Life Cycle Engineering : Fall 2014

Industries and Electrical generation are estimated to produce “a little over 50%” of greenhouse emissions, making it the biggest problem (Petterson

The heavy usage of machinery and fossil fuels required in industrialization leads to high amounts of carbon emissions. The mass amount of raw materials used in each industry accumulates and

A study done in 2015 by the Royal Society of Chemistry, a non-profit organization of chemical scientists in the UK, shows that, if the US were to switch to utilize solar and wind energy sources, the air pollution mortality will decrease by at least 62,000 premature deaths yearly. In addition, converting would eliminate up to 3.3 trillion dollars per year in “2050 global warming costs to the world due to US emissions,” and the average person would save $1500 in health costs and $8300 on climate costs yearly. (Jacobson). Opposition to cleaner energy sources comes mainly from the business world, which fears the EPA estimated $1.4 billion in factory modifications; however, “$2.9 billion to $5.9 billion will be saved each year due to fewer missed days of work and school, emergency room visits and premature deaths” (Adams). By changing the methods in which we acquire energy, we can change air and life quality in a positive

A new green economy brings opportunity for all and a great chance for stagnating and

The American energy revolution has done more than just provide record amounts of oil and natural gas to fuel our transportation needs or generate electricity and heat our homes, schools and businesses. Increased American energy production has lowered the cost of energy and manufacturing feedstocks, which helps to cut energy and materials costs for American manufacturers, particularly producers of steel, chemicals, refined fuels, plastics, fertilizers and numerous consumer products. U.S. industrial electricity costs are 30 to 50 percent lower than those of our foreign competitors, according to a 2015 study from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). American manufacturing costs are now 10 to 20 percent lower than those in Europe and could be 2 to

Waxman-Markey proposes the clean air act to reduce the effects of global warming by setting economy cap and trade program that control GHG gases emission using 2005 baseline. Every year, there are more than 25,000 tons per year of GHGs that emitted by large stationary sources emitting producers like refineries, and importers of all petroleum fuels, natural gas distributors, commercial and small industrial users (“American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009: Update on the Waxman-Markey Climate Change and Clean Energy Legislation”, (2009)). Some example of GHGs that emit from refineries and distributors are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane

The first key commitment in the section of Climate Change and Energy states that “we will understand the sources, scope and extent of greenhouse gas emissions associated with our activities and we will continually improve energy and greenhouse gas management at our site”. This is highly beneficial to the community as it allows transparency in reporting of the company’s emission profile, inclusive of the emissions from production activities; and ways in which they are intended to effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their production and use. It also enables the company to share leading practice and innovation in energy and operational efficiency to deliver savings in emissions and costs that can be dispersed across the entirety of the industry. It will in turn lead to external projects and other opportunities that deliver tangible reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and generate

A few of these was include, methagenic material eliminating methane emissions and offsetting the reduction in landfill carbon sequestration, materials that require large energy input can be made from recycled inputs which require less energy and virgin materials, as well as the reduction of cardboard and paper products reduces the demand for fresh wood for harvest which increases forest carbon storage (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). For certain materials, recycling, reducing, and reusing them have a positive effect on reducing the energy use of industries to manufacture them and GHGs. Some of these materials include aluminum and paper. The authors discuss how the overall GHG emissions that are embedded in a final product is still sensitive to the amount of energy used during the manufacturing process as well as the GHG intensity of the energy use and various fuels utilized during the manufacturing processes (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). The authors also find that GHG associated with aluminum and paper is higher in the United States industry because of the lower GHG intensity of Canadian electricity (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). This is the result of Canada utilizing more hydroelectricity and the United States depends more on coal for electricity (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). Table 2 illustrates the impact of recycling due to forest carbon sequestration and energy savings on GHGs. In this table we see that aluminum, non-ferrous, and PET are the most recycled materials that have high energy savings and forest carbon sequestration. These materials are measured in tonnes and represented as CO2eq per tonne of recycled material. Moreover, the selected materials that have the least GHG impact on energy saving and forest carbon sequestration are glass, ferrous metals, steel, and

manufacturing process, the iron from the blast furnace is converted to steel in a basic oxygen

Our modern world is one of busy streets, loud machines, and steaming factories. All three of these things, while necessary and important part of society, have some unintended effects on the world. We sometimes fail to realize the effect that we have on the world with every action that we take. The people of the world, in collaboration, are massive users of fossil fuels. The gas emissions that cars, busses, and even planes produce have a very profound effect on our atmosphere, and not many people take the initiative to reduce these harmful substances. However, there are some that are actively trying to find a solution to the problem to cleaner and renewable energy.

Reduction in emissions and energy efficiency is the backbone of CN’s sustainability policy. In order to achieve that CN has focused on three key areas; reducing

A life cycle cost analysis calculates the total cost of ownership. In a green roof cost analysis multiple criteria is used to analyse the cost over time of a green roof. Blackhurst, Hendrickson, and Matthews’s 2012 model of an average green roof life cycle uses three phases and three impacts. The three phases are materials, construction, and utilization. The three impacts are energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, and stormwater runoff. Blackhurst, Hendrickson, and Matthews did several charts illustrating the different criteria. The first series of charts shows summaries and base impacts of all the criteria. They show the monetary cost as well as the environmental cost. The next series of charts break down each phase and analysis the cost

Research shows that improving fuel economy at the projected rates will result in $126 billion of “non-fuel-cost benefits” to the environment (Yang). These claimed benefits include a reduction of pollution and increased human health due to lowered pollution levels. One cannot necessarily argue against these benefits, but this position shows only half the story. Not taken into consideration is the fact that making vehicles lighter requires new materials like aluminum that have many adverse effects on the environment. The process of producing one ton of aluminum requires the extraction of seven tons of bauxite (Australian Atlas of Mineral Resources, Mines, and Processing Centres). This oar is generally strip mined, a process that is extremely destructive to habitats and can lead to groundwater pollution. The production of aluminum also requires massive amounts of electricity, 14,000 to 16,000 kilowatt hours per ton (Australian Mine Atlas). Because of the massive power requirements, power to produce aluminum generally comes from the cheapest option, a heavily polluting coal fired power plant. This couples with the fact that the aluminum smelting process itself releases perfluorocarbons(PFCs), a harmful pollutant, with a global warming potential(GWP) between 6,000 and 25,000

The production rate (or speed) affects energy consumption and the generation of GHG emissions. A manufacturing process (equipment) requires fixed (for start-up or to remain in a ready state) and variable (proportional to the production rate) power components to run (Gutowski et al., 2006). The GHG emissions follow a similar pattern. In particular, the literature proposes a convex function of the production rate or equipment speed to model the carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions (Bogaschewsky, 1995; Jaber et al., 2013; Bazan et al., 2015a).

With the ever changing world we live in, green technology is here for the betterment of our fellow man. The future of our planet is dependent on mankind to produce a safe, clean, and viable resource that does not rely on non renewable resources. The history of green technology, how we currently utilize it, and what we can look forward to in the future acuminate to how we may live on a healthier, more efficient earth.