Environmental problems of production and use of building materials. Environmentally friendly materials for construction, finishing and decoration: what should we build an eco-house? ...To build walls

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Environmental pollution from the production of building materials

1. Main sources of pollution in the production of building materials

The production of building materials is one of the oldest, but quite dynamically developing industries. In Russia there are many industrial enterprises operating using old technologies and using outdated equipment. The impact on the environment occurs due to emissions of waste gases into the atmosphere and discharges of wastewater containing a large number of dangerous ecotoxicants. The cost of fixed assets in the building materials industry is 2.8% of the cost of all production assets in the country.

Recently, the annual growth in the production of main types of building materials in physical terms ranged from 7 to 30%, with a simultaneous increase in the share of domestic products that meet modern requirements and match the quality of world analogues. The construction materials industry is one of the most fuel- and energy-intensive (more than 16% in the cost structure), as well as cargo-intensive sectors of the economy: in the total volume of cargo transportation by rail, road and water transport, transportation of construction cargo accounts for about 25%. The industry consumes 20 types of mineral raw materials, covering over 100 types of rocks, and is one of the largest mining industries in the Russian economy.

The construction industry is one of the most material-intensive and energy-intensive sectors of the national economy. It accounts for about 50% of the energy consumption produced by humanity and 60% of material resources. The production of building materials consumes industrial waste to a greater extent than other industries. However, humanity, having realized the importance of environmental problems, comes to understand that the scale and intensity of people’s material activities have become such that the natural environment and man-made activities have ceased to be a general absorber of industrial, transport, and household waste and a practically inexhaustible source of raw materials and energy. Signs of irreversible degradation processes in the biosphere have emerged. Ecosystems that have been formed for millions of years are undergoing significant changes and becoming unstable in relation to external anthropogenic influences at the global level.

Every year, up to 30 billion tons of all types of solid and liquid waste enter the biosphere. Their large number is due to the imperfection of modern technologies. According to some data, no more than 7% of extracted raw materials are used for the production of final products. For each inhabitant of the Earth, up to 100 tons of raw materials are currently extracted per year. An analysis of modern economic trends shows that the amount of waste doubles every 10-12 years. The problem of recycling and disposal of waste for modern civilization is one of the most important problems of survival. The waste problem is perhaps the most complex in Russia, where about 100 billion tons of solid waste have accumulated in landfills, storage facilities, and landfills, which is about 700 tons for each resident. Of this entire mass of waste, only 5% goes to waste incineration plants, the rest is stored. The level of waste accumulation in Russia is 10-15 tons per person per year, including 1 ton of toxic waste. The degree of recycling is low and does not exceed 10-25% of the total mass of waste.

In Europe today, great attention is paid to creating a healthy, environmentally friendly environment. That is why manufacturers of building materials, developers, and home owners are interested in maintaining high environmental standards in construction.

This problem has many components. And although one of the main ones is the construction of buildings that can exist without harming the environment, it is equally important what building materials are used in the construction of new buildings. After all, they have an impact on the environmental situation both inside and outside the building. Based on the fact that modern man spends about 80% of his time either in buildings or on the way between them, one can understand how the quality of building materials affects his health, and, as a consequence, the quality of his life.

Construction materials have no less impact on the environment: according to experts, about 50% of the total volume of waste comes from the construction industry. In Europe, the construction of one house generates an average of 7 tons of waste. In the EU, every year there is 0.5 tons of construction waste per person.

Since building materials are made from many different substances of both organic (plastic, wood) and inorganic nature (metals, minerals), and there are also those that combine both, it is necessary to give an environmental assessment not only to their components, but also the entire product as a whole, that is, assess the impact of a given building material on the environment at every stage of its existence - from production to the moment of its disposal.

Currently, Europe is striving to develop uniform standards for certification of manufactured and imported building materials. Until this system has fully come into force, national certification systems are used in each country.

The general requirements for building materials are as follows: they must be healthy, hygienic and not harm the environment, that is:

Do not emit toxic gases;

Do not emit radioactive radiation;

Do not pollute either water or soil;

Construction waste should not become an additional source of environmental pollution;

Construction materials should not contribute to the accumulation of moisture on structural parts and inside constructed premises.

Until recently, the main task of construction was to create an artificial environment that would provide conditions for human life. The environment was considered only from the point of view of the need to protect against its negative impacts on the newly created artificial environment. The reverse process of the influence of human construction activities on the natural environment and the artificial environment on the natural environment has fully become the subject of consideration relatively recently. Only certain aspects of this problem, to the extent of practical necessity, were studied and solved (for example, removal and disposal of waste, concern for clean air in populated areas...). Meanwhile, construction is one of the most powerful anthropogenic factors affecting the environment. The anthropogenic impact of construction is diverse in nature and occurs at all stages of construction activity - from the extraction of building materials to the operation of finished objects.

Speaking about the impact of construction on the natural environment, one should distinguish, on the one hand, construction as the most important sector of agriculture, and on the other, construction as the product of this industry: urbanized areas, highways, etc. As an industry, construction requires a large number of different raw materials, building materials, energy, water and other resources, the production of which has a strong impact on the environment. Work directly on the construction site is associated with serious disturbances of landscapes and environmental pollution. These violations begin with clearing the construction area, removing the vegetation layer and performing excavation work. When clearing a construction site that had previously been used for development, a significant amount of waste is generated that pollutes the environment when burned or clutters up landfill areas, which changes the morphology of sites, worsens hydrological conditions, and promotes erosion. The degree of impact on nature depends on the materials used for construction, the technology of construction of buildings and structures, and technological equipment construction production, type and quality of construction machines, mechanisms and vehicles and other factors.

Construction areas become a source of pollution to neighboring areas: exhaust and noise from car engines, waste burning. Water is widely used in construction processes - as components of solutions, as a coolant in heating networks; After use, it is discharged, polluting groundwater and soil.

