Lessons learnt from embodied GHG emission calculations in zero emission buildings (ZEBs) from the Norwegian ZEB research centre

Abstract

The objective of this work is to present, evaluate and discuss the calculation methodology and embodied greenhouse gas (GHG) emission results from zero emission building (ZEB) case studies from the Norwegian ZEB research centre, to extract design drivers and lessons learnt. In all, two virtual models, and five ZEB pilot buildings are assessed; consisting of three residential, two office and two school buildings. The embodied GHG emission results show that the building envelope (ca. 65%) and production and replacement of materials (ca. 55-87%) are the main contributors to total emissions across the Norwegian ZEB case studies. Although difficult to draw definitive conclusions, this work builds upon the current body of knowledge on embodied GHG emissions in Norwegian ZEBs, and provides some practical indications for embodied GHG emission calculations and reduction strategies in future Norwegian ZEB and zero emission neighbourhood (ZEN) projects.

Reduction Strategies for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from High-Speed Railway Station Buildings in a Cold Climate Zone of China

“…HSRS, known as the gateway to the city, will gradually become the most common type of railway stations, and an increasing amount of constructions will likely promote an upward trend in energy and resource demand in the immediate future. Due to increasingly stringent energy requirements and improved energy efficiency, the embodied GHG emissions from building materials are gaining significance [8][9][10][11]. As a major consumer of societal energy and national resources, it is necessary to conduct evaluative research on HSRS buildings in the scope of embodied GHG emissions.…”

“…As a major consumer of societal energy and national resources, it is necessary to conduct evaluative research on HSRS buildings in the scope of embodied GHG emissions. Several studies have focused on the energy consumption and carbon emissions from multiple building typologies internationally, including residential, office, school, and hotel buildings in China [8,9], Norway [10,11], Spain [12] and the United Kingdom [13]. More attention should be paid to the environmental performance of HSRS buildings, which also needs to be drastically improved.…”

“…In accordance with international LCA standards [32,33], the LCA methodology is used to quantify the life cycle GHG emissions following four main steps: goal and scope, life cycle inventory (LCI), environmental impacts assessment, and results interpretation. Different studies have carried out the life cycle GHG emission calculations with varying objectives, system boundaries, data sources, and levels of detail, following the LCA methodology [11,34,35]. Some studies have briefly evaluated the life cycle CO 2 emissions of an HSRS building for energy efficient and carbon reduction analysis [21,22].…”

From Zero Emission Buildings (ZEB) to Zero Emission Neighbourhoods (ZEN): A Mapping Review of Algorithm-Based LCA

“…For the ZEB-O ambition, the exported energy must be sufficient to compensate for the carbon footprint of all operational energy use. For the ZEB-COMPLETE, the exported energy must compensate the carbon footprint of the whole building in a life cycle perspective [11]. It should be noted that the term ZEB can also refer to a zero energy building.…”

“…Another result was a tool for calculating and documenting greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, referred to as the ZEB tool. The ZEB tool was continually developed through the ZEB Centre's time period, and has been applied to a number of pilot buildings [11].…”