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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2018) | Viewed by 72356

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Francesca Tittarelli

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Department of Materials, Environmental Sciences and Urban Planning (SIMAU), Università Politecnica delle Marche, INSTM Research Unit, 60131 Ancona, Italy
Interests: mortar; concrete; reinforced concrete corrosion; new binders; building materials; durability; sustainability; by-product valorization; indoor air quality

Dr. Maria Letizia Ruello

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Guest Editor

Department of Materials, Environmental Sciences and Urban Planning SIMAU, Università Politecnica delle Marche, 60131 Ancona, Italy
Interests: raw material; secondary raw material; environmental monitoring; indoor air quality; depollution processes
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Dear Colleagues,

European Commission states that the greatest energy saving potential lays in buildings since they account for around 40% of the planet's energy resources. 65% of this energy is consumed during the operational life of structures and 35% is embedded in building materials.

Moreover, recently, the implementation of energy efficiency measures leads to more tightly sealed structures giving a greater risk of uncomfortable and unhealthy Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). Generally, to improve IAQ, active engineered control systems (HVAC) are used but they need energy to work, impacting on the total request of energy. Many factors, including low energy consumption, long-term performances and process efficiency, should be taken into account when selecting the most effective air cleaning apparatus.

The reduction of energy consumption in the building sector is achievable only if buildings are designed through a comprehensive, rigorous and sustainable approach. The building components should be able to satisfy several criteria of sustainability during their entire service life:

In the production phase, by adopting building materials with low thermal transmittance, manufactured with low cost and energy saving processing, and even by valorizing, recycling and reusing by-products or wastes.
During the service life, by ensuring the ability to guarantee a comfortable and healthy IAQ, the energy efficiency and durability to reduce the costs of maintenance. Since the cost to restore a degraded structure increases exponentially with the level of degradation at the restoration time, building sustainability also implies the development of monitoring systems able to detect as soon as possible the establishment of conditions favorable to deterioration.
At the end of service life, by adopting materials able to be recycled.

This special issue comprises selected papers focused on these different and multidisciplinary themes concerning materials, durability, energy efficiency, recycling, IAQ and monitoring for more sustainable buildings.

Papers selected for this special issue are subject to a rigorous peer review procedure with the aim of rapid and wide dissemination of research results, developments and applications.

Prof. Dr. Francesca Tittarelli
Dr. Maria Letizia Ruello
Guest Editors

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

Sustainable Buildings
Building Materials
New Binders
Durability
Recycling
Energy Efficiency
Reinforcement Corrosion
Monitoring
Indoor Air Quality

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 3147 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Evaluating the Self-Sensing Ability of Cement Mortars Manufactured with Graphene Nanoplatelets, Virgin or Recycled Carbon Fibers through Piezoresistivity Tests

by Alberto Belli, Alessandra Mobili, Tiziano Bellezze, Francesca Tittarelli and Paulo Cachim

Sustainability 2018, 10(11), 4013; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114013 - 2 Nov 2018

Cited by 59 | Viewed by 4492

Abstract

This paper presents the resistivity and piezoresistivity behavior of cement-based mortars manufactured with graphene nanoplatelet filler (GNP), virgin carbon fibers (VCF) and recycled carbon fibers (RCF). GNP was added at 4% of the cement weight, whereas two percentages of carbon fibers were chosen, namely 0.05% and 0.2% of the total volume. The combined effect of both filler and fibers was also investigated. Mortars were studied in terms of their mechanical properties (under flexure and compression) and electrical resistivity. Mortars with the lowest electrical resistivity values were also subjected to cyclic uniaxial compression to evaluate the variations in electrical resistivity as a function of strain. The results obtained show that mortars have piezoresistive behavior only if they are subjected to a prior drying process. In addition, dry specimens exhibit a high piezoresistivity only when loaded with 0.2 vol.% of VCF and 0.4 wt.% of GNP plus 0.2 vol.% RCF, with a quite reversible relation between their fractional change in resistivity (FCR) and compressive strain. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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22 pages, 5360 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Approach of Including TVOCs Concentration in the Indoor Environmental Quality Model (IEQ)—Case Studies of BREEAM Certified Office Buildings

by Michał Piasecki, Mateusz Kozicki, Szymon Firląg, Anna Goljan and Krystyna Kostyrko

