Material Passport Research Articles

Building Circularity Assessment in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Industry: A New Framework

Circular Economy (CE) has proved its contribution to addressing environmental impacts in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industries. Building Circularity (BC) assessment methods have been developed to measure the circularity of building projects. However, there still exists ambiguity and inconsistency in these methods. Based on the reviewed literature, this study proposes a new framework for BC assessment, including a material flow model, a Material Passport (MP), and a BC calculation method. The material flow model redefines the concept of BC assessment, containing three circularity cycles and five indicators. The BC MP defines the data needed for the assessment, and the BC calculation method provides the equations for building circularity scoring. The proposed framework offers a comprehensive basis to support a coherent and consistent implementation of CE in the AEC industry.

Digitizing material passport for sustainable construction projects using BIM

Several aspects hinder the application sustainability in construction industry. The most prominent problems are related to the conservation of natural resources and the generation of construction and demolition wastes. Previous studies indicated that these problems are due to lack of information available to construction projects stakeholders on the proper handling of building materials in their different lifecycle stages. This paper presents Material Passport (MP) tool that provides information on how to handle building materials at the construction stage and how to benefit from them at their end-of-life stage through different recovery opportunities. This tool provides three quantitative indicators that assess building's sustainability: 1) deconstructability score; 2) recovery score; and 3) environmental score. These indicators help stakeholders to choose more sustainable solutions to building elements in the initial stages of the project. The paper introduces a framework that incorporate MP within Building Information Modeling (BIM). Such incorporation automates sustainability assessment as well as facilitating the documentation and sharing of building's information for future needs. A case study of a traditional residential building is presented to illustrate the concept of the material passport. Also, new alternatives of modular building concept are presented to validate the sustainability indicators, allowing a comparison with traditional building to reach more sustainable solutions. The results reveal that modular buildings are preferred as expected, demonstrating the effectiveness of the presented tools in evaluating alternatives. The results also show the influence of the parameters used in calculating the presented indicators, such as the connection type and the material used. The research provides a methodology that solves the problem of the of insufficient information in order to achieve sustainability for buildings by including quantitative and qualitative information. The provided information covers all lifecycle stages of the building, making it more comprehensive compared to other tools.

Material Passports for the end-of-life stage of buildings: Challenges and potentials

Concerns about the increasing global consumption of non-renewable resources as well as shortages of primary raw materials and reduction of space available for final disposal of waste are raising important issues for the society. Additionally, the unsustainable treatment of resources belongs to the main concerns of the EU, resulting in the development of strategies for maximizing recycling rates in order to minimize environmental impacts and energy consumption caused by extraction of primary materials.In this paper, the Material Passport (MP) method, which evaluates the recycling potential and environmental impact of materials embedded in buildings, is demonstrated on a use case - a demolition object, in order to test its applicability at the end-of-life stage as well as to assess the recycling potential of the existing building.Three acquisition methods were applied on the use case in order to obtain information on the material composition as well as geometrical information: laser scanning, demolition acquisition (DA) and Urban Mining assessment (UMA), with regards to the quality and separability of the materials. A BIM-Model (Building Information Modelling) was generated, integrating the acquired data, as well as serving as knowledge database, from which element lists with incorporated materials were exported and mapped to the regarding recycling grade.As a result, an MP is generated for the exterior walls and the foundation, delivering information on the total masses, the share of recycling and waste masses, as well as the environmental impacts. The recycling potential of the exterior walls is ~52%, whereby the foundation has a recycling potential of ~20%. The existence of an MP at the end-of-life stage of a building can be seen as an outstanding advantage regarding recycling and reuse, thus supporting circularity and sustainability in the construction sector.

