Carbon Management 101

Transcription

1 Carbon Management 101 West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum January 12, 2009 Clinton S. Boyd, PHD Sustainable Research Group

2 Decarbonization The systematic reduction of the carbon intensity* of emissions associated with the energy and material inputs of products and processes. o o Embodied carbon Carbon footprint * Intensity of carbon dioxide-equivalents

3 So where do carbon emissions fit in The role of the atmospheric greenhouse gases in the planetary climate system

4 Definition of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) o Trace gases in the atmosphere that have heat trapping properties. o By virtue of their molecular structure, they can collectively absorb and re radiate infra red radiation across a wide range of wavelengths, thereby reducing the amount of heat escaping from the atmosphere into space. Definition of Greenhouse Effect o The natural, insulating effect of the atmospheric greenhouse gases, which maintains the Earth s mean surface temperature o Natural Greenhouse Effect vs. Anthropogenic (Enhanced) Greenhouse Effect (Anthropogenic = related to human activities) o Principal natural GHG: water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone (in order of relative abundance)

5 Atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases

6 Source:

7 So, why all the attention on carbon? CO 2 CH 4 CF N 2 O PFC 4 CHClF 2 HFC SF 6 O 3 CCl 4 CHCl 3 H 2 O o Most GHG are carbon-based o The principal GHG emissions associated with human activities are carbonbased, CO 2 and CH 4

8 Source: US EPA, 2000 Sources of GHG in United States (1998)

9 Source: US EPA, 2000

10 Source: US EPA, 2000

11 Source: US EPA, 2000

12 What is your CARBON footprint?

13 A Road Map to Decarbonization Three steps to effective carbon management: Step 1: Measure Step 2: Reduce (internal reductions) Step 3: Off-set (external reductions)

14 Step 1: Measurement ( Carbon Footprinting ) A. Select a GHG accounting/reporting protocol o o o Use a standardized and recognized format: WRI/WBCSD Greenhouse Gas Protocol US EPA Climate Leaders Chicago Climate Exchange California Climate Action Registry Global Warming is an established impact category of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) GHG emissions may be a significant environmental aspect of your operation 1. Set GHG emission reductions as the primary objective of an environmental management plan, OR: 2. Document GHG emission reductions as a secondary benefit of other environmental management goals

15 B. Establish scope and boundaries Temporal boundaries o 12 consecutive months o Fiscal versus calendar year o Establish baseline Spatial boundaries o Life cycle stage: Gate-to-Gate analysis Material Acquisition Pre- Manufacturing Manufacturing Consumer End-of-Life Management Transportation

16 o Organizational: Single facility versus multiple facilities (corporate-wide) National versus international locations Administrative, manufacturing, business travel Operational boundaries o Types of GHG emissions All six main GHGs: Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) Methane (CH 4 ) Nitrous oxide (N 2 O) Perfluorocarbons (PFC) Hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) Sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6 ) o Sources of GHG emissions Sources (and quantities) of each of the six main GHG

17 Emission Source Optional Core (Mandatory) Influenced Controlled or owned INDIRECT DIRECT Electricity (Purchases) Fossil Fuel Combustion Fugitive Emissions Process Emissions Steam (Purchases) Hot water (Purchases) Stationary Sources o Natural gas o Propane o Fuel oil o HVAC/refrigeration o Fuel storage o Cement manufacture o Aluminum production Mobile Sources o Gasoline o Diesel

18 GREENHOUSE GAS Emissions Category CO 2 CH 4 N 2 0 HFC PFC SF 6 A. On-site Energy Fossil Fuel Combustion XX X X Electricity-related activities XX X X B. Transportation Fossil Fuel Combustion XX X X C. Process-Related Emissions Process-specific X X X X X X D. Fugitive Emissions Air conditioning & refrigeration: mobile & stationary Non-combustion emissions from fuel (e.g. storage) X X X X

