scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Building Renovation Measures–Trade-off between Building Materials and Energy

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Ramírez-Villegas ◽  
Ola Eriksson ◽  
Thomas Olofsson
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Ventilation System ◽  
Cold Climate ◽  
Solar Irradiation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock

The scope of this study is to assess how different energy efficient renovation strategies affect the environmental impacts of a multi-family house in a Nordic climate within district heating systems. The European Union has set ambitious targets to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2030. There is special attention on reducing the life cycle emissions in the buildings sector. However, the focus has often been on new buildings, although existing buildings represent great potential within the building stock in Europe. In this study, four different renovation scenarios were analyzed with the commercially available life cycle assessment software that follows the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) standard. This study covers all life cycle steps from the cradle to the grave for a residential building in Borlänge, Sweden, where renewable energy dominates. The four scenarios included reduced indoor temperature, improved thermal properties of building material components and heat recovery for the ventilation system. One finding is that changing installations gives an environmental impact comparable to renovations that include both ventilation and building facilities. In addition, the life cycle steps that have the greatest environmental impact in all scenarios are the operational energy use and the building and installation processes. Renovation measures had a major impact on energy use due to the cold climate and low solar irradiation in the heating season. An interesting aspect, however, is that the building materials and the construction processes gave a significant amount of environmental impact.

scholarly journals Gypsum, Geopolymers, and Starch—Alternative Binders for Bio-Based Building Materials: A Review and Life-Cycle Assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (14) ◽  
pp. 5666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Girts Bumanis ◽  
Laura Vitola ◽  
Ina Pundiene ◽  
Maris Sinka ◽  
Diana Bajare
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Initial Moisture Content ◽  
Limited Application ◽  
Ecological Building ◽  
Thermal Conductivity Λ

To decrease the environmental impact of the construction industry, energy-efficient insulation materials with low embodied production energy are needed. Lime-hemp concrete is traditionally recognized as such a material; however, the drawbacks of this type of material are associated with low strength gain, high initial moisture content, and limited application. Therefore, this review article discusses alternatives to lime-hemp concrete that would achieve similar thermal properties with an equivalent or lower environmental impact. Binders such as gypsum, geopolymers, and starch are proposed as alternatives, due to their performance and low environmental impact, and available research is summarized and discussed in this paper. The summarized results show that low-density thermal insulation bio-composites with a density of 200–400 kg/m3 and thermal conductivity (λ) of 0.06–0.09 W/(m × K) can be obtained with gypsum and geopolymer binders. However, by using a starch binder it is possible to produce ecological building materials with a density of approximately 100 kg/m3 and thermal conductivity (λ) as low as 0.04 W/(m × K). In addition, a preliminary life cycle assessment was carried out to evaluate the environmental impact of reviewed bio-composites. The results indicate that such bio-composites have a low environmental impact, similar to lime-hemp concrete.

Comparative Life Cycle Assessment between Ordinary Gypsum Plasterboard and Functional Phase-Change Gypsum Plasterboard

2020 ◽  
Vol 993 ◽  
pp. 1473-1480
Author(s):  
Yan Jiao Zhang ◽  
Li Ping Ma ◽  
Shi Wei Ren ◽  
Meng Chi Huang ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Phase Change ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Resource Depletion ◽  
Renewable Resource ◽  
Pollutant Emissions ◽  
Main Stage ◽  
Depletion Potential

With the emphasis of national policies on green manufacturing and the recognition of the people for green development, expanding the green assessment of products will be the general trend. In this study the life cycle assessment method was used to compile a list of resources, energy consumption and pollutant emissions during the life cycle of typical ordinary gypsum plasterboard and functional phase-change gypsum plasterboard, the key environmental impact indicators of both products during the life cycle calculated, the key stages affecting the environmental performance of products analyzed and identified, and the difference in environmental impacts between phase-change gypsum plasterboard and ordinary gypsum plasterboard compared and analyzed, for guiding the selection of green building materials and the development of ecological building materials. The results show that the global warming potential of phase-change gypsum plasterboard is 3.42 kgCO2 equivalent/m2, the non-renewable resource depletion potential is 2.25×10-5 kgSb equivalent/m2, the respiratory inorganic is 1.97×10-3 kgPM2.5 equivalent/m2, the eutrophication is 1.21×10-3 kgPO43- equivalent/m2, and the acidification is 9.47×10-3 kgSO2 equivalent/m2. Compared with ordinary gypsum plasterboard, the phase-change gypsum plasterboard shows the biggest increase by 874.03% in non-renewable resource depletion potential. The major environmental impact of ordinary gypsum plasterboard in the life cycle is mainly from energy use, and the transport process is the main stage of eutrophication. The use of phase-change materials in the phase-change gypsum plasterboard is the main stage causing environmental impact.

scholarly journals Comparative Whole Building Life Cycle Assessment of Energy Saving and Carbon Reduction Performance of Reinforced Concrete and Timber Stadiums—A Case Study in China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Dong ◽  
Tongyu Qin ◽  
Siyuan Zhou ◽  
Lu Huang ◽  
Rui Bo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Reinforced Concrete ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Rc Buildings ◽  
Carbon Reduction ◽  
The Government

