37 Sustainable Construction and

Building Materials
Resource efficient materials that are;
 natural and abundant
 has undergone energy efficient manufacturing process
 locally available for reducing pollution & costs from transportation
 reusable and recyclable, where it could be dismantled and repurposed for use somewhere else
 durable, which reduces wastage and the need to replace worn out and weakened materials
Materials which satisfy indoor air quality
 non toxic, meaning materials that does not emit chemicals that pollute the environment
 low volatile organic compounds during its assembly or processing
 safe maintenance, i.e. requires simple and non toxic methods of cleaning
 moisture resistant for preventing growth of biological contaminants in the building
 contributes to improving air quality instead.
Energy efficient materials
 that help reduce consumption of energy in buildings and homes.
 materials that help (directly or indirectly) generate energy from renewable sources like solar, hydro, aero,
kinetics and etc.
Water saving materials
 which help reduce water usage in buildings
 converse and collect water from environment for use
Cost effectiveness
 materials that are comparatively more affordable due to lower and efficient life-cycle, processing or
maintenance costs
Finally, here's a non-exhaustive list of 37 eco-friendly construction and building
materials
1. Rock (more info)
Rock structures have existed for as long as history can recall. It is the longest lasting building material available,
and is usually readily available. There are many types of rock throughout the world all with differing attributes
that make them better or worse for particular uses. Rock is a very dense material so it gives a lot of protection.
its main drawback as a material is its weight and awkwardness.

2. Thatch (more info) Thatch is one of the oldest of building materials known, grass is a good insulator and
easily harvested. Many ancient tribes have lived in homes made completely of grasses year round. In Europe,
thatch roofs on homes were once prevalent but the material fell out of favour as modernisation and improved
transport increased the availability of other materials. Today, though, the practice is undergoing a revival.

3. Brush (more info) Brush structures are built entirely from plant parts and are generally found in tropical and
subtropical areas, such as rainforests, where very large leaves can be used in the building. Natives often built
brush structures for resting and living in, too. These are built mostly with branches, twigs and leaves, and bark,
similar to a beaver’s nest.

4. Ice or Pykrete (more info) Ice was used by the Inuit for igloos, but has also been used for ice hotels as a
tourist attraction in northern areas that might not otherwise see many winter tourists.

5. Mud and Clay (more info) The amount of each material used leads to different styles of buildings. The
deciding factor is usually connected with the quality of the soil being used. Larger amounts of clay usually mean
using the cob/adobe style, while low clay soil is usually associated with sod building. The other main ingredients
include more or less sand/gravel and straw grasses. Soil and especially clay is good thermal mass; it is very
good at keeping temperatures at a constant level. Homes built with earth tend to be naturally cool in the summer
heat and warm in cold weather. Clay holds heat or cold, releasing it over a period of time like stone. Earthen
walls change temperature slowly, so artificially raising or lowering the temperature can use more resources than
in say a wood built house, but the heat or coolness stays longer.

6. Fabric (more info) The tent used to be the home of choice among nomadic groups the world over. Two well
known types include the conical teepee and the circular yurt. It has been revived as a major construction
technique with the development of tensile architecture and synthetic fabrics. Modern buildings can be made of
flexible material such as fabric, tarpaulin membranes, and supported by a system of steel cables.

7. Ceramics (more info) Ceramics used to be just a specialized form of clay-pottery firing in kilns, but it has
evolved into more technical areas though kiln firing is still usually a major step in its creation. Ceramics tend to
be more water resistant and heat resistant than other types of pottery, due to its high firing temperature.It is often
are used to make such things as tiles, fixtures, etc. It is mostly used as fixtures, ceramic floors, walls, counter-
tops, even ceilings. Many countries use ceramic roofing tiles to cover their buildings. Other uses of ceramics
include international space programs, which have used ceramic tiles to cover the undersides of spacecraft such
as the space shuttle program, high temperature engines, and dental implants and synthetic bones.

