Infrastructure Engineering - Research Publications
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ItemNo Preview AvailableUpcycling opportunities and potential markets for aluminium composite panels with polyethylene core (ACP-PE) cladding materials in Australia: A review(ELSEVIER SCI LTD, 2022-10-18)Many buildings worldwide have high fire-risk materials as part of their cladding. As governments in Australia strive to make buildings safer, it is expected that a large volume of end-of-life dangerous cladding will be replaced with safer materials. This high volume of hazardous materials might be upcycled into value-added products. This article presents a systematic market analysis and literature review in identifying current and potential uses for the raw materials used in hazardous ACP-PE cladding. The most promising areas were identified to be non-food-contact packaging (US$228 M p.a.), non-pressure pipes (US$30 M p.a.), footwear (US$5.29 M p.a.) and 3D printer filament (US$2.73 M p.a.)
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ItemApplications of phase change materials in concrete for sustainable built environment: a review(ICSECM 2011, 2011)The fast economic development around the globe and high standards of living imposes an ever increasing demand for energy. As a prime consumer of world‟s material and energy resources building and construction industry has a great potential in developing new efficient and environmentally friendly materials to reduce energy consumptions in buildings. Thermal energy storage systems (TES) with Phase change materials (PCM) offer attractive means of improving the thermal mass and the thermal comfort within a building. PCMs are latent heat thermal storage (LHTS) materials with high energy storage density compared to conventional sensible heat storage materials. Concrete incorporating PCM improves the thermal mass of the building which reduces the space conditioning energy consumption and extreme temperature fluctuations within the building. The heat capacity and high density of concrete coupled with latent heat storage of PCM provides a novel energy saving concepts for sustainable built environment. Microencapsulation is a latest and advanced technology for incorporation of PCM in to concrete which creates finely dispersed PCMs with high surface area for greater amount of heat transfer. This paper reviews available literature on Phase change materials in concrete, its application and numerical modelling of composite concrete. However most of the existing TES systems have been explored with wallboards and plaster materials and comparatively a few researches have been done on TES systems using cementitious materials. Thus, there is a need for comprehensive experimental and analytical investigations on PCM applications with cementitious materials as the most widely used construction materials in buildings.
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ItemApplication of nanomaterials in the sustainable built environment(University of Moratuwa, 2010)Nanotechnology is widely regarded as one of the twenty-first century’s key technologies, and its economic importance is sharply on the rise. In the construction industry, nanomaterials has potentials that are already usable today, especially the functional characteristics such as increased tensile strength, self-cleaning capacity, fire resistance, and additives based on nano materials make common materials lighter, more permeable, and more resistant to wear. Nanomaterial are also considered extremely useful for roofs and facades in the built environment. They also expand design possibilities for interior and exterior rooms and spaces. Nano–insulating materials open up new possibilities for ecologically oriented sustainable infrastructure development. It has been demonstrated that nanotechnology has invented products with many unique characteristics which could significantly provide solutions current construction issues and may change the requirement and organization of construction process. This paper examines and documents applicable nanotechnology based products that can improve the sustainable development and overall competitiveness of the construction industry.
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ItemApplication of nano insulation materials in the sustainable built environment(University of Moratuwa, 2010)Nanotechnology is widely being used in the built environment for its advantages in many improved engineering properties of the nano materials. Nano insulating materials open up new possibilities for ecologically oriented sustainable infrastructure development. The most widely used nano material in built environment is for the purpose of insulation to improve the energy efficiency namely in the buildings and dwellings. Nanotechnology has now provided an effective and affordable means to increase energy efficiency in pre-existing buildings as well as new construction by increasing thermal resistance. The major advantage of nano insulation materials is its benefit of translucent coatings which increase the thermal envelope of a building without reducing the square footage. The intrinsic property of nano insulating material is it can be applied to windows to reduce heat transfer from solar radiation due it its thermal resistant property and the translucent property allows diffusing of day light. The nano insulating material has significant advantage in reducing the operational energy aspects of buildings due to its valuable insulating properties. This paper examines applicable nanotechnology based products that can improve the sustainable development and overall competitiveness of the building industry. The areas of applying nano insulating material in building industry will be mainly focused on the building envelope. The paper also examines the potential advantages of using nanotechnology based insulating material in reducing the life cycle energy, reduction of material usage and enhancing the useable life span. The paper also investigates the operational energy by simulation methodology and compares the reduction of operational energy consumption.
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ItemNew normal remote communication for collaboration (presentation)( 2021-12-19)Presented at the 12th International Conference on Structural Engineering and construction Management (ICSECM) 2021, Kandy, Sri Lanka (17-19 December)
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ItemDesigning Post COVID-19 Buildings: Approaches for Achieving Healthy Buildings(MDPI AG, 2022-01-12)The COVID-19 pandemic forced the accessibility, social gathering, lifestyle, and working environment to be changed to reduce the infection. Coronavirus spreads between people in several different ways. Small liquid particles (aerosols, respiratory droplets) from an infected person are transmitted through air and surfaces that are in contact with humans. Reducing transmission through modified heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and building design are potential solutions. A comprehensive review of the engineering control preventive measures to mitigate COVID-19 spread, healthy building design, and material was carried out. The current state-of-the-art engineering control preventive measures presented include ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI), bipolar ionization, vertical gardening, and indoor plants. They have potential to improve the indoor air quality. In addition, this article presents building design with materials (e.g., copper alloys, anti-microbial paintings) and smart technologies (e.g., automation, voice control, and artificial intelligence-based facial recognition) to mitigate the infections of communicable diseases.
