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Number of results: 11
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Abstract

This article discusses the advantages of using renewable energy resources (RES), analyzes the resource potential of Ukraine in terms of energy production and substantiates the benefits of using RES for energy security. It explores the potential of the existing technological infrastructure for the sustainable development of the energy industry in Ukraine. It also identifies the structure of energy capacities and the technically achievable potential of energy production from RES and alternative fuels as a basis for different scenarios for the prospective development of alternative energy in Ukraine.
The development of solar, wind and bioenergy is analyzed in line with policy recommendation traced with the dynamics of the final volume of energy consumption in Ukraine.
This enables improvements to the methodology for determining the target parameters of energy security with the available resource potential, which forms the basis for the dynamics models of integral indices of components of energy security. These models demonstrate the current state of energy security of Ukraine in terms of resource potential, economic sufficiency, and institutional and organizational support for the use of energy resources.
The article suggests the key management directions of energy policy in Ukraine and the mechanism of emergency response to the shortage of energy supply. The development of alternative energy is considered as a path to the energy independence of the national economy of Ukraine and Europe.
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Authors and Affiliations

Nataliia Antoniuk
1
ORCID: ORCID
Joanna Kulczycka
2
ORCID: ORCID

  1. Department of Philosophy, Economics and Management of Education, Rivne Regional Institute of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education, Ukraine
  2. Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, AGH University of Science and Technology, Kraków, Poland
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Abstract

Building a Strategic Battery Value Chain in Europe COM/2019/176 is a priority for EU policy. Europe’s current share of global cell production is only 3%, while Asia has already reached 85%. To ensure a competitive position and independence in the battery market, Europe must act quickly and comprehensively in the field of innovation, research and construction of the infrastructure needed for large-scale battery production. The recycling of used batteries can have a significant role in ensuring EU access to raw materials. In the coming years, a very rapid development of the battery and rechargable battery market is forecast throughout the EU. In the above context, the recycling of used batteries plays an important role not only because of their harmful content and environmental impact, or adverse impact on human health and life, but also the ability to recover many valuable secondary raw materials and combine them in the battery life cycle (Horizon 2010 Work Programme 2018–2020 (European Commission Decision C(2019) 4575 of 2 July 2019)). In Poland, more than 80% of used batteries are disposable batteries, which, together with municipal waste, end up in a landfill and pose a significant threat to the environment. This paper examines scenarios and directions for development of the battery recycling market in Poland based on the analysis of sources of financing, innovations as well as economic and legal changes across the EU and Poland concerning recycling of different types of batteries and rechargable batteries.

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Authors and Affiliations

Agnieszka Nowaczek
ORCID: ORCID
Joanna Kulczycka
ORCID: ORCID
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Abstract

In the defunct Górka heading there is both a waste disposal site with an area of 6.7 ha containing approximately 600 000 m3 of waste generated in the course of aluminum oxide production and a pond with an area of 3 ha and depth ofup to 15 m containing about 400 000 m3 of effluent (leachate water). The reservoir is filled with infiltrates flowing in from the above-mentioned disposal site at a rate - 130 m3/day. The subsidence of the pond bottom and infiltration of solutions into the Triassic and Jurassic water resources, estimated at - 40 m3/day, is a cause of serious concern. The basic problem of the effluents in the Górka pond is their high alkalinity (pH 12-14) and variable pollutant content, the level of which increases with the pond's depth. The proposed solution involves pumping out and treating about 500 000 m3 of effluents retained in the Górka reservoir. The effluents would be treated in a reverse osmosis plant using a process which has so far been verified on a quarter-commercial scale. The treatment process by-product would be discharged into the Ropa stream. The brine solution (containing - 25% NaCl), would be solidified. The next stage after pumping would be the utilization of approximately 50 000 m3 of bottom slurry. Highly alkaline slurries would be utilized in the production of self-solidifying mixtures. These mixtures would be used to scal the bottom of the Górka reservoir and part of the edges of the defunct quarry, according to requirements. The next stage would involve outcropping the feed-water sources located in the northern section of the old heading to reconstruct the original flow system from the sources to the Ropa River. The excavated solid waste would be relocated into the remainder of the disposal site containing solid aluminium waste. The surface ofthc site would be scaled and then reclaimed. The final stage involves macrolcvclling of the site into an amphitheatre system, outcropping the fertile soil layer, constructing a lake and streams, and finally land reclamation of the whole site.
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Authors and Affiliations

