Sustainable Development and

Environmental Treatment Technology

Chapter 5. Life Cycle Assessment
(LCA)
 Reference textbooks
[1] Adisa Azapagic & Slobodan Perdan, Sustainable Development in Practice:
Case Studies for Scientists and Engineers, Chapters 3 & 6, Wiley, 2011
[2] David Brennan, Sustainable process engineering_ concepts, strategies,
evaluation, and implementation, Chapters 10 & 11, Pan Stanford, 2013
[3] David T. Allen & David R. Shonnard, Green Engineering_ Environmentally
Conscious Design of Chemical Processes, Chapter 13, Prentice Hall, 2001
[4] R. Smith. 2016. Chemical Process Design and Integration, 2nd Ed, Chapter
27, Wiley, 2016
 LCA - Introduction

LCA is a method which has been developed to provide a

quantitative assessment of the environmental impact of a product
over its entire life cycle.
LCA accounts for both inputs and outputs, each derived from both
process and utility sources:
• inputs — consumptions of raw materials, energy, fuel and water
• outputs — emissions to air, land and water.
 LCA - Introduction

Inputs and outputs for an LCA study

 LCA - Applications

LCA has been most widely applied to products. One objective

has been to establish which of several competing products has
the least environmental impact for a given product function
Examples:
– Paper vs. plastic bags
– Wood/bamboo chopsticks vs. plastic spoons
– Plastic cups vs. paper cups
 LCA - Applications

Another objective has been to determine which part of a

product’s life cycle incurs the greatest environmental impact;
this then directs activities such as sourcing alternative raw
materials, developing an improved processing technology, or
improving product design
 LCA - Applications

Results from LCA study for Polyester Blouse

 LCA - Applications
Observations from LCA study for Polyester Blouse

For washing machine manufacturer

 Problem: major energy and water consumption in
the stage of product use.
 Solutions: Make machines which use less energy
and water.
 LCA - Applications
Observations from LCA study for Polyester Blouse

For cloth manufacturer

 Problem: Major energy consumption in the stage
of product use (warm washing and drying).
 Solutions: Manufacture cold water washable and
fast dryable cloth.
For detergent producer
Problem: Major impact on the environment from
the direct discharge of the spent detergent.
Solutions: Cold water usable, biodegradable easily
 Another
Example?
 LCA - Applications

LCA can also be applied to processes in the context of process

technology selection, process development, or process synthesis.
A chemical processing plant is one module of an extended
product life cycle which may involve more than one chemical
processing stage. For example, both alumina refining and
aluminum smelting are separate and significant processes in
terms of environmental impact within the life cycle of the
product aluminum. LCA is thus a valuable tool for quantitative
evaluation of the ‘cleanliness’ of a process, and for ranking
processes according to their environmental merits
 Standard procedure for a LCA

Step 1: Goal definition

The scope and purpose of the LCA are defined. The system
boundaries are defined and the functional unit is established.
The functional unit is the reference point to which
environmental impacts are attributed
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 1: Goal definition
In comparing alternative processes for making a chemical
product such as ammonia, a suitable functional unit would be 1
tonne of ammonia. In comparing processes to reduce SO2
emissions to atmosphere, a tonne of sulphur dioxide removed
from the effluent gas might be an appropriate basis.
When comparing alternative products, the task is more
difficult. For insulating materials, insulating capability is a
more important function than mass or volume of material.
When comparing paint products, a suitable functional unit
would need to incorporate the surface covered and the
durability of the paint surface over time. A possible unit might
be the volume of paint to cover and protect 1 m2 of a particular
surface over 10 years.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 1: Goal definition
The scope of the LCA study encompasses the definition of the
system under study including its boundaries, the level of detail
and accuracy required, and the various data requirements.
System boundaries should be clearly defined and documented.
Boundaries include both
- Space considerations, for example, inclusive of all raw
material mining and extraction, all transport operations, and
- Time considerations encompassing product life and plant life,
inclusive of decommissioning and waste storage time
frameworks.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 1: Goal definition
It is essential to include within the system boundary the
impacts of utilities generation associated with the utilities
consumed at the various stages of the product life cycle. Where
utility generation is from a specific source, for example, steam
supplied from a boiler at a chemical plant site, impacts can
be identified and quantified. In other cases, for example, where
electricity is drawn from a grid supply, impacts are usually
derived from many sources of electricity supply and are
accounted for on a weighted basis
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 1: Goal definition
Studies may be conducted for the whole life cycle, or restricted to
certain parts of the life cycle. Thus, studies are often termed
• cradle to grave, encompassing the entire life cycle
• cradle to gate, encompassing raw materials extraction through
a processing chain to a product leaving the factory gate (e.g.,
PVC manufacture inclusive of upstream manufacture of ethylene,
chlorine, and vinyl chloride monomer, but exclusive of
downstream fabrication, use, and disposal of PVC products)
• gate to gate, encompassing a manufacturing process at a
particular site (e.g., manufacture of hydrogen gas from natural gas
by the steam reforming process).
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 1: Goal definition

