# ABS: Emissions

Styrene alone brings half the footprint

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/emissions/

What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint per tonne, split by lifecycle phase (feedstock, production, movement, use, end of life), the global total, other environmental impacts, levers and low-carbon routes, India's position, and where the investment opportunity lies. Emission intensity 3.30 t CO2e per t range 3.0-3.8 · derived: 0.58 t styrene x 2.8 + 0.23 t acrylonitrile x 3.4 + 0.19 t butadiene x 1.3 = 2.65 t, plus about 0.55 t for polymerisation, drying and compounding and 0.1 t transport Global emissions per year 33.0 Mt CO2e per year 2024 · about 10 Mt x 3.3 t CO2e/t (derived, indicative)

Per t of ABS pellets, cradle-to-gate. Intensity: derived from the styrene, acrylonitrile and butadiene tiles (indicative); consistent with Plastics Europe ABS eco-profiles of about 3.3-3.8 (indicative). Global total: derived.

#### Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
 Feedstock 80% Production / process 17% Movement 3%

#### Footprint by lifecycle phase

| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Feedstock** | about 2.65 t CO2e/t | 80% | naphtha cracking, styrene dehydrogenation steam, ammoxidation for acrylonitrile | styrene alone about 1.6 t CO2e/t ABS | derived from monomer tiles (indicative) |
| **Production / process** | about 0.55 t CO2e/t | 17% | emulsion polymerisation, coagulation, drying and extrusion energy | mass process uses less energy than emulsion | indicative |
| **Movement** | about 0.1 t CO2e/t | 3% | container shipping Asia to customers | small | indicative |
| **Use** | not applicable | – | inert in use | light-weighting in cars gives small use-phase savings | n/a |
| **End of life** | about 3.1 t CO2 per t if incinerated (calculated from about 86% carbon content) | – | incineration, landfill or recycling | ABS is recovered from appliances and electronics by density and optical sorting; much ends in landfill or is exported as mixed e-waste plastic | calculated (indicative) |

#### Other environmental impacts

Residual acrylonitrile is a carcinogen; brominated flame-retardant grades complicate recycling; plastic leakage from toys and e-waste in informal recycling.

#### Levers to cut emissions

- Mechanical recycling of appliance and electronics ABS cuts cradle-to-gate emissions by roughly 70-80% per t versus virgin (indicative, typical LCA results).
- Bio-attributed or circular-attributed monomers under ISCC PLUS mass balance (INEOS Styrolution offers such ABS grades; indicative).
- Low-carbon styrene: electrified steam and lower-carbon benzene and ethylene.
- Switching from emulsion to mass process cuts drying energy and effluent.

#### India

India's ABS footprint is small (indicative, a few hundred kt of demand). The main lever is the E-Waste EPR system, which can create a domestic recycled-ABS supply chain if collection moves from informal to formal recyclers.
 Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.

#### Low-carbon routes

| Route | Intensity | Cost premium | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Mechanically recycled ABS from WEEE** | about 0.5-1.0 t CO2e/t (indicative) | often at or below virgin price when virgin is high; volume limited by sorting (indicative) | commercial in Europe and Asia; scale not published in sources reached | indicative |
| **Mass-balance bio-attributed ABS** | claimed reductions depend on allocation (not published) | premium not published | commercial in small volumes (indicative) | indicative |

 For a climate investor Most ABS emissions sit in its monomers, so plant-level decarbonisation has limited effect. The investable opportunity is formal recycling of appliance and electronics plastic into compounding-grade ABS, especially in India where E-Waste EPR now assigns collection targets. What has to be true: reliable sorting of brominated grades and long-term offtake from appliance makers.

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/characteristics/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/abs/links/index.md)