Use Of Alternative Materials Research Articles

“Alternative” materials in the green building and construction sector

Purpose The construction, use and demolition of buildings carry enormous environmental burdens. As one step to reduce a building’s environmental impact, green building design guidelines and certification programs, such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, Cradle to Cradle and the Whole Building Design Guide, promote the specification of alternative, non-traditional building materials. Alternative materials carry a variety of potential benefits: reducing the amount of energy and other resources needed to create building materials; creating healthier indoor and outdoor environments; diverting or reducing waste from landfills; reducing the use of scarce, critical or economically volatile materials; and spurring innovation in the building industry. However, a lack of clarity surrounds alternative materials and creates a barrier to their usage. The purpose of this paper is to review definitions of alternative materials in various design guidelines in order to provide context to their specification and usage. Design/methodology/approach Through a survey of green building programs and guidelines, existing literature on alternative materials, and life-cycle assessment using multiple inventory databases, this study tackles the following questions: what constitutes an alternative building material; what are the current barriers to their specification; how are they specified in the most common design guidelines; and do alternative building materials present a “greener” alternative? Findings These results show that while often alternative materials do in fact show promise for reducing environmental impacts of the built environment, by how much can be a challenging question to quantify and depends on a variety of factors. While many green building guides and certification systems provide recommendations for use of alternative materials, the sheer diversity and uncertainty of these systems coupled with the complexity in understanding their impacts still present a significant barrier to their specification. Much work remains in a variety of disciplines to tackle these barriers. A clear emphasis should be on better understanding their environmental impacts, particularly with respect to the context within the built environment that their specification will provide energy, resource and emission savings. Other key areas of significant work include reducing costs, removing regulatory and code barriers, and educating designers, consumers, and end-users. Originality/value Alternative materials are defined and specified in a diversity of contexts leaving the design and construction communities hesitant to promote their use; other work has found this to be a key barrier to their widespread usage. By compiling definitions, barriers and design guidelines instructions while also exploring analytically the benefits of specific cases, this work provides a foundation for better understanding where new, more sustainable materials can be successfully specified.

NbTiN/AlN/NbTiN SIS Junctions Realized by Reactive Bias Target Ion Beam Deposition

The current state-of-the-art approach for superconductor–insulator–superconductor (SIS) junction fabric-ation is based on magnetron sputtering and the Gurvitch Al overlayer trilayer process, where an Al overlayer is deposited onto the Nb base electrode in order to subsequently grow a critical $\sim$ 1-nm AlO $_{x}$ or AlN tunnel barrier. While the switch from AlO $_x$ to AlN barriers has significantly increased the achievable critical current density, and significant research has been performed to understand and optimize inductively coupled plasma AlN growth, the use of Nb electrodes provides an upper limit to the frequency range for low-noise operation when employed in terahertz (THz) mixer applications and has led to the study and use of alternative materials with higher transition temperatures ( $T_{C}$ ) such as NbN and NbTiN. The Nb electrodes also impose stringent cooling requirements; replacement of both electrodes with higher $T_{C}$ materials can increase the required device operating temperature to 10 K, thus reducing the power consumption of the refrigeration system, a building block for the realization of more energy efficient superconducting computing systems, such as those based on single-flux-quantum logic. In this work, we have departed from conventional SIS material growth techniques through the use of an alternative material deposition technology—reactive bias target ion beam deposition (RBTIBD)—that offers unique capabilities to tailor materials and interfaces. Using RBTIBD technology, we have realized the first ever NbTiN/AlN/NbTiN SIS junctions with highest yet reported sum-gap voltages exceeding 5.0 mV, potentially extending the theoretical limit of low-loss SIS mixing applications beyond 1.2 THz and relaxing the cooling requirements for superconducting device applications.