However, the construction itself is a relatively fleeting process. The situation is much more complicated with the impact on nature of objects that are products of construction - buildings, structures and their complexes - urbanized areas. Their impact on the natural environment has not yet been sufficiently studied, therefore almost all environmental measures are advisory in nature. As for the current results, the number of trees is decreasing, water and soil are polluted due to industrial emissions and accumulation of municipal waste, dust, gas and thermal air pollution occurs, which leads to changes in the level of radiation, precipitation, changes in air temperatures, wind mode, i.e. to the creation of artificial conditions in urbanized areas.

In addition to the listed factors, noise pollution, especially infrasound, geopathogenic zones and a number of others, have a negative impact on human health.

It is possible to reduce the negative impact of the environment on humans through the creation of environmentally effective new composite materials for multifunctional purposes and their skillful use in industrial and civil construction.
Traditionally, at the design stage of construction projects, specialists are primarily interested in the physical and mechanical characteristics and aesthetic properties of building materials. For example, choice finishing materials most often determined by their texture, color, color fastness, and durability of coatings.

However, the environmental situation forces, in addition to decorative qualities, to take into account the protective properties of materials that ensure the safety of human life in a particular region of residence. Over the past decades, a wide range of new composite materials have been created that have protective properties against the effects of harmful environmental factors.

Among them are effective wall materials, heat-insulating, sound-proofing, radiation-protective, waterproofing, sealants and a number of others.

The matrix material of these composites is most often traditional and alternative mineral and organic binders, and highly dispersed industrial waste from a number of industries is used as a filler, having a significant supply of free internal energy involved in the processes of structure formation of these materials in order to obtain the specified physical, mechanical and protective characteristics.

The introduction of heavy metal ions into the composition of finishing materials makes it possible to combine their high decorative and artistic qualities and reliable protection from hard ionizing radiation. Glass and ceramics have such properties, which in themselves are an environmentally friendly material, since heavy metal ions are in the glassy phase and are not water-soluble. This is perhaps the only reliable way to dispose of galvanic sludge accumulated in almost all economic regions of the Russian Federation. Technological techniques make it possible to regulate the nature of the surface porosity of finishing glass-ceramic tiles modified with galvanic sludge, thereby imparting soundproofing properties. It is known that the use of conventional glazed ceramic tiles for finishing building facades only increases noise pollution of the environment due to the high reflectivity of the coating.
In many regions of Russia in recent years, the volume of industrial waste used by the construction industry instead of natural raw materials has been constantly increasing.

This is one of the main directions for overcoming the global and regional environmental crisis. The contradictions between man and the ecosystem lie precisely in the fact that for artificial production processes mankind selects resources that are as ready for use as possible, since they require minimum costs labor. But these natural compounds are already involved in ensuring the balance and sustainability of the environment. After their removal from natural circulation, chaos arises in many local environments, reducing the efficiency of metabolic processes. By extracting them from interconnected natural structures, a person causes an imbalance in the cycles of matter and energy. On the one hand, the needs of humanity are satisfied, and on the other, the systems created by nature that participate in the self-organizational processes of the Geosystem are destroyed. It is always necessary to follow the main principle of cooperation between man and nature: the rate of self-structuring in the geosystem due to natural and artificial processes must always exceed the rate of their degradation.
Currently, an inventory of man-made waste is being created through the Ministry of Natural Resources in Russia.

The purely informative function of the inventory of industrial and solid household waste will only become effective if special organizations on the problems of secondary resources are created, which should include prominent specialists and scientists in the field of ecology, technology, environmental economics, etc.
Only in this case can specific recommendations be given on the strategic use of large-scale waste and rational sectors for their processing proposed. For particularly hazardous and toxic waste, it is necessary to create methods for reliable disposal and promising developments of technologies for their destruction or recycling.

pollution construction waste standardization

2. Features of the production technology of building materials, stages of production

Work programs in the field of construction require for their implementation, along with the further development of the building materials industry, the search for new reserves for increasing the efficiency of their production. In modern construction, the need for high-strength building materials, which have a developed raw material base and are manufactured using advanced technological methods, is sharply increasing.

In the technology of building materials, there are works that show the technical feasibility and economic feasibility of producing cement-free binders. Mineral raw materials for production are large-tonnage waste from metallurgical, thermal power, mining, chemical and other industries.

Based on these binders, it is possible to produce various building materials, such as: dry building mixtures, concrete blocks and slabs, concrete for monolithic construction, brick, paving slabs etc.

The experimental introduction of cement-free binders in construction began in 1958, and production in 1964. During this time, the high technological and operational properties of such building materials have been proven, which have stood the test of time in structures in various fields of construction. For example, in 1989 a 22-story building was built in the city of Lipetsk.

The development of building materials based on the integrated use of large-scale industrial waste is determined, first of all, by environmental and economic factors. Firstly, a significant increase in prices for cements, natural aggregates, energy resources and, secondly, the aggravation of the environmental situation in the country as a result of the continued increase, formation and accumulation of industrial waste.

Minimizing the environmental consequences of industrial waste can only be achieved by its complete recycling. Therefore, many developed countries have taken the path of using not natural, but man-made materials as mineral raw materials and manufacturing fundamentally new types of high-quality products from them. Russia, in this regard, is significantly inferior. For example, ash and slag waste from thermal power plants is used only by 8%, steel and ferroalloy slag by 50%, ultrafine silica, which is a waste from the production of silicon-containing alloys, by 10%, and waste from the mining industry by 27%. Research shows that the widespread use of industrial waste would expand the mineral resource base of the construction industry by 15-20%.

The chemical and mineralogical composition of the listed wastes, for the most part, is ideal for the production of cementless binders. In addition, their distinctive feature is the ability to be chemically activated by substances, which in turn can also be waste from other industries.

