scholarly journals Using life cycle assessment to quantify the environmental benefit of upcycling vine shoots as fillers in biocomposite packaging materials

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grégoire David ◽  
Giovanna Croxatto Vega ◽  
Joshua Sohn ◽  
Anna Ekman Nilsson ◽  
Arnaud Hélias ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Composite Materials ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Filler Content ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Environmental Benefit ◽  
Dry Fractionation ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Purpose The objective of the present study was to better understand the potential environmental benefit of using vine shoots (ViShs), an agricultural residue, as filler in composite materials. For that purpose, a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of a rigid tray made of virgin poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) PHBV, polylactic acid (PLA) or polypropylene (PP), and increasing content of ViSh particles was performed. The contribution of each processing step in the life cycle on the different environmental impacts was identified and discussed. Furthermore, the balance between the environmental and the economic benefits of composite trays was discussed. Methods This work presents a cradle-to-grave LCA of composite rigid trays. Once collected in vineyards, ViShs were dried and ground using dry fractionation processes, then mixed with a polymer matrix by melt extrusion to produce compounds that were finally injected to obtain rigid trays for food packaging. The density of each component was taken into account in order to compare trays with the same volume. The maximum filler content was set to 30 vol% according to recommendations from literature and industrial data. The ReCiPe 2016 Midpoint Hierarchist (H) methodology was used for the assessment using the cutoff system model. Results and discussion This study showed that bioplastics are currently less eco-friendly than PP. This is in part due to the fact that LCA does not account for, in existing tools, effects of microplastic accumulation and that bioplastic technologies are still under development with low tonnage. This study also demonstrated the environmental interest of the development of biocomposites by the incorporation of ViSh particles. The minimal filler content of interest depended on the matrices and the impact categories. Concerning global warming, composite trays had less impact than virgin plastic trays from 5 vol% for PHBV or PLA and from 20 vol% for PP. Concerning PHBV, the only biodegradable polymer in natural conditions in this study, the price and the impact on global warming are reduced by 25% and 20% respectively when 30 vol% of ViSh are added. Conclusion The benefit of using vine shoots in composite materials from an environmental and economical point of view was demonstrated. As a recommendation, the polymer production step, which constitutes the most important impact, should be optimized and the maximum filler content in composite materials should be increased.

Life Cycle Assessment of Particulate Recycled Low Density Polyethylene and Recycled Polypropylene Reinforced with Talc and Fiberglass

2011 ◽  
Vol 471-472 ◽  
pp. 999-1004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariam Al-Ma'adeed ◽  
Gozde Ozerkan ◽  
Ramazan Kahraman ◽  
Saravanan Rajendran ◽  
Alma Hodzic
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Composite Materials ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Human Toxicity ◽  
Acidification Potential ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Abiotic Depletion

Although recycled polymers and reinforced polymer composites have been in use for many years there is little information available on their environmental impacts. The goal of the present study is to analyze the environmental impact of new composite materials obtained from the combination of recycled thermoplastics (polypropylene [PP] and polyethylene [PE]) with mineral fillers like talc and with glass fiber. The environmental impact of these composite materials is compared to the impact of virgin PP and PE. The recycled and virgin materials were compared using life cycle assessment method according to their environmental effects. Within the scope of the study, GaBi software was used for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) analysis. From cradle-to-grave life cycle inventory studies were performed for 1 kg of each of the thermoplastics. Landfilling was considered as reference scenario and compared with filled recycled plastics. A quantitative impact assessment was performed for four environmental impact categories, global warming (GWP) over a hundred years, human toxicity (HTP), abiotic depletion (ADP) and acidification potential (AP) were taken into consideration during LCA. In the comparison of recycled and virgin polymers, it was seen that recycling has lower environmental effect for different impact assessment methods like acidification potential, abiotic depletion, human toxicity and global warming.

scholarly journals Case study of a water bioengineering construction site in Austria. Ecological aspects and application of an environmental life cycle assessment model

