Results
Life cycle inventory for corrugated board 2022
Table 4 shows the calculated inputs and outputs for the production of 1 tonne of corrugated board products in Europe with an average corrugated base paper composition. The production of corrugated board is normally expressed in m2. However, for LCA it is preferable to have it expressed in weight.
For the average corrugated board product, the paper input is 1.12 tonnes/tonne corrugated board, with an output of 0.12tonnes paper for recycling.
The original five datasets for the four main paper grades and corrugated board/box production from which the data are derived, are reported in the Annex. The data for the corrugated box is calculated by multiplying the average paper grade composition by 1.12 and adding the corrugated board/box data reported in the Annex.
Table 4 - Life cycle inventory for the production of 1 tonne of corrugated boxes in Europe, with average corrugated base paper composition
For the average corrugated board product, the paper input is 1.12 tonnes/tonne corrugated board, with an output of 0.12tonnes paper for recycling.
The original five datasets for the four main paper grades and corrugated board/box production from which the data are derived, are reported in the Annex. The data for the corrugated box is calculated by multiplying the average paper grade composition by 1.12 and adding the corrugated board/box data reported in the Annex.
Table 4 - Life cycle inventory for the production of 1 tonne of corrugated boxes in Europe, with average corrugated base paper composition
| Product | 2023 | |
| tonne net saleable product | 1 | |
| SOLD BYPRODUCTS | ||
| Tall oil | kg/t | 3.04 |
| Turpentine | kg/t | 0.15 |
| RAW MATERIAL | ||
| Wood consumption | as bone dry weight (= 45% of transported total wet weight) |
|
| Softwood logs | t/t | 0.098 |
| Hardwood logs | t/t | 0.053 |
| Saw mill residues, softwood | t/t | 0.020 |
| Saw mill residues, hardwood | t/t | 0.001 |
| Total wood | t/t | 0.173 |
| Recovered Paper | as wet weight | 1.081 |
| Category | ||
| Mixed Grades | t/t | 0.197 |
| Corrugated and Kraft, pre-consumer | t/t | 0.089 |
| Corrugated and Kraft, post-consumer | t/t | 0.519 |
| Newspaper and Magazines | t/t | 0.005 |
| Other grades | t/t | 0.0271 |
| Purchased pulp consumption | as bone dry weight | |
| Bleached pulp | t/t | 0.0071 |
| Unbleached pulp | t/t | 0.0051 |
| Paper consumption for corrugated board production | ||
| Total | t/t | 1.12 |
| Cores | kg/t | 2.53 |
| Core plugs | kg/t | 0.06 |
| TRANSPORT OF RAW MATERIALS | ||
| Wood | ||
| Wood with truck | t.km/t | 72 |
| Wood with rail | t.km/t | 35 |
| Wood with boat | t.km/t | 132 |
| Recovered paper | ||
| Recovered paper with truck | t.km/t | 282 |
| Recovered paper with rail | t.km/t | 33 |
| Recovered paper with boat | t.km/t | 81 |
| Purchased pulp | ||
| Purchased pulp with truck | t.km/t | 553 |
| Purchased pulp with rail | t.km/t | 614 |
| Purchased pulp with boat | t.km/t | 320 |
| Paper to corrugated board plants* | ||
| Paper with truck | t.km/t | 3 |
| Paper with rail | t.km/t | 0 |
| Paper with boat | t.km/t | 41 |
| ENERGY INPUTS | ||
| Steam | GJ/t | 0.449 |
| Bought Electricity | GJ/t | 1.346 |
| Fossil fuels | ||
| Natural gas | GJ/t | 4.019 |
| Heavy fuel oil | GJ/t | 0.043 |
| Light fuel oil | GJ/t | 0.059 |
| Diesel oil | GJ/t | 0.009 |
| LPG | GJ/t | 0.015 |
| Coal | GJ/t | 0.249 |
| Lignite | GJ/t | 0.074 |
| Peat | GJ/t | 0.047 |
| Total fossil fuel | GJ/t | 4.515 |
| Renewable fuels | ||
| Biofuel (bark, scrap wood, tall oil) | GJ/t | 0.724 |
| Total renewable fuel | GJ/t | 0.724 |
| Refuse Derived Fuel | GJ/t | 0.535 |
| Total fuel | GJ/t | 5.774 |
| WATER | ||
|
Input total |
m3/t | 14.10 |
|
Ground water (non renewable) |
m3/t | 0.07 |
| Ground water (renewable) | m3/t | 3.04 |
| Surface water | m3/t | 10.30 |
