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Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment
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Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2022) | Viewed by 26572

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Franco Cotana

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Perugia, 06123 Perugia, Italy
Interests: life cycle assessment; cogeneration; renewable energy technologies; energy efficiency in buildings; energy community
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Mattia Manni

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center on Pollution and Environment “Mauro Felli”, 06123 Perugia, Italy
Interests: zero emissions buildings; building-integrated photovoltaic; solar analyses; cool materials; multiobjective evolutionary optimization

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has been widely utilized during the last decades to investigate the influences on global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of various human activities and products. Alongside this, LCA-related tools, such as Life Cycle Cost (LCC) and Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA), have permitted holistic analyses by also including the economic and social fields. This has highlighted the need to develop a Life Cycle Thinking framework. When it comes to the building sector, LCA has permitted a better understanding of the potential environmental impacts of construction materials and technologies, and also of systems and plants installed to guarantee adequate comfort conditions or to produce energy from renewable energy source (RES). Within this framework, the Zero Emissions Building (ZEB) and Zero Emissions Neighborhood (ZEN) concepts, which respectively refer to carbon neutral buildings and districts, were outlined.

Despite this, there is still need for LCA to analyze buildings in order to identify the materials, technologies, and plants that have the most impact on carbon emissions over their whole life-cycle (from-cradle-to-grave), and orient their further development towards a more sustainable scenario. Strategies to offset GHG emissions such as green roofing and vegetation are also worth investigating in order to facilitate the definition of standards and guidelines capable of regulating and promoting their application.

Furthermore, unordinary events such as the Covid-19 pandemic that humankind is experiencing currently can modify the environmental impact of buildings, particularly during the operational stage. These variations need to be analyzed to provide a more complete view of such occurrences.

This Special Issue aims to bring together current progress on LCA which can contribute to a better knowledge of the impact of the building sector, but also to the identification of low-carbon solutions and to enhance the robustness of the LCA methodology. Original research article and comprehensive reviews along with well-documented case studies will be considered for publication.

The following topics are addressed:

  • LCA/LCC/S-LCA of both residential and commercial buildings;
  • LCA/LCC/S-LCA of innovative construction materials and technologies;
  • LCA/LCC/S-LCA of systems and plants (i.e., HVAC, CHP, BiPV);
  • ZEB and ZEN case studies;
  • Optimization analyses to minimize environmental impacts of buildings/construction materials/RES plants;
  • Compensation strategies (i.e., green roofing, micro-algae cultivation, vegetation);
  • Changes in environmental impact of buildings/construction materials/RES plants due to unordinary events (e.g., Covid-19 pandemic);
  • Guidelines and policy instruments to implement de-carbonization of the building sector.

Prof. Dr. Franco Cotana
Dr. Mattia Manni
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

  • life cycle thinking
  • life cycle assessment
  • life cycle cost
  • social life cycle assessment
  • zero emissions buildings
  • zero emissions neighborhood
  • optimization analyses
  • innovative materials
  • green plant design
  • compensation strategies

Published Papers (8 papers)

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Editorial

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2 pages, 148 KiB  
Editorial
Life Cycle Thinking a Sustainable Built Environment
by Mattia Manni and Franco Cotana
Energies 2022, 15(10), 3511; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15103511 - 11 May 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1033
Abstract
Life Cycle Assessment is widely utilized to investigate the influences on global greenhouse gas emissions of various humankind activities and products [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)

