Terminology ISO  International Organization for Standardization   Establish and provide Standards for products and services  Quality, safety, reliability etc  Standards make an enormous and positive contribution CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 1

System Interaction 2 CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 3

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 4

LCA Definition Remember that …  A life cycle of a product (a.k.a. “cradle to grave”) begins with raw materials production and extends to manufacture, use, transport, and disposition Life Cycle Assessment  A concept and methodology to evaluate the. effects of a product or activity holistically, by analyzing the whole of a particular product, process, or activity (U.S. EPA, 1993)  studies analyze the. throughout a product's life cycle (e.g., cradle-to-grave) from raw material acquisition through production, use and disposal (ISO) CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 5

LCA Definition LCA is “a technique for assessing the environmental aspects and potential impacts associated with a product, process, or system by”:  Setting goals and scope of study  Compiling an of inputs / outputs  Evaluating potential impacts of those  of the inventory and impact assessment in context of study objectives  Suggesting for future benefit LCA process  → LCA process CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 6

LCA … LCA is not a cure-all for our environmental problems LCA is a way of structuring/organizing the relevant parts of the life cycle LCA is a tool to track performance  &. General categories of Env. Impact  Resource Use  Human Health  Ecological consequences CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 7

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Raw Material Acquisition Material Processing Manufacture & Assembly Use & Service Retirement & Recovery Treatment Disposal open-loop recycle reuse remanufacture closed-loop recycle M, E W WWWW W M, E = Material and Energy inputs to process and distribution W = Waste (gas, liquid, or solid) output from product, process, or distribution Material flow of product component CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 9

History of LCA Initial LCA work was focused on energy first multi-criteria study for Coca-Cola  Choice between glass vs plastic for container  Choice between internal vs external container production  End of life options (recycling or one-way)  Result: plastic bottle was best, contrary to expectations.  Study was never published, questions of validity  Led to calls by scientific community for a standardization process  International Organization for Standardization (ISO) doc.  First international LCA ‘standard’ CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 10

Standards Why do we need standards?  Help ensure. accurate data, clear process and assumptions etc  Continuously methodology  Ensure that is completed in a certain way CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 11

ISO standards: make the development, manufacturing and supply of products and services. facilitate trade between countries and make it fairer provide governments with a technical base for,.. and conformity assessment share technological advances and good management practice disseminate. safeguard consumers, and users in general, of products and services make life simpler by providing to common problems CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 12

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Standards So for the product → ISO But what about Transportation?  Guidelines  Policy  Strategy  Etc… CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 14

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 15

Green Engineering Industry is looking for ways to green their products and m anufacturing processes. Individuals and Families are looking to green their homes and lifestyles. How can you tell if something really is green?? What is currently happening to achieve this goal? Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 16

Why LCA? In “meeting needs of present without compromising our ability to meet future needs” → obstacles  Corporate and social pressures  Governmental/regulatory barriers  Uncertain objectives/goals  Lack of tools to measure our progress Sometimes our intuitions not a sufficient framework for analysis  Product or project development and improvement  Strategic planning  Public policy making  Marketing and eco-declarations CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 17

Sustainability & LCA What is sustainability?  Environmental Aspects  Economic Aspects  Social Aspects Sustainable Assessment  = LCA + Life Cycle Costing + Social LCA  = LCA + LCC + SLCA The LCA output is eco-profile Compiled measurements of environmental issues’ indicators  Climate change  Water resources etc CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 18

Life Cycle Cost(ing) Economic assessment of all money flows that are ca used by the existence of the product (Fabrycky & Mi ze 1991) A tool for evaluating the overall long-term economic efficiency of a system, product, or service Methodologies → Yes Standards → No CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 19

SLCA Impacts connected with the conduct of the companies performing process/manufacturing products (Dreyer 2006) A tool for the inclusion these social aspects into the Env. LCA Limitations  Perception of social problems is variable  Disagreement about how to measure the social impacts (quantitative and/or qualitative) CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 20

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 21

Phases of an LCA Direct applications: Direct applications: Product development and improvementProduct development and improvement Strategic planningStrategic planning Public policy makingPublic policy making MarketingMarketing OtherOther Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 22

Phases of an LCA Direct applications: Direct applications: Product development and improvementProduct development and improvement Strategic planningStrategic planning Public policy makingPublic policy making MarketingMarketing OtherOther Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Define Purpose Purpose Audience Audience Scope Scope metrics metrics CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 23

Step I – Goal Def. and Scoping Defines the evaluation basis  What are we trying to accomplish and why? Purpose  What is to be included and excluded? Scope and boundary  Method of including LCA results into the decision- making process  For who? CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 24

Step I – Goal Def. and Scoping What is the function & functional unit? Where are the boundaries? What data do you need? What assumptions are you making? Are there any limitations? CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 25

Life-cycle – identify the boundaries CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 26

