• Journal of Construction Engineering and Project Management
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.58-65
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• 2013

Earthwork activities are typically performed by heavy duty diesel (HDD) construction equipment that consumes large quantities of diesel fuel use and emits large quantities of pollutants, including nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matters (PM), hydrocarbon (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and carbon dioxide ($CO_2$). This paper presents the framework for a model that can be used to estimate the production rate, activity duration, total fuel use, and total pollutants emissions for earthwork activities. A case study and sensitivity analysis for an excavator performing excavations are presented. The tool is developed by combining the multiple linear regressions (MLR) approach for modeling the productivity with the EPA's NONROAD model. The excavator data from RSMeans Heavy Construction Data were selected to build the productivity model, and emission factors of all type of pollutants from NONROAD model were used to estimate the total fuel use and emissions. The MLR model for the productivity rate can explain 92% of the variability in the data. Based on the model, the fuel use and emissions of excavator increase as the trench depth increase, but as the bucket size increase, the fuel use and emissions decrease.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.295-302
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• 2011

Almost half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions arise from agriculture and enteric methane ($CH_4 $) emissions arising from ruminant animals constitute 30% of total $CO_2$-e emissions. Enteric $CH_4$ emissions have increased by 9% since 1990. Extensive research has been undertaken to develop reliable methods for measuring enteric $CH_4$ emissions. New Zealand studies using the SF6 tracer technique suggest that on average this technique yields similar values to the 'gold' standard of calorimetry, but with a larger variance. National inventory estimates based on results obtained using the $SF_6$ technique will therefore overestimate the uncertainty. Mitigating emissions can be achieved by changing feed type but there are practical and cost barriers to the use of alternative feeds. Forages containing condensed tannins do reduce emissions but are agronomically inferior to the forages currently used. Rumen additives have shown some success in-vitro but results from in-vivo trials with both monensin and fumaric acid have been disappointing. The development of methods for directly manipulating rumen microorganisms are at an early stage and work to develop vaccines that can inhibit methanogenesis has yielded mixed results. The successful identification of sheep with contrasting $CH_4$ yields raises the possibility that, in the long term, a breeding approach to $CH_4$ mitigation is feasible.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1627-1633
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• 2012

This study was to evaluate the feasibility of recycling the solids separated from swine wastewater treatment process as a fuel source for heat production and to provide a data set on the gas emissions and combustion properties. Also, in this study, the heavy metals in ash content were analyzed for its possible use as a fertilizer. Proximate analysis of the solid recovered from the swine wastewater after flocculation with organic polymer showed high calorific (5,330.50 kcal/kg) and low moisture (15.38%) content, indicating that the solid separated from swine wastewater can be used as an alternative fuel source. CO and NOx emissions were found to increase with increasing temperature. Combustion efficiency of the solids was found to be stable (95 to 98%) with varied temperatures. Thermogravimetry (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) showed five thermal effects (four exothermic and one endothermic), and these effects were distinguished in three stages, water evaporation, heterogeneous combustion of hydrocarbons and decomposition reaction. Based on the calorific value and combustion stability results, solid separated from swine manure can be used as an alternative source of fuel, however further research is still warranted regarding regulation of CO and NOx emissions. Furthermore, the heavy metal content in ash was below the legal limits required for its usage as fertilizer.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.917-925
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• 2023

Efforts for developing the domestic horse industry in South Korea are evident through the various national policies. Proper management of stables for ensuring the health of horses is essential to sustain the growing equine industry. This study aimed to measure the fine dust emissions in stables based on the type and quantity of bedding used for horses, for establishing guidelines pertaining to bedding use in stables. The stables accommodated 12 horses. Sawdust, wood shavings, wood pellet, and straw were chosen as treatments. Three different quantities (approximately 3, 6, and 9 cm in height) were applied for each type. Fine dust measurements were carried out at three time points, with each measuring period lasting for approximately three weeks. Measurements included PM2.5 and PM10 fine dust levels. The initial analysis revealed that, sawdust with 9 cm bedding had the highest dust levels; approximately 54.6 ㎍/m³, for PM2.5 and 95.3 ㎍/m³, for PM10. Sawdust bedding at the highest quantity (9 cm) exhibited significantly higher initial fine dust emissions. These findings suggest that bedding materials with smaller particle size, such as sawdust and wood shavings, tend to produce finer dust. Initially, the fine dust emissions decreased in all bedding types and quantities, possibly due to the increased moisture content of bedding owing to horse manure production. However, emissions increased subsequently due to ammonia production.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.25-37
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• 2013