Life cycle of a product from cradle to grave and its variations

Vòng đời của một sản phẩm từ khi sinh ra đến khi chết và những biến thể
của nó
 Standard procedure for a LCA

Example of System
Boundary Determination
LCA case study of
alternative processes for
desulphurising
gases from metallurgical
smelters
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Example of System Boundary Determination
Desulphurisation options included
• conversion of SO2 to sulphuric acid
• reduction of SO2 to sulphur, with option for subsequent sulphuric
acid manufacture
• absorption of SO2 in limestone slurry to form gypsum (thạch cao:
CaSO4)
Options considered for downstream processing of sulphuric acid
included:
• manufacture of phosphoric acid
• reaction of phosphoric acid with ammonia to make ammonium
phosphate fertiliser
• manufacture of superphosphate fertiliser from sulphuric acid and
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Example of System Boundary Determination

Activities within shaded area are included

Activities outside shaded area are excluded
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis
All material and energy resources consumed and all wastes
emitted are quantified.

Note that inventory in LCA refers to the quantities of raw

materials and energy inputs and emission outputs, not a quantity
of stored chemical as the term denotes in safety assessment.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis
Inventory analysis involves the identification and quantification
of all material and energy resources consumed and all wastes
emitted, expressed in mass units. To achieve this, the process
technology, design and operation of the plant must be
considered and understood. One important data source is
the process flow-sheet. The quality and detail of the flow-sheet
and supporting work are important in determining the quality of
the data
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis
A separate source of inventory data is performance data from an
operating plant. It is important to recognize, however, that such
data can vary from plant to plant due to variations in
• feedstock compositions
• differences in technology (often associated with age of the plant)
• process and plant design details
• operating and maintenance procedures.
Published inventory data is available for certain processes and
products, for example, within commercial software packages for
LCA and within published LCA studies, but the supporting basis
for the data in such cases is often not fully provided
 Standard procedure for a LCA

Step 2:
Inventory
analysis -
Example
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis - Example
The inventory analysis quantifies
• raw materials and utilities consumptions
• products and wastes generated.
Assumptions were needed to assign inputs and outputs which
correspond to consumptions of utilities. Assumptions common to
all cases in the study were
• electricity was obtained from black coal
• fuel energy was obtained from fuel oil combustion
• water losses from evaporative cooling water circuits and steam
circuits were 5% of the utility consumed
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis - Example
Inputs / outputs quantifications for utilities sources (electricity,
steam, fuels used in furnaces and heaters, cooling water) have to
be made, and making use of assumptions is often necessary
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 2: Inventory analysis - Issues

Issues of inventory analysis

• Detailed calculations via process simulation of process
flowsheet or analyzing performance data of existing plants =>
very time consuming, especially for “cradle-to-grave” LCA
study.