Sustainability 2018, 10(11), 3902; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10113902 - 26 Oct 2018

Cited by 32 | Viewed by 5994

Abstract

The article analyzes the impact of measured concentrations of Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC) emissions determined for four BREEAM certified buildings on the Indoor Air Quality Index (IAQ_index) and the overall Indoor Environment Quality index (IEQ_index). The IEQ_index indicates the percentage of building users who are satisfied from the indoor environment. In existing IEQ models, currently the concentration of CO₂ is mostly used to evaluate the IAQ_index sub-component. Authors point out that it is recommended to use TVOC instead CO₂ at pre-occupant stage where building is mainly polluted by emission from finishing products. The research provides the approach where the component related to the emission of TVOCs is implemented to IEQ model. The first stage of assessment was a test of the volatile organic compounds concentrations in case study buildings. Secondly, the analysis results were assigned into the number of dissatisfied users (PD(_IAQ)) from the theoretical function given by Jokl-Fanger resulting from the Weber-Fechner equation. Finally, the overall IEQ_index was calculated. The IEQ approach proposed in this paper is mainly based on a consideration of EN 15251 and scientifically accepted models. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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18 pages, 4422 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Indoor Air Quality: A Bibliometric Study

by Mattia Pierpaoli and Maria Letizia Ruello

Sustainability 2018, 10(11), 3830; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10113830 - 23 Oct 2018

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 17455

Abstract

What are the actual trends in Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), and in which direction is academic interest moving? Much progress has been made in identifying and mitigating indoor pollutants, due to both prevention campaigns (e.g., smoking bans) and greater control of product emissions. However, IAQ is still of interest and the future trends are unknown. In this study, a thorough bibliometric analysis was conducted on the scientific literature available on the Web of Science database with CiteSpace from 1990 until today. It was possible to identify past trends and current advances, both with the aim of introducing the IAQ topic to those encountering it for the first time and to examine the issues that are expected to be pertinent in the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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19 pages, 11431 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Thermal and Vibration Comfort Analysis of a Nearly Zero-Energy Building in Poland

by Małgorzata Fedorczak-Cisak, Marcin Furtak, Jolanta Gintowt, Alicja Kowalska-Koczwara, Filip Pachla, Krzysztof Stypuła and Tadeusz Tatara

Sustainability 2018, 10(10), 3774; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103774 - 18 Oct 2018

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4074

Abstract

Placing emphasis exclusively on minimizing energy consumption in low-energy buildings can adversely impact thermal comfort and vibrational comfort. Vibrational comfort is extremely important in building design, especially within mining or seismically active territories, and due to car transportation in city centers. In this article, a new approach to designing passive buildings and nearly zero-energy buildings (NZEBs) in Poland is proposed, which has a strong emphasis on the necessity of providing comfort of use in passive houses and NZEBs. Additionally, vibration comfort provisions in the design process are examined. The research gap that will be addressed by the research presented in this article is to extend the comfort conditions of passive buildings and NZEBs into the area of vibratory comfort. The second goal of the project is to determine the impact of solar control systems on the conditions of thermal comfort. The conclusions from the research will allow for the optimization of design assumptions for passive houses and NZEBs. The conclusions from the tests can serve as the basis for introducing appropriate construction law requirements in Poland. The results of the research, which are presented in the article, indicate that the technical requirements that are applicable in Poland ought to include requirements regarding the use of sun blinds in NZEBs and passive buildings (not only as recommendations). In particular, the use of apertures on the south side ought to be mandated. The article can also be the basis for introducing the requirements of vibration comfort to the PN–EN 15251:2012 “Indoor environmental input parameters for design and assessment of energy performance of buildings addressing indoor air quality, thermal environment, lighting and acoustics” standard, which is the basis for designing the parameters of the internal environment for buildings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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15 pages, 861 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comfort as a Service: A New Paradigm for Residential Environmental Quality Control

by Juan Gómez-Romero, Miguel Molina-Solana, María Ros, M. Dolores Ruiz and M. J. Martin-Bautista

