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The Impact of Climate Change on the Facades of Tall Buildings

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Hazards and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2024) | Viewed by 9723

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Michael Yit Lin Chew

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Interests: building system and diagnostics; maintainability of facilities
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Nyuk Hien Wong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, 4 Architecture Drive, Singapore
Interests: urban heat island and the mitigation measures; outdoor thermal comfort and indoor thermal comfort for naturally ventilated spaces; thermal performance of façade for non air conditioned buildings; thermal performance of urban greenery including green roofs and vertical green walls; climate change and the impact on built environment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Sheila Conejos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Science and Technology, Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore 599494, Singapore
Interests: low carbon urban regeneration; adaptable, maintainable and circular buildings in the tropics; zero waste township in the tropics; green reuse of built heritage in the tropics; green building technologies in the tropics; design for excellence (which includes design for maintainability; design for adaptability; design for disassembly; design for future adaptive reuse) for tropical built environment; green stewardship and user engagement for climate change adaptation and urban resilience in the tropic

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It must be noted that for cities dominated by tall buildings, objects falling from such heights are a public safety issue that cannot be compromised. Cases of falling objects have increased globally for many reasons, one of which is building aging. The problem will no doubt be exacerbated by climae change.

Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges faced by mankind in the 21st century. According to the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), climate change will substantially accelerate over the 21st century. With improvements in the accuracy of climate models, the possibilities of the Earth facing extreme global weather conditions, such as heavy precipitation and heatwaves, will become more apparent, frequent, widespread, and intense during the 21st century.

The predicted extreme weather events as a result of climate change will dramatically affect the materials/systems/components/features used on building façades. Unprecedented changes in temperature and precipitation will lead to atmospheric corrosion of the façade’s material surfaces. Excessive amounts and wind-driven rain will increase surface erosion and facilitate moisture penetration and biodeterioration, which will lead to the intensified decline of the building’s hygrothermal performance. Increases in ultraviolet (UV) radiation escalates the rate of degradation of many materials (especially polymers and their composites) used in building façade systems.

The actual mechanism of failure of materials/systems/components/features on an externally exposed façade in a city dominated by tall buildings is much more complicated. Climate change, when translated to a micro-local condition, the combination of effects of (a) cyclical moisture and temperature exposure, (b) thermal shock, (c) hot water immersion, (d) wind driven rain, (e) air/water pollutants, (f) relative humidity, (g) aggressive agents, etc., play a significant effect on the integrity of a façade.

Papers addressing the following “challenges” are most welcome:

  1. Understanding of “service life” and “performance” in relation to objects falling from agreat height.
  2. Identification and classification of critical façade building materials/systems/components/features that are sensitive to accelerated deterioration due to extreme weather events, in relation to objects falling from a great height.
  3. R&D on simulation of weather conditions which affect the service life and performance of facade materials/systems/components/features, in relation to objects falling from a great height.
  4. Establishment of scientific testing frameworks and robust testing and evaluation methodologies to conduct physical testing in order to evaluate the service life and performance of critical façade materials/systems/components/features against the effects of climate change.

The significance of this Special Issue lies in the consolidaton of knowledge from robust testing and evaluation methodologies that integrate micro-climate change predictions into building and infrastructure design, guides, and codes. The development of tools, guidelines, and standards for specific building systems, like building façades, which reflect the impacts of climate change, will inform future infrastructure projects and rehabilitation work. This Special Issue is timely and significant, as augmented climate models will assist in the formulation of accurate material service life performances, provide appropriate adaptation and maintenance measures, inform future design decisions, and impact policies and practices regarding the endurance of façade materials.  

Prof. Dr. Michael Yit Lin Chew
Prof. Dr. Nyuk Hien Wong
Dr. Sheila Conejos
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • building facade
  • falling objects
  • public safety
  • service life
  • climate change