Many stadiums will be built in China in the next few decades due to increasing public interest in physical exercise and the incentive policies issued by the government under its National Fitness Program. This paper investigates the energy saving and carbon reduction performance of timber stadiums in China in comparison with stadiums constructed using conventional building materials, based on both life cycle energy assessment (LCEA) and life cycle carbon assessment (LCCA). The authors select five representative cities in five climate zones in China as the simulation environment, simulate energy use in the operation phase of stadiums constructed from reinforced concrete (RC) and timber, and compare the RC and timber stadiums in terms of their life cycle energy consumption and carbon emissions. The LCEA results reveal that the energy saving potential afforded by timber stadiums is 11.05%, 12.14%, 8.15%, 4.61% and 4.62% lower than those of RC buildings in “severely cold,” “cold,” “hot summer, cold winter,” “hot summer, warm winter,” and “temperate” regions, respectively. The LCCA results demonstrate that the carbon emissions of timber stadiums are 15.85%, 15.86%, 18.88%, 19.22% and 22.47% lower than those of RC buildings for the regions above, respectively. This demonstrates that in China, timber stadiums have better energy conservation and carbon reduction potential than RC stadiums, based on life cycle assessment. Thus, policy makers are advised to encourage the promotion of timber stadiums in China to achieve the goal of sustainable energy development for public buildings.

scholarly journals A life cycle assessment model of Canadian residential dwellings and building stocks

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Francis Bowick
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Data Storage ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Cycle Performance ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Efficiency Measures ◽  
Performance Trends ◽  
Environmental Performance Measurement

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an internationally recognized and scientifically based methodology to quantify the environmental impact of a product or service, typically from cradle-to-grave. The life cycle performance of housing is influenced by the interdependent nature of material and energy use, and dwelling location and service life. While much research has been conducted building LCA, its incorporation into regulation has been difficult to implement. This research outlines the methodology used to create an LCA database of new Canadian construction for the purpose of building stock modeling and benchmarking national construction practice, two key tools for higher level decision making. A software program has been developed to handle data storage and calculations. Results presented include general performance trends at various sector scales, and analysis comparing LCA to traditional environmental performance measurement, and sensitivity analysis of building material and operating energy fuel choice and energy efficiency measures.

scholarly journals Environmental Performance Measures to Assess Building Refurbishment from a Life Cycle Perspective

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helena Nydahl ◽  
Staffan Andersson ◽  
Anders Åstrand ◽  
Thomas Olofsson
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Life Cycle Perspective ◽  
Building Refurbishment ◽  
Operational Energy

Energy efficiency investments in existing buildings are an effective way of reducing the environmental impact of the building stock. Even though policies in the European Union and elsewhere promote a unilateral focus on operational energy reduction, scientific studies highlight the importance of applying a life cycle perspective to energy refurbishment. However, life cycle assessment is often perceived as being complicated and the results difficult to interpret by the construction sector. There is also a lack of guidelines regarding the sustainable ratio between the embodied and accumulated operational impact. The scope of this study is to introduce a life cycle assessment method for building refurbishment that utilizes familiar economic performance tools, namely return on investment and annual yield. The aim is to use the introduced method to analyze a case building with a sustainability profile. The building was refurbished in order to reduce its operational energy use. The introduced method is compatible with a theory of minimum sustainable environmental performance that may be developed through backcasting from defined energy and GHG emissions objectives. The proposed approach will hopefully allow development of sustainable refurbishment objectives that can support the choice of refurbishment investments.

Reed as a Thermal Insulation Material: Experimental Characterisation of the Physical and Thermal Properties

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raphaele Malheiro ◽  
Adriana Ansolin ◽  
Christiane Guarnier ◽  
Jorge Fernandes ◽  
Lívia Cosentino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Insulation ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Insulation Material ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Thermal Insulation Material

The building sector plays a significant role in reducing global energy use and carbon emissions. In the European Union (EU), the building stock represents 40% of total energy use and in which cooling and heating systems represent over 50%. Portugal is one of the EU countries where the consequences of energy poverty are most evident due to the families' financial inability to adequately climate their homes. The reasons are several, but they are mainly linked to buildings' poor passive thermal performance, resulting from inadequate adaptation to the climatic context and reduced thermal insulation. Thus, it is necessary to develop solutions to increase buildings’ thermal performance and reduce their potential environmental impact, which arises mainly from the significant use of active systems. In this sense, natural building materials are a promising solution, reducing energy use and carbon emissions related to buildings. This research studies the potential use of reed found in Portugal (Arundo donax) as a thermal insulation material. Its physical characterisation and the influence of geometry configuration on its thermal performance are evaluated. Its durability was studied too. Reed stalks were used to carry out the physical and durability tests. A reed board (150 x 150 mm) was built, and its thermal performance was tested in a hotbox. According to the results, the characteristics of reeds found in Portugal make it suitable to be used as a building material. Furthermore, regardless of the configuration studied, the reeds have a satisfactory thermal performance to be used as thermal insulation, under the requirements defined by Portuguese thermal regulation, Re ≥ 0.30 (m2.oC)/W. There is a trend to the mould growth in the reed, but only under favourable conditions. Additionally, considering the abundance of reed throughout the Portuguese territory, this is an eco-friendly and low-cost option that gathers all requirements to be more used in the construction market.