Open biomass burning (excluding biofuels) is an important contributor to air pollution in the Asian region. Estimation of emissions from fires, however, has been problematic, primarily because of uncertainty in the size and location of sources and in their temporal and spatial variability. Hence, more comprehensive tools to estimate wildfire emissions and that can characterize their temporal and spatial variability are needed. Furthermore, an emission processing system that can generate speciated, gridded, and temporally allocated emissions is needed to support air-quality modeling studies over Asia. For these reasons, a biomass-burning emissions modeling system based on satellite imagery was developed to better account for the spatial and temporal distributions of emissions. The BlueSky Framework, which was developed by the USDA Forest Service and US EPA, was used to develop the Asian biomass-burning emissions modeling system. The sub-models used for this study were the Fuel Characteristic Classification System (FCCS), CONSUME, and the Emissions Production Model (EPM). Our domain covers not only Asia but also Siberia and part of central Asia to assess the large boreal fires in the region. The MODIS fire products and vegetation map were used in this study. Using the developed modeling system, biomass-burning emissions were estimated during April and July 2008, and the results were compared with previous studies. Our results show good to fair agreement with those of GFEDv3 for most regions, ranging from 9.7 % in East Asia to 52% in Siberia. The SMOKE modeling system was combined with this system to generate three-dimensional model-ready emissions employing the fire-plume rise algorithm. This study suggests a practicable and maintainable methodology for supporting Asian air-quality modeling studies and to help understand the impact of air-pollutant emissions on Asian air quality.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.1415-1424
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• 2021

Objective: Portable laser methane detectors (LMDs) may be an economical means of estimating CH₄ emissions from ruminants. We validated an LMD-based approach and then used that approach to evaluate CH₄ emissions from indigenous dairy cows in a dryland area of Ethiopia. Methods: First, we validated our LMD-based approach in Simmental crossbred beef cattle (n = 2) housed in respiration chambers and fed either a high- or low-concentrate diet. From the results of the validation, we constructed an estimation equation to determine CH₄ emissions from LMD CH₄ concentrations. Next, we used our validated LMD approach to examine CH₄ emissions in Fogera dairy cows grazed for 8 h/d (GG, n = 4), fed indoors on natural-grassland hay (CG1, n = 4), or fed indoors on Napier-grass (Pennisetum purpureum) hay (CG2, n = 4). All the cows were supplemented with concentrate feed. Results: The exhaled CH₄ concentrations measured by LMD were linearly correlated with the CH₄ emissions determined by infrared-absorption-based gas analyzer (r² = 0.55). The estimation equation used to determine CH₄ emissions (y, mg/min) from LMD CH₄ concentrations (x, ppm m) was y = 0.4259x+38.61. Daily CH₄ emissions of Fogera cows estimated by using the equation did not differ among the three groups; however, a numerically greater milk yield was obtained from the CG2 cows than from the GG cows, suggesting that Napier-grass hay might be better than natural-grassland hay for indoor feeding. The CG1 cows had higher CH₄ emissions per feed intake than the other groups, without significant increases in milk yield and body-weight gain, suggesting that natural-grassland hay cannot be recommended for indoor-fed cows. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the potential of using LMDs to valuate feeding regimens rapidly and economically for dairy cows in areas under financial constraint, while taking CH₄ emissions into consideration.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2017.10a
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• pp.14-23
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• 2017

In high-density high-rise cities such as Hong Kong, buildings account for nearly 90% of energy consumption and 61% of carbon emissions. Therefore, it is important to study the design of buildings, especially high-rise buildings, to achieve lower carbon emissions in the city. The carbon emissions of a building consist of embodied carbon from the production of construction materials and operational carbon from energy consumption during daily operation (e.g., air-conditioning and lighting). An integrated analysis of both types of carbon emissions can strengthen the design of low carbon buildings, but most of the previous studies concentrated mainly on either embodied or operational carbon. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to develop a holistic methodology framework considering both embodied and operational carbon, in order to enhance the sustainable design of low carbon high-rise buildings. The framework will be based on the building information modeling (BIM) technology because BIM can be integrated with simulation systems and digital models of different disciplines, thereby enabling a holistic design and assessment of low carbon buildings. Structural analysis program is first coupled with BIM to validate the structural performance of a building design. The amounts of construction materials and embodied carbon are then quantified by a BIM-based program using the Dynamo programming interface. Operational carbon is quantified by energy simulation software based on the green building extensible Markup Language (gbXML) file from BIM. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) will be applied to analyze the ambient wind effect on indoor temperature and operational carbon. The BIM-based framework serves as a decision support tool to compare and explore more environmentally-sustainable design options to help reduce the carbon emissions in buildings.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2024.07a
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• pp.1314-1314
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• 2024

