Environmental Product Declaration Fly ash for concrete, asphalt and cement production This environmental product declaration (EPD) is in accordance with EN ISO 14025 and EN 15804. The product declaration is aimed at business customers and the findings are presented according to the communication format described in DS/EN 15942 ( Business-to-Business ). Date of issue: 19 March 2013 Valid until: 19 March 2018 Prepared by: The Danish Technological Institute
1 General information Product Distributor Fly ash from Emineral is a mineral by-product from the production of electricity and heating at Danish hard coal burning power plants. Emineral is owned in equal shares by Vattenfall A/S and DONG Energy A/S. Emineral a/s Nefovej 50 DK-9310 Vodskov Telephone +45 96 54 10 50 Contact: Peter Lundquist (pl@emineral.dk) Declared unit One tonne of fly ash complying with the requirements of the EN 450-1 and EN 13043 standards for application in concrete and asphalt, respectively. Product category Comparability EPD is based on the LCA method described in EN ISO 14025 regarding the product category for construction products; see EN 15804. It is characterised as cradle-togate, corresponding to module A1-A3 in Figure 2. Comparable to similar construction products where EPD is made according to the same standard. Allocation As fly ash is a by-product according to clause 6.4.3 of EN 15804 for construction products, it needs to be allocated. Allocation is made according to the method for financial allocation between the production of fly ash and energy at Emineral's hard coal burning power plants. The economic value of the fly ash is deemed not to exceed 1% of the value of the energy production and accordingly the assessment is that the environmental impacts of the energy production should not be allocated to the fly ash. This assessment is in accordance with clause 6.4.3.2, Note 1, of EN 15804. This conclusion will be valid as long as new revenue figures do not alter the outcome of the financial allocation. Documentation for the allocation is provided in the project report for this EDP. EDP developer Danish Technological Institute, the Building and Construction Division Gregersensvej 1, DK-2630 Taastrup www.teknologisk.dk Verification This EDP is not verified by a third party. 2
2 Product description Use Classification Material Health risks Links to further material Fly ash from Emineral is used in the concrete, asphalt and cement industry. Fly ash is certified in accordance with the requirements defined in EN 450-1:2005 with the EC certificates of 1073-CPD-B078/ID for category A/N and 1073-CPD-B078/ID for category B/N, respectively. Fly ash is used in cement production in Denmark as a raw material. There is not any harmonised standard governing this. Fly ash is a mineral composition created as a by-product during the burning of coal. Fly ash from Emineral is registered in the European register of chemical substances, REACH. Due to its chemical structure, fly ash is not governed by the rules on classification and labelling of environmental and health hazards. Certificates: http://www.emineral.dk/userfiles/file/engelsk/emineral_uk_cpr_certifikatpakke.pdf Product declarations: http://www.emineral.dk/userfiles/file/engelsk/emineral_dop_pakke_gb.pdf Safety data sheet: http://www.emineral.dk/userfiles/file/engelsk/fly_ash_(coal)_gb_en_6.0.pdf 3
3 System boundaries This EPD covers the life cycle stages from cradle to gate. This means that the processes included are internal transportation and storage in Emineral's own depots. Figure 1 provides an overview of all processes covered by the environmental product declaration and the boundaries of the system in question. The figure shows that 85% of the fly ash is transported directly to customers and 15% is stored before transportation to customers. This EPD considers an average tonne of fly ash based on the amount transported directly to customers and the amount stored in a depot. Coal Power plant Fly ash Transportation to customer 85% Fly ash loaded on truck 15% Transportation to depot Loading and unloading of silo at depot Transportation to customer Figure 1 Production processes covered by the environmental product declaration. The broken line marks the boundaries of the system, which means that transportation directly to customer is not included. Figure 2 shows the life cycle modules for construction products according to EN 15804, where only the product stage (module A1-A3) is mandatory. The grey sections mark the modules comprised by this environmental product declaration. Product stage Information for evaluation of construction products Information on life cycle of construction products Construction Use Stage stage End of Life Stage A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 C1 C2 C3 C4 Raw material supply Transport Manufacturing Transportation Construction Installation process Use B6 Maintenance Repair Replacement Operational energy use Refurbishment De-construction demolition Transport Waste processing Disposal Module D Benefits and loads beyond the system boundary B7 Operational water use Scenario Scenario Scenario Figure 2 The modular framework for environmental product declarations according to the EN 15804 standard. The sections marked by grey show the life cycle modules comprised by the environmental product declaration 4
4 Data Data basis for this EPD is the figures for electricity use at Emineral's coal burning power plants in 2011. Only the electricity use is included, as surplus heat from the compressors which account for the main part of the electricity use is used for heating of premises. Moreover, this EPD is based on data from Emineral on internal transportation of fly ash. Table 1 provides an overview of the data quality. Table 1 Quality of data characterised as Specific (i.e. data from the manufacturer of the specific product), Representative (data from the manufacturer for average production). Estimated (approximated by calculation) or Generic (from the GaBi software database) Process Quality of data Production of fuel/energy Distance and type of vehicle Consumption Transportation to a depot (distance and type of vehicle) Generic Specific Energy consumption at the depot (loading and unloading of silo) Energy consumption during loading at power plant Generic - Specific Generic - Estimated (based on consumption at the depot) 5
