Evaluation of reinforced concrete structural systems in context of carbon emissions and energy consumption: The case of Kocaeli City Hospital

Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in the building and construction industry lead to global and local environmental problems. Therefore, it is important to develop environmentally friendly building systems and buildings in order to reduce environmental problems. With the increase in studies on sustainable building construction, it is aimed to determine the environmental impacts throughout the life cycle of buildings and to minimize carbon emissions and energy consumption by choosing structural system materials. Especially in reinforced concrete structural systems, carbon emissions and energy consumption must be reduced to ensure ecological sustainability. Therefore, the carbon emissions and energy consumption released by reinforced concrete materials into the environment should be calculated. Life cycle assessment (LCA) method is used to measure these values. LCA is an approach that calculates the environmental impacts of a building in the production, use and post-use stages, starting from the extraction of raw materials. This thesis uses the "Cradle to Gate" model as the LCA system boundary. This model includes the processes of production, transportation, processing and conversion of building materials into building materials. Carbon emission and energy consumption values emitted during the production phase of reinforced concrete vii structural systems, material production and transportation to the construction site are examined within the framework of life cycle assessment. ICE (The Inventory of Carbon and Energy) database was used for these calculations. The ICE database is appropriate to local conditions, has project-specific material data and complies with industry standards. For example, the carbon emission and energy consumption values of the reinforced concrete materials of the Kocaeli City Hospital MHA building were calculated with the data obtained from the ICE database. These calculations include determining material quantities and using emission factors and energy consumption data. As a result, this study takes an important step to increase environmental sustainability and reduce carbon emissions and energy consumption in reinforced concrete structural systems. This approach contributes to promoting more sustainable practices in the construction industry.