Constructing a network of the social-economic consumption system of China using extended exergy analysis

The prominent conflict between consumption and environmental resources is acknowledged as a significant force in affecting the social-ecological community balance. The whole process of resource allocation, utilization, efficiency and outcome are crucial clues in uncovering the structural and functional characteristics in complex consuming systems. Herein, network relationship provides a system-oriented modeling technique for examining the structure as well as flow of materials or energy from an input–output perspective. Meanwhile, extended exergy, the only currently available thermodynamic based metric for social-economic environmental impacts associated with energy consumption, manpower and monetary operation as well as environmental emission, is an extension of the labor theory of value and a possible sustainability metric. The core purpose of this research is to construct a network of the social-economic consumption system of China using extended exergy analysis to explain the interrelationship among different sectors within a thermodynamic metric. Therefore, we firstly make a database of extended exergy accounting in the Chinese consumption system. Data are available for 2007, which can be divided into seven sectors based on the reclassification of the regularly published 42-sector Input–Output Table, namely, (1) Agriculture, (2) Extraction, (3) Conversion, (4) Industry, (5) Transportation, (6) Tertiary, and (7) Domestic sectors. Then we will construct an extended exergy network to gain insight into the thermodynamic distribution within sectoral criterion. Lastly, the network results and indicator analysis are explained for Chinaʹs social metabolism maintained by a large quantity of energy, resources, and labor, as well as the environmental costs, within an exergy foundation.