8. Foam (more info) More recently synthetic polystyrene or polyurethane foam has been used on a limited scale.
It is lightweight, easily shaped and an excellent insulator. It is usually used as part of a structural insulated panel
where the foam is sandwiched between wood and cement.

9. Limestone (more info) Limestone is perhaps the most prevalent building material obtained through mining. It
is used as a cladding material and plays an important role in the production of a wide range of building
products. Concrete and plaster are obvious examples of products that rely on limestone; less obvious is the use
of limestone in steel and glass production. An abundant natural resource, limestone is found throughout the
world. Most limestone is crushed at the quarry, then converted to lime.

10 .Glass (more info) Glass making is considered an art form as well as an industrial process or material. Clear
windows have been used since the invention of glass to cover small openings in a building. They provided
humans with the ability to both let light into rooms while at the same time keeping inclement weather
outside. Glass is generally made from mixtures of sand and silicates, in a very hot fire stove called a kiln and is
very brittle. Very often additives are added to the mixture when making to produce glass with shades of
colours or various characteristics (such as bullet proof glass, or light emittance). The use of glass in architectural
buildings has become very popular in the modern culture. Glass “curtain walls” can be used to cover the entire
facade of a building, or it can be used to span over a wide roof structure in a “space frame”. These uses though
require some sort of frame to hold sections of glass together, as glass by itself is too brittle.

11. Rammed Earth (more info) Rammed earth is similar to adobe or cob construction, because its main
component is soil, clay and sand. Very little water is used during construction, so almost 3 metre high walls can
be built in a day. Most of the Great Wall of China is either rammed earth or has a large component of rammed
earth as its base. Traditionally, rammed earth buildings are common in arid regions where wood is in scarce
supply.

12. Fly Ash (more info) An extremely versatile material, fly ash offers environmental advantages, it also improve
the performance and quality of concrete. Fly ash affects the properties of concrete by by improving workability,
reducing water demand, reducing segregation and bleeding, and lowering heat of hydration. Fly ash also
increases strength, reduces permeability, reduces corrosion of reinforcing steel by increasing sulphate
resistance, and reducing alkali-aggregate reaction.

13. Wood (more info) Wood is a product of trees, and sometimes other fibrous plants, used for construction
purposes when cut or pressed into lumber and timber, such as boards, planks and similar materials. It is a
generic building material and is used in building just about any type of structure in most climates. Wood can be
very flexible under loads, keeping strength while bending, and is incredibly strong when compressed
vertically. There are many differing qualities to the different types of wood, even among same tree species. This
means specific species are better for various uses than others. And growing conditions are important for
deciding quality.

14. ECO Surfaces (more info) Tire rubber recycled into indoor/outdoor flooring and surfacing. These reusable
and recycled materials are;

 Slip resistant,

 Weather resistance,

 Meets indoor air quality emissions standards.

 Can be purchased as tiles, interlocking pavers and sheets and in many colours.

15. Faswell (more info) Mineral-treated wood chips bonded with cement into interlocking wall forms. Mortar-less
blocks are filled with cement when in place.Comparatively this material is:

 Lightweight,

 Having low density,

 Thermal and sound insulating,

 Non-combustible,

 Fire resistant,

 Pest resistant,

 Highly insulating,

 Weather resistant.

16. Durisol (more info) Wood shavings bonded with cement, compressed and molded into wall, roof, floor and
facing panel forms. Comparatively this material is: lightweight, having low density, thermal and sound insulating,
non-combustible, fire resistant, pest resistant, highly insulating and weather resistant.

17. Fly Ash Bricks (more info) These bricks are manufactured by mixing weighed amount of fly ash, cement
and size stone powder in a mixer and moulded in bricks making machine. Fly Ash can be used in the range of
40-70%. The other ingredients are lime, gypsum (/cement), sand, stone dust/chips etc. Minimum compressive
strength (28 days) of 70 kg/cm2 can easily be achieved and this can go upto 250 Kg/cm2 (in autoclaved
type). Advantage of these bricks over conventional bricks;
  Lower requirement of mortar in construction

 Plastering over brick can be avoided

 Controlled dimensions, edges, smooth and fine finish and can be in different colours using pigments

 Cost effective, energy-efficient and environment friendly (as avoids the use of fertile clay)

18. Fal-G composites (more info) The process of blending fly ash, lime and calcined gypsum has produced a
useful product, named "Fal-G". Fal-G having strong binding proportions and can be used as cement. It can be
mixed with sand and/or aggregate to produce building blocks of any desired strength.

