Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Container Cities and Tent Cities for Earthquake Victims: Environmental Impacts and Sustainability Considerations

The provided text presents a study that compares the environmental impacts of container cities and tent cities used as temporary shelters for earthquake victims. The study utilizes life cycle assessment (LCA), which is a methodology used to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product or process throughout its entire life cycle. The LCA consists of four main phases: goal and scope definition, life cycle inventory, life cycle impact assessment, and interpretation. In the study, the goal and scope are defined as comparing the environmental performance of container cities and tent cities. The research question of the study is to determine and compare the environmental impacts of temporary cities for earthquake victims. The functional unit is set as a temporary city where 100 people will live, with 25 containers and 25 tents needed to accommodate them. The study considers the materials used in the construction of container cities and tent cities, such as steel, concrete, aluminium, cotton textile products, PVC, and stone chips. The life cycle inventory collects data on the inputs and outputs associated with the production, use, and disposal of the products. For example, it gathers information on the manufacturing of shipping containers and the modification process, as well as the extraction and processing of materials used in tents. The study also considers the floor areas of the cities and the thickness of the flooring materials. The life cycle impact assessment evaluates the environmental impacts based on impact categories such as global warming potential, ozone depletion, ionizing radiation, ozone formation, human health, particulate matter formation, terrestrial ecosystems, freshwater and marine eutrophication, freshwater and marine ecotoxicity, human carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic toxicity, mineral and fossil resource scarcity, and water consumption. The results of the study, shown in tables, provide the environmental impacts for each impact category for both container cities and tent cities. The impacts are measured in units such as kilograms of CO2 equivalent for global warming potential and kilo becquerels of Co-60 equivalent for ionizing radiation. It is important to note that the text you provided is part of a research paper or article and provides an overview of the study’s methodology and some results. The full study would include more detailed information and analysis of the environmental impacts of container cities and tent cities.