Stephan Krinke

Life cycle assessment of lightweight and end-of-life scenarios for generic compact class passenger vehicles

Goal, Scope and BackgroundThe automotive industry has a long history in improving the environmental performance of vehicles - fuel economy and emission improvements, introduction of recycled and renewable materials, etc. The European Union also aims at improving the environmental performance of products by reducing, in particular, waste resulting from End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) for example. The European Commission estimates that ELVs contribute to approximately 1 % of the total waste in Europe [9]. Other European Union strategies are considering more life cycle aspects, as well as other impacts including resource or climate change. This article is summarizing the results of a European Commission funded project (LIRECAR) that aims at identifying the environmental impacts and relevance for combinations of recycling / recovery and lightweight vehicle design options over the whole life cycle of a vehicle - i.e. manufacturing, use and recycling/recovery. Three, independent and scientific LCA experts reviewed the study according to ISO 14040. From the beginning, representatives of all Life Cycle Stakeholders have been involved (European materials & supplier associations, an environmental Non-Governmental Organization, recycler’s association).Model and System DefinitionThe study compared 3 sets of theoretical vehicle weight scenarios: 1000 kg reference (material range of today’s end-of-life, mid-sized vehicles produced in the early 1990’s) and 2 lightweight scenarios for 100 kg and 250 kg less weight based on reference functions (in terms of comfort, safety, etc.) and a vehicle concept. The scenarios are represented by their material range of a broad range of lightweight strategies of most European car manufacturers. In parallel, three End-of-Life (EOL) scenarios are considered: EOL today and two theoretical extreme scenarios (100% recycling, respectively, 100% recovery of shredder residue fractions that are disposed of today). The technical and economical feasibility of the studied scenarios is not taken into consideration (e.g. 100% recycling is not possible).Results and DiscussionSignificant differences between the various, studied weight scenarios were determined in several scenarios for the environmental categories of global warming, ozone depletion, photochemical oxidant creation (summer smog), abiotic resource depletion, and hazardous waste. However, these improvement potentials can be only realized under well defined conditions (e.g. material compositions, specific fuel reduction values and EOL credits) based on case-by-case assessments for improvements over the course of the life cycle. Looking at the studied scenarios, the relative contribution of the EOL phase represents 5% or less of the total life cycle impact for most selected impact categories and scenarios. The EOL technology variations studied do not impact significantly the considered environmental impacts. Exceptions include total waste, as long as stockpile goods (overburden, tailings and ore/coal processing residues) and EOL credits are considered.Conclusions and RecommendationsLIRECAR focuses only on lightweight/recycling, questions whereas other measures (changes in safety or comfort standards, propulsion improvements for CO2, user behavior) are beyond the scope of the study. The conclusions are also not necessarily transferable to other vehicle concepts. However, for the question of end-of-life options, it can be concluded that LIRECAR cannot support any general recommendation and/or mandatory actions to improve recycling if lightweight is affected. Also, looking at each vehicle, no justification could be found for the general assumption that lightweight and recycling greatly influence the affected environmental dimension (Global Warming Potential or resource depletion and waste, respectively). LIRECAR showed that this general assumption is not true under all analyzed circumstances and not as significant as suggested. Further discussions and product development targets shall not focus on generic targets that define the approach/technology concerned with how to achieve environmental improvement (weight reduction [kg], recycling quota [%]), but on overall life cycle improvement). To enable this case-by-case assessment, exchanges of necessary information with suppliers are especially relevant.

LCA’s theory and practice: like ebony and ivory living in perfect harmony?

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is recognized as a trustworthy, scientific while understandable approach to address the environmental sustainability of human activities. It is applied for multiple uses in internal and external information supply and for decision support. However, LCA application in practice must fulfill three basic criteria: (1) It must be reliable in order to ensure the credibility of information and results generated, (2) it must fit into existing information routines and practices in business to ensure applicability, and (3) it must provide quantitative and relevant information to inform decision makers. Over the last two decades, LCA methodology and related data have become a suitable and professional

Volkswagen slimLCI: a procedure for streamlined inventory modelling within life cycle assessment of vehicles

One of the key prerequisites of environmentally-friendly product design is a quantitative assessment of the environmental profile of product design options. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool for evaluating the environmental performance of goods and services over the whole life cycle. Yet, the effort involved remains one major obstacle for its wide-spread use. It is well-known that collecting and processing the relevant data is the most time-consuming part while conducting an LCA study of complex systems. It is possible to reduce the workload significantly by automating these process steps, which also offers advantages in terms of LCA quality.

Automobiler Leichtbau unter Einbezug des gesamten Lebenszyklus

Moderne Leichtbauweisen sind eine der Schlusseltechnologien fur eine effiziente und zukunftsfahige Mobilitat. Neben der Erfullung aller technischen Anforderungen hat sich die Volkswagen AG zum Ziel gesetzt, auch die Umweltvertraglichkeit ihrer Produkte kontinuierlich zu verbessern. Dies erfolgt fruhzeitig im Entwicklungsprozess stets unter Einbezug des gesamten Lebenswegs. Die Okobilanz nach ISO 14040/44 ermoglicht es, die Umweltvertraglichkeit quantitativ zu bewerten und die Entscheidungsfindung zu unterstutzen.

