Life Cycle Assessment

General Description
The Chemical Engineering Department at the University of Balamand (UOB) is launching a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Center for the first time in Lebanon, mainly to enhance the collaboration between the industrial and academic sectors. LCA is a methodology used to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product, process, or service throughout its life cycle, i.e. from raw materials extraction to the end-of-life. The Chemical Engineering Department at UOB has a strong expertise in LCA, which is recently gaining more and more popularity in Lebanon and in the MENA region, given the need for consumers for “greener” products. LCA can be used for product development/optimization, marketing, and public policy making.

The purposes of the Life Cycle Assessment Center are to i) develop the LCA methodology for the Lebanese region, ii) assess the environmental impacts of Lebanese industrial products and iii) enhance the cooperation between universities and industries in Lebanon through different LCA research and case studies. By studying the environmental impacts of a product throughout its life cycle stages (raw material extraction, manufacture, distribution, use, and disposal), it will become possible to provide industries with “hotspots”, i.e. materials or processes with the highest contribution to environmental impacts. Industries can benefit from these results to identify new technologies to lessen the environmental burden of their products. The Center will also offer trainings on carbon and water footprints and LCA in general.

Relevant Publications

1. - Saoud A., Harajli H., and Manneh R., “Cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment of an air to water heat pump: Case study for the Lebanese context and comparison with solar and conventional electric water heaters for residential application”, Journal of Building Engineering, Vol. 44, 2021.
2. - Hayek J., El Bachawati M., and Manneh R., "Life cycle assessment and water footprint scarcity of yogurt", Environment, Development and Sustainability, Vol. 23, 2021.
3. - Boutros M., Saba S., and Manneh R., Life cycle assessment of two packaging materials for carbonated beverages (polyethylene terephthalate vs. glass): Case study for the lebanese context and importance of the end-of-life scenarios”, Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 314, 2021.
4. - Koura J., Manneh R., Belarbi R., El Khoury V., and El Bachawati M., "Comparative cradle to grave environmental life cycle assessment of traditional and extensive vegetative roofs: an application for the Lebanese context", The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, Vol. 25, 423-442, 2020.
5. - Tannous S., Manneh R., Harajli H., and El Zakhem H., "Comparative cradle to grave life cycle assessment of traditional grid-connected and solar stand-alone street light systems: A case study for rural areas in Lebanon", Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 186, 963-977, 2018.
6. - El Bachawati M., Manneh R., Belarbi R., Dandres T., Nassab C., and El Zakhem H., "Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of traditional gravel ballasted, white reflective and vegetative roofs: A Lebanese case study", Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 137, 833 - 842, 2016
7. - Manneh R., Margni M., and Deschenes L., "Evaluating the relevance of seasonal differentiation of human health intake fractions in life cycle assessment", Integrated environmental assessment and management, Vol. 8, 4, 749 - 759, 2012
8. - Manneh R., Margni M, and Deschenes L., "Spatial variability of intake fractions for Canadian emission scenarios: A comparison between three resolution scales", Environmental Science & Technology, Vol. 44, 11, 4217 - 4224, 2010
9. - Humbert S., Manneh R., Shaked S., Horvath A., Deschenes L., Jolliet O., Margni M., "Assessing regional intake fractions in North America", The Science of the Total Environment, Vol. 407, 17, 4812-4820, 2009

QOOT Collaboration Success Story
As a proponent of collaborative innovation, Qoot recognizes the value of cross-sector partnerships in the agri-food industry. Connecting Société Moderne Libanaise pour le Commerce (SMLC) to the University of Balamand (UOB) was one of the first success stories in bridging the gap between academia and industry within the framework of the Qoot initiative.

The collaboration project between UOB and SMLC Pepsi was established with the aim of focusing mutual efforts on comparing the life cycle environmental impacts of two different packaging materials (polyethylene terephthalate and glass) for carbonated beverages. The project was conducted by a UOB Chemical Engineering Master’s student, Ms. Marleine Boutros, and was co-supervised by Dr. Rima Manneh, Associate Professor and Chairperson of the Chemical Engineering Department at the Faculty of Engineering at UOB, and Dr. Sabine Saba, Assistant Professor at the Issam Fares Faculty of Technology at UOB. Dr. Shady Khoury, Director of Operations at SMLC provided all necessary data needed for the modeling. Ms Boutros successfully defended her thesis on the 14th of December 2020 and is currently finalizing an article to be submitted for publication in a peer-review scientific journal. The University of Balamand is a leading academic institution pioneering in the field of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Lebanon. LCA is a tool that can help identify the environmental impacts of a product, process, or service throughout its life cycle, i.e. from the raw material extraction to the end-of-life. This research project was the first of its kind in Lebanon. No other LCA studies were previously performed for carbonated beverages packaging in Lebanon, and only a few LCA studies exist for the Lebanese agri-food sector. The idea for the research project matured when Dr. Manneh performed a site visit with Ms Jihane Chahla from Qoot to SMLC Pepsi and proposed a research project in the field of Life Cycle Assessment to Dr. Khoury. Dr. Manneh, a leading scholar in LCA and one of the very few LCA researchers who have instigated LCA in Lebanon, is very enthused by this project's outcomes. She strongly believes that LCA will help in further bridging the gap between academia and industry, which in turn can only help the community and the environment. Qoot will hopefully remain a key partner and facilitator of such activities.

