共查询到20条相似文献,搜索用时 15 毫秒
1.
东北有机及常规大豆对环境影响的生命周期评价 总被引:4,自引:0,他引:4
选择我国主要有机出口农产品之一——大豆作为研究对象,采用生命周期评价、DNDC模型、实地调研等方法建立大豆生命周期资源消耗和环境排放清单,分析比较了出口型有机大豆、国内消费型有机大豆以及国内消费型常规大豆的生命周期环境影响.结果表明:3种不同生产消费型大豆生命周期中资源消耗、酸化以及全球变暖对综合环境影响贡献最明显,基本上占到综合环境影响评价的30%左右,而富营养化和生态毒性的贡献率较低,小于10%.从生命周期的不同阶段分析,3种消费模式的大豆其运输阶段对于各分类环境影响的贡献率最大,都在50%以上,对资源消耗的贡献率更是在80%以上.从2种不同的生产模式看无论是全球变暖、酸化、资源消耗还是生态毒性都是有机大豆的环境影响综合指数小于常规大豆,对环境产生的负面影响较小.综合比较3种不同生产消费型大豆,国内消费的有机大豆生命周期综合环境影响最小,其环境影响综合指数比常规大豆的减少31%.但是出口有机大豆由于出口使运输距离延长,其生命周期综合环境影响最大.因此,环境管理关键是提倡有机产品本地消费以缩短运输距离,或者采用环保型能源以减少环境排放. 相似文献
2.
Environmental impacts of forest production and supply of pulpwood: Spanish and Swedish case studies 总被引:2,自引:0,他引:2
Sara González-García Staffan Berg Gumersindo Feijoo Ma Teresa Moreira 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2009,14(4):340-353
Background, aim and scope Forest operations use large amounts of energy, which must be considered when life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is applied
to forest products. Forest management practices differ considerably between countries and may also differ within a country.
This paper aims to identify and compare the environmental burdens from forest operations in Sweden and Spain focused on pulpwood
production and supply to pulp mills.
Materials and methods To perform the analysis, the main forest plantations were investigated as well as the most important tree species used in
pulp mills in both countries: eucalyptus and, Norway spruce and Scots pine, were taken into account for the Spanish and Swedish
case studies, respectively. Energy requirements for pulpwood production and supply to Spanish and Swedish pulp mills are evaluated
in this paper. All forest operations from site preparation to extraction of felled wood to the delivery point at the roadside
are included within the system boundaries as well as wood transport from forest landing to the pulp mill gate. Seedling and
machinery production are excluded from the system boundaries due to lack of field data. The impact assessment phase was carried
out according to the Swedish Environmental Management Council and, in particular, the impact categories assessed in forest
and agricultural LCAs (global warming, acidification, eutrophication and photochemical oxidant formation) were analysed. SimaPro
7.10 software was used to perform the impact assessment stage.
Results Different types of wood are produced in both case studies: softwood in Sweden and hardwood in Spain, with higher production
of round wood and biomass per hectare in Sweden. Total energy use for pulpwood production and supply are in a similar order
of magnitude, up to 395 MJ and 370 MJ/m3 solid under bark in Spain and Sweden, respectively. Field operations, such as silviculture and logging, are more energy-intensive
in the Spanish case study. However, secondary hauling of pulpwood to pulp mill requires more energy in the Swedish case study.
These important differences are related to different forest management practices as well as to pulpwood supply to the pulp
mill. The eventual imports of pulpwood, application of pesticides, thinning step or final felling considerably affects energy
requirements, which are reflected on the environmental results.
Discussion Although differences between both case studies were observed, several stages were investigated: wood delivery to the pulp
mill by road, harvesting and forwarding, contribute considerably to acidification, eutrophication and global warming potential
in both cases. The type of wood, the machines used in forest operations (mechanised or motor-manual), the use of fossil fuels
and the amount of wood produced influence the results. These differences must be kept in mind in comparative studies between
such different countries.
Conclusions The results obtained in this work allow one to forecast the importance of forest operations in LCA of forest products (in
this case, wood pulp) and the influence of energy use in the results. Special attention has been paid in the inventory analysis
stage for both case studies. It is possible to gain a better environmental performance in both case studies if alternative
practices are considered, mainly focused on site preparation and stand tending in the Spanish system and on pulpwood supply
in the Swedish one.
Recommendations and perspectives This study provides useful information that can assist forest-based industries in the aim of increasing their sustainability.
Future work will focus on the study of several transport alternatives of pulpwood supply including railway, road and ship.
