Review of Sustainability Assessment Approaches Based on Life Cycles

Wulf, Christina; Werker, Jasmin; Ball, Christopher; Zapp, Petra; Kuckshinrichs, Wilhelm

doi:10.3390/su11205717

Cited by 73 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 223 publications

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“…reduction of a presented scenario). External referencing is preferred to internal references, as it offers increased objectivity [67]. However, the reference needs to be defined for each evaluation and each criterion based on the availability of information and objectives of the evaluation, external references may not always be available.…”

Section: Normalization and Aggregation Of Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holistic Evaluation of Digital Applications in the Energy Sector—Evaluation Framework Development and Application to the Use Case Smart Meter Roll-Out

2021

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The development of digital technologies is accelerating, enabling increasingly profound changes in increasingly short time periods. The changes affect almost all areas of the economy as well as society. The energy sector has already seen some effects of digitalization, but more drastic changes are expected in the next decades. Besides the very positive impacts on costs, system stability, and environmental effects, potential obstacles and risks need to be addressed to ensure that advantages can be exploited while adverse effects are avoided. A good understanding of available and future digital applications from different stakeholders’ perspectives is necessary. This study proposes a framework for the holistic evaluation of digital applications in the energy sector. The framework consists of a combination of well-established methods, namely the multi-criteria analysis (MCA), the life cycle assessment (LCA), and expert interviews. The objective is to create transparency on benefits, obstacles, and risks as a basis for societal and political discussions and to supply the necessary information for the sustainable development and implementation of digital applications. The novelty of the proposed framework is the specific combination of the three methods and its setup to enable sound applicability to the wide variety of digital applications in the energy sector. The framework is tested subsequently on the example of the German smart meter roll-out. The results reveal that, on the one hand, the smart meter roll-out clearly offers the potential to increase the system stability and decrease the carbon emission intensity of the energy system. Therefore, the overall evaluation from an environmental perspective is positive. However, on the other hand, close attention needs to be paid to the required implementation and operational effort, the IT (information technology) and data security, the added value for the user, the social acceptance, and the realization of energy savings. Therefore, the energy utility perspective in particular results in an overall negative evaluation. Several areas with a need for action are identified. Overall, the proposed framework proves to be suitable for the holistic evaluation of this digital application.

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Section: Normalization and Aggregation Of Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holistic Evaluation of Digital Applications in the Energy Sector—Evaluation Framework Development and Application to the Use Case Smart Meter Roll-Out

2021

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“…A change in diet is the most effective strategy Thus, the LCSA method is increasingly used to assess the sustainability of product systems, but is hardly applied in the assessment of service systems. The review of sustainability assessment approaches carried out by Wulf et al [52] confirm that an increased number of studies applying LCSA have been published, but many questions concerning the methodology are still open and there is a need to develop more guiding principles. In order to apply LCSA to PSS, an approach that simultaneously considers aspects of products and services is required.…”

Section: Lcsa Applied In Product and Service Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability Assessment of Product–Service Systems Using Flows between Systems Approach

et al. 2020

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The development of product–service systems (PSS) is currently considered a promising solution to the challenge of sustainability. Nevertheless, the sustainability of these systems has not been systematically assessed and there is a need to develop more guiding principles. In this work, an approach based on the flows between product and service systems is used to facilitate both the definition of PSS boundaries and the identification of links between the systems involved. In addition, the life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) method is applied to simultaneously quantify environmental, economic and social impacts. Two cases are analysed. First, the production process of cow´s milk, in which a veterinary service is required, is studied using data measured from a dairy farm. Next, the sustainability of a clothing retail service taking, into account that a construction product is involved in its creation stage, is evaluated. In each PSS specific life cycle, stages are analysed, a functional unit referred to both products and services is defined, and quantitative indicators are selected to assess each sustainability dimension. The category of workers is selected to evaluate social aspects. The relative incidence of each system is evaluated and the impacts of different factors on the PSS sustainability are analysed.

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“…Academic interest in life cycle sustainability assessment has seen a rapid rise in the last decade, covering a broad range of methodological discussions as well as focused topics [16,17]. Although the exact understanding of environmental sustainability and its assessment varies per company, the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to facilitate more sustainable decision-making is widely recognized as the main approach and the most suitable basis to evaluate environmental sustainability [18][19][20].…”

Section: Life Cycle Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design for Sustainable Public Transportation: LCA-Based Tooling for Guiding Early Design Priorities

et al. 2020

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Environmental sustainability is an increasingly important subject for public transportation organizations. For passenger train operators, modernization projects provide key opportunities to improve the environmental impact of their rolling stock by making informed design decisions at the midpoint of the life cycle of their trains. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is widely adopted as the main instrument for evaluating environmental impact. However, in the past LCA was rarely used in the earlier design stages, where it is most effective, due to constrained access to data, information, and LCA-specific expertise. To this end, a purpose-built streamlined LCA tool for train modernization is developed and demonstrated, following a Design Science Research approach. The developed tool simplifies the application of LCA employing four main design principles: (1) sacrificing the declarative function of LCA, (2) the use of Input–Output-based Life Cycle Inventory, (3) the inclusion of ‘shadow costs’, (4) the limitation of the included environmental impact categories. By streamlining the application of LCA in this way, it becomes possible to introduce LCA-based principles and ways of thinking into a process that would otherwise be inaccessible to performing LCA in: the early design stages of modernization projects.

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Review of Sustainability Assessment Approaches Based on Life Cycles

Cited by 73 publications

References 223 publications

Holistic Evaluation of Digital Applications in the Energy Sector—Evaluation Framework Development and Application to the Use Case Smart Meter Roll-Out

Holistic Evaluation of Digital Applications in the Energy Sector—Evaluation Framework Development and Application to the Use Case Smart Meter Roll-Out

Sustainability Assessment of Product–Service Systems Using Flows between Systems Approach

Design for Sustainable Public Transportation: LCA-Based Tooling for Guiding Early Design Priorities

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