Minimising the embodied carbon of reinforced concrete piles using a multi-level modelling tool with a case study

Abstract

The construction industry is one of the main contributors to the increasing carbon emissions globally. With an increasing interest in optimising the embodied carbon of superstructures, very little attention is paid to optimising the embodied carbon of substructures although foundations are responsible for a considerable share of the total carbon emissions within any structures. This research focuses on minimising the embodied carbon of reinforced concrete piles and introduces a novel multi-level modelling tool that can be used by designers to discover the full range of feasible design scenarios with optimised environmental impact. Results show that adjusting design parameters like concrete grade (fck), pile slenderness ratio (L/D) and steel-to-concrete ratio (As/Ac) can lead to a significant cut in the final value of embodied carbon. The modelling tool is applied to a case study of a monorail bridge and showed that a 51.4% potential carbon saving can be achieved through adjusting the design parameters, moreover, a significant 72.4% cut is achievable if this is coupled with switching to cleaner materials.