Reducing dust pollution in construction: state of the art and the way forward (2023)

Dust pollution is a serious problem for the construction industry. Wind currents inevitably kick up dust on the ground during construction work. Dust will not only affect the physical and mental health of construction workers, but also pollute the environment. In this work, the law of generation and diffusion of dust in typical construction works is simulated and analyzed. According to the simulation, the wind flow lasts 5-10 seconds and the dust concentration in the air reaches more than 50mg/m³in the everyday environment. In order to control dust pollution, a kind of "green environmental protection" dust suppressant suitable for construction sites has been developed using graft polymerization technology on molecular modification technology. Using performance characterization, the synthetic ingredients of the dust suppressant were determined to be 2.5 g sodium alginate, 5 g acrylamide, 0.15 g N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide, and the weight ratio of persulfate sodium ammonium to acrylamide was 3%. The optimum temperature for the synthesis of the dust suppressor was 60°C. The synthesized dust suppressant can still retain more than 80% moisture after oven drying at 45°C for 90 minutes, indicating good water retention. With an ambient wind speed of 12m/s, the wind erosion resistance rate is more than 99%, which suggests that it has good performance against wind erosion. According to the results of the dust suppression experiment, the synthesized dust suppressant can control dust in the construction site well.

Construction dust contributes significantly to airborne fine dust particles and affects the health of the environment and the population. Construction workers are often exposed to high levels of dust and present serious health risks. Existing articles on the exposure and health effects of construction dust are limited, but this area of ​​research is receiving increasing attention. This article reviews the literature in the field and attempts to systematically capture the current state of research. Here we review (1) methods for monitoring or sampling construction dust; (2) Principal characteristics of construction dust, including dust classification, exposed populations, and exposure concentrations; (3) potential health hazards and (4) health risk assessment of construction dust. Existing literature mainly focuses on exposure concentrations from different types and sources of construction dust, while particle size distribution and chemical composition are rarely mentioned. The classification and characteristics of populations exposed to construction dust should be an important consideration, but are not yet sufficiently clear. An in-depth study of the health hazard and a systematic evaluation of the risks associated with construction dust are still lacking. In the future, there is value in developing utility tools to accurately monitor construction dust. In addition, control measures to reduce construction dust pollution deserve further study. The health hazard caused by construction dust must be proven by biological tests. Also, emerging algorithm models should be used in risk assessment. The results will help to better understand construction dust exposure and associated health risks.

For the first time, this study presents the radioactivity concentrations of the primordial radionuclides in a series of classroom dust collected from 23 schools in central Bangladesh. Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) bulk element compositions were translated into degrees of concurrent radioactivity (Bq.kg⁻¹). Average activity content of²²⁶Royal Academy of Fine Arts,²³²Do, &⁴⁰The K powder samples were 86.0, 43.4 and 448 Bq.kg.⁻¹, which were comparatively high relative to the respective world average. The higher NORM frequencies were due to ground surface weathering and aerodynamic fractionation. The estimation of typical radiological risk indices reveals risks to human health. Considering that adolescents and school-age children are most susceptible to ionizing radiation and NORM-containing dust particles entering human lungs, the calculated radiological indices represent only the lowest potential risk.²³⁸you are²³²The series of decays can cause significant radiation damage to the respiratory system.

Highway construction has significant adverse impacts on the natural environment, which has attracted increasing attention from the government and the public. While contractors are encouraged to engage in sustainable construction, contractors tend to choose unsustainable practices. This research aims to analyze why contractors adopt unsustainable practices. A semi-structured interview and content analysis were used to examine environmental changes and contractors considered decision making. Research suggests that contractors use environmental remediation to avoid environmental liability and government punishment. Governments have a tolerance for the environment that reduces environmental stewardship. This study offers a new perspective for examining unsustainable construction by contractors and provides guidance on how to improve sustainable construction.

Construction site environmental monitoring (OCEM) can help control the behavior of construction participants with regard to polluting emissions and environmental protection. However, current OCEM systems were built using a centralized architecture, e.g. B. the local government database, leading to an imbalance of information and disputes between various stakeholders. In the absence of reliable data justifying compliance by construction companies, for example, disputes or even conflicts can arise between local residents and contractors. Blockchain has the potential to be a trusted platform for environmental monitoring due to its decentralization, immutability, transparency, and autonomous enforcement of agreements. However, the possibilities of blockchain in OCEM have only been studied to a limited extent. Aiming to fill the knowledge gap, this article proposed a blockchain-enabled framework for OCEM. First, a general conceptual framework was created in which pollution data from buildings was collected through sensors and then uploaded to the blockchain network. Then, based on the consensus algorithm, the chain information flow was introduced. Smart contracts have been programmed to automatically monitor building pollution levels and assess environmental performance. Finally, a case study was carried out to validate the theoretical feasibility of the proposed framework in a laboratory environment, where a blockchain prototype based on the Hyperledger Fabric architecture was presented. The results show that blockchain can support OCEM by providing reliable environmental data and enabling continuous monitoring. This research explored the potential of blockchain in OCEM and created a prototype system that can be tuned for use in real world scenarios.

