Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses

Thesis: M. Eng., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2018.

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Stern, Brenda G
Other Authors: Caitlin T. Mueller.
Format: Thesis
Language:eng
Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/119324
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author Stern, Brenda G
author2 Caitlin T. Mueller.
author_facet Caitlin T. Mueller.
Stern, Brenda G
author_sort Stern, Brenda G
collection MIT
description Thesis: M. Eng., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2018.
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spelling mit-1721.1/1193242019-04-12T23:14:39Z Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses Stern, Brenda G Caitlin T. Mueller. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Civil and Environmental Engineering. Thesis: M. Eng., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2018. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 55-56). In the built environment, there is a growing emphasis on sustainable, energy efficient design that reduces carbon emissions. However, until recently, most efforts have focused only on reducing operational carbon [1]. As a result, the carbon embodied in construction materials, especially in a building's structural system, is becoming a larger contributor to the total carbon impacts of a building. Material type and quantity are important in determining the extent of this contribution because both will affect the amount of carbon emitted from the material production. For example, two common materials for truss structures are timber and steel. While timber's embodied carbon coefficient (kg[subscript CO2e]/kg[subscript material]) and density are lower than that of steel, its much lower strength means that it may not always result in the least-emitting structural design. As a result, the choice of the more sustainable material for any given member is dependent on factors such as the truss span or shape. Multi-material structures offer a solution to create efficient structures with a lower environmental impact. In this thesis, an embodied carbon optimization investigates truss structures of various spans and studies how multi-material and single-material designs compare. This research introduces a new approach for multi-material designs for the optimization of embodied carbon and demonstrates the advantages of using structural optimization and multi-material designs for sustainability. Keywords.: Optimization, embodied carbon, sustainable structures, truss structures by Brenda G. Stern. M. Eng. 2018-11-28T15:43:14Z 2018-11-28T15:43:14Z 2018 2018 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/119324 1062556526 eng MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 60 pages application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology
spellingShingle Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Stern, Brenda G
Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title_full Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title_fullStr Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title_full_unstemmed Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title_short Minimizing embodied carbon in multi-material structural optimization of planar trusses
title_sort minimizing embodied carbon in multi material structural optimization of planar trusses
topic Civil and Environmental Engineering.
url http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/119324
work_keys_str_mv AT sternbrendag minimizingembodiedcarboninmultimaterialstructuraloptimizationofplanartrusses