An Introduc+on to Life Cycle Assessment with SimaPro Colin McMillan and Steve Skerlos ME 589 Term Project F06 An Introduc@on to SimaPro •  Why Use It? •  Program Structure –  Goal and Scope Defini@on –  Inventory Analysis –  Impact Analysis –  Interpreta@on •  Building a LCA in SimaPro –  Naviga@ng SimaPro –  Where to find data –  Entering data (see extra slides) Why SimaPro? •  Market-­‐leading LCA soRware developed by PRé Consultants (Netherlands). •  Provides access to a large amount of licensed (i.e. not publicly available) LCI data. •  Speeds the calcula@on of LCI and LCIA. •  SimaPro allows organiza@on of material & energy flows into a database of product and process building blocks. •  LCAs of materials and processes are then constructed with these building blocks. SimaPro Organiza@on •  Organized based on LCA stages: –  Goal and scope defini@on –  Inventory –  Impact assessment –  Interpreta@on Goal and Scope Defini@on •  Descrip+on –  Mul@ple fields for discussion of project goal, func@onal unit, and other details. •  Data Quality Indicators (DQIs) –  Used to record data @me period, geography, representa@veness, alloca@on, system boundaries. –  Allows users to evaluate the appropriateness of data and to define DQI requirements and weigh@ngs. •  Your ideal LCI data are the most current possible and are obtained from the same geographic area as your study. •  Complete documenta@on of data sources, data quality, and any associated assump@ons are of KEY IMPORTANCE. Life Cycle Inventory: LCA “Building Blocks” (flows, states, and “things”) Processes (flows) Describe materials processing , transporta@on, produc@on processing, and disposal processing in terms of input & output “flows” of substances: 1)  Environmental Flows-­‐ most commonly used. Include emissions to air, water, and soil, solid wastes, non-­‐material emissions (i.e. radia@on, noise), use of natural resources. 2)  Economic Flows-­‐ include inputs from other processes, economic outputs (e.g. products), waste outputs for treatment, avoided processes, economic inputs. 3)  Social Flows-­‐ user specified. Product Stages (states) Assemblies, life cycle, disposal scenarios, reuse, disassembly used to describe the overall product and its life cycle. Life Cycle Inventory: LCA “Building Blocks” Substances (from nature): (Resources) –  These are the most basic blocks in SimaPro and express the use of natural resources. –  They are materials as they exist in nature and have neither emissions nor energy consump@on associated with them. Example: limestone in ground. Inputs (from Technosphere): Materials/Fuels & Electricity/Heat –  These are inputs from other processes. –  The building blocks that define human products and processes and contain defined inputs and outputs. Example: limestone mining, heat from an industrial furnace. –  Dis@nc@on between inputs: “Materials/Fuels” have mass units. “Electricity/Heat” have energy units. SUBSTANCES
PROCESSES
PRODUCT
STAGES
Rela@onships Among “Building Blocks” Residential
Life Cycle
Home
Fiberglass
Assembly
Insulation
Mined
Inputs
Limestone
from
Technosphere
Inputs
Electricity
from
Technosphere
Generation
Limestone
Inputs
(Ca
from
2CONature
3, in ground)
Emissions
CO2
Process Types: Systems and Unit Processes •  A system type process includes only inputs from nature (the furthest point upstream) and emissions. A “black box” is created, reducing transparency. •  A unit process type process iden@fies all of the sub processes used, each of which have inputs from nature and emissions. Individual sub processes can be modified with updated data or data from a new geographic area (i.e. in order to make European process data for mfg HDPE more suitable for use in a U.S. LCA, subs@tute U.S. electricity produc@on for the given electricity process) Process Types: Systems and Unit Processes System: Only inputs from
nature and emissions
Unit Process: Also includes sub
processes in addition to inputs
from nature and emissions
Product Stages: Assembling the “Building Blocks” Product Stages Do not directly contain environmental, social, or economic flows; instead are used to assemble materials and processes to describe various life cycle stages. •  Assemblies –  The product specifica@on of component materials, transporta@on, and mfg processes. –  An assembly is a “cradle-­‐to-­‐gate” representa@on of a product. •  End-­‐of-­‐Life Scenarios –  Enables user to describe separate processes for disposal, disassembly, and reuse. •  Life Cycle –  Links the product specifica@ons (assemblies) with defined use phase and end-­‐
of-­‐life scenario. –  Can be linked to other life cycles, enabling the user to model a product’s use of other products. Example Product Assembly Required materials
Processes for converting
materials into required forms
Example Product Life Cycle Product assembly:
represents all required
components
Electricity
consumption:
represents use phase
