Uncontrolled open dumping and burning of municipal solid waste (MSW) has resulted in soil, water, and air pollution in many urban cities in India. Landfills are the most common cost-effective solution for MSW management in many developing countries like India. However, the identification of suitable landfill sites always remains a challenging task as it involves the selection of several environmental criteria set by the local authorities. The objective of this study is to identify the most potential landfill sites proposed by the Government in Bengaluru Metropolitan Region, Karnataka state, India using Geographic Information System enabled Analytical Hierarchy Process based multi-criteria evaluation technique. Several criteria and constraints as recommended by the local authorities along with the proximity to the solid waste processing plants are used to identify the potential landfill sites in the study region. The study identified three highly suitable sites (Neraluru, Gudhatti, Madivala) for landfills which are not only environmentally sustainable but also economically attractive as they are closer to the solid waste processing plants minimizing the transportation cost involved in the disposal of solid waste from the source to the final disposal sites in the study region.

Due to the waste crisis in Lebanon and its impact on the social, environmental, and economic sectors, many municipalities like Zahle District and its Unions of Municipalities planned to apply the circular economy to tackle the mismanagement of solid waste. Theoretically, many studies have been conducted at Zahle landfill to integrate was-to-energy technologies and get benefit of the gas generated by anaerobic digestion of biodegradable waste such as food. However, several basic variables related to anaerobic digestion AD had not been taken into consideration such as variation in the organic composition, waste generation related to the population, and power generation efficiency. Therefore, based on the plans set by Law 80 on Integrated Solid Waste Management ISWM to achieve 35% recycling rates 2025-2035, and Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) with conditional target 30% of recycling by 2030, the aim of this thesis is to estimate the biomethane production and power generation achieved at different rates of food waste digestion between 2025 and 2035, to achieve 30 and 35% recycling of FW beside the composting.Thus, scenario A where 10 to 20% of FW is digested, by increasing 1% every year from 2025 t0 2035, and 15% for composting as constant, results show a biomethane yield of 604000 to 1725000m3 annually, with a power generation 2400 to 6800 MWh/years for 2025 and 2035 respectively by usage of 1MW CHP 41.25% electrical efficiency. The achievement of scenario A requires 5 to 9 150m3digesters.Scenario B where digestion rates are 25% by 2025 and 35% by 2035 requires 10 to 19 150m3digesters, where biomethane and power production have ranges of 1466500 to 3019000 m3 annually, and 5800 to 11900MWh/year, respectively.

Sweden’s municipalities are leading the green energy transition, in this study, a techno-economic evaluation was done for a number of carbon neutral scenarios for Växjö municipality’s future energy system, situated within Sweden’s projected energy demand development in 2030 and 2050. The municipality’s partially decentralized energy system relies heavily on interconnected electricity supply from the national grid, and fuels imports from other parts of Sweden. It was a matter of question: in which ways will future demand changes induce supply changes, and whether a future carbon neutral energy system will be less costly in a sustained-electricity supply condition? To answer this, a balanced energy reference system for the municipality was created from an actual energy balance, using an hour-by-hour dynamic energy analysis tool EnergyPlan. Afterward, a future energy demand projection for Växjö was stemmed from the Swedish Energy Agency (SEA) sustainable future scenarios for Sweden, based on an average inhabitant energy demand. Modelling results for Växjö carbon neutral scenarios showed that Växjö energy system will be sufficient to supply future heat demand but not electricity demand, nor transport and industrial fuels. While in the short-term being carbon neutral is more economically attainable without changes in electricity supply technologies, a projected electricity price and consumption increase, change the outcomes for a carbon neutral scenario based on Intermittent Renewable Energy (IRE) to be less costly in the long term.

In line with the Swedish target of carbon neutrality by 2045, the municipality of Växjö in Kronoberg County has set its own target to be carbon neutral in 2030. Currently, the Municipality's partially decentralized energy system relies heavily on interconnected electricity supply from the national grid, and fuels imports from other parts of Sweden. Under this circumstance, several concerns arise, including: in which ways future demand changes induce supply changes, and whether a future carbon-neutral energy system will be less costly in a sustained-electricity supply condition. In this study, techno-economic evaluations are conducted for different carbon-neutral scenarios for Växjö’s future energy system in 2030 and 2050, using an hour-by-hour dynamic energy simulation tool of EnergyPLAN. Projections for the future energy demands for Växjö were developed and modeled, based on the development strategies and on the national sustainable future scenarios in Sweden. Results for the Växjö’s carbon-neutral scenarios showed that the current energy system is sufficient to satisfy future heat demand. However, fulfilling demands of electricity for all sectors and fuels for transport and industry is a challenge. In the short term and at increased energy demand and price, being carbon neutral is technically viable without major changes in energy supply technologies. However, in the long term, investment for intermittent renewable energy resources, together with carbon capture and storage is considered to be viable financially. Therefore, planning for a carbon-neutral Växjö based on local investments showed to be a feasible strategy.

As a result of the significant increase in population, urbanization, the lack of societal awareness, and the lack of sustainable strategies and appropriate policies for solid waste management, the problem of solid waste management has become a significant threat to the environment and living organisms in developing countries. The situation is not in the best condition in the Zahle district in Lebanon, as the lack of funding and expertise, the absence of legal systems and the Syrian refugee crisis are the most prominent obstacles faced by the municipalities of Zahle district for the optimal management of municipal solid waste (MSW). In the Zahle district, most MSW is disposed of in landfills. This approach includes several drawbacks, such as occupying large areas and becoming an environmental threat. In this paper, a review was conducted of the most common technologies for recovering energy from MSW. Based on that, anaerobic digestion (AD) technology as a potentially effective option for converting waste into energy was selected for adoption in the Zahle district. However, the main objective of this analysis was the site suitability analysis by implementing the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) in a Geographic Information System (GIS) model to assess the land suitability for the AD plant. AHP was used to estimate the weights and thus determine their relative importance in the site selection of the AD plant. ArcGIS software was used to analyze the site suitability of an AD plant in this research. The map of the potential locations of the AD plant was divided into five classes: Highly suitable, most suitable, suitable, moderately suitable, and low suitable. The results indicated that the highly suitable class with an area of 1867.5 hectares contained three zones suitable for building an AD plant, according to its proximity to the current sites of sanitary landfills. Accordingly, Zone 3 with 66.79 ha was identified as the most suitable site for establishing an AD plant. The research can help decision-makers in the Ministry of Environment and the Zahle municipalities choose the appropriate technology for energy recovery from waste and select a suitable site for that plant.

The aim of this work was to investigate the melting characteristics and morphology of filter ash and bottom ash with and without 7% of peat addition to the fuel of the circulating fluidized bed boiler. The samples were characterized by simultaneous thermal analysis (STA) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The STA results indicate that the filter ash melts at 1140^oC with 10 wt% of the mass loss and Bottom ash partially melts at 1170^oC with below 2 wt% of the mass loss. The low melting point of the filter ash is due to the high concentration of the alkali metals in the filter ash. Similar trends were observed in the case of fly ash and bottom ash with peat admixture to the fuel. Furthermore the elementary analysis via scanning electron microscopy, coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis showed that 7% of peat addition to the fuel does not significantly effect on the ash composition.

Hagelrums Gård/Biogas is a farm that produces biomethane for transportation from anaerobic digestion. For the anaerobic digestion manure is mainly used in their facility with two digesters.

