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What’s New in ecoinvent v3.12?

Written by Max Siegel

The latest version of the ecoinvent database, ecoinvent v3.12, is now live in Mobius and coming to Helix soon. Key highlights of this release include refined and expanded ecoinvent background datasets, specifically focusing on improvements within the forestry & wood, fuels, and chemicals & plastics sectors.

It also includes the introduction of three new LCIA methods:

  • IPCC 2021 (ISO 14067): Optimized for calculating Product Carbon Footprints in alignment with the Pathfinder Framework and ISO standards.

  • TRACI 2.2: The Environmental Protection Agency's method tailored for environmental assessments in the North American market.

  • Enhanced EN15804+A2: An upgraded implementation that automates several complex parameters and indicators, significantly reducing the need for manual processing outside the platform.

Beyond updated background data, this release introduces several improvements that reduce the amount of manual processing required when creating LCAs and EPDs according to the EN15804+A2 standard.. Many indicators and parameters that previously had to be calculated manually are now calculated automatically within Mobius, resulting in more complete outputs, reduced risk of manual errors, better alignment with current standards, and a more time-efficient LCA creation process!

Main Improvements per Industry

Chemicals & Plastics

Expanded regional coverage for major chemicals and polymers including PE, PP, PVC, methanol, and industrial gases. Added new bromine supply data, plastic processing datasets, and 40+ new chemical products.

Electricity

Electricity market mixes updated mainly to 2022 data, with selected countries updated to 2023. European residual mixes now reflect 2024 statistics.

Fuels

Updated oil and gas extraction datasets across 40+ countries with 2023 reference data. Added regionalized natural gas liquids and helium production datasets.

Metals

New datasets for steel alloys from 100% scrap-based EAF production. Updated aluminium supply chains and added European Zamak alloy datasets.

Batteries

Improved Li-ion battery chemistries, updated energy inputs, refined cathode/anode modeling, and additional electrolyte and precursor materials.

Forestry & Wood

New Finnish forestry datasets for pine, spruce, and birch. Harmonized product naming conventions and improved metadata clarity.

Agriculture

Technical refinements for crop datasets including harmonized emissions, improved metadata, and updated water content parameters.

Textiles

New hemp fibre datasets based on French production data. Updated flax datasets and corrections for cotton and polyester datasets.

Waste Management & Recycling

Improved plastic recycling integration, refined toxicity modeling, harmonized EN15804 waste indicators, and corrections to recycling inventories.

Note – Full release note: Curious to know more? Read the full ecoinvent v3.12 release note.

New LCIA methods added

IPCC 2021 (ISO 14067)

New version aligned with ISO 14067 and the Pathfinder Framework for Product Carbon Footprints (PCFs) calculations. The method automatically distinguishes between:

  • Fossil greenhouse gas emissions

  • Biogenic greenhouse gas emissions

  • Biogenic carbon removals

  • Land-use change emissions

  • Aircraft emissions

This enables you to prepare Product Carbon Footprint results according to these frameworks.

TRACI 2.2

For customers performing LCAs for the North American market, Mobius and Helix now include the TRACI 2.2 impact assessment method developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

TRACI 2.2 includes impact categories such as:

  • Climate change

  • Acidification

  • Eutrophication

  • Ozone depletion

  • Smog formation

  • Particulate matter

  • Human toxicity

  • Ecotoxicity

Enhanced EN15804+A2 implementation

One of the largest improvements in Ecoinvent 3.12 is the enhanced implementation of the EN15804+A2 calculation method. Many indicators and parameters that previously required manual calculations are now automatically generated within the platform. This reduces manual processing, improves consistency and makes LCA and EPD preparation significantly more efficient.

EN 15804 Parameter Inclusion

To reduce manual dataset adjustments, several indicators that previously defaulted to zero are now pre-calculated. Mobius now automatically calculates all six EN15804+A2 primary energy indicators:

  • PERM – Renewable primary energy used as raw material

  • PERE – Renewable primary energy used as energy carrier

  • PERT – Total renewable primary energy

  • PENRM – Non-renewable primary energy used as raw material

  • PENRE – Non-renewable primary energy used as energy carrier

  • PENRT – Total non-renewable primary energy

In previous database versions, PERM and PENRM had to be calculated manually, after which PERE and PENRE had to be corrected accordingly. These calculations are now performed automatically within Mobius. Mobius pulls lower heating values (LHVs) from either the database or a fallback source, checks the carbon content to determine if the material is renewable (non-fossil) or non-renewable (fossil), and assigns the material energy to the proper variant (PERM or PENRM). The calculated material energy component is subtracted from primary energy totals, separating primary energy materials and primary energy energy (PERE and PENRE). For more detail on datasourcing and calculation methods, ask our AI chatbot. We will update the chatbot with ecoinvent v3.12 information, and the background data sources used for these parameter calculations so that this information is also available for you as a user.

Several EN15804+A2 end-of-life indicators are also now automatically generated, including:

  • MFR – Materials for recycling

  • EEE – Exported electrical energy

  • ETE – Exported thermal energy

The calculation uses a complex formula that factors in the material's LHV, the specific electric and thermal efficiencies of the dataset, and subtracts any internal energy required to operate the incineration process itself. We will also add the background data used to calculate this to our AI Chatbot.

  • Secondary Material (SM) indicator is now automatically included through integration of the EN15804+A2 add-on. Previously, this value had to be manually added to your model.