In addition, pulpwood processing in Spanish and Swedish paper pulp mills considered to be representative of the “state of
art” will be carried out in order to get a complete picture of this kind of forest-based industry. In addition, the use of
biofuels (such as forest biomass) instead of fossil fuels and CO2 uptake of wood via photosynthesis will be carried out in order to have a complete perspective of forest ecosystems. 相似文献
3.
Life cycle assessment of a multi-material car component 总被引:1,自引:1,他引:0
Catarina Ribeiro José V. Ferreira Paulo Partidário 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2007,12(5):336-345
Background, Aims and Scope In recent years, the automotive industry has been experiencing an increasing concern with environmental requirements. A particular
focus is being given to light-weighting of cars, to reducing fuel consumption and to the use of different recycling materials.
Consequently, decisions on product design and development must involve economic and technological as well as environmental
considerations. In adequate conditions, the LCA methodology enables one to assist an effective integration of the environmental
considerations in the decision-making process [1]. In this paper, a multi-material car component which is part of the current
automotive brake system, has been modified by its original manufacturer. Such a modification included the use of a new multi-material
injection moulding process and the consumption of recyclable materials. The new and the current component were comparatively
assessed throughout their life cycles in order to evaluate their respective environmental impacts and, thus, to verify if
the new component offers a lower environmental load. The results described in this paper are part of the outcome of a broader
research project involving industrial companies, university, technological centres and research institutes based in Portugal,
Spain and Germany.
Main Features The car component under focus has four subcomponents whose base materials consist of steel and plastic. The LCA methodology
is used to evaluate two scenarios describing the new car component, on the one hand, and the reference scenario, which consists
of the existing car component, on the other. The former results from the selection of new subcomponents materials, aiming
to use a new production process together with a recycling strategy.
Results and Discussion The inventory analysis shows a lower energy consumption in the alternative scenario (4.2 MJ) compared to the reference scenario
(6.1 MJ). Most of that energy is still non-renewable, relating in particular to crude consumption in the car use phase and
in the production phase (transports and plastics production). The life cycle inventory analysis indicates also that the alternative
scenario has lower air emissions of CO2, CO, NOx, SOx, NM VOC and PM10, as well as lower solid wastes and water emissions of oils and BOD5. Otherwise, the water emissions of undissolved
substances and COD are higher for the alternative scenario. Most of the energy consumed and the air pollutants inventoried
occur as a consequence of the use phase. Otherwise, for most of the life cycle water emissions inventoried and solid wastes,
the production phase is the major contributor. The impact assessment, performed with the CML method, allows one to conclude
that the alternative scenario exhibits lower results in all the impact categories. Both scenarios have similar environmental
profiles, being: (i) the use phase, the major contributor for the abiotic depletion, global warming, photochemical oxidation,
acidification and eutrophication; and (ii) the production phase, the main contributor for ozone depletion, human toxicity,
fresh water aquatic ecotoxicity, marine aquatic ecotoxicity and terrestrial ecotoxicity. The sensitivity analysis, with respect
to the fuel consumption reduction value, the impact assessment method and the final disposal scenario, performed in this study
allows one to confirm, as a main conclusion, that the alternative scenario is environmentally preferable to the reference
scenario.
Conclusion The results obtained through the application of the LCA methodology enable one to conclude that the alternative component
has a lower environmental load than the reference component.
Recommendations and Perspectives Considering that the time required for the inventory data collection is a critical issue in LCA practise, the insights provided
by this particular case study are likely to be useful to product developers in the car component manufacturing industry, particularly
to brake system manufacturers supporting the environmental design within the sector. 相似文献
4.
基于生命周期视角的产业资源生态管理效益分析——以虚拟共生网络系统为例 总被引:2,自引:0,他引:2
资源流代谢失调是造成产业生态环境问题的主要原因之一,对其实施基于共生网络的生态管理是解决问题的一项重要的举措。运用全生命周期的思想构建了产业资源共生网络及其管理框架,并运用全生命周期评价的方法,借助生命周期评价软件GaBi4,分别选取EI99 (Eco-Indicator 99)、CML2001 EP评价体系,以武汉市造纸产业为例,通过设计合理的资源流网络关系及中水、废纸和污泥利用共生路径构建虚拟造纸产业共生网络,对比分析了共生设计系统与原有共生系统的各生态环境影响。并运用市场价值法对共生设计系统的经济效益进行了分析。结果表明:共生设计系统总的环境影响、生态系统质量、人体健康、资源损耗值的环境影响分值分别为1166.445、814.509、148.893、203.045,比原有系统分别减少23.91%、19.15%、46.56%、22.26%;其中富营养化、气候变化的影响分别比原有系统降低56.25%、16.62%。同时共生设计系统通过污水、废纸及污泥的回用,在不考虑市场波动的情况下,可获得1018-7252万元的经济效益。可见,通过构建共生网络的生态管理是提高资源利用效率的有效手段之一,在一定条件下可取得明显的环境和经济效益。 相似文献
5.
