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Purpose: The environmental aspects of paper as a consumer good have been extensively studied. However, the paper machine has been mostly neglected in the literature. The purpose of this article is to present a LCA case study that explicitly focuses on the system of a newsprint paper machine and its environmental impacts and not on the system of the consumer good paper. The relevance of the paper machine as capital equipment is analyzed, and conclusions for the environmental improvement of paper machines are drawn based on identified hotspots. The article hereby answers the more general research questions of whether capital equipment has rightly been neglected in other studies regarding pulp and paper and which impact categories are important for analyzing the environmental burdens of a paper machine. Methods: The study has been executed in collaboration with Voith Paper, an original equipment manufacturer. Hence, in distinction to literature-based studies, primary data on the paper machine was available resulting in a high overall data quality. Based on the ISO 14040 () and 14044 () standards, this article pursues a cradle-to-grave approach for the paper machine. It assesses the environmental impacts in the impact categories defined by the ReCiPe impact assessment methodology. Different types of energy generation are examined in a scenario analysis with combined heat and power generation (CHP) as the baseline case. For interpretation, a normalization and a sectoral analysis are performed. Results and discussion: The normalized results indicate fossil resource depletion and global warming as the most important impact categories. Global warming impacts are highly dependent on the energy processes and result to 432.7 kg CO2e per production of 1 t of paper for CHP and to 701.7 kg CO2e for EU25 grid mix. The sectoral analysis shows that the machinery's operations/use phase is clearly dominating most impact categories due to its long lifetime. An exception is the metal depletion, for which the materials and manufacturing processes are most important. Conclusions: These findings prove that for most categories, the operations/use phase of the paper machine is the most important life cycle stage. In systems focusing on the consumer good paper, it is therefore sufficient to model the operation of the paper machine, whereas the manufacturing, transport, and end-of-life processes regarding the paper machine equipment can be neglected, unless metal depletion is important to the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Goal, Scope and Background. The environmental sustainability is one of the current priorities of the Portuguese pulp and paper industry. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was the methodology chosen to evaluate the sustainability of the printing and writing paper production activity. This paper grade represents about 60% of the total production of paper in Portugal and its production is expected to increase in the near future. The main goal of this study was to assess the potential environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of the printing and writing paper produced in Portugal from Eucalyptus globulus pulp and consumed in Germany, in order to identify the processes with the largest environmental impacts. Another goal of this study was to evaluate the effect on the potential environmental impacts of changing the market where the Portuguese printing and writing paper is consumed: German market vs. Portuguese market. Methods. The main stages considered in this study were: forestry, pulp production, paper production, paper distribution, and paper final disposal. Transports and production of chemicals, fuels and energy in the grid were also included in these stages. Whenever possible and feasible, average or typical data from industry were collected. The remaining data were obtained from the literature and specialised databases. A quantitative impact assessment was performed for five impact categories: global warming over 100 years, acidification, eutrophication, non-renewable resource depletion and photochemical oxidant formation. Results. In the German market scenario, the paper production stage was a remarkable hot spot for air emissions (non-renewable CO2, NOx and SO2) and for non-renewable energy consumption, and, consequently, for the impact categories that consider these parameters: global warming, acidification and non-renewable resource depletion. These important environmental impacts are due to the energy requirements in the printing and writing paper production process, which are fulfilled by on-site fuel oil burning and consumption of electricity from the national grid, which is mostly based on the use of fossil fuels. The pulp production stage was identified as the largest contributor to water emissions (COD and AOX) and to eutrophication. Considering that energy consumed by the pulp production processes comes from renewable fuels, this stage was also the most contributing to renewable energy consumption. Discussion. The paper distribution stage showed an important contribution to NOx emissions, which, however, did not result in a major contribution to acidification or eutrophication. The final disposal stage was the main contributor to the photochemical oxidant formation potential due to CH4 emissions from wastepaper landfilling. On the other hand, paper consumption in Portugal was environmentally more favourable than in Germany for the parameters/impact categories where the paper distribution stage has a significant contribution (non-renewable CO2, NOx, non-renewable energy consumption, acidification, eutrophication and non-renewable resource depletion) due to shorter distances needed to deliver paper to the consumers. For the remaining parameters/impact categories, the increase observed in the final disposal stage in the Portuguese market was preponderant, and resulted from the existence of significant differences in the final disposal alternatives in the analysed markets (recycling dominates in Germany, whereas landfilling dominates in Portugal). Conclusions. The pulp and paper production stages were found to be of significance for almost all of the inventory parameters as well as for the impact assessment categories. The paper distribution and the final disposal stages were only of importance for some of the inventory parameters and some of the impact categories.… [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this work is to compare greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from producing tissue paper from virgin pulp (VP) or recycled waste paper (RWP). In doing so, the study aims to inform decision makers at both company and national levels which are the main causes of emissions and to suggest the actions required to reduce pollution. Methods: An attributional life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed in order to estimate and compare the GHG emissions of the two processes. LCA allows us to assess how the choice of raw material for VP and RWP processes influences total GHG emissions of tissue paper production, what are the main drivers behind these emissions and how do the direct materials; energy requirements and transportation contribute to the generation of emissions. The cradle-to-gate approach is carried out. Results and discussion: The results show that demands for both thermal energy and electricity are higher for the RWP than for the VP if only the manufacturing stages are considered. However, a different picture emerges when the analysis looks at the entire life cycle of the production. GHG from the VP are about 30 % higher than the RWP, over the life cycle emitting 568 kg CO eq more per kilogram of tissue paper. GHG emissions from the wood pulping alone were 559 g CO eq per kilogram of tissue paper, three times higher than waste paper collection and transportation. Conclusions: In terms of GHG emissions from cradle to gate, the recycled process less intensive than the virgin one for two reasons. First, as shown in the results the total GHG emissions from RWP are lower than those from VP due to relatively lower energy and material requirements. Second is the non-recyclability nature of tissue paper. Because the tissue paper is the last use of fibre, using RWP as an input would be preferable over using VP. The environmental profile of the tissue products both from RWP and VP can be improved if the following conditions are considered by the company. First, the company should consider implementing a cogeneration unit to simultaneously generate both useful heat and electricity. Second, it may consider changing the VP mix, in order to avoid the emissions associated with long distance transpiration effort. Third, there is the option of using sludge as fuel, which would reduce the total fossil fuel requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to analyze and quantify the environmental impacts associated with the production of testliner paper using 100 % recovered paper as fiber raw material, by applying the life cycle assessment principles. A simulation of advanced sorting technology was done to prepare and use batches of raw materials with different levels of contaminants. Comparative studies of environmental impact assessment were focused on the quality of recovered paper, which is decisively influenced by the efficiency of the sorting process. The particularity of the study is that so far it is the only one that analyzes the environmental impact generated by recovered paper quality. Methods: To analyze the environmental impacts in the scenarios, life cycle assessment methodology was considered. Potential environmental impacts were assessed by using the CML , Dec.07 method developed by the Centre for Environmental Science from the University of Leiden. Results and discussion: In this study, acidification potential, abiotic resources depletion potential, eutrophication potential, global warming potential, photochemical ozone creation potential, and human toxicity potential were the impact categories analyzed. Considering that the system boundaries refer only to the paper mill that was obtained, all unitary processes involved in the manufacturing of product system influence in varying proportions the impact categories chosen for evaluation. A higher concentration of contaminants leads to a higher amount of energy and water used, and thus, a significant amount of waste and emissions generated. Simulations performed have highlighted the importance of sorting technology that influences the quality of raw material that will be used. Conclusions: Utilization of recovered paper batches with a low quality contributes to an increased environmental impact associated with the testliner paper manufacturing stage. A low quality of recovered paper will influence energy consumption in different modules of the system (recycled fiber pulp preparation, paper machine, and wastewater treatment), the volume of waste generated, and consequently the emissions released both in air and water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to analyse the potential green practices that can be adopted onboard a cruise ship in order to enhance the environmental performance of the cruise with particular attention to paper input and output flows in a waste minimization perspective. Methods: A comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of management scenarios of paper streams onboard a cruise ship is performed. The potential environmental impacts due to three strategic choices about paper and paper waste management onboard a case-study ship have been investigated through a so-called difference analysis, i.e. the digitalization of the daily information journal Today, the reduction of toilet paper and paper towels through the installation of auto-cut single extraction dispensers and the reduction of printing paper through dissemination of specific guidelines. In order to compare each scenario with the reference case in absence of the practice implementation, the functional unit in this study has been defined as 1 day of cruise. Results and discussion: The implementation of the analysed green practices show comparable environmental benefits onboard a pilot ship, on the basis the set of assumptions and hypothesis identified in this simulation. In particular, when comparing the potential GHG emission reductions, it results that the two most realistically feasible scenarios in the communication area, i.e. digitalization of 25 and 50 % shares of Today journal, show environmental savings comparable to measures related to reduction of consumables and guidelines for personnel. Nevertheless, the addition of a reasonable number of touch-screen devices for this purpose would not significantly influence the environmental impacts. Conclusions: A set of reduction measures of paper items onboard a cruise ship is able to both avoid the impacts related to production and incineration stages. In the form of forecast scenarios, the results of such modelization may represent a set of indicators to be considered in a feasibility analysis prior to selection of the green practices to be introduced, as a support to decisions for cruise managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The pervasive use of plastics, coupled with inadequate waste management systems in many countries, has led to widespread leakage of plastics into the environment. In South Africa, the predominant type of shopping bags are single-use plastic bags; but paper, biodegradable plastic and re-usable bags have emerged as alternatives. To compare these alternatives in terms of environmental impacts across the whole product life cycle, we carried out a cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment (LCA) of 16 shopping bag types available in South Africa. Methods: The comparison includes single-use plastic, bioplastic and paper bags, as well as re-usable bags (typically made from plastic in South Africa). The functional unit was based on the estimated annual volume of groceries purchased per capita. An attributional LCA was carried out using the ReCiPe 2016 