Durability of concrete coupled with life cycle assessment: Review and perspective

Extending the service life of structures is an important strategy to mitigate the environmental impacts, in particular, the global warming potential, of the building sector. As a key factor determining service life, the durability performance of reinforced concrete has been investigated for decades. Yet, durability's impact on the eco-efficiency of materials and structures has not been well realized until the early 2010s. Today, an increasing number of publications focus on concrete durability coupled with life cycle assessment (LCA), an important tool for analyzing eco-efficiency. However, the gap between the two research fields, i.e., durability and LCA, has led to divergent methodologies, which hinders the consensus between studies. To bridge this gap, this review covers the recent advances in durability-based LCA. Three aspects were highlighted: 1) how durability influences the eco-efficiency of cementitious materials; 2) how LCA models these effects; and 3) how we come to more justified results. The review argues the necessity of a unified methodology in this field and identifies the importance of performance-based models in justifying durability-based LCA. Further, a framework grounded on the prescriptive and performance-based design methods was proposed to unify the existing divergent methodologies. This framework will facilitate improving the future engineering codes underlining sustainability.

Automated summary

Extending the service life of structures is crucial for mitigating environmental impacts, such as global warming. While the durability of reinforced concrete has been studied for decades, its impact on eco-efficiency has only recently gained attention. This review discusses the recent advances in durability-based life cycle assessment (LCA) and highlights the need for a unified methodology in this field. It proposes a framework that combines prescriptive and performance-based design methods to unify existing divergent methodologies and improve sustainability in engineering codes.