Review of material flow analysis and its application under carbon neutralization target: a bibliometric perspective

Material flow analysis (MFA) could provide methodological support for quantifying material carbon flow and carbon emissions in the pursuit of carbon neutrality. Despite the extensive publication of MFA studies in academic journals, significant challenges remain on MFA and its application in carbon emission (MFA-CE) research, including identifying emerging research trends. This paper reviews MFA and MFA-CE research based on bibliometric analysis of data from WOS (Web of Science) platform, spanning from 1991 to 2022. We find that over the last 32 years: (1) Both MFA and MFA-CE research share similar article characteristics, such as rapid and active fluctuations in trends, with high-output countries primarily being the USA, China, and others; (2) MFA and MFA-CE are multidisciplinary fields, showing the fastest growth in Environmental Studies and Economics research; (3) Highly cited papers mainly focus on global material flow, environmental impact, and recycling. Notably, high citation analysis shows that both MFA and MFA-CE research have garnered substantial attention since 2014; and (4) Combining MFA with other methods would help identify material flow, such as carbon material flow. Additionally, the future perspectives of MFA-CE research were summarized: increasing interdisciplinary cooperation; a growing emphasis on multi-scale research; and enhanced availability and application of data.