Research

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21 pages, 2689 KiB  
Article
Life Cycle Assessment and Energy Balance of a Polygeneration Plant Fed with Lignocellulosic Biomass of Cynara cardunculus L.
by Ramoon Barros Lovate Temporim, Gianluca Cavalaglio, Alessandro Petrozzi, Valentina Coccia, Paola Iodice, Andrea Nicolini and Franco Cotana
Energies 2022, 15(7), 2397; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15072397 - 24 Mar 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2126
Abstract
This article aims to present an evaluation of the environmental performance of a combustion polygeneration plant fed with lignocellulosic material from cardoon (Cynara cardunculus L.) through the technique of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The system boundaries encompassed macro-phases of crop production, transportation, [...] Read more.
This article aims to present an evaluation of the environmental performance of a combustion polygeneration plant fed with lignocellulosic material from cardoon (Cynara cardunculus L.) through the technique of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The system boundaries encompassed macro-phases of crop production, transportation, and polygeneration processes that were able to produce 100 kW of electricity, a residual thermal energy recovery system and district heating and cooling with 270 kW of heating, and a 140 kW of cooling. The LCA was performed using Cumulative Energy Demand and ReCiPe Life Cycle Impact Assessment methods through midpoint and endpoint indicators. From 2000 h/year, 165.92 GJ of electricity and 667.23 GJ of primary energy were consumed, and 32.82 tCO2eq were emitted. The rates of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) and energy demand per MJ produced were 0.08 MJSE/MJPD, 0.30 MJPE/MJPD, and 0.01 kgCO2eq/MJPD. According to the ReCiPe method, the impact categories with the highest impact loads were Terrestrial ecotoxicity (2.44%), Freshwater ecotoxicity (32.21%), Marine ecotoxicity (50.10%), Human carcinogenic toxicity (8.75%), and Human non-carcinogenic toxicity (4.76%). Comparing the same energy outputs produced by Italian power and gas grids, the proposed polygeneration plant was able to reduce primary energy demand and GHG emissions by 80 and 81%, respectively, in addition to reducing the emissions of the five main categories of impacts by between 25 and 73%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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22 pages, 7499 KiB  
Article
Life Cycle Assessment on Different Synthetic Routes of ZIF-8 Nanomaterials
by Vasileios Ntouros, Ioannis Kousis, Dimitra Papadaki, Anna Laura Pisello and Margarita Niki Assimakopoulos
Energies 2021, 14(16), 4998; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en14164998 - 14 Aug 2021
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3105
Abstract
In the last twenty years, research activity around the environmental applications of metal–organic frameworks has bloomed due to their CO2 capture ability, tunable properties, porosity, and well-defined crystalline structure. Thus, hundreds of MOFs have been developed. However, the impact of their production [...] Read more.
In the last twenty years, research activity around the environmental applications of metal–organic frameworks has bloomed due to their CO2 capture ability, tunable properties, porosity, and well-defined crystalline structure. Thus, hundreds of MOFs have been developed. However, the impact of their production on the environment has not been investigated as thoroughly as their potential applications. In this work, the environmental performance of various synthetic routes of MOF nanoparticles, in particular ZIF-8, is assessed through a life cycle assessment. For this purpose, five representative synthesis routes were considered, and synthesis data were obtained based on available literature. The synthesis included different solvents (de-ionized water, methanol, dimethylformamide) as well as different synthetic steps (i.e., hours of drying, stirring, precursor). The findings revealed that the main environmental weak points identified during production were: (a) the use of dimethylformamide (DMF) and methanol (MeOH) as substances impacting environmental sustainability, which accounted for more than 85% of the overall environmental impacts in those synthetic routes where they were utilized as solvents and as cleaning agents at the same time; (b) the electricity consumption, especially due to the Greek energy mix which is fossil-fuel dependent, and accounted for up to 13% of the overall environmental impacts in some synthetic routes. Nonetheless, for the optimization of the impacts provided by the energy use, suggestions are made based on the use of alternative, cleaner renewable energy sources, which (for the case of wind energy) will decrease the impacts by up to 2%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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17 pages, 43091 KiB  
Article
A Comparative Study on Opto-Thermal Properties of Natural Clay Bricks Incorporating Dredged Sediments
by Mattia Manni, Fabiana Frota de Albuquerque Landi, Tommaso Giannoni, Alessandro Petrozzi, Andrea Nicolini and Franco Cotana
Energies 2021, 14(15), 4575; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en14154575 - 28 Jul 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1587
Abstract
The brick industry is currently facing a shortage of natural resources. Despite this, the demand for construction bricks is progressively increasing. Alternative materials, such as dredged sediments and solid organic waste, have been recently proposed as options to replace natural clay in brick [...] Read more.
The brick industry is currently facing a shortage of natural resources. Despite this, the demand for construction bricks is progressively increasing. Alternative materials, such as dredged sediments and solid organic waste, have been recently proposed as options to replace natural clay in brick manufacturing. Potential exploitation of dredged sediments in clay bricks is evaluated in this study. The chemical composition of the mixtures and the opto-thermal properties of brick samples, which differed for the dredged sediment content (from 10% to 50% of the clay weight), were investigated. Chemical analyses detected lower concentrations of heavy metals in bricks incorporating dredged sediments (DS). Negligible variations in thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, and specific heat were observed by increasing the amount of DS in the mixture. In particular, the thermal conductivity values ranged between 0.45 ± 0.03 W m−1 K−1 (DS-50) and 0.50 ± 0.03 W m−1 K−1 (DS-30). Conversely, the color shift value and spectral reflectance in the infrared field were found directly proportional to the concentration of DS. Using dredged sediments as building material demonstrated to be a solution to the problem of their disposal and the scarcity of raw materials, reducing the global warming score by up to 2.8%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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12 pages, 2442 KiB  