Cellulose/biochar aerogels with excellent mechanical and thermal insulation properties

Aiming at investigating the use of alternative materials for the production of thermal insulation and, mainly, to replace the carbon structures (graphene and nanotubes), extensively used in the development of aerogels, the present study had the objective to produce cellulose/biochar aerogels and to evaluate their properties. The aerogels were produced from Pinus elliottii cellulose fibers and biochar produced from these fibers. The materials were characterized in their physical, thermal and mechanical properties. They were extremely light and porous, with a density between 0.01 and 0.027 g cm−3 and porosity between 93 and 97%. Several percentages of biochars were added to the cellulose suspension (0–100% w/w). The use of 40 wt% biochar provided a 60% increase in the compressive strength of the aerogel in relation to the cellulose aerogel. Besides that, the addition of this carbonaceous structure did not influence significantly the thermal conductivity of the aerogels, which presented a thermal conductivity of 0.021–0.026 W m−1 K−1. The materials produced in the present research present a great potential to be used as insulators due to the low thermal conductivity found, which was very similar to the thermal conductivity of the air and also of commercial materials such as polyurethane foam and expanded polystyrene.

Experiment on Concrete with Partial Replacement of Sand with Alternate Green Materials

In recent decades, there is a sprut in the growth of the construction industry. Aggregates are one of the main ingredients for making concrete. Depletion of natural resources of sand and the effect of mass production of cement on sustainable environment, need studies on the use of alternative materials. On the other hand, dumping of wastes from the industries are piling up resulting in the pollution of the environment. By considering the above facts, severe studies are focused on partial replacement of river sand with alternatives like copper slag, steel slag, quarry dust, etc., The outcome of these studies shows that the alternate materials enlarge the mechanical and durability properties of concrete. The optimum dose of alternate materials to replacement of sand is evaluated. In this paper, technical papers published by researchers are studied, discussed and compared

Bio-Brick - Development of Sustainable and Cost Effective Building Material

AbstractBuilding construction is one of the fastest growing industries in India and it puts a huge burden on its limited natural resources. Fired clay bricks are one of the major constituent materials for the construction industry and it produces a huge amount of greenhouse gases. This research tries to highlight the use of alternative materials and how they can be modulated to suit the Indian construction industry. Bio-brick or agro-waste based brick is one such material that has the potential to be a sustainable and cost-effective solution. It acts as good heat and sound insulator and at the same time has overall negative carbon footprint. Additionally, it also acts as a deterrent to stubble burning, prevalent in northern India which causes severe air pollution. Due to its low density, it reduces dead load in high rise structures, thereby making RCC construction more economical. The study also highlights the use of Bio-brick in various areas of a structure. Another important objective of this research is to inspire and motivate architects, designers, researchers and builders to encourage and support the development of such sustainable and eco-sensitive material in construction industry.

Applications of Sustainable Materials in Concrete � A Short Review

Background/Objectives: Concrete is an inevitable material in construction industry. The major pollution from construction industry was reported from the production of materials like aggregates and cement. The material scarcity, supply-demand gap and environmental pollution insist the construction industry to find an alternative material for concrete matrix. The prime objective of this study is to review the past and recent research on the utilization of alternative materials in concrete production and its applications in construction industry. Materials and Methods: The abundant availability of recyclable waste materials like Construction and Demolition Wastes (C and DW) and industrial byproducts such as fly ash and slag increased the interest of the researchers towards application of these materials as an alternative source for cement and aggregate materials. Findings: Recycled Aggregate Concrete (RAC) showed less strength performance than normal concrete. To attain the similar strength performance of normal concrete, some modifications in the RAC mix design is required. The durability performance was highly improved with the application of industrial by product materials in concrete. Application/Improvement: This study possibly will help to encourage the consumers and further promote the use of alternative materials for concrete production on a larger scale in civil engineering projects. Keywords: Concrete, Construction and Demolition Wastes, Fly Ash, Recycled Aggregate Concrete, Slag

Industrial Wastes as Alternative Materials to Fine Aggregates in Triple Blend Self Compacting Concrete – a Sustainable Technological Solution

