BE GREEN

Engineering Can Be Green

The meaning of the word, Green, is about life, health, and peace. When the concept applied in the civil engineering field, it would be concerned with environmental protection, energy saving, carbon reduction, vegetation, and ecological variety.

The ACE Geosynthetics EcoPark adopted such green concept. Details, such as "How to Create GREEN Environment", "How to Adopt GREEN Engineering methods", "How to Select GREEN Materials", "The Greenhouse Gas Emission", and "The Objects of Assessment" can be found in following sections.

GREEN CONCEPT

How do geosynthetics relate to the “Green Concept”?

The applications of geosynthetics are widely regarded as eco-friendly or near natural construction method. In fact, according to these three aspects, geosynthetics can be applied to realize the “Green Concept” as the followings:

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSION

TYPES

The inventory taken includes the GHG mentioned in the IPCC 2007 fourth assessment report, such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, fluorinated ether, perfluoropolyether, hydrovarbon and other substances that are controlled and monitored by the Montreal Protocol.

CALCULATION

The calculation of GHG emission of this assessment is done by proceeding the quantification in accordance with the method of emission inventory; the assessment estimates the impact based on the carbon emissions within a hundred year after the product is formed, the calculation is as follows:

GHG Emissions = Activity Data x Emissions Factors x GWP value (IPCC 2007)
Activity Data
There are two types of data namely Primary Activity Data and Secondary Data; the primary activity data is the emission figure obtained by multiplying the measure taken from the life-cycle of a product by the emission factor; the secondary data is the figure obtained outside of the product life-cycle, which, according to PAS 2050:2011, is applicable when primary activity data is unable to obtain or impracticable.
Emission Factor
An emission factor is a representative value that attempts to relate the quantity of a pollutant, in this case carbon dioxide, released to the atmosphere with an activity associated.
Global Warming Potential (GWP)
The global warming potential of a GHG refers to the total contribution to global warming resulting from the emission of one unit of that GHG relative to one unit of the reference gas.

OBJECT OF ASSESSMENT

A Reinforced Embankment
The ACE Geosynthetic EcoPark adopted concepts of carbon reduction, water saving, recycling and carbon sink, etc. in the initial design stage. Carbon Footprint and Life Cycle Assessment was carried out for everything that involved in the construction process, e.g. equipment, materials, labor, and the post-construction operation and clean up stage, to determine the overall carbon emissions of this project. We are proud to present the first engineering project awarded with the Carbon Footprint Verification in Taiwan.

System Boundary
According to PAS 2050:2011, the product life cycle system boundary defines the scope for the product carbon footprint, i.e. which life cycle stages, inputs, and outputs should be included in the assessment. Since this engineering project is to provide service to end users, it is conformed to the boundary of cradle-to-grave.

Functional Unit
Unit Length: 209 meters
Unit Width: 5.31 meters
Unit Height: 2.94 meters
Assessment Period: from 06/25/12 to 10/19/12
Functional Unit: A Reinforced Road Embankment

GHG Emissions Information
GHG Emissions: 101.22 ton
Level of Assurance: Reasonable

ACETube®

ACETube® is an innovative product provides solutions for coastal and marine engineering. It is made of high strength polypropylene woven geotextile with good permeability, low elongation and remarkable resistances to UV radiation, corrosion, acid and alkali. Because the geotextile is capable of retaining soil while filtering out water, the design concept of ACETube® is to fill it with in-situ soil to form a firm structure. It is a cost-efficient, low environmental impact, and easy installation solution to engineering works. Moreover, its dewatering function can also be applied to sludge treatments (both industrial and environmental aspects).
 

System Boundary

According to PAS 2050:2008 the assessment of the life-cycle GHG emissions of products, the system boundary can either be B2B (Business to Business) or B2C (Business to Consumer). Since the target geotextile is a material for engineering applications and is provided to engineering/construction firms, it is conformed to the boundary of B2B.
 

Functional Unit 

The functional unit of the assessment is measured by per square meter.
 

GHG Emissions Information

GHG Emissions: 2.479 kg

Level of Assurance: Reasonable

ACEGrid®

ACEGrid® is made of high strength PET yarns with a protective coating of PVC, which provides a good resistance to UV radiation, corrosion, acid and alkali. It is a flexible material that can be easily installed, and is more cost-efficient comparing with the traditional reinforced concrete structure; its stable and durable quality makes it a popular material in the world-wide geotechnical field. Reinforcing the earth with ACEGrid® can improve its tensile strength, resistance to shearing force and erosion, and the overall stability. The reinforced earth wall can nurture vegetation on the surface for a natural esthetic appearance, which also provides a habitat for some living organisms.

