A method (LCA) for quantitatively evaluating energy consumption and environmental impact at each stage: material production, product manufacture, use, and disposal or recycling.
Japanese name: ライフサイクルアセスメント
Life cycle assessment appears in 1 practice question across 1 topic, including Materials selection and design.
Answer: B. The use (driving) stage; choosing materials that lighten the body and reduce fuel consumption is effective
In life cycle assessment (LCA), the use-stage energy from fuel consumed while driving usually accounts for most of the total for a gasoline passenger car. So even aluminum alloys and CFRP, which take a lot of energy to produce, can pay off overall if they lighten the body and improve fuel economy in service. The production stage dominates for products that use no energy in service, such as building materials. The disposal stage generally accounts for a small share of energy, so considering it alone is insufficient. Which stage dominates varies by product, so the basic approach is first to identify it and then choose materials that reduce that stage. The proportions change with the assumptions; in electric vehicles, for example, battery production takes a larger share.
In life cycle assessment (LCA), the use-stage energy from fuel consumed while driving usually accounts for most of the total for a gasoline passenger car.
For a typical gasoline passenger car, when the energy consu…CFRP (carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic) Ashby chart (materials selection chart) Material index (performance index) Pareto optimality Specific stiffness Tramp elements Yield before fracture