Innovative robotic-woven willow-clay-composite ceiling elements

Abstract The construction sector contributes 36% to global final energy use and 39% to energy-related CO2 emissions. Consequently, it is imperative to focus on quantifying and reducing environmental impacts e.g., via renewable building materials. The combination of fast-growing willow as tension reinforcement for regionally available and compression bearing clay seems a promising approach. The new attempt is based on the idea of full circularity, as the willow clay composite modules are in the first loop dismountable and can be rearranged and reused for another life cycle. When the composite material comes to its end-of-life, the materials can be theoretically fully recovered. To assess the environmental sustainability of such an innovative composite structure for the first time, a simplified cradle to grave Life Cycle Assessment is performed. The investigation is based on experimental data of the 1 to 1 scale robotically woven willow-clay-composite ceiling demonstrator. First results reveal hot spots, especially in the supply chain of the prototype production process but compared to conventional steel concrete ceiling, the innovative biobased composite is capable to function as a CO2 sink over the entire life cycle. In addition, the resource problem of timber could be circumvented accordingly.