Adding own data when using circularity package

Question

Hello and greetings,

I am interested in using the circularity package to assess and compare the circularity of two products, using industrial data. It will be my first time using this package and I would like to model my supply chain as close to the real-world supply chain as possible. I have emission factors from my client, for many of the raw materials (specific plastics and metal alloys).

1. While using the circularity package, can I create my own processes, with emission factors/GWP values from industrial data?
2. Would it be possible to add in data for some processes from other sources such as EPDs? And other databases, such as Plastics Europe? 

I look forward to your answers. 

With best regards,

Meg

Answer 1

Hi Meg,

1. yes you can create new processes as you would do with other background databases in openLCA. If you want that they are included in the circularity assessment, you shall place the shadowing elementary flows that trace circularity. You can find those in the circularity folder under flows.
2. yes, once you have the environmental impacts of that process, e.g. GWP100, you can make a process that has the elementary flows that will represent those results. E.g. your process should have a carbon footprint of 2 kg CO2 eq., then you create a new process and put a carbon dioxide elementary flow in the output with an amount of 2 kg CO2 eq. When calculating the LCIA of that process, you will see that the GWP100 is 2 kg CO2 eq. The same with other impact categories.

For the second point, maybe it helps to create a new elementary flow that aims only to have a unit impact in a certain impact category, e.g. creating a GWP100 flow rather than using the carbon dioxide one. This flow has to be placed in the characterisation table of the LCIA Method you are using. In my experience this helps.

Kind regards,

Julia