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Material flow analysis
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<p>Material flow analysis (MFA), also referred to as substance flow analysis (SFA), is an analytical method to quantify flows and stocks of materials or substances in a well-defined <a href="/facts/System/hmqQ4ASX">system</a>. MFA is an important tool to study the bio-physical aspects of human activity on different spatial and temporal scales. It is considered a core method of <a href="/facts/Industrial_ecology/WRcYYmza">industrial ecology</a> or <a href="/facts/Anthropogenic_metabolism/Pcqk69ak">anthropogenic</a>, <a href="/facts/Urban_metabolism/w94vfmbl">urban</a>, <a href="/facts/Social_metabolism/T6mHReRV">social</a> and <a href="/facts/Industrial_metabolism/qyasTfcu">industrial metabolism</a>. MFA is used to study material, substance, or product flows across different industrial sectors or within <a href="/facts/Ecosystem/kVE8mSmR">ecosystems</a>. MFA can also be applied to a single industrial installation, for example, for tracking <a href="/facts/Nutrient/34bn4skK">nutrient</a> flows through a <a href="/facts/Waste_water_treatment_plant/nIstBCdG">waste water treatment plant</a>. When combined with an assessment of the costs associated with material flows this business-oriented application of MFA is called <a href="/facts/Material_flow_cost_accounting/7L090HjY">material flow cost accounting</a>. MFA is an important tool to study the <a href="/facts/Circular_economy/13UFemv7">circular economy</a> and to devise <a href="/facts/Material_flow_management/EYmrHNvR">material flow management</a>. Since the 1990s, the number of publications related to material flow analysis has grown steadily. Peer-reviewed journals that publish MFA-related work include the <i><a href="/facts/Journal_of_Industrial_Ecology/uUvQuKsq">Journal of Industrial Ecology</a></i>, <i><a href="/facts/Ecological_Economics/t2N5upyK">Ecological Economics</a></i>, <i><a href="/facts/Environmental_Science_and_Technology/vAgEA55q">Environmental Science and Technology</a></i>, and <i>Resources, Conservation, and Recycling</i>. </p>