Embodied Energy – A Measure of Sustainability in Buildings & Construction

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Embodied energy in building materials has been studied for the past several decades by researchers interested in the relationship between building materials, construction processes, and their environmental impacts.

Source: www.canadianarchitect.com

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What is embodied energy?
There are two forms of embodied energy in buildings:

· Initial embodied energy; and
· Recurring embodied energy

1.  The initial embodied energy in buildings represents the non-renewable energy consumed in the acquisition of raw materials, their processing, manufacturing, transportation to site, and construction. This initial embodied energy has two components:

• Direct energy the energy used to transport building products to the site, and then to construct the building; and
• Indirect energy the energy used to acquire, process, and manufacture the building materials, including any transportation related to these activities.

2.  The recurring embodied energy in buildings represents the non-renewable energy consumed to maintain, repair, restore, refurbish or replace materials, components or systems during the life of the building.

As buildings become more energy-efficient, the ratio of embodied energy to lifetime consumption increases. Clearly, for buildings claiming to be “zero-energy”…

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