Circular economy of façades: Real-world challenges and opportunities

Hartwell, Rebecca; Macmillan, Sebastian; Overend, Mauro

doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105827

Cited by 40 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Norman (2013) detailed the drivers and barriers to improving energy efficiency in the energy-intensive sub-sectors within UK industry and highlighted the need to increase information on energy use and motivations to reduce it across the value-chain. Hartwell et al (2021) completed a cross-industry review on the barriers and motivations to realising the circular economy in the design of façade systems, including architectural glass. It was found that an improved understanding of the environmental value of reuse and recycling would be a key lever to influencing design decisions that better consider whole-life environmental performance and/or justifying financial investments in effective takeback supply-chains.…”

Section: Use Of Cullet In New Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: a material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Hartwell

Coult²,

Overend

2022

Glass Struct Eng

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Glass is one of the UK’s eight energy-intensive industries. As such, it is under scrutiny to decouple growth in production from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Recycled glass, also known as cullet, requires less energy to melt than primary raw materials in new glass production. The use of cullet thus reduces the energy intensity per unit of output whilst also reducing demand for primary material resources. However, efficient systems for flat glass collection are yet to be established in the UK, resulting in a limited supply of cullet available for the flat glass market and missed environmental opportunities. This study identifies the existing supply-chain inefficiencies in the UK glass industry in three stages. Firstly, the mass flows of materials within the three main glass sectors: container glass, flat glass and glass wool, are mapped from natural resource through to primary application and subsequent end-of-life management based on a reference year of annual production figures. The map is presented in the form of a “Sankey” diagram which draws attention to several opportunities for increasing resource efficiency; namely in the stark contrast in glass collection rates between the flat and container glass industry. Using the data collected on the annual mass flows of materials in the UK flat glass sub-sector, the energy (MJ) and GHG emission (CO2-eq) saving potential of enhanced end-of-life collection methods are assessed, based on three alternative recovery scenarios. These scenarios consider the use of alternative distributions of recovered flat glass cullet in the three primary glass sub-sectors. The emission savings resulting from each recovery scenario are evaluated, based on the estimated tonnage yield of finished flat glass products. It is shown that together with improved manufacturing yield, the reutilization of end-of-life flat glass as cullet in new production could reduce the annual emissions of the UK flat glass value-chain by up to 18.6%. Finally we review the existing barriers to recycling different glass types based on acceptability criteria and available take-back infrastructure, and thus find that the advancement of improved recycling rates will rely on establishing the business opportunity and/or supporting policy for developing efficient systems for flat glass collection.

show abstract

Section: Use Of Cullet In New Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: a material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Hartwell

Coult²,

Overend

2022

Glass Struct Eng

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Circular thinking must be embedded into these new designs as well, facilitating future upgrades to maintain operational efficiency, whilst maximising resource efficiency. Hartwell et al 11 explored the challenges and opportunities of new There is much work to be done. The critical next steps I have outlined will require huge efforts from engineers, supply chain experts, educational institutions, policymakers, building and construction firms and product manufacturers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Embed circular economy thinking into building retrofit

