ABSTRACT
Continuing fossil-based energy consumption is leading to increased depletion of fossil resources and consequently increased greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions [1]. It has been observed that GHG emissions (carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide) are upsetting the Earth’s climate due to fossil fuel combustion and land-use change as a result of human activities [2]. Using new technologies that will guarantee economic growth and environmental sustainability in the long term can overcome these issues. As a potential solution, over the past decades, attention has been paid to using renewable sources for providing energy and chemicals. Although heat and power can be produced by several renewable resource alternatives (wind, solar, hydro, biomass, etc.), biomass is the only alternative that by use of biorenery technologies can be converted into fuels and chemicals [2]. To prove
CONTENTS
27.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 793 27.2 Overview of Life-Cycle Assessment Methodology ...................................................... 794
27.2.1 Goal and Scope Denition .................................................................................... 795 27.2.2 Life-Cycle Inventory Analysis ............................................................................. 796 27.2.3 Life-Cycle Impact Assessment ............................................................................. 796 27.2.4 Life-Cycle Interpretation ...................................................................................... 796
27.3 LCA Applications .............................................................................................................. 797 27.4 LCA Challenges and Limitations .................................................................................... 798 27.5 Environmental Concerns for Biorenery Plants ........................................................... 798 27.6 LCA Studies for Biorenery Projects ..............................................................................800 27.7 Illustrative Example ...........................................................................................................800
