Advancing Life Cycle Assessment of Building Energy: Exploring Policy Contexts, Whole-Life Carbon Thinking, and Net-Zero Carbon Strategies

Dear Colleagues,

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a systematic methodology that enables the evaluation of the environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of a building, from construction and operation to eventual demolition or reuse. Understanding and optimizing the energy consumption and associated environmental burdens of buildings is crucial to achieving sustainability goals and minimizing the overall carbon footprint of the built environment. The advancement of LCA has garnered significant attention in the realm of selecting architectural building materials. It is currently in an initial stage for building service system. We want to comprehensively determine the precise proportion of embodied carbon emissions that can be attributed to the building service systems utilized in construction projects.

This Special Issue tries to focus on the multifaceted aspects of LCA in relation to building energy systems. It delves into three crucial dimensions: policy contexts, whole-life carbon thinking, and net-zero embodied and operational carbon strategies. The issue seeks to contribute to the ongoing efforts of the building industry to achieve sustainability and reduce environmental impacts.

1) Policy Contexts:

The Special Issue begins by examining the policy contexts that shape the landscape of building energy. It explores the influence of building regulations, emphasizing the need for stringent energy efficiency standards and performance metrics. Additionally, it addresses the role of waste and circularity policies, highlighting the importance of reducing construction and operational waste, as well as promoting circular economy practices. The issue also delves into sustainable procurement policies, emphasizing the significance of considering environmental impacts throughout the supply chain. Lastly, sustainable finance policies are discussed, emphasizing the integration of sustainability criteria in investment decisions and the support for low-carbon building initiatives.

2) Whole-Life Carbon Thinking:

The Special Issue underscores the adoption of a whole-life carbon thinking approach that integrates circularity principles into building energy assessment. It recognizes that circularity plays a vital role in reducing environmental impacts and maximizing resource efficiency. The issue presents various strategies to incorporate circularity within building service systems in terms of  repairs, upgrading and renovation, re-use, face-lifts and design for disassembly, etc.

3) Net-Zero Embodied Carbon and Net-Zero Operational Carbon:

Another key focus of this Special Issue revolves around net-zero carbon strategies. It explores the concept of net-zero embodied carbon, which involves reducing and offsetting the carbon emissions associated with building service product selection and installation processes.

Furthermore, net-zero operational carbon emphasizes the importance of reducing carbon emissions during the operational phase of a building service system. This Special Issue presents studies and approaches that facilitate the integration of renewable energy systems, energy-efficient technologies, and smart building management systems to achieve net-zero operational carbon.

Overall, this Special Issue of Buildings aims to provide a comprehensive exploration of the Life Cycle Assessment of building energy, addressing policy contexts, whole-life carbon thinking, and net-zero carbon strategies. The insights and findings presented in this issue aim to contribute to the knowledge base and foster sustainable practices within the building industry, ultimately advancing the transition towards a low-carbon future.

Dr. Jingchun Shen
Dr. Jonn Are Myhren
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• regulatory and policy context
• building service system
• building energy
• HVAC
• renewable energy
• sustainability
• environmental impact
• embodied carbon
• carbon footprint
• upfront carbon
• operational carbon
• whole Life carbon
• carbon designer
• circularity
• sustainable procurement
• sustainable finance
• sustainable construction
• carbon risk monitoring
• digitalization
• digital renovation
• design for disassembly
• climate change mitigation
• climate change adaptation
• product life-cycle management