Industrial metabolism
Encyclopedia
Industrial metabolism was first proposed by Robert Ayres as "the whole integrated collection of physical processes that convert raw materials and energy, plus labour, into finished products and wastes..." The goal is to study the flow of materials through society in order to better understand the sources and causes of emissions, along with the effects of the linkages in our socio-technological systems.
See also
- Anthropogenic metabolismAnthropogenic metabolism"Anthropogenic metabolism" is a term used in material flow analysis, substance flow analysis and waste management. It includes: "not only the physiological metabolism but also includes the thousands of goods and substances necessary to sustain modern life. Anthropogenic stands for man-made...
- Energy accountingEnergy accountingEnergy accounting is a system used within industry, where measuring and analyzing the energy consumption of different activities is done to improve energy efficiency.-Energy management:...
- Industrial ecologyIndustrial ecologyIndustrial Ecology is the study of material and energy flows through industrial systems. The global industrial economy can be modeled as a network of industrial processes that extract resources from the Earth and transform those resources into commodities which can be bought and sold to meet the...
- Material flow accountingMaterial flow accountingMaterial flow accounting is the study of material flows on a national or regional scale. It is therefore sometimes also referred to as regional, national or economy-wide material flow analysis.-Definition:...
- Material flow analysisMaterial flow analysisMaterial flow analysis is an analytical method of quantifying flows and stocks of materials or substances in a well-defined system. MFA is an important tool to assess the physical consequences of human activities and needs in the field of Industrial Ecology, where it is used on different spatial...