Life Cycle Assessment applied to a new system for sea wave energy harvesting

A new technology for wave energy harvesting is currently under development at the University of Palermo. The target is the exploitation of sea waves in the Mediterranean Sea, and small islands. The paper suggests an innovative technology for the wave energy harvesting in onshore areas. Indeed, the machine can be installed on existing infrastructures, like breakwaters of harbours. A small-scale prototype was already tested in laboratory. In this paper, a Life Cycle Assessment is performed to evaluate the environmental impacts of this technology, considering the potential energy production as functional unit.