Carbon Footprint of a 20' Shipping Container

Client NameID: ********17/12/12
ENGY-665 FUNDAMENTALS OF AIR POLLUTION
FINAL PROJECT 2012
ASSESMENT OF THE LIFECYCLE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF A 20` INTERMODAL FREIGHT CONTAINER
INTRODCUTION:
This document aims to identify the cumulative carbon footprint of a 20` standard intermodal freight container (with dimensions as specified by ISO 6346:2012).It includes a detailed Life Cycle Analysis(LCA) of the article in question, starting from mining of iron ore to shipment of container to destination in Europe(in this case Antwerp). For the purpose of simplification and focusing on a single majorly used type, it is assumed that the container is made of Core-Ten steel. Other varieties of such containers are also in use which is partially composed of materials like Aluminum or strengthened polymer. The container we will be evaluating has a dry weight of roughly 2200 kg while weight can vary considerably depending upon the exact of nature of building material used along with presence or absence of plywood floor.
The LCA methodology used will attempt to evaluate carbon footprint in terms of equivalent tons of carbon-dioxide produced. The analysis will start from mining of the iron ore, its transport to iron mill, processing in iron mill, and transport to manufacturing facility, processing in manufacturing facility and then finally delivery to its destination.
Background:
The first use of intermodal variants of trucking containers was on April 26, 1956. Initially 58 aluminum truck bodies were transferred on board an old tanker ship. Later these bodies were put back on trucks as it is and then departed for their intended destinations. Before that cargo was loaded/ unloaded manually on commercial vessels with the aid of an army of laborers who worked round the clock, yet still took days and even weeks to finish unloading/loading cargo.
The containerization era started in the end of 1950`s; eventually it drastically reduced the cost of shipping and ultimately changed the scenario of international trade. Where previously the main population of a port was workers who made an earning by handling cargo piece by piece, were replaced by gigantic cranes which handle hundreds of tons of a cargo per minute. Several ports which were previously of considerable importance eventually died a slow death because of inability to upgrade to infrastructure necessary for handling cargo containers. The length of layovers for sailors on ports were reduced exponentially and where previously these hugely expensive ships wasted a lot of time just sitting in port awaiting completion of cargo handling, now they waited for barely a few hours before all the cargo was in order and the ship was ready to disembark on its next profitable venture. The effects of this revolution were more thorough than expected; the massive amount of labor engaged in the cargo handling business was suddenly unemployed after the advent of this hugely efficient and more economical arrangem...