Impact Assessment in LCA Flashcards
(11 cards)
Impact Pathways
Environmental Flows
- Inventory Results (water abstracted, carbon dioxide emitted, …)
Midpoints
- Human Toxidity
- Global Warming
- Land Occupation
Endpoints
- Human Health
- Ecosystem Quality
- Climate Change
- Ressources
Water Footprint
Evaluates water use impacts (scarcity, quality, availability) related to water used or affected by a product, process or organization
Water Footprint: AWARE
midpoint indicator, representing the relative Available WAter REmaining per area
(Water Availability - Demand (AMD)) / area
Result / World average result (0.0136m3 per m2 and month)
Water Footprint: Water Availability
extent to which humans and ecosystems have sufficient water resources for their needs
- depends on the location and timing
- depends on water quality
Toxicity and Human Health - ProScale
What is the specific hazard of and exposure to chemicals present in products along their life cycle?
Toxicity and Human Health - ProScale: Calculation
Hazard Factor * Exposure Concentration Factor * Person-Hours Factor * Mass Flow
Multifunctional Processes
Few industrial processes yield a single output or are based on a linearity of raw material inputs and outputs. Consideration should be given to the need for allocation procedures when dealing with systems involving multiple products and recycling systems
Multifunctional Processes: Allocation
Partitioning the inputs or outputs of a process between the product system under study and one or more other product systems
Multifunctional Processes: Allocation Procedure in LCA
Step 1
Try to avoid allocation:
- Split the process into smaller parts and collect data for each part, or
- Expand the system to include all functions of the co-products.
Step 2
If allocation is necessary, use physical relationships:
- Divide inputs and outputs based on how they physically relate to the products (e.g. how changes in one product affect inputs and outputs).
Step 3
If physical relationships don’t work, use other methods:
- For example, divide inputs and outputs based on the economic value of the products.
Multifunctional Processes: Substitution Option
Environmental impact of product A
- Saved environmental impact of substitute from product B
= Environmental impact from product B
Multifunctional Processes: Waste
Some outputs may be partly co-products and partly waste. In such cases, it is necessary to identify the ratio between co-products and waste since the inputs and outputs shall be allocated to the co-products part only.
