LIFE CYCLE

ASSESSMENT OF
PLASTIC CUPS

DA-1 CLC-ENVIRONMENTAL INPACT ASSESSMENT

NAME: BHOSALE MOHAN VILASRAO

REG NO: 17BEC0480

PROGRAMME: B. TECH ; SCHOOL : SENSE

life cycle assessment of plastic cups
C L C - E N V I RO N M E N TA L I N PAC T A S S E S S M E N T

Abstract:

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life cycle assessment of plastic cups

INTRODUCTION :

Life cycle assessment :

Life cycle assessment is a “cradle -to-grave” approach for assessing industrial

systems. “Cradle -to-grave” begins with the gathering of raw materials from the earth
to create the product and end sat the point when all materials are return en d to the
earth. LCA evaluates all stages of a product ’s life from the perspective that they are
interdependent, meaning that one operation leads to the next. LCA enables the
estimation of the cumulative environmental impacts resulting from all stages in th e
product life cycle, often including impacts not considered in more traditional
analyses (e.g. raw material extraction, material transportation, ultimate product
disposal, etc.). The term “life cycle” refers to the major activities in the course of the
product’s life - span from its manufacture, use, and maintenance, to its final disposal,
including the raw material an acquisition required manufacturing the product. Life
Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a technique for assessing the potential environmental
aspects and potential aspects associated with a product (or ser vice), by: Compiling
an inventor y of relevant inputs and outputs, Evaluating the potential environmental

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impacts associated with those inputs and outputs, Interpreting the results of the
inventor y and impact phases in relation to the objectives of the study.

IMPORTANCE OF LCA:

A great deal of waste is generated through human activities – approximately 40

tons/year per person in the United States. This represents lost resources as well as
results in environmental degr adation. The most important goal of LCA, according to a
sur vey of organizations actively involved in LCA, is to minimize the magnitude of
pollution.

1. Provides a standard
scientifically based method to
evaluate environmental
burdens associated with a
product or process over its
life cycle;
2. Identifies and quantifies
energy and materials used
and wastes released to the
environment;
3. Assesses the impact of those
energy and materials uses
and releases on the environment; and
4. Evaluates opportunities to effect environmental improvements.

Life Cycle Assessment Plastic cups :

Plastic cups were first introduced in 1977 and now account for
four out of every five bags handed out at grocer y stores. A Life
cycle analysis involves making detailed measurements during the

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life cycle assessment of plastic cups

manufacturing of the product, from the mining of the raw materials used in its
production and distribution, its use, possible re -use or recycling, and its eventual
disposal. Most plastic cups are made from polyethylene, which is made from
petroleum, a nonrenewable resource. Life cycle analysis enables a manufacturer to
quantify how much energy and raw materials are used, and how much solid waste,
liquid waste and gaseous waste is generated at each stage of the product's life. In
order to outline a well-founded waste management policy for the use of drinking
cups at events, OVAM, the Public Waste Agency for the Flemish Region in Belgium,
commissioned VITO, the Flemish Institute for Technological Research, to study the
current environmental impacts and the costs related to existing systems for drinking
cups on small- scale indoor and large - scale outdoor events in Flanders, Belgium. The
study compares re -usable polycarbonate (PC) cups with one -way polypropylene
(PP), polyethylene (PE) -coated cardboard, and Ingeo (PLA) cups. The basis for the
comparison is defined as the recipients needed for ser ving 100 liter beer or soft
drinks at a small- scale indoor event (2000 -5000 visitors) or a large - scale outdoor
event (>30,000 visitors). This definition includes the production of the cups, the
consumption phase (at the event) and the processing of the waste. The four cup
systems were compared in four basic scenarios, along with a sensitivit y analysis to
examine the trip rate in the case of reusable PC cups, as we ll as the PLA Future
scenario. (2008)

Goal and scope definition :

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The goal and scope definition is the first step of an LCA. In this study OVAM wishes
to gain insight in the current environmental impact and the costs related to existing
systems for drinking cups on events in order to outline a well -founded policy with
regard to this subject. A life cycle assessment analyses the environmental impacts of
a product. However the results of an LCA are not directly useful for the government
or the most important target group of this project: the organizers of events.
Therefore, an economic al analysis is done. In a first phase a comparative LCA to
compare the environmental profiles of 4 existing product systems, more specifically
the re -usable PC cup, the one -way PP cup, the one -way PE/cardboard cup and the
one -way compostable PLA cup, all used on two types of events (different scales,
indoor versus outdoor).

Scope of LCA:

The following paragraphs describe the aspects that are related to the scope of the
LCA -study. For the eco-efficiency analysis no ISO standards exist. The environmental
aspect, however, will be based on the LCA and will therefore be well documented and
described, as prescribed by ISO.

