Life Cycle Assessment Results Research Articles

Life cycle assessment of a new industrial process for sustainable construction materials

One of the key sectors for the green transition of European countries is construction, that is more and more asked to evolve towards innovative ecological binders and green cost-effective processes. The construction sector is highly energy intensive, and the cement production is one of the main sources of environmental pollution in the world. In this regard, GeoPolymers (GP) seem to be promising for a sustainable replacement of cementitious materials. Therefore, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of the industrial production of different formulations of Geopolymer Concrete (GC) was performed in this study after scaling up the Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) from a laboratory scale to an industrial one. Based on LCA results, the Global Warming Potential (GWP) indicator demonstrated a lower greenhouse gas emission of the proposed GC production in respect to the CC manufacturing process, while no significant difference was observed in the GWP scores of the considered GC formulations when referring to the functional unit. Nevertheless, the usage of the innovative GC formulations, on an industrial scale, would avoid a significant reduction of sand and kaolin extracted, with a consequent decrease on the environmental impact. Finally, the economic assessment showed that the combined production of thermal and electrical energy by a cogeneration system could provide a significant cost reduction when the percentage of electricity fed into the public network is higher than 39%.

Environmental impact analysis of surface printing and 3D inkjet printing applications using an imine based covalent organic framework: A life cycle assessment study

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are emerging materials with structural modularity that allows their application in many fields. The aim of this work is to determine the environmental impact of using an imine based covalent organic framework (RT-COF-1) for both surface printing (Case A) and 3D inkjet printing (Case B) by applying Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. Experimental data on RT-COF-1 synthesis as well as results obtained by simulation of their precursors production, 1,3,5-tris-(4-aminophenyl) benzene (TAPB) and 1,3,5-benzenetricarbaldehyde (BTCA), are used. LCA results show that monomer synthesis is the most important contributor to environmental impacts in both case studies. On the other hand, the contribution of solvents used in Case A is also remarkable. The comparison between both case studies indicates that the environmental impacts of Case B is lower than that of Case A (reduction within 5%–65%). Finally, LCA results of Case B are compared to other materials used for 3D-printing, such as polymerizable ionic liquids (PILs). The results show that RT–COF–1 compares favourably with PILs in five of nine impact categories, being especially relevant the reductions achieved in the abiotic depletion and acidification potential (>90%), in the primary energy consumption (⁓35%) and carbon footprint (⁓50%), suggesting the potential of RT–COF–1 as 3D-printing material from an environmental perspective. This work is a first step for further research to highlight the main environmental burdens of using COF-based materials in this application.

End-of-life options for ceramic masonry units – environmental and performance-based perspective

Ceramic bricks are among the most used building material throughout human history for their excellent technical properties, abundance of raw materials and easy production. Huge quantity of brick waste is generated from demolition works at the end-of-life stage of buildings. Several scenarios within waste management hierarchy can be considered: a) preparing for reuse of bricks into masonry units for similar purposes; b) mechanical recycling (crushing, screening) to crushed stone for various applications -in backfilling, pavement, drainage works, which are examples of down-cycling or as concrete aggregate and as a component in blended binders which are examples of upcycling; c) disposal at inert waste landfills or used as a separation layer at municipal waste landfills.This study performs a life cycle assessment (LCA) of these three possible routes for ceramic waste and takes into account the relevant processes. The LCA results are calculated for the compulsory environmental indicators according to the methodology of EN 15804 along with the additional indicators assessing toxicity. The outcome of the LCA confirms that the most environmentally beneficial scenario is the reuse of bricks as it requires minimal activities for preparing. Technical feasibility issues and costs impact, associated to the three scenarios are also analysed. The conclusion is that an optimised and sustainable approach of bricks end-of-life shall be applied in order to boost the circularity in construction sector.

