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Construction impact on the environment
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Concrete is one of the world’s most popular construction materials. Some six billion tonnes of concrete is produced each year in the world, making it approximately one ton of concrete for every human being per year (Fardis, 2012, p.116). However, the lifecycle of concrete does not make it the most sustainable building material at the moment. Because of limited natural resources, concerns over green house gases, and landfill problems, concrete production is being cut-back, or at least cannot be increased to keep up with population increase. In this essay, I will look at what makes concrete an unsustainable material and possible solutions to make concrete a more sustainable material. Sustainability According to the Office of Environment and Heritage, sustainability is defined as “meeting human needs in the present while preserving the environment so that these needs can also be met in the indefinite future” . There are three components of sustainability: economy, environment, and social (OEH, 2014). To meet the goal of sustainable development, one must understand the many interconnections between environment, society and the economy. Despite the importance of all three components, the environment is probably the most focused issue of sustainability around the world right now, and it is what will be in focus for this essay in relation to the lifecycle of concrete. It is not to say that economic and social issues are less important, but merely that they are outside our attention. production of material In order to estimate the environmental impact of a construction material, it is necessary to consider all stages construction in the life of the material (Fig.1). Many “green” construction claims and strategies are now based on a ... ... middle of paper ... ...te; rely on natural energy flows; understand the limitations of design; and seek constant improvement by the sharing of knowledge. (http://www.mcdonough.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Hannover-Principles-1992.pdf) Conclusion How can we reduce the environmental impact of the concrete industry? The long-term approach to lower the environmental impact of using any material is to reduce its rate of consumption. However the focus should not just be on the material impacts on sustainability, but designers, planners and government officials are equally responsible for making sustainable design choices. The lifetime of a structure is influenced by cultural and market forces. When a structure no longer serves an important function (not necessarily the function for which it was constructed), or is not aesthetically pleasing, it is likely to be destructed. So materials and
Many people go through tough struggles in their lives, but no one really sees it, and most of the time no one really cares. The Rose That Grew From Concrete was written by Tupac Shakur. In this poem the author uses conflict, the characters, and mood to illustrate that just because something shouldn’t happen doesn’t mean that it won’t happen.
According to major supplies, “Use of synthetic fibers for reinforcing concrete is continuously, increasing. The increase has been considerable since 1980, but slowed somewhat in 1990, a year of substantial construction cutbacks. Apparently the construction community believes there are advantages in the use of synthetic fibers in concrete.” (Schupack) Synthetic fibers are used to improve crack control in concrete. Some reports say that synthetic fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) would replace welded wire fabric in many slab-on-grade applications. But in reality if the welded wire fabric is placed properly it controls crack width better than the synthetic fiber reinforced concrete. In a case study of the use of synthetic fibers in reinforced concrete, the following conclusions were obtained. No matter what concrete placing job is being done, there is no substitute for good concrete practices. The use of a low fiber volume mix will help control plastic shrinkage cracks and bleeding, but not give good cracking control once the crack forms. The synthetic fibers running through a crack have a poor bond providing no shear friction. Impact and toughness tests on synthetic fiber reinforced concrete imply less edge spalling will occur. The American Concrete Institute (ACI) conducted two studies on polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete, one dealing with plastic shrinkage cracking and the other on permeability characteristics. Plastic shrinkage cracking occurs when the surface water on the concrete evaporates faster than the bleed water reaches the surface of the concrete. It was determined by the plastic shrinking cracking study that polypropylene fibers helped reduce the total plastic shrinkage crack area on test panels. Also determined is that the screeding rate affects the total crack area in polypropylene reinforced concrete, while finishing operations showed no significant effects. This study also suggests the use of longer fibers (about 0.75in.) will produce less crack area. “Permeability plays an important role in long-term durability of concrete materials. Permeability of concrete generally refers to the rate at which particular aggressive substances (water, sulfates, chloride ions, etc.) can flow through the concrete.” (Soroushian) As discussed in the plastic shrinkage study that polypropylene fibers reduce cracking. Less cracking in the concrete surface that surface would be less permeable. In the permeability study, they concentrated on the effects of chloride and the permeability of the concrete. The results of this study concluded polypropylene fibers had little effects on chloride permeability of concrete. The polypropylene fibers only help reduce plastic shrinkage cracks.
Throughout the construction industry, technology plays a role to help ease the completion of a project to all of the parties involved. The amount of technology application in the industry supports the belief that technology has a positive impact on project productivity. One of the main materials used in the construction industry that surrounds us every day, in which we overlook, is concrete. Concrete is an art form, in which it takes time and talent in order for it to be used efficiently, to produce its high strength and longevity. However, the downfall of this material is that it is extremely costly and nearly impossible to form it to an aesthetically pleasing surface. In spite of this, what if I told you that there is hope? That the dream of a material made of concrete, producing the same qualities, can be formed to any shape, and used anywhere was a reality.
In this paper we have studied compressive strength of concrete by replacing natural aggregate with recycled aggregate by 25%, 50% and 75%.This mixture formed in the sample of cubes of dimension 150x150x150mm3.
ement occupies approximately 50% of the mixed concrete volume and is responsible for physiomechanical properties of concrete. Cement production is essential to infrastructure and building construction, creating demands in very large quantities. Energy resources invested in the production process and resulting greenhouse gas emissions have become problematic. The cement production process has become among the world’s largest anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide emissions, contributing to approximately 5% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions, (WBCSD, 2009). Increased pressure is being placed on the industry to reduce CO2 emissions, owning to awareness regarding sustainability....
