Sankey charts are a powerful visualization tool for showing the flow of data between different entities or variables. They are named after the UK chemist and philosopher英 William Sankey, who first described the chart in his 1873 work “The Chemical Constitutions of Living Organisms.”
Sankey charts are particularly useful when trying to understand the direction and magnitude of relationships between different variables. They can be used to visualize a wide range of data flows, from the flow of energy or money through a system, to the flow of concepts or ideas in a social or economic network.
Creation of Sankey Charts
To create a Sankey chart, you first need to have data that describes the flow of data between different entities or variables. This data typically takes the form of a directed graph, where each node (or entity) represents a variable or entity, and each edge (or line) represents a flow of data between them.
Once you have your data, you can use a spreadsheet software such as Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets or Python Pandas to create the chart. There are several online tools like https://www.shiny.rstudio.com/ or https://www.sankey.org/ that allows you to create sankey chart easily.
Applications of Sankey Charts
Sankey charts are a very powerful tool for visualizing and understanding complex data flows. Here are some examples of how they can be used:
- Energy Flow: Sankey charts are often used to visualize the flow of energy between different sources (e.g. fossil fuels, nuclear power, renewable energy) and end-use sectors (e.g. industry, transportation, residential).
- Economic Relationships: Sankey charts can be used to visualize the flow of money or capital between different economic sectors (e.g. government, commerce, finance) or between different countries.
- Social Networks: Sankey charts can be used to visualize the flow of ideas or concepts between different social groups or individuals.
- Study of Pollution: Sankey charts can be used to visualize the flow of pollutants or contaminants through a system, such as a water or air pollution.
- Business Processes: Sankey charts can be used to visualize the flow of materials, information, or resources through different stages of a business process.
Conclusion
Sankey charts are a powerful tool for visualizing and understanding complex data flows. They are simple to create and easy to understand, making them a useful tool for a wide range of applications. With the increasing amount of data that is collected and shared, Sankey charts provide a way to visualize and understand these data flows in a meaningful way.
SankeyMaster
SankeyMaster is your go-to tool for creating complex Sankey charts . Easily enter data and create Sankey charts that accurately reveal intricate data relationships.
