LCA as Code

This is the official repository of LCA as Code language.

What is LCA as Code?

LCA as Code is a domain-specific language (DSL) for life-cycle analysis experts. Its declarative approach allows to define parametrized and reusable LCA models. See our book to learn more about the language.

Table of Contents

1. Getting started
2. What's inside
3. Documentation
4. Related projects
5. License
6. About us

Getting started

Impact assessment

Check the sample file in $GIT_ROOT/cli/samples/main.lca.

process electricity_mix {
    params {
        from_fossil = 40 percent
        from_nuclear = 20 percent
        from_hydro = 40 percent
    }
    products {
        1 kWh electricity
    }
    inputs {
        from_fossil * 1 kWh electricity from fossil
        from_nuclear * 1 kWh electricity from nuclear
        from_hydro * 1 kWh electricity from hydro
    }
}
// rest of the file omitted

On the command line, setup the cli.

./gradlew :cli:installDist
alias lcaac=$GIT_ROOT/cli/build/install/lcaac/bin/lcaac

Now you can assess the process electricity_mix.

cd $GIT_ROOT/cli/samples
lcaac assess "electricity_mix"

The result is printed on the standard output in CSV format.

product,amount,reference unit,co2,co2_unit
electricity,1.0,kWh,5.4,kg

You can also run multiple assessments with an external data csv file providing values for the process parameters.

lcaac assess "electricity_mix" --file params.csv

Tests

The language allows to define tests as well. See the file $GIT_ROOT/cli/samples/test.lca.

test should_pass {
    given {
        1 kWh electricity from electricity_mix
    }
    assert {
        co2 between 0 kg and 10 kg
    }
}
// rest of the file omitted

Run the tests using

lcaac test --show-success

What's inside

This repository contains the core libraries to handle LCAAC code.

Package core

The package core contains:

• the language's abstract syntax tree (AST)
• the evaluator
• analysis programs, namely, contribution analysis, and local sensitivity analysis

Package grammar

The package grammar contains:

• a concrete ANTLR-based grammar
• utilities to parse and load LCAAC files.

Package cli

The package cli contains the code for the command-line interface.

Documentation

For users

• Walkthrough
• Code samples

For developers

• Core concepts [coming soon]
• Contribution guide [coming soon]

Related projects

Cloud Assess

Cloud Assess is an open-source tool to automate the assessment of the environmental impacts of cloud services. It aims at defining a trusted library of LCA models, written in the LCAAC language, which can be easily consulted via a REST API.

LCA as Code IDE

An integrated-development environment (IDE) is available. This editor provides facilities to develop and interact with LCAAC models. E.g.

• Automatic unit consistency check with syntax highlighting.
• Integrated analysis and visualization.
• Support for collaboration and code review.

License

This work is dual licensed:

• For commercial use: commercial license. Reach out to contact@kleis.ch for more information.
• For non-commercial use: AGPL v3. See LICENSE-AGPL.txt.

About us

We are Kleis Technology. Software craftsmen, thirsty for knowledge, with experience in complex subjects, we solve challenges in a pragmatic manner. Backed by our core values of trust, commitment and continuous improvement, we love to make and create.