Life Cycle Assessment of Environmentally Friendly Solutions for the Construction of Unpaved Rural Roads

In recent decades, the international community has recognized the detrimental impact of the construction industry on the environment. In recent years, the use of recycled aggregates has attracted increasing interest as a sustainable and cost-effective solution for the construction and maintenance of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Infrastructures (Basel) 2023-10, Vol.8 (10), p.144
Main Authors: Di Sessa, Mattia, Riviera, Pier Paolo, Tsantilis, Lucia, Urbano, Leonardo, Baglieri, Orazio, Santagata, Ezio
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aggregates
Alternative energy sources
Asphalt pavements
Climate change
Cold
Construction
Construction industry
Energy requirements
Infrastructure
Inventory
Life cycle assessment
mineral sludge
Moisture content
Raw materials
reclaimed asphalt
Recycled materials
Recycling
Road maintenance
Roads & highways
Rural roads
Sludge
Sustainability
unpaved roads
Water consumption
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Summary:In recent decades, the international community has recognized the detrimental impact of the construction industry on the environment. In recent years, the use of recycled aggregates has attracted increasing interest as a sustainable and cost-effective solution for the construction and maintenance of road pavements. The life cycle assessment (LCA) represents a valuable methodology for evaluating the environmental sustainability of technologies involving the use of such materials. This study deals with the LCA of alternative solutions for the construction and maintenance of unpaved rural roads. Different scenarios using recycled materials, such as reclaimed asphalt and mineral sludge, are analyzed and compared to a reference solution that employs only virgin aggregates. The environmental sustainability of the proposed alternatives is assessed by considering the global warming potential (GWP), energy requirements, and water consumption. The LCA analysis is performed using SimaPro software (version 9.1.1.7). The obtained results demonstrate that solutions involving the use of recycled materials represent a more sustainable and environmentally friendly option. In particular, a significant reduction in water depletion was found for the alternative scenarios, with savings between 56% and 99%. For GWP and energy, the total savings ranged from approximately 20% to 40%.
ISSN:2412-3811
2412-3811
DOI:10.3390/infrastructures8100144