Ecological Footprint as a sustainability indicator to analyze energy consumption in a Portuguese textile facility

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2018

Authors

Isabella Costa (Author) FEUP; fernando G. Martins (Author) FEUP; I. Alves (Author) Other

Journal

Title: International Journal of Energy and Environmental Engineering

Vol. 10 No. 4

Pages: 523-528

ISSN: 2008-9163

Publisher: Springer Nature

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 4 Citations

INSPEC

Associated Projects

LEPABE-2-ECO-INNOVATION - LEPABE-2-ECO-INNOVATION

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00N-QCH

DOI: 10.1007/s40095-018-0268-6

Abstract (EN): The main objective of this paper is to apply Ecological Footprint methodology as a tool to analyze the Portuguese textile industry. This analysis is related to energy and resources consumption in dyeing, printing and finishing processes. It also includes identification of mitigation measures to increase energy efficiency, promoting at the same time the reduction of CO2 emissions and consequently the decrease in industry's Ecological Footprint. Moreover, the analysis presents the Ecological Footprint reduction potential for each mitigation option proposed for an important textile facility located in the North Region of Portugal, used as a case study in this work. The results for the case study showed that the total Ecological Footprint accounted, for the year 2016, summed up to 4890 gha. Furthermore, the energy category corresponds to more than 50% of the total Ecological Footprint estimation, and natural gas was the most required fuel for the processes. The calculation of the Ecological Footprint in the textile facilities can be used as a tool to analyze the processes' energy efficiency and to quantify the global impact of the implementation of mitigation measures in the energy field. The result is an indicator shown in a common unit, gha (global hectare) and it can be easily used to compare energy-intensive processes and industrial sectors. In addition, it can be used to analyze how each sector can impact the country's total demand for resources.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 6