Evaluation of Environment Sustainability of Clay Roof Tiles Manufacturing Practices in Sri Lanka using LCA Technique

Abstract

Clay roof tiles have been one of the most utilised roofing materials in the past. With the introduction of new roofing materials, the popularity of clay roof tiles reduced over the years. However, with the modern trend towards sustainable built environment and policy decisions to ban asbestos fibre-based cement roofing tiles in Sri Lanka, demand for clay roofing tiles is positively affected. Furthermore, due to its environmentally benign performance, some of locally manufactured day roofing tiles have gained foreign markets. However, it is rare to find any detailed study on the overall sustainability of clay roof tiles. In order to assess the environmental sustainability of the day roofing tiles, comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was done from cradle to gate. Two day roof manufacturing processes: semi-conventional and modern were considered for the evaluation. The environmental hotspots were identified through the IPCC GWP and ReCiPe analysis method using the SimaPro LCA software. Results revealed that conventional manufacturing practice is more environmentally sustainable than modern practice because modern practice causes significant influence on both impact assessment methods.