Investigating embodied carbon of common floor ceiling assemblies and low carbon buildups to meet new requirements

The buildings and construction sector is known to be the largest global emitter of greenhouse gasses, representing 37% of all emissions. International building regulations are poised to incorporate embodied carbon targets for new building construction, with restrictions expected to become stricter over time. California became the first state to add embodied carbon emission control as part of the California Green Building Standards Code. Some cities are also enacting policies like Toronto where new city owned buildings must demonstrate less than 350kg/CO2/m2. With this increased focus and requirements, whole building life cycle assessments will become an important tool in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) design process. These evolving environmental regulations demand a deeper understanding of the relationship between the acoustic performance and embodied carbon of common assemblies. This work compares this relationship in several construction types, including concrete, mass timber, and wood frame assemblies. This relationship is evaluated by using environmental product declarations (EPDs) and acoustic testing of various assembly types to offer a holistic comparison of the performance metrics. The findings will support development of best practices for selecting materials and acoustic design approaches to balance low embodied carbon with high acoustic performance and support the construction industry to meet future environmental standards.