Hoffmann LCA targets energy-, emissions-savings for rubber fillers

Neuburg, Germany – Hoffmann Mineral has had a life cycle analysis (LCA) prepared for its Aktifit AM function filler for elastomer/rubber materials to help “balance the environmental impact of a product and show companies where energy- and emissions-savings can be made.”

The LCA was carried out by TÜV Rheinland in accordance with ISO standards 14040:2021 and 14044:2021, Neuburg-based Hoffmann reported in a recent press release.  

"Aktifit AM represents the entire value-chain in our company and is thus an ideal starting point for deriving possible courses of action for this product and later for other products as well," said Dr Mikhail Meilikhov, board member responsible for R&D and risk management.

According to Hoffmann, the LCA provides a detailed view of each phase of the Aktifit AM life-cycle in terms of and emissions and how much energy is consumed in total for individual production steps and packaging.

This includes: the extraction/production of the various input materials by Hoffmann and suppliers including packaging and transport expenses; manufacture of the product by Hoffmann; and packaging of Aktifit AM at the company’s production site in the Neuburg in different packaging materials.

"This gives us transparency over different input and output sources, and in the next step we can also draw up LCAs for other products relatively easily," commented Meilikhov.

With the LCA data, Hoffmann aims to support customers own sustainability analyses, towards optimising energy-intensive processes and resource-consumption throughout the entire supply-chain – also addressing increasing regulatory requirements worldwide and growing demand for sustainable products.

Interestingly, Hoffmann said emissions linked to the packaging are a “decisive factor for many customers”, as these materials can have a significant impact on the corresponding LCA of their products.

The company went on to note that primary energy sources for the production of Aktifit AM have a significant influence on the LCA results and thus on the actual emissions.

“Due to the changes in the conventional and renewable shares of the overall energy mix in Germany, it is necessary to regularly update and re-evaluate the LCA results, explained Meilikhov, adding that Hoffmann plans to repeat the current review at regular intervals.

Aktifit AM is widely used as a functional filler for elastomers, particularly in polar polymers in combination with sulfur or sulfur donor, amine or bisphenol crosslinking systems.