Self-compacting concrete is a most revolutionary development in concrete constructions for several decades and presently has become a common feature of day to day constructions. The powder content of SCC consists of cement as major binding material. It is a well-known factor that cement production is the major contributor of emission of CO2, One of the methods adopted to reduce the consumption of cement and hence to reduce greenhouse effect is to use the mineral admixtures such as Fly Ash, GGBS, Metakaolin etc., as cementitious materials, replacing cement partially. It is a solution for the management of Industrial by-products as solid waste, reducing the burden on environment. The consumption of depleting natural resources as FA can also be reduced. Encouraging the use of alternative materials in concrete contributing to green and clean environment. The quality and strength criteria of end product, concrete and SCC are maintained as expected. The paper presents the experimental study on use of cementitious materials alternate to cement/powder content replacing cement equally named as Triple Blend and also to replace Natural River sand (FA) with Manufactured Sand and Pond Ash.The literatures report the studies on rheology and strength parameters of concretes with Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCM). Few studies on the application of cement, fly ash and GGBS in equal proportion by weight (Triple Blend SCC-TSC) is available. The literature on properties of TSC replacing both cementitious materials and FA are scanty.This paper is an effort to develop a sustainable concrete (TSC) with alternative materials for Cement and Natural River sand and to assess the suitability in terms of required properties of TSC.The SCC mixes are designed for a powder content of 400 kg/m3 using Absolute Volume method. The Rheology of mixes namely Slump Flow, Slump T50, V Funnel and L-Box are assessed with 180lts of water and varying the dosage of admixtures as per EFNARC 2005. Specimens are cast and cured (for 28 days) as per standard codal procedure. The properties in fresh state of TSC and strength are assessed and analysed in comparison with that of Normal SCC – SCC with 70% cement, 30% Fly ash as powder content and with 100% Natural River Sand as FA.Properties in fresh state confirms to the requirement of EFNARC 2005. However, the study showed that the presence of Pond ash as FA makes the SCC mix is sticky due to more inter particle friction. Slight bleeding of mixes can be attributed to the that higher water absorption of Pond Ash in comparison with Natural River Sand and lesser water retentivity of Pond Ash.The rheological properties of TSC mixes is comparable with that of Normal SCC mixes recommending the use of industrial waste from the point of view of properties of fresh SCC.The strength reduction of TSC mixes is ranging from 5-10% for the mix in which replacement of M-Sand and Pond ash is carried out in equal proportion by weight. This may be due to the presence of porous, irregular particles of Pond ash which may affect packing density of the mix. Other important observation in the study is that reduction in strength of TSC mix may be attributed to higher water absorption of Pond Ash and lesser water retentivity of Pond Ash.Hence, the present study recommends the use of alternative materials to both power content of TSC and FA content to produce a sustainable SCC mix contributing to lesser release of CO2 to atmosphere, avoiding the dependency on depleting natural resources (using alternatives as M-Sand and Pond ash) contributing to Green Design Mix of TSC. This may be one of the most appropriate solution for management of huge solid waste from the industry.

Research on the use of lignocellulosic fibers reinforced bio-polyamide 11 with composites for automotive parts: Car door handle case study

Most of the decisions taken during the early design and development steps of a new product compromise a large part of its cost, including its environmental footprint and energy consumption. This is of special interest for the automotive industry that has made an effort to increase its sustainability. Adjectives like bio-based, recyclable or biodegradable are commonly used as synonyms of greener; nonetheless, such materials must achieve the requirements of the industry. This paper researches the use of alternative materials instead of glass fiber reinforced polypropylene, a commodity material. The authors propose using a wood fiber reinforced polyamide 11 composite as replacement. The research discussed the mechanical properties of such composites, obtaining values similar to the currently used materials. Moreover, a case study was performed to assess the behavior of the composites when used to manufacture a door car handle. The materials with reinforcement contents ranging from 40 to 60% showed its ability to replace the commodity materials. Furthermore, a preliminary LCA analysis was performed to evaluate the environmental footprint of the researched materials. In was found, that, in terms of energy and carbon footprint, the PA11 composites were penalized by the energy cost of the PA11 monomer production.