Article
Testing the Toxicity of Stachybotrys chartarum in Indoor Environments—A Case Study
by Marlena Piontek and Katarzyna Łuszczyńska
Energies 2021, 14(6), 1602; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en14061602 - 13 Mar 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3196
Abstract
Infestation of interior walls of buildings with fungal mould is a reason for health concern which is exacerbated in energy-efficient buildings that limit air circulation. Both mycological and mycotoxicological studies are needed to determine the potential health hazards to residents. In this paper, [...] Read more.
Infestation of interior walls of buildings with fungal mould is a reason for health concern which is exacerbated in energy-efficient buildings that limit air circulation. Both mycological and mycotoxicological studies are needed to determine the potential health hazards to residents. In this paper, a rare case of the occurrence of Stachybotrys chartarum in an apartment building in the Lubuskie Province in Poland has been described. Isolated as the major constituent of a mixed mycobiota, its specific health relevance still needs to be carefully analyzed as its biochemical aptitude for the synthesis of mycotoxins may be expressed at different levels. Therefore, ecotoxicological tests were performed using two bioindicators: Dugesia tigrina Girard and Daphnia magna Straus. D. tigrina was used for the first time to examine the toxicity of S. chartarum. The ecotoxicological tests showed that the analyzed strain belonged to the third and fourth toxicity classes according to Liebmann’s classification. The strain of S. chartarum was moderately toxic on Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) as a culture medium (toxicity class III), and slightly toxic on Malt Extract Agar (MEA) (toxicity class IV). Toxicity was additionally tested by instrumental analytical methods (LC-MS/MS). This method allowed for the identification of 13 metabolites (five metabolites reported for Stachybotrys and eight for unspecific metabolites). Spirocyclic drimanes were detected in considerable quantities (ng/g); a higher concentration was observed for stachybotryamide (109,000 on PDA and 62,500 on MEA) and lower for stachybotrylactam (27,100 on PDA and 46,300 on MEA). Both may explain the result observed through the bioindicators. Highly toxic compounds such as satratoxins were not found in the sample. This confirms the applicability of the two bioindicators, which also show mutual compatibility, as suitable tools to assess the toxicity of moulds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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19 pages, 5787 KiB  
Article
Methods to Optimize Carbon Footprint of Buildings in Regenerative Architectural Design with the Use of Machine Learning, Convolutional Neural Network, and Parametric Design
by Mateusz Płoszaj-Mazurek, Elżbieta Ryńska and Magdalena Grochulska-Salak
Energies 2020, 13(20), 5289; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en13205289 - 12 Oct 2020
Cited by 41 | Viewed by 6589
Abstract
The analyzed research issue provides a model for Carbon Footprint estimation at an early design stage. In the context of climate neutrality, it is important to introduce regenerative design practices in the architect’s design process, especially in early design phases when the possibility [...] Read more.
The analyzed research issue provides a model for Carbon Footprint estimation at an early design stage. In the context of climate neutrality, it is important to introduce regenerative design practices in the architect’s design process, especially in early design phases when the possibility of modifying the design is usually high. The research method was based on separate consecutive research works–partial tasks: Developing regenerative design guidelines for simulation purposes and for parametric modeling; generating a training set and a testing set of building designs with calculated total Carbon Footprint; using the pre-generated set to train a Machine Learning Model; applying the Machine Learning Model to predict optimal building features; prototyping an application for a quick estimation of the Total Carbon Footprint in the case of other projects in early design phases; updating the prototyped application with additional features; urban layout analysis; preparing a new approach based on Convolutional Neural Networks and training the new algorithm; and developing the final version of the application that can predict the Total Carbon Footprint of a building design based on basic building features and on the urban layout. The results of multi-criteria analyses showed relationships between the parameters of buildings and the possibility of introducing Carbon Footprint estimation and implementing building optimization at the initial design stage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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18 pages, 12644 KiB  
Article
Parametric Design to Maximize Solar Irradiation and Minimize the Embodied GHG Emissions for a ZEB in Nordic and Mediterranean Climate Zones
by Mattia Manni, Gabriele Lobaccaro, Nicola Lolli and Rolf Andre Bohne
Energies 2020, 13(18), 4981; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en13184981 - 22 Sep 2020
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3137
Abstract
This work presents a validated workflow based on an algorithm developed in Grasshopper to parametrically control the building’s shape, by maximizing the solar irradiation incident on the building envelope and minimizing the embodied emissions. The algorithm is applied to a zero-emission building concept [...] Read more.
This work presents a validated workflow based on an algorithm developed in Grasshopper to parametrically control the building’s shape, by maximizing the solar irradiation incident on the building envelope and minimizing the embodied emissions. The algorithm is applied to a zero-emission building concept in Nordic and Mediterranean climate zones. The algorithm enables conducting both energy and environmental assessments through Ladybug tools. The emissions embodied in materials and the solar irradiation incident on the building envelope were estimated in the early design stage. A three-steps optimization process through evolutionary solvers, such as Galapagos (one-objective) and Octopus (multi-objective), has been conducted to shape the most environmentally responsive ZEB model in both climates. The results demonstrated the replicability of the algorithm to optimize the solar irradiation by producing an increment of solar incident irradiation equal to 35% in the Mediterranean area, and to 20% in the Nordic climate. This could contribute to compensate the additional 15% of emissions due to the higher quantities of employed materials in the optimized design. The developed approach, which is based on the parametric design principles for ZEBs, represents a support instrument for designers to develop highly efficient energy solutions in the early design stages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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Review

