Life Cycle Analysis - Lecture Notes PDF

Life cycle Analysis Step 1: Goal and Scope 32 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE 4 questions to answer to properly define (or analyse) the goal and scope of an LCA WHY? WHO? WHAT?...

Life cycle Analysis Step 1: Goal and Scope 32 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE 4 questions to answer to properly define (or analyse) the goal and scope of an LCA WHY? WHO? WHAT? WHERE? 33 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Set the goal: Why the LCA is considered? Identify the (sustainability related) decisions that require a support from the results of the study: ‒ Assess (environmental and health) impacts; ‒ Improve design decisions; ‒ Make better procurement decisions; ‒ Meet communications needs; ‒ Achieve compliance; ‒ Make better policies; ‒ Identify cost savings; ‒ Enhance brand value for competitive differentiation, etc. https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/process-and-operations/us- consulting-enhancingthevalueoflifecycleassessment-112514.pdf 34 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Example of a MIT LCA study on hand dryers (Commissioned by Dyson): The overall goal of this study is to compare the life cycle environmental impact of several hand‐drying systems using a consistent basis. Specific goals are to: ‒ 1) Evaluate how hand‐drying systems impact the environment under different manufacturing and use scenarios. ‒ 2) Identify impact drivers and ways to target those factors. ‒ 3) Inform product design decisions. Answering the WHY question helps define the specific objectives of the study. 35 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Who is the target audience? ‒ Is it for internal use only? ‒ Will it be used by the design or engineering teams? ‒ To engage your suppliers or to inform the CEO? ‒ Do you plan to make the results available to the public? ‒ Etc. 36 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE 37 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Example of a MIT LCA study on hand dryers: ‒ Who is/are their target audience(s)? “This study was commissioned by Dyson and it is expected that the results will be used to support comparative assertions that are disclosed to the public. The report has two audiences. The first audience is any interested party who wishes to understand the data, assumptions, and methodologies used to calculate life cycle environmental impact for the hand‐drying systems. The second audience is the Dyson engineers who are interested in understanding the drivers of environmental impact for the hand‐drying systems.” 38 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? A LCA requires a fair basis to compare options: ‒ Function: A product’s function is an action describing the product’s purpose or the product’s components’ purpose(s); A simple way to describe a function: verb + complements. 39 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? Examples of functions: 40 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? 2 possible levels of function: ‒ Basic functions & additional functions; ‒ Example: Node chair Basic functions: ‒ Sit; ‒ Write and read; Additional functions: ‒ Move quick and easily in classroom ‒ Store student’s belongings ‒ Fit to student’s ergonomics and comfort needs 41 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? Functional unit: ‒ A product’s functional unit is a quantified performance of a system of products to be used as the reference unit in the LCA study; ‒ The FU should relate to a quantity of service (related to the function) rather than a quantity of physical product. 42 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? Examples of functional units: And in the MIT example? 43 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE What is going to be analysed? Three common mistakes when defining FU: Assuming that the same Being overly restrictive; Incorrect use of technical standards or physical quantity of a legal requirements: product equals the same Example : “Enable function: watching of television Example : “Driving 1000 average with a 30 W power person-kilometers in a diesel Example : “1 kg of consumption for passenger car that fulfils the Euro 6 packaging material” 10,000h” standard and therefore emitting less than 0.08 g NO X per kilometer (Euro 6 standard) during use” 44 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Where are placed the boundaries? System boundaries: ‒ the boundaries between the studied product system and (1) the surrounding economy (technosphere) and (2) the environment (ecosphere); ‒ determine the unit processes from which environmental impacts should be quantified. 45 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE - Elementary flows: Cradle to gate directly taken (resources) or rejected (emissions in air, water, soil) in the Supplier 1 environment; - Non elementary flows: Supplier 2 Supplier 3 Energy supplier intermediary materials, components, products or co-products or wastes between Production facility actors. Elementary User flows Other flows Elementary EoL actors flows Cradle to Grave Other flows Cradle to Cradle 46 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Where are placed the boundaries? System boundaries: ‒ Define the LC phases that are considered (Cradle to Gate / Cradle to Grave / Cradle to Cradle); ‒ Define the level of scrutiny of the study: cut-off rules 47 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Boundaries: cut-off rules ‒ 1. Physical measure with weight (% total mass) ‒ 2. Cost or revenue contribution (% total cost) ‒ 3. Environmental aspects contribution 48 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Boundary : decisions of exclusion – by physical properties Example with a tea kettle 95 % 49 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Where are placed the boundaries? System boundaries: ‒ Define the LC phases that are considered (Cradle to Gate / Cradle to Grave / Cradle to Cradle); ‒ Define the level of scrutiny of the study (% w/w, % total cost, % env. contribution); ‒ Define the location of the study. 50 LCA – STEP 1: GOAL & SCOPE Where are placed the boundaries? ‒ Example of a MIT LCA study on hand dryers (Commissioned by Dyson) “The analysis includes all life cycle stages, from cradle to grave, along with transportation between each stage. These stages and their corresponding locations are shown in Figure 2 for the hand dryer, cotton roll towel, and paper towel systems. The United States is the primary region of focus for the use of the products in this study, although scenarios involving several other regions throughout the world have been evaluated in the sensitivity analyses […] all systems, with the exception of paper towels, are assumed to be manufactured in China and used in the United States. […] In the case of the Dyson Airblade hand dryer, all parts are accounted for, with the smaller parts such as screws or fasteners aggregated into a single “part”” 51 LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT LCA Methodology: 4 (+1) main steps 1. Goal & Scope LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT definition FRAMEWORK Direct applications: Product development 2. 4. and improvement; Need for Inventory Strategic planning; comprehensive Interpretation analysis (LCI) Public policy making; Databases Marketing; Etc. 3. Need for 5. Critical review Impact software and assessment models 52