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1.
Andreas Ciroth Marcel Hagelüken Guido W. Sonnemann Francesc Castells Günter Fleischer 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2002,7(6):363-368
Goal and Background Geographical and technological differences in Life Cycle Inventory data are an important source for uncertainty in the result
of Life Cycle Assessments. Knowledge on their impact on the result of an LCA is scarce, and also knowledge on how to manage
them in an LCA case study.
Objective Goal of this paper is to explore these differences for municipal solid waste incinerator plants, and to develop recommendations
for managing technological and geographical differences.
Methodology The paper provides a definition of technological and geographical differences, and analyses their possible impacts. In a case
study, the differences are caused intentionally in ‘games’, by virtually transplanting incineration plants to a different
location and by changing parameters such as the composition of the waste input incinerated. The games are performed by using
a modular model for municipal solid waste incinerator plants. In each case, an LCA including an Impact Assessment is calculated
to trace the impact of these changes, and the results are compared.
Conclusions The conclusions of the paper are two-fold: (1) reduce the differences in inventory data where their impact on the result is
high; where it is possible reducing them to a great extent, and the effort for performing the change acceptable; in the case
of incineration plants: Adapt the flue gas treatment, especially a possible DeNOx step, to the real conditions; (2) make use
of modular process models that allow adapting plant parameters to better meet real conditions, but be aware of possible modelling
errors. We invite the scientific community to validate the model used for a waste incinerator plant, and suggest putting up
similar models for other processes, preferably those of similar relevance for Life Cycle Inventories. 相似文献
2.
Marlo Raynolds Roydon Fraser David Checkel 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2000,5(1):37-46
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is being used more and more as a decision making tool to compare alternative systems of providing a given product or service. Each system is theoretically made up of a near infinite number of elements or unit processes to produce the product or service. In practice, time and resources to complete an LCA are limited, hence the need to draw practical boundaries on the systems being analyzed. However, how does the LCA practitioner draw fair boundaries on two or more different systems being compared? In other words, how does one decide which unit processes to include in each system? A consistent quantitative method of selecting boundaries is essential for comparative LCA studies. This paper first outlines the requirements for a system boundary selection methodology and then demonstrates the shortfalls of existing methods. The primary objective is to present the Relative Mass-Energy-Economic (RMEE) method for system boundary selection. This concise, repeatable and quantitative method for selecting system boundaries for LCA is demonstrated on a life-cycle system for ethanol fuel. Unlike many other methods of selecting system boundaries, the RMEE method is practical to use and quantitatively ensures different systems have similar system boundaries to ensure a fair comparison between options. The RMEE method has been designed specifically for LCA studies of energy systems 相似文献
3.
Christine Roxanne Hung Linda Ager‐Wick Ellingsen Guillaume Majeau‐Bettez 《Journal of Industrial Ecology》2020,24(1):26-37
While life cycle assessment (LCA) is a tool often used to evaluate the environmental impacts of products and technologies, the amount of data required to perform such studies make the evaluation of emerging technologies using the conventional LCA approach challenging. The development paradox is such that the inputs from a comprehensive environmental assessment has the greatest effect early in the development phase, and yet the data required to perform such an assessment are generally lacking until it is too late. Previous attempts to formalize strategies for performing streamlined or screening LCAs were made in the late 1990s and early 2000s, mostly to rapidly compare the environmental performance of product design candidates. These strategies lack the transparency and consistency required for the environmental screening of large numbers of early‐development candidates, for which data are even sparser. We propose the Lifecycle Screening of Emerging Technologies method (LiSET). LiSET is an adaptable screening‐to‐LCA method that uses the available data to systematically and transparently evaluate the environmental performance of technologies at low readiness levels. Iterations follow technological development and allow a progression to a full LCA if desired. In early iterations, LiSET presents results in a matrix structure combined with a “traffic light” color grading system. This format inherently communicates the high uncertainty of analysis at this stage and presents numerous environmental aspects assessed. LiSET takes advantage of a decomposition analysis and data not traditionally used in LCAs to gain insight to the life cycle impacts and ensure that the most environmentally sustainable technologies are adopted. 相似文献
4.
5.
Andreas Kicherer Stefan Schaltegger Heinrich Tschochohei Beatriz Ferreira Pozo 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2007,12(7):537-543
Goal, Scope and Background The eco-efficiency analysis and portfolio is a powerful decision support tool for various strategic and marketing issues.
