Title: Environmental impact of ship hull repair

Authors: Stavros Drakopoulos, Konstantinos Salonitis, George Tsoukantas, George Chryssolouris

Addresses: Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, University of Patras, Patras 26110, Greece. ' Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, University of Patras, Patras 26110, Greece. ' Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, University of Patras, Patras 26110, Greece. ' Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics, University of Patras, Patras 26110, Greece

Abstract: This study presents an environmental analysis of a number of cutting and joining processes taking place during the ship hull repair. These processes include oxy-acetylene cutting, plasma arc cutting, shielded metal arc welding, flux core arc welding and submerged arc welding. The processes are modelled in terms of their environmental impact. The environmental-related inputs and outputs of each process are elaborated with a life cycle assessment tool. The impact on various aspects, such as human health, resource depletion etc., is assessed by the |environmental priority strategy (EPS)| and the |Eco-Indicator 99| impact assessment methods. Based on the results, a benchmarking of the cutting and welding processes is performed, in terms of their environmental impact.

Keywords: environmental impact assessment; ship hull repair; oxy-acetylene cutting; plasma arc cutting; shielded metal arc welding; flux core arc welding; submerged arc welding; life cycle assessment; LCA; human health; resource depletion; sustainable manufacturing; sustainability.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSM.2009.023980

International Journal of Sustainable Manufacturing, 2009 Vol.1 No.3, pp.361 - 374

Published online: 22 Mar 2009 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article