Concrete today is considered by many modern engineers and architects as a more efficient and effective alternative to steel n regards to the creation of buildings, ranging from low-story apartments to neck-breaking skyscrapers. Through the rapid growth and development of the world's major metropolises and growing cities, concrete today has become one of the most important building materials to date. According to the World Business Counsel for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), “it has become the most consumed substance on earth, only superseded by water, with three tons for each person used annually” (World). This huge demand for concrete makes the cement industry one of the world's largest carbon dioxide producers, accounting for about five percent of all man-made pollution. “Approximately one ton of carbon dioxide is put into the atmosphere for every ton of cement used” (World). The cause for this problem is the increase of the global population and the increasing demand for land and energy. It's effect is that as the population continues to increase, it forces builders and developers to meet the quota of creating unlimited amounts of infrastructure within a limited resource-filled world. Knowing this, a proposed and widely agreed solution is to make the concrete in an environmentally-conscious way that will incorporate more demolished concrete, scrap from past projects, and other recycled aggregates.
Nowadays, it will not be inept to inform that the universe is going over a construction boom. In truth, in the past few decades an entire affair of construction has altered dramatically like all other aspects of life. Currently, construction is no more just about keeping one brick above the other, but a diverse more than that. With the present scenario, the construction work encompasses all the aspects of construction like, performance, optimization, developing and designing. As an outcome, construction chemicals have become an essential part of the world construction industry. These chemicals are typically utilized to impart different properties into the layout.
Now a days HPC is expensive than conventional concrete. It require additional materials in some quantities as to meet specified performance.These additional materials are cement,silica fume,...
In addition to its more practical benefits noted earlier, concrete is also widely used because of the environmental benefits that can be enjoyed through its use as well. Since the ingredients and process for making concrete are so basic, there is very little impact to the environment in the form of waste, none of which can be considered especially dangerous or toxic. As noted before, concrete is inherently fire retardant. In order for wood, for example, to be made to be fire retardant, it requires the use of specific treatment methods and chemicals. These chemicals can have an adverse reaction on both the environment and even on the workers performing these actions. Furthermore, if disposed of incorrectly, the chemicals used can continue to harm the environment long after the building has been demolished. Another obvious advantage over the use of wood is that concrete use has no effect on
Concrete is one of the most widely used construction material in the world. The reason for this is because concrete is strong, easy to make and can be molded into various shapes and sizes. Besides that, concrete is cheap, affordable and is readily mix.
Whether you are considering building new or simply renovating, there are many verdant options that a company can use to reduce expenses. There is a price difference present between the costs of traditional and eco-friendly building materials. Typically these costs contribute about 2-3% towards the increase on price when choosing to use green building materials (Lawson, 2009). At first you think 2 - 3%, really is not significant at all, however if you consider many of the larger companies easily spends upwards of 5 – 6 million dollars on new constructions. That is quiet a magnitude of money; ranging anywhere from $100,000 – $180,000 in extra investments, depending on the options that are chosen.
Buildings consume 40% of energy and produce 40% of CO2 emissions (DTI 2004) to reduce the high level of CO2. EU and UK government have introduced tougher energy efficiency standards, this will be felt by builders merchant; the latter stand to gain from an increase in demand for insulation materials but will also have to bear additional costs. The Key Impacts of building merchant industry on climate change are the cement sector alone accounts for 5% of global man-made CO2 emission (Piltz 2005), highest impact is the mining/manufacture of materials and chemicals, transport of heavy materials such as cement is energy-intensive, but most building materials tend to be sourced from close-by facilities. The chemical processes and use of fuel/electricity account for the major portion of the sector's CO2 emissions.
Brooke (1997), explains Estimation as the technical procedure of anticipating the value of the project. Building construction estimation is the process of acquiring the construction value for the whole project before the project starts. Thus, construction attaining process depends hugely on financial management to sustain workability and smooth operations. The delay in construction is a global issue which is due to improper preparation of estimates and lack of drawings (Ajanlekoko, 1987). In accordance to Gkritza (2008), the source of delay in a project are identified to be in the initial stages, like bad quantification, errors in design and ground conditions. Thus, the purpose of a proper estimate is to foretell the cost needed to finish the
In a world where over half of the human population calls a city their home, the need to restructure and revolutionize the way we design our urban environments has never been greater. Currently, the notion that these vast metropolises of metal, concrete, and sludge could one day be fully realized pillars of sustainability is certainly laughable. However, when these same cities are constantly growing and multiplying across the globe, all the while using a greater and greater chunk of our planet’s energy, this impossible task becomes a necessary focus. To strive towards the closed, continuous loop of “true” sustainability could greatly alter the image of the modern city. Any improvement over the current state of urban affairs could carry weight, and even if that goal is not entirely fulfilled, the gained benefits would be immense.
Greer, D. (2004, September-October). Green builders get big help from deconstruction. In Business, 26(5), 20. Retrieved from http://www.jgpress.com/inbusiness/archives/_free/000648.html