Methodology for the quantification of concrete sustainability

Abstract

Abstract. Efficient sustainability management requires the use of tools which allow material, technological and construction variants to be quantified, measured or compared. These tools can be used as a powerful marketing aid and as support for the transition to "circular economy". Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) procedures are also used, aside from other approaches. LCA is a method that evaluates the life cycle of a structure from the point of view of its impact on the environment. Consideration is given also to energy and raw material costs, as well as to environmental impact throughout the life cycle -e.g. due to emissions. The paper focuses on the quantification of sustainability connected with the use of various types of concrete with regard to their resistance to degradation. Sustainability coefficients are determined using information regarding service life and "eco-costs". The aim is to propose a suitable methodology which can simplify decision-making in the design and choice of concrete mixes from a wider perspective, i.e. not only with regard to load-bearing capacity or durability.

Analysis of Slag-Containing Steamed Concrete’s Composition Efficiency

“…The calculations were performed using the Statistica 6.0 (Statsoft) software package [28]. (10) Concrete compressive strength, 28 days after steaming, MPa (11) Criterion of cement efficiency for concrete, 4 h after steaming (L 4h ), MPa/kg (12) Criterion of cement efficiency for concrete, 28 days after steaming (L 28d ), MPa/kg…”

“…Moreover, concrete composition design should also consider the possibility of using technogenic waste and its effect on the concrete properties [7][8][9][10][11]. The main material resource, the rational use of which characterizes, to a large extent, the concrete composition's effectiveness, is cement [12][13][14][15][16]. As an integral economic criterion for the concrete composition's optimality, the total costs of its production with standardized properties can be considered [17].…”

“…Figure 5.Example of graphic determination of the optimal crushed stone part in the aggregates (X 1 ) and the part of slag in the fine aggregates (X 2 ) according to the maximum value of the L 4h criterion. When constructing the response surface according to Equation(12), the following values were adopted: C/W = 2.32, W s = 10%, W sc = 2.5%, and W sl = 9%.…”