Resource-efficient building materials for
a sustainable built environment
John E. Fernández
Container City: India Wharf, London, UK
Ferrous
metals
4
Cast
irons
Carbon
1.8-4%
(weight%)
Common
nonferrous
metals
Brass
Cu + Zn
Ductile iron
Copper
Gray iron
Pure copper
Cast irons
3
Cu
Bronze
Cu + Sn(10-30%)a
Zinc
Cupronickel
Cu + Ni(30%)
White iron
High carbon
steels
Medium carbon
steels
Low carbon
steels
2
Zn
1
Tin
Sn
0
Nickel
Ni
Weight% carbon
1000 Series
>99% Al
2000 Series
Al + 4Cu + Mg,Si,Mn
3000 Series
Al + 1Mn
4000 Series
Al + Si
Aluminum
Al
Tool steel
Fe+tungsten, cobalt
Stainless steel
Fe+chromium (13-26%)
Steels
Carbon
0.04 - 1.7%
(weight%)
High alloy
Tool
Low alloy
Plain
Magnesium
Mg
Manganese
Mn
5000 Series
Al + 3Mg,0.5Mn
6000 Series
Al + 0.5Mg,0.5Si
7000 Series
Al + 6Zn + Mg,Cu,Mn
Casting alloys
Al + 11Si
Al-lithium alloys
Al + 3Li
Titanium
High carbon
Heat treatable
Medium carbon
Plain
Low carbon
High strength
low alloy
Ti
Ti-6 Al 4V
Lead
Pb
Chromium
Cr
Plain
aAll alloying proportions given in terms of percentage weight.
bAluminum series 1000-7000
Figure by MIT OCW.
Axial Compressive Force (kN)
Stress (MPa)
16
12
Quasi-static
Dynamic 3609/s
8
4
0
80
0.2
0.4
Strain
Figure by MIT OCW.
metal foams
0.6
3
40
2
20
0
0
Foam filled tube
60
Sum 1 + 2
4
Empty tube
Foam
1
0
20
40
60
80
Axial Compression (mm)
Figure by MIT OCW.
100
Departures in temperature (oC) from the
1961-1990 average
(b) the past 1,000 years
Northern Hemisphere
0.5
0.0
-0.5
-1.0
1000
Data from thermometer (red) and from tree rings, corals,
ice cores and historical records (green).
1200
1400
1600
Year
Figure by MIT OCW.
1800
2000
Million metric
tons
200
100
Figure by MIT OCW.
Composition of Total Material Requirement
(TMR; in Tonnes/Capita) in the
European Union, Selected Member States
and Other Countries.
Fossil fuels
Metals
Minerals
Excavation
Biomass
Erosion
Other (imports)
TMR
30
20
10
0
Finland
1995
Germany
1995
Japan
1994
Netherlands
1993
Poland
1995
USA
1994
EU-15
1995
Note: Hidden flows are included in fossil fuels, metals and minerals or are represented by
excavation and erosion.
Figure by MIT OCW.
Foreign
hidden
flows
Air and
water
Water
vapor
Imports
Exports
Economic Processing
TMR
Domestic
extraction
DMI
TDO
Stocks
Domestic
hidden
flows
Domestic
processed
output (DPO)
(to air, land
and water)
Domestic
hidden
flows
Domestic Environment
TMR (Total Material Requirement) = DMI+Domestic Hidden Flows+Foreign Hidden Flows
DMI (Direct Material Input) = Domestic Extraction+Imports
NAS (Net Additions to Stock) = DMI-DPO-Exports
TDO (Total Domestic Output) = DPO+Domestic Hidden Flows
DPO (Domestic Processed Output) = DMI-Net Additions to Stock-Exports
Figure by MIT OCW.
MATERIAL INPUT
Imports
Abiotic raw
material
Used:
1) minerals
2) energy carriers
Unused:
1) non saleable
extraction
2) excavation
475
ECONOMY
Net additions
to stock
3443
898
253
1996
296
MATERIAL OUTPUT
938
Exports
Waste disposal
(excl. incineration)
1) controlled
waste disposal
2) landfill and mine
dumping
Emission to air
1) CO2
2) NO2, SO2, CO
and others
Air
1080
TOTAL INPUT 5348
Biotic raw materials (fresh weight) 225
Erosion 126
228
2329
119
2210
1005
990
Emission to water
from material
15
639
TOTAL OUTPUT 4411
Dissipative use of products and
dissipative losses 47
Emissions to water 37
Figure by MIT OCW.