Industrial waste must be viewed not as traditional industrial landfills, but as a stable and renewable raw material base for the production of high-quality, cheap building materials.

Features of building materials technology are as follows:

Application of industrial waste;

Use of chemical hardening activators from local waste;

Simple hydrothermal treatment at atmospheric pressure;

The technology makes it possible to produce volume-colored building materials.

The main stages and directions of development of the building materials industry. IN Russian Federation over the past few years, it has been possible to achieve a constant increase in the volume of industrial products, but, although the annual increase in the output of construction materials averaged about 10%, the achieved volumes do not fully satisfy the needs of modern construction, which is caused mainly by the low technical level of enterprises and the wear and tear of technological equipment equipment.

The production of certain types of building materials is characterized by high capital intensity of production facilities and requires significant time for construction, which reduces their investment attractiveness.

In the basic industry for construction - the cement industry, the volume of investment per 1 ton of cement will increase from 5-6 dollars per ton of capacity per year when maintaining and repairing existing facilities to 250-300 dollars per ton when building new plants.

The degree of wear and tear of technological equipment in the cement industry is 70%. As a result, the capacity of the 45 operating cement plants is officially estimated at 71.2 million tons, but in fact - according to independent estimates - the plants in their current state can produce a maximum of 65 million tons of cement per year.

To provide the construction complex with cement sufficient to commission 80 million sq.m. housing per year, the industry should reach the level of 90 million tons of cement per year in 2010, which will require the introduction of additional production capacity. Large one-time capital investments in total for the industry are estimated at 5.1 - 6.3 billion dollars.

Production of thermal insulation materials. Currently, the domestic industry produces about 9.0 million cubic meters. m of thermal insulation products of all types.

The main type of insulation produced in Russia is mineral wool products, the share of which in total production is more than 65%. About 8% comes from glass wool materials, 20% from foam plastics, 3% from cellular concrete.

The need for insulation materials has increased sharply after the introduction of new requirements for heat loss of building envelopes. According to estimates, the total need for insulation materials for all sectors of the country's economy will amount to 50-55 million m3 by 2010, including 18-20 million m3 for housing construction.

3. Production of roofing and waterproofing materials

The all-Russian market for rolled roofing and waterproofing materials is currently estimated at 450-460 million sq.m., “ soft tiles» - 3.3-3.5 million sq.m. According to Rosstat of the Russian Federation, in 2005 the production of soft roofing and waterproofing materials amounted to 477 million sq.m.

Improving the range of products produced is a priority for the roofing and insulation materials industry.

In this regard, a significant change in the structure of production is necessary, with the goal of significantly increasing the share of modern high-performance materials (bitumen-polymer, polymer, including those based on polymer fibers), which have a higher (5-7 times) durability and reliability .

Also, changing the structure of production of roofing materials, as well as improving their quality, is impossible without modernizing or replacing obsolete and physically worn-out technological equipment.

Glass production. The production volume of sheet glass in Russia currently amounts to 120 million square meters. meters, including 74% of glass produced using modern float technology (thermopolished). The shortage of high-quality sheet glass today is approximately 35 million square meters. meters.

One of the main tasks is to organize large-scale production in Russia of modern energy-saving glass with hard and soft coatings.

Production of wall materials. The volume of production of wall materials in Russia in 2005 was increased to 15 billion units. conditional brick.

According to Rosstroi of the Russian Federation, the demand for wall materials in 2006 will increase to 16-17, and by 2010 it will reach 27-28 billion units of conventional brick.

Priority directions in the production of wall materials consist of the construction of technological lines for the production of cellular concrete of autoclave and non-autoclave hardening, primarily at existing sand-lime brick plants, and the construction of lines for the production of foam concrete and expanded polystyrene concrete must be carried out at existing reinforced concrete and KPD plants.

Production of ceramic tiles and sanitary ceramic products. Technical level Most Russian construction ceramics enterprises lag behind the level of most foreign companies due to the production equipment being morally and physically outdated. The degree of wear and tear on the equipment of some enterprises is over 60%, especially in the mass preparation departments

The main directions of development of the ceramic industry are the technical re-equipment and reconstruction of enterprises for the production of ceramic tiles and sanitary ceramic products with the installation of advanced imported equipment, which has a significant advantage over domestic ones.

Production of concrete and reinforced concrete. Currently, world practice proves that precast reinforced concrete is being used more and more widely in construction and, as a result, the main directions of development in the field of concrete and reinforced concrete are:

Development, research and improvement of concrete in terms of increasing construction and technical properties, ensuring a guaranteed service life of buildings and structures of at least 50 years, including especially dense, frost-resistant, corrosion-resistant, acid-resistant, polymer, fiber-reinforced, fine-grained, etc.;

Development and organization of production of new types of cements, primarily quick-hardening and high-strength, allowing in the future to abandon the heat treatment of concrete, non-shrinkage and chromate-free cements, cements with low water demand.

In the field of construction production, machinery and equipment, the main areas of development are:

Development of competitive domestic equipment for factory production and installation of prefabricated reinforced concrete structures;

Expansion of the range and development of new types of modular formwork;

Creation of automated and mechanized equipment for the preparation of concrete and mortar mixtures, including dry mixtures of a wide range, and fiber-reinforced concrete.

Development of large-panel housing construction. The change in the structure of housing construction with an increase in the share of individual housing in recent years, as well as the introduction of increased requirements for thermal protection of enclosing structures, led to a sharp decrease in the use of industrial housing construction capacity at the end of the last century.

Mineral resource base for non-metallic industry. The volume of production of non-metallic building materials used in capital, housing and road construction in Russia in 2005 amounted to about 257 million m3, which is 0.7% less than in 2004.

The technical level of the industry's equipment lags behind the world's, and the degree of automation of production processes is low. There is a constant shortage of equipment in the industry; a number of advanced machines and equipment are not produced in our country.

