Analyzing Changes in Supply Risks for Abiotic Resources over Time with the ESSENZ Method—A Data Update and Critical Reflection

Bach, Vanessa; Berger, Markus; Finogenova, Natalia; Finkbeiner, Matthias

doi:10.3390/resources8020083

Cited by 12 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…However, other aspects considered relevant in the resource assessment presented in the introduction [31,32] are not covered by any of the publications in this group. Thus, only two out of seven questions were addressed, however not using the recommended methods [31,32] ESSENZ [39], Ge- Overall supply risk and criticality aspects were addressed most often, followed by environmental aspects and material requirement. Thermodynamic aspects were covered in two publications [67,91].…”

Section: Resource Use Aspects Assessedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For each question, a method was recommended, in order to supply an application-dependent recommendation. A broad range of methods and indicators were introduced to assess the different aspects of resource use, reaching from, e.g., Abiotic Depletion Potential (ADP) [33,34], over Surplus Ore Potential (SOP) [35], LIME [36], Cumulative Exergy Extraction from the Natural Environment (CEENE) [37] to ESSENZ [38,39] and GeoPolRisk [40][41][42]. The methods consider physical depletion, resource quality, resource quality change and its consequences, (economic) externalities due to overexploitation of resources, thermodynamics and the mid-and short-term supply of mineral resources [31,32].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The methods consider physical depletion, resource quality, resource quality change and its consequences, (economic) externalities due to overexploitation of resources, thermodynamics and the mid-and short-term supply of mineral resources [31,32]. Some of these methods cover many aspects, e.g., the assessment of the mid-and short-term supply covers company concentration, concentration of production and reserves, primary material use, political stability, price, recycling rates, substitutability and furthermore aspects [39][40][41][42][43].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Resource Assessment of Renewable Energy Systems—A Review

2021

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The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by the energy transition may lead to trade-offs with other impacts on the environment, society, and economy. One challenge is resource use impacts due to increasing demand for high-tech metals and minerals. A review of the current state of the art resource assessment of energy systems was conducted to identify gaps in research and application. Publications covering complete energy systems and supplying a detailed resource assessment were the focus of the evaluation. Overall, 92 publications were identified and categorized by the type of system covered and the applied abiotic resource assessment methods. A total of 78 out of 92 publications covered sub-systems of renewable energy systems, and nine considered complete energy systems and conducted a detailed resource use assessment. Most of the publications in the group “complete energy system and detailed resource assessment” were found in grey literature. Several different aspects were covered to assess resource use. Thirty publications focused on similar aspects including criticality and supply risks, but technology-specific aspects are rarely assessed in the resource assessment of renewable energy systems. Few publications included sector coupling technologies, and among the publications most relevant to the aim of this paper one third did not conduct an indicator-driven assessment.

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Section: Resource Use Aspects Assessedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Resource Assessment of Renewable Energy Systems—A Review

2021

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“…Further, the remaining studies applied the EDIP method 2003 [39], the Geopolitical Supply Risk method [40][41][42], the Eco-Indicator 99 [43] and the ESSENZ method [44,45].…”

Section: Assessment Of Resource Use In Electric Vehicle Lcamentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Life Cycle Assessment Studies of Electric Vehicles with a Focus on Resource Use

et al. 2020

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Changes in the mobility patterns have evoked concerns about the future availability of certain raw materials necessary to produce alternative drivetrains and related batteries. The goal of this article is to determine if resource use aspects are adequately reflected within life cycle assessment (LCA) case studies of electric vehicles (EV). Overall, 103 LCA studies on electric vehicles from 2009 to 2018 are evaluated regarding their objective, scope, considered impact categories, and assessment methods—with a focus on resource depletion and criticality. The performed analysis shows that only 24 out of 76 EV LCA and 10 out of 27 battery LCA address the issue of resources. The majority of the studies apply one of these methods: CML-IA, ReCiPe, or Eco-Indicator 99. In most studies, EV show higher results for mineral and metal resource depletion than internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEV). The batteries analysis shows that lithium, manganese, copper, and nickel are responsible for the highest burdens. Only few publications approach resource criticality. Although this topic is a serious concern for future mobility, it is currently not comprehensively and consistently considered within LCA studies of electric vehicles. Criticality should be included in the analyses in order to derive results on the potential risks associated with certain resources.

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“…The applied approach for the criticality assessment is a screening approach only, meaning that the results should be interpreted as “potential criticality issues.” The dimensions and categories of ESSENZ are shown in Table 1 . For details, please see the original publications [ 39 , 40 ] and supplementary information.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Criticality Assessment of the Life Cycle of Passenger Vehicles Produced in China

et al. 2021

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China is globally the largest and a rapidly growing market for electric vehicles. The aim of the paper is to determine challenges related to criticality and environmental impacts of battery electric vehicles and internal combustion engine vehicles, focusing not only on a global but also the Chinese perspective, applying the ESSENZ method, which covers a unique approach to determine criticality aspects as well as integrating life cycle assessment results. Real industry data for vehicles and batteries produced in China was collected. Further, for the criticality assessment, Chinese import patterns are analyzed. The results show that the battery electric vehicle has similar and partly increased environmental impacts compared with the internal combustion engine vehicle. For both, the vehicle cycle contributes to a large proportion in all the environmental impact categories except for global warming. Further, battery electric vehicles show a higher criticality than internal combustion engine vehicles, with tantalum, lithium, and cobalt playing essential roles. In addition, the Chinese-specific results show a lower criticality compared to the global assessment for the considered categories trade barriers and political stability, while again tantalum crude oil and cobalt have high potential supply disruptions. Concluding, battery electric vehicles still face challenges regarding their environmental as well as criticality performance from the whole supply chain both in China and worldwide. One reason is the replacement of the lithium-ion power battery. By enhancing its quality and establishing battery recycling, the impacts of battery electric vehicle would decrease.

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Analyzing Changes in Supply Risks for Abiotic Resources over Time with the ESSENZ Method—A Data Update and Critical Reflection

Cited by 12 publications

References 30 publications

Resource Assessment of Renewable Energy Systems—A Review

Resource Assessment of Renewable Energy Systems—A Review

A Review of Life Cycle Assessment Studies of Electric Vehicles with a Focus on Resource Use

Criticality Assessment of the Life Cycle of Passenger Vehicles Produced in China

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