 

System Boundary

According to PAS 2050:2008 the assessment of the life-cycle GHG emissions of products, the system boundary can either be B2B (Business to Business) or B2C (Business to Consumer). Since the target geogrid is a material for engineering application and is provided to engineering/construction firms, it is conformed to the boundary of B2B.
 

Functional Unit

The functional unit of the assessment is measured by per square meter.
 

GHG Emissions Information

GHG Emissions: 3.858 kg

Level of Assurance: Reasonable

How to Create “Green” Environment Using Geosynthetics?

Ecology Environment Reservation:

Geosynthetics such as geogrid and geotextile have openings through their bodies which can allow the passage of roots and water. Therefore, creatures’ living spaces are free from over-interrupted and original ecology environment can be reserved.

Landscape Greening:

The apertures on geosynthetics make the room for plant roots to stretch into soils. Therefore, plants can grow on geosynthetic structures (e.g., wrap-around reinforced slope or retaining wall) and then increase their vegetation area, which is beneficial for beautifying environment, controlling local atmosphere’s temperature, enhancing environment comfort, and contributing to carbon sequestration.

Base Water Sustaining:

The apertures on geosynthetics can prevent the water from being blocked by construction structures, and ensure the natural or artificial soil layers within the base are able to contain water and retain rainwater. On the other hand, some geosynthetic materials such as geonet and geopipe are designed fordrainage. When they are properly used, the surface runoff of rainwater can be reduced effectively and finally decrease the loading of downstream waterway.

Choosing Natural Materials:

Using natural materials instead of artificial materials can be beneficial for lowering environmental impact caused by the later ones. For example, applying geomatfor slope vegetation is a “greener” way to control erosion than shotcrete because the concrete sprayed on slope would interrupt rainwater infiltration and plants living which is crucial for the reservation of original environment.

Downsizing Construction Scale to Lower the Impact on Ecology:

It is inevitable that the constructionsite and its surroundings would be influencedby construction process. Therefore, not only site selection should be done carefully but minimized and reasonable scale of construction has to be considered. Because geosynthetics includes materials with diverse functions or even with composite functions, they can be applied flexibly in accordance with in-situ site conditions. When using them properly, the scale downsizing could be achieved effectively.

How to Adopt “Green” Engineering Methods Using Geosynthetics?

Applying with high efficiency and low energy-consumption construction method:

Generally, the applications of geosynthetics are advantageous for simplifying construction process and reducing construction time. As a result, energy consumed by construction vehicles can be reduced.

Diminishing waste:

One characteristic of geosynthetic application is the usage of in-situ materials. For instance, we can fill local sand into geotubes to compose marine structures, or use local soil combined with geogrids to build retaining walls. In the light of exploiting in-situ materials, the volume of waste soil and transportation of soil can be minimized. As a result, polluted air and energy consumption caused by transportation could be reduced.

How to Select “Green” Materials?

High efficiency construction materials:

Concrete is one of the most frequently used construction materials. However, its manufacturing processes consume huge amount of energy and emit lots of greenhouse gas (GHG). Besides, the transportation and usage of concrete have not only the same disadvantages but also pollution problems. The application of geosynthetics, substitutes for concrete, can decrease the demand of concrete. Furthermore, most geosynthetics are much lighter than concrete, so can effectively lower the GHG emissions resulted from their transportation.

Vegetation covering materials:

Because some geosynthetics including geogrid, geotextile, geomat, geobag, soil bag, etc. have the characteristic of permeability which make them applicable in vegetation, they are named vegetation covering materials. Functionally, they have abilities of filtration, separation, reinforcement, drainage, or combination of previous functions. In other words, vegetation covering materials can be used for fulfilling engineering needs and carrying out green vegetation at the same time.

Tour Booking

We sincerely invite you to visit the ACE Geosynthetics EcoPark. A one-hour tour is offered.
With the tour, you would be able to learn more about the followings:
- The making, characteristics and applications of geosynthetic materials
- The concept and construction process of applications using geosynthetic materials

The opening hours are:

09:00-11:30 / 14:00-16:30 (Monday to Friday )

Please complete and send out the following form 3 days prior to the tour date .
We will contact you as soon as possible.

Click here to see the location of ACE Geosynthetics EcoPark


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