Life cycle sustainability assessment of reinforced concrete bridges

Abstract

Achieving sustainability in infrastructure requires a new design approach and implies an improvement of the standardized materials commonly used for the design and construction of structures. Environmental impact, which together with economic and social aspects is one of the three fundamental pillars of a holistically integrated definition of sustainability, is becoming an important factor in the requirements for designing sustainable structures. This paper gives a short summary of a research into state-of-the-art of life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) and their application to bridges, highlighting the phases of the life cycle and the methods employed. Considering that reinforced concrete is one of the most used materials for load-bearing elements of bridges and has a large application potential for all types and lengths of bridges, improving its sustainability is an important task. In that context, different types of concrete for structural use and the possible aspects of improving the sustainability of concrete mixes are discussed, including the “green” concrete.