• Making use of assumptions is often necessary => there are

uncertainties in results, depending on the assumptions
 Standard procedure for a LCA

Step 3: Impact assessment

Impact assessment evaluates the potential human and
ecological impacts and resource depletion from the use of
materials, energy and water, and releases to the environment
identified in the inventory analysis.
Examples of impacts might be contribution to global warming
from the release of greenhouse gases or eutrophication of
receiving water from the discharge of nitrates and phosphates.
Standard procedure for a LCA
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Impact categories in LCA
Standard procedure for a LCA
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment

Equivalency factors for selected compounds and selected impact

categories are shown in Table 10.4.
Note that the number 1 is assigned to particular compounds in
each impact category. Impact scores are then expressed in tonnes
equivalent of these particular compounds. Thus, global warming
potential is expressed in tonnes equivalent of CO2, acidification
potential in tonnes equivalent of SO2, and so on. In some impact
categories, for example, global warming potential, distinction is
also made between impacts over different time horizons
Standard procedure for a LCA
Standard procedure for a LCA
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
A gaseous vent stream with a flowrate of 1000 Nm3/hr needs to be
released to the environment. The gas contains 47% methane, with the
balance being an inert gas.
The inert gas can be assumed not to make any contribution towards
global warming. Calculate the global warming potential of the vent
stream for a 100-year time horizon:
a) If it is released directly to the atmosphere.
b) If it is combusted in a steam-assisted elevated flare with a
destruction efficiency of 98%. The steam required for the flare is at 2
bar and 140 oC with a flowrate of 500 kg/hr. The energy required to
generate the steam can be assumed to be 2601 kJ/kg. The overall
steam generation and distribution efficiency can be assumed to be
85%. Steam generation can be assumed to be from natural gas.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
b) (continued) Natural gas is required for the flare
pilot burner with a flowrate of 15 Nm3/hr. The natural gas can be
assumed to be effectively pure methane with a net calorific value
of 50 MJ/kg. Any methane that is combusted in the pilot flame
and the steam generation can be assumed to be completely
combusted to CO2. Other products of combustion will be
formed in the flare, such as CO and NOX (including N2O), but
these are difficult to estimate and extremely small and will be
neglected. Any water vapor formed in combustion processes can
be assumed not to make a contribution towards global warming.
It can be assumed that the molar mass of a gas in kilograms
occupies 22.4 m3 in the vapor phase at standard conditions.
The molar masses of methane and carbon dioxide are
16 kg/kmol and 44 kg/kmol respectively.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example

Một dòng khí lưu lượng 1000 m3/h cần được xả ra môi trường.
Khí chứa 47% methane, phần còn lại là khí trơ. Khí trơ có thể được coi là không góp phần vào sự nóng lên
toàn cầu.
Tính toán khả năng nóng lên toàn cầu của dòng khí thải trong khoảng thời gian 100 năm:
a) Nếu nó được thải trực tiếp vào khí quyển.
b) Đốt bằng đuốc có hỗ trợ hơi nước, hiệu suất tiêu hủy là 98%. Hơi nước cần thiết cho quá trình đốt
cháy là ở áp suất 2 bar và 140 oC với lưu lượng 500 kg/h. Năng lượng cần thiết để tạo ra hơi nước là
2601 kJ/kg. Hiệu suất tạo và phân phối hơi nước tổng thể có thể được giả định là 85%. Việc tạo ra hơi
nước có thể được coi là từ khí thiên nhiên (natural gas).

Khí thiên nhiên cần thiết cho quá trình đốt cháy đuốc có lưu lượng 15 m 3/h. Khí thiên nhiên có thể được coi
là khí methane tinh khiết với nhiệt lượng là 50MJ/kg. Bất kỳ khí methane nào được mồi trong đuốc và dùng
để tạo ra hơi nước có thể được coi là hoàn toàn cháy thành CO 2. Các sản phẩm cháy khác sẽ được hình thành

trong ngọn lửa, chẳng hạn như CO và NO X (kể cả N2O), nhưng những điều này không đáng kể.
Hơi nước hình thành trong quá trình đốt cháy có thể được cho là không góp phần vào sự nóng lên toàn cầu.
Có thể coi khối lượng mol của một chất khí tính bằng kg chiếm 22,4 m 3 ở pha hơi ở điều kiện tiêu chuẩn.
Khối lượng mol của khí methane và CO 2 là lần lượt là 16 kg/kmol và 44 kg/kmol.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
a) Mass flowrate of CH4 in the vent
= (1000 * 0.47/22.4)*16
= 335.7 kg/hr
Global warming potential of the vent stream for direct release
to
the atmosphere = 335.7*21
=7049.7 kg CO2 equivalents per hour

