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EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) validation is one of the key stages of the P3 “environmental route”.
It is a stage that once again is ahead of its time. P3 was, in fact, the very first business in the air ducting sector to achieve this prestigious threshold.
P3ductal – other preinsulated: comparing expanding agents
The first step was to compare the environmental impacts of different expanding agents used in the various types of pre-insulated aluminum panels available in the market.
| type of expanding agent | acceptance of expanding agent | ODP | GWP |
|---|---|---|---|
| CFC – 11 | banned | 1 | 4600 |
| HCFC – 141B | banned | 0,11 | 700 |
| HFC – 245 | allowed* | 0 | 990 |
| HFC – 365 | allowed* | 0 | 910 |
| HC – pentano | allowed | 0 | 11 |
| Water – Hydrotec | allowed | 0 | 0 |
* Countries like Denmark, Switzerland and Austria have already prepared directives which take in to account the total ban of HFC. Other countries like Germany and France are ready to reduce the use of HFC’s.
P3ductal – other preinsulated: comparing panels
We proceeded with a larger study LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) comparing the environmental impacts (in terms of GWP100) of different types of available air ducts.
Taking into account the impact from an allowed Kg of equivalent CO2 point of view, released during the production of 1 m² of 20,5 mm thick sandwich panel (with the same density) and considering only expanding agents which are principally used in the production of expanded rigid polyurethane sandwich panels destined for the preinsulated aluminium duct market, we obtain (approximated values):
| type of expanding agent | weight of foam per m² of panel [kg/mq] | weight of expanding agent [%] | quantity of expanding agent [kg/mq] | GWP100 | kg of CO2 released for every m² of panel | m² of forest needed to compensate the emission of CO2* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water – Hydrotec | 1,05 | 1,3 | 0,013 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| HFC – 245 | 1,05 | 10 | 0,105 | 990 | 103,95 | 207,9 |
*2 m² of forest are needed in order to reabsorb 1 kg of produced CO2
The functional unit commonly used for zinc coated sheet metal is the kg, while panel ducts are sold by m². Taking into consideration 8/10 mm thick zinc coated sheet metal with its accessories for the construction of the duct, the weight/surface conversion factor is of roughly 8. Therefore, considering that a kg of zinc coated sheet metal has a GWP100 of 3 (source IISI EDP) if we apply the conversion factor, we obtain that the GWP100 contribution per m² is 24. If instead we consider the typical insulation for zinc coated sheet metal ducts (rubber), we can estimate a GWP100 of around 4,5 per m², calculated on the basis of the Boustead Model which estimates a contribution of 3 per kg of rubber. Said so, we obtain the following comparison table:
| material | u.m. | GWP100 per mq |
|---|---|---|
| P3ductal with Hydrotec technology (20,5 mm thick panel; 80 micron aluminium on both sides) | kg CO2 eq. | 12,5 |
| Zinc coated sheet metal duct without insulation | kg CO2 eq. | 24 |
| Zinc coated sheet metal duct with 30 mm* rubber insulation | kg CO2 eq. | 28,5 |
* the 30 mm of rubber guarantees the same thermal insulating performance offered by the 20,5 mm thick P3ductal panel
From LCA to EPD
The results seen from the LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) analysis of the P3ductal panel represent the starting point, from which to strive forward and achieve issue of the Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) and its validation.
In order to better explain this important certification, making it meaningful for the entire air ducting sector, P3 has defined PCR (Product Category Rules), which have in turn resulted in the preparation of a final document, drawn up in accordance with the standards established by standard ISO 14025, supervised by a specific supranational entity (International EPD System) and published on the website www.environdec.com.