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Achieving negative emissions in plastics life cycles through the conversion of biomass feedstock
Author(s) -
Oliveira Camilla C N,
Zotin Marianne Z,
Rochedo Pedro R R,
Szklo Alexandre
Publication year - 2020
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.2165
Subject(s) - high density polyethylene , waste management , incineration , raw material , greenhouse gas , environmental science , life cycle assessment , biomass (ecology) , polyethylene , pollution , polyvinyl chloride , carbon footprint , environmental pollution , plastic waste , hazardous waste , materials science , production (economics) , engineering , chemistry , environmental protection , composite material , ecology , oceanography , macroeconomics , organic chemistry , economics , biology , geology
Plastics are one of the fastest‐growing groups of bulk materials in the world. Yet, a third of plastic waste ends up as terrestrial or marine pollution. As a strategy to lower the carbon footprint of plastics, this study aimed to test the hypothesis that using plastics in long‐term applications would bring an environmental advantage due to the reduction of plastic pollution, the achievement of negative CO 2 emissions (NETs) by bio‐based plastics, and demand reduction for emission‐intensive construction materials, such as iron, aluminium, wood, and cement. Cradle‐to‐grave life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of high‐density polyethylene (HDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and expanded polystyrene (EPS) were performed for four ethylene production routes. For the final disposal, this study assessed incineration; incineration with energy recovery; recycling; and the orientation of plastics for replacing emission‐intensive material construction (long‐term applications). Findings show that using plastics as long‐lifetime materials could lead to NETs, particularly in the cases of bio‐based HDPE, bio‐based PET, and bio‐based EPS. Hence, an opportunity arises, by producing plastics for long‐term applications, to reduce both the carbon footprint and the plastic waste generation that may enter the marine environment. © 2020 Society of Industrial Chemistry and John Wiley & Sons Ltd