Abstract Mycelium-bound composites (MBCs) grown from fungi onto solid lignocellulosic substrates offer a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based materials. However, their limited mechanical strength and durability are often insufficient for practical applications. In this work, we report a method for designing and developing strong and thermally insulating MBCs. The method grows mycelium onto 3D-printed stiff wood-Polylactic Acid (PLA) porous gyroid scaffolds, enhancing the strength of the scaffold while imparting other functional properties like thermal insulation, fire resistance, hydrophobicity, and durability. The extent of improvement in MBCs’ performance is directly dependent on the mycelium growth, and the best growth is observed at 90% porosity. We observe yield strength (σy) of 7.29 ± 0.65 MPa for 50% porosity MBC, and thermal conductivity (Kt) of 0.012 W/mK for 90% porosity MBC. Maximum improvement in σy (50.4–77.7%) between before and after mycelium growth is observed at medium (70%)–high (90%) porosity. The MBCs also exhibit design-dependent improved fire-resistance and durability compared to the base wood-PLA scaffold, further enhancing their suitability for practical applications. Our findings show that integration of 3D printing, design, and biomaterials enables the development of sustainable bio-based composites to replace pollution-causing materials from the construction industry.
Human activities result in sediment accumulation, so the reservoirs gradually lose their functionality, impacting their ability to manage large flood inflows, supply water, and generate hydroelectric power. Therefore, periodic removal of sediments from water reservoirs is essential to maintain functionality. Notwithstanding, the management of dredged sediments is a multifaceted process that involves careful consideration of environmental, regulatory, and economic factors to ensure their responsibility and sustainable handling. In this regard, the search for synergies represents an important development factor in the current industrial world, which can bring several benefits, especially in the construction industry. By reusing sediments, the environmental externalities typically associated with building materials production can be reduced by transforming sediments from waste material into valuable resources. The consolidated knowledge in this review emphasizes the advances in the upcycling of dredged sediments into building materials in various ways, including aggregate production, brick manufacturing, traditional binder replacement, and alkaline activation. The provided summary of benefits, disadvantages, challenges, and future potential of freshwater dredged sediments (FDS) use can stimulate the rationalization of material flows, reduce the dependence on primary raw materials in the construction industry, and at the same time contribute to maintaining the functionality of water reservoirs.
Concern about carbon reduction in the construction industry is growing. Engineered cementitious composites (ECC) have been extensively studied for their potential sustainability, continuous efforts are being made for a greener ECC. In this study, a new type of low-carbon supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), limestone calcined clay (LC2), was blended with fly ash (FA) as the cementitious materials of ECC. A series of experiments were carried out to study the effects of blended LC2/FA on the mechanical properties and drying shrinkage of ECC materials, XRD and MIP were also used to explain the mechanism. The results show that LC2 can accelerate the hydration, improve the mechanical properties of ECC, especially in the early age. The addition of LC2 can improve the flexural bearing capacity, but weaken the bending deformation capacity and affect the flexural toughness. The increase of LC2 content significantly refined the pore size, thus reduced the drying shrinkage. In addition, based on the drying shrinkage model of ordinary concrete, the improved drying shrinkage model proposed in this study can accurately describe the drying shrinkage behavior of ECC.
Materials of engineering and construction. Mechanics of materials
Abstract Efficient and effective construction progress tracking is critical to construction management. Current manual tracking methods are time consuming and/or error prone. Three dimensional (3D) laser scanners are being investigated in the construction industry and have shown potential for supporting progress tracking. However, their full potential has not yet been achieved. The reason may be that commercial software packages are still too complicated for processing scanned data. Methods have however been developed for the automated recognition of project 3D CAD model objects in site laser scans. A novel system is thus described herein that combines 3D object recognition technology with schedule information into a combined 4D object oriented progress tracking system. This system is tested on a comprehensive field database acquired during the construction of the Engineering V Building at the University of Waterloo. It demonstrates a degree of accuracy for automated progress tracking that meets or exceeds typical manual performance.
