Functional unit

Benedetto Rugani

Chapter 83 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment, 2026, pp 312-314 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Products fulfill “functions” for human well-being, for industrial, agricultural and manufacturing supply chains, for technological systems and processes in general. Hence the quantification of those functions determines the performance of the product system and their associated/generated potential impacts on the environment and human health. The so-called functional unit (FU) represents a pillar of the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology since it defines what is being studied. The FU is specified in the LCA “Goal and Scope” phase and describes the reference function of the life cycle model. FUs may have different natures, with their amounts referring to physical (mass-based, volume-based, etc.), monetary, or quality-based values. The International Organization for Standardization refers to a FU in LCA as the “quantified performance of a product system for use as a reference unit”. This entry illustrates the main peculiarity of the FU concept and investigates the way FU is defined and selected by practitioners.

Keywords: Functional unit; Life Cycle Inventory; Obligatory property; Positioning property; Reference flow; Primary and Secondary Functions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035309887
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