Environmental Life Cycle Assessment An LCA Introduction and

Environmental Life Cycle Assessment An LCA Introduction and an investigation of Biodiesel LCAs Joyce Smith Cooper Mechanical Engineering University of Washington cooperjs@u. washington. edu

Defining the Product Life Cycle Other life cycles Material extraction Material processing Product manufacturing Product use, maintenance, upgrade recovery disposal Assessment Questions: Why? What? Who? Where? How? When? With what environmental implications? At what cost? What opportunities exist for partnerships, elimination of toxics, material recovery, …. . ? LCA and Biodiesel

A coffee maker’s life cycle From Pré Consultants, "The Eco-indicator 99: A damage oriented method for Life Cycle Impact Assessment, Manual for Designers, " http: //www. pre. nl/eco-indicator 99/index. html LCA and Biodiesel

Life Cycle Assessment LCA is a technique for assessing the environmental aspects and potential impacts associated with a product by: Ø compiling an inventory of relevant inputs and outputs of a product system Ø evaluating the potential environmental impacts associated with those inputs and outputs Ø interpreting the results of the inventory and impact analyses in relation to the objective of the study. Goal and Scope Definition Inventory Assessment Interpretation Impact Assessment Direct Applications • Product development and improvement • Strategic planning • Public policy making • Marketing From ISO 14040 -1997, Environmental management-- Life cycle assessment-- Principles and framework LCA and Biodiesel

Goal and Scope of the study • The goal of a LCA describes Ø the intended application (what is being assessed? ), Ø the reasons for carrying out the study, Ø the intended audience (to whom the results of the study are intended to be communicated) • The scope of the LCA considers Ø System function Ø Included materials and processes Ø Type of impact assessment From ISO 14040 -1997, Environmental management-- Life cycle assessment-- Principles and framework LCA and Biodiesel

Different ways to provide the same function • Hold coffee Ø Plastic cup, polystyrene cup, ceramic cup, china cup, thermos, … • Maintain a tidy haircut Ø Plastic comb, metal comb, razor … • Mowing your lawn Ø Power mower, reel mower, a goat … • Protecting a surface from corrosion Ø Painting, anodizing, make from plastic …. From Wenzel, H. , M. Hauschild, L. Alting, 2000, Environmental Assessment of Products: volume 1: Methodology, tools, and case studies in product development, Chapman Hall Publishers, New York. LCA and Biodiesel

Functional Unit • ISO 14040 -1997: “a measure of the performance of the functional outputs of the product system” • Includes: ØA magnitude ØA duration ØA level of quality LCA and Biodiesel

System Boundaries • ISO 14040 -1997: ØWhat materials/ equipment will be included üHow will this be determined ØWhat phases of the life cycle will be included • The reality üoften by material weight (% of product) üfacilities, equipment, and infrastructure are often neglected LCA and Biodiesel

The Life Cycle Inventory • Create a process flow diagram/ mass balance for the life cycle. • Identify ØThe product flows between unit processes ØMaterial and energy use and waste that comes from or goes to the environment LCA and Biodiesel

The Unit Process For each unit process, identify inputs, outputs, and recovery as follows: Closed Loop Reuse/ Recycle Inputs Raw or Intermediate Materials Energy Unit Process Outputs Product Co-Products= open loop reuse/ recycle Waste (fugitive or to treatment: air, water, solid) LCA and Biodiesel

Process Data Sources • Measurements • LCI databases: USDatabase Project, Boustead, Sima. Pro, Ga. Bi, DEAM, BUWAL, APME (plastics data) • Literature data: Ø LCA reports Ø Engineering References: Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, Kirk-Othmer, Ulman, etc. Ø Journal and conference papers Ø National laboratory research reports Ø Emission factors (AP-42, etc. ) Ø EPA sector notebooks Ø Computation/ Parametric Models (for example, GREET) LCA and Biodiesel

“Gasoline combustion in industrial equipment” Data from the US Database Project at www. nrel. go v/lci/ user name of lci@lci. or g and a password of lci

“Electricity Production” Data from the US Database Project at www. nrel. go v/lci/ user name of lci@lci. or g and a password of lci

