Adaptation Strategies for the Maintenance of Existing Buildings under Climate Change

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Materials, and Repair & Renovation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2022) | Viewed by 19564

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Georresources, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Av. Rovisco Pais, 1049-001 Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: CIB—International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction; durability of building elements, maintenance of buildings; rehabilitation of buildings; building life cycle assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
CERIS, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Rovisco Pais, 1049-001 Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: service life prediction, durability and life cycle of buildings and their components; maintenance modelling; statistical models
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change already has relevant effects on our society. The predicted changes in weather patterns, such as extreme wind and rain, are likely to result in accelerated deterioration of existing buildings, especially in current constructions that have not been properly maintained, which results in their continuous decay and sometimes sudden failure. In this sense, reliable tools should be created to manage the maintenance of existing buildings, considering adaptation measures to assess the effects of anticipated changes in climate, to promote the resilience of built heritage.

This Special Issue will provide an overview of existing knowledge related to various aspects of Adaptation Strategies for the Maintenance of Existing Buildings under Climate Change.

Original research, theoretical and experimental, case studies, and comprehensive review papers are invited for possible publication in this Special Issue. Relevant topics for this Special Issue include, but are not limited to the following subjects:

  1. Analysis of the impact of climatic agents on the deterioration/pathology of existing buildings;
  2. Quantification of the effects of predicted changes in climate on the durability and service life of buildings;
  3. Up-to-date instruments to support decisions regarding the maintainability of existing buildings under a changing climate;
  4. Definition and optimization of maintenance plans, for adaptation to the effects of climate change;
  5. Socio-political challenges of maintaining the built heritage, in adequate conditions, facing changes in weather patterns;
  6. Proposal of adaptation measures for the design and maintenance of new and existing buildings under climate change;
  7. Adaptation strategies in existing buildings to minimize or eliminate the risks related to the effects of climate change;
  8. Assessment of costs and benefits from buildings adaptation.

Prof. Dr. Jorge de Brito
Dr. Ana Silva
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Maintenance
  • Climate change
  • Durability
  • Adaptation strategies
  • New and existing buildings

