Volumetric mapping and visualization of life cycle assessment results on computer-aided design models

Abstract

Life cycle assessments (LCAs) are widely used for identifying opportunities for redesigning engineered parts from a sustainability perspective. However, the data representations and results visualizations used in LCAs remain disconnected from those used for engineering design; this makes it challenging to apply results from LCAs towards redesign decision-making. To address this gap, this paper presents a novel voxel-based approach for mapping process-based life cycle inventory data (and consequently LCA results) to three-dimensional CAD models. The proposed approach can be flexibly applied at different resolutions, i.e., part-level, feature-level, and individual voxel-level based on the granularity of information available. Furthermore, it enables volumetric visualization of LCA results directly on the three-dimensional model of the part. A real-world case study on mapping and visualizing LCA results of a shaft and rotor sub-assembly manufacturing process is used for demonstrating the merits and limitations of the proposed approach.