Impact Assessment • Impact assessment looks at how inventory flows (cause) contribute to impacts (effect) • Impact assessment can include Ø Classification ü inventory flows are placed in impact categories Ø Characterization ü the contribution of each inventory flow is estimated for each impact of interest Ø Normalization ü the contribution of the product to each impact at the global, national, regional, or local level is assessed Ø Valuation/ Weighting ü subjective preferences are used to prioritize impact categories and impacts LCA and Biodiesel

Impact Assessment • Classification ØInventory materials are categorized as: üAbundant or rare, üHazards, üRegulated materials, üRecyclable materials, üMaterials that contribute to global warming, acidification…. LCA and Biodiesel

Classification by Material Abundance • Materials can be classified as those in Ø infinite supply: Ar, Br, Ca, Cl, Kr, Mg, N, Na, Ne, O, Rn, Si, Xe Ø ample supply: Al (Ga), C, Fe, H, K, S, Ti Ø adequate supply: I, Li, P, Rb, Sr Ø potentially limited supply: Co, Cr, Mo(Rh), Hi, Pb (As, Bi), Pt (Ir, Os, Pb Rh, Ru), Zr (Hf) Ø potentially highly limited supply: Ag, Au, Cu (Se, Te), He, Hg, Sn, Zn, (Cd, Ge, In, Tl) (lists by-product metals in parentheses after their reservoir parent) From Graedel, T. , B. Allenby, Design for Environment, Prentice Hall (1996) LCA and Biodiesel

Classification • Qualitative process of categorizing inventory flows LCA and Biodiesel

Classification • Acidification • Eutrophication LCA and Biodiesel

Classification: Global Warming • • • • • • -(CF 2)4 CH(OH)(CF 3)2 CFOCH 3 (CF 3)2 CHOCHF 2 (CF 3)2 CHOH (CF 3)CH 2 OH C 2 F 6 CARBON DIOXIDE CARBON TETRAFLUORIDE C-C 3 F 6 C-C 4 F 8 CF 3 CF 2 CH 2 OH CH 3 OCH 3 FIC-1311 HCFE-235 DA 2 HFC-125 HFC-134 A HFC-143 A HFC-152 A • • • • • • HFC-161 HFC-227 EA HFC-236 CB HFC-236 EA HFC-236 FA HFC-245 CA HFC-245 FA HFC-32 HFC-365 MFC HFC-41 HFC-4310 MEE HFE-125 HFE-134 HFE-143 A HFE-227 EA HFE-236 EA 2 HFE-236 FA HFE-245 CB 2 HFE-245 FA 1 HFE-245 FA 2 HFE-254 CB 2 HFE-263 FB 2 HFE-329 MCC 2 LCA and Biodiesel • • • • • • HFE-338 MCF 2 HFE-347 MCC 3 HFE-347 -MCF 2 HFE-356 MCF 3 HFE-356 MEC 3 HFE-356 PCF 2 HFE-356 PCF 3 HFE-374 PCF 2 HFE-7100 HFE-7200 HG-01 HG-10 H-GALDEN 1040 X METHANE NF 3 NITROUS OXIDE PERFLUOROBUTANE PERFLUOROHEXANE PERFLUOROPENTANE PERFLUOROPROPANE SF 5 CF 3 SF 6