Data collection format for life cycle assessment of the german association of the automotive industry (VDA)

Abstract. The subcommittee for Life Cycle Assessment of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (Verband der Automobilindustrie-VDA) developed a Data Collection Format for Life Cycle Assessment which has been adopted by the VDA Environmental Management Committee, representing not only the German automobile manufacturers, but also their development partners, the suppliers, and manufacturers of trailers, body superstructures and containers.This paper introduces the background and some main aspects of the VDA LCA data collection format. All documents including a manual, a checklist and the data collection format as such can be downloaded from the VDA website (http://wvyw.vda.de/ en/vda/intern/organisation/abteilungen/umwelt_04.html).

Implementing Life Cycle Engineering in Automotive Development as a Helpful Management Tool to Support Design for Environment

This chapter describes the implementation of life cycle engineering, a life cycle management component that focuses on the environmental performance improvement, in the context of automotive design for environment. The purpose of life cycle engineering is to derive measurable technical targets from life cycle assessment (LCA). This approach is described using the example of lightweight design. The progress in this methodology is the ability to calculate measurable targets – such as weight reduction, fuel reduction on a vehicle level, or the amount of secondary material – on the basis of LCA results. It is important to note that LCA is not used here for comparing the environmental performance between competing materials or technologies. Instead, life cycle engineering, as a helpful management tool to support design for environment, shows the technical roadmap of measures that must be taken in order to assure environmental progress over the entire life cycle. In doing so, this tool supports putting life cycle assessment results into business practice.

Implementing Life Cycle Engineering Efficiently into Automotive Industry Processes

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a powerful tool which supports life cycle engineering. It can be used as an environmental management instrument within the product development. For successful life cycle engineering the formal incorporation of life cycle thinking into the company policy is a necessary pre-requisite. Additional success factors which have to be met are the transformation of LCA results into measurable targets for engineers. Based on given environmental targets, such as a certain target value for greenhouse gas emissions, LCA can be used to calculate a specific technical target such as the weight of a component, the fuel consumption of a vehicle or the minimum amount of recycled content in a product. The transformation of pure LCA results into measurable target values, which can be understood by engineers, will clearly show the added value which LCA can give in terms of life cycle engineering.Even for very complex products with a huge variety of different materials and a complex value chain life cycle assessment can be performed with a reasonable time demand, with good quality and integrated efficiently into business processes.

An integrated life cycle approach to lightweight automotive design

Modern lightweight design techniques are one of the key technologies in the development of efficient and sustainable mobility solutions. Volkswagen AG aims to ensure that as well as meeting all the necessary technical requirements, its products also deliver continuously improved environmental performance. Right from the start of the development process, these efforts are always focused on the full life cycle of the product. Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) based on ISO 14040/44 allow life cycle environmental impacts to be quantified, so that they can be taken into account in business decisions.

Life Cycle Management in Industry—Supporting Business with Life Cycle Based Assessments

Sustainability is becoming more and more a strategic growth driver for numerous companies. In this context transparency on the environmental strengths and weaknesses of products and processes and related opportunities and risks is crucial. Accordingly, the assessment of sustainability aspects is gaining importance for companies and their customers along the value chain. Life cycle-based methodologies as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) but also other assessment systems are used in decision-making processes, product development and marketing activities. Many companies have a public corporate sustainability policy backed up with commitments in the form of quantitative targets. LCA methodology may be used as a tool supporting the identification of ‘hot spots’ in the value chain and measuring progress towards sustainability targets. In practice, however, common issues and challenges stand in the way of a full deployment of LCA methods in industry. It is important for companies to find common ground on how to implement these approaches, which data and impact assessments to be used and how results should be interpreted. ISO rules give a good basis for that work, though it is not sufficient for several questions. For exchanging experiences, updating or adopting methods, and generating data the International Sustainability Practitioners Network (ISPN) was created in 2012. The ISPN is an exchange forum for LCA methodology in the context of industry and comprises sustainability experts from a range of different industry sectors. To share experiences from the different activities, examples of good practices of this cross-sectoral initiative and to discuss opportunities for improving sustainability assessments within the companies are introduced. This article highlights challenges and solutions in terms of data availability and uncertainty, streamlining and using standardization processes as well as communication of results with non-LCA-experts.

LCM for Transport and Mobility

LCM studies of industry and academia show the increasing importance of implementing life cycle thinking in the transport and mobility sector. Tools facilitating the use of LCA in product development processes increase the relevance of this topic in companies. OEMs use LCM as decision support for decarbonisation strategies and operationalization of greenhouse gas reduction targets. Next to environmental impacts, financial and social aspects are considered for a holistic assessment of vehicles. Regional impacts of alternative fuels and power trains need to be considered to support the development of sustainable mobility strategies in nation states. Regional specifics are also included in new data sets for modelling flat steel production along the value chain. Introducing voluntary credit transfer options in automotive legislation is proposed to incentivize low-carbon innovations throughout the whole life cycle of vehicles.