Resource Misallocation and Energy-Related Pollution

Developing countries face the conflict between economic development and environmental protection. Resource misallocation will not only affect the effectiveness of economic development, but also have environmental impacts. Based on two large-scale enterprise databases in China, this paper measured the level of enterprise resource allocation, and further used empirical research methods to investigate the environmental impact of enterprise resource misallocation and specific mechanisms. The results show that the low efficiency of resource allocation will harm the quality of China’s environment. Further investigation, resource misallocation is accompanied by an increase in total energy input, a decrease in the labor-to-energy ratio and the capital-to-energy ratio, and a loss of energy efficiency, which in turn affects the environmental performance of enterprises. China is the largest developing country in the world, and research on China’s environmental and economic issues is important. The conclusions of this paper can provide experience and suggestions for other developing countries to improve environmental quality and promote sustainable development from the perspective of resource misallocation.

Comparison of energy inputs and energy efficiency for maize in a long-term tillage experiment under Pannonian climate conditions

Sustainable crop production requires an efficient usage of fossil energy. This six-year study on a silt loam soil (chernozem) analysed the energy efficiency of four tillage systems (mouldboard plough 25–30 cm, deep conservation tillage 35 cm, shallow conservation tillage 8–10 cm, no-tillage). Fuel consumption, total energy input (made up of both direct and indirect input), grain of maize yield, energy output, net-energy output, energy intensity and energy use efficiency were considered. The input rates of fertiliser, herbicides and seeds were set constant; measured values of fuel consumption were used for all tillage operations. Total fuel consumption for maize (Zea mays L.) production was 81.6, 81.5, 69.5 and 53.2 L/ha for the four tillage systems. Between 60% and 64% of the total energy input (17.0–17.4 GJ/ha) was indirect energy (seeds, fertiliser, herbicides, machinery). The share of fertiliser energy of the total energy input was 36% on average across all tillage treatments. Grain drying was the second highest energy consumer with about 22%. Grain yield and energy output were mainly determined by the year. The tillage effect on yield and energy efficiency was smaller than the growing year effect. Over all six years, maize produced in the no-tillage system reached the highest energy efficiency.

Meta-Analysis on Energy-Use Patterns of Cropping Systems in Iran

We present a meta-analysis of energy-consumption and environmental-emissions patterns in Iranian cropping systems using data collected from articles published between 2008 and 2018 for 21 different crops. The results show that the crops consuming the most energy per hectare are tomato, sugarcane, cucumber and alfalfa, while sunflower consumed the least. The average total energy input for all crops in Iran during the study period was 48,029 MJ ha−1. Our analysis revealed that potato has the highest potential to reduce energy consumption and that electricity and fertilizer inputs have the most potential for energy savings in cropping systems. Not all studies reviewed addressed the factors that create energy consumption patterns and environmental emissions. Therefore, eight indicators were modeled in this meta-analysis, which include Total Energy Input, Energy Productivity, Energy Use Efficiency, Net Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Technical Efficiency, Pure Technical Efficiency and Scale Efficiency. The effects of region (which was analyzed in terms of climate), year and crop or product type on these eight indicators were modeled using meta-regression and the nonparametric Kruskal–Wallis test. To create a comprehensive picture and roadmap for future research, the process of the agricultural-systems analysis cycle is discussed. This review and meta-analysis can be used as a guide to provide useful information to researchers working on the energy dynamics of agricultural systems, especially in Iran, and in making their choices of crop types and regions in need of study.

Technical, Field, Economic and Energy Comparison of Cutter Bar Maize Header With Snap Roll Maize Header

In India, most of the maize combine harvester currently being used employs snap roll type header. This type of header is costly, dependent on row spacing of maize crop and causes losses at headlands during turning. Moreover owing to its heavy weight its frequent lifting and downing during harvesting season causes hydraulic leakages in certain sections of combine. Therefore to overcome these problems a new light weight cutter bar Maize header is developed and evaluated for maize crop. The performance evaluation of the cutter bar type maize header is done in a dislodged and a partially lodged (30-40%) maize crop. For lodged crops, the header losses varied from 19.18-26.71% and for dislodged crops it was varied from 5.29-10.15% respectively. The cylinder losses for dislodged crop varied from 2.70-2.86% and for lodged crop it varied from 0.85-2.04%. The mean cleaning efficiency for lodged and dislodged maize crop was found as 88.87% and 90.58% respectively. The grain damage for lodged and dislodged crop was observed as 8.31% and 5.94% respectively. The trash content for lodged and dislodged crop was 2.75 and 3.45% respectively. The performance of snap roll and cutter bar was also done. Total losses with snap roll header were higher as 15.06% and lower for cutter bar as 10.85%. The brokens were higher for cutter bar as 5.94 and lower for snap roll as 3.45%. The trash content was 3.45% for cutter bar header and 2.24% for snap roll header. The total energy input in snap roll header, cutter bar maize header and maize dehusker cum sheller were 2360.05, 1970.90 and 3770.48 MJ/ha respectively.The cost of operatin with cutter bar maize header, snap roll maize header and maize dehusker cum sheller were 53.62 $/ha, 68.73$/ha 187.32 $/ha respectively.

