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Sustainable Design and Construction
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Sustainable Design and Construction

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 9099

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Laura Tupėnaitė

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Construction Management and Real Estate, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Sauletekio av. 11, LT-10223 Vilnius, Lithuania
Interests: sustainable development; real-estate economics; multiple criteria decision support
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The construction industry is vital for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, namely economic growth, social progress, and the effective protection of the environment. The global buildings’ sector is growing at unprecedented rates. Over the next 40 years, the world is expected to build 230 billion square meters in new construction—adding the equivalent of Paris to the planet every single week [1]. This rapid growth, however, has negative impacts. According to the “2019 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction”, the buildings and construction sector accounted for 36% of the final energy use and 39% of the energy and process-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2018, 11% of which resulted from manufacturing building materials and products, such as steel, cement, and glass [2]. Moreover, the construction industry is the largest user of natural resources and produces huge amounts of waste. It contributes to air and water pollution, changes the natural environment, and fosters climate change.

A movement oriented towards sustainability began affecting society and business, including, however slowly, the design and construction industry. Governments, municipalities designers, construction companies, and real estate developers are innovating and implementing measures to improve the sustainability of the construction industry. In this context, scientific research activities and achievements are of major significance. This Special Issue aims to promote sustainable design and construction, and proposes a collection of studies that combine the aforementioned concepts, namely:

  • Sustainable resource-conscious design;
  • Sustainable land-use;
  • Building from environmentally friendly materials;
  • Sustainable construction in terms of economic, social, and environmental criteria;
  • Sustainable design and construction policy;
  • Green buildings;
  • Passive buildings;
  • Low- and zero-carbon buildings;
  • Sustainability rating systems;
  • Sustainable refurbishment;
  • Life-cycle assessment;
  • Circular economy in construction;
  • Sustainable communities.

References

[1] International Energy Agency. Towards a zero-emission, efficient, and resilient buildings and construction sector. Global status report 2017. United Nations Environment Programme, 2017. Available online: https://www.worldgbc.org/sites/default/files/UNEP%20188_GABC_en%20%28web%29.pdf

[2] International Energy Agency. 2019 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction. Towards a zero-emissions, efficient and resilient buildings and construction sector. United Nations Environment Programme, 2019. Available online: https://www.worldgbc.org/sites/default/files/2019%20Global%20Status%20Report%20for%20Buildings%20and%20Construction.pdf

Dr. Laura Tupėnaitė
Guest Editor

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. 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 2400 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 design
  • Sustainable construction
  • Eco-friendly materials
  • Low carbon buildings
  • Recycling
  • Life cycle assessment
  • Sustainable communities