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Phases of an LCA Direct applications: Direct applications: Product development and improvementProduct development and improvement Strategic planningStrategic planning Public policy makingPublic policy making MarketingMarketing OtherOther Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Identify System Input Output relationship CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 29

Step II – Life Cycle Inventory of all life-cycle processes have to be determined in terms of material and energy a classifying the events in a product’s life-cycle which are to be considered in the LCA, plus their interrelations start collecting the relevant data for each event: the emissions from each process and the resources (back to raw materials) used. Establish (correct) material and energy balance(s) for each process stage and event. CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 30

Step II – Life Cycle Inventory (cont’) CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 31

Step II – Life Cycle Inventory (cont’) The inventory phase usually takes a great deal of time and effort and mistakes are easily made. There exists published data on impacts of different materials such as plastics, aluminum, steel, paper, etc.  However, the data is often inconsistent and not directly applicable due to different goals and scope.  It is expected that both the quantity and quality of data will improve in the future. CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 32

Step II – Life Cycle Inventory (cont’) Time-sensitive Geographical Technology Representativeness Consistency Reproducibility Never Forget Precision: The consistent reproducibility of a measurement Completeness: Covers all the areas outlined in the scope Source: Data Collection CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 33

Phases of an LCA Direct applications: Direct applications: Product development and improvementProduct development and improvement Strategic planningStrategic planning Public policy makingPublic policy making MarketingMarketing OtherOther Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Characterize Resource Depletion Human Health Ecosystem Impacts CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 34

Step III – Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCI) Evaluation of and environmental impacts of the environmental resources and releases identified during LCI Should address  Ecological and human health effects  Resource depletion The impact assessment focuses on characterizing the...of environmental impact more specifically different ways to assess and weigh the environmental effects  Research area CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 35

Phases of an LCA Direct applications: Direct applications: Product development and improvementProduct development and improvement Strategic planningStrategic planning Public policy makingPublic policy making MarketingMarketing OtherOther Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Identify areas of Improvement and Inform decision making regarding: Materials Selection Materials Selection Design Design Policy Policy Strategy Strategy etc etc CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 36

Step IV – Life Cycle Interpretation Systematic technique to  information To better inform decision-makers  By providing a particular type of information  With a life cycle perspective of Env. and human health ISO’s Life Cycle Interpretation Goal  Analyze results, reach conclusions, explain limitations, and provide based on the findings of the preceding phases  Provide readily understandable, complete, and consistent presentation of the results of LCA in accordance with the goal and scope of the study CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 37

Step IV – Life Cycle Interpretation Identification of the significant issues Evaluation which considers  Conclusions, recommendations, and reporting CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 38

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 39

LCA Benefits Develop a of the environmental consequences of a given product/alternative Analyze the environmental trade-offs associated with one or more specific product/processes to help gain for a planned action Quantify environmental release to air, water, and land in relation to each life cycle stage Assist in identifying significant shifts in environmental impacts Perform throughout product design Compare the health and ecological impacts Identify the impacts of a specific product or process Identify impacts to one/more specific environmental areas of concerns CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 40

LCA Limitations Resource and time intensive Highly on dataset  Data availability  Data gathering method LCA does not address  Economic aspects  Social aspects LCA does not determine  Most cost-effective product/alternative  Best product/alternative CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 41

Recommendations Important to weigh   Time necessary to conduct the study  Required financial resources (B/C analysis) Integration with  LCC  SLCA To be used as one component of a more comprehensive decision process assessing the trade-offs with cost and performance  Life Cycle Management CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 42

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 43

Application Alternative Analysis Transportation Planning Captures the impact beyond Traffic Operation  Manufacture  Recycle/Reuse or disposal stage CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 44

Today’s Topic – Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Overall Review  Definition & History  Need of LCA  LCA Process  Advantages/Disadvantages LCA & Transportation  Application  Example CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 45

Life-Cycle Env. Assessment of CA High Speed Rail San Diego – Sacramento (over 500 miles) Comparison  Sedan  Bus  BART  Commuter Rail  Light Rail  High Speed Rail  Midsize Aircraft CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 46

Light Rail  An electric railway with a 'light volume' traffic capacity  May use shared or exclusive right-of-way  high or low platform loading  Multi-car trains or single cars Heavy Rail  an electric railway with the capacity to handle a ‘heavy volume’ of traffic  Separate right-of-way CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 47

Commuter Rail  primarily operates between a city center and the middle to outer suburbs beyond 10 miles  sharing track or right-of-way with intercity or freight trains  having scheduled services CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 48

Study Wide range of ridership Analysis on Capital payback period Consider energy source far beyond where travel occurs Car Manufacturing Requires Electricity Burn Fossil Fuel SO 2 Human Health CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 49

Life Cycle Energy Consumption CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 50

Life Cycle Sulfur Dioxide CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 51

Study Findings Preferable mode depends on ridership Payback period depends on mode and riders hip Building High Speed Rail  Co-investment in clean electricity Energy and Emission Policy CEE8207 Summer2013 L#8 52