The socioeconomics of the circular economy

Marine plastics, circular economy, and artificial intelligence: A comprehensive review of challenges, solutions, and policies.

Assessing the social life cycle impacts of circular economy

To limit the increase of the global average temperature in the range of 1.5°C to 2°C above pre‐industrial levels, it is mandatory to reduce anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Aggressive mitigation measures are thus needed to tackle these emissions leading to “net negative CO2 emissions.” The present study focuses on direct air capture (DAC) processes among the diverse negative emissions approaches. DAC refers to man‐made technologies that selectively extract CO2 from ambient air and deliver it in a concentrated form for further use or storage. DAC technologies are currently developed at different levels of maturity and performance. They can be classified into three main approaches, the liquid sorbent approach, the solid sorbent approach, and a panel of more innovative technologies combining different approaches. They involve various unit operations and different materials and energy types (electrical and thermal). To better evaluate the status and both the environmental and economic performances, the present paper provides a literature review of the life cycle (LCA) and techno‐economic (TEA) assessments in relation to DAC process chains. It was emphasized that DAC could lead to negative emissions if paired with subsequent storage, while the production of synthetic fuels can at best be carbon neutral when using CO2 from the air. Building large DAC plants has an impact on the amount of energy required to operate them, as well as other environmental impacts with regard to land, water, and material use. Even if the carbon‐negative characteristic of DAC was confirmed, these technologies are still expensive. It was highlighted that large DAC costs ranges are currently provided in the literature, from €80/tCO2 to €1133/tCO2 for the current DAC processes, while estimations from €34 to €260/tCO2 are expected in the future. Different levers were identified to improve the environmental and economic performances of DAC processes, such as the availability of waste heat, the heat integration possibilities, and, among others, the improvement of contactors and sorbents properties.

Life cycle and techno‐economic assessments of direct air capture processes: An integrated review

As a typical energy-intensive industry, the primary aluminum industry (PAI) is the third largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, followed by the electricity and steel industries. GHG emissions of PAI exceed those of the other non-ferrous metal sectors, accounting for more than 3 % of total global emissions. As the largest producer and consumer of primary aluminum (accounting for 57 % of the global amount), China bears an important responsibility for energy conservation and emission reduction. This review aims to discuss low-carbon strategies and technology improvement related to PAI, with an emphasis on their potential, cost, and development prospects. This study established an analytical framework, based on life cycle assessment (LCA) that considered factors reported in related literature, for the design of strategies for reducing GHG emissions in China's PAI. The LCA-based carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e) emissions per ton (t) of primary aluminum and secondary aluminum were estimated to be 14.98 t and 0.32 t, respectively. This indicated that the CO2e emission of recycling process was only approximately 2 % of that of normal process. China's PAI exhibits considerable potential for emission reduction, with its peak being scheduled to be achieved by 2030. The potential to be tapped mainly includes clean energy, waste aluminum recycling, and low-carbon technology. This study suggests that the focus of China's PAI should be on cost-effective technology improvement in the short term, on power decarbonization and aluminum-scrap recycling in the medium term, and on technologies with a higher cost but better emission reduction in the long term. 

Technologies for CO2 emission reduction and low-carbon development in primary aluminum industry in China: A review

A framework to identify environmental-economic trade-offs by combining life cycle assessment and life cycle costing – A case study of aluminium production

Robust monitoring and assessment methods are required to assess circular economy (CE) concepts in terms of their degree of circularity and their contribution to sustainability. This research aimed to develop an integrated framework for the CE context—considering both the technical circularity and the complexity of the three dimensions of sustainability (environment, economy, and social). Two existing methods were identified as an appropriate foundation: CE indicators and life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA), combining life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle costing (LCC), and social life cycle assessment (S‐LCA). The developed circular life cycle sustainability assessment (C‐LCSA) framework added circularity assessment (CA) as an additional dimension to LCSA (C‐LCSA = LCA + LCC + S‐LCA + CA). The abundance of CE indicators required a systematic selection process to identify the most appropriate indicators for the framework which was built on criteria levels, performance, loops, unit, dimension, and transversality. The material circularity indicator, product circularity indicator, and longevity indicator were identified as most suited for C‐LCSA. Being developed for a single life cycle, the traditional life cycle approaches needed refinements for application to CE concepts, derived from discussions and proposed adaptions presented in the academic literature. The cut‐off approach was identified as the most suitable end‐of‐life allocation method for C‐LCSA, being in line with the technical system boundaries. C‐LCSA can be used by LCA practitioners to identify trade‐offs between an improved circularity and resulting impacts on the environmental, economic, and social pillars to provide a basis for decision making in industrial ecology.

Circular life cycle sustainability assessment: An integrated framework

To counter the high consumption of resources and environmental emissions in the construction sector, innovative materials such as carbon-reinforced concrete (CRC) are needed. CRC has the potential to lower the resource use and emissions of the construction sector and lead to a circular economy (CE). To understand the overall circularity and sustainability performance of such materials, holistic assessments are needed. This study demonstrated the application of the newly developed circular life cycle sustainability assessment (C-LCSA) framework that is based on CE indicators and life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA). The framework was applied to an industrial floor that was made from recycled CRC scrap (R–CRC industrial floor) in its development phase – using both the concrete faction and the carbon fiber fraction. The material circularity indicator (MCI) was used for the circularity assessment. It was applied in parallel to a life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle costing (LCC), and a social hotspot assessment, using the same functional unit and system boundaries. The cut-off approach used was in line with the technical system boundaries. The results showed that the contribution to the circularity of the R–CRC industrial floor was high (0.8184) due to the use of recycled material and the potential of being recycled again. The global warming potential (GWP, 167 kg CO2 eq.) was lower while the human toxicity potential (HTP) was higher compared to similar products. The production costs far exceeded the current price of a comparable product which might be related to the inefficiencies in the production at the laboratory scale in the development phase of the R–CRC industrial floor. Social risks were found for health and safety, as well as for the social acceptance of the floor due to technical uncertainties. Increasing the circularity further by only using recycled aggregates mostly showed positive effects on the environmental impacts. However, HTP and costs increased. General statements on the interlinkages between a higher circularity and positive impacts on sustainability performance cannot necessarily be made. Instead, a robust and holistic assessment of new products is needed. C-LCSA has demonstrated its effectiveness as a reliable framework for identifying interlinkages and trade-offs between the different sustainability dimensions and circularity. Further studies should be conducted to validate and demonstrate the C-LCSA framework on different products. 

Demonstrating circular life cycle sustainability assessment – a case study of recycled carbon concrete

Environmental and economic implications of selective demolition and advanced recycling of construction waste

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