Sustainable Retrofitting Criteria in Heritage Buildings: Case Study in Seville (Spain)

Abstract

The construction sector has an important role to play in reducing the threat of climate change. Thus, this work proposes, analyses, and compares two constructive strategies for the intervention/rehabilitation of a protected building located in Seville (Spain). The first solution intends to follow traditional techniques and standardized criteria, while the second option takes into account environmental aspects for the constructive definition of the proposal. An environmental study of each constructive solution, using a life-cycle assessment methodology, as well as an energy behavior analysis were carried out. The results show that the “sustainable proposal” represents a significant environmental improvement, in which a reduction in CO2 emissions and incorporated energy can be appreciated apart from an optimal energy certification. Finally, the sustainable proposal reveals a significant economic reduction in the total budget of the intervention.

Keywords

• sustainable construction
• eco-efficient materials
• life-cycle assessment
• energy simulation
• economic impact