SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION WITH BIO- COMPOSITE MATERIALS
BIOFIBRE
Abstract
For EU countries, the European Green Deal has set ambitious objectives to become climate-neutral by 2050. Global challenge is to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to obtain prosperity and sustainable economic development. To accomplish this goal, actions across all economic sectors are needed. “The built environment has a significant impact on many sectors of the economy, on local jobs and quality of life. It requires vast amounts of resources and accounts for about 50% of all extracted material. The construction sector is responsible for over 35% of the EU’s total waste generation. GHG emissions from material extraction, manufacturing of construction products, as well as construction and renovation of buildings are estimated at 5–12% of total national GHG emissions. Greater material efficiency could save 80% of those emissions” (EC, 2022). To increase material efficiency and reduce climate impact, the European Commission has launched a comprehensive new strategy for a sustainable built environment, which promotes circularity principles throughout the lifecycle of buildings. One of the possible options is building with bio-composite materials. Typical construction materials (e.g., plastic, steel) have a large ecological footprint. Contrary, bio-composites are the next generation of sustainable building materials, made up of a combination of eco-friendly ingredients – usually plant fibers mixed with natural resins and binders.
Bio-composites help eliminate non-renewable waste, reduce raw material usage, and cut fossil-fuel consumption. It can be stated that construction industry is experiencing a technological and green revolution across the entire building life cycle. However, analysis of available education across European countries reveals that higher education in green construction with bio-composites is still not sufficiently developed, teachers and students lack sustainability competences, as well as green construction knowledge and skills. Bio-composites are often neglected in civil engineering and other construction-related study programmes. The gaps in education and skills mismatches, observed in 7 universities, encouraged the new BIO-FIBRE project’s idea – to develop and deliver the innovative student-centered trans-disciplinary course in green construction using bio-composite materials. For development of such education, efforts and resources of single institution are not sufficient, joint collaboration actions, sharing of know-how among different higher education institutions are necessary, moreover, to maximise the impact, international trainings of students are required. Therefore, it is expected that funding will enable participating organisations to gain experience in international cooperation, join and share trans-disciplinary knowledge, strengthen their capacities and will help to produce high-quality innovative deliverables, including innovative course on green construction with bio-composites.
Team di ricerca UNIBO
Luisa Molari, Stefania Manzi
Partner di progetto
VIA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE Aarhus, Denmark; VILNIAUS GEDIMINO TECHNIKOS UNIVERSITETAS, Vilnius, Lithuania; UNIVERSIDADE NOVA DE LISBOA, Lisboa, Portugal; ARISTOTELIO PANEPISTIMIO THESSALONIKIS Thessaloniki, Greece; UNIVERSITAT POLITECNICA DE CATALUNYA, Barcelona, Spain; TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN, Eindhoven, Netherlands; STUDY AND CONSULTING CENTER Vilnius, Lithuania