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 1535 KiB  
Article
Climate Change Impacts on Occupational Health and Safety of Façade Maintenance Workers: A Qualitative Study
by Ransi Salika Athauda, Shashini Jayakodi, Ashan Senel Asmone and Sheila Conejos
Sustainability 2023, 15(10), 8008; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15108008 - 14 May 2023
Viewed by 2084
Abstract
At present, climate change is considered a considerable future threat due to its possible catastrophic impacts on humans, their properties, and also the environment. Therefore, most people and organizations have paid attention to this area. Thus, special consideration should be given to building [...] Read more.
At present, climate change is considered a considerable future threat due to its possible catastrophic impacts on humans, their properties, and also the environment. Therefore, most people and organizations have paid attention to this area. Thus, special consideration should be given to building operations, as buildings and building operations are capable of being impacted by various negative consequences of climate change. As façade-maintenance workers experience considerable climate change impacts as they perform their work for prolonged hours, at height, on the exterior of buildings, this study focuses on identifying the impacts of climate change on façade-access methods and façade-maintenance workers. Thus, in this study, a qualitative research approach was undertaken with an interview research design. A comprehensive literature review was conducted along with 12 semi-structured expert interviews selected through judgmental sampling. Software-aided thematic content analysis was carried out to analyze the collected data. The findings indicated that climate change could have significant impacts on building operations, as the attention paid to climate change adaptation by building operations is negligible in various countries, especially in developing countries. A significant impact was identified on façade-maintenance workers and façade-access methods caused by climate change, creating various risk factors for their occupational health and safety. Furthermore, the research methods that have been applied in this study are also capable of expanding to address various other probable operations. Accordingly, this research is exploring a new field of study that should be given more consideration by researchers due to its significant importance in scenarios that are experienced worldwide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of Climate Change on the Facades of Tall Buildings)
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23 pages, 1674 KiB  
Article
Climate Change Impacts on Facade Building Materials: A Qualitative Study
by Ransi Salika Athauda, Ashan Senel Asmone and Sheila Conejos
Sustainability 2023, 15(10), 7893; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15107893 - 11 May 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2854
Abstract
Recently, various parts of the world are being affected by different climate change incidents causing hindrances to day-to-day activities. The concept of constructing sustainable buildings has gained traction as climate change and other risks increase, allowing them to endure future natural or artificial [...] Read more.
Recently, various parts of the world are being affected by different climate change incidents causing hindrances to day-to-day activities. The concept of constructing sustainable buildings has gained traction as climate change and other risks increase, allowing them to endure future natural or artificial disasters while maintaining functionality. As facade building materials are impacted considerably by climate change due to exposure to various such conditions, the focus of this study is to identify the climate change impacts on facade building materials. A qualitative research method with an interview research design was used for the study. Twelve semi-structured expert interviews by selecting the experts through the judgmental sampling method were undertaken along with a detailed analysis of the literature. The gathered data were evaluated using software-assisted thematic content analysis. According to the results, climate change has a substantial impact on facade building materials, despite the fact that few governments, particularly those in developing nations, have given considerable attention. Moreover, these identified impacts on facade building materials from climate change have the potential to cause catastrophic occupational health and safety risks for facade maintenance workers which also should be gained more consideration in the world as per the findings of this study in order to create a safer working environment for the workers to carry out their activities. Additionally, the research techniques used in this study can be expanded to cover a variety of other potential building materials and operations. As a result, this research is focused on a new subject matter that must be given more concern by researchers, because of its significance in the current global settings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of Climate Change on the Facades of Tall Buildings)
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14 pages, 5710 KiB  
Article
Climate Change Projection and Its Impacts on Building Façades in Singapore
by Lup Wai Chew, Xian-Xiang Li and Michael Y. L. Chew
Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3156; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043156 - 09 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3504
Abstract
Singapore is one of the most populous countries, and the majority of the population stays in high-rise public flats. In 2021, there were about 1.1 million public residential units, of which 79% were above 20 years old. The number of incidents of falling [...] Read more.
Singapore is one of the most populous countries, and the majority of the population stays in high-rise public flats. In 2021, there were about 1.1 million public residential units, of which 79% were above 20 years old. The number of incidents of falling objects from a height has been increasing due to the aging and deterioration of buildings. The Periodic Façade Inspection (PFI) regime was enacted in 2020 to mandate façade inspections for all buildings above 13 m and exceeding 20 years old. However, the relatively new PFI regime has not considered the potential impacts of climate change on building façades. In this paper, the common root causes of façade defects that can be impacted by climate change are first identified. Based on the climate projection in Singapore to 2100, Singapore is expected to experience a higher mean temperature, a higher rainfall intensity, more extreme rainfall events, and a higher wind gust speed. Overall, these changes in the climate pattern will accelerate corrosion or degradation, material fatigue, adhesion failure, biological attack, and humidity or dampness. The impacts of climate change on vertical greeneries are also discussed. This paper provides a first insight into the key concerns to focus on for the future revision and improvement of the PFI regime to incorporate climate change impacts on façades. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of Climate Change on the Facades of Tall Buildings)
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