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Cement is the most-used construction material worldwide. Research for sustainable cement production has focused on including nanomaterials as additives to enhance cement performance (strength and durability) in recent decades. In this concern, graphene is considered one of the most promising additives for cement composites. Here, we propose a novel technique for producing few-layer graphene (FLG) that can fulfil the material demand for the construction industry. We produced specimens with different FLG loadings (from 0.05% to 1% by weight of cement) and curing processes (water and saturated air). The addition of FLG at 0.10% by weight of cement improved the flexural strength by 24% compared to the reference (bare) sample. Similarly, a 0.15% FLG loading by weight of cement led to an improvement in compressive strength of 29% compared to the reference specimen. The FLG flakes produced by our proposed methodology can open the door to their full exploitation in several cement mortar applications, such as cementitious composites with high durability, mechanical performance and high electrical conductivity for electrothermal applications.

More than thirty years after the definition of sustainable development, the commitment to protect the planet has been renewed, and all sectors of human activity have been called to contribute to this critical challenge of our time. Therefore, the construction sector can also make an essential contribution. Designers are called upon to modify their actions to consider the environmental, social, and economic impacts during the entire life cycle of construction. The digital revolution could be a suitable opportunity for a profound renewal oriented towards sustainability. The new digital technologies and the increased computing power are useful for managing the increasing complexity in current projects and supporting collaboration between the many experts involved. The presented research analyzes the current state and identifies the signs of change and the cues to imagine possible virtuous complicity between sustainable development goals and the digital revolution’s potential, which is supported by the operational features of optimization methods. Based on this in-depth analysis, an operational strategy has been defined, combining the three macro themes usually treated separately—sustainability, digitization, and optimization. This strategy can be a valuable tool to guide designers in optimizing the process of sustainable design and regenerative construction.

The building sector has been identified as one of the key sectors to achieve the 20/20/20 targets of the EU. In particular, the existing buildings are considered as one of most potential sub-sectors to reach energy and raw materials savings. This research is integrated in this European context and the main goal is to look for solutions that can be fully integrated in the building system and that can optimize all the sustainable future aspects. A global approach is proposed to generate a comprehensive framework for the building renovation process. It’s an “action guide” of the entire regenerative process already applied to different types of buildings. A summary of the results obtained in the buildings regeneration projects are presented.

Sustainability in construction has a short history in terms of principles, standardizations and applications. From the Brundtland Report “Our Common Future”, a new vision of the resource deficits, climate impacts and the social responsibility gave growth to the idea of sustainability also in design and construction. Consequently, in around 2000, the international and national organizations for standardization started to develop standards for the application of sustainable principles. This paper gives an overview of existing and planned standards, and examples on how to use them as a framework for the development of methods and tools for assessment.

The author present several results of some different European Project about the the call "Smart Cities and Communitiesin Europe". The main objective of these projects is to develop a replicable strategy for the design, construction and management of entire residential neighborhoods with "almost zero" consumption. The experience, both in the competition participation and in the course of the phases of the project, it is particularly significant, especially for the synergy that has necessarily developed at international level, including Municipality, researchers, industries, non-profit companies and finance companies. Regarding the role of the University is evident the contribution in terms of knowledge and strength of cohesion between the different actors involved.

Ancient structures have been designed according to semi-empirical rules based on few simplified mechanical principles; nevertheless, their structural performance is rather good in the majority of cases. In this article, the ancient rules for masonry bridges and arches, derived from some historical manuals, are analyzed on the basis of modern mechanics. Some issues on the material mechanical characteristics and on the structural response of masonry arches allow a better understanding of the structural performance and response of old arch structures.

A comprehensive experimental/numerical procedure is presented for the in vivo characterization of the mechanical properties of human skin and the simulation of reconstructive surgery. The procedure uses in vivo experimental tests, which can be performed during surgery, a numerical model formulated within the framework of nonlinear finite strain elasticity and a nonlinear parameter identification technique for the calibration of the model. The skin is treated as a time independent and hyperelastic membrane and the problem is solved through a finite element discretization. The procedure is applied to characterize the scalp skin tested by Raposio and Nordstrom, 1998, and to simulate a simple surgical procedure of excision and closure. The application highlights the validity of the proposed approach.Copyright © 2003 by ASME

This paper investigates the parameter estimation problem for brick masonry models. An identification procedure is proposed in which the uncertainties of known parameters and/or errors of measurements are its elements of distinction. The minimization process of the discrepancies between experimental data and theoretical measurements takes place by means of a first order iterative method. The identification procedure is applied to two different problems: the calibration of an interface model for brick–mortar joint in its functional form through monotonic experimental tests; to evaluate the unknown parameters of a continuum model for brick masonry walls in its non-holonomic form by means of in-plane cyclic shear–compression test of masonry panels. The general framework of the non-linear estimate methodology, the parameter identification problems and the numerical results are presented.