5 Environmental profile 5.1 Environmental impacts The consumption figures from Emineral's annual production of fly ash are used for calculation of the potential environmental impacts of the production. The environmental impacts are caused by the amount of fuel and electricity used during the internal transportation and energy consumption at Emineral's depots and power plant. Table 2 shows the values of the environmental impacts. Seven different categories of environmental impacts are included, which is in accordance with EN ISO 14025 and EN 15804. These seven categories have different units and consequently comparison is only possible within each individual category and not across the categories. Section 5 provides a definition of the seven different categories of environmental impacts. Table 2 Potential environmental impacts allocated on seven different impact categories Impact category Impact per tonne of fly ash Total Loading at power plant Depot Transport Global warming; GWP [kg CO2 equiv.] 3.92 1.31 2.61 5.71 10-3 Ozone depletion; ODP [kg CFC-11 equiv.] 9.88 10-10 3.29 10-10 6.58 10-10 0 Acidification for soil and water; AP [kg SO2 equiv.] 7.26 10-3 2.41 10-3 4.82 10-3 2.31 10-5 Eutrophication; EP [kg PO4 equiv.] 1.05 10-3 3.48 10-4 6.96 10-4 6.06 10-6 Photochemical ozone creation in tropospheric ozone; POCP Depletion of abiotic resourceselements Depletion of fossil resources [kg Ethene equiv.] [kg Sb equiv] [MJ, net calorific value] 5.49 10-4 1.87 10-4 3.73 10-4 -1.10 10-5 3.29 10-7 1.10 10-7 2.19 10-7 0 43.3 14.4 28.8 0 6
5.2 Resource consumption The consumption of natural resources relates to Emineral's internal transportation and energy consumption at the depots as well as at the power plant. The consumption figures are shown in Table 3, which illustrates the use of renewable energy, non-renewable energy and water. The non-renewable energy is fossil fuels such as oil and coal, whereas renewable energy sources can be biomass, solar energy, wind or water. Secondary materials are raw materials that are recycled from previous use or from waste. As opposed to secondary materials, primary materials are extracted directly from natural occurrences. Table 3 Resource consumption per declared unit (1 tonne of fly ash) Resource Consumption per tonne of fly ash Total Loading at Depot Transport power plant Renewable primary energy [MJ] 15 4.9 10 0 Non-renewable primary energy [MJ] 43 14 29 0 Renewable secondary energy [MJ, net calorific value] 0 0 0 0 Non-renewable secondary energy [MJ, net calorific value] 0 0 0 0 Use of secondary material [kg] 0 0 0 0 Water [m 3 ] 0.427 0.142 0.285 0 5.3 Waste Generation of waste relates to production of the electricity used by Emineral at the power plant and at the depots. Table 4 shows the generation of waste. Table 4 Generation of waste from life cycle modules included in the environmental product declaration per declared unit Waste categories Waste per tonne of fly ash Total Loading at Depot Transport power plant Hazardous waste [kg] 0 0 0 0 Non-hazardous waste From excavation of resources [kg] 5.71 1.90 3.81 0 Non-hazardous waste Other [kg] 7.95 10-2 2.65 10-2 5.30 10-2 0 Radioactive waste [kg] 1.23 10-4 4.10 10-5 8.21 10-5 0 Materials for re-use [kg] 0 0 0 0 Materials for recycling [kg] 0 0 0 0 Materials for energy recovery [kg] 0 0 0 0 7
6 Other environmental information (Module D, EN 15804) The use of fly ash in cement, concrete and asphalt replaces naturally occurring materials thus reducing the consumption of resources. Fly ash in cement replaces natural clay and lime, whereas fly ash in concrete replaces new cement. Finally, fly ash replaces alternative filler materials in asphalt. 8
7 Definitions Categories of environmental impacts Global warming; GWP Ozone depletion; ODP Acidification for soil and water; AP Eutrophication; EP Definition Increases in the global mean temperature due to increased amounts of CO 2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gasses adsorb heat and reflect it back to earth. Depletion of the protective ozone layer in the atmosphere. Due to emission of ozone depleting substances, such as freon, which has a long life in the atmosphere. Decrease in the ph-value in soil and water systems. Due to emission of acids/acidifying substances. Disturbance of the nutrients balance in soil and water due to increased supply of nutrients. In water systems, an increased algae growth leads to oxygen deficits. Photochemical ozone creation; POCP Ozone creation in the lower parts of the atmosphere. Caused by emission of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds. Inhalation of ozone is harmful to humans and plants. Depletion of abiotic resources-elements; ADP Depletion of abiotic resources-fossil fuels; ADP fossil Other Re-use Recycling Energy recovery Hazardous waste [kg] Non-hazardous waste [kg] Use of non-renewable resources such as metals and minerals. Relative amount specified in relation to the amount of Sb reserves, which is the inorganic element Antimony. Use of fossil resources (oil, coal, gas). Specified as net calorific value at the point of extraction of the fuel. Application of a used product in its original form. A used product in a new form, e.g. after remelting. Use the energy contained in waste by burning. A number of factions that pose fire, health and environmental risks, etc. Refuse collection and similar industrial waste. Radioactive waste [kg] Includes radioactive atomic nuclei emitting radiation. E.g. waste from nuclear plants. 9