Abstract Security of payment (SOP) issues still persist in the construction industry despite numerous investigations and incremental reforms. Various solutions and policies have been proposed and analysed in-depth in previous studies. However, limited studies have focused on the integration of advanced technologies to address SOP issues. The aim of this research is to develop a comprehensive framework that integrates practical advanced technologies to address SOP issues in the construction industry. A concurrent mixed-method design was adopted to (a) identify the industry's perspective on what advanced technologies can be accepted to address SOP issues through a questionnaire survey, and (b) identify the use of advanced technologies through a live construction project as a case study. Subsequently, a data flow diagram framework was developed to articulate the whole process flow of how the system delivers automatic payments to subcontractors upon the completion of their contractual obligations and work done. This research contributes new and practical insights into the application and integration of smart sensors, oracles, BIM, blockchain technology and smart contracts in addressing SOP issues in the construction industry.
In the context of the current technological revolution and unprecedented major changes, countries are facing the situation of accelerating the development of key core technologies, which is caused by the transformation from the dispute over trade to the dispute over ecology and scientific and technological strength. Competitive situation analysis is an important link of key core technology innovation. The construction of a universal model of international competitive situation analysis of key core technology can provide scientific support for decision makers of science and technology innovation to solve technical difficulties. This study takes the new generation of information technology industry as an example, identifies key core technologies of the industry and evaluates the competitive situation of the major world countries. Studies indicate that in the field of new generation information technology, the US and Japan is in the leading position globally. In addition, China has active innovation activities in all fields, but overall there remains a considerable gap with the world-leading level, and its R&D quality needs to be further improved.
ObjectiveThis study aims to analyze the spatial distribution and dynamic evolution of older adult service supply in Zhejiang Province from 2010 to 2019. Additionally, this research seeks to propose an optimized resource allocation strategy for older adult care services, promoting regional fairness and coordinated development.MethodsTo evaluate the older adult service supply capacity, this research first constructed an evaluation index system based on the Chinese modernization development pattern. Then, an empirical analysis was carried out using a combination of the entropy-TOPSIS method, kernel density estimation, Markov chain analysis, Dagum Gini coefficient, and panel regression model.ResultsThe results show an overall upward trend in the supply and service capacity of older adult care in the whole province. However, the spatial distribution of older adult service supply capacity in Zhejiang Province still exhibits a gradient effect, even in the most recent year of 2019. Furthermore, the supply capacity of older adult services shifted to a higher level in the whole province, and regions with high supply capacity had a positive spillover effect on adjacent regions. The overall difference in the older adult service supply capacity of the province showed a decreasing trend. The level of economic development, urbanization rate, transportation capacity, the level of opening up, and the proportion of employees in the tertiary industry had a significant impact on the supply capacity and spatial difference of older adult services.ConclusionFrom the findings, this study puts forth countermeasures and suggestions to optimize the spatial distribution of older adult care services. This includes giving full play to the regional spatial linkage effect, promoting new-type urbanization construction, upgrading the transportation network, and expanding the opening up of the industrial structure. By implementing these measures, a more equitable and coordinated older adult services system can be developed in Zhejiang Province.
Abstract Building information modelling (BIM) has significantly influenced the construction industry. However, the existing BIM tools and frameworks within prefabricated buildings are minimal. This research study aims to identify the opportunities and barriers of integrating BIM in the Australian prefabrication industry. The research was carried out using a mixed method of literature review and questionnaire survey with 30 indudstry professionals. The literature review identified the key challenges associated with prefabricated buildings including construction discipline-specific, fabrication-specific issues and communication-specific issues. The survey results proved that the most significant BIM opportunities are minimizing design errors and discrepancy of final product model between designers and manufacturers and increasing mass customization. The study revealed that seamless and timely information exchange among key project stakeholders via a BIM system was identified as the most critical success factor to adopt BIM in the prefabrication industry. This research provides practical insights into how to utilize BIM effectively for prefabrication in the housing sector. The survey results document the opportunities and barriers to BIM integration and provide professional insights on how BIM can benefit the prefabrication. The study contributes to the body of knowledge on enhancing the productivity/practice of prefabrication through BIM integration within the Australian housing context.
In the construction industry, the labor shortage is a global issue. Characterized by the forming process of layered extrusion and rapid solidification, 3D concrete printing (3DCP) technology begins to be used in digital concrete construction to minimize the demand for manpower. However, the utilization of 3DCP in full-scale architectural constructions is still in its infancy, involving many manual processes like rebars-binding and formwork-making, which reduces the benefits of construction automation that should be brought by such technology. Therefore, this study proposes a design-to-printing workflow to 3D print the entire structure of a farmhouse in Wujiazhuang (WJZ) village. Firstly, design strategies are built up by a series of multi-disciplinary research, including printing system development, site planning, material design, and structure evaluation. Secondly, construction strategies involving printing process organization and man-hour-saving construction methods are utilized in the 3D printing process. By applying the introduced workflow, the project saves 62.4 % of human resources compared with the traditional reinforced concrete (RC) method, and the participation of 3D printing technologies arises from 18.3 % in the common 3DCP scenario to 76.5 % in this project. The on-site construction duration of the WJZ farmhouse is also reduced by 24.5 % in comparison with the unplanned construction process.
