The overall target of Action 4 is to develop and implement the LCA framework methodology during the full cycle of transportation, handling and loading/unloading phases of widely used fuels and oils and other hazardous substances in Greece in each of the case studies developed in this action based on the HazChem taxonomy in line with UNRTDG hazard classes.
According to ISO 14040 (2006), the scope of an LCA study should be sufficiently well defined in order to ensure that the breadth, depth and detail of the study are compatible and sufficient to address the stated goal. However, it must be highlighted that the LCA is an iterative technique. Hence, the scope of the study may need to be modified while the study is being conducted as additional information is collected.
Action 4 will comprise 4 sub actions and is expected to start at the last trimester of the first year of the project.
No particular constrains and problems are foreseen during the implementation of this Action, considering the extensive experience and knowledge of the beneficiaries, TUC and MOH in the development and implementation of LCA framework methodology as well as the determination of the material flows and energy coefficients.
During this Action representatives from TUC will travel to Athens and if necessary to other important locations in Greece, in order to collaborate with representatives from MOH and AVINOIL for the gathering of the appropriate data for the development of the LCA framework and also assess the progress of the project.
TUC will be the overall responsible beneficiary for this Action.
In this action will take place a survey for the determination of the LCA framework of the study based on the Hazardous Chemicals taxonomy in line with the UNRTDG (United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods) hazard classes (see sub action 3.1).
The substance classes that are subject to this study are: Class 2 (including all divisions), Class 3, Class 5 (Division 5.1), Class 6 (Division 6.1), Class 8 and Class 9, considering that these classes include the substances that are greatly handled and transported by the all of the target users of this study. This conclusion is a fact deriving from the huge experience on the general industrial practice in this field (Distribution and handling of HazChem) of all the partners of this project.
Based on the above substance classes, a study will be conducted in order to delineate a number of HazChem from each class, very commonly used, for which the transportation and handling during loading / unloading phases is held with same means and comprise of the same stages. To this effect, results from the sub action 2.4 will be also used. This will modulate the HazChem taxonomy. Analytical description in sub action 3.1.
The homogeny in the ways of transportation and handling of different HazChem of the same class, is crucial to the development of the LCA framework and it will be the base on which the different LCA models for each of the substance classes will be differentiated of each other.
Action 4.1 is expected to start in the beginning of Action 4.
Methods employed: Literature survey on ways of transportation and handling during loading / unloading phases for the most commonly used HazChem of the selected UNRTDG classes and classification of the HazChem selected to separate LCA (Life Cycle – LC) categories, based on the differentiation to the means and stages applied, during handling and transportation.
Beneficiary responsible for the implementation of sub action 4.1 will be TUC
Indicators of progress: Number of HazChem LCA categories identified and number of HazChem included in every category.
This is one of the most important sub actions for the implementation of ACTION 4, since the exact environmental emissions (material flows) and types of energy requirements will be determined. To this effect the probability of accidental spills in surface waters or on soil will be taken into account, as well as the possible loss of product mass occurring during the phases of transportation or loading / unloading of HazChem. Data for the loss of mass will be considered as resulted from sub action 3.2.
The environmental emissions will be further categorised into solid, liquid and gaseous emissions, while energy requirements will be categorized into pre-combustion and combustion emissions and fossil fuel or electricity related emissions. In addition, under this action, the measurement units for the aforementioned coefficients will be set and justified (e.g. kg of emissions / ton of Reference Substance, KWh / ton RS etc.). Finally, this sub action will define the exact boundaries of the LCA systems for each of the HazChem categories (defined in action 4.1), which is one of the cores of the LCA methodology, taking into consideration the probability of accidental spills in surface waters or on soil.
In this LCA study the life cycle stages that will be examined comprise of the transportation procedures via road, sea, rail, and pipelines, the handling and the loading/unloading of HazChem stage processes. The procedures taking action inside the plant are excluded from the system’s boundaries. Therefore based on the latter, a brief description of the indicative LCA system adopted in this project is presented in Table 1.
