![openlca capabilities openlca capabilities](https://www.openlca.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/ecoinvent-centre.png)
This study presents an overview of available indicators and LCIAs for bioeconomy sustainability assessments as well as their link to the SDGs.
#Openlca capabilities software#
Therefore, not only the capabilities of the software and databases, but also the supported methods of life cycle impact assessments (LCIA) are evaluated regarding the requirements of the indicator set and goal and scope of future case studies. In order to conduct a practical implementation of HILCSA, we choose openLCA, because it offers the best current state and most future potential for application of LCSA. We select possible indicators from existing suitable LCA and LCSA approaches as well as from the literature, and allocate them to a sustainability concept for holistic and integrated LCSA (HILCSA), based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In order to contribute to the current early stage of LCSA development, this study seeks to identify a practical framework for integrated LCSA implementation. Based on life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) aims to combine or integrate social, environmental, and economic assessments. Environmental Protection Agency.Currently, social, environmental, and economic risks and chances of bioeconomy are becoming increasingly a subject of applied sustainability assessments.
![openlca capabilities openlca capabilities](https://www.openlca.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Grouping.png)
The views expressed in this abstract are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of the U.S. SustainPro-A tool for systematic process analysis, generation and evaluation of sustainable design alternatives, Comp. A Process Systems Framework for Rapid Generation of Life Cycle Inventories for Pollution Control and Sustainability Evaluation. Methods and tools for sustainable process design. Sustainability indicators for chemical processes: III. The case study then demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed framework for integrating CHEMCAD, PCU, LCI generation and GREENSCOPE for improving the sustainability performance of chemicals during their manufacturing life cycle stages. The application results show process improvements in terms of sustainability performance represented by GREENSCOPE indicators and LCI generation after the implementation of the appropriate PCUs for waste stream treatment.
![openlca capabilities openlca capabilities](https://www.openlca.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/K640_prosuite2.png)
The developed framework is applied to a case study of an Acetic Acid manufacturing process. The proposed framework is generic and can be used for other applications, with the intent of facilitating the communication between tools used by the LCA practitioner and process simulation packages used by process engineers5. The employed Excel tools enable the augmentation of CHEMCAD’s capability on waste treatment technologies and LCI estimation. Specifically, a user-friendly automation interface is built via Microsoft Excel-VBA to enable the communication between CHEMCAD (a widely used commercial process simulation tool for chemical processes) and Excel tools, such as GREENSCOPE, PCU and LCI generation. To bridge this gap, an integrated framework with a process modeling/simulation environment, pollution control units (PCUs), LCI generation, and sustainability assessment is proposed. For example, process design and optimization rely on conventional commercial tools, such as Aspen and CHEMCAD, while sustainability assessment tools (e.g., SustainPro6 and GREENSCOPE1) are typically developed employing Excel or other tools that require life cycle inventory (LCI) information consisting of resource and energy consumption and environmental releases related to the process of interest. Such steps are typically performed in separate software packages/interfaces, although they have overlap data requirements5. One of the major obstacles for integrating LCA and sustainability assessment tools into process design and optimization is the software integration between steps. However, current methods in existing sustainable process design/optimization studies are difficult to be customized for different applications4. This raised awareness has led to the incorporation of the concept of sustainability and sustainable development into process design and optimization, such as pollution prevention and control technologies, releases minimization, sustainable process design, sustainability assessment (e.g., GREENSCOPE1) and life cycle assessment (LCA) tools (e.g., SimaPro2, Open-LCA3). In recent years, environmental consciousness has been growing and has become critical in the decision-making process in the chemical industry.