Premium
Comparing life cycle energy and GHG emissions of bio‐based PET , recycled PET , PLA , and man‐made cellulosics
Author(s) -
Shen Li,
Worrell Ernst,
Patel Martin K
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
biofuels, bioproducts and biorefining
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.931
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1932-1031
pISSN - 1932-104X
DOI - 10.1002/bbb.1368
Subject(s) - lyocell , viscose , petrochemical , cellulose , polylactic acid , waste management , pulp (tooth) , polyester , life cycle assessment , pulp and paper industry , raw material , environmental science , cellulose fiber , fiber , materials science , polymer , chemistry , chemical engineering , engineering , composite material , organic chemistry , medicine , pathology , production (economics) , economics , macroeconomics
The purpose of this paper is to review the environmental profiles of petrochemical PET , (partially) bio‐based PET , recycled PET , and recycled (partially) bio‐based PET , and compare them with other bio‐based materials, namely PLA (polylactic acid, a bio‐based polyester) and man‐made cellulose fibers (cellulose fiber produced from wood pulp, i.e. Viscose, Modal and Tencel). Life cycle assessment ( LCA ) studies on polymers, fibers and bottles made from these materials are reviewed. Only non‐renewable energy use and greenhouse gas ( GHG ) emissions are considered. The scope is cradle to grave excluding the use phase. The results show that both recycled and bio‐based materials offer important environmental benefits over single‐use petrochemical PET . Among the four PET product systems studied, recycled (partially) bio‐based PET has the lowest impacts, followed by recycled PET , (partially) bio‐based PET , and petrochemical PET . PLA and man‐made cellulose fibers produced in an integrated plant have lower impacts than both petrochemical PET and bio‐based PET . The impacts of recycled products are strongly influenced by the choice of the allocation method applied to open‐loop recycling. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons Ltd