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Low Carbon and Green Materials in Construction—3rd Edition
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Low Carbon and Green Materials in Construction—3rd Edition

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 May 2026 | Viewed by 786

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Long Li

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Guest Editor
Department of Structural Engineering, College of Civil Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Interests: recycled aggregate concrete; alkali-activated materials; carbonation; 3D concrete printing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jie Xiao

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Guest Editor
School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
Interests: concrete durability; sulfuric acid corrosion; ultra-high performance concrete; fractal dimension characterization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Bo Wang

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Guest Editor
Department of Structural Engineering, College of Civil Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Interests: recycled aggregate concrete; plant-based construction material
Dr. Lingfei Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Transportation, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Foshan University, Foshan 528225, China
Interests: seismic performance; ECC; strengthening of existing structures
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The amount of CO2 emissions caused by the construction industry accounts for about half of the total CO2 emissions in the world, and a large portion is due to the production of construction materials. For example, the production of construction materials contributes to about 27% of total CO2 emissions in China. Therefore, the development of low-carbon materials in construction is essential for carbon neutrality.

A large amount of construction and demolition waste (e.g., waste concrete, brick, glass, wood, timber, etc.) is generated every year. The recycling of construction and demolition waste in construction materials can effectively reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills and save natural resources. This is important for the sustainable development of the construction industry.

This Special Issue aims to encourage scientists and researchers to publish their experimental and theoretical findings or solutions on low-carbon and green materials in construction. Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following research areas:

  • Low-carbon concrete;
  • Recycled aggregate concrete;
  • Alkali-activated materials;
  • Ultra-high performance concrete;
  • 3D printed concrete;
  • Carbonation;
  • Machine learning;
  • Engineered cementitious composites (ECCs).

We look forward to your contributions.

Dr. Long Li
Dr. Jie Xiao
Dr. Bo Wang
Dr. Lingfei Liu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • low-carbon materials
  • recycled aggregate concrete
  • alkali-activated materials
  • 3D concrete printing
  • carbonation
  • ultra-high performance concrete
  • ECC
  • machine learning