Environmental impacts of solar thermal power plants used in industrial supply chains

A systematic literature review was conducted to investigate the environmental impact of solar thermal power plants in the industrial supply chains. A number of different solar thermal power collectors like parabolic trough (PT), linear Fresnel (LFR), solar dish (SD) and solar towers (ST) were considered and analysed. The first observation was that PT collectors generate the lowest level of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, followed by LFR, DT and SD plants. There was a lack of studies dealing with the GHG emissions of LFR and SD plants, which demonstrated a need of conducting more studies to gain better understanding of their environmental performances. The second observation was that different environmental assessment software tools used for analysing the environmental impact showed conflicting results because of the different approaches used in the characterization factors management in each software. Those software tools include: SimaPro, Gabi, System Advisor Model (SAM), Umberto and Thermoflex + PEACE. The standardization of environmental software tools and life cycle impact assessment methods is required to prevent discrepancies in life cycle assessment results. The third observation was the need for integrated environmental and economic assessments to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the solar thermal plants as it will enable investors, policy-makers and researchers to make informed decisions about the environmental and economic impacts of those plants.

The Application of Circular Footprint Formula in Bioenergy/Bioeconomy: Challenges, Case Study, and Comparison with Life Cycle Assessment Allocation Methods

Allocation methodological choices in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a relevant issue for the Circular Bioeconomy context. The recent Product Environmental Footprint Guide from the European Commission includes the Circular Footprint Formula (CFF) as a new way to deal with energy recovery/recycling processes. This paper investigated CFF vs. other different LCA allocation methods in Brazilian briquette production. A cradle-to-gate LCA study was conducted considering 1 MJ of energy from recovered and dedicated Eucalyptus briquette production. Global Warming Potential (GWP) and Cumulative Energy Demand (CED) were selected as the impact categories to evaluate the allocation methods choice that influences the potential impacts. LCA results were compared regarding four allocation methods. Eucalyptus wood as a biomass supply scenario achieved impact results up to 4.3 kg CO2-eq. for GWP and 0.0272 MJ-eq. for CED. The recovery wood scenario presented LCA burdens reduction by up to 206% for GWP, however a 492% increase in the CED results. CFF provided the lowest results for both impact categories. However, the CFF method still doesn’t address particular aspects of circular bioenergy systems. Biomass and bioenergy LCA require further adjustments focusing on biochemical flows in the CFF calculation procedure to lead the development of innovative circular business models.

Life Cycle Based GHG Emissions from Algae Based Bioenergy with a Special Emphasis on Climate Change Indicators and Their Uses in Dynamic LCA: A Review

Life cycle-based analysis is a key to understand these biofuels’ climate benefits. This manuscript provides a state-of-the-art review of current biofuel production, primarily through algae-based routes. Standalone biofuel production has an unfavorable environmental and energy footprint. Therefore, industrial symbiosis is required to reduce the environmental impacts of biofuel. The availability of waste heat, CO2, renewable energy, and colocation of other industries, especially renewable energy and dairy firms, have been demonstrated beneficial for producing biofuel through the algal route. Dynamic life cycle assessment (DLCA) issues were discussed in detail. DLCA is one of the highlighted areas of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) paradigm that can improve the applicability of climate change indicators used in the LCA. Various climate change indicators, global warming potential (GWP), global temperature change (GTP), and climate tipping point (CTP) were discussed in detail. Special emphasis was given to waste-based bioenergy production and its LCA as this route provided the lowest GHG emissions compared to the other bioenergy production pathways (e.g., from energy crops, using lignocellulosic biomass, etc.). The use of LCA results and modification of life cycle inventory (e.g., modification in the form of the regional energy mix, dynamic Life Cycle Inventory (LCI), etc.) was another highlight of this study. Such modifications need to be incorporated if one wants to improve the applicability of LCA results for net zero target analysis.

Carbon Analysis, Life Cycle Assessment, and Prefabrication: A Case Study of a High-Rise Residential Built-to-Rent Development in the UK

