Life cycle assessment (LCA) of sustainable building materials: an overview

Abstract: The construction industry is one of the largest exploiters of both renewable and non-renewable natural resources. It was inevitable that it would find itself at the centre of concerns regarding environmental impact. The process and operation of building construction consumes a great deal of materials throughout its service life cycle. The selection and use of sustainable building materials play an important role in the design and construction of green building. This chapter sets out to present an overview of sustainable building materials and their impacts on the environment. It also discusses the life cycle assessment as a methodological principle and framework, and its limitations for the analysis of sustainable building materials.

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