EECE 449549 Sustainable Air Quality: Sustainable Linking of Energy and the Environment

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EECE 449/549 Sustainable Air Quality
Sustainable Linking of Energy and the
Environment

• Rudolf B. Husar Erin Robinson
• Department of Energy, Environmental Chemical
  Engineering

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Sustainability Grand Challenge of Science and
Engineering

• The problems of Energy and Environment (EE) are
  Grand Challenges
• Solutions require engineering, biological,
  socio-economic and other sciences
• A rigorous and practical integrated framework for
  EE is not available

This is an exploration of frameworks for
integrated Energy Environmental
Analysis Interested in the EE integration
challenge? Join us on the wiki!
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Sustainable Development (SD)

• A process of reconciling societys developmental
  needs with the environmental limits over the long
  term. But, What should be developed, what should
  be sustained?
• SD as an adaptive process, in which society's
  discovery of where it wants to go is intertwined
  with how it might try to get there.
• During the SD journey toward sustainability,
  the pathways have to be navigated adaptively
• Science is the compass, giving the directions and
  laws-regulations are the gyroscope for staying on
  course
• .

National Academy, 1999
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Life and non-life on Earth form a combined system
(Gaia Theory)
Carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium are in
constant circulation between the earths major
environmental compartments Earths compartments
remain in balance as long as the rate of flow of
matter and energy in and out of the compartments
is unchanged. Changes in the environmental
compartments will occur if the circulation (in
and out flow) of the substances is perturbed.
Atmospheric CO2 has been increasing because the
rate of input is larger than the rate of output
from the atmosphere.
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Major Biogeochemical Processes Visualized by
Aerosols
Dust storms
Fires
Volcanoes
Anthropogenic pollution
Anthropogenic pollution perturbs the natural
processes and material flows
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Sustainability Analysis Frameworks
Biogeochemical Cycling Loop (Conservation Laws
Engineering Biology)

• Sensory-Motor Feedback Loop
• (System Science Regulatory)

Causality Loop (Combined Social-Physical-Biologica
l System)
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Biogeochemical Cycles - Carbon

• Laws Mass Energy conservation - Everything has
  to go somewhere
• Methods Earth Science, Engineering, Biology

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• Analysis Framework II
• Materials Energy Flow Loop

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Analysis Framework I Sensory-Motor Loop
Human activities exert pressures, e.g burning
fossil fuels, that alter the state of
environment. The impaired environmental state,
elicits responses, such as regulations in a
feedback loop
Monitoring collects multi-sensory data from
surface and satellite platforms and
Monitoring (Sensing)
AssessmentCompare to Goals, Plan
ReductionsTrack Progress
Set Goals
Controls (Actions)
Assessment turns data into knowledge for decision
making actions through analysis (science eng.)

All living organisms use this type of
sensory-motor feedback to maintain their
existence. Monitoring, Assessment, Control are
the necessary steps for sustainable development.
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Controls Sustainability Transition
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How and what to Control?? Analysis Framework III
Causality LoopEconomic Development with Due
Care of the Environment

• The system approach links human activities and
  their consequences in closed loop
• It is the minimum set of linked components if
  any missing, the system is crippled
• Each component depends on its causal upstream
  drivers and external environment
• The causal loop can be used as an organizing
  principle for sustainability analysis

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Analysis Framework III Causality LoopEconomic
Development with Due Care of the Environment
Socio-Economic
Energy-Environment
Health-Welfare
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Main Components of WU Carbon Emissions On
Campus Energy Use in Buildings and Transportation
On Campus Energy Use Carbon Impact
Heating
Cooling
Appliances
Transportation Carbon Impact
Commuting
Air Travel
Students
University Fleet
Faculty/Staff

• The impact on carbon arises from on-campus energy
  use and from transportation

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Reporting the Transition
Transportation Indicators
Building Indicators
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1991-92
1995-96
2000-2001
Annual miles driven per student decreased most
dramatically from 2002-2007. This is explained
in part by the shift in student residences from
2001-2007.
2007-08
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Washington University Transportation Emission

• Air Travel
• General areas of air travel
• Faculty
• Study abroad
• Athletics
• Methodology
• Faculty air travel not considered
• Study abroad data was provided for the past 6
  years
• Athletic air travel data provided for the past 3
  years

EECE 449/549 2009 Class
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On Campus Energy Use 1990 vs. 2006 Main Campus
Site Map
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Monthly Total Electricity Use

• Monthly data for Danforth campus electricity use
• Data for 1996-2000 is incomplete and not shown
  above

EECE 449/549 2009 Class
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Mark S Wrighton, Chancellor EES, WashU

• Wash U.'s goals are to address the issues of
  environment, energy and sustainability through
  education, research and out reach projects. More
  over, Wash U. will seek and define its best
  operation practices, and aspire to be a model of
  energy conservation for other institutions.

What is to be sustained? What is to be developed?
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EECE 449/549 2009 Class