Hello everyone,
My process consists of a production phase and a subsequent use phase.
The production phase is quite short, lasting only a few weeks. During this time, methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) are emitted into the atmosphere.
Following this, there's a use phase estimated to last 40 years. During this period, we assume a constant annual CO2 emission.
My questions regarding OpenLCA are:
- How exactly does OpenLCA calculate the total climate change impact for such a scenario?
- How can I implement the timeline of short production and the long unse phase in the production system?
- Are all emissions (from both production and use phases) normalized to a specific reference date? Can I define such reference date?
- Are all emissions treated as "overnight" emissions (i.e., as one-time, instantaneous releases) and then simply summed up?
- It's expected that a portion of the methane from the production phase will have already decomposed or transformed by the end of the 40-year use phase. Does OpenLCA account for this temporal aspect of methane decomposition when calculating the total impact on climate change, or are the GWP values of the gases considered statically?
Thanks for your help and best regards!
