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This paper aims to identify the magnitude of energy efficiency improvement, which has been promoted through energy efficiency labeling and the Minimum Energy Performance Standard, and to compare this against the increase in the number of products and the average increase in cooling capacity. Air conditioners (ACs) are one of the major contributors to energy consumption in a household. To assess the magnitude of this factor, we developed a formula to decompose total energy consumption from ACs into the number of ACs, their average cooling capacity, and energy efficiency. In the case of ACs in Thailand, energy efficiency improvement has offset the increase in the average AC cooling capacity. However, energy consumption from ACs increases with the number of ACs.

This paper aims to identify the magnitude of energy efficiency improvement, which has been promoted through energy efficiency labeling and the Minimum Energy Performance Standard, and to compare this against the increase in the number of products and the average increase in cooling capacity. Air conditioners (ACs) are one of the major contributors to energy consumption in a household. To assess the magnitude of this factor, we developed a formula to decompose total energy consumption from ACs into the number of ACs, their average cooling capacity, and energy efficiency. In the case of ACs in Thailand, energy efficiency improvement has offset the increase in the average AC cooling capacity. However, energy consumption from ACs increases with the number of ACs.

This study discusses a new use of DEA environmental assessment to measure a possible occurrence of desirable congestion, or eco-technology innovation, in electric power plants. The phenomenon is compared with an occurrence of undesirable congestion in this study. The identification of undesirable congestion is important to avoid a cost increase and a shortage of generation. However, the identification of desirable congestion is much more important than that of undesirable congestion from the perspective of environmental assessment. This study looks for a sustainable economic growth by identifying eco-technology innovation that can be effectively used to reduce the amount of air pollution so that electric power companies satisfy a governmental standard on environmental protection. The proposed approach is applied to evaluate the performance of coal-fired power plants in the United States. This study finds two policy implications. First, power plants operated by bituminous coal (i.e., black coal) outperform those with sub-bituminous coal (i.e., brawn coal). The result implies that power plants with sub-bituminous coal should be replaced by bituminous coal. Second, the undesirable congestion, due to a line limit between points of power generation and consumption, may occur on most of coal-fired power plants. In contrast, desirable congestion, due to eco-technology innovation, may occur on a limited number of power plants. Thus, the identification of desirable congestion assists us in selecting which technology, or the type of power plant, should be invested to facilitate eco-technology innovation and its related engineering management for a future sustainable economic growth.

This study discusses a new use of DEA environmental assessment to measure a possible occurrence of desirable congestion, or eco-technology innovation, in electric power plants. The phenomenon is compared with an occurrence of undesirable congestion in this study. The identification of undesirable congestion is important to avoid a cost increase and a shortage of generation. However, the identification of desirable congestion is much more important than that of undesirable congestion from the perspective of environmental assessment. This study looks for a sustainable economic growth by identifying eco-technology innovation that can be effectively used to reduce the amount of air pollution so that electric power companies satisfy a governmental standard on environmental protection. The proposed approach is applied to evaluate the performance of coal-fired power plants in the United States. This study finds two policy implications. First, power plants operated by bituminous coal (i.e., black coal) outperform those with sub-bituminous coal (i.e., brawn coal). The result implies that power plants with sub-bituminous coal should be replaced by bituminous coal. Second, the undesirable congestion, due to a line limit between points of power generation and consumption, may occur on most of coal-fired power plants. In contrast, desirable congestion, due to eco-technology innovation, may occur on a limited number of power plants. Thus, the identification of desirable congestion assists us in selecting which technology, or the type of power plant, should be invested to facilitate eco-technology innovation and its related engineering management for a future sustainable economic growth.

Marine macroalgae (green, red and brown macroalgae) have attracted attention as an alternative source of renewable biomass for producing both fuels and chemicals due to their high content of suitable carbohydrates and to their advantages over terrestrial biomass. However, except for green macroalgae, which contain relatively easily-fermentable glucans as their major carbohydrates, practical utilization of red and brown macroalgae has been regarded as difficult due to the major carbohydrates (alginate and mannitol of brown macroalgae and 3,6-anhydro-L-galactose of red macroalgae) not being easily fermentable. Recently, several key biotechnologies using microbes have been developed enabling utilization of these brown and red macroalgal carbohydrates as carbon sources for the production of fuels (ethanol). In this review, we focus on these recent developments with emphasis on microbiological biotechnologies.

Marine macroalgae (green, red and brown macroalgae) have attracted attention as an alternative source of renewable biomass for producing both fuels and chemicals due to their high content of suitable carbohydrates and to their advantages over terrestrial biomass. However, except for green macroalgae, which contain relatively easily-fermentable glucans as their major carbohydrates, practical utilization of red and brown macroalgae has been regarded as difficult due to the major carbohydrates (alginate and mannitol of brown macroalgae and 3,6-anhydro-L-galactose of red macroalgae) not being easily fermentable. Recently, several key biotechnologies using microbes have been developed enabling utilization of these brown and red macroalgal carbohydrates as carbon sources for the production of fuels (ethanol). In this review, we focus on these recent developments with emphasis on microbiological biotechnologies.

The environmental tolerance should not exceed the global self-purification capacity. The industrial revolution that began with the invention of the steam engine is the large scale of energy consumption industry, and creates out electricity and car civilized society. When it tries to arrange the energy resource with firewood, coal, petroleum, natural gas, methane hydrate, the hydrogen of the energy efficiency is better than that of the carbon in the direction of the decarbonization element, decarbonization element will show the new industry society.

The environmental tolerance should not exceed the global self-purification capacity. The industrial revolution that began with the invention of the steam engine is the large scale of energy consumption industry, and creates out electricity and car civilized society. When it tries to arrange the energy resource with firewood, coal, petroleum, natural gas, methane hydrate, the hydrogen of the energy efficiency is better than that of the carbon in the direction of the decarbonization element, decarbonization element will show the new industry society.