Environmental Footprint Calculator (EFC)

1. Environmental Footprint Calculator (EFC)

2. What is the Best Choice for My Business? Thermal Processing? Solvent Processing? Liquid Processing?

3. One Size Fits All? • A printer’s choice of plate processing technology depends upon several factors: • Graphic Requirements • Ink Compatibility • Available Equipment Footprint • Most Important Environmental Impacts • No one solution works for everyone

4. Variables • How do the following variables affect the environmental impact of various plate processing technologies? • Geographic location? • Plate gauge? • Plate size?

6. UT Center for Clean Products • Established in 1992 • A multi-disciplinary research center housed within UT • Dedicated to the development, evaluation, and adoption of clean products and materials • Conducted several projects within the printing industry, including a pollution prevention project for the Gravure Association of America • Conducted a number of corporate endeavors where they have developed environmental impact calculators that evaluate the overall environmental impacts associated with the manufacture, use and disposal of various products ecoform • Founded in 2006 • Practitioners working through a variety of corporate and university organizations, including the University of Tennessee’s Center for Clean Products • Has worked with organizations such as Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Evercare, and the Natural Stone Council

7. Definition: Life Cycle Assessment • The investigation and evaluation of the environmental impacts of a given product or service caused or necessitated by its existence. Source: www.epa.gov

8. The LCA Process • Goal Definition & Scoping • Inventory Analysis • Impact Assessment • Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal Definition & Scope Inventory Analysis Interpretation Impact Assessment Source: Lifecycle Assessment: Principles and Practice, EPA

9. The LCA Process • Goal Definition & Scoping • Inventory Analysis • Impact Assessment • Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal Definition & Scope Inventory Analysis Interpretation Impact Assessment Source: Lifecycle Assessment: Principles and Practice, EPA

10. Goal and Scope • Goal: • To develop an interactive sustainability tool that will enable users to determine the relative environmental impacts of digital solvent, digital thermal and liquid plate processing while incorporating customer-specific variables such as geographic location, plate gauge, plate size and number of plates. • Scope: • Raw material production and processing • Production of the photopolymer material • Processing of the photopolymer plate .

11. Scope Plate manufacture Plate Mounting Imaging Printing Converting Within Scope Outside Scope Waste Recycled Waste Waste Waste Note: Transportation of raw materials was not included within the scope of this study

12. The LCA Process • Goal Definition & Scoping • Inventory Analysis • Impact Assessment • Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal Definition & Scope Inventory Analysis Interpretation Impact Assessment Source: Lifecycle Assessment: Principles and Practice, EPA

13. Inventory Analysis • Data Collection and Modeling of the Product System • Description and Verification of Data • Inputs • Materials • Energy • Chemicals • Outputs: • Air emissions • Water emissions • Solid Waste • Final product

14. Assumptions • A steady state of production • A production rate of 80% maximum capacity at largest format available for each processing method • A 50% image area • 50% relief

15. Photopolymer Manufacturer Workflow Raw materials Energy Inputs Manufacturing Process Waste Photopolymer Outputs

16. Sheet Photopolymer – Digital Solvent Processing DigitalPlate Electrical Power Inputs Clean Solvent LaserImager UV Exposure Washout Dryer PX/DT Dust(negligible) Dirty solvent (Solvent + dissolvedphotopolymer) PET coversheet SolventVapor Outputs Still bottoms(haz waste) Distillation 90% recovery FinishedPlate Clean Solvent

17. Sheet Photopolymer – Digital Thermal Processing DigitalPlate Electrical Power Inputs Blottermaterial LaserImager UV Exposure LAVASystem PX/DT Carbondust(negligible) Organic vapors PET coversheet Used blotter Usedfilter w/ captured organics Outputs C Filter FinishedPlate Clean air

18. Liquid Photopolymer Liquidphotopolymer Electrical Power Inputs 1. Film negative 2. Coverlay3. PET substrate Water + Detergent Water + salts Casting + Exposure Reclaim Washout PX Dryer DT Rinse water Rinse water Soluble Photopolymer In water Water + Salts Water vapor Outputs FinishedPlate Disposal

19. The LCA Process • Goal Definition & Scoping • Inventory Analysis • Impact Assessment • Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal Definition & Scope Inventory Analysis Interpretation Impact Assessment Source: Lifecycle Assessment: Principles and Practice, EPA

20. Impact Categories • Energy Consumption: The total quantity of energy consumed within the life cycle of the product. • Water Consumption: The total quantity of water consumed within the life cycle of the product • Acidification of Water: The process by which the pH of a body of water is decreased due to the entry of acidifying compounds, particularly nitric acid (HNO3) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4). • Eutrophication of Water: The process of nutrient enrichment [namely phosphorous (P) and nitrogen (N)]. The increased food supply results in extensive growth of algae, in turn causing highly turbid water. • Global Warming: An increase in the planet’s average tropospheric temperature. To some extent, this occurs naturally on earth, but is exacerbated by the excess of heat trapping compunds – known as greenhouse gases – in the earth’s atmosphere. • Ozone Depletion: Refers to the destruction of the stratospheric ozone layer which filters out the most intense ultraviolet light from the sun’s radiant energy. • Smog Generation: The formation of photochemical smog in the troposphere. Smog forms from the reaction of nitric oxide (NO), oxygen (O2), and volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) in the presence of sunlight.

21. Environmental Footprint Calculator (EFC)

22. Energy Grids

23. The LCA Process • Goal Definition & Scoping • Inventory Analysis • Impact Assessment • Interpretation Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal Definition & Scope Inventory Analysis Interpretation Impact Assessment Source: Lifecycle Assessment: Principles and Practice, EPA

24. Interpretation: Key Findings • In terms of environmental impacts, generally speaking: . . Solvent > Thermal > Liquid

25. Interpretation • Compared to Solvent Processing • Liquid processing results in higher water consumption and smog generation, but has significantly lower impacts in all other categories. • Thermal processing has a slightly higher impact on eutrophication of water but has significantly lower impacts in all other categories. • Compared to Thermal Processing • Both liquid and solvent processing use much more water • Liquid processing consumes less energy and contributes fewer CO2 emissions to the atmosphere (Global Warming Impact). • Compared to Liquid Processing • Both solvent and thermal processing use much more energy than liquid processing • Thermal processing produces fewer kgs of CFC equivalents (ozone depletion) than liquid platemaking.

26. Reasons Why Liquid Platemaking generally has a smaller environmental footprint than solvent and thermal processing because: • No solvents are used • Un-imaged photopolymer can be reclaimed Thermal Processing generally has a smaller environmental footprint than solvent because: • Energy usage required by the still

27. Reasons Why: Energy Use Solvent Processing Workflow Thermal Processing Workflow x x x x x x x x

28. Looking Forward • First Iteration of the EFC • Will continue to refine data as we move forward • Collection of raw material LCA input data growing more complete • EFC creates areas for improvement (i.e., water usage in Liquid) • Recycling photopolymer materials at end-of-life

29. Thank You! Heather P. Barrett MacDermid Printing Solutions hbarrett@macdermid.com 404.699.3338