Skip to main content

Advertisement

Springer Nature Link
Log in

Adaptation of environmental data to national and sectorial context: application for reinforcing steel sold on the French market

  • DATA AVAILABILITY, DATA QUALITY IN LCA
  • Published:
The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Environmental data for steel products are generally proposed at a continental or a global scale. The question we are tackling here is: does the fact that steel as a global market necessarily reduces the need for national data?

Methods

In this study, the environmental impact of reinforcing steel sold in France is evaluated. To do so, a specific environmental inventory is adapted from Ecoinvent database. CML method is used for impact calculation and both methods “recycled content” as well as “end of life recycling approach” are tested.

Results and discussion

This study shows that there is a specificity of reinforcing steel products sold in France compared to European value. It is due to the fact that reinforcing steel is mainly made with recycled steel as the market growth for construction product in France is limited allowing a very high recycled content. This result is not sensitive neither to the allocation method used for recycling (cut-off approach or system expansion) nor to transport distance and electricity country mix used.

Conclusions

The result of this study can be used with confidence in every construction site work located on the French territory. Furthermore, the present study advocates for an adaptation of global database to local context defined by a specific industrial sector and a geographic region even for product such as steel that may be considered as a first approximation as a global product.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

References

  • AFCAB (2011a) Certification Acier pour Béton Armé. RCC03, AFNOR 58 pp

  • AFCAB (2011b) Annual reinforcing steel production of certified products for the French market: Details by steel plants. Confidential document. AFCAB, Paris, 4pp

  • Althaus H-J, Classen M (2005) Life cycle inventories of metals and methodological aspects of inventoring material resources in Ecoinvent. Int J Life Cycle Assess 10:43–49

    Google Scholar 

  • Apfel J (2002) Electric Arc Furnace Slag, a product not a waste: saving or earning money by using slag as building material. Tech. report, BSE Badische Stahl Engineering, 6 pp

  • Atherton J (2007) Declaration by the metals industry on recycling principles. Int J Life Cycle Assess 12:59–60

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beddoes J, Bibbly MJ (1999) Principles of metal manufacturing process, Arnold, 326 pp. ISBN 0-470-35241-8.

  • Blaser S, Althaus HJ, Jungbluth N et al (2009) Metal processing, Part XV. In: Classen (ed) Life cycle inventpry of metals. Final report Ecoinvent data v2.1, no. 10. EMPA Dübendorf, Swiss Centre for Life Cycle Inventories, Switzerland

    Google Scholar 

  • Cimbéton (2010) En,vironmental quality of buildings, B56. Collection technique Cimbéton, 140 pp

  • Classen M, Althaus H-J, Blaser S, Tuchschmid M, Jungbluth N, Doka G, Faist, Emmenegger M, Scharnhorst W (2011) Life Cycle Inventories of metals. Final report ecoinvent data v2.2, n°10. EMPA Dübendorf, Swiss Centre for Life Cycle Inventories, Dübendorf, Switzerland, Online-version under: www.ecoinvent.ch

  • de Schrynmakers P (2009) Life cycle thinking in the aluminium industry. Int J Life Cycle Assess 14(supl 1):S2–S5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubreuil A, Young SB, Atherton J, Gloria TP (2010) Metals recycling maps and allocation procedures in life cycle assessment. Int J Life Cycle Assess 15:621–634

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • E-PRTR (2012) The European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register http://prtr.ec.europa.eu. Accessed 20 February 2013

  • Ecoinvent (2011) Ecoinvent Report part XV. ‘Metal processing’, Data v2.2, Swiss Centre for Life Cycle Inventories, Dübendorf, Switzerland

  • ELCD (2012) European Life Cycle Database. http://lca.jrc.ec.europa.eu/lcainfohub/datasetArea.vm. Accessed 20 June 2012

  • EN 15804 (2012) Sustainability for construction works. Environmental product declarations. Core rules for the product category of construction products. European Committee for Standardization

  • European Commission (2000) Best available techniques reference document on the production of iron and steel. Institute for prospective technological studies. European IPPC Bureau, Seville

    Google Scholar 

  • European Commission (2010) Joint Research Centre—Institute for Environment and Sustainability: International Reference Life Cycle Data System (ILCD) Handbook - General guide for Life Cycle Assessment - Detailed guidance, 1st edn. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, EUR 24708 EN

    Google Scholar 

  • Euroslag, Eurofer (2012) Position paper on the status of ferrous slag complying with the waste framework directive 2008/98/CE (articles 5/6) and the REACH regulation. European Slag Association and European Steel Association, April 2012

  • Frischknecht R (2006) Notions on the design and use of an ideal regional or global LCA database. Int J Life Cycle Assess 11:40–48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frischknecht R (2010) LCI modelling approaches applied on recycling of materials in view of environmental sustainability, risk perception and eco-efficiency. Int J Life Cycle Assess 15:666–671

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Goedkoop M, Oele M (2004) Simapro database manual, Methods library. Pre consultants BV

