Comparative Life Cycle Impact Assessment between the Productions of Zinc from Conventional Concentrates Versus Waelz Oxides Obtained from Slags

(1) Background: The importance of Zinc in today’s world can hardly be exaggerated—from anticorrosion properties, to its durability, aesthetic, and even medicinal uses—zinc is ever-present in our daily lives ever since its discovery in ancient times. The natural, essential, durable, and recyclable features of zinc make it a prized material with uses in many applications across a wide array of fields. The purpose of this study was to compare two life cycle impact assessments of zinc production by using two different main raw materials: (A) zinc concentrates (sulfide ore) and (B) Waelz oxides (obtained through recycling existing imperial smelting process furnace slags). The Waelz oxide scenario was based on a case study regarding the existing slag deposit located in Copsa Mica town, Sibiu county, Romania. (2) Methods: consequential life cycle impact assessment methods were applied to each built system, with real process data obtained from the case study enterprise. (3) Results: Overall, the use of slags in the Waelz kiln to produce zinc oxides for use in the production of zinc metal is beneficial to the environment in some areas (acidification, water, and terrestrial eutrophication), whereas in other areas it has a slightly larger impact (climate change, photochemical ozone formation, and ozone depletion). (4) Conclusions: The use of slags (considered a waste) is encouraged to produce zinc metal, where available. The results are not absolute, suggesting the further need for fine-tuning the input data and other process parameters.

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A Practical Comparison of Regionalized Land Use and Biodiversity Life Cycle Impact Assessment Models Using Livestock Production as a Case Study

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10114089 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 4089 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Ricardo Teixeira ◽

Tiago Morais ◽

Tiago Domingos

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Life Cycle Impact Assessment ◽

Spatial Differentiation ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Land Occupation ◽

Country Level ◽

Life Cycle Impact

Land use is increasingly important for impact assessment in life cycle assessment (LCA). Its impacts on biodiversity and provision of ecosystem services are crucial to depict the environmental performance of products. Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) models are commonly selected by consensus through processes frequently misinformed by the absence of practical application studies. Here, we performed an assessment of all free and peer-reviewed LCIA models for land use. We started with spatial correlation analysis at the country scale. Models that use the same indicators are strongly correlated, suggesting that regionalization is no longer a decisive issue in model selection. We applied these models in a case study for cattle production where feeds are replaced by sown biodiverse pastures (SBP). We tested (1) a non-regionalized inventory from an LCA database and, (2) a regionalized inventory that explicit considered the locations of land occupation and transformation. We found the same qualitative result: the installation of SBP avoids impacts due to feed substitution. Each hectare of SBP installed avoids the occupation of 0.5 hectares per year for feed ingredient production. Adding inventory regionalization for 70% of land use flows leads to a change of 15% in results, suggesting limited spatial differentiation between country-level characterization factors.

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IMPACT 2002+, ReCiPe 2008 and ILCD’s recommended practice for characterization modelling in life cycle impact assessment: a case study-based comparison

The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment ◽

10.1007/s11367-014-0708-3 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 19 (5) ◽

pp. 1007-1021 ◽

Cited By ~ 58

Author(s):

Mikołaj Owsianiak ◽

Alexis Laurent ◽

Anders Bjørn ◽

Michael Z. Hauschild

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Life Cycle Impact Assessment ◽

Life Cycle Impact

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Social Impact Analysis of Products under a Holistic Approach: A Case Study in the Meat Product Supply Chain

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su132112163 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (21) ◽

pp. 12163

Author(s):

Juan Aranda ◽

David Zambrana-Vásquez ◽

Felipe Del-Busto ◽

Fernando Círez

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle ◽

Impact Assessment ◽

Life Cycle Impact Assessment ◽

Social Life ◽

Social Impact ◽

Impact Analysis ◽

Social Life Cycle Assessment ◽

The Social ◽

Life Cycle Impact

Social impact assessment of products can be approached through different methodologies that need to be adapted to the particularities and features of the studied subject. Thus, the Social Life Cycle Assessment methodology can be used to assess different innovative practices of product manufacturing, under a circular economy approach, by identifying potential positive as well as negative impacts along products’ life cycle. This paper presents the results of the Social Life Cycle Impact Assessment of a reference product from the Spanish meat industry using existing and new innovative methods of social impact analysis. Worker discrimination, health and safety for workers, consumers and local community were identified as the social aspects with relevant significance into the business or for the influence on customer’s perception of the products studied. Therefore, results can represent a reference scenario for the future assessment of innovative solutions in the Spanish meet sector. Despite the scarce use of Social Life Cycle Impact Assessment, this case study is a good example of how this innovative kind of assessment can be helpful for companies to identify their weak and strong social performance areas and design strategies to improve in Social Responsibility Management.

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