RoofKrete

Embodied Energy

Embodied energy is the measurement of the amount of energy required to produce a tonne or sq. m of a product. It can also be used to measure the carbon within the product. Generally the lower the embodied energy &Carbon –the better a product is for the environment. The embodied energy of materials is usually about 85 % of the total energy input in the production of a building. Most tables of embodied energy only include the energy to the “ factory gate “, and does not include transport energy from factory to site, and does not include the energy to recycle.

Roofkrete and Krete Membranes have the very lowest “embodied energy” contributing less to global warming than every other flat roofing/ balcony/ terrace/ green roof system, as demonstrated in the typical examples below taken from “ the inventory of carbon and energy (ICE ) report “ produced by the department of Mechanical Engineering Univ Bath., and the web site of Sarnafil UK (probably the worlds largest manufacturer of Single Ply PVC and Single Ply TPO - petrochemical based membranes) and the GREEN PRO REGISTER (www.newbuilder.co.uk)

Comparison of Embodied Energy/Sustainability of All Waterproofing Membranes

Click here for a summary of how thick concrete is becoming more sustainable. (Please note RoofKrete is only 5mm thick). You can download it as a PDF below.

• Research on embodied energy at the University of Sydney, Australia
• CSIRO on embodied energy: Australia's foremost scientific institution
• Australian Greenhouse Office, Department of the Environment and Heritage
• Ben Fusaro's Env. Math. Course
• University of Bath (UK), Embodied Energy & Carbon Material Inventory

Measurement of Embodied Energy

The UK Code for Sustainable Homes and USA LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design are standards in which the embodied energy of a product or material is rated, along with other factors, to assess a building's environmental impact. Embodied energy is a new concept for which scientists have not yet agreed absolute universal values because there are many variables to take into account, but most agree that products can be compared to each other to see which has more and which has less embodied energy. Comparative lists (for an example, see the Bath University Embodied Energy & Carbon Material Inventory[6]) contain average absolute values, and explain the factors which have been taken into account when compiling the lists.

Typical embodied energy units used are MJ/kg (megajoules of energy needed to make a kilogram of product), tCO2 (tonnes of carbon dioxide created by the energy needed to make a kilogram of product). Converting MJ to tCO2 is not straightforward because different types of energy (oil, wind, solar, nuclear and so on) emit different amounts of carbon dioxide, so the actual amount of carbon dioxide emitted when a product is made will be dependent on the type of energy used in the manufacturing process. For example, the Australian Government[7] gives a global average of 0.098 tCO2 = 1 GJ. This is the same as 1 MJ = 0.098 kg CO² = 98 g CO² or 1 kg CO² = 10.204 MJ.

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