Carbon Footprint Assessment in the Life-Cycle Design of Concrete Structures in the Tropics: A Case Study of Residential Buildings in Malaysia

Abstract

With the exponential growth in development of cities and increasing demand for construction,
which is one of the factors in environmental degradation, the need for CO2 emissions control is
essential. In order to balance carbon emissions along the life-cycle of concrete structures; in
this paper, we have analysed the carbon emissions and assessed the carbon footprint of selected
concrete structures in a tropical city. For this purpose, the carbon footprint has been evaluated
using Life-Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) approach at different stages concrete
structures’ life-cycle, which are production, construction, operation, and demolition stages,
where the CO2 footprint of two residential buildings in Malaysia have been analysed as case
studies. The findings indicated that the energy consumption, and the production phase in the
life-cycle of a concrete structure are the main contributors of CO2 emission. In addition,
detailed analysis of the carbon cycle in structures and their interaction with other components
involved in the regional eco-system can lead to a significant reduction in CO2 emission, and
thus to the improvement in reducing environmental deterioration and its consequences.
Moreover, optimised design and customisation to the constituents of concrete, as well as
improving citizens’ consumption agenda can significantly reduce the carbon emission of
concrete structures.