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ISO 14040 Terminology
Elementary flow
•Material or energy 1) entering the system that has been
drawn from the environment without previous human
transformation, or 2) leaving the system that is released
Week‐6 Material into the environment without subsequent human
transformation
Intermediary flow
Product, material or energy flow occurring between unit
Life Cycle Analysis processes of the product system
MOOC Course Reference flow
Measure of the outputs from processes in a given product
system required to fulfil the function expressed by the
functional unit
ISO 14040 Terminology ISO 14040 Terminology
Term Example
Life cycle inventory (LCI)
Impact category Climate change
•Phase of LCA involving the compilation and quantification
of inputs and outputs for a product throughout its life cycle LCI results Amount of a greenhouse gas
(GHG) per functional unit
Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA)
•Phase of LCA aimed at understanding and valuating the Category indicator Infrared radiative forcing (W/m2)
magnitude and significance of the potential environmental Characterisation model Baseline model of 100 years of the
impacts for a product system throughout the life cycle of the IPCC
product Characterisation factor Global warming potential for each
Interprétation GHG (kg CO2 eq./kg gas)
•Phase of LCA in which the findings of either the LCI or Category indicator kg CO2 eq. per functional unit
LCIA, or both, are evaluated in relation to the defined goal result
and scope in order to reach conclusions and
Category endpoints Human health, ecosystems
recommendations
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ISO 14040 Terminology ISO 14040 Terminology
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ISO 14040 Terminology ISO 14040 Terminology
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ISO 14040 Terminology
Category endpoint
Attribute or aspect of natural environment, human
health, or resources, identifying an environmental issue
giving cause for concern
Ex: Human health, ecosystems (coral reefs, forets, crops)
Key points for a good LCA
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Key points for a good LCA Key points for a good LCA
Screening approach 2. Data quality
LCA in two steps
Validity of the study depends on the quality of the data
• First screening level LCA, to get order of magnitude used
results
• Geographical, temporal and technological coverage
1. Goal & scope • Second detailed LCA, to refined results and most 2. Inventory • Uncertainty
important contributors
Sources:
1b. Goal of the study
• Primary: specific
Very clearly define the « What », « What for » and « For
• Secondary: generic
who »
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Key points for a good LCA Key points for a good LCA
1c. Function & functional unit
Function of the system
• Starting point in defining the system boundaries 2b. Multifunctional processes
• Comparison on the basis of the same function
(secondary function?) There are several approaches to treat multifunctional
processes, the results are often strongly influenced by
1. Goal & scope Functional unit (FU) 2. Inventory the approach choses
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Key points for a good LCA Key points for a good LCA
1d. System boundaries
All processes needed to provide the function
The impact evaluation is always done according to the
• Rule 1: Compared systems must provide the same goal and scope
function
3. Impact Only use re‐known and « peer‐reviewed » methods;
1. Goal & scope • Rule 2: Included processes are those which must consider the fate and effect of emissions
contribute more than a fixed percentage (mass,
assessment
energy or environmental relevance cut‐off criteria) Test robustness of conclusions by using other method(s)
• Rule 3: Indentical stages/processes between
compared systems can be excluded ONLY IF this
does not affect functional equivalence
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Key points for a good LCA What is LCA?
• Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool that assesses a
product/process’s impacts:
Analyse contributions at different levels: • Environmentally
• At each phase of the LCA: inventory, impact
• Socially
evaluation • Economically
• At each life cycle stage, concentrating on main
contributors and those with the high potential for • There are multiple approaches to LCA:
4. Interpretation reduction
• Cradle‐to‐Grave
• At the substance level • Cradle‐to‐Gate
Do sensitivity analyses to test robustness of conclusions
• Cradle‐to‐Cradle
• Gate‐to‐Gate
• scenarios, uncertainty
• Well‐to‐Wheel
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Dongara
• Dongara is a waste to energy plant that processes residential
MSW as a feedstock to manufacture a pelletized fuel product
• Located in Vaughan
LCA of EnerPax+ from Cradle to • Processes MSW from the Greater Toronto Area and the Regions of
York, Durham and Peel
Gate‐ an example • Processes approximately 75,000 tons of MSW per year
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EnerPax+ Assumptions & Limitations
• EnerPax+ is the fuel product produced at Dongara • General Assumptions:
• Used as a substitute for fossil fuels • Facility assumed to be a black box
Only inputs and outputs considered
• Assumed 75,000 tonnes of MSW annually processed at Dongara
• Assumed waste was strictly coming from the Region of York
• Contains an energy output of 10,000 Btu/lb
• Average distances traveled by a collection truck from curb‐side to plant
• Utilizes approximately 60% of the incoming waste in producing 41.4 km
the pellet • Collection truck capacity of 18 tonnes
• Coal Production Scenario:
– Cradle to gate analysis (only the production of medium grade hard coal
briquettes)
• Incineration Scenario:
• Total MSW sent to incineration
• Distance traveled in transportation is identical to that in EnerPax+ LCA
Goal Definition & Scope MSW Breakdown
• The goal of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of
EnerPax+ in comparison to medium grade coal
• Compared to medium grade coal since EnerPax+ has similar energy MSW Assumed Rejected EnerPax+
content Organics 20.25% ‐ 20.25%
Plastic film 25.07% 18.60% 6.47%
• The analysis was performed from Cradle‐to‐Gate Paper and Cardboard 19.52% ‐ 19.52%
• Combustion properties and information of EnerPax+ were
unavailable to perform a Cradle‐to‐Grave analysis Wood 13.77% ‐ 13.77%
Hard Plastic 8.50% 8.50% ‐
Process Flow & Boundary Layer Assumptions: Breakdown of MSW
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Rejected Waste LCA Scenario for Coal
MSW Percent Rejection Disposal Mehtod
Plastic film ~74.19% Landfill
Hard Plastic 100% Landfill
Glass 100% Landfill
Metal 100% Recycling
PVC 100% Landfill
Non‐combustibles 100% Landfill
LCA Scenario for Incineration
Results
• LCA of EnerPax+ at Dongara
• LCA scenario for coal
• LCA scenario for incineration
LCA of EnerPax+ Environmental Impact Assessment
100.00%
90.00%
80.00%
70.00%
60.00%
50.00%
Total EnerPax
40.00%
Total MSW
30.00% Total Incineration
Total Coal
20.00%
Dongara Impact
10.00%
0.00%
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Environmental Impact of Dongara Environmental Impact
Assessment: Summary
Impact on Climate Change Impact on Urban land occupation • EnerPax+ has less impact on environment than coal for most
of the impact categories
140000000 900000 • EnerPax+ has a better impact on environment than
120000000
800000 incineration
100000000
700000
• Most sensitive impact categories are Climate Change,
Total EnerPax
Total MSW
600000
Total EnerPax
Total MSW
Marine Eco‐toxicity, Marine Eutrophication, Ionizing
80000000
Total Incineration
500000 Total Incineration Radiation and Terrestrial Eco‐toxicity
60000000
Total Coal
Dongara Impact
400000 Total Coal
Dongara Impact
• Major contributors to environmental impacts include
40000000
300000 electricity usage, disposal of plastics, organic waste and
200000 metals
20000000 100000
0 0
Environmental Impact of Dongara Conclusion and Recommendations
• According to the results EnerPax+ is a environmentally
Impact on Marine Ecotoxicity Impact on Marine Eutrophication positive substitute to medium grade coal
– Possible alternate treatment of MSW instead of incineration
2000000
200000
• Possible room for improvement in reduction of
1800000 180000
160000
environmental impact
1600000
140000
– According to the results reduction of energy usage is
1400000
Total EnerPax Total EnerPax
recommended
1200000 Total MSW 120000 Total MSW
Total Incineration Total Incineration
• Energy audit may be beneficial in locating inefficiencies in
1000000
Total Coal
100000
Total Coal production process
800000 Dongara Impact 80000 Dongara Impact – Leachate generated due to landfilling of rejected plastics
600000 60000
• Dongara may want to consider collection and recycling of plastics
400000 40000
– Implementation of renewable energy sources (ex. Solar
200000 20000 Panels) to supplement required energy is recommended
0 0
Environmental Impact of Dongara
Impact on Terrestrial Ecotoxicity Impact on Ionising Radiation
30000
9000000
8000000
Environmental Release of Chemicals and
its Fate and Transport
25000
7000000
20000 Total EnerPax
6000000 Total EnerPax
Total MSW
Total MSW
Total Incineration 5000000
15000 Total Incineration
Total Coal
4000000 Total Coal
Dongara Impact
Dongara Impact
10000 3000000
2000000
5000
1000000
0 0
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Environmental releases Gasoline spill
• A material, at the end of its useful life cycle or as
a consequence of its production or use, is
released into the environment
• Will its release pose significant environmental or
human health risks?