Unsustainable private consumption causes energy and environmental problems. This occurs directly (resource depletion and emissions through using cars for transport) or indirectly (purchase of consumer goods and services for which the production uses energy and emits damaging gases). A hybrid energy analysis proved that indoor energy consumption, mobility, and vacations are the main consumer categories from an energy point of view. Although energy is often used as a proxy for environmental load from private consumption, there are other proxies like methane (CH4), sulfur oxides (SOx), and land use. This article describes the results of the extension of the hybrid energy analysis with energy and ten environmental stressors (CH4, nitrous oxide [N2O], nitrogen, phosphate, SOx, nitrogen oxides [NOx], ammonia [NH3], nonmethane volatile organic compounds [NMVOCs], particulate matter [PM10], and land use), combined in five impact categories (global warming potential [GWP], acidification, eutrophication, summer smog, and land use). Household consumption was analyzed by dividing Dutch household expenditure into 368 consumer items in 11 categories. The results show that food impacts, in particular, are underestimated when only energy is taken into account. Food makes the highest contribution in three out of five impact categories when all ten stressors are taken into account. Within the food domain, meat and dairy consumer items have the highest environmental impact, about 45% of total food impact on average across all five impact categories. Looking in detail (368 consumer items), there are nine food items in the top ten most‐polluting items. Salad oil and cheese are the most polluting food items. 相似文献
6.
Polymers based on olefins have wide commercial applicability. However, they are made from non-renewable resources and are characterised by difficulty in disposal where recycle and re-use is not feasible. Poly-beta-hydroxybutyric acid (PHB) provides one example of a polymer made from renewable resources. Before motivating its widespread use, the advantages of a renewable polymer must be weighed against the environmental aspects of its production. Previous studies relating the environmental impacts of petroleum-based and bio-plastics have centred on the impact categories of global warming and fossil fuel depletion. Cradle-to-grave studies report equivalent or reduced global warming impacts, in comparison to equivalent polyolefin processes. This stems from a perceived CO(2) neutral status of the renewable resource. Indeed, no previous work has reported the results of a life cycle assessment (LCA) giving the environmental impacts in all major categories. This study investigates a cradle-to-gate LCA of PHB production taking into account net CO(2) generation and all major impact categories. It compares the findings with similar studies of polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE). It is found that, in all of the life cycle categories, PHB is superior to PP. Energy requirements are slightly lower than previously observed and significantly lower than those for polyolefin production. PE impacts are lower than PHB values in acidification and eutrophication. 相似文献
7.
Belmira Neto Ana Cláudia Dias Marina Machado 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2013,18(3):590-602
Purpose
This paper performs a life cycle assessment study for a white wine produced in the northern part of Portugal, i.e. the white vinho verde. The purpose is to identify the environmental impacts occurring along the wine life cycle as well as the stages that mostly contribute to the environmental impact, as well as the associated causes. The stages considered include: (1) viticulture, (2) wine production (vinification to storage), (3) wine distribution and (4) bottles production.Methods
The consumption of materials and energy, as well as the emissions to air, soil and water from the wine campaign of 2008/2009 were reported to the functional unit (0.75 l of white vinho verde). A Portuguese company that produces about 25 % of the current total production of white vinho verde supplied specific life cycle data for the stages of viticulture, wine production and distribution. SimaPro and the Ecoinvent database were used to perform the environmental assessment using CML 2001 impact methodology. A sensitivity analysis for a set of significant parameters was performed.Results
Results show that for viticulture the contribution of each impact category is larger than 50 %. The production of bottles is the second contributor varying from about 4 % (to eutrophication) to 26 % (to acidification). Wine production and distribution are the subsequent contributors. The contribution of wine production varies between 0.6 % (to land competition) and about 13 % (from marine aquatic and sediment ecotoxicity 100a). The contribution of distribution is up to 14 % (to photochemical oxidation). Sensitivity analysis shows that significant changes are calculated for parameters as the nitrate leaching to groundwater, the emission of nitrous oxide from managed soil, and from runoff and leaching. Changes in these parameters are significant for only a few impact categories as eutrophication and global warming.Conclusions
Viticulture is the stage with the largest relative contribution to the overall environmental impact and the bottle production is the subsequent stage. In order to improve the environmental performance of the supply chain for wine, it is necessary to optimise the dosage of fertilisers and phytosanitary products used during viticulture. The sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the most influential parameters relate with the emission of nitrogen compounds associated with the use of fertilisers. 相似文献8.
