EASETECH – A LCA model for assessment of environmental technologies

EASETECH is a new model for the environmental assessment of environmental technologies developed in collaboration between DTU Environment and DTU Compute. EASETECH is based on experience gained in the field of waste management modelling over the last decade and applies the same concepts to systems with different kinds of material flows, such as sludge, wastewater, biomass for energy production and treatment of contaminated soil. The primary aim of EASETECH is to perform life cycle assessment (LCA) of complex systems handling heterogeneous material flows. The main novelties of the model compared to other LCA software are as follows. The focus is put on material flow modelling. This means that each material flow is characterized as a mix of material fractions with different properties. Flows in terms of mass and composition are computed throughout the integrated system including rejects, slags, ashes and products as a basis for the LCA calculations. These flows are handled as a matrix of waste fractions and material properties, and each fraction can be handled independently or grouped based on general similarity (e.g. PE bottle and plastic waste) in different processes. This is very important because different materials have different chemical compositions, and the optimal treatment for one material fraction might be suboptimal for another fraction. It is therefore critical that the starting point of the modelling process is a composition matrix where each material fraction is specified in terms of chemical, as well as fraction‐specific parameters (e.g. water content, heating value).