19. Sintered Light Weight Aggregate (more info) Sintered Light Weight Aggregate substitutes stone chips in
concrete reducing dead weight. It can also be used for various purposes such as structural light weight concrete
building units for use as load and non load bearing elements. It has got good potential in where fly ash is locally
available and stone aggregates are costly.

20. Cellular Light Weight Concrete (more info) Cellular light Weight concrete (CLC) can be manufactured by a
process involving the mixing of fly ash, cement. These blocks are especially useful in high rise construction
reducing the dead weight of the structure blocks. Cellular Light Weight Concrete (CLC) blocks are substitute to
bricks and conventional concrete blocks in building with density varying from 800 kg/m3 to 1800 kg/m3.

21. Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (more info) Autoclaved aerated concrete can be manufactured by a process
involving mixing of fly ash, quick lime or cement and gypsum in a high speed mixer to form thin slurry. These are
considered excellent products for walling blocks and prefab floor slabs.

22. Stabilized Mud Fly Ash Bricks Compacted mud fly ash blocks stabilized with lime, cement or other
components can be easily made. The problem of getting dry fly ash at the site makes adoption of this technology
some what difficult.

23. Clay Fly Ash Bricks (more info) Twenty to fifty percent fly ash depending upon the quality of the soil can be
mixed with it to produce clay fly ash bricks by conventional or mechanized processes. Its advantages include
reducing fuel requirement as fly ash contains some percentage of unburnt carbon, better thermal insulation, cost
effective and environment friendly.

24. Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) (more info) Fast becoming staples of the green building industry are
pre-assembled structural insulated panels, or SIPs, which replace conventional framing and offer greater energy
efficiency, reduced lumber usage, and quicker construction. SIPs are polystyrene foam sandwiched between
oriented strands boards that provide structural framing, insulation, and exterior sheathing in one piece. They can
be used as floors, walls, and roofs and provide much greater energy efficiency than insulation in stud walls with
an R-value improvement of 15%-40%.

25. Cork (more info) Cork is a great insulating material. It keeps warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
This energy efficiency aids in cutting energy bills in the winter. It is much more energy efficient than either special
laminate flooring or discount wood flooring. Cork is also good for sound insulation.
26. Cellulose Insulation (more info) Cellulose insulation is natural insulation material. It is made from recycled
newspaper and other recycled paper products. The recycled content is at least 75% or more. This material is
better as a sound insulation for reducing the noise in home. The coverage is more uniform and better at muffling
sounds from outside the home or the next room.

27. Terrazzo (more info) One of the most popular terrazzo surfaces is made from recycled glass and cast
concrete. The glass use is both post consumer as well as post industrial. The final product contains 80% -95%
post consumer recycled content and at such relies on the material being produced and consumed in the first
place. Terrazzo is as durable as granite and less porous than marble which makes for long lasting and beautiful
green.

28. Green paint (more info) Paints may have a negative impact on the indoor air quality of a building because
they may contain chemicals called volatile organic compounds (VOC) other toxic components that evaporate
into the air and are harmful to the health of occupants. VOC react with sunlight and nitrogen oxide to form
ground level ozone, a chemical that has detrimental effects on human health. These problems can be eliminated
by using low or zero VOC paints.

29. Bamboo (more info) Bamboo is one of the most amazingly versatile and sustainable building materials
available. It grows remarkably fast and in a wide range of climates. It is exceedingly strong for its weight and can
be used both structurally and as a finish material. There is a long vernacular tradition to the use of bamboo in
structures in many parts of the world, especially in more tropical climates, where it grows into larger diameter
canes. One tricky aspect to the use of bamboo is in the joinery; since its strength comes from its integral
structure, it cannot be joined with many of the traditional techniques used with wood.