This report investigates if installation of a heat pump that takes heat from the digestate would be economically and beneficial for heating of the first digester. The comparison will be done against the facility’s current chip boiler.

The current facility’s operation and three different scenarios with a heat pump with COP 4 and continuous flow of digestate is presented in the result section. In the results section is also comparisons of how an installation of the proposed heat pump would affect the operation of the facility.

The conclusion of the project is that a heat pump is not economical or suitable for the current facility. The extra costs and operation of the facility that is not optimal for a heat pump is the reasoning of the conclusion.

Naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM), which is present in the oil and gas industry, can pose a risk to the workers engaged in the activities in this field. Nevertheless, to our knowledge, there is no study on NORM presence and NORM measurement in liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel systems and installations. Therefore, the question on whether NORM, particularly radon and radon progeny, can pose a risk to the health of employees, is still open. This study provides the initial base for further investigation and real NORM measurement. In this study, all stages of radon and radon decay products movement and deposition starting from natural gas production till the final destination are analyzed and reviewed. Several techniques for NORM detection and measurement are proposed. In the case if radon levels exceed the reference level, several actions towards radon reduction are proposed.

The urge for more sustainable living motivated the Stockholm Tiny House Expo. The project aims to build a floating, sustainable, man-made island for living and working outside of Stockholm. This paper proposes a waste management method with possible energy recovery for the island. It introduces a comprehensive system that integrates decentralized wastewater treatment with energy generation through anaerobic treatment. A by-product of the wastewater treatment process, the sludge, is combined with food waste to generate energy through biogas. The island’s organic waste (wastewater and food waste) is thereby managed sustainably. The results of this report require further research. The energy supply from the biogas reactor was calculated to be 52.19 MWh. The wastewater treatment process was designed with an objective of 90% reduction of BOD5, to comply with the Swedish regulations for wastewater discharge to natural bodies of water, including the ocean. The system's total volume proposed is 11.25 m3, which is the sum of the volumes of all the reactors, or tanks, needed to complete the treatment. 

Advances in technology continuously reshape habits, behaviours and interactions at individual, organisational and societal levels. Information and Communication technology (ICT) is pervasive, and is the bearer of crucial information, analysis and responses to the recipient. It assists in processes such as understanding phenomena and taking appropriate action. It also provides communication means, platforms and tools to interact with one another.

In the United Kingdom’s (UK) Energy industry, smart meters are currently being deployed by energy suppliers to their customers. These are presented as a revolutionary device that supports a more efficient energy use at home and/or in the workplace, and helps customers save on their energy bill and reduce carbon footprint.

Using interpretivist phenomenological Human-centred qualitative research, The thesis work explores the impact of using smart meter devices, as perceived by UK customers, in helping to monitor, use and manage energy consumption at home. Also, the study looks into alternative technology and customers’ expectations in the context of energy efficiency. And finally, the principles of a design is presented to respond to customers demands and desires. Passive participant observation, Future workshop and inspiration cards session are the methods and techniques applied in this research to collect  data.

The findings constitute good grounds for individual consumers to be aware of the opportunities made available by alternative technology. At organisational level it is a basis for energy suppliers to change their behaviour towards a changing demand and adapt by switching their core business to supplying Information and analysis as well as energy efficiency management solutions. At societal level government bodies and regulating agencies can tackle sustainability and green energy issues by controlling the profit driven character of privatised energy companies and responding to real market demand as perceived by consumers.

Emerging technologies present opportunities that have the capabilities of breaking the status quo of energy supply industry in the UK as well as the rest of world.

The value of this research is to show customers’ perceived reality and expectations, as well as opportunities to change the way energy is supplied and consumed.

Globalt utgör byggnader för mer än 40% av världens energianvändning. I EU är 35% av byggnaderna mer än 50 år gamla samtidigt som 75% av dem är energiineffektiva. Byggnader från bland annat det svenska miljonprogrammet, den tid då en miljon bostäder byggdes mellan åren 1965 och 1974 i Sverige, är i behov av att rustas upp och energieffektiviseras för att de inte ska nå slutet av sin tekniska livslängd. I detta projekt jämförs tre energisystem på tre olika fastigheter i södra Sverige. Ett FX-system med fjärrvärmecentral i Lund, en spillvattenanläggning i Växjö och ett äldreboende i Ronneby med solhybrider och borrhål. 

Jämförelsen görs bland annat genom en ekonomisk analys med LCC, återbetalningstid och investeringens minskning av primärenergianvändning. Genom en energiteknisk analys har jämförelser fastställts gällande energiförbrukning, potentiell energi att ta vara på ur frånluft och spillvatten samt förändringen av fastigheternas energideklarationer före och efter installation utifrån BBR29 i Boverkets Gripen tillsammans med en certifierad oberoende energiexpert. Jämförelsen har även lyft för- och nackdelar med de olika systemen. FX-systemet med fjärrvärmecentral medför risk för kallras och att obehandlad luft tas in i fastigheten, däremot är installationen enkel om lämplig i fastigheter med frånluftskanaler. Spillvattenanläggningen är beteende beroende och begränsas av en lägsta returtemperatur men möjliggör energiåtervinning ur spillvatten samt att solhybrider med borrhål begränsas av tillgången på användbar mark för installation men producerar både värme och el. 

Resultatet av den ekonomiska analysen blev att återbetalningstiden, utan hänsyn till kalkylränta, var kortast för solhybridanläggningen med borrhål som var omkring 9 år medan spillvattenanläggningen hade längst återbetalningstid på 95 år. FX-systemet med fjärrvärmecentral hade en återbetalningstid på 22 år medan endast FX-systemet hade 11 år. 

Utifrån den energitekniska analysen minskade solhybridanläggningen med borrhål primärenergitalet från energideklarationen mest med 61 kWh/Atemp, år motsvarande 33,7%, medan FX-systemet med fjärrvärmecentral minskade med 24 kWh/Atemp, år motsvarande 21,0%. För spillvattenanläggningen minskade primärenergitalet minst av de tre anläggningarna med 6 kWh/Atemp, år motsvarande 7,8%. Solhybridanläggningen med borrhål hade det högsta årliga anläggnings COP på 5,3 medan FX-systemet med fjärrvärmecentralen hade 3,9. Lägst årligt anläggnings COP hade spillvattenanläggningen med 3,8. Energin, för de standardiserade frånlufts- och spillvattenflödena, var att frånluften innehöll 2,4 gånger mer energi att ta vara på än spillvattnet. Spillvattnet hade 26,4 kWh/Atemp, år medan frånluften hade 64,4 kWh/Atemp. 

En av slutsatserna med projektet var att spillvattenåtervinningen inte lämpar sig som första renoveringsåtgärd utan mer som effektivisering av redan energieffektiva byggnader som behöver reducera energianvändningen ytterligare. Installation av solhybrider med borrhål var lönsammast, men begränsas av markyta för borrhålen. FX-systemet lämpar sig för fastigheter med befintligt frånluftssystem.