Midpoint(H) method, with 18 mid-point impact categories. In addition, given the lack of an impact category for plastic pollution in existing methods, we developed a mid-point indicator based on the persistence of plastics (and other materials) leaked to the environment (Persistence of leaked material, PersistenceLM). Specific attention was placed on modelling end-of-life and waste management in the South African context. Economic-based allocation at the point of substitution was used to apportion environmental impacts to virgin and recyclate material, and the production of recyclate was modelled using system expansion. Results and discussion: Re-usable bag types, specifically the 70 µm High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and non-woven Polyester bags, had the lowest environmental impacts for all indicators, except PersistenceLM. Paper and biodegradable plastic bags had a lower PersistenceLM impact as compared to the petro-based plastic bags, and therefore may be preferable in terms of avoiding plastics accumulating in the environment. The re-usable bags need to be used at least 3 to 10 times to offer lower environmental impacts than single-use ones. Among the single-use bags, biodegradable bags made from imported Polybutylene Adipate Terepthalate (PBAT) plus starch showed the lowest environmental impacts across all impact categories, including PersistenceLM, followed by the Paper bag. The single-use 24 µm HDPE bag (HDPE_24) with no recycled content had the highest overall environmental impacts, while increasing the recycled content reduced overall environmental impacts by up to 52%. Compared to other countries, the high environmental impacts of plastic bags in South Africa can largely be attributed to the coal-to-liquids process used for polymer production, which is intensive in terms of both energy and raw materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background, aim, and scope Pulp and paper production is one of the most important Portuguese economic activities. Mostly based on eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), nearly 70% of the pulp produced is exported, mainly to the European Union. The aim of this paper is to compare the environmental impacts of the production of Portuguese printing and writing paper based on eucalyptus with those from the production of paper from industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa). Materials and methods We have used a life cycle assessment approach to compare both types of paper. The functional unit used was a ton of white printing and writing paper. Data was mostly derived from the Portuguese literature for eucalyptus and from scientific literature for hemp. The impact categories/indicators taken into account were global warming, photochemical oxidant formation (summer smog), acidification, eutrophication, and direct land use. Results and discussion Industrial hemp presents higher environmental impacts than eucalyptus paper in all environmental categories analyzed. The main differences are in the crop and the pulp production stages. This is because hemp makes use of higher number of mechanical operations and larger amounts of fertilizer in the former and larger amounts of chemical additives in the latter. Conclusions There is scope for improving industrial hemp paper production. We present some suggestions on how to reduce some of the environmental impacts identified for hemp, so that the pulp and paper industry can continue its progress towards a more environmentally friendly paper production. Recommendations and perspectives New studies could be based on the alternatives presented throughout the paper for improving hemp paper. Further studies should incorporate analyses on water consumption, soil erosion, soil nutrient depletion, and impacts on biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Pulp and paper manufacturing constitutes one of the largest industry segments in term of water and energy usage and total discharges to the environment. More than many other industries, however, this industry plays a key role in sustainable development because its most important raw material, wood fiber, is renewable Dias and Houtman (Environ Prog 23(4):347-357, ). Actually, even if the communication is dominated by electronic media, paper-based communication has a role to play due to its unique practical and aesthetic qualities. This research aims to assess the environmental impact of advertising folders produced with different papers and distributed by a system of Italian consumers' cooperatives in order to indicate the possible options of improvement and to assess the CO emitted during the entire life cycle. Methods: Life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed from cradle-to-grave considering paper production, transport from paper mill to printing site, printing, distribution, and disposal. Data for the study were directly collected from specific companies and completed on the basis of literature information. The analysis was conducted using the SimaPro 7.1.5 software and IMPACT 2002+ method to assess all its environmental impact and damage categories. Results and discussion: LCA analysis indicates that the higher environmental impact is mainly due to paper production and printing processes. The main operations which generate the major impact in the paper production stage are related to the direct or indirect fossil energy use, the production of additives for bleaching operations, and the collection and selection of waste paper. Printing causes relevant impacts for the electricity and ink production and for the aluminum plates used in the offset printing. Moreover, the use of paper with low quantity of additives and small amount of primary fibers causes a reduction of the environmental load of 13.94 %. The major global warming potential value was found for advertising folders made with little amount of mechanical pulp which slightly contributes to the absorption of CO. Conclusions: The analysis pointed out the relevance of the paper production phase and of the printing step within the advertising folders life cycle and allowed to detect the other critical stages of the life cycle. Paper composition greatly affects the environmental impact of the advertising folders' life cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background, aim, and scope North American pulp and paper mills are facing tremendous challenges, which may necessitate major mill modernizations. An example is process modification to reduce dependency on purchased power, which is an expensive resource. Such modifications may have environmental implications at the mills' sites, on their product life cycle, and on other interconnected systems, and therefore, systematic tools such as life cycle assessment (LCA) need to be applied. Different LCA system boundary approaches can be used for such process design applications, and these approaches need to be compared to determine their respective benefits and limitations in this context. This study compares setting the system boundary according to a cradle-to-gate approach [attributional LCA (ALCA)] and a system expansion [consequential LCA (CLCA)] approach using a case study, which deals with implementing cogeneration and increased de-inked pulp production at an integrated newsprint mill. Methodology A case study considering various process options to reduce purchased electricity at an integrated newsprint mill is defined. These options include implementing cogeneration and increasing de-inked pulp production. The environmental impacts related to these process options are analyzed using two LCA methodologies. The first one consists in setting the system boundary according to a cradle-to-gate ALCA approach, while the second one uses a differential CLCA approach (system expansion). Comparisons of the two methods are based on different parameters: inclusion/exclusion of the indirect environmental consequences, selected allocation procedures, and effect of using the average versus the marginal technology for power production. Results Both the ALCA approach and the CLCA approach indicate that the process options are beneficial. However, the results show that indirect environmental consequences, which are assessed only with the CLCA approach, can be opposite to direct effects (e.g., the results can indicate an improvement of the direct impacts and a deterioration of the indirect ones). In addition, environmental impacts obtained by modeling the average or the marginal technology may be very different. Using an ALCA approach often necessitates the use of an arbitrary allocation procedure, which can greatly affect the results. On the other hand, ALCA can be used to perform "hot spots" identification, which, at this time, is not possible with CLCA. Discussion The cradle-to-gate boundary approach, which is usually used in the literature for pulp and paper process design applications, may not always be the most appropriate to determine the environmental consequences of implementing different process options. However, at this time, there is no method based on CLCA allowing for "hot spots" identification, and thus, a combined approach may be required for process design. Conclusions It is shown that the choice of the system boundary can significantly affect the results. More specifically, the usage of different allocation procedures in ALCA leads to different interpretation of the results, which does not occur when using the CLCA approach. CLCA provides more complete information for decision making for the cases where most of the consequences occur outside the life cycle of the product investigated. Recommendations and perspectives Research opportunities include developing methodologies to integrate ALCA and CLCA for improved process design applications and mechanisms for reducing uncertainty in CLCA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: ISO 14020 series of standards provide guidance for establishing ecolabels and a classification based on three label types, I, II, and III. They also determine the consideration of product's life cycle and application of the life cycle assessment (LCA) in ecolabeling. Still, the large number and variety of existing ecolabels has led to consumer confusion in the recent years. The objective of this paper is to propose a characterization scheme for ecolabels and to provide recommendations for the enhancement of existing ecolabel classification, questioning the current sufficiency of ISO. Methods: To reach the objective, we first create a sample of ecolabels covering forest and paper products as an example, to narrow down the enormous number of existing ecolabels (over 460 as of August 2018). Second, we analyze their content, purpose, and awarding criteria through a desk research. In parallel, scientific publication, reports, and standards are also analyzed. Third, based on the obtained information, we define a list of ecolabel characterization attributes and their options and observe tendencies in ecolabel development. Ultimately, based on the outcomes of the proposed characterization scheme, we give recommendations for enhancement. Results and discussion: Ultimately, we compare a sample of 45 ecolabels against 18 attributes of the proposed characterization scheme, including, among others, their ISO typology, life cycle perspective, awarding format, covered environmental aspects, and scope. Regarding type I or type III label, ISO seems to be explicit and their requirements are well respected, including how LCA is to be applied. However, approximately 60% of the explored ecolabels in our sample did not declare any ISO typology, whereas none assigned a type II classification. These "undefined" ecolabels, as we call them, apply different awarding formats and criteria in combination and hybrid forms that are not recognized and described by ISO or any other observed classification approach. Misuse of the term "LCA" is also perceived in such "undefined" initiatives. Conclusions: We conclude that the current ISO standards on ecolabels belittle the consequences that the increased number of undefined ecolabels brings. We provide a list of recommendations for the enhancement of the current ISO classification in seven topics, namely, awarding format, aspects diversity, operation scope, verification, reconsideration of the usability of ISO 14021, new ISO classification, and transparency. Limitations of the study and outlook conclude the work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The sale and distribution of books are activities that have changed through increased use of the internet. The main aim of this paper was to determine the potential environmental impacts of paper books and identify key issues determining the magnitude of those impacts. A second aim was to study the environmental difference between a paper book bought in a traditional bookshop and through an internet bookshop. In addition, areas with a lack of data and major uncertainties were to be noted. Materials and methods: A screening life cycle assessment was performed on an average hardback novel produced and read in Sweden. The data used were general data from Ecoinvent 2.0 and site-specific data from companies participating in the study, whenever average data were not available. Results and discussion: The results showed the most important processes to be pulp and paper production. However, if a substantial distance was travelled by car, to buy a book or collect it, this had a major influence on the environmental performance. Comparing the two bookshop alternatives, the results showed a slight benefit for the internet bookshop due to fewer books being returned to the publisher and the avoidance of energy use at the traditional bookshop. The buyer of a book could significantly influence the total impact by choosing to walk to the bookshop or to combine the trip with several other activities to decrease the impact of the travel per activity performed. When books ordered via the internet were sent by postal services directly to the end consumer, the climate change impact was lowered. Conclusions: This study showed that, in addition to the paper