Water Footprinting in the Manufacturing Industries -Methods, Tool and Optimization Strategies

制造业的水足迹 - 方法、工具和优化策略

• 批准号: 321170424
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Matthias Finkbeiner
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Fachgebiet Sustainable Engineering
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2016-12-31 至 2020-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/321170424?language=en
• 关键词: Water; Footprinting; Manufacturing; Industries; Methods

Implementing the goal of sustainable manufacturing into daily engineering practice is challenging - especially with regard to water. Today, water use is simply reported as one indicator among many others and optimization strategies usually aim at reducing water needs due to increased efficiency, cycling systems, or waste water purification. Even though these measures are relevant, the direct water consumption of a company is only a small fraction of its total water footprint. Water consumption in the production of materials or in the generation of energy is often much higher. Moreover, impacts resulting from direct water consumption in water-abundant regions in Central Europe are usually low. In contrast, the indirect water consumption in the supply chain often causes more severe impacts if it occurs in water scarce regions, e.g. mining of copper ore in Chile or bauxite in Australia. Hence, water consumption and resulting impacts should be assessed along a product life cycle and optimization strategies should focus on local impacts along global supply chains rather than on the direct consumption of a company. After reviewing and discussing more than 30 water footprint approaches, the applicant conducted the first water footprint studies in industrial product systems and manufacturing. Based on these experiences methodological challenges have been identified and a novel water footprint method - the water accounting and vulnerability evaluation (WAVE) model has been developed. This research project aims at enhancing the water footprint concept for manufacturing from a methodological and practical point of view. From a methodological perspective, the modelling of local water availability will be refined by considering seasonal variation in the hydraulic situation of river basins and by taking into account atmospheric moisture recycling effects. Based on these improved water scarcity models, impact assessment methods will be developed which evaluate consequences of water consumption on human health and ecosystems. From a practical perspective, the lack of regionalized inventory data is the main hindrance regarding the application of water footprinting in manufacturing. Therefore, a regionalization methodology will be developed in cooperation with an inventory database provider and regionalized water inventories will be developed for a broad set of materials and processes relevant for manufacturing. In a water footprint tool, this regionalized water inventory database will be combined with the impact assessment developments. The tool will be tested in several industrial case studies. This research project and the resulting water footprint tool will enable practitioners to quantify water consumption in manufacturing processes and the corresponding supply chains. By assessing impacts resulting from water consumption, efficient optimization strategies can be developed allowing for a sustainable use of freshwater resources in manufacturing.

在日常工程实践中实现可持续制造的目标是具有挑战性的，尤其是在水方面。今天，水的使用只是作为许多其他指标中的一个，优化策略通常旨在减少由于提高效率，循环系统或废水净化而产生的水需求。尽管这些措施是相关的，但公司的直接用水量只是其总水足迹的一小部分。生产材料或生产能源的用水量往往要高得多。此外，在中欧水资源丰富的地区，直接用水造成的影响通常很低。相比之下，供应链中的间接水消耗如果发生在缺水地区，通常会造成更严重的影响，例如智利的铜矿开采或澳大利亚的铝土矿开采。因此，用水量和由此产生的影响应该沿着产品生命周期进行评估，优化策略应该关注全球供应链上的当地影响，而不是公司的直接消耗。在审查和讨论了30多种水足迹方法后，申请人在工业产品系统和制造业中进行了第一次水足迹研究。基于这些经验，已经确定了方法上的挑战，并开发了一种新的水足迹方法-水会计和脆弱性评估（WAVE）模型。本研究项目旨在从方法论和实践的角度加强制造业的水足迹概念。从方法学的角度来看，将考虑到河流流域水力情况的季节变化和考虑到大气水分再循环效应，从而改进当地可用水的模拟。根据这些改进的缺水模型，将制定影响评估方法，评估用水对人类健康和生态系统的影响。从实际的角度来看，缺乏区域化的库存数据是水足迹在制造业应用的主要障碍。因此，将与库存数据库提供者合作制订区域化方法，并将为与制造有关的一套广泛的材料和工序制订区域化水清单。在一个水足迹工具中，这个区域化的水清单数据库将与影响评估的发展相结合。该工具将在几个工业案例研究中进行测试。该研究项目和由此产生的水足迹工具将使从业者能够量化制造过程和相应供应链中的用水量。通过评估水消耗产生的影响，可以制定有效的优化战略，以便在制造业中可持续地利用淡水资源。

项目成果

A regionalised life cycle assessment model to globally assess the environmental implications of soil salinisation in irrigated agriculture.

• DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.9b03334
• 发表时间: 2020-02
• 期刊: Environmental science & technology
• 影响因子: 11.4
• 作者: M. Núñez;M. Finkbeiner

Considering the Fate of Evaporated Water Across Basin Boundaries-Implications for Water Footprinting.

考虑流域边界蒸发水的归宿——对水足迹的影响

• DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c04526
• 发表时间: 2021
• 期刊: Environmental science & technology
• 影响因子: 11.4
• 作者: Andreas Link;Markus Berger;Ruud van der Ent;Stephanie Eisner;Matthias Finkbeiner
• 通讯作者: Matthias Finkbeiner