Unit 4: Life Cycle Assessment
Session 1:
Intro – What is the Cost of Materials Usage
Professor Randolph Kirchain
Department of Materials Science & Engineering and
Engineering Systems Division
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment: Slide 1
Overview
• Context – Indirect Costs
• The role of materials in the environment
– Direct
– Indirect
• Is this really a problem?
– How much do we consume?
• What can be done
– Changing the rules of the game
• Overview of new methods – Life Cycle Assessment
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 2
1
What is indirect cost?
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment: Slide 3
What is indirect cost?
• In economics, referred to as an … Externality
– Great definition, explanation from wikipedia
The decision-maker does not bear all of the costs or
reap all of the gains from his action.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Externality
• What are examples of externalities?
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 4
2
How do Materials Drive Indirect Social Cost?
Environment
• Direct
– Manufacturing burden
• Consumption of energy
• Emissions to the environment
– Concentration in the environment
• Most materials still eventually in up in landfills
• Toxicity for some materials
• Indirect
– Performance of the products into which they are
transformed
• Energy Efficiency
• Recyclability
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 5
Is this something to be concerned about?
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment: Slide 6
3
Energy Consumption in the US
40000
35000
M Btu / year
30000
Industrial
25000
Transport
20000
Residential
15000
10000
Commercial
5000
19
49
19
53
19
57
19
61
19
65
19
69
19
73
19
77
19
81
19
85
19
89
19
93
19
97
20
01
0
From: Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2004, Table 2.1a , 2004.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 7
Energy Consumption in the US
180
M Btu / person / year
160
140
Industrial
120
100
80
Transport
60
40
Residential
Commercial
20
0
1949 1954 1959 1964 1969 1974 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999
From: Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2004, Table 2.1a , 2004.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 8
4
• Vehicle Lightweighting Saves
Little vs Total Man-made
Releases
– Total
24 G tons / year
Man-made CO2
Total CO2/year (G tons)
– CO2 Saved
via Al Body
0.2 G tons / year
30
Total CO2/year (G tons)
Placing CO2 Savings from Lightweighting in
Perspective
5
4
3
2
1
0
CO2 Saved
Desired Savings
• BUT , Compared to Kyoto
25
Savings Goal, Savings is
Significant
20
15
10
• Savings Goal ~ 3.8 G ton / year
~ 6% of Goal
• CO2 Saved
5
0
Savings
Total
Anthropogenic
via Al Body
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 9
Is this really a problem?
How much do
YOU
consume per day?
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 10
5
How much do YOU use per day (kilograms)?
3 Recycled
Inputs
2
3
3
7
21
21
Metals
Minerals
Forestry products
Agriculture
Energy materials
Construction
Outputs
2
6
19
21
Dissipated
Wastes
Air emissions
In use
> 50 kg/person/day
Figure by MIT OCW.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 11
U.S. Consumption Has Skyrocketed
Courtesy of Annual Review, Inc. Used with permission.
Source: Figure 3 in Matos, G., and L. Wagner. "Consumption of Materials in the United
States, 1900-1995." Annu. Rev. Energy Environ. 23 (1998):107–22.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 12
6
How Can We Affect This?
• Human Behavior
– Change patterns of consumption
• Waste less
• Change the rules
– Dematerialization
• Get the same function from less material
– Materials substitution
• Apply less harmful materials
– Waste Mining – Reuse, Recycle
• Find ways to make use of streams currently wasted
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Materials Science & Engineering
3.080 Econ & Enviro Issues In Materials Selection
Randolph Kirchain
Life Cycle Assessment : Slide 13
7