Environmental impact assessment of eco-friendly sanitary absorbents made from plantain waste

This study conducts a cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate the environmental impacts of plantain derived absorbent core (PDCs) for sanitary products, focusing on small scale industrial production in Ghana's Ashanti Region. The analysis identifies environmental hotspots, evaluates sensitivity to production variables and compares PDCs with conventional wood/superabsorbent polymer (SAP) alternatives, adhering to ISO 14040/14,044 standards. The assessment reveals that, the material preparation stage is the primary environmental hotspot contributing 63.4 % to abiotic resource depletion, 75.1 % to cumulative energy demand, and 71.3 % to global warming due to high electricity consumption. The LCA indicates that the current PDC production process has a higher environmental impact than conventional wood/SAP cores, with 1.5 times higher global warming emissions and consuming 3.2 times greater energy consumption per functional unit. However, sensitivity analysis suggests that PDCs have significant potential for environmental improvement through process optimization. This optimization, involving pre-drying the biomass ahead of manufacturing and avoiding the use of bleaching chemicals, could, for instance, reduce global warming potential by ∼30 %. Insights from this work can guide the development of more sustainable production practices for plant-based absorbent cores, inform future environmental assessments, and support policy or industry decisions aimed at reducing the ecological footprint of hygiene products.