In this study, we analysed the cost-optimum level of building fabric elements renovation in a multi-story residential building. We calculated final energy use for space heating of the building considering a wide range of energy efficiency measures, for exterior walls, basement walls, attic floor and windows. Different extra insulation thicknesses for considered opaque elements and different U-values for new windows were used as energy efficiency measures. We calculated difference between the marginal saving of energy cost for space heating and the investment cost of implemented energy efficiency measures, in order to find the cost-optimum measure for each element. The implications of building lifespans, annual energy price increase and discount rate on the optimum measure were also analysed. The results of the analysis indicate that the contribution of energy efficiency measures to the final energy use reduces, significantly, by increasing the thickness of extra insulation and by reducing the U-value of new windows. We considered three scenarios of business as usual (BAU), intermediate and sustainability, considering different discount rates and energy price increase. The results of this analysis suggest that the sustainability scenario may offer, approximately, 100% increase in the optimum thickness of extra insulation compare to BAU scenario. However, the implication of different lifespans of 40, 50 or 60 years, on the optimum measure appears to be either negligible or very small, depending on the chosen scenario. We also calculated the corresponding U-value of the optimum measures in order to compare them with the current Swedish building code requirements and passive house criteria. The results indicate that all optimum measures meet the Swedish building code. None of the optimum measures, however, meet the passive house criteria in BAU scenario. This study suggests that the employed method of building renovation cost-optimum analyses can be also applied on new building construction to find the cost-optimum design from energy conservation point of view.

A large potential for energy savings can be found in building envelopes of the existing Swedish dwelling stock. This study analyzes the final energy savings and cost implications of energy efficiency measures for an existing multi-apartment building in Sweden. Energy efficiency improvements consisting of high-performance windows as well as doors, and additional insulation to attic floor and exterior walls were modelled to the building’s thermal envelope. Dynamic energy balance simulations were performed to determine the final energy savings of the improvements. The cost-effectiveness of the improvements were then analyzed considering the net present value of the energy cost savings and the investment costs of the improvement measures. The results showed that additional insulation to the attic floor is the only cost-effective measure for the building under the existing operating conditions. The other improvement measures give high final energy savings but are not cost effective due to their high investment costs.

A considerable share of the existing buildings in Europe has low energy performance and are expected to last at least for the next 50 years. The operation of these buildings causes high atmospheric greenhouse gases emissions, besides low thermal comfort for occupants. In Sweden, most of the existing buildings are residential, consisting of multi- and single-family houses. Large final energy savings can be achieved by integrating energy efficient measures (EEMs) to the thermal envelopes of these buildings. However, it is often a challenge to achieve a considerable energy savings and realize cost effectiveness simultaneously. This study investigates the effect of carbon taxes implementation on the cost effectiveness of EEMs applied to an existing multi-apartment building in southern Sweden. It explores the implications of different additional insulation thicknesses for exterior walls and roof, and high-performance windows and doors, for the final energy use and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of the building. The final energy savings of the EEMs are estimated through dynamic energy balance simulations and the CO2 emissions are calculated considering the full energy chains. The cost effectiveness of the EEMs are analyzed with and without carbon abatement costs considering the investment costs and associated net present value of costs savings of the EEMs. The results show that replacing the existing windows give the highest final energy savings, reducing the building’s space heating demand by 23 %. The cost optimal analysis without carbon abatement costs shows that all the analyzed thicknesses of roof insulation and high-performance windows are cost effective. Considering the carbon abatement costs altered the cost effectiveness of the EEMs, with exterior walls as well as ground floor insulations and door replacement becoming cost effective for certain thicknesses and U-values, respectively.

Den här rapporten kartlägger den energimängd i form av spillvärme som tillförs fjärrvärmenäten i Kronobergs län samt undersöker spillvärmepotentialen från företag i Kronobergs län. Resultat för nuvarande tillförsel av spillvärme till fjärrvärmenäten i Kronobergs län summerades till 4–5 GWh per år. För enkätundersökningen kontaktades 124 företag och av dessa uppgav 55 att det förekom spillvärme i processen. Det finns enligt enkätundersökningen sju företag inom Kronobergs län vars spillvärme håller en temperatur över 80 °C och som ej nyttjas för fjärrvärmeproduktion i dagsläget. Därmed bör den vara tillräckligt hög för att kunna levereras till framledningen i fjärrvärmenätet. Endast nio företag kunde svara på hur mycket spillvärme som uppkom från verksamheten, denna summerades till ca 25 GWh/år, dock angav samtliga dessa att den i varierande grad att nyttjades internt och temperaturen på spillvärmen var i åtta fall i intervallet 25–60 °C. För att avgöra om det är möjligt att utöka tillförseln av spillvärme till fjärrvärmenäten i Kronobergs län så måste dock förutsättningarna utredas mer utförligt hos respektive företag där potential finnes.

It is not easy to replace fossil-based fuels in the transport sector, however, an appealing solution is to use biomass and waste for the production of renewable alternatives. Thermochemical conversion of biomass for production of synthetic transport fuels by the use of gasification is a promising way to meet these goals.

One of the key challenges in using gasification systems with biomass and waste as feedstock is the upgrading of the raw gas produced in the gasifier. These materials replacing oil and coal contain large amounts of demanding impurities, such as alkali, inorganic compounds, sulphur and chlorine compounds. Therefore, as for all multi-step processes, the heat management and hence the total efficiency depend on the different clean-up units. Unfortunately, the available conventional gas filtering units for removing particulates and impurities, and also subsequent catalytic conversion steps have lower optimum working temperatures than the operating temperature in the gasification units.

This report focuses on on-going research and development to find new technology solutions and on the key critical technology challenges concerning the purification and upgrading of the raw gas to synthesis gas and the subsequent different fuel synthesis processes, such as hot gas filtration, clever heating solutions and a higher degree of process integration as well as catalysts more resistant towards deactivation. This means that the temperature should be as high as possible for any particular upgrading unit in the refining system. Nevertheless, the temperature and pressure of the cleaned synthesis gas must meet the requirements of the downstream application, i.e. Fischer-Tropsch diesel or methanol.

Before using the gas produced in the gasifier a number of impurities needs to be removed. These include particles, tars, sulphur and ammonia. Particles are formed in gasification, irrespective of the type of gasifier design used. A first, coarse separation is performed in one or several cyclone filters at high temperature. Thereafter bag-house filters (e.g. ceramic or textile) maybe used to separate the finer particles. A problem is, however, tar condensation in the filters and there is much work performed on trying to achieve filtration at as high a temperature as possible.

The far most stressed technical barriers regarding cleaning of the gases are tars. To remove the tar from the product gas there is a number of alternatives, but most important is that the gasifier is operated at optimal conditions for minimising initial tar formation. In fluid bed and entrained flow gasification a first step may be catalytic tar cracking after particle removal. In fluid bed gasification a catalyst, active in tar cracking, may be added to the fluidising bed to further remove any tar formed in the bed. In this kind of tar removal, natural minerals such as dolomite and olivine, are normally used, or catalysts normally used in hydrocarbon reforming or cracking. The tar can be reformed to CO and hydrogen by thermal reforming as well, when the temperature is increased to 1300ºC and the tar decomposes. Another method for removing tar from the gas is to scrub it by using hot oil (200-300ºC). The tar dissolves in the hot oil, which can be partly regenerated and the remaining tar-containing part is either burned or sent back to the gasifier for regasification.

Other important aspects are that the sulphur content of the gas depends on the type of biomass used, the gasification agent used etc., but a level at or above 100 ppm is not unusual. Sulphur levels this high are not acceptable if there are catalytic processes down-stream, or if the emissions of e.g. SO₂ are to be kept down. The sulphur may be separated by adsorbing it in ZnO, an irreversible process, or a commercially available reversible adsorbent can be used. There is also the possibility of scrubbing the gas with an amine solution. If a reversible alternative is chosen, elementary sulphur may be produced using the Claus process.

