Each database of ecoinvent contains several thousand datasets. To easily and quickly find the adequate datasets, three search variants are available:

• Simple Search,
• Search by Categories,
• Advanced Search.

Please keep in mind that the search is only performed on the database selected after login. Its name is shown in the navigation bar at the top of the page. To choose another database simply return to the start page and select another database.

Simple Search 

To perform a simple search, please select one of the options on the Search page: choose "Processes", "Elementary Flows" or "Impact Assessment Methods" by marking the appropriate radio button.

Enter a search string in the field below. The search string can be a word or part of a word. To start the search click on the button "Search for".

The search routine tries to identify the search string in the name of the datasets- both main English name and localized (i.e translated) name - as well as in the list of synonyms.  If "Impact Assessment Methods" has been selected the categories/subcategories will be searched additionally. The results matching the search string will be displayed and can be selected for download (members only). "No processes found",  "no elementary flows found" or "no impact assessment methods found" indicates that no datasets match the search query. In this case, please modify the search string.

Search by Categories

If you are looking for availability of datasets for a certain area, a search by categories might be more convenient. The hierarchically structured directory of categories can be browsed for datasets.

Next to "List categories" on the Search page click on one of the links "Processes", "Elementary Flows" or "Impact Assessment Methods" to display all available categories for the selected type.

Click on one of the categories to display the subcategories available in the category. The datasets contained in the category / subcategory will be displayed and can be selected for download (members only). "No processes found",  "no elementary flows found" or "no impact assessment methods found" indicates that no datasets were found in the selected category.

The following fields permit to further specify the query by adding additional search criteria to further reduce the number of search results. Search criteria can be entered in one or more fields. Please mind that all criteria have to be matched and that therefore too many or conflicting entries in the search fields might lead to an empty result list.

After having entered specific search criteria, launch the search by clicking the button "Search dataset". The search results can be sorted alphabetically by selecting the option "by name" or "by category". The default setting is "by category".