Household Food Wraps Life Cycle Assessment Betsy Boatner
Household Food Wraps Life Cycle Assessment Betsy Boatner Rob Frederick Hyung Chul Kim Yasmin Ullah April 12, 1999
Goal Definition Conduct a life cycle assessment of: • PVC (Reynolds Plastic Wrap) • PVDC (Saran Wrap) • PE (Handi-Wrap) • Al (Reynolds Aluminum Foil)
Overview • Introduction • Life Cycle Inventory Analysis • Life Cycle Impact Assessment • Life Cycle Interpretation
INTRODUCTION
Performance Characteristics Consumer objective: coverage • Ability to seal/enclose • Cling • Resist tearing • Hot/cold, clarity, and gas permeability are outside of the scope
LIFE CYCLE INVENTORY
System Boundary Raw Material Extraction Manufacturing Use End of Life Input Bauxite Petroleum Al, PVC, PVDC, PE Production Film Manufacture Wrap Manufacture Output End of Life Wrap Use Human Health Wood Cardboard Pulp Production Tube & Box Manufacture Recycling Landfill Incineration Recycle
PVC Food Wrap Production Mining Rock Salt Electrolysis Extraction Stabilizer Plasticizer Methane Cl 2 Chlorination PVC Food Wrap VCM Calendering Emulsion Polymerisation Reaction
PVDC Food Wrap Production Mining Extraction Rock salt Methane Electrolysis Cl 2 Chlorination PVDC Calendering Food Wrap Vinyl Chlorination Chloride Emulsion Polymerisation Reaction Vinylidene Chloride
PE Food Wrap Production Oil Well Drilling Refinery Water Steam Cracking Oil Stabilizers Rolling Additives Extrusion Polyethylene Food Wrap Ethylene Polymerisation
Aluminum Foil Production Mining Na. OH Limestone Bauxite Al oxide Manufacture Aluminum Foil Wrap Mining Cathode/Anode Manufacture Na-Al-Ca Fluoride Carbon Electrolysis Rolling/ Annealing Al metal Casting
Cost Comparison
Weight Distribution
Material Consumption
Energy Consumption 70 Energy (MJ) 60 50 feedstock precomb. + comb. 40 30 20 10 0 PVC PVDC (Reynolds (Saran Plastic Wrap) PE (Handi Wrap) Al (Reynolds Alum. Foil) • Aluminum production has high electricity demands
Air Emissions of Criteria Pollutants
Water Emissions Suspended Solids Nitrogen
Water Emissions (cont’d) Salts and Acids Metals
Water Emissions (cont’d) Total Organic Carbons
Transportation Energy • Cardboard tube for plastic wrap weighs more than for aluminum
End of Life • Aluminum foil has 9% recycle rate • Scrap aluminum foil is worth $1050 per ton / $0. 85 per roll
LIFE CYCLE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
Critical Volume • Pollutants included are Fl, Cl, NH 3, Pb, Hg, HCl, CO, SOX, NOX, Hydrocarbons, and Dust/Part.
GWP 100 Relative to CO 2 • Greenhouse gases included are CO 2, N 20, CH 4, and Halon-1301.
Health Concerns: Aluminum Production & Recovery Production - Link between aluminum smelting & asthma & chronic airway disease - Acid mine drainage Recycling - Neurobehavioral, rheumatic, & respiratory impairments* (Al, Mn, VCM)
LIFE CYCLE INTERPRETATION
Report Card
Recommendations • Examine changes in manufacturing techniques to reduce migration • Conduct more research on migration and health effects • Investigate alternative plasticizers (e. g. , polymerized, benzoic acid based) • Recover and utilize chlorine discharges
Recommendations (cont’d) • Reuse or recycle aluminum foil • Avoid use of heavy duty foil • Minimize contact of PVC/PVDC wrap with food
Which would you choose?
- Slides: 36