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Quantitative Sustainable Design (QSD): A Methodology for the Prioritization of Research, Development, and Deployment of Technologies | |
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Research, development, and deployment (RD&D) of innovative technologies are often impeded by the lack of transparent, systematic, and agile approaches to prioritize investment across the expansive landscape of technologies and design/operational decisions. This tutorial review synthesizes research on sustainability analyses to present Quantitative Sustainable Design (QSD) – a structured methodology to expedite the RD&D of water, sanitation, and resource recovery technologies. | |
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Li et al., Y.; T. Trimmer, J.; Hand, S.; Zhang, X.; G. Chambers, K.; C. Lohman, H. A.; Shi, R.; M. Byrne, D.; M. Cook, S.; S. Guest, J. Quantitative Sustainable Design (QSD) for the Prioritization of Research, Development, and Deployment of Technologies: A Tutorial and Review. Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol. 2022, 8 (11), 2439–2465. | |
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QSDsan: An Integrated Platform for Quantitative Sustainable Design of Sanitation and Resource Recovery Systems |
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Robust and agile tools are needed to support the research, development, and deployment (RD&D) of sanitation and resource recovery technologies. This work introduces QSDsan – an open-source Python tool that integrates system design, simulation, and sustainability characterization (techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment) to quickly identify critical barriers, prioritize research opportunities, and navigate multi-dimensional sustainability tradeoffs for technology RD&D. | |||
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Li, Y.; Zhang, X.; Morgan, V. L.; Lohman, H. A. C.; Rowles, L. S.; Mittal, S.; Kogler, A.; Cusick, R. D.; Tarpeh, W. A.; Guest, J. S. QSDsan: An Integrated Platform for Quantitative Sustainable Design of Sanitation and Resource Recovery Systems. Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol. 2022, 8 (10), 2289–2303. | |||
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DMsan: A Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis Framework and Package to Characterize Contextualized Sustainability of Sanitation and Resource Recovery Technologies | ||
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DMsan is an open-source multi-criteria decision analysis Python package that enables users to transparently compare sanitation and resource recovery alternatives and characterize the opportunity space for early-stage technologies. The core structure of DMsan includes five criteria (technical, resource recovery, economic, environmental, and social), 28 indicators, criteria weight scenarios, and indicator weight scenarios tailored to 250 countries/territories, all of which can be adapted by end-users. DMsan integrates with QSDsan for system design and simulation to calculate quantitative economic (via techno-economic analysis), environmental (via life cycle assessment), and resource recovery indicators under uncertainty. | ||
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Lohman, H. A. C.; Morgan, V. L.; Li, Y.; Zhang, X.; Rowles, L. S.; Cook, S. M.; Guest, J. S. DMsan: A Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis Framework and Package to Characterize Contextualized Sustainability of Sanitation and Resource Recovery Technologies. ACS Environ. Au 2023, 3 (3), 179–192. | ||
| Read Paper | DMsan Repository | |
Financial Viability and Environmental Sustainability of Fecal Sludge Treatment with Pyrolysis Omni Processors |
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Omni Processors (OPs) are community-scale systems for non-sewered fecal sludge treatment. These systems have demonstrated their capacity to treat excreta from tens of thousands of people using thermal treatment processes (e.g., pyrolysis), but their relative sustainability is unclear. In this study, QSDsan (an open-source Python package) was used to characterize the financial viability and environmental implications of fecal sludge treatment via pyrolysis-based OP technology treating mixed and source-separated human excreta and to elucidate the key drivers of system sustainability. | ||
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Rowles, L. S.; Morgan, V. L.; Li, Y.; Zhang, X.; Watabe, S.; Stephen, T.; Lohman, H. A. C.; DeSouza, D.; Hallowell, J.; Cusick, R. D.; Guest, J. S. Financial Viability and Environmental Sustainability of Fecal Sludge Treatment with Pyrolysis Omni Processors. ACS Environ. Au 2022, 2 (5), 455–466. | ||
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Advancing the Economic and Environmental Sustainability of the NEWgenerator Nonsewered Sanitation System | |
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NEWgenerator is a nonsewered sanitation (NSS) system that includes an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR), nutrient recovery via ion exchange, and electrochlorination. The system has been shown to achieve robust treatment of real waste for over 100 users, but the technology’s relative life cycle sustainability remains unclear. This study characterizes the financial viability and life cycle environmental impacts of the NEWgenerator and prioritizes opportunities to advance system sustainability through targeted improvements and deployment. This research demonstrates that the NEWgenerator is a low-cost, low-emission NSS treatment technology with the potential for resource recovery to increase access to safe sanitation. Source code unavailable due to non disclosure agreement. | |
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Watabe, S.; Lohman, H. A. C.; Li, Y.; Morgan, V. L.; Rowles, L. S.; Stephen, T.; Shyu, H.-Y.; Bair, R. A.; Castro, C. J.; Cusick, R. D.; Yeh, D. H.; Guest, J. S. Advancing the Economic and Environmental Sustainability of the NEWgenerator Nonsewered Sanitation System. ACS Environ. Au 2023, 3 (4), 209–222. | |
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Characterizing the Opportunity Space for Sustainable Hydrothermal Valorization of Wet Organic Wastes |
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Resource recovery from wetorganic wastes cans upport circular economies by creating financial incentives to produce renewable energy and return nutrients to agriculture. In this study, we characterize the potential for hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) based resource recovery systems to advance the economic and environmental sustainability of wastewater sludge, FOG (fats,oils,and grease), food waste, green waste, and animal manure management through the production of liquid biofuels (naphtha, diesel), fertilizers (struvite, ammonium sulfate), and power (heat, electricity). In addition to two unique analysis perspectives (waste management vs. fuel production), we also set specific targets for the future development of hydrothermal waste management systems through uncertainty analysis and Monte Carlo filtering. Overall, our work demonstrates the potential ofHTL-based resource recovery systems to reduce the costs and carbon intensity of resource-rich organic wastes. | ||
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Feng, J.; Li, Y.; Strathmann, T. J.; Guest, J. S. Characterizing the Opportunity Space for Sustainable Hydrothermal Valorization of Wet Organic Wastes. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c07394. | ||
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