Furthermore, the levels of ammonia formed in gasification (3,000 ppm is not uncommon) are normally not considered a problem. When combusting the gas, nitrogen or in the worst case NO_x (so-called fuel NO_x) is formed; there are, however, indications that there could be problems. Especially when the gasification is followed by down-stream catalytic processes, steam reforming in particular, where the catalyst might suffer from deactivation by long-term exposure to ammonia.

The composition of the product gas depends very much on the gasification technology, the gasifying agent and the biomass feedstock. Of particular significance is the choice of gasifying agent, i.e. air, oxygen, water, since it has a huge impact on the composition and quality of the gas, The gasifying agent also affects the choice of cleaning and upgrading processes to syngas and its suitability for different end-use applications as fuels or green chemicals.

The ideal upgraded syngas consists of H₂ and CO at a correct ratio with very low water and CO₂ content allowed. This means that the tars, particulates, alkali salts and inorganic compounds mentioned earlier have to be removed for most of the applications. By using oxygen as the gasifying agent, instead of air, the content of nitrogen may be minimised without expensive nitrogen separation.

In summary, there are a number of uses with respect to produced synthesis gas. The major applications will be discussed, starting with the production of hydrogen and then followed by the synthesis of synthetic natural gas, methanol, dimethyl ether, Fischer-Tropsch diesel and higher alcohol synthesis, and describing alternatives combining these methods. The SNG and methanol synthesis are equilibrium constrained, while the synthesis of DME (one-step route), FT diesel and alcohols are not. All of the reactions are exothermal (with the exception of steam reforming of methane and tars) and therefore handling the temperature increase in the reactors is essential. In addition, the synthesis of methanol has to be performed at high pressure (50-100 bar) to be industrially viable.

There will be a compromise between the capital cost of the whole cleaning unit and the system efficiency, since solid waste, e.g. ash, sorbents, bed material and waste water all involve handling costs. Consequently, installing very effective catalysts, results in unnecessary costs because of expensive gas cleaning; however the synthesis units further down-stream, especially for Fischer-Tropsch diesel, and DME/methanol will profit from an effective gas cleaning which extends the catalysts life-time. The catalyst materials in the upgrading processes essentially need to be more stable and resistant to different kinds of deactivation.

Finally, process intensification is an important development throughout chemical industries, which includes simultaneous integration of both synthesis steps and separation, other examples are advanced heat exchangers with heat integration in order to increase the heat transfer rates. Another example is to combine exothermic and endothermic reactions to support reforming reactions by using the intrinsic energy content. For cost-effective solutions and efficient application, new solutions for cleaning and up-grading of the gases are necessary.

A commercial vanadia, tungsta on titania SCRcatalyst was poisoned in a side stream in a waste incinerationplant. The effect of especially alkali metal poisoning was observed resulting in a decreased activity at long times of exposure. The deactivation after 2311 h was 36% whilet he decrease in surface area was only 7.6%. Thus the major cause for deactivation was a chemical blocking of acidic sites by alkali metals. The activation–deactivation model showed excellent agreement with experimental data. The model suggests that the original adsorption sites, from the preparation of the catalyst, are rapidly deactivated but are replaced by a new population of adsorption sites due to activation of the catalyst surface by sulphur compounds (SO₂, SO₃) in the flue gas.

In this paper, we identify the socio-economic attributes and attitudes that have influencedhouse owners in renovating their homes in the past. Our study is based on responses to an onlinequestionnaire survey of 971 house owners living in Kronoberg County in Sweden. Results showedthat the interest and willingness of the house owners to perform a renovation varied dependingon their demographic background and the age of the house. The latter positively affected pastrenovations, only when combined with the residence time. Furthermore, the age of house ownersstrongly and positively affected the probability of performing aesthetic type of renovations, becauseof a long time of residence in the house. Younger, town living, and highly educated house ownersseem to be more concerned regarding saving energy, which motivated them to perform physicalrenovations on their house. Our results also suggest that income, level of education, and place ofresidence have an effect on renovation decisions only through their effect on the energy concern ofhouse owners, and a varied effect on renovation decisions, when combined with the time of residencein the house.

The performance of a full-scale ESP was studied at the Vattenfall AB oxyfuel pilot plant in SchwarzePumpe. The lignite-fired boiler has a 30 MWth top-mounted pulverized coal burner and was operated under conventional air combustion as well as oxyfuel combustion. The ESP was operated with varying numbers of fields in service and at different current/voltage settings. Particle number size distributionsdownstream the ESP were established on-line in the size range 0.015-10 μm, using an electrical mobility spectrometer and an aerodynamic particle sizer. The particle size distribution at oxyfuel operation was qualitatively very similar to the results obtained for air-firing. Gravimetric measurementsof total fly ash concentration showed outlet emissions below 5 mg/Nm3 when the ESP was operatedwith two fields in service at oxyfuel conditions.

A mechanistic understanding of potassium release is essential to mitigate the potassium-induced ash problems during biomass combustion. This work studies the effects of operational condition on the potassium release and transition during the combustion of wheat straw, and elucidate the release potential of potassium associated with the structural change of biomass particles. The combustion tests were carried out in a laboratory-scale reactor, working in a wide range of temperatures and heating rates. It was found that the combustion of biomass sample at a temperature up to 1000 °C results in a release of over 60% of its initial potassium content. Raising the heating rate from 8 °C/min to 25 °C/min could lead to an additional release of up to 20% of the initial amount of potassium. A three-stage potassium release mechanism has been concluded from this work: the initial-step release stage (below 400 °C), the holding stage (400–700 °C) and the second-step release stage (above 700 °C). Comprehensive morphology analysis with elemental (i.e. K, S, O, Si) distribution was carried out; the results further confirmed that potassium is likely to exist inside the stem-like tunnel of biomass particles, mainly in forms of inorganic salts. During the heating-up process, the breakdown and collapse of biomass particle structure could expose the internally located potassium and thus accelerate the release of potassium and the transform of its existing forms. Lastly, a detailed temperature-dependent release mechanism of potassium was proposed, which could be used as the guidance to mitigate the release of detrimental potassium compounds by optimising the combustion process.

The pros and cons of replacing traditional materials with polymeric materials in solar thermosiphon systems were analysed by adopting a total cost accounting approach.

In terms of climatic and environmental performance, polymeric materials reveal better key figures than traditional ones like metals. In terms of present value total cost of energy, taking into account functional capability, end user investment cost, O&M cost, reliability and climatic cost, the results suggest that this may also be true when comparing a polymeric based thermosiphon system with a high efficient thermosiphon system of conventional materials for DHW production in the southern Europe regions. When present values for total energy cost are assessed for the total DHW systems including both the solar heating system and the auxiliary electric heating system, the difference in energy cost between the polymeric and the traditional systems is markedly reduced.

The main reason for the difference in results can be related to the difference in thermal performance between the two systems. It can be concluded that the choice of auxiliary heating source is of utmost importance for the economical competiveness of systems and that electric heating may not be the best choice.