Materials of engineering and construction. Mechanics of materials
Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been extensively studied and applied within the AEC sector, particularly in design and construction. In recent years, Facility Management (FM) processes are becoming more digitalised, thus requiring effective BIM-FM integration. BIM adoption in many countries, such as the UK, Italy and Brazil, has been publicly driven. Generally, adoption was targeted at design and construction implementation, with little effort in framing public action for FM implementation. The lack of an integrated approach for BIM-FM implementation resulted in numerous bespoken implementation approaches that mimic the private sector and hinder knowledge exchange. Therefore, there is a need for assessing and amalgamating knowledge about BIM-FM for public organisations. This research aims to leverage knowledge about BIM-FM in the public domain by analysing and classifying articles published between 2010–2021. The research was carried out through a systematic review and comparative thematic analysis investigating the use of BIM for different public buildings (e.g., schools and hospitals) and the implementation for FM purposes. Research results outline prevalent trends and areas of research from three perspectives: people, process and technology. Results show an increasing number of publications about BIM-FM. However, the divide between BIM-FM for public and private organisations is unequal. BIM-FM research for public organisations is still limited and lacks standardisation. This state-of-the-art review makes an incremental contribution to knowledge by identifying progress, gaps and new industry directions on the subject matter.
Computer vision is an emerging artificial intelligence subject, whose purpose is to make computers have the same ability to perceive and understand image semantic information as humans. Computer vision technology is based on high-performance computers, which can obtain massive amounts of information and data in a short period of time and use intelligent algorithms to perform high-speed data processing on the information, which is conducive to the integration of information related to product design, production process management, etc. Due to the rapid development of visual sensing technology, computer technology, and image processing technology, computer vision technology has been widely used in the fields of food, medicine, construction, chemical industry, electronics, packaging, and automobiles. This article uses computer vision technology to compare four conservative treatments and rehabilitation training for rectus femoris in basketball training and analyze the best rehabilitation treatment for rectus femoris tear. The experimental results show that the average electroacupuncture plus muscle stretching exercise group after treatment has an average EMG value of 55.49, an average muscle strength rating of five, an average motor function score of 23.45, and an average treatment recovery time of 11.6 days. This group has the best treatment effect.
The global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has created a whole new set of risks in construction industries generating unprecedented delays, disruptions, and uncertainty on construction projects, and has forced the industries in adopting more sophisticated technologies while combating the reduced workforce on job sites. Further, the post-pandemic era of construction is expected to be a lot different as the industries will embrace the technology as the augmentation and collaboration strategy. Thus, it will be extremely hard to sustain for construction industries in the absence of effective risk management. The existing risk plans need to be inspected for their capability of handling new risks arising from COVID-19 and the project managers will need to make the necessary revisions as needed. This paper discusses on past (NORM), present (NEW NORM), and future (Post COVID-19 NORM) of the construction industry and highlights key strategies for managing projects and construction risks during and post COVID-19 pandemic.
Karmen Fifer Bizjak, Barbara Likar, Ana Mladenovič
et al.
Abstract This study introduces a novel geotechnical composite material comprising two types of fill material sourced from the paper industry—deinking paper sludge ash (DPSA) and deinking paper sludge (DPS). Five composites with different DPSA and DPS contents were investigated. Two composites were selected for further analyses. The technology and procedure for composite installation were implemented in field tests. The composites with 80% and 70% DPSA exhibited the elasticity required to withstand minor landslide slip deformations, in addition to achieving sufficiently high values of uniaxial compressive strength. The composites had a low maximum dry density value, which led to fewer settlements in the entire support structure. The enhanced shear characteristics can enable the construction of a thinner retaining wall. The delay between preparation and installation of the composites was further investigated. The field tests confirmed that the composites with 80% and 70% DPSA can be installed on the construction site 4 h and even 24 h after mixing. In 2018, a retaining wall structure with 70% DPSA and 30% DPS was successfully implemented near a railway line using conventional technology as followed-up research to the herein presented study. Results have been derived from work performed in the scope of the H2020 Paperchain project in which novel circular economy models centered on the valorization of the waste streams generated by the pulp and paper industry as secondary raw material for several resource-intensive sectors, including the construction sector, have been developed. Environmental benefits are savings in natural raw materials, reduction of landfill disposal as well as CO2 emission reduction.
