Includes a free CD containing the full contents of the book.The rammed earth technique, in all its variants, is widespread all over the world. This enormously prevalent building technique harbours an important richness of varieties both in application and in materials used. Interventions on historical rammed earth buildings have also been carried o

With the aim to facilitate the dissemination of research from both academia and the industrial community, presented works from the 10th International Conference on Computational Methods and Experiments in Material and Contact Characterisation are included in this book. These papers discuss the latest developments in this rapidly advancing field. The demand for high-quality production for both industry and consumers has led to rapid developments in materials science and engineering. This requires the characterisation of the properties of the materials. Of particular interest to industry and society are the knowledge of the surface treatment and contact mechanics of these materials to determine the in-service behaviour of components subject to contact conditions. Modern society requires systems that operate at conditions that use resources effectively. In terms of components durability, the understanding of surface engineering wear frictional and lubrication dynamics has never been so important. Current research is focused on modifications technologies that can increase the surface durability of materials. The characteristics of the system reveal which surface engineering methods should be chosen and as a consequence, it is essential to study the combination of surface treatment and contact mechanics. Combinations of different experimental techniques as well as computer simulation methods are essential to achieve a proper analysis. A very wide range of materials, starting with metals through polymers and semiconductors to composites, necessitates a whole spectrum of characteristic experimental techniques and research methods. Topics covered include: Experimental and measurement techniques; Mechanical testing and characterisation; Composites; Characterisation at multiple scales; Corrosion and erosion; Damage, fatigue and fracture; Recycled and reclaimed materials; Emerging materials and processing technology; Materials for energy systems; Contact mechanics; Coatings and surface treatments; Tribology and design; Biomechanical characterisation and applications; Residual stresses; Polymers and plastics; Computational methods and simulation; Biological materials; Evaluation and material processing.

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 “Strategies for a resilient built environment”, which covers the current and emerging approaches that lead to an optimized design and maintenance of constructions and systems. It includes the development of service life models and life cycle design, in order to maximise longevity and level of service while minimising the environmental impact of constructions and systems. It also includes the analysis and design of larger systems, such as communities, cities or regions, aiming at reducing risk and increasing resilience. The following subtopics are included: resilience and robustness of the built environment and communities at local and global scales; risk based inspection and maintenance; life cycle analysis and service models; performance based design; improved design strategies by integrating materials and structures.

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 book explains and illustrates the rules that are given in the Eurocodes for designing steel structures subjected to fire. After the first introductory chapter, Chapter 2 explains how to calculate the mechanical actions (loads) in the fire situation based on the information given in EN 1990 and EN 1991. Chapter 3 is dedicated to the models which represent the thermal actions created by the fire. Chapter 4 describes the procedures to be used to calculate the temperature of the steelwork from the temperature of the compartment and Chapter 5 shows how the information given in EN 1993-1-2 is used to determine the load bearing capacity of the steel structure. Chapter 6 presents the essential features that characterize the advanced calculation models, for thermal and mechanical response. The methods used to evaluate the fire resistance of bolted and welded connections are described in Chapter 7. Chapter 8 describes a computer program called `Elefir-EN? which is based on the simple calculation model given in the Eurocode and allows designers to quickly and accurately calculate the performance of steel components in the fire situation. Chapter 9 looks at the issues that a designer may be faced with when assessing the fire resistance of a complete building. This is done via a case study and addresses most of the concepts presented in the previous chapters. For this second edition the content has been revised and extended. The book contains some new sections, e.g. a comparison between the simple and the advanced calculation, as well as additional examples.

This atlas presents technical information for professionals who process and use temperate or tropical timber. It combines the main technical characteristics of 283 tropical species and 17 species from temperate regions most commonly used in Europe with their primary uses.