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Devi Buehler
Institute of Natural Resource Sciences, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Wädenswil, Switzerland

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Original paper
Published: 12 July 2021 in Circular Economy and Sustainability
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In the scope of this study, a pilot facility for the recycling of laundry effluent was developed and tested. With the aim to enable nearly complete energy and water self-sufficiency, the system is powered by a photovoltaic plant with second-life batteries, treats the wastewater within the unit and constantly reuses the treated wastewater for washing in a closed cycle. The technology for wastewater treatment is based on a low-tech approach consisting of a physical/mechanical pre-treatment and biological treatment in trickling filter columns. The treatment process is operated in batch mode for a capacity of five washing cycles per day. During five weeks of operation water quality, energy consumption and production, water losses and washing performance were monitored. The system recovered 69% of the used water for the washing machine while treating the wastewater to the necessary water quality levels. The average COD removal rate per cycle was 92%. Energy analysis was based on modelled data of the monitored energy consumption. With the current set-up, an internal consumption rate of 80% and self-sufficiency of 30% were modelled. Future developments aim at increasing water and energy self-sufficiency and optimizing the water treatment efficiency.

ACS Style

Devi Buehler; Nadine Antenen; Matthias Frei; Christoph Koller; Diederik P. L. Rousseau; Andreas Schoenborn; Ranka Junge. Towards Water and Energy Self-Sufficiency: a Closed-Loop, Solar-Driven, Low-Tech Laundry Pilot Facility (LaundReCycle) for the Reuse of Laundry Wastewater. Circular Economy and Sustainability 2021, 1 -15.

AMA Style

Devi Buehler, Nadine Antenen, Matthias Frei, Christoph Koller, Diederik P. L. Rousseau, Andreas Schoenborn, Ranka Junge. Towards Water and Energy Self-Sufficiency: a Closed-Loop, Solar-Driven, Low-Tech Laundry Pilot Facility (LaundReCycle) for the Reuse of Laundry Wastewater. Circular Economy and Sustainability. 2021; ():1-15.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Devi Buehler; Nadine Antenen; Matthias Frei; Christoph Koller; Diederik P. L. Rousseau; Andreas Schoenborn; Ranka Junge. 2021. "Towards Water and Energy Self-Sufficiency: a Closed-Loop, Solar-Driven, Low-Tech Laundry Pilot Facility (LaundReCycle) for the Reuse of Laundry Wastewater." Circular Economy and Sustainability , no. : 1-15.

Review
Published: 29 October 2016 in Sustainability
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The aim of this study was to analyze current practices in commercial urban rooftop farming (URF). In recent years, URF has been experiencing increasing popularity. It is a practice that is well-suited to enhancing food security in cities and reducing the environmental impact that results from long transportation distances that are common in conventional agriculture. To date, most URF initiatives have been motivated by social and educational factors rather than the aim of creating large sustainable food production systems in cities. The commercial operation of urban rooftop farms, should they become profitable, is likely to attract notable private investment, allowing a significant level of high quality urban food production to be achieved. There is a reasonable amount of literature available on urban farming that deals with its potential, and its limitations. However, it does not focus on commercial operations. In contrast to other surveys and theoretical papers, this study of URF focuses on large and commercial operations. The analysis showed that commercial URFs can be grouped into two main types: Firstly, hydroponic systems in greenhouses where mostly leafy greens, tomatoes, and herbs are grown; secondly, soil-based open-air farms that grow a large variety of vegetables. Hydroponics is frequently seen as the key technology for commercial urban food production. While the technology is not in and of itself sustainable, hydroponic farms often make an effort to implement environmentally friendly technologies and methods. However, there is still untapped potential to systemically integrate farms into buildings. The findings of this study identified where future research is needed in order to make URF a widespread sustainable solution.

ACS Style

Devi Buehler; Ranka Junge. Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming. Sustainability 2016, 8, 1108 .

AMA Style

Devi Buehler, Ranka Junge. Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming. Sustainability. 2016; 8 (11):1108.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Devi Buehler; Ranka Junge. 2016. "Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming." Sustainability 8, no. 11: 1108.

Journal article
Published: 27 April 2015 in Sustainability
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The operation of so-called Zero Emission Buildings (ZEB) does not result in harmful emissions to water, soil and air. In contrast, ZEBs produce energy, water and resources. Therefore, the definition of ZEBs in this paper goes well beyond the definition of (Net) Zero Energy Buildings, which focuses primarily on greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels. The concept of ZEB is based on the decentralization of urban infrastructure systems on the building level. The aim is to avoid environmental impacts during the building operation through sustainable production, management, consumption, and recycling of resources. In order to facilitate an easy evaluation of ZEBs a ZEB assessment tool needed to be developed. This paper discusses the development of the general framework, the assessment method, and the ZEB Assessment Tool (ZEBAT), which facilitates the evaluation of the environmental performance of potential ZEBs. The exemplary evaluation of selected case studies from Switzerland and South Korea illustrates the method and the practicability of the ZEBAT for the evaluation of potential ZEBs. The holistic integration of environmental performance factors and their specific environmental impacts facilitates the successful application of the ZEBAT independently from the specific use of a building and its geographical location.

ACS Style

Devi Bühler; Thorsten Schuetze; Ranka Junge. Towards Development of a Label for Zero Emission Buildings: A Tool to Evaluate Potential Zero Emission Buildings. Sustainability 2015, 7, 5071 -5093.

AMA Style

Devi Bühler, Thorsten Schuetze, Ranka Junge. Towards Development of a Label for Zero Emission Buildings: A Tool to Evaluate Potential Zero Emission Buildings. Sustainability. 2015; 7 (5):5071-5093.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Devi Bühler; Thorsten Schuetze; Ranka Junge. 2015. "Towards Development of a Label for Zero Emission Buildings: A Tool to Evaluate Potential Zero Emission Buildings." Sustainability 7, no. 5: 5071-5093.