Since its original academic development, the approach has been refined during the last decade and applied to a multitude of
projects. BASF, as possibly the most prominent company using and developing this tool, has applied the eco-efficiency approach
to more than 300 projects in the last 7 years. One of the greatest difficulties is to cover both dimensions of eco-efficiency
(costs or value added and environmental impact) in a comparable manner. This is particularly a challenge for the eco-efficiency
analyses of products.
Methods In this publication, an important approach and field of application dealing with product decisions based on the combination
of Life Cycle Cost (LCC) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is described in detail. Special emphasis is put on the quantitative
assessment of the relation of costs and environmental impacts. In conventional LCA an assessment of environmental impact categories
is often made by normalization with inhabitant equivalents. This is necessary to be able to compare the different environmental
impact categories, because of each different unit. For the proposed eco-efficiency analysis, the costs of products or processes
are also normalized with adapted gross domestic product figures.
Results and Discussion The ratio between normalized environmental impact categories and normalized costs (RE,C) is used for the graphical presentation of the results in an eco-efficiency portfolio. For the interpretation of the results
of an eco-efficiency analysis, it is important to distinguish ratios RE,C which are higher than one from ratios lower than one. In the first case, the environmental impact is higher than the cost
impact, while the inverse is true in the second case. This is very important for defining which kind of improvement is needed
and defining strategic management decisions. The paper shows a statistical evaluation of the RE,C factor based on the results of different eco-efficiency analyses made by BASF. For industries based on large material flows
(e.g. chemicals, steel, metals, agriculture), the RE,C factor is typically higher than one.
Conclusions and Recommendations This contribution shows that LCC and LCA may be combined in a way that they mirror the concept of eco-efficiency. LCAs that
do not consider LCC may be of very limited use for company management. For that very reason, corporations should install a
data management system that ensures equal information on both sides of the eco-efficiency coin. 相似文献
6.
Günter Fleischer Wulf-Peter Schmidt 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》1997,2(1):20-24
A screening and simplified LCA method, is essential necessary to include environmental aspects in the stage of Research and
Development (R&D) of products and processes. An interactive, iterative and integrative eco-design tool using the top-down
approach in the identification of advanced materials is being developed in a joint project performed by six research institutes.
The principles and methods as well as some examples for the validation of the screening LCA as well as its application in
eco-design in case studies are presented in this article. 相似文献
7.
Sabrina Spatari Michael Betz Harald Florin Martin Baitz Michael Faltenbacher 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2001,6(2):81-84
The growing availability of software tools has increased the speed of generating LCA studies. Databases and visual tools for
constructing material balance modules greatly facilitate the process of analyzing the environmental aspects of product systems
over their life cycle. A robust software tool, containing a large LCI dataset and functions for performing LCIA and sensitivity
analysis will allow companies and LCA practitioners to conduct systems analyses efficiently and reliably. This paper discusses
how the GaBi 3 software tool can be used to perform LCA and Life Cycle Engineering (LCE), a methodology that combines life
cycle economic, environmental, and technology assessment. The paper highlights important attributes of LCA software tools,
including high quality, well-documented data, transparency in modeling, and data analysis functionality. An example of a regional
power grid mix model is used to illustrate the versatility of GaBi 3. 相似文献
8.
The application of the methodology Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is time-consuming and expensive. A definite interpretation,
furthermore, is not always derivable from the determined results. The reason for the leeway of interpretation is frequently
due to the imprecision and uncertainty of the ingoing data. An improved clearance of interpretation is to be expected by an
ecological evaluation of methodology with the support of fuzzy-sets. The influence of uncertainties of ingoing data on evaluation
results becomes transparent through a representation as fuzzy-sets. Thus, the interpretation of an uncertainty of assessment
results is reduced in comparison to usual procedures for environmental LCA thus far. Time and cost saving is to be expected
from the fact that the extensive quantification of many energy and mass flows is replaced by a fuzzy-set supported iteration
loop, with which only the exact quantification of a few important flows is necessary. 相似文献
9.
