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A report by Knowable Magazine provides a rather insightful glimpse into the rise of mass timber and its benefits. The technique basically uses massive engineered wood elements instead of concrete and steel to build higher than ever before. As of 2024, mass timber buildings have climbed to almost unbelievable heights, with the 25-story Ascent tower in Milwaukee leading the pack.
The building is far from the only one in the category. The report states that there were 84 completed or under-construction mass timber buildings of eight stories or higher worldwide by 2022, with another 55 proposed. Europe dominates with 70% of these, but North America is catching up with around 20%.
As for what's driving this wooden renaissance, there are multiple reasons. For starters, mass timber could be an answer for reducing concrete and steel's massive carbon footprint, which alone makes up a whopping 15% of global emissions.
[...] But what about issues like raw strength and fire resistance, which have historically held wooden buildings back? Well, mass timber uses elements like cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels that can match steel's strength pound-for-pound, thanks to layering and high-pressure gluing techniques.
Modern mass timber also passes rigorous fire testing. In the event of a fire, a protective char layer forms on the wood's surface, insulating the interior from flames long enough for evacuation and firefighter response.
Likely taking these perks into account, a 2021 update to the International Building Code gave mass timber a huge vote of confidence, allowing such constructions up to 18 stories in many places.
Of course, moisture poses risks that need careful management to prevent fungus and pests. But proponents are confident mass timber can be a sustainable solution if done right.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 23, @05:29PM (1 child)
My concern for this is what happens when they need to come down. Steel is one of the most recycled materials. Concrete chunks can be re-used in various ways also.
AFAIK, homogeneous wood like 2X4s is usually sent to the landfill upon demolition but could be safely burned or recycled in small non-structural projects. Some of it was even a participant in the hipster reclaimed wood furniture movement of late.
Ply and "glue lam", which is what we're talking about here is problematic from a recycle/reuse standpoint. We're not supposed to burn ply in the wood stove. It could get re-used for small projects too, but I don't think it's quite as desirable. I'm not sure how it breaks down in landfills.
So a few decades or maybe 100 years from now, the generations that come are going to have to figure out what to do with these things. It'd be nice if the adhesive composition were marked on the product so at least we'd know. I don't think that's generally done with ply or glue-lam currently so I don't have a lot of hope. It's going to be "well, we know they used wood and a lot of chemicals in this."
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 24, @01:04AM
The more of these you use and bury, the more and longer the CO2 is out of the atmosphere.