Implementing hybrid LCA routines in an input–output virtual laboratory

Abstract Hybrid life cycle assessment (LCA) has been developed for almost 40 years, but its applications are still limited to certain products/industries. This study endeavors to expand the accessibility of hybrid LCA from specialists to practitioners by developing a streamlined and semi-automated hybrid LCA data compilation routine in an input–output virtual laboratory. Data from the Australian Life Cycle Inventory Database (AusLCI) and the Australian Industrial Ecology Virtual Laboratory are used to demonstrate this routine. A hybridized AusLCI database is generated and used to calculate the hybrid carbon footprint intensities (CFIs) of all AusLCI processes. How different assumptions and settings on the hybridization influence the difference between process-based and hybrid results is further investigated and discussed intensively. Major inputs from the IO system are identified, and the sensitivity and uncertainty of hybrid results against unit price variations and EEIO table uncertainties are quantified via Monte Carlo simulations. On average, process-based CFIs are 21–32% lower than the corresponding hybrid CFIs, which is larger than the uncertainties resulting from either price variation, EEIO data uncertainty or scenarios on how the hybridization is conducted. Although the data are Australian specific, the underlying procedure is applicable to any country as long as suitable data are available.