Tools for Implementing and Monitoring Circularity in the Built Environment—2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

The circular economy (CE) is a topical subject in addressing a more sustainable built environment, considering worldwide resource shortages and ever-increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Facing multiple fragmented approaches for applying the CE concepts to built environment elements and value chains, there is a continuous need to investigate new perspectives for developing more consistent models and frameworks with a multicriteria approach that apply to existing and future built environment stocks on multiple scales, from materials and components through to individual buildings and other structures all the way to urban-scale cities.

This Special Issue is devoted to expanding and enhancing this knowledge by exploring cutting-edge research and recent advances in the fields of circularity application, assessment, and monitorisation in the built environment from a whole-lifecycle perspective. CE design support tools, benchmarking standards, assessment and monitoring indicators, methods and frameworks dealing with multiple CE-promoted strategies (including design for adaptability, design for disassembly, design for change and reversible design, among others), and renowned sustainability frameworks are particularly welcome in this Special Issue. Additionally, submissions should identify opportunities and address multiple barriers to market uptake, stakeholder participation, value chain management, and technical limitations (e.g., materials recovery and adaptive reuse of existing stock). Furthermore, contributions that consider the Industry 4.0 principles of introducing automation and information technologies to guarantee efficient yet effective processes are also highly encouraged. In this regard, potential authors are invited to investigate new methods of using information and requirement digitalisation and building information modelling (BIM) to develop innovative management models and automated indicators that promote enhanced circularity implementation in the built environment. Both theoretical/analytical and experimental studies are welcome, as well as comprehensive review and survey papers, materials, and processes.

Prof. Dr. Luís Bragança
Dr. Rand Askar
Guest Editors

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