Environmental Assessment Of Fires In Products Using The Fire-lca Model

Abstract

The environmental impact of products has been increasingly discussed in recent years. In response to questions of the environmental appropriateness of, for example, technologies used to attain a high level of fire safety, a model has been developed to quantify the emissions from fires and include this into a holistic treatment of the environmental impact of a product from the cradle to the grave. This model is based on Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology but represents a significant improvement over traditional LCA models that cannot include accidents such as fires. The Fire-LCA model has been tested in three case studies: TV, cables, and furniture. This article presents the model in detail, in particular focusing on the difference between the Fire-LCA model and traditional LCA models, using examples from the case studies.

Assessment of risks and benefits in the use of flame retardants in upholstered furniture in continental Europe

“…In this case, it should be completed by a small open-flame scenario to reproduce the most common dwelling fire ignition scenario. The use of flame retardants to achieve a high fire safety level has been proved by SP studies [6][7][8]. In this case, the problem has to do with political acceptance of a common and harmonized regulation on the highest fire scenarios.…”

“…Accidental fires are not considered in terms of risk of smoke toxicity, which is what this paper aims at evaluating, considering only the toxic gases produced from an upholstered furniture fire. The effect of flame retardants on decreasing the risk of accidental fires was previously studied and presented in SP Sweden life cycle analysis [6][7][8]. Many countries use EN standards like EN 1021 and EN 597 to evaluate the ignitability of furniture by cigarette or match.…”

“…SP studied a large number of goods, including TV, cable and furniture [6][7][8]. Studies the total emission of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.…”

Environmental impact of fire

“…The methodology was developed specifically to identify the stages in the products lifecycle where a fire will occur (Simonson et al 2005). The Fire-LCA process is primarily the same process as the typical LCA process with the difference being that it includes modules to account for accidents, like fires.…”

Review: The Use of Bench-Scale Tests to Determine Toxic Organic Compounds in Fire Effluents and to Subsequently Estimate Their Impact on the Environment

“…Assuming that a certain number of fire accidents are unavoidable in any society, it is important to take fires into consideration when defining the environmental impacts from products. Therefore, a Fire-LCA model was developed by SP in Sweden [165][166][167]. Such a model includes modules to account for accidents, like fires, but also recognizes the extent of the damaged area, the fire-fighting efforts and the replacement of damaged materials.…”