SEE 6115/8115

Carbon Audit and Management

Prof. Xue Wang

School of Energy and Environment

06 – ISO-approved LCA methodology

Oct. 15, 2024
 SEE 6115-8115 class overview (Tentative)
Week Date (temporary) Topics Notes

Week 1 Sep. 3 Course Information, Introduction Quiz 1

Week 2 Sep. 10 Basics of Energy Auditing HW1 release

Week 3 Sep. 17 Introduction to Carbon Audit and Quantify Carbon Emissions- Auditing methodology
for Companies

Week 4 Sep. 24 Reporting of GHG Emissions for Companies and its Interpretation

Week 6 Oct. 8 • Guest lecture #1 from Industry expert; TBD • Quiz 2

• Carbon Auditing in Hong Kong • HW2 release

Week 7 Oct. 15 ISO-approved LCA methodology • HW1 submission due by 7

pm

Week 8 Oct. 22 Modeling of Life Cycle Inventories for LCA (Part 1) CSC Teaching Studios
(location: LI-4412)

Week 9 Oct. 29 • Quiz 3

• Guest lecture #2 from Industry expert; TBD CSC Teaching Studios
• Modeling of Life Cycle Inventories for LCA (Part 2) (location: LI-4412)

Week 10 Nov. 5 • Modeling of Life Cycle Inventories for LCA (Part 3) CSC Teaching Studios
• Field trip (Tentative: Nov. 2 ) (location: LI-4412)

Week 11 Nov. 12 Group Presentations for SEE6115 • HW2 submission due by 7

Individual Presentations for SEE8115 pm

Week 12 Nov. 19 Group Presentations for SEE6115

Individual Presentations for SEE8115

Week 13 Nov. 26 Course Review and Exam Overview

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.2
 Last week recap:

▪ Financial Assessment Methods

▪ Guidelines to Account for and Report on Greenhouse Gas Emissions

and Removals for Buildings in Hong Kong (2010 Edition) (materials for
reading after classes)

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.3
 Assignment 2
▪ The project should contribute to the development of environmentally friendly product,
process, or system using Simapro LCA software tool
– Trainees will present the final project to classmates.
▪ Final project report is expected to be 6 pages or longer, describing:
– What (i.e., what is the problem, what has been done, what needs to be done (i.e., research
gap), what you have done, what are the results/conclusions),
– Why (i.e., why it is important)
– How (i.e., how you have done it, following the ISO standards on conducting LCA and
including detailed life cycle inventory data, if applicable).
▪ The report is ideally to be converted to a journal paper.
– Below are selected journals publishing LCA studies:
 Journal of Cleaner Production
 Resources, Conservation, and Recycling
 The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment
 Journal of Industrial Ecology
 Environmental Research letters
 ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering
 Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management
 Environmental Management
 Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management
 International Journal of Sustainable Manufacturing
 International Journal of Sustainable Design

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.7
 Assignment 2
• Master Program students will work in groups of three (or four; the 4th student
might be randomly assigned to some groups based on the scenarios).
• Please send your team information below to our TA Zipei DONG via Canvas
by Oct. 11.
•Teammate 1: Name and SID
•Teammate 2: Name and SID
•Teammate 3: Name and SID
*Note: After Oct. 11, we will assign your teammate randomly if you do not send your
team information to us.
• The two PhD students will be a team to work together.

Assignment 2 submission will be due by 7 pm, Nov. 12 (Tuesday). Penalty will be

20% off per day late (after 7:00 pm, Tuesday). Weekends and holidays are also
accounted.
Notice: Assignment 1 submission will be due by 7 pm, Oct. 15.
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.8
 Assignments

RULES:
1. Homework are to be submitted through Canvas before 7:00 pm
2. Penalty 20% off per day late (after 7:00 pm, Tuesday). Weekends
and holiday are also accounted.
3. No copying (I will know!)
4. Homework format: Digital via CANVAS
5. List all reference sources
6. Course site file upload as attachment only
7. File naming: [Family name_First name_ Assignment
number.pdf]
8. Remember to write your name and SID on your assignment
and quiz
9. Submission is final, make sure you submit the right
document.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.9
 This week:

▪ Financial Assessment Methods (continued…)

▪ Carbon Audit Tools

▪ Product LCA

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.10
 Net present value

▪ Net present value (NPV) takes into account the time value of money.