Recent research relating to energy use and carbon emissions by buildings has started to move from operational energy carbon impacts to the embodied energy/carbon impacts of buildings, and the methods and approaches used in architectural design to reduce embodied carbon have become more prominent. From a practitioner’s perspective, working with an ‘in-house’ Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool has become a growing trend for architects, and one perceived way of improving the LCA outcomes of a proposed building is to consider prefabrication of the construction process. Initiatives such as the Low Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI) and government bodies such as Greater London Authorities (GLA) provide guidance on LCA and upfront carbon emission targets for transitioning to net zero by 2050. The aim of this study was to establish (i) the LCA impacts from prefabricated residential buildings against current benchmarks; (ii) boundaries and opportunities in architectural practice in the UK when conducting an LCA; (iii) the effectiveness of an in-house LCA tool. This study shows that, although the life-cycle emissions of this prefabricated building achieved a low band in the LETI labelling system, with 1076 kgCO2e/m², it still performs better than the business-as-usual model value of 1200 kgCO2e/m². The results also reveal that the construction industry is not ready to provide realistic data on the prefabrication process to test its advantages compared to conventional constructional methods. However, having an in-house LCA tool provides a faster and more comprehensive LCA due to the commitment to carbon assessment in the office and saves time compared to manual calculations.

Carbon footprint of black tea products under different technological routes and its influencing factors

Tea industry is considered to have a high energy consumption, due to its complex life cycle system. The global change potential (GWP) of the life cycle of tea, is deserving in-depth discussion. This study conducted a life cycle assessment (LCA) towards the Dianhong black tea products, and evaluated the discharge and mitigation potential, and compared with the results of LCA of other tea to clarify the advantages and disadvantages of Chinese black tea industry. The results showed that the planting stage and packaging stage were the main sources of GWP in the life cycle of black tea, accounting for 43.73% and 39.44% respectively, because of the application of chemical fertilizer and the production of aluminum foil. In the tea processing stage, the GWP has a greater impact on the process of heating and withering, accounting for 8.63%. It is followed by the rolling stage, which accounts for 6.85%, mainly from the consumption of electricity during the process. Finally, the key factors affecting tea production efficiency and quality were analyzed by combining the results of contribution and sensitivity analysis. The research will contribute to the establishment of a more sustainable tea value chain.

A Comparison of Temporally Dynamic Life Cycle Assessment Methods for Ecological Evaluation in Aviation

Most Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) in aviation are static and do not adequately reflect the long life cycles of aircraft and associated temporal impacts of emissions. However, these temporal aspects will become more important in the future, as the concept of freedom in the climate crisis is now joined by a revolutionary factor, which states that the timing of certain emissions and their consequences will play an increasingly important role in the assessment of aircraft. There are various dynamisation methods that can extend classical LCAs. A literature review including a list of benefits and limitations should provide information on which dynamic methods are particularly suitable for aviation. Especially in the aviation sector, the dynamic life cycle inventory offers great potential for mapping and evaluating the operational life of an aircraft in more detail. A thorough examination, for example with the help of a discrete-event simulation, can therefore offer the possibility of significantly improving the accuracy and quality of the LCA results and thus generate more extensive insights into the ecological impact of aircraft.

Evaluation of environmental disturbance indicator using functional performance and life cycle assessment of ferrochrome waste concrete

This paper reports on environmental disturbance indicators (EDI) using functional performance-based life cycle assessment (LCA) on concrete prepared using waste materials from the ferrochrome industry. The study is made on six concrete mixes with and without waste materials like ferrochrome ash (FCA) and air-cooled ferrochrome slag (ACFS). Lime-activated FCA is used for partial replacement of cement up to 47% and ACFS for total replacement of natural coarse aggregate. The study examines the sustainability of concrete mixes made with ferrochrome waste materials by LCA through the weighting schemes applied to five environmental impacts such as aquatic acidification (AA), carcinogens (CAR), global warming (GW), terrestrial ecotoxicity (TE) and respiratory inorganic (RI). The results of LCA based on the performance in terms of strength and durability indicated benefits in EDI of 46%. The robustness and independence of EDI results were checked through six different weighting schemes and the difference between these varied from 2.87 to 2.40%. The present work also includes the EDI-based study on the best-case and worst-case scenarios that describe the transportation of waste materials from the nearest and farthest plant. The results of such a study indicated that there is a difference of 4–11% between best-case and worst-case transportation scenarios. The contribution of various ingredients of concrete to the environment was checked through contribution analysis using OpenLCA software, where the results showed that cement is the top contributor. Lime and superplasticizer are the 2nd and 3rd contributors. Among the six concrete mixes made with and without ferrochrome waste materials, the normal concrete mix was found most unsustainable. There exists a good relationship between functional unit-based EDI values and scenario-based impact values. Results revealed that the concrete produced using ferrochrome waste materials have low EDI compared to conventional concrete.