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. von der Thannen ◽  
S. Hoerbinger ◽  
C. Muellebner ◽  
H. Biber ◽  
H. P. Rauch
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Construction Site ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Environmental Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Soil And Water

AbstractRecently, applications of soil and water bioengineering constructions using living plants and supplementary materials have become increasingly popular. Besides technical effects, soil and water bioengineering has the advantage of additionally taking into consideration ecological values and the values of landscape aesthetics. When implementing soil and water bioengineering structures, suitable plants must be selected, and the structures must be given a dimension taking into account potential impact loads. A consideration of energy flows and the potential negative impact of construction in terms of energy and greenhouse gas balance has been neglected until now. The current study closes this gap of knowledge by introducing a method for detecting the possible negative effects of installing soil and water bioengineering measures. For this purpose, an environmental life cycle assessment model has been applied. The impact categories global warming potential and cumulative energy demand are used in this paper to describe the type of impacts which a bioengineering construction site causes. Additionally, the water bioengineering measure is contrasted with a conventional civil engineering structure. The results determine that the bioengineering alternative performs slightly better, in terms of energy demand and global warming potential, than the conventional measure. The most relevant factor is shown to be the impact of the running machines at the water bioengineering construction site. Finally, an integral ecological assessment model for applications of soil and water bioengineering structures should point out the potential negative effects caused during installation and, furthermore, integrate the assessment of potential positive effects due to the development of living plants in the use stage of the structures.

scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Households in Santiago, Chile: Environmental Hotspots and Policy Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2525
Author(s):  
Camila López-Eccher ◽  
Elizabeth Garrido-Ramírez ◽  
Iván Franchi-Arzola ◽  
Edmundo Muñoz
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Food Consumption ◽  
Household Income ◽  
Resource Scarcity ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Freshwater Eutrophication

The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of household life cycles in Santiago, Chile, by household income level. The assessment considered scenarios associated with environmental policies. The life cycle assessment was cradle-to-grave, and the functional unit considered all the materials and energy required to meet an inhabitant’s needs for one year (1 inh/year). Using SimaPro 9.1 software, the Recipe Midpoint (H) methodology was used. The impact categories selected were global warming, fine particulate matter formation, terrestrial acidification, freshwater eutrophication, freshwater ecotoxicity, mineral resource scarcity, and fossil resource scarcity. The inventory was carried out through the application of 300 household surveys and secondary information. The main environmental sources of households were determined to be food consumption, transport, and electricity. Food consumption is the main source, responsible for 33% of the environmental impacts on global warming, 69% on terrestrial acidification, and 29% on freshwater eutrophication. The second most crucial environmental hotspot is private transport, whose contribution to environmental impact increases as household income rises, while public transport impact increases in the opposite direction. In this sense, both positive and negative environmental effects can be generated by policies. Therefore, life-cycle environmental impacts, the synergy between policies, and households’ socio-economic characteristics must be considered in public policy planning and consumer decisions.

scholarly journals Global Warming Impacts Study of Tofu Products in Mampang Prapatan Small and Medium Enterprises with Life Cycle Assessment Methods

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bayu Sukmana ◽  
Isti Surjandari ◽  
Muryanto . ◽  
Arief A. R. Setiawan ◽  
Edi Iswanto Wiloso
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Liquefied Petroleum Gas ◽  
Fuel Wood ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
The Impact

Firstly global warming issue caused by greenhouse gas emissions (CO2) which comes from human activities. Along with increasing of daily need, that humans of activities food produce is also increase, include of tofu. Tofu is a traditional Indonesian specialty made from soybeans and used as a side dish. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of global warming from tofu products on Mampang Prapatan's Small Tofu and Medium Enterprises. The method used in this study is the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method with the help of Simapro 8.4 software with a 1 kg tofu functional unit. The data collected in this study is the average data of tofu production for 3 months, namely January - March 2018. The LCA data in this study include the process of soybean cultivation, transportation processes for shipping soybeans, water, fuel wood, and electricity use. The limitations of this study are from cradle (soybean cultivation) to gate (tofu products).The results showed that UKM Mampang Prapatan has the potential impact of global warming with a value of 3.84 kg CO2-eq, while the value of global warming in the production process knows the scenario of wastewater treatment and the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) as fuel for boiling pulp 4.49 kg CO2-eq soybeans. Based on the results of this study, greenhouse gas (CO2) emissions are issued; the intervention that can be done is to optimize the use of raw materials for production to reduce the impact of CO2-eq kg global warming.

