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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Environ. Sci.
Sec. Environmental Systems Engineering
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2024.1505312
This article is part of the Research Topic Advancements in Intelligent and Sustainable Construction Materials (ISCM): Experimental Investigation, Computational Analysis, and Real-World Application View all articles

Environmental and Human Health Impact of Recycle Concrete Powder: An Emergy-Based LCA Approach

Provisionally accepted
Aneel Manan Aneel Manan 1*Zhang Pu Zhang Pu 1*Wael Alattyih Wael Alattyih 2*Jawad Ahmad Jawad Ahmad 3*Mohanad Muayad Sabri Mohanad Muayad Sabri 4
  • 1 Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
  • 2 Qassim University, Buraidah, Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia
  • 3 National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan
  • 4 Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University, Saint Petersburg, Saint Petersburg, Russia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The construction sector extensively utilizes natural resources and energy, contributing significantly to greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). Concrete production, in particular, contributes notably to environmental pollution. This study investigates the environmental and human health impact of concrete production, focusing on parameters such as Portland Cement, organic chemicals, diesel, medium voltage electricity, crushed gravel, natural gas heat, lubricating oil, sand and tap water. It also evaluates the impact of replacing cement with recycled concrete powder (RCP) using a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach through OpenLCA 2.1 software and the Ecoinvent database. Four concrete mixes were assessed with RCP substitution ratios of 0, 5%, 10%, and 15%. Key indicators analyzed include climate change, human toxicity, ionising radiation, ozone depletion, photochemical oxidant formation, ecosystem quality, and resource depletion. Resultsshow that cement is the most environmentally harmful ingredient, while RCP substitution reduces environmental impacts and resource depletion. Notably, the analysis indicates that higher RCP content leads to reduce environmental impacts. Specifically, the mix containing 15% RCP showed substantial improvements, lowering ozone depletion impacts from 100% to 90% and photochemical oxidant formation from 100% to 92%. These findings provide valuable insights for construction industry stakeholders and policymakers, supporting the advancement of more sustainable construction practices. Future research should focus on optimizing RCP content, longterm performance, and techno-economic feasibility to enhance sustainable construction practices.

    Keywords: Life Cycle Assessment, sustainability, Human health impact, Recycle concrete powder, concrete

    Received: 03 Oct 2024; Accepted: 19 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Manan, Pu, Alattyih, Ahmad and Sabri. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Aneel Manan, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
    Zhang Pu, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
    Wael Alattyih, Qassim University, Buraidah, 52571, Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia
    Jawad Ahmad, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, 44000, Islamabad, Pakistan

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.