High level circular use of post-consumer insulating glass units will contribute to lower the environmental and social impact of insulation glass industry. The application of various circular strategies for insulating glass units (IGU’s) is rising. The product age will give an indication of the remaining life-time of an IGU, but a method which includes screening a technical quality is needed to check if an IGU is indeed suitable for re-use on a high level of circularity. In this study the argon concentration is suggested as discriminative quality. Energy efficient double glazing applied in windows of buildings situated in The Netherlands were studied. Product codes were noted and unraveled. Measurements were performed using the Sparklike Laser Portable, a non-invasive argon measuring device, which generates argon concentration, glass thickness and cavity width values. In addition, measurements were performed with a Glass Check thickness meter. The resulting data were analyzed. Measuring errors were explored and used to setup a testing procedure. Threshold values of the product age and argon concentration were selected for different circular strategies. In conclusion, a screening method using the product age and argon concentration to determine the circular use potential of insulating glass units is proposed.
MULTIFILE
The ambition of a transition to a sustainable society brings forth the dual challenge to preserve historical buildings and simultaneously improve the energy performance of our built environment. While engineers claim that a dramatic reduction of energy use in the built environment is feasible, it has proven to be a difficult and twisting road.In this paper we focus on historical buildings, where difficulties of energy reduction are paramount, as such buildings provide local identity and a connection to our past. It is a EU policy objective to conserve and redesign heritage buildings like prisons, military barracks, factories, stations, and schools. Such redesign should also ensure reduction of energy use without compromising historical identity. In this paper we conceptually and empirically investigate how the two conflicting aspirations unfold. In particular we elaborate the obduracy and scripts of buildings, to clarify how they resist change and invite a specific use. We analyse the tensions between identity and energy conservation in a case study of a restoration project in Franeker. This buildinghas recently undergone a restoration, with energy efficiency as one of its goals.Scripts and networks are traced by a combination of methods, such as studyinglayout, materials and building history, and qualitative interviews with restoration architects and users. We identified three types of strategies to conserve identity and energy: design strategies; identity strategies and network strategies. Such strategies are also relevant for other efforts where conservation and innovation have to be reconciled.
The actual non-sustainable way of living has to be changed fundamentally. Despite all efforts to create a better environment, to improve building designs and to ameliorate existing buildings, often contradictory factors are faced which make it difficult to decide what the best solutions are.The discussion around the Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) house insulation is a typical example how complicated the relation between, energy efficiency, human comfort and health can be. Clearly positive effects like energy efficiency are sometimes associated with e.g. potential flaws in aesthetics caused by growth of algae, poor indoor climate, and health risks which can result in negative responses of residents when implementation of these measures is proposed. Therefore often substances are added which may cause implications with existing regulations if reused again. Smart and highly efficient products are often in contradiction with our aims to create a circular economy due to the fact that different materials are often treated with chemicals or put together in infrangible combinations. The aim of this paper is to highlight the balancing act being faced when trying to introduce new more sustainable materials and methods into the building process. Based on some examples the paper want to demonstrate that principally good intentions like improved energy savings can cause problems in other fields like environmental impact or limited re-use in a circular economy. Basic problems are described and potential approaches to minimize the risk of using building materials which might not meet the requirements for reuse in a second use phase are suggested.
