scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Solar Façade Concepts Based on Transparent Insulation Materials

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karel Struhala ◽  
Miroslav Čekon ◽  
Richard Slávik
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Insulation Materials ◽  
Energy Gains ◽  
Solar Wall ◽  
Contemporary Architecture

Contemporary architecture and construction industry are trying to cope with increasing requirements concerning energy efficiency and environmental impacts. One of the available options is the active utilization of energy gains from the environment, specifically solar energy gains. These gains can be utilized by, for example, solar walls and facades. The solar façade concept has been under development for more than a century. However, it has not achieved widespread use for various reasons. Rather recently the concept was enhanced by the application of transparent insulation materials that have the potential to increase the efficiency of such façades. The presented study evaluates the environmental efficiency of 10 solar façade assemblies in the mild climate of the Czech Republic, Central Europe. The evaluated façade assemblies combine the principles of a solar wall with transparent insulation based on honeycomb and polycarbonate panels. The study applies Life-Cycle Assessment methodology to the calculation of environmental impacts related to the life cycle of the evaluated assemblies. The results indicate that even though there are several limiting factors, façade assemblies with transparent insulation have lower environmental impacts compared to a reference assembly with standard thermal insulation. The highest achieved difference is approx. 84% (in favor of the assembly with transparent insulation) during a modelled 50-year façade assembly service life.

scholarly journals Life Cycle Assessment of Solar Façade Concepts Based on Transparent Insulation Materials

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karel Struhala ◽  
Miroslav Čekon ◽  
Richard Slávik
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Insulation Materials ◽  
Energy Gains ◽  
Solar Wall

Contemporary architects and the construction industry are trying to cope with increasing requirements concerning energy efficiency and environmental impact. One of the available options is the active utilization of energy gains from the environment, specifically solar energy gains. These gains can be utilized by, for example, solar walls and facades. The solar façade concept has been under development for more than a century. However, it hasn’t achieved widespread use for various reasons. Rather recently the concept was enhanced by the application of transparent insulation materials that have the potential to increase the efficiency of such façades. The presented study evaluates the environmental efficiency of 10 solar façade assemblies in the mild climate of the Czech Republic, Central Europe. The evaluated façade assemblies combine the principles of a solar wall with transparent insulation based on honeycomb and polycarbonate panels. The study applies Life-Cycle Assessment methodology to the calculation of environmental impacts related to the life cycle of the evaluated assemblies. The results indicate that even though there are several limiting factors, façade assemblies with transparent insulation have lower environmental impacts compared to a reference assembly with standard thermal insulation. The highest achieved difference is approx. 84% (in favour of the assembly with transparent insulation) during a modelled 50-year façade assembly service life.

The Application of the Life-Cycle Assessment in the Building Sector: An Italian Case Study

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-108
Author(s):  
Maurizio Cellura ◽  
Francesco Guarino ◽  
Sonia Longo
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Life Cycle Thinking ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Building Sector ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Whole Life Cycle

The building sector is one of the most relevant in terms of generation of wealth and occupation, but it is also responsible for significant consumption of natural resources and the generation of environmental impacts, mainly greenhouse gas emissions. In order to improve the eco profile of buildings during their life-cycle, the reduction of the use of resources and the minimization of environmental impacts have become, in the last years, some of the main objectives to achieve in the design of sustainable buildings. The application of the life-cycle thinking approach, looking at the whole life cycle of buildings, is of paramount importance for a real decarbonization and reduction of the environmental impacts of the building sector. This paper presents an application of the life-cycle assessment methodology for assessing the energy and environmental life-cycle impacts of a single-family house located in the Mediterranean area in order to identify the building components and life-cycle steps that are responsible of the higher burdens. The assessment showed that the largest impacts are located in the use stage; energy for heating is significant but not dominant, while the contribution of electricity utilized for households and other equipment resulted very relevant. High environmental impacts are also due to manufacture and transport of building materials and components.

Environmental impacts of peanut production system using life cycle assessment methodology

2015 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. 84-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amin Nikkhah ◽  
Mehdi Khojastehpour ◽  
Bagher Emadi ◽  
Alireza Taheri-Rad ◽  
Surur Khorramdel
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Production System ◽  
Assessment Methodology ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Peanut Production

scholarly journals Environmental Impacts Associated with Intensive Production in Pig Farms in Mexico through Life Cycle Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11248
Author(s):  
Mario Rafael Giraldi-Díaz ◽  
Eduardo Castillo-González ◽  
Lorena De Medina-Salas ◽  
Raúl Velásquez-De la Cruz ◽  
Héctor Daniel Huerta-Silva
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Pig Slurry ◽  
Growth Phases ◽  
Product System ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Intensive Production ◽  
Pig Farm

In this research, environmental impacts associated with the intensive production of pigs on a farm in Mexico were determined through the application of life cycle assessment methodology. The research was focused on the following stages of the product system: (i) pig rearing and growth phases; (ii) production operations in the pig-house; (iii) the supply of feed. The life cycle inventory database was mainly made up of data collected in field visits to local farms. The functional unit was defined as one finished swine weighing 124 kg. The results for the selected impact categories of carbon, water, and energy footprints were 538.62 kg CO2eq, 21.34 m3, and 1773.79 MJ, respectively. The greatest impact was generated in the final stages of pig fattening, mainly due to the large quantity of feed supplied. The impacts caused by operation of the pig farm were less significant, their contribution in all cases was less than a third of the total quantified values. The energy conversion of pig slurry improves the environmental performance of the product system by reducing the carbon footprint.

