Since the construction industry has a significant impactful footprint on the climate, a transition to sustainable solutions is imperative. Concrete is the predominant material for load-bearing structures in multi-residential buildings and is usually used in more walls than necessary, resulting in unnecessary excess of carbon dioxide. This study aims to climate-optimize the intended load-bearing structure in a multi-residential building project by evaluating the possibility of an alternative load-bearing structure. Concrete party walls, those which are unnecessary for load-bearing purposes, are removed in the alternative load-bearing structure and replaced with stud walls that meet sound and fire requirements. The comparison is made between the alternative and intended load-bearing structures concerning structural performance and overall climate impact. To comprehend the subject, an extensive literature study was conducted. Subsequently, the load-bearing structures were modelled in FEM-design program to analyse and compare structural aspects. Using FEM-Climate, life-cycle analyses (LCAs) were performed for both load-bearing structures to assess the difference in the total amount of carbon dioxide equivalents ( ). The results indicate that utilization rates are optimized in the alternative load-bearing structure with the reduction of concrete walls. Furthermore, the results show that the deflection value in the alternative load-bearing structure increases relative to the intended, which is deemed acceptable according to the established requirements. Moreover, LCA results show that the total amount of carbon dioxide equivalents ( ) decreased by approximately 6.5% kg per gross area in the alternative load-bearing structure. However, with the replacement of stud walls, the total amount of increased by about 6% kg per gross area. This resulted in the alternative load-bearing structure being a less favourable solution than the intended one, as no optimization had been achieved from a climate perspective according to the LCA calculations and values. Since the construction industry has a significant impactful footprint on the climate, a transition to sustainable solutions is imperative. Concrete is the predominant material for load-bearing structures in multi-residential buildings and is usually used in more walls than necessary, resulting in unnecessary excess of carbon dioxide. This study aims to climate-optimize the intended load-bearing structure in a multi-residential building project by evaluating the possibility of an alternative load-bearing structure. Concrete party walls, those which are unnecessary for load-bearing purposes, are removed in the alternative load-bearing structure and replaced with stud walls that meet sound and fire requirements. The comparison is made between the alternative and intended load-bearing structures concerning structural performance and overall climate impact. To comprehend the subject, an extensive literature study was conducted. Subsequently, the load-bearing structures were modelled in FEM-design program to analyse and compare structural aspects. Using FEM-Climate, life-cycle analyses (LCAs) were performed for both load-bearing structures to assess the difference in the total amount of carbon dioxide equivalents ( ). The results indicate that utilization rates are optimized in the alternative load-bearing structure with the reduction of concrete walls. Furthermore, the results show that the deflection value in the alternative load-bearing structure increases relative to the intended, which is deemed acceptable according to the established requirements. Moreover, LCA results show that the total amount of carbon dioxide equivalents ( ) decreased by approximately 6.5% kg per gross area in the alternative load-bearing structure. However, with the replacement of stud walls, the total amount of increased by about 6% kg per gross area. This resulted in the alternative load-bearing structure being a less favourable solution than the intended one, as no optimization had been achieved from a climate perspective according to the LCA calculations and values.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-533699 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Haboush, Asmaa |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Tillämpad mekanik |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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