More detailed GWP-biogenic reporting

Biogenic Disaggregation: In Mobius, users can select a method version that states "including parameters" to see a full disaggregation of GWP biogenic into:

  • Biogenic CO₂ emissions

  • Biogenic CO₂ removals

  • Biogenic non-CO₂ emissions

In addition, biogenic CO₂ emissions and removals are automatically included for products containing more than 5% fossil carbon content, in line with the EN15804+A2. This specific disaggregation is omitted from Helix for now.

Parameters that still require manual calculation

  • Materials for Energy Recovery (MER): This parameter is explicitly defaulted to zero due to the difficulty in automatically determining it, meaning it still requires manual entry.

  • Secondary fuels (SF)

  • Components for re-use (CRU)

  • Biogenic carbon, if A1 & C modules don’t match (or if you wish to use your own figures). If the biogenic carbon emissions in modules A1 and C don’t cancel out to zero, this has to be corrected manually.

  • Manual Override Variants: For users who prefer their existing manual workarounds or find that the pre-calculated numbers do not accurately represent their product system, the tool still retains the "non-adapted versions" (or non-parameter versions) where parameter values default to zero.

When do we recommend upgrading?

Upgrading to Ecoinvent 3.12 is particularly valuable if you fall into one of the following categories.

You create Product Carbon Footprints (PCFs)

If you perform Product Carbon Footprint studies according to ISO 14067 or the Pathfinder Framework, we strongly recommend upgrading. The new IPCC 2021 ISO 14067 calculation method supports the required reporting categories directly within Mobius, reducing manual calculations and simplifying reporting.

You create EN15804+A2 Environmental Product Declarations

If you create LCAs and EPDs for construction products according to EN15804+A2, Ecoinvent 3.12 offers significant benefits.

Many indicators and parameters that previously required manual calculations are now generated automatically, including:

  • GWP-biogenic correction

  • PERM, PERE, PERT, PENRM, PENRE and PENRT

  • MFR, EEE and ETE

  • Secondary Material (SM)

This substantially reduces manual post-processing while also reducing the likelihood of calculation or transcription errors.

You want to work with the latest Ecoinvent data

Customers who want to benefit from the latest available background datasets, particularly for fuels, forestry & wood, and chemicals & plastics, should also consider upgrading.

You perform North American LCAs

If you perform studies for the North American market, Ecoinvent 3.12 introduces the TRACI 2.2 impact assessment method.

When is upgrading less relevant?

Upgrading is not necessary for every workflow. Ecoinvent v3.12 averages ~1% difference in impact across all indicators and material categories compared to v3.11. Some specific indicators have higher differences between versions, but often updating your model won’t yield significant changes, so it’s important to weigh the benefits of updating against the time it takes to do so.

You work according to the Dutch Bepalingsmethode

If your studies follow the Dutch Bepalingsmethode, upgrading is generally not recommended. The current methodology prescribes the use of Ecoinvent 3.9.1 (and Ecoinvent 3.6 for Set 1), meaning Ecoinvent 3.12 cannot be used for compliant calculations.

You perform generic ISO 14040/44 LCAs using EF3.1

If you primarily perform ISO 14040/44 LCAs using the EF3.1 impact assessment method, the main advantage of upgrading is access to newer datasets. The enhanced EN15804+A2 functionality and new calculation methods generally do not provide additional benefits for these studies.

How to use ecoinvent v3.12?

In Mobius

  1. Go to the Workspace settings.

  2. Select a compatible Impact assessment method (e.g. EF 3.1, EN15804+A2 or IPCC 2021 ISO 14067).

  3. Next, choose ecoinvent v3.12 as the Preferred database.

Figure 1: Selecting ecoinvent v3.12 in workspace settings in Mobius.

You can select a version including automatic parameter calculation, or with default values depending on your needs. This is the version which includes disaggregated biogenic carbon indicators.

Figure 2: Selecting EN15804+A2 including automatic parameter calculation

Note - LCIA method compatibility: Ecoinvent v3.12 in Mobius supports a wide range of LCIA methods, including:

  • EF 3.1, EF 3.0

  • EN15804+A2 (enhanced version with parameters)

  • IPCC 2021 (ISO 14067)

  • TRACI v2.2

  • ReCiPe 2016

How to update your current workspace?

To update an existing workspace to ecoinvent v3.12 in Mobius, you can either update the datasets manually yourself or reach out to our support or professional services teams to run an automated updater for you.

Before running any update, we recommend backing up your old models by exporting all product inventories and uploading them to a new workspace. This ensures your historical footprints remain safely preserved for reference or reporting.

Caution - Older database versions: Some older database versions may not support newer LCIA methods and indicators. Mobius will show a warning (red triangle “invalid” icon) when combinations aren’t compatible.

In Helix

If you want to use this database on the usage and emissions page:

  1. Go to Settings.

  2. Find the calculation method.

  3. In the Standard Database field, select "Worldwide - Ecoinvent v 3.12 Cut-Off" (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Viewing the new Ecoinvent v3.12 Cut-Off calculation method in Helix.

If you want to search for an ecoinvent dataset in the database:

  1. Type "v3.12" in the search field, followed by a keyword (e.g., electricity Europe) (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Searching for ecoinvent v3.12 datasets in Helix.

Note - LCIA method compatibility: Ecoinvent v3.12 in Helix supports a wide range of LCIA methods, including:

  • EF 3.1, EF 3.0

  • EN15804+A2 (enhanced version with parameters)

  • IPCC 2021 (ISO 14067)

  • TRACI v2.2

  • ReCiPe 2016

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