The objective of this study was to describe the perception and satisfaction with mitigation measures along the construction site of a major urban highway and to quantify the relationship between mitigation measures and noise pollution. A total of 1,409 participants enrolled in a first socio-acoustic survey in 2018 and 609 participants in a second survey in 2020. Overall, residents were satisfied with most mitigation interventions, although a reduction in their perceived effectiveness was noted in the 2020 survey. Perception of mitigation measures explained between 2.9 and 6.5% of the variance of construction noise annoyance. Traffic management, site monitoring and temporary acoustic barriers were the most important variables in the statistical models. Although some measures are only used by a small part of the target population, our results show that the implementation of comprehensive mitigation measures can help reduce nuisance caused by construction noise.

Atmospheric Environment, Band 137, 2016, S. 62-79

Building demolition generates large amounts of particulate matter (PM) that can be inhaled by site workers and local residents, but studies evaluating environmental exposures at actual demolition sites are limited. We measure the concentrations of particulate matter₁₀(≤10 μm), PM_2.5(≤2,5μm) y PM₁(≤1 μm) together with the local weather for 54 working hours during the demolition time. Measurements were taken (i) at a fixed location downwind of the demolished building, (ii) around the site during demolition operations using mobile surveillance, (iii) at various distances from the demolition site using sequential surveillance, and ( iv) on an excavator. vehicle booth and a temporary engineering office on site. The position of the PM instrument was continuously recorded with a Global Positioning System at a second base during rover measurements. Percentage of coarse particles (PM_2,5–10) contributed 89 (with mean particle mass concentration, MCP≈133±17μgm).⁻³), 83 (100 ± 29 µg⁻³) y 70% (59 ± 12 μg⁻³) of total PMC during stationary, mobile, or sequential monitoring, compared to only 50% (mean 12 ± 6 μgm⁻³) during background measurements. The corresponding values ​​for particulate matter (PM_2.5) were 11, 17 and 30% compared to 50% during bottoming, showing a much higher release of coarse particles during rupture. The Openair package in R and map source software (ArcGIS) were used to assess the spatial variation of the PMCs downwind and downwind of the termination point. A modified box model was developed to determine the emission factors, which were 210, 73 and 24 µg⁻²s⁻¹to PM₁₀, PN_2.5and PM₁Mean doses of coarse (and fine) particles deposited in the respiratory tract from the excavator cab and the temporary office on site increased 57 (and 5) and 13 (and 2) times, respectively, compared to levels background venues. Downwind stations showed a logarithmic decrease in PM with distance. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to assess the physicochemical properties of the particles. Minerals like silica have been found to track demolition dust and elements like sulfur from construction machinery emissions. The results of this study underscore the need to limit people's occupational exposure to coarse and fine particles through the application of effective engineering controls.

Journal of Cleaner Production, Band 112, Teil 2, 2016, S. 1645-1657

Environmental degradation caused by polluting industrial complexes is a relevant problem for the local community. Most studies focus on the negative externalities of pollution from these industrial complexes, although some research has also examined the economic benefits of these facilities and the damage that their closure can cause to the local economy. In the context of a petrochemical complex in Castellón (Spain), this article analyzes how residents' cognitive appraisals of economic and environmental aspects lead to their affective responses and how both cognitive and affective elements together explain their behavioral intention. The proposed hypotheses are tested on a sample of 992 people. The results confirm that cognitive assessments have a significant impact on residents' behavioral intentions regarding their place of residence, both directly and through affective responses. The results also show that the affective response has a greater impact than the cognitive response and that environmental aspects play a more important role than economic ones. In addition, the relationship between affect and behavioral intention has a greater weight among citizens who live closer to the petrochemical complex. The implications for the environmental management of companies and authorities are discussed.