Satish Joshi 《Journal of Industrial Ecology》1999,3(2-3):95-120
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) facilitates a systems view in environmental evaluation of products, materials, and processes. Life-cycle assessment attempts to quantify environmental burdens over the entire life-cycle of a product from raw material extraction, manufacturing, and use to ultimate disposal. However, current methods for LCA suffer from problems of subjective boundary definition, inflexibility, high cost, data confidentiality, and aggregation.
This paper proposes alternative models to conduct quick, cost effective, and yet comprehensive life-cycle assessments. The core of the analytical model consists of the 498 sector economic input-output tables for the U.S. economy augmented with various sector-level environmental impact vectors. The environmental impacts covered include global warming, acidification, energy use, non-renewable ores consumption, eutrophication, conventional pollutant emissions and toxic releases to the environment. Alternative models are proposed for environmental assessment of individual products, processes, and life-cycle stages by selective disaggregation of aggregate input-output data or by creation of hypothetical new commodity sectors. To demonstrate the method, a case study comparing the life-cycle environmental performance of steel and plastic automobile fuel tank systems is presented. 相似文献
This paper proposes alternative models to conduct quick, cost effective, and yet comprehensive life-cycle assessments. The core of the analytical model consists of the 498 sector economic input-output tables for the U.S. economy augmented with various sector-level environmental impact vectors. The environmental impacts covered include global warming, acidification, energy use, non-renewable ores consumption, eutrophication, conventional pollutant emissions and toxic releases to the environment. Alternative models are proposed for environmental assessment of individual products, processes, and life-cycle stages by selective disaggregation of aggregate input-output data or by creation of hypothetical new commodity sectors. To demonstrate the method, a case study comparing the life-cycle environmental performance of steel and plastic automobile fuel tank systems is presented. 相似文献
9.
Cheila Almeida Sofia Vaz Henrique Cabral Friederike Ziegler 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2014,19(2):297-306
Purpose
The purse seine fishery for sardine is the most important fishery in Portugal. The aim of the present study is to assess the environmental impacts of sardine fished by the Portuguese fleet and to analyse a number of variables such as vessel size and time scale. An additional goal was to incorporate fishery-specific impact categories in the case study.Methods
Life Cycle Assessment methodology was applied, and data were collected from nine vessels, which represented around 10 % of the landings. Vessels were divided into two length categories, above and below 12 m, and data were obtained for the years 2005 to 2010. The study was limited to the fishing phase only. The standard impact categories included were energy use, global warming potential, eutrophication potential, acidification potential and ozone depletion potential. The fishery-specific impact categories were overfishing, overfishedness, lost potential yield, mean trophic level and the primary production required, and were quantified as much as possible.Results and discussion
The landings from the data set were constituted mainly by sardine (91 %), and the remainders were other small pelagic species (e.g. horse mackerel). The most important input was the fuel, and both vessel categories had the same fuel consumption per catch 0.11 l/kg. Average greenhouse gas emissions (carbon footprint) were 0.36 kg CO2 eq. per kilo sardine landed. The fuel use varied between years, and variability between months can be even higher. Fishing mortality has increased, and the spawning stock biomass has decreased resulting in consequential overfishing for 2010. A correlation between fuel use and stock biomass was not found, and the stock condition does not seem to directly influence the global warming potential in this fishery. Discards were primarily non-target small pelagic species, and there was also mortality of target species resulting from slipping. The seafloor impact was considered to be insignificant due to the fishing method.Conclusions
The assessment of the Portuguese purse seine fishery resulted in no difference regarding fuel use between large and small vessels, but differences were found between years. The stock has declined, and it has produced below maximum sustainable yield. By-catch and discard data were missing but may be substantial. Even being difficult to quantify, fishery impact categories complement the environmental results with biological information and precaution is need in relation to the stock management. The sardine carbon footprint from Portuguese purse seine was lower than that of other commercial species reported in. 相似文献10.