Simultaneously with the decline in production, labor productivity decreased, specific energy and material costs and land intensity of production increased.

This state of affairs in the building materials industry gives every reason to doubt the possibility of implementing the National Project without government support on time and in the required volumes.

When investing in the construction industry, the final effect will be multiplier economic growth in the construction industry and related industries, while funds will be “tied up” in long-term projects, which will not cause a surge in inflation, which is typical for direct budget spending.

Due to the significant capital intensity of the building materials industry, the initial impetus for its dynamic and sustainable development should be a program that creates initial conditions at the first stage, which should ensure a guaranteed attraction of investors to the market.

4. Characteristics of pollutants and their impact on the environment

The production of building materials is a source of air pollution with dust. The wrapping and paper industry released the following toxic compounds during production: sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, carbon disulfide. Tile, glass, and earthenware production emitted hydrogen fluoride.

The production of cement and other building materials is also a source of dust pollution. Basic technological processes these industries - grinding and chemical processing of charges, semi-finished products and resulting products in hot gas streams is always accompanied by emissions of dust and other harmful substances into the atmosphere. Atmospheric pollutants include hydrocarbons - saturated and unsaturated, containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms. They undergo various transformations, oxidation, polymerization, interacting with other atmospheric pollutants after excitation by solar radiation. As a result of these reactions, peroxide compounds, free radicals, and hydrocarbon compounds with nitrogen and sulfur oxides are formed, often in the form of aerosol particles.

In the building materials industry, the largest “contribution” to environmental pollution comes from cement, glass and asphalt concrete production.

In the glass production process, among the pollutants, in addition to dust, are lead compounds, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen fluoride, nitrogen oxide, arsenic - all this is toxic waste, almost half of which ends up in the environment.

Construction materials industry. The production of cement and other binders, wall materials, asbestos-cement products, building ceramics, heat and sound insulation materials, construction and technical glass is accompanied by emissions of dust and suspended substances into the atmosphere (57.1% of total emissions), carbon monoxide (21.4% ), sulfur dioxide (10.8%) and nitrogen oxides (9%). In addition, hydrogen sulfide (0.03%) is present in the emissions.

The most important indicator is the recovery of pollutants, which means the number of pollutants returned to production, used to obtain a marketable product, or sold externally.

One of the reasons for the high “digestibility” of pollutants, apparently, is that in the total amount of pollutants, a large proportion is occupied by solid substances, which are better amenable to collection and disposal than liquid and gaseous ones. Solid substances occupy 93% of the total volume of pollutants (158.2 and 147.2 thousand tons) and an insignificant - 7% (11.0 thousand tons) - gaseous and liquid. Of solid substances, 1% was released without treatment, and of gaseous and liquid substances - 93%. In the region as a whole, across all industries, solid pollutants account for 33% of the total volume of pollutants, while gaseous and liquid pollutants account for 67%, and 2% and 70% are emitted without treatment, respectively.

Of the gaseous and liquid substances, half was carbon monoxide (51%), and the second half was represented by sulfur dioxide (27%) and nitrogen oxides (20%).

5. Measures to protect the environment from the impact of the production of building materials

Air pollution control measures can have a positive impact on industrial structure and the activities of individual construction companies.

The development and investment in low-polluting technologies typically reduce production costs over the long term, along with a reduction in emissions. Mandatory emissions standards encourage the replacement of old plants with new ones. Clean technologies can also reduce capital investment and operating costs compared to legacy processes, primarily through energy and raw material savings.

The complexity and severity of environmental problems force us to seek new reserves of protection from anthropogenic impact both in everyday economic practice and in the future. Today, the insufficient effectiveness of traditional methods of environmental protection through the purification and neutralization of emissions from pollutants is already obvious; the use of new, more rational, low-waste and non-waste technologies is required, the introduction into economic and production activities of the results of scientific research aimed at optimizing the interaction between man and nature, the justification of environmental standards ensuring the preservation of the environment and human health, as well as the rational use of natural resources.

Environmental impact assessment can be used as a tool to justify the right decisions. Its main objectives should be the assessment of sanitary-hygienic, physical-technical, socio-economic impacts of economic activities on the environment and analysis possible options this activity.

The increased range of tasks associated with solving environmental problems requires an analysis of the anthropogenic load, in particular of enterprises in the building materials industry, on the biosphere and associated environmental pollution.

Measures to protect the environment from the impact of the production of building materials consider a set of issues of various human activities aimed at eliminating the impact of anthropogenic factors, improving and rational use of natural resources. In human construction activities, such activities include:

Urban planning measures aimed at environmentally sound placement of enterprises, populated areas and transport networks;

Architectural and construction measures that determine the choice of environmental space-planning solutions;

Selection of environmentally friendly materials in design and construction;

Construction and operation of treatment and neutralization facilities and devices;

Land reclamation;

Measures to combat soil pollution;

Use of waste-free technologies, etc.

To prevent contamination of the Earth's surface, preventive measures are needed - to prevent contamination of the soil with industrial and household waste. wastewater, solid household and industrial waste, sanitary cleaning of the soil and the territory of populated areas where such violations have been identified is necessary.

So far, the only way to significantly reduce environmental pollution is low-waste technologies. Currently, low-waste industries are being created in which emissions of harmful substances do not exceed maximum permissible concentrations (MPC), and waste does not lead to irreversible changes in nature. Complex processing of raw materials, combination of several industries, and use of solid waste for the production of building materials are used.

New technologies and materials, environmentally friendly fuels, and new energy sources are being created that reduce environmental pollution.

