Francis Cordero, Francis A.

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    Streamlined life cycle assessment of glass bottle end of life strategies in Puerto Rico
    (2021-05-17) Francis Cordero, Francis A.; Baigés Valentín, Iván J.; College of Engineering; Lugo Ortiz, José E.; Quintero Aguiló, Pedro O.; Department of Mechanical Engineering; Carlo Colón, Héctor J.
    In the following study, a streamlined life cycle assessment (SLCA) of different end-of-life strategies for repurposing or recycling glass bottles is modelled to compare the environmental impact of each strategy. This SLCA was restricted to the transportation of glass bottles, the filling process and use phase, and finally the disposal stage such as landfill, sterilization process, and cullet production for aggregate. Also includes the amount of material (glass bottle mass) used, energy and water consumption of each process modelled. Challenges in data collection were found but the research done in collecting data from literature, field visits and questionnaires lays the foundation to conduct a modelling of the SLCA using GaBi Software. The assessment was carried out according to TRACI v.2 to calculate the emissions and their impact categories values. In conclusion, the results of this SLCA contributes not only on clearing the picture of the environmental impact caused by the lack of recycling and solid waste management strategies but to organize the data collected not found anywhere else. This way it facilitates the decision-making process for modifying or implementing a new strategy for the end of life of glass bottles.