Improved structural, embodied carbon and cost efficiency of single storey industrial buildings using sandwich panels

Recent changes to the Building Regulations aimed at improving energy efficiency have resulted in significant increases in the amount of insulation incorporated into building envelopes. As a consequence, composite (sandwich) panels have become deeper, considerably improving their structural capability in terms of strength and stiffness. This however has largely been ignored in the design of building structures, so this study has sought to ascertain the degree to which more efficient solutions, that take advantage of the improved capabilities of panels, may reduce the embodied carbon of building structures, and indeed of whole buildings. The research focused on single-storey industrial buildings. A series of studies were undertaken to evaluate the opportunities, and to quantify the benefits and trade-offs associated with structural solutions that fully exploit panel capabilities. The studies addressed a) long span sandwich panels to reduce the number of supporting structural members, b) diaphragm action to stiffen the frame and c) frameless buildings. Results suggested that the greatest potential benefit (up to 60% steelwork saving) arises from the use of long span systems, particularly for trussed roof frames with northlight construction. The study identified that further realistically achievable improvement in the spanning capabilities of panels would provide significant additional benefits. An improved long span sandwich panel design was therefore developed using theoretical investigations, structural testing and a Pareto-optimisation process. The optimal solution in terms of embodied carbon and panel strength was defined. Optimised frame arrangements combined with enhanced long span roof sandwich panels were compared with traditional portal frame solutions. This comparison demonstrated the considerable savings in terms of both embodied carbon and cost that can be achieved over traditional construction. The study demonstrated that exploiting the increased insulation depth of composite panels can deliver solutions with greater structural efficiency and reduced environmental impact.

Grantor dc:publisher

Oxford Brookes University

Year dc:date

2016

Author dc:creator

• Moutaftsis, Dimitrios

Statement dc:rights

• All rights reserved

Language dc:language

en

DOI dc:identifier

https://doi.org/10.24384/000477

OAI identifier oai:identifier

tle:fb46ae71-4cb3-4912-9bb9-c2a37d1325b1:d6bd9758-527a-46cd-bfe2-c433766e8fca:1