List of used literature

1. Avramenko S.V. Modern environmental problems. M., 2004

2. Israel Y.A. Ecology and control of the state of the natural environment. - M., 1994

3.Malakhov A.G., Makhanko E.P. The release of toxic metals into the atmosphere and their accumulation in the surface layer of the earth. M., 1998

4. Poryadina A.F. Environmental auditing of industrial enterprises. M., 1997

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Non-eco-friendly building materials:

Polystyrene foam - releases the toxic substance styrene, which provokes myocardial infarction and vein thrombosis.
Taking into account the technology, HBCDD (hexabromyocyclododecane) is added to insulation materials (extruded polystyrene and expanded polystyrene) to reduce their flammability. Not long ago, the European Chemicals Agency declared HBCDD one of the most dangerous among 14 known toxic substances.
Thermal insulation boards are made on the basis of polyurethane. They contain toxic isocyanates.
Linoleum, vinyl wallpaper and decorative film are widely used materials in construction that are responsible for the content of heavy metals in the air. These substances, accumulating over time in the human body, can cause the development of tumors.
Low-quality paints, varnishes, and mastics are considered the most dangerous to health, as they contain lead, copper, as well as toluene, xylene and cresol, which are narcotic substances.
Concrete is known to be dense and durable. Unfortunately, it is the density of concrete that prevents the free penetration of air and contributes to the amplification of electromagnetic waves.
Reinforced concrete has the same disadvantages as concrete, but in addition it also shields electromagnetic radiation. As a result, people living or working in homes and offices built from such materials often suffer from fatigue.
Polyvinchloride is a component of many varnishes and paints. In contact with air with the assistance of sunlight, it decomposes, releasing hydrochloride, which in turn provokes diseases of the liver and blood vessels.
Polyurethane foam in dust is bad for the skin, eyes and lungs.

When purchasing materials for the construction of your house, demand that you receive a sanitary and epidemiological certificate for them. This conclusion will give you an idea of the toxicity level of your chosen building material.

Fortunately, there are other materials, the presence of which in a room not only does not cause harm, but, on the contrary, has a positive effect on the physical and spiritual state of a person - environmentally friendly building materials.

Eco-friendly building materials

Eco-friendly (environmentally friendly) building materials are materials that do not harm the environment during their production and operation. They are divided into two types: absolutely environmentally friendly and conditionally environmentally friendly.

Absolutely environmentally friendly building materials are generously presented to us by nature itself. These include wood, stone, natural glue, rubber, cork, silk, felt, cotton, natural leather, natural drying oil, straw, bamboo, etc. All these materials have been used by man for the construction of houses from time immemorial. Their disadvantage is that they do not always respond technical requirements(insufficiently hardy and fireproof, difficult to transport, etc.).

In this regard, currently in construction, conditionally environmentally friendly materials are widely used, which are also made from natural resources, are safe for the environment, but have higher technical performance.

Conditionally environmentally friendly building materials include:

brick
tile
roofing tiles
foam concrete blocks
materials made of aluminum, silicon

Brick is made from clay without the use of chemical additives and dyes. Walls made of this material are strong, durable, and resistant to harmful environmental influences. The least energy-intensive type of brick is considered to be one that is made from clay with the addition of straw reinforcing it. After drying in the sun, this brick is ready for use. More than a quarter of the world's population lives in houses built from this kind of brick. In areas with dry climates they are especially durable.

Each of us has the power to improve our standard of living. According to statistics, a person spends most of his time indoors (at work or at home) approximately 75% of the time. Therefore, it is of great importance what this room is built from. Building your house from environmental materials or using them in interior decoration, we create a unique and at the same time healthy atmosphere.

Tips: for interior decoration of room walls, wood or mats made of straw, jute, or bamboo are best suited. As a last resort, plaster and paper wallpaper. If you decide to use parquet or laminate to finish the floor, be sure to pay attention to whether it has a CE mark (means that the material is manufactured in accordance with European standards).

Baltic State Academy of Fishing Fleet

Faculty of Transport

Department of Defense in emergency situations

Subject: " Environmental risks in the production of building materials"

Completed by: Krupnova A.S.

Tosunova D.D.

ZChS Group – 32

Kaliningrad 2009

Goal and tasks

The goal is to determine the environmental risk to the environment and humans.

1. Identify enterprises related to the construction industry and located in the Kaliningrad region

2. Identify explosives emitted into the air during the production of building materials by enterprises in the Kaliningrad region

3. Determine the volume of emissions from construction industry enterprises in the Kaliningrad region

4. Conduct a study at one of the enterprises of the Kaliningrad region construction industry

5. Define Negative consequences for the environment and humans when standards are exceeded due to explosive emissions into the atmosphere

List of enterprises in the Kaliningrad region

1. Plant “Reinforced Concrete Products – 1”, Pribrezhny village, Zavodskaya St., 11

2. Factory "Reinforced Concrete Products - 2" Mukomolnaya St., 14

3. Brick factory “Chaikovsky” Pravdinsky district, Zheleznodorozhny village, Kirpichnaya st., 3

4. Asphalt-concrete plant, Dvinskaya St., 93

5. Baltkeramika LLC, Zavodskaya str., 11

6. Ecoblock LLC Maloye Isakovo, Guryevskaya St., 1

7. Cosmoblock LLC, Baltic Highway, 1

Production of building materials and harmful substances released into the atmosphere during their production

Concrete production

Concrete is fake diamond, obtained by mixing cement, gravel and water.

The components are poured into a concrete mixer and water is supplied into it at the same time.

After mixing, the starting materials form a plastic mixture similar to a heavy liquid. Therefore, freshly prepared concrete is not called concrete, but a concrete mixture. Only after some time does the mixture harden and turn into stone, i.e. concrete.

Reinforced concrete is concrete reinforced with structural steel.

Main pollutants: oxides of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur; hydrocarbons; inorganic dust

Asphalt production

Asphalt is a mixture of bitumen (60-75% natural and 13-60% artificial) with minerals (limestone, sandstone, etc.). Used in a mixture with sand, gravel, crushed stone for the construction of highways, as a roofing, waterproofing and electrical insulating material, for the preparation of putties and adhesives.

