Green Industry

Glass Industry: 16 Emerging Technologies for Energy-efficiency and GHG Emissions Reduction

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Glass production is a highly energy-intensive industrial process. The container and flat glass industries (which combined account for 80% of glass production) emit over 60 million tonne of CO2 emissions per year. The global increase in glass consumption and production will drive significant growth in the industry’s absolute energy use and GHG emissions.

Studies have documented the potential to save energy by implementing commercially-available energy-efficiency technologies and measures in the glass industry worldwide. However, today, given the projected continuing increase in glass production, future reductions (e.g., by 2030 or 2050) in absolute energy use and GHG emissions will require further innovation in this industry. Innovations will likely include development of different processes and materials for glass production or technologies that can economically capture and store the industry’s GHG emissions. The development of these emerging technologies and their deployment in the market will be a key factor in the glass industry’s mid- and long-term climate change mitigation strategies.

Many studies from around the world have identified sector-specific and cross- energy-efficiency technologies for the glass industry that have already been commercialized. However, information is scarce and scattered regarding emerging or advanced energy-efficiency and low-carbon technologies for the glass industry that have not yet been commercialized.

In 2017, Cecilia Springer of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and I wrote a report that consolidated available information on emerging technologies for the glass industry with the goal of giving engineers, researchers, investors, glass companies, policy makers, and other interested parties easy access to a well-structured database of information on this topic.

The information about the 16 emerging technologies for the glass industry was covered in the report and was presented using a standard structure for each technology. Table below shows the list of the technologies covered.

Table. Emerging energy-efficiency and GHG emissions-reduction technologies for the glass industry (Springer and Hasanbeigi, 2017)

Table. Emerging energy-efficiency and GHG emissions-reduction technologies for the glass industry (Springer and Hasanbeigi, 2017)

Shifting away from conventional processes and products will require a number of developments including: education of producers and consumers; new standards; aggressive research and development to address the issues and barriers confronting emerging technologies; government support and funding for development and deployment of emerging technologies; rules to address the intellectual property issues related to dissemination of new technologies; and financial incentives (e.g. through carbon trading mechanisms) to make emerging low-carbon technologies, which might have a higher initial costs, competitive with the conventional processes and products.

Our report is published on LBNL’s website and can be downloaded from this Link. Please feel free to contact me if you have any question.

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Some of our related publications are:

1.     Springer, Cecilia and Hasanbeigi, Ali (2016). Emerging Energy Efficiency and Carbon Dioxide Emissions-Reduction Technologies for the aluminum Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

2.     Hasanbeigi, Ali (2013). Emerging Technologies for an Energy-Efficient, Water-Efficient, and Low-Pollution Textile Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. LBNL-6510E

3.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Arens, Marlene; Price, Lynn; (2013). Emerging Energy Efficiency and CO2 Emissions Reduction Technologies for the Iron and Steel Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory BNL-6106E.

4.     Kong, Lingbo; Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn (2012). Emerging Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Technologies for the Pulp and Paper Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. LBNL-5956E.

5.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn; Lin, Elina. (2012). Emerging Energy Efficiency and CO2 Emissions Reduction Technologies for Cement and Concrete  Production. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory LBNL-5434E.

References:

  • Springer, Cecilia; Hasanbeigi, Ali and Price, Lynn (2017). Emerging Energy Efficiency and CO2 Emissions Reduction Technologies for the glass Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Global Efficiency Intelligence and Rocky Mountain Institute are Assisting Chinese Cities To Peak Their GHG Emissions

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In September 2015 at the first U.S.-China Climate-Smart/Low-Carbon Cities Summit, China’s Alliance of Pioneer Peaking Cities (APPC) announced that 23 cities and provinces are now members and committed to peaking emissions by or before 2030. In addition, these cities committed to report on greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories, establish climate action plans, and enhance bilateral and multilateral partnership and cooperation. These cities and provinces represent about 16.8 percent of China’s population, 27.5 percent of national GDP, and 15.6 percent of national carbon dioxide emissions. By 2050, over 80% of Chinese population will be living in cities.

