MNG 620: Business and Sustainable

Development
Session 7
Cleaner Production and LCA

Trupti Mishra
SJMSOM, IIT Bombay
Source : UNEP Manuals

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What is Cleaner Production?

- Continuous application of an integrated preventive environmental

strategy to processes, products and services to increase eco-
efficiency and reduce risks to humans and the environment.

Production processes: conserving raw material and energy,

eliminating toxic raw materials, and reducing the quantity of
toxicity of all emissions and wastes at source.

Products: reducing negative impacts along the entire life cycle of

a product, from design to ultimate disposal.

Services: incorporating environmental concerns into designing

and delivering services. (UNEP IE 1989)

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Cleaner Production Options
 Housekeeping - Improvements to work practices and methods and proper
maintenance of equipment – saving resources - typically low cost and provide
low to moderate benefits.

 Process optimization - Rationalization of the process sequence (e.g., the

elimination of a redundant washing sequence), combining or modifying process
operations to save on resources and time, and improving process efficiency -
typically low to medium cost and moderate to high benefits.

 Raw material substitution - Better options exist in terms of costs, process

efficiency, and reduced health and safety related hazards - assess the options
through laboratory / bench scale studies and pilots, to ensure that the product
quality is not changed and / or is acceptable to the market.

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Cleaner Production Options
 New technology - Reduce resource consumption and minimize
wastes, as well as increase the throughput or the productivity - capital
intensive, but can lead to potentially high benefits.

 New product design - impacts on both the “upstream” as well as

“downstream” side of the product life cycle.

- Reduce the quantity or toxicity of materials in a product,

- or reduce the use of energy, water and other materials during use,

- or reduce packaging requirements, or increase the "recyclability“ of

used components.

 Product re-design - feasibility studies and market surveys

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Milestones : Productivity and Environment

Source : UNEP Manual

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Case 1 : RCIC
 Reactive Chemical Industries Corporation (RCIC) - additives for the
processing of high polymer materials.

 Discharge : 500 m3 of wastewater – Fish Kill

 Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) of 4,000 mg/L.( maximum stipulated

COD discharge 45 mg/L),

 WWTP - Capital investment of US$960,000, Annual operating cost of

US$72,000.

 COD discharge regulations to 20 mg/L. - "the solution to pollution is

dilution“ - Revamp the existing outfall by increasing its length and adding
diffuser-portriser mechanisms, at an investment of US$250,000

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Case 1 : RCIC
 Further tightening of discharge regulations

- additional investments in terms of upgrading the WWTP were extremely

cost-prohibitive.

- Installation of a new WWTP was not feasible, given the substantial area
requirement and escalating land prices.

 Reduction at the source in the production processes

 An in-plant cleaner production assessment – Technical and Economic

feasibillity.

 Improvements and expansions, improved housekeeping, direct recycling

in the washing plant and certain process modifications (e.g. installation
of a microprocessor-based system to control the quantity and rate of
addition of raw materials, installation of vacuum pumps to allow the
recovery of product previously lost with wastewater, etc.).

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Case 1 : RCIC
 Short time frame of 6 months - investment of US$60,000 and a

 payback period varying between 0.5 to 3 years.

 Outcome - Meet the new stringent effluent discharge regulations easily,

but also to increase its production by 15%, and save on raw materials
and water, one fourth of the existing WWTP was found to be redundant!

 RCIC - Closed one of the batteries (125 m3/day capacity) and

decommissioned some of the equipment.

 lesson – Cleaner Production should have been the first step to manage
the problem of pollution instead of dilution and end-of-pipe treatment.

 Proactive then Reactive

 Strategy that integrates the concepts of environmental protection

and improvement of resource productivity is called Cleaner
Production.
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Case 2
 PAC Foods supplies food-packaging solutions to restaurants

 Issue of Solid waste - regulatory issue, Disposal fees escalated and

the neighbourhood started expressing its concerns, with some articles
appearing in the local newspapers

 Re - evaluate PAC Foods’ system of packaging.

