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- Furberg, Anna, 1990, et al.
(author)
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Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of Synthetic Diamond Production
- 2019
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Conference paper (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Synthetic diamond is a superhard material found in applications such as cutting and grinding of rocks, minerals, metals and plastics, but also in windows and lenses in analytical equipment. Since the 1950s, when the synthesis of diamond via the high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) synthesis was introduced, the use of synthetic diamond has gained increasing importance within industry, for example in cutting processes. Today, synthetic diamond dominates the industrial diamond use over its natural counterpart and the production is mainly via HPHT synthesis. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) synthesis is also applied but to a lesser extent due to various technological issues, including the tendency of CVD diamond coatings to wear and tear in tooling applications. Nevertheless, a lot of research exist in the area of synthetic diamond film production via CVD synthesis addressing technological issues and CVD diamond has been described as the potential facilitator of a new diamond age. In the strive for sustainable production, it is important to investigate the environmental impacts associated with various products and life cycle assessment (LCA) is commonly applied for this purpose. Until now, however, no study has conducted LCA of conventional synthetic diamond production via HPHT synthesis and so far, only laboratory-scale LCA results have been presented for one CVD synthesis alternative. The aim of this study is to conduct a cradle-to-gate LCA for synthetic diamond production both via the conventional HPHT synthesis and the potentially emerging CVD synthesis. For the latter route of synthesis, prospective (or ex ante) LCA was conducted and a predictive scenario was constructed focusing on microwave CVD. Future scenarios were constructed, e.g. by modelling the background energy system both using a fossil-based mix, representing the currently dominating Chinese production, and a renewable energy mix in an explorative scenario. A comprehensive uncertainty analysis was furthermore conducted for the included parameters. Environmental impacts were compared between the two routes of synthesis and hotspots in synthetic diamond production identified. The results from this research can be applied as a foundation for further LCA studies of synthetic diamond products.
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- Furberg, Anna, 1990, et al.
(author)
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What are the Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of Synthetic Diamond?
- 2019
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Conference paper (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Synthetic diamond is due to its superior properties used in a wide range of applications including cutting and grinding of metals and rocks, but also in analytical equipment lenses and jewelry. The conventional production of synthetic diamond is energy-intensive and typically conducted via high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) synthesis, while microwave chemical vapor deposition (MW-CVD) is also used but to a lesser extent. The purpose of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of synthetic diamond production via HPHT and MW-CVD synthesis. The method of life cycle assessment (LCA) is applied, where the environmental impacts of a product is studied over its life cycle. In this study, the parts of the life cycle included are the raw material extraction and manufacturing of synthetic diamond. Various types of environmental impacts are assessed, including global warming and acidification. Furthermore, the largest contributors in synthetic diamond production to the environmental impacts, i.e. the hotspots, are identified and potential improvements are discussed. Scenarios were constructed in order to assess the importance of the type of electricity mix that is applied in the production. Preliminary results from the study indicate that the cemented carbide (WC-Co) parts required for the high-pressure apparatus constitute a hotspot in the HPHT synthesis, while the required electricity constitutes a hotspot in the MW-CVD synthesis.The results provided from this study on conventional synthetic diamond production can be applied by synthetic diamond manufacturers in order to identify the largest potentials for improvement in their production. The results can also be used in future full LCA studies, which then include the whole life cycle of synthetic diamond products.
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