OekoWG

OekoWG – Life Cycle Assessment and Economic Analysis of Heat Supply Technologies for Buildings

Emissions from heating systems in the building sector account for a significant proportion of anthropogenic environmental pollution in Germany. It is therefore important to obtain reliable information on the environmental impact of different heating systems. The aim of the project is to quantify the environmental impacts of heating systems throughout the entire product life cycle, to carry out an economic evaluation and to forecast the future effects by means of a dynamic life cycle assessment. From this, the heating system with the lowest environmental impact and lowest costs can be identified.

In the project, two different buildings will be examined as examples. For this purpose, the heating systems and combinations of heating systems are designed specifically for each building, taking into account the legislation, and described with detailed mass and energy balances over their life cycle. The mass and energy balances are used to conduct life cycle assessments of the different heating systems, broken down by the phases of the product life cycle (production, use, disposal), as well as an economic evaluation of the systems. The results of the ecological and economic investigations are used in an eco-efficiency analysis to put the environmental impact into relation with the costs.

Funding:

We are very grateful for the support and promotion of the project by the Agency for Renewable Resources.