An Experimental Study on the Effects of Adding Steel and Polypropylene Fibers to Concrete on Its Resistance after Different Temperatures

Abstract The use of fibers in concrete improves strength, ductility, and durability of concrete. Concrete has fireproofing properties, but rebars are the most important concern of reinforced concrete structures in the event of a fire outbreak. Therefore, one of the recommendations to reduce these risks is the use of alternative materials like fibers. In this article, the effects of different temperatures on the mechanical properties of concretes with different cement contents containing steel and polypropylene fibers were studied. The specimens were placed under temperatures of 25°C, 100°C, 250°C, 500°C, and 700°C, and the results revealed that the effects of fire on concrete containing steel fibers are more damaging. Also, the compressive strength and modulus of rupture at 25°C and tensile strength at 250°C have the maximum values. Compressive and tensile strengths of concrete containing steel fibers were 40 % and 50 %, respectively, more than the concrete containing polypropylene fibers. However, their flexural strength was almost equal. By comparing the flexural strength of specimens with grade 400 and grade 700, it can be concluded that the specimens with grade 400 have more resistance by about 10 to 40 %.

A life cycle assessment of the construction phase of eleven micro-hydropower installations in the UK

The rapid deployment of renewable energy technologies continues, yet the environmental impacts associated with their construction is accepted without sustainable design considerations. This life cycle assessment study quantifies the embodied burdens in the construction phase of eleven micro-hydropower installations, ranging from 70–100 kW in size. The consumption of concrete and aggregates, metals and plastics influence each of the five impact categories assessment differently. In relation to global warming potential, upstream production of concrete and aggregates contributed 25–44%, whilst production of plastics contributed 27–49%. For acidification potential, production of metals and plastics contributed 29–67% and 19–45%, respectively. Production of metals used in MHP projects contributed 86–98% of human toxicity potential and 79–98% of abiotic resource depletion, whilst production of plastics contributed 56–77% of fossil resource depletion potential. One low-head scheme had the highest global warming, acidification and fossil resource depletion burdens due to large quantities of materials used in construction, while another scheme demonstrated high human toxicity and abiotic resource depletion burdens due to a 3-km grid connection upgrade for exporting electricity. The results were more sensitive to the quantity of materials used in the micro-hydropower projects than to changes in transport and construction contributions. The use of alternative materials could reduce global warming potential, e.g. a wood-frame powerhouse instead of concrete construction would reduce it by 6–12%. The results also indicated a general trend of reduced burdens per kWh electricity generated as capacity increased. However, no clear correlations were found between site-specific characteristics and environmental impacts in constructing these micro-hydropower projects. Therefore, independent life cycle assessment case studies are still required to inform better construction practices for specific renewable energy projects, with significant potential to improve environmental performance, especially in relation to resource efficiency as per circular economy principles.

The study of soil crumbling when using new working bodies

Comparison of quality indicators of the results of research and testing on machine-testing stations with with their normalized values characterizes the compliance or non-compliance with the agrotechnical requirements of soil tillage machines and working bodies. According to agrotechnical requirements, one of the main indicators characterizing the quality of tillage is soil crumbling. The crumbs of the field surface depend on the quality of crumbling as with the predominance of the required size of lumps in the treated soil layer, an even field surface is observed. At a high quality of crumbling, soil particles smaller than 1 mm from the upper layer spill to the lower ones, preventing erosion. Objective: to characterize the quality of crumbling of the soil when using new working bodies in terms of compliance with agrotechnical requirements and compare it with analogues by the technological adapter. Compliance with the agrotechnical requirements of the new working bodies was determined according to the regulatory docu-mentation for soil tillage testing machines. It was found that by the quality of the layer crumbling (up to 98,5 %) and by reducing the number of erosion-hazardous particles in the upper soil layer (up to 18,13 %) new working bodies are superior to analogues by the process adapter. A positive impact on the quality of crumbling has had the use of elements of the working body, made in a curvilinear form (87,8-98,5 %) compared with a flat-cutter (65,1-76,8 %). Modernization of the flat-cut design with the possibility of self-setting the cutting angle at the angle of the natural cleavage of the soil allowed improving the quality of crumbling to 80,5-82,0 %, and the use of alternative materials - to 82,0-84,8 %. In terms of the quality of crumbling of the reservoir, new working bodies correspond to agrotechnical requirements of tillage pre-sowing. This reduces the number of technological operations for additional loosening and leveling the field surface before sowing. This reduces the number of technological operations for additional loosening and leveling the field surface before sowing. It was established that new working bodies are not inferior in terms of agrotechnical indicators to modern technical means for tillage.