Zeng-Wei Yuan Ya-Nan Zhu Jun-Kui Shi Xin Liu Lei Huang 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2013,18(3):659-672
Purpose
China is the largest producer of textile-dyeing products in the world. The production of these materials consumes high amounts of water and energy and results in the discharge of huge amounts of pollutants. This study aimed at evaluating the life-cycle environmental impacts of the textile-dyeing industry and determining the key processes for mitigating life-cycle environmental impacts efficiently and effectively, which will benefit the application of cleaner production technologies.Methods
A life-cycle assessment was performed according to the ISO 14040 standard series. The system investigated includes the dyeing process and final disposal and the transportation of raw material, energy production, and transportation. The functional unit is 10,000 m of cotton fabric, which weighs 2,000 kg. Our study encompasses three types of data. The data regarding the production process and the major raw materials, necessary energy, and the source of the energy, as well as the emissions of some pollutants, were provided by a textile-dyeing enterprise in Jiangsu Province. The data regarding transport were generated using the GaBi version 4.3 database. Some emission factor data such as those on CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions were obtained from the literature. Resources, energy consumption, and emissions are quantified, and some of the potential environmental effects were evaluated using the CML2001 method built into the GaBi version 4.3 database.Results and discussion
Scouring and oxygen bleaching, dyeing, stentering and setting, wastewater treatment, and incineration are the key processes in terms of global warming potential, acidification potential, photochemical ozone creation potential, and eutrophication potential. It will therefore be useful to enhance the recycling of water, control the consumption of additives and dyes, and conserve energy as much as possible. Through scenario analysis, we note that motorized shipment should be used instead of shipment by trucks, when conditions permit.Conclusions
To promote energy conservation and the clean production of continuous pad-dyeing technology for cotton fabrics, other environmental impact categories besides the impact of the water system should be given focus. Additional work can be performed on the following: considering a consumption-based perspective of the entire process, uncertainty in data on life-cycle inventory, the evaluation methodology employed, temporal and spatial variation, the normalized toxicity of dyes and additives, and weighting methods. 相似文献11.
Sara González-García Érica G. Castanheira Ana Cláudia Dias Luis Arroja 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2013,18(4):796-811
Purpose
The dairy sector covers multiple activities related to milk production and treatment for alimentary uses. Different dairy products are available in the markets, with yoghurt being the second most important in terms of production. The goal of this study was to analyse from a cradle-to-grave approach the environmental impacts and energy balance derived from the yoghurt (solid, stirred and drinking yoghurts) manufacture process in a specific dairy factory processing 100 % Portuguese raw milk.Methods
The standard framework of life cycle assessment (LCA) was followed and inventory data were collected on site in the dairy factory and completed using the literature and databases. The following impact categories were evaluated adopting a CML method: abiotic depletion (ADP), acidification (AP), eutrophication (EP), global warming (GWP), ozone layer depletion (ODP), land competition (LC) and photochemical oxidants formation (POFP), with the energy analysis carried out based on the cumulative non-renewable fossil and nuclear energy demand (CED). A mass allocation approach was considered for the partitioning of the environmental burdens between the different products obtained since not only yoghurts are produced but also dairy fodder.Results and discussion
The key processes from an environmental point of view were identified. Some of the potential results obtained were in line with other specific related studies where dairy systems were assessed from an LCA perspective. The production of the milk-based inputs (i.e. raw milk, concentrated and powdered milk) was the main factor responsible of the environmental loads and energy requirements, with remarkable contributions of 91 % of AP, 92 % of EP and 62 % of GWP. Other activities that have important environmental impacts include the production of the energy requirements in the dairy factory, packaging materials production and retailing. Potential alternatives were proposed in order to reduce the contributions to the environmental profile throughout the life cycle of the yoghurt. These alternatives were based on the minimisation of milk losses, reductions of distances travelled and energy consumption at retailing and household use, as well as changes to the formulation of the animal feed. All of these factors derived from light environmental reductions.Conclusions
The main reductions of the environmental impact derived from yoghurt production can be primarily obtained at dairy farms, although important improvements could also be made at the dairy factory. 相似文献12.
Purpose
This paper compares 16 waste lubricant oil (WLO) systems (15 management alternatives and a system in use in Portugal) using a life cycle assessment (LCA). The alternatives tested use various mild processing techniques and recovery options: recycling during expanded clay production, recycling and electric energy production, re-refining, energy recovery during cement production, and energy recovery during expanded clay production.Methods
The proposed 15 alternatives and the actual present day situation were analyzed using LCA software UMBERTO 5.5, applied to eight environmental impact categories. The LCA included an expansion system to accommodate co-products.Results
The results show that mild processing with low liquid gas fuel consumption and re-refining is the best option to manage WLO with regard to abiotic depletion, eutrophication, global warming, and human toxicity environmental impacts. A further environmental option is to treat the WLO using the same mild processing technique, but then send it to expanded clay recycling to be used as a fuel in expanded clay production, as this is the best option regarding freshwater sedimental ecotoxicity, freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity, and acidification.Conclusions
It is recommended that there is a shift away from recycling and electric energy production. Although sensitivity analysis shows re-refining and energy recovery in expanded clay production are sensitive to unit location and substituted products emission factors, the LCA analysis as a whole shows that both options are good recovery options; re-refining is the preferable option because it is closer to the New Waste Framework Directive waste hierarchy principle. 相似文献13.
