Smart Sustainability in Construction: An Integrated LCA-MCDM Framework for Climate-Adaptive Material Selection in Educational Buildings

Ehab A. Mlybari ()
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Ehab A. Mlybari: Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-38

Abstract: The heavy environmental impact of the construction industry—responsible for 39% of world CO 2 emissions and consuming over 40% of natural resources—supports the need for evidence-based decision-making tools for sustainable material selection balancing environmental, economic, and social considerations. This research develops and evaluates an integrated decision support system that couples cradle-to-grave lifecycle assessment (LCA) with various multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods to optimize climate-resilient material selection for schools. The methodology is an integration of hybrid Analytic Hierarchy Process–Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (AHP-TOPSIS) and VIKOR techniques validated with eight case studies in hot-arid, hot-humid, and temperate climates. Environmental, economic, social, and technical performance indices were evaluated from primary experimental data and with the input from 22 international experts with climate change assessment expertise. Ten material options were examined, from traditional, recycled, and bio-based to advanced composite systems throughout full building lifecycles. The results indicate geopolymer–biofiber composite systems achieve 42% reduced lifecycle carbon emissions, 28% lower cost of ownership, and 35% improved overall sustainability performance compared to traditional equivalents. Three MCDM techniques’ cross-validation demonstrated a satisfactory ranking correlation (Kendall’s τ = 0.87), while Monte Carlo uncertainty analysis ensured framework stability across 95% confidence ranges. Climate-adaptive weighting detected dramatic regional optimization contrasts: thermal performance maximization in tropical climates and embodied impact emphasis in temperate climates. Three case studies on educational building projects demonstrated 95.8% accuracy in validation of environmental performance and economic payback periods between 4.2 and 6.8 years in real-world practice.

Keywords: sustainable material selection; lifecycle assessment; multi-criteria decision-making; climate-adaptive design; educational buildings; uncertainty analysis; comparative MCDM; cradle-to-grave analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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