Characterization of new selective coatings, made of granite and chrome, for solar collectors

The depletion of fossil fuel reserves and climate change caused by atmospheric pollution has led the human being to seek alternatives that are less damaging to the environment. The concern and the awareness of the population open space for the study of renewable energies to be deepened, among them the best use of solar energy. The use of alternative materials to replace selective surfaces is a natural trend, since improvements in surface efficiency are usually sought while attempting to reduce costs. Composite substances are already used to obtain some selective surfaces, and, as a result, the search for better processes awakens research on more appropriate and lower cost materials, which represents a great scientific potential in the evolution of these technologies. Thus, the present work consisted in obtaining and studying selective surfaces for applications in low-cost flat plate solar collectors, using residues from the granite industry. Five different surfaces were studied, varying the weight percentage: 100% granite powder, 75% granite powder + 25% chromium oxide, 50% granite powder + 50% chromium oxide, 25% granite powder + 75% chromium oxide and 100% chromium oxide. For the tests, an experimental wooden stand was built, and it was possible to simulate the conditions of a flat plate solar collector. To characterize the surfaces, scanning electron microscope (SEM) techniques, infrared analysis, X-ray diffraction and UV-VIS absorbance determination, as well as graphs with surface temperatures and with radiation, during the tests in the sun, were used. The surfaces` efficiency was determined by the ratio of the absorptivity by the emissivity, as well as the trademark MRTiNOX, a commercial selective surface applied on copper substrate. For this, an efficiency of 23.56 was obtained, while for the 50% granite and 50% chromium surfaces the value of 23.27 (closest to the trade mark) was calculated. Therefore, replacing the traditional components of selective surfaces with granite proved to be a satisfactory solution, contributing to the reduction of costs with work involving solar energy.

Hemoglobin–albumin cluster: physiological responses after exchange transfusion into rats and blood circulation persistence in dogs

A core–shell protein cluster comprising hemoglobin and human serum albumins, hemoglobin–albumin cluster (Hb–HSA3), was designed and synthesized for use as an artificial O2 carrier and red blood cell (RBC) substitute. For initial preclinical safety evaluation of the Hb–HSA3 solution, we observed blood compatibility in vitro, physiological responses after exchange transfusion into rats and blood circulation lifetime in dogs. Dilution of human whole blood with Hb–HSA3 showed an appropriate decrease in blood cell number, proportional to the mixing volume ratio. Time courses in the circulation parameters and blood gas parameters after 20% exchange transfusion with Hb–HSA3 in anesthetized rats were almost identical to those observed in a sham group (without infusion) and an HSA group (with HSA administration) for 6 h. Serum biochemical tests of the withdrawn blood indicated safety of the protein cluster. Furthermore, fluorescent Hb–HSA3 was infused into beagle dogs to assess blood retention. Fluorescence measurements of the blood samples enabled us to ascertain the cluster half-life within the intravascular space. Histopathologic inspections of the vital organs imply no abnormality in tissues. All these results indicate sufficient initial preclinical safety of Hb–HSA3 as an alternative material for use in RBC transfusion.

Empirical assessing cement CO2 emissions based on China's economic and social development during 2001–2030