used, the way books are bought and distributed, including possible personal transportation, can significantly affect the total environmental impact of paper books. The impact per book read can be significantly decreased by sharing books with others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Goal and Background. The LCA methodology is used to compare the potential environmental benefits of an emerging bio- technology, enzyme-bleaching, with those of elemental chlorine free (ECF) bleaching, an existing technology that is widely used in paper making. Through the use of biodegradable enzymes to supplement, or eventually to replace, chemicals in the bleaching process to extract lignin, enzyme bleaching processes are aimed to reduce the use of chlorine based bleaching chemicals and to achieve cost savings by circumventing investment into oxygen delignification or ozone bleaching technology. Scope and Method. The assessment is conducted using SimaPro 4.0 and focuses on the processes within the bleach plant stage. For this study, ECF is replaced by enzyme bleaching only in the first stage of the bleaching process. Because this is a comparative study, all upstream and downstream processes are excluded. The impact categories based on Eco-indicator 95 are used to characterize the inventory data in this study. Other methodologies, such as Eco-indicator 99 and CML 2000, have not been chosen as they are more region-specific and are not yet fully applicable to the Canadian environmental condition. A new initiative to develop a Canadian Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCJA) Method is ongoing at the Interuniversity Reference Center for the Life Cycle Assessment, Interpretation and Management of Products, Processes and Services (CIRAIG), Ecole Polytechnique, Canada. Results and Conclusion. The analysis shows that the introduction of enzyme bleaching into the ECF process significantly im- proves the overall environmental performance in the majority of the impact categories. Extending the substitution of enzyme bleaching for chlorine dioxide is warranted. Of the three im- pact categories where increased impact was noted, two of these which increased emissions of greenhouse gases and increased incidence of summer smog, would be completely eliminated if the enzyme mediator was manufactured at the point of use. There remains a potential for increased impact from eutrophication, which would need to be managed. Recommendations and Outlook. With the only partial substitution of ECF by enzyme bleaching examined here, chlorine dioxide consumption, energy consumption, NaOH consumption, and transportation remain the key hot spots and warrant further research. Anything that can be done to replace or reduce chlorine dioxide consumption will benefit the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The European Ecolabel (EU Flower) has the mission to encourage cleaner production and influence consumers to promote Europe's transition to a circular economy. Nonetheless, little is known about EU Ecolabel evolution; it is not clear what the drivers that encourage its implementation are. Thus, this study aims to assess the growing acceptance of the EU Ecolabel in the European Union, and Spain more specifically, by examining product and service categories and geographical regions. Methods: The methodological approach taken in this study is a mixed methodology based on the triangulation method by consulting the EU Ecolabel scheme database, EU Ecolabel delegates from some autonomous regions, and the academic literature. Also, a geographic analysis was run in the ArcGIS Software with data about the accumulation of licenses assigned in 2016. Results and discussion: The analysis shows that most products in Spain that have been awarded the EU Ecolabel belong to the following categories: Do-It-Yourself Products (paint and varnish), Paper Products, Cleaning Up Products, and Electronic Equipment. At the same time, the study showed that this ecolabel faces significant obstacles in its diffusion, such as the competition with environmental labels launched previously in Europe and other regional labels. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate the existence of five drivers that may encourage the implementation of EU Flower in a region: (1) public management, (2) communication strategy, (3) sustainable public procurement criteria, (4) local income per capita, and (5) international trade incentives. Finally, this study provides essential recommendations for policymakers to trigger ecolabeling practices such as the need to improve the understanding of the EU ecolabel impact in different levels of activity, which means countries, regions, industrial clusters, firms, and consumers. Also, this investigation identifies areas for further research, and it expresses the need to develop business case studies about ecolabeling with the objective to visualize this phenomenon as an eco-innovation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this research is to carry out a literature review on the use of life-cycle cost (LCC) approaches for hydrogen technologies, by analysing its evolution over a decade (2012–2021). Methods: The SCOPUS database has been used to select relevant literature on the subject. After adoption of inclusion/exclusion criteria, a total of 67 papers were selected for our review. Then, we analysed these studies in terms of hydrogen technologies (fuel cells, electrolysers, hydrogen storage approach, etc.) covered by the LCC approaches. In addition, we also performed an analysis of the LCC features — type of LCC (conventional, environmental, social), integration with LCA/S-LCA, guidelines followed, system boundaries (cradle-to-farm gate, cradle-to-consumer, cradle-to-grave, cradle-to-cradle), functional units, financial tools (NPV, BEP, etc.), type of costs included, and life span — to provide a comprehensive view of LCC studies applied to hydrogen technologies. We also discussed and interpreted the most significant findings. Results and discussion: Our main results can be summarised as follows: (i) the number of LCC studies for application to hydrogen technologies has increased in the decade 2012–2021; (ii) China is the leading country for number of publications on the subject (15 papers), even if the most prolific author and institution are Iranians; (iii) a large number of studies performed LCC analysis including fuel cells and/or electrolysers based on proton exchange membranes; (iv) the most widely used LCC approach is a cradle-to-consumer (37 papers); (vi) almost all the studies on LCC of hydrogen technologies included initial, operation and maintenance costs; while other costs — replacement, external, end-of-life — are included in a limited number of papers; (vii) the net present value (NPV) is the most used financial tool. Conclusions: LCC analysis for application to hydrogen technologies has gained interest in recent years. However, the number of studies that explicitly follow LCC or LCA guidelines is very limited (only 7). The life-cycle cost analyses performed are quite incomplete in terms of costs included in the life-cycle stages. Besides, there is a lack of information and uniformity in the use of functional units and financial tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to identify at what extent e-book reading reduces global warming potential (GWP) of book reading activities relative to that of reading only paper books. Past studies assume e-books and paper books are interchangeable during consumption, but adopting e-book reading can alter reading patterns in reality. This research comparatively assessed the GWP of reading only paper books and that of reading pattern of after e-reader adoption of consumer segments.Methods: We computed GWP of book reading activities of consumer segments that include a life cycle of paper book, e-book, and e-book reading device. Two e-book devices were considered: a designated e-book device (e-reader) and a tablet. The functional units are book reading activities per person and per person-book, which account the number of books purchased or acquired and the reading hours per person. We collected data through a web survey in the USA. Consumer segmentation was performed by analyzing the level of importance in the aspects of book reading activities as a measurement variable. To observe the changes in reading patterns upon e-reader adoption within the same population, we conducted a 3-month social experiment involving e-readers in the USA.Results and discussion: Adopting e-readers was discovered to reduce both the GWP per person and the GWP per person-book of book reading activities. The GWP of e-books read with an e-reader and the GWP of paper books were found to break even at 4.7 books per year, provided consumers read less than 11 h a day. According to the web survey, e-reader users purchase more than seven e-books annually on average, which resulted in a smaller GWP per person-book relative to that of one paper book. Furthermore, the GWP per person in the social experiment was smaller for e-reader adopters than those who only read paper books because they substituted e-books for paper books. The overall book reading volume remains unchanged upon e-reader adoption.Conclusions: Adoption of e-readers reduces the GWP from book reading activities with only paper books, provided more than 4.7 paper books are substituted by e-books annually, and provided consumers’ total consumption volume remain unchanged. E-reader adopters read sufficient number of e-books to break even with paper books. However, most e-reader adopters are yet to fully abandon paper books for e-books. Analyzing the differences in the reading experience between e-books and paper books is a future task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Information and communication technology (ICT) has been proposed as a means to facilitate environmental sustainability. Dematerialisation is one potential way of doing this. For books, this could be realized through using e-book readers, which share many of the qualities of printed media and have notably low-energy requirements during use. The main aim of this study was to analyse the environmental impacts of an e-book read on an e-book reader, and to identify key issues determining the magnitude of the impact. A second aim was to compare the e-book product system with a paper book product system using a life cycle perspective. Materials and methods: A screening LCA was performed on an e-book produced and read in Sweden. The e-book reader was assumed to be produced in China. The data used were general data from Ecoinvent 2.0 and site-specific data from companies participating in the study, whenever average data were not available. Results and discussion: The results showed that production of the e-book reader was the life cycle step contributing most to the environmental impact of the system studied, although data on the e-ink screen were lacking. The disposal phase leads to avoided impact as materials are recycled; however, these results are less certain due to limited data availability. When the e-book was compared with a paper book, the results indicated that the number of books read on the e-book reader during its lifetime was crucial when evaluating its environmental performance compared with paper books. The results indicate that there are impact categories and circumstances where paper books are preferable to e-books from an environmental perspective and vice versa. Conclusions: There is no single answer as to which book is better from an environmental perspective according to the results of the current study. To improve the e-book environmental performance, an e-book reader should be used frequently, the life time of the device should be prolonged, as far as possible, and when not in use anymore, the device should be disposed of in a proper way, making material recycling possible. In addition, the production of the e-reader should be energy efficient and striving towards minimisation of toxic and rare substances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to report the current status of life cycle assessment (LCA) in Saudi Arabia. It summarizes the LCA studies conducted in academia and industry. It also examines LCA collaboration networks and training opportunities. It then points out current gaps in implementing LCA in Saudi Arabia. Finally, it delineates the steps required to promote LCA both as a research methodology and as a sustainability assessment tool in Saudi Arabia. Methods: Using Scopus database and the Internet, a state-of-the-art review was conducted for this paper. "LCA", "Life Cycle Assessment" and "Saudi Arabia" were the key words used for searching scientific studies, industrial reports, training courses and conferences related to application of LCA within Saudi Arabia. The search resulted in 32 scientific documents and one industrial report. Further scrutiny reduced the final sample considered for this paper to eleven scientific documents and one industrial report that used a complete LCA study to report environmental impacts. Results and discussion: Studies considered for this paper were related to fossil fuels, buildings, electricity generation, desalination, and food consumption. However, overall number of publications and industry reports related to LCA in Saudi Arabia is very little as compared to other advanced economies. This sheer lack of studies conducted in Saudi Arabia can be attributed to lack of educational programs, consultancies, and research projects related to LCA. This points to the vast potential for developing LCA both as a research tool and sustainability assessment tool in Saudi Arabia. There is a need to develop a local network of LCA researchers, a local LCI database, and training courses. Conclusions: This study revealed that use of LCA as a sustainability assessment tool is still in its early stages within Saudi Arabia. There are only a handful of LCA studies that are reported in scientific literature related to Saudi Arabia. Additionally, most of these studies relies on non-local databases rendering the results of these studies less reliable. There is an urgent need to promote LCA within Saudi Arabia and academia can play a leading role by offering short courses, training for industry, and participating in joint projects to conduct LCA studies. Furthermore, local LCA databases and consultancies should also be promoted. It is conjectured that in the future, the use of LCA will grow in Saudi Arabia as the county is targeting to become a net zero carbon economy by 2060. