Life Cycle Assessment and Environmental Cost Evaluation of Biomimetic Cellulose-Enhanced Hydrogels

Abstract

Cellulose-based hydrogels, recognized for their exceptional strength and toughness, have become promising alternatives to petroleum-based functional materials in soft robotics and wearable devices applications. However, the current lack of a detailed understanding of its environmental characteristics and robust quantitative research poses significant challenges to the long-term, sustainable design of biomass materials. To address this research gap and avoid shifting environmental problems in biomass material design, this study developed a sustainable assessment model using life cycle assessment to quantify and identify the drivers of environmental implications in the biomimetic cellulose-enhanced hydrogel fabrication process. The results indicated that preparation of cellulose skeleton and acrylamide solution are the main contributors to environmental burdens, accounting for 68% and 29% of the overall environmental impact. The main driving indicators come from primary energy demand (PED), CO2, SO2, NOx, and NH3–N during raw material extraction and electricity consumption. The scenario analysis revealed that optimizing materials and energy inputs collaboratively can reduce environmental implications and costs by 72.9% and 88.7%, respectively. This life cycle thinking-based quantitative model provides both data-driven insights for the design of cellulose-based materials, avoiding the risk of environmental problem shifting and offering practical guidance for advancing the sustainable development of biomass-derived functional materials.