Particulate matters (PMs) generated on construction sites can pose serious health risks to field workers and residents living near construction sites. PMs are generated in a wide range of locations; therefore, they must be managed in real time at various locations within construction sites for practical management of the PMs. However, no such systems exist currently. Therefore, this study aims to develop a system that can manage PMs in real time at multiple locations in a construction site using the Internet of Things technology. Accordingly, measuring instrument, network, and program services were developed as system components, while considering the characteristics of construction sites, and the construction site PM monitoring system was developed by integrating these components. Finally, performance certification and field application tests were performed to verify the developed system. The construction site PM monitoring system (CPMS) achieved grade 1 for reproducibility, relative precision, and data acquisition rate, and grade 2 for accuracy and coefficient of determination. Thus, it received a performance certification of grade 2, in total. In particular, regarding accuracy, which is a shortcoming of the light-scattering method and represents the accuracy of measurements, the CPMS was found to have an accuracy of 74.2%.

With the increasing need for particulate matter (PM) monitoring, the demand for light-scattering sensors that allow for real-time measurements of PM is increasing. This light-scattering method involves irradiating light to the aerosols in the atmosphere to analyze the scattered light and measure mass concentrations. Humidity affects the measurement results. The humidity in an outdoor environment may exist as gas or steam, such as fog. While the impact of humidity on the light-scattering measurement remains unclear, an accurate estimation of ambient PM concentration is a practical challenge. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of humidity on light-scattering measurements by analyzing the variation in the PM concentration measured by the sensor when relative humidity was due to gaseous and steam vapor. The gaseous humidity did not cause errors in the PM measurements via the light-scattering method. In contrast, steam humidity, such as that caused by fog, resulted in errors in the PM measurement. The results help determine the factors to be considered before applying a light-scattering sensor in an outdoor environment. Based on these factors, directions for technological development can be presented regarding the correction of measurement errors induced by vapor in outdoor environments.

The sustainability of structures during their construction and service life has become a widespread topic of interest. To ensure the sustainability of bridges, maintenance databases can be analyzed to determine the status changes and required maintenance of existing bridges. The results of this analysis can then be used to predict the environmental impacts and costs incurred during ongoing maintenance of new bridges to prepare accordingly for the future. To prepare for future events, this study utilizes the US National Bridge Inventory to analyze changes in the condition rating of bridge decks and substructures according to their service years, and suggests maintenance scenarios for the service life of bridge deck and substructure concrete by investigating the maintenance activities according to service years. The factors for applying the scenarios in Korea and conceptual equations for life cycle studies which apply the scenarios are discussed for further study in the life cycle assessment field of bridges.

Recently, efforts to effectively reduce particulate matter by identifying its sources and trends have become necessary due to the sustained damage it has caused in East Asia. In the case of South Korea, damage due to fugitive dust generated at construction sites in densely populated downtown areas is significant, and particulate matter in such fugitive dust directly influences the health of nearby residents and construction workers. Accordingly, the purpose of the present study was to develop a method for calculating emission factors for PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 emission amounts in the fugitive dust generated in construction sites and to derive emission amount trends for major variables to predict the amounts of generated particulate matter. To this end, South Korean emission factors for PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 for different construction equipment and activities that generate fugitive dust were derived and a method for calculating the amount of particulate matter using the derived emission factors was proposed. In addition, the calculated total emissions using these factors were compared to those calculated using construction site fugitive dust equations developed for the United States, Europe, and South Korea, and the trend analysis of total emissions according to the major emission factor variables was conducted.

The impacts of concrete on global warming through its use in structures such as buildings and infrastructure must be identified and better understood, as concrete is known to have a very high global warming potential (GWP). However, in contrast with ordinary on-site constructed reinforced concrete, GWPs of off-site factory-made prefabricated concrete products such as precast concrete (PC) and concrete piles that are widely used in construction are rarely evaluated, owing to the complicated manufacturing processes that make the determination of greenhouse gas emission difficult. In this study, the embodied life cycle GWPs were derived for PC and pretensioned spun high-strength concrete (PHC) piles to enable precise assessment of the global warming impact of concrete structures and the concrete industry of Korea. The determined embodied GWPs of PC and PHC piles were 1.77 × 10⁻¹ kg CO₂ eq/kg and 1.87 × 10⁻¹ kg CO₂ eq/kg, respectively. As a result, both prefabricated concrete products were determined to have high GWP due to input materials, such as cement rebars, while the GWP contributions of the off-site prefabrication processes were low. Moreover, the embodied GWPs of both prefabricated concrete products were significantly higher than those of ordinary reinforced concrete, and the impact of both products on global warming was found to be approximately 4% of the impact of the Korean concrete industry. This indicates that it is necessary to consider the impacts of the PHC pile and PC industries when assessing the impacts of greenhouse gas occurring in the concrete industry at the national level. It is expected that these findings will be widely used to obtain a more accurate assessment of the impact of concrete structures and industry on global warming.