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Life cycle assessment and generative design: development of a national LCA tool for exterior walls

Sally Hassan (Architecture and Urban Planning Department, Faculty of Engineering, Port Said University, Port Said, Egypt)
Osama Abo Eleinen (Architecture and Urban Planning Department, Faculty of Engineering, Port Said University, Port Said, Egypt)
Asmaa Hassan (Architecture and Urban Planning Department, Faculty of Engineering, Port Said University, Port Said, Egypt)
Naglaa Megahed (Architecture and Urban Planning Department, Faculty of Engineering, Port Said University, Port Said, Egypt)

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management

ISSN: 0969-9988

Article publication date: 8 October 2024

104

Abstract

Purpose

The promotion of sustainable design is demanded globally. The life cycle assessment (LCA) proved its reliability in this mission, but the difficulty and time required to apply it discouraged designers. This research aims to integrate LCA into the building design process through a software tool, taking advantage of generative design features. This will facilitate decision-making by architects and construction professionals.

Design/methodology/approach

The study develops the EGY-LCA (http://egy-lca.com/). This prototype tool suggests exterior wall design alternatives for residential buildings in Egypt, using the environmental impact indicators of LCA data and other criteria related to national codes, materials, construction methods and required thermal resistance. Within a generative design process, the algorithm tests every possible wall method with materials and thickness combinations for each layer in compliance with inputs. The paper begins by explaining the tool’s working method. Afterward, different sets of inputs are examined and the values of the resultant environmental impacts of several suggested wall solutions are statistically analyzed. The application demonstrates the importance of the generative design tool. Proposing several solutions based on a set of inputs facilitates the selection of sustainable choices and allows comparisons between alternatives.

Findings

The prototype experiment confirms the research hypothesis. Unlike the available LCA tools, architects can make decisions with limited LCA experience if the data and equations are integrated into a generative design tool. The prototype proves its applicability for exterior wall alternatives.

Research limitations/implications

The prototype is the initial step toward a whole-building LCA tool. It includes limited LCA stages and materials for the external wall. Future research is required to expand this parametric tool concept to include all the building components. The framework in Section 5 proposes a visualization.

Practical implications

The prototype tool: EGY-LCA (http://egy-lca.com/). The value added to the design and construction sectors through the uncomplicated LCA application is fostering sustainable design, generative design tools can achieve this.

Originality/value

The novelty of this work is that it is the first initiative offering a parametric LCA tool. It promotes the application of LCA at the design stage using generative design, which contributes to sustainable development.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the ecoinvent association for providing Port Said University with an educational license. The authors are also appreciative to engineer Amr Elseidy, the software programmer, engineer Mohamed Elkenany for statistical calculation revision and Maya EL-Hawary for copyediting.

Credit authorship contribution statement: Sally Rashad Hassan: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis, Writing-original draft, Visualization, Tool (conceptualizing, algorithms, embedded data & calculations, and graphic. Coding not included). Osama Mahmoud Abo Eleinen: Writing-review & editing, Supervision. Asmaa Mohamed Hassan: Methodology, Writing-review & editing, Visualization, Supervision.Naglaa Ali Megahed: Conceptualization, Writing-review & editing, Visualization, Supervision.

Citation

Hassan, S., Abo Eleinen, O., Hassan, A. and Megahed, N. (2024), "Life cycle assessment and generative design: development of a national LCA tool for exterior walls", Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-06-2024-0722

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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