Zygmunt Kowalski
Ryszard Strzelecki
Premysław Wolski
Joanna Kulczycka
ORCID: ORCID
Piotr Rudnicki
Agnieszka Sobczak
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Abstract

This paper presents a comparative analysis of feed phosphates production processes using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology and process analysis in the quantification of cumulated calculation. Three feed phosphates production processes were compared: a modified thermal process and two different low temperature endothermic units (one working in the "Bonarka" Inorganic Works (BIW) in Cracow and the other in the Phosphoric Fertilizers Works (PFW) "Fosfory" in Gdańsk). The LCA results indicated that the most advantageous technology is the feed phosphates production unit in "Fosfory". It was shown that LCA can be an efficient instrument for evaluating environmental impact, though it should be compared with other estimation methods.
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Authors and Affiliations

Zygmunt Kowalski
Joanna Kulczycka
ORCID: ORCID
Grzegorz Skowron
Agnieszka Sobczak
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Abstract

The paper presents an application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method for the environmental evaluation of the technologies for the fertilizers production. LCA has been used because it enables the most comprehensive identifi cation, documentation and quantifi cation of the potential impacts on the environment and the evaluation and comparison of all signifi cant environmental aspects. The main objective of the study was to assess and compare two technologies for the production of phosphorus (P) fertilizers coming from primary and secondary sources. In order to calculate the potential environmental impact the IMPACT 2002+ method was used. The fi rst part of the LCA included an inventory of all the materials used and emissions released by the system under investigation. In the following step, the inventory data were analyzed and aggregated in order to calculate one index representing the total environmental burden. In the scenario 1, fertilizers were produced with use of an integrated technology for the phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge ash (SSA) and P fertilizer production. Samples of SSA collected from two Polish mono-incineration plants were evaluated (Scenario 1a and Scenario 1b). In the scenario 2, P-based fertilizer (reference fertilizer – triple superphosphate) was produced from primary sources – phosphate rock.

The results of the LCA showed that both processes contribute to a potential environmental impact. The overall results showed that the production process of P-based fertilizer aff ects the environment primarily through the use of the P raw materials. The specifi c results showed that the highest impact on the environment was obtained for the Scenario 2 (1.94899 Pt). Scenario 1a and 1b showed the environmental benefi ts associated with the avoiding of SSA storage and its emissions, reaching -1.3475 Pt and -3.82062 Pt, respectively. Comparing results of LCA of P-based fertilizer production from diff erent waste streams, it was indicated that the better environmental performance was achieved in the scenario 1b, in which SSA had the higher content of P (52.5%) in the precipitate. In this case the lower amount of the energy and materials, including phosphoric acid, was needed for the production of fertilizer, calculated as 1 Mg P2O5. The results of the LCA may play a strategic role for the decision-makers in the aspect of searching and selection of the production and recovery technologies. By the environmental evaluation of diff erent alternatives of P-based fertilizers it is possible to recognize and implement the most sustainable solutions.

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Authors and Affiliations

Marzena Smol
1
ORCID: ORCID
Joanna Kulczycka
2
ORCID: ORCID
Łukasz Lelek
1
Katarzyna Gorazda
3
Zbigniew Wzorek
3

  1. Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences
  2. AGH University of Science and Technology, Poland
  3. Cracow University of Technology, Poland
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Abstract

Municipal waste management has been an area of special interest of the European Commission (EC) for many years. In 2018, the EC pointed out issues related to municipal waste management as an important element of the monitoring framework for the transition towards a circular economy (CE), which is currently a priority in the economic policy of the European Union (EU). In the presented monitoring framework, 10 CE indicators were identified, among which issues related to municipal waste appear directly in two areas of the CE – in the field of production and in the field of waste management, and indirectly – un two other areas – secondary raw materials, and competitiveness and innovation. The paper presents changes in the management of municipal waste in Poland in the context of the implementation of the CE assumptions, a discussion of the results of CE indicators in two areas of the CE monitoring framework in Poland (production and waste management), and a comparison of the results against other European countries.