Life cycle assessment of potential municipal solid waste management strategies for Mumbai, India

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhupendra K Sharma ◽  
Munish K Chandel
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Municipal Solid Waste ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Solid Waste Management ◽  
Municipal Solid Waste Management ◽  
Human Toxicity ◽  
The Impact

Dumping of municipal solid waste into uncontrolled dumpsites is the most common method of waste disposal in most cities of India. These dumpsites are posing a serious challenge to environmental quality and sustainable development. Mumbai, which generates over 9000 t of municipal solid waste daily, also disposes of most of its waste in open dumps. It is important to analyse the impact of municipal solid waste disposal today and what would be the impact under integrated waste management schemes. In this study, life cycle assessment methodology was used to determine the impact of municipal solid waste management under different scenarios. Six different scenarios were developed as alternatives to the current practice of open dumping and partially bioreactor landfilling. The scenarios include landfill with biogas collection, incineration and different combinations of recycling, landfill, composting, anaerobic digestion and incineration. Global warming, acidification, eutrophication and human toxicity were assessed as environmental impact categories. The sensitivity analysis shows that if the recycling rate is increased from 10% to 90%, the environmental impacts as compared with present scenario would reduce from 998.43 kg CO2 eq t−1 of municipal solid waste, 0.124 kg SO2 eq t−1, 0.46 kg PO4−3 eq t−1, 0.44 kg 1,4-DB eq t−1 to 892.34 kg CO2 eq t−1, 0.121 kg SO2 eq t−1, 0.36 kg PO4−3 eq t−1, 0.40 kg 1,4-DB eq t−1, respectively. An integrated municipal solid waste management approach with a mix of recycling, composting, anaerobic digestion and landfill had the lowest overall environmental impact. The technologies, such as incineration, would reduce the global warming emission because of the highest avoided emissions, however, human toxicity would increase.

scholarly journals Environmental impact of tofu production in West Jakarta using a life cycle assessment approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 896 (1) ◽  
pp. 012050
Author(s):  
I P Sari ◽  
W Kuniawan ◽  
F L Sia
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Ozone Depletion ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Whole Process ◽  
Assessment Approach ◽  
Cradle To Gate ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Tofu is one of the processed soybean foods that are very popular with Indonesian society. Despite the popularity of Tofu, Tofu production in Indonesia is generally small and medium, reaching 500 kg per day, as in the tofu factory in Semanan, West Jakarta. The purpose of this study is to analyze the environmental impact of tofu production in West Jakarta. The life cycle assessment (LCA) approach was used to achieve this goal with SimaPro software for impact calculations. This research applies the LCA cradle to gate, which consists of soybean cultivation, transportation, and tofu production processes. The environmental impacts of tofu production analyzed in this study include global warming, ozone depletion, acidification, and eutrophication. The impact analysis showed that the acquisition of soybeans, which consisted of soybean cultivation and transportation, had the most significant environmental impact with a global warming potential value of 0.882 kg CO2 eq out of a total of 0.978 CO2 eq for the whole process.

scholarly journals Comparison of life cycle assessment for different volume polypropylene jars

2012 ◽  
pp. 159-167
Author(s):  
Nevena Krkic ◽  
Vera Lazic ◽  
Danijela Suput
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Injection Molding ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Mass Flow ◽  
Global Warming Potential ◽  
Life Cycle Inventory ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact

