Special Issue "Sustainable Materials for Construction"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ilaria Capasso
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Geology, University of Chieti-Pescara “G d’Annunzio”, 66100 Pescara, Italy
Interests: materials science; geopolymers; construction and building materials; waste recycling; porous and foamy inorganic materials; hybrid foams; sustainable and innovative building materials; thermal-acoustic insulating materials; chemical-physical, microstructural, and mechanical characterization of materials
Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Brando
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Geology, University of Chieti-Pescara “G d’Annunzio”, 66100 Pescara, Italy
Interests: steel and aluminum structures; material and structures for cultural heritage; special materials and devices for the seismic protection of new and existing structures; additive manufacturing
Dr. Gianluca Iezzi
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Geology, University of Chieti-Pescara “G d’Annunzio”, 66100 Pescara, Italy
Interests: chemical, crystallographic and textural characterisations of geomaterials and their synthetic analogues using XRPD, XRF, EPMA-WDS, SEM-EDS, FTIR and Raman; solidification of silicate melts and volcanic rocks; crystal-chemistry of silicates and germanates; brittle deformation of carbonate rocks; construction and demolition wastes (CDW)
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The construction industry still represents one of the sectors with the highest environmental impacts, due to energy and raw materials consumption, production of wastes (CDWs: construction and demolition wastes), and greenhouse gas emissions mainly related to cement manufacturing. Remarkably, the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere is about one ton for each ton of cement produced. Considering the increasing awareness of global warming, there is a compelling need to replace cement in concrete with more eco-friendly alternative materials to strongly reduce its environmental impact. In parallel, the limitations of soil consumption require an expansion of the circular economy and processes that limit the extraction of new raw materials and reduce landfill of end-of-life materials. Many of the possible alternatives rely on technological advances that include energy-efficient and low-carbon production methods, new cement formulations based on the use of secondary raw materials, and the utilization of more sustainable binders, like geopolymers or alkali-activated materials. The additive manufacturing process is attracting growing attention for its promising advantage of addressing sustainable manufacturing issues, minimizing negative environmental impact through efficient resource utilization, especially concerning high complexity and customization of products. Moreover, the reuse and valorization of several kinds of waste materials, from different industrial processes and/or anthropogenic activities, especially CDWs, in the production of building materials represents one of the most promising responses to increasing the sustainability of construction sector. These advances are key factors to enhance the circular economy and, at the same time, reduce environmental issues related to waste disposal. Finally, the production of inexpensive, fire-resistant, energy-saving, and environmentally friendly sound absorbing and insulating inorganic material also represents a challenge to improving the energy-efficiency and sustainability of the building sector.

This Special Issue invites reviews, original research advances, and contributions dealing with the design, synthesis, production, and characterization of innovative building materials produced with sustainable raw materials, such as geopolymers, alkali-activated and CDWs materials, and/or using environmentally friendly processes (i.e., additive manufacturing) to promote their possible use in the construction industry.

Dr. Ilaria Capasso
Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Brando
Prof. Dr. Gianluca Iezzi
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 papers will be 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. Sustainability 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 1900 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

  • sustainable building materials
  • waste materials
  • CDWs
  • secondary raw materials
  • geopolymers
  • recycled materials
  • inorganic insulating foams
  • additive manufacturing