Since 2017, South Korea has been the first country in the world to implement a national certification system for Zero Energy Buildings (ZEB). This system aims to maximize the energy efficiency of buildings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce energy consumption in the building sector using renewable energy. To achieve this goal, the ZEB certification system classifies green buildings into five grades based on the energy independence rate. However, the current ZEB certification system based on the energy independence rate is only considered a requirement for building completion, losing its original intent. This study aims to highlight the problems and limitations of the ZEB certification system based on the energy independence rate and to propose an operational plan for the system that can genuinely reduce energy consumption in the building sector. For this, the actual energy consumption and the renewable energy production referenced during the certification of 10 ZEB-certified buildings were quantified and compared with the energy independence rate. The total energy consumption, energy production, life cycle cost, performance coefficient of equipment, and other key indicators were analyzed to evaluate the actual effects of ZEB certification on energy savings. As a result, the simple energy independence rate-based ZEB certification was judged to be inconsistent with the original intent of the system. The ZEB certification system needs to be re-established to reflect the design of systems that can activate and utilize energy savings and renewable energy usage in buildings. Additionally, improvements in the management and inspection systems are necessary to determine how much they contribute to actual reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption post-certification.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.111-118
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• 2019

Greenhouse gas emissions have a profound effect on global warming. Various environmental regulations have been introduced to reduce the emissions. The largest amount of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, is produced in the steel industry. To decrease carbon dioxide emission, hydrogen-based iron oxide reduction, which can replace carbon-based reduction has received a great attention. Iron production generates various by-product gases, such as cokes oven gas (COG), blast furnace gas (BFG), and Linz-Donawitz gas (LDG). In particular, COG, due to its high concentrations of hydrogen and methane, can be reformed to become a major source of hydrogen for reducing iron oxide. Nevertheless, continuous COG cannot be supplied under actual operation condition of steel industry. To solve this problem, this study proposed to use two alternative COG-based fuel mixtures; one with natural gas and the other with biogas. Reforming study on two types of mixed gas were carried out to evaluate catalyst performance under a variety of operating conditions. In addition, methane conversion and product composition were investigated both theoretically and experimentally.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.23-38
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• 2011

● The current world is suffering abnormal climate caused by global warming. The main cause of global warming is greenhouse gas such as carbon dioxide. The carbon labeling system and carbon traceability system being pushed ahead in the agricultural sector is the policy for responding to climate change to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To make this policy more effective and enhanced, the amount of carbon emissions should be calculated based on the kind of crops or the various businesses in the agricultural sector. Therefore, in order to estimate the accurate amount of carbon emissions, it is necessary to establish carbon dioxide emission intensity of various agricultural materials added onto the agriculture, and to calculate the amount of carbon dioxide emission for each crop according to agricultural production. The purpose of this study is to establish the amount of emission, emission per agricultural materials, of agricultural materials being added for crop production as a basic step, and emission intensity which can be used in the future market in order to estimate accurate amount of carbon emission in all the policies being promoted in the agricultural sector. Therefore, in this study, in order to build LCI D/B about organic fertilizers among many organic materials added onto the organic agriculture sector, one leading company in organic fertilizer production was selected and LCA was conducted for this leading company. We had to build the intensity and integrated average concept of intensity upon the two cases once production farmers for their own consumption and farms besides organic fertilizer company were categorized even if it's little amount. But in this study, individually produced organic fertilizers were excluded. Calculated results are following. Carbon emission of mixed expeller cake fertilizer in organic fertilizer was 1,106,966.89kg-$CO^2$ and emission intensity was 0.01606kg-$CO^2$, respectively. Total emission of mixed organic fertilizers was 241,523.2kg-$CO^2$ and emission intensity was 0.01705kg-$CO^2$. And total emission of organic compound fertilizers was 94,592.66kg-$CO^2$ and emission intensity was 0.01769kg-$CO^2$, respectively.