Scanning and data capturing for BIM-supported resources assessment: a case study

Buildings are the largest consumer of raw materials and simultaneously are responsible for 40% of the global energy consumption as well as for about 30% of global CO2 emissions. In order to reach sustainability goals such as reduction of the use of primary resources, it is of utmost importance to reuse or recycle the existing stocks – a strategy labelled as “Urban Mining”. The fact that the new construction rate is only 3%, underlines the importance of Urban Mining. However, there is lack of knowledge about the exact material composition and geometry of the existing stock, which represents the main obstacle for Urban Mining and accordingly for reaching high recycling rates. In this paper the Integrated Data Assessment and Modelling (IDAM) method based on digital scanning and modelling technologies for capturing of the geometry and material composition data is proposed for enabling a generation of as built Building Information Modelling (BIM)-models from acquired point clouds and non-geometric data. The main aim of this research is to explore the potential of the IDAM method for the generation of a BIM-model, which serves as basis for BIM-based Material Passports (MP), as major element enabling Circular Economy (CE) and Urban Mining strategies as well as the creation of a digital secondary raw materials cadastre. In order to deliver a proof of concept for IDAM, a real use case will be assessed in terms of geometry and material composition, and possibilities of data capturing via laser scanning and ground penetrating radar (GPR) for follow-up generation of a BIM-based MP explored. For capturing the geometry, laser scanning, and for capturing the material composition, GPR is used. The use of GPR for the generation of a BIM-model, which incorporates material information, addresses a research gap – the capturing and modelling of geometry is already well explored, however the methods and tools for capturing and modelling of the material composition of buildings are largely lacking. Result show, that the coupled use of capturing technologies has great potential to serve as basis for a BIM-based MP. Moreover, the use of GPR, enables a determination of embedded materials within a building, but is confronted with various difficulties. As a result, a framework, which can serve as groundwork for follow-up research, is presented.

Coherent Investigation on a Smart Kinetic Wooden Façade Based on Material Passport Concepts and Environmental Profile Inquiry

Wood is one of the most fully renewable building materials, so wood instead of non-renewable materials produced from organic energy sources significantly reduces the environmental impact. Construction products can be replenished at the end of their working life and their elements and components deconstructed in a closed-loop manner to act as a material for potential construction. Materials passports (MPs) are instruments for incorporating circular economy principles (CEP) into structures. Material passports (MPs) consider all the building’s life cycle (BLC) steps to ensure that it can be reused and transformed several times. The number of reuse times and the operating life of the commodity greatly influence the environmental effects incorporated. For a new generation of buildings, the developing of an elegant kinetic wooden façade has become a necessity. It represents a multidisciplinary region with different climatic, fiscal, constructional materials, equipment, and programs, and ecology-influencing design processes and decisions. Based on an overview of the material’s environmental profile (MEP) and material passport (MP) definition in the design phase, this article attempts to establish and formulate an analytical analysis of the wood selection process used to produce a kinetic façade. The paper will analyze the importance of environmentally sustainable construction and a harmonious architectural environment to reduce harmful human intervention on the environment. It will examine the use of wooden panels on buildings’ façades as one solution to building impact on the environment. It will show the features of the formation of the wooden exterior of the building. It will also examine modern architecture that enters into a dialogue with the environment, giving unique flexibility to adapt a building. The study finds that new buildings can be easily created today. The concept of building materials passport and the environmental selection of the kinetic wooden façade can be incorporated into the building design process. This will improve the economic and environmental impact of the building on human life.

The Impact of 4IR Digital Technologies and Circular Thinking on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

As we stand at the cusp of the fourth industrial revolution, digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, the Internet of Things, Big Data, Blockchain, Robotics, 3D technologies, and many more have become the means and solutions to many of the world’s problems. Most recently, these technologies have assisted in the global fight of the COVID-19 pandemic and other societal problems. Together with these innovative techniques, the concept of circular economy and its relevant tools such as life cycle costing, life cycle impact assessment, materials passports, and circularity measurements have been implemented in a number of sectors in different countries for the transition from a linear “take, make, and dispose” model towards a more circular model, which has shown positive results for the environment and economy. In this article, with the help of implementation, prototyping, and case studies, we explore how these technological advancements and innovative techniques are used in different sectors such as information and communications technology, the built environment, mining and manufacturing, education, healthcare, the public sectors, and others to provide an opportunity to understand and resolve the agreed upon framework in 2015 by 193 countries, that is, the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Digital Platform for Circular Economy in AEC Industry

