REHABILITATION OF BUILT AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENTS

Coordinator: Maria da Glória Gomes

Thematic Strand 3 (TS3), Rehabilitation of Built and Natural Environments, involves a diverse array of R&D activities aimed at extending the service life of infrastructures, architectural heritage preservation, and protection and restoration of natural environment.

Despite meeting current societal demands, existing infrastructure inevitably confronts ageing and deterioration. Hence, rehabilitation stands as the cornerstone of the civil engineering sector and its affiliated domains. Simultaneously, the pursuit of improved living conditions, heightened security standards, and the imperative of energy optimisation underscore the urgency of rehabilitating both built and natural environments. Addressing these challenges demands a synthesis of new knowledge and skills acquired through interdisciplinary endeavours.

The R&D activities involve collaboration with esteemed international experts from different fields related to this TS, such as infrastructure, construction, hydraulics, water resources, and environment. These experts contribute with their expertise through various means, such as carrying out cutting-edge collaborative research and disseminating new findings and solutions.

R&D activities developed within TS3 focus on cross-cutting issues whose resolution directly contributes to tackling major societal challenges, addressing several sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, in particular, SDG 6- Clean Water and Sanitation, SDG 7-Affordable and Clean Energy, SDG 9- Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, SDG 11- Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG 13-Climate Action, and SDG 15- Life on land.

R&D responses to challenges related to the rehabilitation of built and natural environments are organised into four main themes:

• Enhancement of the spatial functionality, energy efficiency, and structural performance of civil infrastructures
• Study of deterioration processes and development of advanced inspection and monitoring techniques to enhance the durability and safety of civil infrastructures
• Developing urban management models for financing urban rehabilitation, enhancing flexibility and efficiency in transport infrastructures
• Rehabilitation/restoration of natural and altered water bodies and improvement of the flexibility and efficiency of the existing water infrastructure and management systems

TS3 comprises a broad spectrum of both fundamental and applied research, encompassing experimental, fieldwork, and numerical analysis. These initiatives span innovative research on rehabilitation and strengthening techniques for ageing masonry and concrete buildings, seismic safety measures, thermal retrofitting, energy efficiency enhancements, protective coating solutions, seismic protection strategies for historical structures, green roofs and walls, life cycle assessments, maintenance management systems, as well as the management and restoration of water resources.