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Unlike ordinary products, festival food gifts like mooncakes in China are prone to excessive packaging, using various materials and complicated decorations, which increases the resource and environmental burdens of consumption. This study evaluated the environmental impacts of different mooncake packaging options, including metal, wood, and paper-based packaging. Methods: This study sampled 64 mooncake packaging types (with low, medium, and high prices) in the Chinese market and employed life cycle assessment modeling to quantify and analyze the environmental impacts of different mooncake packaging types. Based on these results, this study identified environmental-friendly options and shed light on directions to alleviate unnecessary environmental impacts associated with the packaging of massive seasonal festival food. Results and discussion: The weight of packing materials associated with 1 kg of mooncake product ranged from 0.5 to 2.5 kg (with a mean value of 1.2 kg), resulting in average greenhouse gas emissions of 2 kg of CO2-eq, or approximately 67 times the value of ordinary food packing (0.03 kg of CO2-eq). Among the three packaging types, metal-based packaging had the highest environmental impacts, followed by wood and paper-based packaging. The outer packaging was the dominant contributor to the environmental impacts of metal-based packaging, while the impacts of wood and paper-based packaging were primarily derived from the middle packaging materials, which mainly consisted of individual packaging boxes and fixed pallets. Higher-priced mooncakes had heavier packaging weight and greater environmental impacts, suggesting that they bear more environmental responsibility. Conclusion: Excessive and extravagant packaging was responsible for the increasing environmental burden associated with mooncakes. For both mooncake producers and consumers, turning back to the essence of the festival itself will be crucial for mitigating the environmental impacts of packaging. This study is an initial attempt to quantify the environmental impacts of traditional festival food packaging, and the study results facilitate evidence-based policymaking to transition the festival commodity packaging sector in a more sustainable direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Many companies around the world have been challenged to make their products in a more sustainable way in the last decade in order to minimize their environmental impacts. Klabin, the largest producer, exporter, and recycler of paper in Brazil, has made great efforts to exchange old for new and more efficient equipment to produce cellulose packaging materials. The objective of this study was to measure the benefits of modernization of its plant located in the southern region of the country for manufacturing carrier board/folding box board (CB/FBB) and kraftliner paper (KP). Methods: The goal established was analyzed through a cradle- to- gate life cycle assessment methodology. Results and discussion: The modernization carried out has led to several improvements such as the reductions measured by the functional units of 1,000 kg of CB/FBB and 1,000 kg of KP, respectively, of energy consumption (21 and 3 %), water (8.5 % for CB/FBB only), wood (6.6 and 7.2 %), and land use (6.9 and 7.1 %). The environmental impact categories (according to CML 2001) that have suffered greater reductions are human toxicity (68 and 69 %), abiotic depletion (59 and 28 %), and global warming potential (51 and 9 %) for the same reference units. Conclusions: The results achieved clearly show the importance of renewing industrial plant in order to achieve better environmental performance and also provide a historical inventory perspective for the company to establish future targets for improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper by Kiss and Szalay ([12]) titled I Sensitivity of buildings' carbon footprint to electricity decarbonization: a life cycle-based multi-objective optimization approach i examines how changes in electricity mix impacts GHG emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emphasizes the need to immediately tackle climate change by significantly reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and capping global warming at 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels (IPCC, [8]). The study found that total GHG emissions from maize production were on average 429 ± 27 kg CO2-eq/ton grain, with the highest emissions occurring during the dry season. This SI further contributes to raising awareness to the topic of measuring GHG emissions, decarbonization measures as well as climate neutrality. [Extracted from the article]

Part 2 summarises the results of a comparative LCA study of HT stone wool, flax representing crop grown products and paper wool representing recycled products applied for roof insulation, in which an attempt is made to answer the question of whether the biological products flax and paper wool are more environmentally preferable than the mineral product stone wool representing more traditional insulation materials. Of the three products compared, paper wool has, in general, the lowest global and regional environmental impacts and flax insulation the highest, with stone wool falling in between. A notable exception is the total energy use, where stone wool has the lowest consumption, followed by cellulose and flax. The study also addresses occupational health, using an approach similar to that used for risk assessment. Here, the modern less biopersistent stone wool products are seen as the safest alternatives, because of a low potential for exposure, sufficient animal testing and the absence of carcinogenic properties. Overall, the differences between the investigated products are of minor environmental significance compared to that achieved by their use, namely insulation of buildings, which saves energy corresponding to more than 100 times the environmental impacts incurred in their manufacture. The main conclusion is that the quality and fitness for use of an insulation product throughout its useful life span is the most important aspect in the life cycle of insulation materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Insulation of buildings in order to save heating energy is an important technology for enabling sustainable development. This paper summarises the results of a comparative LCA study according to ISO 14040 standard series of HT stone wool, flax representing crop grown products and paper wool representing recycled products applied for roof insulation. As the three materials have vastly different lifecycles, yet fulfil the same function cycles, the methodology used should be of general interest. Part 1 consists of the project background, goal and scope definition, a detailed life cycle inventory analysis with sensitivity analysis, impact assessment and interpretation. The actual comparison of the results from the life cycle assessments of the three products, in which an attempt is made to answer the question of whether the biological products flax and paper wool are more environmentally preferable than the mineral product stone wool representing more traditional insulation materials, is discussed in Part 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Polymer materials play an important role in the improvement and quality of life. However, due to their persistence in the environment, polymer materials may be harmful to the ecosystems. According to the European Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste, management of these wastes should include prevention of their generation as a priority. The main motivation for employing ecodesign of a product is to reduce both raw material consumption and waste generation through a good initial design. Methods: In this study, life cycle assessment (LCA) was applied to the design of printed PVC plastic packing tape in order to reduce its environmental impact. LCA software GaBi4.4 was used to determine the PVC packing tape life cycle stage with the highest environmental impacts. Results and discussion: LCA results showed that PVC film manufacture was the stage with the highest impact. It was therefore reasonable to assume that packing tape manufactured with material other than PVC could have reduced environmental impact, and LCA was used to evaluate this hypothesis. When using Kraft paper or polypropylene plastic packing tape, the weighted impacts were reduced by 36.3 and 39.9 %, respectively. Conclusions: PVC plastic packing tape has been redesigned with the aim of reducing waste and raw material consumption. LCA results showed that a suitable option for reducing life cycle environmental impact is to use alternative film materials. Kraft paper and polypropylene plastic packing tape were found to give lower values of almost all environmental impact indexes and normalized and weighted impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Most LCAs estimate environmental impacts for a specific situation (industry, sector or location) in a generic way, without considering the specific characteristics of the product or service being evaluated. This paper outlines the relevance of the use of parameters and scenarios in environmental assessment for a daily newspaper considering multiple factors. The results of the different environmental impacts were compared with a baseline reference scenario.Methods: Different product specifications, sources of raw materials, manufacturing technologies, energy mix, locations of the printing plant, and distribution possibilities of the newspaper have been taken into account. The unit processes and the amounts allocated for each resource may vary depending on the scenarios. Inventory data were obtained directly from measured data for consumption in the printing plant located in Gran Canaria (Spain) and internal inventories and indirectly from information of existing processes and products. As functional units, both 1 kg of printed newspaper and 1 unit of printed newspaper have been used. The environmental impact assessment methodology ReCiPe has been applied in this study. Also endpoint indicators are shown as score (Pt) for different areas of protection.Results and discussion: For variations in the number of printed copies, the results show that environmental impacts are very high for small runs. For large runs, the impacts decrease between −14 and −16% with respect to the baseline scenario. The environmental impact of paper in the final product depends on several variables including the use of recycled fiber, the papermaking technology and the energy used in the paper plant. For airlifted daily newspapers, this means an increase of over 98% in the Climate Change impact if it is not printed in the same place of distribution. The electricity mix also depends on the geographical location and significantly affects the impacts, especially in the case of an isolated territory with increments of over 12% compared to interconnected systems.Conclusions: An impact assessment should take into account the suppliers and the characteristics of the raw materials the equipment, the technology, the energy mix, and all the variables that may affect the product. From the analysis of the scenarios, it is obtained that the low runs as well as the high pages and weights produce the greatest impacts. The use of recyclable paper, the shorter distance to the printing plant from the raw materials factories as well as the use of renewable energy sources considerably reduce the impacts generated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is an urgent and serious global problem. Life cycle assessment methods may be used to evaluate the life cycle carbon footprint of a product, such as the National Geographic magazine. The results of the study provide the publisher and material suppliers with information to reduce life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The study also informs consumers of the GHG emissions associated with the product. The purpose of this study was to document the life cycle carbon footprint of the National Geographic magazine. Currently, there is no international standard for conducting a product life cycle carbon footprint. Both the International Standards Organization (ISO) and the World Resources Institute’s Greenhouse Gas Protocol are working to develop standards. The study followed the ISO standards for life cycle assessment (ISO 14040:2006 and ISO 14044:2006). The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard also provided guidance. The study showed that the life cycle of the National Geographic magazine produces about 0.82 kg of carbon dioxide equivalents per life cycle of the average magazine. The amount of GHG emissions per life cycle of each magazine produced is about the same amount of GHG emissions produced by driving an automobile (8.5 km/liter gasoline) for about 3 km. High quality, geographically and temporally representative data for the study were provided by National Geographic, Verso Paper, and Quad Graphics. These data are specific to the magazine life cycle and account for about 88% of the total energy results and about 75% of the total GHG emissions for the entire life cycle of the magazine. The study includes extraction of raw materials from the earth, processing of raw materials, fuels, intermediate products, transportation steps, manufacture of paper, printing, distribution of the magazine, and final disposition. The results indicate that opportunities for improving the carbon footprint of the magazine are more likely to be found within the manufacturing and printing of the paper. These two steps account for the majority of the greenhouse