• Function and functional unit: - The functional unit for this study is defined
as: “the recipients needed for ser ving 100 liter beer or soft drinks on a small -
scale indoor (2000 -5000 visitors) and a large - scale outdoor event (>30 000
visitors)”. This definition includes the production of the cups, the
consumption ph ase (on the event) and the processing of the waste. In the
remainder of this report, small - scale events automatically imply indoor and
large -scale events automatically imply outdoor events.
• The product systems to be studied: - 4 alternative t ypes of cups for use on
events will be examined:
➢ re -usable cup in polycarbonate (PC);
➢ one -way cup in polypropylene (PP);
➢ one -way cup in PE-coated cardboard;
➢ one -way cup in polylactide (PLA).

• System boundaries: - Ideally, all life cycle stages, from the extraction of raw
materials to the final waste treatment should be taken into consideration. In

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life cycle assessment of plastic cups

practice however, there is often not sufficient time, data or resources to

conduct such a comprehensive study. Decisions have to be made regarding
which life cycle stages, processes or releases to the environment can be
omitted without compromising the results of the study.
• Allocation procedures: - Allocation procedures are needed when dealing with
systems involving multiple products. The materials and energy flows as we ll
as associated environmental releases shall be allocated to the different
products according to clearly stated procedures, which shall be documented
and justified. For processes where allocation is necessar y (multiple input or
output processes), the allo cation procedure described by ISO 14041 will be
followed (to be applied for incineration, composting, etc.).
• Assumptions and limitations: - All assumptions made during the course of
the project and the limitations of the study are commented on in the rep ort
and annexes.
• Inventor y analysis:
In the inventor y phase all data needed to analyze the environmental impacts
associated to the 4 types of cups are gathered. In summar y this means that all
the input flows (material, energy,) and all the output flows (emissions waste,)
are described and quantified. The data inventor y process used the following
procedure:
➢ Inquir y (based on specific questionnaires) of the relevant actors
(stakeholders) being producers of cups, suppliers of cups in Flanders,
distribution organizations, event organizers, waste collection and waste
treatment organizations;
➢ Simultaneously literature sources that discuss similar issues are
consulted;
➢ If available, specific data supplied by the different stakeholders and
relevant for Flan ders (and Belgium) are used;
➢ Otherwise data from literature are used (more general);
➢ For aspects where no specific or literature data are found an
assumption is made, based on well -founded arguments.

The most important difference that exists between re usable PC -cups and the one way
alternatives is the fact that the PC -cups can be reused several times. This implies

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that per functional unit less cups and possibly less new material is needed for
serving beer and soft drinks in reusable PC -cups compared to the one -way cups. On
the other hand collecting and washing of the PC -cups is needed. In this study the
average basic scenario has the following specifications:

➢ Small-scale events: 45 trips per cup. For the functional unit this relates
to an average loss of 5.5% cups that have to be replaced by new cups.
➢ Large - scale events: 20 trips per cup This relates to an average loss of
12.5%.

• Impact assessment and interpretation:

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life cycle assessment of plastic cups

Usually, the inventor y process generates a long list of data, which may be difficult to
interpret, especially with regard to the comparison of products, processes or
systems. The impact assessment is a tool to relate the large number of inventor y
values to a smaller number of environmental themes (damage categories) so that the
outcome of the assessment is more conveniently. This chapter describes the
approach, the methodology and the results of the impact analysis of the different cup
systems that have been analyzed. The impact analysis is performed according to the
ISO 14042 (impact analysi s) and ISO 14043 standard (interpretation). When
comparing the environmental profiles of the different cup systems with each other,
we use the following rules of thumb for defining a significant difference:

➢ 20% for the well -defined impact categories depl etion of minerals, depletion of
fossil fuels, climate change, and ozone layer depletion;
➢ 30% for the impact categories where the methodology is less well -founded or
incomplete, being acidification/eutrophication, ecotoxicit y, carcinogenic, resp.
organic and inorganic.

• CONCLUSION:

This paper suggests cradle -to-gate life cycle assessment as a method to analyze the
plastic cup waste of different event or occasions. This study examined various
disposable and reusable cups that are available on the market. It analyzed cups that
are made from fossil resources as well as renewable raw materials, biodegradable
materials and loop-capable materials. order to achieve reliable results, the necessar y
adaptations must be made. In accordance with the issue, only those c up systems and
materials were examined, which were relevant for use. The new materials from
renewable raw materials (PLA) or recyclable material are at an early stage of
development and warrant the expectation of future improvements, which were not
investigated.

• REFERENCES :

[01] Environmental management – Life cycle assessment – Principles and framework,

International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Genève ISO 14040 (2006)

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[02] J.M. Pearce, "Optimizing G reenhouse Gas Mitigation Strategies to Suppre ss
Energy Cannibalism" 2nd Climate Change Technology Conference Proceedings, p. 48,
2009

[03] S. Ryding, "International Experiences of Environmentally Sound Product

Development Based on Life Cycle Assessment," Swedish Waste Research Council,
AFR Report 36, Stockholm, May 1994.

[04] "GHG Product Life Cycle Assessments". Ecometrica. Retrieved on: 25 April
2013.

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