The durability of building materials under a changing climate

Abstract

Weathering of materials leads to degradation of the fabric of buildings which if left unchecked will lead to an increase in the rate, and possibly severity, of degradation. Adjustments to maintenance regimes could accommodate marginal changes to degradation rate. However, for significant increases in degradation rate, adaptations may be required. Globally, any new deterioration mechanisms are unlikely. However, in the future previously insignificant problems may start to become significant at a local level, for which there is a lack of local knowledge or experience. Adaptation in the context of existing buildings is a means to further protect the existing fabric, to consolidate performance and control the rate of deterioration. This adaptation goes beyond the scope of enhanced maintenance. For historic buildings, there will be tension between the need to conserve the building and simultaneously adapt in the face of increased climate change driven weathering. Impact studies are needed to identify priorities for adaptation by identifying the scale and impact of degradation-related defects for the future building stock. Such studies need to be integrated with authoritative information on projected future climate. Adaptation of building design is needed to ensure new buildings consider performance in both current and future climates. A whole-life approach to building design is needed. To achieve this building standards, building codes need to be developed which consider future climate design. Traditional vernacular styles may offer an opportunity for learning design lessons and adapting design practices that could help facilitate appropriate climate protection.

Impact of Environmental Exposure Conditions on the Maintenance of Facades’ Claddings

“…The façades, being external walls [2], are part of the building envelope, the barrier that separates the external environment from the interior [3,4]. In this sense, façades are designed with the purpose of protecting the inside of the building from undesirable climate influence [5]. Part of the façade's functions is established based on the interaction with external environmental conditions, such as the following [6]: Mitigation of water and air leakage; thermal and acoustical insulation; solar and glare control; and natural lighting.…”

“…The cladding, the façade "skin" [2,7], being the outer layer of the system, is a particularly vulnerable component. Façades performance is highly dependent on the climate [8], since they are directly subjected to the variability of different types of external loads over decades, such as the following [5]: Temperature, precipitation, damp, and wind. Its robustness, resilience, and adaptability are vital, not only to users' protection, but also to prevent escalating damage after weather events [4].…”

“…Climate agents strongly affect the degradation process and natural ageing of the building external components, during their service life [4]. Durability depends on the external climate loads and on the building specific location, in terms of topography, rural or urban context, altitude and distance to the sea [5]. These factors, both beyond the control of designers, are related and contribute to characterize the climate at a local level.…”

Durability and Climate Change—Implications for Service Life Prediction and the Maintainability of Buildings

“…In respect to the effects of climate change, it is unlikely that new mechanisms of degradation will develop. However, the changing climate will affect the built environment through steady changes in weather, increasing variability of and extremes in climate conditions [15]. The significant daily processes of weathering that contribute to premature degradation of the exterior of structures include wind-driven rain, temperature fluctuations, freeze-thaw cycling, frost effects, wetting and drying of porous materials, the action of solar and ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and chemical deposition on metals from the atmosphere.…”

Warmer, Wetter Climates Accelerate Mechanical Weathering in Field Data, Independent of Stress‐Loading

“…Accurate characterizations of how climate controls weathering, the in situ breakdown of rock, are essential because weathering drives erosion and soil formation (Murphy et al., 2016; Richter et al., 2019), impacts biomes (Lu & Hedin, 2019) including the evolution of human life (Kasting, 2019), degrades civil infrastructure (Phillipson et al., 2016), and—crucially—influences the rate of atmospheric CO 2 uptake by the lithosphere, which stabilizes climate on geological time scales (e.g., Isson et al., 2020; Macdonald et al., 2019; Walker et al., 1981).…”