Several European associations of the concrete industry (BIBM, ERMCO, UEPG, EUROFER, and CEMBUREAU EFCA), in collaboration with the Dutch environmental consultant INTRON BV studied the possibility of minimizing the environmental impacts of concrete elements. One of the objectives of this study, was to develop the tool EcoConcrete, in order to evaluate the environmental impact associated […]
Рубрика: Eco-efficient construction and building materials
Eco-Labels and Environmental Product Declarations
Eco-labels were created to favor the choice of products with enhanced environmental performance and provide a guarantee for a certain environmental performance certified by an independent entity. Since they are quite simple and their meaning is unambiguous these labels have obvious advantages when compared to LCA. Although the advantages of eco-labels are clear, it is […]
LCA of Construction and Building Materials
The LCA ‘‘includes the complete life cycle of the product, process or activity, i. e., the extraction and processing of raw materials, manufacturing, transportation and distribution, use, maintenance, recycling, reuse and final disposal’’ (Setac 1993). The application of LCA has been regulated internationally since 1996 under ISO14040, ISO14041, ISO14042 and ISO14043. Some of the biggest […]
Selection Process
11.1 General As already stated in Chap. 1, eco-efficient construction and building materials present less environmental impact than common materials. However, it is difficult to say if for instance concrete is more environmentally friendly than steel. Because it is truth that the former is responsible for some CO2 emissions (0.8 tonnes emitted per tonne produced), […]
Bactericidal Capacity
One of the most important applications of materials with photocatalytical properties concerns the destruction of fungi and bacteria. Indoor fungi and bacteria proliferation are one of the main causes responsible for construction materials degradation and also for health problems (Zyska 2001; Santucci et al. 2007; Wiszniewska et al. 2009; Bolashikov and Melikov 2009) because fungi […]
Air Pollution Reduction
The subject of air pollutants such as VOCs released from building materials have already been addressed in. Chap. 2. In the last years several investigations have been carried out in order to use photocatalysis to reduce air pollution. The reaction Table 10.1 Patent for paving tile comprising an hydraulic binder and photocatalyst particles (Cassar and […]
. Self-Cleaning Ability
Although self-cleaning properties of photocatalysts materials are known since the 60s (Fujishima and Honda 1972), only recently they start to be used in a wide — scale (Fujishima et al. 1999). Cassar and Pepe (1997) patented a concrete block with self-clening ability (Table 10.1). The first application of self-cleaning concrete took place in the church […]
Photocatalytic Applications
The most known application of nanomaterials in the construction industry relates to the photocatalytic capacity of semiconductor materials. Several semiconductors materials, such as TiO2, ZnO, Fe2O3, WO3 and CdSe, possess photocatalytic capacity (Makowski and Wardas 2001). However, TiO2 is the most used of all because of its low toxicity and stability (Djebbar and Sehili, 1998). […]
Composites with Nanoparticles
Nanoparticles have a high-surface area to volume ratio providing high-chemical reactivity. They act as nucleation centers, contributing to the development of the hydration of Portland cement. Most investigations use nanosilica while some already used nano-Fe2O3. The production of nanoparticles can be obtained either through a high-milling energy (Sobolev and Ferrada-Gutierrez 2005) or by chemical synthesis […]
Cementitious Composites with Enhanced Strength and Durability
10.2.1 Investigation of Portland Cement Hydration Products Concrete is the most used construction material on Planet Earth and presents a higher permeability that allows water and other aggressive elements to enter, leading to carbonation and chloride ion attack, resulting in steel corrosion problems. Therefore, the nanoscale study of the hydration products (C-S-H, calcium hydroxide, ettringite, […]