Exploring sustainability and circularity trade-offs using multi-objective life-cycle optimization
Vyom Thakker, The Ohio State University, Columbus, United States of America
Flash Presentation: Supply Chain & Sustainability Management
Video Conference Room (BigBlueButton): https://bbb.mpi-magdeburg.mpg.de/meeting/SmartPSE2022-Thakker
Abstract: Material life cycles must be reformed for a Sustainable Circular Economy (SCE) to avoid exploitation of natural resources and waste pile-up in the environment. Particularly, plastic commodity networks are creating a menace to the environment and require immediate attention. It has become crucial to determine the most promising value-chains of plastics, not only for achieving SCE but also to balance trade-offs between sustainability and circularity. We have developed a novel framework that builds systems engineering and superstructure optimization models to Life-cycle analysis. This general framework is able to systematically identify the optimal value-chain pathways in the life-cycle of materials/products to maximize circularity, while minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and life-cycle cost. Further, multi-objective optimization is used to develop 3-D pareto surfaces to quantify the trade-offs between these objectives. We have applied this framework to a grocery bags case study with alternatives from the plastic and paper industries and found a pareto-optimal compromise value-chain with an ideal paper to plastic ratio, and a suitable end-of-life strategy. In addition, we also discover the hot spot sectors of the value-chain which are leading contributors of emissions and leakages from the life-cycle network. These hot spots are critical to guide innovations and novel solutions, required to achieve win-win-win solutions for sustainable circularity. Information about SCE optimal solutions and hot spot analysis is used for holistically screening and ranking currently available innovations in the technology, policy, and societal domains.