Cement industry is a large emitter of carbon dioxide (CO2), taking up 5–8% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions. China is the largest developing country in the world. With the fast urbanization rate, economic growth and rapid development of industry, China's cement production is soaring year by year. Also, cement CO2 emissions increased year by year and aroused the rising attention. However, the historical province- and nation-level cement production situations, driving forces of cement output and/or demand based on rapid economic growth and urbanization rate, the peak of cement consumption and China's cement demand projection and CO2 emissions through 2030 when China should fulfill the international commitments were not clear. The present study summarized the characteristics of China's cement production and CO2 emissions during 2001–2015, projected cement CO2 emission scenarios based on diffusion of alternative materials and technical innovation toward 2030. The following results were summarized, clinker- and cement- CO2 emission factors (EFs) were declining year by year with the technical innovation. CO2 emissions increased with the increase of cement output year by year. The discrepancies of CO2 emissions from different researches were becoming large year by year, and the biggest difference of CO2 emissions reached 49% in 2015. Accordingly, we recommended active EFs for the calculation of cement CO2 emissions. Cement production situation varies greatly with province, as manifested in unbalanced NSP technology and clinker-to-cement ratio, and energy consumption, which was primarily attributed to the unbalanced resource reserves and economic development. There is still sufficient room for CO2 reduction in China's cement industry, and the use of alternative material was better than technical innovation in such reduction. The optimal emissions in 2030 will be 1490 Mt CO2. And China's cement consumption will be stable in 2030, cumulative cement consumption per capita will be peaked at 23394 kg, and UR will reach 70.1%.

Cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of energy and carbon of a residential building in Sri Lanka

The growing concerns over the environment have led to increasing demand for environmentally-friendly buildings. So far, only a few studies on environmental impacts of buildings have been conducted in the context of Sri Lanka. Reliable data sources that match the specific conditions of the country are limited. Using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, this paper presents a cradle-to-gate energy and carbon emission study of a multi-storey residential building in a Sri Lankan university. The total embodied energy and carbon of the building are 3.84 GJm-2 and 229.34 kgCO2m-2, respectively, which are comparable with results of similar studies found in literature. Reinforced concrete, the main structural material, contributed to 61 % of total embodied energy and 71 % of total embodied carbon of the building. Despite the relatively low material quantity used, aluminium, ceramic tiles and paint shared 18.67 % of total embodied energy. In order to achieve low-energy and low-carbon buildings in Sri Lanka, several strategies were identified; suitable construction practices and building designs to reduce quantities of mass materials, use of alternative materials with low energy and carbon intensities, material recycling and reuse, use of clean and renewable energy for production processes and popularising the concept of eco-labels for building materials. The reduction of embodied energy and carbon is expected to lighten the environmental footprint of buildings.

Mechanical and dynamic properties of alternate materials for machine tool structures: A review

Machine tool structures find large-scale applications in various machining industries due to their necessity to design several kinds of machines. However, the vibration produced on machining is a significant problem which has to be overcome. To suppress the vibration, several researchers have attempted to enhance the machine tool structure’s dynamic characteristics in the recent past. The composite materials have risen up as a new kind of material for the manufacture of machine tool structures with producing lesser vibrations since the past few decades. To increase the production of precision products, machining should be done at high speeds without producing vibration. The dynamic characteristics such as natural frequency as well as damping of machine tool structures are very important parameters. Hence, the improvement of these parameters is nothing but the improvement of dynamic characteristics, as said earlier. Therefore, the present review elaborates various available reports on the improved dynamic characteristics of machine tools. The review focused mainly on mechanical and dynamic properties of alternate materials for machine tools with different composite materials. Furthermore, conflicting conditions of suitable alternate material for the preparation of machine tools are also focused in the present review. To the best of our knowledge, the review on the use of alternate materials for the manufacturing of machine tool structures has not been reported elsewhere and hence the present review will provide useful information for subsequent researchers to enhance the scope of research work in the area of manufacturing machine tool structures.

Alternative to Avoid Tooth Discoloration after Regenerative Endodontic Procedure: A Systematic Review.

This systematic review aimed to evaluate whether alternative materials to conventional triple antibiotic paste (TAP - metronidazole, ciprofloxacin, and minocycline) and grey mineral trioxide aggregate (GMTA) could avoid tooth discoloration in teeth submitted to Regenerative Endodontic Procedure (REP). It was also investigated if dental bleaching is able to reverse the color of darkened teeth due to REP. The search was conducted in four databases (Medline via PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Science and BVS - Virtual health library), following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. The retrieved papers were uploaded in the software EndNoteTM and two reviewers independently selected the studies and extracted the data. Only studies in humans (case reports, case series, clinical trials) were included in the review. From 1,122 potentially eligible studies, 83 were selected for full-text analysis, and 38 were included in the review. The included studies were mainly case reports (76.3 %). The studies described a total of 189 teeth submitted to REP. From these, about 54% of teeth presented some degree of discoloration. Most teeth presenting color alteration were treated with TAP, especially when combined with GMTA. Only three studies performed dental bleaching to restore the color of teeth and neither bleaching technique was able to restore the original color of the crowns. The use of alternative materials to TAP and GMTA, such as double antibiotic paste or Ca(OH)2 pastes and white mineral trioxide aggregate or BiodentineTM, reduces the occurrence of tooth discoloration.

