Eco-Friendly Materials for a Sustainable Built Environment

The global construction sector is experiencing an urgent shift towards eco-friendly materials, motivated by the need to reduce reliance on virgin raw resources and to mitigate environmental impacts. In response, a new wave of innovative materials, often derived from waste and secondary resources, is gaining attention as a means to foster a circular economy within the built environment and associated industries. These materials present substantial environmental and economic benefits by promoting waste valorization and resource efficiency.
Despite these advantages, significant challenges impede the widespread adoption and validation of secondary raw materials. The inherent variability of waste-derived materials, differences from conventional resources, lack of standardized processing methods, and the necessity for cost-effectiveness all present formidable obstacles to large-scale implementation. Addressing these challenges is crucial to realizing the full potential of sustainable materials in construction and related domains.

This Special Issue seeks to showcase pioneering research and comprehensive reviews that advance our understanding of sustainable material development, characterization, and application,especially those approaches that reinforce circularity, resource efficiency, durability, and long-term sustainability in the built environment. We welcome contributions that propose innovative solutions and highlight emerging trends in the integration of circular economy principles across various sectors.

Scope & Topics

We invite original research articles and reviews covering, but not limited to, the following areas:
o Design, use, and reuse of products incorporating secondary raw materials
o Development of innovative materials derived from wastes or industrial by-products
o Synthesis, processing, and characterization of sustainable and green materials
o Applications and performance of eco-friendly materials in the built environment
o Life cycle assessment and environmental performance evaluation
o Eco-friendly materials for additive manufacturing and other advanced technologies
o Strategies for integrating circular economy principles across industries

Submission
We encourage multidisciplinary approaches, collaboration between academia and industry, and case studies demonstrating real-world impacts. This Special Issue aims to provide a platform for knowledge exchange and to inspire next-generation solutions for a more sustainable built environment.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review

Keywords: Ecofriendly Materials, Green Concrete, Geopolymers, Circular Economy, Smart Building, Waste Recycling, Life Cycle Assessment

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.