Life-Cycle Environmental\nImpacts of Additive-Related\nChemicals in Polyvinyl Chloride Plastics and the Mitigation Potential

Plastic additive-related chemicals, particularly in polyvinyl\nchloride\n(PVC) plastics, have become a key issue in plastic pollution. Although\naddressing plastic pollution through the life-cycle approach is crucial,\nthe environmental impacts of typical plastic additive-related chemicals\nin PVC plastics during the cradle-to-gate stage remain unexplored.\nConsequently, managing the life-cycle environmental impacts of these\nadditives remains challenging. Herein, the environmental impacts of\n23 typical plastic additive-related chemicals and six PVC plastic\nproducts were evaluated throughout the cradle-to-gate life-cycle stage\nusing a life cycle assessment–material flow analysis (LCA-MFA)\ncoupled model. The results indicate that plastic additives significantly\ncontribute to the environmental impacts of PVC plastic products across\nvarious end point indicators, ranging from 8.7 to 40.6%. Additionally,\nscenario analysis (SA) reveals that conventional strategies for addressing\nplastic pollution may not be highly effective in mitigating the environmental\nimpacts associated with plastic additives. Specifically, compared\nto primary polymers, these additives exhibit 4 to 13% lower mitigation\npotential under the same policy scenarios. However, technical adjustment\nstrategies targeting additives show a mitigation potential of 12 to\n39%, suggesting that guiding the plastic additive industry toward\ngreen transformation is a key strategy for reducing environmental\nimpacts.