this is danielle abbey’s phd project of which i am one of the supervisors. the primary supervisor of the project is dr danielle densley tingley and is funded through a epsrc studentship. danielle’s work is currenlty focusing on understanding the whole life carbon impact of and the scale of challenge in retrofitting commercial buildings in the uk.
researching how to automate commercial retrofit, ensuring sustainability with a life-cycle assessment. this gives truly sustainable measures through an automated system, ensuring the ability to improve the performance of commercial buildings quickly. quick action on buildings around the uk is vital if we are to reach net zero emissions by 2050. looking into the life-cycle embodied carbon of each method should ensure that the materials used will not negatively affect the sustainability of the process. there is also scope to look at the adaptability of these retrofit measures for a future climate as the uk’s temperatures continue to rise.
References
confs
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Demolish or Reuse? – The Balance between Operational and Embodied Emissions in the Retrofit of Commercial Buildings
In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, Apr 2022
There are two clear options for reducing the emissions of poorly-performing buildings: refurbishment of the space to a higher standard or demolition and replacement with a better performing building. Non-residential buildings are subject to the latter of these options more than dwellings due to higher rates of ownership changes. This study assesses the carbon emissions of each of the above options for a poorly-performing retail building in Sheffield, UK. The embodied carbon and operational performance of each scenario are calculated to identify the most sustainable option over a 50 year lifespan. The scenario with the lowest emissions is found to be a retrofit case study relying upon electricity as its sole fuel source. The new build scenarios emitted significantly more carbon over the building’s lifespan despite performing better operationally than the refurbishment scenario. It was also found that, due to the decarbonisation of the national grid, relying on gas boilers instead of electric fuel sources would make carbon emissions approximately 2.5x bigger in the refurbishment model, despite being legal under UK building regulations.