LCA of an Asphalt Mixture Produced in a Southern Italian Plant: Analysis and Perspectives

In recent years, a growing attention on environmental issues affecting all fields and procedures of the productive sectors has raised, aiming to reduce energy and raw-material consumptions and pollution effects on environment. Due to the involved volumes and to the nature of the related materials and productive processes, the civil and road sectors have been strongly invested by this change of perspective. Therefore, a proper estimation of the environmental impacts for the entire life cycle of the asphalt mixtures for road construction and maintenance activities is extremely important. For performing similar investigations, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has become one of the most reliable and effective methodologies, assuring the possibility to include in a comprehensive analysis all the relevant processes and products, such as raw material extraction, production, use and final recycling. In this paper, a specific LCA analysis, based on the international standards of the ISO 14040 series, of an asphalt mixture is performed, based on primary data, i.e. through data collected or measured directly at a production plant in Sicily. The results, presented in terms of aggregated environmental indicators, are useful for better understanding the overall impact of the productive process, as well as the contribution of its single phases. The results of this research can provide a more reliable and exhaustive analysis on the environmental impacts of an asphalt mixture, assuring a useful numerical reference to producers, contractors and designers that can assume more conscious, informed and sound decisions.