In Poland, tasks related to the implementation of municipal waste management from July 1, 2013 are the responsibility of the municipality, which is obliged to ensure the conditions for the system of selective collection and collection of municipal waste from residents, as well as the construction, maintenance and operation of regional municipal waste treatment installations (RIPOK). The municipality is also committed to the proper management of municipal waste, in accordance with the European waste management hierarchy, whose overriding objective is to prevent waste formation and limiting its amount, then recycling and other forms of disposal, incineration and safe storage. The study analyzed changes in the value of two selected CE indicators, i.e. (1) the municipal waste generation indicator, in the area of production and (2) the municipal waste recycling indicator, in the area of waste management. For this purpose, statistical data of the Central Statistical Office (GUS) and Eurostat were used. Data has been presented since 2014, i.e. from the moment of initiating the need to move to the CE in the EU. In recent years, there has been an increase in the amount of municipal waste generated in Poland as well as in the EU. According to Eurostat, the amount of municipal waste generated per one inhabitant of Poland increased from 272 kg in 2014 to 315 kg in 2017. It should be noted that the average amount of municipal waste generated in Poland in 2017 was one of the lowest in EU, with a European average of 486 kg/person. Poland has achieved lower levels of municipal waste recycling (33.9%) than the European average (46%). The reason for Poland’s worse results in the recycling of municipal waste may be, among others, the lack of sufficiently developed waste processing infrastructure, operating in other countries such as Germany and Denmark, and definitely higher public awareness of the issue of municipal waste in developed countries. Municipal waste management in Poland faces a number of challenges in the implementation of GOZ, primarily in terms of achieving the recycling values imposed by the EC, up to a minimum of 55% by 2025.

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Authors and Affiliations

Marzena Smol
Joanna Kulczycka
Agnieszka Czaplicka-Kotas
Dariusz Włóka
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Abstract

The operation of thermal devices and installations, in particular heat exchangers, is associated

with the formation of various deposits of sediments, forming the boiler scale. The

amount of precipitate depends on the quality of the flowing liquids treatment, as well as

the intensity of the use of devices. There are both mechanical and chemical treatment methods

to remove these deposits. The chemical methods of boiler scale treatment include the

cleaning method consisting in dissolving boiler scale inside heat devices. Worked out descaling

concentrate contains phosphoric acid (V) and the components that inhibit corrosion,

anti-foam substances, as well as anti-microbial substances as formalin, ammonium chloride,

copper sulphate and zinc sulfate. Dissolution of the boiler scale results in the formation of

wastewater which can be totally utilized as raw materials in phosphoric fertilizer produc

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Authors and Affiliations

Piotr Olczak
Zygmunt Kowalski
Joanna Kulczycka
Agnieszka Makara
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Abstract

The Green Deal and the New Industrial Strategy for Europe recognize the access to raw materials and the security of supply from secondary and primary sources as essential for Europe’s transition to sustainability. It can be expected that with the development of the circular economy approach, the extraction of primary resources would be diminished, but it is emphasized that a circular economy may need a wider range of metals and other raw materials critical to the new environmentally friendly technology, especially in renewable energy and mobility. Therefore, the latest global initiatives and EU policies focus on ensuring resource efficiency in a holistic manner, from the extraction of raw materials to the re-use of the end products, which requires data transparency not only on material and waste flows, but also on financial and economic burdens including incentives and subsidies. In addition, for sectors with significant environmental impacts, the transparency of information on payments to central governments and local authorities can increase social acceptance and accountability and allow for further development. The paper analyzes regulations and initiatives supporting the disclosure of wider data than required in financial and corporate social responsibility reporting related to the implementation of a circular economy. As circular economy indicators take upstream resource flows into account, the transparency of environmental and economic data in the value chain is required, for example for the calculation of the environmental footprint. Moreover, transparency is important for mining companies’ stakeholders to increase social acceptance of mining activities and facilitate the transition to a circular economy.
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Authors and Affiliations

Agnieszka Nowaczek
1
ORCID: ORCID
Joanna Kulczycka
1
ORCID: ORCID
Ewa Dziobek
1
ORCID: ORCID
Daina Kalnina
2
ORCID: ORCID

  1. Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, Poland
  2. Riga Technical University, Ryga, Latvia

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