Life Cycle Assessment via Software Tools: Result Analysis in a Bicycle Study

There is a current need for enhancing the use of conventional bicycles in commuting since their life-cycle emissions are significantly lower than those of other means of transport. Despite several Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) have been performed to demonstrate the sustainability of bikes; the used method, the software employed, the datasets and the characterisation factors applied in the modelling process should be addressed in order to determine how these conditions can change the impact results of this vehicle. In this sense, the aim of this study was to quantify the life-cycle emissions from a conventional bike, performing LCA by means of two different technological approaches: the product system modeller of OpenLCA and the module for sustainable design of SolidWorks; in order to explore the specific parameters affecting the inventories, the results and the environmental loads of the processes related to the selected vehicle. Our analysis showed that the Global Warming Potential (GWP) obtained from SolidWorks is 12.69% higher than that from OpenLCA. This research concludes that the impacts related to the energy used in the extraction of raw materials, the types of supply acquired for production and the treatment of the used bicycle can influence the results of the Life Cycle Assessments performed.