Classification: Carcinogens • • • • • 1, 1, 1, 2 -TETRACHLOROETHANE 1, 1, 2 -TRICHLOROETHANE 1, 1 -DICHLOROETHYLENE 1, 1 -DIMETHYLHYDRAZINE 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 HEPTACHLORODIBENZOFURAN 1, 2 -DIBROMOETHANE 1, 2 -DICHLOROPROPANE 1, 3 -BUTADIENE 1, 3 -DICHLOROBENZENE 1, 3 -DICHLOROPROPENE 1, 4 -DICHLOROBENZENE 1, 4 -DIOXANE 11, 12 -BENZOFLUORANTHENE 1 -CHLORO-2, 3 -EPOXYPROPANE 1 -CHLORO-4 -NITROBENZENE 1 -NAPHTYL N-METHYLCARBAMATE 2, 3, 4, 7, 8 PENTACHLORODIBENZOFURAN • • • • • • 1, 2 -DIBROMOETHANE 1, 2 -DICHLOROPROPANE 1, 3 -BUTADIENE 1, 3 -DICHLOROBENZENE 1, 3 -DICHLOROPROPENE 1, 4 -DICHLOROBENZENE 1, 4 -DIOXANE 11, 12 -BENZOFLUORANTHENE 1 -CHLORO-2, 3 -EPOXYPROPANE 1 -CHLORO-4 -NITROBENZENE 1 -NAPHTYL N-METHYLCARBAMATE 2, 3, 4, 7, 8 -PENTACHLORODIBENZOFURAN 2, 3, 7, 8 -TCDD 2, 3, 7, 8 -TETRACHLORODIBENZOFURAN 2, 4, 6 -TRICHLOROPHENOL 2, 4, 6 -TRINITROTOLUENE 2, 4 -D [ACETIC ACID (2, 4 -DICHLOROPHENOXY)-] 2, 4 -DIAMINOTOLUENE 2, 4 -DINITROTOLUENE 2, 6 -DINITROTOLUENE etc LCA and Biodiesel

Characterization • Characterization is the quantification of the contribution of each inventory flow to each impact of interest • Whereas inventory analysis can be seen as a model which includes all types of complications (cut-off, multifunctionality, etc. ) characterization uses the results of complicated models: Ø Fate and transport Ø Exposure assessment Ø Dose-response Ø Etc. LCA and Biodiesel

Characterization • Computational structure where hi= the contribution of the product system to impact i qij= the equivalency (or characterization) factor for intervention j for impact i gj= components of the inventory vector for intervention j (remember g=Bs) LCA and Biodiesel

Global Warming Potentials as Equivalency Factors • Process X emits 5 kg methane and 4 kg nitrous oxide ü g. CH 4 = 5 kg, g. N 2 O = 4 kg Ø The equivalency factors are the 100 -year Global Warming Potentials (GWPs): ü qglobal warming- CH 4 = GWPCH 4 = 21 g CO 2/ g CH 4 ü qglobal warming- N 2 O = GWPN 2 O = 310 g CO 2/ g N 2 O Ø THEREFORE the potential contribution to global warming for methane is ü qglobal warming- CH 4 x g. CH 4 = 5, 000 g x 21 g CO 2/ g CH 4=105, 000 g CO 2 Ø AND the total contribution of Process X to global warming is: ü hglobal warming = (105, 000 + 1, 240, 000) g CO 2 = 1, 345 kg CO 2 LCA and Biodiesel

Impact Assessment • Characterization Ø Inventory materials are weighted by their contribution to different impacts • Normalization Ø Characterization results are compared to important levels of impacts (at the national level, for the technology being replaced, etc. ) • Valuation Ø Impacts are weighted by their value to decision makers LCA and Biodiesel

Biodiesel LCAs • Biodiesel Ø is a renewable diesel fuel substitute. Ø can be made from a variety of natural oils and fats. ü Biodiesel is made by chemically combining any natural oil or fat with an alcohol such as methanol or ethanol. Methanol has been the most commonly used alcohol in the commercial production of biodiesel. • In Europe, biodiesel is widely available in both its neat form (100% biodiesel, also known as B 100) and in blends with petroleum diesel. European biodiesel is made predominantly from rapeseed oil (a cousin of canola oil). • In the United States, initial interest in producing and using biodiesel has focused on the use of soybean oil as the primary feedstock mainly because the United States is the largest producer of soybean oil in the world. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

Why LCA of Biodiesel? • Proponents of biodiesel as a substitute for diesel fuel (in blends or in its neat form) can point to a number of potential advantages for biodiesel that could support a number of strategies for addressing national issues: Ø Reducing dependence on foreign petroleum… Ø Leveraging limited supplies of fossil fuels…. Ø Mitigating greenhouse gas emissions…. Ø Reducing Air Pollution and Related Public Health Risks…. Ø Benefiting our domestic economy…. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

Biodiesel Synthesis Pathways From Holbein, et al. (2004) “Canadian Biodiesel Initiative: Aligning Research Needs and Priorities With the Emerging Industry, ” Prepared for Natural Resources Canada LCA and Biodiesel

