Environmental product information

for Nature product range

The Nature collection (including the products Granite and Estetic)
is the ideal choice in the manufacture of construction products using
top-quality organic coatings for interior and exterior use.
The main applications are building components and
construction systems such as roofs, faades, rainwater
systems, guttering, sheet work, standing seam roofs, long
strip or sheet roofing and tile panels. Organic coated steel
coils are produced at ArcelorMittal works in a fully integrated
production process, ranging from steel-making, hot rolling and
cold rolling to metal and organic coating on a continuous coil
coating line.
This information document, compiled on a voluntary basis,
provides relevant environmental indicators for organic coated
coil production for use by architects, designers, contractors and
anyone else wishing to assess the environmental profile of a
specific construction project.
The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology has been used
to produce this document, in compliance with ISO 14040 and
ISO 14044 standards [1, 2]. LCA is a set of well-recognised
techniques employed to compile and evaluate the inputs,
outputs and potential environmental impacts of a product
system throughout its life cycle.

There are five main steps in a products life cycle: extraction of

raw materials, transformation, manufacturing of the end-user
product, use phase and end-of-life process (recycling, disposal,
energy recovery etc).
The calculation model for organic coated product impacts
takes into consideration impacts from the raw resources
extraction stage materials and energy up to the
ArcelorMittal plant gate (after industrial processes and
transportation). This model is described as cradle-to-gate.
The indicators and flows shown on the back page have been
calculated from the industrial site inventories collected by the
World Steel Associationa. ArcelorMittal contributes to this data
collection exercise. The latest collection is representative of the
period from 2005 to 2008 (data released in September 2011).
As far as organic coated coils are concerned, data stems from
nine European plants and is averaged according to the World
Steel Association methodology [3]. This methodology complies
with the above-mentioned ISO standards and has been peerreviewed by an independent third party.

EMISSIONS TO AIR, WATER AND SOIL

Raw & recycled

material

Material
transformation

Product
manufacturing

Production phase

Use phase

RESOURCES
Product life cycle

Product
usage

Recycling,
disposal
etc

End of life

Environmental Footprint Indicators

Specific flows

In an LCA study, a Functional Unit has to be defined; this is the unit to

which the results are related. In the present case, the functional unit is:

Some more specific and significant flows are given below.

1 m of organic coated coil having

a mean surface mass of 4.7 kg.

Emissions to air

Unit

/kg

/m

CO2

kg

1.49

6.99

Total particulates

0.22

1.05

Nitrogen oxides

2.43

11.42

Sulphur oxides

3.29

15.44

The results are representative of cradle-to-gate production plus

the end-of-life of the product, taking into account a typical 90%
recycling rateb.

CO2 is by far the main greenhouse gas emitted.

Common Environmental Indicators

Total particulates is the total amount of solid particles, including

PM10 and PM2.5, emitted into the air. Almost half of these are
emitted in blast furnace upstream processes.

Unitc

/kg

/m

Primary energy demand

MJ

19.64

92.32

Global warming contribution

kg CO2 equivalent

1.55

7.30

Air acidification

g SO2 equivalent

4.58

21.51

Water eutrophication

g Phosphate equivalent

0.34

1.59

Photochemical ozone

g Ethene equivalent

0.46

2.18

Primary energy demand accounts for the total amount of

energy drawn directly from nature, used in all the processes.
Global warming potential represents the contribution of the
product to the increase in the temperature of the atmosphere
due to human activities.
Acidification occurs when the product contributes to the
acidification of rain, causing damage to vegetation and forests.
Eutrophication occurs when surface waters are artificially
enriched with pollutants such as phosphate compounds,
creating disturbances in the biological balance.
Photochemical ozone formation at low altitude is better
known as summer smog and has consequences in terms of
respiratory diseases. Expressed as C2H4 (ethene) equivalent.

References
[1] ISO 14040:2006 Environmental management
Life cycle assessment - Principles and framework.
[2] ISO 14044:2006 Environmental management
Life cycle assessment - Requirements and guidelines.
[3] The World Steel Association Life Cycle Inventory for

Steel Products report, July 2011.

Nitrogen oxides are mainly emitted during transportation (bulk

materials transported by sea), followed by blast furnace upstream
processes.
Sulphur oxides: electricity production is the major contributor.
Emission levels are improved by recycling process gases on site and
by exporting the surplus to power plants replacing fossil fuel demand.

Substances of Very High Concern

ArcelorMittals organic coated steel is produced in full compliance
with the European REACH regulation (Registration, Evaluation,
Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals). In line with its proactive
policy, ArcelorMittal R&D continuously investigates alternatives to
any substance of concern while maintaining product performance
and durability. In particular, all coatings and surface treatments
used for the Nature product line are free of hexavalent chromium
compounds, which are substances of very high concern included in
the REACH candidate list, and heavy metals (Pb, Hg and Cd).

Indirect benefits
Using organic coated steel products for construction has indirect
environmental benefits, among which:
Storage on the construction site is minimised because coated
sheets can be sized to the right dimensions in the forming plant and
only the exact quantities needed are delivered, thus reducing the
need for transportation.
Assembling steel parts is quick and is done dry; no dust is emitted
and no water is used on site.
At the end of a buildings life, steel parts are easily dismantled
and can then be either reused or recycled, thus reducing steels
environmental footprint.

a www.worldsteel.com
b Steel is a highly recycled material. The benefit of steel recycling in the electric arc furnace mainly
corresponds to the avoidance of the need for raw materials; it is taken into account by means
of a credit. The World Steel Association provides a methodology for this [3]. To properly make
fair comparative studies, it is important to include the recycling of materials in the indicator
calculations.

Credits

c The units for which the term equivalent is used concern indicators calculated from several
contributors: for example, the global warming contribution takes into account CO2 (the main
contributor) and all the other contributory gases (methane, N2O etc) whose warming potential has
a CO2-equivalent value.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be

reproduced in any form or by any means whatsoever,
without prior written permission from ArcelorMittal.

19, avenue de la Libert

L-2930 Luxembourg
fce.technical.assistance@arcelormittal.com
www.arcelormittal.com/industry/Nature

Copyright

Care has been taken to ensure that the information in

this publication is accurate, but this information is not
contractual. Therefore ArcelorMittal and any other
ArcelorMittal Group company do not accept any liability
for errors or omissions or any information that is found
to be misleading.
As this document may be subject to change at any time,
please consult the latest information on
www.arcelormittal.com/industry/Nature

PR-EP-G-EN 11/2011

Flat Carbon Europe

Images: Philippe Vandenameele