Energy Efficiency of Continuous Rye, Rotational Rye and Barley in Different Fertilization Systems in a Long-Term Field Experiment

A goal in sustainable agriculture is to use fossil energy more efficiently in crop production. This 60-year-old experiment on a silt loam chernozem investigated effects of fertilization (unfertilized control, mineral fertilizer (NPK) and farmyard manure (FYM)) and rotation (continuous winter rye (CR), winter rye in rotation (RR), spring barley in rotation (SB) on diesel fuel consumption, total energy input (made of both direct and indirect inputs), crop yield, energy output, net-energy output, energy intensity, energy productivity and energy use efficiency. The input rates of fertilizer, herbicides and seeds were set constant during the experiment. Soil tillage was done with a moldboard plough with subsequent combined seedbed preparation and seeding. The mean calculated total energy input was highest in NPK with 11.28 GJ ha−1 and lowest in the unfertilized control with 5.00 GJ ha−1. Total energy input for FYM was intermediate with 6.30 GJ ha−1. With energetic consideration of NPK nutrients in FYM the total energy input increased to the level of NPK. The share of the fertilizer energy on the total energy input was 49% for NPK. Fertilization with FYM and NPK increased yield and energy output considerably, especially of CR and SB which attained about doubled values. Crop rotation also increased the yield and energy output, especially of unfertilized rye, which attained values increased by about 75%. Fertilization with FYM resulted in the highest energy efficiency as the net-energy output, the energy productivity and the energy use efficiency were higher but the energy intensity was lower compared to unfertilized controls and NPK. When the nutrients in FYM were also energetically considered, the energy efficiency parameters of FYM decreased to the level of the NPK treatment. Crop rotation increased the energy efficiency of winter rye compared to the monoculture.

Energy and Environmental Assessment of Straw Production for Power Generation

Agricultural residues, including straw, are important energy feedstock for electricity generation. This study aims to develop a model for energy and environmental assessment of straw production, taking into account its life cycle. The proposed mathematical model allows us to distribute input energy (into any crop production) and emit carbon dioxide (during crop production) between grain and straw formation. It takes into account direct energy input (fuels, electricity, etc.), indirect energy input (fertilizer, herbicide, etc.), and energy required in manufacturing agricultural tractors and implements. It has been found that straw formation consumes from 41 to 66 % of the total energy input and CO2 emissions.

Estimation of the Dissipative Heat Sources Related to the Total Energy Input of a CFRP Composite by Using the Second Amplitude Harmonic of the Thermal Signal

Theories for predicting the fatigue behaviour of composite laminates often make strong assumptions on the damage mechanisms that strongly depend on the designed laminate lay-up. In this regard, several physical and empirical models were proposed in the literature that generally require experimental validations. The experimental techniques, such as thermography, also provide useful tools for monitoring the behaviour of the specific material so, that they can be used to support the study of the damage mechanisms of materials. In this research, the second amplitude harmonic of the thermal signal has been investigated and used to assess the relationship with the total energy input in order to estimate the fatigue strength of the material. A thermal index was assessed by monitoring the constant amplitude tests (S/N curve) that were performed on a quasi-isotropic carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminate obtained by the automated fibre placement process. The obtained results demonstrated the capability of the second amplitude harmonic of the thermal signal to describe and monitor the fatigue damage.

Numerical Simulation of Particle Breakage of Granular Assemblies in Discrete Element Analyses

This paper presents numerical simulations of high-pressure biaxial tests on breakable granular soils with the discrete element method. The 2D setting is more economic in terms of computational cost, which allows simulation with a larger number of particles with a wider size distribution. The results of breakable and unbreakable agglomerates show that particle breakage has a significant influence on the macro- and micromechanical behaviors of the assembly. Higher confining pressure and larger axial strain result in the variation of particle grading and agglomerate numbers. The evolution of bond breakage during shearing makes it possible to trace the failure process and breakage mechanism at the microlevel. The breakage energy is found to account for a small fraction of total energy input compared with friction energy. A hyperbolic correlation between relative particle breakage and total energy input per unit volume was established regardless of the influence of confining pressure.

Electric Water Heater Energy Consumption Determination Using Outlet Temperature and Volumetric Estimation

This paper presents the use of outlet temperature and water meter data as inputs to a physical model of a domestic electric water heater (EWH) for estimating the energy consumption for various control settings. Four sets of actual household data, consisting of at least 7 consecutive days each, is used to determine the accuracy of the energy consumption estimates in comparison to measured energy consumption. Both the outlet temperature and water meter data inputs used were able to estimate the total energy input with an error of less than 10 percent for 3 of the 4 datasets considered. Additionally, both methods are also implemented as a smartphone application that can be used to obtain input from users, as well as provide instantaneous feedback on the impact of control changes.