Life cycle assessment of spray dried soluble coffee and comparison with alternatives (drip filter and capsule espresso)

This paper aims to evaluate the environmental burdens associated with spray dried soluble coffee over its entire life cycle and compare it with drip filter coffee and capsule espresso coffee. It particularly aims to identify critical environmental issues and responsibilities along the whole life cycle chain of spray dried coffee. This life cycle assessment (LCA) specifically uses foreground data obtained directly from coffee manufacturers and suppliers. Aside from energy consumption and greenhouse gases emissions, water footprint is also studied in detail, including regionalization of water impacts based on the ecological scarcity method 2006. Other impact categories are screened using the IMPACT 2002+ impact assessment method.The overall LCA results for a 1 dl cup of spray dried soluble coffee amounts approximately to 1 MJ of primary non-renewable energy consumption, to emissions of 0.07 kg of CO_2-eq, and between 3 and 10 l of non-turbined water use, depending on whether or not the coffee cultivation is irrigated and wet treated. When considering turbined water, use can be up to 400 l of water per cup. Pouch – and to a lesser extent metal can packaging alternatives – show lower environmental burdens than glass or sticks.On average, about one half of the environmental footprint occurs at a life cycle stage under the control of the coffee producer or its suppliers (i.e., during cultivation, treatment, processing, packaging up to distribution, along with advertising) and the other half at a stage controlled by the user (shopping, appliances manufacturing, use and waste disposal). Key environmental parameters of spray dried soluble coffee are the amount of extra water boiled and the efficiency of cup cleaning during use phase, whether the coffee is irrigated or not, as well as the type and amount of fertilizer used in the coffee field. The packaging contributes to 10% of the overall life cycle impacts.Compared to other coffee alternatives, spray dried soluble coffee uses less energy and has a lower environmental footprint than capsule espresso coffee or drip filter coffee, the latter having the highest environmental impacts on a per cup basis. This study shows that a broad LCA approach is needed to help industry to minimize the environmental burdens directly related to their products. Including all processes of the entire system is necessary i) to get a comprehensive environmental footprint of the product system with respect to sustainable production and consumption, ii) to share stakeholders responsibility along the entire product life cycle, and iii) to avoid problem shifting between different life cycle stages.     

Life cycle assessment of borate-treated lumber with comparison to galvanized steel framing

A cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment was done to identify the environmental impacts related to borate-treated lumber used as structural framing and to determine how the impacts compare to the primary alternative product, galvanized steel framing members. Borate-treated lumber may be used for framing buildings in locations of high decay or termite hazard. A model of borate-treated lumber life cycle stages was created and used to calculate inputs and outputs during the lumber production, treating, use, and disposal stages. Lumber production data are based on published sources. Primary wood preservative treatment data were obtained by surveying wood treatment facilities in the United States. Product use and disposal inventory data are based on published data and professional judgment. Life cycle inputs, outputs, and impact indicators for borate-treated lumber were quantified using life cycle assessment LCA methodologies at functional units of 1000 board feet, 100 linear feet (30.5 linear meters) of structural perimeter wall framing, and framing required for the perimeter walls of one representative home. In a similar manner, a life cycle inventory model was developed for the manufacture, use, and disposal of the primary alternative product, galvanized steel framing, and comparisons were done using an equivalent measure of 100 linear feet of structural perimeter wall framing. Impact indicator values such as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, fossil fuel use, water use, acidification, ecological toxicity, smog forming potential, and eutrophication were quantified for each of the two framing products.National normalization was done to compare the significance of the framing in a representative U.S. family home to the family’s total annual impact footprint.If a U.S. family of three builds a 2225 square feet (207 square meters) home using borate-treated lumber for structural perimeter wall framing, the framing impact “footprint” (normalized over the use life of the structure) for GHG emissions, fossil fuel use, acidification, ecological toxicity, smog forming potential, and eutrophication each is less than one-tenth of a percent of the family’s annual overall impact. The cradle-to-grave life cycle impacts of borate-treated lumber framing were approximately four times less for fossil fuel use, 1.8 times less for GHGs, 83 times less for water use, 3.5 times less for acidification, 2.5 times less for ecological impact, 2.8 times less for smog formation, and 3.3 times less for eutrophication than those for galvanized steel framing.     

Historical overview of the efficacy of two decades of power plant fisheries impact assessment activities in Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is world renowned as an estuary that historically yielded large harvests of a wide variety of fish and shellfish species. Thirteen power plants are located on the mainstem of the Bay and its tributaries in Maryland, drawing out of and discharging into the Bay eight billion gallons per day of the Bay’s waters for cooling purposes. Maryland DNR’s Power Plant Research Program (PPRP) has, since 1974, funded a wide variety of fisheries assessment, entrainment and impingement studies. PPRP’s Potomac River Fisheries Program (PRFP) encompassed multi-year, statistically rigorous, quantitative studies of all life stages of striped bass, from egg to adult, together with estuarine hydrodynamics modeling and water quality assessments, all yielding data integrated to project potential entrainment impacts from a proposed nuclear power plant. PPRP and utility-sponsored monitoring programs at BGE’s Calvert Cliffs NPP, PEPCO’s Chalk Point SES and DP&L’s Vienna SES, as well as other generating facilities throughout the state have provided comprehensive data on impingement, entrainment and receiving water populations of all life stages of potentially impacted resource species. These studies have resulted in unusually complete and long term data sets being available for impact assessment applications, and provide a basis for confirming and validating impact assessment findings and conclusions based on much shorter time series. The state/federal Chesapeake Bay Program has extensively characterized the status and trends of all important resource species in the Bay. We compare and contrast impact conclusions and projections from studies conducted in the 1970s and 1980s with current data and information on the status of and trends in affected fish stocks in Chesapeake Bay. We use that comparison to establish the role that power plant impacts play as factors driving changes in species abundance over time. These comparisons and contrasts between historical and current data and information also illustrate and confirm the methodologies that have proven to be most and least useful for assessing entrainment and impingement impacts.     

Development of LCIA characterisation factors for land use impacts on biodiversity

The UNEP/SETAC life cycle initiative has recently proposed a framework for life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) of land use. Still, a lack of appropriate LCIA-methods for assessing land use impacts exist in life cycle assessment (LCA). Most existing methods are either too coarse-grained regarding the differentiation between different land use types (e.g. conventional farming versus organic farming), or they are too narrow regarding spatial coverage (e.g. only part of Europe). Therefore, the purpose of this article is to develop a method that overcomes these problems. A secondary goal is to develop a method for which it is possible to determine characterisation factors for any land use type in any region without the need for overwhelming data and data manipulation requirements. The developed method for LCIA of biodiversity focuses on species richness of vascular plants which can be determined from species–area curves. The category indicator is calculated as the multiplication of occupied area, the number of species affected per standard area (100 m²), the duration of occupation and renaturalisation from transformation, and a factor for ecosystem vulnerability. The main uncertainties of the method are related to the determination of renaturalisation times and the establishment species–area curves. The intention of the study presented in this article, i.e. to develop an applicable model with global coverage and no constraints on resolution regarding spatial and land use type differentiation, has widely been met. The limiting factor for applicability is the access to species richness surveys for the relevant regions and land use types. But still, the method shows that, with limited efforts, it is possible to calculate characterisation factors for a large range of land use types in different parts of the world.     

基于生命周期评价的产品水足迹计算方法及案例分析

科学评价人类活动对水资源的影响是实现水资源可持续利用的前提。对比目前广泛应用的以虚拟水理论为基础的水足迹计算方法,详细介绍了基于生命周期评价(LCA)的产品水足迹计算方法,并以我国小麦生产为例进行实证研究。与虚拟水方法相比,LCA方法评价结果体现了水资源利用的环境影响,便于不同产品、不同生产阶段以及不同产地产品间水足迹的比较。实例研究表明:我国黄河、海河流域小麦水足迹平均为1 262 L H₂Oe·kg^-1,而长江流域仅为31 L H₂Oe·kg^-1;小麦生产对我国极度缺水的北方造成的压力远高于水资源较为丰富的南方地区。LCA方法能科学评价农产品生产对水资源的影响,为我国保障粮食安全和水资源可持续利用提供科学依据。     

水源中央空调环境影响的生命周期评价

从原材料获取、生产加工、运行使用和废弃后处理处置 4个阶段 ,对水源中央空调按污染排放和资源能源消耗2种类型进行输入、输出清单参数以及相应生命周期环境影响潜值的统计计算与分析。以水资源和燃煤发电为基础的水源空调运行使用阶段的环境影响明显突出。水源中央空调环境影响的生命周期评价可为该产品环境绩效的改进设计提供有效的信息支持     

Environmental impact assessment taxonomy providing comprehensive coverage of midpoints,endpoints, damages,and areas of protection

Before conducting a comprehensive impact assessment, such as a life cycle impact assessment (LCIA), there is a need to discuss the range of impacts which could and should be included. Up to this point of time, there has not been a comprehensive list of impacts for potential inclusion available. This research builds upon previous work which surveyed a large component of the comprehensive impact assessment field for cataloging and analysis in greater detail and then expanded it to include those midpoints, endpoints, and damages which could be covered in a more comprehensive impact assessment. In this paper, a seminal effort in the form of a meta-model is presented to facilitate an expanded discussion of the taxonomy of this field. Upon using existing models it was apparent the taxonomy needed to be structured to represent midpoint, endpoint, damage, and weighted levels as they relate to areas of protection for the impact assessment phase. Contrary to recent use in the LCIA field, a distinction will be made between an endpoint measure (which is more of a “count” of impacts) and a damage measure (which is a value-weighted aggregation of two or more endpoints). The authors present a representation of all four levels of impact assessment: midpoint, endpoint, damage, and weighted. This taxonomy was developed to include the existing impacts found in LCIA literature, and then expanded to be more comprehensive and include a larger set of impacts than are normally included within LCIA. The authors recognize this is the first of many steps necessary to capture all potential impacts that should be considered when conducting a comprehensive environmental assessment. The intent is to propose a taxonomy that would greatly facilitate the accumulation and communication of empirical and theoretical knowledge gained by offering a standard vocabulary and structure.     

Review of land use impact methodologies

A review was performed of existing approaches on land use methods for LCA. Two main questions arise: how does land occupation relate to (irreversible) land changes, and what indicators are to be used to describe land use impacts. Most approaches aim at a single or limited number of indices for land use impacts, for data availability reasons. Vascular plant species density is the most common basis for an indicator. Methods using many more indicators may be seen as future sophistications, when data is available over the whole life cycle. For silviculture and agriculture crops multi-indicator scores may be applicable now to compare management techniques. Land use efficiency measured by m2.y is presently seen as the inventory step of land occupation impact assessment, but may also be a separate issue. Land management techniques in fact influence long-term changes and should be assessed as such, or not quantified at all. Further discussion and harmonisation is however required.     

华北高产粮区夏玉米生命周期环境影响评价

以山东省桓台县夏玉米生产体系为例,应用生命周期评价方法,以单位产量为评价功能单元,把夏玉米生命周期分为原料开采与运输、农资生产与运输、作物种植3个生产阶段,对不同施氮水平下夏玉米生命周期的资源消耗与污染物排放进行了清单分析和影响评价.结果表明,随着施氮量的增加,夏玉米生命周期环境影响呈指数上升趋势,其中,主要影响类型为水资源耗竭,这与农作物需水量较大、水分生产率较低有关.在低氮量条件下,主要污染影响类型是全球变暖,随着施氮量的增加,富营养化上升为主要污染影响类型.提高作物种植阶段水肥利用效率是控制夏玉米生命周期环境影响的关键,它可减少夏玉米对水资源和氮肥的需求,从而直接减少农田氮素损失污染影响,也间接降低了上游生产环节的资源消耗与污染物排放影响,进而有助于降低夏玉米生命周期环境影响总潜力.     

动态生命周期评价的研究与应用现状

生命周期评价（LCA）在理论和实际应用中存在一些局限性,包括清单和评价方法缺乏时间维度和空间维度,主要表现为缺乏对产品能源系统随时间变化的考虑,使用静态的过时的清单数据而非基于时间的动态生命周期清单数据,以及影响评价方面缺乏动态特征因子的选择和计算方法.动态生命周期评价（DLCA）是针对工业和环境系统的时间和空间变化的动态建模过程的评价方法,可大大提高传统生命周期评价的科学性和准确性.本文从3个方面对动态生命周期评价方法进行总结和评述,即将时间信息作为不确定因素的动态建模分析;生产过程或污染物排放的实时数据的获取;基于时间分化的动态特征因子的影响评价方法.通过目前的动态生命周期评价的研究现状来看,其方法框架并不统一,另外缺乏科学的时间分化的LCI计算的数学模型和软件以及生命周期影响评价的建模解决方案.因此,本文对DLCA未来的发展进行展望,以期为LCA方法的研究、应用、发展和完善提供更多的支持.     

