Korean manufacturer LG Display reduced more than 8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent last year, a move that the EPA says illustrates how flat panel display makers are cutting fluorinated greenhouse gas from their operations.
F-GHGs, which are potent and persistent in the atmosphere, are used to make LCD TVs, computer monitors and tablets. The EPA estimates emissions from LCD panels will reach about 11 to 12 million metric tons of CO2e in 2020. If LCD panel production experiences high growth, emissions are projected to rise to about 35 million metric tons CO2e.
These fluorinated greenhouse gases can be captured and destroyed as part of the manufacturing process if suppliers implement F-GHG reduction strategies, the EPA says. The process can also be refined so that fewer gases are used in the first place. The EPA’s Center for Corporate Climate Leadership, which serves as a resource for companies seeking to reduce GHG impacts from their own operations and supply chains, is offering industry information how major suppliers of large-area LCD panels are taking steps to cut their emissions.
This is the first initiative in a larger effort to reduce supply chain GHG emissions at the sectoral level. In this initial initiative, the EPA is focusing on the electronics sector, specifically flat-panel display suppliers’ effort to reduce F-GHG emissions. The aim is to increase awareness and highlight best practices.
For example, AUO, formerly known as Acer Display Technology, has reduced its F-GHG emissions by 6.94 million metric tons of CO2e from 2003 to 2011. Its total F-GHG emissions in 2012 were about 295,000 metric tons of CO2e. Since 2003, AUO voluntarily installed IPCC-recognized F-GHG abatement devices with destruction removal efficiencies over 90 percent in dry etching and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes for all newly built fabrications, the EPA says.
The EPA says there’s also a need to create international protocols for measuring the emissions. The agency says it hopes to see industry develop such an agreed upon approach.