A Comparison of Life Cycle Impact of Mass Timber and Concrete in Building Construction

Table 6.

Combined LCA results for stages A to D (not including theoperational energy use phase) for beams and columns sections of the design– from Athena impact estimator for buildings.

LCA Measures

Columns and beams, (Concrete)

Columns and beams, (Glulam)

Columns and beams (LVL/PSL)

Global Warming Potential, kg CO2 eq

1.63E+04

-1.75E+03

3.97E+02

Acidification Potential, kg SO2 eq

7.68E+01

1.17E+01

2.03E+01

HH Particulate, kg PM2.5 eq

3.10E+01

1.81E+00

2.30E+00

Eutrophication Potential, kg N eq

5.43E+00

1.23E+00

1.57E+00

Ozone Depletion Potential, kg CFC-11 eq

8.68E-05

2.42E-05

4.26E-06

Smog Potential, kg O3 eq

1.41E+03

2.15E+02

3.13E+02

Total Primary Energy, MJ

1.82E+05

2.91E+04

4.87E+04

Non-Renewable Energy, MJ

1.76E+05

1.69E+04

3.04E+04

Fossil Fuel Consumption, MJ

1.44E+05

1.69E+04

3.04E+04