• Will the chemical degrade in the environment or
will it persist?
Example of Fate and Transport Problems
Contaminant leaking from a discharge site of radioactive waste
Persistence of chemicals
• Once the basic physical and chemical properties are defined, a
series of properties that influence the persistence of chemicals
in the environment are estimated.
• These include estimates of the rates at which chemicals will
react in the atmosphere, the rates of reaction in aqueous
environments, and the rates at which the compounds will be
metabolized by organisms
• If environmental concentrations can be estimated based on
release rates and environmental fate and persistence
properties, human exposures to the chemicals can be
estimated
• These chemical and physical properties can be used to
evaluate a variety of metrics related to environmental impacts;
some of the most commonly evaluated environmental metrics
are persistence, bioaccumulation, and toxicity
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Using property estimates to evaluate
environmental partitioning, persistence, and
measures of exposure
• The problems associated with estimating
environmental exposures are complex
• Consider the relatively simple example of calculating
exposure through drinking contaminated surface water
• Assume that a chemical is released to a river upstream
of the intake to a public drinking water treatment plant
To evaluate the exposure we would need to
determine:
• What fraction of the chemical was adsorbed by
river sediments
• What fraction of the chemical was volatilized to
the atmosphere
• What fraction of the chemical was taken up by
living organisms
• What fraction of the chemical was biodegraded or
was lost through other reactions
• What fraction of the chemical was removed by the
treatment processes in the public water system
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Direct Use of Properties to Categorize Classifying fuel molecules
the Environmental Risks of Chemicals
• Chemical and physical properties can be used to
estimate environmental footprints
• Another approach is to use the values of
properties to directly categorize the
environmental risks of chemicals and to classify
the persistence and bioaccumulation of
chemicals
Green, Sustainable Materials –part 1
For each of these categories, a score might be given. For example,
persistence might be scored 1 through 4 for the four levels of
biodegradation listed in Table. Bioaccumulation might be given a score
of 1 through 3 based on the three categories of bioconcentration
factor. Similar scores could be developed for toxicity. These indices or
scores could then be combined, for example, by adding the scores, to
arrive at a composite index.
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Introduction
• Almost every engineering design involves the use of
materials
• If an engineering design is to be as sustainable as
possible, the materials that are involved in the
embodiment of the design should have light
environmental and natural resource use footprints
• Determining the magnitude of a material’s footprint
is not straightforward, however
• In this lecture, a three‐pronged approach to
characterizing the footprint of materials will be
described
• A material must first be extracted and purified
(refined), and the overall impact of this extraction
and refining is the first component of the footprint
• Once the material enters the production system, it
can be reused and recycled, reducing the need for
extraction processes. The extent to which various
materials are reused and recycled, and the energy
and other resources used in processing the materials,
is a second component of the footprint
• Finally, if a material is not reused or recycled but
escapes into the environment, its environmental fate,
persistence, human health impact, and ecological
impact are a third component of the footprint
Environmental and Natural Response use
Footprints of Materials Extraction and Refining
Example: Supplies and use of elements
• One of the simplest approaches for characterizing the Calculate the ratio of the abundance of materials
footprints associated with the extraction and production
of a material is to assess the material’s overall scarcity in the Earth’s crust (tons) to the annual use of the
• Simply stated, if a material is scarce, it is likely to be materials (tons/yr). Assume an approximate mass
energy‐intensive to obtain and refine it, and the ability to for the crust of 2 * 1019 metric tons. This mass is
meet large‐scale demand will be limited
• Elements vary widely in their natural abundance based on a 40 km thickness for continental crust
• The most common elements on a mass basis are, in and a 3 km thickness for oceanic crust, with an
descending order, O, Si, Al, Fe, Ca, Mg, and K average density of 3 g/cm3 (3 tons/m3).