gas emissions. Including recycled fiber into magazine paper did not improve the carbon footprint of the magazine. Incorporation of groundwood did impact end-of-life emissions from disposal into landfills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a data-intensive methodology; therefore, experts usually focus collection efforts on a few activities, while generic data on remaining activities are taken from databases. Even though increased availability of databases has facilitated LCA takeoff, assuring data quality is fundamental to ensure meaningful results and reliable interpretation.Methods: Ecoinvent has become a global reference for inventory data. Its current version released three impact partition modeling options—the recycled content, "allocation at the point of substitution" (APOS), and consequential models—whose adequate choice is crucial for yielding meaningful assessments. Tutorials and manuals describe the distribution algorithm that backs each system model, to ground decision-making regarding the best fit to a study's goals. We performed a systematic literature review to investigate—within the papers published on the International Journal of LCA (IJLCA)—how transparently authors addressed the system model choices.Results and discussion: About 70% of LCA practitioners continued to use earlier versions of ecoinvent after version 3 was launched in 2013. The number of papers using versions 3.x only showed an increased growth trend 2 years later. Eighty-three papers actually adopted the newest version of the database. From those, only 29 papers clearly mentioned the adopted system model. Our SLR also suggests a trend regarding authorship profile of LCA-related studies: the number of studies conducted by practitioners aware of the intricacies of sound modeling of background and foreground data might have been surpassed by those conducted by non-LCA specialists who use LCA as a supporting tool for investigations in applied fields, and merely scratch the surface.Conclusions: Our results point to a need for a caveat: ecoinvent users must take time to understand the general concept behind each system model and practice one of the most important actions when performing an LCA—state methodological choices clearly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The increasing global concern surrounding plastic pollution has resulted in a spotlight being placed on major contributors. Straws have been identified as a top contributor in this regard leading to a global outcry against plastic straws. This has resulted in the increasing popularity of plastic straw material alternatives. This study compares the environmental impacts associated with five straw material options available in South Africa. Methods: The straw materials compared include disposable options (polypropylene, paper and polylactide) and reusable straws (glass and steel). Plastic straws were the only option which are locally produced from local materials, whereas glass and steel straws are manufactured from imported materials and paper and polylactide straws are imported. The functional unit was based on an annual straw consumption per capita, which equates to 36 disposable straws and 1 reusable straw. The impact assessment was conducted using the Recipe Midpoint (H) method, which took into consideration 18 impact categories. The potential marine pollution impacts were explored based on the leakage propensity of the material option coupled with its degradability. Results and discussion: The paper straw was found to have lower climate change emissions than the plastic one, which was mainly caused by the performance of the material. In South Africa, coal is used as a primary feedstock for polypropylene production making it more carbon-intensive in comparison with polypropylene produced in Europe and the USA which is primarily from crude oil and/or natural gas feedstocks. Glass and steel straws would require 23–39 and 37–63 uses respectively to break even with climate change emissions associated with disposable options. Overall, material production was the major contributor to straw emissions. The relative contribution of transportation, including import, was more dependent on the transportation mode compared with distance. For reusable straws, the washing water temperature was found to notably influence emissions. At end-of-life, reusable straws were considered unlikely to enter the marine environments. Disposable straws were found to have a leakage rate of 38%, with paper being the only marine degradable material. Conclusions: Overall, paper straws had the least impacts in the majority of impact categories in comparison with other disposable options and glass was more favourable to steel. In terms of marine pollution, reusable straws were deemed to pose the least risk due to their unlikelihood to be polluted. Paper was associated with the least potential impacts of the disposal options, due to its degradability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This literature review starts from the recognition of the importance of the social performance of sustainable products and the SLCA approach as a potential tool to measure this performance. The goal of this research is to analyze the bibliographies (papers and authors) that could be considered to be the basis to support the application of the SLCA concept in product performance. Methods: A bibliographical survey was conducted in two databases (Italian and Brazilian) covering the articles published from 2010 to 2013. The structure of the research consists of four steps: selection and analysis of recent scientific papers related to SLCA, selection and analysis of recent scientific papers related to the application of SLCA to a product, analysis of all of the references cited in recent scientific papers related to the application of SLCA to a product, and analysis of all of the scientific papers cited in recent scientific papers related to the application of SLCA to a product. Results and discussion: In 99 articles derived from the first selection, 13 articles specifically discussed the use of SLCA to products related to five different sectors. The investigation of the references cited in these papers identified 524 references used in 56 different journals and 358 authors. To discover the most cited references, the 220 articles published in scientific journals were examined. The work of Dreyer et al. (Int J Life Cycle Assess 11(2):88-97, ) was utilized in 62 % of the 13 selected articles and by the all of the sectors. Other important studies are also Benoît et al. (Int J Life Cycle Assess 15:156-163, ), Jørgensen et al. (Int J Life Cycle Assess 13(2):96-103, ), and Weidema (Int J Life Cycle Assess 11(1):89-96, ). Regarding an individual analysis of the authors, we highlight Hauschild, Jørgensen, Noris, and Dreyer. Conclusions: In summary, the results indicate that the article of Dreyer et al. (Int J Life Cycle Assess 11(2):88-97, ) was cited by several authors in the scientific studies over the last decade and that Hauschild, Jørgensen, Norris, and Dreyer were the most cited authors. However, regarding the frequency and distribution of the citations in all of the sectors, a deeper discussion regarding whether the effects are due to the sample or are based on the use of the SLCA being in its infancy is required. Note that a factor that differentiates a mature thematic area of a new field of study is the presence of shared references. Thus, the definition of a common approach among scientists applying SLCA would result in a bibliography with a shared basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: A critical evaluation of the life cycle assessment (LCA) studies was performed in the main scientific bibliographic databases (online and free access) of Brazil where the LCA methodology could be considered. Methods: This has been an exploratory study with a qualitative evaluation of quantitative LCA studies with regard to International Organization of Standardization (ISO) 14040 standards. Firstly, the selected papers were those which used the LCA methodology in case studies (quantitative LCA studies). This survey was based on previously chosen keywords which were directly and/or indirectly related to LCA in Portuguese, English, and Spanish. Results and discussion: One hundred and twenty papers related to LCA were found, among which 21 have been effectively used the LCA methodology applied to case studies. The study has indicated agriculture and livestock as some promising areas for the use of LCA methodology in Brazil. As for the scope of LCA, it has been found that nine papers have adopted the cradle-to-grave approach, whereas 12 papers have limited the study to some life cycle stage (cradle-to-gate, gate-to-gate, or gate-to-grave). This behavior can be justified by the difficulty in obtaining data from raw material, supply chain, inputs, or about the disposal, reuse, and recycling of products/systems. The criteria set out in the ISO 14040 standard was carried out in 17 out of the 21 selected papers. Conclusions: The LCA of Brazilian studies could be improved. For instance, when considering the requirements and guidelines of ISO standards, at the goal phase, the papers have clearly mentioned their target audience. The scope phase requires more explanation about the allocation procedures, once the process/product is not isolated, and for most processes, it may generate more than one product. As regards the Life Cycle Inventory, these studies could improve their data sources, once few papers used primary sources. According to our understanding, the best phase performed by the papers was life cycle impact assessment. Hopefully, LCA will become a known research area and will be adopted by most of the Brazilian scientific community. It is further expected that LCA might have a regular publication in scientific journals (perhaps an own journal). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper provides global weights (weighting factors) for the three endpoint impact categories (areas of protection (AoPs)) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Life Cycle Initiative's "Global Guidance for Life Cycle Impact Assessment Indicators and Methods" (GLAM) project, namely human health, ecosystem quality, and natural resources and ecosystem services. Methods: A discrete choice experiment (DCE) was conducted to elicit the preferences of respondents on the GLAM AoPs, and they were then used to calculate the respective weights. Responses were obtained from a subset of countries pertaining to each income level defined by the World Bank (i.e. low, lower-middle, upper-middle, and high). The adimensional (between 0 and 1) weights were derived using two different approaches: econometric and multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA). The econometric approach obtained weights by transforming the estimated preference parameters from a multinomial logit model. The MCDA approach obtained weights representing the vectors that best reconstitute the choices of each individual, using linear programming to fit an additive value function. Results: When considering responses from all income groups, the weights from the econometric approach are 0.42, 0.31, and 0.26 for human health, ecosystem quality, and natural resources and ecosystem services, respectively. Following the same order for the AoPs, the weights from the MCDA approach are 0.41, 0.32, and 0.27. For high-income countries, ecosystem quality has the highest weight; for upper-middle-income countries, ecosystem quality and human health have the same weights using the econometric approach, while in the MCDA approach, human health is weighted higher than ecosystem quality. For the two lower income country groups, the priority is given to human health with both approaches. Recommendations for the use of these weights are also provided, as well as a comparison with other existing weights. Conclusion: The two methods obtained similar weights overall, although with some differences when disaggregated by income groups. The weights proposed in this paper are suitable for decision-makers or users who want to use survey-derived weights for endpoint-based LCA when using the AoPs of GLAM. These weights can be used in projects where the decision-makers do not want to or have no resources to identify a set of weights themselves, or when decision-makers are not involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To discuss the process of stakeholder involvement as undertaken in a post-consumer paper and packaging waste management LCA study conducted during 1997-2001 for the Melbourne Metropolitan Area, Victoria, Australia. Secondly, to present the findings from a survey conducted with the stakeholder groups regarding their perception of involvement in the project. To investigate the stakeholder’s perception; and value of being involved in the LCA study intended to generate quantitative environmental information to support debate, development and implementation of waste management practices. Stakeholders that were involved in the study, both actively and passively, were surveyed by questionnaire Survey findings were analysed in conjunction with stakeholder interaction experiences obtained in the course of the study. as]Results and Discussion Respondents to the survey believed there was a sufficient level of interaction between stakeholders and researchers during the course of the project. The advisory committee approach helped to timely recognize issues and deal with them appropriately. It furdier assisted in the collection of life cycle inventory data and in obtaining ownership of outcomes by the research ream appropriately responding to the needs and issues raised by stakeholders. General recommendations for the inclusion of stakeholders in future studies are to use stakeholder interactions, wherever it is possible and practical, which in turn play an educational role, engage stakeholders from the start of the process and allow additional time in the project plan for review stages, as well as ensuring that all relevant groups are represented — industry, industry associations, government and non-governmental organizations, and also provide sufficient material and progress for discussion at meetings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: National LCA networks have been supporting the mainstreaming of LCA practice in around a hundred countries. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the factors which contribute to the continuity and relevance of LCA networks as LCA practice becomes more mainstream. This paper addresses the following research questions: what factors enabled the establishment of LCA networks and how is their relevance maintained? How do LCA networks maintain operational continuity? In-depth interviews with national LCA networks were conducted and thematically analyzed. The results analyze the factors contributing to the establishment of LCA networks, as well as offering a unique insight into the factors affecting their relevance over time and contributing to maintaining their operational continuity. While previously LCA networks focused mainly on raising awareness of life cycle approaches, now, they are moving towards providing a coordinated influence on policies and stakeholders. LCA is no longer only an academic method; it has become mainstreamed in business sectors. By offering diverse activities and networking possibilities, LCA networks remain attractive for their members who are willing to pay a membership fee, which secures their long-term viability. The driving force for starting LCA networks was individual experts with an interest in the topic. The formal establishment of the networks allowed greater budgetary resources and, thus, the ability to carry out a broader set of activities that are relevant for different groups of stakeholders. The role of LCA networks both as a learning platform as well as an influential interface between different organizations makes them relevant over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Digital closed-loop medication administration (CLMA) is a prime example of how digitalization in healthcare can reduce time and costs while simultaneously increasing patient safety. However, in contrast to its social and economic benefits, associated environmental impacts have never been investigated. Since the required amount of packaging material is seen as a major subject of criticism, we assess associated environmental burdens using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to identify hotspots and provide adaptation recommendations. Methods: Digital, as well as conventional paper-based medication management (PBMM), involve two types of packaging: pharmaceutical packaging (blisters or bottles), containing purchased medication, and clinical packaging (unit doses or medical dispensers) for medication dispensation. Therefore, a cradle-to-grave life cycle model was established comparing impacts at pharmaceutical packaging level, clinical packaging level, and a combined level. While PBMM requires small, blistered boxes, CLMA requires large, bottled packages. Therefore, the functional unit allows to compare different box sizes but inhibits comparing medication from different manufacturers. Primary data is obtained from University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf which practices state-of-the-art CLMA. PBMM data is obtained in three dispenser scenarios, varying the reusability of medical dispensers. The life cycle impact assessment was performed for five impact categories using CML 2001(2016) method. Results and discussion: All compared blistered pharmaceutical packaging options yield higher impacts than their bottled counterparts. Cardboard and package inserts result in up to 40 times higher impacts for blisters than for bottles, which, however, is attributed to the methodology of comparing different box sizes. Yet, this does not influence the required amount of blister laminate. All blister materials were found to result in higher environmental burdens, peaking in nearly 240 times higher ozone depletion impacts for polyvinylchloride/polychlorotrifluoroethylene blisters. In terms of clinical packaging, two of three dispenser scenarios result in higher environmental burdens than the respective unit dose scenario. Only if reused, 7.2 times this trend is reversed. When combining selected impacts from both pharmaceutical and clinical impacts, all three dispenser scenarios perform worse than the unit dose scenario. Conclusions: Packaging impacts are lowest if unit dose dispensation is combined with bottled pharmaceutical packaging. Given a specific pharmaceutical packaging, dispensation via medical dispensers may perform better, if they are comprehensively reused. With this study, the authors disproved that packaging impacts are generally higher for CLMA than for PBMM. However, both systems certainly comprise other processes and materials like consumed paper or energy to run required digital infrastructure, which should be subject to future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper addresses the lack of ecotoxicity characterization factors (CFs) for persistent and mobile (PM) chemicals in life cycle assessment. The specific aims are (1) to provide CFs for 64 selected chemicals and benchmark them against the USEtox database, (2) to propose an ecotoxicity data harmonization strategy, and (3) to analyze the influence of ecotoxicity data sources and data harmonization strategies. Methods: Sixty-four per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), triazines, and triazoles were selected. An ecotoxicity data harmonization strategy was developed to ensure data consistency. A screening strategy for including transformation products was also developed. Existing CFs in the USEtox organic substances database (version 2.01) were identified, and new CFs were calculated based on available data sources. The USEtox model (version 2.13) was used for calculations, and the collected ecotoxicity data from different sources were varied to test their influence. Results and discussion: The ecotoxicity data harmonization strategy excluded a considerable amount of incompatible data. To the list of 64 chemicals, 3 transformation products were added. Out of the 67 chemicals, experimental ecotoxicity data were available for 47, leading to the use of in silico tools and average values to fill data gaps for 20 chemicals. CFs for 67 chemicals could thus be provided. Comparing CFs calculated based on experimental and estimated ecotoxicity data reveals that the estimated data leads to considerably different CF values. Conclusions: The paper provides strategies for ecotoxicity data harmonization and the inclusion of transformation products. The limited availability of experimental ecotoxicity data and differing results of the applied estimation methods highlight the need for further development of estimation methods. In addition, further development in including transformation products is recommended, which is particularly relevant for PM chemicals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The popularity of life-cycle assessment (LCA), and its related methods and concepts, has increased significantly in the past decade. A purposefully simplistic method was employed to determine the availability of studies in each region: a normal Google-based, non-exclusive keyword search that included the words "life cycle assessment" and the country of interest. These included studies that did not specify functional unit, impact assessment method, and results or used the correct keywords but did not actually perform a LCA. [Extracted from the article]

Purpose: While social aspects are considered as part of Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA), the concept of Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) is relatively new in the construction sector, and more research is needed to comprehend its full potential and inform practice to deliver socially sustainable interventions. The paper aims to provide an account of current work in the field of S-LCA in the construction sector and presents an overview of the methodologies and frameworks that are currently used, with a focus on the critical analysis of impact categories applied to the construction sector. Methods: The paper adopts a systematic review of the literature with the objective to (a) provide a holistic and cross-disciplinary overview of the S-LCA methodologies and frameworks in the construction sector, (b) explore existing gaps, and (c) frame directions for future research. Results and discussion: Several gaps have been identified in relation to the S-LCA research landscape applied to the construction sector, which have, in turn, informed the formulation of recommendations for future research. Conclusions: The paper emphasises the importance and the need to intensify efforts to develop and reach consensus on the categories and criteria to deliver an S-LCA framework for Social Life Cycle Assessment of built environments. The framework, underpinned by a methodology, should involve an adaptable weighting system that considers the nature of the building as well as the type and profile of occupants. It should also factor in dynamic data to inform real-time adaptations to continuously deliver socially sustainable built environment interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The transition to a circular agri-food sector is a necessary condition for the sustainable development of the current production and consumption model. The complexity of the agri-food chain requires the introduction of a harmonized measurement system so that the circular economy can be applied. This study aims to define a life cycle-based dashboard to systematize and test cross-sectional life cycle-based (LCB) indicators to evaluate their applicability. Methods: The study is based on previous research to systematize cross-sectional LCB indicators, for the circular agri-food sector, classified according to the spatial dimensions (macro, meso, micro), areas of sustainability (economic, social, environmental), and scope within which the indicators are applied. The indicators were tested through a multiple compared analysis at the national and regional level, including a company case study (within the same region). Data were collected through two different methodologies based on the spatial dimension analysed. At the macro level, data were collected from databases and reports. At the micro level, a semi-structured interview with the owner of the company was conducted. For the analyses, data from different years were considered to compare results and to outline micro-trends. Result and discussion: The work made it possible to outline two types of results. The first derives from the application of the indicators to the spatial dimensions; the second expresses the potential application of the LCB-dashboard by the cross-sectional LCB indicators. The results of the work highlight the ability of cross-sectional indicators to provide a first comprehensive overview of the circularity of the agri-food sector concerning each level of observation. The study also allowed the applicability of LCB cross-sectional indicators to be tested. This suggests the need to introduce a harmonized detection system, between the national and regional accounting systems, obtaining consistent indicators that facilitate the comparison of results over time. Conclusions: The research showed the validity of the use of the cross-sectional LCB indicators, contributing to the discussion on CE indicators in the agri-food sector. The work supports the definition of new cross-sectional indicators and the new data collection model. For companies, the results encourage the development of monitoring models based on the LCB-dashboard. The paper has highlighted the limits and future steps of the measuring indicator system for the circularity of the agri-food sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The olive oil sector in Italy has a significant socio-economic, environmental, and cultural relevance. However, the environmental impacts of production and consumption models are considerable, mainly due to the demand for large quantities of resources (fuels, chemicals) and to the environmental impacts of residues' disposal. Due to the scarcity of resources and climate change concerns, circular economy principles based on industrial ecology concepts are emerging. In this paper, the principles of circular economy were specifically applied to the olive oil supply chain, to improve the environmental sustainability of the sector. Methods: The production chain of extra virgin olive oil was analyzed using the Life Cycle Assessment method, based on primary data from an oil farm and mill in Southern Italy. The environmental impacts were evaluated through the SimaPro software and the ReCiPe 2016 Mid-point (H) Impact Assessment Method, with reference to the functional unit of 1-L bottle of extra virgin olive oil. Some circular improvement options were investigated, comparing the impacts generated by (i) extra virgin olive oil linear production without valorization of by-products, (ii) extra virgin olive oil linear production with allocation of total impacts to co-products, and (iii) two circular production systems, incorporating improvements such as replacement of diesel with biodiesel and of electricity from the national grid with energy recovered from residues. Results and discussion: The environmental impacts of the business-as-usual production pattern were identified for possible improvements. In all phases of the production chain of organic extra virgin olive oil, the most affected impact categories were human carcinogenic toxicity, marine ecotoxicity, and terrestrial ecotoxicity. As expected, the major contributions to almost all the analyzed impact categories were determined by the agricultural phase (92.65%), followed by the bottling phase (7.13%) and the oil extraction phase (0.22%). The valorization of by-products was considered by widening the system boundaries to ensure the environmental sustainability by developing circular patterns that feedback waste materials to upstream steps of the same process. The environmental impacts resulted lower in almost