Purpose

Recently, there has been a shift toward the embodied energy assessment of buildings. However, the impact of material service life on the life-cycle embodied energy has received little attention. We aimed to address this knowledge gap, particularly in the context of the UAE and investigated the embodied energy associated with the use of concrete and other materials commonly used in residential buildings in the hot desert climate of the UAE.

Design/methodology/approach

Using input–output based hybrid analysis, we quantified the life-cycle embodied energy of a villa in the UAE with over 50 years of building life using the average, minimum, and maximum material service life values. Mathematical calculations were performed using MS Excel, and a detailed bill of quantities with >170 building materials and components of the villa were used for investigation.

Findings

For the base case, the initial embodied energy was 57% (7390.5 GJ), whereas the recurrent embodied energy was 43% (5,690 GJ) of the life-cycle embodied energy based on average material service life values. The proportion of the recurrent embodied energy with minimum material service life values was increased to 68% of the life-cycle embodied energy, while it dropped to 15% with maximum material service life values.

Originality/value

The findings provide new data to guide building construction in the UAE and show that recurrent embodied energy contributes significantly to life-cycle energy demand. Further, the study of material service life variations provides deeper insights into future building material specifications and management considerations for building maintenance.

中文翻译：

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评估材料使用寿命对阿拉伯联合酋长国住宅别墅隐含能源的影响

目的

最近，人们开始转向对建筑物进行能源评估。然而，材料使用寿命对生命周期蕴含能量的影响却很少受到关注。我们旨在解决这一知识差距，特别是在阿联酋的背景下，并调查了与阿联酋炎热沙漠气候下住宅建筑中常用的混凝土和其他材料的使用相关的能源。

设计/方法论/途径

通过基于输入-输出的混合分析，我们使用平均、最小和最大材料使用寿命值量化了阿联酋一栋建筑寿命超过 50 年的别墅的生命周期隐含能源。使用 MS Excel 进行数学计算，并使用包含超过 170 种建筑材料和别墅组件的详细工程量清单进行调查。

发现

对于基本情况，初始隐含能源为 57% (7390.5 GJ)，而根据平均材料使用寿命值，经常性隐含能源为生命周期隐含能源的 43% (5,690 GJ)。材料使用寿命值最小的经常性隐含能源占生命周期隐含能源的比例提高到68%，而材料使用寿命值最大的则下降到15%。

原创性/价值

研究结果为指导阿联酋的建筑施工提供了新数据，并表明经常性隐含能源对生命周期能源需求做出了重大贡献。此外，对材料使用寿命变化的研究可以更深入地了解未来的建筑材料规格和建筑维护的管理注意事项。