Classic asphalt concrete consists of crushed stone, sand, mineral powder (filler) and bitumen binder (bitumen, polymer-bitumen binder).

Main pollutants: lead and its inorganic compounds

Nitrogen oxides; soot; sulfur dioxide (sulfur dioxide – SO2); carbon monoxide (CO); saturated hydrocarbons C12 -C19; fuel oil ash; inorganic dust (SiO2 > 70%) dinas, etc.; inorganic dust (SiO2 = 20-70%), cement, fireclay, etc.; inorganic dust (SiO2<20 %) известняк и др.

Brick production

Ceramic brick is a brick obtained by firing clays and their mixtures in an oven.

Ceramic bricks are made from clay, most often red, and at the end of production they are fired at an operating temperature in a kiln of up to 1000°C.

There are three ways to prepare ceramic bricks:

The first and most common is the plastic method: the clay mass (with a humidity of 17 - 30%) is squeezed out of a belt press and then fired.

The second method is distinguished by the preparation of the raw material - it is formed from a clay mass with a moisture content of 8 - 10% by strong pressing.

The technology for producing bricks using the rigid extrusion method involves molding bricks on a belt press at a clay moisture content of 12-14%. The molded brick has high strength, so immediately after cutting it is placed on a kiln trolley, on which the brick drying process takes place.

Production of gas silicate blocks

The production of aerated concrete involves the introduction of substances that release gas during chemical interaction with cement and lime, and aluminum powder or paste acts as a gas generator. According to HEBEL aerated concrete production technology, the raw mixture of quartz sand, lime, cement, after expansion, undergoes subsequent autoclave treatment at a temperature of 180 degrees and a pressure of about 14 bar. Numerous pores of 1–3 mm in size are formed in the resulting mass, which give the material properties such as thermal insulation, frost resistance and lightness.

Main pollutants: oxides of silicon, aluminum, nitrogen, carbon.

Production of foam concrete blocks

The production of foam blocks is based on the technology of producing ready-made foam concrete blocks as a result of hardening of a solution consisting of cement, sand, water and foam. The following methods are used in the production of foam blocks: pouring foam concrete into cassette metal molds and removing the finished foam blocks manually, pouring large masses and cutting them into blocks and pouring non-separable cassette molds with subsequent automatic demoulding.

Main pollutants: oxides of silicon, nitrogen, carbon; heavy metal compounds; aerosols and suspensions.

Table 1. Volumes of emissions from the construction industry into the atmosphere in 2003

OJSC "Zavod ZhBI-2" is a single modern largest complex in Kaliningrad and the region for the production of concrete and reinforced concrete products (RCC), ready-mixed concrete, mortars for various purposes, reinforcing mesh, frames.

Let's consider the environmental risk associated with environmental pollution and harmful effects on people.

Table 2. Standards for maximum permissible emissions of pollutants into the air for reinforced concrete products - 2

Name of pollutant	Total emissions for 2008, t/year
Vanadium pentoxide
Iron oxide
Manganese and its compounds
Nitrogen dioxide
Nitrogen oxide

Sulfur dioxide
Hydrogen sulfide
Carbon monoxide
Fluoride gaseous compounds
Fluorides inorganic.poor solution.

Benzopyrene


White Spirit
Saturated hydrocarbons C12 – C19
Emulson
Suspended solids
Dust inorganic, containing. 70 – 20% silicon dioxide
Abrasive dust
Wood dust
Fluoride gaseous compounds
Including vehicles
Nitrogen dioxide
Nitrogen oxide

Sulfur dioxide
Carbon oxide


Total	4,098987
Including:

liquid and gaseous

Table 3. Waste generation standards for reinforced concrete products – 2

Name	Hazard Class	Annual standard, t/year	2008
Welding slag
Spent abrasive wheels and their scrap
Lead batteries
Cleaning material contaminated with oils
Waste of solid production materials, contaminated with oil and mineral fatty products
Used oils
Waste concrete mixture containing dust< 30%
Residues and cinders of steel welding electrodes
Unsorted steel scrap
Steel shavings are not contaminated.
Wood waste from natural pure wood
Natural pure wood sawdust
Natural pure wood shavings

Table 4. Background concentration of pollutants around concrete products – 2

Predicting the risk of knock-on effects from the construction industry

For nitrogen dioxide: 2nd class.

Prob=-5.51+7.49lg(0.15/0.085)=-3.66

For dust: 3rd class.

Prob=-2.35+3.73lg(0.39/0.3)=-1.92

For nitric oxide: 3rd class.

Prob=-2.35+3.73lg(0.04/0.4)=-6.08

For carbon monoxide: 4th class.

Prob=-1.41+2.33log(3.1/5)=-1.89

conclusions

Based on the conducted research, we can conclude:

1. If the standards for emissions of carbon monoxide and dust are exceeded at concrete products - 2, 297 and 278 people out of 10,000 will suffer, respectively.

2. When exposed to carbon monoxide on the human body, the development of oxygen deficiency, disruption of cellular respiration and death of the body (at a concentration of 1% within several minutes), and heart attacks are possible.

3. When exposed to inorganic dust on the body, it is possible to develop pulmonary diseases and inflammatory processes in them, reduce ventilation ability and lung capacity, damage to the mucous membranes of the eyes, upper respiratory tract, skin irritation, increased mortality from lung and intestinal cancer, increased incidence of tonsillitis, pharyngitis , rhinitis.

Often when ordering renovations at home or in the office, we think about how long it will serve us, whether the builders will make defects, whether the design will be harmonious. And very rarely do we ask ourselves the question: how will the use of certain construction and finishing materials in the production of repairs or decoration affect our health? They look fashionable and are easy to clean, but at the same time they undermine our health. And sometimes they do it unnoticed. Some synthetic materials emit into the surrounding space vapors consisting of various chemicals: phenol, formaldehyde, toluene, benzene and the like, which contribute to the emergence of a whole bunch of chronic diseases.

