. In addition, the aspects of possible elimination/reduction of the
impact of the most significant risks that occur at the analyzed stage of the investment life
cycle were developed.
The transition to circular economy requires diversifying material sources, improving secondary raw materials management, including recycling, and finally finding sustainable alternative materials. Both recycled and bio-based plastics are often regarded as promising
alternatives to conventional fossil-based plastics. Their broad application instead of fossilbased plastics is, however, frequently the subject of criticism because of offering limited
environmental benefits. The study presents a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of
fossil-based polyethylene terephthalate (PET) versus its recycled and bio-based counterparts. The system boundary covers the plastics manufacturing and end-of-life plastic management stages (cradle-to-cradle/grave variant). Based on the data and assumptions set
out in the research, recycled PET (rPET) demonstrates the best environmental profile out
of the evaluated plastics in all impact categories. The study contributes to circular economy in plastics by providing transparent and consistent knowledge on their environmental
portfolio.
In this study, the environmental impacts of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW) treatment and its conversion in anaerobic digestion to glycerol tertiary butyl ether (GTBE) were assessed. The production process is a part of the innovative project of a municipal waste treatment plant. The BioRen project is funded by the EU’s research and innovation program H2020. A consortium has been set up to implement the project and to undertake specific activities to achieve the expected results. The project develops the production of GTBE which is a promising fuel additive for both diesel and gasoline. It improves engine performance and reduces harmful exhaust emissions. At the same time, the project focuses on using non-recyclable residual organic waste to produce this ether additive.
The aim of this paper is the evaluation through Life Cycle Assessment of the environmental impact GTBE production in comparison with a production of other fuels. To quantify the environmental impacts of GTBE production, the ILCD 2011 Midpoint+ v.1.10 method was considered. The study models the production of GTBE, including the sorting and separation of municipal solid waste (MSW), pre-treatment of organic content, anaerobic fermentation, distillation, catalytic dehydration of isobutanol to isobutene, etherification of GTBE with isobutene and hydrothermal carbonization (HTC).
The results indicate that unit processes: sorting and hydrothermal carbonization mostly affect the environment. Moreover, GTBE production resulted in higher environmental impact than the production of conventional fuels.
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