Study on carbon emission calculation during the materialization phase of subway stations and comparative analysis of carbon emissions from various construction methods

• Published in: Case Studies in Construction Materials 2024-12, Vol.21, p.e03923, Article e03923
• Main Authors: Mei, Yuan, Zhou, Dongbo, Wang, Haokun, Ke, Xin, Liu, Ziyang, Tian, Xinyu, Wang, Zhonghui
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon emission calculation; Low carbon construction design; Software development; Subway stations
• ISSN: 2214-5095; 2214-5095
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cscm.2024.e03923

To enhance the low-carbon construction level of subway stations, this paper, based on life cycle theory and the carbon emission factor method, summarizes the carbon emission calculation methods and relevant standards. Preliminary versions of the "Carbon Emission Database Software for subway station Civil Engineering" and "Carbon Emission Calculation Software for subway station Civil Engineering" were developed, enabling rapid calculation of carbon emissions for subway stations. From the perspective of low-carbon construction, a subway station in Guangzhou was used as an example to calculate the carbon emissions of three low-carbon construction methods. The results indicate that: (1) The carbon emission intensity of the materialization phase of the case station using the cover excavation reverse method is 3.46 tCO2e/m², demonstrating a lower carbon advantage compared to the other two methods; (2) The carbon emission of the building materials production phase accounts for over 84 % of the total carbon emission during the materialization phase for all three methods, making it the main source of carbon emission in the materialization phase of subway stations; (3) For subway stations of the same cost, the carbon emission of the open cut method is 13.77 % higher than that of the cover-excavation method and 10.18 % higher than that of the cover excavation reverse method.