• All of these elements are present at greater than 1%
abundance in the Earth’s crust, and all are present in
widely used commodity materials
• In contrast, some widely used elements (Ag, Sn, Sb) are
present at the ppm level or lower, on average, in the crust
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Economically extractable supplies and use of
materials
Calculate the ratio of the economically extractable materials in
the Earth’s crust (reserves) to the annual use of the materials
(tons/yr). The quantities of reserves identified in this exercise
are derived from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS, 2010)
Solution:
Say for Iron:
Ratio of Abundance to Use (yr)
= (230,000,000,000/1,200,000,000) = 191 yrs
• This presents the scenario if all the material present in the crust
can be extracted
• Not all material can be extracted, concentration too low to be
extracted cost‐effectively
• There is a relationship between the total crustal abundance and
identified and economically extractable deposits (reserves)
• On average, only 1 in 107 to 109 tons of an element in the Earth’s
crust is an economically viable reserve of the material
Extractable supplies and use of
materials
• Although the total amount of material available in
the Earth’s crust is sufficient to support current
rates of extraction indefinitely (Example‐1)
• The second example shows that the total amount
of crustal material that is present in high enough
concentrations to be economically recoverable is
much lower than the total amount available
• This is because energy and other resources
required to mine and purify the material for use
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Sherwood relationships
• An approximate relationship between the concentration at
which a material is found in a raw material and the cost to
refine the material
• This concept—that the cost of a material is largely determined
by the cost of extracting and purifying the raw material—is
sometimes referred to as the Sherwood relationship
• The relationship between prices and dilution in ores—the
Sherwood relationship—is technology‐dependent
• As technologies continue to become more efficient, costs
associated with material extraction can be reduced
• A certain amount of entropy must be overcome to purify a
material, and that imposes a minimum energy burden that
must be overcome
Energy burdens of material recovery
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• Reserves that are known and their extent Tracking material flow in engineered
demonstrated, can be recovered at cost lower than
current prices, are referred as economically recoverable systems
reserves • Materials have a life cycle. They are extracted from the
lithosphere or biosphere, processed into commodity
• Demonstrated reserves that could be cost‐effectively materials, then products, then used and possibly reused,
recovered, through either moderate improvements in then eventually disposed of or leaked into the
technology or increases in price, are referred to as environment
marginal reserves • The number of times that a material is reused or recycled
• Demonstrated reserves that are unlikely to be before it is released into the environment can have a
significant impact on its environmental footprint
recoverable at any foreseeable price are referred to as
• In addition, different types of uses, for the same material,
subeconomic can lead to very different types of impacts
• Demonstrated reserves can also lead to inferences that • Characterizing the flows and emissions of materials in
similar geological formations may contain similar manufacturing and use requires data on material and
reserves. These are referred to as inferred reserves, mineral flows entering the economy, and information on
which can be economic, marginal, or subeconomic the wastes, emissions, and recycling structures
Resources‐summary
• Multiple elements are present together in minerals (e.g., Cu ores
typically contain As, Se, and Te; Pt ores typically contain Ir, Os, Pa, Rh
and Ru
• The elements with the highest demand or highest price tends to
drive the extraction of these ores
• For example, mining of Zn produces Cd as a by‐product, making it
available at a price and a quantity that might not be possible if it
were not associated with Zn
Example material flow analysis: Lead
• Pb is a neurotoxin, and Pb exposure is associated
with developmental delays
• Historically, some of the principal uses of lead have
been as an octane enhancer in gasoline, in
Green, Sustainable Materials –part 2 batteries, and in paint
• The material flows of Pb in the United States in
1970 and in the mid‐1990s are shown in next slide
• As shown in the left‐hand portion of the diagram,
flows of Pb come from both extraction of
geological resources (virgin materials) and recycled
material
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• Additional flow types can be incorporated
• Global use of iron as a case study: separates iron
flows during production of products into
production, fabrication/manufacturing, use, and
waste management
• There are flows between these stages of materials
processing, for example, as “home” scrap within
production operations is reprocessed
• Flows of crude ore from the lithosphere (virgin ore)
can be compared to various types of recycling;
losses to the environment can be compared to total
use and stocks.
• In 1970 the fraction of recycled material was 36% (450 tons
recycled/1250 tons total usage), while in the mid‐1990s the
fraction had increased to 65% (910 tons recycled/1400 tons Global material balance for iron: Material flow
total usage) information, of the type shown in Figure 4‐7,
• The Pb is incorporated into a variety of products; some typically comes from multiple sources, and material
products, when used as designed (such as lead paint applied
outdoors or lead additives in gasoline), result in the release of balances can be used to assess the consistency of
Pb into the environment (dissipative uses) the information. At the most macroscopic level, the
• Other products, when used as designed (lead acid batteries), basic material balance equation, in out
can be effectively recovered and recycled at the end of the
product’s life (nondissipative uses). accumulation, can be translated into crude ore in
• Figure shows that the fraction of dissipative uses decreased flows to repositories stock accumulation.
