Department of Civil Engineering

U18CE702C

Sustainable Materials and Green Buildings

Dr. A. Suchith Reddy (CE2)

 U18CE702C Sustainable Materials and Green Buildings

Course Learning Objectives (LOs):

This course will develop students’ knowledge in /on
LO1: concepts of sustainability and governing principles
LO2:green and sustainable building materials
LO3:energy and carbon reduction in buildings
LO4:building performance towards sustainability

Course Learning Outcomes (Cos):

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to…
CO1: infer the significance of sustainability in construction engineering
CO2: appraise and select sustainable building materials
CO3: interpret the energy and carbon reduction strategies
CO4: rate and propose sustainable building
Three Phases of Building Materials
Pre-Building Phase
describes the production and delivery process of a material up to, but not including, the point
of installation. This includes discovering raw materials in nature as well as extracting,
manufacturing, packaging, and transportation to a building site. This phase has the most
potential for causing environmental damage.

Understanding the environmental impacts in the pre-building phase will lead to the wise
selection of building materials. Raw material procurement methods, the manufacturing
process itself, and the distance from the manufacturing location to the building site all have
environmental consequences.

An awareness of the origins of building materials is crucial to an understanding of their

collective environmental impact when expressed in the form of a building.
The basic ingredients for building products, whether for concrete walls or roofing
membranes, are obtained by mining or harvesting natural resources.

The extraction of raw materials, whether from renewable or finite sources, is in itself a source
of severe ecological damage. The results of clear-cutting forests and strip-mining once-pristine
landscapes have been well documented.

Mining refers to the extraction, often with great difficulty, of metals and stone from the earth’s
crust. These materials exist in finite quantities, and are not considered renewable. The refining
of metals often requires a large volume of rock to yield a relatively small quantity of ore,
which further reduces to an even smaller quantity of finished product. Each step in the
refining process produces a large amount of toxic waste.
In theory, harvestable materials like wood are renewable resources and thus can
be obtained with less devastation to their ecosystems.

In reality, a material is only considered a renewable or sustainable resource if it

can be grown at a rate that meets or exceeds the rate of human consumption.
Hardwoods, for example, can take up to 80 years to mature.

The ecological damage related to the gathering of natural resources and their
conversion into building materials includes loss of wildlife habitat, erosion, and
water and air pollution.

Loss of habitat: Habitat refers to the natural environment in which a species is found;
usually, these areas are undeveloped. Cutting forests for lumber or removing vegetation
for mining destroys the habitats of animal and plant species. A microclimate may be
immediately and severely altered by the removal of a single tree that protectively shaded
the plants below.

Plants return moisture to the air through respiration, filter water and air pollutants, and
generate the oxygen necessary for people and animals to survive. Tropical rainforests are a
main route for the movement of water from the ground into the atmosphere: trees, like
people, expel moisture as part of their respiration cycle. A decrease in the amount of
atmospheric water may lead to a decrease in worldwide rainfall, resulting in drought and
famine.
 Loss of habitat: Habitat refers to the natural environment in which a species is
found; usually, these areas are undeveloped. Cutting forests for lumber or
removing vegetation for mining destroys the habitats of animal and plant
species. A microclimate may be immediately and severely altered by the
removal of a single tree that protectively shaded the plants below.

Plants return moisture to the air through respiration, filter water and air
pollutants, and generate the oxygen necessary for people and animals to
survive. Tropical rainforests are a main route for the movement of water from
the ground into the atmosphere: trees, like people, expel moisture as part of
their respiration cycle. A decrease in the amount of atmospheric water may
lead to a decrease in worldwide rainfall, resulting in drought and famine.

Example: Tropical rainforests support a vast range of plants and

animals. As part of the photosynthesis process, they also absorb
carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The widespread
destruction of rainforests to make way for mining and farming
operations has been linked to increased levels of carbon dioxide
in the atmosphere, which in turn has been linked to global
warming.
Erosion: The removal of trees and groundcover also leaves areas vulnerable to
erosion. The erosion of topsoil and runoff into streams and rivers has become a major
environmental concern.
In addition to depleting the area of fertile soil, the particulate matter suspended in
water reduces the amount of sunlight that penetrates to plants below the surface. The
resulting plant die-off triggers a reaction that moves up the food chain.
As plants die, the amount of oxygen available to other lifeforms decreases.
Eventually, a stream or lake can become clogged with decaying plants and animals,
and can no longer be used as a drinking source by wildlife or humans.
Water Pollution: Waste and toxic
by-products of mining and
harvesting operations are also
carried into the water. Like soil
erosion, they can increase the
turbidity, or opacity, of the water,
blocking sunlight. Many of these
byproducts are acidic and thus
contribute to the acidification of
ground water, harming plant and
wildlife. Oil and gasoline from
engines and toxic metals leftover
from mining may also leech into
the groundwater, causing
contamination of drinking
supplies.
Air Pollution: Mining and harvesting operations contribute to air pollution because their
machinery burns fossil fuels and their processes stir up particulate matter. Combustion
engines emit several toxic gases:
• carbon monoxide, which is poisonous to most life
• carbon dioxide, known as a “greenhouse gas”; has been linked to global warming
• sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxide, which contribute to “acid rain”: precipitation acidified
by atmospheric gases, that can damage buildings or kill plants and wildlife.
Building Phase

The Building Phase refers to a building material’s useful life. This phase
begins at the point of the material’s assembly into a structure, includes the
maintenance and repair of the material, and extends throughout the life of
the material within or as part of the building.