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 3746 KiB  
Article
Shear Performance of UHPC-NC Composite Structure Interface Treated with Retarder: Quantification by Fractal Dimension and Optimization of Process Parameters
by Runcai Weng, Zhaoxiang He, Jiajie Liu, Bin Lei, Linhai Huang, Jiajing Xu, Lingfei Liu and Jie Xiao
Buildings 2025, 15(15), 2591; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15152591 - 22 Jul 2025
Abstract
Prefabricated Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) and cast-in-place Normal Concrete (NC) composite members are increasingly used in bridge engineering because they combine high performance with cost-effectiveness. The bond at the UHPC-NC interface is critical as it directly impacts the composite structure’s safety. This study employed [...] Read more.
Prefabricated Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) and cast-in-place Normal Concrete (NC) composite members are increasingly used in bridge engineering because they combine high performance with cost-effectiveness. The bond at the UHPC-NC interface is critical as it directly impacts the composite structure’s safety. This study employed 3D laser scanning acquired the UHPC substrate geometry, utilized fractal dimension analysis to quantify the interface roughness, and adopted the slant shear test to evaluate the effects of retarder application mass and hydration delay duration on roughness and bond strength. The research results indicate that the failure modes of UHPC-NC specimens can be categorized into interface shear failure and NC splitting tensile failure. With the extension of hydration delay duration, both the interface roughness and bond strength show a decreasing trend. The influence of retarder dosage on interface roughness and bond strength exhibits a threshold effect. This study also confirms the effectiveness of fractal dimension as a quantitative tool for characterizing the macroscopic roughness features of the bonding interface. The findings of this paper provide a solid theoretical basis and quantitative support for optimizing key process parameters such as retarder dosage and precisely controlling hydration delay duration, offering significant engineering guidance for enhancing the interface bonding performance of UHPC-NC composite structures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Low Carbon and Green Materials in Construction—3rd Edition)
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17 pages, 8153 KiB  
Article
Numerical Simulation of Freezing-Induced Crack Propagation in Fractured Rock Masses Under Water–Ice Phase Change Using Discrete Element Method
by Hesi Xu, Brian Putsikai, Shuyang Yu, Jun Yu, Yifei Li and Pingping Gu
Buildings 2025, 15(12), 2055; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15122055 - 15 Jun 2025
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Abstract
In cold-region rock engineering, freeze–thaw cycle-induced crack propagation in fractured rock masses serves as a major cause of disasters such as slope instability. Existing studies primarily focus on the influence of individual fissure parameters, yet lack a systematic analysis of the crack propagation [...] Read more.
In cold-region rock engineering, freeze–thaw cycle-induced crack propagation in fractured rock masses serves as a major cause of disasters such as slope instability. Existing studies primarily focus on the influence of individual fissure parameters, yet lack a systematic analysis of the crack propagation mechanisms under the coupled action of multiple parameters. To address this, we establish three groups of slope models with different rock bridge distances (d), rock bridge angles (α), and fissure angles (β) based on the PFC2D discrete element method. Frost heave loads are simulated by incorporating the volumetric expansion during water–ice phase change. The Parallel Bond Model (PBM) is used to capture the mechanical behavior between particles and the bond fracture process. This reveals the crack evolution laws under freeze–thaw cycles. The results show that, at a short rock bridge distance of d = 60 m, stress concentrates in the fracture zone. This easily leads to the rapid penetration of main cracks and triggers sudden instability. At a long rock bridge distance where d ≥ 100 m, the degree of stress concentration decreases. Meanwhile, the stress distribution range expands, promoting multiple crack initiation points and the development of branch cracks. The number of cracks increases as the rock bridge distance grows. In cases where the rock bridge angle is α ≤ 60°, stress is more likely to concentrate in the fracture zone. The crack propagation exhibits strong synergy, easily forming a penetration surface. When α = 75°, the stress concentration areas become dispersed and their distribution range expands. Cracks initiate earliest at this angle, with the largest number of cracks forming. Cumulative damage is significant under this condition. When the fissure angle is β = 60°, stress concentration areas gather around the fissures. Their distribution range expands, making cracks easier to propagate. Crack propagation becomes more dispersed in this case. When β = 30°, the main crack rapidly penetrates due to stress concentration, inhibiting the development of branch cracks, and the number of cracks is the smallest after freeze–thaw cycles. When β = 75°, the freeze–thaw stress dispersion leads to insufficient driving force, and the number of cracks is 623. The research findings provide a theoretical foundation for assessing freeze–thaw damage in fractured rock masses of cold regions and for guiding engineering stability control from a multi-parameter perspective. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Low Carbon and Green Materials in Construction—3rd Edition)
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25 pages, 2915 KiB  
Article
Meshless Numerical Simulation on Dry Shrinkage Cracking of Concrete Piles for Offshore Wind Power Turbine
by Cong Hu, Jianfeng Xue, Taicheng Li, Haiying Mao, Haotian Chang and Wenbing Zhang
Buildings 2025, 15(12), 2006; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15122006 - 11 Jun 2025
Viewed by 299
Abstract
Against the backdrop of the global energy transition, offshore wind power has undergone rapid development. As a vital component of offshore wind power infrastructure, dry shrinkage cracking in concrete piles poses a significant threat to the safe and stable operation of offshore wind [...] Read more.
Against the backdrop of the global energy transition, offshore wind power has undergone rapid development. As a vital component of offshore wind power infrastructure, dry shrinkage cracking in concrete piles poses a significant threat to the safe and stable operation of offshore wind power systems. However, the fundamental mechanism of concrete pile cracking during dry shrinkage—particularly the coupled effects of moisture diffusion, meso-structural heterogeneity, and stress evolution—remains poorly understood, lacking a unified theoretical framework. This knowledge gap hinders the development of targeted anti-cracking strategies for offshore concrete structures. Hence, investigating the mechanism of dry shrinkage cracking is of substantial importance. This paper employs numerical simulation to explore the patterns and influencing factors of dry shrinkage cracking in concrete piles for offshore wind turbines, aiming to provide theoretical support for enhancing pile performance. A meshless numerical simulation method based on the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) framework is developed, which generates concrete meso-structures via a specific algorithm, discretizes the moisture diffusion equation, defines dry shrinkage stress terms, and introduces a fracture coefficient to characterize particle failure, enabling the simulation of concrete dry shrinkage cracking processes. Simulation schemes are designed for varying aggregate percentages, aggregate particle sizes, dry shrinkage coefficients, and moisture diffusion coefficients, using a 100 mm-diameter circular concrete model. Qualitative results reveal the following: Increased aggregate percentages lead to more uniform moisture diffusion, with dry shrinkage crack number and length first increasing and then decreasing; larger aggregate particle sizes exacerbate moisture diffusion non-uniformity and intensify dry shrinkage cracking; higher dry shrinkage coefficients correlate with increased crack number and length; elevated moisture diffusion coefficients accelerate surface water loss, with cracking severity first increasing and then decreasing. The proposed SPH-based meshless method effectively simulates dry shrinkage cracking in offshore wind turbine concrete piles, demonstrating the significant impact of different factors on moisture diffusion and cracking patterns. This study offers insights for applying the SPH method in related fields, deepens the understanding of concrete dry shrinkage cracking mechanisms, and provides a theoretical foundation for the design and optimization of offshore wind power concrete piles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Low Carbon and Green Materials in Construction—3rd Edition)
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