Holistic framework for studying ship air emissions in a life cycle perspective

This paper presents a novel mathematical framework which incorporates the life cycle approach with the objective to provide a holistic assessment of air emissions for ocean going ships. For the development of the framework, important elements of the Life Cycle Assessment method have been applied which is a methodology that considers the full life cycle of the system it examines (i.e. from the extraction of row materials to the final disposal/recycling). The paper presents some illustrative results from a case study on a Panamax oil tanker. The life cycle emissions inventory for this ship has been developed using the life cycle framework and results are presented and discussed accordingly.