Proposal of Environmental Impact Assessment Method for Concrete in South Korea: An Application in LCA (Life Cycle Assessment).
This study aims to develop a system for assessing the impact of the substances discharged from concrete production process on six environmental impact categories, i.e., global warming (GWP), acidification (AP), eutrophication (EP), abiotic depletion (ADP), ozone depletion (ODP), and photochemical oxidant creation (POCP), using the life a cycle assessment (LCA) method. To achieve this, this study proposed an LCA method specifically applicable to the Korean concrete industry by adapting the ISO standards to suit the Korean situations. The proposed LCA method involves a system that performs environmental impact assessment on the basis of input information on concrete mix design, transport distance, and energy consumption in a batch plant. The Concrete Lifecycle Assessment System (CLAS) thus developed provides user-friendly support for environmental impact assessment with specialized database for concrete mix materials and energy sources. In the case analysis using the CLAS, among the substances discharged from the production of 24 MPa concrete, those contributing to GWP, AP, EP, ADP, ODP, and POCP were assessed to amount to 309 kg-CO₂ eq/m³, 28.7 kg-SO₂ eq/m³, 5.21 kg-PO₄3-eq/m³, 0.000049 kg-CFC11eq/m³, 34 kg/m³, and 21 kg-Ethylene eq/m³, respectively. Of these six environmental impact categories selected for the LCA in this study, ordinary Portland cement (OPC) was found to contribute most intensely to GWP and POCP, and aggregates, to AP, EP, ODP, and ADP. It was also found that the mix design with increased prop proportion of recycled aggregate was found to contribute to reducing the impact in all other categories.
Building and Urban Research Institute, Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, Daehwa-dong 283, Goyandae-Ro, ILsanseo-Gu, Goyang-Si 10223, Gyeonggi-Do, Korea. kimtaehyoung@kict.re.kr.
Tae Hyoung
TH
Kim
School of Architecture & Architectural Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangrok-Gu, Ansan-Si 15588, Gyeonggi-Do, Korea. jnb55@hanyang.ac.kr.
Sung Ho
SH
Tae
D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D060389:Construction Industry; D003252:Construction Materials / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D056910:Republic of Korea
D004785:Environmental Pollutants
South Korea; concrete; environmental impact; life cycle assessment