Building's eco-efficiency improvements based on reinforced concrete multilayer structural panels

Abstract

[EN] The aim of this paper is to show the environmental benefits provided by the Multilayer Structural Panels technology when applied to construct low rise residential buildings.

This is a holistic approach that takes into account the structural aspects and the environmental issues involved. Conclusions are based on the assessment of a broad set of cases and a procedure is provided to compare the environmental impact of each one. The design space was composed of single-family houses with three different building technologies: Reinforced Concrete Multilayer Structural Panels solving, at the same time and with high level of efficiency, structural and thermal insulation requirements; Reinforced Concrete Frame structures combined with insulated cavity walls; and Steel Frames structures plus insulated cavity walls. An optimized structural analysis was applied to fulfil the load transfer requirements. On each case were evaluated the economic cost, the embodied energy and the amount of CO2 emissions during the construction phase and also the energy savings obtained along the use phase of the building due to the reduction in heat losses. The conclusions show that the more substantial improvements can be achieved when buildings are located on intense seismic activity areas or places with poor bearing capacity soils.