Construction: The material waste generated on a building construction site

can be considerable. The selection of building materials for reduced
construction waste, and waste that can be recycled, is critical in this phase
of the building life cycle.

Use/Maintenance: Long-term exposure to certain building materials may be

hazardous to the health of a building’s occupants. Even with a growing
awareness of the environmental health issues concerning exposure to
certain products, there is little emphasis in practice or schools on choosing
materials based on their potential for outgassing hazardous chemicals,
requiring frequent maintenance with such chemicals, or requiring frequent
replacements that perpetuate the exposure cycle.
Post-Building Phase

The Post-Building Phase refers to the building materials when their usefulness in a building has
expired. At this point, a material may be reused in its entirety, have its components recycled
back into other products, or be discarded.

From the perspective of the designer, perhaps the least considered and least understood phase of
the building life cycle occurs when the building or material’s useful life has been exhausted.

The demolition of buildings and disposal of the resulting waste has a high environmental cost.

Degradable materials may produce toxic waste, alone or in combination with other materials.
Inert materials consume increasingly scarce landfill space. The adaptive reuse of an existing
structure conserves the energy that went into its materials and construction. T

he energy embodied in the construction of the building itself and the production of these
materials will be wasted if these “resources” are not properly utilized.

Some building materials may be chosen because of their adaptability to new uses. Steel stud
framing, for example, is easily reused in interior wall framing if the building occupants’ needs
should change and interior partitions need to be redesigned (modular office systems are also
popular for this reason). Ceiling and floor systems that provide easy access to electrical and
mechanical systems make adapting buildings for new uses quick and cost-effective.
Form of life cycle assessment (LCA)
Environmental Concerns and Connections to Construction Materials
Global Climate Change
Global climate change is defined as long-term fluctuations in temperature, precipitation,
wind, and all other aspects of the earth’s climate. Climate change holds potential to impact
many aspects of life on the planet with rising sea levels, melting glaciers, more violent
storms, loss of biodiversity, reduced food supplies, and displaced populations. Global
warming, one type of global climate change, is the increase in average temperature of the
earth’s near-surface air and oceans. Global warming occurs when energy from the earth is
reradiated as heat and is absorbed and trapped by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
This greenhouse effect reduces heat loss to space, resulting in warmer temperatures on
Earth.

Greenhouse gases (GHG) include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, nitrous oxide, ozone,
sulfur hexafluoride, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and chlorofluorocarbons. In
addition, there are several gases that do not have a direct global warming effect but
indirectly impact solar radiation absorption by influencing the formation of greenhouse
gases, including ground-level and stratospheric ozone. They are carbon monoxide (CO),
oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and non-CH4 volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs).

Greenhouse gas emissions are often directly related to the embodied energy of a
construction material, as for most materials the emissions stem from the fossil fuel
combustion required in their production. For instance, steel requires a relatively high
amount of energy to produce—energy derived primarily from coal combustion processes,
so the greenhouse gas emissions are directly related.
FOSSIL FUEL DEPLETION

Fossil fuels, the primary source of energy for the industrialized world, are being extracted
at a rate thousands of times faster than the time taken for them to renew. They are
considered to be nonrenewable resources because they take millions of years to renew. As
fuel reserves decrease, it is expected that extraction and refinement costs will increase.
Fossil fuels are used throughout a product’s life cycle to power vehicles (used in extraction,
transportation, construction, and maintenance); to produce steam or heat for industrial
processes; for electricity; to power machinery; and as raw material for production of
plastics, other synthetic polymers (e.g., fibers), and solvents. Besides the impacts
associated with extraction and combustion of fossil fuels, there are no direct
environmental impacts of depletion per se.

Political concerns over ownership of fossil fuel reserves and concerns about the
environmental and human health impacts of combustion have led to increased policy
interest in renewable energy sources such as biofuels, geothermal, wind, and solar power
in some countries. In the industrial sector, as costs of fossil fuels and purchased electricity
increase, some manufacturers are looking to alternative energy sources such as wind
power, hydroelectric power, landfill methane capture, or energy recovery from incineration
of waste.
 STRATOSPHERIC OZONE DEPLETION

The naturally occurring ozone layer of the stratosphere is a critical barrier that
prevents harmful shortwave ultraviolet radiation from reaching the earth. Human
caused emissions of ozone-depleting substances, such as chlorofluorocarbons
(CFCs; used as a propellant in manufacturing and a refrigerant) and halons (used in
fire suppression systems), can cause a thinning of the ozone layer, resulting in more
shortwave radiation on Earth. This has a number of potentially negative
consequences, such as impacts on plants and agriculture, and increases in cancer
and cataracts in people. Additional effects on climate and the functioning of
different ecosystems may exist, although the nature of these effects is less clear.
AIR POLLUTION

Air pollutants are airborne solid and liquid particles and gases that can pose risks to
the environment and human health. Fugitive emissions result from many activities,
including production of electricity; operation of equipment used in manufacture,
transport, construction, and maintenance; manufacturing processes; and mining
and crushing of materials. Air pollution from manufacturing processes related to
site construction materials is discussed in greater detail later in this chapter under
outputs from manufacturing.

