Methodology for evaluation of environmental performance of building materials: application in interlocking concrete pavement block
LCA; Construction; Environmental Performance; Environmental Performance; Performance levels.
Faced with the indisputable finitude of basic raw materials for the civil construction industry and the problem caused by global warming, the incorporation of sustainability in its components helps and provides information for the analysis and selection of materials. In the context of building sustainability, the material selection process is currently emerging as a necessary premise for the sustainability of the built environment. In this thesis, we started from the premise that proposing a sustainable built environment implies, mainly, a closer articulation of materials, based on pre-established requirements, in coherence with new technological demands. In this context, the main purpose of the research was to develop a methodology to help the selection and development of materials in the light of sustainability, practical and accessible to the theoretical knowledge of the interested parties. The methodological structure is based on Life Cycle Thinking (LCT), in which sustainability indicators such as the amount of polluting emissions and embodied energy are measured and evaluated. The objective of the methodology is to provide a practical tool for analyzing the environmental performance of building materials. The methodological scope does not consist in determining whether the building material is sustainable or not, but how much this material can become sustainable. The methodology for evaluating the environmental performance of building materials, called Methodology (EPBMC): identifies, directs, evaluates and presents environmental improvements, considering pre-established sustainability indicators. The Methodology establishes the (Ipe) environmental performance index, and proposes a graphic scale, to determine the level of environmental performance that can vary from 0% to 100%. The methodology classifies environmental performance as: very low, low, medium, high and advanced. Its structure consists of 7 sequential and interdependent stages, and was conceived with the purpose of seeking opportunities for environmental improvements in the component or material of civil construction. As study material, the interlocking concrete pavement block was adopted for the application of the methodology. The proposal for environmental improvements in the pavement block, presented a reduction of 51,29% or about 9,48 kgCO₂/m², for CO₂ polluting emissions and a reduction of 27,98% of embodied energy (EI), or about of 31,26 MJ/m².