Alina Iosip Antonio Dobon Mercedes Hortal Elena Bobu 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2012,17(8):1050-1058
Purpose
This study aims to analyze and quantify the environmental impacts associated with the production of testliner paper using 100?% recovered paper as fiber raw material, by applying the life cycle assessment principles. A simulation of advanced sorting technology was done to prepare and use batches of raw materials with different levels of contaminants. Comparative studies of environmental impact assessment were focused on the quality of recovered paper, which is decisively influenced by the efficiency of the sorting process. The particularity of the study is that so far it is the only one that analyzes the environmental impact generated by recovered paper quality.Methods
To analyze the environmental impacts in the scenarios, life cycle assessment methodology was considered. Potential environmental impacts were assessed by using the CML 2009, Dec.07 method developed by the Centre for Environmental Science from the University of Leiden.Results and discussion
In this study, acidification potential, abiotic resources depletion potential, eutrophication potential, global warming potential, photochemical ozone creation potential, and human toxicity potential were the impact categories analyzed. Considering that the system boundaries refer only to the paper mill that was obtained, all unitary processes involved in the manufacturing of product system influence in varying proportions the impact categories chosen for evaluation. A higher concentration of contaminants leads to a higher amount of energy and water used, and thus, a significant amount of waste and emissions generated. Simulations performed have highlighted the importance of sorting technology that influences the quality of raw material that will be used.Conclusions
Utilization of recovered paper batches with a low quality contributes to an increased environmental impact associated with the testliner paper manufacturing stage. A low quality of recovered paper will influence energy consumption in different modules of the system (recycled fiber pulp preparation, paper machine, and wastewater treatment), the volume of waste generated, and consequently the emissions released both in air and water. 相似文献14.
Willow Salix sp. is currently cultivated as a short rotation forestry crop in Ireland as a source of biomass to contribute to renewable energy goals. The aim of this study is to evaluate the energy requirements and environmental impacts associated with willow (Salix sp.) cultivation, harvest, and transport using life cycle assessment (LCA). In this study, only emissions from the production of the willow chip are included, end‐use emissions from combustion are not considered. In this LCA study, three impact categories are considered; acidification potential, eutrophication potential and global warming potential. In addition, the cumulative energy demand and energy ratio of the system are evaluated. The results identify three key processes in the production chain which contribute most to all impact categories considered; maintenance, harvest and transportation of the crop. Sensitivity analysis on the type of fertilizers used, harvesting technologies and transport distances highlights the effects of these management techniques on overall system performance. Replacement of synthetic fertilizer with biosolids results in a reduction in overall energy demand, but raises acidification potential, eutrophication potential and global warming potential. Rod harvesting compares unfavourably in comparison with direct chip harvesting in each of the impact categories considered due to the additional chipping step required. The results show that dedicated truck transport is preferable to tractor‐trailer transport in terms of energy demand and environmental impacts. Finally, willow chip production compares favourably with coal provision in terms of energy ratio and global warming potential, while achieving a higher energy ratio than peat provision but also a higher global warming potential. 相似文献
15.
Environmental performance assessment of hardboard manufacture 总被引:1,自引:0,他引:1
Sara González-García Gumersindo Feijoo Petri Widsten Andreas Kandelbauer Edith Zikulnig-Rusch Ma Teresa Moreira 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2009,14(5):456-466
Background, aim and scope The forest-based and related industries comprise one of the most important industry sectors in the European Union, representing
some 10% of the EU's manufacturing industries. Their activities are based on renewable raw material resources and efficient
recycling. The forest-based industries can be broken down into the following sectors: forestry, woodworking, pulp and paper
manufacturing, paper and board converting and printing and furniture. The woodworking sector includes many sub-sectors; one
of the most important is that of wood panels accounting for 9% of total industry production. Wood panels are used as intermediate
products in a wide variety of applications in the furniture and building industries. There are different kinds of panels:
particleboard, fibreboard, veneer, plywood and blockboard. The main goal of this study was to assess the environmental impacts
during the life cycle of wet-process fibreboard (hardboard) manufacturing to identify the processes with the largest environmental
impacts.