To achieve greater economic stability, CHP plant operators such as VEAB from Växjö are motivated to search for a new business model that are compatible with their existing facilities while also contribute to increasing the overall revenue of the company. These processes include hydrogen production and biochemical products such as biopolymer and biofuels. However, these processes also produce a substantial amount of heat that needs to be taken care of. Alternatively, the extra heat storage capacity could allow the plant to be more selective of when to produce those heat to maximize profit. Therefore, it is important to investigate different approaches to achieve that, both traditional approach (e,g, convective cooling) and alternative approaches (different large scale underground heat storages). Lake source cooling is also investigated to determine whether it can replace convective cooling as a method of cooling off waste heat from the plant. The technical analysis showed that the alternative approach is certainly promising albeit with more land use (BTES requiring 36 000 m² against 750 m² of convectional cooling system) with some limitations that must be addressed when deciding the appropriate approach. In addition, it is found that by increasing the scale of the BTES system, the amount of heat loss per heat capacity reduces while increasing the borehole depth decreases the overall heat loss of the system. The economic analysis showed that when used solely to deal with the waste heat, the alternative approach is costs magnitude more than convective cooling, the alternative costing almost 6 times more than the convective cooling. There are certainly opportunities in the future that can make the BTES system to be a much more feasible choice if additional utilization of the BTES system could be found or potential demand may make the BTES system a more attractive choice to deal with the excess heat that comes with expanding the business of a CHP plant operator.

In the production of glass, the addition of more cullet to the batch of glass and the reduction of the thickness of glass are means to reduce energy consumption and raw material usage. This contributes towards improved energy efficiency targets of the European Union. This thesis investigated the energy consumed for the process of strengthening thinner glass as well the environmental implications of thinner and stronger compared to conventional glass across the life cycle of glass. The life cycle phases also included a recycling phase where 70% of the used glass was recycled with the remaining 30% being landfilled. The functional unit selected for this study was 1m2 of SLS glass, 4mm thick, with an average light transmittance of 91%. This corresponds to 10kg of clear float glass as per general rule. The findings of this thesis showed that one of the major contributing factors to high energy consumption in the melting phase of SLS glass is low efficiency of the furnace; this led to significant energy losses in the production of SLS glass. Recycling of flat glass, at a 70% rate, led to a 12% reduction in total global warming potential, a 10% reduction in the Acidification Potential, a 13% reduction in the Eutrophication Potential in marine environs, and a 7% reduction in the Eutrophication Potential in terrestrial habitats. The chemical and thermal strengthening process consumed 2.24 and 2.37 kWh/m2 respectively. The consequential impact of this is dependent on the source of the electricity for the strengthening processes. It was concluded that the energy used for the strengthening of the thinner glass is considerably less than the energy used in the production of a conventional glass that satisfies the same strength parameters.

The project aims to develop a DUT (University Diploma of Technology) type training in Renewable Energies engineering and to support the emergence of technology parks specializing in Renewable Energies. The objective is to develop skills allowing to acquire basic knowledge on the production of electricity from renewable energies (wind, solar, photovoltaic, etc.). The project intends to launch a training program such as the DUT (University Diploma of Technology) in Renewable Energy Engineering and to support the appearance of engineers specializing in Renewable Energy. Para ello claims to desarrollar competences that allow to acquire basic knowledge sober the production of electrical energy from renewable energies (electrical, solar, photovoltaic, etc.)

The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is an important information tool to improve the energy performance (EP) of buildings. However, establishing the EP of building is tedious, time-consuming, and numerous input parameters are required in its estimation. However, the usefulness of EPC for the implementation of customized solutions by the supply-side actors require that EPCs are available for all buildings, easily accessible, credible, and recent. However, this is not the case at present. This could be addressed by employing remote sensing dataset along with GIS based spatial analysis techniques. In the present study, the spatial regression analysis technique is implemented in identifying the spatial relation between the input variables and the EP of selected 4541 buildings within Växjö municipality, Sweden.

The input variables used in the study include the land surface temperature (LST) maps of summer and spring of 2020 derived through the thermal band of Landsat 8 satellite data, built-up and openland neighbourhood maps prepared from the land use/land cover map 2020 of the study region. Building topology including year of construction, type, category, and complexity of buildings are also used to identify the relation between the input variables and the EP of those selected buildings. Results of spatial regression analysis reveal a significant positive relation between the LST and EP of buildings (regression co-efficient are 0.86 and 0.95 in spring and summer respectively).

The stronger correlation in summer could be because of the availability of higher intensity of solar radiation which gets absorbed by the built-up regions. Results suggest that the LST maps derived from satellite imageries could provide information on the EP of buildings. This could be beneficial to local decision makers and policy regulators in identifying the buildings with lower EP with better accuracy with less dependence on EPC data which are sometimes not available or not updated. The results could also be beneficial to investment bankers, real estate companies during the purchase and sale of a building. Policy makers and renovation companies could get benefited with the results in preliminary identification of the potential hotspots for district energy renovation where the EP of buildings is poorer. This could help achieve the goal of sustainable urban planning targeting energy reduction, climate adaptation, through implementation of effective energy management strategies in the building sector.

The municipal solid waste (MSW) remains a great challenge in most cities of developing countries, as the majority of the generated waste is either not collected or is dumped in open uncontrolled non-engineered landfill sites, creating significant pollution due to the leakage of landfill leachate in the surrounding environment. In developing countries, a complete transition to a zero-landfill scenario is less likely to happen in the near future due to various socio-economic challenges. Therefore, the existing landfills in developing countries need holistic waste management thinking with more efforts on waste to energy conversions. This study highlights the challenges with existing MSW management practices of Curitiba, Brazil, and suggests some holistic and sustainable landfill management techniques. This is accomplished through the (i) identification of the suitable sites for setting up transfer stations (TSs), (ii) route optimization for MSW transportation, and (iii) analysis of the life expectancy of the existing landfill with waste valorization techniques for enhancing circularity of MSW of the city. The study has identified six potential TSs, making use of various geological criteria and constraints as suggested by the United States Environmental Protection Agency using GIS-based spatial analysis, which could save fuel cost of approximately 1.5 million Brazilian Real (BRL) per year for the solid waste transportation (from the source to the landfill site). This research has also made a value addition in this specific field with the preparation of a digitized road network map of the study region. Further, the sensitivity-based scenario analysis highlights that the lifespan of the existing landfill (until 2030) might be extended to 2058 if the city achieves the targeted recycling rate of 85% compared with the current rate of 23%. The results would be useful for policy-makers to adopt the crucial MSW scenario to achieve a circular economy in the waste management of the city of Curitiba.

As mentioned in earlier chapters, the HKH regions form the entirety of some countries, a major part of other countries, and a small percentage of yet others. Because of this, when we speak about meeting the energy needs of the HKH region we need to be clear that we are not necessarily talking about the countries that host the HKH, but the clearly delineated mountainous regions that form the HKH within these countries. It then immediately becomes clear that energy provisioning has to be done in a mountain context characterized by low densities of population, low incomes, dispersed populations, grossly underdeveloped markets, low capabilities, and poor economies of scale. In other words, the energy policies and strategies for the HKH region have to be specific to these mountain contexts.

