Life Cycle Assessment as a Major Support Tool within Multi-Criteria Design Process of Single Dwellings Located in Poland

Michał Pierzchalski, Elżbieta Dagny Ryńska and Arkadiusz Węglarz
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Michał Pierzchalski: Faculty of Architecture, Warsaw University of Technology, ul. Koszykowa 55, 00-659 Warszawa, Poland
Elżbieta Dagny Ryńska: Faculty of Architecture, Warsaw University of Technology, ul. Koszykowa 55, 00-659 Warszawa, Poland
Arkadiusz Węglarz: Faculty of Civil Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, ul. Armii Ludowej 16, 00-637 Warszawa, Poland

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 13, 1-21

Abstract: Life cycle assessment is an environmental method which estimates either a process or a building material within the cradle-to-grave cycle. Presently, it is one of a few tools that include all factors which may influence the environment. The authors used this tool to prove effects connected with potential efficient energy levels and a reduction in CO 2 emissions within a building’s life cycle. For the purpose of our analyses, several types of single-family building were chosen and they were subjected to analysis in the fixed location of Warsaw. The research scope included a numerical analysis of the buildings concerning the level of embodied energies and the emission of greenhouse gases. The performed analysis proved that, within a 50-year cycle, the difference between the embodied energy from the best and worst building choices can amount to 14.87%, whereas a reduction in embodied carbon emissions can reach 20.65%. Each change in the building’s form and the type of building materials used, regardless of the usable area, influence the environmental impact. Therefore, this paper concludes that LCA, as a management tool, should be used cyclically as part of each phase of the design process. A multi-criteria method for selecting architectural solutions was proposed which considered minimum cumulative primary energy, minimum cumulative carbon emission and minimum cost of constructing a building.

Keywords: LCA; embodied energy; embodied carbon emission; life cycle assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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