EVALUATING THE ENERGY USAGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF A SAND CASTING USING LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT
Keywords:
Life cycle assessment, Inventory characterization, Eco-Indicator 99(E)Abstract
Metal casting is a primary manufacturing process that produces parts of intricate shapes. More than 90% of these castings are produced by sand casting process; however this process is energy intensive and associated with high environmental impacts. In this work, Life cycle Assessment (LCA) tool is employed to quantitatively evaluate and compare the energy usage and its environmental impacts by a cast iron component of 1 kg over the complete lifecycle using Eco-indicator-99 methodology. The system boundary includes all the phases, extraction, manufacturing, use and disposal phase. The energy data for sub-processes: core and mould making, mould handling, melting and pouring, fettling, finishing operations is obtained from foundries. The comparison is done on the basis of use of 25% to 100% scrap proportions. The results reveal that shifting to 100% scrap use, the energy usage and environmental impacts are drastically reduced.
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