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research article

The computational structure of environmental life cycle costing

Moreau, Vincent
•
Weidema, Bo P.
2015
International Journal Of Life Cycle Assessment

Existing computational methods for life cycle costing (LCC) are few and appeared inconsistent with the very definition of LCC. This article improves the common matrix-based approach in life cycle assessment as applied to LCC, correcting previous errors. Reusing a simple and hypothetical example, the authors derive the LCC from both the physical and monetary technology matrices. Accounting for the added value of all activities in the life cycle leads to a simplified computational structure for LCC. The results show that the definition of LCC and computational structure can be fully harmonized with life cycle assessments (LCAs) and simplified. In addition to eco-efficiency calculations, the vector of added values, if disaggregated over social groups, allows for distributional analysis. It is furthermore shown how LCC can account for costs shifting (economic externalities) in the same way as LCA highlights shifting of environmental externalities between different products, life cycle stages or actors. Life cycle costing as defined by the sum of the added value over the life cycle is consistent with LCA and cradle to gate assessments in particular. The authors simplified the computation of LCC with either the matrix-based approach or the added values of upstream activities as an elementary exchange vector or matrix.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.1007/s11367-015-0952-1
Web of Science ID

WOS:000360936300002

Author(s)
Moreau, Vincent
Weidema, Bo P.
Date Issued

2015

Publisher

Springer Heidelberg

Published in
International Journal Of Life Cycle Assessment
Volume

20

Issue

10

Start page

1359

End page

1363

Subjects

Computational structure

•

Externalities

•

Life cycle assessment

•

Life cycle costing

•

Value added

Note

National Licences

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
ENAC  
Available on Infoscience
December 2, 2015
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/121207
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