In this study the implications of different energy efficiency requirements and heating solutions for versions of a single-family house in southern Sweden is explored. Final energy use, primary energy use, climate impacts and lifecycle cost of heat supply are analyzed for the building versions designed to meet the current Swedish BBR 2015 building code and heated with district heating or exhaust air heat pump. A case where the building is designed to the Swedish passive house criteria and heated with exhaust air heat pump is also analyzed. The district heating is assumed to be supplied from combined heat and power plants using bio-based fuels. For the heat pump solutions, cases are analyzed where the electricity supply is from coal-fired condensing power plant or fossil gas combined cycle power plant as baseline scenario, and from a combination of improved fossil power plants and non-fossil power plants as long-term scenario. The analysis considers the entire energy chain from natural resources to the final energy services. The results show that the BBR heat pump heated building use the most primary energy compared to the other two alternatives. Lifecycle cost is reduced by about 7-12% when district heating is used instead of heat pump for a BBR code-compliant building. This study shows the importance of lifecycle and system-wide perspectives in analyzing the resource efficiency and climate impacts as well as economic viabilities of heating solutions for houses.

In this study we analyze the lifecycle primary energy use of a wood-frame apartment building designed to meet the current Swedish building code or passive house criteria, and heated with district heat or bedrock heat pump. We employ a lifecycle perspective methodology and determine the production, operation and end-of-life primary energy use of the buildings. We find that the passive house requirement strongly reduces the final energy use for heating compared to the current Swedish building code. However, the primary energy use is largely determined by the energy supply system, which is generally outside the mandate of the building standards. Overall, buildings with district heating have lower life-cycle primary energy use than alternatives heated with heat pump. The primary energy for production is small relative to that for operation, but it is more significant as the energy-efficiency standard of building improves and when efficient energy supply is used. Our results show the importance of a system-wide lifecycle perspective in reducing primary energy use in the built environment. A life cycle primary energy perspective is needed to minimize overall primary energy use, and future building energy-efficiency standards may reflect the full energy use during a building's life cycle. This could include primary energy implications for production, operation and end-of-life of buildings.

In this study, the extent to which different climate scenarios influence overheating risk, energy use and peak loads for space conditioning of district heated multi-storey buildings in Sweden are explored. Furthermore, the effectiveness of different overheating control measures and the implications of different electricity supply options for space cooling and ventilation are investigated. The analysis is based on buildings with different architectural and energy efficiency configurations including a prefab concrete-frame, a massive timber-frame and a light timber-frame building. Thermal performance of the buildings under low and high Representative Concentration Pathway climate scenarios for 2050–2059 and 2090–2099 are analysed and compared to that under historical climate of 1961–1990 and recent climate of 1996–2005. The study is based on a bottom-up methodology and includes detailed hour-by-hour energy balance and systems analyses. The results show significant changes in the buildings’ thermal performance under the future climate scenarios, relative to the historical and recent climates. Heating demand decreased significantly while cooling demand and overheating risk increased considerably with the future climate scenarios, for all buildings. In contrast to the cooling demand, the relative changes in heating demand of the buildings under the future climate scenarios are somewhat similar. The changes in the space conditioning demands and overheating risk vary for the buildings. Overheating risk was found to be slightly higher for the massive-frame building and slightly lower for the light-frame building.

In this study we use dynamic computer simulation modelling to investigate the potential impact of future climate change scenarios on the risk of overheating and annual primary energy requirements for space heating and cooling of residential buildings in Växjö, Sweden. The buildings are designed to the energy efficiency level of conventional or passive house, and are assumed to be heated with district heating and cooled with mechanical cooling system. We compare different climate change scenarios to a baseline which represents the climate data of Växjö for 1996-2005. The climate change scenarios are based on projected temperature changes under the representative concentration pathways (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios. The result shows that the risk of overheating increases under the climate change scenarios. Furthermore space heating demand is reduced and cooling demand is increased for the analyzed buildings, and the changes are proportionally more significant for the passive compared to the conventional building.

The building and construction sectors account for a large share ofthe global total primary energy use, which is currently dominated byfossil and non-renewable fuels. The sectors are expected to play a majorrole in the transition to a sustainable society with low-energy intensity.Energy is used during the life cycle of buildings for materialsmanufacture, transport, construction, operation, maintenance anddemolition. A wide range of resources, from forest-based materials suchas timber and bamboo to ore-based materials such as steel and concreteare used for building and construction projects. Energy is used forvarious building operation activities, including for space heating and cooling, tap water heating, and lighting and appliances. Materials andenergy resources use are associated with significant environmentalimpacts including atmospheric, solid and waterborne emissions. Thereis growing emphasis on strategies to reduce energy use and therebymitigate climate change. This chapter looks at the energy and economicimplications of buildings and construction products, adopting a lifecycle perspective. It examines the implications of different constructionmaterials, design strategies and thermal envelope improvementmeasures for energy, climate and economic performances of buildings.The implications of building renovation and post-use building materialsmanagement strategies are discussed. Case studies and analyses fromdifferent regions and climates are explored to demonstrate theimplications of different choices and decisions.

In this study we explore key parameter values, methods and assumptions used for energy balance modelling of residential buildings in the Swedish context and analyse their effects on calculated energy balance of a typical multi-storey building from 1970s and on energy savings of energy efficiency retrofit measures. The parameters studied are related to microclimate, building envelope, occupancy behaviour, ventilation, and heat gains from electric appliances and persons. Our study shows that assumed indoor air temperature, internal heat gains and efficiency of ventilation heat recovery units have significant effect on the simulated energy performance of the studied building and energy efficiency measures. Of the considered microclimate parameter values and assumptions, the outdoor temperature, ground solar reflection and window shading have significant impact on the simulated space heating and cooling demands. On the contrary, the simulated energy performances are less affected by the variations in air pressure outside and the percentage of wind load that hits the building. We found that input data and assumptions used for energy balance calculations and energy saving analyses vary significantly in the Swedish context. These result in significantly different calculated final energy performance of buildings and energy efficiency measures. To inform accurate analysis of energy performance of building and energy saving measures, input parameters used in simulation models need to be appropriate.

Motivated by the need for less polluting energy production, the recent increase in renewable electricity production is reshaping classical power systems. Initially unidirectional and constant power flow becomes multi-directional and dynamic. As one of the many consequences, classical power system fault location methods might become outdated.To this extent, the development of new methods as well as improvement of already existing methods is of great interest. Additionally, robust and fast means of fault location strengthen power system reliability by improving recovery time. Since most of the faults occur at the distribution level, a study of the main fault location methods in distribution power systems is first conducted. Relevant information about their respective advantages and drawbacks put into light the need to improve classical fault location methods or to develop new methods. The main objective of the thesis is to develop a prototype data-driven ground fault location method that aims to improve the robustness and accuracy offault location in the power system, as well as offer new solutions for fault location.

An 11-bus 20 kV distribution power system with distributed generation is modeled to test the method. As a requirement for data-driven methods, the dataset is provided through simulation where time-domain three-phase voltages at the system substation during fault are generated. This data is then processed using dyadic discrete wavelet transform, a powerful signal processing method, to extract useful information of the signal, after what relevant features are found from the wavelet coefficients. To predict the location ofthe fault, neural networks are trained to find potential correlations between computed features and the distance of the fault from the substation. After testing and comparing different combinations of neural networks, results are analyzed, and eventually, challenges and potential improvements for further development and application of the method are introduced.