Criteria air pollutants (CAPs) are particulate matter (both PM10 and PM2.5),
ground-level ozone, carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxides (SO2), nitrogen oxides
(NOx), and lead. VOCs and ammonia are also monitored along with CAPs, as they
contribute to human and environmental health risks.
Release of CAPs such as particulate matter, CO, lead, and ozone can contribute to
asthma, or more serious respiratory illnesses such as permanent lung damage, and
heart disease. SO2, NOx, and ozone can contribute to acid rain and ground-level
ozone, damaging trees, crops, wildlife, water bodies, and aquatic species.
Hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), also called toxic air pollutants or air toxics, are
pollutants that can cause negative human or environmental health effects. They may
cause cancer or other serious health effects such as reproductive effects or birth
defects; damage to the immune system; or developmental, respiratory, or
neurological problems in humans and other species (U.S. EPA Air and Radiation).
Airborne HAPs can deposit onto soils or surface waters, where they are taken up by
plants and ingested by animals, and are magnified as they move up the food chain.

Human exposure to toxic air pollutants can occur by breathing contaminated air;
eating contaminated food products such as fish from polluted waters or vegetables
grown in contaminated soil; drinking water contaminated by toxic air pollutants; or
touching contaminated soil, dust, or water. HAPs released into the air such as vinyl
chloride (the precursor to PVC) are toxic and can cause cancer, birth defects, long-
term injury to the lungs or brain, and nerve damage
SMOG

Smog is a type of air pollution, resulting when industrial and fuel emissions become
trapped at ground level and are transformed after reacting with sunlight. For example,
ozone is one component of smog and occurs when volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
react with oxides of nitrogen (NOx). Transport of materials and equipment used in
landscape construction and maintenance contributes to smog-producing emissions.
Like air pollutants and acidification compounds, smog can have negative effects on the
health of people and other biotic communities.
ACIDIFICATION

Acidification occurs in surface waters and soils as acidifying gases, primarily sulfur and
nitrogen compounds, either dissolve in water or adhere to solid particles. These
compounds reach ecosystems primarily in the form of acid rain, through either a dry or
wet deposition process.

The primary sources of acid rain are emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide from
fossil fuel combustion, although they can also result from natural processes of decaying
vegetation and volcanoes. In the United States, roughly two-thirds of all SO2 and one
quarter of all NOx emissions result from electric power generation, primarily from coal-
fired power plants, while another primary source is motor vehicle fuel combustion.

In material manufacture, fossil fuels are burned to produce electricity and to power
equipment used in raw material extraction, manufacture, transportation, construction,
and maintenance. Winds can blow these emissions from power and manufacturing plants
over hundreds of miles before they are deposited.

Acid rain causes acidification of rivers, streams, and oceans, lowering the pH and causing
damage to fish and other aquatic animals. This can lower the biodiversity of the water
body. Soil biology is also negatively affected by acid rain with the consumption of acids by
microbes killing some. Some acids in soil can mobilize toxins and leach essential nutrients
and minerals.
EUTROPHICATION

Eutrophication is the addition of nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to soil or water
resulting in overstimulation of plant growth. Eutrophication is a natural process; however, it is
accelerated by human activities, causing species composition alterations and reducing
ecological diversity.
In water, it promotes algal blooms that can cloud the water, blocking sunlight and causing
underwater grasses to die. Loss of the grasses reduces habitat and food for aquatic species,
sometimes causing their death. As algae die, oxygen in water is depleted, also affecting the
health of fish and aquatic species. Eutrophication impacts affect humans by affecting the taste
of water (even after treatment) and by negative impacts on swimming, boating, and fishing.

Eutrophication results from the release of pollutants, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to
surface waters from fertilizers, sewage effluent, and manufacturing wastewater. Nitrogen and
phosphorus are major components of synthetic fertilizers used in landscape maintenance and
agriculture. Unchecked nutrients from nonpoint source pollution in stormwater runoff are also
a cause of eutrophication.
DEFORESTATION, DESERTIFICATION, AND SOIL EROSION

Deforestation, the large-scale removal of forests, contributes to negative environmental

impacts such as loss of biodiversity, global warming, soil erosion, and desertification.
Deforestation is driven by factors such as poverty, economic growth, government policies,
technological change, and cultural factors.

When forests are eliminated, they no longer provide ecological services such as carbon
sequestration, habitat, erosion control, and regulation of the hydrological cycle. Forests
play a vital role in stabilizing the climate by sequestering atmospheric carbon.

Habitant Alteration
Loss of Biodiversity
Water Resource Depletion
Ecological Toxicity
Human Health Damage