Biodiesel LCAs • Several biodiesel LCAs have been performed (US, Canada, Germany…) • The foremost US study was a LCI funded by the USDOE and US Department of Agriculture: Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” at http: //www. nrel. gov/docs/legosti/fy 98/24089. pdf LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Reductions in Petroleum and Fossil Energy Consumption Ø Substituting 100% biodiesel (B 100) for petroleum diesel in buses reduces the life cycle consumption of petroleum by 95%. ü This benefit is proportionate with the blend level of biodiesel used. When a 20% blend of biodiesel and petroleum diesel (B 20) is used as a substitute for petroleum diesel in urban buses, the life cycle consumption of petroleum drops 19%. Ø It was found that the production processes for biodiesel and petroleum diesel are almost identical in their efficiency of converting a raw energy source (in this case, petroleum and soybean oil) into a fuel product. The difference between these two fuels is in the ability of biodiesel to utilize a renewable energy source. ü Biodiesel yields 3. 2 units of fuel product energy for every unit of fossil energy consumed in its life cycle. The production of B 20 yields 0. 98 units of fuel product energy for every unit of fossil energy consumed. ü By contrast, petroleum diesel’s life cycle yields only 0. 83 units of fuel product energy per unit of fossil energy consumed. Such measures confirm the “renewable” nature of biodiesel. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Reductions in CO 2 Emissions Ø Given the low demand for fossil energy associated with biodiesel, it is not surprising that biodiesel’s life cycle emissions of CO 2 are substantially lower than those of petroleum diesel. Ø Biodiesel reduces net emissions of CO 2 by 78. 45% compared to petroleum diesel. For B 20, CO 2 emissions from urban buses drop 15. 66%. Ø In addition, biodiesel provides modest reductions in total methane emissions, compared to petroleum diesel. Methane is another, even more potent, greenhouse gas. Thus, use of biodiesel to displace petroleum diesel in urban buses is an extremely effective strategy for reducing CO 2 emissions. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Changes in Air Pollutant Emissions Ø The effect of biodiesel on air quality is more complex. Biodiesel, as it is available today, offers substantial improvements in some air pollutants, while it leads to increases in others. Ø The use of B 100 in urban buses results in substantial reductions in life cycle emissions of total particulate matter, carbon monoxide and sulfur oxides (32%, 35% and 8% reductions, respectively, relative to petroleum diesel’s life cycle). From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Particulates, Carbon Monoxide and Sulfur Oxides. . . Ø are targeted by EPA because of the important role they play in public health risks, especially in urban areas where the acute effects of these pollutants may be greater. Ø Given the concern over urban air quality, it is important to note that most of these reductions occur because of lower emissions at the tailpipe. For buses operating in urban areas, this translates to an even greater potential benefit: ü Tailpipe emissions of particulates less than 10 microns in size are 68% lower for buses run on biodiesel (compared to petroleum diesel). In addition, tailpipe emissions of carbon monoxide are 46% lower for buses run on biodiesel (compared to petroleum diesel). Biodiesel completely eliminates emissions of sulfur oxides at the tailpipe. ü The reductions in air emissions reported here are proportional to the amount of biodiesel present in the fuel. Thus, for B 20, users can expect to see 20% of the reductions reported for biodiesel used in its neat form (B 100). From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Increased Emissions of Nitrogen Oxides (NOx)… Ø NOx is one of three pollutants implicated in the formation of ground level ozone and smog in urban areas (NOx, CO and hydrocarbons). Ø The use of B 100 in urban buses increases life cycle emissions of NOx by 13. 35%. Blending biodiesel with petroleum proportionately lowers NOx emission. B 20 exhibits a 2. 67% increase in life cycle emissions of NOx. Ø Most of this increase is directly attributable to increases in tailpipe emissions of NOx. B 100, for example, increases tailpipe levels of NOx by 8. 89%. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The US Biodiesel LCA • Hydrocarbons—higher on a life cycle basis, but lower at the tailpipe… Ø The increase in hydrocarbon emissions is due to release of hexane in the processing of soybeans and volatilization of agrochemicals applied on the farm. Ø Total life cycle emissions of hydrocarbons are 35% higher for B 100, compared to petroleum diesel. However, emissions of hydrocarbons at the tailpipe are actually 37% lower. Ø These results point out opportunities for improving the life cycle of biodiesel. Future biodiesel research should focus on ways of reducing hexane releases from today’s current levels in soybean crushing plants. Ø Improvements in use of agrochemicals on the farm would have similarly beneficial effects. From Sheehan, et al. (1998) “Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus, ” NREL/SR-580 -24089 UC Category 1503 LCA and Biodiesel

