Aluminum Beverage Cans Have Superior Environmental Performance Over Glass PET Containers Study

New Delhi: A research that has used India-specific information and the Life Cycle Evaluation (LCA) instrument throughout a ‘cradle to grave’ cycle of substrates has revealed that aluminum beverage cans have superior environmental efficiency over glass, PET and multi-layer drinks containers.

The Life Cycle Evaluation (LCA) in contrast the environmental sustainability of aluminum cans, glass bottles, PET plastic bottles and multi-layer packaging (MLP), all of which had been studied in opposition to 18 environmental influence classes together with international warming potential (GWP), water consumption, acidification and materials circularity.

The primary-of-its-kind in India research by The Vitality and Sources Institute (TERI) assessed 250 ml and 500 ml aluminum cans; 200 ml, 600 ml and 750 ml PET bottles; 200 ml, 330 ml and 650 ml glass bottles; and 200 ml MLP cartons.

“In its 500 ml kind, aluminum cans, already the world’s most recycled drinks container, averaging 69 per cent globally and 85 per cent in India, carried out the most effective in a number of influence classes, particularly due to its recyclability, excessive recycled content material and light-weight weight,a the research ‘Sustainable Beverage Packaging Choices in India: A Comparative Life Cycle Evaluation Examine’ mentioned.

The 200 ml MLP cartons got here an in depth second almost about GWP, adopted by the 600 ml PET bottles.

“The only use glass bottles didn’t carry out nicely throughout a number of influence classes attributable to their excessive power intensive manufacturing and comparatively low-recycled content material,” the research mentioned.

The research used India-specific information and the LCA instrument throughout a ‘cradle to grave’ cycle of substrates, together with uncooked materials extraction, the manufacture of main and secondary packaging supplies, transportation between the totally different levels within the worth chain, as nicely wanting on the end-of-life elements of the totally different packaging sorts.

Vibha Dhawan, director basic, TERI, mentioned: “This research has been carried out at a time when there’s rising environmental consciousness amongst Indian customers and important coverage thrust by the Indian authorities in the direction of promotion of circularity throughout numerous sectors.”