Comparative life cycle assessment of industrial demand-side management via operational optimization

Demand-side management (DSM) is a promising option to synchronize electricity demand with volatile electricity generation by renewable energy sources. For a comprehensive assessment of the environmental impacts of DSM, the holistic method of life cycle assessment (LCA) can be applied. However, not all purposes of industrial DSM are consistently defined in the functional unit, focusing either on the products or the flexible electricity consumption. We develop a method to jointly consider the products and the flexible electricity consumption in the functional unit of industrial DSM. To ensure a consistent LCA, we compare the DSM system with a reference system that provides the same functionality by operating the industrial process at steady state and utilizing electricity storage technologies to provide flexibility. We apply the proposed method on the switchable chlor-alkali electrolysis. The results show that the environmental impacts of applying DSM on the switchable electrolysis are comparable to integrating electricity storage.