1 / 20

Use of the Economic Input-Output Life-Cycle Assessment (eiolca) Website

Explore a range of sustainability tools including LCA, economic input-output model, and triple bottom line assessments for green design. Learn about the history, use, and popular sectors of the Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment (EIOLCA) website.

donnamartin
Download Presentation

Use of the Economic Input-Output Life-Cycle Assessment (eiolca) Website

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Use of the Economic Input-Output Life-Cycle Assessment (eiolca) Website By Chris Hendrickson, H. Scott Matthews and Mike Griffin Green Design Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15208, USA

  2. Some Sustainability Tools • Triple bottom line assessments (multi-objective optimization) • Life Cycle Assessment • Expand range of design alternatives (not a tactic limited to sustainable infrastructure, of course…) • New technology (datalogger, new materials) • Alternative approaches (different modes)

  3. Some Other Common Tools • Materials flow analysis • Appropriate boundary setting. • Risk and uncertainty analysis. • Life cycle cost analysis. • Design heuristics (reduce energy use, eliminate waste material)

  4. www.eiolca.net Website Components • Economic Input-Output Model of US Economy (~480 economic sectors) • Impact Vectors: Air emissions, Energy use, Toxic emissions, Employment. • 1992 and 1997 Benchmark models + annual models of US economy • Tutorial on model use. • Forum for discussion.

  5. History of Website • Initial version on spreadsheet. • Moved to web for free public use in 2000 with 1992 Benchmark Input-Output Data. • Update to 1997 Benchmark in 2004. • Papers on input-output life cycle assessment method and applications from 1992 on. • Plan to update to 2002 Benchmark in 2007.

  6. Use of Website • >1,000,000 uses of the model (over 10,000 per month). • Education/research uses most frequent. • Numerous industrial and government uses. • Numerous international uses. • ‘Hybrid applications’ with process models and input-output model common.

  7. Most Popular Sectors

  8. Most Popular Impacts

  9. Book for Documentation in 2006 • Theory. • Applications: appliances, buildings, energy generation and transmission, logistics, motor vehicles, and services • Extension to regional and safety impacts.

  10. Residential Life Cycle Energy Source: Ochoa, Hendrickson, Matthews and Ries, 2005

  11. Motor Vehicle Energy Use

  12. Example: Power Tool Datalogger

  13. Datalogger Triple Bottom Line • Permits profitable re-manufacturing to replace loss making recycling. • Develops information on tool use. • Reduces material use overall. • Creates new low-cost tool option. • No privacy issues raised (unlike autos!) • Must balance cost (including environmental cost) of datalogger versus benefits – return rate of used power tools is critical.

  14. Some Relevant On-going Green Design Inst. Research • 2002 Benchmark Update. • Mixed unit input-output models: metal flows and monetary transactions. • Regional Models. • Other national models with international trade flows. • Construction, energy (especially electricity), infrastructure and transportation alternatives life cycle assessment applications.

  15. Switchgrass (Cellulosic) Ethanol

  16. Local Action: Carnegie Mellon

  17. Some Carnegie Mellon Projects (cont)

  18. Conclusions • Making sustainability operational requires political will but also effective tools and technology. • Triple bottom line assessment: economic, environmental, social • Life cycle perspective essential • Challenges should not lead to paralysis.

  19. Some Resources • Center for Sustainable Engineering (ASU, Carnegie Mellon, Texas): http://www.csengin.org/ • Carnegie Mellon Green Design Institute: www.gdi.ce.cmu.edu • Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment: website at www.eiolca.net. Book: Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Goods & Services: An Input-Output Approach, 2006.

More Related