This study presents a life cycle assessment of two prototype biocomposite formulations manufactured at NRC-IMI in Boucherville, Quebec under a collaborative project between National Research Council of Canada-Industrial Materials Institute (NRC-IMI) and the Composites Department of FPInnovations on the “Development of cellulosic fibres/thermoplastic biocomposites”:
Formulation 1 – uses wood fibre with two biopolymers: polylactic acid (PLA) and thermoplastic starch (TPS). PLA is imported from Nebraska, US and TPS is produced at NRC-IMI using a locally available biopolymer source.
Formulation 2 - uses wood fibre and PLA.
The goals set to assess the cradle-to-gate environmental performance of the two formulations are:
Develop life cycle inventory for Formulation 1
Develop life cycle inventory for Formulation 2
Perform contribution analysis to identify significant inputs within the two formulations
Compare and contrast environmental performances of the two formulations
Compare and contrast environmental performance of the two biocomposite formulations with alternative materials such as nylon and polypropylene.