Wire and Cable Insulation and Jacketing: Life-Cycle Assessments for Selected Applications

摘要

This report presents comparative environmental life-cycle assessment (LCA) results, pursuant to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14040, for resin systems with alternative heat stabilizer formulations used in Category 6, riser-rated communication cable (CMR); Category 6, plenumrated communication cable (CMP); and non-metallic-sheathed low-voltage cable (NM-B). Based on primary and secondary data that span the wire and cable life-cycle stages from upstream material extraction and processing to the product end-of-life (EOL), this report presents impact results for 14 environmental and human health categories. Monte Carlo-based uncertainty analyses, which attempt to model the major sources of uncertainty in the wire and cable life cycle, are presented, along with sensitivity analyses that investigate the proportion of impact category uncertainty attributable to each source.