Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling
The standard ISO 14044:2006 defines the hierarchical steps to follow when solving multifunctionality issues in life cycle assessment (LCA). However, the practical implementation of such a hierarchy has been debated for twenty-five years leading to different implementation practices from LCA practiti...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2020-07-01
|
| Series: | Energies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/14/3579 |
| _version_ | 1797562730160324608 |
|---|---|
| author | Christian Moretti Blanca Corona Robert Edwards Martin Junginger Alberto Moro Matteo Rocco Li Shen |
| author_facet | Christian Moretti Blanca Corona Robert Edwards Martin Junginger Alberto Moro Matteo Rocco Li Shen |
| author_sort | Christian Moretti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The standard ISO 14044:2006 defines the hierarchical steps to follow when solving multifunctionality issues in life cycle assessment (LCA). However, the practical implementation of such a hierarchy has been debated for twenty-five years leading to different implementation practices from LCA practitioners. The first part of this study discussed the main steps where the ISO hierarchy has been implemented differently and explored current multifunctionality practices in peer-reviewed studies. A text-mining process was applied to quantitatively assess such practices in the 532 multifunctional case studies found in the literature. In the second part of the study, citation network analysis (CNA) was used to identify the major publications that influenced the development of the multifunctionality-debate in LCA, i.e., the key-route main path. The identified publications were then reviewed to detect the origins of the different practices and their underlying theories. Based on these insights, this study provided some “food for thought” on current practices to move towards consistent methodology. We believe that such an advancement is urgently needed for better positioning LCA as a tool for sustainability decision-making. In particular, consistent allocation practices could be especially beneficial in bioeconomy sectors, where production processes are usually multifunctional, and where current allocation practices are not harmonized yet. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:33:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ef2d209c10bd4990b2833ceea6ec71c0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:33:05Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-ef2d209c10bd4990b2833ceea6ec71c02023-11-20T06:30:38ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732020-07-011314357910.3390/en13143579Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle ModelingChristian Moretti0Blanca Corona1Robert Edwards2Martin Junginger3Alberto Moro4Matteo Rocco5Li Shen6Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsCopernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsJoint Research Centre, European Commission, 21027 Ispra, ItalyCopernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsJoint Research Centre, European Commission, 21027 Ispra, ItalyDepartment of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, 21056 Milan, ItalyCopernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsThe standard ISO 14044:2006 defines the hierarchical steps to follow when solving multifunctionality issues in life cycle assessment (LCA). However, the practical implementation of such a hierarchy has been debated for twenty-five years leading to different implementation practices from LCA practitioners. The first part of this study discussed the main steps where the ISO hierarchy has been implemented differently and explored current multifunctionality practices in peer-reviewed studies. A text-mining process was applied to quantitatively assess such practices in the 532 multifunctional case studies found in the literature. In the second part of the study, citation network analysis (CNA) was used to identify the major publications that influenced the development of the multifunctionality-debate in LCA, i.e., the key-route main path. The identified publications were then reviewed to detect the origins of the different practices and their underlying theories. Based on these insights, this study provided some “food for thought” on current practices to move towards consistent methodology. We believe that such an advancement is urgently needed for better positioning LCA as a tool for sustainability decision-making. In particular, consistent allocation practices could be especially beneficial in bioeconomy sectors, where production processes are usually multifunctional, and where current allocation practices are not harmonized yet.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/14/3579bibliometricsreviewlife cycle assessment (LCA)allocationsystem expansion |
| spellingShingle | Christian Moretti Blanca Corona Robert Edwards Martin Junginger Alberto Moro Matteo Rocco Li Shen Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling Energies bibliometrics review life cycle assessment (LCA) allocation system expansion |
| title | Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling |
| title_full | Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling |
| title_fullStr | Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling |
| title_short | Reviewing ISO Compliant Multifunctionality Practices in Environmental Life Cycle Modeling |
| title_sort | reviewing iso compliant multifunctionality practices in environmental life cycle modeling |
| topic | bibliometrics review life cycle assessment (LCA) allocation system expansion |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/14/3579 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT christianmoretti reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT blancacorona reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT robertedwards reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT martinjunginger reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT albertomoro reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT matteorocco reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling AT lishen reviewingisocompliantmultifunctionalitypracticesinenvironmentallifecyclemodeling |