This book gathers peer-reviewed contributions presented at the 3rd RILEM Spring Convention and Conference, held at Guimarães and hosted by the University of Minho, Portugal, on March 9-14, 2020. The theme of the Conference was “Ambitioning a Sustainable Future for Built Environment: comprehensive strategies for unprecedented challenges”, which was aimed at discussing current challenges and impacts of the built environment on sustainability. The present volume is dedicated to the topic “Service life extension of existing structures”, which covers the most recent scientific and technological developments in the understanding of the evolution and degradation of construction materials and structural systems. Analytical and numerical, as well as experimental approaches, aimed at characterizing, modelling and predicting the evolution of the physical, chemical and mechanical properties of construction materials and structural systems are regarded. Multiphysics models are also considered, as well as other strategies that contribute for an accurate characterization and prediction the service life and the evolution of existing and novel construction materials under normal or extreme environmental exposure or loading conditions. New strategies to promote the smart repairing or the recovery of material properties, as well as the service life extension, are also considered. The following subtopics are included: service life models and multiphysics approaches; smart structures, innovative monitoring and intervention strategies; management and optimized maintenance strategies; integrated rehabilitation and strengthening approaches.

This book gathers peer-reviewed contributions presented at the 3rd RILEM Spring Convention and Conference, held at Guimarães and hosted by the University of Minho, Portugal, on March 9-14, 2020. The theme of the Conference was “Ambitioning a Sustainable Future for Built Environment: comprehensive strategies for unprecedented challenges”, which was aimed at discussing current challenges and impacts of the built environment on sustainability. The present volume is dedicated to the topic “Shift to a circular economy”, which is focussed on sustainability and covers the research and recent technologies on the use and development of sustainable materials and structural systems, as well as on recycling and reusing. It also covers the implementation of industrial processes leading to minimized waste, including digital fabrication and deconstruction, as well as integrative approaches that lead to the achievement of the concept of circular economy. Additionally, this topic covers research on novel or existing construction materials and systems based on local resources and regional practices. The following subtopics are included: industrialized construction systems minimizing waste; recycling and reuse of materials and components; 4Ls: local constructions with local materials through local approaches for local development; Digital Manufacturing; design for deconstruction; smart demolition techniques; timber structures; Life-Cycle Assessment of construction materials and technologies; recycling of pavements and materials in roads.

This work gives an overview of significant research from recent years concerning performance-based design and quality control for concrete durability and its implementation. In engineering practice, performance approaches are often still used in combination with prescriptive requirements. This is largely because, for most durability test methods, sufficient practical experience still has to be gained before engineers and owners are prepared to fully rely on them. This book, compiled by RILEM TC 230-PSC, is intended to assist efforts to successfully build the foundation for the full implementation of performance-based approaches through the exchange of relevant knowledge and experience between researchers and practitioners worldwide.

The research and its outcomes presented in this book treat applications of NDT techniques to on-site measurements. These on-site measurements have been marginally successful as each technique requires a particular analysis. In this regard, visualization and imaging of results are in great demand for practitioners and engineers for inspection. This volume, in which on-site measurements of concrete and masonry structures by NDT techniques are comprehensively summarized, focuses on the visualization procedure of the results measured. The book will therefore be of great value to the field.