Footprint (# of planets)
1.5
World Biocapacity
1.0
Demand
0.5
0.0
1961
1971
1981
Demand vs. Biocapacity
Figure by MIT OCW.
1991
2001
Material Resources
U.S. Flow of Raw Materials by Weight, 1900-2000
(non-fuel and non-food resources)
4.0
Agriculture and Fishery
Wood
Nonrenewable Organics
Metals
Industrial Minerals
Stone, Sand and Gravel
Billion Metric Tons
3.0
Oil Crisis
Recession
2.0
{
World War I
World War II
Great
Depression
{
1.0
0.0
1900
1920
1940
1950
Year
Figure by MIT OCW.
1980
2000
Renewable
15%
85%
Nonrenewable
5%
95%
1907: beginning
of open pit mining
Percent
3
Herfindahl
(avg)
Coppa
McMahon
MYB-all
MYB-conc
1920+: flotation process
for concentrating sulfide
ores
2
1
0
1880
1900
1920
1940
1960
U.S. Copper Ore Grade Percent, 1880-2000
Figure by MIT OCW.
1980
2000
IMPORT/EXPORT
PROCESSING
ORE
FABRICATION
USE
DISCARD
MGT.
ENVIRONMENT
Figure by MIT OCW.
STAF Project
© Yale University 2004
Japan Copper cycle: One Year Stocks and Flows, 1990s
IMPORT/EXPORT
16
Concentrate
1100
Production
Ore
Cathode
Mill, Smelter,
7
Refinery
Stock
2
Tailings
0.3
New
Scrap,
Ingots
180
Blister
1
52
1200
Cathode
170
Fabrication &
Manufacturing
Semis, Finished
Products
500
Prod.Cu
950
Prod. Alloy
240
34
280
New Scrap
-830
120
80
Old Scrap
120
Discards
USE
700
Stock
Old Scrap
500
Waste
Management
200
180
18 Slag
Lith.
-2
Landfilled
Waste,
Dissipated
ENVIRONMENT
+200
System Boundary Japan
Units : Gg/yr
Figure by MIT OCW.
© STAF Project, Yale University
Zambia’s Copper Cycle: One Year Stocks and Flows, 1994
Base Year: 1994
Unit: Gg Cu / yr
OTHER REGIONS
Concentrate
14
14
Ore
360
Cathode
340
Production
Mill, Smelter,
1
Refinery
New Scrap
2
Cathode
Stock
15
Semis, Finished
1 Products
Fabrication &
Manufacturing
Products
12
Tailings
46
Lith.
Old Scrap
2
3
USE
Discards
10
Stock
2
Waste
Management
Landfilled waste,
Dissipated
47
Reworked
Tailings
+330
1
4 Slag
-360
REPOSITORIES
UNITS: Gg/yr
+4
System Boundary: Zambia (ZM)
Figure by MIT OCW.
© STAF Project, Yale University
China’s Copper Cycle: One Year Stocks and Flows, 1994
Base Year: 1994
Unit: Gg Cu / yr
OTHER REGIONS
Concentrate
220
48
Ore
510
Blister
86
Production
Mill, Smelter,
5
Refinery
Cathode
Stock
Tailings
46
Lith.
New
Scrap
200
Semis, Finished
Products
350
Fabrication &
Manufacturing
1060
110
74
New Scrap
6
Reworked
Tailings
27
Cathode
62
-1000
19
Products
1150
Old Scrap
260
270
USE
1000
Stock
Old Scrap
490
Discards
150
Waste
Management
280
Landfilled
Waste,
Dissipated 87
10 Slag
-510
REPOSITORIES
UNITS: Gg/yr
© STAF Project, Yale University
+160
System Boundary: China (CN)
Figure by MIT OCW.
2002 Estimated In-Use Copper Stocks in Beijing—3D View
Source: T. Wang and T.E. Graedel, unpublished research, Center for Industrial Ecology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 2005.
