Hydrogen-based fuels for European aviation: A prospective life cycle assessment applying scenario analysis

Through exploratory scenario development, this study delves into the environmental impacts of European commercial aviation. Climate targets and the adoption of alternative aviation fuels (AAF) following ReFuelEU Aviation are assessed, considering e-fuel produced from direct air capture (DAC) and hydrogen aircraft. A novel method is applied,...

Towards Zero Carbon: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Conventional Renovation Strategies for Terraced Houses, Using Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC) to Enhance Decision-Making Support – accompanied by the design of a tool: Support for short term and long term decision-making in renovation

To reduce global warming the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) must be net zero in 2050, Paris agreement. In the Netherlands the building sector is responsible for 38% of total GHG emissions, 27% being operational carbon (related to energy use) and 11% embodied carbon (related to the use of materials). A large portion of the GHG emissions in...

Lowering ECI/MPG value by implementing sustainable foundations for houses

This research addresses the environmental impact of foundations in lightweight housing units, focusing on BAM's timber house concept, FLOW. While the engineered timber superstructure is environmentally conscious, the foundation's contribution is often overlooked. The study aims to minimise the Environmental Cost Indicator (ECI) of FLOW houses by...

Environmental trade-offs of aerostructures: A prospective lifecycle assessment of wing ribs

Emerging in the domain of composite manufacturing, thermoplastic polymers can enable the reduction of process times, costs, and waste. In this study, lifecycle assessment (LCA) is used to evaluate a design for a carbon fibre-reinforced thermoplastic (CFRTP) wing rib, made from carbon fibre and polyetherketoneketone (CF/PEKK). The CF/PEKK rib is...

Alternative marine energy carrier impact on ship powering and the environment: A comparative conceptual LCA of the operational stage of ship types with alternative marine energy carriers

This thesis investigates the total environmental impact of various alternative marine energy carriers while taking the powering increase into account due to their disadvantageous spatial requirements compared to conventional fuel. A parametric design tool for bulk carriers, tankers, container ships, and trailing suction hopper dredgers has been...

The environmental impact of structural elements made of concrete compared to timber: A case study of terraced housing in the Netherlands

This research tries to answer the question which construction material, concrete or timber, is best to use during the construction of terraced housing in the Netherlands, based on the environmental performance. Existing studies often do not take all aspects of a design for the comparison into account, or have a bias toward one material. In order...

Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of Timber High-Rise: Research and Development of a Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Tool

There are two main challenges in the construction industry: carbon emissions and densification in cities. Timber high-rise might prove as a suitable solution to both these challenges. However, there is a lack of implementation of timber high-rise. This research argues that a lack of thorough analysis of timber design alternatives in the...

Reducing the environmental impact of distribution centres: Environmental impact assessment of the load-bearing structures of distribution centre design alternatives

Buildings influence the environment due to the emission of greenhouse gases, energy use, water consumption, and waste generation. The load-bearing structures of buildings also have a significant share in these emissions. Currently, European and national regulations oblige to focus on sustainability in designs as well. In this research, it is...

Improving the environmental impact of the washing machine product-service system by Coolblue

In 2019 over 670000 new washing machines(WMs) were purchased in the Netherlands (Statista, 2020). With a WM ownershiprate of 98%, the Dutch people have one of the highest WM ownership percentagesin the world (Laitala et al., 2018). In the traditional business model (BM)these WMs will be used, discarded and recycled. In order...

An environmental and economic assessment of solar photovoltaics and nuclear energy in Maharashtra, India

Maharashtra, the second largest state in India in terms of population and area, is a fast-developing economy and meeting its electricity demand is crucial for its economic growth. Currently, power production is causing severe environmental and security issues mainly because of the reliance on coal plants in the state. In order to meet SDG 7 ...

A decision support model for analysing the reuse potential of hollow-core slab floor components

This thesis ‘A decision support model for analysing the reuse potential of hollow-core slab floor components’ describes the development of a decision support model to investigate the reuse potential of a structural building component. For this research, the hollow-core slab floor component is chosen as the structural building component to be...

When energy savings become a waste: How the environmental- and energy performance requirements of buildings can stimulate the building industry towards sustainable design of office facades in the Netherlands

The life cycle of a building has a tremendous impact on the environment. This is due to its energy demand, production and transportation of building materials, and its maintenance. Actually, the building industry is one of the most polluting industries that contribute to climate change. In the Netherlands alone, this sector is chargeable for 50%...

Quantifying Life Cycle Environmental Benefits of Circular Steel Building Designs: development of an environmental assessment tool for reuse of steel members in building designs for the Netherlands

The re-use of building components and structural elements is an underdeveloped practice which could be an important strategy in the global paradigm shift towards a circular economy. Steel is one of the most important structural building materials which combines incredible strength, favourable mechanical properties and excellent durability...