Product carbon footprint evaluation method

Abstract

The method for evaluating the carbon footprint of the product comprises the following steps of: setting product basic data of the product; obtaining a product category rule corresponding to the product; providing an input interface for a user to set activity data of each evaluation item of each life cycle stage; providing a distribution principle setting module for a user to set a distribution proportion of each evaluation item for the product; obtaining an emission coefficient of a greenhouse gas corresponding to each evaluation item from an emission coefficient database; calculating a discharge amount of the greenhouse gas of each evaluation item, calculating a stage discharge amount of the greenhouse gas of each life cycle stage, and calculating a total discharge amount of the greenhouse gas of the product.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a product carbon footprint and in particular to a product carbon footprint assessment method. Background Art

[0002] Greenhouse gases have become one of the major factors affecting global climate change. For the purpose of sustainability and environmental protection, organizations (or enterprises) need to have a deep understanding of their greenhouse gas emissions, especially the carbon emissions of the products (including goods or services) produced by the organization. This helps to understand the carbon emissions generated during the product's life cycle. Therefore, the assessment of product carbon footprint has become an important matter that many organizations must implement.

[0003] Although there are regulations for the inventory of product carbon footprint, the inventory regulations have many steps, and the organization's inventory personnel need to have a deep understanding of the inventory steps. For those who are not familiar with the inventory steps, they usually have no idea where to start, resulting in inefficient product carbon footprint inventory and a waste of time and manpower costs. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a product carbon footprint assessment method, which can improve the efficiency of product carbon footprint assessment.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a product carbon footprint assessment method, which is implemented by a product carbon footprint assessment system. The product carbon footprint assessment method comprises the following steps:

[0006] A. Setting a product basic data of a product, wherein the product basic data includes a product life cycle type;

[0007] B. obtaining a product category rule corresponding to the product, the product category rule having a plurality of evaluation items for each of a plurality of life cycle stages corresponding to the product life cycle type;

[0008] C. providing an input interface for a user to set an activity data of each evaluation item in each life cycle stage;

[0009] D. Providing an allocation principle setting module, wherein the allocation principle setting module allows the user to set an allocation ratio of each evaluation item to be used for the product;

[0010] E. obtaining an emission coefficient of a greenhouse gas corresponding to at least a part of each of the plurality of assessment items from an emission coefficient database; and

[0011] F. Calculate the greenhouse gas emissions of each assessment item based on the activity data, the allocation ratio and the emission coefficient at each life cycle stage, calculate the stage emissions of the greenhouse gases at each life cycle stage, and calculate the total greenhouse gas emissions of the product.

[0012] The effect of the present invention is that it can guide and assist users in calculating the greenhouse gas emissions of a product during its life cycle, thereby improving the efficiency of users in evaluating the carbon footprint of the product. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 This is a connection diagram of a product carbon footprint assessment system according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a flow chart of a product carbon footprint assessment method according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram, which discloses an input interface.

[0016] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram, which discloses an allocation principle setting module.

[0017] Figure 5 This is a flow chart of a product carbon footprint assessment method according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Description of reference numerals:

[0019] 1: Greenhouse gas inventory system

[0020] 10: Server

[0021] 20: Database

[0022] 22: Emission factor database

[0023] 24: Product Category Rules Database

[0024] 26: Organize a carbon inventory project database

[0025] 30: Electronic devices

[0026] 40: Network

[0027] 50: Input interface

[0028] 60: Allocation principle setting module

[0029] 62: Parameter setting area

[0030] 64: Calculation formula setting area

[0031] 66: Setting interface

[0032] 662: Operand Image

[0033] 664: Operator Image

[0034] 666: Digital Image

[0035] 668: Calculation expression display area

[0036] S11~S18, S11a: Steps DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] In order to more clearly illustrate the present invention, preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 As shown, a product carbon footprint assessment system 1 of a first preferred embodiment of the present invention is used to implement the product carbon footprint assessment method of this embodiment. The product carbon footprint assessment method is used to assess the carbon footprint of a product, that is, to assess the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions of the product during its life cycle. The total amount of emissions is carbon dioxide CO2 equivalent. The product can be a commodity or a service.

[0038] The product carbon footprint assessment system 1 includes a server 10 and a database 20. The server 10 is used to execute a product carbon footprint check program and is connected to the database 20. The server 10 can be connected to multiple electronic devices 30 via a network 40. The network 40 can be, for example, the Internet or a local area network. For ease of explanation, in this embodiment, an electronic device 30 is taken as an example. The electronic device 30 can be, for example, a computer, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, or other devices that can be connected to the network. The electronic device 30 is operated by a user of the organization (or enterprise) that produces the product. The server 10 and the database 20 can be located on the same host, or they can be located on different hosts and connected through the network 40.

