Life cycle assessment of wind tower foundations: Comparative Study

Abstract

Wind energy, despite being environmentally beneficial, is not exempt from environmental impacts. Studies that use the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), a methodology capable of quantifying a system's environmental impacts, usually detect the foundation of the wind turbine as its component with the greatest environmental impact. This article performs a comparative LCA between three types of foundation for a hypothetical wind turbine in Northeast Brazil, two conventional (direct and indirect) and a foundation based on the tensegrity system, a new model that reduces the demand for concrete, through the use of structural elements of tension and compression. The LCA provides evidence that the tensegrity foundation can mitigate impacts of global warming, terrestrial acidification and ecotoxicity, non-renewable energy expenditure, mineral extraction and land occupation of wind turbines. It was also evident that the impacts arising from the use of cement and transport have a great influence on the environmental viability of the studied foundation systems.