Reusing large concrete rubble into prefabricated structural walls is a novel construction process offering a way to reduce the environmental footprint of concrete up to 80%. Instead of crushing demolition concrete rubble into recycled concrete aggregate, this PhD research aims to directly reuse the large rubble pieces from demolition as masonry elements of prefabricated load-bearing walls. It implies sourcing the “waste” from recycling centres, scanning them in 2D using smartphone photos, and then assembling them on the tilting table of prefabrication facilities. This approach is implemented at full scale for a two-story demonstrator and a public pavilion, both designed and built by the author, which also feature reused concrete slabs sawn from a building prior to its demolition.
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Maxence Grangeot, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland