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.

Life Cycle Assessment of Traction Lead-acid Batteries for Electric Bikes in China

This research undertook a life cycle assessment (LCA) for lead-acid batteries (LABs) used in electric bikes, the fastest growing LABs in China. A cradle-to-grave LCA model was established to identify the key materials or processes that contribute most to environmental impacts within the life cycle of LABs, including material production, battery manufacture, transportation, use, and end-of-life. A large amount of primary data obtained from enterprisers and a Chinese LCA database were used in this research to reflect the status of technology and environmental management for the related industries in China. The results indicate that material production and LAB use dominate in resource consumption and environmental impacts during the life cycle of LABs. Material production is the most important driver of such impacts as abiotic resources depletion (699%), eutrophication (89%), photochemical smog production (98%), ozone depletion (117%), total human toxicity (159%), and ecological toxicity (484%). Battery use is responsible for 83% of primary energy use and contributes the highest potentials to the impacts related to energy, including global warming potential (86%) and acidification potential (70%). Recovery of materials at the end-of-life stage will significantly mitigate the overall life cycle impacts by reducing virgin material consumption. Based on the findings, there are several substantial opportunities to reduce the overall environmental impacts of batteries, such as prolonging the lifetime of batteries, reducing the metal consumption in batteries, and improving the technology and management in recovery of end-of-life batteries.