Life-cycle environmental impacts of typical plasticizers for plastics and their sustainable transformation potential

Abstract

Plasticizers are among the most used additives in the plastics industry, widely applied to improve the flexibility and processability of plastics. Despite the complex ecological and health risks associated with their life cycle, there is still a lack of comprehensive analysis and forward-looking research on the environmental impacts of plasticizers during the production stage, leading to a gap in relevant scientific information. This study, based on life-cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, selects 12 representative plasticizers and establishes a unified “equivalent performance” functional unit to systematically quantify their environmental impacts in the production stage. Through structural, source, market and functional grouping analyses, this study reveals the structural differences in environmental impacts and potential driving mechanisms. Results show that benzene-based plasticizers perform well on most indicators but exhibit significantly higher toxicity, while some bio-based varieties, although advantageous in terms of toxicity, face challenges related to resource use and carbon emissions. Traditional plasticizers with higher maturity exhibit more robust performance and stronger consistency. Furthermore, prospective scenario modeling based on learning curves indicates that new plasticizers have significant reduction potential towards key indicators such as carbon footprint and toxicity, with reductions reaching 7%–12%. Based on these findings, this study reveals the trade-offs among production-related environmental impacts, toxicity during the usage phase, and economic factors. Among the evaluated plasticizers, di-2-ethylhexyl terephthalate stands out because of its excellent overall performance, demonstrating strong potential for green substitution. This research provides scientific support for the green design, alternative pathway selection, and policy formulation for plastic additives while advancing the application of life cycle assessment methods in other domains of plastic chemistry.