Guerra, Beatriz Chinelato (2021) BIM-based construction waste management and circular economy for resource recovery. PhD thesis, University of Texas at Austin, USA.
Abstract
Projections show that the consumption of raw materials worldwide is set to almost double by 2060, and the construction industry is a key responsible party for this trend. Additionally, high generation of construction and demolition waste is a common trend in the construction industry. Engineering challenges related to the aforementioned trends are identified in different phases of a construction project lifecycle. For instance, the difficulty in estimating construction waste (CW) generation in the early phases of a project and the lack of formal planning of CW reuse and recycling (R&R) during construction further challenge the waste generation issue. Moreover, early disposal of the existing built environment with low recovery of resources are challenges associated with the end-of-life of projects that tend to aggravate the consumption of natural resources. Three research questions in this PhD dissertation sought to aid the aforementioned engineering challenges. Research Question 1 is tied to the problem of CW generation estimation during early phases of the project; algorithms leveraging building information modelling (BIM) were developed to automate and streamline CW generation estimations. Research Question 2 built on Research Question 1 algorithms but went one step further and discretized the amounts of CW generation into quantities for on-site reuse and off-site recycling. Four-dimensional (4D) BIM - through its simulation and visual capabilities - was used to enhance CW R&R planning during construction. Formalizing and enhancing CW R&R planning promotes resource recovery and minimizes waste disposal in landfills. Finally, Research Question 3 focused on the resource recovery issue at the end-of-life of a project and the design of new building construction; this research sought to better understand the application of strategies that facilitate the circulation of resources in the United States built environment. Contributions of this dissertation include streamlining the application of construction waste management practices at the project level and providing an overview of key construction industry stakeholders' awareness and adoption of circular construction strategies in the United States.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Leite, Fernanda L |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | circular economy; construction waste; waste management; building information modelling |
| Index terms: | consumption, waste disposal, estimating, landfill, construction project, management practice, waste management, construction and demolition, strategy, building construction, resource recovery, United States, circulation, dissertation, construction industry, construction waste, lifecycle, built environment, waste generation, streamlining, recycling, estimation, natural resource, circular economy, building information modelling, recovery |
| Subjects: | management, environmental engineering, information systems, infrastructure and transport systems, industry analysis, financial and cost management, project delivery, urban design, Geography, sustainable design, production management, building construction, research dissemination and communication, consumer economics, environmental impact, waste management, environmental resource management, operations management |
| Topics: | Sustainability, Project Management, Geographical Context, Construction Technology, Stakeholder Management, Research Practice, Business Strategy, Cost Management, Urban Studies, Digital Applications |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here