[0039] The database 20 includes an emission coefficient database 22 , a product category rules (PCR) database 24 , and an organization carbon inventory project database 26 .

[0040] The emission coefficient database 22 stores an emission coefficient of greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide CO2) of multiple predetermined evaluation items, and the multiple predetermined evaluation items may include various raw materials, various fuel oils, various fuel gases, various electricity, etc.

[0041] The product category rule database 24 stores a plurality of predetermined product category rules, each of which corresponds to a plurality of predetermined product names. Each of the predetermined product category rules has a plurality of evaluation items for each of the plurality of life cycle stages of a product life cycle type corresponding to each of the predetermined products, that is, there are evaluation items to be evaluated at each life cycle stage.

[0042] The product life cycle type may be, for example, B2B (Business-to-Business), B2C (Business-to-Consumer), or service type. The multiple life cycle stages of the B2B type are respectively the raw material stage, the manufacturing stage, and the in-plant waste stage. The multiple life cycle stages of the B2C type are respectively the raw material stage, the manufacturing stage, the in-plant waste stage, the distribution and sales stage, the use stage, and the waste stage. The multiple life cycle stages of the service type are respectively the raw material acquisition stage, the service stage, and the waste treatment stage.

[0043] The organization carbon inventory project database 26 is used to store a greenhouse gas inventory of an organization that produces the product, and the greenhouse gas inventory includes activity data of each of multiple emission sources (such as direct greenhouse gas emission sources and energy indirect emission sources). The multiple emission sources are, for example, diesel, gasoline, natural gas, purchased electricity, purchased steam, purchased heat, etc.

[0044] The product carbon footprint assessment method of this embodiment can be executed by the product carbon footprint assessment system 1, including the following steps: Figure 2 Steps shown.

[0045] Step S11: setting basic product data of a product, wherein the basic product data includes a product life cycle type.

[0046] In this embodiment, the user can operate the electronic device 30 to connect to the server 10, and the server 10 provides a product setting interface, which is transmitted to a screen display of the electronic device 30. The user can set the basic product data of the product in the product setting interface through the electronic device 30, and the basic product data may also include a product name, a production area, or other data related to the product, such as the inventory year.

[0047] Step S12: obtaining a product category rule corresponding to the product, wherein the product category rule has a plurality of evaluation items corresponding to each of a plurality of life cycle stages of the product life cycle type.

[0048] In this embodiment, the server 10 selects one of the plurality of predetermined product category rules corresponding to the product in the product category rule database 24 to form the product category rule. For example, the server 10 searches the product category rule database 24 for a predetermined product name that matches the product name based on the product name of the product basic data in step S11, and selects the predetermined product category rule corresponding to the predetermined product name that matches the predetermined product name to form the product category rule.

[0049] Of course, the user may also upload a product category rule to the server 10 via the electronic device 30 , and the server 10 may obtain the product category rule uploaded by the user.

[0050] Step S13: providing an input interface for a user to set activity data of each of the evaluation items in each of the life cycle stages.

[0051] Please refer to Figure 3 In this embodiment, the server 10 transmits the input interface 50 to the screen display of the electronic device 30. The user can set the evaluation items and activity data of each life cycle stage in the input interface 50 through the electronic device 30. For example, Figure 3 In the evaluation, the "plastic pellets" of the direct raw materials in the raw material stage is an evaluation item. The user enters the name of the raw materials used to make the product, activity data, units and other data to form an evaluation item and its activity data.

[0052] In this embodiment, step S13 further includes the server 10 connecting to the organization carbon inventory project database 26 to obtain the greenhouse gas inventory list of the organization that produces the product, and obtaining the activity data of at least one of the assessment items from the greenhouse gas inventory list to be imported into the input interface. For example, the multiple assessment items in the manufacturing stage may be, for example, multiple emission sources for manufacturing the product, such as direct greenhouse gas emission sources and energy indirect emission sources. Since the greenhouse gas inventory list of the organization already includes the activity data of each of the multiple emission sources, in this step, the activity data of at least one emission source may be obtained from the greenhouse gas inventory list as the activity data of at least one of the assessment items. Therefore, the user does not need to re-check the activity data of the assessment items of the emission sources, which can improve the efficiency of product carbon footprint assessment.

[0053] Step S14: providing an allocation principle setting module, wherein the allocation principle setting module allows a user to set an allocation ratio of each of the evaluation items to be used for the product.

