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Title:
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Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of composite materials
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Author(s):
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Published by:
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Publication date:
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ECN
Energy Efficiency in Industry
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1997
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ECN report number:
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Document type:
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ECN-I--97-050
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Other
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Number of pages:
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Full text:
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39
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Download PDF
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Abstract:
The aim of the present study is to compare and quantify the environmentalimpact of three rotorblades made of different materials and to establish
which stage in the life cycle contributes most. The life cycle of a product
can be represented by the production phase, including depletion of raw
materials (mining) and production (machining) of products, the utilisation
phase, including use of energy, maintenance and cleaning, and the disposal
phase, including landfill, incineration, recycling, etc. The environmental
impact of a product is not only determined by the materials selected but also
by the function of the product itself. E.g. when natural fibres are applied
in vehicles as a substitution for metals the environmental impact in the use
phase will be reduced due to a lower energy consumption caused by a lower car
weight. The influence on the environmental impact of the production phase
must also be taken into account. The material relation between the production
phase and the use phase and the disposal phase is complicated. In general the
lifetime of a product use phase can be extended (positive aspect), e.g. by
application of a coating onto the surface. Due to the coating the product can
not easily be recycled, which is a negative aspect. The three types of
composites used in the rotorblade of the wind energy converter considered in
this study are: flaxfibre reinforced epoxy, carbon fibre reinforced epoxy and
glassfibre reinforced polyester. The assessment is performed using the
computer program Simapro 3, which is based on the Dutch CML method for the
environmental life-cycle assessment of products using the Eco-Indicator 95
evaluation method. The CML method defines five phases for an LCA: goal
definition and scoping; inventory; classification; impact assessment; and
improvement analysis. The improvement analysis is not part of this work.
Performing an LCA is a time-consuming process due to the detailed information
that is required. In chapter five some general guidelines for incorporating
environment related issues into the design process are formulated, especially
relating to composite materials, without performing an exhaustive LCA. 9
figs., 4 tabs., 22 refs., 2 appendices
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