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Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Building Construction: Focus on Embodied Carbon and Energy

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "G: Energy and Buildings".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2022) | Viewed by 12238

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Seongwon Seo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Infrastructure Engineering, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Interests: climate mitigation, adaptation, resilience and sustainability of the built environment; urban and infrastructure systems modelling and sustainability transitions
Prof. Dr. Greg Foliente

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Infrastructure Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3052, Australia
Interests: systems-based approaches to climate change mitigation; climate adaptation; sustainable buildings and cities; urban systems; infrastructure systems; built environment; freight and logistics systems; disaster risk reduction and resilience

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cranes that dominate the skyline of most cities may remind people about the environmental impacts of construction, but most people are not aware that about 40 per cent of global energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions come from the building and construction sector. Even when acknowledged, this figure often excludes the embodied energy and carbon emissions in products and the construction process.  

The 2016 Paris Agreement has provided an impetus for stronger partnerships and collaborations within the global building and construction industry to significantly reduce GHG emissions in the sector. However, these are mainly focused on energy/carbon reduction in the operational phase along the life cycle of built assets. The embodied energy/carbon, resulting from energy-related carbon emissions in product manufacturing, transportation, construction, use of building (e.g., repair, maintenance, refurbishment) and end of life (deconstruction), accounts for around 20% additional energy-related carbon emissions. A range of policy instruments, technologies, and initiatives that explicitly consider embodied energy and carbon emissions are needed to achieve net zero emission goals, and a more sustainable building and construction sector.

This Special Issue aims to present the latest research and development on the impacts and performance related to the embodied energy/carbon of built assets across scales (from products to building stock) and life cycle stages. We seek original paper(s) not only on methodological issues, but also on data and tool integration, policies, and related case studies that contribute to the above objective.

Dr. Seongwon Seo
Prof. Dr. Greg Foliente
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Challenges in assessing embodied energy/carbon (methodology, data, guideline, etc.)
  • Policies related to embodied energy/carbon
  • Data management of embodied energy/carbon
  • Benchmarking of embodied energy/carbon
  • Supporting tools or platforms for embodied energy/carbon reduction
  • Case studies of each phase of embodied energy/carbon (A4 and A5, B3 to B5, C1-C4 or consideration of stage D or whole of embodied energy/carbon, etc.)
  • Circularity of materials in construction