With the construction of the national hub node of the integrated computing force network and the accelerated implementation of the “eastern data and western calculation” project, the integration of computing and network is moving towards the deep water area. Facing the needs of emerging businesses for networks and computing, how to coordinate distributed computing resources, service applications and network resources to meet service needs has become an urgent problem to be solved. Aiming to solve the problems of computing and network awareness, coordination, and scheduling. The key technologies, including phased evolution of computing force network , computing-aware technology architecture, computing force quantity and identification, computing force routing and other technologies were explored and researched, and a variety of deployment modes of computing force network was proposed, and reference was provided for the follow-up technology research and industry development of the computing force network.
The appearance of sparkling water has set off a new wave in the beverage industry in China, with the annual sales volume increasing by almost 200% in 2019, compared with the 2018. The market share has risen to fourth place in the beverage market, becoming a new beverage that is only lower than water, carbonated drinks, and tea drinks. YuanQi Forest occupies a large market share in Chinese market, and its products are quite competitive. Therefore, it is of great theoretical and practical significance to study the marketing strategy of the YuanQi Forest at the present stage. This paper mainly adopts SWOT analysis, PEST analysis, and other marketing theories to analyze this kind of situation. The author aims to provide general rules for enterprises engaged in bubble water production and marketing for reference, and provides practical and theoretical guidance for Chinese enterprises to carry out and expand this industry. Through analysis, it can be concluded that YuanQi Forest has three marketing methods, which are product strategy, channel strategy and big data marketing. What is more, Yuanqi Forest has some drawbacks, such as channel construction, lack of supply chain, difficulty in market subsidence, and other problems.
Funmilayo Iyabo BODUNDE, Ebunoluwa Akinrata, Ayodeji Emmanuel Oke
et al.
Construction firms over the world involve in Strategy Alliance (SA) in order to achieve efficient time-cost-quality relationship during construction process through knowledge sharing, team culture and risk management with one another. Despite the numerous benefits gained, there are still various barriers facing it in the developing world. This paper is aimed at analysing the current level of awareness and barrier facing SA procurement method in the building industry in an emerging market (EM) using Nigeria as a case study, to profound future steps in avoiding these barriers and to encourage maximum implementation in the construction industry. A survey design was employed in evaluating the level of awareness of SA and barriers facing its adoption in building industry. Construction professionals in Nigeria were examined through a well-structured questionnaire. Mean Item Score and Factor Analysis were utilized in evaluating data gathered on the current barriers to SA procurement method in the construction industry. It was revealed from the study that the awareness level of SA procurement method within the industry amongst construction professionals is moderately high. This indicates that the barrier facing SA procurement method is not the issue of awareness but of willingness to adopt it. It was also established from the study that fear and trust issue, lack of strategic planning toward alliance, inadequate knowledge about alliance and, different in cultural values were the major component barriers facing strategic alliance procurement method. The study shows the true reflection of the current barriers facing the adoption of SA procurement methods in the developing country and notable points in this study can be largely recommended to promote strategic alliance partnership among construction firms the Nigerian construction industry and other emerging economy countries were building projects are carried out in the same approach, style and method.
The relevance of this work is associated with the creation of methodological foundations for the formation of effective organizational forms and ways to improve the quality of road maintenance, the development of conditions that prevent different types of environmental pollution, compliance with environmental protection and environmental safety throughout the length of road transport routes. The study solves the following tasks: analysis of the development of systems and complexes that prevent environmental pollution, the development of road service facilities with the infrastructure for the environmental mode of transport, substantiation of the organizational form and scheme of interaction between the state and private business in the Russian Federation for the implementation of road service facilities, comparison of Russian and international experience in the development of these facilities. The organizational form of construction of road service facilities using the public-private partnership (PPP) mechanism in the Russian Federation is a priority from an economic point of view and effective for the development of facilities that contribute to the improvement and compliance with environmental safety requirements. The most effective type of construction in this industry is modular construction. Combining PPP and modular type of construction is the most priority method of cooperation for private entrepreneurs. The minimum construction time and the availability of the roadside service will accordingly improve the conditions for movement of road users and, thus, the ecological state.