Additional product life
cycles: filters and product
packaging
Waste Scenarios, Disposal Scenarios, Disassembly, and Reuse •  Used to build descrip@ons and to define impacts of EOL processes •  Commonly an under u@lized feature of SimaPro •  Waste Scenarios are SimaPro “processes” and are used to describe where waste flows go. They require addi@onal “waste treatment” processes. –  Example: a waste scenario for municipal waste describes the %s of certain materials collected from waste stream. An incinera@on process describes the emissions resul@ng from incinera@on. •  Disposal Scenarios, Disassembly, and Reuse are SimaPro “product stages” and are used to describe the EOL processes for the product you’re modeling, as well as any of the product’s assemblies and subassemblies. –  Example: a disposal scenario describes the transporta@on energy required to collect a discarded coffee maker and includes the %s of the overall coffee maker that are disposed, disassembled and recovered, and reused. Waste Scenarios: Iden@fying Waste Flows and Where They Go •  A material or process must have a defined waste type in order to be included in a waste scenario. This is the waste flow. •  The waste scenario is then used to describe where the waste flow goes. Example: household waste 36% of paper waste flow is separated and recycled All remaining is treated as municipal waste Waste Scenarios: Describing the Treatment of Waste Flows •  ARer ini@al separa@on, household waste is linked to the “municipal waste” scenario. Here, addi@onal separa@on occurs before waste is incinerated and landfilled •  The “Incinera@on” waste treatment process contains the emissions that result from incinera@ng municipal waste Additional separation & recovery
Waste treatment scenarios
Disposal Scenarios, Disassembly, and Reuse •  Disposal Scenarios describe the types of EOL processes that specific products undergo. •  The disposal scenario for a coffee maker includes the % of the product that is sent to municipal waste, disassembled, and reused. •  Separate disassembly and reuse stages are used to describe specifics. SUBSTANCES
PROCESSES
PRODUCT
STAGES
Rela@onships Among Disposal & EOL Processes Disposal
Coffee Scenario
Maker
Disposal Scenario
Coffee
Disassembly
Maker
Disassembly
Municipal
Waste Scenario
Waste
Waste
Landfill
Treatment
Waste Types
Aluminum
(“waste flows”)
Emissions
Al to Soil
Calcula@ng, Analyzing, and Interpre@ng Results •
•
•
•
•
Network Tree Analyze Compare Uncertainty Analysis }
Clicking any
of these will
calculate
results
Analyzing & Interpre@ng Results: Networks and Trees •  Both networks and trees show the rela@onships within and between processes and assemblies. •  Unlike a tree, a network shows looped rela@onships between processes •  Contribu@on Analysis-­‐ both can track contribu@ons of substances, emissions, and impact assessment results. Analyzing & Interpre@ng Results: Analyze & Compare •  Choosing either will calculate LCI and LCIA results. “Compare” is used to create a side-­‐by-­‐
side comparison of mul@ple processes or assemblies. Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Results •  A life cycle inventory (LCI) is the environmental balance sheet for a process or material. •  It records material and energy flows entering and leaving the process or material. •  Later used to calculate the life cycle impact assessment LCI Results Inventory contribution by life cycle stage
Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) LCI results are aggregated and adjusted to describe their relevance in a more meaningful way. Mul@ple steps of calcula@on are involved-­‐ depend on Midpoint or Endpoint approach. •  Classifica@on –  Defines the impact categories and their substances. •  Characteriza@on –  Reflects the rela@ve contribu@on of a LCI flow (a substance) to the impact category result. Only these steps are required by ISO Standards
•  Normaliza@on –  Defines the extent to which an impact category contributes to the total environmental burden. •  Weigh@ng –  Process by which indicators are aggregated into a single score. Uses subjec@ve weigh@ng factors. Genng to Know Your Impact Assessment Methods (v 7.0) Endpoint Methods: include emission, fate, exposure, effect, and damage. Provides more intui@ve measures, but at the expense of certainty. •  Eco-­‐Indicator 99 •  Impact 2002 •  Ecopoints 97 Midpoint Methods: include emission, fate, and exposure. Less uncertainty than endpoints. •  TRACI 2002: U.S. EPA. Characteriza@on only-­‐ no normaliza@on or weigh@ng. •  CML 2 baseline 2000 LCIA Example: Climate Change in EcoIndicator 99 Characterization: factors to convert
masses of GHG emissions (in kg) to
DALYs
Classification: climate change
Weighting factor expresses value
impact categoryNormalization factor
determines
to change
judgment on the importance of an
Factor tocontribution
convert climate
overall
environmental
impact category.
