Application of Energetic Life Cycle Assessment of Retrofit Interventions on the Historical Heritage: The Case of “Palazzo Del Sedile”

In recent years the legislation in energetic certification of buildings oriented the construction sector towards an increasing restraint about energy requirements, associated with the different phases of life cycle of a building. For this purpose, the Life Cycle Assessment, internationally recognized for reliable valuation of energy and environmental performances, is still a useful tool to determine any impact in the life cycle of process. The first part of this paper focuses on LCA and its application to historical heritage. A reported analysis of literature and a description of the software and methods used in the case study are shown. In the second part of the paper, LCA analysis was performed using the software SimaPro by PRéConsultants v.8.5.2.0, based on the hypothesis aimed to the energy efficiency of “Palazzo del Sedile”, an historical building located in Matera, a southern city of Italy. The data related to this building have been derived from previous energetic analyses carried out on the same building and from statistical data and other affine studies in the literature. The Cumulative Energy Demand, the Eco-indicator 99 and the EDIP2003 methods have been implemented. Finally, the differences between the outcomes of these assessment methods have been discussed.