▪ This refers to the view that money is worth more now than in the
future, due to factors such as the cost of capital, uncertainty, etc.
▪ The analysis converts future cash flow values to current values which
facilitates like-for-like comparison of projects

The following is a brief summary of present value calculations:

The value used to convert future value to present value is the discount rate r. If r
= 0.10 or 10%, then we accept that the difference in value over a year is 10%.
So...

Over the period of n years:

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.11
 Internal rate of return (IRR)
▪ Internal rate of return (IRR) is a measure of the profitability of a project.
– return that the investment would need to deliver if it were invested
elsewhere.
▪ The IRR is the rate of return on a project that makes the NPV equal
to zero.
– Therefore, for a project to be viable, the IRR must always be greater
than the discount rate.
𝑁
𝐶𝐹0
0 = 𝑁𝑃𝑉 = ෍
(1 + 𝐼𝑅𝑅)𝑛
𝑛=0

CF0: Initial investment

CF1, CF2…. : Cash flows
N: Holding period
n: Each period
– Because of the nature of the formula, IRR cannot be calculated
analytically and must be calculated either through trial-and-error or
using software programmed to calculate IRR.
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.13
 Life Cycle Costing (LCC)

▪ Various approaches to life cycle costing (LCC) but, essentially, they combine
investment, operating and disposal costs in order to get an indication of
overall costs.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.15
 Life Cycle Costing (LCC)

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.16
 Life Cycle Costing: example

▪ The NPV approach can be used to compare future and current costs.
The following example compares two projects.
– The first involves an investment of €100,000 and running costs of
€65,000.
– The second involves costs of €125,000 and €55,000, respectively.
– Both with a discount rate of 15%.
Compare the LCC between two projects over 5 years.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.17
 Life Cycle Costing: example

▪ The NPV approach can be used to compare future and current costs.
The following example compares two projects.
– The first involves an investment of €100,000 and running costs of
€65,000.
– The second involves costs of €125,000 and €55,000, respectively.
– Both with a discount rate of 15%.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.18
 Choice of financial analysis tool

▪ Residual values can also be considered in the assessment.

– The residual value is the amount that a company expects to receive for an asset
at the end of its service life less any anticipated disposal costs

E.g. a machine costing $15,000 has an estimated service life of 10 years, and at
the end of its service life it can be sold as scrap metal to the dump for $2,000. If
the cost of transporting the machine to the dump is $100, the residual value of the
machine is:

$2,000 (value) – $100 (transportation costs) = $1,900

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.19
 Choice of financial analysis tool

▪ Care should be taken to complete a sensitivity analysis as small changes in the

factors chosen (such as discount factor, operations and maintenance costs, or
inflation for fuel or services) can radically change the outcomes, particularly over
long analysis time periods.

e.g. Assuming the parameters are changed by the same amount, which is the
main parameter impacting on the overall NPV results?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.20
 Choice of Financial Assessment

Small investments Larger investments

• In cases where savings are • If only one solution is being put

relatively small and the forward for evaluation and the
implementation cost is low, a payback is very short, there
detailed life cycle cost analysis may be little added benefit in
is not warranted. conducting a life cycle costing
• A simple evaluation based on exercise.
simple payback methodology • However, when operating costs
may be adequate for decision- are substantial, life cycle
making purposes. costing techniques can be
useful in getting a more
balanced view of the overall
cost over the lifetime of the
asset.
• Might convince decision makers
of longer-term benefits and
assist in securing financial
appraisal.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.21
 Carbon Audits on Companies in Hong Kong

▪ Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) (https://www.hkex.com.hk/-

/media/hkex-market/listing/rules-and-guidance/other-resources/environmental-social-and-
governance/how-to-prepare-an-esg-report/app2_kpis)
– KPI A1.2: GHG Emissions- Scope 1 and 2 are mandatory, Scope 3 voluntary