Sustainability 2018, 10(9), 3053; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093053 - 28 Aug 2018

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 6326

Abstract

This paper introduces the concept of Comfort as a Service (CaaS), a new energy supply paradigm for providing comfort to residential customers. CaaS takes into account the available passive and active elements, the external factors that affect energy consumption and associated costs, and occupants’ behaviors to generate optimal control strategies for the domestic equipment automatically. As a consequence, it releases building occupants from operating the equipment, which gives rise to a disruption of the traditional model of paying per consumed energy in favor of a model of paying per provided comfort. In the paper, we envision a realization of CaaS based on several technologies such as ambient intelligence, big data, cloud computing and predictive computing. We discuss the opportunities and the barriers of CaaS-centered business and exemplify the potential of CaaS deployments by quantifying the expected energy savings achieved after limiting occupants’ control over the air conditioning system in a test scenario. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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19 pages, 1344 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Combined Value Focused Thinking-Soft Systems Methodology Approach to Structure Decision Support for Energy Performance Assessment of School Buildings

by Hermano Bernardo, Adélio Gaspar and Carlos Henggeler Antunes

Sustainability 2018, 10(7), 2295; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10072295 - 3 Jul 2018

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 5763

Abstract

Several technological, social and organizational factors influence energy management in school buildings, resulting in a complex situation away from the usual engineering approach. The selection of evaluation criteria to assess the energy performance of school buildings remains one of the most challenging aspects since these should accommodate the perspectives of the potential key stakeholders. This paper presents a comprehensive problem structuring approach combining Soft Systems Methodology and Value Focused Thinking to elicit and organize the multiple aspects that influence energy efficiency of school buildings. The main aim of this work is structuring the fundamental objectives to develop a criteria tree to be considered in a multi-criteria classification model to be used by management entities for rating overall energy performance of school buildings. This methodological framework helped grasping the main issues at stake for a thorough energy performance assessment of school buildings and the need to define adequate policies for improvement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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15 pages, 4271 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Plain and Ultrafine Fly Ashes Mortars for Environmentally Friendly Construction Materials

by Luigi Coppola, Denny Coffetti and Elena Crotti

Sustainability 2018, 10(3), 874; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030874 - 19 Mar 2018

Cited by 42 | Viewed by 5072

Abstract

This paper is aimed to study the rheological and physical performance of mortars manufactured replacing Portland-based cements with low calcium siliceous fly ash (FA) or ultrafine fly ash (UFFA). Five different types of cement (CEM I, CEM II/A-LL, CEM III/A, CEM III/B, and CEM IV according to EN 197-1) were used. Mortars were manufactured with FA or UFFA replacing 5%, 15%, 25%, 35%, and 50% of cement mass. Results indicate that compressive strength of mortars with UFFA is considerably higher than that of mixtures containing traditional FA, both at early and long ages. Moreover, experimental data reveal that replacement of cement with up to 25% of UFFA determines higher compressive strength at 7, 28, and 84 days than plain mortars (containing cement only), regardless of the type of cement used. Mortars manufactured with 35% or 50% of UFFA show slightly lower or similar compressive strength compared to the reference mortar (containing cement only). In addition, the results show values of the strength activity index of mortars made with FA 25%, 23%, and 20% lower than the reference corresponding mortars (cement only) at 7, 28, and 84 days, respectively. The grinding of FA, despite resulting in an increase in production energy and CO₂ emissions compared to unmilled FA, allows a wide use of these SCM (Supplementary Cementitious Materials) in place of cement, reducing the environmental impact of mortars up to 40% at the 28-day strength class. The use of UFFA ensures better resistance in CaCl₂-rich environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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20 pages, 5940 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Energy Use and Perceived Indoor Environment in a Swedish Multifamily Building before and after Major Renovation

by Lina La Fleur, Patrik Rohdin and Bahram Moshfegh

Sustainability 2018, 10(3), 766; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030766 - 11 Mar 2018

