LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT (LCA) METHOLOGY OF AIR/AIR HEAT PUMP APLICATED TO A TERTIARY BUILDING AS A CONTRIBUTION TO RENEWABLE ENERGY

Abstract

Industry and construction are responsible of the most important environmental impact generated by the man in their activities, being environmentally the most devastating activities. According to many current researches, it has been proved that between 60% and 65% of atmosphere emissions are caused by processes developed in the life cycle of industry and buildings. The use of materials industrially processed, the international origin of these ones, the high consumption of energy demanded by buildings during their phase of use and an inadequate treatment of waste in a final stage, connect straightly the development of countries and their environmental impact. Many different strategies, i.e. a reduction of energy consumption, a decrease of energy demand with passive design in buildings, a progressive rise of renewable energy and the use of sustainable materials among others, have been started to relieve these problems. One of the most important phases to reduce the enviromental impact is the choice of materials. That is why, it is essential to have the environmental information of the LCA at the stage of elaboration of the projects. In this research, I will develop a "Life Cycle Assessment". This "Life Cycle Assessment" will let us determine which impacts will take place in a heat pump system and which ones will be the most important with the main aim of reducing impacts after a deep analysis of results.