A predictive approach to assessing the environmental footprint of tunnels presented at the fourth ITA-CET conference
On 2nd and 3rd July 2026, Ruhr University Bochum (Germany) hosted the fourth edition of the ITA-CET conference, organised by the Education and Training Committee (ITA-CET) of the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association (AITES), with the support of CETU. This event brings together PhD students and academic researchers in the field of underground structures to foster scientific exchange and the development of international collaborations.
Lucille Baucal-Poyac, who completed her PhD at the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées last December and is currently a research fellow at CETU working on the sustainable development of underground structures, presented her doctoral thesis on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of mechanised tunnelling using a tunnel boring machine.
Her presentation focused on the development of a parametric approach, based on a database of over 500 tunnel projects, enabling the estimation of environmental impacts (e.g. indicators of climate change or the depletion of fossil fuel resources) from the design stages onwards, using predictive models, including one based on the XGBoost machine learning algorithm. Discussions during the conference focused in particular on incorporating the manufacture of the tunnel boring machine into life cycle assessments (LCAs), as well as on the modelling assumptions associated with machine learning-based approaches.
This edition of the ITA-CET conference also provided an opportunity to address other topics related to sustainable underground construction, such as the reuse of bentonite slurry, the first formulation of cement-free shotcrete using alkaline-activated materials, digital twins for predictive maintenance, and new dynamic models for risk anticipation and management.