Applying life cycle assessment with minimal information to support early-stage material selection

Traditional life cycle assessment (LCA) is too data intensive and time consuming to be used during typical building design processes. Conducting an LCA during the building design process therefore requires simplifications and assumptions. Such “screening LCAs” are quicker and can be used with less data but introduce greater uncertainty. Unfortunately, uncertainty is not reflected in standard deterministic LCA calculations, which produce single-point values in LCA results. Thus, in this study, data quality scoring has been incorporated into a screening LCA to produce probabilistic predictions of environmental performance based on limited data. The approach has been applied during the design process of a bio-based wall panel designed for a circular economy. A combination of ecoinvent and material data sheets were used to analyse a wide range of novel bio-based insulation materials. The screening LCA analysed global warming potential and identified a short-list of promising materials that were then subjected to a detailed LCA for further consideration in the design. The method uses publicly available information and can be applied at material or building-element level. The method thus helps designers estimate environmental impacts without hindering the design process.

Connected design decision networks: Multidisciplinary decision support for early building design LCA

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has become the standard method to evaluate environmental impact throughout the life cycle of buildings. However, detailed data about the future building as well as knowledge about the mutual influence of decisions concerning the various disciplines involved are often missing in early design phases, otherwise known to bear the highest potential for emissions savings. Hence, a meaningful basis for decision making is lacking.This study suggests a method to digitally represent decisions and their interdependencies in early design phases and visualize their possible consequences for the life cycle of the future building. The method is based on identification of relevant processes and tasks concerning architecture and Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC). Decisions trees of these tasks are used as a point of departure. Connecting the decision trees to a multidimensional, Connected Design Decision Network (CDDN) enables an interdisciplinary design team to pinpoint strategic decision nodes with comparatively more interdependencies with other subsets and high influence on LCA results. We believe that a transparent decision making in early design stages can be valuable to both the design team as well as clients and contractors and bear potential for an increased mutual awareness minimizing late and expensive redesigns.

Potential use of iron ore tailings for binder production: A life cycle assessment

Iron ore tailings (IOT) are generated in large-scale around the world and are stored in its slurry form generating risks of dam failure. The stabilization of this tailings by cementing agent provides a better mechanical capacity for stockpiling. Alkali-activated cement (AAC) can be used due to its versatility in the use of waste for its production, thus reducing environmental impacts. In this context, the present work brings the use of iron ore mining waste for an alternative production of a binder. The IOT Binder uses a differentiated production of sodium silicate with tailings (from flotation process) and production of metakaolin with mining overburden. To evaluate the environmental efficiency of IOT Binder product, an environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is performed and compared with a conventional production of alkali-activated cement, using commercial products, for mining tailings stabilization. Eleven environmental impact categories are used for the evaluation of the IOT Binder and conventional AAC production inputs and their application for tailings stabilization. Preliminary compressive strength tests were performed with IOT Binder in the stabilization of iron ore tailings from Brazil. LCA results indicate that IOT Binder is more environmentally sustainable than conventional alkali-activated cement due to its lower energy consumption and avoidance of natural resource use. In addition, it is effective in cementing and stabilizing iron ore tailings for possible use in dry stacking.

Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Conventional and Dry Stack Tailings Disposal Schemes: A Case Study in Northern China

Alternative tailings disposal technologies can be effective solutions to mining waste safety and environmental problems. The current decision-making processes for tailings disposal schemes lack consideration of environmental impacts. Based on a case study of an open-pit iron mine in northern China, this study adopted the life cycle assessment (LCA) method to compare the environmental impacts of three tailings disposal schemes of conventional slurry disposal technology (CSDT), dry stack disposal technology (DSDT) by belt conveyance and DSDT by truck transport. The results indicated that (1) the environmental impacts of the CSDT scheme were lowest under the premise that water consumption was ignored; (2) the environmental impacts of the DSDT scheme by belt conveyance mainly originated from its transport process, indicating that the tailings storage facilities (TSFs) site planning could be crucial in design decision making; (3) the environmental impacts of the DSDT scheme by truck transport mainly originated from the energy consumption of dry stacking equipment; and (4) the DSDT scheme by truck transport was eventually found to be preferable and implemented in the case study, after comprehensively considering the LCA results, TSF safety and remaining capacity, and social and policy uncertainties. It is therefore recommended to conduct LCA of environmental impacts in the decision-making process for the sustainable design of TSFs.

