Applying a mass balance approach to product carbon intensity and reduction claims

Decarbonization within the chemical manufacturing sector has become one of the key challenges in moving toward net zero goals. In an industry known for high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, many surfactant and detergent manufacturers are embarking on a new era of eco-conscious production by transitioning to cleaner energy sources, utilizing alternative bio and recycled feedstocks, and implementing technologies such as carbon capture and storage.

To address the needs of the sector, SCS Standards, an ANSI-accredited standard development organization that has developed sustainability standards across a wide range of industries, launched in 2024 its SCS-115 Certification Standard for Product Carbon Intensity and Reduction for Chemicals and Co-products. This standard provides a methodology for third-party certification of the greenhouse gas intensity and reduction of chemicals, solvents, plastics, and similar products, and supports different decarbonization levers, including circular and biobased feedstock, as well as carbon capture utilization and storage among others. The standard offers a novel mass balance approach to carbon footprint reduction and allows credible product intensity and reduction claims that showcase product decarbonization downstream of the manufacturing/processing.

In this panel presentation, I will use the SCS-115 standard as an example to illustrate how mass balance can be applied to GHG emission savings to support sustainability claims for surfactants and detergents, on and off-product.