Life Cycle Assessment functional unit

Functionalization, silicone network preparation via, 22 568 Functionalized initiators, 14 255 Functional methacrylates, 16 240-242 Functional monomers methacrylate, 16 241-242 polymer colloid, 20 379-380 Functional perfume products, 18 354 Functional polyethylene waxes, 26 220 Functional properties, of wax, 26 215 Functional unit, in life cycle assessment, 14 809... 

Cooper, J., 2003. Specifying functional units and reference flows for comparable alternatives. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 8 (6), 337—349. http //dx.doi.org/ 10.1007/BF02978507. 

For an assessment of the sustainability profile, it is not enough to look at laundry detergent surfactants in isolation the whole life-cycle has to be taken into account.In order to arrive at soundly based conclusions, the total washing process must be analyzed. To enable the findings for different systems to be compared, all results must be related to a functional unit e.g. the cleaning of 1 kg of laundry. A systematic analysis of the total process is then carried out in the context of a so-called life-cycle assessment (LCA), in which all the system s inputs and outputs are systematically recorded and assessed. ... 

Value analysis does not try to break down already established costs instead, it seeks to build a new solution from a value established for the main function of a product, a reasoning similar to the determination of the functional unit in life cycle assessment. It follows that value analysis can elucidate hidden potential for environmental improvement that can directly translate into cost savings. As with LCA, it is likely that value analysis will be particularly effective in the development of new products rather than in the rationalisation of existing products. 

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a methodological tool used to quantitatively analyze the life cycle of a product or an activity with a generic framework provided by ISO Standards (14040, 14044, and 14047). When analyzing environmental impacts, LCA takes into account the complete life cycle of a product delivering a functional unit. 

There are dedicated LCA software packages available. Software is important given the complexity of LCA studies required, ft is equally important to determine the software required and due to different legal fiamewoiks in the European Union and in the United States. Some software features that can be used in EU may not function in other countries. LCA can evaluate the system-wide effects of product and process design options. Software development is streamlining and reducing the cost of life cycle assessments in the textile industry. 

Life cycle assessment is a methodology to assess the environmental impacts of a product, process, or service. ISO 14040 and 14044 are international standards for developing LCA, which has four steps that include definition of goal or scope, inventory of relevant material and energy inputs and relevant environmental outputs, evaluation of environmental impacts per functional unit, and interpretation of results. 

A functional unit is a quantitative description of the service performance of a product. Examples are a 11 bottle that can make 25 return trips or a coating for 1 m soft wood that will meet specified criteria for protection, color, and gloss over a 5-year period, when exposed outdoors to temperate climatic conditions. Using functional units as an object for life cycle assessment facilitates between-product comparisons. 

In this first phase of LCA, the following aspects must be defined/described the purpose and extent of the assessment the descriptive functional unit (represented by a product or service) that is formed and its limits the basis of comparison the components of the product s life cycle and assumptions and possible limitations. 

Before examining the approaches to recycling textiles, it is important to place this discussion in the context of the product life cycle. The methodology of LCA is one approach to quantitatively assess the environmental advantages of recycling fibre. An LCA typically considers the energy, water and chemical impacts of a product system from cradle (raw materials) through to production, distribution, use by the consumer and disposal. Formal LCA follows ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards. It requires determination of the functional unit of the product or raw material in question to be assessed, for example T kg of cotton fibre , or one viscose blouse . Importantly, LCA is conducted under defined system boundaries. For example, the LCA may be... 

A streamlined LCA study was done to assess the life cycle impacts of these chosen packaging systems with the aid of Simapro software, clubbed with Australian and International data. The following functional unit was used in this study a household... 

The aim of this case study is to illustrate the environmental impact assessment through a life cycle approach of HgnoceUulosic biorefineries, which are representative examples of multifunctional systems comprising various production lines. This example highlights the need to provide environmental performance metrics by allocating the total bio-refinery impacts to the biorefinery final products. This kind of allocation is particularly useful when a certain final product of interest can also be produced by alternative ways (i.e., other biomass- and fossil-based pathways) and, therefore, a comparison between these alternatives for the functional unit of 1 kg of product is required. In other words, in this case the focus is not on the utilization of 1 kg of biomass where the total biorefinery environmental performance would be of interest, but on a specific production path within the biorefinery production network, considering of course the joint or coproduction nature of the system. This allocation procedure (here the term allocation is... 

The two key elements of an LCA of the fuel cell system are the assessment of the entire life cycle of the fuel cell system and the assessment of a variety of environmental impacts because of it. The first step is the goal and scope definition, in which the system, the intended application, the data sources, and system boimdaries are described and the functional unit, that is, the reference of all related inputs and outputs, is defined. The criteria for selecting input and output flows or processes have to be specified, hi this step, the data quality requirements time-related and geographical coverage the consistency, representativity, and imcertainty of the data and the critical review procedure have to be described. 

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