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 1700 KiB  
Article
Sustainability Assessment of Modern High-Rise Timber Buildings
by Laura Tupenaite, Viktorija Zilenaite, Loreta Kanapeckiene, Tomas Gecys and Ineta Geipele
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8719; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13168719 - 04 Aug 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3506
Abstract
As woodworking and construction technologies improve, the construction of multi-storey timber buildings is gaining popularity worldwide. There is a need to look at the design of existing buildings and assess their sustainability. The aim of the present study is to assess the sustainability [...] Read more.
As woodworking and construction technologies improve, the construction of multi-storey timber buildings is gaining popularity worldwide. There is a need to look at the design of existing buildings and assess their sustainability. The aim of the present study is to assess the sustainability of modern high-rise timber buildings using multi-criteria assessment methods. The paper presents a hierarchical system of sustainability indicators and an assessment framework, developed by the authors. Based on this framework, the tallest timber buildings in different countries, i.e., Mjøstårnet in Norway, Brock Commons in Canada, Treet in Norway, Forte in Australia, Strandparken in Sweden and Stadthaus in UK, were compared across the three dimensions of sustainability (environmental, economic/technological, and social). Research has revealed that none of the buildings is leading in all dimensions of sustainability. However, each building is unique and has its own strengths. Overall multi-criteria assessment of the buildings revealed that the Brock Commons building in Canada has received the highest rank in all dimensions of sustainability. The paper contributes to the theory and practice of sustainability assessment and extends the knowledge about high-rise timber buildings. The proposed sustainability assessment framework can be used by both academics and practitioners for assessment of high-rise timber buildings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Design and Construction)
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21 pages, 4638 KiB  
Article
Analytical Mathematical Modeling of the Thermal Bridge between Reinforced Concrete Wall and Inter-Floor Slab
by Tiziana Basiricò, Antonio Cottone and Daniele Enea
Sustainability 2020, 12(23), 9964; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su12239964 - 28 Nov 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1923
Abstract
The evaluation of thermal bridges in buildings, following the UNI TS 11300-1:2014 standard, must be carried out with finite element analysis or through the use of atlases compliant with the UNI EN ISO 14683:2018. The paper illustrates the development of an analytical tool [...] Read more.
The evaluation of thermal bridges in buildings, following the UNI TS 11300-1:2014 standard, must be carried out with finite element analysis or through the use of atlases compliant with the UNI EN ISO 14683:2018. The paper illustrates the development of an analytical tool to determine the internal linear thermal transmission coefficient (ψi) for the thermal bridge between concrete wall and inter-floor slab, neglected in the main existing catalogs or atlases. This type of thermal bridge is relevant in multi-story buildings, and is typical of public housing districts built between the 1960s and 1970s throughout Europe by means of industrialized systems. Considering energy requalification, due to their low energy efficiency, these buildings require adaptation to the standards imposed by law, and this thermal bridge, which has a high percentage incidence on the total heat losses, cannot be overlooked. From the survey of a representative number of such buildings in Italy, three different technological solutions were examined, with dimensional variations in the individual technical elements and the related functional layers. The combination of these variables resulted in 216 different case studies. The analysis of the existing atlases and catalogues has demonstrated their inapplicability for the selected case studies. For each one of these, ψi was calculated, using off-the-shelf software. The correlation of the data made it possible to determine an analytical mathematical modeling process to assess heat losses due to the analyzed thermal bridge. The validity of this mathematical formula was verified by recalculating the typologies investigated, reaching an error evaluated by means of the mean square deviation equal to ±4%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Design and Construction)
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13 pages, 2865 KiB  
Article
Indicators for the Smart Development of Villages and Neighbourhoods in Baltic Sea Coastal Areas
by Maris Kalinka, Sanda Geipele, Edgars Pudzis, Andrejs Lazdins, Una Krutova and Jurijs Holms
Sustainability 2020, 12(13), 5293; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su12135293 - 30 Jun 2020
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2776
Abstract
A formal village/neighbourhood planning process is typically focused on three planning levels (national, regional and local) and is usually linked with administrative units of the territory (state, region or municipality). The local planning level (village or neighbourhood) “pocket plan” is a development challenge [...] Read more.
A formal village/neighbourhood planning process is typically focused on three planning levels (national, regional and local) and is usually linked with administrative units of the territory (state, region or municipality). The local planning level (village or neighbourhood) “pocket plan” is a development challenge for spatial planners. The small coastal village Tuja in Latvia was taken as a pilot territory for “pocket planning” due to the unique location; biodiversity and ecosystems; significant natural, cultural, economic and social values; specific interests; and the needs of the involved local society. All these factors create a dynamic flow of data and information. Geographic information systems (GIS) are widely used as planning support systems. GISs for pocket plans must accommodate the special needs of communities in villages and neighbourhoods. Ensuring the availability of information in dynamic real time is an opportunity to build both community integration in specific environments and to understand the future plans of the territory. Access to a WEB-GIS (internet GIS) provides possibilities for every person with a mobile phone to use and update information. Static and statistical information is generally used for spatial planning. For pocket plans, the data and information flow has to be dynamic and has to interact with non-professional users. The special wishes and needs of every member of a community must be accommodated by a pocket plan for the well-being of the people and the sustainability of the surrounding territory. Small territory planning involves a very narrow circle of individuals or communities that identify spatial development needs for the future, which includes the socio-economic, cultural, historical, environmental and climate change scenarios. In order to assess the development opportunities and needs of such areas, the detection, accumulation and monitoring of reliable data is necessary. Methodically derived data (facts) provide objectivity and transparency. Currently, as information between the present and the past is able to circulate very fast, analysis of the current situation to forecast the future and show different constructed realities (scenarios) using a GIS is necessary. Therefore, to explore and determine a local needs-based and smart spatial planning approach, we must identify indicators that can be used for the short-term and long-term analysis of specific territories in coastal areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Design and Construction)
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