Methods The study covers the life cycle of hardboard production from a cradle-to-gate perspective. A hardboard plant was analysed
in detail, dividing the process chain into three subsystems: wood preparation, board forming and board finishing. Ancillary
activities such as chemicals, wood chips, thermal energy and electricity production and transport were included within the
system boundaries. Inventory data came from interviews and surveys (on-site measurements). When necessary, the data were complemented
with bibliographic resources. The life cycle assessment procedure followed the ISO14040 series. The life cycle inventory (LCI)
and impact assessment database for this study were constructed using SimaPro Version 7.0 software.
Results Abiotic depletion (AD), global warming (GW), ozone layer depletion (OLD), human toxicity (HT), ecotoxicity, photochemical
oxidant formation (PO), acidification (AC) and eutrophication (EP) were the impact categories analysed in this study. The
wood preparation subsystem contributed more than 50% to all impact categories, followed by board forming and board finishing,
which is mainly due to chemicals consumption in the wood preparation subsystem. In addition, thermal energy requirements (for
all subsystems) were fulfilled by on-site wood waste burning and, accordingly, biomass energy converters were considered.
Several processes were identified as hot spots in this study: phenol-formaldehyde resin production (with large contribution
to HT, fresh water aquatic ecotoxicity and PO), electricity production (main contributor to marine aquatic ecotoxicity), wood
chips production (AD and OLD) and finally, biomass burning for heat production (identified as the largest contributor to AC
and EP due to NO
X
emissions). In addition, uncontrolled formaldehyde emissions from manufacturing processes at the plant such as fibre drying
should be controlled due to relevant contributions to terrestrial ecotoxicity and PO. A sensitivity analysis of electricity
profile generation (strong geographic dependence) was carried out and several European profiles were analysed.
Discussion Novel binding agents for the wood panel industry as a substitute for the currently used formaldehyde-based binders have been
extensively investigated. Reductions of toxic emissions during drying, mat forming and binder production are desirable. The
improved method would considerably reduce the contributions to all impact categories.
Conclusions The results obtained in this work allow forecasting the importance of the wood preparation subsystem for the environmental
burdens associated with hardboard manufacture. Special attention was paid to the inventory analysis stage for each subsystem.
It is possible to improve the environmental performance of the hardboard manufacturing process if some alternatives are implemented
regarding the use of chemicals, electricity profile and emission sources in the production processes located inside the plant.
Recommendations and perspectives This study provides useful information for forest-based industries related to panel manufacture with the aim of increasing
their sustainability. Our research continues to assess the use phase and final disposal of panels to complete the life cycle
assessment. Future work will focus on analysing the environmental aspects associated with plywood, another type of commonly
used wood panel. 相似文献
16.
Lisa Marie Gruber Christian Peter Brandstetter Ulrike Bos Jan Paul Lindner Stefan Albrecht 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2016,21(5):773-784
Purpose
In the light of anthropogenic resource depletion and the resulting influences on the greenhouse effect as well as globally occurring famine, food waste has garnered increased public interest in recent years. The aim of this study is to analyze the environmental impacts of food waste and to determine to what extent consumers’ behavior influences the environmental burden of food consumption in households.Methods
A life cycle assessment (LCA) study of three food products is conducted, following the ISO 14040/44 life cycle assessment guidelines. This study addresses the impact categories climate change (GWP100), eutrophication (EP), and acidification (AP). Primary energy demand (PED) is also calculated. For adequate representation of consumer behavior, scenarios based on various consumer types are generated in the customer stage. The customer stage includes the food-related activities: shopping, storage, preparation, and disposal of food products as well as the disposal of the sales packaging.Results and discussion
If the consumer acts careless towards the environment, the customer stage appears as the main hotspot in the LCA of food products. The environmental impact of food products can be reduced in the customer stage by an environmentally conscious consumer. Shopping has the highest effect on the evaluated impact categories and the PED. Additionally, consumers can reduce the resulting emissions by decreasing the electric energy demand, particularly concerning food storage or preparation. Moreover, results show that the avoidance of wasting unconsumed food can reduce the environmental impact significantly.Conclusions
Results of this study show that the influence of consumer behavior on the LCA results is important. The customer stage of food products should not be overlooked in LCA studies. To enable comparison among results of other LCA studies, the LCA community needs to develop a common methodology for modeling consumer behavior.17.
Goal, Scope and Background Agricultural production includes not only crop production, but also food processing, transport, distribution, preparation,
and disposal. The effects of all these must be considered and controlled if the food chain is to be made sustainable. The
goal of this case study was to identify and review the significant areas of potential environmental impacts across the whole
life cycle of cane sugar on the island of Mauritius.
