Flame Retardants For PCBs Conducted by School of Chemical and - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Carbon Footprint Study of Flame Retardants For PCB’s

Conducted by School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA In collaboration with BSEF

Policy Context

• On 17 July 2012, the European Commission published an harmonised

methodology for the calculation of Product Environmental Footprints (PEF)

• These guidelines were developed by DG Environment together with the

European Commission's Joint Research Centre

• The adoption of the policy that applies the methodology it is scheduled either for

December 2012 or early 2013

BSEF Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) project

Project Outline:

• Carbon Footprint Study of Flame Retardants For Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs)
• Conducted by School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute
• f Technology
• Developed engineering based LCA analysis of blocks that can be assembled into

different supply chains. Created data for each block of the inventories of mass, energy and emissions based on transparent engineering design principles of representative processes

Objective:

• To calculate the impact that the selection of different flame retardant chemistries

have on chemical products and on the use in PCBs as carbon footprints.

• Phase I: calculate the carbon footprint of two representative flame retardants,

TBBPA and DOPO

• Phase II: Calculate the carbon footprints of different copolymer systems

Gate –to-Gate Block Chemical Inputs Specific Chemical/Product Output

Approach: Modular Engineering Based LCI

Develop engineering based analysis of blocks that can be assembled into different supply chains . Create data for each block of the inventories of mass, energy and emissions based on transparent engineering design principles for representative processes. “Cradle-to-Gate” All the activities necessary to convert raw materials through to final chemical production, does not include packaging, use, and end-of-life stages. Composed of Gate-to-Gate blocks. “Cradle-to-Gate Module” A cradle-to-gate calculation for a key intermediate chemical in a complex production process.

Average or Representative?

Some LCI data generated through industrial surveys followed by averaging of results.

Energy Use Throughput Representative LCI Data

Pick system/process technologies that industry experts can agree are representative of their activity.

Average LCI Data

Functional Unit Inputs Other Functional Units Emissions

What is representative?

• Industrial literature and patents on process technology research to narrow the

process chemistry and unit operations.

• Representative conversion and separation processes chosen.
• Open databases on thermodynamic properties to determine necessary values

for energy consumption and mass flows.

• Chemical engineering design methodology for unit operations to estimate

energy consumption and possible energy recovery.

• Industry review of representative process flow and mass and energy balances.
• Divergent process flows captured in different GTG blocks, not averaged.
• Largely nonproprietary information allows sharing with stakeholders

To calculate the impact that the selection of different flame retardant chemistries have on chemical products and on use in PCBs as carbon footprints.

• Calculate the carbon foot print of two representative flame retardants
• TBBPA (Bromine based chemistry)
• DOPO (Phosphorus based chemistry)
• Calculate the carbon foot prints of TBBPA based chemistry flame

retardants.

• Bromine from Dead Sea
• Bromine from Brine Well
• Process Solvents (Dichloromethane, Methanol, Ethanol)
• Calculate the carbon foot prints of prepreg layer product based on flame retardant

chemistry, no fillers (such as ATH) are included.

• Calculate the carbon foot prints of different copolymer systems
• DGEBA + Epichlorohydrin
• Phenol formaldehyde + Epichlorohydrin

Study Goals

Life Cycle Inventory Scope

Glass Fiber Polymer Resin Prepreg

Impregnation & Partial Cure To Layup To Core Manufacturing Core Manufacturing

Copper Foil + Etch Foil Layer Prepreg Core Layer

Copper component of life cycle is not influenced by flame retardant choice. Polymer component of life cycle depends on flame retardant

Epoxy Glass Prepreg, gtg 3% DGEBA and TBBPA Copolymer, gtg 0% BISPHENOL A DIGLYCIDYL ETHER, ctg 26% Tetrabromobisphenol A, ctg 8% dicyandiamide, ctg 3% PVA Coated Eglass, ctg 60%

% Contribution of Materials and Manufacturing GTG to TBBPA based prepreg

53.1 MJ/kg TBBPA Epoxy Glass Prepreg

Novolac DOPO Epoxy Prepreg, gtg 3% PNE and DOPO Copolymer, gtg 1% cradle-to-gate data 0% PVA Coated Eglass, ctg 60% dicyandiamide, ctg 3% DOPO, ctg 3% phenol Novolac epoxy, ctg 30%

% Contribution of Materials and Manufacturing GTG to DOPO based prepreg

52.7 MJ/kg DOPO prepreg

Key Findings

• The carbon footprint of DOPO is significantly affected by the allocation

scheme used for the Phosphorus.

• Using mass allocation, the carbon foot print of DOPO is comparable to that
• f TBBPA in the worse case of producing TBBPA, and higher by 30% in the

best case of TBBPA production. Production Route Carbon Footprint kge CO2/ kg TBBPA Dead Sea DCM 1.8 TBBPA Brine Well Ethanol 2.4 DOPO Mass Allocation to P 2.4 DOPO Allocation to P and CO 2.9