Sankeys

Overview of Sankeys:

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Sankeys

Sankeys, also known as Sankey diagrams, are a type of flow diagram in which the width of the arrows is proportional to the flow rate. They are commonly used in process engineering and environmental studies to visualize energy or material transfers between processes.

History

The Sankey diagram was named after Captain Matthew Henry Phineas Riall Sankey, an Irish engineer who first used this type of diagram in 1898 to represent the energy efficiency of a steam engine.

Usage

Sankey diagrams are used in a variety of fields, including:

• Process engineering: Sankeys are used to visualize energy flows in systems and to identify inefficiencies.
• Environmental studies: They are used to illustrate the flow of energy or materials in an ecosystem.
• Data visualization: Sankeys can be used to represent the flow of information or money in a system.

Creating a Sankey Diagram

Creating a Sankey diagram involves the following steps:

1. Identify the processes and flows to be represented.
2. Determine the quantities for each flow.
3. Draw the processes as boxes and the flows as arrows between the boxes.
4. Adjust the width of the arrows to be proportional to the flow quantities.

Software for Creating Sankey Diagrams

There are several software tools available for creating Sankey diagrams, including:

• Microsoft Excel: While not specifically designed for Sankey diagrams, Excel can be used to create them with some effort.
• SankeyMATIC: A free, online tool specifically designed for creating Sankey diagrams.
• Tableau: A data visualization tool that includes support for Sankey diagrams.

See Also

• Flow diagram
• Data visualization
• Process engineering

External Links

• Sankey Diagrams
• SankeyMATIC

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