Renewable carbon feedstock for polymers: environmental benefits from synergistic use of biomass and CO2

Abstract

Polymer production is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To reduce GHG emissions, the polymer industry needs to shift towards renewable carbon feedstocks such as biomass and CO₂. Both feedstocks have been shown to reduce GHG emissions in polymer production, however often at the expense of increased utilization of the limited resources biomass and renewable electricity. Here, we explore synergetic effects between biomass and CO₂ utilization to reduce both GHG emissions and renewable resource use. For this purpose, we use life cycle assessment (LCA) to quantify the environmental benefits of the combined utilization of biomass and CO₂ in the polyurethane supply chain. Our results show that the combined utilization reduces GHG emissions by 13% more than the individual utilization of either biomass or CO₂. The synergies between bio- and CO₂-based production save about 25% of the limited resources biomass and renewable electricity. The synergistic use of biomass and CO₂ also reduces burden shifting from climate change to other environmental impacts, e.g., metal depletion or land use. Our results show how the combined utilization of biomass and CO₂ in polymer supply chains reduces both GHG emissions and resource use by exploiting synergies between the feedstocks.