With industry sector accounting for over 65% of primary energy use and about 70% of total GHG emissions in China, it is quite common to find manufacturing plants (including heavy industries) within the boundary of many cities in China. Therefore, peaking GHG emissions in Chinese cities will not be possible without addressing the energy use and GHG emissions in industries located in those cities.

One of the APPC cities is Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province. Wuhan committed to achieve the peaking of GHG emissions by 2022. Global Efficiency Intelligence (GEI) has joined Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) in their effort to help the city of Wuhan to peak its industrial GHG emissions by 2022. In this project, RMI and GEI are working with local partners to conduct both technical and policy analysis in order to come up with a concrete action plan and practical suggestions for the city of Wuhan to achieve its emission peaking goal. The aim is to develop methodologies and tools that can be replicated across other cities in China to help them with their GHG emissions peaking targets. 

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Infographic: Energy Use and Emissions in the Cement Industry

The cement industry is one of the most energy-intensive and highest CO2 emitting industries and one of the key industrial contributors to air pollutions (PM, SO­2, etc.) in the world. The inforgraphic below is prepared by Global Efficiency Intelligence, LLC to summarize some key information on energy use and emissions in the cement industry.

Global Efficiency Intelligence, LLC has experience conducting various projects and studies on energy efficiency, GHG and other emissions reduction, energy benchmarking, and alternative fuel use in the cement industry in China, India, U.S., Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

Don't forget to Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook to get the latest about our new blog posts, projects, and publications.


Some of our related publications are:

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Nina Khanna, Price, Lynn (2017). Air Pollutant Emissions Projection for the Cement and Steel Industry in China and the Impact of Emissions Control Technologies. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. 1007268

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Agnes Lobscheid; Hongyou, Lu; Price, Lynn; Yue Dai (2013). Quantifying the Co-benefits of Energy-Efficiency Programs: A Case-study for the Cement Industry in Shandong Province, China. Science of the Total Environment. Volumes 458–460, 1 August 2013, Pages 624-636.

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Morrow, William; Masanet, Eric; Sathaye, Jayant; Xu, Tengfang. 2013. Energy Efficiency Improvement Opportunities in the Cement Industry in China. Energy Policy Volume 57, June 2013, Pages 287–297

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn; Lin, Elina. (2012). Emerging Energy Efficiency and CO2 Emissions Reduction Technologies for Cement and Concrete  Production. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory LBNL-5434E.

  • Morrow, William; Hasanbeigi, Ali; Sathaye, Jayant; Xu, Tengfang. 2014. Assessment of Energy Efficiency Improvement and CO2 Emission Reduction Potentials in India’s Cement and Iron & Steel Industries. Journal of Cleaner Production. Volume 65, 15 February 2014, Pages 131–141

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Menke, Christoph; Therdyothin, Apichit (2010). Technical and Cost Assessment of Energy Efficiency Improvement and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Potentials in Thai Cement Industry. Energy Efficiency. DOI 10.1007/s12053-010-9079-1

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Menke, Christoph; Therdyothin, Apichit (2010). The Use of Conservation Supply Curves in Energy Policy and Economic Analysis: the Case Study of Thai Cement Industry. Energy Policy 38 (2010) 392–405

  • Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn; Hongyou, Lu; Lan, Wang (2010). Analysis of Energy-Efficiency Opportunities for the Cement Industry in Shandong Province, China: A Case-Study of Sixteen Cement Plants. Energy-the International Journal 35 (2010) 3461-3473.


18 Emerging Technologies and 180 Commercialized Technologies and Measures for Energy and Water Efficiency, and GHG Emissions Reduction in the Textile Industry

The textile industry uses large amounts of electricity, fuel, and water, with corresponding greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and contaminated effluent.  With regard to energy use, the textile industry’s share of fuel and electricity use within the total final energy use of any one country depends on the structure of the textile industry in that country. For instance, electricity is the dominant energy source for yarn spinning whereas fuels are the major energy source for textile wet processing.

