Recycle-BIONET

Inducement and Goals

The overall objective of the research project was to obtain in-depth knowledge on the use of mineral substitute building materials in buildings/ construction projects of the Urban Green Infrastructure by investigating soil mechanics, water management and ecology. In addition to an inventory of suitable substitute building materials, the application focus was on green roofs on the one hand and on the renaturation of brownfield and contaminated sites on the other. The feasibility study was carried out both on a small scale through laboratory and field tests and on a large scale (survey at neighbourhood level using geographical information systems). Substitute building materials with high storage capacities and suitable vegetation properties that accumulate in large quantities and for which recycling problems exist were in the focus. In addition to the small-scale approach of green roofs, potential brownfield sites that are suitable for Urban Green Infrastructure construction with the help of substitute building materials were also identified.
 

Research Activities

With the help of pot planting trials, findings on different mineral substitute building materials (MSBM) were obtained and five different substrates based on two to four MSBM were derived from these results. These were installed in lysimeters on the roof of the refectory at the University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg-Stendal and are now undergoing long-term analysis within the trial under real conditions. Furthermore, the MSBM were sent to specialised companies to test their soil-mechanical and soil-physical properties as well as their pollutant content. 

Further activities included:

• Monitoring of the field tests (lysimeter),
   
• Life cycle analysis of the regarded primary and secondary materials,
   
• Calculation of the water balance of suitable material combinations and transfer of the results to the field on the basis of the soil-physical data,
   
• Investigation of the biotope networking potentials for green roofs in Magdeburg using the register of potentials, based on the Stepping Stone Concept of the German Council for Land Stewardship,
   
• Derivation of conclusions on ecosystem service potentials,
   
• Interdisciplinary evaluation of the overall results.

Conclusions

• The implementation of green roof applications at municipal level offers enormous potential in terms of climate protection, climate adaptation and resource efficiency if the appropriate amount of raw materials is available. This emphasises the importance of using substitute building materials.
   
• So far, investigated substitute building material mixtures have shown a basic suitability as green roof substrates and in some cases more favourable properties than the reference substrate made from primary raw materials. 

News

The Research Award 2022 of the Magdeburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry, endowed with € 2,000, was given to M.Sc. Jonas Thiel for his Master's thesis "Life Cycle Assessment of Mineral Substitute Building Materials in Urban Green Infrastructure", which was written as part of the Recycle-Bionet project. This award recognises scientific and application-oriented work that contributes to the future development of the commercial economy. The award was presented at a ceremony on 8 December 2022 at the Magdeburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Jonas Thiel graduated with a Master's degree in engineering ecology and is now working for an engineering firm in Magdeburg in the field of land recycling and remediation.
 

Publications

In English:

• Schneider, P, Schwerdt, S, Schulz, K, Fiebig, S, Mirschel, D. Feasibility of substitute building materials for circular use in urban green infrastructure. Civil Engineering Design. 2020; 2: 159–168.  Link to the paper

In German:

• Schneider, P.; Stachowiak, P.; Marx, A.; Wilhelm, G.; Fauk, T.; Kannengießer, J.; Dorer, C.; Schwerdt, S. Eignung und ökologisches Potenzial von Ersatzbaustoffen in Dachbegrünungen. Wasser und Abfall, 1/2/2024, pp. 21-26.
   
• Thiel, J. Ökobilanzielle Untersuchung von mineralischen Ersatzbaustoffen in Urbaner Grüner Infrastruktur. Wasser und Abfall, 1/2/2024, pp. 27-43.
   
• "Ökologie trifft Bauwirtschaft. Grüne Stadtplanung: Innovativer durch recycelte Baustoffe". Newsletter-Artikel (2022)