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

31 pages, 15918 KiB  
Article
Multi-Criteria Analysis of a Developed Prefabricated Footing System on Reactive Soil Foundation
by Bertrand Teodosio, Francesco Bonacci, Seongwon Seo, Kasun Shanaka Kristombu Baduge and Priyan Mendis
Energies 2021, 14(22), 7515; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14227515 - 10 Nov 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3010
Abstract
The need for advancements in residential construction and the hazard induced by the shrink–swell reactive soil movement prompted the development of the prefabricated footing system of this study, which was assessed and compared to a conventional waffle raft using a multi-criteria analysis. The [...] Read more.
The need for advancements in residential construction and the hazard induced by the shrink–swell reactive soil movement prompted the development of the prefabricated footing system of this study, which was assessed and compared to a conventional waffle raft using a multi-criteria analysis. The assessment evaluates the structural performance, cost efficiency, and sustainability using finite element modelling, life cycle cost analysis, and life cycle assessment, respectively. The structural performance of the developed prefabricated system was found to have reduced the deformation and cracking by approximately 40%. However, the cost, GHG emission, and embodied energy were higher in the prefabricated footing system due to the greater required amount of concrete and steel than that of the waffle raft. The cost difference between the two systems can be reduced to as low as 6% when prefabricated systems were installed in a highly reactive sites with large floor areas. The life cycle assessment further observed that the prefabricated footing systems consume up to 21% more energy and up to 18% more GHG emissions. These can significantly be compensated by reusing the developed prefabricated footing system, decreasing the GHG emission and energy consumption by 75–77% and 55–59% with respect to that of the waffle raft. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Building Construction: Focus on Embodied Carbon and Energy)
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28 pages, 2213 KiB  
Article
Carbon Footprint Reduction through Residential Building Stock Retrofit: A Metro Melbourne Suburb Case Study
by Seongwon Seo and Greg Foliente
Energies 2021, 14(20), 6550; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14206550 - 12 Oct 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3634
Abstract
Since existing residential buildings are a significant global contributor to energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, any serious effort to reduce the actual energy and carbon emissions of the building sector should explicitly address the carbon mitigation challenges and opportunities in the [...] Read more.
Since existing residential buildings are a significant global contributor to energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, any serious effort to reduce the actual energy and carbon emissions of the building sector should explicitly address the carbon mitigation challenges and opportunities in the building stock. This research investigates environmentally and economically sustainable retrofit methods to reduce the carbon footprint of existing residential buildings in the City of Greater Dandenong as a case study in Metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. By categorizing energy use into various building age brackets and dwelling types that align with changes in energy regulations, we identified various retrofit prototypes to achieve a targeted 6.5-star and 8-star energy efficiency rating (out of a maximum 10-star rating system). The corresponding operational energy savings through different retrofit options are examined while also considering the quantity of materials required for each option, along with their embodied energy and GHG emissions, thus allowing a more comprehensive lifecycle carbon analysis and exploration of their financial and environmental payback times. Results show that when buildings are upgraded with a combination of insulation and double-glazed windows, the environmental benefits rise faster than the financial benefits over a dwelling’s lifecycle. The size or percentage of a particular dwelling type within the building stock and the remaining lifecycle period are found to be the most important factors influencing the payback periods. Retrofitting the older single detached dwellings shows the greatest potential for lifecycle energy and carbon savings in the case suburb. These findings provide households, industry and governments some guidance on how to contribute most effectively to reduce the carbon footprint of the residential building sector. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Building Construction: Focus on Embodied Carbon and Energy)
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16 pages, 4242 KiB  
Article
Study on Worldwide Embodied Impacts of Construction: Analysis of WIOD Release 2016
by Yu Mishina, Yosuke Sasaki and Keizo Yokoyama
Energies 2021, 14(11), 3172; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14113172 - 28 May 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2101
Abstract
Net-zero-energy buildings (ZEBs) that contribute to making annual energy consumption balances zero are effective measures for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the construction sector. As the application of ZEBs progresses, GHG emissions during the construction of buildings and the manufacturing of materials [...] Read more.
Net-zero-energy buildings (ZEBs) that contribute to making annual energy consumption balances zero are effective measures for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the construction sector. As the application of ZEBs progresses, GHG emissions during the construction of buildings and the manufacturing of materials and products (called construction EG) account for a relatively large proportion of overall emissions. This study aimed to clarify construction EG as a means by which to formulate policies for the reduction of emissions in each country. The construction EGs of 43 countries from 2011 were analyzed. The 56-sector input/output table and CO2 emission data of the 2016 World Input/Output Database, published by the EU, were both used in this analysis. It was found that the construction sector accounted for the highest proportion of total CO2 emissions. Moreover, the fraction of construction EG tended to be higher in developing countries such as China and India, while developed countries tended to contribute a lower fraction of construction EG. Construction EGs were shown to be heavily influenced by the sectors that manufacture “cement”, “steel bars and steel frames”, and “energy sources”. Thus, it is very important to advance technological developments to reduce CO2 emissions within these sectors. The annual variation of construction EGs and CO2 emissions from 2000 to 2014 showed that the construction EGs and total CO2 emissions in developing countries were increasing, whereas emissions from developed countries have been decreasing slightly. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Building Construction: Focus on Embodied Carbon and Energy)
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14 pages, 3705 KiB  
Article
Carbon Emission Estimation of Assembled Composite Concrete Beams during Construction
by Kaitong Xu, Haibo Kang, Wei Wang, Ping Jiang and Na Li
Energies 2021, 14(7), 1810; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14071810 - 24 Mar 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2451
Abstract
At present, the issue of carbon emissions from buildings has become a hot topic, and carbon emission reduction is also becoming a political and economic contest for countries. As a result, the government and researchers have gradually begun to attach great importance to [...] Read more.
At present, the issue of carbon emissions from buildings has become a hot topic, and carbon emission reduction is also becoming a political and economic contest for countries. As a result, the government and researchers have gradually begun to attach great importance to the industrialization of low-carbon and energy-saving buildings. The rise of prefabricated buildings has promoted a major transformation of the construction methods in the construction industry, which is conducive to reducing the consumption of resources and energy, and of great significance in promoting the low-carbon emission reduction of industrial buildings. This article mainly studies the calculation model for carbon emissions of the three-stage life cycle of component production, logistics transportation, and on-site installation in the whole construction process of composite beams for prefabricated buildings. The construction of CG-2 composite beams in Fujian province, China, was taken as the example. Based on the life cycle assessment method, carbon emissions from the actual construction process of composite beams were evaluated, and that generated by the composite beam components during the transportation stage by using diesel, gasoline, and electric energy consumption methods were compared in detail. The results show that (1) the carbon emissions generated by composite beams during the production stage were relatively high, accounting for 80.8% of the total carbon emissions, while during the transport stage and installation stage, they only accounted for 7.6% and 11.6%, respectively; and (2) during the transportation stage with three different energy-consuming trucks, the carbon emissions from diesel fuel trucks were higher, reaching 186.05 kg, followed by gasoline trucks, which generated about 115.68 kg; electric trucks produced the lowest, only 12.24 kg. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in Building Construction: Focus on Embodied Carbon and Energy)
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