NWI-MM020A
Environmental Life Cycle Assessment
Course infoSchedule
Course moduleNWI-MM020A
Credits (ECTS)3
CategoryMA (Master)
Language of instructionEnglish
Offered byRadboud University; Faculty of Science; BioWetenschappen;
Lecturer(s)
Coordinator
dr. R. van Zelm
Other course modules lecturer
Lecturer
dr. R. van Zelm
Other course modules lecturer
Contactperson for the course
dr. R. van Zelm
Other course modules lecturer
Examiner
dr. R. van Zelm
Other course modules lecturer
Academic year2019
Period
KW2  (04/11/2019 to 02/02/2020)
Starting block
KW2
Course mode
full-time
Remarks-
Registration using OSIRISYes
Course open to students from other facultiesYes
Pre-registrationNo
Waiting listNo
Placement procedure-
Aims
The learning objectives represent the endpoints for the course and are formulated as main competences, and sub-competences:
Main competences
  • You understand the concepts and methods that are used to assess the life cycle assessment of products and services.
  • You are able to select and interpret relevant data from scientific research and to use these data to quantify the environmental pressure of human activities.
Sub-competences
  1. You have insight in the structure of environmental life cycle assessment and are able to identify its strong and weak points
  2. You are able to conceptually develop and interpret a life-cycle inventory model
  3. You are able to analyse an environmental problem via a cause-effect chain and quantify the impacts
  4. You are able to identify, quantify, and analyse uncertainties in life cycle impact assessment models.
  5. You are able to interpret the results of life cycle assessment methods
Content
Sustainable production and consumption is the use of goods and services, while minimizing the use of natural resources, toxic materials and emissions of waste and pollutants over the life cycle. The challenge is to improve the overall environmental performance of products throughout their life-cycle, to boost the demand for better products and production technologies and to help consumers in making informed choices. All products cause environmental degradation in some way, whether from their manufacturing, use or disposal. The life-cycle of a product covers all the areas from the extraction of natural resources, through their design, manufacture, assembly, marketing, distribution, sale and use to their eventual disposal as waste.
The environmental assessment of production and consumption of products and services can be done applying the life cycle assessment methodology. This course will provide insights into this methodology, from inventory and impact assessment modeling, to uncertainty assessment and finally a full case study will be performed.
Level

Presumed foreknowledge

Test information
The course is concluded with a written closed book exam, which will be graded with a mark. All course components and learning materials are part of the examination material, thus including the student manual, reader, self-tuition assignments, working group assignments, (guest) lectures and tutorials. The exam focuses on insight obtained in the subject matter and appliance of knowledge and skills. It is tested whether the student achieved the learning objectives of the different course components. A mark of at least 5.5 for the written exam is required to pass the course.In addition, there will be a project work that will be graded and counts for part of the final grade. A mark of at least 5.5 for this work is required to pass the course.
Specifics

Topics
• Introduction in the environmental life cycle assessment methodology
• Life cycle inventory modeling
• System boundaries, process-based and input-output life cycle inventory approaches, matrix calculations
• Life cycle impact assessment
• Methods to address environmental impacts of products/technologies/etc., i.e. energy/exergy analysis, footprinting (ecological, carbon, water),
• Uncertainty
• Framework to address uncertainty (parameter, model, and scenario) and variability in LCA. Monte Carlo analysis to quantify uncertainty for a simple LCA system.
• Case study
• Application in an LCA case study, use of databases, methods and software

Test information
The course is concluded with a written closed book exam, which will be graded with a mark. All course components and learning materials are part of the examination material, thus including the student manual, reader, self-tuition assignments, working group assignments, (guest) lectures and tutorials. The exam focuses on insight obtained in the subject matter and appliance of knowledge and skills. It is tested whether the student achieved the learning objectives of the different course components.
A mark of at least 5.5 for the written exam is required to pass the course.In addition, there will be a project work that will be graded and counts for part of the final grade. A mark of at least 5.5 for this work is required to pass the course.

Required materials
Professional texts
Manual can be downloaded from Brightspace, (links to) texts and other necessary reading can also be downloaded from Brightspace.

Instructional modes
Course
Attendance MandatoryYes

Lecture
Attendance MandatoryYes

Presentation
Attendance MandatoryYes

Project
Attendance MandatoryYes

Tutorial
Attendance MandatoryYes

Tests
Exam
Test weight1
Test typeDigital exam with CIRRUS
OpportunitiesBlock KW2, Block KW4

Report
Test weight1
Test typeReport
OpportunitiesBlock KW2