Introduction to nanotechnology in eco-efficient construction

Abstract

In the past decades, nanotechnology which is not considered a sector by itself but a highly dispersed multidisciplinary area has been on a rise not only in terms of papers and patents but also in terms of applications. A review on paper and patent production for the period 2000e16 shows that United States is the dominant player both in publications in top journals and also in patents although China has shown a relevant growth (Zhu et al., 2017). A recent survey has tracked the patent production in the field of nanotechnology (Ozcan and Islam, 2017), using the patent provider Thomson Innovation. The study shows that there are around 50,000 patent inventions, of which around 30,000 are owned by corporations, around 14,000 by inventors, around 11,000 by academia, and almost 2,000 by government. The shared patents explain the difference in the total. Of course, as Fig. 1 in the paper of Ozcan and Islam (2017) shows, different countries show different proportion of owners in the patent production. Inventors are the majority of the owners in United States. With regard to corporates, the United States and Japan have similar levels of patent ownership. France, for instance, has a higher proportion of government ownership, while in China its academia has the largest proportion. Of course it is important to take into account the method used for patent retrieval because the authors point out that there are some patents on the nanotechnology class that are not related to this field. Sabatier and Chollet (2017) using bibliometric data and a survey of French nanotechnology scientists showed that promoting groundbreaking , innovative research provides an important advantage for future scientific production. However, it is important not to overemphasize the importance of patents because van Raan (2017) showed that only a small amount of patents represent important, "radical," technological breakthroughs. Also in an important essay, Archibugi (2017) mentioned that intellectual property rights may delay the diffusion of knowledge and that disruption by itself does not necessarily lead to progress or to greater economic efficiency, and if it is not properly managed it can lead not only to company losses, but to societal damages as well. In fact, Shapira and Youtie (2015) mentioned that many nanotech sales forecasts were adjusted downwards because some of the promised scale benefits are unlikely to be realized. On one hand complex nanomaterials may not be very environmental friendly and life cycle assessment (LCA) may require further Nanotechnology in Eco-efficient Construction.

Introduction to start-up creation for the smart ecoefficient built environment

“…In the last decades nanotechnology became a hot area, crossing different scientific areas from electronics to life sciences; however, only in the last few years have the nanotech investigations for the construction industry begun to have enough expression justified by the published works on that particular field (Smith and Granqvist, 2011;Pacheco-Torgal et al, 2013a). A Scopus search of journal papers containing the terms "nanotechnology" and "eco-efficient construction" shows that a research shift from cement nanotech to nanotech energy-efficient materials has occured.…”

An autonomous power temperature sensor based on window-integrated transparent PV using sustainable luminescent carbon dots

“…Buildings' energy performance has been a top priority concern in the EU. Three European directives stimulate the transition to decarbonized buildings: (1) the 2020 Climate and Energy Package, 5 associated with the Energy Efficiency Directive, 6 which targets a 20% cut in GHG emissions (from 1990 levels), 20% energy from renewables, and 20% improvement in energy efficiency; (2) the 2030 Climate and Energy Framework, 7 which targets 40% cuts in GHG emissions (from 1990 levels), a 32% share for renewable energy, and 32.5% improvement in energy efficiency; and (3) the 2050 Long-Term Strategy, 8 which targets climate-neutrality by 2050 and netzero GHG emissions. All these targets are aligned with the Paris Agreement on climate change and the European Green Deal.…”

“…Nowadays, the world's energy is mainly consumed by three sectors: building, industry, and transportation, in which the building sector represents the world's largest energy consumer. 1 In the European Union (EU), energy management in buildings accounts for nearly 40% of the primary energy consumption (33% worldwide) and 36% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. 2 For the next decade, energy needs must also take into account the rise of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), namely the deployment and full maturity of Internet of Things (IoT) systems, in which the industrial mass market associated is estimated at 350 billion dollars in 2025.…”

Recent Advancements in the Nanomaterial Application in Concrete and Its Ecological Impact

“…This advanced technology is also being utilized in biosensors, drug delivery, other biomedical uses, and environmental applications (environmental contaminant clean-up) [19][20][21][22]. In recent times, nanotechnology was also found to have tremendous applications in construction industries [23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. Nanomaterials have uses in coatings, glass, concrete, steel, bricks, and insulation.…”