▪ Carbon Footprint Repository (https://cnsd.gov.hk/en/green-business-and-

industry/carbon-audit/carbon-footprint-repository-for-listed-companies-in-hong-kong/)
– to encourage private sector companies to adopt regular carbon auditing practice
– aims to provide handy information on carbon performance of listed companies to the public

▪ Critical Resource: Carbon neutral @ HK website

https://cnsd.gov.hk/en/
– Data on Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Hong Kong
– Carbon Calculators for Hong Kong
– Practical Guide on Carbon Audit and Management

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.22
 International Standards

▪ ISO 14064-1:2006 – Specification with guidance at the organization level

for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals
▪ ISO 14064-2:2006 – Specification with guidance at the project level for
quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission
reductions and removal enhancements
▪ The Greenhouse Gas Protocol – A Corporate Accounting and Reporting
Standard
▪ The ISO 14064 series is GHG program neutral
▪ Requirements of GHG Protocol are additional

▪ If there is a conflict between the requirements of ISO 14064 and the GHG
program, requirements of the latter take precedence (Clause 1)
▪ Specific requirements examples:
– Product footprint requirements (PAS 2050)
– Carbon neutral requirements (PAS 2060)
– HK Guideline etc.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.23
 The GHG Protocol

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.24
 PAS 2050:2011

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.25
 BSI: Sustainable Construction

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.26
 PAS 2080:2016

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.27
 National Carbon Audit Guidance

▪ Guidance on how to measure and report your greenhouse gas

emissions, DEFRA, UK
▪ General Reporting Protocol, the Climate Registry, USA

▪ HK Guideline by EPD, HK

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.28
Introduction to Life Cycle Assessment
and International Standard ISO 14040
 Life Cycle Thinking

Products pass through different stages in

their life cycle

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.30
 Life Cycle Thinking for Sustainable Buildings

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652618324144

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.31
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.32
 What is Life Cycle Assessment?

“Compilation and evaluation of the inputs, outputs and the

potential environmental impacts of a product system
throughout its life cycle”

• Process split into life cycle stages and LCA phases

o Stages are portions of the product life cycle and phases are the portions
of the LCA process

• Data collected on inputs and outputs of the system

• Associated environmental and resource impacts of those inputs and outputs

*ISO 14040:2006

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.33
 Stages versus Phases

Stages Phases
Sections of product life cycle Portions of LCA procedure

Extraction and upstream Goal and Scope

production
Transport
Manufacture Inventory
Transport Interpretation
Analysis
Use
Transport
Disposal/recycling Impact
Assessment
Note: This is a general diagram of stages
and some products or processes may have
more or less stages than those shown here.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.34
 Why do we do an LCA?

Identify opportunities to improve environmental performance

Inform decision-makers

Select relevant indicators of environmental performance

Marketing purposes e.g. ecolabel

School of Energy
12/2014 and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.35
 What does an LCA tell you?

▪ Comparative: What would be a better alternative?

Example:

vs.

BCI Cotton Recycled Cotton

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.36
 What does an LCA tell you?

▪ Improvement: Where can I realize improvements within my

current activity?
Example

Improving bio-recycling method for converting 50–50 cotton/polyester waste fabric to

PET fibre and glucose syrup.
Resources, Conservation and Recycling 161 (2020): 104989.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.37
 ISO 14040 Background
▪ LCA Principles and Framework
▪ “Details the requirements for conducting an
LCA”*
▪ Also covers Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) only
study
▪ Developed first by the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO) in
1996.
– Updated to second edition in 2006

▪ Guiding document for basic Life Cycle

Assessment procedures
– More detailed procedures and examples *ISO 14040:2006

in:
 ISO 14044 – Requirements and guidelines
 ISO/TR 14047 – Illustrative examples on how to apply ISO
14044 to impact assessment situations
 ISO/TS 14071 – Critical review process and reviewer
competencies: Additional requirements and guidelines to
ISO 14044:2006
 ISO/TS 14048 – Data documentation format