30. Adobe (more info) No, not photoshop! Adobe is one of the oldest building materials in use. It is basically just
dirt that has been moistened with water, sometimes with chopped straw or other fibers added for strength, and
then allowed to dry in the desired shape. Commonly adobe is shaped into uniform blocks that can be stacked
like bricks to form walls, but it can also be simply piled up over time to create a structure. The best adobe soil will
have between 15% and 30% clay in it to bind the material together, with the rest being mostly sand or larger
aggregate. Too much clay will shrink and crack excessively; too little will allow fragmentation. Adobe is a good
thermal mass material, holding heat and cool well. It does not insulate very well, so walls made of adobe need
some means of providing insulation to maintain comfort in the building.

31. Cob (more info) Cob is a very old method of building with earth and straw or other fibers. It is quite similar to
adobe in that the basic mix of clay and sand is the same, but it usually has a higher percentage of long straw
fibers mixed in. The wonderful thing about cob construction is that it can be a wildly freeform. Cob walls are
externally durable, lasting for centuries and create no pollution or disposal problems.

32. Cordwood (more info) Cordwood construction utilizes short, round pieces of wood, similar to what would
normally be considered firewood. This method of building can be very resource efficient, since it makes use of
wood that might not have much other value. Cordwood building can also create a wall that has both properties of
insulation and thermal mass. This material produces a look that is both rustic and beautiful.

33. Earthbag (more info) Building with earthbags (aka called sandbags) is both old and new. Sandbags have
long been used, particularly by the military for creating strong, protective barriers, or for flood control. The same
reasons that make them useful for these applications carry over to creating housing: the walls are massive and
substantial, they resist all kinds of severe weather (or even bullets and bombs), and they can be erected simply
and quickly with readily available components. Newer polypropylene bags have superior strength and durability,
as long as they are kept away from too much sunlight. For permanent housing the bags should be covered with
some kind of plaster for protection.

34. PaperCrete (more info) A composite made from recycled paper and concrete. It can be used to replace
concrete for most lightweight applications. Advantages are obviously its much lighter, resistant to cracks and
makes use of otherwise disposed paper and boxes.

35. Poured earth (more info) Poured earth is similar to ordinary concrete, in that it is mixed and formed like
concrete and uses portland cement as a binder. The main difference is that instead of the sand/gravel used as
an aggregate in concrete, poured earth uses ordinary soil (although this soil needs to meet certain
specifications) and generally uses less portland cement. Poured earth could be considered a “moderate strength
concrete.” Little to no maintenance is required of poured earth walls, since they have a high resistance to the
erosion (wear & tear) effects of water and heat (sun).

36. Straw bale (more info) Straw is a renewable resource that acts as excellent insulation and is fairly easy to
build with. Care must be taken to assure that the straw is kept dry, or it will eventually rot. It is generally best to
allow a straw bale wall to remain breathable as any moisture barrier will invite condensation and weaken the
structure. Erecting bale walls can go amazingly quickly, and does not take a lot of skill, but then the rest of the
creation of the building is similar to any other wood framed house. In fact straw bale houses typically save about
15% of the wood used in a conventionally framed house.

37. Futuristic Composites (more info) The possibilities are endless, as now with the resources and support
from world governments and powerful & wealthy business magnates, more biological, hybrid and new materials
are being produced every day that outperforms conventional construction materials in all aspects, while at the
same time fulfilling all the criteria being an eco-friendly and sustainable material. An examples of these futuristic
construction methods and sustainable materials are that large scale tests are now being done to 3D "print" a
whole building or bridge. Now thats pretty impressive!
Although concrete is a core component in homes, public buildings, and bridges, it’s not the most sustainable building material out there.

Commercial concrete production releases tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere every year, contributing to environmental pollution and climate

change. Fortunately, there are more sustainable construction materials that present a greener alternative to concrete in both residential and

commercial projects.