[0054] Please refer to Figure 4 In this embodiment, the server 10 generates the allocation principle setting module 60, the user connects to the server 10 through the electronic device 30, and the allocation principle setting module 60 is displayed on the screen of the electronic device 30. The allocation principle setting module 60 includes a parameter setting area 62 and an operation formula setting area 64. The parameter setting area 62 is used to set a plurality of allocation parameters, and the operation formula setting area 64 is used to set an operation formula for calculating the allocation ratio of each of the evaluation items according to one or more of the plurality of allocation parameters, and the server 10 calculates the allocation ratio according to the value of the allocation parameter.

[0055] For example, the user can set the allocation parameter to "full plant output" and its value to "100000", the allocation parameter to "target product output" and its value to "500", and the calculation formula setting area 64 can set the calculation formula "target product output / full plant output / target product output" for the evaluation item (paint). The server 10 calculates the allocation ratio according to the calculation formula, i.e., 500 / 100000 / 500, that is, the paint allocated to each product is 0.00001 times the paint used in the whole plant. Of course, the user can also directly input the allocation ratio of the evaluation item without using the calculation formula.

[0056] To facilitate the use of the set operation formula, in this embodiment, the allocation principle setting module 60 further includes a setting interface 66, the setting interface 66 having a plurality of operator images 662, a plurality of operator sub-images 664 and an operation formula display area 668, the plurality of operator images 662 are respectively linked to the plurality of allocation parameters set in the parameter setting area, and the plurality of operator sub-images 664 are respectively corresponding to a plurality of operators. The setting interface 66 may also have a plurality of digital images 666 respectively corresponding to different numbers. The plurality of operator images 662, the plurality of operator sub-images 664, and the plurality of digital images 666 in the setting interface 66 are provided for the user to select, and the user selects the operator image 662, the operator sub-image 664 and / or the digital image 666 on the screen of the electronic device 30 according to the needs, and can link the corresponding allocation parameters, operators and / or numbers to generate a predetermined operation formula, and display the corresponding predetermined operation formula in the operation formula display area 668, such as "target product output / full factory output / target product output". The server 10 sets the predetermined calculation formula displayed in the calculation formula display area 668 as the calculation formula of one evaluation item in the calculation formula setting area 64. Therefore, the user can more intuitively set the calculation formula of the allocation ratio of each evaluation item.

[0057] Step S15: Obtaining an emission coefficient of a greenhouse gas corresponding to at least a part of each of the plurality of evaluation items from the emission coefficient database 22 .

[0058] In this embodiment, the server 10 searches the emission coefficient of the corresponding predetermined assessment item from the emission coefficient database 22 according to each assessment item input by the user and sets it as the greenhouse gas emission coefficient of each assessment item. The emission coefficients of all assessment items can be obtained from the emission coefficient database 22; or the emission coefficients of a part of the multiple assessment items are obtained from the emission coefficient database 22, and the emission coefficients of another part of the multiple assessment items are obtained according to the production area of ​​the basic data. For example, different production areas have different emission coefficients for energy (for example, electricity). The server 10 can pre-store the emission coefficients of electricity in multiple production areas, and quickly obtain the emission coefficient of electricity through the production area in the basic data.

[0059] Step S16: Calculate the greenhouse gas emissions of each assessment item based on the activity data of each assessment item at each life cycle stage, the allocation ratio and the emission coefficient, calculate the greenhouse gas emissions of each life cycle stage, and calculate the total greenhouse gas emissions of the product.

[0060] The server 10 multiplies the activity data of each assessment item by the allocation ratio and then by the emission coefficient to obtain the greenhouse gas emissions of each assessment item. The emissions of each assessment item in the life cycle stage are summed up to obtain the stage emissions of each life cycle stage. The total greenhouse gas emissions are summed up for multiple life cycle stages.

[0061] The above product carbon footprint assessment method can guide and assist users to calculate the total greenhouse gas emissions of a product during its life cycle, thereby improving the efficiency of product carbon footprint assessment for users. The allocation principle setting module 60 can also facilitate users to set the allocation ratio of each assessment item to be used for the product.

[0062] Figure 5 The product carbon footprint assessment method of the second embodiment of the present invention is shown, which is based on the first embodiment, except that the database 20 includes a template database, in which a plurality of predetermined assessment templates are stored, each of which corresponds to a product life cycle type (B2B type, B2C type or service type).

[0063] The product carbon footprint assessment method in this embodiment further includes a step S11a between steps S11 and S12: the server 10 selects one of the predetermined assessment templates corresponding to the product life cycle type of the basic data from the multiple predetermined assessment templates in the template database according to the product life cycle type of the product basic data in step S11, so as to form an assessment template having the multiple life cycle stages corresponding to the product life cycle type.

[0064] In addition, after step S16, step S17 is also included: the server 10 generates a product carbon footprint inventory based on the evaluation template, and the product carbon footprint inventory includes the product basic data, the activity data of each evaluation item in each life cycle stage, the allocation ratio and the emission coefficient, and the stage emissions of the greenhouse gas in each life cycle stage and the total emissions of the greenhouse gas.