Production of synthesis gas by catalytic reforming of product gas from biomass gasification can lead to catalyst deactivation by the exposure to ash compounds present in the flue gas. The impact of fly ash from biomass gasification on reforming catalysts was studied at the laboratory scale. The investigated catalyst was Pt/Rh based, and it was exposed to generated K2SO4 aerosol particles and to aerosol particles produced from the water-soluble part of biomass fly ash, originating from a commercial biomass combustion plant. The noble metal catalyst was also compared with a commercial Ni-based catalyst, exposed to aerosol particles of the same fashion. To investigate the deactivation by aerosol particles, a flow containing submicrometer-size selected aerosol particles was led through the catalyst bed. The particle size of the poison was measured prior to the catalytic reactor system. Fresh and aerosol particle exposed catalysts were characterized using BET surface area, XRPD (X-ray powder diffraction), and H2 chemisorption. The Pt/Rh catalyst was also investigated for activity in the steam methane reforming reaction. It was found that the method to deposit generated aerosol particles on reforming catalysts could be a useful procedure to investigate the impact of different compounds possibly present in the product gas from the gasifier, acting as potential catalyst poisons. The catalytic deactivation procedure by exposure to aerosol particles is somehow similar to what happens in a real plant, when a catalyst bed is located subsequent to a biomass gasifier or a combustion boiler. Using different environments (oxidizing, reducing, steam present, etc.) in the aerosol generation adds further flexibility to the suggested aerosol deactivation method. It is essential to investigate the deactivating effect at the laboratory scale before a full-scale plant is taken into operation to avoid operational problems.

Detta arbete utvärderar bränslepellets ekonomiskt och arbetsmässigt gentemot andra konkurrerande uppvärmningssätt vilket i främsta hand är värmepumps-tekniken. Resultatet av studien visade att bränslepellets inte gav samma nöjdhet som värmepumpstekniken, rent ekonomiskt så var det värmepumpsteknik som var det mest driftekonomiska alternativet. Elpriser och effektdebitering gör att bränsle pelletsen i framtiden förmodas bli ett fördelaktigt val av värmekälla.

Det sker snabba klimatförändringar som utgör en global kris och IPCC:s rapport från 2023 visar att utsläpp från växthusgaserna fortsätter att öka. För att skapa en hållbar framtid behöver fossila bränslen fasas ut då de står för nästan 90 % av världens koldioxidutsläpp. För att lyckas uppnå Parisavtalets klimatmål med att begränsa den globala uppvärmningen till 1,5 °C behöver de globala utsläppen minska med 55 %, jämfört med år 1990, senast år 2030.  Genom att använda fossilfri vätgas som energibärare går det att minska utsläpp av växthusgaser inom exempelvis transportsektorn som bidrar till stora utsläpp årligen.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilka förhållande, marknads- och produktionsmässiga, som det är lönsamt att prioritera produktion av vätgas framför leverans av elenergi till nät. Målet är att få fram en produktionskostnad för vätgas vid vätgasanläggningen samt hitta vid vilket spotpris det är lönsamt att producera vätgas på OKG. Studien visar hur produktionskostnaden av vätgas är beroende av spotpriset på el samt visar olika scenarion för detta.

This project has been commissioned by Kalmar Energi AB and has been carried out at the CHP plant Moskogen. The project aimed to investigate whether recycling of flue gas condensate was possible and economically justifiable. This measure could potentially reduce the plant´s raw water consumption and would result in economic savings. The measure would also help the plant become more self-sufficient and less sensitive to disturbances on the local raw water distribution net.  Measurements of the flow of flue gas condensate, levels of pollution and raw water consumption gave important parameters for contact with the purification supplier. We entered a collaboration with Eurowater AB where two different purification plants were presented to Kalmar Energi AB. The cost of the two different proposals and their respective raw water savings gave two different payback periods in which the initial investment would be recouped by the client. The conclusion drawn from the project is that the installation of a purification plant for recycling of flue gas condensate was possible.

The heat demand in Sweden has stagnated and district heating companies must take action to sustain in the market. Based on this background this study combines a PEST and SWOT analysis to produce a basis to suggest general strategies suitable for district heating companies in southern Sweden. The analysis found that both investments into activities outside of the heating market, as well as further development of current systems, are viable options. Increasing the awareness and knowledge about district heating companies was also identified as a factor that could entail several benefits.

We analyze conventional retrofit building materials, aluminum, rock, and glass wool materials and compared such materials with wood-based materials to understand the lifecycle primary energy implications of moving from non-renewable to wood-based materials. We calculate cost optimum retrofit measures for a multi-apartment building in a lifecycle perspective, and lifecycle primary energy savings of each optimized measure. The retrofit measures consist of the thermal improvement of windows with varied frame materials, as well as extra insulation of attic floor, basement walls, and external walls with varied insulation materials. The most renewable-based heat supply is from a bioenergy-based district heating (DH) system. We use the marginal cost difference method to calculate cost-optimized retrofit measures. The net present value of energy cost savings of each measure with a varied energy performance is calculated and then compared with the calculated retrofit cost to identify the cost optimum of each measure. In a sensitivity analysis, we analyze the cost optimum retrofit measures under different economic and DH supply scenarios. The retrofit costs and primary energy savings vary somewhat between non-renewable and wood-based retrofit measures but do not influence the cost optimum levels significantly, as the economic parameters do. The lifecycle primary use of wood fiber insulation is about 76% and 80% less than for glass wool and rock wool, respectively. A small-scale DH system gives higher primary energy and cost savings compared to larger DH systems. The optimum final energy savings, in one of the economic scenarios, are close to meeting the requirements in one of the Swedish passive house standards.

Woody biomass is an important renewable energy resource that can be used directly or indirectly in the electricity, heat and transport sectors. Different technologies and conversion pathways can be used to convert woody biomass to supply different types of energy services. The primary energy and climate implications of bioenergy systems depend on which conversion technologies and pathways are used to produce the energy services, as well as how the services would have been supplied without the bioenergy system. Here, we focus on bioenergy for transportation in the context of a total renewable-based energy system. We contrast two different pathways: (i) biomotor fuel production in stand-alone plants and (ii) bioelectricity production in standalone plants and district heating systems with CHP plants and heat storage capacity for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. We quantify the primary energy use and the instantaneous biogenic CO₂ of the two alternatives, per km of driving distance. We consider both commercially available technologies and emerging technologies for biomass-based conversion systems. Furthermore, for the two alternatives we discuss potential benefits of integration between the electricity, heating and transport sectors, to enable a better use of infrastructure. The results show that primary energy use and instantaneous biogenic CO₂ emission vary strongly between the alternatives. The primary energy efficiency is much higher and gives less instantaneous biogenic CO₂ emission for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles compared to vehicles using biomotor fuels. Furthermore, the potential integration benefits between the electricity, heating and transport sectors are much larger due to the integration potential of heat storage capacity in DHS and battery storage capacity in electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, as well as an improved overall integration capacity between the sectors. This study suggests that use of biomass should be considered in the context of the overall energy system, and in relation to the development of energy conversion technologies and integration potential between different energy sectors, to find primary energy efficient alternatives giving climate benefits in both a short- and long-term perspective.

Human society releases greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere while providing housing, heat, mobility and industrial production. Man-made greenhouse gas emissions are the main causes of climate change, coming mainly from burning fossil fuels and land-use changes. Sustainably managed forests play an important role in climate change mitigation with the prospect of sustainably providing essential materials and services as part of a low-carbon economy, both through the substitution of fossil-intensive fuels and material and through their potential to capture and store carbon in the long-term perspective.