A Review of the Application of LCA for Sustainable Buildings in Asia

2013 ◽  
Vol 724-725 ◽  
pp. 1597-1601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Faiz Abd Rashid ◽  
Sumiani Yusoff ◽  
Noorsaidi Mahat
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
International Organization ◽  
Embodied Energy ◽  
Building Industry ◽  
Sustainable Buildings ◽  
Iso 14040 ◽  
Operational Phase

The introduction of life cycle assessment (LCA) to the building industry is important due to its ability to systematically quantify every environmental impact involved in every process from cradle to grave. Within the last two decades, research on LCA has increased considerably covering from manufacturing of building materials and construction processes. However, the LCA application for buildings in Asia are limited and fragmented due to different research objectives, type of buildings and locations. This paper has attempted to collect and review the application of LCA in the building industry in Asia from the selected publications over the last 12 years, from 2001 to 2012. The result shows that most LCA research basic methodology is based on International Organization of Standardization (ISO) 14040 series but with variance. It is found that the operational phase consume highest energy and concrete responsible for the highest total embodied energy and environmental impact. It also suggested that building material with low initial embodied energy does not necessarily have low life cycle energy. Overall, findings from LCA studies can help to make informed decisions in terms of environmental impact and help realizing sustainable buildings in the future.

scholarly journals A life cycle assessment model of Canadian residential dwellings and building stocks

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Francis Bowick
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Data Storage ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Cycle Performance ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Efficiency Measures ◽  
Performance Trends ◽  
Environmental Performance Measurement

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an internationally recognized and scientifically based methodology to quantify the environmental impact of a product or service, typically from cradle-to-grave. The life cycle performance of housing is influenced by the interdependent nature of material and energy use, and dwelling location and service life. While much research has been conducted building LCA, its incorporation into regulation has been difficult to implement. This research outlines the methodology used to create an LCA database of new Canadian construction for the purpose of building stock modeling and benchmarking national construction practice, two key tools for higher level decision making. A software program has been developed to handle data storage and calculations. Results presented include general performance trends at various sector scales, and analysis comparing LCA to traditional environmental performance measurement, and sensitivity analysis of building material and operating energy fuel choice and energy efficiency measures.

scholarly journals A two family house built to passive house standard in the north of Sweden: environmental system performance

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Jonasson ◽  
Itai Danielski ◽  
Michelle Svensson ◽  
Morgan Fröling
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Residential Building ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Northern Sweden ◽  
Passive House

A life cycle assessment (LCA) of a low energy / passive house in northern Sweden, including building materials and energy use is reported. The case study building is semi detached house for two families situated in Östersund (lat. 63°N), Sweden. Each apartment having a floor space of 160 m2 divided on two floors. The building was constructed during 2010 with a design meeting the requirements for Swedish passive houses as defined by the Forum for energy efficiency buildings (FEBY) and the Swedish center for zero energy houses (SCNH). When it comes to more sustainable buildings, energy use in the build environment has been in focus for some time. The life cycle assessment in this study reveals that the building materials can contribute significantly to environmental burdens of a residential building in northern Sweden. Energy efficiency, efficient use of good building materials and issues of appropriate design need to be discussed in the same context to move toward a more sustainable built environment. For energy efficient buildings in a energy system with renewably based energy carriers, building materials might give rise to a significant or even dominating part of the life cycle impact of a building. This give rise to considerations regarding choices of building materials as well as design of buildings to minimize such impact; while not forgetting social aspects impacted by building design.

scholarly journals Comparative Life Cycle Assessment Analysis of Sewage Sludge Recycling Systems in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiawen Zhang ◽  
Toru Matsumoto
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Anaerobic Digestion ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Sludge Treatment ◽  
Heat Utilization ◽  
Sludge Recycling ◽  
Recycling Systems

With the acceleration of economic development and urbanization in China, sewage sludge generation has sharply increased. To maximize energy regeneration and resource recovery, it is crucial to analyze the environmental impact and sustainability of different sewage sludge recycling systems based on life cycle assessment. This study analyzed four sewage sludge recycling systems in China through life cycle assessment using the ReCipe method, namely aerobic composting, anaerobic digestion and biomass utilization, incineration, and heat utilization and using for building materials. In particular, the key pollution processes and pollutants in sewage sludge recycling systems were analyzed. The results demonstrated that aerobic composting is the most environmentally optimal scenario for reducing emissions and energy consumption. The lowest environmental impact and operating costs were achieved by making bricks and using them as building materials; this was the optimal scenario for sludge treatment and recycling. In contrast, incineration and heat utilization had the highest impact on health and marine toxicity. Anaerobic digestion and biomass utilization had the highest impact on climate change, terrestrial acidification, photochemical oxidant formation, and particulate matter formation. In the future, policy designers should prioritize building material creation for sludge treatment and recycling.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document