The construction industry is one of the world´s largest consumers of resources (sand, building materials) and produces significant amounts of waste. Simultaneously it is one of the least digitalized industries. With increasing levels of urbanization, scarceness of resources and lack of landfills, the policy of circular economy (CE) is becoming increasingly important in the construction industry. The European Union is obliging material recovery of construction and demolition waste to a minimum of 70% by weight by 2020 for all new construction projects. Simultaneously, digitalization in construction is one of the major goals in the EU digitalization action plan. We thereby hypothesize that digital technologies have significant potential to support CE in Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) in multiple ways – for assessment of resources as well as for the prediction and optimization of upcoming waste and recycling masses. Based on our conducted and ongoing research projects - BIMaterial: Process-Design for a BIM-based Material Passport; SCI_BIM: Scanning and data capturing for the Integrated Resources and Energy Assessment using Building Information Modeling; and finally a Case Study reviewing digital tools and processes within a large design and planning company (DPC) - we assess to which degree and to what purpose digital technologies are used, and define the potentials and challenges for the realization of CE objectives in the construction industry. Based on the conducted assessment, we propose a framework for a Digital Platform for Circular Economy (DEEP), integrating various stakeholders and data repositories on the external (inter)-firm and internal (intra)-firm level, using open interfaces. Such a platform for the AEC aims to optimize the use of resources in the circular economy – from cradle to grave, foster mutual learning and coordination, and finally generate added value along the life cycle of a building project.

Methodological review: Socio-cultural analysis criteria for BIM modeling and material passport tracking of agriwaste as a building construction raw material

Abstract

Environmental Profile on Building Material Passports for Hot Climates

Vernacular building materials and models represent the construction methods and building materials used in a healthy manner. Local building materials such as gravel, sand, stone, and clay are used in their natural state or with minor processing and cleaning to mainly satisfy local household needs (production of concrete, mortar, ballast, silicate, and clay bricks and other products). In hot climates, the concept of natural building materials was used in a form that can currently be applied in different kinds of buildings. This concept depends on the proper consideration of the climate characteristics of the construction area. A material passport is a qualitative and quantitative documentation of the material composition of a building, displaying materials embedded in buildings as well as showing their recycling potential and environmental impact. This study will consider two usages of building materials. The first is the traditional use of building materials and their importance in the application of vernacular building strategies as an essential global bioclimatic method in sustainable architecture. The second is the affordable use of new building materials for their availability and utilization by a large part of society in a way to add more detail to research. The article aims to create an objective reading and analysis regarding specific building materials in order to generate a competent solution of materials that is suitable for building requirements in hot climates. This study evaluates the most suitable Building Material Passports needed in hot climates, where the environmental profile must be analyzed to confirm the use of natural materials.

Model and data management issues in the integrated assessment of existing building stocks

Abstract The increasing population growth and urbanization rises the worldwide consumption of material resources and energy demand. The challenges of the future will be to provide sufficient resources and to minimize the continual amount of waste and energy demand. For the achievement of sustainability, increasing recycling rates and reuse of materials, next to the reduction of energy consumption has the highest priority. This article presents the results of the multidisciplinary research project SCI_BIM, which is conducted on an occupied existing building. Within SCI_BIM, a workflow for coupling digital technologies for scanning and modeling of buildings is developed. Laser scanning is used for capturing the geometry, and ground-penetrating radar is used for assessing material composition. For the semi-automated generation of an as-built BIM, algorithms are developed, wherefore the Point-Cloud serves as a basis. The BIM-model is used for energy modeling and analysis as well as for the automated compilation of Material Passports. Further, a gamification concept will be developed to motivate the buildings’ users to collect data. By applying the gamification concept, the reduction of energy consumption together with an automated update of the as-built BIM will be tested. This article aims to analyze the complex interdisciplinary interactions, data, and model exchange processes of various disciplines collaborating within SCI_BIM. Results show that the developed methodology is confronted with many challenges. Nevertheless, it has the potential to serve as a basis for the creation of secondary raw materials cadaster and for the optimization of energy consumption in existing buildings.