A comprehensive experimental/numerical procedure is formulated and validated for the in vivo characterization of the mechanical properties of human skin and the simulation of reconstructive surgery. The procedure uses in vivo experimental tests on undermined skin flaps, which can be performed during surgery, a numerical model formulated within the framework of nonlinear finite strain elasticity and a nonlinear parameter identification technique for the calibration of the model from indirect measurements. The procedure is applied to characterize the scalp skin tested in Raposio and Nordstrom (Skin Res. Technol. 4 (1998) 94). The skin is treated as a time independent, isotropic and hyperelastic membrane and the problem is solved through a finite element discretization. The study highlights that the model parameters can be determined with good accuracy using displacement measurements of a few points in the domain.

Publisher Summary Brick masonry is a heterogeneous and anisotropic material in which mortar joints are the predominant planes of weakness. This chapter presents a procedure for parameter identification and its applications to a nonlinear interface model to describe the shear behavior of masonry mortar joints. The parameters of this model are related to the physical properties of mortar joints, but some of these cannot be quantified directly through simple experimental tests. Furthermore, the large number of parameters can make the direct calibration process difficult. The general parameter identification technique presented in this chapter is based on the weighted least-squares method, and the minimization of the objective function is based on an iterative method that is the Levemberg‑Marquardt method. The general framework of the identification method, the interface model, and the numerical results are also presented.

The need to respond to global missions about the containment of energy losses has generated the promotion, at national level, of numerous tax incentives for the recovery of the built heritage. The race for funding has encouraged a sudden innovation of materials and new technological solutions for energy retrofit interventions that sometimes are invasive for the application on those historic buildings, even if not punctually constrained, which characterize most of the curtains of the historical centers of the big cities. With the support of bibliographical data and through simplified quantitative checks, the paper highlights the limit of the application of prescriptive regulations for energy efficiency and the critical issues about the compatibility and durability of retrofit solutions applied to traditional wall supports. With the contribution, the authors intend to open a discussion among the representatives of the scientific sector, about the regulatory conflict that exists between the demands for energy efficiency and the demands of the conservation of the built heritage highlighting the need to overcome the diachrony between the productive world and the academic one so that the latter can implement the technological and cultural transfer activities aimed, on the one hand, at the development of clear paths for test and certification of materials and technologies for the recovery and redevelopment of the built heritage and, on the other hand, to the revision of energy regulations structure, in those cases where the waiting of theoretical parameters determine a damage to the preservation of the physical characteristics of the building.

A large part of the Italian territory is characterized by a spatial organization structured in small towns, with natural and cultural resources, vast material and immaterial heritage, and economic potential. All features often mirrored by a limited accessibility to essential services (transportation, health, and education systems), depopulation and high building vulnerability and inefficiency. The aim of this paper is to propose a methodology for the systemic definition of intervention strategies for building recovery and valorization, as part of a more complex strategy of inner areas’ revitalization, to be achieved in accordance with the cultural landscape, local construction techniques and materials, and the specific characteristics of considered buildings. The chosen case study has been the small town of Conza della Campania, whose historic center was almost destroyed by the 1980’s Irpinia earthquake; although abandoned since, the damaged building stock still preserves acknowledged architectural and constructive qualities, and the area has many potentials linked to its natural and productive vocations. Applying the methodology, seismic and energy retrofitting strategies resulted in the definition of adaptive abacuses describing the most efficient interventions for each considered building, derived by detailed analysis related to their construction techniques, architectural features, historical evolution, and artistic/cultural values. In terms of urban regeneration, these abacuses, as basis for seismic and energy building recovery, act as adaptive tools to support the definition of compatible operational choices and ensure the development of sustainable strategies leading to holistic results.

The research herein presented was carried out within the issues of the Adriseismic project, funded by the Interreg Adrion program, to address seismic vulnerability through a multidisciplinary approach. The project aims at developing new integrated approaches to innovate and harmonise the normative, technical and training frameworks in the ADRION area, providing ready-to-use methods, tools and procedures that will be integrated into the existing policies and practices, thus strengthening local responses and reducing vulnerability to natural hazards. The starting point of the activities was to deepen the knowledge of the built heritage in each country involved in the project, especially the local building techniques in the historic centres of the Adriatic-Ionian area, then qualitatively correlate them to possible seismic weaknesses. The typical construction characteristics of the buildings present in these Countries, both traditional and more recent ones, were analysed. In the first phase, the investigations were conducted by collecting all possible data in the six countries involved in the project: Italy, Croatia, Albania, Serbia, Slovenia and Greece. Then, the building techniques were divided according to their structural function, defining four macro-categories: vertical masonry structures, vertical reinforced concrete structures, horizontal structures and foundation structures. In the last phase, the results collected for each country were compared, highlighting a common general framework with substantial similarities between the various countries’ construction characteristics, despite different historical-cultural events and distant regulatory practices. This result demonstrates how the availability of the same building material governs construction solutions, even though human events are very different.