Vinyl chloride monomer

Activity Vinyl chloride monomer by the balanced EDC process (direct chlorination and oxygen-based oxychlorination), RER: the inventory of 1 kilogram of its reference product, attributional, cut-off.

Calculation maturity: not assessed Design maturity: Concept (research)Not independently reviewedvcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloridePreliminaryReport a problem with this dataset

Research outputAn inventory from a research design at the design maturity its process states, not verified plant data: check its calculation maturity and review status before use. Background activities are referenced by name only; no background data is included. All caveats

What it is

Per 1 t of VCM, gate-to-gate, EU plants of the LVOC BREF data collection. Direct chlorination and oxygen-based oxychlorination of ethylene, thermal EDC cracking, all HCl recycled. Feeds and utilities from the BREF, oxygen and residues from stoichiometry, vent CO2 and combustion CH4 from IPCC 2006.

Reference product: 1 kilogram of Vinyl chloride monomer
Chemical: vinyl-chloride
CAS: 75-01-4
Code: vcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloride
Dataset: vcm-balanced-oxygen version 0.1.0 · UUID bc0cd832-14ce-5b79-b376-9a3b1e169113
Activity UUID: not available (the library assigns none; use the code)
Database: cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4 (version preview-a3c52e4)
Process: Vinyl chloride monomer by the balanced EDC process (direct chlorination and oxygen-based oxychlorination)
Geography: RER · background inputs with a site rule link at the user's site location (default DE)
Time period: 2009 · valid until 2018
Technology: balanced EDC/VCM unit: direct chlorination (low- or high-temperature) and oxygen-based oxychlorination, thermal cracking of EDC in natural-gas-fired furnaces; air-based oxychlorination, unbalanced units and the acetylene route are not modelled · level current
Boundary: gate-to-gate: direct chlorination, oxychlorination, EDC purification, EDC cracking, VCM purification, vent treatment and wastewater pretreatment; ethylene, chlorine, oxygen, steam and power from outside
Classification: ISIC Rev.4 2011 (taxonomy/families.yaml (ISIC Rev.4) of the process's families)
System model: attributional, cut-off (docs/system-model.md, methodology 1.1.0)
Allocation: mass, 100 % of the dataset to this product (rule single-output, from default)
one product: nothing to allocate
Rights: CC-BY-4.0

Exchanges per 1 kilogram of Vinyl chloride monomer

As exported: allocated and scaled to the reference product. Provenance: 11 given, 8 calculated, 1 assumed. Pedigree scores (1 best, 5 worst): reliability, completeness, temporal correlation, geographical correlation, further technological correlation.

Preliminary5 exchanges are not yet linked to a background dataset. They count no burden, so the inventory is incomplete: do not read a result from it as complete.