all the impact categories, with the major benefits gained in the global warming and fossil depletion impact categories. Conclusions: The analysis proved that the reuse of pomace, prunings, and exhausted cooking oil initially considered as waste can bring benefits from an environmental point of view to the larger scale of the economy, by replacing fossil fuels, as well as to the olive oil chain itself, by providing the needed energy for production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to develop a scenario analysis on the experts' perceptions of benefits and barriers related to adopting digital technologies for the life cycle assessment (LCA) to catalyse a circular economy transition in the agri-food system. Methods: A literature review was performed to identify LCA's digital technologies that can be implemented within the agri-food system. Furthermore, an in-depth interview with a panel of senior researchers was conducted to establish a set of items and assess the perceived benefits and barriers associated with an "empowered LCA", i.e. a future-oriented LCA based on digital technologies. To this end, a two-stage exploratory factor analysis relying on the principal component analysis technique was carried out to refine the set of items. Finally, a covariance-based structural equation model was performed, built on a confirmatory factor analysis, to test the measurement model. Results and discussion: The study's findings provide five constructs to explore the potential benefits and barriers related to adopting a digital technologies-based LCA (empowered LCA) for a circular economy transition in the agri-food system. More specifically, the benefits can be assessed using the following constructs: "benefits for the data collection and analysis", "benefits for the LCA analysts", "benefits for the management" and "benefits for traceability". In addition, the barriers have been evaluated using a single construct labelled "general barriers". Conclusions: The study highlights the relevance of digital technologies for a circular economy transition to develop a more reliable LCA, enhancing legislative compliance and supporting the traceability processes in the agri-food system. The associated implications for LCA experts, agri-food managers and policymakers are presented. Furthermore, limitations and future research directions are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of using circularity indicators is to show the effect of changes from linear to more circular systems. This paper contributes to highlighting the importance of methodological aspects of circularity indicators in the agricultural sector when using a life cycle thinking approach. Selected circularity indicators have been explored and compared with LCA impact categories by using them to evaluate the circularity of a livestock system. Methods: Circularity indicators were tested on a theoretical pig production system where several circularity strategies and associated mitigation actions were applied. The strategies and mitigation actions were as follows: anaerobic digestion of manure (closing resource loops), anaerobic digestion of bread waste (closing resource loops), precision fertilization (narrowing resource loops), use of cover crops in feed production (regenerating resource flows), and use of bread waste as feed (slowing resource loops). The functional unit was 1 kg pork as carcass weight, and the treatment of 1.1 kg bread waste for all impact categories and indicators. For each mitigation action, relevant circularity indicators were tested. Based on this, the functionality and suitability of these indicators were discussed. Results and discussion: Four of the circularity indicators were based on nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) substances: N recycling index, partial N balance, consumption of fossil-P fertilizers, and emissions to water bodies (P). Even if the indicators do not capture the impact of emissions of N and P as the eutrophication impact categories, they provide a useful indication of the circularity of a system. The other three circularity indicators tested were as follows: renewable energy production, soil organic carbon, and land use ratio. The renewable energy production indicator is easy to understand and communicate and provides unique information. Soil organic carbon presents a potential for soil carbon sequestration. Land use ratio is based on the same data as land occupation but provides an assessment of whether feed production competes for the suitable area for food production by including production of human-digestible protein. Conclusions: Circularity indicators provide valuable information about the circularity of an agricultural product system. The circularity indicators and LCA impact categories can be used either separately or together, or to complement each other. The choice of indicators depends on the questions raised, i.e., goals and scope, and it is therefore important to have a number of circular indicators to choose from in order to achieve a comprehensive assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: For the development of any life cycle assessment study, the practitioner frequently integrates primary data collected on-field, with background data taken from various life cycle inventory databases which are part of most commercial LCA software packages. However, such data is often not generally applicable to all product systems since, especially concerning the agri-food sector, available datasets may not be fully representative of the site specificity of the food product under examination. In this context, the present work investigates the background, sources and methodological aspects that characterise the most known commercial databases containing agri-food data, with a focus on four agri-food supply chains (olive oil, wine, wheat products and citrus fruit), which represent an important asset for the Italian food sector. Methods: Specifically, the paper entails a review of currently available LCI databases and their datasets with a twofold scope: firstly, to understand how agri-food data is modelled in these databases for a coherent and consistent representation of regional scenarios and to verify whether they are also suitable for the Italian context and, secondly, to identify and analyse useful and relevant methodological approaches implemented in the existing LCI databases when regional data are modelled. Results: Based on the aforementioned review, it is possible to highlight some problems which may arise when developing an LCI pertaining to the four Italian agri-food supply chains, namely: 1. The need for specific inventory datasets to tackle the specificities of agri-food product systems. 2. The lack of datasets, within the existing DBs, related to the Italian context and to the abovementioned supply chains. In fact, at present, in the currently available LCI DBs, there are very few (or in some cases none) datasets related to Italian wine, olive oil, wheat-based products and citrus fruit. The few available datasets often contain some data related to the Italian context but also approximate data with that of product systems representing other countries. Furthermore, the present study allowed to identify and discuss the main aspects to be used as starting elements for modelling regional data to be included in a future Italian LCI database of the abovementioned four supply chains. Conclusions: The results of the present study represent a starting point for the collection of data and its organisation, in order to develop an Italian LCI agri-food database with datasets which are representative of the regional specificities of four agri-food supply chains which play an important role in the Italian economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information about the International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment Electronic Submission System (ESS). The system is used for peer-reviewed papers, which is tailored according to the requirements of the Scientific Journals in order to modernize and improve the process previously conducted by e-mail. The author further stresses that the system enhances the quality of the review process by transparency. In addition, ESS accelerates the work flow from the abstract submission through the publication in OnlineFirst, because all players are informed equally all the way to the process.

Goal, Scope and Background. This paper gives an overview on how the wood and packaging material production is inventoried in ecoinvent. Packaging materials have been a very important topic in the area of Life Cycle Assessment for more than twenty years. Wood is the most important renewable material and regenerative fuel used worldwide, and an important raw material for paper I board. Several methodological problems arising when inventorying wood for material and energetic uses in a generic database are discussed in more detail. Within the ecoinvent project, the Swiss data base for life cycle inventory data, two reports are dedicated to these two important topics - report No. 9 for wood and report No. 11 for packaging materials. Methods. The whole wood chain has been modeled in a consistent way. This allows one to use this data for LCAs of building materials, bioenergy or paper production. The data represent average technologies used in Central Europe in the year 2000. A revenue-based co-product allocation approach is used for the different outputs. Correction factors are introduced for the consistent modeling of mass-based, material inherent wood properties such as solar energy, carbon uptake and land use. For packaging materials, the data sets represent European average data for the most often used materials as well as specific datasets for the production of actual packaging boxes and containers. Results and Discussion. For wood, revenue-based allocation and the use of the correction factors for mass-related wood properties are shown and explained. For packaging materials, the importance of the raw material wood to the total load is shown. Furthermore trends in the data inventories for board packaging materials over the last two decades are discussed: mainly due to the increased comprehensiveness of the data, higher cumulative emissions can be observed. Conclusion. For wood, the database ecoinvent provides consistent data sets for the entire chain from forestry to intermediate products such as timber, different types of wood based boards, chips, pellets, etc. For packaging materials, the number of data sets of basic materials has been extended. A modular concept for actual packaging container data sets allows the user an easy modeling of various types of packaging containerslboxes. In the area of paper and board, a comprehensive database for the production of various types of pulp, paper and board is provided, which is representative for the average European production situation. Outlook. Since wood is only limited and representative data for Europe is therefore not included, an update in the near future would be reasonable. Possible further extensions in the future could include various, final wooden products. For the data on paper/board, different levels of quality are observed, requiring a selective up-date of these data. Future extensions could include data sets for the import of pulp from overseas - especially from South America and Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The paper aims to promote the transition to low/zero emission of the local public transport, particularly, urban buses are taken into account. Method: The life cycle assessment of electric and biomethane-fuelled urban buses is performed by exploiting SimaPro commercial software (v.9.1.1.). Attention is focused on powertrains. Both midpoint and endpoint analyses are performed. Referring to environmental impact, the best compressed biomethane gas (CBG) powertrain was compared to the best electric one. Additionally, the worst-case scenario has been considered for both CBG and electric powertrains. Results: CBG powertrain outperforms the electric one if overall greenhouse gas emissions are considered. However, the electric powertrain seems promising for human health and ecosystem. Conclusions: The environmental performance of the two powertrains is good. Both of the two technologies have strength and weak points that anyhow make them good candidates for a clean local public transport of the future. The analysis performed in the paper suggests a future investigation on hybrid electric-CBG powertrain. Actually, such a solution could benefit from both the strengths of the biomethane and the electric powertrain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We bibliometrically evaluated the scientific literature outlined around Brazilian life cycle assessment (LCA). Our aim is twofold: (1) Analyze the Brazilian scientific literature on LCA, forming a current view of how the LCA methodology is applied in the country; (2) within this view, trace the evolution of themes, characterize institution collaboration, and indicate major influences in Brazilian LCA community. Methods: Data were outlined around academic production and publications, from 1993 to 2015, indexed by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI- SCIE and SSCI) through a specific group of keywords. Initially, a temporal evolution and projection of papers, PhD and Master Theses, were performed. In sequence, indexed papers were analyzed through performance indicators (i.e., number of authors, impact factor, among others) and content evaluation (for instance, major addressed themes). Finally, a mapping of science was performed, with the aid of Cite Space software application, where coword (and evolution), cocollaboration (and evolution), and cocitation maps were created. Results and discussion: The survey identified 429 documents divided among international and national papers, PhD and Master Theses. From those documents, 165 were indexed. In terms of production and performance, the results indicate an undeniable evolution of the Brazilian LCA research, as affirmed by relations solidified through time. The main research field is 'LCA application' with 84 % of papers, whereas 'LCA methodology' completes the framework. In LCA applications, 25 % of publications are related to Biofuels-divided into bioethanol and biodiesel-which makes it the current dominant LCA research area in Brazil. The collaboration network demonstrates three main institution groups, whereas evolution through the years indicates that this situation may further improve. Influential authors are linked to LCA of biofuels, general LCA guidelines, and methodological LCA developments. Conclusions: Brazilian LCA research has been growing and more complex relations between themes and institutions denote that further developments can be expected. Cocollaboration indicates three main clusters, led by USP, Unicamp, and UFRJ. 