CEN/TR 16721:2014

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-oktober-2014
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Bio-based products - Overview of methods to determine the bio-based content
Biobasierte Produkte - Überblick über verfügbare und mögliche Methoden und
Techniken zur Bestimmung des gesamten biobasierten Gehaltes von Produkten
Produits biosourcés - Vue d'ensemble des méthodes pour déterminer la teneur
biosourcée
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: CEN/TR 16721:2014
ICS:
13.020.60 Življenjski ciklusi izdelkov Product life-cycles
71.100.01 Izdelki kemijske industrije na Products of the chemical
splošno industry in general
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

TECHNICAL REPORT
CEN/TR 16721
RAPPORT TECHNIQUE
TECHNISCHER BERICHT
August 2014
ICS 13.020.60
English Version
Bio-based products - Overview of methods to determine the bio-
based content
Produits biosourcés - Vue d'ensemble des méthodes pour Biobasierte Produkte - Überblick über verfügbare und
déterminer la teneur biosourcée mögliche Methoden und Techniken zur Bestimmung des
gesamten biobasierten Gehaltes von Produkten

This Technical Report was approved by CEN on 21 July 2014. It has been drawn up by the Technical Committee CEN/TC 411.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and United
Kingdom.
EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Avenue Marnix 17, B-1000 Brussels
© 2014 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. CEN/TR 16721:2014 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

Contents Page
Foreword .3
Introduction .4
1 Scope .5
2 Terms and definitions .5
3 Method using the radiocarbon analysis and elemental analysis .5
3.1 Background .5
3.2 Principle .6
3.3 Basic rules .6
3.3.1 Oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen elements .6
3.3.2 Chemical reactions .6
3.3.3 Natural products .7
3.4 Test methods .7
3.5 Products obtained by chemical synthesis (Group 1).7
3.5.1 General .7
3.5.2 Validation criteria .8
3.6 Formulated products (Group 2) .9
3.6.1 General .9
3.6.2 Calculation of the bio-based content of a sample .9
3.6.3 Calculation of the bio-based carbon content of a sample . 10
3.6.4 Assessment of deviations of measured 14C values from theoretical values . 11
4 Methods based on measurement of stable isotopic ratio . 11
4.1 General . 11
4.1.1 Introduction . 11
4.1.2 Material and Methods . 12
13 12
4.2 C/ C isotope ratio . 14
18 16
4.3 O/ O isotope ratio . 14
4.3.1 Isotopic measurement of water . 14
4.3.2 Isotopic measurements of organic samples . 14
2 1
4.4 H/ H isotope ratio. 15
15 14
4.5 N/ N Isotope ratio . 15
4.6 Isotopes S . 15
4.7 Multi-isotopic determinations . 15
5 Method based on material balance . 15
5.1 General . 15
5.2 Principle . 16
5.3 Examples . 16
5.3.1 Paint formulation . 16
5.3.2 Flexible insulation panel made from wood fibres . 17
6 Applicability of the different methods . 17
7 Recommendations . 18
Annex A (informative) Isotope ratio tables . 19
Bibliography . 23

Foreword
This document (CEN/TR 16721:2014) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 411 “Bio-based
products”, the secretariat of which is held by NEN.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. CEN shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Introduction
Bio-based products from forestry and agriculture have a long history of application, such as paper, board and
various chemicals and materials. The last decades have seen the emergence of new bio-based products in
the market. Some of the reasons for the increased interest lie in the bio-based products’ benefits in relation to
the depletion of fossil resources and climate change. Bio-based products may also provide additional product
functionalities. This has triggered a wave of innovation with the development of knowledge and technologies
allowing new transformation processes and product development.
Acknowledging the need for common standards for bio-based products, the European Commission issued
mandate M/492 , resulting in a series of standards developed by CEN/TC 411, with a focus on bio-based
products other than food, feed and biomass for energy applications.
The standards of CEN/TC 411 "Bio-based products" provide a common basis on the following aspects:
− Common terminology;
− Bio-based content determination;
− Life Cycle Assessment (LCA);
− Sustainability aspects;
− Declaration tools.
It is important to understand what the term bio-based product covers and how it is being used. The term "bio-
based" means "derived from biomass". Bio-based products (bottles, insulation materials, wood and wood
products, paper, solvents, chemical intermediates, composite materials, et cetera.) are products which are
wholly or partly derived from biomass. It is essential to characterize the amount of biomass contained in the
product by for instance its bio-based content or bio-based carbon content.
The bio-based content of a product does not provide information on its environmental impact or sustainability,
which may be assessed through LCA and sustainability criteria. In addition, transparent and unambiguous
communication within bio-based value chains is facilitated by a harmonized framework for certification and
declaration.
The purpose of this Technical Report is provide an overview of methods for the determination of the bio-based
content of solid, liquid and gaseous products.
The ability to determine the bio-based content of a product is an obvious prerequisite for developing the
market for bio-based products. Currently, the bio-based content is usually derived from the determination of
the bio-based carbon content by means of C measurement (as described in ASTM D6866-12 [1]).This
methodology is used because C is measurable.
However, results based on the C methodology are expressed as a fraction of bio-based carbon on the total
(organic) carbon content of the sample. In some cases the bio-based content of a product can differ
substantially from the bio-based carbon content. For example, for products in which a fraction of the raw
materials has been replaced by bio-based materials/constituents containing other elements such as oxygen,
nitrogen or hydrogen (e.g. carbohydrate-based products), the bio-based carbon content may be substantially
lower than the fraction of the product that is derived from biomass. This Technical Report describes three
different methodologies to determine the bio-based content in a product and proposes the development of
standards.
It should be noted that the quantification of the bio-based content is not a measure of sustainability of a
bio-based product.
A Mandate is a standardization task embedded in European trade laws. M/492 Mandate is addressed to the European
Standardization bodies, CEN, CENELEC and ETSI, for the development of horizontal European Standards for bio-based
products.
1 Scope
This Technical Report gives an overview of methods which can be used for the determination of the bio-based
content of solid, liquid and gaseous products. It describes more specifically:
a) a method using the radiocarbon analysis and elemental analysis: this method is based on a statement
and a verification of the composition of the products;
b) methods based on measurement of stable isotopic ratio; and
c) a method based on the material balance.
This Technical Report gives guidance on the applicability of the different methods.
This Technical Report also gives recommendations for the further development of European Standards for the
determination of the bio-based content.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in FprEN 16575:2014 [2] and the following
apply.
2.1
formulated product
product obtained by mixing of different constituents
2.2
material balance
comparison of physical quantities of inputs, outputs and inventory changes in a quantity centre over a
specified time period
[SOURCE: ISO 14051:2011, 3.1]
3 Method using the radiocarbon analysis and elemental analysis
3.1 Background
Element carbon, C, has an isotope, C, which allows for a clear distinction between carbon based substances
derived from biomass and carbon based substances from fossil sources. The C present in chemicals
originates from recent atmospheric CO . Due to its radioactive decay, it is almost absent from fossil products
older than 20 000 years to 30 000 years. The C content may thus be considered as a tracer of chemicals
recently synthesized from atmospheric CO and particularly of recently produced products.
The approach based on isotopic measurements to determine the bio-based content of a sample can be used
for carbon but not for other elements, such as oxygen, nitrogen
...