19 C. Inventory and quantify GHG emissions Inventory physical consumption data o Quantify each emission sources based on physical consumption data; specify units (e.g. MWh of electricity) Convert physical consumption data to GHG emissions o Use a standardized emissions factor (coefficient) to convert the physical consumption data to amount of GHG emissions: Physical consumption data x emissions factor = GHG emissions Convert GHG emission data to Carbon Dioxide Equivalents o Convert each GHG emission to its Carbon Dioxide Equivalents (CO 2 E) or Carbon Equivalent (CE) GHG emission x global warming potential (GWP) = CO 2 E Calculate the total carbon footprint o Sum the CO 2 -E data for each GHG source

20 Global Warming Potentials (GWP): CO 2 = 1 CH 4 = 23 N 2 O = 296 HFC-143a = 4,300 Example Data

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22 Step 2: Internal Reductions (Decarbonization) A. Establish a baseline (bench mark) B. Set reduction goals C. Identify opportunities / strategies for decarbonization: Key factors for assessing potential for decarbonization: o Quantity of GHG emitted (carbon content) o Type of GHG emission and its Global Warming Potential o Source of carbon: biogenic vs. fossil o Life-cycle contribution

23 Table: CO 2 intensity for different energy and fuel sources Modified from: Fuel and Energy Source Codes and Emission Coefficients ( Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Program) [Energy Information Agency]

24 Correction of carbon coefficients for energy density

25 Global Warming Equivalencies of GHG Impact characterization factor: where, CO 2 -equivalency = Σ (GWP i x M i ) CO 2 -E = impact metric GWP i = Global Warming Potential of emission i M i = quantity of emission i (kg)

26 Budget Analysis: Atmospheric Greenhouse Gases Sources I 1 I 2 I 3 Flux reservoir Sinks O 1 O 2 O 3 O 4

27 The GHG Cycle Reservoir 1: Atmosphere Reservoir 4 Reservoir 2 Reservoir 3

28 Atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases

29 Biogenic Carbon A part of the natural carbon cycle, and present day climate Sources are balanced by sinks No net gain in GHG CARBON NEUTRAL / CARBON BALANCED Fossil Carbon Also of biological origin, but a sink (reservoir) of a previous geological era and a past climate Combustion of fossil fuels results in a net gain in GHG (sources > sinks) Not a part of the present day carbon cycle Human activities such as sequestration are required to balance emissions (need to create new artificial carbon sinks)

30 Fossil CO 2 Reservoir 3: Atmosphere Reservoir 2 Reservoir 4: Vegetation Reservoir 1: Coal Bed

31 Biogenic CO 2 Reservoir 4: Atmosphere Reservoir 3 Reservoir 1: Vegetation Reservoir 2:

32 Opportunities for Decarbonization 1. Energy and Fuel o Energy/fuel minimization: energy efficiency / energy conservation measures o Reduced embodied energy = reduced embodied carbon o Change energy / fuel mix o Transportation / shipping strategies 2. Feed Stocks o Switch starting (raw) materials from petroleum-based feed stocks (fossil carbon) to bio-based feed stocks (biogenic carbon) o Dematerialize: reduce material intensity of processing o Increase the recycled content and recyclable content of raw materials

33 3. Processing o Seek opportunities from industrial biotechnology, e.g.: 1. Switch from thermo-chemical processing to biochemical processing o Seek opportunities from green chemistry / green engineering, e.g.: 1. Change solvents and reaction conditions (many solvents are GHG) 2. Use catalysts, not stoichiometric reagents 3. Maximize atom efficiency [don t waste (carbon) atoms] o Select refrigerants with lowest Global Warming Potentials 4. Product Design o Adopt Design for the Environment in product design decisions (R&D) o Take a whole systems approach by employing life cycle thinking or performing a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to assess the GHG emissions over the entire product life-cycle: 1. Global Warming is a standard impact category of a LCA

34 Step 3: External Reductions (Carbon Off-setting) Purchase carbon offsets from a project that meets the following quality objectives: o Additionality o Real & measurable o Permanence o Leakage o Monitoring & verification o Ownership o Registration & guaranteed o Transparency

35 Thank you! Clinton S. Boyd, PhD Senior Scientist Sustainable Research Group 949 Wealthy SE Suite 205 Grand Rapids, MI Tel: Fax: