 Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research.  You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain  You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim.

 Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research.  You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain  You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim.

No abstract

 Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research.  You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain  You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim.

No abstract

Life cycle assessment is a methodology to assess environmental impacts associated with a product or system/process by accounting resource requirements and emissions over its life cycle. The life cycle consists of four stages: material production, manufacturing, use, and end-of-life. This study highlights the need to conduct life cycle assessment (LCA) early in the new product development process, as a means to assess and evaluate the environmental impacts of (nano)enhanced carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) prototypes over their entire life cycle. These prototypes, namely SleekFast sailing boat and handbrake lever, were manufactured by functionalized carbon fibre fabric and modified epoxy resin with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The environmental impacts of both have been assessed via LCA with a functional unit of ‘1 product piece’. Climate change has been selected as the key impact indicator for hotspot identification (kg CO2 eq). Significant focus has been given to the end-of-life phase by assessing different recycling scenarios. In addition, the respective life cycle inventories (LCIs) are provided, enabling the identification of resource hot spots and quantifying the environmental benefits of end-of-life options.

No abstract

Off-site prefabrication systems continuously gain attention in the building industry as they combine fast construction with fewer and more sustainable resources as well as minimize disturbance for occupants. In this direction, adaptable off-site prefabricated envelope components with embodied HVAC systems have been developed as an effective renovation solution. They can minimise thermal losses through the envelope while at the same time integrated HVAC systems efficiently maintain indoor thermal comfort conditions. In this study, a “Plug-and-Play” prefabricated envelope component incorporating HVAC systems is examined as a solution for the deep renovation of a typical single-family residence in Berlin, aiming to reach NZEB state. This versatile modular system, called SmartWall, can be installed either to the exterior or the interior side of the external wall, incorporating timber-based frame, boards and insulation, high-performance windows and a slim-type fan coil. The evaluation of this prefabricated system is investigated with respect to its energy performance both at component and building level, as well as its calculated embodied energy. The results indicate a reduction of 89% total primary energy highlighting that NZEB state can be ensured if the SmartWall application is combined with sufficient photovoltaic modules. The climate change potential contribution of such retrofit indicates a significant amount of embodied energy, which is nevertheless counterbalanced by the operational energy savings within the first few years after the implementation.