'Biofuels' is the main research area where sugarcane ethanol and biodiesel from different sources are the domain product systems. Cocitation analysis solidifies this statement, pointing to Isaias Macedo (and other biofuel researchers) as the main author in Brazilian LCA after ISO and Mark Goedkoop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: A recent update to the Product Category Rules (PCRs) for Construction Products (of the International EPD System) has triggered a methodological issue for owners and users of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). The updated PCR has led to capital goods data being implicitly included in the Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) of EPDs. This paper critically examines the role of capital goods in EPDs and establishes major shortcomings in the current methodology, LCI datasets and interpretation. Methods: To evaluate the role of capital goods in EPDs, this paper provides a discourse on the fundamentals of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology, scope, available LCI data and the impact of capital goods on EPD outcomes. Using the ecoinvent database, we analyse the impact of the inclusion and exclusion of capital goods in selected 38 construction products based on the EN 15804+A2 (2019) Standard. Finally, we estimate the relative contribution of capital goods to a suite of Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) indicators based on the archetypes of capital goods available in ecoinvent and apply Monte Carlo simulation to establish the range of uncertainties in the capital goods data for the selected construction products. Results and discussion: Our research confirms that when capital goods are included based on currently available background LCI data, they mostly have a low effect (<10% increase) on climate change, but they can have an enormous effect (>100% increase) on abiotic depletion (minerals and metals), land use and/or human toxicity indicators. Interestingly, when looking further into the ecoinvent capital goods LCI datasets, it becomes clear that there are inaccuracies, inconsistencies, and possibly incorrect estimates of capital goods and infrastructure data. These findings raise questions about the suitability of the underlying LCI background data and whether non-attributable capital goods should be allowed to define EPD outcomes. Conclusion: The requirement for the inclusion of capital goods leads to a major conundrum for LCA practitioners. It is suggested that capital goods be excluded until there is better refinement and improvement of the quality of LCI datasets and EPD programs provide clearer guidance on dealing with capital goods. Alternatively, EPDs could document transparently the inclusion or exclusion of capital goods, so that there is a clear separation of the effects of capital goods on LCIA indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Abiotic resource is included as an impact category in life cycle impact assessment (LCIA). The most widely accepted LCIA method is abiotic resource depletion potential (ADP). However, numerous studies have illustrated the limitations of the ADP method, such as the neglect of resources that can be recycled. This paper aims to develop a comprehensive and objective method for assessing the impact of resource use on future generations, which can be used at different stages of the life cycle. Methods: Based on the above research objectives, this paper proposes a new method, the abiotic resource expected dissipation potential (AEDP) method, for assessing the impacts of current resource use on the abiotic resource accessibility. The method is divided into four impact categories based on different endpoints of the dissipative flow and replaces the resource extraction rate with the global annual dissipation rate and adds anthropogenic stocks to the total reserves, resulting in the characterization factor AEDPs. Finally, the four impact categories are weighted to obtain a final impact score for resource use. Results: Results of the new method are presented as a multi-dimensional reflection of natural reserves, dissipation rates, and extraction rates of resources. The comparison between AEDPs and ADPs revealed differences between them, but they were not significant. A higher power of the total reserves in the AEDP formula can overemphasize the effect of natural reserves on the characterization factor. Furthermore, other natural reserve data was used as alternative indicators in the sensitivity analysis. Conclusion: The new assessment method enables the future impacts of abiotic resource use to be more accurately assessed. It can be used at any life cycle stage to support relevant stakeholder decision-making. However, a broader database is required to be developed to calculate more characterization factors. Moreover, the over-dominance of reserve data in the characterization factors overshadows the influence of other dimensions. Consequently, further research is necessary to improve the operability and plausibility of this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper explores a life cycle assessment (LCA) case study of two char carbon reductants for silicon alloys production, manufactured from Polish and Colombian hard coal. Life cycle assessment (LCA) of chars has not been thoroughly analysed and described in the scientific literature and the studies on high silicon alloys tend to focus solely on climate change with smaller consideration of other important environmental issues. Methods: This cradle-to-gate LCA of chars uses 1 tonne of final product as a functional unit. The method chosen for the life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) is Environmental Footprint 3.0 (EF 3.0) and five impact categories from the method were chosen for presenting environmental impacts (climate change, particulate matter, freshwater eutrophication, freshwater ecotoxicity, and fossil resource use), with remaining available in supplementary materials. Results and discussion: While the carbon footprint for char produced from Polish coal is 13% higher than for char derived from Colombian and amounts, respectively, to 1554.4 and 1373.3 kg CO2 eq, the freshwater ecotoxicity for char from Colombian coal achieving 113,956 CTUe outperforms the result of 11,749 CTUe measured for Polish char. When applying weighting aggregated into single score results, Polish and Colombian char obtained, respectively, 109.4 mPt and 160.1 mPt. Activities relating to the manufacturing stage had the largest impact on climate change and particulate matter due to the coal devolatilisation process but mining operations were most damaging to freshwater eutrophication, ecotoxicity, and fossil resource use. The paper also investigates and presents potential optimisation opportunities in the area of char production. Conclusions and recommendations: A comparative life cycle assessment of two chars fills the research gap in the literature. Results for selected impact categories of EF 3.0 method for both Polish and Colombian chars show variability of environmental loads, but clearly suggest that the greatest environmental burdens concern the coal extraction process. Most scientific literature on the metallurgy industry focuses on carbon footprint as the most important impact. While the carbon footprint of Polish char is slightly higher than that of its Colombian counterpart, other environmental impact categories can exhibit opposite trends. This is especially significant in the freshwater ecotoxicity category, which is ten times higher for Colombian char and can be attributed to the open-cast mining process. Therefore, it is important to analyse chars in terms of alternative technological solutions aimed at maintaining optimal usability in all life cycle stages, taking into account a holistic view to possibilities of reducing environmental impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: EN 15804 and EN 15978 are the established standards to calculate the environmental impact of building products and buildings. Despite the importance of circular building, many life cycle assessment (LCA) studies based on EN 15804/15978 are not set up to evaluate circularity. This paper aims to research how an LCA study should be developed that can determine the environmental impact of a circular versus a linear building element within the methodological framework of EN 15804/15978. Methods: First, it is clarified how the methodological framework of EN 15804/15978 considers different circular principles. There is a particular focus on the concept of multi-cycling and module D. Second, and as the main objective of this paper, it is analyzed which scenarios throughout the lifespan of a building element should be modeled. The focus lies on combining characteristic transformation and end-of-life scenarios into characteristic life cycle scenarios and examining if this provides sufficient insight into the possible environmental impact. This is illustrated by an LCA study of a linear and circular facade system. When representing the results of the LCA study, it is analyzed how the inclusion of module D changes the results. Results and discussion: To account for the concept of 'multi-cycling,' the authors propose to consider multiple use cycles (i.e., transformations) within one life cycle instead of considering several life cycles. This is done through module B5 Refurbishments. Module D is important to stimulate recycling and reuse at the end of life. However, the concept of module D must be handled with the necessary care to provide correct information. Characteristic life cycle scenarios are determined for a more robust understanding of the possible environmental impact of a building element by modeling only a limited amount of scenarios. For the facade systems, the considered transformation scenarios are more determining for their environmental impact than the choice of end-of-life scenario, especially when module D is not considered. Conclusions: By setting up an LCA study that can evaluate the important circular principles and consider characteristic life cycle scenarios, detailed insight into the environmental impact of circular versus linear building elements can be obtained. The proposed approach leads to more robust LCA studies of circular versus linear building elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose and context: This paper aims to establish principles for the increased application and use of life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA). Sustainable development (SD) encompassing resilient economies and social stability of the global system is growingly important for decision-makers from business and governments. The "17 SDGs" emerge as a high-level shared blueprint for peace, abundance, and prosperity for people and the planet, and "sustainability" for supporting improvements of products and organizations. A "sustainability" interpretation—successful in aligning stakeholders' understanding—subdivides the impacts according to a triple bottom line or three pillars: economic, social, and environmental impacts. These context and urgent needs inspired the LCSA framework. This entails a sustainability assessment of products and organizations in accordance with the three pillars, while adopting a life cycle perspective. Methods: The Life Cycle Initiative promotes since 2011 a pragmatic LCSA framework based on the three techniques: LCSA = environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) + life cycle costing (LCC) + social life cycle assessment (S-LCA). This is the focus of the paper, while acknowledging previous developments. Identified and reviewed literature shows challenges of addressing the three pillars in the LCSA framework implementation like considering only two pillars; not being fully aligned with ISO 14040; lacking interconnectedness among the three pillars; not having clear criteria for results' weighting nor clear results' interpretation; and not following cause-effect chains and mechanisms leading to an endpoint. Agreement building among LCSA experts and reviewing processes strengthened the consensus on this paper. Broad support and outreach are ensured by publishing this as position paper. Results: For harmonizing practical LCSA applications, easing interpretation, and increasing usefulness, consensed ten LCSA principles (10P) are established: understanding the areas of protection, alignment with ISO 14040, completeness, stakeholders' and product utility considerations, materiality of system boundaries, transparency, consistency, explicit trade-offs' communication, and caution when compensating impacts. Examples were provided based on a fictional plastic water bottle Conclusions: In spite of increasing needs for and interest in SD and sustainability supporting tools, LCSA is at an early application stage of application. The 10P aim to promote more and better LCSA applications by ensuring alignment with ISO 14040, completeness and clear interpretation of integrated results, among others. For consolidating its use, however, more consensus-building is needed (e.g., on value-laden ethical aspects of LCSA, interdependencies and interconnectedness among the three dimensions, and harmonization and integration of the three techniques) and technical and policy recommendations for application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]