Abstract
Life cycle assessment (LCA) on total sewage sludge treatment system from thickening to incineration and melting was performed for estimating global environmental impact as $CO_2$. In general, the life cycles of actual treatment facilities consist of construction, operation and dismantlement. In this study, the amount of $CO_2$ produced from both whole and each life cycle step of currently used unit sludge treatment processes were calculated by inventory analysis. In addition, in the all processes investigated in this study, individual $CO_2$ production unit (CPU), i.e. total produced $CO_2$ by treating a unit weight of sludge was also calculated. By using the CPU matrix of the unit processes, it was possible to simulate the $CO_2$ production for any type of complex-system as well as to trace a dominant cause of $CO_2$ production in each process. Four selected alternatives examined here, each involve the same disposal way but differ substantially in the $CO_2$ exhaust.