Estudo sobre a utilização de Resíduo de Minério de Ferro em microrrevestimento asfáltico

Este trabalho apresenta resultados dos ensaios de caracterização física e mecânica de agregados pétreos e do resíduo proveniente do beneficiamento do minério de ferro, da cidade de Mariana/MG, bem como a caracterização física e mecânica de traços de Microrrevestimento Asfáltico a Frio (MRAF), considerando a incorporação do resíduo de ferro como agregado miúdo, tendo-se como referência as normas técnicas vigentes. Esse tipo de revestimento é aplicado, geralmente, em rodovias com alto volume de tráfego, as quais, durante a manutenção, requerem a liberação imediata das vias. O uso do resíduo em MRAF é importante, pois reduz o passivo ambiental das barragens de rejeitos e viabiliza o uso de materiais alternativos, agregando ao pavimento desempenho mecânico satisfatório e promovendo redução de custos. A análise química e ambiental do resíduo mostrou que ele se classifica como não perigoso e inerte. O comportamento mecânico dos corpos de prova de MRAF contendo agregado do resíduo de ferro mostrou que os resultados obtidos são compatíveis com a literatura, bem como mostrou ter desempenho semelhante aos agregados usuais, indicando tratar-se de um material com uso promissor nesse tipo de técnica de pavimentação.

GHG mitigation of railway concrete products using eco-concrete and surface protection agent

This study investigated the life cycle greenhouse gases (GHG) mitigation effect of railway infrastructure through the application of an eco-concrete, using ground granulated blast furnace (GGBF) slag and electric arc furnace (EAF) slag as alternative materials in railway sleeper, and a concrete surface protection agent in railway track. A simplified life cycle assessment method was applied to compare GHG emissions and an instrumental analysis as well as a physical performance test were carried out to identify the protection mechanism between the agent and concrete along with field tests. From this study, it was found that two different approaches might contribute substantially to mitigate GHG emissions from railway infrastructure. The surface protection agent with an anti-deterioration function showed high possibility of increasing lifespan of the concrete structure and the use of alternative materials, such as furnace slag, reduced the concrete consumption by more than 20% (w/w). It was estimated that the potential GHG mitigation effects from the surface protection agent and eco-concrete technology applied to a railway concrete track were at least 27 ton CO2 eq. per km a year and 11.1 kg of CO2 eq. per 1 sleeper, respectively.

Evaluation of adapted books and the use of Tactile Cartography at public schools in the State of São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract. Brazil adopts an educational inclusion policy, which is based on the insertion of students with special needs in the elementary and high school. In the State of São Paulo, Brazil, visually impaired students, who attend public schools, receive books adapted for blind and low sighted individuals, so they can participate on Geography classes. This paper presents the results of the analysis of the enlarged material adapted to braille used at the elementary school. The analysis was based on the principle of the graphical semiology developed by ALMEIDA (2015), which discusses the use of alternative materials in order to represent areas, lines and dots with different heights, textures and shapes. The results were obtained through interviews, surveys and evaluation of teachers and students, who somehow experience the specificities of the visually impaired students daily. We observed that the adapted books do not bring all information contained in the original versions of the books and some of the exercises are not presented. Furthermore we could notice that the teachers and other students do not have any level of proficiency in understanding braille, which can hamper the interaction between visually impaired and the other students. After the observations, we adapted 22 maps using colored materials and handcraft techniques taking in-to account the different needs of the low sighted audience. The materials used are easy to be found and purchased, since they have a low cost. Using this alternative material we achieved a learning that was representative to all students and to the teachers, providing the socialization of the acquired knowledge.