HFC Blowing Agents in Insulation: An Embodied Carbon Blind Spot | Anthony Pak (Priopta)

In this talk, Anthony discusses his recent findings on how the building industry, including some of our Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) software tools, has significantly underestimated the embodied carbon associated with HFC blowing agents used in XPS and Spray Foam insulation. He compares the embodied carbon of many different types of insulation based on industry average and manufacturer-specific Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). Anthony covers why Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are so impactful from a climate change perspective, which is used not only as blowing agents in insulation but also as refrigerants in our mechanical systems. Given the short atmospheric life span of HFCs and other greenhouse gases such as methane, Anthony also discusses the implications of calculating Global Warming Potential using a 20-year time horizon instead of the standard 100 years (GWP20 vs GWP100). Presentation Slides: https://www.dropbox.com/s/yzc9bdpxkvn... Anthony Pak is the founder of ECN Vancouver and the Principal at Priopta, a Life Cycle Assessment consulting company. https://www.priopta.com/ This presentation was recorded during ECN Vancouver's webinar event on "Embodied Carbon of HFC Blowing Agents in Insulation", May 20, 2020. ECN Vancouver is the Vancouver local chapter of the Embodied Carbon Network. Sign up to our mailing list to be notified of future events. https://www.ecnvancouver.com