Imam, R and Ayadi, O (2022) Powering electric tower cranes by solar energy for sustainable construction. International Journal of Construction Management, 22(13), pp. 2614-2624. ISSN 1562-3599
Abstract
The construction industry is responsible for many negative environmental impacts that include emissions, waste generation, and the use of land, water, and energy. Most previous construction research attention has focussed on the environmental impacts only for material selection and building operation. Nevertheless, the high electrical demand that comes from the use of construction equipment on-site, mainly tower cranes, is considered a critical component of construction sites that is responsible for a significant volume of CO2 emissions and energy consumption. This research aims to study the feasibility of using photovoltaic (PV) systems to power the electric tower cranes used on construction sites, using as a case study The Mall of the Emirates' expansion project in Dubai. Two concepts of PV systems were designed to power the seven cranes used on site; one connected (on-grid) and the other as a hybrid PV/Diesel system (off-grid). The results indicated that for both cases the solar systems supplied electricity with competitive costs, and reduced the greenhouse gases by substantial amounts. The results are then generalized for different climatic regions; especially for less solar blessed regions. Finally, managerial and policy implications of the study are discussed.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | green construction; photovoltaic; sustainable construction; techno-economic; tower crane |
| Index terms: | CO2 emissions, construction equipment, case study, waste generation, tower crane, energy consumption, photovoltaic, construction industry, land, policy implication, solar energy, sustainable construction, construction site, Dubai, environmental impact, building operation, greenhouse gas |
| Subjects: | industry analysis, Geography, sustainable construction, construction equipment, management, maintenance engineering, energy systems, real estate economics, work location, environmental impact, climate science, data collection methods, air quality, policy studies |
| Topics: | Site Management, Urban Studies, Sustainability, Plant and Equipment, Governance, Business Strategy, Research Practice, Geographical Context |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here