Evaluating the Environmental Sustainability of Alternative Ways to Produce Benzene, Toluene, and Xylene.

The petrochemical industry can reduce its environmental impacts by moving from fossil resources to alternative carbon feedstocks. Biomass and plastic waste-based production pathways have recently been developed for benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX). This study evaluates the environmental impacts of these novel BTX pathways at a commercial and future (2050) scale, combining traditional life cycle assessment with absolute environmental sustainability assessment using the planetary boundary concept.

The potential of emerging bio-based products to reduce environmental impacts.

The current debate on the sustainability of bio-based products questions the environmental benefits of replacing fossil- by bio-resources. Here, we analyze the environmental trade-offs of 98 emerging bio-based materials compared to their fossil counterparts, reported in 130 studies. Although greenhouse gas life cycle emissions for emerging bio-based products are on average 45% lower (-52 to -37%; 95% confidence interval), we found a large variation between individual bio-based products with none of them reaching net-zero emissions.

Novel brominated flame retardants - A review of their occurrence in indoor air, dust, consumer goods and food.

This critical review summarizes the occurrence of 63 novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) in indoor air, dust, consumer goods and food. It includes their EU registration and (potential) risks. The increasing application of NBFRs calls for more research on their occurrence, environmental fate and toxicity.