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.38
 Scope of ISO 14040

ISO 14040 contains general information on:

a. Goal and scope of LCA
b. LCI phase Phases of an
c. LCIA phase LCA
d. Interpretation phase
e. Reporting and critical review
f. Limitations
g. Relationship between phases
h. Conditions for use of value choices and optional elements

Reference: “Life Cycle Assessment: Best Practices of ISO 14040 Series”

https://www.apec.org/docs/default-source/Publications/2004/2/Life-Cycle-Assessment-Best-Practices-of-
International-Organization-for-Standardization-ISO-14040-Ser/04_cti_scsc_lca_rev.pd

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.39
 Full Listing of Terms in ISO 14040

3.1 life cycle 3.16 ancillary input 3.32 system boundary

3.17 allocation 3.33 uncertainty analysis
3.2 life cycle assessment
3.34 unit process
3.3 life cycle inventory analysis 3.18 cut-off criteria 3.35 waste
3.4 life cycle impact 3.19 data quality 3.36 category endpoint
assessment 3.20 functional unit 3.37 characterization factor
3.5 life cycle interpretation 3.21 input 3.38 environmental
3.22 intermediate flow mechanism
3.6 comparative assertion
3.39 impact category
3.7 transparency 3.23 intermediate product 3.40 impact category indicator
3.8 environmental aspect 3.24 life cycle inventory analysis 3.41 completeness check
3.9 product result 3.42 consistency check
3.10 co-product 3.25 output 3.43 sensitivity check
3.26 process energy 3.44 evaluation
3.11 process
3.45 critical review
3.12 elementary flow 3.27 product flow 3.46 interested party
3.13 energy flow 3.28 product system
3.14 feedstock energy 3.29 reference flow
3.15 raw material 3.30 releases
3.31 sensitivity analysis

Definitions of all terms available at: https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/#iso:std:iso:14040:ed-2:v1:en

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.40
 Select Terms and Definitions in ISO 14040
▪ Process
– Set of interrelated or interacting activities that transforms inputs into outputs
▪ Elementary flow
– Material or energy entering the system being studied that has been drawn from the environment
without previous human transformation; or material or energy leaving the system being studied
that is released into the environment without subsequent human transformation
▪ Product flow
– Products entering from or leaving to another product system
▪ Intermediate flow
– Product, material or energy flow occurring between unit processes of the product system being
studied
▪ System boundary
– Set of criteria specifying which unit processes are part of a product system
▪ Impact category
– Class representing environmental issues of concern to which life cycle inventory analysis results
may be assigned
▪ Characterization factor
– Factor derived from a characterization model which is applied to convert an assigned life cycle
inventory analysis result to the common unit of the category indicator
▪ Allocation
– Partitioning the input or output flows of a process or a product system between the product system
under study and one or more other product systems
All definitions directly quoted from ISO 14040:2006

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.41
 Functional Unit

▪ The functional unit is a measure of the function of the studied

system
– Provides a reference to which the inputs and outputs can be related
– Enables comparison of two essentially different systems

▪ A functional unit describes a quantity of a product or product system

on the basis of the performance it delivers in its end-use application.
Examples
– The functional unit for a paint system may be defined as the unit surface
protected for 10 years
– The functional unit for a printer may be defined as the number of printed
pages of an acceptable print quality
– The functional unit for power generation systems may be defined as
1 kWh of electricity

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.42
 Why functional unit ?

LCA is on products;
What is the functional
unit of product & Service?

1kWh electricity;
1 kg steel;
1 km driving;
…

To enable the
comparison, compare the
product system with
same unit function (offer
the same service)

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.43
 Midpoint, Endpoint & Single-issue indicators