 Less Waste Initiatives - , materials substitutions and design alterations.

 Within the first six months, PAC Foods was able to eliminate almost
7,500 tons of superfluous packaging.

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Case 2
 Innovation in Design

- Reducing raised designs on napkins - enabled 23% more napkins to fit

into a shipping container, saving 294,000 kg of corrugated packaging and
150 truckload shipments.

- Redesigning drink shipment boxes to achieve a 4% reduction in

corrugated packaging (i.e. saving 450,000 kg).

- Converting light-weight and non-greasy classified food containers from

paperboard cartons to paper bags, thus saving 3 million kg worth of
packaging.

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Case 2
 PAC Foods - toxics use reduction by printing its packaging material with soy-
based inks, as well as by introducing unbleached carryout paper bags..

 Outcome - net savings of US$250,000 from the second year onwards, with an
initial investment of US$80,000.

 Public Benefit

- Decrease in packing paper translated into less trees being cut down.

- Less truckload shipments translated into savings in fuel

- decreased gaseous emissions and better air quality.

- Toxics use reduction translates to significantly less environmental risks, and

improved worker health and safety.

 PAC Foods stand out in the market as an environmentally sensitive company

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Case 3 : Hotel Relax
 Relax was losing its competitiveness

- Reduce operating costs

- re-establish a foothold and create a niche for itself in the market.

 Water and Energy Audit –

- Existing lighting was replaced with lower wattage incandescent fluorescent

lighting - savings of approximately 25% on electricity costs for lighting.

- Flow restrictors were installed on all taps and showers - save approximately
16,000 L of water per day, annual savings of US$4,470.

- The electric water heaters were replaced with gas operated units - annual savings
of approximately US$17,000.

- For an initial investment of only $250, the hotel could shut down its fountain
pump system for five hours a night, thereby saving US$2,475 annually.

- Net Outcome – Increase Occupancy rates and decrease attrition

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Lesson from the case studies
 Proactive Strategy

 Continuous Prevention strategy

 Attitude : Top management

Factors : Customer / community pressures, resource availability and

pricing, competition in business and need of image-building, and
increasingly stringent pollution control norms and their enforcement.
Linked to Productivity

- how water and energy could be saved,

- or how raw material requirements could be reduced,

- or how the output or production could be increased.

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Session References
 Gertler and Ehrenfeld, A down to Earth approach to clean
production, MIT Technology Review, February/March 1996

 Mark W. Johnson and Josh Suskewicz , ‘How to Jump-Start the

Clean-Tech Economy’, HBS article, 2009.

 UNEP note on Cleaner production

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Which energy source is better and why?

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

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Life Cycle Analysis

 Taking a holistic environmental view of a product or service, from raw

material through production to distribution and final disposal.

 Life-cycle analysis (LCA) is a method in which the energy and raw

material consumption, different types of emissions and other important
factors related to a specific product are being measured, analyzed and
summoned over the products entire life cycle from an environmental
point of view.

 Life-Cycle Analysis attempts to measure the “cradle to grave” impact on the

ecosystem.

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Life Cycle Assessment

 LCAs started in the early 1970s, initially to investigate the energy

requirements for different processes.
 Emissions and raw materials were added later.

 IS0 14040-14043 is considered to be the LCA standard.

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LCA Steps
1.Goal definition (ISO 14040):
 The basis and scope of the evaluation are defined.

2.Inventory Analysis (ISO 14041):

 Create a process tree in which all processes from raw material extraction through
waste water treatment are mapped out and connected and mass and energy
balances are closed (all emissions and consumptions are accounted for).

3.Impact Assessment (ISO 14042):

 Emissions and consumptions are translated into environmental effects. The are
environmental effects are grouped and weighted.

4.Improvement Assessment/Interpretation (ISO 14043):

 Areas for improvement are identified.

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 LCA - Components

 LCA Inventory - quantifying the energy and materials used, and

wastes generated

 LCA Impact - assess the effects of the inventory.

