PYRAMID PYRAMIDE
The building material pyramid
Byggemateriale pyramide
Everybody knows “the food pyramid” in Denmark. It tells us about the relationship between what we consume when we eat and our health – what we can eat in large quantities and where to be apprehensive. In the fall of 2017, we developed mini “consumer py ramids” for building materials together with candidate students from SET/KADK, with the aim of understanding what can be used without strict limitations and where to be cautious in relation to construction. Based on Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), the initial impacts (GWP only) were established for all the materials in question. A point was that the architecture should be design for disassembly (DfD), and therefore we chose to focus on the phases, until we stood there with the material in our hands (EPD A1–A3). From there, it was our responsibility, as architects, to ensure that the lifespan of the materials was not tied to the overall composition of the building component and therefore defined by the worst performing material. It was the ambition – in this fashion – to bypass the problematic standard a ssumptions that govern the output of life-cycle assessments. In other words, the pyramid is a way to show the environmental impact associated with the production of materials. From this point, the lifetime of the material is handled as a technical design parameter.
I Danmark kender alle madpyramiden. Den fortæller os om forholdet mellem vores indtag og vores sundhed; Hvad vi kan indtage i store mængder, og hvor vi skal være påpasselige. Med kandidatstuderende fra SET/KADK udviklede vi i efteråret 2017 mini-pyramider for byggeriets materialer, med det formål at forstå hvad vi kan bruge løs af, og hvor vi skal være påpasselige, når det kommer til byggeriet. Baseret på Miljødeklarationer (EPD) fastlagdes det miljøaftryk (kun GWP) for de materialer, som var i spil. Da pointen var at alt skulle designes, så det kunne adskilles (DfD), valgte vi at fokusere på faserne, indtil vi stod med materialet i hånden (EPD A1-A3). Så var det vores ansvar som arkitekter, at sørge for at materialernes levetid ikke blev defineret af bygningsdelen som helhed og dermed laveste fællesnævner. Hermed forsøgte vi at udfordre og undgå standardantagelserne om byggematerialers påvirkninger igennem byggeriets levetid, som er problematiske ved anvendelsen af livscyklusanalyse (LCA). Med andre ord; pyramiden er en måde at synliggøre den miljøpåvirkning der er forbundet med materialers produktion. Materialets levetid bliver derefter håndteret som et teknisk designparameter.
kg CO2 Eq kg material
kg CO2 Eq kg material
1 Wood for construction Konstruktionstræ (GNS) -1.44 10 New brick Nye mursten 2 CLT (Cross-laminated timber) CLT -1.28 11 Mortar Mørtel 3 Straw Halm -1.28 12 Mineral wool Mineraluld 4 Wood fiber insulation Træfiberisolering -1.10 13 Steel Stål 5 Plywood Krydsfiner -1.01 14 Rubber sealant Gummifugemasse 6 CEB (Compressed Earth Brick) Ubrændte lersten 0.08 15 PVC sheet material PVC pladematriale 7 Salvaged brick Genbrugte mursten 0.003 16 Aluminum plate Aluminiumsplade 8 Plasterboard Gipsplader 0.22 17 Alu window frame Alu vinduesramme 9 Insulation block Poreteglblokke 0.24 18 Copper Kobber
30
PYRAMID PYRAMIDE
0.26 0.5 1.57 1.735 4.01 4.30 10.69 12.69 17.77