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.44
 Midpoint, Endpoint & Single-issue indicators
Endpoint composite Indicators Midpoint Indicators Unit
Ecosystem Quality (ESQ) Ozone depletion kg (CFC-115 to air)
Photochemical oxidant formation kg (NMVOC6 to air)
Particulate matter formation kg (PM10 to air)
Climate change kg (CO 2 to air)
Terrestrial acidification kg (SO 2 to air)
Freshwater eutrophication kg (P to fresh water)
Terrestrial ecotoxicity kg (14-DCB to industrial soil)
Freshwater ecotoxicity kg (14-DCB to fresh water)
Marine ecotoxicity kg (14-DCB7 to marine water)
Human Health (HH) Climate change kg (CO 2 to air)
Human toxicity kg (14-DCB to urban air)
Ionising radiation kg (U235 to air)
Resource Depletion (RD) Agricultural land occupation m2x yr (agricultural land)
Urban land occupation m2x yr (urban land)
Natural land transformation m2x yr (natural land)
Metal depletion kg (Fe)
Fossil depletion kg (oil)
Single issue indicators Global warming potential kg CO 2 equivalent
Non renewable
(fossil,nulcear,biomass) and
MJ
Renewable (
wind,solar,geothermal,water)
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.45
 Common LCA terminology

▪ Cradle-to-grave: Scope includes end-of-life disposition

of the product/material
▪ Cradle-to-cradle: Scope includes the entire material
cycle, including recylcing
▪ Cradle-to-gate: LCA boundaries include material
acquisition, processing, transportation, and
manufacturing (factory gate), but not product uses or
disposition
▪ Gate-to-gate: Partial LCA looking at a single added
process or material in the product chain
▪ Well-to-wheel: Application of fuel cycles to
transportation vehicles

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.46
 • Cradle-to-grave
• Cradle-to-cradle
• Cradle-to-gate

https://ecochain.com/blog/cradle-to-cradle-in-lca/

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.47
 Well-to-wheel: Application of fuel cycles to transportation
vehicles.

https://eufactcheck.eu/factcheck/mostly-true-e-vehicles-are-more-efficient-than-
combustion-engines/
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.48
 System Boundaries

Define which unit processes shall be included in the product system.

Material Bag Packaging &

Processing Use End of Life
Extraction Manufacture Distribution

Single use & reusable plastic bag

Transform
Extracting Form plastic Packaging &
petroleum Use Landfill
petroleum into bags Distribution
into plastic

Paper bag
Transform 50/50 to
Cutting down Form paper Packaging &
trees into Use Landfill &
trees into bags Distribution
paper Recycling

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.49
 LCA and SIMAPRO
▪ SimaPro – World’s most widely LCA software to quantify environmental
performance including energy demands of products taking into account its complete
life cycle.
▪ Structure of SimaPro:
• Databases
• Libraries
• Processes
• Product stages

▪ Software program:
• Managing and Storing data - LCI
• Making calculation of impacts – LCIA
• Report results – Interpretation

▪ Eco invent Library (version 3.2) – Inbuilt database

• More than 4000 processes
• Electricity mixes
• Includes unit and system processes
• Market vs Transformation processes
• Consistent and well documented
• Updated regularly

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.50
 Sources of Carbon in the Whole Building Lifecycle

LETI Embodied Carbon Primer. https://www.leti.london/ecp

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.51
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.52
 Embodied and Operational carbon emissions timeline

▪ Whole life carbon can be divided in two main components:

– Operational emissions generally occur while the building is occupied
– Embodied emissions occur during the design and construction stage and again post-occupancy

▪ Operational emissions begin to contribute when the building begins to use energy, mostly.
– possible for operational carbon emissions to be net negative, with on-site renewable energy
generation greater than the building’s energy consumption.
▪ Embodied carbon contributes to the life cycle in three distinct phases, labelled A1-A5, B3-B5 and C,
with the largest contribution during the design and construction phase.
– longer the lifespan of a building, the less embodied emissions contribute to the overall percentage of
the carbon footprint
LETI Embodied Carbon Primer. https://www.leti.london/ecp

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.53
 Embodied Carbon in Buildings
▪ Embodied carbon is the total GHG emissions generated to produce a
built asset.
– A1-A4: Product- Product carbon applies directly to the extraction and processing of building
materials.
– A5: Construction- Construction carbon is the emissions during the construction phase of
the building.
– B3-B5: Use- In-use embodied carbon concerns the repair, refurbishment, and replacement
of materials and equipment used to keep the building functioning.
– C: End-of-Life- End-of-life embodied carbon emissions concern the processing of the
materials of the building when it has been decommissioned.