| Municipal water | m3/t | 0.62 |
| Rain water | m3/t | 0.06 |
| Other water received | m3/t | 0.00 |
|
Water in-out |
m3/t | 1.99 |
|
|
||
| PROCESS CHEMICALS AND ADDITIVES, DRY MASS | ||
| Alum (Al2(SO4)3 | kg/t | 0.24 |
| Biocides | kg/t | 0.85 |
| Borax | kg/t | 0.26 |
| CaCO3 | kg/t | 7.93 |
| Ground Calcium Carbonate | kg/t | 4.06 |
| Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (purchased) | kg/t | 3.87 |
| CaO | kg/t | 0.61 |
| Coagulant delete? | kg/t | |
| Colorants | kg/t | 0.62 |
| CO2 | kg/t | 0.43 |
| Defoamer | kg/t | 0.33 |
| Fillers | kg/t | 2.00 |
| Glue, cold + hot melts | kg/t | 1.06 |
| H2O2, peroxide | kg/t | 0.41 |
| H2SO4 | kg/t | 1.24 |
| Water based ink for flexo printing | kg/t | 1.82 |
| Varnish for printing | kg/t | 0.74 |
| Ligno sulphonate | kg/t | 0.76 |
| Lubricants | kg/t | 0.04 |
| MgO | kg/t | 0.03 |
| NaClO3 | kg/t | 0.18 |
| Na2CO3 (soda) | kg/t | 0.21 |
| Na2SO4 | kg/t | 0.14 |
| NaOH | kg/t | 1.93 |
| NH3 | kg/t | 0.27 |
| Oxygen, O2 | kg/t | 0,71 |
| PAC (polyaluminiumclorid) delete? | kg/t | 0.30 |
| Pitch despergents | kg/t | 0.12 |
| Polymer and retention agents | kg/t | 1.66 |
| S, sulphur | kg/t | 0.09 |
| Sizing agents | kg/t | 0.85 |
| SO2 | kg/t | 0.00 |
| Starch, corn | kg/t | 20.00 |
| Starch, potato | kg/t | 3.62 |
| Starch, wheat | kg/t | 25.02 |
| Starch, modified | kg/t | 4.69 |
| Starch flour | kg/t | 0.91 |
| EMISSIONS TO AIR | ||
| Particulates, < 2.5 µm | kg/t | 0.0076 |
| Particulates, > 2.5 µm, and < 10µm | kg/t | 0.0040 |
| Particulates, > 10 µm | kg/t | 0.0219 |
| CO2 (fossil) | kg/t | 340.54 |
| CO2 (biomass) | kg/t | 278.11 |
| CO | kg/t | 0.25 |
| NOx (as NO2) | kg/t | 0.42 |
| SOx (as SO2) | kg/t | 0.13 |
| TRS (H2S as S) | kg/t | 0.003 |
| EMISSIONS TO WATER | ||
| Water output | m³/t | |
| Thermally polluted water | m³/t | 3.63 |
| Process water after treatment | m³/t | 8.49 |
| Total water out | m³/t | 12.11 |
| COD | kg/t | 1.02 |
| BOD 5 | kg/t | 0.17 |
| TOC | kg/t | 0.09 |
| Suspended solids | kg/t | 0.19 |
| Total Nitrogen | kg/t | 0.06 |
| AOX | kg/t | 0.001 |
| Total Phosphorus | kg/t | 0.005 |
|
Waterborne emissions - seawater |
kg/t | |
| COD | kg/t | 3.99 |
| BOD5 | kg/t | 0.07 |
| TOC | kg/t | 0.05 |
|
Suspended solids |
kg/t | 0.08 |
| Total Nitrogen | kg/t | 0.01 |
| AOX | kg/t | 0.0003 |
|
Total Phosphorus |
kg/t | 0.002 |
| RESIDUES | wet weight | |
| Calcium Carbonate | kg/t (75% dry content) | 0.16 |
| Ink residues | kg/t (50% dry content) | 2.41 |
| Inorganic ashes (10 01 01) | kg/t (85% dry content) | 10.77 |
| Green liquor sludge |
kg/t (32% dry content) |
0.60 |
| Organic primary fibre sludge | kg/t (43% dry content) | 6.42 |
| Lime mud |
kg/t (32% dry content) |
0.86 |
| Organic biological treatment sludge |
kg/t (43% dry content) |
8.82 |
| Bark and wood | kg/t (45% dry content) | 1.25 |
| Paper for recycling | kg/t (90% dry content) | 121.00 |
| Rejects, paper related** | kg/t (57% dry content) | 10.91 |
| Rejects, other*** | kg/t (57% dry content) | 21.82 |
| Starch, glue (wet weight) | kg/t (30% dry content) | 0.05 |
| Lubricants and oil | kg/t | 0.06 |
«0» no input or below reporting requirements see «chemical input»
«na» not available
*As this life cycle inventory is intended to be representative of average European production, only transport from European paper mills to
European corrugated board production sites has been considered in the weighted average. Transport associated with export of paper
outside of Europe has not been considered
**Rejected materials that were associated with the previous use of the paper (for example, staples, paper clips, tags, adhesive labels, unrecovered
fibres, etc)
***Material that is not in anyway associated with the previous use of the paper (for example, foreign items such as plastic packaging, glass,
sand and grit, etc)