Pdeng in developing LCA and LCC models to support the sustainable valorization of building CDW in road pavement infrastructure
Would you like to contribute to improve the sustainability of the Dutch building Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) management and road transportation infrastructure sectors? Are you passionate about high-end technological design? Then, this Professional Doctorate in Engineering (PDEng) programme may be for you.
The PDEng is a 2-year post-master’s degree, technological designers programme. This programme at the University of Twente contains an educational part and a design project. For the project, you will work with TNO. The educational programme will have an in-depth character with ample attention for professional development and will be partly tailored to the design project. Together with the external organisation, you will develop a high-level and creative solution for the given problem.
JOB DESCRIPTION
The Netherlands is widely recognized as a frontrunner in CDW recycling. However, the majority of the CDW is used as a road base material or as filler material to raise the level of industrial estates. Recycling in such low-value applications is called downcycling and consists of using recycled material for an application of less value than the original purpose of the material. Given the current context where Rijkswaterstaat is moving from the construction of new transportation infrastructure to the maintenance and rehabilitation of the existing ones, the market for downgraded recycled materials is expected to achieve a saturation point.
Using CDW materials in bounded layers of road pavement infrastructure is a promising alternative to downcycling that multiple recent research efforts have proved to be technically possible. However, the extent to which such alternative recycling routes are environmentally and economically beneficial remains unknown.
This project aims to tighten the links between building and road transportation infrastructure sectors through the development of life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) models to quantify the environmental impacts and costs associated with the use of building CDW materials in bounded layers of road pavement infrastructure.
ACTIVITIES
1. Characterization (i.e., quantity, quality, composition and availability) of the CDW associated with the Dutch building sector
2. Identification of alternative technical applications of recycled building CDW materials in road pavement infrastructure
3. Identification of the key stakeholders influencing the use of recycled materials in road pavement infrastructure
4. Quantification of the demand for raw materials in road pavement infrastructure that can be replaced by recycled building CDW materials
5. Identification of the processes involved in the different building CDW recycling strategies
6. Development of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to model to quantify the environmental impacts associated with the valorisation of building CDW in road pavement infrastructure
7. Development of a Life Cycle Costs (LCC) model to quantify the costs associated with the valorisation of building CDW in road pavement infrastructure
Information and application
If you have any further questions about this vacancy of the PDEng programme in Civil Engineering, please contact Dr. João Santos at j.m.oliveiradossantos@utwente.nl or Dr. Seirgei Miller at s.r.miller@utwente.nl or telephone: 053 489 5886.
Please submit your application until October 14th, 2022 by using the “Apply now” button. Applications should at least include:
- A curriculum vitae including publications and references (if any)
- A cover letter
- A list with grades of courses
General information about PDEng programmes you can find at http://www.utwente.nl/pdeng/ or http://www.utwente.nl/pdeng/en/
About the organization
The Faculty of Engineering Technology (ET) engages in education and research of Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Industrial Design Engineering. We enable society and industry to innovate and create value using efficient, solid and sustainable technology. We are part of a ‘people-first' university of technology, taking our place as an internationally leading center for smart production, processes and devices in five domains: Health Technology, Maintenance, Smart Regions, Smart Industry and Sustainable Resources. Our faculty is home to about 2,900 Bachelor's and Master's students, 550 employees and 150 PhD candidates. Our educational and research programmes are closely connected with UT research institutes Mesa+ Institute, TechMed Center and Digital Society Institute.
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