Cleaner Production Magazine, Band 113, 2016, S. 54-65

Water contamination at the construction site causes irreversible damage to the environment, with additional costs, time, and resources required for remedial work. Construction crews are often accused of contaminating construction site water. Little attention has been paid to recognizing the underlying reasons for adverse effects, particularly distal factors. In construction, accident and safety research provided a strong theoretical foundation focused on distal factors. Therefore, this study aims to identify the distal and proximal site water pollution factors based on the accident causation model, which is presented with the Causal Loop Diagram. The use of the causal loop diagram establishes a new scientific approach to describe the dynamic interplay between distal and proximal factors that lead to on-site water contamination, further narrowing down the factors that need to be improved or controlled. This study used three different methods (in-depth interview, systematic review, and case study) to identify possible distal and proximal factors. The results of the study suggest that the main cause of water contamination at the site is the distal factor, due to funding. From a dynamic point of view, positive improvements in financing could reduce the negative impact on downstream factors. In summary, distal factors have a ripple effect on proximal factors, where the dynamic interaction between them can increase the risk of on-site water contamination. The result of this study would be a transparent and holistic perspective on the underlying causes of water contamination at the site, which would encompass the concept of pollution prevention.

Cleaner Production Magazine, Band 222, 2019, S. 218-230

Noise pollution from construction activities is a major factor endangering the health of people at work and their living environment. However, previous research has primarily focused on reducing noise pollution around sensitive off-site buildings rather than reducing on-site noise pollution. In addition, currently available noise reduction methods are quite passive and require considerable additional effort. Since facility location is a critical factor in noise exposure, this study attempts to explore how worker noise exposure can be reduced through optimized pre-construction site layout planning. Recognizing that noise reduction through site design optimization can have negative safety and cost implications, the desired site design must strike a balance between noise reduction, safety enhancement and cost control. . Therefore, resources are being developed that address potential security risks and transportation costs arising from interactions between on-site facilities. To solve this multi-objective optimization problem, a hybrid model of ant colony-genetic algorithm is applied to obtain compensation solutions. The feasibility and effectiveness of the optimization model is verified through a case study in a residential building project. This study integrates noise pollution abatement into pre-construction site design optimization issues without additional effort and safely. It helps future researchers to improve the sustainability of construction already in the planning phase. It also helps site managers to improve sustainability on the site, uniting environmental protection, economy and worker safety. The proposed research framework can also be used as a benchmark for balancing conflicting sustainability goals at other industrial sites.

Atmospheric Environment, Band 141, 2016, S. 96-105

One of the main sources of air pollution in arid and semi-arid environments (i.e. North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Australia) is volatile particulate matter (fPM), which is a common product of wind erosion. However, the precise determination of fPM is an ongoing scientific challenge. The aim of this study is to investigate the fPM emissions from loose calcisols (i.e. soils with significant enrichment of secondary carbonates) due to construction activities, which today are often observed in urbanized arid regions such as the Middle East. . At a dormant construction site in the city of Doha, Qatar, a two-month field campaign was conducted to measure PM concentrations in the 0.25–32 μm size range using monitoring stations based on light scattering. The fPM emission fluxes were iteratively calculated using the Fugitive Dust Model (FDM) and fitted to a power function expressing the dependence on wind speed. Performance factors were estimated to be 1.87, 1.65, 2.70 and 2.06 for the four different particle size classes ≤2.5, 2.5-6, 6-10 and ≤10 μm, respectively. The fitted performance function was considered acceptable given the adjusted R²the values ​​ranged from 0.13 for the smallest particles to 0.69 for the largest. These power factors are in the same range as those reported in the literature for similar sources. The result of this study is expected to help improve PM emission inventories by focusing on an overlooked but significant source of pollution, particularly in dry and arid regions that are often close to residential areas and vulnerable populations. Other campaigns are recommended to reduce uncertainty and include more sources of fPM (eg earthworks) and other soil types.

Cleaner Production Magazine, Band 184, 2018, S. 598-608

A probabilistic risk assessment model was developed to study the effects of construction dust on the health of professionals in the construction industry based on the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) risk assessment model. and the Monte Carlo simulation method. The risk to workers' health was assessed in five zones during the construction phase of housing projects in Beijing. Health decline assessment models were applied to translate health risks into disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), which are more intuitive and easy to understand. Sensitivity analysis methods were used to analyze the different exposure parameters and influencing factors that affect the results of the health risk assessment. The results showed that workers in the standard zone faced the highest health risk, which followed a lognormal distribution of 1.14 × 10⁻⁶±9,43×10⁻⁷, and the probability exceeds 10⁻⁶was higher than 40%. The average health risks for workers in steel, concrete and soil areas were just under 10⁻⁶, and workers in the office area had the lowest health risk. Spearman's correlation coefficient method and full factorial design method were used for sensitivity analysis and validation. Sensitivity analysis showed that mean exposure time (AT), exposure duration (ED), exposure frequency (EF), and concentration (C) had higher sensitivities, while AT and body weight ( BW) had higher negative sensitivities. The workers in the caliber and iron and steel areas presented the greatest health problems, with an average of more than 0.1a.