Cradle to site Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of adobe bricks

Abstract

The application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to construction materials provides a useful inside to the energy embodied in their production and contributes towards educated decision-making regarding the choice of the most environmentally friendly product. This study focuses on the cradle to site LCA of adobe production. It examines different production scenarios: (i) on-site production with locally available soil and transported straw or sawdust, (ii) on-site production with transported soil/straw or sawdust, and (iii) in factory production. The results, in terms of embodied energy and carbon per kg of adobe bricks produced, confirm that the minimization of transportation needs and the utilisation of locally available resources can significantly affect the environmental footprint of an adobe production system. They also show that the use of sawdust instead of wheat straw leads to improved environmental performance of the end-product. The embodied energy and carbon of adobe production is compared to equivalent data referring to other common masonry materials highlighting the eco-friendliness of the material.