Measuring Thermal Mass of Sustainable Concrete Mixes

Sustainable construction is becoming more popular as this sector corresponds to the world changing needs. One of the key requirements in meeting challenges of sustainability within the built environment is to optimize the energy efficiency of buildings during their lifespan. Considering that the concrete is the construction material having the greatest common use, such material should have low embodied CO2 together with consumption of various cementitious by-products and furthermore, recycled aggregates that causes decrease in operational CO2 with the intrinsic property called ¿thermal mass¿ that reduces the risk of overheating in the summer and provides passive heating in the winter. The purpose of those variations is to increase the life of the residence by lowering CO2 emissions and to increase the use of natural resources. Construction industry has already performed numeral effective actions which were provided important steps to obtain sustainable construction. Examination of thermal mass can be used to prevent or minimize temperature swings in the building and can also be used to eliminate the need for energy consuming for air conditioning systems.