scholarly journals Carbon footprint of plastic from biomass and recycled feedstock: methodological insights

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Davide Tonini ◽  
Dieuwertje Schrijvers ◽  
Simone Nessi ◽  
Pelayo Garcia-Gutierrez ◽  
Jacopo Giuntoli
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Current Form ◽  
Biobased Materials ◽  
Temporary Storage ◽  
Secondary Raw Material ◽  
Recycled Content ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Purpose A circular (bio)economy is sustained through use of secondary raw material and biomass feedstock. In life cycle assessment (LCA), the approach applied to address the impact of these feedstocks is often unclear, in respect to both handling of the recycled content and End-of-Life recyclability and disposal. Further, the modelling approach adopted to account for land use change (LUC) and biogenic C effects is crucial to defining the impact of biobased commodities on global warming. Method We depart from state-of-the-art approaches proposed in literature and apply them to the case of non-biodegradable plastic products manufactured from alternative feedstock, focusing on selected polymers that can be made entirely from secondary raw material or biomass. We focus on global warming and the differences incurred by recycled content, recyclability, LUC, and carbon dynamics (effects of delayed emission of fossil C and temporary storage of biogenic C). To address the recycled content and recyclability, three formulas recently proposed are compared and discussed. Temporary storage of biogenic C is handled applying methods for dynamic accounting. LUC impacts are addressed by applying and comparing a biophysical, global equilibrium and a normative-based approach. These methods are applied to two case studies (rigid plastic for packaging and automotive applications) involving eight polymers. Results and discussion Drawing upon the results, secondary raw material is the feedstock with the lowest global warming impact overall. The results for biobased polymers, while promising in some cases (polybutylene succinate), are significantly affected by the formulas proposed to handle the recycled content and recyclability. We observe that some of the proposed formulas in their current form do not fully capture the effects associated with the biogenic nature of the material when this undergoes recycling and substitutes fossil materials. Furthermore, the way in which the recycled content is modelled is important for wastes already in-use. LUC factors derived with models providing a combined direct and indirect impact contribute with 15–30% of the overall life cycle impact, which in magnitude is comparable to the savings from temporary storage of biogenic C, when included. Conclusion End-of-Life formulas can be improved by addition of corrective terms accounting for the relative difference in disposal impacts between the recycled and market-substituted product. This affects the assessment of biobased materials. Inclusion of LUCs effects using economic/biophysical models in addition to (direct) LUC already embedded in commercial datasets may result in double-counting and should be done carefully. Dynamic assessment allows for detailed modelling of the carbon cycle, providing useful insights into the impact associated with biogenic C storage.

scholarly journals Life Cycle Sustainability Assessments of an Innovative FRP Composite Footbridge

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 13000
Author(s):  
Timothy Jena ◽  
Sakdirat Kaewunruen
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Suitable Alternative ◽  
Frp Composite ◽  
Reinforced Plastic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Whole Life Cycle

Sustainable construction and the design of low-carbon structures is a major concern for the UK construction industry. FRP composite materials are seen as a suitable alternative to traditional construction materials due to their high strength and light weight. Network Rail has developed a prototype for a new innovative footbridge made entirely from FRP with the aim of replacing the current steel design for footbridges. This study conducted a life cycle analysis of this novel composite footbridge design to quantify the cost and environmental benefits. An LCA and LCC analysis framework was used to analyse the environmental impacts and cost savings of the bridge throughout its lifespan from raw material extraction to its end of life. From the results of the LCA and LCC, the FRP footbridge sustainability was reviewed and compared to a standard steel footbridge. Due to the uncertainty of the fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) structure’s lifespan, multiple scenarios for longevity at the assets-use stage were studied. The study revealed that the FRP bridge offered substantial economic savings whilst presenting potentially worse environmental impacts, mainly caused by the impact of the production of FRP materials. However, our study also demonstrated the influences of uncertainties related to the glass-fibre-reinforced plastic (GFRP) material design life and end-of-life disposal on the whole life cycle analyses. The results show that if the FRP footbridge surpasses its original estimation for lifespan, the economic savings can be increased and the environmental impacts can be reduced substantially.

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 Sustainability of Extraction of Raw Material by a Combination of Mobile and Stationary Mining Machines and Optimization of Machine Life Cycle

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 10454
Author(s):  
Katarína Teplická ◽  
Martin Straka
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Optimal Distribution ◽  
Transport Costs ◽  
Scientific Discussion ◽  
Mining Companies ◽  
Conveyor Belts ◽  
The Impact

This article summarizes the arguments within the scientific discussion on the issue of using mining machines and their life cycle. The main goal of the article is to investigate the impact of a combination of mobile and stationary mining machines and their optimal distribution in the mining process to increase the efficiency of mining and processing of raw materials. The following methods of research were focused on the use of technical indicators for the valuation efficiency of the mining process: a simulation method was used for the distribution of mining machines, comparison analysis was used for the real and past state of mining machines, and a decision tree was used as managerial instrument for optimal alternatives of mining machines. The research empirically confirms and theoretically proves that optimal distribution of mining machines and machine parks is very important for mining companies. The benefit of this research for the mining company was the new location of the machines and the combination of stationary production lines and mobile equipment. The optimal layout of the machines reduced the number of conveyor belts and improved the transfer of limestone processing to mobile devices, saving time, which was reflected in transport costs. The results can be useful for other mining companies seeking to create an optimal machine park.