I=PxAxT
resource
MI = unit service
Type I
Type I icon
Ecosystem
Ecosystem
Component 1
Ecosystem
Component 2
Unlimited
Resources
Mi
Ecosystem
Component 3
MoEo
Unlimited
Sinks
Ecosystem
Component n
Mi = Material resources
MoEo = Wastes
Source: Fernandez
Type II
Type II icon
Ecosystem
Ecosystem
Component 1
Ecosystem
Component 2
Limited
Resources +
Energy
MiEi
Ecosystem
Component 3
MoEo
Limited
Wastes
Ecosystem
Component n
MiEi = Material and energy resources
MoEo = Wastes
Source: Fernandez
Type III
Type III icon
Ecosystem
Ecosystem
Component 1
Ecosystem
Component 2
Energy
Ei
Ecosystem
Component 3
Ecosystem
Component n
Ei = Energy input (solar radiation)
Source: Fernandez
BUILDING
SITE
Life cycle assessment
Consumption attributes of contemporary buildings
Temporal
•
Actual service lifetimes are uncertain (shorter or longer than intended)
•
Buildings often outlast the firms that build them
•
Buildings are one of the very few human artifacts that can span generations
Spatial
•
Buildings are immobile over lifetime
•
Materials and processes (energy) converge to site
•
Materials (wastes or “residues”) are dissipated from site
Physical
•
Buildings (cities and infrastructure) constitute the largest single stock type
•
Each building is a “prototype”
•
Buildings are meta-systems composed of complex semi-autonomous
systems (with distinct lifecycles)
Comparative analysis of
resource requirements
1.Brick and concrete masonry
block wall
2.Glass and aluminum
curtainwall
3.Precast concrete panel and
structural steel stud wall
4.Structural straw bale, wood
stud and exterior finish plaster
construction
Data sources:
US EPA Lifecycle Methods (1993)
SETAC (1993)
BEES (2000)
ISO 1401 (1998)
Scientific Certification Systems (1995)
Keoleian, G. (2001)
CES Materials Selector 4.5 (Beta version)
6.0 m
0.4m
1.75m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
6.8m
0.4m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
Figure by MIT OCW.
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
1.0m
(a) Worker Tranportation/Construction
Energy
Steel
16
17
Worker Transportation Energy (%)
80
Concrete
12
3
45
60
28
18
26
27 19 8
9 6
40 1213 7
24
25
21
22
20
23
36 30
35
32
33
39
20
100
31
37
34
38
14
15
0
29
Wood
20
0
Worker Transportation Greenhouse Gases (%)
10
11
40
60
80
100
Construction Energy (MJ/m2)
120
140
Steel
17
(b) Worker Transportation/Construction
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
80
1
2
Wood
26
60 27 5
12
Concrete
28
3
24
40 25
21
29
18
36
34
30
31
37
20
35
20
32
14
39
0
0
5
33
38
10
15
Construction Energy (kg/m2)
20
Figure by MIT OCW.
25
Construction energy (MJ/m2)
80
On-site equipment use
60
Equipment & materials
transportation
40
Worker transportation
20
0
Wood
Steel
Concrete
Construction greenhouse gases
(kg/m2)
(a) Average Construction Energy for Wood, Steel and Concrete Assemblies
12
8
4
0
Figure by MIT OCW.
Wood
Steel
Concrete
(b) Average Construction Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Wood, Steel and
Concrete Assemblies
Source: adapted from, Bras, B. and Graedel and Allenby
Low energy buildings and
resource content
(whole building)
Increased energy efficiency
continually recalibrates proportion of
pre-use to use phase energy
investment.
For example:
Resource Content
91% use phase
9% pre-use
Overall reduction
of 60%
74% use phase
26% pre-use
Single family detached house (USA)
Typical systems
9% pre-use, 91% use phase
Low energy systems
0
0
25
75
Years
26% pre-use, 74% use phase
Figure by MIT OCW.
Keoleian, G. et al. 2001. Life-cycle energy,
costs, and strategies for improving a singlefamily house. JIE Vol.4, No.2: pp. 135-156.
50
100
125
Strategies
Pre-Use
•
Integrated delivery (construction) including premanufactured assemblies for
dematerialized built environment (renewable and non renewable).
Issues:
employment, quality, material flow control, waste control and reuse,
transportation energy in construction, firm MFA analysis, product LCA.