Input	Amount	Unit	Provenance	Pedigree	Linked to
Ethylene feed:ethylene EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, Table 11.12, p. 506 (midpoint of 0.46 to 0.47 kg/kg); stoichiometry alone needs 0.449 kg/kg	0.465	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	Atlas (pinned): Ethylene and propylene by ethane steam cracking (1000 kt/a ethylene, concept) (Polymer-grade ethylene, GLO) compatible: grade the input names ethylene only; ethylene (Polymer-grade ethylene) is taken; unit kilogram; system model cutoff (one database); allocation mass (deviation); boundary plant gate (pinned): no distribution or losses; the consumer's dataset counts its delivery
Chlorine feed:chlorine EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, Table 11.12, p. 506 (one value); stoichiometry alone needs 0.567 kg/kg, the rest leaves in the residues (see output:residues)	0.59	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	Atlas (pinned): Chlor-alkali by membrane-cell electrolysis (100 kt/a Cl2, 50 wt-% caustic soda, hydrogen) (Dry chlorine gas to the consumer (400 kPa(a)), GLO) compatible: grade the input names chlorine only; chlorine (Dry chlorine gas to the consumer (400 kPa(a))) is taken; unit kilogram; system model cutoff (one database); allocation shares (deviation); boundary plant gate (pinned): no distribution or losses; the consumer's dataset counts its delivery
Oxygen to oxychlorination feed:oxygen stoichiometry of the balanced process 2 C2H4 + Cl2 + 1/2 O2 -> 2 C2H3Cl + H2O, of the residues and of the vent CO2 (C2H4 + 3 O2 -> 2 CO2 + 2 H2O); compare 0.13 to 0.14 kg/kg (LVOC BREF Table 11.12, benchmarks/chlorinated-organics.yaml)	0.1388	kilogram	calculated	4 4 4 4 4	Atlas (pinned): Cryogenic air separation unit (500 t/d GOX) (Oxygen, gaseous, >= 99.5 mol%, 30 barg, GLO) compatible: grade the input names oxygen only; oxygen/gox-30barg-99.5 (Oxygen, gaseous, >= 99.5 mol%, 30 barg) is taken; unit kilogram; system model cutoff (one database); allocation exergy (physical-exergy); boundary plant gate (pinned): no distribution or losses; the consumer's dataset counts its delivery
Natural gas (as methane) to the EDC cracker furnaces feed:natural-gas EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, Table 11.13, p. 507 (fuel midpoint) over the LHV of methane fuel, LHV 50.01 MJ/kg	0.07598	kilogram	calculated	3 4 4 3 3	Atlas: natural gas, per kg, as methane (Atlas unit proxy) (natural gas, by mass, GLO)
Process water (washes, quench, scrubbers) feed:water ASSUMED: the effluent less the water formed by oxychlorination, so that the water balance closes. TODO source the water input	0.6005	kilogram	assumed	4 4 4 4 4	market for water, deionised (water, deionised, RoW) in your background (default ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff)
Electricity feed:electricity EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.5, Table 11.13, p. 507 electricity	0.16	kilowatt hour	given	3 4 4 3 3	market for electricity, medium voltage (electricity, medium voltage, DE, site location) in your background (default ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff)
Steam, as heat delivered feed:steam EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.5, Table 11.13, p. 507 (1.0 GJ/t); gross, heat recovery not credited	0.2778	kilowatt hour	given	3 4 4 3 3	Atlas: heat from steam, per kWh (Atlas unit proxy) (heat from steam, by energy, GLO)
Copper chloride oxychlorination catalyst (make-up) input:catalyst EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.6, p. 508 (spent catalyst per t, taken as the make-up); mass outside the element balance	9.1e-5	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	unlinked unlinked, no technosphere mapping: no mapping (no chemical slug or factor id); add it to lci/mappings.yaml technosphere or to the process's lca/mappings.yaml exchanges
Spent oxychlorination catalyst (with adsorbed PCDD/F), to hazardous waste output:spent-catalyst EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.6, p. 508; mass outside the element balance	9.1e-5	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	unlinked unlinked, no technosphere mapping: no mapping (no chemical slug or factor id); add it to lci/mappings.yaml technosphere or to the process's lca/mappings.yaml exchanges
Light and heavy ends of EDC purification, to incineration output:residues the chlorine in excess of the VCM and the fugitives, as 1,1,2-trichloroethane (model compound ASSUMED; the source names it among the main by-products, 11.3.3); compare 20 to 62 kg/t (LVOC BREF 11.3.6, p. 508, benchmarks/chlorinated-organics.yaml)	0.02854	kilogram	calculated	4 4 4 4 4	unlinked unlinked, no technosphere mapping: no mapping (no chemical slug or factor id); add it to lci/mappings.yaml technosphere or to the process's lca/mappings.yaml exchanges
Coke from EDC cracking and decoking, to hazardous waste output:cracker-coke EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.6, p. 508; carbon with a few wt% chlorinated hydrocarbons, mass outside the element balance	1.5e-4	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	unlinked unlinked, no technosphere mapping: no mapping (no chemical slug or factor id); add it to lci/mappings.yaml technosphere or to the process's lca/mappings.yaml exchanges
Sludge of the wastewater pretreatment (copper, PCDD/F), to hazardous waste output:sludge EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.6, p. 508; mass outside the element balance	0.001085	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	unlinked unlinked, no technosphere mapping: no mapping (no chemical slug or factor id); add it to lci/mappings.yaml technosphere or to the process's lca/mappings.yaml exchanges
Pretreated effluent to biological treatment output:wastewater EU JRC (2017) LVOC BREF, EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304, 11.3.2, p. 504 (0.5 to 1 m3/t; stripped and pretreated at the plant, then a shared biological treatment)	0.75	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3	Atlas (plant): wastewater to treatment, per kg (Atlas unit proxy) (wastewater, by mass, GLO) compatible: grade the input names wastewater only; wastewater (Wastewater treated) is taken; unit kilogram; system model cutoff (one database); allocation mass (single-output); boundary plant gate of a site utility: no utility market yet (docs/markets.md)

Elementary flows

Flow	Direction	Compartment	Amount	Unit	Provenance	Pedigree
Carbon dioxide, fossil 349b29d1-3e58-4c66-98b9-9d1a076efd2e	emission	air	0.2401	kilogram	calculated	4 4 4 4 4
Water 075e433b-4be4-448e-9510-9a5029c1ce94	emission	air	1.802e-4	cubic meter	calculated	4 4 4 4 4
Nitrogen oxides c1b91234-6f24-417b-8309-46111d09c457	emission	air	7.414e-5	kilogram	calculated	3 4 4 3 3
Carbon monoxide, fossil ba2f3f82-c93a-47a5-822a-37ec97495275	emission	air	8.473e-6	kilogram	calculated	3 4 4 3 3
Methane, fossil 0795345f-c7ae-410c-ad25-1845784c75f5	emission	air	1.9e-5	kilogram	calculated	3 4 5 3 3
Ethane, 1,2-dichloro- 03758df7-503a-400e-bc7b-ec05825761a5	emission	air	8e-6	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3
Chloroethylene 2a51889e-9264-45df-9753-64c25a755d9e	emission	air	7e-6	kilogram	given	3 4 4 3 3

Where these numbers come from: each exchange names its source above; the dataset is processes/vcm-1/lca/datasets/vcm-balanced-oxygen.yaml in library version a3c52e4.

