8
G. Jha et al.
considered as a decision-supporting tool to evaluate a process in order to anticipate
the positive and negative outcome of the system that whether it must be carried
out or not [28, 31]. This makes it an essential tool in evaluating the system under
consideration and its anticipated impact on the environment [28, 32].
LCA comprises of four steps, i.e., [25, 33]
(1) Goal and Scope
(2) LCA inventory generation
(3) Analysis and assessment
(4) Interpretation and discussion
6.1 Evolution of LCA and the Purpose of the Study [34]
The principles of LCA were developed in the 1960s. The LCA was initially named
as Resource and Environmental Profile Analysis (REPA) by the US environment
protection agency. In the earlier stage, it was more focused on the quantification
of energy and resource consumption. The quantification of environmental impact
was elementary work at that time. In the 1980s, assessments of the product life cycle
experienced a renaissance through studies of the environmental loadings and potential
impacts of beverage containers (e.g., beer cans, milk containers). This attempt started
a parallel branch for the product life cycle assessment of the materials getting used
in the packaging industry. In the late 1980s and 1990s, several worldwide attempts
have been made to standardize the working mechanisms and its possible codes of
conduct altogether to refine the assessment. This inclusion has grown the process so
extensive that it started including very complex products such as paint, insulation
materials, and kitchen and home appliances.
In 2000, LCA was standardized with a series of standards, i.e., 14000 series, which
are illustrated in Table 1 [35].
Table 1 LCA stages with
ISO standards [35, 36]
Standards
Stages of assessment
Environmental Management
14040
LCA—Principles and
Framework
Environmental Management
14041
LCA—Goal and scope
definition and Inventory
Analysis
Environmental Management
14042
LCA—Impact Assessment
Environmental Management
14043
LCA—Interpretation
Environmental Management
14044
LCA—Requirements and
guidelines
Environmental Management
14067
Greenhouse gases—Carbon
footprint of products
G. Jha et al.
considered as a decision-supporting tool to evaluate a process in order to anticipate
the positive and negative outcome of the system that whether it must be carried
out or not [28, 31]. This makes it an essential tool in evaluating the system under
consideration and its anticipated impact on the environment [28, 32].
LCA comprises of four steps, i.e., [25, 33]
(1) Goal and Scope
(2) LCA inventory generation
(3) Analysis and assessment
(4) Interpretation and discussion
6.1 Evolution of LCA and the Purpose of the Study [34]
The principles of LCA were developed in the 1960s. The LCA was initially named
as Resource and Environmental Profile Analysis (REPA) by the US environment
protection agency. In the earlier stage, it was more focused on the quantification
of energy and resource consumption. The quantification of environmental impact
was elementary work at that time. In the 1980s, assessments of the product life cycle
experienced a renaissance through studies of the environmental loadings and potential
impacts of beverage containers (e.g., beer cans, milk containers). This attempt started
a parallel branch for the product life cycle assessment of the materials getting used
in the packaging industry. In the late 1980s and 1990s, several worldwide attempts
have been made to standardize the working mechanisms and its possible codes of
conduct altogether to refine the assessment. This inclusion has grown the process so
extensive that it started including very complex products such as paint, insulation
materials, and kitchen and home appliances.
In 2000, LCA was standardized with a series of standards, i.e., 14000 series, which
are illustrated in Table 1 [35].
Table 1 LCA stages with
ISO standards [35, 36]
Standards
Stages of assessment
Environmental Management
14040
LCA—Principles and
Framework
Environmental Management
14041
LCA—Goal and scope
definition and Inventory
Analysis
Environmental Management
14042
LCA—Impact Assessment
Environmental Management
14043
LCA—Interpretation
Environmental Management
14044
LCA—Requirements and
guidelines
Environmental Management
14067
Greenhouse gases—Carbon
footprint of products