MAE 124/ESYS 103:
Reading on Life Cycle Assessment
Term paper 2 will focus on applying life cycle assessment to global
warming mitigation strategies. There's an enormous body of
literature on life cycle assessment that provides good examples of how
to apply the methodology. To familiarize yourself with the
process, choose two of the
following articles to read.
digital music versus CDs:
ketchup:
milk:
office
buildings:
aluminum:
houses in New Zealand:
A more general discussion of Life Cycle Assessment is available from
the EPA, and you'll find numerous links to other resources:
Question from a student: Are we reading the life cycle
assessment samples for the information in them, or just to get an idea of
how to do them? I am worried for the final I cannot remember all of the
facts in each assessment.
One answer: The week 6 readings are intended to show you what a life cycle assessment does, so that you will have an idea what we'd like you to do for your second paper.
You do not need to remember all of the facts in a life cycle assessment, but you should have a clear understanding of the sequence, so that if we asked an exam question about how to conduct life cycle assessment for another product, you'd be able to think on your feet. The final exam will be open note, like the midterm, so if you take notes on your reading, you'll have information available to help you out.