Authors
Arcos, Raul; Berzosa, Joan; Espí, José Jorge; Parareda, Sergi; Clarens, Frederic; Larsson, Jan; Sieurin, Henrik
Abstract
Warmlight project aims at enabling weight-optimized components with complex geometries. The components are manufactured with a thermo-mechanical forming process (warm forming) and, as a result, the weight reduction of some parts made from AHSS is estimated at 20%. The purpose of the study is to perform a complete and detailed LCA to demonstrate that the solutions provided by the project have a better environmental profile while maintaining the technical characteristics of the parts. To evaluate the environmental impacts, it is necessary to consider the entire life cycle. Therefore, the study has been divided into 3 phases: steel production, parts production, and use phase. Primary data is the main source of information, gathered via questionnaires distributed through the Consortia. From this, VECTO simulation tool has been used for determining the evolution of CO2 and fuel consumption thanks to Warmlight parts. Obtained values feed the SimaPro project. On one hand, the implementation of Warmlight parts allows the reduction of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by 0.15% during the use phase. On the other hand, benefits during production phase are motivated by less steel needed. Despite warm forming is expected to have slightly higher impacts than cold forming, it is foreseen to be counteracted by benefits from use and production phases. The fact of reducing the mass of the vehicle allows to increase the load capacity, which means higher efficiency index per transport. This implies that, at European level, that part of the long-haul transport could be reduced, while same quantity of cargo is transported.