1. Public handling of protective masks from use to disposal and recycling options to new productsKatarina Remic, Alen Erjavec, Julija Volmajer Valh, Sonja Šterman, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: A study was conducted on the waste of disposable surgical masks and their problematic impact on the environment. The studies examined have shown the negative effects on the environment that are likely to occur and those that have already occurred. In this article, society's relationship to the potential recycling of disposable surgical masks is considered and projected onto the possibilities of the cradle-to-cradle design approach. The development of a product from recycled surgical masks is driven by two different surveys. The first focuses on wear and disposal habits, and the second on the relationship to recycling. As a result, the flooring was developed with thermally treated recycled surgical masks replacing the filler layer. The goal of the product design was to improve the long-term life cycle analysis of a waste surgical mask.
Keywords: maske, medicinski odpadki, okolje, recikliranje izdelka z dodano vrednostjo, analiza življenjskega cikla, masks, medical waste, recycling added-value product, life-cycle-analysis
Published in DKUM: 26.03.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 1
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2. When technology meets sustainability: microplastic removal from industrial wastewater, including impact analysis and life cycle assessmentJan Puhar, Michael Toni Sturm, Erika Myers, Dennis Schober, Anika Korzin, Annamaria Vujanović, Katrin Schuhen, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Microplastics (MPs) that are ubiquitous in aquatic environments and industrial wastewater streams have been identified as key hotspots of MP contamination. It is significantly more effective to remove MPs at these points before they enter municipal wastewater streams. This study is an environmental assessment of a novel pilot plant for the removal of MPs and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) from wastewater with a high MP contamination from a plastics manufacturer in Germany. MP removal is based on physical–chemical agglomeration–fixation by organosilanes. Formed agglomerates are separated using a belt filter. The COD is removed by an adsorption process. The resulting MP removal was 98.0 ± 1.1% by mass and 99.9987 ± 0.0007% by particle count, while the COD was reduced by 96 ± 2.7%. The system’s sustainability is evaluated using the Life Cycle Assessment methodology, evaluating system construction, operation, and end-of-life considerations. The current pilot plant is also compared to an optimized circular and sustainable upgrade, where drivers of environmental burdens are eliminated and collected MPs are reused. Significant reductions in environmental impact categories are achieved and the global warming potential is reduced by 96%. This study provides a sustainability assessment of a novel technology and circular solution to remove MPs from highly polluted industrial wastewater.
Keywords: microplastics, life cycle assessment, impact analysis, removal technology, sustainable process design, carbon footprint, water quality, circular economy
Published in DKUM: 14.03.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 4
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3. Organizational maturity and sustainability orientation influence on DMS life cycle : case analysisSandra Jordan, Simona Sternad Zabukovšek, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: The topic of the article addresses the management of the document management system (DMS), which represents one of the important steps for organizations to speed up the implementation of business processes, achieve better control over documents, and ensure safer operations. When implementing and using DMS, the importance of the organization’s maturity shall not be forgotten, as it gives the organization a framework to evaluate and improve the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the organization’s DMS, which can contribute to better decision-making and increased productivity. On the other hand, sustainable-oriented organizations are likely to show interest in choosing, implementing, and using DMS. In the article, the impact of an organization’s maturity and the role of sustainability on the DMS lifecycle are researched. Results are presented based on a case analysis of Company X. Supporting the case analysis, structured interviews with the project leader on the clients’ and the project leader on the providers’ side have been performed, which shall give a deeper insight into DMS implementation and the importance of sustainability and organizational maturity, resulting in more successful DMS implementation and use.
Keywords: document management system (DMS), DMS life cycle, maturity model, sustainability, case analysis
Published in DKUM: 09.04.2024; Views: 167; Downloads: 25
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4. Multi-purpose use and lifecycle analysis of solar panelsDušan Strušnik, Urška Novosel, Jurij Avsec, 2020, original scientific article Abstract: The combined use of renewable energy technologies and alternative energy technologies is a promising approach to reduce global warming effects throughout the world. In this paper, the solar panel is used in combination with a heat pump or with biomass sources to obtain heat, electricity, and hydrogen. Based on the Rankine thermodynamic cycle, hydrogen could be obtained from water with electrolysis and the CuCl thermochemical cycle. Furthermore, this study contains a life cycle analysis of solar panels.
Keywords: heat pump, life cycle analysis, Rankine cycle, solar panel, thermochemical cycle
Published in DKUM: 01.12.2023; Views: 393; Downloads: 106
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5. SYNTHESIS OF SUSTAINABLE BIOPROCESSES USING COMPUTER-AIDED PROCESS ENGINEERINGLidija Čuček, 2013, doctoral dissertation Abstract: This doctoral dissertation, which consists of four substantive wholes, presents several syntheses of sustainable bioprocesses using computer-aided process engineering. In the first part the synthesis of different integrated processes of ethanol production from the entire corn plant is presented. The synthesis of different processes is in the second part further extended to the simplified and more comprehensive synthesis of bioproducts in the whole production supply chain network. Synthesis is based on the generic optimisation model of biomass production and supply chain networks.
In the third part three methods for sustainable development assessment, suitable for multi-criteria optimisation, are presented: method of sustainability indexes, footprints and combined criteria, such as eco- and total profit. Methods are further upgraded with indirect effects in order to measure the unburdening the environment, associated with the use and replacement of environmentally-harmful products. Methods include the direct, indirect and total impacts on the environment.
In the last part the methodology for reducing a large number of criteria within multi-objective optimisation to a small number of representative criteria is presented. This method is presented on the case of environmental footprints.
Keywords: Biomass energy generation, Supply chain networks, Synthesis of sustainable bioprocesses, Life Cycle Analysis, Sustainability assessment, Multi-objective optimisation, Dimensionality reduction, Representative Objectives Method
Published in DKUM: 06.05.2013; Views: 2598; Downloads: 292
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