Environmental benchmarking of the largest fossil-fueled electricity generating plants in the U.S.

Joseph Sarkis

doi:10.1117/12.518791

27 February 2004 Environmental benchmarking of the largest fossil-fueled electricity generating plants in the U.S

Joseph Sarkis

Proceedings Volume 5262, Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing III; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.518791
Event: Photonics Technologies for Robotics, Automation, and Manufacturing, 2003, Providence, RI, United States

Abstract

Environmental management, to be effective, requires performance evaluation and process improvement. This is especially the case in fossil-fueled electricity generating plants. Although eco-efficient management of these types of organizations are critical to local, national and global environmental issues, few studies have focused on performance measurement and eco-efficiency improvements in this industry. This study evaluates the eco-efficiencies of the top 100 major U.S. fossil-fueled electricity generating plants from 1998 data. Using a multi-criteria non-parametric productivity model (data envelopment analysis) efficiency scores are determined. These efficiency scores are treated by a clustering method in identifying benchmarks for improving poorly performing plants. Efficiency measures are based on three resource input measures including boiler generating capacity, total fuel heat used, and total generator capacity, and four output measures including actual energy generated, SO2, NOx, and CO2 emissions. The purpose of this paper is two-fold, to introduce the methodology’s application to eco-efficiency performance measurement and show some characteristics of the benchmarked plants and groups.

Citation Download Citation

Joseph Sarkis "Environmental benchmarking of the largest fossil-fueled electricity generating plants in the U.S", Proc. SPIE 5262, Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing III, (27 February 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.518791

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available