The overall aim of this thesis was to develop a methodology under a life cycle perspective to assess the climate impact of the sustainable use of forest biomass in bioenergy and material systems. To perform this kind of analysis a methodological framework is needed to accurately compare the different biological and technological systems with the aim to minimize the net carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere and hence the climate impact. In such a comparison, the complete energy supply chains from natural resources to energy end-use services has to be considered and are defined as the system boundaries.

The results show that increasing biomass production through more intensive forest management or the usage of more productive tree species combined with substitution of non-wood products and fuels can significantly reduce global warming. The biggest single factor causing radiative forcing reduction was using timber to produce wood material to replace energy-intensive construction materials such as concrete and steel. Another very significant factor was replacing fossil fuels with forest residues from forest thinning, harvest, wood processing, and post-use wood products. The fossil fuel that was replaced by forest biomass affected the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, with carbon-intensive coal being most beneficial to replace. Over the long term, an active and sustainable management of forests, including their use as a source for wood products and bioenergy allows the greatest potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

While issues of land-use have been considered in many direct analyses of biomass systems, little attention has heretofore been paid to land-use in reference fossil systems. Here we address this limitation by comparing forest biomass systems to reference fossil systems with explicit consideration of land-use in both systems. We estimate and compare the time profiles of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and cumulative radiative forcing (CRF) of woody biomass systems and reference fossil systems. A life cycle perspective is used that includes all significant elements of both systems, including GHG emissions along the full material and energy chains. We consider the growth dynamics of forests under different management regimes, as well as energy and material substitution effects of harvested biomass. We determine the annual net emissions of CO2, N2O and CH4 for each system over a 240-year period, and then calculate time profiles of cRF as a proxy measurement of climate change impact. The results show greatest potential for climate change mitigation when intensive forest management is applied in the woody biomass system. This methodological framework provides a tool to help determine optimal strategies for managing forests so as to minimize climate change impacts. The inclusion of land-use in the reference system improves the accuracy of quantitative projections of climate benefits of biomass-based systems. (c) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

While issues of land-use have been considered in many analyses of biomass systems, little attention has heretofore been paid to land-use in reference fossil systems. In this study we address this limitation by comparing forest biomass systems to reference fossil systems with explicit consideration of land-use in both systems. We estimate and compare the time profiles of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and cumulative radiative forcing (CRF) of woody biomass systems and reference fossil systems. A life cycle perspective is used that includes all elements of both systems and all GHG emissions along the full material and energy chains. We consider the growth dynamics of forests under different management regimes, as well as energy and material substitution effects. We determine the annual net emissions of CO2, N2O and CH4 for each system over a 240-year period. We then calculate time profiles of CRF as a proxy for climate change impacts. The results show greatest CRF reduction when fertilized forest management is applied in the woody biomass system. The results show the relevance of including land use options in both the biomass and the fossil system to accurately determine the climate impacts and benefits of forest management and product use.

To facilitate design of policies and strategies which aim to promote a sustainable development of the built environment, a deeper understanding of factors influencing the decisions taken in construction projects is needed. This study investigates Swedish contractors’ perceptions of the new-build of very energy efficiency multi-storey residential buildings (e.g. passive houses). The results of interviews with twenty selected contracts managers disclose several perceived disadvantages and risks associated with such buildings which influence the interest to invest in high energy efficiency. These include several cost and market-related issues as well as issues relating to the performance of the buildings. Without market intervention it seems unlikely that very energy efficient multi-storey residential buildings will diffuse to any substantial degree within the Swedish construction industry.

Swedish forest growth can be increased through intensive forestry practices, enabling an increased use of forest biomass for climate-change mitigation. However, the diffusion of such practices depends on the forest owners’ adoption of them. We study Swedish private forest owners’ perceptions and intentions with respect to increasing forest growth by adopting exotic tree species. The results of a mail-in questionnaire survey show that although a majority of forest owners desire increasing forest growth, most owners have only a basic understanding of exotic tree species and a smaller proportion is interested in adopting them. The intention to adopt exotics seems to depend on the perceived performance of the species with respect to the economic aspects of forest management rather than on environmental or recreational concerns. Whereas a knowledge gap among the private forest owners regarding how to increase forest growth is implied, forest owners with higher self-rated knowledge of forestry and exotics have stronger intentions to adopt such species.

Method when heating a building with solar collectors comprising also a heat pump and energy storage using phase change materials. The invention is charaterized in that the energy storage system comprises to two containers, one placed indoors, where the phase change material has a melting point between 19 and 30 degrees Celsius, and a second container located outdoors and buried in the ground, where the phase change material has a conversion temperature which corresponds to or is lower  than the mean temperature of the ground surrounding the container.

The use of Information Communication technology (ICT) is rapidly increasing in an age ofdigitalization. Measurement of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions from ICT is crucial for reducingthem. Most ICT organizations focus on Scope 1 and 2 emissions as they have greater control over them, commonly ignoring Scope 3 emissions. Scope 3 Category 1 (S3C1) emissions occur throughout the rawmaterial acquisition and manufacturing stages of an ICT product's life cycle accounting for a large portion ofthe sector's overall CO2e emissions and energy consumption. By not reporting Scope 3 emissions, companieslose the ability to reduce their overall CO2e corporate emissions. Although Category 1 and 11 under Scope 3account for 85% of ICT's worldwide CO2e emissions, the methodologies for calculating S3C1 emissions in ICTare understudied. This study focuses on these emissions in the framework of Sustainable Development Goals 9,12, and 13. Product life cycle assessment (PLCA) and Spend-based methods have been used to analyze S3C1emissions in the ICT sector with two case examples of laptop computers and smartphones. The ExcelManagement Life Cycle Assessment (EMLCA) tool has been used for the S3C1 emissions estimation. PLCAand Spend-based methods are compared on their ability to calculate CO2e emissions. It is concluded that theSpend-based is faster than PLCA for predicting ICT emissions with modest uncertainty for smartphone andlaptop components. Furthermore, this work explores the advantages and downsides of both methods. 

The circular bioeconomy (CBE) aims to enhance the value of renewable biowaste byrecovering resources, and the biogas sector, in particular, is a promising area within CBE. Despite the availability of diverse waste types, developing countries have mainly focused on circulating domestic waste. This study aims to formulate a strategy to enhance Nepal’s biogas-based circular bioeconomy (BGCBE) using the widely employed PEST-SWOT methodology. The biogas sector was analyzed from political, economic, social, and technical (PEST) perspectives, drawing from relevant literature, primary and secondary data, and international practices observed within the BGCBE. Key drivers and barriers in terms of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) were identified to enhance circularity within the sector. Key drivers supporting the BGCBE include a state-sponsored regulatory body promoting the biogas sector through financial incentives, the availabilityof various waste resources, and the involvement of local elected bodies as facilitators for municipal solid waste (MSW)-based biogas plants. However, several barriers were identified, such as a lack of community awareness about the importance of waste segregation and the environmental benefits of BGCBE, limited technical skills among household biodigester (HBD) users, the unavailability of technically skilled manpower, and the underutilization of waste resources for valorization. Stakeholder perspectives were integrated to validate the SWOT analysis and develop comprehensive strategies. Key proposed strategies include incentivizing bio-based product competitiveness through premium pricing policies, extending carbon trading opportunities, and raising community awareness about the ecological benefits of waste-based products. Policy interventions such as mobilizing unused waste resources, strategically locating biogas plants, and fostering stakeholder collaboration are recommended to advance the BGCBE in Nepal.