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

Article
Crushed Bricks: Demolition Waste as a Sustainable Raw Material for Geopolymers
Sustainability 2021, 13(14), 7572; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147572 - 06 Jul 2021
Viewed by 522
Abstract
Demolition activity plays an important role in the total energy consumption of the construction industry in the European Union. The indiscriminate use of non-renewable raw materials, energy consumption, and unsustainable design has led to a redefinition of the criteria to ensure environmental protection. [...] Read more.
Demolition activity plays an important role in the total energy consumption of the construction industry in the European Union. The indiscriminate use of non-renewable raw materials, energy consumption, and unsustainable design has led to a redefinition of the criteria to ensure environmental protection. This article introduces an experimental plan that determines the viability of a new type of construction material, obtained from crushed brick waste, to be introduced into the construction market. The potential of crushed brick waste as a raw material in the production of building precast products, obtained by curing a geopolymeric blend at 60 °C for 3 days, has been exploited. Geopolymers represent an important alternative in reducing emissions and energy consumption, whilst, at the same time, achieving a considerable mechanical performance. The results obtained from this study show that the geopolymers produced from crushed brick were characterized by good properties in terms of open porosity, water absorption, mechanical strength, and surface resistance values when compared to building materials produced using traditional technologies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Materials for Construction)
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Article
Bamboo as a Sustainable Building Material—Culm Characteristics and Properties
Sustainability 2021, 13(13), 7376; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137376 - 01 Jul 2021
Viewed by 441
Abstract
Bamboo culm is a renewable and lightweight material with high strength, particularly tensile strength. It is well accepted that bamboo culms have played a significant role in architecture because of their sustainable contribution. The culm characteristics and properties of three-year-old bamboo from five [...] Read more.
Bamboo culm is a renewable and lightweight material with high strength, particularly tensile strength. It is well accepted that bamboo culms have played a significant role in architecture because of their sustainable contribution. The culm characteristics and properties of three-year-old bamboo from five species (Dendrocalamus asper, Dendrocalamus sericeus, Dendrocalamus membranaceus, Thyrsostachys oliveri, and Phyllostachys makinoi) were investigated. The results show that each bamboo species has different culm characteristics along with culm length. Culm size, particularly the outer culm diameter and culm wall thickness, affects the ultimate load. These results confirm that a bigger culm with a thicker wall could receive more load. D. asper received the highest ultimate load, while T. oliveri received the lowest ultimate load. However, when calculating the test results for stress (load per cross-section area), P. Makinoi showed excellent mechanical properties, while D. asper showed the worst mechanical properties. This research promotes bamboo’s appropriate use for building applications and as a more sustainable material for architecture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Materials for Construction)
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Article
Microstructure of Structural Lightweight Concrete Incorporating Coconut Shell as a Partial Replacement of Brick Aggregate and Its Influence on Compressive Strength
Sustainability 2021, 13(13), 7157; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137157 - 25 Jun 2021
Viewed by 412
Abstract
In this study, coconut shell aggregate (CSA) was used in brick aggregate concrete (BAC) to produce structural lightweight concrete. Various BACs containing CSA (CSBACs) were prepared based on the volumetric mix ratio of 1:1.5:3 (cement:fine aggregate:coarse aggregate). CSA was used substituting 0−15% of [...] Read more.
In this study, coconut shell aggregate (CSA) was used in brick aggregate concrete (BAC) to produce structural lightweight concrete. Various BACs containing CSA (CSBACs) were prepared based on the volumetric mix ratio of 1:1.5:3 (cement:fine aggregate:coarse aggregate). CSA was used substituting 0−15% of brick aggregate (BA) by weight. The concrete mixes were designed based on the weight-based water to cement (w/c) ratios of 0.45, 0.50, and 0.55. All the freshly mixed concretes were tested for their workability with respect to slump. In addition, the freshly mixed concretes made with the w/c ratio of 0.50 were examined for their wet density and air content. The hardened concretes were tested for their dry density, compressive strength, and microstructural characteristics (e.g., microcrack, micropore, fissure). The microstructure of CSBACs was investigated by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). In addition, the fissure width between the cement paste and CSA was measured from the SEM images using “ImageJ” software. The correlation between the compressive strength and fissure width of CSBAC was also examined. Test results showed that the air content of CSBACs including 5–15% CSA was higher than that of the control concrete (0% CSA). In addition, the density and compressive strength of concrete decreased with the increased CSA content. Above all, the most interesting finding of this study was the presence of fissures in the interfacial transition zone between the cement paste and CSA of CSBAC. The fissure width gradually increased with the increase in CSA content and thus decreased the compressive strength of concrete. However, the fissure width decreased with the increased curing age of concrete and therefore the compressive strength of CSBAC was enhanced at later ages. Moreover, a good correlation between the compressive strength and fissure width of CSBAC was observed in this study. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Materials for Construction)
