Environmental Life Cycle Assessment in LEED 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference E i A hl Ph D LEED AP Erin Ashley, Ph.D., LEED AP National Ready Mixed Concrete Association 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 1 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Performance From the perspective of LEED, the word performance is often used in two ways: Performance in the sense of achieving LEED credits Performance in the sense of achieving a measured beneficial environmental outcome. 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 2 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
History of LCA in LEED August 2002: Integrating LCA Tools in Green Building Rating Systems January 2007: Initial recommendations for incorporating Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of building materials as part of the continuous improvement of LEED January 2010: 0 Pilot Credit 1: Life- Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Building Assemblies and Materials 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 3 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
LEED Categories 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 4 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Life Cycle Phases Recycling Material Acquisition Production Construction Life Cycle Phases Building Use 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 5 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Pilot Credit The LEED Pilot Credit Library is intended to facilitate the introduction of new prerequisites and credits to LEED. This process will allow USGBC to test and refine credits through LEED 2009 project evaluations before they are sent through the balloting procedures Awarded 1 point under Innovation in Design Credit 1 (IDc1) 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 6 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Pilot Credit 1: LCA of Building Assemblies and Materials Use Athena Eco-Calculator to find environmental impacts of your assemblies Use LEED LCA Credit Calculator to create LCA Impact Scores and generate the LEED Credits associated with your design Compare to database average age 5 Points plus 2 Innovation LCA points available 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 7 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Material & Resource Credits MR Credit 1.1 Building Reuse MR Credit 4 Recycled Content MR Credit 5 Regional Materials Use materials with recycled content such that the sum of postconsumer recycled content plus 1/2 of the Pre-consumer content Materials that have been extracted, harvested or recovered, as well as manufactured, within 500 miles of the project site 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 8 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Athena Impact Estimator Material building inputs Generates bill of materials Outputs Athena LCI profile Applies TRACI v2.2 characterization factors 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 9 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Impact Estimator Inputs Material assemblies Foundation Walls & openings Beams and columns Roofs Floors Extra basic materials 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 10 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 11 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator There are six types of building assemblies included in the EC: columns and beams intermediate floors exterior walls windows interior walls roofs 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 12 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Summarizes Key Impacts Select from multiple assemblies Different spreadsheet s for different climates Simply enter surface area Free Download Available: http://www.athenasmi.org/tools/ecocalculator/index.html 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 13 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 14 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Impact Categories Energy Consumption Materials Resource Use Global Warming Potential Acidification Potential Human Health Respiratory Effect Potential Aquatic Eutrophication Potential Ozone Depletion Potential Smog Potential 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 15 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalc Regional Considerations Northern US Southern US 8 Canadian Locations Atlanta Minneapolis Orlando Pittsburgh LA NY Seattle 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 16 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Concrete Assumptions 60 year building life Concrete assumed to be 4000 psi All cast in place concrete assumed to be 25% fly ash All concrete masonry was assumed to contain 0% flyash Precast concrete was assumed to contain 10% silica fume in place of Portland cement. Concrete topping was assumed to be 3 ½ /89mm thick concrete reinforced with 6 x6 /150mm x 150mm no. 10 metal mesh. 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 17 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Concrete Assumptions ICF exterior walls were assumed to be 8 in total thickness with a finished R-value of 20 Cast-in-place concrete walls were assumed to be 6 thick Concrete tilt-up walls were assumed to be 6 thick with average (25%) flyash content 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 18 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Building Modeling Energy Performance of Concrete Buildings for LEED-NC Version 2.2: Energy and Atmosphere - Credit 1 Medgar L. Marceau and Martha G. VanGeem 5 Story 105 x 105 63 tall 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 19 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Building Ten windows per façade, No exterior shading Roof: open-web steel joists, ribbed steel deck, ⅝-in. gypsum wallboard, board insulation, and built-up waterproofing membrane Slab: The groundlevel floor consists of carpet with fibrous pad and 6- in. cast-in-place concrete slab-onground. 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 20 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Building: Concrete vs. Steel Mass Building Concrete: Density of 145 lb/ft 3 Steel Building Interior Floors 12 concrete, carpet Ribbed steel deck, 4 concrete, carpet Exterior Structure Interior Partition Walls Precast concrete exterior walls Reinforced concrete structural frame Structural reinforced concrete Exterior insulation finishing system (EIFS) and metal stud exterior walls Structural steel frame Non-structural steel studs and gypsum wallboard. 