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Georg Fischer Piping Systems Ltd.
8201 Schaffhausen
Switzerland
www.piping.georgfischer.com
Ralph Schreiber
Public & Media Relations Manager
Tel +41 (0) 52 631 3374
Fax +41 (0) 52 631 2830
Mobile +41 (0) 79 830 2803
ralph.schreiber@georgfischer.com
Schaffhausen, December 2008
Plastics for an Energy-efficient Future
Great challenges lie ahead for all of us in the area of energy: the
increasing consumption of energy, the finiteness of fossil fuels, rising
prices and climate change. Plastics can help to master these challenges.
Eighty percent of the global energy supply is currently derived from oil, coal and gas.
When fossil fuels are burned, the greenhouse gas CO2 is emitted. The increase in
greenhouse gases is what causes global warming – the negative effects of which are
already perceptible. The impact of global warming on human well-being and the
health of the planet will continue to grow.
We face other challenges besides climate change. The largest oil and gas-producing
countries are located in politically unstable regions. Transport infrastructures are
vulnerable. The imbalance in the global consumption of energy – approx. 1.6 billion
people have no electricity – represents a geopolitical risk. Energy prices will continue
to rise as the maximum output of crude oil and gas is reached [1].
Fields of activity
Moving toward a more sustainable use of energy calls for action in a variety of areas.
«Saving energy» alone is not enough. Some of the key areas of activity are:
Improving energy efficiency: Today, 60% of energy is wasted or lost. New
technologies and materials result in improved efficiency.
Reducing energy needs, particularly in buildings (e.g., better insulating materials) and
in transport (e.g., lighter vehicles).
Increased use of renewable energy sources, such as solar, water, wind, wood or
geothermal. In the midterm, the «renewables» could cover 20% of the global energy
demand.
Introducing CO2 capture and collection: Large consumers of fossil fuels (power
plants, raw materials industry) are able to separate CO2 from exhaust air. The CO2
can then be stored or used for the production of bioenergy. This contributes to the
reduction of greenhouse gases.
Replacing energy-intensive products: Using materials with lower proportion of «grey
energy» (the energy hidden in a product) and of natural materials.
More recycling: Recycling materials requires much less energy than manufacturing
new ones.
Life cycle assessment of plastic products
In addition to the widely known technical benefits, such as corrosion resistance,
plastics possess clear economic benefits as well. Thanks to their light weight and
insulating properties, plastics are predestined for a multitude of energy-efficient
applications – for example, in vehicles (automobiles, ships, airplanes), for packaging
and insulation.
In an extensive study [2] Plastics Europe examined how much more or less energy
would be used in Europe if all plastic products were replaced by analog products
made of other materials. Some examples are wooden garden furniture, paper
packaging or copper piping; a total of 174 different product groups were analyzed.
The manufacture of the materials and products, as well as the utilization and disposal
were taken into consideration; included were also the effects, such as the higher
energy demand of refrigerators with poor insulation or more spoiled food with inferior
packaging.
The results:
Articles made of plastic enable significant savings in energy use and greenhouse gas
emissions.
For most product groups, the «plastic version» was the one with the lowest energy
consumption.
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Replacing plastic goods with articles made of other materials leads in most cases to
an increase in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
With a maximum substitution of plastic products, we would have to figure with an
increase in energy consumption of about 26% a year.
Plastic products make it possible to save energy in the order of 1000 million
gigajoules in Europe annually – this corresponds to 22 million tons of crude oil,
which would fill 190 large oil tankers. The greenhouse gas emissions which are thus
saved amount to nearly 100 million tons CO2, more than double the total CO2
emissions of Switzerland.
Of the pipes examined in the study, plastic pipes perform better than competitive
materials in seven out of nine groups. In one group, the findings were similar and
only for large effluent pipes did the plastic pipes finish slightly worse.
… and of pipes
Georg Fischer Group Quality & Sustainability had the life cycle assessment of pipes
for building technology, industry and utilities updated [3]. This analysis compares the
environmental effects of one meter pipe for each of the plastics used by GF Piping
Systems with the major competitive materials (for DN 25, 80, 150 and 400). The
study was carried out by an independent Swiss environmental performance expert
and is based on the leading international life cycle inventory database «Ecoinvent».
The good news – and this has been corroborated in other studies – is that plastic
pipes in the applications and dimensions supplied by GF Piping Systems almost
always perform better than other materials. For example, the carbon footprint, in
other words the accumulated greenhouse gas emissions in the manufacture,
transport and disposal of one meter PE pipe in the dimension DN 80, is
approximately five times lower than for a stainless steel pipe.
Plastic: stored energy
Decisive factors for the life cycle assessment of pipes are the type and quantity of
materials used. Per kilogram, many plastics exhibit an energy requirement similar to
copper and stainless steel. Low alloy steel and cast iron – with an average
percentage of recyclate – have a much lower value per kilogram. In relation to a
meter pipe, however, the results look much different. Because of their much lower
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weight, plastic pipes perform better than metals, especially in the smaller and
medium dimensions.
Among the plastics themselves, PB, PE, PP and PVC exhibit similar environmental
effects. ABS has a somewhat higher value. For PVDF the environmental effects are
greater, i.e. about the same as for a stainless steel pipe, due to the energy-intensive
manufacturing process.
Plastics are «stored energy». However, this potential is not utilized sufficiently at the
moment. Of the plastic waste accumulated in Europe, only 20% is recycled. An
additional 30% is combusted, by which part of the energy can be reclaimed. And
50% is still deposited in landfills and cannot be reused as a material or a source of
energy. Recycling plastic waste even makes ecological sense if the waste needs to
be transported over long distances. The separate collection of waste materials is
essential as is creating applications for recyclate.
The expenditure for transport is a less important criterion – as long as the pipes are
not transported by plane! Air freight drastically reduces environmental performance.
For a distance of 5000 kilometers, air transport requires the same amount of energy
as the manufacture of the pipe itself.
To further ameliorate the life cycle assessment of plastic pipes, reducing the
materials requirement is a priority. This concerns product development, as well as
users or planners:
Reduce materials requirement (wall thickness)
Use recycled materials for parts with low loads
No overdimensioning in planning (diameter, pressure level)
Other important points are minimizing air transports and promoting recycling (offering
to take back products and/or participating in recycling systems).
As we all know, plastics are derived from crude oil. Approximately four percent of the
oil produced globally is used for plastics production. True, we must cut back on the
consumption of crude oil and other fossil fuels, but this should not be at the expense
of plastics. On the contrary, using plastics saves energy!
Author:
Stefan Erzinger, Corporate Sustainability Management, Georg Fischer Piping
Systems, Switzerland
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Georg Fischer – Adding Quality to People`s Lives
GF Piping Systems is one of the three core businesses of the Georg Fischer Corporation and a leading supplier
of piping systems in plastic and metal with global market presence. Connecting technology, fittings, valves,
measuring devices and pipes are used for water conveyance and treatment as well as the transport of liquids and
gases for industrial purposes. GF Piping Systems provides innovative, engineered solutions for the segments
building technology, chemical process industry, cooling, life science, microelectronics, ship building, water and
gas utilities and water treatment. Sales companies in more than 25 countries and representatives in another 80
countries ensure customer support 24 hours a day. Production sites in Europe, Asia and the US are near the
customers and meet local requirements. The Georg Fischer headquarters is based since its foundation in 1802 in
Schaffhausen, Switzerland.
Key figures GF Piping Systems 2008
More than 4’700 employees worldwide (per 31 December 2008)
1224 MCHF sales
122 MCHF EBIT
Further information is available at www.piping.georgfischer.com
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