Extruded Polystyrene. This category involves estimating greenhouse gas emissions over the studied timeframe for foam products actually produced in the state of California. There was one known manufacturing plant producing extruded polystyrene sheathing in California. The plant operated between 1960 and 2009. During this period it produced 2 Building Energy Efficiency Standards for Residential and Non-Residential Buildings; California Energy Commission, 1998, 2005, 2008 11 million cubic meters of foam and used over 35,500 tons of blowing agents. From 1960 to 1989, it used CFC-12 and thereafter an 80/20 HCFC-142b and HCFC-22 share. An estimated 4,970 tons of blowing agent was emitted over this period, corresponding to a 1st year emission rate of 10 -14%. This is made up from die emissions during manufacturing: (typically 5-7%); curing emissions while the foam is cooling down, curing and becoming stable: (typically another 4-5%) and the rest of the annual emissions from year 1: (approximately 1-2%). If it was realistically much higher than that companies would have installed capture and condensing technology to gather and re-use blowing agents as they have become more expensive through their evolution of CFC--HCFC--HFC.3 Based on an average 25% XPS market share in the buildings application, this plant would have met practically all of California’s XPS demand over the period 1960 to 2009. Please note that in-state production of expanded polystyrene (EPS) was not considered by this project. This type of foam is generally used for packaging applications and has never used ozone depleting substances or HFCs as blowing agents. It therefore falls outside the scope of the inventory.
Extruded Polystyrene. This category involves estimating ODS emissions over the studied timeframe for foam products actually produced in the state of California. There was one known manufacturing plant producing extruded polystyrene sheathing in Torrance. California and owned by Dow Chemical. The plant operated between 1960 and 2009. During this period it produced 11 million cubic meters of foam and used over 35,500 tons of blowing agents. From 1960 to 1989, it used CFC-12 and thereafter an 80/20 HCFC- 142b and HCFC-22 share. An estimated 2,500 tons of blowing agent was emitted over this period. Based on an average 25% XPS market share in the buildings application, the Torrance plant would have met practically all of California’s XPS demand over the period 1960 to 2009. Table 3-3 IN-STATE EXTRUDED POLYSTYRENE FOAM PRODUCTION Total Estimated Emissions from Torrance, CA plant (1960 – 2009) = 5.51 MM lbs BA emissions. (2500 tons) PERIOD FOAM PRODUCTION FOAM PRODUCTION ANNUAL GROWTH BA USED BA USED BA EMITTED BA EMITTED BA EMITTED/YR BA EMITTED/YR mm cu. Ft 000 cu. Mtr % mm lb tons mm lb tons 000 lb tons 1960 - 1969 72.5 2,051.75 0.00 14.5 6,591 1.01 459 101.5 46 1970 - 1979 75 2,122.50 3 15 6,818 1.05 477 105 48 1980 - 1989 79.2 2,241.36 6 15.8 7,182 1.11 505 110.8 50 1990 - 1999 83.3 2,357.39 5 16.6 7,545 1.17 532 116.6 53 2000 - 2009 83.3 2,357.39 0 16.6 7,545 1.17 532 116.6 53 TOTAL 393.3 11,130.4 78.5 35,681.4 5.5 2,505 550.5 250