Calculation and evaluation of circularity indicators for the built environment using the case studies of UMAR and Madaster

Understanding buildings as material depots radically changes the way resources need to be managed within the construction industry and the built environment. Similar to warehousing, buildings, cities and regions will have to keep track and anticipate the stocks and flows of materials, needing to document and communicate (at the right moment) which materials in what quantities and qualities become available for re-use or recycling where and at what time in the future. This paper describes the process of documenting materials and products utilized in the construction of the Urban Mining and Recycling (UMAR) unit within the Madaster platform. UMAR is a fully circular residential unit of Empa NEST created from secondary resources and designed as a material depot for future constructions. Madaster is an online platform, which generates and registers materials passports and calculates a Circularity Indicator for their construction, use, and end-of-life phases. The results of the calculations show that the UMAR unit is 96% circular. Constructed from 95% non-virgin and rapidly renewable materials, the unit has a utility rate of 98% and 92% of its materials are prepared to return into pure-type material cycles at the unit’s end of life. In combination, these two case studies provide a unique opportunity to evaluate the capabilities of materials passports and the Madaster Circularity Indicator to document material stocks and flows within a circular built environment, and to assess the potential of circularity indicators as a design tool supporting the transition towards a circular construction industry. The continuous development of tools and systems for material cadastres undoubtedly represents a key prerequisite for the implementation of a paradigm shift towards a functioning circular construction industry.

Improving the recycling potential of buildings through Material Passports (MP): An Austrian case study

A major fraction of building materials is transformed into waste at the end of a building's life cycle. For sustainability reasons, it is of importance to maintain or recycle urban stocks, and in consequence to minimise the use of primary resources, wherefore a Material Passport (MP) represents an important support-tool. A MP acts as a design optimisation tool, as well as an inventory of all materials embedded in a building and displays the recycling potential and environmental impact of buildings. In this paper, the proof of concept for a MP is demonstrated on a use case, which is a residential building, whereby a variant in timber and a variant in concrete construction are evaluated. Results show that the recycling potential of the concrete variant is better; however, concrete leads to more waste, due to its significantly higher mass in comparison with timber. The comparison of the environmental impact of the variants shows, that the variant in timber has a significantly lower impact to the environment, than the variant in concrete. Results also show that the MP-methodology has large potentials for improving the recyclability of new buildings as well as for making assumptions for upcoming materials through displaying embedded materials of existing buildings.

BIM-Based Material Passport (MP) as an Optimization Tool for Increasing the Recyclability of Buildings

Building stocks and infrastructures are representing the largest material stock of industrial economies, whereby the largest fraction of building materials is transformed into waste at the end of the life cycle. In order to optimize the recycling potential of buildings, new design-tools and methods are required, whereby it is of utmost importance to have a documentation of the material composition of buildings. In this paper, the methodology for creating a BIM-based Material Passport, enabling optimization of the design of buildings and serving as a documentation of materials existing in buildings, is described. Therefore, a specific building component - the flat roof - of a residential building is used in order to test the proposed tool-chain and show the recycling potential of the built-in materials. Thereby, the recycling potential of a version in timber construction and a version in concrete construction is assessed. The results show that the two versions have a similar recycling rate. However, concrete has a significantly higher mass in comparison to timber, by what the mass of the total waste materials is less in the timber version.

