Comprehensive guide to engineered wood construction systems for both residential and commercial/industrial buildings. Includes information on plywood and oriented strand board (wood structural panels), glulam, I-joists, structural composite lumber, typical specifications and design recommendations for floor, wall and roof systems, diaphragms, shear walls, fire-rated systems and methods of finishing.
Background
There has been growing interest in the development of waste-specific decay factors for estimation of greenhouse gas emissions from landfills in national greenhouse gas inventories. Although engineered wood products (EWPs) and paper represent a substantial component of the solid waste stream, there is limited information available on their carbon dynamics in landfills. The objective of this study was to determine the extent of carbon loss for EWPs and paper products commonly used in Australia. Experiments were conducted under laboratory conditions designed to simulate optimal anaerobic biodegradation in a landfill.
Results
Methane generation rates over incubations of 307–677 days ranged from zero for medium-density fibreboard (MDF) to 326 mL CH4 g-1 for copy paper. Carbon losses for particleboard and MDF ranged from 0.7 to 1.6%, consistent with previous estimates. Carbon loss for the exterior wall panel product (2.8%) was consistent with the expected value for blackbutt, the main wood type used in its manufacture. Carbon loss for bamboo (11.4%) was significantly higher than for EWPs. Carbon losses for the three types of copy paper tested ranged from 72.4 to 82.5%, and were significantly higher than for cardboard (27.3–43.8%). Cardboard that had been buried in landfill for 20 years had a carbon loss of 27.3%—indicating that environmental conditions in the landfill did not support complete decomposition of the available carbon. Thus carbon losses for paper products as measured in bioreactors clearly overestimate those in actual landfills. Carbon losses, as estimated by gas generation, were on average lower than those derived by mass balance. The low carbon loss for particleboard and MDF is consistent with carbon loss for Australian wood types described in previous studies. A factor for carbon loss for combined EWPs and wood in landfills in Australia of 1.3% and for paper of 48% is proposed.
Conclusions
The new suggested combined decay factor for wood and EWPs represents a significant reduction from the current factor used in the Australian greenhouse gas inventory; whereas the suggested decay factor for paper is similar to the current decay factor. Our results improve current understanding of the carbon dynamics of harvested wood products, and allow more refined estimates of methane emissions from landfills.
Sustainability and innovation are key components in the fight against climate change. Mass timber buildings have been gaining popularity due to the renewable nature of timber. Although research comparing mass timber buildings to more mainstream buildings such as steel is still in the early stages and therefore, limited. We are looking to determine the difference between carbon footprints of mass timber and traditional steel and concrete buildings. This is done with the intention of determining the sustainability and practicality of mass timber buildings.
Increasing the use of engineered wood products in the European Union can contribute to leveraging a shift towards a more emission-efficient production of construction materials. Engineered timber products have already been substituted for carbon and energy intensive concrete and steel-based building constructions, but they still lack the capacities and market demand to be more than just a niche market.
However, in the post-crisis period after 2008 the consumption of engineered wood products began rising in Europe. In this paper we analyse options for the future development of engineered wood products taking into consideration policy barriers and technical and environmental potentials for accelerating market introduction as part of a comprehensive scenario approach. For the European building sector we assessed an achievable potential for net carbon storage of about 46 million tonnes CO2-eqv. per year in 2030. To unlock this potential a bundle of instruments is necessary for increasing the market share for engineered wood products against the backdrop of existing policy instruments such as the gradual introduction of stricter rules for carbon emissions trading or more incentives for the voluntary use of innovative wood construction materials.
Raw materials for buildings and construction account for more than 35% of global primary energy use and nearly 40% of energy-related CO2 emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emphasized the drastic reduction in GHG emissions and thus, wood products with very low or negative carbon footprint materials can play an important role. In this study, a cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment (LCA) approach was followed to quantify the environmental impacts of laminated strand lumber (LSL). The inventory data represented North American LSL production in terms of input materials, including wood and resin, electricity and fuel use, and production facility emissions for the 2019 production year. The contribution of cradle-to-gate life cycle stages was substantial (>70%) towards the total (cradle-to-grave) environmental impacts of LSL. The cradle-to-gate LCA results per m³ LSL were estimated to be 275 kg CO2 eq global warming, 39.5 kg O3eq smog formation, 1.7 kg SO2 eq acidification, 0.2 kg N eq eutrophication, and 598 MJ fossil fuel depletion. Resin production as a part of resource extraction contributed 124 kg CO2 eq (45%). The most relevant unit processes in their decreasing contribution to their cradle-to-grave GW impacts were resource extraction, end-of-life (EoL), transportation (resources and product), and LSL manufacturing. Results of sensitivity analysis showed that the use of adhesive, consumption of electricity, and transport distance had the greatest influences on the LCA results. Considering the whole life cycle of the LSL, the final product stored 1,010 kg CO2 eq/m³ of LSL, roughly two times more greenhouse gas emissions over than what was released (493 kg CO2 eq/m³ of LSL) from cradle-to-grave. Overall, LSL has a negative GW impact and acts as a carbon sink if used in the construction sector. The study results are intended to be important for future studies, including waste disposal and recycling strategies to optimize environmental trade-offs.
It is expected that Cross-laminated timber (CLT) and other engineered wood products will experience rapid growth in the coming years. Global population growth is requiring more housing units, at the same time the negative impact of construction industry cannot stay in the same level as today. Alternatives for concrete and steel reinforced structures are being explored. CLT has proven to be an excellent substitution for concrete regarding construction of buildings up to eight storeys high. In addition to much lower environmental impact, construction process using CLT takes significantly less time due to pre-cut shapes required for specific project. Despite mentioned benefits, there are considerable amount of CLT cuttings generated in this process. Due to irregular shape and small dimensions of these cuttings they are useless for further use in construction. By applying re-processing technology described in this paper, around 70 % of generated cuttings can be re-processed into new CLT panels. In this paper we are evaluating the environmental benefits of re-processing these cuttings into new CLT panels versus business-as-usual scenario with waste disposal. Life cycle assessment results showed significant reduction of environmental impact for the scenario of CLT cutting re-processing.
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