Life Cycle Assessment on Wave and Tidal Energy Systems: A Review of Current Methodological Practice

Zhang, Xizhuo; Zhang, Longfei; Yujun, Yuan; Zhai, Qiang

doi:10.3390/ijerph17051604

Cited by 11 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…The lack of operational experience leads to large uncertainties in the estimations made during the O&M and decommissioning phases, and even their lifespan, which are generally based on expert judgments [39]. Moreover, the lack of standardization in LCA methodologies [35,144,187] and the scarcity of data on energy inputs and outputs are further challenges to estimating the EROI of marine technologies [138].…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining the Potential of Marine Renewable Energy: A Net Energy Perspective

et al. 2023

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It is often claimed that marine renewable energy alone could meet the electricity demand of current and future human societies. However, such claims are based on highly uncertain estimations of the global potentials of marine renewable energy sources (including tidal, ocean currents, wave, offshore wind and salinity and thermal gradients), and do not take into account the embedded energy of current technologies. To better understand the effective potential of marine energy, we conducted a literature review of its gross, technical, economic and sustainable potentials, as well as the energy return on investment (EROI), and estimated the net energy potential. We found that all marine technologies could provide a maximum energy surplus of 57,000 TWh/yr. This figure goes down to ∼5000TWh/yr when excluding offshore wind. The previous figures do not include the contribution from ocean currents, for which no reliable estimates of global potentials and EROIs could be obtained. Due to its high upfront costs and environmental impacts and low social acceptance, no additional tidal range capacity expansion is envisioned. Similarly, the combination of a low sustainable potential and the low EROI makes the large-scale exploitation of salinity gradients unlikely with current technologies. Including all technologies, the average EROI of marine energy is ∼20, but excluding offshore wind reduces the average EROI to ∼8. While we did consider sustainability constraints for some marine energy sources, our estimation of marine net energy potential primarily relied on technical factors and did not account for economic and legal constraints. Therefore, the results presented here should be interpreted as an upper bound for the actual net energy contribution of marine energy sources to the global energy mix.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining the Potential of Marine Renewable Energy: A Net Energy Perspective

et al. 2023

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“…The application of the LCA framework as a guide to decision making is outlined in part B. Life cycle assessment is a stepwise method comprising of: (i) goal definition and scope definition, (ii) life cycle inventory analysis, (iii) life cycle assessment and (iv) interpretation [249]. LCAs are iterative: thus, if the framework in this review is applied, the LCA process should be continually refined as Ex-ante LCA analysis cannot solely follow the methodology described in the LCA manuals.…”

Section: Life Cycle Analysis Framework To Assess the Viability Of Green Lithographic Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Green Nanofabrication Opportunities in the Semiconductor Industry: A Life Cycle Perspective

Mullen

Morris

2021

Nanomaterials

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The turn of the 21st century heralded in the semiconductor age alongside the Anthropocene epoch, characterised by the ever-increasing human impact on the environment. The ecological consequences of semiconductor chip manufacturing are the most predominant within the electronics industry. This is due to current reliance upon large amounts of solvents, acids and gases that have numerous toxicological impacts. Management and assessment of hazardous chemicals is complicated by trade secrets and continual rapid change in the electronic manufacturing process. Of the many subprocesses involved in chip manufacturing, lithographic processes are of particular concern. Current developments in bottom-up lithography, such as directed self-assembly (DSA) of block copolymers (BCPs), are being considered as a next-generation technology for semiconductor chip production. These nanofabrication techniques present a novel opportunity for improving the sustainability of lithography by reducing the number of processing steps, energy and chemical waste products involved. At present, to the extent of our knowledge, there is no published life cycle assessment (LCA) evaluating the environmental impact of new bottom-up lithography versus conventional lithographic techniques. Quantification of this impact is central to verifying whether these new nanofabrication routes can replace conventional deposition techniques in industry as a more environmentally friendly option.

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“…It is important to highlight that some studies made a quantitative evaluation (low, medium, and high), others focused on life cycle assessment and classified the potential effects in every stage of the projects [14,53,75].…”

Section: Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020 17 X 8 Of 18mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review on Environmental and Social Impacts of Thermal Gradient and Tidal Currents Energy Conversion and Application to the Case of Chiapas, Mexico

Rivera

Felix

Mendoza

2020

IJERPH

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Despite the proved potential to harness ocean energy off the Mexican coast, one of the main aspects that have restrained the development of this industry is the lack of information regarding the environmental and social impacts of the devices and plants. Under this premise, a review of literature that could help identifying the potential repercussions of energy plants on those fields was performed. The available studies carried out around the world show a clear tendency to use indicators to assess impacts specifically related to the source of energy to be converted. The information gathered was used to address the foreseeable impacts on a hypothetical case regarding the deployment of an Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plant off the Chiapas coast in Mexico. From the review it was found that for OTEC plants, the most important aspect to be considered is the discharge plume volume and its physicochemical composition, which can lead to the proliferation of harmful algal blooms. Regarding the case study, it is interesting to note that although the environmental impacts need to be mitigated and monitored, they can be somehow alleviated considering the potential social benefits of the energy industry.

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Life Cycle Assessment on Wave and Tidal Energy Systems: A Review of Current Methodological Practice

Cited by 11 publications

References 42 publications

Examining the Potential of Marine Renewable Energy: A Net Energy Perspective

Examining the Potential of Marine Renewable Energy: A Net Energy Perspective

Green Nanofabrication Opportunities in the Semiconductor Industry: A Life Cycle Perspective

A Review on Environmental and Social Impacts of Thermal Gradient and Tidal Currents Energy Conversion and Application to the Case of Chiapas, Mexico

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