Life cycle assessment and role of circular economy: The case of fertilizer industry in India

Life cycle assessment (LCA) and circular economy (CE) are becoming crucial tools in minimizing the impact of the industrial system. The proposed work explores the LCA of the fertilizer industry (FI) engaged in urea and NPK fertilizer manufacturing in the western and southern parts of India. Further, the 11R-based CE framework and material circularity approach are proposed to minimize the environmental impacts (EIs) of FI for a successful transition toward sustainable development. The study shows significant EIs of FI, such as freshwater ecotoxicity, terrestrial ecotoxicity, freshwater eutrophication, terrestrial eutrophication, marine eutrophication, aquatic acidification, climate change, and ionizing radiation. The carbon footprints during fertilizer manufacturing were 7.092245E+03 kg CO₂ equivalent and 7.87000E+03 kg CO₂ equivalent for each ton of urea and NPK produced. Focusing on each stages of FI, the proposed 11R CE framework provides an action plan for better environmental management during urea and NPK fertilizer manufacturing. The adoption of the developed 11R CE framework and material circularity approach can help minimize the impact associated with FI and can bring considerable environmental benefits. The study further provides in-depth policy and managerial insights for FI decision-makers.