Life cycle assessment of concrete production with a focus on air pollutants and the desired risk parameters using genetic algorithm

Abstract

Background Through a new systematic perspective, the HSE-integrated management system attempts to examine the relationships between safety, health and environment. The purpose of this system is to provide a coordinated, comprehensive and precautionary assessment of the issues and incidents within concrete plants.Methods In addition to a life cycle assessment (LCA) of concrete through air pollutant emissions in this study, the extraction and monitoring of pollutant from three concrete plants in the city of Mashhad are carried out via fieldwork. In the present study, a number of factors such as the extent and time of exposure to each pollutant are estimated using the meta-heuristic genetic algorithm approach (GA) in order to create the desirable risk rate (risk rate ≤ 3).Results The results of life cycle assessment indicate the production of 348 kg Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) per cubic meter of concrete processing. However, in addition to its environmental effects, CO 2 in concentrations of more than 5000 ppm may cause asphyxiation as well as epidemiologic effects on the staff. Conclusion The results of the study show that in order to reduce the risks of developing chronic diseases such as lung cancer, the staff in cement processing sector must be exposed to a period of at most 3.5 h for each 8-h work interval.

Optimal Design of the Cement, Fly Ash, and Slag Mixture in Ternary Blended Concrete Based on Gene Expression Programming and the Genetic Algorithm

“…The genetic algorithm is used to solve the object function under constraints [20,21]. The GA originated from a computer simulation of biological systems.…”

“…We used the MATLAB global optimization toolbox to solve the objective function under constraints [20,21]. The equation for the object function and constraints can be set in the MATLAB global optimization toolbox.…”

A principal component analysis in concrete design

“…Since the end of the 20th century, new design methods have been proposed to address these problems (e.g. the Mehta/Aitcin method (Mehta & Aietcin, 1990;Alves et al, 2004), Laboratory Central des Ponts et Chausses method (Rossi, 1997;Benaicha et al, 2019), compactness method (Zhang et al, 2015), overall calculation method (Xie, 2012;Shen et al, 2011) and genetic algorithm method (Gheibi et al, 2018;Kumar, 2013)). Some of these methods have proven to be quite successful for specific cases of concrete mixes.…”

Intelligent Optimization Algorithm for Maintenance Scheme Based on Life Cycle Cost

“…The theory of Life Cycle Cost (LCC) was first applied to procurement of expensive military equipment in the United States and then introduced to the field of engineering, its purpose is to manage the decision-making at various stages in the life cycle of engineering projects. The US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) was the first to introduce the application of LCC theory in bridge engineering [1]. Then Hawk proposed a LCC analysis method suitable for bridge structures [2]; and Scott et al conducted an in-depth study on decision-making and economic analysis of bridge decks [3][4][5].…”

“…Holland first applied GA to the optimization and selection of plans, and then GA has become a typical heuristic random search algorithm [9][10][11]. He Hongming used Neural Network (NN) to study the evaluation, prediction and maintenance decision of the deterioration of existing reinforced concrete structures [12][13][14][15]. Based on the specified service level, Liu Xingwang adopted GA as the tool to optimize the pavement maintenance decision-making scheme, and introduced LCC theory and GA to the optimization of the maintenance scheme of the bridge decks [16][17][18].…”