 LCA Improvement - Systematic evaluation of the needs and

opportunities to reduce of the environmental burden.

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Product Life cycle

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 LCA Process Flow Diagrams

energy energy energy energy energy

Raw
process manufacture use dispose
materials

wastes wastes wastes

reuse

recycle
Source :Ivan J. Baiges
From Materials to products

energy energy energy energy

materials materials materials materials

Petroleum Ethylene Polyethylene Bag

extraction production polymerization manufacturing

waste waste waste waste

By products By products By products By products

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

LCA Scoping, Flow Diagram

Raw Materials Extraction and Processing

raw concentrated
extraction
materials materials

refining

Physical,
processed refined
materials Chemical materials
Preparation
Source :Ivan J. Baiges
 LCA Scoping, Flow Diagram

Raw Materials Extraction and Processing – fossil fuels

raw concentrated
extraction transportation
materials materials

refining

processed
Physical,
refined
materials Chemical
materials
Preparatio
n
Source :Ivan J. Baiges
 LCA Flow Diagrams

Manufacturing

finished finished
fabrication
materials components

assembly

finished bulk
packaging
products products

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

 LCA Flow Diagrams

Energy production with fossil fuels / biofuels

Heat
Fossil fuel vapor
production

Energy conversion

Delivered Electrical
distribution
energy energy

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

 LCA Flow Diagrams

Energy production with solar radiation

Photovoltaic Electrical
sunlight
conversion energy

battery
Energy conversion

Delivered Electrical
energy distribution
energy

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

 LCA Flow Diagrams

Energy production with wind

Electromechanical Electrical
wind
energy
conversion

battery
Energy conversion

Delivered Electrical
energy distribution
energy

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

 Aluminum Can Production

Energy Savings Recycling

Aluminum • Energy D = 66.7 kw hr/kg

Ore • Energy % = 90.4%
extraction
7.3 kw hr/kg 0.07 kw hr/kg 16.6 kw hr/kg

Aluminum Sheet Sheet Can

production production transport production
70.4 kw hr/kg 0.07 kw hr/kg
Ingot material
production transport
3.9 kw hr/kg Recycling

Source :Ivan J. Baiges

 Why is LCA important?
 Purposes
 To support Business strategy – 18%

 R&D – 18%

 Input to product or process design – 15%

 Labelling and product declarations – 11%

 European ENSLIC Building project guidelines for buildings: LCA is continuously

integrated as a tool [2]

 Major corporations in the world are undertaking LCA in their companies or as a

topic of study for commissioning while governments are supporting the
development of national database

 Increasing use of LCA in the products based on ISO 14040 series of standards

 Third party certified LCA labels (For example: ISO 14041) provide a framework to
relatively compare competing products for their environmental impact

 Also shows dedication of the company to safer, environmentally friendlier

products to stakeholders: (customers and NGOs)

Cooper, J.S.; Fava, J. (2006)

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 LCA: Inventory Analysis, Impact Assessment
and Interpretation
 Data collection and calculation procedure:

 Allocation Procedures

 The calculation of energy flow

 LCA Impact Assessment:

 Assigning of inventory data to impact categories i.e. Classification

 Modeling of inventory data within impact categories i.e.

Charecterization
 Possibly aggregating the results in very specific cases and only when
meaningful i.e. Weighting

 LCA Interpretation: The findings of the inventory analysis as well as

of the impact assessment are combined together and are evaluated
against the defined goal and scope to reach conclusions and
recommendations

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 Life Cycle Impact Assessment
STEPS

 Categorization - determine impact consequences

 Characterization - determine how the actions affect the categories

 Valuation - determine which impact are more relevant to society

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 Life Cycle Impact Assessment

Inventory greenhouse effect

batteries Categorization ozone depletion
CO smog
HC
 Global warming
oil Characterization
 Respiratory diseases

Impact Valuation
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Source :Ivan J. Baiges
 Impact Assessment
Stressors - Categories