In addition to using substantial energy, textile manufacturing uses a large amount of water, particularly for wet processing of materials, and produces a significant volume of contaminated effluent. Conserving water and mitigating water pollution will also be part of the industry’s strategy to make its production processes more environmentally friendly, particularly in parts of the world where water is scarce.

In 2016, the world’s population was 7.4 billion; this number is expected to grow to 9.5 billion by 2050. The bulk of this growth will take place in underdeveloped and developing countries. As the economy in these countries improves, residents will have more purchasing power; as a result, per-capita consumption of goods, including textiles, will increase. In short, future population and economic growth will stimulate rapid increases in textile production and consumption, which, in turn, will drive significant increases in the textile industry’s absolute energy use, water use, and carbon dioxide (CO2) and other environmentally harmful emissions.

Having the higher education background in both textile technology engineering and energy efficiency technologies, I wrote a report on commercially available energy-efficiency technologies and measures for the textile industry several years ago. This report included a review of over 180 commercialized energy efficiency technologies and measures for the textile industry based on case-studies around the world. In addition to conserving energy, some of the technologies and measures presented also conserve water. The report can be downloaded from this Link (Hasanbeigi 2010).

Several other reports also document the application of commercialized technologies. However, today, given the projected continuing increase in absolute textile production, future reductions (e.g., by 2030 or 2050) in absolute energy use and CO2 emissions will require further innovation in this industry. Innovations will likely include development of different processes and materials for textile production or technologies that can economically capture and store the industry’s CO2 emissions. The development of these emerging technologies and their deployment in the market will be a key factor in the textile industry’s mid- and long-term climate change mitigation strategies.

However, information is scarce and scattered regarding emerging or advanced energy-efficiency and low-carbon technologies for the textile industry that have not yet been commercialized. That was why a few years ago, I wrote another report that consolidated available information on 18 emerging technologies for the textile industry with the goal of giving engineers, researchers, investors, textile companies, policy makers, and other interested parties easy access to a well-structured database of information on this topic. Table below shows the list of the technologies covered.

Table. Emerging energy-efficiency, water efficiency, and GHG emissions reduction technologies for the textile industry (Hasanbeigi 2015)

A few years ago when I conducted several day-long training on energy efficiency in the textile industry for hundreds of engineers and manager of textile companies in China, one major feedback we received, which did not surprise me, was that they did not know about most of the commercialized and emerging technologies we introduced. Engineers and manager are busy with day-to-day routine which rarely involves energy efficiency improvement.  

Also, you can check out the Energy Efficiency Assessment and Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Tool for the Textile Industry (EAGER Textile), which we developed a few years ago. EAGER Textile tool allows users to conduct a simple techno-economic analysis to evaluate the impact of selected energy efficiency measures in a textile plant by choosing the measures that they would likely introduce in a facility, or would like to evaluate for potential use.

Don't forget to Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook to get the latest about our new blog posts, projects, and publications.

Some of our related publications are:

1.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn; (2015). A Technical Review of Emerging Technologies for Energy and Water Efficiency and Pollution Reduction in the Textile Industry. Journal of Cleaner Production. DOI 10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.02.079.

2.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Hasanabadi, Abdollah; Abdolrazaghi, Mohamad, (2012). Energy Intensity Analysis for Five Major Sub-Sectors of the Textile Industry. Journal of Cleaner Production 23 (2012) 186-194

3.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn (2012). A Review of Energy Use and Energy Efficiency Technologies for the Textile Industry. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 16 (2012) 3648– 3665.

References:

·      Hasanbeigi, Ali (2013). Emerging Technologies for an Energy-Efficient, Water-Efficient, and Low-Pollution Textile Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. LBNL-6510E

·      Hasanbeigi, Ali, (2010). Energy Efficiency Improvement Opportunities for the Textile Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. LBNL-3970E