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ItemAirborne and impact sound performance of modern lightweight timber buildings in the Australian construction industry(Elsevier BV, 2021-12)Timber usage in the Australian construction industry has significantly increased due to its strength, aesthetic properties and extended allowances recently introduced in building codes. However, issues with acoustic performance of lightweight timber buildings were reported due to their inherit product variability and varying construction methods. This article reviews the recent literature on the transmissions of impact and airborne sounds, flanking transmission of timber buildings, and the state of computer prediction tools with reference to the Australian practice. An in-depth analysis of issues and an objective discussion related to acoustic performance of timber buildings are presented. Timber is a lightweight material and shows low airborne sound resistance in low frequency range. Attenuation of sound transmission with addition of mass, layer isolation, different products like cross-laminated timber and prefabrication are discussed. Challenges in measuring sound transmissions and reproducibility of results in low frequency ranges are discussed. Well-defined measurement protocols and refined computer simulation methods are required. The serviceability design criteria for modern lightweight timber applications in Australia need to be re-evaluated in the area of impact generated sound. Developing computer tools to predict airborne and impact sound transmission in lightweight timber buildings is quite challenging as several components such as timber members and complex connections with varying stiffnesses are non-homogeneous by nature. Further, there is a lack of experimentally validated and computationally efficient tools to predict the sound transmission in timber buildings. Computer prediction tools need to be developed with a focus on mid-frequency transmission over flanks and low-frequency transmission of timber and prefabricated buildings.
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ItemEffective use of offsite manufacturing for public infrastructure projects in Australia(ICE Publishing, 2019)Prefabrication and offsite manufacturing have featured in various forms in an in-situ based construction industry for many decades. Scarcity of both human and material resources is challenging the future of traditional construction practices. Due to its many benefits such as speed of project delivery, minimum work on site, minimised construction waste and higher quality assurance, offsite manufacturing is gradually evolving into an essential technology in the construction industry. As a result of re-cent government initiatives, Australia is seeing a considerable increase in the use of offsite manufacturing and prefabricated modular technologies in delivering public infrastructure projects such as schools, healthcare facilities, and public transport facilities. Such projects are ably supported by academic research collaborating with the industry to ensure that the outcomes keep improving to achieve the highest quality and functionality. This paper discusses how multidisciplinary research addresses issues such as structural performance, construction technology, design for manufacturing and assembly and indoor environ-mental quality for the delivery of such public infrastructure projects. These projects have set an example in how offsite manufacturing supported by academic research can be beneficial for effectively delivering the greater good to the society.
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ItemThermal performance of concrete with PCMs(University of Moratuwa, 2012-01-01)Development of energy efficient and environmentally friendly materials to reduce energy consumption in buildings is a major concern in today’s building and construction industry. Sustainable development of energy efficient materials in buildings needs to consider not only the mechanical properties such as strength and stiffness of structural materials but also thermal properties which includes heat capacity and thermal insulation. Concrete as most widely used construction material has a great potential to improve its heat storing capacity or thermal mass for their effective usage in buildings. One of the promising solutions is thermal energy storage with Phase change materials (PCM). Concrete incorporating PCM improves the thermal mass of the building which reduces the space conditioning energy consumption and extreme temperature fluctuations within the building. The heat capacity and high density of concrete coupled with latent heat storage of PCM provides a novel energy saving concepts for sustainable built environment. Microencapsulation is a latest and advanced technology for incorporation of PCM in to concrete which creates finely dispersed PCMs with high surface area for greater amount of heat transfer. Moreover PCM absorbs the excess energy during cement hydration and reduces the possibility of formation of cracks within the concrete. This paper reviews available literature on Phase change materials in concrete, its application and discusses finite element modelling of thermal performance of composite concrete.
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ItemInnovative modelling and visualisation platform for sustainable cities - MUtopia(University of Moratuwa, 2012)Now more than half the world’s population lives in towns and cities and this proportion will rise to nearly two thirds by 2030. Many cities worldwide are facing acute challenges, and therefore it is essential that all future developments are carried out on a sustainable footing. Through a web-based platform, MUtopia visualises and demonstrates in a quantifiable manner what impact a planned site development would have by representing best practice in all aspects of sustainable urban living on a relatively large scale. Sites may be new suburbs or rebuilt sections of the city large enough to require systematic planning. The project focuses on the development of an integrated modelling, analysis and visualization tool that helps the government and developers to make informed decisions to achieve such sustainable urban development and implementation. MUtopia integrates the streams of energy, waste, water and transport, based on land use, as well as social and environmental factors so that various planning scenar os or dependencies between factors can be tested. It is an integrated BIM and GIS tool. MUtopia would be an international first in an area of growing interest and need.