Peer Review #1 of "The impact on life cycle carbon footprint of converting from disposable to reusable sharps containers in a large US hospital geographically distant from manufacturing and processing facilities (v0.1)"

Research was conducted to indicate the impact of the increased flow of thermal insulation materials on the environment due to the implementation of the new regulations on energy efficiency of buildings. The regulations on energy efficiency of buildings in Serbia came into force on 30 September 2012 for all new buildings as well as for buildings in the process of rehabilitation and reconstruction. For that purpose, the carbon footprint was analyzed in three scenarios (BS, S1 and S2) for which the quantities of construction materials and processes were calculated. The life cycle analysis (LCA), which is the basis for analyzing the carbon life cycle (LCACO2), was used in this study. Carbon Calculator was used for measuring carbon footprint, and URSA program to calculate the operational energy. This study was done in two phases. In Phase 1, the embodied carbon was measured to evaluate short-term effects of the implementation of the new regulations. Phase 2 included the first 10 years of building exploitation to evaluate the long-term effects of the new regulations. The analysis was done for the period of 10 years, further adjustments to the regulations regarding energy efficiency of the buildings in Serbia are expected in accordance with EU directives. The study shows that, in the short-run, Scenario BS has the lowest embodied carbon. In the long-run, after 3.66 years, Scenario S2 becomes a better option regarding the impact on the environment. The study reveals the necessity to include embodied carbon together with the whole life carbon to estimation the impact of a building on the environment.

Download Full-text

Carbon Footprint and Variable Costs of Production Components for a Container-grown Evergreen Shrub Using Life Cycle Assessment: An East Coast U.S. Model

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.51.8.989 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 51 (8) ◽

pp. 989-994 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Dewayne L. Ingram ◽

Charles R. Hall ◽

Joshua Knight

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

East Coast ◽

Cultural Practices ◽

Variable Cost ◽

Labor Costs ◽

Evergreen Shrub ◽

Assessment Period ◽

The Impact

The production components of an evergreen shrub (Ilex crenata ‘Bennett’s Compacta’) grown in a no. 3 container in an east coast U.S. nursery were analyzed for their costs and contributions to carbon footprint, as well as the product impact in the landscape throughout its life cycle. A life cycle inventory was conducted of input materials, equipment use, and all cultural practices and other processes used in a model production system for this evergreen shrub. A life cycle assessment (LCA) of the model numerated the associated greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), carbon footprint, and variable cost of each component. The LCA also included the transportation and transplanting of the final product in the landscape as well as its removal after a 40-year useful life. GHG from input products and processes during the production (cutting-to-gate) of the evergreen shrub were estimated to be 2.918 kg CO2e. When considering carbon sequestration during production weighted over a 100-year assessment period, the carbon footprint for this model system at the nursery gate was 2.144 kg CO2e. Operations, combining the impact of material and equipment use, that contributed most of GHG during production included fertilization (0.707 kg CO2e), the liner and transplanting (0.461 kg CO2e), the container (0.468 kg CO2e), gravel and ground cloth installation (0.222 kg CO2e), substrate materials and preparation (0.227 kg CO2e), and weed control (0.122 kg CO2e). The major contributors to global warming potential (GWP) were also major contributors to the cutting-to-gate variable costs ($3.224) except for processes that required significant labor investments. Transporting the shrub to the landscaper, transporting it to the landscape site, and transplanting it would result in GHG of 0.376, 0.458, and 0 kg CO2e, respectively. Variable costs for postharvest activities were $6.409 and were dominated by labor costs (90%).

Download Full-text

The importance of embodied energy in carbon footprint assessment

Structural Survey ◽

10.1108/ss-01-2013-0012 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 32 (1) ◽

pp. 49-60 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Zaid Alwan ◽

Paul Jones

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Embodied Energy ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Design Team ◽