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 4475

Abstract

Improved energy efficiency in the building sector is a central goal in the European Union and renovation of buildings can significantly improve both energy efficiency and indoor environment. This paper studies the perception of indoor environment, modelled indoor climate and heat demand in a building before and after major renovation. The building was constructed in 1961 and renovated in 2014. Insulation of the façade and attic and new windows reduced average U-value from 0.54 to 0.29 W/m²·K. A supply and exhaust ventilation system with heat recovery replaced the old exhaust ventilation. Heat demand was reduced by 44% and maximum supplied heating power was reduced by 38.5%. An on-site questionnaire indicates that perceived thermal comfort improved after the renovation, and the predicted percentage dissatisfied is reduced from 23% to 14% during the heating season. Overall experience with indoor environment is improved. A sensitivity analysis indicates that there is a compromise between thermal comfort and energy use in relation to window solar heat gain, internal heat generation and indoor temperature set point. Higher heat gains, although reducing energy use, can cause problems with high indoor temperatures, and higher indoor temperature might increase thermal comfort during heating season but significantly increases energy use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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1523 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Production and Compression Strength of Mortars Containing Unprocessed Waste Powdered Steel Slag

by Stefano Maschio, Eleonora Aneggi, Lorenzo Fedrizzi, Francesco Andreatta, Maria Lekka, Alex Lanzutti and Erika Furlani

Sustainability 2017, 9(12), 2372; https://doi.org/10.3390/su9122372 - 19 Dec 2017

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3896

Abstract

This paper deals with the production of mortars prepared using a commercial CEMIIB-S 42.5N cement, a natural aggregate, steelmaking slag, a superplasticizer and water. The as-received unprocessed steel slag was milled by a hammer mill and then sieved to obtain batches with different maximum particle size. Each batch was used, together with the other components, in the production of mortars which were tested, by compression and water absorption, after different aging times in order to evaluate their long term stability. Several slag-free samples were also prepared as reference materials. All mortars were prepared with fixed aggregate/cement ratio (6/1), superplasticizer/cement ratio (s/c) and water/cement ratio (w/c). It has been demonstrated that an adequate protocol for the preparation and the use of slag containing particles with 2500 µm maximum size lead to the production of materials with mechanical properties suitable for civil engineering applications after aging for 28, 90 and 180 days. However, samples containing slag particles with size equal or greater than 1000 µm display a decay of mechanical properties after longer aging in water or after accelerated aging. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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Review

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21 pages, 2164 KiB

Open AccessReview

Application of Wall and Insulation Materials on Green Building: A Review

by Hao Wang, Pen-Chi Chiang, Yanpeng Cai, Chunhui Li, Xuan Wang, Tse-Lun Chen, Shiming Wei and Qian Huang

Sustainability 2018, 10(9), 3331; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093331 - 18 Sep 2018

Cited by 71 | Viewed by 13791

Abstract

The construction materials utilized in the building sector have accounted for a large amount of natural resource and energy consumption. Green building, which has developed over three decades, can be regarded as a management and technical approach for building and construction sectors to achieve resource and energy sustainability in building sectors. Therefore, the development and deployment of green construction materials play an important role in the green building field due to the contribution of sustainable resources and energy. To realize the barriers of energy and resources utilization on green building, the development trend, application, and some case studies on wall materials and thermal insulation materials are described. A summary of plant fibers, recycled wastes, and photochromic glass is developed to show applications of green construction materials, which contributes to sustainable development. The challenges and barriers from business, technical, and policy aspects are also reviewed. Finally, perspectives and prospects of green construction material life-cycle framework are illustrated. This paper presents a snapshot review of the importance of wall materials and thermal insulation materials from the point of view of energy and resources consumption. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Buildings and Indoor Air Quality)

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