1. Straw Bales

Straw bale building is a nod to the days when we built our homes from natural and locally-sourced materials. Instead of relying on technology and

manufactured materials, we use what the earth provides. Straw bales are used to replace concrete, plaster, gypsum, and other building materials in walls.

When sealed properly, they have a high insulating ability. As a renewable resource, straw is both sustainable and affordable.

2. Bamboo

The recent popularity of bamboo amenities such as furniture and utensils may make it seem trendy, but it has been used in construction for millennia. Its

combination of light weight, tensile strength, and renewability make it an ideal replacement for expensive imported materials and an alternative to rebar and

concrete construction, especially in areas with easy access to locally-sourced bamboo.

3. Recycled Plastic

Plastic is emerging as one of the more sustainable construction materials. Instead of sourcing, mining and milling new components, researchers are

producing concrete made from ground-up trash and recycled plastics. This practice reduces greenhouse gas emissions and provides a positive new use for

plastic waste that would otherwise be clogging landfills.

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4. Wood

Wood, a tried and true construction mainstay, retains many advantages over concrete, steel, and other industrial building materials. Trees absorb CO2 as

they grow and don’t need to undergo energy-intensive procedures to be converted into a construction product. When a forest is properly managed it is also

renewable, resulting in a biodiverse habitat.

5. Rammed Earth

Another natural technology, rammed earth has been used by human civilization for thousands of years. Not only does it last a long time, when pressed tightly

in wooden forms, it creates walls that have a similar feel to concrete. The rammed earth buildings being produced today can be fortified by bamboo or rebar

for added safety, and mechanical tampers cut down on the labour needed to produce sturdy walls.

6. Ferrock

A newer building material, ferrock uses a wide range of recycled materials, such as steel dust, to create a building material that resembles concrete but is

actually even stronger. In addition, this innovative material absorbs and seals carbon dioxide as part of the drying and hardening procedure. Ferrock is

therefore not only less CO2-involved than concrete, it is also carbon neutral.
7. Timbercrete

An intriguing material composed of concrete and sawdust, timbercrete is lighter than concrete and the sawdust component both recycles a waste material

and replaces some of the more energy-involved ingredients in traditional concrete. It also reduces transportation emissions. Timbercrete can be shaped into

pavers, blocks, and bricks, making it both versatile and sustainable.

What is a Sustainable Material?

A sustainable material is any material that can be put to effective use in the present without
compromising its availability for use by latter generations. A sustainable material’s use is within
the brackets of a sustainable system, which in turn refers to practices that benefit and replenish
the well-being of humans and the general environment. It is this sustainability that is seen to be
the key to ensuring a productive survival for the human population and an accommodating Earth.

Clareview Community Recreation Centre

 Architects
Teeple Architects
 Location
Edmonton, AB, Canada
 Category
Community Center
 Area
190000.0 ft2
 Project Year
2014

Expo 2020 (Arabic: ٢٠٢٠ ‫ )إكسبو‬is a World Expo to be hosted by Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, opening on
October 20, 2020. The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) general assembly in Paris awarded Dubai as
the host on November 27, 2013.
The Red Sea, with its crystal clear waters and abundant sea life, is one of the world’s fastest developing waterfront destinations. In
the heart of this gorgeous region, on a one square kilometer oceanfront site, the Saudi Crown Prince [Saudi Arabia's next king] His
Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz al Saud and his son His Highness Prince Bader Bin Abdullah Al
Farhan Al Saud asked GDW to design a palace for Prince Salman, as well as additional palaces for each of his six sons.

The concept we created focused on discovery, privacy and water sports, and took the form of a metaphorical flower lying on the
sandy beach. Petals of this tropical flower formed a series of private coves, each the home of an individual palace, its own private
beaches, guesthouses, gardens and water sports facilities. At the center of the flower is a community recreation hub, a place for the
family to come together to enjoy water sports and evening recreation. Enormous waterfalls tumble down into cool, subterranean
pools, and all are surrounded by evening entertainment venues.