Life Cycle Assessment: Impact Categories and Examples

This lecture covers the essentials of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), focusing on impact categories such as abiotic resource depletion, land use, and ecotoxicity potential. It also discusses the comparison between petro- and bio-based polymers, specifically Polylactic Acid (PLA) and Thermoplastic Starch (TPS), in terms of environmental impacts. The instructor explains the synthesis processes of these polymers and analyzes their life-cycle impacts, including global warming potential, eutrophication, and human toxicity. Furthermore, the lecture explores the role of green chemistry in LCA, providing examples of how green chemistry principles can lead to more sustainable chemical products and processes.