Use
•
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) or better yet Extended Industry Responsibility
(EIR): product LCA
•
Material reclamation, recycle, downcycle.
•
Comfort/Carbon Tax
Post-Use
•
“Cities are the mines of the future.”, Jane Jacobs
Are we any closer to a Type III ecology?
Ecologies of Construction
03.20-21.06 Dept. of Architecture, MIT
Material flow analysis (MFA)
REGION
CITY
M
E
M
BUILDING
E
SITE
Life cycle assessment
Metabolism: the consumption of resources for the purpose of providing a unit of
service.
System(product) boundary
Mi
Ei
Figure by MIT OCW.
Pre-Use
Phase
Use Phase
End-of-Life
Phase
Mo
Eo
Industrial ecology as steward of tools of analysis for resource consumption
[Mi,Ei] = [Mo,Eo] + [A.S.]
Anthroposphere
Mi
Mo
Anthropogenic Stock
Ei
Figure by MIT OCW.
Eo
KEY
100
80
60
1
40
Percent
Material Content/Area
1 = Residential
2 = Commercial
3 = Industrial
2
20
3
0
Building Types
Figure by MIT OCW.
Stabilizing
Urbanization
Incremental
Densification
Energy
Materials
Time
Figure by MIT OCW.
Energy Consumption
Material Consumption
Rapid
Urbanization
Per Capita Annual Electricity Consumption
KWh/Person, (Thousands)
A = Shanghai
B = Nanjing
C = Hangzhou
D = National average
5
4
A
B
3
C
2
D
1
0
1990
1995
Year
Figure by MIT OCW.
2000
Maximize material
resource transfer
Local site
materials
Santa Monica
Sustainable City Initiative
Source of recycled
materials
Minimize
waste stream
Greater Los Angeles Basin
(source of post-industrial and post-consumer materials)
Local Resource System Boundary: Urban Center and Local Ecology
Figure by MIT OCW.
Ordnance Plant
Arden Hills, Minnesota
Built: 1930s
Dismantled: 2002
Materials recovered:
20,000 maple tongue and
groove flooring,
500,000 board feet of
structural timber
Cost of disassembly:
$183,000
Cost of demo/landfilling:
$600,000
The photographs on this and the following pages were removed for copyright reasons.
Sears Catalog
Warehouse Center
Chicago, Illinois
Built: 1906
Demolished: 1992-1994
(full 2 yrs of demolition)
Size: 9 story, 3 million sq.
ft.
Materials recovered:
7.5 million board feet
timber,
23 million bricks
Site recovered for housing
Murray Grove
Apartments
London, England
Cartwright Pickard
Architects
(Yorkon Building Modules)
Built: completed 2001
Size: 30 apartments, 5
stories
On-site construction: 2
weeks
Overall cost reduction:
10% (affordable housing
contract)
Premanufactured
building modules
Yorkon
Foreman’s
Premanufactured
components for
buildings
Container City
India Wharf, London, UK
source: photo J. Fernandez
Depletable
(Coal, Oil, Nuclear)
Food
Organic Wastes
(Landfill, sea dumping)
Inputs
Outputs
Emissions
(CO2, NOx, SO2)
CITY
Energy
Inorganic Wastes
(Landfill)
Goods
A) 'Linear metabolism' cities (consume and pollute at a high rate)
Organic Waste
Renewable
Recycled
Food
CITY
Energy
Goods
Outputs
Inputs
Recycled
Reduced Pollution
and Wastes
Inorganic Waste
B) 'Circular metabolism' cities (minimise new inputs and maximise recycling)
The 'Metabolism' of Cities: Towards Sustainability
Figure by MIT OCW.
Extraction of natural
resources
Processing into
materials
Construction
Manufacture into
components
Assembly into
buildings
Domain of the
built environment
Recycling of materials
Reprocessing of materials
Reuse of components
Relocation of entire building
Building use
De-construction
Disassembly
Waste for dumping
Materials cycles in construction
Scope
The analysis of the metabolism of the city of New Orleans may
provide a unique understanding of the relationship between
anthropogenic structures of industry and the built environment
and the natural ecology of the lower Mississippi Delta.
1. System boundary
i. Municipal (political)
ii. Regional (geographic, ecological, etc.)
2. Physical accounting
i. Listing of entities to ‘track’ (key resources)
ii. Data sources