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.

scholarly journals Environmental Payback of Renovation Strategies in a Northern Climate—the Impact of Nuclear Power and Fossil Fuels in the Electricity Supply

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Ramírez-Villegas ◽  
Ola Eriksson ◽  
Thomas Olofsson
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Global Warming Potential ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Impact

The aim of this study is to assess how the use of fossil and nuclear power in different renovation scenarios affects the environmental impacts of a multi-family dwelling in Sweden, and how changes in the electricity production with different energy carriers affect the environmental impact. In line with the Paris Agreement, the European Union has set an agenda to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by means of energy efficiency in buildings. It is estimated that by the year 2050, 80% of Europe’s population will be living in buildings that already exist. This means it is important for the European Union to renovate buildings to improve energy efficiency. In this study, eight renovation scenarios, using six different Northern European electricity mixes, were analyzed using the standard of the European Committee for Standardization for life cycle assessment of buildings. This study covers all life cycle steps from cradle to grave. The renovation scenarios include combinations of photovoltaics, geothermal heat pumps, heat recovery ventilation, and improvement of the building envelope. The results show that while in some electricity mixes a reduction in the global warming potential can be achieved, it can be at the expense of an increase in radioactive waste production, and, in mixes with a high share of fossil fuels, the global warming potential of the scenarios increases with time, compared with that of the original building. It also shows that in most electricity mixes, scenarios that reduce the active heat demand of the building end up in reducing both the global warming potential and radioactive waste, making them less sensitive to changes in the energy system.

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 Tackling xEV Battery Chemistry in View of Raw Material Supply Shortfalls

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duygu Karabelli ◽  
Steffen Kiemel ◽  
Soumya Singh ◽  
Jan Koller ◽  
Simone Ehrenberger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
End Of Life ◽  
Electric Vehicle ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Lithium Ion ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Performance Expectations ◽  
Potential Market ◽  
Critical Materials ◽  
The Impact

The growing number of Electric Vehicles poses a serious challenge at the end-of-life for battery manufacturers and recyclers. Manufacturers need access to strategic or critical materials for the production of a battery system. Recycling of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries may ensure a constant supply of critical materials, thereby closing the material cycle in the context of a circular economy. However, the resource-use per cell and thus its chemistry is constantly changing, due to supply disruption or sharply rising costs of certain raw materials along with higher performance expectations from electric vehicle-batteries. It is vital to further explore the nickel-rich cathodes, as they promise to overcome the resource and cost problems. With this study, we aim to analyze the expected development of dominant cell chemistries of Lithium-Ion Batteries until 2030, followed by an analysis of the raw materials availability. This is accomplished with the help of research studies and additional experts’ survey which defines the scenarios to estimate the battery chemistry evolution and the effect it has on a circular economy. In our results, we will discuss the annual demand for global e-mobility by 2030 and the impact of Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt based cathode chemistries on a sustainable economy. Estimations beyond 2030 are subject to high uncertainty due to the potential market penetration of innovative technologies that are currently under research (e.g. solid-state Lithium-Ion and/or sodium-based batteries).

Eco product development combining eco design and life cycle assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Jamile Damasceno Barbosa ◽  
Vitor Hugo de Paiva Santos ◽  
Priscilla Cavalcante de Araújo ◽  
Felipe Lucas de Medeiros ◽  
Letícia Yasmin da Silva Otaviano
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Product Life Cycle ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Real Problem ◽  
Cotton Swab ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Original Product ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe paper aims to propose the development of an eco product to replace the traditional cotton swab that meets the expected needs, besides having a bias based on sustainability and economic viability.Design/methodology/approachThe applied nature article opted for an exploratory and descriptive study, with the objective of seeking a solution to a real problem: to reduce the environmental impact in the disposal of cotton swabs. To test this hypothesis, the exploratory stage evaluated the literature on the principles of eco design and environmental marketing to understand market viability and environmental impacts. The descriptive phase presented a comparative analysis between the original product and the proposed one, in terms of production processes and impacts of the product life cycle. Thus, an alternative product was conceived and validated applying the life cycle analysis (LCA).FindingsThe paper provides a comparative analysis between the eco product and the traditional product in order to validate the hypothesis that the new proposal reduces the environmental impact. It was found that both productive processes have similar impacts; however, the raw material of the proposed eco product demonstrated a significant reduction in the impact caused on the environment, considering cradle to cradle analysis.Originality/valueThis paper conceives an eco product as an alternative to traditional cotton swab, presenting an innovative potential in line with worldwide sustainability trends.

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.

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