Life cycle impacts of grid and micro-generation options for achieving net-zero carbon building goals

Date

2026-5

Author

İnceöz, Enes

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Decarbonizing the built environment requires an accurate and comprehensive accounting of operational carbon emissions. Türkiye's 2043 net-zero building target underscores this urgency, yet current assessment metrics often fall short. Quantifying buildings’ operational emissions cannot rely solely on on-site energy combustion; it must also account for the embodied emissions of the energy infrastructure supplying buildings. The true carbon intensity of electricity encompasses both generation related emissions and lifecycle emissions of the infrastructure system. Despite this, infrastructure emissions remain largely overlooked in Türkiye, leading to an underestimation of the sector's decarbonization trajectory. Therefore, this study quantifies the true operational carbon emissions of a case office building in Ankara by accounting for the total embodied and operational emissions of its grid electricity supply, including generation emissions, power losses, and the embodied emissions of the transmission and distribution network, through an extensive Life Cycle Assessment. Furthermore, it evaluates the cost reduction potential of solar panels installed on the roof and façade across four scenarios, including a “net-zero energy building scenario” and a “business-as-usual” scenario. The "business-as-usual" scenario, without solar panels, yields a carbon footprint of 315.45 tCO2eq. The "net-zero energy building" scenario results in 60.69 tCO2eq, an 80.75% reduction from the baseline, with a carbon abatement cost of -207.90 $/tCO2eq, indicating that solar panels provide financial savings while reducing operational carbon emissions. The results serve as a benchmark for understanding the impact of net-zero energy buildings, accounting for the environmental impact of electricity across every phase of its delivery to end users.

Subject Keywords

Net zero energy buildings, Operational carbon emissions, Life cycle assessment, Transmission and distribution emissions, Carbon footprint of the grid

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/119710

Collections

Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis