Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing

This paper evaluates the current conditions of Ugandan low-income tropical housing with a focus on construction methods and materials in order to identify the key areas for improvement. Literature review, site visits and photographic surveys are carried out to collect relevant information on prevail...

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Hauptverfasser: Hashemi, Arman, Cruickshank, Heather, Cheshmehzangi, Ali
Sprache:Englisch
Veröffentlicht: MDPI 2019
Online-Zugang:https://demo7.dspace.org/handle/123456789/468
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author Hashemi, Arman
Cruickshank, Heather
Cheshmehzangi, Ali
author_browse Cheshmehzangi, Ali
Cruickshank, Heather
Hashemi, Arman
author_facet Hashemi, Arman
Cruickshank, Heather
Cheshmehzangi, Ali
author_sort Hashemi, Arman
collection DSpace
description This paper evaluates the current conditions of Ugandan low-income tropical housing with a focus on construction methods and materials in order to identify the key areas for improvement. Literature review, site visits and photographic surveys are carried out to collect relevant information on prevailing construction methods/materials and on their environmental impacts in rural areas. Low quality, high waste, and energy intensive production methods, as well as excessive soil extraction and deforestation, are identified as the main environmental damage of the current construction methods and materials. The embodied energy is highlighted as the key area which should be addressed to reduce the CO$_2$ emissions of low-income tropical housing. The results indicate that the embodied energy of fired bricks in Uganda is up to 5.7 times more than general clay bricks. Concrete walling is identified as a much more environmentally friendly construction method compared to brick walling in East African countries. Improving fuel efficiency and moulding systems, increasing access to renewable energy sources, raising public awareness, educating local manufacturers and artisans, and gradual long-term introduction of innovative construction methods and materials which are adapted to local needs and conditions are some of the recommended actions to improve the current conditions.
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spelling oai:localhost:123456789-4682021-04-07T16:30:12Z Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing Hashemi, Arman Cruickshank, Heather Cheshmehzangi, Ali This paper evaluates the current conditions of Ugandan low-income tropical housing with a focus on construction methods and materials in order to identify the key areas for improvement. Literature review, site visits and photographic surveys are carried out to collect relevant information on prevailing construction methods/materials and on their environmental impacts in rural areas. Low quality, high waste, and energy intensive production methods, as well as excessive soil extraction and deforestation, are identified as the main environmental damage of the current construction methods and materials. The embodied energy is highlighted as the key area which should be addressed to reduce the CO$_2$ emissions of low-income tropical housing. The results indicate that the embodied energy of fired bricks in Uganda is up to 5.7 times more than general clay bricks. Concrete walling is identified as a much more environmentally friendly construction method compared to brick walling in East African countries. Improving fuel efficiency and moulding systems, increasing access to renewable energy sources, raising public awareness, educating local manufacturers and artisans, and gradual long-term introduction of innovative construction methods and materials which are adapted to local needs and conditions are some of the recommended actions to improve the current conditions. 2019-04-26T08:57:22Z 2019-04-26T08:57:22Z 18/06/15 https://demo7.dspace.org/handle/123456789/468 en MDPI
spellingShingle Hashemi, Arman
Cruickshank, Heather
Cheshmehzangi, Ali
Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title_full Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title_fullStr Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title_full_unstemmed Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title_short Environmental Impacts and Embodied Energy of Construction Methods and Materials in Low-Income Tropical Housing
title_sort environmental impacts and embodied energy of construction methods and materials in low income tropical housing
url https://demo7.dspace.org/handle/123456789/468
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AT cruickshankheather environmentalimpactsandembodiedenergyofconstructionmethodsandmaterialsinlowincometropicalhousing
AT cheshmehzangiali environmentalimpactsandembodiedenergyofconstructionmethodsandmaterialsinlowincometropicalhousing