Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment
The built environment—with its significant environmental impact and long lifespan—is a key sector in which to implement circular economy principles. So far, however, a coherent framework with circularity indicators has not yet been established. While Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is commonly practiced...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Buildings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2152 |
| _version_ | 1797461106807013376 |
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| author | Wai Chung Lam Steven Claes Michiel Ritzen |
| author_facet | Wai Chung Lam Steven Claes Michiel Ritzen |
| author_sort | Wai Chung Lam |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The built environment—with its significant environmental impact and long lifespan—is a key sector in which to implement circular economy principles. So far, however, a coherent framework with circularity indicators has not yet been established. While Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is commonly practiced to quantify the total environmental impact, it is designed and intended to assess linear life cycles, making it unsuitable for circularity assessment. Thus this paper explores an objective method to link LCA to a semi-quantified circularity indicator. Four variants of external wall designs of two case studies are analyzed. The explored possibilities of linking LCA results or mass input flows to the circularity indicator show differences in outcome. Furthermore, the analysis shows that decision-making can be affected by choice of assessing only a circularity indicator, an environmental impact indicator, or mass input flows, as opposed to a scenario in which a linked approach of these parameters is applied. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:15:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c5b1dc6634ba45628c98ee6f982ce643 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:15:37Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-c5b1dc6634ba45628c98ee6f982ce6432023-11-24T13:42:42ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092022-12-011212215210.3390/buildings12122152Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built EnvironmentWai Chung Lam0Steven Claes1Michiel Ritzen2VITO, Unit Smart Energy and Built Environment, Boeretang 200, 2400 Mol, BelgiumVITO, Unit Smart Energy and Built Environment, Boeretang 200, 2400 Mol, BelgiumVITO, Unit Smart Energy and Built Environment, Boeretang 200, 2400 Mol, BelgiumThe built environment—with its significant environmental impact and long lifespan—is a key sector in which to implement circular economy principles. So far, however, a coherent framework with circularity indicators has not yet been established. While Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is commonly practiced to quantify the total environmental impact, it is designed and intended to assess linear life cycles, making it unsuitable for circularity assessment. Thus this paper explores an objective method to link LCA to a semi-quantified circularity indicator. Four variants of external wall designs of two case studies are analyzed. The explored possibilities of linking LCA results or mass input flows to the circularity indicator show differences in outcome. Furthermore, the analysis shows that decision-making can be affected by choice of assessing only a circularity indicator, an environmental impact indicator, or mass input flows, as opposed to a scenario in which a linked approach of these parameters is applied.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2152Life Cycle Assessmentcircularity assessmentlinking indicators |
| spellingShingle | Wai Chung Lam Steven Claes Michiel Ritzen Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment Buildings Life Cycle Assessment circularity assessment linking indicators |
| title | Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment |
| title_full | Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment |
| title_fullStr | Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment |
| title_short | Exploring the Missing Link between Life Cycle Assessment and Circularity Assessment in the Built Environment |
| title_sort | exploring the missing link between life cycle assessment and circularity assessment in the built environment |
| topic | Life Cycle Assessment circularity assessment linking indicators |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/12/2152 |
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