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Life cycle assessment (LCA) database

Find life cycle inventory (LCI) data in the TianGong LCA database. Understand dataset types, scope, sources, exact versions and terms of use.

Explore the TianGong data catalog

The TianGong catalog provides public process and flow records for product and service life cycle assessments. Browse by dataset type or geography, then open a record to check its scope, source, version and available content.

What is a life cycle assessment database?

A life cycle assessment (LCA) database organizes data on production, energy supply, transport and other activities to support environmental assessments of products or services. Life cycle inventory (LCI) data records inputs such as resources, energy and materials, and outputs such as products, emissions and waste. An assessment combines suitable process data with a study model, functional unit and assessment methods.

Understand the two dataset types

Process data: activities and their inputs and outputs

Process records describe production, energy supply, transport or other activities. Check the reference product, functional unit, geography and time. Exchanges and impact results are available only where the record makes them public.

Flow data: products, resources and emissions

Flow records describe the properties and units of products, materials, resources, emissions or waste. They identify process inputs and outputs; a life cycle inventory or carbon footprint requires process data and assessment methods.

LCI data, LCIA results and carbon emission factors

Life cycle inventory (LCI) data
Inventory data describes the inputs and outputs of an activity. Check the reference product, unit and scope associated with each quantity. An individual material or emission flow record is not a complete process inventory.
Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) results
Impact assessment applies a specific method to inventory data to calculate potential environmental impacts. Read each result with its impact category, method version, unit and process version. A result that is not public must not be treated as zero.
Carbon emission factors
A carbon emission factor typically expresses greenhouse gas emissions per unit of activity. Check whether it reports CO₂ or CO₂ equivalents, along with the reference unit, geography, period and system boundary. A climate change result does not represent other environmental impact categories.

Choose data that fits your study

Scope and technology
Check the functional unit, system boundary, production technology and allocation approach. Similar names can describe different activities.
Geography and time
Select data that represents the location and reference period of your study. Read the coverage notes before treating a local sample as an industry average.
Sources and quality
Review original sources, data generators, quality information and documented reviews to assess suitability for your study.
Versions and citations
Keep the dataset name, exact version and link used in your study. Before comparing results, also check that units, methods and system boundaries are compatible.
Read the data usage guide

From finding data to citing it

  1. Find relevant processes

    Start with a product, material or activity name. Browse by classification and geography, then narrow your selection to the period and technology of your study. Use flow records to identify the substances or products in process inputs and outputs.

  2. Check the fit for your study

    Open a specific version to review scope, sources, quality information and the inputs, outputs or impact results made public. Before comparing processes, check functional units, methods and system boundaries. Follow the record and provider’s terms of use.

  3. Keep the version and citation

    Record the dataset name, exact version and link, together with the sources used in your study. Save selected versions in this browser, add notes and export a backup of your saved datasets. This backup does not contain the complete database.

Data access and licensing

Browse the catalog without signing in. Before obtaining complete data, check the record and provider’s license for download options and reuse conditions.

ILCD data distribution

The TianGong Life Cycle Data Network (LCDN) is a publication and distribution point for databases in ILCD format, serving LCA software and data networks. Check the node for the datasets, versions and access conditions currently available.

Visit the ILCD data node