b) If the vent is to be released to atmosphere via a steam-

assisted
flare, then there are four sources of contribution to global
warming. These are the uncombusted methane, the products
of the vent combustion, products of combustion of the pilot
fuel and products of combustion from generation of steam for
the flare steam.
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
Emissions associated with the construction of
the equipment will be neglected, as will be indirect energy
emissions.
First is the uncombusted methane.
Mass flowrate of uncombusted methane released for 98%
destruction
= 335.7*0.02 = 6.714 kg/hr

For combustion of the methane in the vent:

CH4 + 2O2 = CO2 + 2H2O
Since 1 kmol of CO2 is formed for each kmol of CH4 combusted,
CO2 formed from combustion of the vent methane
= (1000 * 0.47*0.98/22.4)*44
= 904.75 kg/hr
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
If the pilot gas (flowrate = 15 Nm3/hr) is assumed to be 100%
methane and the methane is assumed to be completely combusted,
then the flowrate of CO2 formed from the pilot is
= (15/22.4)*44
= 29.46 kg/hr
If the fuel to generate the flare steam is assumed to be 100%
methane, then the amount of CH4 (variable X kg/hr) required to
generate the steam with an overall efficiency of 85%
Heat used for generating the steam = Heat supplied by combustion
of methane (with overall efficiency of 85%) (unit: kJ/hr)

500 (kg/hr)*2601(kJ/kg) = X(kg/hr)*50000 (kJ/kg)*0.85

Thus, X = 30.6 kg/hr = 30.6/16 = 1.9125 (kmol/hr)

(Net calorific value of methane = 50 MJ/kg = 50000 kJ/hr)
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 3: Impact assessment - Example
CO2 formed from the generation of the flare steam
=1.9125*44 = 84.15 (kg/hr)

Global warming potential for release to atmosphere from a flare

stack
= 6.714*21 + 904.75*1 + 29.46*1 + 84.15*1
= 1159.4 kg CO2 equivalents per hour

Thus, flaring of the vent gas reduces the global warming potential
of the release by 84% relative to direct release

https://ecotree.green/en/how-much-co2-does-a-tree-absorb

https://www.vuonkyniem.com/cay-cao-su-co-hap-thu-o2-thai-co2.html
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 4: Improvement analysis
Aspects for improvement in processing or product use are
identified and explored. By comparing indices or inventory
data for processes or products, it is possible to identify those
phases of product manufacture or use which make major
contributions to environmental impact. It is also possible to
identify what impact category contributes most to
environmental damage, what molecular species it derives
from, and where in the product life cycle the inventory is
created. Product design, process design, or operations strategy
can then be reviewed and modified to reduce impacts
 Standard procedure for a LCA

Step 4: Improvement analysis -Example

Alternative processes for desulphurising gases from
metallurgical smelters – Results from Impact analysis
 Standard procedure for a LCA
Step 4: Improvement analysis -Example
 LCA Case Studies
LCA study for comparison of various electricity-
generating technologies
 LCA Case Studies
LCA study for comparison of various electricity-
generating technologies
 LCA Case Studies
LCA study for comparison of various electricity-
generating technologies
 LCA Case Studies

LCA study for sustainability analysis of biofuels:

Students are instructed by lecturer to study this LCA

case study from the following reference:
[1] Adisa Azapagic & Slobodan Perdan, Sustainable
Development in Practice: Case Studies for Scientists
and Engineers, Chapter 6, section 6.3.1
“Environmental Sustainability of Biofuels”
 LCA Case Studies

LCA study for evaluating environmental impact of

Hydrotreating of Diesel:

Students are instructed by lecturer to study this LCA

case study from the following reference:
[2] David Brennan, Sustainable process engineering_
concepts, strategies, evaluation, and implementation,
Chapter 11, section 11.4 “Hydrotreating of Diesel”