Less than a year after the substantial release of ecoinvent 3.2, which included a complete update of the electricity sector, ecoinvent 3.3 provides yet again considerable amount of new data and overall improvements to the database.
World Food LCA Database
Several hundreds of new agricultural datasets from the WFLDB were added to ecoinvent 3.3 including vegetables, fruits, cereal and grain products. Moreover, the distinction between agricultural technologies and categories allows users to choose between open field, greenhouse and heated greenhouse production as well as between fresh grade and processing grade.
PDF documentation per dataset
Want to be able to grasp a single dataset at a glance? Or would you like to be able to download documentation of a dataset in a report-like format?
One of the major improvements of ecoinvent version 3 was to include more information directly in the dataset. We've taken this one step further as users will now also find a link to the pdf documentation for each dataset in ecoQuery. LCA software providers have the possibility to also integrate the links to the pdf documents in their software.
Providing both unit process information as well as some key impact assessment results, the pdf documentation encompasses and distils a lot in one document. To appreciate its full potential we have highlighted the main features and advantages in an example pdf documentation.
Advanced search function in ecoQuery
With the substantial increase in the number of datasets the advanced search function is a welcomed new feature in ecoQuery. Seasoned ecoinvent users will remember the advanced search function of ecoinvent 2.2. The new advanced search function for ecoinvent 3.3 lets you refine your search according to geographies, ISIC Codes, markets, transforming activities and more.
Test the new search function first-hand by logging in to ecoQuery.
New method - ILCD method
Users performing PEF compliant studies will be happy to learn that the impact scores calculated with the ILCD methods (version 1.0.8) are available with ecoinvent 3.3. These methods have been collected, reviewed and recommended by the Joint Research Center of the European Union.
Prices for all products
Price data are available for all the products (except for waste materials and their disposal) in the database. The prices can be used for simple life cycle costing studies or when working with social LCA data.
New CPC classification added
The United Nations Statistics Division publishes two different types of classification: the ISIC classification of production activities and the CPC classification of products. The ISIC classification of activities was present in the ecoinvent database since version 3.01 while the CPC classification has been introduced with the release of ecoinvent 3.3. Being able to classify every dataset in the database according to both standards means ecoinvent users can now search, sort and identify products present in the database more easily. At the same time, it offers the possibility to use ecoinvent data together with other databases and data sources.
Find a more comprehensive documentation and information on ecoinvent 3.3 here.