Assess new ideas for packaging materials LCA

The development of packaging materials is closely related to the development of human civilization and technological progress. With the development of modern industry, a group of industrialized products have become common packaging materials. As early as the 19th century, industrialized products (such as paper, cardboard, metal plates, glass, etc.) have been used to manufacture boxes, cans, bottles, bags, etc. . The development of the composite material industry in the 20th century has also led to a large amount of plastics being used for packaging. However, the extensive use of industrialized materials such as plastics has caused serious pollution and threatens people's health. The more developed countries and regions in the industry, the higher the per capita consumption of packaging materials and the greater the amount of packaging waste. According to incomplete statistics, the current per capita consumption of packaging materials in the world is 145 kg/year, of which plastic accounts for about 10% to 15%. The quality of general national packaging waste (PSW) accounts for about 1/5 to 1/3 of the mass of municipal solid waste (Msw). If this situation continues, it will lead to very serious environmental pollution and waste of resources, especially the “white pollution” caused by plastic packaging waste that cannot be fully degraded in a relatively long time, which has brought great harm to the environment.

With the deepening of people’s awareness of the world’s environmental crisis and resource crisis, a global wave of environmental protection has been set off. In 1987, the United Nations Commission on Environment and Development issued the “Our Common Future” declaration and formally proposed that the human lifestyle and production methods should be adjusted to be more friendly and harmless to the environment. Controlling environmental pollution should not be limited to the generation of pollution, but should be placed in the adjustment of lifestyles and production processes. This principle prompted people to pay attention to the entire process of manufacturing, use, recycling, and disposal of products in the late 1980s. The assessment of the environmental performance of products should be based on the entire life cycle of the product, from cradle to grave. The whole process of (Cradle-To-Grave) went to comprehensive evaluation, which resulted in LCA.

The definition and structure of LCA

LCA (Life Cycle Analysis), "Life Cycle Analysis Method". The International Organization for Standardization defines LCA as a method of aggregating and evaluating all the inputs and outputs of a product (or service) system during its entire life cycle to the environment and its potential impact. The method pointed out that evaluating the environmental performance of packaging products (packaging materials, packaging technology) can not be evaluated only from the environmental impact of packaging after discarding, but must be from the entire life cycle of the packaging products, namely the extraction of raw materials, production processing, transportation Quantification and comparison are used to evaluate the environmental performance of the packaged product during the entire process of sales, use, reuse or recycling until the final disposal. This method of analysis can be used for comparative analysis, to evaluate who has the best environmental performance in several packaging products, and to use it as a full-process analysis of a product to find the environmental impact of each link in the process. This can adjust our industrial policy, technology policy, production process and material selection.

The basic structure of LCA can be summarized as four organically linked parts: defining goals and scope, inventory analysis, impact evaluation, and improving evaluation. The basic relationship is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 The basic structure of LCA

Defining goals and determining scope is the first step in the LCA, directly affecting the entire evaluation process and the final conclusions of the study. The definition of goals clearly illustrates the objectives and causes of this LCA and its possible application areas. The scope of research should be determined to meet the research objectives, including the definition of the system under study, the identification of system boundaries, the specification of data requirements, and the identification of key assumptions and limitations.

Inventory analysis is a data-based objective quantification of the energy and raw material requirements for a product, process, and activity over its entire life cycle, as well as emissions to the environment (wastewater, waste gas, solid waste, and other environmental emissions). process.

The impact assessment is the quantitative or qualitative evaluation of the degree of environmental impact identified in the inventory analysis phase, that is, the determination of the material system and energy exchange of the product system and its impact on the external environment. This assessment should consider the ecosystem, human health and other The impact. Improved evaluation is the systematic assessment of the needs and opportunities for reducing energy consumption, raw material use, and environmental release throughout the life cycle of a product, process, or activity. This analysis includes quantitative and qualitative improvement measures such as changing the product structure, updating raw material selection, changing manufacturing processes and consumption patterns, and waste management.

Application of LCA

At present, LCA technology has attracted international attention. In some developed countries (such as Japan, the United States, Germany, etc.) have used this analysis to assess packaging materials. Packaging materials are closely related to the environment from the stages of raw material selection, material processing, manufacturing, to waste disposal, recycling, and utilization. LCA technology can be used to quantify these effects and formulate corresponding improvement measures, which can effectively reduce the environmental damage of packaging materials. Haruo Sasaki of the Japan Packaging Association pointed out in the “Development Prospects of the Packaging Industry in the Era of Environmental Awareness” that it is entirely possible to promote the use of LCA technology. There is no point in arguing with traditional conservative thoughts or old knowledge held by everybody. In other words, the application of packaging materials should be determined by LCA research. This is particularly important for companies that have established environmental awareness.

In order to protect the environment, it is necessary to minimize the effect of packaging materials on the environmental impact. Therefore, the packaging designer should choose and use packaging materials that are harmless to the environment or have the least harm to the environment. The selection of materials is based on the principle of reducing the amount of use and reducing the damage to the environment. The materials that can be recycled or degraded are selected as far as possible, and have appropriate physical and chemical properties, mechanical properties and reliable protection properties during use.

From the viewpoint of environmental protection and sustainable development, what is a good packaging? What is a good packaging waste disposal solution? LCA packaging measures can be embodied in four "R" principles. Among them, Reduce is the top priority, and Reuse, Recycle, and Recover have their own strengths.

Reduce: Under the condition of guaranteeing the main function of packaging, the primary consideration of packaging is to reduce the amount of packaging material as much as possible. According to studies, the best package for the environment is the lightest one; when the recyclability of packages is inconsistent with the reduction of weight, decrement is more beneficial to the environment.

Reuse: Reuse of all or part of a package, such as beer bottle recycling practices.

Recycle: The packaging material is recycled for reprocessing to be used in different areas, such as recycling cans or recycled paper. Recycling of waste plastics is also a Recycle.

Recover (Get new value, conversion): For example, the energy converted from waste through incineration.

With regard to the current pollution problem of packaging waste in China, visual pollution can be eliminated through improvement of waste collection and treatment systems and management; and the mandatory selection of a certain type of packaging materials and methods for collection and treatment (including recycling) requires careful attention. Combine the actual analysis of LCA.

for example

Can beverages be reusable glass bottles or disposable metal cans? For people often see only the moment they are discarded after consumption, then it is easy to produce glass bottles that are more conducive to environmental judgment than cans – but consumption and discard only It is a part of the whole life cycle of these packaging containers, from their respective raw materials being mined and processed into containers, to being used to package foods, to the distribution of packaged foods to consumers, and even to consumers' homes. All aspects of the environmental impact should be considered. Therefore, the LCA method needs to solve: What kind of environmental destruction is used for the extraction of quartz (glass bottle raw material) and bauxite (open cans raw material)? Which of the largest energy consumption of glass smelting and bauxite electrolytics are used in the environment? What is the impact? Glass bottles weigh more than cans, which leads to the impact of the energy consumption of airborne transport on sustainability. Glass bottled milk needs to be refrigerated from the factory to the home, and the energy it consumes contributes to the greenhouse effect, How does the CFC gas emitted in the refrigeration affect the ozone? And so on. Through the above comprehensive analysis of LCA, it is concluded that the use of multiplexing glass bottles or disposable metal cans.

Reprinted from: China's packaging industry Author: Ma Yan Ping Luo Guanglin