Data- and stakeholder management framework for the implementation of BIM-based Material Passports

European Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry consumes a significant amount of materials like steel, aluminum, copper and plastics, thus creating a large reservoir on secondary raw materials in buildings. One of the main strategies to minimize environmental impacts and the energy consumption is maximizing recycling rates. To enable circularity, and in consequence high recycling rates, material information about the existing building stock is necessary. Therefore, new design-centric tools and methods, as well as tools, which enable a compilation of data repositories on the material composition of buildings, are required. The first aim of this research is the generation of a Building Information Modelling (BIM) - supported Material Passport (MP), which enables an assessment of the recycling potential and environmental impacts of building materials. For the compilation of the semi-automated MP, a specific methodology was developed and tested on a use case. Thereby various challenges regarding data and stakeholders were faced, such as inconsistent data and lack of collaboration between various stakeholders. These challenges lead to the second focus of this paper – the development of a data- and stakeholder management framework. The data- and stakeholder management framework presents the required collaboration of various stakeholders in order to achieve a successful implementation of the MP in the AEC industry. Results show, that a semi-automated compilation of the BIM-based MP is possible and the implementation of the MP in the AEC industry requires close collaboration of a broad spectrum of stakeholders, thus forming a need for creating digital platforms for life cycle management of buildings and material resources.

BIM and Circular Design

Materials passport is a tool to promote circular design. BIM is an essential and powerful tool to create and manage digital information. As such, it can be used for materials passports. Which information is needed and reliable? How can we extract it from a BIM model? The current debate issues “which information is needed?” with the assumption that it will be all settled with BIM. Indeed, BIM has great potential when it comes to gain and share information, but what are the possibilities and how to maximise its potential? This paper clears the discussion by giving better understanding about BIM and circular design using the different phases of the lifecycle to get a grip on how information develops during the process. A circular economy requires a paradigm-shift: buildings as material banks. Each building will have a ‘materials passport’ and new buildings will be built reversible and reusable using BIM. A circular BIM model is needed and should be created with the least possible effort in order to maximise its potential on an affordable way.

SBE19 Brussels - BAMB-CIRCPATH “Buildings as Material Banks - A Pathway For A Circular Future”

ForewordThe SBE19 Brussels - BAMB-CIRCPATH “Buildings as Material Banks – A Pathway for a Circular Future” held in Brussels on 5 to 7 of February 2019, is an initiative of the Consortium of the H2020 BAMB Project together with the Sustainable Built Environment (SBE) series of conferences.Being within the SBE series, this event gathers the support of CIB – International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction, iiSBE – International Initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment, the United Nations Environment Programme, and FIDIC – International Federation of Consulting Engineers. The goal of this series of regional and international conferences is to disseminate innovative policies and developments in the field of sustainable urban environment to a broad international audience of specialists in policy, design, construction and operation of buildings and related infrastructure.BAMB is a EU funded project that brings together 16 partners from 7 European countries throughout Europe together for one mission - enabling a systemic shift in the building sector by creating circular solutions. BAMB has been developing and integrating tools that will enable the shift to a circular built environment: Reversible Building Design tools and Materials Passports – supported by new business models, policy suggestions, management, and decision-making models. In addition to testing developed BAMB tools, design, manufacturing, and construction innovations as well as the environmental and economic benefits of circular buildings have also been investigated through six real-life pilot projects.

Concept for a BIM-based Material Passport for buildings

Minimisation of resources consumption belongs to the main concerns of EU, resulting in the development of strategies for maximizing recycling rates in order to minimize environmental impacts and energy consumption caused by extraction of primary materials. Detailed knowledge about the embedded materials as well as their characteristics of building stocks is crucial in order to enable high recycling rates and low environmental impacts of buildings. In this paper, we will present the results of the funded research project BIMaterial: Process design for a BIM (Building Information Modelling) -based Material Passport. The concept of the BIM-based Material Passport is used for evaluating the recycling potential and environmental impact of materials embedded in buildings. The BIM-based Material Passport assesses all materials including their quantitative and qualitative properties, thus significantly supporting recycling and reduction of environmental impacts. Further, the BIM-supported Material Passport serves as design optimization tool and enables the generation and comparison of variants thus supporting the decision making process. The main aim of this research is to generate a BIM-based Material Passport for the optimization of the building design regarding resources use and documentation of materials, thereby using Building Information Modelling as knowledge base for geometry and material properties and coupling to further databases for assessment of ecologic footprint and recycling potentials. Thereby a framework for modelling and the methodology for the semi-automated generation of the BIM-based Material Passport will be proposed.

