Browsing by Author "Mrad, Cyrine"
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- Assessment of Europe’s circular economy in the construction sectorPublication . Mrad, Cyrine; Ribeiro, Luís FrölénThe research is dedicated to the evaluation of the implementation level of the circular economy in the construction sector in Europe. The circular economy (CE) has received increasing attention in the last decade. However, only 10% of the studies concern the construction sector, where the concept implementation is still at its begging and treated as a trend for environmental practices. Integrating the CE principles in the construction sector urge as the sectors’ practices are harmful to the environment, being responsible for 42% of total Europe's energy consumption, more than 50% of extracted materials, 30% of Europe’s water consumption, and waste generation, and 35% of the greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. The research holds the assessment of the studies done about the CE and its principles in the construction sector, carried out in a review using namely Scopus and Web of Science as databases. Of 1750 publications, only 2.9% were eligible for a full-text reading and analysis. The goal is to extract the relevant information and to deduce an optimal solution to implement the circular economy principles into the life cycle of buildings and construction materials. A great part of the studies, 41%, is still promoting the recycle and reuse as traditional practices that should be performed in the construction sector. One concluded that the “Recover” principle should be eliminated from the CE principles as its practice harms the environment. One discovered that the key to optimal CE implementation in the construction sector is to combine the CE principles with the life cycle of materials and buildings. One proposed a new circular economy framework adequate for the construction sector activities, where the principles of the concept are optimized and adapted to all the life stages of construction and circular strategies are suggested for closing the loop by applyingsustainable manufacturing, lifespan extension, waste management, and design for assembly and disassembly. Furthermore, one suggested “upcycling” as a new practice for the design strategy, with the aim of discarding as few architectural components as possible, eliminating waste, and especially, closing the loop at 100%.
- A review of europe’s circular economy in the building sectorPublication . Mrad, Cyrine; Ribeiro, Luís FrölénThis article evaluates Europe’s building sector’s circular economy (CE). This industry is responsible for 42% of energy consumption, more than 50% of extracted materials, 30% of Europe’s water and waste generation, and 35% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study focuses on peer-reviewed articles from Scopus and Web of Science databases. Of the first 1750 publications, 2.9% were eligible for a full-text reading and analysis. Most of the trending studies, 92%, promote the circular economy concept through construction materials rather than analyzing the impact of the construction sector on the environment and finding solutions for better implementation, and 41% promote recycling and reuse as the only options. New Design solutions are in 12% of the studies, six-fold more than Law and Legislation, which is only 2%. Finding an optimal combination of assessing the life cycle of buildings and components and searching for different ways of managing the Construction and Demolition Waste at end-of-life is between 33% and 39%. Ultimately, CE proposed frameworks for the building industry based on 10R principles variations were evaluated. An alternative framework for a circular strategy for the building industry that focuses on Upcycling, replacing the Recover principle is presented.