When deciding what packaging is the most appropriate for a product there are many factors to be considered. One of them is the impact of the packaging on environment. In this work, life cycle inventory and life cycle assessment of two different volume packagings were compared. The data were collected on the types and amounts of materials and energy consumption in the process of packaging and distribution of hand cream packed in polypropylene jars of 200 and 350 mL. Life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle impact assessment (LCA) were calculated. It was found that the total mass flow was higher for the jars of 350 mL. After analyzing individual flows, it was found that in both cycles (polypropylene jars of 200 and 350 mL),the consumption of fresh water was a dominant flow. This fresh water flow is mostly (95%) consumed in the injection molding process of manufacturing jars from polypropylene granules. The LCA analysis showed no significant difference in global warming potential between different volume jars. The process that mostly affected global warming was the production of polypropylene jars from polypropylene granules by injection molding for both jar volumes. Judging by the global warming potential, there is no difference of the environmental impact between investigated jars, but considering the mass flow and water consumption, more environmental friendly were the 200 mL jars.

scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Residential Air Conditioners Considering the Benefits of Their Use: A Case Study in Indonesia

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 447
Author(s):  
Selim Karkour ◽  
Tomohiko Ihara ◽  
Tadahiro Kuwayama ◽  
Kazuki Yamaguchi ◽  
Norihiro Itsubo
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
High Energy ◽  
External Cost ◽  
Air Conditioners ◽  
Energy Mix ◽  
The Future ◽  
Use Stage ◽  
The Impact

The global demand for air conditioners (ACs) has more than tripled since 1990, with 1.6 billion units currently in use. With the rapid economic and population growth of countries located in the hottest parts in the world, this trend is likely to continue in the future. The aim of this study was to show the benefits of introducing air conditioners with different materials or different technologies such as inverters with high energy-saving performance on the environment and human health in Indonesia. To evaluate the environmental impacts of the different technologies, a cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment (LCA) of air conditioners was conducted using the life-cycle impact assessment method based on endpoint modeling (LIME3). As expected, the use stage has the largest global warming potential (GWP), representing more than 90% of the impact, whereas copper and nickel have the most important impact in terms of resource consumption (about 50%). We found that the impacts are heavily dependent on the country’s energy mix, but reduction can be achieved by introducing better technologies. The integration factors from LIME3 were then applied to estimate the external cost of each model; the results showed that the use stage also has the most influence. Even though the impact of climate change is important, air pollution impact must be seriously considered as its impact was found to be the highest (about 60% of the total impact). The external cost was finally compared to the possible benefits produced by the introduction of air conditioning technologies during their 10-year life cycle. We found that the impacts are twice that of the benefit for the best model (USD 2003 vs. 1064); however, the novelty of this study is that the benefit was also considered. In the future, developing countries should promote AC models with inverters, refrigerants with low global warming impact such as natural refrigerants, and encourage the recycling of units as soon as possible. The energy mix for electricity production is also a key parameter to consider.

scholarly journals Recovery Strategies of Contaminated Marine Sediments: A Life Cycle Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8520
Author(s):  
Francesco Pasciucco ◽  
Isabella Pecorini ◽  
Simona Di Gregorio ◽  
Fabiano Pilato ◽  
Renato Iannelli
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Marine Sediments ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Contaminated Sediments ◽  
Combined Use ◽  
Recovery Strategies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Contaminated Marine Sediments

This study performed a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) on recovery strategies of dredged contaminated marine sediments in a large Mediterranean port located in central Italy (Tuscany) in order to find the most environmentally sound solution. The study considered marine sediments polluted by potentially toxic elements (PTEs) and/or organic compounds, two different sediment particle sizes and the combined use of three soil remediation technologies: soil washing, electrokinetic treatment and enhanced landfarming. The analyzed scenarios depended on the sediment properties and characteristics of the treatment technologies investigated, and were compared with the corresponding reference scenarios, consisting of the landfilling of dredged contaminated sediments. The LCA results show that scenarios associated with sediment recovery generated potential environmental impacts lower than the corresponding reference scenarios. Almost all the impact categories considered in the CML-IA baseline method showed an environmental convenience in the recovery of contaminated sediments, especially for abiotic depletion and global warming. Future studies should focus on optimizing the combined use of multiple technologies and reducing the resource consumptions related to their implementation in order to achieve both environmental and economic benefits.