Life cycle assessment of ACQ-treated lumber with comparison to wood plastic composite decking

A cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment was done to identify the environmental impacts related to alkaline copper quaternary (ACQ)-treated lumber used for decking and to determine how the impacts compare to the primary alternative product, wood plastic composite (WPC) decking. A model of ACQ-treated lumber life cycle stages was created and used to calculate inputs and outputs during the lumber production, treating, use, and disposal stages. Lumber production data are based on published sources. Primary wood preservative treatment data were obtained by surveying wood treatment facilities in the United States. Product use and disposal inventory data are based on published data and professional judgment. Life cycle inventory inputs, outputs, and impact indicators for ACQ-treated lumber were quantified using functional units of 1000 board feet and per representative deck (assumed to be 320 square feet (30 square meters) of surface decking material) per year of use. In a similar manner, an inventory model was developed for the manufacture, use, and disposal of the primary alternative product, WPC. Impact indicator values, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, fossil fuel use, water use, acidification, smog forming potential, ecological toxicity, and eutrophication were quantified for each of the two decking products. National normalization was done to compare the significance of a representative deck surface per year of use to a family’s total annual impact footprint.If an average U.S. family adds or replaces a deck surfaced with ACQ-treated lumber, their impact “footprint” for GHG emissions, fossil fuel use, acidification, smog forming potential, ecological toxicity, and eutrophication releases each is less than one-tenth of a percent of the family’s annual impact. ACQ-treated lumber impacts were fourteen times less for fossil fuel use, almost three times less for GHG emissions, potential smog emissions, and water use, four times less for acidification, and almost half for ecological toxicity than those for WPC decking. Impacts were approximately equal for eutrophication.     

Life cycle assessment of lithium-ion batteries for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles – Critical issues

The main aim of the study was to explore how LCA can be used to optimize the design of lithium-ion batteries for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Two lithium-ion batteries, both based on lithium iron phosphate, but using different solvents during cell manufacturing, were studied by means of life cycle assessment, LCA. The general conclusions are limited to results showing robustness against variation in critical data. The study showed that it is environmentally preferable to use water as a solvent instead of N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, NMP, in the slurry for casting the cathode and anode of lithium-ion batteries. Recent years’ improvements in battery technology, especially related to cycle life, have decreased production phase environmental impacts almost to the level of use phase impacts. In the use phase, environmental impacts related to internal battery efficiency are two to six times larger than the impact from losses due to battery weight in plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, assuming 90% internal battery efficiency. Thus, internal battery efficiency is a very important parameter; at least as important as battery weight. Areas, in which data is missing or inadequate and the environmental impact is or may be significant, include: production of binders, production of lithium salts, cell manufacturing and assembly, the relationship between weight of vehicle and vehicle energy consumption, information about internal battery efficiency and recycling of lithium-ion batteries based on lithium iron phosphate.     

水利项目环境影响综合评价

文章研究了模糊综合评价法在水利建设项目综合环境影响评价中的应用,以某水利工程为例建立了项目环境影响评价的指标体系,并对项目环境影响进行了综合评价,同时将建设项目环保措施的落实程度进行环境影响程度对比分析。结果表明,模糊综合评价方法是一种科学合理、简单可行的环境影响评价方法,可以在水利建设项目的环境影响评价中应用推广;同...     

Influence of impact assessment methods in wastewater treatment LCA

Facing the increase of environmental concern in the water treatment field, stakeholders need reliable decision support tools to assess environmental performances of urban and industrial wastewater systems. To discuss how life cycle assessment (LCA) can be applied to wastewater treatment projects, such an assessment has been performed through a case study on a full-scale plant. Methodological issues that had to be dealt with are briefly exposed. Five life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methods have been used: CML 2000, Eco Indicator 99, EDIP 96, EPS and Ecopoints 97. Consistent assessment between these methods has been obtained for greenhouse effect, resources depletion and acidification. Eutrophication is correctly estimated if one looks at the potential impact of a treatment scenario but not at the characterization of the eutrophication state of a specific receiving stream. Work is needed concerning human toxicity as large discrepancies are noticed between the impact assessment methods.     

中国电动自行车动力铅酸蓄电池生命周期评价

以近年来中国用量增长最快的电动自行车动力铅酸蓄电池为对象,建立了生命周期环境影响评价模型,分析了从原材料生产、电池生产、电池运输、电池使用和废旧铅酸蓄电池及含铅废物回收处理全生命周期的环境影响.研究采用了大量企业调研数据和中国本土LCA数据库,以期反映整个中国铅酸蓄电池产业链的技术工艺和环境管理水平现状.结果表明,原材料生产和电池使用是资源(含能源)消耗的主要阶段,贡献了电池全生命周期绝大部分的环境影响.原材料生产贡献最多的全生命周期环境影响包括非生物资源耗竭(699%)、富营养化(89%)、光化学烟雾(98%)、臭氧层破坏(117%)、人体毒性(159%)和生态毒性(484%).电池使用过程的电耗间接消耗了83%的一次能源,相应地贡献了最多的气候变暖潜值(86%)和酸化潜值(70%).废旧铅酸蓄电池和含铅废物回收再生铅可抵消很大一部分原材料生产造成的环境影响.延长电池寿命,减少电池生产金属用量及提高废旧电池回收处理过程的工艺技术和污染控制水平也是减少铅酸蓄电池生命周期环境影响的关键.     

