Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method

The recycled asphalt technology is considered to have environmental sustainability prospects due to the resource conservation of old material recycling. Nonetheless, how to quantitatively evaluate the environmental impact of the entire life cycle of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) still needs to be...

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Main Authors: Xiaohua Liu, Lu Deng, Henglong Zhang, Jiangmiao Yu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Developments in the Built Environment
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666165924002655
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author Xiaohua Liu
Lu Deng
Henglong Zhang
Jiangmiao Yu
author_facet Xiaohua Liu
Lu Deng
Henglong Zhang
Jiangmiao Yu
author_sort Xiaohua Liu
collection DOAJ
description The recycled asphalt technology is considered to have environmental sustainability prospects due to the resource conservation of old material recycling. Nonetheless, how to quantitatively evaluate the environmental impact of the entire life cycle of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) still needs to be sorted out. Based on the theory of life cycle management, through the Life-cycle assessment (LCA) method, this study establishes a quantitative assessment model for the environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement. A quantitative assessment model is established for the full life cycle environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement. The model can output a list of environmental impacts for each stage of the life cycle, and can also conduct characteristic impact assessments based on five major impact categories: energy consumption (EC), global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP), human health hazards (HTP), and particulate matter emissions. The results indicate that the acquisition of raw materials is the dominant stage for the environmental impact of cold recycled asphalt pavement, with a proportion of over 50% for each major impact category. In the construction of highways, using recycled modified asphalt mixture can reduce the total emissions by 12,976 kg per kilometer. In addition, the life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis shows that the environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement is mainly quantified by energy consumption and various pollutant emissions, such as CO2, CH4, SO2, CO, N2O, NMVOC, particulate matter, and asphalt smoke. The raw material extraction stage has been identified as the stage with the greatest environmental impact, making significant contributions in energy consumption, global warming potential, acidification potential, human health hazards, and particulate matter emissions. This indicates that utilizing cold recycling technology and increasing the use of recycled RAP materials are efficient ways to promote energy conservation, reduce emissions, and minimize the environmental impact of asphalt pavement throughout its lifecycle.
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spelling doaj-art-e196ce11c07a4ce5a3c0f5cd55b305f82025-08-20T02:49:35ZengElsevierDevelopments in the Built Environment2666-16592024-12-012010058410.1016/j.dibe.2024.100584Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment methodXiaohua Liu0Lu Deng1Henglong Zhang2Jiangmiao Yu3College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, China; Shenzhen General Integrated Transportation and Municipal Engineering Design & Research Institute Co, Ltd, Shenzhen, ChinaCollege of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, China; Key Laboratory of Damage Diagnosis for Engineering Structures of Hunan Province, Hunan University, Changsha, China; Corresponding author. College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, China.College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, ChinaSchool of Civil Engineering and Transportation, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China; Central Fortune Creation (Canton) Roadway Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, ChinaThe recycled asphalt technology is considered to have environmental sustainability prospects due to the resource conservation of old material recycling. Nonetheless, how to quantitatively evaluate the environmental impact of the entire life cycle of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) still needs to be sorted out. Based on the theory of life cycle management, through the Life-cycle assessment (LCA) method, this study establishes a quantitative assessment model for the environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement. A quantitative assessment model is established for the full life cycle environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement. The model can output a list of environmental impacts for each stage of the life cycle, and can also conduct characteristic impact assessments based on five major impact categories: energy consumption (EC), global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP), human health hazards (HTP), and particulate matter emissions. The results indicate that the acquisition of raw materials is the dominant stage for the environmental impact of cold recycled asphalt pavement, with a proportion of over 50% for each major impact category. In the construction of highways, using recycled modified asphalt mixture can reduce the total emissions by 12,976 kg per kilometer. In addition, the life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis shows that the environmental impact of recycled asphalt pavement is mainly quantified by energy consumption and various pollutant emissions, such as CO2, CH4, SO2, CO, N2O, NMVOC, particulate matter, and asphalt smoke. The raw material extraction stage has been identified as the stage with the greatest environmental impact, making significant contributions in energy consumption, global warming potential, acidification potential, human health hazards, and particulate matter emissions. This indicates that utilizing cold recycling technology and increasing the use of recycled RAP materials are efficient ways to promote energy conservation, reduce emissions, and minimize the environmental impact of asphalt pavement throughout its lifecycle.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666165924002655Recycled asphalt pavementLCACarbon emissionsQuantitative evaluation
spellingShingle Xiaohua Liu
Lu Deng
Henglong Zhang
Jiangmiao Yu
Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
Developments in the Built Environment
Recycled asphalt pavement
LCA
Carbon emissions
Quantitative evaluation
title Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
title_full Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
title_fullStr Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
title_full_unstemmed Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
title_short Quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
title_sort quantitative study on carbon emissions of modified recycled asphalt mixture based on life cycle assessment method
topic Recycled asphalt pavement
LCA
Carbon emissions
Quantitative evaluation
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666165924002655
work_keys_str_mv AT xiaohualiu quantitativestudyoncarbonemissionsofmodifiedrecycledasphaltmixturebasedonlifecycleassessmentmethod
AT ludeng quantitativestudyoncarbonemissionsofmodifiedrecycledasphaltmixturebasedonlifecycleassessmentmethod
AT henglongzhang quantitativestudyoncarbonemissionsofmodifiedrecycledasphaltmixturebasedonlifecycleassessmentmethod
AT jiangmiaoyu quantitativestudyoncarbonemissionsofmodifiedrecycledasphaltmixturebasedonlifecycleassessmentmethod