PSI - Issue 55

Giovanna Bartels et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 55 (2024) 88–95 Bartels et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2023) 000 – 000

92

5

Thermal Insulation (MW/ICB/XPS)

(Layer B)

Bonding Material Following the implementation of the roof solution, the attention was focused on critical constructive aspects of the roof. These considerations are fundamental for shaping the Proactive Maintenance Plan, and they were identified through on-site inspections, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Additionally, an internal research initiative involving collaboration with the product development team was conducted. This internal research aimed to discern vulnerable points, potential anomalies, and to understand the expectation of the lifespan of each layer within the system, providing valuable insights for proactive maintenance strategies.

Fig. 2. Simulating a retrofitting scenario with solution in Carregado, Portugal. 2023.

With the gathered data, it was possible to start the literature review. This iterative process involved collaboration with the development team, aiming to anticipated the behaviour of the innovative roofing systems, that doesn’t have historical application data. Through extensive literature studies, it was identified potential roof anomalies. These insights were pivotal in formulating proactive maintenance actions and determining their necessary frequencies. With all these components, and recursive analysis, it was possible to develop the Proactive Maintenance Plan. 3. Results and Discussion The GWP refers to the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted directly or indirectly by the product. It serves as a metric for assessing contributions to global warming. Reducing the carbon footprint is crucial in combating climate change and promoting environmental sustainability. The standard unit of measurement for the carbon footprint is kg CO 2 eq and was calculated for each square meter of every roof combination. Upon analysing each combination results, it is evident that solutions incorporating ICB as thermal insulation yield a lower carbon footprint compared to other alternatives. From an environmental perspective, these solutions prove to be more advantageous. Additionally, the thermal insulation layer emerges as a significantly influential factor in the Carbon Footprint, surpassing the impact of the waterproofing membrane and reinforcements. PE-NRe refers to the total amount of non-renewable energy used during the manufacture of a product, including raw material extraction, transportation, and production. It stands as a vital metric for assessing the environmental impact associated with the production of goods and services. Reducing primary energy in products and processes is a key-factor for promoting sustainability and minimizing the consumption of natural resources. In this context, the focus is primarily on reducing the use of non-renewable energy sources. When examining the results for PE-NRe , both the thermal insulation layer, the waterproofing membrane, and the reinforcements can have significant impacts on the ranking of solutions. The solutions with lower PE-NRe do not necessarily align with those having a smaller GWP. This disparity is because, among the evaluated thermal insulation solutions, ICB has the smallest GWP, while MW stood out for having the lowest PE-NRe , and XPS does not performs well in either of these 2 environmental impact categories.