▪ Attaching these emissions to the building materials enables an

assessment of the environmental impact of a building.

Source: https://www.hkgreenfinance.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Decarbonising-Hong-Kong-Buildings-Policy-Recommendations-and-Next-Steps.pdf

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.54
 Operational Carbon in Buildings
▪ Emissions associated with the in-use operation of the building –
powering the HVAC, water, lighting, electrical equipment and vertical
transportation systems such as lifts and escalators – all require energy
from the grid.
▪ Operational emissions, in modules B1-B2 & B6-B7, have been the
focus of building codes and energy certificates.

Carbon intensity of the

local electricity grid
and the energy
efficiency of the
buildings determines
the total operational
emissions of a building
in Hong Kong

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.55
 Carbon Footprinting Schemes

▪ Carbon emission calculations often diverge in terms of boundaries, scope,

GHG units, and methodologies.
– Chau et al. reported that the use of primary or secondary energy is not always explicit
in the carbon footprint calculations
– Some studies have been focusing on particular materials, systems or processes, while
others have reported comparisons of whole building
– Life cycle carbon assessment of buildings has been simplified in several studies, such
as omitting transportation emissions for light materials and short distances, thus
providing only a general picture of GHG emissions

▪ Moreover, each project has its own characteristics, such as climate zone,
building type, and local regulations, that directly affect the total carbon
emissions for each building.
– Several embodied emissions sources that may represent a significant share of the
carbon footprint of buildings, such as the transportation of tenants, are often ignored by
most studies.

▪ Comparison of GHG emissions is compromised by the lack of a clear and

consistent methodology.
C. Chau, T. Leung, W. Ng. A review on life cycle assessment, life cycle energy assessment and
life cycle carbon emissions assessment on buildings. Appl Energy, 143 (2015), pp. 395-413

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.56
 How is the Industry applying LCA?

https://youtu.be/mbVHvTqBG24
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.57
 Consumer Product – Life-Cycle GHG Analysis

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.58
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt

Cotton Seed Dye Finishing Import

Weaving Water
Fertiliser Pesticide Water Washing
Deter-
gent
Spinning
Drying
Fuel
Ginning Transport

Waste Cotton Transport Waste Transport Landfill

Transport

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.59
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt
- Raw Materials

Cultivation of cotton from cotton seed Cotton Seed

requires various inputs including: water
for irrigation, pesticides and fertilisers,
and fuel for operation of farm machinery
Fertiliser Pesticide Water

Fuel

Waste Cotton

1.072 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.60
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt
- Manufacturing

Production of the cotton t-shirt involves Dye Finishing

energy intensive processes of ginning,
spinning, weaving and finishing.
Weaving

Spinning

Ginning

Waste

5.282 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.61
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt
- Distribution

T-shirts are imported from abroad, Import

travelling an average distance of 620
kilometers before reaching Hong Kong.
0.004 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.62
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt
- Consumer Use

Consumers wash and dry their t-shirt over

it’s lifetime, using energy, water, fabric
detergent and softener as part of the process. Water
Washing
Deter-
gent
Drying

7.080 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.63
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt
- Disposal

At the end of the t-shirt lifecycle, it cannot be recycled.

Consumers dispose of it and it ends up in one of Hong
Kong’s landfills. Methane is released as the t-shirt Landfill
anaerobically decomposes.

0.576 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.64
 Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Assessment of a Cotton T-Shirt

Total Carbon
Cotton Seed Footprint:
Dye Finishing Import
14.014 kg CO2-e

Weaving Water
Fertiliser Pesticide Water Washing
Deter-
gent
Spinning
Drying
Fuel
Ginning Transport

Waste Cotton Transport Waste Transport Landfill

Transport

1.072 kg CO2-e 5.282 kg CO2-e 0.004 kg CO2-e 7.080 kg CO2-e 0.576 kg CO2-e

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.65
 Process LCA according to ISO14040

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.72
 Life Cycle Modelling

Elementary flow: material or energy entering the system being studied that has been drawn from the environment without
previous human transformation, or material or energy leaving the system being studied that is released into the
environment without subsequent human transformation
Intermediate flow: product, material or energy flow occurring between unit processes of the product system being studied
Reference flow: measure of the outputs from processes in a given product system required to fulfil the function expressed by
the functional unit
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.73
 Life Cycle Modelling: Product System

“Collection of unit processes with elementary

and product flows, performing one or more
defined functions, and which models the life
cycle of a product” ISO 14044

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.74
 Process LCA: Life Cycle Inventory Analysis

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.75
 Process LCA: Life Cycle Inventory Analysis

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.76
 Questions that need answers!

