D6.3 – Report on social acceptance and impacts study

The PERFECOAT Project, under the EU's Horizon 2020 initiative, focuses on creating biobased coatings for wood and decorative applications that contain over 25% bio-based components. Targeting key markets such as UV-curable clearcoats and DIY waterborne paints, the project aims to offer sustainable alternatives to conventional fossil-based coatings. This report provides a summary of the assessment of UV-curable coatings (sealer and topcoat), including a conventional reference and two PERFECOAT’s bio-based formulations, referred to as A and B. Formulation A uses the binder X-YOFA-HECLA, while Formulation B incorporates the binder CB-BU-AC. The report includes results from the life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle costing (LCC) analyses, and studies on social acceptance and impacts from a social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) perspective. Additionally, the results from these assessments are integrated using a multi-criteria analysis methodology to conduct a sustainability assessment. This evaluation aims to compare the progress of developed bio-based coatings against reference fossil-based coatings. Initial results indicate that fossil-based coatings currently outperform bio-based alternatives in most environmental impact categories, including global warming potential and resource use. However, bio-based formulations hold significant potential for future improvements through process optimisation and material innovation. Economically, biobased coatings are generally more expensive, with formulation B being approximately 17% more costly than its fossil-based counterpart. Formulation A, while still more expensive, is closer in cost to conventional coatings. On the social front, bio-based coatings show promise in fostering positive impacts such as knowledge development, competitive advantage, and consumer wellbeing, particularly for environmentally conscious buyers. Challenges remain in areas like supply chain transparency and worker rights, but bio-based products have the potential to generate green jobs and support local economies. In