Practical Handbook of MATERIAL FLOW ANALYSIS L1604_C00.fm Page 2 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM Practical Handbook of MATERIAL FLOW ANALYSIS Paul H. Brunner and Helmut Rechberger LEWIS PUBLISHERS A CRC Press Company Boca Raton London New York Washington, D.C. L1604_C00.fm Page 4 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brunner, Paul H., 1946- Practical handbook of material flow analysis / by Paul H. Brunner and Helmut Rechberger. p. cm. — (Advanced methods in resource and waste management series ; 1) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-5667-0604-1 (alk. paper) 1. Materials management—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. Environmental engineering—Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Rechberger, Helmut. II. Title. III. Series. TS161.B78 2003 658.7—dc21 2003055150 This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reprinted material is quoted with permission, and sources are indicated. A wide variety of references are listed. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and the publisher cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials or for the consequences of their use. Neither this book nor any part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. The consent of CRC Press LLC does not extend to copying for general distribution, for promotion, for creating new works, or for resale. Specific permission must be obtained in writing from CRC Press LLC for such copying. Direct all inquiries to CRC Press LLC, 2000 N.W. Corporate Blvd., Boca Raton, Florida 33431. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation, without intent to infringe. Visit the CRC Press Web site at www.crcpress.com © 2004 by CRC Press LLC Lewis Publishers is an imprint of CRC Press LLC No claim to original U.S. Government works International Standard Book Number 1-5667-0604-1 Library of Congress Card Number 2003055150 ISBN 00-203-50720-7 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-59141-0 (Adobe eReader Format) L1604_C00.fm Page 5 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM To Sandra and Heidi L1604_C00.fm Page 6 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM L1604_C00.fm Page 7 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM Preface About 40 years ago, Abel Wolman coined the term metabolism of cities in an article for Scientific American. His pioneering view of a city as a living organism with inputs, stocks, and outputs of materials and energy has since inspired many others. Today, there are numerous studies describing metabolic processes of companies, regions, cities, and nations. While the phenomenology of the anthroposphere is described in several books and papers, there is no widely accepted methodology for applying these concepts. This handbook was written to help in establishing and disseminating a robust, transparent, and useful methodology for investigating the material metabolism of anthropogenic systems. After many years of using and developing material flow analysis (MFA), we have seen the value of applying this method in various fields such as environmental management, resource management, waste management, and water quality manage- ment. We have written this book to share our experience with engineering students, professionals, and a wider audience of decision makers. The aim is to promote MFA and to facilitate the use of MFA in a uniform way so that future engineers have a common method in their toolboxes for solving resource-oriented problems. The hidden agenda behind the handbook comprises two objectives: resource conservation and environmental protection, otherwise known as “sustainable materials management.” We believe that human activities should not destroy or damage natural resources and systems. Future generations must be able to enjoy resources and the environment as we do. We also believe that this goal can be achieved if technology and social sciences are developed further. The case studies presented in this book exemplify the potential of MFA to contribute to sustainable materials management. This is a handbook directed toward the practitioner. The 14 case studies dem- onstrate how to apply MFA in practice. The exercises in the “Problem” sections that appear throughout the book serve to deepen comprehension and expertise. The MFA tool has not yet been perfected, and there is much room for further refinement. If the reader finds that the handbook promotes understanding of anthropogenic systems and leads to better design of such systems, then we have accomplished our goals. Since this book is not the final work on the subject, we would appreciate any comments and suggestions you may have. Our main hope is that this handbook encourages application of and discussion about MFA. We look forward to your comments on the Web site www.iwa.tuwien.ac.at/MFA-handbook.htm, where you will also find the solutions to the exercises presented in this handbook. We are grateful to Oliver Cencic, who wrote Sections 2.3 and 2.4 in Chapter 2, about data uncertainty and MFA software, and who contributed substantially to Case Study 1. The support of the members of the Waste and Resources Management Group at the Vienna University of Technology in editing the final manuscript is greatly acknowledged. Demet Seyhan was instrumental in preparing the case study on L1604_C00.fm Page 8 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM phosphorus. Bob Ayres and Michael Ritthoff supplied important comments on Chap- ter 2, Section 2.5. We are indebted to Inge Hengl, who did all the artwork and expertly managed the genesis and completion of the manuscript. Helmut Rechberger person- ally thanks Peter Baccini for conceding him the time to work on this handbook. Finally, we are particularly grateful for critical reviews by Bob Dean, Ulrik Lohm, Stephen Moore, and Jakov Vaisman, who evaluated a first draft of this handbook. Paul H. Brunner Helmut Rechberger L1604_C00.fm Page 9 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM Authors Paul H. Brunner, recognized for his outstanding research work in the fields of waste and resource management, is a professor at the Vienna University of Technology Institute for Water Quality and Waste Management, Austria. Together with Peter Baccini from ETH Zurich, he published the ground- breaking book Metabolism of the Anthroposphere, presenting a new view of the interactions among human activities, resources, and the environment. His work at the Institute for Water Quality and Waste Management focuses on advanced methods for waste treatment and on methods to assess, evaluate, and design urban systems. For more than 30 years, Dr. Brunner has been engaged in research and teaching in the United States, Europe, and Asia. He travels frequently throughout the world, lecturing on the application of material flow analysis as a tool for improv- ing decision making in resource and waste management. Helmut Rechberger is currently a research scientist and lec- turer in the fields of waste and resource management at ETH Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Department of Resource and Waste Management, Zurich, Switzerland. He began his academic career as a process engineer at the Vienna University of Technology in Austria with a pioneering Ph.D. thesis on the application of the entropy concept in resource management. Since then, he has been engaged in research and teaching in both the United States and Europe and he has become internationally acknowledged for his research work in the fields of resource management and waste-treatment technology. His current research interests are focused on the further development of methods to advance sustainable regional and urban resource management. Dr. Rechberger was recently appointed professor at the Technische Universität Berlin, Germany. L1604_C00.fm Page 10 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM L1604_C00.fm Page 11 Wednesday, September 10, 2003 9:20 AM Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ..........................................................................................1 1.1 Objectives and Scope.......................................................................................1 1.2 What Is MFA?..................................................................................................3 1.3 History of MFA................................................................................................5 1.3.1 Santorio’s Analysis of the Human Metabolism...................................5 1.3.2 Leontief’s Economic Input–Output Methodology ..............................8 1.3.3 Analysis of City Metabolism...............................................................8 1.3.4 Regional Material Balances .................................................................9 1.3.5 Metabolism of the Anthroposphere ...................................................12 1.3.6 Problems — Sections 1.1–1.3 ...........................................................13 1.4 Application of MFA.......................................................................................13 1.4.1 Environmental Management and Engineering ..................................14