Definition of Indicators Relating to the Extraction of Minerals Used in the Ceramic Sector for LCA

Among the main criticalities that the ceramic supply chain has to address in the logic of industrial symbiosis is the difficulty of finding primary data relating to the processes of supplying raw materials and the distribution and use of the final product. As part of the Mise REDuce REuse Ceramic Tiles (REDiRECT) project ( https://www.redirect.gresmalt.it/ ), which aims to design and validate a Circular Industry 4.0 model, the environmental sustainability of the extraction processes of raw materials used in ceramic production was evaluated using the Life Cycle Assessment methodology. The study was based on the definition of new indicators related to the depletion of the mineral Eurite in the IMPACT 2002+ calculation method, which allow the environmental damage due to the extraction of the mineral resource to be attributed dynamically. Finally, through an environmental impact assessment using the life cycle assessment methodology, it was shown that the damage categories obtained from the new indicators affect the total damage related to the extraction and processing of the resource by a value within the range [0.20%; 1.96%].