An LCIA-based model proposal for the selection of building interior finishing materials

Abstract

The increasing environmental impacts of buildings highlight conscious material selection as a pivotal aspect of sustainable building design. Most current life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) models on material selection focus on the main construction or insulation materials while often neglecting the environmental effects of finishing materials. Hence, this study seeks to present an LCIA-based model for selecting finishing materials based on their environmental impacts. Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) as a data source for the mandatory steps of LCIA is recommended for the model since it provides fast, reliable, and equivalent data on the environmental impacts of the materials. The model is validated by assessing three wall finishing materials in hotel bedrooms- gypsum board, paint, and wood panel. Findings revealed that the model has the potential to mitigate the environmental effects by guiding decisions made during the finishing material selection phase.