Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings
Some straw buildings, which combine eco-sustainability with versatility, low cost, and fast construction times, have recently been built in Northern Italy. In this work, the technologies used to build straw houses are presented, and the characteristics of the raw materials, the straw bales, and the...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-04-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/8/2858 |
| _version_ | 1797570129261756416 |
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| author | Guglielmina Mutani Cristina Azzolino Maurizio Macrì Stefania Mancuso |
| author_facet | Guglielmina Mutani Cristina Azzolino Maurizio Macrì Stefania Mancuso |
| author_sort | Guglielmina Mutani |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Some straw buildings, which combine eco-sustainability with versatility, low cost, and fast construction times, have recently been built in Northern Italy. In this work, the technologies used to build straw houses are presented, and the characteristics of the raw materials, the straw bales, and the construction techniques are dealt with. Two straw buildings, which have different characteristics and types of application, are analyzed. The first building is a residential, nearly zero-energy building, which was built in Saluggia (Vercelli) in 2012. This house is presently inhabited by a family and is heated with a wood stove. The second building was built in 2014 in Verres (Aosta) and is a pre-assembled demonstration prototype used for teaching purposes. The thermal performance of the straw envelopes was evaluated during the heating season by measuring the thermal conductance of the straw walls through two experimental campaigns. Straw bale walls offer good insulating performance, as well as high thermal inertia, and can be used in green buildings since straw is derived from agricultural waste, does not require an industrial process, and is degradable. Finally, these characteristics of straw can be combined with its low cost. Local economic development in this field may be possible. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:20:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a921eec6d335449ab9a3703e3d4591a7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:20:32Z |
| publishDate | 2020-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-a921eec6d335449ab9a3703e3d4591a72023-11-19T22:12:47ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172020-04-01108285810.3390/app10082858Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic SavingsGuglielmina Mutani0Cristina Azzolino1Maurizio Macrì2Stefania Mancuso3R3C, Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, ItalyLAMSA, Department of Architecture and Design, Politecnico di Torino, 10125 Torino, ItalyStudio di Architettura Macrì & Mancuso, 10138 Torino, ItalyStudio di Architettura Macrì & Mancuso, 10138 Torino, ItalySome straw buildings, which combine eco-sustainability with versatility, low cost, and fast construction times, have recently been built in Northern Italy. In this work, the technologies used to build straw houses are presented, and the characteristics of the raw materials, the straw bales, and the construction techniques are dealt with. Two straw buildings, which have different characteristics and types of application, are analyzed. The first building is a residential, nearly zero-energy building, which was built in Saluggia (Vercelli) in 2012. This house is presently inhabited by a family and is heated with a wood stove. The second building was built in 2014 in Verres (Aosta) and is a pre-assembled demonstration prototype used for teaching purposes. The thermal performance of the straw envelopes was evaluated during the heating season by measuring the thermal conductance of the straw walls through two experimental campaigns. Straw bale walls offer good insulating performance, as well as high thermal inertia, and can be used in green buildings since straw is derived from agricultural waste, does not require an industrial process, and is degradable. Finally, these characteristics of straw can be combined with its low cost. Local economic development in this field may be possible.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/8/2858strawnatural materialthermal insulating materialthermal transmittanceenergy savingsself-construction technology |
| spellingShingle | Guglielmina Mutani Cristina Azzolino Maurizio Macrì Stefania Mancuso Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings Applied Sciences straw natural material thermal insulating material thermal transmittance energy savings self-construction technology |
| title | Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings |
| title_full | Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings |
| title_fullStr | Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings |
| title_full_unstemmed | Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings |
| title_short | Straw Buildings: A Good Compromise between Environmental Sustainability and Energy-Economic Savings |
| title_sort | straw buildings a good compromise between environmental sustainability and energy economic savings |
| topic | straw natural material thermal insulating material thermal transmittance energy savings self-construction technology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/8/2858 |
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