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GCSE Chemistry · key term
An assessment of the resource use and environmental impacts associated with a material or product from obtaining raw materials through to its end-of-life disposal.
Used by AQA, Edexcel and OCR
Specification 4.10.2.1 · Paper 2
An assessment of the environmental impact of a product across the stages of its life, from obtaining raw materials to its end-of-life treatment.
Revise: Life Cycle AssessmentsA life cycle assessment, usually shortened to LCA, examines these impacts across the product's life. It helps avoid judging a product from just one visible feature, such as its packaging or what happens when it is thrown away.
Specification 4.11, 4.12 · Paper 1
A consideration of a product’s effects on the environment from obtaining its raw materials through to its disposal.
Revise: Life-Cycle AssessmentA life-cycle assessment (LCA) considers those effects across four stages: obtaining raw materials, manufacturing the product, using it and disposing of it. Looking at the whole life helps prevent one stage from hiding effects elsewhere.
A study of a product’s environmental effects from obtaining its raw materials through manufacture and use to its eventual disposal.
Specification C6.1k, C6.1l · Paper 2 (Foundation), Paper 4 (Higher)
An assessment of the resources used and environmental impacts caused throughout a material’s or product’s life, from raw materials to end-of-life treatment.
Revise: Life-Cycle Assessment PrinciplesA life-cycle assessment (LCA) follows a material or product through its whole life. At each stage, it considers the resources used—such as raw materials, water and energy—and the impact on the environment, such as pollution or waste. This helps reveal impacts that would be missed by looking only at the finished product.
Paper 1 (Foundation), Paper 2 (Foundation), Paper 3 (Higher), Paper 4 (Higher)
A study of the environmental impacts associated with making, using and disposing of a material or product throughout its life.
Revise: Life-cycle assessment principlesA life-cycle assessment, or LCA, examines the environmental impact of this whole sequence—often described as going from “cradle to grave”.
An assessment of the environmental impacts associated with making, using and disposing of a product across its life.
When listing the stages of an LCA, include transport and distribution at every relevant stage rather than treating transport as a separate final stage only.
If an LCA supports an advertising claim, check whether stages, impacts or unfavourable data have been omitted.
If asked to describe an LCA, organise the answer by life-cycle stage and consider water, energy, other resources, waste and environmental effects at each stage.
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