Karen G. Shapiro 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2001,6(2):121-123
The goal of LCA is to identify the environmental impacts resulting from a product, process, or activity. While LCA is useful
for evaluating environmental attributes, it stops short of providing information that business managers routinely utilize
for decision-making — i.e., dollars. Thus, decisions regarding the processes used for manufacturing products and the materials
comprising those products can be enhanced by weaving cost and environmental information into the decision-making process.
Various approaches have been used during the past decade to supplement environmental information with cost information. One
of these tools is environmental accounting, the identification, analysis, reporting, and use of environmental information,
including environmental cost data. Environmental cost accounting provides information necessary for identifying the true costs
of products and processes and for evaluating opportunities to minimize those costs. As demonstrated through two case studies,
many companies are incorporating environmental cost information into their accounting systems to prioritize investments in
new technologies and products. 相似文献
10.
Günter Fleischer Karin Gerner Heiko Kunst Kerstin Lichtenvort Gerald Rebitzer 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2001,6(3):149-156
Intention, Goal and Scope: Dealing with data gaps, data asymmetries, and inconsistencies in life cycle inventories (LCI) is
a general prohlem in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies. An approach to deal with these difficulties is the simplification
of LCA. A methodology that lowers the requirements for data quality (accuracy) for process emissions within a simplified LCA
is introduced in this article. Background: Simplification is essential for applying LCA in the context of design for environment
(DfE). The tool euroMat is a comprehensive DfE software tool that is based on a specific, simplified LCA approach, the Iterative
Screening LCA (IS-LCA). Within the scope of the IS-LCA, there is a quantitative assessment of energy-related processes, as
well as a semi-quantitative assessment of non-energy related emissions which supplement each other. Objectives: The semi-quantitative
assessment, which is in the focus of this article, aims at lowering the requirements for the quality of non-energy related
emissions data through combined use of qualitative and quantitative inventory data. Methods: Potential environmental impacts
are assessed based on ABC-categories for qualities (harmfulness) of emissions and XYZ-categories for quantities of emitted
substances. Employing statistical methods assignment rules for the ABC/XYZ-categories were derived from literature data and
databases on emissions to air, water, and soil. Statistical tests as well as a DfE case study (comparing the materials aluminum
and carbon fiber reinforced epoxy for a lightweight container to be used in an aerospace application) were conducted in order
to evaluate the level of confidence and practicality of the proposed, simplified impact assessment. Results: Statistical and
technical consistency checks show that the method bears a high level of confidence. Results obtained by the simplified assessment
correlate to those of a detailed quantitative LCA. Conclusions: Therefore, the application of the ABC/XYZ-categories (together
with the cumulative energy demand) can be considered a practical and consistent approach for determining the environmental
significance of products when only incomplete emission data is available. Future Prospects: The statistical base of the method
is expanded continuously since it is an integral part of the DfE software tool euroMat, which is currently being further developed.
That should foster the application of the method. Outside DfE, the method should also be capable of facilitating simplified
LCAs in general. 相似文献
11.
Karin Andersson 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2000,5(4):239-248
This article is a summary of my dissertation in which LCA was applied to food products and production systems. The overall
objectives were: (1) to learn more about the feasibility and limitations of LCAs of systems for the production and consumption
of foods (food systems); and (2) to generate information on the environmental impact of such systems. Case studies of tomato
ketchup and white bread were carried out. The main conclusion is that LCA is very valuable for incorporating environmental
aspects in the development of more sustainable food systems. One of the major problems encountered was the great scarcity
of environmental data. It was found that there is a need for simplified methods that can be used as a compass to show the
direction towards sustainability. Accordingly, the feasibility of combinng the concept of sustainabiliry principles and LCA
for product development was examined and discussed. This combination was found to yield a simplified method well suited for
screening analysis and product development. 相似文献
12.
Yasuhumi Mori Gjalt Huppes Helias A. Udo de Haes Suehiro Otoma 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2000,5(6):327-334
To date, numerous simplified Life Cycle Assessment methods and techniques have been developed to reduce complexities associated
with practical application. However, these methods often identify critical elements according to subjective considerations.
In this paper, we develop and apply a new type of Life Cycle Inventory method — Component Manufacturing Analysis (CMA) — that
is easy to implement and less arbitrary. Application of CMA requires identification of all product components and their associated
weights, which are then entered into a factory-type database. Because the factory database has a rigorous yet generic structure
and because calculation is done automatically, the application of CMA tends to be less arbitrary and more complete than other
simplified methods. Results of a case study on beverage vending machines show that the manufacturing stage is a significant
phase in the whole life-cycle inventory of a product. We conclude that CMA shows promise for further development and future
application. 相似文献
13.
