Analysis of environmental hotspots of energy supply systems with life cycle assessment approach

Energy systems, despite their key roles and diversity, have serious implications for human health, ecosystems, and natural resources; Thus, in the last two decades, the focus of more than 1,000 LCA studies on energy systems has been to determine and mitigate these effects. This paper examines the applications of LCA in energy and heat generation energy systems to determine environmental hotspots, as well as brief and important information about 1) methodology, including defining the objectives and scope of studies, covering the system life cycle, and Environmental Impacts; 2) The main findings of these studies, especially with the aim of determining environmental hotspots and patterns of effects in different energy sources, are presented. In this article, an attempt has been made to review the recommendations and guidelines in the field of LCA on the main aspects of the methodology in order to properly guide LCA studies on energy systems and the reliability of LCA results.