scholarly journals POTENTIAL OF FABRICATION OF DURIAN SKIN FIBER BIOCOMPOSITES FOR FOOD PACKAGING APPLICATION THROUGH THE ELECTRICITY IMPACT ANALYSIS

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 294-305
Author(s):  
Hazleen Anuar ◽  
Siti Munirah Salimah Abd Rashid ◽  
Nurfarahin Mohd. Nordin ◽  
Fathilah Ali ◽  
Yose Fachmi Buys ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Packaging Material ◽  
System Boundary ◽  
Epoxidized Palm Oil ◽  
Acidification Potential ◽  
Negative Impacts

As an effort to replace the petroleum-based polymers and reduce waste-related environmental problems, biopolymers are the best candidate due to their renewable, biodegradable and commercially viable. Initiative have been taken by developing durian skin fibre (DSF) reinforced polylactic acid (PLA) biocomposites with the addition of epoxidized palm oil (EPO). PLA/DSF biocomposites were fabricated via extrusion and then injection moulded. The biocomposites were assessed for its life cycle by developing a system boundary related to its fabrication processes using GaBi software. The life cycle assessment (LCA) of PLA/DSF biocomposites show that global warming potential (GWP) and acidification potential (AP) were the major impacts from PLA/DSF biocomposite. For PLA/DSF biocomposite, the results were 199.37 kg CO2 equiv. GWP and 0.58 kg SO2 equiv. AP. Meanwhile, for PLA/DSF/EPO biocomposite, the results obtained were 195.89 kg CO2 equiv. GWP and 0.57 kg SO2 equiv. AP. The GWP and AP were contributed by the electricity used in the fabrication of biocomposites. These impacts were due to the usage of electricity, which contributed to the emission of CO2. However, the PLA/DSF/EPO biocomposite had lower negative impacts because EPO improved the workability and processability of the biocomposite, and hence, reduced the amount of energy required for production. It can be concluded that the plasticized PLA/DSF biocomposite can be a potential biodegradable food packaging material as it has favourable properties and produces no waste. ABSTRAK: Biopolimer adalah terbaik dalam usaha mengganti polimer berasaskan-petroleum dalam mengurang masalah pencemaran-sisa. Ini kerana biopolimer boleh diperbaharui, biodegradasi dan sangat maju secara komersial. Inisiatif telah diambil dengan menghasilkan sabut kulit durian (DSF) bersama biokomposit asid polilaktik (PLA) dengan penambahan minyak kelapa sawit terepoksi (EPO). Biokomposit PLA/DSF direka melalui kaedah pemyemperitan dan acuan suntikan. Biokomposit ini dipantau kitar hidupnya dengan membina sistem sempadan berkaitan proses rekaan menggunakan perisian GaBi. Pengawasan kitar hidup (LCA) biokomposit PLA/DSF menunjukkan potensi pemanasan global (GWP) dan potensi pengasidan (AP) menyebabkan impak terbesar komposit PLA/DSF. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan 199.37 kg CO2 bagi GWP dan 0.58 kg SO2 bagi AP bagi biokomposit PLA/DSF. Sementara itu, dapatan kajian bagi biokomposit PLA/DSF/EPO adalah 195.89 kg CO2 bagi GWP dan 0.57 kg SO2 bagi AP. Kedua-dua GWP dan AP adalah disebabkan oleh penggunaan elektrik dalam proses pembuatan biokomposit. Ini adalah kesan daripada penggunaan elektrik, dan menyumbang kepada pembebasan CO2. Walau bagaimanapun, biokomposit PLA/DSF/EPO mempunyai kurang kesan negatif, kerana EPO telah menambah baik kebolehkerjaan dan kebolehprosesan biokomposit, menyebabkan kurang tenaga yang diperlukan dalam proses pembuatan. Kesimpulannya plastik biokomposit PLA/DSF berpotensi sebagai bahan biodegradasi bagi pembungkus makanan kerana ianya mempunyai ciri-ciri yang diperlukan dan tidak menghasilkan sisa buangan.

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