Environmental life-cycle impacts of CRT and LCD desktop computer displays

Final impact results from an industry-wide environmental life-cycle assessment of cathode ray tube (CRT) and liquid crystal display (LCD) computer monitors are presented for 20 environmental impact categories. Considering the entire life cycle of each monitor, water eutrophication and aquatic ecotoxicity impacts for the baseline analysis were greater for the LCD while all other impact categories (e.g., resource use, energy, ozone depletion, landfill space use, human health toxicity) were greater for the CRT. Energy inputs from CRT glass manufacturing, for which there was some uncertainty in the data, drive many of the CRT impacts. Modifying the glass energy data based on comparison to secondary data resulted in nine of the 20 impact categories having greater relative life-cycle impacts for the LCD than the CRT. When comparing the manufacturing stages of each monitor type in the baseline scenario, the LCD has greater relative burdens on the environment in eight categories. Energy, global warming, and human health toxicity impacts are also presented in greater detail, showing contributions from each life-cycle stage. This study's results can allow industry to focus on frit manufacturing, PWB manufacturingimprovements can be made.     

Life cycle assessment of offset printed matter with EDIP97: how important are emissions of chemicals?

Existing product life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on offset printed matter all point at paper as the overall dominating cause of environmental impacts. All studies focus on energy consumption and the dominating role of paper is primarily based on the energy-related impact categories: global warming, acidification and nutrient enrichment. Ecotoxicity and human toxicity, which are related to emissions of chemicals, etc., are only included to a limited degree or not at all. In this paper we include the impacts from chemicals emitted during the life cycle of sheet fed offset printed matter. This is done by making use of some of the newest knowledge about emissions from the production at the printing industry combined with knowledge about the composition of the printing materials used. In cases with available data also upstream emissions from the production of printing materials are included. The results show that inclusion of the chemical emission-related impacts makes the EDIP97 impact profile of sheet fed offset products much more varied, as well for the normalised profiles as for the profiles weighted by distance to political environmental targets. Especially the ecotoxicity impact potential related to the production stage may contribute significantly, and the use of paper no longer becomes the overall dominating factor driving the environmental impacts.     

Assessing water ecosystem services for water resource management

Ecosystem service concepts can offer a valuable approach for linking human and nature, and arguments for the conservation and restoration of natural ecosystems. Despite an increasing interest in the topic, the application of these concepts for water resource management has been hampered by the lack of practical definitions and methodologies. In this study we review and analyse the current literature and propose an approach for assessing and valuing ecosystem services in the context of water management. In particular, to study the link between multiple pressures, ecological status and delivery of ecosystem services in aquatic ecosystems under different scenarios of measures or future changes. This is of interest for the development of River Basin Management Plans under the EU Water Framework Directive. We provide a list of proxies/indicators of natural capacity, actual flow and social benefit for the biophysical assessment of the ecosystem services. We advocate the use of indicators of sustainability, combining information on capacity and flow of services. We also suggest methods for economic valuation of aquatic ecosystem for each service and spatial scale of application. We argue that biophysical assessment and economic valuation should be conducted jointly to account for the different values of ecosystem services (ecologic, social and economic) and to strengthen the recognition of human dependency on nature. The proposed approach can be used for assessing the benefits of conservation and restoration of aquatic ecosystems in the implementation of the EU water policy.     

基于投入产出与生命周期评价的集成电路产业环境影响分析

我国集成电路产业正蓬勃发展,在国家经济与高科技产业中占据重要地位。基于投入产出与生命周期评价,分别使用生命周期评价软件SimaPro7.0中的Eco-indicator 98与IMPACT 2002+2种评价模式作为量化影响评价方法,分析了我国集成电路产业的生产制造过程对环境的影响。根据Eco-indicator98分析结果,集成电路产业的各项环境影响中,重金属污染最高,其次为能源消耗、夏季烟雾、温室效应等;而IMPACT 2002+的损害评价结果显示,人体健康危害为集成电路产业最显著的环境损害,其次为生态系统质量、资源消耗及气候变化。在评估能源消耗与气候变化影响时,2种模式的结果一致。