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Supporting Sustainable Markets Through Life Cycle Assessment: Evaluating emerging technologies, incorporating uncertainty and the consumer perspective

Merugula, Laura
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1373461844

Abstract Details

2013, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
As civilization's collective knowledge grows, we are met with the realization that human-induced physical and biological transformations influenced by exogenous psychosocial and economic factors affect virtually every ecosystem on the planet. Despite improvements in energy generation and efficiencies, demand of material goods and energy services increases with no sign of a slowing pace. Sustainable development requires a multi-prong approach that involves reshaping demand, consumer education, sustainability-oriented policy, and supply chain management that does not serve the expansionist mentality. Thus, decision support tools are needed that inform developers, consumers, and policy-makers for short-term and long-term planning. These tools should incorporate uncertainty through quantitative methods as well as qualitatively informing the nature of the model as imperfect but necessary and adequate. A case study is presented of the manufacture and deployment of utility-scale wind turbines evaluated for a proposed change in blade manufacturing. It provides the first life cycle assessment (LCA) evaluating impact of carbon nanofibers, an emerging material, proposed for integration to wind power generation systems as blade reinforcement. Few LCAs of nanoproducts are available in scientific literature due to research and development (R&D) for applications that continues to outpace R&D for environmental, health, and safety (EHS) and life cycle impacts. LCAs of emerging technologies are crucial for informing developers of potential impacts, especially where market growth is swift and dissipative. A second case study is presented that evaluates consumer choice between disposable and reusable beverage cups. While there are a few studies that attempt to make the comparison using LCA, none adequately address uncertainty, nor are they representative for the typical American consumer. By disaggregating U.S. power generation into 26 subregional grid production mixes and evaluating the comparison with respect to a representative range of efficiencies in dishwasher units, a realistic comparison was made. A statistical approach was devised to process the available output by combining a Z-score test with the Cox method for confidence intervals. Despite the common use of LCA software with Monte Carlo analysis, this approach to compare distributions has not been discovered in LCA-related literature and offers a straightforward method for extending analysis under conditions of positive skew approximated by a lognormal distribution, which is common in LCA parameters. The two case studies provide product developer and consumer guidance, respectively. They furthermore may be used to inform policy in both direct and nuanced manners. The encouragement of product reuse is facilitated for individuals and organizations providing food-service facilities. Caution in efforts to increase power generation capacity with renewable energy not coupled with reduction of demand is implied.
Bhavik Bakshi (Advisor)
Jessica Winter (Committee Member)
James Rathman (Committee Member)
217 p.
Alternative Energy; Climate Change; Environmental Education; Environmental Management; Nanotechnology; Systems Science
life cycle assessment; sustainability; environmental impact; nanotechnology; renewable energy

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Merugula, L. (2013). Supporting Sustainable Markets Through Life Cycle Assessment: Evaluating emerging technologies, incorporating uncertainty and the consumer perspective [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1373461844

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Merugula, Laura. Supporting Sustainable Markets Through Life Cycle Assessment: Evaluating emerging technologies, incorporating uncertainty and the consumer perspective. 2013. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1373461844.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Merugula, Laura. "Supporting Sustainable Markets Through Life Cycle Assessment: Evaluating emerging technologies, incorporating uncertainty and the consumer perspective." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1373461844

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1373461844
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© 2013, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.
Release 3.2.12