 Resource Consumption - How an action affects the

supply of important resources
 Ecological Health - How an action affects the Ecosystem
 Human Health - How an action affects the wellbeing of
human beings
 LCA Reporting

 Fair, complete and accurate to the intended audience

 Type and format of the report defined in the scope phase

 Results, data, methods, assumptions, limitations must be transparent and in

sufficient detail

 To be used in a manner consistent with the goals of the study

 General Aspects:

 LCA commissioner, practitioner (internal or external)

 Date, Statement that the report adheres to the requirements of the International
Standard
 Definition of goal and scope, data collection, calculation procedures, methodology
and the results of the impact assessment that was performed
 Data quality assessment, name and affiliation of the reviewers, critical review
reports, responses to recommendations

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Variant of LCA
 Cradle-to-grave

 Full Life Cycle Assessment from resource extraction ('cradle') to use

phase and disposal phase ('grave').

- Trees produce paper, which can be recycled into low-energy

production cellulose (fiberised paper) insulation, then used as an
energy-saving device in the ceiling of a home for 40 years, saving 2,000
times the fossil-fuel energy used in its production.

- After 40 years the cellulose fibers are replaced and the old fibers are
disposed of, possibly incinerated. All inputs and outputs are considered
for all the phases of the life cycle.

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Variant of LCA
 Cradle-to-gate

- partial product life cycle from resource extraction (cradle) to the factory
gate (i.e., before it is transported to the consumer).

- The use phase and disposal phase of the product are omitted in this
case.

- Cradle-to-gate assessments are sometimes the basis for environmental

product declarations (EPD).

- Compiles the life cycle inventory (LCI) using cradle-to-gate.

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Variant of LCA
 Cradle-to-cradle or closed loop production

- Cradle-to-grave assessment, where the end-of-life disposal step for the

product is a recycling process.

- Method used to minimize the environmental impact of products by

employing sustainable production, operation, and disposal practices and
aims to incorporate social responsibility into product development.

- From the recycling process originate new, identical products (e.g.,

asphalt pavement from discarded asphalt pavement, glass bottles from
collected glass bottles), or different products (e.g., glass wool insulation
from collected glass bottles).

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Variant of LCA
 Gate-to-gate

- Gate-to-gate is a partial LCA looking at only one value-added process in

the entire production chain.

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Variant of LCA
 Well-to-wheel

- Specific LCA used for transport fuels and vehicles.

- Broken down into stages entitled "well-to-station", or "well-to-tank", and "station-

to-wheel" or "tank-to-wheel", or "plug-to-wheel".

- First stage incorporates the feedstock or fuel production and processing and fuel
delivery or energy transmission - "upstream" stage

- Stage that deals with vehicle operation - "downstream" stage.

- Used to assess total energy consumption, or the energy conversion

efficiency and emissions impact of marine vessels, aircraft and motor vehicles,
including their carbon footprint, and the fuels used in each of these transport
modes.

- Different efficiencies and emissions of energy technologies and fuels at both the
upstream and downstream stages, giving a more complete picture of real
emissions.

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Variant of LCA
 Economic input–output life cycle assessment

- Use of aggregate sector-level data on how much environmental impact

can be attributed to each sector of the economy and how much each
sector purchases from other sectors.

- Building an automobile requires energy, but producing energy requires

vehicles, and building those vehicles requires energy, etc.),

Ecologically based LCA

- Broader range of ecological impacts.

- Designed to provide a guide to wise management of human activities by

understanding the direct and indirect impacts on ecological resources
and surrounding ecosystems.

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Uncertainties in Life Cycle Analysis
 Database Uncertainty

 Statistical and Measurement Error

 Uncertainty in Preference and Future system

 Montecarlo Simulation

 Sensitivity analysis

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References
 Curran, Broad-based environmental LC assessment, ES&T, 27(3),
1993

 David Brownstein ,A Qualitative Cradle to Grave Life Cycle Analysis

of a BC Disposable-Coffee-Cup's Sustainability,

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