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 21 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Modeled Building - Both Foundation Windows Roof Actual 6 cast in place concrete, carpet, fibrous pad Curtain wall viewable Open web steel joists, ribbed steel deck, 5/8 inch gypsum, waterproofing membrane Modeled 4 Poured Concrete Slab Curtain wall viewable EPDM membrane, R-20 insulation, PET membrane, open web steel decking, gypsum board, latex paint 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 22 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Modeled Building - Mass Actual Building Modeled Building Interior Floors 12 concrete, carpet Suspended concrete slab, interior ceiling finish of gypsum board and latex paint Exterior Structure Interior Partition Walls Precast concrete exterior walls Reinforced concrete structural frame Structural reinforced concrete Brick cladding, CIP concrete, rigid insulation, PET membrane, gypsum and latex Concrete column, concrete beam 6 concrete block with two coats of latex pain 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 23 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Modeled Building - Steel Actual Building Interior Floors Ribbed steel deck, 4 concrete, carpet Modeled Building Open web steel joist with concrete topping Exterior Exterior insulation finishing system (EIFS) and metal stud exterior walls Brick cladded, 2x4 steel stud, 24 on center, R-13, PET membrane, gypsum wallboard, latex paint Structure Structural steel frame WF column, WF beam Interior Partition W ll Non-structural steel studs 1 5/8 x 3 5/8 steel stud, Walls and gypsum wallboard. 24 on center, 5/8 gypsum board and two coats of latex paint 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 24 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Primary Energy Concrete/Mass Roof Interior Walls Windows Intermediate Floors Exterior Walls Foundation Structure 8.8 million MJ 29% Exterior Walls Windows, Intermediate Floors, Interior Walls, Roof equivalent (15%) 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 25 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
GWP Concrete/Mass Interior Walls Roof Foundation Windows Roof Structure Exterior Walls Intermediate Floors 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 26 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Primary Energy Steel Roof Interior Walls Windows Intermediate Floors Exterior Walls Foundation Structure 6.4 million MJ Windows, Intermediate Floors, Exterior Walls, Roof equivalent (20%) 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 27 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
GWP Steel Roof Interior Walls Foundation Assembly Roof GWP % of Total (Tonnes CO2) Foundations & 8% Footings 42 Structure 26 5% Intermediate 11% Floors 57 Exterior Walls 83 15% Windows 225 42% Interior Walls 27 5% Roof 76 14% TOTALS 537 Roof Windows Interior Wall Exterior Walls Windows Foundation Structure Structure Intermediate Floor Intermediate Exterior Floors Wall 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 28 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Results Comparison Primary Weighted Global Acidification Ozone Depletion Energy Resourc Warming Potential e Use Potential Concrete 9.5 GJ/m2 3700 Ton Steel 7 GJ/m2 1500 Ton 880 Ton 380,000 moles H 540 Ton 260,000 moles H 1800 mg CFC eq 570 mg CFC eq 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 29 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Johnson, MIT Typical office building 10,000000 sq. ft. Steel vs. Concrete Embodied Energy only CO2 Emissions Energy Consumption Resource Depletion Steel 138 kg/m2 1.1 GJ/ m2 30,800 Ton Concrete 177 kg/m2 11.0 GJ/ m2 96,800 Ton 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 30 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Limitations Embodied/Operational Energy 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 31 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Zhang, China Steel vs. Aerated Concrete Brick Energy Use Through Construction Phase Energy Use End of Life Steel Frame Concrete Frame 2.9 GJ/m2 3.9 GJ/m2 26 GJ/m2 24 GJ/m2 CO2 Through 314 kg/m2 606 kg/m2 Construction Phase CO2 End of Life 2400 kg/m2 2400 kg/m2 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 32 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Guggemos, A Study compared the environmental impact of concrete and steel framed office building Steel Frame Concrete Frame Energy Use 034GJ/m2 0.34 001GJ/m2 0.01 Through Construction Phase Energy Use End of 11.4 GJ/m2 10.2 GJ/m2 Life CO2 Through Construction Phase 22.4 kg/m2 44.8 kg/m2 CO2 End of Life 683 kg/m2 683 kg/m2 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 33 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Limitations Does not measure operational energy 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 34 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
EcoCalculator Limitations Clarity/Transparency of Model Limited Assemblies Stagnant materials Not all product data has been peer reviewed or validated 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 35 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Benefits of EcoCalculator Ease of Use Clear visual results Addresses several Impacts Free 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 36 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Conclusion Operational energy must be included in LCA as it is in LEED Pilot credit provides cradle to gate analysis EcoCalculator may be oversimplified LCA is a great tool when all phases of the life cycle taken into consideration 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 37 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Thank You. Erin Ashley, Ph.D., LEED AP eashley@nrmca.org 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 38 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
Uncertainty Analysis in LCA Models Data Quality Measurement/Reporting Error Aging Error 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 39 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association
TRACI Impacts 2010 Concrete Sustainability Conference 40 National Ready Mixed Concrete Association