So You Want to Replace Your PVC

摘要

PVC is often a material chosen for replacement when it comes to green products. This is due to PVC's chlorine content. Carcinogenic materials are used in making PVC and are released when it's combusted. Other toxic materials can leach out of the PVC while in use. Replacement materials are often chosen simply for not containing PVC. In this paper, a three metric system is developed for product replacement assessment and applied to PVC piping. The assessment metrics include functionality, economics and sustainability. Functionality is assessed using mechanical properties, economics by linear cost, and sustainability by life cycle assessment. Both off the shelf and reinforced plastics are compared to PVC piping using the three metric system. None of off the shelf plastics can compare to PVC's good mechanical properties and low cost. However, glass or natural fiber reinforced polypropylene has the potential to replace PVC based on all three metrics.