Table 2.
Quantitative sensitivity analysis of alternative configurations for processes with large contribution to system GWP
| Unit process/stage altered | System | Process GWP (MT CO2e) | % impact on system GWP | Outcome GWP comparison (Base: RSC 83.9% less than SSC) |
|
| Base (% of system GWP) |
Effect (% of system GWP) |
||||
| Polymer manufacture North-West (NW) England; Container manufacture in UK company site | SSC | 2103.8—Saudi Arabia (59.0) |
1757.4 (NW Eng) (59.0) |
−13.9 | RSC 84.3% less than SSC |
| RSC | 120.2—Sth Korea (+UK SSC) (19.1) |
94.8 (NW Eng) (18.0) |
−16.0 | ||
| Manufacture containers in NW England | SSC | 522.2—Eng. 2 sites (13.4) |
115.4 (NW Eng) (3.3) |
−11.4 | RSC 82.4% less than SSC |
| RSC | 30.7—USA (+UK SSC) (4.9) |
5.4 (NW Eng) (0.9) |
−3.4 | ||
| SSC FLL (7.1 L) matches RSC (19.1 L) | SSC | 3896.4 (100) |
3262.4 (100) |
−16.3 | RSC 81.3% less than SSC |
| RSC | 628.9 (100) |
611.5 (100) |
−2.8 | ||
| Transport in UK (use of large vehicle) |
SSC | 152.8 (3.9) |
78.2 (2.3) |
−3.8 | RSC 87.5% less than SSC |
| RSC | 304.6 (48.4) |
144.6 (23.0) |
−25.8 | ||
| RSC polymer and container manufacture | |||||
| If lifespan 66 years/500 uses | 120.2 (19.1) |
78.7 (13.4) |
−6.6 | RSC 84.9% less than SSC | |
| If lifespan 1 year/7.4 uses | 120.2 (19.1) |
1147.5 (69.0) |
164.2 | RSC 57.3% less than SSC | |
FLL, fill line litres; GWP, global warming potential; MTCO2e, metric tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent; RSC, reusable sharps containers; SSC, single-use sharps containers.