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Article
Sustainable Management of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Wastes in Gypsum Composites
Sustainability 2021, 13(7), 3961; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13073961 - 02 Apr 2021
Viewed by 481
Abstract
Promoting the use of gypsum and gypsum-based materials in construction is a successful strategy from an environmental point of view; it allows a lower energy demand with a sensible reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, the manufacturing of gypsum products [...] Read more.
Promoting the use of gypsum and gypsum-based materials in construction is a successful strategy from an environmental point of view; it allows a lower energy demand with a sensible reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, the manufacturing of gypsum products can represent an interesting sector to redirect and manage the large amount of autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) waste. In this paper a sustainable application of AAC granulate waste in gypsum-based building materials was proposed. The intrinsic compatibility derived their chemical composition and allowed it to partially substitute raw gypsum with the waste up to 30% without affecting the functional and structural properties of the final product. Physical characterization and sound absorption data confirmed that the addition of AAC waste does not significantly alter the typical porosity of the gypsum composite. Finally, all of the composites reached mechanical performances suitable for different building application as gypsum plaster. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Materials for Construction)
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Article
Durability of Mortar Containing Coal Bottom Ash as a Partial Cementitious Resource
Sustainability 2020, 12(19), 8089; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198089 - 30 Sep 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 550
Abstract
This research work focuses on the study of the durability of composite cements based on coal bottom ash powder produced by SONICHAR in Niger. After a physicochemical and environmental characterization of the coal bottom ash powder, mortar test specimens were made. In these [...] Read more.
This research work focuses on the study of the durability of composite cements based on coal bottom ash powder produced by SONICHAR in Niger. After a physicochemical and environmental characterization of the coal bottom ash powder, mortar test specimens were made. In these specimens, 10%, 15% and 20% of cement were replaced by identical mass percentages of coal bottom ash powder. Durability studies focused on the determination of the chloride ions apparent diffusion coefficient, the measurement of the depth of carbonation and the accelerated ammonium nitrate leaching. The influence of carbonation and leaching were examined using the following parameters: pore distribution, gas permeability, porosity accessible to water, capillary absorption and electrical resistivity. The results show that the incorporation of coal bottom ash powder into CEM I leads to an increase in the depth of carbonation. This increase is more significant when the substitution rate exceeds 10%. In the leaching test, the partial substitution of coal bottom ash powder in CEM I up to 20% does not significantly affect the durability parameters of the composites compared to the control mortar. Diffusion test shows that for mortars containing less than 15% substitution, there is no significant influence on the chloride diffusion coefficient. A slight decrease is observed for mortar containing 20% substitution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Materials for Construction)
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Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Planned papers:

Title: Red Mud, blast furnace slag based alkali activated materials

Authors: Occhicone, A., Vukcevic, M., Boskovic, I., Ferone, C.

A brief abstract of the paper: Aluminium Bayer production process is widespread diffuse worldwide. One of waste product of Bayer process is basic aluminosilicate bauxite residue called red mud. The aluminosilicate nature of red mud makes it suitable as a precursor for alkali activated materials. In this work red mud has been mixed with different percentages of blast furnace slag and activated by sodium silicate solution at different SiO2/Na2O ratio. Obtained samples have been characterized by chemical-physical analyses and compressive strength determination. Very high values of compressive strength, up to 50MPa, even for high percentage of red mud in the raw mixture, have been obtained. This process creates samples that have no or scarce environmental impact and could be used in construction industry as an alternative to cementitious materials or ceramics.

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