For the quantification of carbon storagewithin the framework of
a life cycle assessment, it is important to note that industrial
composting processes are usually much shorter than the 180 days
stipulated in the standards, namely 2e8 weeks on average for fresh
compost[73], 12 weeks in total including maturing. The level of
biodegradation achieved during composting is also very much
determined by the particle size of the product. The thicker
a material, the smaller the level of biodegradation reached. In
laboratory testing, biodegradation is tested on samples aftermilling
in order to reach high levels of biodegradation as fast as possible.
This means that in reality, biodegradation levels reached at the end
of the composting cyclewill be (much) lower. In order to work with
‘realistic’ biodegradation levels of bio-based materials, we have
therefore conducted a literature survey on the biodegradation of
selected bio-based materials in industrial composting (summarised
inTable 2) and selected average values for these materials based on
this table as well as on information from experts.