IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2022i1p575-d1018597.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Experimental Characterisation of Different Ecological Substrates for Use in Green Roof Systems

Author

Listed:
  • Katya Coelho

    (Itecons, 3030-289 Coimbra, Portugal)

  • João Almeida

    (Itecons, 3030-289 Coimbra, Portugal
    CERIS, University of Coimbra, 3030-790 Coimbra, Portugal)

  • Fernando Castro

    (Centre Metrics, Universidade do Minho, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal)

  • André Ribeiro

    (CVR—Centre for Waste Valorisation, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal)

  • Tiago Teixeira

    (W2V, Lda., Rua das Alminhas, 900, Calvos, 4810-608 Guimarães, Portugal)

  • Paulo Palha

    (Neoturf, Rua das Amoreiras, 155, 4460-227 Senhora da Hora, Portugal)

  • Nuno Simões

    (Itecons, 3030-289 Coimbra, Portugal
    Department of Civil Engineering, CERIS, University of Coimbra, 3030-790 Coimbra, Portugal)

Abstract

Green roofs are made up of several components, including those belonging to the waterproofing and drainage layers, substrate, and vegetation. Of these, the substrate is undoubtedly one of the most important layers of a green roof, contributing not only to the healthy growth of vegetation but also to the water retention capacity and thermal behaviour of the whole solution. Although green roofs are widely recognized as sustainable solutions, it is possible to further improve their environmental performance by developing more ecological substrates that contain industrial by-products. Bearing this objective in mind, sixteen newly developed substrates were characterized in terms of thermal conductivity, specific heat, emissivity, water vapour transmission, hygroscopic sorption, and water retention/drainage capacity. These properties are extremely relevant when solving heat and mass transfer problems as well as for water management prediction. Two reference substrates were also studied for comparison purposes. The results showed that the new ecological substrates have properties that make them comparable to conventional substrates already available on the market. Additionally, the results showed that temperature, moisture content, and density play an important role in the behaviour of substrates of this kind and have a significant influence on many of the studied properties.

Suggested Citation

  • Katya Coelho & João Almeida & Fernando Castro & André Ribeiro & Tiago Teixeira & Paulo Palha & Nuno Simões, 2022. "Experimental Characterisation of Different Ecological Substrates for Use in Green Roof Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-18, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2022:i:1:p:575-:d:1018597
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/1/575/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/1/575/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Xueer Jing & Shouhong Zhang & Jianjun Zhang & Yujie Wang & Yunqi Wang & Tongjia Yue, 2018. "Analysis and Modelling of Stormwater Volume Control Performance of Rainwater Harvesting Systems in Four Climatic Zones of China," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 32(8), pages 2649-2664, June.
    2. Jinsil Park & Yeeun Shin & Suyeon Kim & Sang-Woo Lee & Kyungjin An, 2022. "Efficient Plant Types and Coverage Rates for Optimal Green Roof to Reduce Urban Heat Island Effect," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-17, February.
    3. Daniel Johnson & Judith Exl & Sylvie Geisendorf, 2021. "The Potential of Stormwater Management in Addressing the Urban Heat Island Effect: An Economic Valuation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-19, August.
    4. Fernando Barriuso & Beatriz Urbano, 2021. "Green Roofs and Walls Design Intended to Mitigate Climate Change in Urban Areas across All Continents," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-14, February.
    5. Elena Giacomello & Jacopo Gaspari, 2021. "Hydrologic Performance of an Extensive Green Roof under Intense Rain Events: Results from a Rain-Chamber Simulation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-23, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Nan Jiang & Weina Zou & Yi Lu & Ziman Liao & Lianglong Wu, 2024. "Using Recycled Construction Waste Materials with Varying Components and Particle Sizes for Extensive Green Roof Substrates: Assessment of Its Effects on Vegetation Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-15, January.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sara Lopes Souto & Ricardo Prado Abreu Reis & Marcus André Siqueira Campos, 2023. "Impact of Installing Rainwater Harvesting System on Urban Water Management," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 37(2), pages 583-600, January.
    2. Ana M. Bartolome & Deiyalí A. Carpio & Beatriz Urbano, 2022. "Urban Agriculture Digital Planning for the European Union’s Green Deal," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 24(59), pages 159-159.
    3. Anna Palla & Ilaria Gnecco, 2022. "On the Effectiveness of Domestic Rainwater Harvesting Systems to Support Urban Flood Resilience," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(15), pages 5897-5914, December.
    4. Siwei Chen & Zhonghua Gou, 2022. "An Investigation of Green Roof Spatial Distribution and Incentive Policies Using Green Buildings as a Benchmark," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-23, November.
    5. Erin N. Rivers & Jennifer L. Morse, 2022. "Variability of Potential Soil Nitrogen Cycling Rates in Stormwater Bioretention Facilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-17, February.
    6. Yu Chen & Jacopo Gaspari, 2023. "Exploring an Integrated System for Urban Stormwater Management: A Systematic Literature Review of Solutions at Building and District Scales," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-16, June.
    7. Nandi, Santosh & Gonela, Vinay, 2022. "Rainwater harvesting for domestic use: A systematic review and outlook from the utility policy and management perspectives," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    8. Sinem Yıldırım & Çimen Özburak & Özge Özden, 2023. "Green Roofs, Vegetation Types, Impact on the Thermal Effectiveness: An Experimental Study in Cyprus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-19, February.
    9. Kinga Kimic & Karina Ostrysz, 2021. "Assessment of Blue and Green Infrastructure Solutions in Shaping Urban Public Spaces—Spatial and Functional, Environmental, and Social Aspects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-31, October.
    10. Anqi Wang & Yanhua An & Shuhua Yu, 2023. "Research on the Evaluation of Green Technology Renovation Measurement for Multi-Storey Houses in Severe Cold Regions Based on Entropy-Weight-TOPSIS," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-21, June.
    11. Toledo-Gallegos, Valeria M. & My, Nguyen H.D. & Tuan, Tran Huu & Börger, Tobias, 2022. "Valuing ecosystem services and disservices of blue/green infrastructure. Evidence from a choice experiment in Vietnam," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 114-128.
    12. Flora Silva & Cristina Sousa Coutinho Calheiros & Guilherme Valle & Pedro Pinto & António Albuquerque & Ana Maria Antão-Geraldes, 2023. "Influence of Green Roofs on the Design of a Public Stormwater Drainage System: A Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-13, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2022:i:1:p:575-:d:1018597. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.