Tingley

2022

Commun Eng

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Building retrofit is essential to deliver decarbonisation. But its implementation could leave a legacy of waste if end of life is not considered now. Here I consider the challenges and implications of embedding circularity into building retrofit.Buildings retrofits improve energy efficiency and are an essential component of global decarbonisation plans. However, whilst many retrofit techniques will reduce energy demand in the near future, their longevity is rarely considered. This risks a legacy of waste with high recurring embodied carbon, and buildings that cannot be easily further upgraded in decades to come. To avoid this, engineers, architects, designers and builders must start now to embed a circular economic (CE) approach into building retrofit. Typical retrofitsRetrofits usually tackle two main components: the building fabric and building services. I will focus on domestic building fabric measures. These seek to improve the thermal efficiency of walls, windows and doors through installation of insulation, double or triple glazing, and insulated doors. In temperate climates, such as the UK, building engineers and designers typically focus on reducing heat loss from the building to reduce energy demand. As temperatures rise however, they should also be aware of the post-retrofit risk of overheating in summer months and should ensure sufficient ventilation is provided.The thermal performance of building fabric retrofits typically degrades over time. For example, organic, closed cell insulation materials such as expanded polystyrene, extruded polystyrene, polyurethane, and phenolic foam, leach their foaming gases over time, reducing their thermal performance 1 . Similarly double glazing will not indefinitely retain its thermal performance. Over time glazing seals fail, which allow fresh air into the air gap between the glazing panes. This reduces thermal efficiency and can result in condensation between the glazing panes.In both cases the degradation in performance could lead to the need for replacement of insulation or glazing to optimise buildings' thermal efficiency. The degradation in performance of glazing means that windows are typically replaced after 20-30 years. While the component materials (e.g. plastic frame and window glass) can be recycled, this requires energy and supply chains to 'take-back' the materials. Glazing replacement is more frequent as the condensation highlights the degradation. But in a future net zero world, we are likely to also seek to replace insulation more often to improve building energy efficiency.The value of applying circular economy principles CE aims to keep materials at the highest value possible. In the case of a building this means retention and retrofit (rather than demolition) for as long as possible. However, we also need to consider how to keep the components and materials that are used in retrofit at the highest value possible. This means rather than recycling the materials from a window, priority should be placed on remanufacturing the window in-situ. This rete...

show abstract

“…(Norman, 2013) detailed the drivers and barriers to improving energy efficiency in the energy-intensive sub-sectors within UK industry and highlighted the need to increase information on energy use and motivations to reduce it across the value-chain. (Hartwell et al, 2021) completed a cross-industry review on the barriers and motivations to realising the circular economy in the design of façade systems, including architectural glass. It was found that an improved understanding of the environmental value of reuse and recycling would be a key lever to influencing design decisions that better consider whole-life environmental performance and/or justifying financial investments in effective take-back supply-chains.…”

Section: End-of-life Applications For Glass Productsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: A material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Hartwell

Coult²,

Overend

2022

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Glass is one of the UK’s eight energy-intensive industries. As such, it is under scrutiny to decouple growth in production from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The energy input associated with glass production can be reduced by using recycled glass (cullet) in new glass production, which enables lower furnace operating temperatures and reduces demand for primary raw materials. However, efficient systems for flat glass collection are yet to be established in the UK, resulting in a limited supply of cullet available for the flat glass markets and missed environmental opportunities. This study identifies the existing supply-chain inefficiencies of the UK glass industry in three stages. Firstly, the mass flows of materials within the three main glass sectors: container glass, flat glass and glass wool, are mapped from natural resource through to primary application and subsequent endof-life management based on a reference year of annual production figures. The map is presented in the form of a Sankey diagram which draws attention to several opportunities for increasing resource efficiency; namely in the stark contrast in glass collection rates between the flat and container glass industry. Using the collected data on the annual mass flows of materials in the UK flat glass sub-sector, the energy (MJ) and GHG emission (CO2-eq) saving potential of enhanced end-of-life collection methods are assessed, based on three alternative recovery scenarios. These scenarios consider the use of alternative distributions of recovered flat glass cullet in the three primary glass sub-sectors. The emission savings resulting from each recovery scenario is evaluated, based on the estimated tonnage yield of finished flat glass products. It is shown that together with improved manufacturing yield, the reutilization of end-of-life flat glass as cullet in new production could reduce the annual emissions of the UK flat glass value-chain by up to 18%. Finally we review the existing barriers to recycling different glass types based on acceptability criteria and available take-back infrastructure, and thus find that the advancement of improved recycling rates will rely on establishment of the business opportunity and/or supporting policy for efficient systems of flat glass collection.

show abstract

Circular economy of façades: Real-world challenges and opportunities

Cited by 40 publications

References 22 publications

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: a material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: a material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Embed circular economy thinking into building retrofit

Mapping the flat glass value-chain: A material flow analysis and energy balance of UK production

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About