Current Status and Future Directions of Building Information Modeling for Low-Carbon Buildings

Abstract

In recent years, with the intensification of climate change, the development of low-carbon buildings (LCBs) has gained great momentum, and building information modeling (BIM) is perceived as the most promising path. However, systematic integration, review, and analysis of research in the field of BIM for LCBs has been lacking, which may hinder the potential of BIM in assisting the achievement of the goal of LCBs. Therefore, this study explores the current research status of BIM for LCBs and the directions for further investigation. A hybrid literature review method was utilized, which consisted of quantitative and qualitative analyses. Firstly, a quantitative bibliometric analysis was conducted on 158 studies searched from the Web of Science core collection. The most influential institutions, journals, studies, and keywords were identified. The most often used terms were BIM, life-cycle assessment (LCA), design, construction, digital technologies (DTs), life cycle, and integration. Secondly, a systematic qualitative analysis was conducted of 117 carefully selected studies to identify the research focus of different stages (e.g., design, construction, operation, and demolition) of BIM for LCBs. The results showed that studies pertaining to BIM for LCBs mostly took a whole life-cycle perspective, followed by a focus on the design stage, while the volumes of studies focusing on BIM for LCBs in the operation and demolition stages were relatively small. Currently, research focuses on how the latest methods and technologies can be utilized to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions over the life cycle of a building, e.g., BIM-LCA and BIM combined with DTs. Lastly, the challenges and prospects of integrating BIM with LCA and emerging DTs for LCBs are discussed in depth. Five topics, such as BIM-based interdisciplinary collaboration and improving and validating the BIM integrated sustainability calculation models, are proposed as future research trends. This study points out the current research hotspots and future research trends in the field and builds a solid starting point for scholars who want to devote themselves to this field. For practitioners in LCBs, the research findings could serve as a practical reference for better understanding the potential of BIM for LCBs so as to take full advantage of BIM to more effectively realize the goal of LCBs.