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 2782 KiB  
Article
Quantifying the Effects of Projected Climate Change on the Durability and Service Life of Housing in Wales, UK
by Carolyn Hayles, Matt Huddleston, Paul Chinowsky and Jacob Helman
Buildings 2022, 12(2), 184; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12020184 - 06 Feb 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2723
Abstract
This research aimed to provide the Welsh Government with measured and quantified climate vulnerabilities associated with housing building-fabric, including the potential financial cost of not planning for climate change. Wales’s climate is projected to become warmer but wetter and it is known that [...] Read more.
This research aimed to provide the Welsh Government with measured and quantified climate vulnerabilities associated with housing building-fabric, including the potential financial cost of not planning for climate change. Wales’s climate is projected to become warmer but wetter and it is known that hygrothermal impacts can accelerate deterioration, leading to damp and, subsequently, a loss of thermal performance. A stressor-response methodology was applied, which assumes that the exogenous stressors of solar flux, precipitation, and humidity have a direct effect on building-fabric performance. The resultant stressor-response values equate to the quantitative impact that a specific stressor has on individual specific building elements, presented as an adjusted service life and associated costs. Results show a modest reduction in the service life of building materials due to increases in and changing patterns of precipitation and subsequent moisture ingress. Although modest, with 1.5 million dwellings in Wales, the impact is significant. Advocating regular maintenance and repair will not only reduce the risks associated with changing weather patterns, but also encourage energy efficiency by improving the thermal performance of the building envelope. This will reduce the risk of adverse climate related outcomes, increased vulnerability to climate change, now or in the future. Full article
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31 pages, 5271 KiB  
Article
Impact of Environmental Exposure Conditions on the Maintenance of Facades’ Claddings
by Cláudia Ferreira, Joana Barrelas, Ana Silva, Jorge de Brito, Ilídio S. Dias and Inês Flores-Colen
Buildings 2021, 11(4), 138; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings11040138 - 26 Mar 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2896
Abstract
Façades, as the most external building envelope component, are subject to different ex-ternal environmental loads, such as: Temperature, precipitation, damp, and wind. Therefore, the contribution of environmental actions to the occurrence of defects in façades claddings is an important subject of study since [...] Read more.
Façades, as the most external building envelope component, are subject to different ex-ternal environmental loads, such as: Temperature, precipitation, damp, and wind. Therefore, the contribution of environmental actions to the occurrence of defects in façades claddings is an important subject of study since these actions strongly affect the degradation process and natural ageing of these components during their service life. In this study, a methodology to support decision-makers in the process of selecting a façade cladding system and the maintenance strategy to implement is presented and discussed. This methodology covers the performance of four façade claddings (ceramic tiling systems (CTS), natural stone claddings (NSC), external thermal insulation composite systems (ETICS), and architectural concrete façades (ACF)) over time, according to three environmental exposure variables (exposure to damp, distance from the sea, and orientation). The databases were established based on the diagnosis of the degradation condition of these claddings in-service conditions, in Portugal. The results reveal that the environmental exposure variables have a significant impact on maintenance requirements and costs. For all the categories of the environmental exposure condition variables, under all scenarios, ETICS is the least favorable constructive solution while CTS is the most advantageous solution. Furthermore, the results show that properly implemented maintenance activities enhance the performance level of building components, which positively affects their degradation behavior over time. Full article
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16 pages, 2509 KiB  
Article
Design of a BIM Integrated Structural Health Monitoring System for a Historic Offshore Lighthouse
by Michael O’Shea and Jimmy Murphy
Buildings 2020, 10(7), 131; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings10070131 - 16 Jul 2020
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 6736
Abstract
The advent of wireless sensors and internet of things connectivity combined with increased open source cloud based digital sharing among the architecture, engineering, and construction industry has helped expand the range of applications for building information modelling. As the rate of adoption of [...] Read more.
The advent of wireless sensors and internet of things connectivity combined with increased open source cloud based digital sharing among the architecture, engineering, and construction industry has helped expand the range of applications for building information modelling. As the rate of adoption of BIM as a standard practice for planning, designing, and constructing new infrastructure increases, the research focus is moving towards other applications. Utilizing BIM in innovative ways such as for building energy performance, carbon capture, and asset management are now being explored. An area which receives less focus is the application of BIM on existing structures. This study explores the potential for implementing BIM on an existing structure for asset management and structural health monitoring. A method of integrating sensors to enhance the visualisation of structural health monitoring through BIM is developed. The study describes how monitoring data can be integrated within the BIM of an offshore lighthouse. Full article
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Review

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19 pages, 5751 KiB  
Review
The Effect of Atmospheric Corrosion on Steel Structures: A State-of-the-Art and Case-Study
by Luigi Di Sarno, Armin Majidian and George Karagiannakis
Buildings 2021, 11(12), 571; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings11120571 - 23 Nov 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 5480
Abstract
Atmospheric corrosion can seriously affect the performance of steel structures over long periods of time; thus, it is essential to evaluate the rate of corrosion and subsequent modification of dynamic properties of a structure over different time periods. Standards and codes represent the [...] Read more.
Atmospheric corrosion can seriously affect the performance of steel structures over long periods of time; thus, it is essential to evaluate the rate of corrosion and subsequent modification of dynamic properties of a structure over different time periods. Standards and codes represent the general guidelines and suggest general protection techniques to prevent structures from corrosion damage. The available models in the literature propose the thickness reduction method that accounts for the exposure time of structures in corrosive environments. The purpose of this study is to review the existing corrosion models in the literature and report as well as compare their effectiveness in low (C2 level), medium (C3 level) and high (C4 level) corrosivity class in accordance with the ISO standard. Furthermore, the influence of corrosion loss during the lifetime of a structure is studied through a realistic case study model using FEM (finite element method) in both linear and nonlinear regions. The results showed that the corrosion can considerably affect the dynamic characteristics of the structure. For instance, the vibration period rose up to 15% for the C4 class and 100-year lifespan. Additionally, the corroded structure presented higher acceleration and drift demand, and the base reaction forces were reduced up to 60% for the same class and time period. Full article
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