Quantification of Particulate Matter from Commercial Building Excavation Activities Using Life-Cycle Approach
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 139, Issue 12
Abstract
Construction activities generate large amounts of differing emissions, including particulate matter (PM). These particles are of various aerodynamic diameters—between 10 and 2.5 μm (), or coarse particulates, and smaller than 2.5 μm (), or fine particulates. Coarse particulates are more commonly associated with fugitive dust releases, whereas fine particulates are generally from the combustion of fossil fuels. The combination of construction equipment and diesel fuel combustion emissions and excavated and then exposed earth on a construction site is of particular concern with respect to PM emissions. This research developed a life-cycle assessment model to quantitatively evaluate PM emissions at different scales. An illustrative case study is used to explore the excavation phase of an urban high-rise. The excavation phase includes excavation and hauling of soil, mobilizing and demobilizing of equipment, workers commuting, delivery of fuel, handling of soil at the soil disposal site and the nonregional activities of equipment manufacturing, and the production and distribution of fuels. The emissions generated at the excavation site accounted for 23% of and 13% of total life-cycle emissions by location, whereas the emissions generated over roadways accounted for 59 and 77% of total life-cycle and , respectively. The remaining emissions by location were generated at the soil disposal site and outside of the regional boundary. The majority of regional (89%) and (90%) emissions were a direct result of soil-hauling activities. The results present a case for further discussion and analysis of the impacts of hauling soil on regional human health.
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Acknowledgments
The authors wish to acknowledge the support of their industry partners in the University of Pittsburgh program. In particular, they wish to thank PNC Financial Services Group and PJ Dick for providing access to construction documents. The authors would like to acknowledge the University of Pittsburgh’s Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation for providing funding and support. This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under EFRI-SEED Grant #1038139. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 139 • Issue 12 • December 2013
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Dec 17, 2012
Accepted: Jul 2, 2013
Published online: Aug 27, 2013
Published in print: Dec 1, 2013
Discussion open until: Jan 27, 2014
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