Towards sustainable production for transition to additive manufacturing: a case study in the manufacturing industry

ABSTRACT Additive Manufacturing (AM) has emerged as an important digital technology in improving production efficiency by analysing possible environmental impacts of the operations. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impacts of redesigned products for transition to AM on sustainable production processes. In this study, an industrial-scale product was redesigned according to AM principles and manufactured using the Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) technique. The environmental impacts of the production methods were evaluated in terms of material consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method. Thus, according to LCA results, the use of a single type of material and production method for the redesigned product, as well as reducing the amount of material used by eliminating the fasteners, resulted in a 60.45% reduction in material consumption and 85.59% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to CM. Although the production time in CM is shorter than FDM, the necessity of a mould design and manufacture by pre-processing resulted in an increase in delivery time. Results show that the material unit costs for both manufacturing methods are very similar. This study provides various implications that create sustainable development in the manufacturing industry for the transition to AM. ABBREVIATIONS: AM, Additive Manufacturing; CAD, Computer-Aided Design; CAE, Computed-Aided Engineering; CM, Conventional Manufacturing; CNC, Computer Numerical Control; CO2, Carbon Dioxide; DFAM, Design for Additive Manufacturing; DIY, Do It Yourself; FDM, Fused Deposition Modelling; LCA, Life Cycle Assessment; LEM, Laser Engraving Machine; PLA, Polylactic Acid; SLA – Stereolithography; SLS, Selective Laser Sintering; 3D – Three Dimensional

A Life Cycle Assessment of the Combined Utilization of Biomass Waste-Derived Hydrochar as a Carbon Source and Soil Remediation

The conversion of waste biomass to hydrochar by hydrothermal carbonation (HTC) treatment is a promising technology for waste management, and the thorough utilization of hydrochar can reduce the environmental load. Herein, a life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed to evaluate hydrochar as a carbon source in wastewater plants (WWTPs) and subsequently soil remediation. The simulated combined utilization of hydrochar showed that Bacillus subtilis may utilize the dissolved organic matter (DOM) of hydrochar that contains many aliphatic organic substances, and the microbially treated hydrochar retains most of the nutrients for crop growth. LCA shows that hydrochar could avoid 28% of the environmental load of WWTPs in terms of global warming (GWP100) and 47% of the environmental load of freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity and could reduce 54% of the environmental impact of soil fertilization in terms of eutrophication and 34% of GWP100 in soil remediation. Furthermore, LCA results indicate that hydrochar derived at 160 °C has the lowest environmental load in the combined utilization. This study proposes an optimized utilization of biomass wastes and extends the life cycle of derived hydrochar by experimental determination and the LCA method.

Using systematic building decomposition for implementing LCA: The results of a comparative analysis as part of IEA EBC Annex 72

The building Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) applied to buildings requires collecting and organizing large quantities of data over all building life cycles. To overcome specific difficulties related to the system boundaries definition and life cycle inventory stages, the literature recognizes that systematic building decomposition methods (SBDM) can be used to classify building components, elements and materials, as well as to increase the reliability and transparency of LCA results, particularly for embodied carbon and other environmental impacts. In this paper developed in the context of the research project IEA EBC Annex 72, the authors aim to provide a basis for understanding how different SBDMs decompose a building and classify its parts. This study analyses the implications of using different SBDM along the steps of an LCA study. Such as to support transparent and comprehensible (de)composition of the life cycle inventory (LCI), definition of service lives for different building parts or clear and comparable communication of assessment results and environmental hotspots particularly when using digital tools to conduct LCA. The study analyses 12 national SBDMs used in participating countries of IEA EBC Annex 72. To showcase the implications of SBDMs in building LCA practice, an office building was used as a common case study for applying the different SBDM approaches. Differences were identified among the decomposition levels and the consequences of these differences on the LCI organization. Thus, some of the main contributions to this study are the investigation of different SBDM approaches for improving the design workflows, by discussing BIM model definitions and the recommendation to use hierarchically based methods to allow the building elements and materials decomposition.

Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment

The built environment—with its significant environmental impact and long lifespan—is a key sector in which to implement circular economy principles. So far, however, a coherent framework with circularity indicators has not yet been established. While Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is commonly practiced to quantify the total environmental impact, it is designed and intended to assess linear life cycles, making it unsuitable for circularity assessment. Thus this paper explores an objective method to link LCA to a semi-quantified circularity indicator. Four variants of external wall designs of two case studies are analyzed. The explored possibilities of linking LCA results or mass input flows to the circularity indicator show differences in outcome. Furthermore, the analysis shows that decision-making can be affected by choice of assessing only a circularity indicator, an environmental impact indicator, or mass input flows, as opposed to a scenario in which a linked approach of these parameters is applied.

Performance, life cycle assessment, and economic comparison between date palm waste biochar and activated carbon derived from woody biomass

Currently, comparisons between biochar and activated carbon in terms of performance, environmental impacts as well as financial implications are limited. In this study, biochar sourced from date palm waste were analysed using gate-to-grave life cycle assessment approach and results were compared to activated carbon derived from woody biomass. Simapro 8.5 software was used to quantitatively simulate the environmental impacts of both adsorbents. Date palm waste biochar and activated carbon global warming potentials (GWPs) were found to be 1.53 and 8.96 kg CO2eq/kg respectively. The cumulative energy demand (CED) for producing date palm waste biochar was found to be 20.3 MJ/kg, whereas, activated carbon resulted in 119.5 MJ/kg. Both adsorbents’ performance in terms of adsorption capacity were compared, and it was found that biochar is comparable with activated carbon. The economic performance demonstrated that the average cost of production of date palm waste biochar and activated carbon were $1.06/kg and $1.34/kg, respectively. Sensitivity analysis showed that when the source of energy was changed to renewable energy, a CED dropped to 105.2 MJ/kg and 7.68 MJ/kg, a GWP dropped to 7.29 kg CO2 eq. and 0.665 kg CO2 eq. and production costs dropped to $1.30 and to $1.04 for producing activated carbon and biochar respectively. Based on the results of the study, date palm waste biochar is more cost-effective, shows less environmental impact, and has comparable adsorption efficiency as compared to activated carbon.

Ex ante Life Cycle Assessment and Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis of an anaerobic digester in Italy

The end-use valorisation of food waste (FW) and biowaste is currently being focused on biofuels and bioproducts production through different technologies. This study evaluated the implementation of a new eco-industrial system in Italy that incorporates a micro-scale anaerobic digestion (mAD) and a Solid-State Fermentation (SSF) unit to produce renewable energy (e.g., electricity and heat) from AD biogas and high-quality bio-based products (e.g., bio-pesticides) from digestate. Three scenarios (S0, S1, S2) were modelled. S0 and S1 included only a solid-liquid separation of digestate through a centrifuge, assuming a different fate for the solid fraction (composting in S0 and application on farmland in S1). S2 integrated SSF and reverse osmosis technologies for the treatment and valorisation of digestate with nutrient recovery. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis (eCBA) methodologies were applied to assess the environmental performances and economic feasibility of the project. The pilot system showed solid environmental performances, especially for S1 and S2, in the five impact categories considered. According to LCA results, the eCBA gives a positive outcome for S2. While the financial and economic analysis showed positive Net Present Values for S2, the project's profitability was not achieved for S0 and S1. If AD plants are implemented at a smaller scale they would represent a favourable investment for the local community; particularly when considering the benefits of nutrient recovery through a complete post-treatment of digestate. The valorisation of organic residues could be better supported through introducing alternative market-based policy tools, as well as removing regulatory barriers and encouraging the implementation of financial schemes to support small-scale renewable production systems and the enhancement of market-based instruments for credits certification from renewable energy production. • Biowaste treatment and valorisation had solid performances in Life Cycle Assessment. • Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis quantified good revenues for bio-based products. • Nutrient recovery by bio-pesticides and organic fertilizers allow economic benefits. • Limited plans, policies and economic instruments characterize the biowaste sector. • Alternative economic tools can promote biowaste reduction & efficient resources use.