  • Guinée JB, Gorrée M, Heijungs R, Huppes G, Kleijn R, van Oers L, Wegener Sleeswijk A, Suh S, Udo de Haes HA, de Bruijn H, vanDuin R, Huijbregts MAJ (2002) Life cycle assessment: an operational guide to the ISO Standards. Kluwer, Dordrecht

  • Huijbregts MAJ (1998) LCA methodology application of uncertainty and variability in LCA. Int J Life Cycle Assess 3(5):273–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Intron (2003) MRPI van constructiestaal, INTRON-rapport R20020491, 29 October 2003

  • ISO 14044 (2006) Environmental management—life cycle assessmen—principles and framework. 1st edn. 2006-07-01 Geneva

  • ISO 6935-2 (2007) Steel for the reinforcement of concrete—part 2: ribbed bars

  • Kim S, Hwang T, Lee KM (1997) Allocation for cascade recycling system. Int J Life Cycle Assess 2:217–222

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leroy C, Thomas J-S, Avery N, Bollen J, Tikana L (2012) Tackling the recycling aspects in EN 15804. International Conference on LCA & Construction, July 10–12, Nantes, France

  • Li G, Nie Z, Zhou H, Di X, Liu Y, Zuo T (2002) An accumulative model for the comparative life cycle assessment case study: iron and steel process. Int J Life Cycle Assess 7:225–229

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maslehuddin M, Sharif AM, Shameem M, Ibrahim M, Barry MS (2003) Comparison of properties of steel slag and crushed limestone aggregate concretes. Constr Build Mater 17:105–112

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Monshi A, Asgarani MK (1999) Producing Portland cement from iron and steel slags and limestone. Cement Concrete Res 29:1373–1377

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • NF EN 10 020 (2000) Definition and classification of grades of steel, September, 2000. European Committee for standardization

  • NF EN 10080 (2005) Steel for the reinforcement of concrete—Weldable reinforcing steel—General, September, 2005. European Committee for standardization

  • Pacyna JM, Munthe J, Larjava K, Pacyna EG (2005) Chap 3: Mercury emissions from anthropogenic sources: estimates and measurements for Europe. In: Pirrone N, Mahaffey KR (eds) Dynamics of mercury pollution on regional and global scales. Atmospheric processes and human exposures around the world. Springer, Heidelberg

  • PE International (2011) EPD-BFS-2010111-E. Structural steel: sections and Plates

  • Pr new Wire (2012) http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/steel-industry-calls-for-shift-in-vehicle-regulations-131779808.html. Accessed 12 May 2012

  • Shih PH, Wu ZZ, Chiang H (2004) Characteristics of bricks made from waste steel slag. Waste Manage 24:1043–1047

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • US EPA (2004) U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory Reporting Year 2004 Public Data ReleaseToxic release inventory. US EPA, 228 pp

  • US EPA (2012) Available and emerging technologies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from iron and steel industry. US EPA, 78 pp

  • Worldsteel (2011) Worl Steel Association methodology report. Life cycle inventory study for steel products, July 2011, 41 pp

  • Worrell E, Price L, Neelis M, Galitsky C, Nan Z (2008) World best practice enery intensity values for selected industrial sectors. Tech. Report, Ernst Orlando Lawrence Berkley National laboratory, Feb. 2008, 51 pp

  • Wu S, Xue Y, Ye Q, Chen Y (2007) Utilization of steel slag as aggregates for stone mastic asphalt (SMA) mixtures. Build Environ 42:2580–2585

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study was carried out within the frame of DIOGEN group created by the French Association of Civil Engineers (AFGC) which is acknowledged. The authors would also like to thank the AFCAB for the help provided in the understanding of production processes and for the access of steel production data. FG and AF thank the Chair ParisTech-VINCI “Ecodesign of buildings and infrastructure” for the scientific and financial support to develop this French civil engineering database, and therefore this study. Inter-Carnot VITRES is acknowledged for financial support of RB.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Navier Laboratory, Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, Université Paris-Est, Marne la Vallée, France

    Fernanda Gomes, Raphael Brière & Adélaïde Feraille

  2. IFSTTAR, Materials Department, Université Paris-Est, Paris, France

    Raphael Brière & Guillaume Habert

  3. Institute for Construction and Infrastructure Management, ETH Zurich, Wolfgang Pauli Strasse 15, 8092, Zurich, Switzerland

    Guillaume Habert

  4. Division Environnement et Ingénierie du Cycle de Vie, Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment (CSTB), Université Paris-Est, 24 rue Joseph Fourier, 38400, St. Martin d’Hères, France

    Sébastien Lasvaux

  5. IFSTTAR, MAST, LUNAM University, 44341, Bouguenais, France

    Christian Tessier

Authors
  1. Fernanda Gomes
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Raphael Brière
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Adélaïde Feraille
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Guillaume Habert
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Sébastien Lasvaux
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Christian Tessier
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Guillaume Habert.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Martin Baitz

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gomes, F., Brière, R., Feraille, A. et al. Adaptation of environmental data to national and sectorial context: application for reinforcing steel sold on the French market. Int J Life Cycle Assess 18, 926–938 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-013-0558-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-013-0558-4

Keywords