LCA Examples & Streamlined LCA
Ericsson LCA
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Paper “Life Cycle Assessment of 3G Wireless
Telecommunication Systems at Ericsson”
available in the module network folder.
Summary of the study “Life Cycle Assessment
of a Third Generation (3G) System at Ericsson”
available in the module network folder.
Ericsson LCA
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Goal
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Develop a flexible LCA model with the capacity of
producing reliable environmental information for
Ericsson’s present and future needs
Develop a user-friendly database with all the LCA
data collected during this and previous Ericsson
LCA studies
Determine and describe the environmental impact
from Ericsson’s 3G wireless telecommunication
systems
Ericsson LCA
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Scope
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System consists of 3G terminals, radio network,
control equipment & a core network with switches,
routers, servers and workstations
Transmission equipment like feeders and cables &
site materials like antennas, climate control
equipment and site housing
Ericsson LCA
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Functional Unit
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One year of operation of the 3G pilot system is
studied
For comparisons another functional unit, per
subscriber and information flow and year is needed.
Ericsson LCA
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Following Indicators studied
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Climate change
Resource depletion
Acidification
Photochemical ozone generation
Aquatic eutrophication
Terrestrial eutrophication
Ozone depletion
Land use
Human toxicity
Ecosystem toxicity
Ericsson LCA
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Focuses on the climate change indicator as it is the
most widely accepted environmental indicator.
Based on the global warming potential (GWP) and is
measured in CO2 equivalents
Two external independent scientists reviewed the LCA
to ensure carried out to ISO14040 series specification.
Although data is not available to the public, the data
used is valid and interpretations are accurate
Ericsson LCA
Ericsson LCA
Ericsson LCA
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What impact does my 3G subscription have?
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+0.06% raw material resources depletion
+0.7% energy resources depletion & climate change
+0.004% use of land resources
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
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Paper available in Network folder
EPROM IC chosen for study
Gate to Gate study
Functional Output is a complete EPROM
device
Carried out according to relevant ISO
standards
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Raw Wafer
Front End
Transport
Back End
Device
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Raw
Wafer
Oxidation
Masking
Doping
Etching
Dielectric
Deposition
Metallisation
Electrical Test
Passivation
Processed Wafer
Front End
Processed
Wafer
Production
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Processed
Wafer
Cut
Packaging
Electrolytic
Tuning
Welding
Base
Bounding
Back End
Device
Realisation
Surbase
Clipping
Insert on
Tube
Device
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
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Transport
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Packaging for transport
Truck to airport (40km)
Plane from Milan to Singapore (10,000km)
Truck to site (10km)
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Material
Quantity
DI Water
29 litres
Oxygen
140 mg
Nitrogen
122 g
Hydrogen
2.9 mg
Ceramic
7g
PVC
0.4 g
HDPE
0.1 g
Lead
0.03 mg
Copper
1.2 mg
Tin
0.15 g
Boron
Arsenic
2.9 mg
6.9 mg
Selected total
inventory data for
one single EPROM
device
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Phase
Quantity (MJ)
Front End
2.39
Transport
2 x 10 -6
Back End
Use
10.11
58.35
Total
70.85
Gross energy in
different life cycle
phases of one single
device
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
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Energy Use Phase
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Specific device requires 0.36 Watts
Life estimated at 10 years
Equipment obsolescence estimated less than this (5
years)
Real operating time approx 33% of equipment life
1MJ of electrical energy requires 3MJ of gross
energy
Use phase turns out to be 54 MJ
LCA of an Integrated Circuit
Effect
Quantity (g equivalent)
Unit
Global warming
394
CO2
Ozone Depletion
0.0001
CFC 11
0.39
0.222
H+
PO4
Acidification
Nutrient Enrichment
Average Environmental Effect
related to one EPROM device
Streamlining the LCA Process
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Full LCA is only practical with no limitations to
time, expense, data availability etc…
In practice consists of many compromises
Although very extensive LCA’s have been
conducted a complete quantitative LCA has
never been accomplished nor is it ever likely to
be
Design stage is best time to do LCA but very
little data available at this point
The LCA Continuum
Fully
Comprehensive
LCA
Ecoscreening
Currently Accessible Region
Extensive
LCA
Streamlined
LCA
LCA
Scoping
Streamlining the LCA Process
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Screen the product with an inviolates list
Limit of eliminate life-cycle stages
Include only selected environmental impacts
Include only selected inventory parameters
Limit consideration to major constituents
Limit or eliminate impact analysis
Use surrogate data
Use qualitative rather than quantitative data
Eliminate interpretations or recommendations
The SLCA Matrix
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Number of approaches developed adopting a matrix
approach in which several life stages are evaluated for
their potential impacts on a number of environmentally
related concerns
Any SLCA process should allow for
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Direct comparisons between rated products
Useable and consistent across different assessment teams
Encompass all stages of product life cycle
Address all relevant environmental concerns
Simple enough to permit relatively quick and inexpensive
assessments
The SLCA Matrix
Life Stage
Environmental Concern
Materials Choice Energy Use
Solid Residues
Liquid Residues Gaseous Residues
Resource Extraction
1,1
1,2
1,3
1,4
1,5
Product Manufacture
2,1
2,2
2,3
2,4
2,5
Product Delivery
Product Use
Refurb/ Recycle/ Disposal
3,1
4,1
5,1
3,2
4,2
5,2
3,3
4,3
5,3
3,4
4,4
5,4
3,5
4,5
5,5
Developed in 1993 at AT&T
The SLCA Matrix
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Values may be
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Binary
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Ordinal
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1 = problem
0 = no problem
1-10 severity ranking
1-4 severity ranking
Assessor is providing a figure of merit to represent the
estimated result from a more formal LCA
Should be guided by experience, design &
manufacturing survey, appropriate checklists & other
available info
The SLCA Matrix
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Once an evaluation has been made for each matrix
element the overall Environmentally Responsible
Product Rating (RERP) is computed as the sum of the
matrix element values
R ERP  i  j M i , j
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Process is qualitative and utilitarian but does provide a
numerical end point against which to measure
improvement
Target Plots
The SLCA Matrix
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Assignment of integer ratings may seem
subjective, experiments at AT&T have been
performed in which comparative assessments
of products are made by several different
industrial and environmental engineers. Overall
product ratings differ by no more that 15%
SLCA Assets
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More efficient & less costly (days vrs months)
Useable at the early stage of design when
opportunities for change are greater
Evaluate design attributes which are inherently
qualitative such as ease of dissassembly
SLCA Liabilities
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Little or no ability to track overall material flows
Little ability to compare completely dissimilar
approaches to fulfilling a need
Little ability to track improvements over time
Cumulative Energy Demand as
SLCA
Ref: Mhuijbregtsm M, Hellweg S, Hensriks "Cumulative Energy Demand As Predictor for the
Environmental Burden of Commodity Production" Environ. Sci. Technol., Article ASAP
DOI: 10.1021/es902870s
CED as SLCA
CED as SLCA
CED
time
CED as SLCA
T1
Further Reading
Graedel & Allenby,
Chapter 17