Towards Sustainable Construction: New Trends in Building Renovation, Energy Efficiency and Innovative Materials

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Materials, and Repair & Renovation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025 | Viewed by 1292

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor Assistant
Escuela Técnica Superior de Edificación, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Interests: innovative material, building renovation; building pathology; sustainability; waste management; circular economy; energy efficiency

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The construction industry holds a key role in the economic development of nations. Every year, this sector demands a huge amount of raw materials and generates a strong environmental impact on our planet. For this reason, it is necessary to move towards sustainable, more efficient, and environmentally friendly construction. In this sense, the refurbishment of existing buildings is becoming increasingly common as a sustainable approach for utilising existing resources in cities, improving their initial performance, and therefore recovering the value of the built heritage.

The main goal of this Special Issue is to collect contributions related to sustainability that contribute to boosting building renovation. Thus, this initiative welcomes dissimilar contributions that address various topics, such as (i) the development and characterisation of novel sustainable building materials; (ii) the energy efficiency of buildings and the improvement of their thermal performance; (iii) retrofitting and restoration strategies for existing buildings; and (iv) the efficient management of existing resources and circular economy. In this way, initiatives focused on improving the sustainability of buildings, developing new construction systems, and introducing technological innovations in buildings are welcome.

Dr. Daniel Ferrández Vega
Dr. Paulo Santos
Guest Editors

Alicia Zaragoza Benzal
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • sustainable construction materials
  • energy efficiency in buildings and thermal behaviour
  • building conservation techniques
  • gypsum, lime mortars, cement composites, wood, steel and concrete
  • building pathology and rehabilitation strategies
  • circular economy for a sustainable construction
  • life-cycle assessment of buildings and building components
  • passive conditioning of buildings
  • new technologies applied to buildings

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

32 pages, 13199 KiB  
Article
Viscoelastic and Fatigue Performance of Modified Bitumen Using Polymer and Bio-Based Additives: A Comparative Study
by Ali Almusawi, Shvan Tahir Nasraldeen, Mustafa Albdairi and Hussein H Norri
Buildings 2025, 15(3), 306; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15030306 - 21 Jan 2025
Viewed by 755
Abstract
This study investigates the performance and viscoelastic characteristics of unmodified and modified bitumen using Performance Grading, Frequency Sweep, and Linear Amplitude Sweep tests. The bitumen modifications include styrene-butadiene–styrene at 4% and 5%, animal bone powder at concentrations of 4%, 5%, and 6%, and [...] Read more.
This study investigates the performance and viscoelastic characteristics of unmodified and modified bitumen using Performance Grading, Frequency Sweep, and Linear Amplitude Sweep tests. The bitumen modifications include styrene-butadiene–styrene at 4% and 5%, animal bone powder at concentrations of 4%, 5%, and 6%, and waste cooking oil at 3%, 4%, and 5%. Performance Grading tests were conducted to evaluate the high-temperature performance of bitumen samples. Frequency Sweep tests were used to analyze the complex shear modulus and phase angle, providing insights into stiffness and elasticity. The Linear Amplitude Sweep tests assessed fatigue resistance by monitoring the degradation of the complex shear modulus under cyclic loading. Styrene-butadiene–styrene and animal bone powder significantly enhanced stiffness, elasticity, and fatigue resistance, with styrene-butadiene–styrene-modified samples achieving the highest performance grades and fatigue resistance. Waste cooking oil-modified bitumen reduces stiffness and fatigue resistance, indicating it primarily acts as a plasticizer. Styrene-butadiene–styrene and animal bone powder are effective modifiers for improving bitumen’s mechanical and fatigue properties and are suitable for demanding applications. In contrast, waste cooking oil compromises structural performance despite its environmental benefits, making it less suitable for high-performance use. Full article
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