Methods The functional unit was one tonne of exported raw sugar from the island. The life cycle investigated includes the stage of
cane cultivation and harvest, cane burning, transport, fertilizer and herbicide manufacture, cane sugar manufacture and electricity
generation from bagasse. Data was gathered from companies, factories, sugar statistics, databases and literature. Energy depletion,
climate change, acidification, oxidant formation, nutrification, aquatic ecotoxicity and human toxicity were assessed.
Results and Discussion The inventory of the current sugar production system revealed that the production of one tonne of sugar requires, on average,
a land area of 0.12 ha, the application of 0.84 kg of herbicides and 16.5 kg of N-fertilizer, use of 553 tons of water and
170 tonne-km of transport services. The total energy consumption is about 14235 MJ per tonne of sugar, of which fossil fuel
consumption accounts for 1995 MJ and the rest is from renewable bagasse. 160 kg of CO2 per tonne of sugar is released from fossil fuel energy use and the net avoided emissions of CO2 on the island due to the use of bagasse as an energy source is 932,000 tonnes. 1.7 kg TSP, 1.21 kg SO2,1.26 kgNOxand 1.26 kg CO are emitted to the air per tonne of sugar produced. 1.7 kg N, 0.002 kg herbicide, 19.1 kg COD, 13.1 kgTSS and
0.37 kg PO4
3- are emitted to water per tonne of sugar produced. Cane cultivation and harvest accounts for the largest environmental impact
(44%) followed by fertilizer and herbicide manufacture (22%), sugar processing and electricity generation (20%), transportation
(13%) and cane burning (1%). Nutrification is the main impact followed by acidification and energy depletion.
Conclusions There are a number of options for improvement of the environmental performance of the cane-sugar production chain. Cane cultivation,
and fertilizer and herbicide manufacture, were hotspots for most of the impact categories investigated. Better irrigation
systems, precision farming, optimal use of herbicides, centralisation of sugar factories, implementation of co-generation
projects and pollution control during manufacturing and bagasse burning are measures that would considerably decrease resource
use and environmental impacts.
Recommendation and Outlook LCA was shown to be a valuable tool to assess the environmental impacts throughout the food production chain and to evaluate
government policies on agricultural production systems. 相似文献
18.
This study aims to assess the environmental impacts of canned sardines in olive oil, by considering fishing, processing, and packaging, using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The case study concerns a product of a canning factory based in Portugal and packed in aluminum cans. It is the first LCA of a processed seafood product made with the traditional canning method. The production of both cans and olive oil are the most important process in the considered impact categories. The production of olives contributes to the high environmental load of olive oil, related to cultivation and harvesting phases. The production of aluminum cans is the most significant process for all impact categories, except ozone depletion potential and eutrophication potential, resulting from the high energy demand and the extraction of raw materials. To compare to other sardine products consumed in Portugal, such as frozen and fresh sardines, transport to the wholesaler and store was added. The environmental cost of canned sardines is almost seven times higher per kilogram of edible product. The main action to optimize the environmental performance of canned sardines is therefore to replace the packaging and diminish the olive oil losses as much as possible. Greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by half when plastic packaging is considered rather than aluminum. Frozen and fresh sardines represent much lower environmental impacts than canned sardines. Nevertheless, when other sardine products are not possible, it becomes feasible to use sardines for human consumption, preventing them from being wasted or used suboptimally as feed. 相似文献
19.
Teresa M. Mata Carlos A. V. Costa 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2001,6(5):307-319
Life cycle assessment (LCA) is increasingly becoming an important tool for ecological evaluation of products or processes. In this study the environmental impacts associated with the returnable and the non-returnable glass beer bottles were assessed in order to compare different reuse percentages. The inventory analysis is performed with data obtained from two Portuguese companies (a glass bottles producer and a brewery) and completed with the BUWAL database. It includes all operations associated with the bottles’ manufacture, the brewery and the wastewater treatment plant. The environmental impact assessment considers both the potential ecological and ecotoxicological effects of the emissions. The environmental impact categories included and discussed in this study are the contribution to ecological and human health, global warming, stratospheric ozone depletion, acidification, eutrophication and photochemical ozone creation. The first category is divided into three subcategories that are human toxicity, critical air volume and critical water volume. This study was performed for several reuse percentages and returnable bottle cycles, and is comprised of a sensitivity analysis. The general output is that the relative importance of the impacts associated with the use of returnable and/or non-returnable bottles depends on the number of cycles performed by the returnable bottles. According to the impact index defined in this study, the most significant impacts are the eutrophication and the final solid wastes generated, and the least significant impact is the ozone depletion. 相似文献
20.
Luis Panichelli Arnaud Dauriat Edgard Gnansounou 《The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment》2009,14(2):144-159