Table 1: Indicative LCA system
| Process Category | To be Included | To be Excluded |
| Production, maintenance and replacement of capital equipment |
x |
|
| Transportation of capital goods |
x |
|
| Production of chemicals |
x |
|
| Transportation of chemicals via road (trucks, lorries, etc.), sea (tankers), rail (trains). |
x |
|
| Handling of chemicals during loading/unloading processes |
x |
|
| Transportation of personnel |
x |
|
| Emissions and waste management during loading/unloading processes |
x |
|
| Storage to end-users (i.e. gas stations) and distribution to the market stages processes |
x |
|
| Use and end-of-life stages processes |
x (to be defined) |
|
| Energy generation |
x |
By implementing the LCA in the developed models for every HazChem category (see sub action 4.1) following the above indicative system, certain coefficients, characteristic to the element stages of the life cycle of the different HazChem LCA models will be provided and the effects to the environment, health and safety will be determined through the implementation of the LCA framework in the following sub actions.
Sub action 4.2 is expected to start a little time after beginning of sub action 4.1.
For the implementation of sub action 4.2 representatives from TUC will travel to Athens and possible other critical locations (to be defined) to perform site visits and technical meetings with partners’ representatives in order to collaborate and acquire the essential data for the LCA study.
Methods employed: Development of a comprehensible questionnaire, Conductions of on-site measurements when appropriate for the determination of important coefficients, Data analysis of the questionnaires and the results from the measurements.
Beneficiary responsible for the implementation of this sub action will be TUC with the help of MOH and AVIN OIL. In addition an external assistance (engineering consultant) will be utilized in order to facilitate the implementation of this sub-action and specifically the determination of the material flows, energy coefficients and the systems boundaries.
The expected results of this activity include:
- The development of tools (e.g. questionnaires) for data collection
- The collection of all necessary data and registration in a database
Under this sub action, the LCA models will be developed based on the proposed framework and the results from sub actions 4.1 and 4.2, for each of the HazChem categories identified in sub action 4.1. This will be realized with the use of a LCA specialized software that will perform the necessary calculation to extract site specific coefficients and also include all primary coefficients that will be the basis for further calculations (e.g. the energy content of 1 L of gasoline will be a default input variable included in the software).
For the development of the LCA models via software the working team from TUC will utilise the results of past successful LCA implementations (conducted by TUC but also from other beneficiaries) and the significant experience in the development and implementation of LCA studies acquired. More specifically, the TUC team participated and implemented successfully the LIFE Project “ECOIL” LIFE04 ENV/GR/110 (“Life Cycle Assessment as a Decision Support Tool for the Eco Production of Olive Oil”, completed in 2006). The scope of ECOIL project was the application of Life Cycle Assessment for the eco-production of olive oil, the determination of the parameters that cause major negative environmental impacts and the overall improvement of the olive oil. As a continuation of the successful completion of the ECOIL project, the TUC team has developed and implemented several other LCA studies in the region of Crete island that allowed the comparison of results from the studies and the exclusion of important results for the improvement of the ecological character of the procedures during the olive oil life cycle stages, adding in value to the environment.
Sun action 4.3 is expected to start approximately a trimester after the beginning of sub action 4.2.
Methods employed: Selection of appropriate software, Input data to the software from the results of sub actions 4.1 and 4.2
Beneficiary responsible for implementation: TUC
Under this sub action, implementation of the LCI for the identified HazChem categories in Greece will produce certain site-specific LCI coefficients via the software tool and based on site-specific conditions provided by the partners MOH and AVIN OIL. Analytical measurements aiming to specify the concentrations (if any) of HazChem in groundwater and soil, as well as the emissions to air, will be performed and also, samplings, measurements and chemical analyses of waste and wastewater generated in key locations and areas of the case studies (e.g. petrol stations, loading / unloading installations of ships, trucks, etc.) will be carried out.
Sub action 4.4 is expected to start a trimester after the beginning of sub action 4.3.
Methods employed:
Implementation of the LCI for the case studies on the identified HazChem classes from the LCA models developed via software in sub action 4.3
No particular constraints are foreseen for this Action except for the part involving the analytical measurements, since it is expected that several values might be below detection limit and therefore considered equal to 0. It is also probable that several data that the LCI will be requiring might not be available and therefore appropriate assumptions will be made at regional, national or EU level, depending on the available data. Nevertheless, the TUC acquire great experience in the implementation of the LCA instrument as well as the carrying out of samplings, measurements and chemical analyses. Also, all three institutions have in their possession well equipped laboratories and the necessary infrastructure to carry out the activities foreseen.
Beneficiary responsible for implementation: TUC
Expected results (quantitative information when possible): Realization of the LCI for the case studies based on the identified HazChem classes in Greece
Indicators of progress: Number of HazChem categories selected for the implementation of the Life Cycle Inventories (LCI) and number of HazChem included in every category.