impact
category to human health
impact
damage category
Classification: list of
substances included in impact
category
EXAMPLE OF POINT BREAKDOWN GLASS JUG COFFEE MAKER Example of Point System Using SimaPro SoRware Coffee Maker Material Impacts
Example of Point System Using SimaPro Coffee Maker 0.1 kg Aluminum Ingot (B250 Data)
Material
Weight
mPt
Aluminum ingots
0.1 kg
56
Polypropylene
PVC
PET bottle grade
Cable
Steel low alloy
Glass
1.14 kg
0.02 kg
0.04 kg
0.02 kg
0.15 kg
0.4 kg
349
6
16
28
17
23
1 Point (Pt) is Equivalent to 1/1000 of Average European’s
Environmental Impact in One Year
Why 56 mPt for 0.1kg of Aluminum? 56.5
27.8
26.5
2.2
Why 26.5 mPt for Human Health? 7.8
6.1
4.2
3.7
1.5
1.0
0.9
0.5
0.4
0.2
0.1
0.1 kg Aluminum Ingot Which Human Health Impacts Were Considered? Inorganics
Units DALY
Note: ozone depletion of Halon-1301 is a
negative DALY since O3 is a global warming gas
1.0 kg Aluminum Ingot Rounded
From DALYs To Points Pt = 1000 ⋅ kg substance ⋅
•
•
•
•
•
Human
Health
Ecosystem
Quality
Resources
40%
40%
20%
(damage / kg )
⋅ weighting
(damage of 1 European per year )
Production of 1 Kg creates a total of 1.02E-5 DALYs
Average European creates 1.5E-2 DALYs Per Year
Weighting of human health is 0.4
We are considering 0.1 Kg of Al in the Coffee Maker
Impact is 26.5 mPt!
26.5E − 3 = 1000 ⋅ 0.1kg ⋅
1.02E − 5
⋅ (0.4)
1.5E − 2
LCIA Results •  Based on the type of impact assessment methodology chosen, it may be possible to see results from each stage of the LCIA (characteriza@on, damage assessment, normaliza@on, weigh@ng, and single score). Can also see results
in tabular form
Results by life cycle stage
Connec@on Between Inventory and Impact Assessment •  LCI emissions must be matched to the substances contained in impact assessment categories. If not, the emissions will not be captured by the impact assessment method. •  The “Checks” Tab –  Lists substances that are not being captured by the selected impact assessment method. =234 Substances not included in impact assessment
Analyzing & Interpre@ng Results: Uncertainty Analysis •  Latest version of SimaPro (v7.0)incorporates Monte Carlo analysis for calcula@ng uncertainty in process inputs and outputs, as well as product stages, in LCI and LCIA. •  HOWEVER, informa@on on the types of distribu@ons and other uncertainty parameters are only included with the EcoInvent database. Uncertainty Analysis: Example Only 0.0399% of the values contain uncertainty data! An Introduc@on to SimaPro •  Why Use It?
•  Program Structure
–  Goal and Scope Definition
–  Inventory Analysis
–  Impact Analysis
–  Interpretation
•  Building a LCA in SimaPro
–  Where to find data
–  Entering data
Genng to Know Your Underlying Databases (v 7.0) •  EcoInvent v1.2 (2005) –  Swiss energy produc@on, transport, and materials. •  Industry Data (2001) –  Data collected by industry associa@ons, such as the Associa@on of Plas@cs Manufacturers in Europe (APME). •  Idemat (2001) –  Produc@on of various materials, compiled by DelR University (Netherlands) •  Buwal 250 (1997) –  Packaging materials for the Swiss Packaging Ins@tute. •  ETH-­‐ESU (1996) –  Swiss and Eastern European produc@on of energy, resource extrac@on, raw material produc@on, produc@on of semi-­‐manufactures, auxiliary and working materials, supply of transport and waste treatment services, and infrastructure construc@on. •  Franklin (1996) –  North American materials, energy, and transport. Sources of Publicly Available LCI/LCA Data •  U.S. LCI Database: hsp://www.nrel.gov/lci –  Managed by the Na@onal Renewable Energy Lab –  Sources include Franklin Associates, Athena Ins@tute, … •  Associa@on of Plas@cs Manufacturers in Europe (APME): hsp://www.plas@cseurope.org –  LCI data contained in “eco-­‐profiles”, developed by Boustead. •  Peer-­‐Reviewed Journals –  Journal of Industrial Ecology, Interna<onal Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, Journal of Cleaner Produc<on, Environmental Science & Technology, and others… US. LCI Database The “go-to” source for publicly available LCI data for
North American materials, energy, and processes.
Free, but registration required.
U.S. LCI Database Data Data arranged in spreadsheets. We’re concerned with the “streamlined” and “detailed” spreadsheets. •  Streamlined Spreadsheets –  Contain informa@on on scope & boundary, data quality indicators, and data sources. –  LCI data should look familiar; arranged by inputs from nature, inputs from technosphere, outputs to nature (air, water, soil emissions). •  Detailed Spreadsheets –  Contain suppor@ng calcula@ons and references U.S. LCI Database Data: Al Precision Sand Cas@ng Streamlined Spreadsheet Inputs of Man-Made Materials, Industrial
Processes, and Energy
Inputs of Natural Resources
Air Emissions
Solid Waste
Functional unit: 1000 kg
Co-Products