Life cycle assessment comparison of activated sludge, trickling filter, and high-rate anaerobic-aerobic digestion (HRAAD)

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (10) ◽  
pp. 2353-2360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonardo Postacchini ◽  
Krishna M. Lamichhane ◽  
Dennis Furukawa ◽  
Roger W. Babcock ◽  
F. E. Ciarapica ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Activated Sludge ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Oxygen Demand ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Trickling Filter ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Aerobic Digestion

This paper conducts a comparative assessment of the environmental impacts of three methods of treating primary clarifier effluent in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) through life cycle assessment methodology. The three technologies, activated sludge (AS), high rate anaerobic-aerobic digestion (HRAAD), and trickling filter (TF), were assessed for treatment of wastewater possessing average values of biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solids of 90 mg L−1 and 70 mg L−1, respectively. The operational requirements to process the municipal wastewater to effluent that meets USEPA regulations have been calculated. The data for the AS system were collected from the East Honolulu WWTP (Hawaii, USA) while data for the HRAAD system were collected from a demonstration-scale system at the same plant. The data for the TF system were estimated from published literature. Two different assessment methods have been used in this study: IMPACT 2002+ and TRACI 2. The results show that TF had the smallest environmental impacts and that AS had the largest, while HRAAD was in between the two but with much reduced impacts compared with AS. Additionally, the study shows that lower sludge production is the greatest advantage of HRAAD for reducing environmental impacts compared with AS.

scholarly journals Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Safety Shoes Toe Caps Manufacturing Processes

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iacopo Bianchi ◽  
Archimede Forcellese ◽  
Michela Simoncini ◽  
Alessio Vita ◽  
Vincenzo Castorani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Carbon Fiber ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Fiber Composite ◽  
Manufacturing Processes ◽  
Huge Amount ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Safety Regulations ◽  
Glass Fiber Composite

Abstract Toe caps are fundamental components of safety footwear used to prevent injuries which can be caused by falling objects. They can be realized by exploiting different materials (metal, composites and plastics) and manufacturing processes (stamping, injection molding, compression molding, etc.). However, they have always to fulfill the stringent requirements of safety regulations. In addition, in order to guarantee an ergonomic use, they must be as light as possible. It is estimated that at least 300 million pairs of safety footwear, with 600 million of toe caps, end up in landfill or are incinerated every year. This huge amount of wastes generates a relevant environmental impact, mainly attributable to toe caps manufacturing. In this context, it is important to develop new solutions which minimize the environmental impacts of toe caps manufacturing. Among others, the reuse of carbon fiber prepreg scraps has been recognized as a valid method to produce effective toe caps. In this paper, a detailed analysis of the environmental impacts associated to toe caps realized with reclaimed prepreg scraps has been conducted exploiting the Life Cycle Assessment methodology. The results have been compared to those obtained by analyzing toe caps realized in steel, aluminum, polycarbonate and glass fiber composite. Results demonstrate that the reclaim process for carbon fiber prepreg scraps can be a valid circular economy model to produce more sustainable toe caps for safety footwear.

Environmental Impact Comparison of Different Structure Systems Based on Life Cycle Assessment Methodology

2011 ◽  
Vol 374-377 ◽  
pp. 405-411
Author(s):  
Hai Bei Xiong ◽  
Chao Zhang ◽  
Jiang Tao Yao ◽  
Yang Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Steel Structure ◽  
Timber Structure ◽  
Frame Structure ◽  
Rc Frame ◽  
Life Cycle Assessment Methodology ◽  
Rc Frame Structure

Life cycle assessment (LCA) has become an international recognized method to estimate the environmental impacts of a building during its life. A building’s environmental impacts can be divided into two parts－impacts in the service stage and impacts in other stages of its life cycle. Other stages comprise material acquisition stage, constructing stage and final disposal stage. In life cycle except service stage, the LCA analysis was made on a timber structure teaching building using Athena software Eco-calculator. Then the teaching building is assumed to be redesigned adopting the structure of RC-frame and steel frame respectively. And the LCA analysis was made on the two assumed buildings too. By comparing the results, the conclusion can be drawn that timber buildings have lower environmental impact indexes compared with that of RC-frame and about the same with that of steel structure. The aboard usage of the timber structure instead of RC-frame structure can result in good environment performance. In service stage, if a sensible thermal insulation scheme is also considered, a great amount of energy will be saved, and the environmental impact of a building can be made minimum.

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