A sustainable alternative? A comparative life cycle assessment of epoxy adhesives

In response to the imperative of eco-friendly material substitution, a comparative cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) of two epoxy adhesives is presented: a traditional epoxy resin and an innovative self-curing epoxy derived by epoxidizing poly-beta-myrcene (a constituent of Chios Mastic natural resin). Employing ReCiPe 2016 indicators and standard normalization, our study reveals that epoxidized poly-beta-myrcene outperforms conventional epoxy in 9 of 18 assessed midpoint indicators, with minimal impact in 7, and marginally higher impact in 2. The superiority of epoxidized poly-beta-myrcene extends to all three ReCiPe Endpoint protection areas. Atom economy and the E-factor are also considered and related to the LCA results. Furthermore, the evaluation demonstrates epoxidized poly-beta-myrcene's remarkable environmental favorability compared to a literature bio-based epoxy across multiple CML-IA-baseline indicators. In summary, epoxidized poly-beta-myrcene emerges as a promising, ecologically sensitive alternative to current conventional and bio-based epoxy options. A sustainable epoxy adhesive with 100% green carbon content; ReCiPe 2016 midpoint and endpoint indicators; comparison with a fossil-based epoxy adhesive; comparison with a literature bio-based epoxy case by LMC-IA method.image