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.77
 1. How do we model unit processes?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.78
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.79
 How do we model unit processes?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.80
 2. How do we link Unit Processes to Product Systems?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.81
 System Modelling

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 System Modelling: Allocation

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 System Modelling: System Expansion

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 Attributional vs Consequential LCAs

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.86
 3. How do we actually calculate the LCI?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.87
 4. What type of data is available for “background” unit
processes?

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.88
 LCI Databases

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.89
 Example of an LCI database: Ecoinvent v3.7

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.90
 Summary features of an LCA

➢ Systematic procedure for environmental assessment through product or process life

cycle
➢ Functional unit basis for comparisons differs from many other environmental
management techniques
➢ Amenable to data confidentiality needs and proprietary matters
➢ Open to update based on new science and developing techniques
➢ Not overly restrictive
➢ Impacts identified are all expressed as POTENTIAL
➢ LCIA converts LCI results to environmental issues based on characterization factors
➢ Systematic approach to identify, check, evaluate and present information based on
goal and scope
➢ Iterative process with continual interpretation
➢ May link to other environmental management techniques

Note: Features identified are based on those put forth in ISO 14040:2006

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.91
 Next three weeks we will meet at Li-4412 (Oct. 22; Oct.
29; Nov. 5)

▪ Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

– Demonstration and Hands-on training on SimaPRO

Don’t miss the opportunity to learn the industry standard

software.
▪ Small LCA consulting project in HK costs minimum HKD 20K.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.95
 For next week:
o Propose three potential LCA research studies that your team will
be interested in conducting.
• Propose the Goal and Scope for three potential LCA projects
o Final project topic – that will be your topic of assignment #2 – will
be assigned by Prof. Wang during class next week.
Please send email over CANVAS to TA Zipei Dong before next class (by
Oct. 21). This is accounted for 5 pts in assignments #2. For each
group, please find a representative who will send out the email on behalf
of your team. In the email, please also list your team number and the
names of your team members.
Ex.
Goal: Reduction of carbon emission from human consumption of meat
Scope: Cradle-gate life cycle analysis of impossible burger, including its
acquisition of raw material, transportation and distribution, sale, use and
disposal
School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.96
 Supplementary Readings

▪ ISO Standards
– Texts available online

▪ The Hitch Hiker's Guide to LCA: An Orientation in Life Cycle

Assessment Methodology and Application
– Henrikke Baumann, Anne-Marie Tillman

▪ Handbook of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Textiles and Clothing

– Zipped version of the e-book has been provided

▪ Industrial ecology and sustainable engineering

– Graedel, T. E. Allenby, Braden R. 2010.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.97
 Field trip: CIC-iHub

Visit Date: 2024/11/02 (Sat.)

Visit Time: 14:00 – 15:30 (We will arrive at the reception at 13:45 pm)
Language: English
Organisation: City University of Hong Kong
Visiting Centre: CITAC, CIC-Zero Carbon Park and MiC Resources Centre

Please assemble at the reception of Construction Innovation and Technology Centre

(CITAC) 15 minutes before the tour commences. Each visitor aged 12 or above shall register
at the reception of the assembly point before the tour begins. Visitors are reminded to bring
their own smartphones or other mobile devices to complete the online registration process.
If the visitor does not have a personal mobile device, physical registration form is available
for the visitor to fill in.

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.98
 Construction Innovation and Technology Centre (CITAC)
8 Sheung Yuet Road, Kowloon Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong

School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong SEE 6115-8115 p.99