Used by

No other activity of this database links to it.

How good it is

Review: Not reviewed: no LCI review record yet
Data quality: not available
Mass and carbon closure: Not available: a hand-written dataset: no lca/manifest.json records its balance
Change report: Not available: this build has no change report against an earlier release.

KPI benchmark positions

KPI	Value	Reference range	Position
Direct CO2 (furnaces, vent treatment, process vent) per t of VCM	– t/t	0.294 to 0.294 t/t IPCC (2006) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, Vol. 3 Industrial Processes and Product Use, ch. 3 Chemical Industry Emissions (government)	not evaluated
Ethylene consumption per t of VCM	– kg/kg	0.47 to 0.47 kg/kg IPCC (2006) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, Vol. 3 Industrial Processes and Product Use, ch. 3 Chemical Industry Emissions (government)	not evaluated
Oxygen consumption per t of VCM (oxygen-based oxychlorination)	– kg/kg	0.13 to 0.14 kg/kg Falcke, H. et al. (2017) Best Available Techniques (BAT) Reference Document for the Production of Large Volume Organic Chemicals. JRC Science for Policy Report EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304 (bref)	not evaluated
Light and heavy residues of EDC/VCM purification per t of VCM	– kg/t	20 to 62 kg/t Falcke, H. et al. (2017) Best Available Techniques (BAT) Reference Document for the Production of Large Volume Organic Chemicals. JRC Science for Policy Report EUR 28882 EN, doi:10.2760/77304 (bref)	not evaluated

How to use it

Downloads

cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4.xlsx · bw2io ExcelImporter workbook (bw2io 0.9 Excel layout) · the whole database
code vcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloride
cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4-olca-jsonld.zip · openLCA JSON-LD (olca-schema) (2) · the whole database
process bc0cd832-14ce-5b79-b376-9a3b1e169113 (processes/bc0cd832-14ce-5b79-b376-9a3b1e169113.json)
cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4-multifunctional.json · Brightway 2.5 multifunctional database (JSON, for the multifunctional package) (cheme-as-code/lci-multifunctional/v1) · the whole database
code vcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloride
cheme_as_code_lci-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl · the installer

A file with this activity alone is not available: each file above is the whole database, and the line under it says how to find this activity there.

import bw2data as bd
from cheme_as_code_lci import install

bd.projects.set_current("my-project")   # holds your licensed background + biosphere3
install("cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4.xlsx", background="ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff", location="DE")
activity = bd.get_activity(("cheme-as-code-atlas-preview-a3c52e4", "vcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloride"))

While any exchange of the database has no mapping, install() writes nothing and only lists the unlinked exchanges. So the last line finds no activity until the gaps are mapped: the download section gives the ways to use the database now.

How to cite

Vinyl chloride monomer, from Vinyl chloride monomer by the balanced EDC process (direct chlorination and oxygen-based oxychlorination) (dataset vcm-balanced-oxygen 0.1.0), ChemE-as-Code Process Atlas LCI database preview-a3c52e4, activity vcm-1:vcm-balanced-oxygen:product:vinyl-chloride. Cite the Process Atlas paper (in preparation, 2026), by Artur M. Schweidtmann and Jana M. Weber, and the ChemE-as-Code Process Atlas LCI database version preview-a3c52e4.

DOI: none yet (the Process Atlas paper is in preparation)

For the data, cite the Process Atlas paper; for the platform that builds and checks it, the ChemE-as-Code paper.

Schweidtmann, A. M. & Weber, J. M. (2026, in preparation). Process Atlas: an open, git-native, reproducible library and life cycle inventory of chemical processes (working title).

BibTeX

@unpublished{schweidtmann_process_atlas,
  author = {Schweidtmann, Artur M. and Weber, Jana M.},
  title = {{Process Atlas: an open, git-native, reproducible library and life cycle inventory of chemical processes (working title)}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://atlas.cheme-as-code.org},
  note = {in preparation}
}

Schweidtmann, A. M. (2026). ChemE-as-Code: An Open-Source Platform for Agentic AI in Chemical Engineering. arXiv:2611.07947. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2611.07947

BibTeX

@misc{schweidtmann_cheme_as_code,
  author = {Schweidtmann, Artur M.},
  title = {{ChemE-as-Code: An Open-Source Platform for Agentic AI in Chemical Engineering}},
  year = {2026},
  eprint = {2611.07947},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  doi = {10.48550/arXiv.2611.07947},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.07947}
}