Construction & Building Technology

Review Construction & Building Technology

Text mining and natural language processing in construction

Alireza Shamshiri, Kyeong Rok Ryu, June Young Park

Summary: This paper reviews the application of text mining and natural language processing in the construction field, highlighting the need for automation and minimizing manual tasks. The study identifies potential research opportunities in strengthening overlooked construction aspects, coupling diverse data formats, and leveraging pre-trained language models and reinforcement learning.

AUTOMATION IN CONSTRUCTION (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Mechanical properties and constitutive models of butt-welds in Q345GJ thick steel plates

Naizhou Zhang, Huatian Zhao, Lianjin Bao, Feng Zhou, Xiaoming Chen, Sheng Jiang, Gang Shi

Summary: This study focuses on the mechanical properties of butt welds in thick GJ steel plates and analyzes the differences between the weld specimens and the base metals in terms of static and cyclic mechanical properties.

JOURNAL OF CONSTRUCTIONAL STEEL RESEARCH (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Collapse-resisting mechanism and damage propagation pattern of suspended-domes following sudden cable loss

Xianzhong Zhao, Zhenyu Xu, Shen Yan

Summary: This study aims to reveal the mechanisms that determine the survival of suspended domes when subjected to sudden cable rupture. The results show that the remaining structure can arrest the initial local damage and establish an alternative path for hoop cables, thereby regaining balance. The relaxation of hoop cables can transmit outwards and inwards, causing severe damage and potential structural collapse. The failure of diagonal cables has minimal impact on the structure.

JOURNAL OF CONSTRUCTIONAL STEEL RESEARCH (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Land surface dynamics and meteorological forcings modulate land surface temperature characteristics

Oluwafemi E. Adeyeri, Akinleye H. Folorunsho, Kayode I. Ayegbusi, Vishal Bobde, Tolulope E. Adeliyi, Christopher E. Ndehedehe, Akintomide A. Akinsanola

Summary: This study examines the impact of land cover, vegetation health, climatic forcings, elevation heat loads, and terrain characteristics on land surface temperature distribution over West Africa. The random forest model performs the best in downscaling predictands. The southern regions consistently exhibit healthy vegetation, while areas with unhealthy vegetation coincide with hot land surface temperature clusters. Positive Normalized Difference Vegetation Index trends in the Sahel highlight rainfall recovery and subsequent greening. Southwest winds cause the upwelling of cold waters, resulting in low land surface temperatures in southern West Africa. Considering LVCET factors is crucial for prioritizing greening initiatives and urban planning.

SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Impacts of humidity measurement uncertainties and an uncertainty-tolerant economizer control strategy for air-conditioning systems

Shaobo Sun, Kui Shan, Shengwei Wang

Summary: Economizer control is an important measure for energy savings in air-conditioning systems during moderate seasons. Humidity measurement uncertainties have a significant impact on enthalpy-based economizer control, and an uncertainty-tolerant control strategy is proposed to mitigate these effects.

SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Model predictive control of distributed energy resources in residential buildings considering forecast uncertainties

Felix Langner, Weimin Wang, Moritz Frahm, Veit Hagenmeyer

Summary: This paper compares two main approaches to consider uncertainties in model predictive control (MPC) for buildings: robust and stochastic MPC. The results show that compared to a deterministic MPC, the robust MPC increases the electricity cost while providing complete temperature constraint satisfaction, while the stochastic MPC slightly increases the electricity cost but fulfills the thermal comfort requirements.

ENERGY AND BUILDINGS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Influence of talking behavior of infected patients and the associated exposure risk in a ventilated negative-pressure ward

Zhijian Liu, Zhe Han, Lina Hu, Chenxing Hu, Rui Rong

Summary: This study compared the effects of different respiratory behaviors on the distribution of aerosols in a ward and the risk of infection for healthcare workers using numerical simulation. It was found that talking in the ward significantly increased aerosol concentrations, particularly short periods of talking. Wards designed with side-supply ventilation had lower overall infection risk. Talking alternately between healthcare workers and patients slightly extended the impact time of aerosols.

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Comprehensive assessment of double skin façades: A mathematical model for evaluating influence of KL ratio on electrical and thermal performances, and indoor conditions

Somil Yadav, Caroline Hachem-Vermette

Summary: This study proposes a mathematical model to evaluate the performance of a Double Skin Facade (DSF) system and its impact on indoor conditions. The model considers various design parameters and analyzes their effects on the system's electrical output and room temperature.

ENERGY AND BUILDINGS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Experimental evaluation of thermal adaptation and transient thermal comfort in a tropical mixed-mode ventilation context

Yue Lei, Zeynep Duygu Tekler, Sicheng Zhan, Clayton Miller, Adrian Chong

Summary: Mixed-mode ventilation is a promising solution for achieving energy-efficient and comfortable indoor environments. This study found that occupants can thermally adapt when switching between natural ventilation (NV) and air-conditioning (AC) modes within the same day, with the adaptation process stabilizing between 35 to 45 minutes after the mode switch. These findings are important for optimizing thermal comfort in mixed-mode controls, considering the dynamic nature of thermal adaptation.

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Towards a blockchain and machine learning-based framework for decentralised energy management

Xiaojun Luo, Lamine Mahdjoubi

Summary: This paper presents an integrated blockchain and machine learning-based energy management framework for multiple forms of energy allocation and transmission among multiple domestic buildings. Machine learning is used to predict energy generation and consumption patterns, and the proposed framework establishes optimal and automated energy allocation through peer-to-peer energy transactions. The approach contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and enhances environmental sustainability.