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27 pages, 2576 KiB  
Review
Multi-Objective Optimization Models to Design a Responsive Built Environment: A Synthetic Review
by Mattia Manni and Andrea Nicolini
Energies 2022, 15(2), 486; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15020486 - 11 Jan 2022
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 3921
Abstract
A synthetic review of the application of multi-objective optimization models to the design of climate-responsive buildings and neighbourhoods is carried out. The review focused on the software utilized during both simulation and optimization stages, as well as on the objective functions and the [...] Read more.
A synthetic review of the application of multi-objective optimization models to the design of climate-responsive buildings and neighbourhoods is carried out. The review focused on the software utilized during both simulation and optimization stages, as well as on the objective functions and the design variables. The hereby work aims at identifying knowledge gaps and future trends in the research field of automation in the design of buildings. Around 140 scientific journal articles, published between 2014 and 2021, were selected from Scopus and Web of Science databases. A three-step selection process was applied to refine the search terms and to discard works investigating mechanical, structural, and seismic topics. Meta-analysis of the results highlighted that multi-objective optimization models are widely exploited for (i) enhancing building’s energy efficiency, (ii) improving thermal and (iii) visual comfort, minimizing (iv) life-cycle costs, and (v) emissions. Reviewed workflows demonstrated to be suitable for exploring different design alternatives for building envelope, systems layout, and occupancy patterns. Nonetheless, there are still some aspects that need to be further enhanced to fully enable their potential such as the ability to operate at multiple temporal and spatial scales and the possibility of exploring strategies based on sector coupling to improve a building’s energy efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Life Cycle Thinking for a Sustainable Built Environment)
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