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search_activities

Search the Ecoinvent database for activities by keywords.

Purpose

Find industrial processes, energy systems, materials, and transportation activities in the Ecoinvent database.

Parameters

Parameter Type Required Default Description
q string Yes - Search keywords (e.g., "electricity", "steel")
database string Yes - Database version (e.g., "ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff")
location string No None Filter by location ("US", "GLO", "DE")
unit string No None Filter by unit ("kilowatt hour", "kilogram")
include_ecoinvent boolean No True Include Ecoinvent activities
include_custom boolean No True Include custom user activities
limit integer No 20 Maximum results (1-100)

Returns

{
  "ecoinvent_activities": [
    {
      "name": "electricity production, photovoltaic, 3kWp, GLO",
      "location": "GLO",
      "unit": "kilowatt hour",
      "code": "abc123...",
      "reference_product": "electricity, low voltage",
      "source": "ecoinvent"
    }
  ],
  "custom_activities": [],
  "total_ecoinvent": 45,
  "total_custom": 0,
  "query_time_ms": 125,
  "query": "solar electricity",
  "filters": {
    "location": null,
    "unit": null,
    "database": "ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff"
  }
}

Example Usage

Prompt: 

Search for wind electricity production in Denmark using ecoinvent-3.11-cutoff

Result: Returns wind energy activities located in Denmark.

Common Use Cases

  • Find activities for LCA calculations
  • Explore available processes by sector
  • Filter by geographic region
  • Search custom project activities

Tips

  • Start with broad keywords, then filter
  • Use location codes: "US", "GLO", "RoW"
  • Save activity codes for calculations
  • Limit results to avoid overwhelming output

See Also