Content Type ◽

Operational Energy ◽

The Impact ◽

Whole Life Cycle

Purpose – The construction industry has focused on operational and embodied energy of buildings as a way of becoming more sustainable, however, with more emphasis on the former. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the impact that embodied energy of construction materials can have on the decision making when designing buildings, and ultimately on the environment. This is an important aspect that has often been overlooked when calculating a building's carbon footprint; and its inclusion this approach presents a more holistic life cycle assessment. Design/methodology/approach – A building project was chosen that is currently being designed; the design team for the project have been tasked by the client to make the facility exemplary in terms of its sustainability. This building has a limited construction palette; therefore the embodied energy component can be accurately calculated. The authors of this paper are also part of the design team for the building so they have full access to Building Information Modelling (BIM) models and production information. An inventory of materials was obtained for the building and embodied energy coefficients applied to assess the key building components. The total operational energy was identified using benchmarking to produce a carbon footprint for the facility. Findings – The results indicate that while operational energy is more significant over the long term, the embodied energy of key materials should not be ignored, and is likely to be a bigger proportion of the total carbon in a low carbon building. The components with high embodied energy have also been identified. The design team have responded to this by altering the design to significantly reduce the embodied energy within these key components – and thus make the building far more sustainable in this regard. Research limitations/implications – It may be is a challenge to create components inventories for whole buildings or for refurbishments. However, a potential future approach for is application may be to use a BIM model to simplify this process by imbedding embodied energy inventories within the software, as part of the BIM menus. Originality/value – This case study identifies the importance of considering carbon use during the whole-life cycle of buildings, as well as highlighting the use of carbon offsetting. The paper presents an original approach to the research by using a “live” building as a case study with a focus on the embodied energy of each component of the scheme. The operational energy is also being calculated, the combined data are currently informing the design approach for the building. As part of the analysis, the building was modelled in BIM software.

Download Full-text

Analysis of Calculation Methods for Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Road Sector

Proccedings of 10th International Conference "Environmental Engineering" ◽

10.3846/enviro.2017.156 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Viktoras Vorobjovas ◽

Algirdas Motiejunas ◽

Tomas Ratkevicius ◽

Alvydas Zagorskis ◽

Vaidotas Danila

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Road Construction ◽

Evaluation Methods ◽

The Road ◽

Construction Methods ◽

The Impact

Climate change is one of the main nowadays problem in the world. The politics and strategies for climate change and tools for reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and green technologies are created and implemented. Mainly it is focused on energy, transport and construction sectors, which are related and plays a significant role in the roads life cycle. Most of the carbon footprint emissions are generated by transport. The remaining emissions are generated during the road life cycle. Therefore, European and other countries use methods to calculate GHG emissions and evaluate the impact of road construction methods and technologies on the environment. Software tools for calculation GHG emissions are complicated, and it is not entirely clear what GHG emission amounts generate during different stages of road life cycle. Thus, the precision of the obtained results are often dependent on the sources and quantities of data, assumptions, and hypothesis. The use of more accurate and efficient calculation-evaluation methods could let to determine in which stages of road life cycle the largest carbon footprint emissions are generated, what advanced road construction methods and technologies could be used. Also, the road service life could be extended, the consumption of raw materials, repair, and maintenance costs could be reduced. Therefore the time-savings could be improved, and the impact on the environment could be reduced using these GHG calculation-evaluation methods.

Download Full-text

Punching Above its Weight: Life Cycle Energy Accounting and Environmental Assessment of Vanadium Microalloying in Reinforcement Bar Steel

10.26434/chemrxiv.13090265.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Pranav Pradeep Kumar ◽

David A. Santos ◽

Erick J. Braham ◽

Diane G. Sellers ◽

Sarbajit Banerjee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Chemical Elements ◽

Carbon Steels ◽

Embodied Energy ◽

Global Perspective ◽

Microalloyed Steels ◽

Lower Grade ◽

Low Alloy Steels ◽

The Impact

The manuscript presents a detailed analysis of embodied energy and carbon footprint reduction enabled by microalloying of steel, thereby providing a rich global perspective of the (outsized) role of chemical elements added in trace concentrations on the overall footprint of the construction industry. As such, the manuscript addresses an important and timely topic at the intersection of materials criticality, structural performance, life cycle assessment, and policy interventions. The United Nations estimates that the worldwide energy consumption of buildings accounts for 30—40% of global energy production, underlining the importance of the judicious selection of construction materials. Much effort has focused on the use of high-strength low-alloy steels in reinforcement bars whose economy of materials use is predicated upon improved yield strengths in comparison to low-carbon steels. While microalloying is known to allow for reduced steel consumption, a sustainability analysis in terms of embodied energy and CO 2 has not thus far been performed. Here we calculate the impact of supplanting lower grade reinforcement bars with higher strength vanadium microalloyed steels on embodied energy and carbon footprint. We find that the increased strength of vanadium microalloyed steel translates into substantial material savings over mild steel thus reducing the total global fossil carbon footprint by as much as 0.385%. A more granular analysis pegs savings for China and the European Union at 1.01 and 0.19%, respectively, of their respective emissions.

Download Full-text