Life cycle assessment (LCA) considers all life-cycle phases from initial construction to demolition. For pavements, this includes the operation, maintenance, and end of life phases, and factors such as traffic delay, lighting demand, and future maintenance. CSHub models quantify environmental impacts across a pavements life cycle from manufacturing to disposal and offer detailed analysis of the use phase.
Related Research Briefs
- Impact of Use Phase in Pavement Life Cycle Assessment: A Case Study of Alternative Designs in Different Contexts (April 2014)
- Key Drivers of Uncertainty in Pavement LCA (November 2012)
- Comparative Pavement LCAs With Uncertainty (June 2012)
- Network, Pavements and Fuel Consumption (April 2012)
- Adopting a Life Cycle Perspective (April 2011)
- Designing for Sustainable Pavements (March 2011)
Reports
- Supplementary Information for Comparative Pavement Life Cycle Assessment and Life Cycle Cost Analysis (April 2014)
- Pavements: Methods, Impacts, and Opportunities in the Concrete Industry (August 2011)
- Life Cycle Assessment of Highway Pavements (Interim Report, December 2010)
Related Peer-Reviewed Publications
- Kirchain, R., Gregory, J., Olivetti, E. Environmental life-cycle assessment. Nature Materials, 16 693–697 (2017)
- Gregory, J., Noshadravan, A., Olivetti, E.A., Kirchain, R., A Methodology for Robust Comparative Life Cycle Assessments Incorporating Uncertainty. Environmental Science & Technology, Vol. 50: Issue. 12: Pages. 6397-6405.
- Louhghalam A., Akbarian, M., Ulm F-J. Carbon management of infrastructure performance: Integrated big data analytics and pavement-vehicle-interactions. Journal of Cleaner Production. Volume 142, Part 2, 20 January 2017, Pages 956-964. 2016
- Noshadravan A., Xu X., Gregory J., Kirchain R., “Uncertainty management in comparative life-cycle assessment of pavements”, Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium on Concrete Roads, Prague, Czech Republic, September 23-26, 2014.
- Xu X., Noshadravan A., J. Gregory, R. Kirchain, “Scenario analysis of comparative pavement life cycle assessment using a probabilistic approach,” Proceedings of the International Symposium on Pavement LCA, Davis, CA, October 14-16, 2014.
- J. Mack, X. Xu, J. Gregory, R. Kirchain, “Developing robust rehabilitation scenario profiles for life cycle assessment using decision tree analysis,” Proceedings of the International Symposium on Pavement LCA, Davis, CA, October 14-16, 2014.
- Santero N., Loijos A., Ochsendorf J., Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Opportunities for Concrete Pavements, Journal of Industrial Ecology, Volume 17, Issue 6, Pages 859–868, 2013
- Noshadravan A., Wildnauer M., Gregory J., Kirchain R., Comparative Pavement Life Cycle Assessment with Parameter Uncertainty, Transportation Research Part D, 25, Pages 135-138, 2013
- Akbarian M., Moeini-Ardakani S.S., Ulm F.-J., Nazzal M., Mechanistic Approach to Pavement-Vehicle Interaction and Its Impact on Life-Cycle Assessment, Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 2306, Pages 171-179, 2012
- Mack J., Ulm F.-J., Gregory J., Kirchain R., Akbarian M., Swei O., Wildnauer M., Designing Sustainable Concrete Pavements using the Pavement-ME Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design and Life Cycle Analysis, International Conference on Long-Life Concrete Pavement, 2012
- Loijos A., Akbarian M., Sahni S., Ochsendorf J., Sensitivity Analysis of the Life Cycle Environmental Performance of Asphalt and Concrete Pavements, Concrete Sustainability Conference, 2010
Also see: Pavement Vehicle Interaction (PVI)