Hybrid Life Cycle Assessment Structure

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Hybrid Life Cycle Assessment Structure for
Analyzing Oil Sands Processes Alex
Charpentier Heather L. MacLean Department of
Civil Engineering University of Toronto Toronto,
Ontario, Canada
Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
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Objectives

• Assess life cycle resource use and environmental
  release of current and developing oil sands
  technologies
• Estimate the potential energy use and
  environmental release improvements of new
  technologies in function of their cost
• Calculate indirect use release and their
  economic impact
• Provide industry/government with LCA results
  that could promote the large scale development of
  cost effective technologies
• ? Develop and use a standard modelling tool

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
3

• Process-based LCA models
• Life cycle inventory inputs outputs
• Models that include oil sands pathways
• GHGenius 3.5 Natural Resources Canada
• GREET 1.7 Argonne National Laboratory
• GREET is a Well-to-Wheel model for assessing the
  energy use and environmental metrics of
  alternative transportation fuels
• Selection of crude oils added in GREET1.7
  version
• - Conventional crude oil
• - Bitumen from in-situ projects
• - Synthetic crude oil (SCO) from upgraded
  bitumen from surface-mining and in-situ
  projects.
• Note AERI added SCO pathway in GREET 1.6

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
4

• EIO-LCA models
• UofT models
• Canada, bi-national US/Canada
• Up to 117 sectors in Canada
• Energy production highly aggregated
• CMU model
• US
• 491 sectors
• Energy production still highly aggregated
• CERI models Economic models
• Canada, Alberta, other provinces
• 19 sectors, energy oriented (disaggregated)

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
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Oil sands in Canadian EIO-LCA Input Supply
cost (1997 C) in sector Oil and Gas
extraction (2111 in NAICS)
Total Energy Use for oil sand extraction
Results not reliable based on input into one
sector ? Need decomposition of supply costs ?
Need disaggregation energy sectors ? Need new
data (1997)
(MJ/bbl)
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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
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Model comparison (Energy) Comparison of
bitumen/SCO energy use
(MJ/MJ)
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Note M U surface mining upgrading
Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
7

• Need for new approach
• Process-based model limits
• - black box data from single industry
• - boundaries limitations
• Good for general estimates in transportation
  models
• EIO models limits
• - energy sectors too aggregated (UofT)
• - economy defined in too little detail (CERI)
• - not adapted to product/process specificities
• With oil sands development forecast
• ? need reliable estimates of energy use env.
  impacts
• ? need to assess potential of developing
  technologies
• ? Need a hybrid approach

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
8
Hybrid approach Schematic definition of the
hybrid model
Direct GHG Energy
Indirect GHG Energy
Materials and

Regional and Oil Sands specific factors
EIO-LCA with energy sectors disaggregated
Life Cycle Inventory
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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
9

• Hybrid model requirements
• Life Cycle Inventory
• boundaries definition
• data collection

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
10

• Hybrid model requirements
• 2. EIO-LCA component
• Use bi-national US/Canada EIO-LCA model to
  account for trade
• Disaggregate key sectors, especially energy
  sector oil and gas extraction
• Modify the Canadian input-output model with
  regional data specific to Albertas economy
• e.g. electricity mix

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
11

• Hybrid model requirements
• 3. Intermediate module
• Correction factors applied before input into
  the EIO-LCA model
• Location-specific factors
• e.g. additional costs of non-residential
  construction in Fort McMurray
• Technology-specific factors
• e.g. additional costs of oil sands-specific
  machinery manufacturing

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
12

• Conclusions
• Modelling effort to estimate energy use and
  greenhouse gas emissions of oil sands
  development identify promising technologies
• Current EIO-LCA and process-based models give
  order of magnitude estimates
• Hybrid LCA will provide more precise and
  reliable results, especially in comparing current
  and developing oil sands technologies
• Other key environmental impacts such as water
  consumption, land use, and air pollutant
  emissions
• could be added into the model

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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB
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Hybrid approach
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Workshop on Life Cycle Assessment of Oil Sands
Technologies Nov 3rd, 2006 Calgary, AB