Assessment and optimization of chemical industrial processes from a life cycle perspective

Cespi, Daniele (2015) Assessment and optimization of chemical industrial processes from a life cycle perspective, [Dissertation thesis], Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna. Dottorato di ricerca in Chimica, 27 Ciclo. DOI 10.6092/unibo/amsdottorato/6855.
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Abstract

During the PhD program in chemistry, curriculum in environmental chemistry, at the University of Bologna the sustainability of industry was investigated through the application of the LCA methodology. The efforts were focused on the chemical sector in order to investigate reactions dealing with the Green Chemistry and Green Engineering principles, evaluating their sustainability in comparison with traditional pathways by a life cycle perspective. The environmental benefits associated with a reduction in the synthesis steps and the use of renewable feedstock were assessed through a holistic approach selecting two case studies with high relevance from an industrial point of view: the synthesis of acrylonitrile and the production of acrolein. The current approach wants to represent a standardized application of LCA methodology to the chemical sector, which could be extended to several case studies, and also an improvement of the current databases, since the lack of data to fill the inventories of the chemical productions represent a huge limitation, difficult to overcome and that can affects negatively the results of the studies. Results emerged from the analyses confirms that the sustainability in the chemical sector should be evaluated from a cradle-to-gate approach, considering all the stages and flows involved in each pathways in order to avoid shifting the environmental burdens from a steps to another. Moreover, if possible, LCA should be supported by other tools able to investigate the other two dimensions of sustainability represented by the social and economic issues.

Abstract
Tipologia del documento
Tesi di dottorato
Autore
Cespi, Daniele
Supervisore
Co-supervisore
Dottorato di ricerca
Scuola di dottorato
Scienze chimiche
Ciclo
27
Coordinatore
Settore disciplinare
Settore concorsuale
Parole chiave
Life Cycle Assessment, Chemical processes, Sustainability, Green Chemistry, Green Engineering
URN:NBN
DOI
10.6092/unibo/amsdottorato/6855
Data di discussione
8 Aprile 2015
URI

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