Life cycle assessment process improvement

Advisory Group are considering different facets of LCA. In 1993, they developed the Code of Practice ,the first worldwide accepted technical framework for LCA. This was an important step towards the harmonisation of the method and has initiated and supported the standardisation process by ISO. Between 1997 and 2000, ISO produced the international series of standard defining the different stages of the LCA methodology (ISO 14040 1997, ISO 14041 1998, ISO 14042 2000 ° as well as ISO 14043 2000° ). As mentioned above, these standards were replaced by two improved editions of life cycle assessment standards in 2006 (ISO 14040 2006 and ISO 14044 2006°). 

In the previous chapters, thermodynamic analysis is used to improve processes. However, as pointed out in Chapter 9 (Energy Conversion), the exergy analysis did not make any distinction between the combustion of coal and natural gas and, as a result, could not make any statements regarding toxicity or environmental impact of exploration, production and use of the two fuels. A technique that can do this is LCA. What exactly is life cycle analysis In ISO 14040 [1], life cycle analysis (or life cycle assessment) is defined as "the compilation and evaluation of the inputs, outputs and potential environmental impacts of a product throughout its life cycle."... 

The development of green Foodomics runs parallel to the improvement and design of techniques able to assess the environmental impact of the different protocols/processes/operations involved. At present several techniques can be found in the literature to test, for instance, the impact of analytical chemistry methods (such as the Greeness profile, the HPLC-EAT, or the Analytical Eco-Scale) and the environmental impacts associated with a product or process, over its entire life cycle (such as Life Cycle Assessment). Nevertheless, techniques able to provide a more holistic view of the different aspects... 

Environmental life-cycle assessment (LCA) provides a mechanism for systematically evaluating the environmental impacts linked to a product or process and in guiding process or product improvement efforts. LCA-based information also provides insights into the environmental impacts of raw material and product choices, and maintenance and end-of-product-life strategies. Because of the systematic nature of LCA and its power as an evaluative tool, the use of LCA is increasing as environmental performance becomes more and more important in society. It is likely that LCA will soon become widely used within U.S. industry and by those involved in crafting national and regional environmental policy. 

Process design product stewardship is discussed in the CER, particularly in respect to life-cycle assessments for titanium tetrachloride and converting wastes to co-products for use in the food industry. There are also a number of examples that indicated that Tioxide improved processes to reduce environmental impact. These include ... 

Validation maintenance, an ongoing activity for manufacturing processes [11], continues through the life cycle of the process with a changing focus as the process matures [20]. There is a need to address the process life cycle as a whole and not to suspend process validation after three production scale runs are completed [14]. To support this life-cycle approach, process expert teams are created to rapidly resolve process deviations, determine trends toward loss of control, comply with regulatory requirements, assess process change impact, and identify areas for process improvement [11]. 

It is environmentally important to perform a life cycle assessment analysis, not only for non-biodegradable polymers but also for partially biodegradable or even completely biodegradable polymers. Life cycle analysis (LCA) is a tool which helps in understanding the environmental impact associated with the products, processes and activities throughout the life of a polymer. The life cycle of vegetable oil-based polymers is shown in Rg. 2.6. Thus a complete LCA would include three separate but interrelated components, an inventory analysis, an impact analysis and an improvement analysis. 

Compared with conventional diesel refining process, GTL diesel offers significant environmental advantages such as less carbon emissions and improvement of air quality with the total absence of sulfur in the fuel. However, the GTL technology often requires intensive energy and resources input. This paper applies Life cycle assessment (LCA) method to quantify the environmental impacts of gas-to-liquid fuel processes. LCA is a tool for the analysis of environmental impacts of a product or a system, taking into... 

Life cycle assessment reveals that no petroleum-derived polymer can rival the greenhouse gas sink effect of the improved PLA process. Although disposal of PLA products - whether by combustion, composting or other conventional means - results in a return of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, this advantage survives. 

The key measurement tool to assess the enviromnental sustainability of a product is Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Life cycle inventory analysis accounts for all inputs and outputs for a particular product and is typically practiced on a cradle-to-grave basis. A key benefit of LCA is the opportunity to benchmark performance against competitor products and processes in the marketplace, both to justify performance claims and to identify operations appropriate for performance improvement efforts. 

Life cycle assessment involves an inventory analysis to provide information about the consumption of material and release of wastes from the point that raw material is obtained to make a product to the time of its ultimate fate, an impact analysis to consider the environmental and other impacts of the product, and an improvement analysis to determine the measures that can be taken to reduce impacts. A life cycle assessment gives a high priority to the choice of materials in a way that minimizes wastes. It considers which materials and whole components can be used or recycled. And it considers alternate pathways for manufacturing processes or, in the case of chemical manufacture, alternate synthesis routes. 

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