14.
Background, aim, and scope
Many studies evaluate the results of applying different life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methods to the same life cycle inventory (LCI) data and demonstrate that the assessment results would be different with different LICA methods used. Although the importance of uncertainty is recognized, most studies focus on individual stages of LCA, such as LCI and normalization and weighting stages of LCIA. However, an important question has not been answered in previous studies: Which part of the LCA processes will lead to the primary uncertainty? The understanding of the uncertainty contributions of each of the LCA components will facilitate the improvement of the credibility of LCA.Methodology
A methodology is proposed to systematically analyze the uncertainties involved in the entire procedure of LCA. The Monte Carlo simulation is used to analyze the uncertainties associated with LCI, LCIA, and the normalization and weighting processes. Five LCIA methods are considered in this study, i.e., Eco-indicator 99, EDIP, EPS, IMPACT 2002+, and LIME. The uncertainty of the environmental performance for individual impact categories (e.g., global warming, ecotoxicity, acidification, eutrophication, photochemical smog, human health) is also calculated and compared. The LCA of municipal solid waste management strategies in Taiwan is used as a case study to illustrate the proposed methodology.Results
The primary uncertainty source in the case study is the LCI stage under a given LCIA method. In comparison with various LCIA methods, EDIP has the highest uncertainty and Eco-indicator 99 the lowest uncertainty. Setting aside the uncertainty caused by LCI, the weighting step has higher uncertainty than the normalization step when Eco-indicator 99 is used. Comparing the uncertainty of various impact categories, the lowest is global warming, followed by eutrophication. Ecotoxicity, human health, and photochemical smog have higher uncertainty.Discussion
In this case study of municipal waste management, it is confirmed that different LCIA methods would generate different assessment results. In other words, selection of LCIA methods is an important source of uncertainty. In this study, the impacts of human health, ecotoxicity, and photochemical smog can vary a lot when the uncertainties of LCI and LCIA procedures are considered. For the purpose of reducing the errors of impact estimation because of geographic differences, it is important to determine whether and which modifications of assessment of impact categories based on local conditions are necessary.Conclusions
This study develops a methodology of systematically evaluating the uncertainties involved in the entire LCA procedure to identify the contributions of different assessment stages to the overall uncertainty. Which modifications of the assessment of impact categories are needed can be determined based on the comparison of uncertainty of impact categories.Recommendations and perspectives
Such an assessment of the system uncertainty of LCA will facilitate the improvement of LCA. If the main source of uncertainty is the LCI stage, the researchers should focus on the data quality of the LCI data. If the primary source of uncertainty is the LCIA stage, direct application of LCIA to non-LCIA software developing nations should be avoided. 相似文献15.
Limitations of data quality and difficulties to assess uncertainty are long since acknowledged problems in LCA. During recent
years a range of tools for improvement of reliability in LCA have been presented, but despite this there is still a lack of
consensus about how these issues should be handled. To give basic understanding of data quality and uncertainty in LCA, key
concepts of data quality and uncertainty in the context of LCA are explained. A comprehensive survey of methods and approaches
for data quality management, sensitivity analysis, and uncertainty analysis published in the LCA literature is presented.
It should serve as a guide to further reading for LCA practitioners interested in improving data quality management and uncertainty
assessment in LCA projects. The suitability of different tools for addressing different types of uncertainty and future needs
in this field is discussed. 相似文献
16.
Maxime Agez Guillaume Majeau‐Bettez Manuele Margni Anders H. Strmman Rjean Samson 《Journal of Industrial Ecology》2020,24(3):517-533
Life cycle assessment (LCA) and environmentally extended input–output analyses (EEIOA) are two techniques commonly used to assess environmental impacts of an activity/product. Their strengths and weaknesses are complementary, and they are thus regularly combined to obtain hybrid LCAs. A number of approaches in hybrid LCA exist, which leads to different results. One of the differences is the method used to ensure that mixed LCA and EEIOA data do not overlap, which is referred to as correction for double counting. This aspect of hybrid LCA is often ignored in reports of hybrid assessments and no comprehensive study has been carried out on it. This article strives to list, compare, and analyze the different existing methods for the correction of double counting. We first harmonize the definitions of the existing correction methods and express them in a common notation, before introducing a streamlined variant. We then compare their respective assumptions and limitations. We discuss the loss of specific information regarding the studied activity/product and the loss of coherent financial representation caused by some of the correction methods. This analysis clarifies which techniques are most applicable to different tasks, from hybridizing individual LCA processes to integrating complete databases. We finally conclude by giving recommendations for future hybrid analyses. 相似文献
17.