[0065] Therefore, the product carbon footprint assessment system can automatically generate the product carbon footprint list, saving the user time in compiling data. The product carbon footprint list can be stored in the database 20 for subsequent query and use.

[0066] Further, step S18 is included: generating a product carbon footprint report that complies with a provision specification based on the product carbon footprint inventory. For example, the template database stores multiple report templates, each of which corresponds to a provision range (such as ISO 14067:2018 or other provisions); each server 10 can provide another input interface to transmit to the electronic device 30, allowing the user to select one of the multiple report templates through the other input interface, and the server generates the product carbon footprint report that complies with the provision specification based on the report template selected by the user and the product carbon footprint inventory. Therefore, the user's time for typing the inspection report can be effectively saved. The product carbon footprint report can be stored in the database 20 for subsequent query and use.

[0067] The above descriptions are only preferred feasible embodiments of the present invention. Any equivalent changes made by applying the description and claims of the present invention should be included in the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A product carbon footprint assessment method, implemented by a product carbon footprint assessment system, the product carbon footprint assessment method comprising the following steps: A. Setting a product basic data of a product, wherein the product basic data includes a product life cycle type; B. obtaining a product category rule corresponding to the product, the product category rule having a plurality of evaluation items for each of a plurality of life cycle stages corresponding to the product life cycle type; C. providing an input interface for a user to set an activity data of each evaluation item in each life cycle stage; D. Providing an allocation principle setting module, wherein the allocation principle setting module allows the user to set an allocation ratio of each evaluation item to be used for the product; E. obtaining an emission coefficient of a greenhouse gas corresponding to at least a part of each of the plurality of assessment items from an emission coefficient database; and F. Calculate the greenhouse gas emissions of each assessment item based on the activity data, the allocation ratio and the emission coefficient at each life cycle stage, calculate the stage emissions of the greenhouse gases at each life cycle stage, and calculate the total greenhouse gas emissions of the product.

2. The product carbon footprint assessment method as described in claim 1, wherein in step A, the basic data of the product includes a production area; wherein in step E, a portion of the multiple assessment items is obtained based on the production area of ​​the basic data to obtain the corresponding emission coefficient.

3. The product carbon footprint assessment method as claimed in claim 1, wherein in step B, one of a plurality of predetermined product category rules in a product category rule database corresponding to the product is selected to form the product category rule.

4. A product carbon footprint assessment method as described in claim 3, wherein in step A, the product basic data includes a product name; wherein in step B, the multiple predetermined product category rules in the product category rule database respectively correspond to multiple predetermined product names, and in step B, the product name of the product basic data is used to search the product category rule database for a predetermined product name that matches the product name to select a corresponding predetermined product category rule.

5. The product carbon footprint assessment method as claimed in claim 1, wherein step C comprises connecting to an organization carbon inventory project database to obtain a greenhouse gas inventory list of an organization that produces the product, and obtaining the activity data of at least one of the assessment items from the greenhouse gas inventory list to import into the input interface.

6. The product carbon footprint assessment method as described in claim 1, wherein in step D, the allocation principle setting module includes a parameter setting area and an operation formula setting area, the parameter setting area is used to set a plurality of allocation parameters, and the operation formula setting area is used to set an operation formula for calculating the allocation ratio of each of the assessment items based on one or more of the plurality of allocation parameters.

7. The product carbon footprint assessment method according to claim 6, wherein: The allocation principle setting module in step D includes a setting interface, the setting interface having multiple operator images, multiple operator sub-images and an expression display area, the multiple operator images are respectively connected to the multiple allocation parameters, and the multiple operator sub-images respectively correspond to multiple operators; the multiple operator images and the multiple operator sub-images in the setting interface are provided for user selection to display a corresponding predetermined expression in the expression display area; the predetermined expression displayed in the expression display area is set as the expression in the expression setting area.

8. The product carbon footprint assessment method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the steps A and B comprise: selecting one of the product life cycle types from a plurality of predetermined assessment templates in a template database according to the product life cycle type of the product basic data to form an assessment template, wherein the assessment template has the plurality of life cycle stages corresponding to the product life cycle type; Step F includes: generating a product carbon footprint inventory based on the assessment template, the product carbon footprint inventory including the activity data, the allocation ratio and the emission coefficient of each assessment item at each life cycle stage, and the stage emissions of the greenhouse gases at each life cycle stage and the total emissions of the greenhouse gases.

9. The product carbon footprint assessment method as claimed in claim 8, wherein after step F, it includes generating a product carbon footprint report based on the product carbon footprint inventory and a report template.

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