Quantitative Study on the Life-Cycle Carbon Emissions of a Nearly Zero Energy Building in the Severe Cold Zones of China

This work aimed to quantitatively study the carbon emissions and carbon reduction potential of a nearly Zero Energy Building in a severe cold zone of China from the perspective of its life cycle. The methods were based on China’s “Standard for building carbon emission calculation” (GB/T51366-2019), which include the production, transportation, operation, and demolition stages. For the nearly Zero Energy Building, the total carbon emissions over its whole life were 789.43 kg CO 2 /m 2 , an 86.20% reduction compared to the 5719.68 kg CO 2 /m 2 for a 65% energy-saving building. The carbon emission percentages of the production stage and operation stage for the building materials are 75.62% and 20.40%, respectively. To enhance the carbon reduction potential, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to explore the impact of the use of a wood structural system, recycled concrete replacement, and photovoltaic power generation. The use of a wood structure system can achieve zero or negative carbon emissions in the production stage. The sensitivity of the carbon emissions of the nearly zero energy building (nZEB) to the increment of photovoltaic power generation is much higher than that of the recycled concrete replacement rate, providing a basis for further exploration of the development of nZEBs into zero carbon buildings.