It so happens that in our country builders rarely think about where this or that material comes from and how it affects human health. Most construction organizations do not conduct environmental management in relation to construction and installation work GOST R ISO 14001-98 (ISO 14001), some do not even know about such standards.

Environmentally friendly materials, of course, cost more! Therefore, a situation arises where builders are chasing cheap and often low-quality materials from an environmental point of view. Builders are forced to use such materials at municipal construction sites, since officials usually follow the widespread principle “the cheaper, the better for the state” when holding competitions, tenders and auctions for construction and repair work, they do not take into account what materials will be used to carry out the work. This means that schools, kindergartens, and hospitals use the materials that will be discussed below.

From an environmental point of view, building materials can be divided into harmonious and inharmonious. Inharmonious materials are those materials whose presence has a negative impact on a person, and sometimes causes direct harm to health. Harmonious materials can be considered those that are widespread in nature. There is a consistent pattern between the prevalence of the material and its harmfulness and toxicity. For example: water, earth (soil) are not toxic, but relatively rare elements such as lead, mercury, cadmium are very dangerous for living organisms. According to this pattern, for the construction of a home it is better to use raw materials and materials that are widely used. In mild, humid climates in wooded areas, the best material is, of course, wood. In hot, dry areas - soil and clay; in cold mountainous areas, the most common building material is stone. Before the overdevelopment of industry, builders naturally chose widespread, harmonious materials. Development technology has greatly expanded the range of materials and structures. The industrial approach to construction has led to the widespread use of expensive and artificial building materials. Nowadays, rarely does anyone turn to traditional materials when it is possible to use modern ones. However, it is still worth considering not only the aesthetic and practical side, but also the environmental safety of the material. At first glance, Portland cement seems like an ideal building material. Hardened concrete turns out to be an extremely strong, durable, dense, heavy material, which is best not used for the walls and ceilings of an individual house. The set cement mortar does not breathe, does not transmit atmospheric electric waves, and rejects or amplifies electromagnetic waves.

Reinforced concrete (metal-reinforced concrete) has even more undesirable characteristics for housing. The reinforcement bars and meshes of reinforced concrete buildings shield electromagnetic radiation. Reinforced concrete “puts pressure” on a person; in such structures people get tired faster. This may be partly due to the fact that during the firing process, cement absorbs toxic substances, and the filler of heavy concrete is rocks with an increased level of radiation, the structures cease to allow air to pass through and an uncomfortable microclimate is established in the room.

The filler of a concrete mixture significantly affects its environmental characteristics. Heavy granite crushed stone, lava rocks, which have a high density, in addition to high natural radiation, do not have pores, do not breathe, which (as mentioned above) is undesirable for wall structures).

Synthetic materials and plastics are increasingly used in housing construction, but for the most part they are not environmentally friendly materials. The use of metal in individual construction should be minimized, since metal structures distort the natural magnetic background and cosmic radiation.

Metallic paints are a classic example of a hazardous building material. As the solvent dries, particles of the paint layer enter the air of the room, settling on objects, food, etc. In the 60s, cases of poisoning of children whose toys were coated with paints containing mercury and lead were recorded. The transition to alkyd-based paints eliminates the problem of heavy metals, but the question arises about the environmental friendliness of other chemical additives.

Synthetic paints emit a strong odor when dry. Drying occurs not only in the first hours and days, but also over a number of years. For example, one of the components of modern paints - polyvinyl chloride - decomposes at normal room temperature upon contact with air and, especially, in sunlight. Hydrochloride evaporates into the air, which, when it enters the respiratory tract, creates an acidic environment. Polyvinyl chloride easily penetrates the skin and has a harmful effect on the blood and liver. Vinyl tiles and linoleums emit toxic gases into the air because, during the process of evaporation, new layers of material appear on the surface all the time. Polyurethane foam is an excellent thermal insulation material, but it turns out that its effect on the skin and eyes (when touched or exposed to dust) causes more than just irritation. When inhaled, particles of this material combine with the protein in the lungs and over time change its structure, resulting in pulmonary emphysema. Polyvinyl floor and wall coverings and synthetic paints are materials hazardous to health and the environment; their use in homes should be limited.

Dry plaster and laminated wood are intensively saturated with synthetic adhesive compounds. Polymers are used to enhance their water resistance and as an adhesive. During the production of plastic, formaldehyde, phenolic and other chemical compounds remain in the material and gradually evaporate, which have an adverse effect on the respiratory, blood and immune system of a person in a room decorated with synthetic materials. Static electricity accumulated on plastic surfaces not only affects cardiac and nerve function, but also increases the penetration of toxic synthetic compounds and their accumulation in the form of dust. Dust becomes a haven for germs. Synthetic plastic coverings contribute to the occurrence of pulmonary diseases (in particular, electric pneumonia). In spring, when humidity is high, a person walking on a synthetic floor can generate an electrical charge of thousands of volts per 1 m3.

You should be very careful when choosing synthetic materials for your home. Plastic in the kitchen makes cleaning easier, but it deteriorates from heat, acids and mechanical damage. Wall materials are resistant to rot and insects, but they emit unpleasant gases when heated. In general, one should strive to use organic, environmentally friendly materials of natural origin.

Unfortunately, there is very little information about the ecology of building and finishing materials. In addition, we want to make repairs quickly and cheaply, while manufacturers and sellers want to sell a lot and at a high price, forgetting to talk about possible negative manifestations, showing the product only from the good side. Of course, all finishing materials have an environmental certificate. But the fact is that the standards are indicated for one type of furniture or finishing material. There are a good dozen of them in the room. And the accumulating impact of tiny particles of toxic substances from furniture and various finishing materials is almost impossible to calculate and cannot be regulated by any hygienic standards. So it turns out that each individual roll of wallpaper or linoleum has a legal certificate, and together they will create an atmosphere that negatively affects health. Of course, not all modern construction and finishing materials are dangerous. You just need to know where and which ones to use to minimize possible problems.