significantly from 1970 until the mid‐1990s in part because of Determine whether the flows in Figure 4‐7 satisfy a
the phaseout of many lead‐based paints and lead additives in material balance.
gasoline
• Use of Pb in batteries increased significantly from 1970 through
the mid‐1990s, as the demand for starting‐lighting‐ignition
batteries in vehicles increased
Figure 4‐8A Flows of iron in the United States 2000
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Figure 4‐8B Flows of iron in China 2000
Allen and Behmanesh (1994)
• This very focused analysis, (Table 4‐3) which was initially
performed in 1994 (Allen and Behmanesh, 1994), led to the
conclusion that many opportunities existed for recovering
materials from wastes
• Limitations to analysis: The analysis focused only on hazardous
wastes, where legal liability concerns may limit the desire to
recycle
• The identification of “recyclable” streams was simplistic. It ignored
issues related to economies of scale (i.e., processing geographically
dispersed, heterogeneous waste streams may be more expensive
than extracting a relatively homogeneous ore from a single mine)
• Nevertheless, the analysis indicated that resources are not
effectively recovered from many waste streams
Global import/export of iron UNEP Study
• The United Nations has assembled more recent, global data on metals
• Understanding the sourcing of materials, and the geopolitical recycling
issues associated with source regions, will become increasingly (http://www.unep.org/publications/contents/pub_details_search.asp?ID
important as global demands on resources increase =6197)
• The world’s leading exporter of iron is Brazil, and the leading • Its analysis continues to conclude that global recycling rates can continue
importer (for both total imports and net imports [imports‐ to be improved. Metals like Pb (along with Fe, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and
exports]) is the United States many precious metals) have postconsumer recycling rates that exceed
50% globally, but many other metals (e.g., rare earth elements) have
• Countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United postconsumer recycling rates of less than 1% (United Nations
Kingdom are both importers of iron as a raw material and Environment Programme, 2011)
exporters of iron in manufactured goods • One of the primary barriers to using wastes as raw materials is a lack of
• Global trade in commodity materials leads to some countries critical information on waste streams. While a large number of data
becoming net importers, while others are net exporters, sources are available on waste streams, they lack critical information
depending on the material. For example, while China is a net that is needed to assess whether the waste streams might be reused
importer of iron, it is a dominant producer and exporter of rare • Data on the composition of wastes, their location, and co‐contaminants
earth metals. are rarely available yet are critical to evaluating the potential use of
wastes as raw materials
• Combinations of materials scarcity, potential energy savings, and
geopolitical factors may lead to increased rates of recycling and
reuse for many materials.
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Problem: Energy savings due to recycling
Aluminum is extensively recycled, in part because of the energy savings
associated with reprocessing recycled aluminum into aluminum stock, as
compared to the processing of bauxite into aluminum. The table below shows
the differences in fuel and electricity inputs required for primary aluminum
(from bauxite) and aluminum recycled from automotive scrap (U.S. Life Cycle
Inventory data available at www.nrel.gov/lci). Using current prices for the fuels
and electricity, calculate the differences in energy costs, per pound of
aluminum. How does this compare to the market price of aluminum?
Material flow summary
• Material flow tracking can identify overall availability of
materials and potential opportunities for material reuse
or recycling
• One way to view these flows is as an opportunity to
change the designs of industrial systems so that they
more closely resemble highly networked, mass‐
conserving, natural ecosystems, an industrial ecology
• The data necessary to perform detailed material tracking
are just beginning to emerge in a consistent framework
• For many analyses, we need to assemble the necessary
data on material use and flows on a case‐specific basis
• As material scarcity becomes an important issue, these
types of analyses will become increasingly valuable
Summary
• Almost every engineering design involves the use of materials,
and these materials have environmental footprints
• This week’s lecture summarizes the methods for
characterizing the footprints associated with extraction,
processing, and environmental releases of materials, but
these assessments can lead to very different characterizations
of materials
• Is the material scarce? Can it be recycled? Do environmental
releases have significant impacts?
• There are no universally accepted methods for combining
these characterizations of whether a material is sustainable.
Multiple methods are used.
• Engineers will need to consider materials in the context of
particular designs, recognizing that the choice of the most
sustainable materials will be application‐specific
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