An input‐output‐based life cycle inventory (IO‐based LCI) is grounded on economic environmental input‐output analysis (IO analysis). It is a fast and low‐budget method for generating LCI data sets, and is used to close data gaps in life cycle assessment (LCA). Due to the fact that its methodological basis differs from that of process‐based inventory, its application in LCA is a matter of controversy. We developed a German IO‐based approach to derive IO‐based LCI data sets that is based on the German IO accounts and on the German environmental accounts, which provide data for the sector‐specific direct emissions of seven airborne compounds. The method to calculate German IO‐based LCI data sets for building products is explained in detail. The appropriateness of employing IO‐based LCI for German buildings is analyzed by using process‐based LCI data from the Swiss Ecoinvent database to validate the calculated IO‐based LCI data. The extent of the deviations between process‐based LCI and IO‐based LCI varies considerably for the airborne emissions we investigated. We carried out a systematic evaluation of the possible reasons for this deviation. This analysis shows that the sector‐specific effects (aggregation of sectors) and the quality of primary data for emissions from national inventory reporting (NIR) are the main reasons for the deviations. As a rule, IO‐based LCI data sets seem to underestimate specific emissions while overestimating sector‐specific aspects. 相似文献
18.
Marieke Gorrée Jeroen B. Guinée Gjalt Huppes Lauran van Oers 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2002,7(3):158-166
Linoleum is a floor covering consisting mainly of linseed oil, other vegetable oils, wood flour and limestone on a carrier
of jute. Forbo-Krommenie B.V. commissioned the Centre of Environmental Science (CML) to carry out an Environmental Life Cycle
Assessment for linoleum floors. The goal of this study was to assess the environmental performance of linoleum floors, indicating
possible options for improvement, and assessing the sensitivity of the results to methodological choices. The functional unit
was defined as: 2000 m2 linoleum produced in 1998, used in an office or public building over a period of 20 years. The method followed in this study
is based on a nearly final draft version of the LCA guide published by CML in corporation with many others, which is an update
of the guide on LCA of 1992.
From the contribution analysis, the main contributing processes became clear. In addition, the sensitivity analysis by scenarios
showed that the type of maintenance during use and the pigments used can have a large influence on the results. Major data
gaps of the study were capital goods and unknown chemicals. Sensitivity analysis also showed that these gaps can lead to an
underestimation. Based on this study, some options to improve the environmental performance of linoleum were formulated and
advice for further LCA studies on linoleum was given. 相似文献
19.
This article reviews efforts made by the United Nations Environment Programme to assess the progress in life cycle assessment
(LCA) implementation worldwide. The effort was approached in two stages. First, research was carried out which included a
document search and a survey of LCA practitioners. Secondly, an expert workshop of LCA practitioners was held to review the
survey results and to develop recommendations for action. Results highlight that there is significant and growing interest
in LCA and that its use is increasing. To foster better LCA adoption, industry, government and other societal groups will
have to address barriers due to a lack of: a perceived need for LCA, of expertise or know how, of funding and a lack of data
and methodology. 相似文献
20.
In 1998, the Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) launched a five-year national project entitled ‘Development
of Life Cycle Impact Assessment for Products’ (commonly known as ‘the LCA Project’). The purpose of the project is to develop
common LCA methodology as well as a highly reliable database that can be shared in Japan. Activities over these five years
have resulted in the supply of LCI data on some 250 products. Industrial associations voluntarily provided data. The results
of these activities are currently being made available on the Internet on a trial basis in the form of an LCA database. In
addition, a method entitled ‘Life-cycle Impact assessment Method based on Endpoint modeling (LIME)’ was developed. It is expected
that these results will be widely used in Japan in the future. This paper presents an outline of the results of the research
and development that has been conducted in the LCA Project in Japan. 相似文献