The use of common building materials such as steel and concrete is costly for the environment, as their manufacture and transport generate up to 30% of pollution. Moreover, artificial materials are harmful to the environment.
More and more modern architects are striving to abandon them and turn to such a versatile and renewable material as wood.
Material from the past … or the future
In 2016, the tallest wooden building in the world was completed in Canada. It was the dormitory of the Canadian University of British Columbia. The structure is a wooden superstructure on a concrete base.
According to Vancouver-based architect Michael Green, wood has tremendous advantages over man-made materials. "Wood, unlike steel and concrete, insulates carbon dioxide, keeping it inside for the entire life of the building." During his TED talk, he explained that "One cubic meter of wood stores a ton of carbon dioxide."
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Since deforestation is an environmental problem in itself, the architects suggest using only young trees that do not take long to grow again. As a result, carbon actually disappears from the technological chain: production-transportation-operation.
Innovation in lumber
Architects propose to use a different wood than we usually imagine it.
It should be "engineered" wood, in which pieces of young trees are glued together to form large wood panels and beams. In the future, special processing of wood fibers and the use of 3D printing are possible.
However, there are still many issues related to the construction of wooden skyscrapers, such as flammability and many others. Architects and builders will have to go a long way before the idea of building high-rise buildings from wood will be used in large quantities.
Author: Sophia Sharafan