Can Material Passports lower financial barriers for structural steel re-use?

The building and construction sector is responsible for more than half of global steel consumption. Recycling is common practice. Yet, this is an energy intensive process, even when using the best currently available technology. A strategy that avoids energy use for remelting and significantly reduces negative environmental impacts is re-use. Steel element re-use is technically feasible and economically attractive in certain cases. However, re-use rates in the UK remain low. Cost and timing are identified to be among the main barriers for re-use across the structural steel value chain. Re-used steel is estimated to be about 8-10% more expensive than new steel, taking into account all required reconditioning processes. This study investigates how data/information services like BAMB Material Passports can facilitate structural steel re-use in the UK by lowering financial barriers. It shows that relevant data has the potential of reducing costs in sourcing, testing, reconditioning and fabrication, ranging from 150-1000 £/t, depending on the re-use path followed (remanufacture or direct re-use of elements/structures). Key stakeholder groups are stockists and fabricators, which will be both the suppliers and customers of the data. It should be noted that data alone is not sufficient to overcome all barriers. Next to shortening or vertical integration of the supply chain, value redistribution across the chain can align incentives of different stakeholders. Regulations and perceptions (on quality) also play a key role. Finally, reversible design/design for dismantling can be a game changer in the transition towards more structural steel re-use, since it can significantly reduce deconstruction costs.

Cradle to Cradle and Whole-Life Carbon assessment – Barriers and opportunities towards a circular economic building sector

The general awareness of climate change has been increasing steadily while buildings continue to be the main contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. To address the need for change in the building industry and transform its hazardous impacts on the environment to a positive footprint, circular economic design approaches and Whole-Life Carbon (WLC) assessment have been introduced. This paper analyses the main barriers for a successful implementation of the regenerative Cradle to Cradle (C2C) concept and WLC evaluation, identifying the lack of unified and measurable framework along with the deficiency of detailed case studies and post occupancy evaluation. In the context of the increasing demand for carbon accounting, obtaining comprehensive information on embodied carbon in buildings is challenging despite the existing Life Cycle Assessment structure. To link theory with practice, the paper discusses the London School of Economics Centre Buildings Redevelopment by RSH+P as case study. It reveals barriers and opportunities for WLC evaluation as well as the potential of life cycle cost optimization in environmental and economic terms.The paper concludes with a reflection on how the certification of materials through material passports may not only achieve a higher transparency but lead to a circular economic building industry by comprehensive WLC assessment and a closer implementation of reversible building design corresponding to the C2C principles. The potential of combining WLC evaluation with C2C strategies and translating them into a comprehensive, unified assessment framework for a circular building sector is identified.

Proposal of a building material passport and its application feasibility to the wood frame constructive system in Brazil

Implementing practices for a circular economy transforms the way companies do business. Obtaining and processing systematized and optimized information facilitates decision making in order to innovate, create value and adopt measures to promote energy efficiency and sustainability in construction. Building Materials Passports (BMPs) are tools for inserting circular economy in buildings. They can be crucial in managing and providing information to stakeholders in industry value chains, with the aim of promoting the construction of more sustainable and resilient cities, where materials are identified in a database, removed and reused in order to maintain, recover or even increase value and useful life. This paper presents a proposal of a BMP applied to the wood frame system in Brazil, introducing the following guidelines: general information, safety, sustainability, use and operation, assembling directions, reuse and product service history. A case study was developed in a Brazilian company in order to test the application feasibility of the tool to the system. There were some barriers found in the development of the BMP regarding LCA data, as well as the end of life information of the material. This attempt to implement the BMP encourages practices of circular economy in the construction industry and, associated with the expanding use of wood frame in Brazil, contributes to flexible and renewable buildings. In addition, the main challenges for the introduction of BMP are discussed, emphasizing the need for joint action based on political initiatives and regulations that allow and facilitate circular practices in construction.