Researchers at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid are studying the potential of the use of waste and demolition as a partial substitution of traditional building materials to improve the energy efficiency of buildings. buildings.
Currently in Spain, buildings account for 27.7% of total energy consumption, and the construction, energy and industrial sectors generate 50% of construction and demolition waste (CDW). This scenario has led researchers from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Edificación (ETSEM) of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), in collaboration with the Università Degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, to analyse the possibility of reuse and recycle these materials to improve the thermal insulation properties of buildings, thus reducing energy costs.
To this end, they have developed an energy simulation model with which they have shown that energy savings of between 8% and 13% can be achieved with the use of CDW depending on whether the climate is hot or cold.
The recycled materials can be used in the different construction elements of the roof and façade of buildings to replace cement mortar, ceramic bricks, mortar rendering, laminated plasterboard or lightweight roof slope mortar, all with the aim of making the building more energy efficient.
In order to quantify the potential for energy efficiency of recycled materials, researchers from the Technology and Environment Group of the ETSEM of the UPM have developed an energy simulation model using a reference residential building with four floors, six dwellings per floor and a surface area of 110 m2 each. The building is simulated in different climatic zones representative of the climate in Spain.
Construction waste
In a preliminary analysis carried out on the reference building without recycled materials, where the energy saving potential of the building element is defined, the results indicated that the energy losses emissions increase on the roof and façade in the cold months, while the opposite is true on the ground.
In addition, energy gains are practically negligible in Seville, while in Soria the results showed that gains through the ground were somewhat more significant. On the other hand, in the summer months, the greatest losses occur through the ground in contact with the ground, and the greatest gains through the façades and roof, being more significant in hot climates.
In a subsequent analysis of the reference building with recycled materials, the results indicate that energy savings can amount to 8% in Seville and 13% in Soria, it is more effective to place the recycled materials on the roof. than on the façade.
In addition, the economic savings in air conditioning can reach up to 14% in Soria and 4% in Seville. This means that highly insulated buildings work better in cold environments, as hot environments overheat the interior of the building. Even so, a reduction in the economic cost is achieved.
According to UPM researcher César Porras: "The results of this study show that including recycled materials in our buildings is a good thing because we reduce the consumption of raw materials, giving construction and demolition waste a second life and decrease the energy consumption of buildings"..
(PHOTO: PIXABAY)
