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The construction sector is one of the major consumers of non-renewable energy and natural resources, but also an important factor in increasing global warming and climate change by producing greenhouse gases. In Europe, around 30% of CO2 emissions and 36% of total greenhouse gases are a direct or indirect consequence of the construction sector. At EU level it is estimated that 40% of energy consumption is due to public / private sector buildings. All EU policies regarding climate, energy efficiency and the use of ...

Nowadays, along with creating materials with enhanced mechanical characteristics, it became important in the light of ecological problems, to design eco-friendly materials capable to disappear with time after fulfilling functions, in other words to develop biodegradable mechanically strong materials. The chemistry and technology of biodegradable polymers is one of the most important and rapidly developing fields of modern polymer science. A lot of biodegradibel polymers (BPs) were created mostly for medical applic...

Graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), a cheap carbon-based material with large surface-to-volume ratio, are currently broadly investigated as a promising reinforcement for composite materials in building industry to enhance particularly their mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties. However, the uniform dispersion of GNPs in composite material is a crucial factor to fully manifest their superior properties. This study is aimed at the design of environmentally friendly composite material based on magnesium oxychlor...

The European mining industry is an active sector. Mining operations disturb large volumes of land and produce huge quantities of waste. The tailings dams of the mining industry occupy large areas representing a huge cost in terms of operation/maintenance, health, safety, environment and economy. This paper is an overview of the possible sustainable waste management strategies that are targeted on the reuse of residues as secondary resources. Therefore, it is focused on restoring mine tailings as inert materials to...

The European mining industry is an active sector. Mining operations disturb large volumes of land and produce huge quantities of waste. The tailings dams of the mining industry occupy large areas representing a huge cost in terms of operation/maintenance, health, safety, environment and economy. This paper is an overview of the possible sustainable waste management strategies that are targeted on the reuse of residues as secondary resources. Therefore, it is focused on restoring mine tailings as inert materials to...

The magnesium oxychloride cement (MOC) as an alternative to commonly used Portland cement (PC) has been intensively studied in the past decade. Compared to PC it is more environmentally sustainable and it can be considered as CO2-neutral due to the low calcination temperature of the raw materials and its ability to absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. The objective of this paper was to develop a composite material based on MOC, containing partially oxidized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (partially oxidized MWCNTs) in o...

The stone industry is one of the most essential industries in the Alpine region. This research aims to evaluate the possibility of reusing secondary waste materials produced by the quarry sector as aggregates in Ultra-High-Performance Fiber Reinforced Concrete (UHPFRC). The secondary materials involved were Diabase Sand, Diabase Powder, Dolomite Sand and Dolomite Gravel from crushed stone quarries from the regions of Carinthia and Tyrol in Austria, as well as Limestone Powder from the preparation and production of...

Natural zeolites having a structure with a large number of cavities allow design lightweight plasters with improved thermal insulation parameters. Focusing on the assessment of plasters’ durability, their resistance to salt damage should to be taken into consideration, especially in case of their application in repair of salt laden masonry. Although the crystallization of salts in plasters presents a serious problem, there is as yet no standard procedure for its evaluation. To predict salt damage of lime-based pla...

The rising global average temperature was the main topic at the 26th United Nations Climate Change conference in Glasgow during the climate summit in 2021 (COP26). The meeting aimed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and to discuss the transfer of funds to developing countries. The Europen Green Deal has the same goals. The European Commission aims to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Climate change has a negative impact on environmental biodiversity, the occurrence of natural disasters, and human health...

The paper presents some aspects of an experimental research in which basic recipes have been designed in order to obtain innovative products to be used in construction as finishing coatings. Starting from sunflower seed shells, considered a waste rather a by-product resulting from the industry of edible sunflower oil, and also from rough sheep wool, an animal waste from the zootechnical field, and also from the specific thermal insulating characteristics of theese two waste materials, a serie of basic recipes was ...

The use of information and communication technologies has many benefits. Based on many studies, their level is not sufficient. This can be caused by several factors and obstacles. Communication and ICT competencies are one of the key factors for the active use of advanced technologies for the management of sustainable construction projects. This digital age requirements systematic communication and project management. In this pandemic time, it can be considered an even more important requirement. It is the level o...