Life cycle assessment of a road safety product made with virgin and recycled HDPE

Carla L. Simões; Susana M. Xará; C. A. Bernardo

doi:10.1177/0734242X10379146

Life cycle assessment of a road safety product made with virgin and recycled HDPE

Carla L. Simões, Susana M. Xará, C. A. Bernardo

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The present study aims at evaluating the potential environmental impact of using recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) in the production of an anti-glare lamella (AGL), a road safety device currently manufactured from virgin (not recycled) polymer. The impact was evaluated using the life cycle assessment (LCA) technique and comparing two alternative systems: current AGL, manufactured from virgin HDPE, and optional AGL, made with recycled HDPE obtained from post-consumer packages. The AGL manufacturing phase was found to be responsible for most of the impacts in both systems, with the production of the raw material being the largest contributor for that phase. The present study makes a contribution to the problem of developing value-added products made from post-consumer polymeric recyclates.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	414-422
Number of pages	9
Journal	Waste Management and Research
Volume	29
Issue number	4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X10379146
Publication status	Published - Apr 2011

Keywords

Anti-glare device
Life cycle assessment
Plastics packaging
Plastics waste
Recycling
Road safety device

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1177/0734242X10379146

Cite this

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abstract = "The present study aims at evaluating the potential environmental impact of using recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) in the production of an anti-glare lamella (AGL), a road safety device currently manufactured from virgin (not recycled) polymer. The impact was evaluated using the life cycle assessment (LCA) technique and comparing two alternative systems: current AGL, manufactured from virgin HDPE, and optional AGL, made with recycled HDPE obtained from post-consumer packages. The AGL manufacturing phase was found to be responsible for most of the impacts in both systems, with the production of the raw material being the largest contributor for that phase. The present study makes a contribution to the problem of developing value-added products made from post-consumer polymeric recyclates.",

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Life cycle assessment of a road safety product made with virgin and recycled HDPE

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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