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Commercially Available Materials Selection in Sustainable Design: An Integrated Multi-Attribute Decision Making Approach

Author

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  • Rui Zhao

    (State-Province Joint Engineering Research Lab in Geospatial Information Technology for High Speed Railway Safety, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 611756, China)

  • Han Su

    (State-Province Joint Engineering Research Lab in Geospatial Information Technology for High Speed Railway Safety, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 611756, China)

  • Xiaolang Chen

    (Key Laboratory of Advanced Materials Technology Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, China)

  • Yanni Yu

    (Institute of Resource, Environment and Sustainable Development (IRESD), Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China)

Abstract

This paper presents an integrated multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) approach to aid selection of commercially available materials in the context of sustainable design. The MADM couples grey relational analysis (GRA) with an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to rank alternative materials in terms of their economic, environmental, and social performance. AHP is used to determine the corresponding weighting values for the selected indicators. In addition, a case example is used to verify the proposed MADM method and demonstrate its practical application. Three alternative polymer materials, i.e. , poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene (PE), are examined to determine their sustainability for plastic pipe design. The associated MADM result and the limitations of the approach are discussed to lay the foundation for further improvement.

Suggested Citation

  • Rui Zhao & Han Su & Xiaolang Chen & Yanni Yu, 2016. "Commercially Available Materials Selection in Sustainable Design: An Integrated Multi-Attribute Decision Making Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-15, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:1:p:79-:d:62349
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Honghao Zhang & Yong Peng & Guangdong Tian & Danqi Wang & Pengpeng Xie, 2017. "Green material selection for sustainability: A hybrid MCDM approach," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(5), pages 1-26, May.
    2. Junfang Sun & Ji Chen & Xin Liao & Angran Tian & Jinxu Hao & Yuchen Wang & Qiang Tang, 2021. "The Workability and Crack Resistance of Natural and Recycled Aggregate Mortar Based on Expansion Agent through an Environmental Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-12, January.
    3. Ning Zhang & Bing Wang, 2016. "Toward a Sustainable Low-Carbon China: A Review of the Special Issue of “Energy Economics and Management”," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(8), pages 1-8, August.
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    8. Luiz Fernando Rodrigues Pinto & Glória de Fátima Pereira Venturini & Salvatore Digiesi & Francesco Facchini & Geraldo Cardoso de Oliveira Neto, 2020. "Sustainability Assessment in Manufacturing under a Strong Sustainability Perspective—An Ecological Neutrality Initiative," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-40, November.
    9. Cheng Peng & Dianzhuang Feng & Sidai Guo, 2021. "Material Selection in Green Design: A Method Combining DEA and TOPSIS," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-14, May.
    10. Junfang Sun & Angran Tian & Zheyuan Feng & Yu Zhang & Feiyang Jiang & Qiang Tang, 2021. "Evaluation of Zero-Valent Iron for Pb(II) Contaminated Soil Remediation: From the Analysis of Experimental Mechanism Hybird with Carbon Emission Assessment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-13, January.
    11. Tian, Guangdong & Zhang, Honghao & Feng, Yixiong & Wang, Danqi & Peng, Yong & Jia, Hongfei, 2018. "Green decoration materials selection under interior environment characteristics: A grey-correlation based hybrid MCDM method," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 682-692.
    12. Ehsan Javanmardi & Sifeng Liu & Naiming Xie, 2020. "Exploring Grey Systems Theory-Based Methods and Applications in Sustainability Studies: A Systematic Review Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-32, May.
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