Life Cycle Assessment of building nanomaterials: indoor and outdoor issues

Nanomaterials are currently being considered for using in modern technology, with a vast range of applications, such as in medicine, electronics, building materials, commercial products and energy production. On the other hand, there is a serious lack of information concerning the toxicity and environmental impact of nanomaterials. Nanotitania is widely used in building sector since it is well known its photocatalytic properties, which decomposes air pollutants as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). LCA is an established method to assess potential impacts to the natural environment and on human health, along the whole life cycle [1]. Moreover, LCA has been recognized as a key tool for assessing the environmental performance of nanoproducts [2]. Four LCA case studies on building materials functionalized with nanoTiO2 (resin, glass, glaze and tile) have been conducted in order to identify the life cycle steps where the nanoparticle release mainly occurs. Outdoor installations have been considered for all building materials excluding resin case study, where indoor application has been assessed. A preliminary evaluation of the potential damage on human health and environment caused by released nanoTiO2, during the life cycle stages, has been calculated. The outcomes showed that the phases mainly affected by nanoTiO2 releases are: nanocoating application, maintenance operations and end of life steps. In collaboration with Empa, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, a framework to evaluate the characterization factor for human indoor exposure using USEtox modelling has been developed