Professor Rami Abboud, Vice President for Internationalization and Engagement and Dean of Faculty of Engineering stated: “I was sold the idea of LCA by Dr Manneh from the minute I arrived to UOB in July 2019. Dr Manneh’s passion to LCA is immeasurable and her persistence to establish the first LCA Centre in Lebanon and the MENA region will be launched soon at the Faculty of Engineering. The SMLC Pepsi project will be one of many other future projects that I am sure will be as successful fulfilling our moto from Lab to Society”.

Dr. Elie Karam, Acting Dean of the Issam Fares Faculty of Technology mentioned: “The QOOT cluster project joining partners from two faculties of the University of Balamand with SMLC Pepsi is a real success story. In addition to its substance and academic collaboration values, the project symbolizes the real value of sustainable development by developing strong and tangible working relations exploiting science fundamentals and research methods in the industrial production sectors capitalizing on sustainable economic concepts with direct impact on human life. Facing the current international and national traumatic conditions, I believe that genuine collaborations like this one can keep our hope alive that things can be improved and that small countries like Lebanon can be developed.”

Matelec s.a.l. Success Story
The Chemical Engineering Department at UOB recently completed a comprehensive carbon footprint study for 4 Distribution Transformers produced by Matelec SAL in Gharfine, Lebanon. This study was a pioneering one for the Lebanese context.

The carbon footprint project involved Dr. Rima Manneh (Associate Professor and Chairperson, Chemical Engineering Department), Dr. Makram El Bachawati (Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering Department) and Ms. Jane Hayek (Chemical Engineering Alumnus).

A carbon footprint study follows the ISO14067 standards and is used to identify the amount of CO2eq emitted during a product life cycle, which includes the following stages: raw materials extraction, product manufacture/assembly, transportation, use, and end-of-life. This type of study can help an industry identify a product’s “hotspots”, i.e. the main contributors to the climate change impact category, in order to identify subsequent reduction strategies. The Chemical Engineering Department has a strong expertise in carbon/water footprint and environmental life cycle assessment.

As a result of this collaboration, Matelec SAL was able to secure 4 carbon footprint statements, one for each distribution transformer.

Seminar LCA
The Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Balamand organized an online seminar on environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) on the 8th of April 2021. Following an opening note from Professor Rami Abboud, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Vice President for Internationalization and Engagement, Dr. Rima Manneh, Chairperson of the Chemical Engineering Department introduced the audience to the general definition of the LCA tool, stressing on the state of the environment and the need for life cycle thinking, as well as the advantages and some applications of LCA. Guest speakers Dr. Thomas Dandres from Environment and Climate Change Canada and Dr. Hassan Harajli from UNDP Lebanon highlighted the advantages of using LCA at the level of the country, whether for data center deployment in Canada or to mitigate climate change in Lebanon. The seminar also included short presentations delivered by Chemical Engineering alumni Ms Marleine Boutros and Ms Scarlett Tannous.

In his opening note, Professor Abboud announced the launching of the first Life Cycle Assessment Center in Lebanon, which will be under the leadership of Dr. Manneh who was one of the pioneers in bringing the LCA field to the Lebanese context. The purposes of the Life Cycle Assessment Center are to i) develop the LCA methodology for the Lebanese region, ii) assess the environmental impacts of Lebanese industrial products and iii) enhance the cooperation between universities and industries in Lebanon through different LCA research and case studies. By studying the environmental impacts of a product throughout its life cycle stages (raw material extraction, manufacture, distribution, use, and disposal), it will become possible to provide the industry with “hotspots”, i.e. materials or processes with the highest contribution to environmental impacts. The industry can benefit from these results to identify new technologies to lessen the environmental burden of its product. The Center will also offer trainings on carbon and water footprints and LCA in general.