Life Cycle Analysis of a Refurbished Smartphone
We invite you to check the Report for the Life Cycle Analysis of a RePhone iPhone 8 64 GB model
Smartphones have a high rate of turnover, due to programmed obsolescence, user preferences or technological advances, among others. Leading to an increased burden on the environment due to the extraction of raw materials, as well as production of electronic waste.
A RePhone is a refurbished high-end smartphone, which avoids extracting extra virgin raw materials to produce a homologous unit with the same functions.
To determine which is the environmental profile of a RePhone, its environmental impact is estimated through a complete Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), spanning from the production and import of inputs to the end of life of the product (cradle to grave) for the iP8 64GB model.
The analysis adhered to the ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 norms, which made its findings reliable and comparable to other environmental profiles.
The main objectives of the analysis were to determine the impact difference of the RePhone against a new unit of the same characteristics, comparing the impact of its package by sales channel format and identify the elements with the greatest environmental impact, in order to effectively manage actions to reduce these impacts.
The analysis was conducted based on the functional unit of the daily use of a RePhone iP8 64 GB for 3 years, including video, audio and internet, with a scope that included the production of spare parts, the transport of disuse units to Chile, energy consumption due to usage and the impact of its final destination, among others.
The LCA report shows the Life Cycle Assessment findings for 18 environmental impact categories, followed by everyday equivalences to help in the interpretation of the values, as they are not usually easy to understand.
Additionally, in the LCA report, the conclusion and recommendations were included based on the assessment's findings.
We invite you to learn more about our projects here: https://ecoed.cl/proyectos/