The UK Biodiesel LCA: with Impact Assessment • A UK-based LCA included impact assessment considering two types of biodiesel production. One where the biodiesel is produced using more conventional means and one where it is produced : Ø Using low nitrogen methods of cultivation Ø With the rapeseed straw as an alternative heating fuel for the drying, solvent extraction, refining and esterification process. Ø With biodiesel as the fuel for agricultural machinery and transportation. • Among the 2, conventional production is considered a conservative representation as follows. From Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIOECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel

A UK Biodiesel LCIA: Carbon Dioxide and GHG Emissions • • Biodiesel is described as ‘carbon neutral’ such that any CO 2 emissions associated with it comes from a source outside that of combustion of the fuel. In fact there are many sources of CO 2 associated with biodiesel production. Most of the emissions come from the esterification process, the production of fertilizer and the extraction of the oil from the seed. Ø These CO 2 emissions are not always produced directly from the process but taken from the energy requirement. What this means is that the energy a process uses has an associated emission. For example electricity used in the esterification process may well come from a coal power plant, so the amount of electricity used can be related to the amount of CO 2 released from the plant. It was found that for every ton of biodiesel produced 916 ± 52 kg CO 2 was released into the atmosphere. This dominates the greenhouse gas emissions: for each ton of biodiesel produced the equivalent of 1, 516 ± 88 kg of CO 2 are released. From http: //www. esru. strath. ac. uk/Eand. E/Web_sites/02 -03/biofuels/why_lca. htm and Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel

A UK Biodiesel LCIA: Carbon Dioxide Emissions From http: //www. esru. strath. ac. uk/Eand. E/Web_sites/02 -03/biofuels/why_lca. htm and Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel

• By quantifying the amount of energy required to produce biodiesel it is possible not only to see what processes require the most energy but also to establish an energy balance over the life cycle. I. e. the energy you get out against the energy you put in. • For every ton of biodiesel produced 16, 269 ± 896 MJ of energy is required. From http: //www. esru. strath. ac. uk/Eand. E/Web_sites/02 -03/biofuels/why_lca. htm and Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel

A UK Biodiesel LCIA: What does it mean? • Not surprisingly the largest energy demands match up with the CO 2 emissions. • A ton of biodiesel will contain around 40, 800 MJ of energy. Energy Balance = Energy OUT / Energy IN = 40, 800 / 16. 269 = 2. 5 • For these number to mean anything however there has to be something against which to compare them. In the case of biodiesel this would be the LCA of fossil diesel. From http: //www. esru. strath. ac. uk/Eand. E/Web_sites/02 -03/biofuels/why_lca. htm and Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel

A UK Biodiesel LCIA: Bio- vs. Fossil- Diesel • CO 2 Emissions Ø For each MJ of biodiesel produced 0. 025 Kg of CO 2 is released. Ø For each MJ of fossil diesel produced 0. 087 Kg of CO 2 is released. • GHG Emissions Ø For each MJ of biodiesel produced 0. 041 Kg of GHG CO 2 equivalent is released. Ø For each MJ of fossil diesel produced 0. 095 Kg of GHG CO 2 equivalent is released. • Energy Requirements Ø For each MJ of biodiesel produced 0. 45 MJ is required. Ø For each MJ of fossil diesel produced 1. 26 MJ is required. From http: //www. esru. strath. ac. uk/Eand. E/Web_sites/02 -03/biofuels/why_lca. htm and Mortimer, et al. (2003) “EVALUATION OF THE COMPARATIVE ENERGY, GLOBAL WARMING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BIODIESEL, ” Prepared for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs LCA and Biodiesel