Sectorial Investigation of Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment in the Context of Case Studies

Abstract

The emergence of the concept of sustainability has brought with it the challenge of measuring this concept. Over the years, methods have been developed to assess the environmental impacts of sustainability using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), evaluate its economic impacts through Life Cycle Costing (LCC), and analyze its social impacts with Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA). Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) aims to obtain more holistic and comprehensive results by considering these three dimensions of sustainability together. This study examines the place of the LCSA approach in the literature and its application in different sectors. Case studies from various sectors and the other methods used in these processes were analyzed. The findings indicate that the construction and energy sectors have the most case studies using the LCSA method, while product design lags behind. Evaluating the sustainability of products before mass production is crucial for sustainable product design. Therefore, increasing the use of LCSA in product design is considered a significant step toward achieving sustainability goals.