ENERGY AND BUILDINGS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Estimating omnidirectional urban vertical wind speed with direction-dependent building morphologies

Qi Li, Jiayu Chen, Xiaowei Luo

Summary: This study focuses on the vertical wind conditions as a main external factor that limits the energy assessment of high-rise buildings in urban areas. Traditional tools for energy assessment of buildings use a universal vertical wind profile estimation, without taking into account the unique wind speed in each direction induced by the various shapes and configurations of buildings in cities. To address this limitation, the study developed an omnidirectional urban vertical wind speed estimation method using direction-dependent building morphologies and machine learning algorithms.

ENERGY AND BUILDINGS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Characteristics of droplets emission immediately around mouth during dental treatments

Chaojie Xing, Zhengtao Ai, Zhiwei Liu, Cheuk Ming Mak, Hai Ming Wong

Summary: This study experimentally investigated the emission characteristics of droplets around the mouth during dental treatments. The results showed that the peak mass fraction of droplets occurs within the size range of 20 μm to 100 μm, and droplets with a diameter less than 200 μm account for over 80% of the mass fraction. The dominant emission direction of droplets is towards the dummy's head and chest, forming an approximately cone shape.

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Home environment exposure and sick building syndrome (SBS) symptoms among adults in southern China: Health associations in 2010 and 2019

Hong Cheng, Dan Norback, Huilin Zhang, Liu Yang, Baizhan Li, Yinping Zhang, Zhuohui Zhao, Qihong Deng, Chen Huang, Xu Yang, Chan Lu, Hua Qian, Tingting Wang, Ling Zhang, Wei Yu, Juan Wang, Xin Zhang

Summary: The home environment and sick building syndrome (SBS) symptoms in five southern Chinese cities have been studied over time. The study found a decrease in asthma prevalence and an increase in allergic rhinitis. Cockroaches, rats, mice, mosquitoes or flies were identified as consistent biological risk factors for SBS symptoms, while redecoration, buying new furniture, and traffic air pollution were identified as other risk factors.

BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Dual-layer optimization design method for collaborative benefits of renewable energy systems in building clusters: Case study of campus buildings

Ying Yu, Yuanwei Xiao, Jinshuai Chou, Xingyu Wang, Liu Yang

Summary: This study proposes a dual-layer optimization design method to maximize the energy sharing potential, enhance collaborative benefits, and reduce the storage capacity of building clusters. Case studies show that the proposed design significantly improves the performance of building clusters, reduces energy storage capacity, and shortens the payback period.

ENERGY AND BUILDINGS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Fire behaviour of hollow core slabs

Viktor Hlavicka, Andras Biro, Brigitta Toth, Eva Lubloy

Summary: The objective of this research was to develop an optimal concrete mix for fire resistance in hollow core slab prefabrication. Tests were conducted at different scales and a numerical model was calibrated using the results. The study also examined the effects of geometric variables on temperature and load capacity reduction.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Reactive molecular dynamics study on carbon steel corrosion induced by chloride: Effects of applied potential and temperature

Guojian Liu, Fangmin Shen, Yunsheng Zhang, Cheng Liu, Lin Yang, Honglei Chang

Summary: The corrosion and oxidation mechanisms of steel in a chloride-contaminated environment were studied using reactive molecular dynamics simulations. The results showed that an increase in the external electric field strength and temperature led to a more severe corrosion extent.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Alkali concentration of cement pore solution and its relation with alkali-silica reaction

Erik Coppens

Summary: This paper proposes more robust approaches to define alkali content or concentration thresholds for longer time scales. The derived threshold values are compared with literature values and civil engineering standards.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Rate-dependent lattice modeling of textile reinforced cementitious composites under tensile loading

Ji Woon Park, Bonhwi Choo, John E. Bolander, Yun Mook Lim

Summary: This study presents a lattice-based modeling technique to simulate the direct tensile behavior of textile reinforced cementitious composites under different loading conditions. The model results agree well with experimental results, demonstrating its effectiveness in describing the behavior of TRCC. The stress transfer formulation of the fiber-matrix interface is crucial for simulating crack patterns.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Experimental studies and molecular dynamics simulation of the compatibility between thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer (TPU) and asphalt

Zengping Zhang, Zhaofei Wang, Suyu Zhang, Hao Liu, Yinxiao Guo, Xiaosong Liu, Peijun Tian, Yang Yang, Jingjie Xia

Summary: This study investigates the effect of shearing temperature and TPU content on the compatibility between TPU and asphalt using experiments and molecular dynamics simulations. The results indicate that the diffusion movement of TPU in asphalt is the most active at a shearing temperature of 170 degrees Celsius and the interaction energy between TPU and asphalt peaks at a TPU content of 17 wt%.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)

Article Construction & Building Technology

Graphene oxide coated fly ash for reinforcing dynamic tensile behaviours of cementitious composites

Yuan Gao, Guangzhi Li, Weiqiang Chen, Xinshuai Shi, Chen Gong, Qiuhu Shao, Yanming Liu

Summary: In this study, graphene oxide (GO) coated fly ash was used to enhance the dynamic tensile behavior of cement-based matrixes, resulting in high-performance, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly cementitious composites. The test results showed that the GO-coated fly ash significantly improved the dynamic tensile properties of the cementitious composites. GO nanosheets accelerated the cement hydration process and improved the chemical composition of hydration products, leading to macroscopic nucleation and crack-bridging effects on the cement matrixes, thereby enhancing the tensile resistance.

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS (2024)