Danger No. 1. Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde gas is the most toxic compound released from finishing materials.

Cause: Formaldehyde is contained in the resins used in the manufacture of particle board (particleboard), fibreboard (fibreboard), plywood (FRP), mastics, plasticizers, putties and steel mold release agents.

Possible consequences: Formaldehyde irritates mucous membranes and skin and has carcinogenic activity. Prolonged inhalation of formaldehyde vapor, especially in the warm season, can provoke the development of various skin diseases, blurred vision and respiratory diseases.

Alternative: When using panels made of chipboard, fibreboard, or FRP in a children's room, you need to pay attention to the presence of a laminating coating that prevents the release of formaldehyde into the environment. When purchasing panels, it is advisable to give preference to domestically produced products. The fact is that Russian maximum permissible standards for formaldehyde are 10 times stricter than European ones. A good alternative to chipboard, fiberboard and FRP boards is MDF. The abbreviation MDF is a tracing paper from English - MDF - Medium Density Fiberboard (medium density fiberboard). When wood is heated, lignin is released, which acts as a binding element. It is worth noting that the production of MDF panels does not use resins that are harmful to humans, so they can be used to decorate any premises, including children's rooms. In addition, they are distinguished from other finishing materials by a high level of noise absorption, sound and heat insulation.

Danger No. 2. Phenol
Reason: The use of varnishes, paints and linoleum leads to a 10-fold excess of the maximum permissible concentration of phenol. It is especially dangerous to use varnishes and paints indoors that are intended only for outdoor use and are approved for use outdoors.

Possible consequences: Damage to the kidneys, liver, changes in blood composition.

Alternative: For painting work, choose natural-based varnishes and paints. Among modern materials, alkyd or polyester paints have gained a good reputation among hygienists, ecologists and builders. They have a high degree of adhesion to metal and any type of mineral and organic based surfaces (wood, brick, concrete, fiberboard, plaster). During the process of application and subsequent polymerization, such paints do not emit a poisonous odor or highly toxic substances and have a short drying time compared to oil paints. They are also not as aggressive to human health as organic ones - water-based or, what is the same thing, water-dispersed paints. The service life of such coatings is determined primarily by the quality of the binder. Currently, “talkies” made from PVA and whitewash have been replaced by modern paints, where the main components are latex and acrylic copolymers. Polyacrylate dispersions impart the necessary wear resistance and hardness to the surface film formed during drying, and the presence of latex imparts the necessary elasticity to the system. But it is not advisable to put linoleum in a nursery. Of course, a linoleum-covered floor is easy to use. But it is much safer to replace it with laminate, parquet boards or wooden flooring.

Danger No. 3. Radioactive radiation
Quite often, in residential premises, radiation standards for RADON-222, the most dangerous radioactive inert gas, are found to be exceeded.

Reason: Some building structures may contain natural materials containing radionuclides that far exceed current radiation safety standards. Quite often, when renovating houses, a mixture of concrete and crushed granite is used, which has a high background radiation. In addition, the cause of excess radioactive radiation may be some types of currently widespread phosphorescent wallpaper (with elements that glow in the dark).

Possible consequences: Oncological diseases, the risk of developing lung cancer is especially high.

Alternative: Builders often use a mixture of concrete and crushed granite when restoring walls and floors. This is one of the cheapest materials. But in order to avoid paying for cheap repairs later with your health, it is advisable to use a variety of putties, plasters and hanging panels to restore walls and floors. And before gluing wallpaper and laying floors, it is advisable to cover all cemented surfaces with a thin layer of putty, which will reduce possible radiation radiation. Also, if possible, get rid of dense reinforcement frame, which changes the level of natural radiation in the room. As for wallpaper, high-quality phosphorescent wallpaper must be tested for the presence of radiation. Therefore, in large specialized stores, the risk of buying “pest” wallpaper is minimized. But in various markets you often come across quite “dangerous” rolls. Without special instruments, it is impossible to determine the quality and presence of background radiation on wallpaper. Therefore, for your own safety, purchase finishing materials only in large specialized stores.

Danger No. 4. Styrene molecules
Reason: The main source of styrene release is thermal insulation foam, facing plastic, linoleum, as well as varnishes, paints and adhesives. In addition, finishing walls and ceilings with dry lining significantly increases the concentration of styrene in the air.

Possible consequences: Irritation of mucous membranes, eyes, headache, nausea, vascular spasms.

Alternative: To reduce the concentration of styrene molecules in the air, absolute vapor barrier of the walls on the room side is necessary. A good method of vapor barrier is to use vinyl wallpaper. To ensure thermal insulation, use only natural-based materials. It is not recommended to use polystyrene foam in children's rooms. It is also undesirable to install suspended ceilings made of foam and plastic panels in the room where the baby lives. It is much safer to paint the ceiling with water-based paint (water-based) or paste it with paper wallpaper. In addition, try to reduce the amount of building material used as much as possible. Painting the battery with three layers of paint will not increase its beauty, and the concentration of styrene molecules in the air will increase significantly.

Danger No. 5. Aerosols of heavy metals
Daily concentrations of many metals indoors significantly exceed their content in atmospheric air. For lead this difference is 2.3 times, cadmium - 3.2 times, chromium - 10%, copper - 29%.

Reason: Some types of wallpaper and carpeting accumulate huge amounts of heavy metal aerosols. In addition, concrete, cement, putty and other materials with the addition of industrial waste are high in heavy metals.

Possible consequences: Diseases of the cardiovascular system, liver, kidneys and allergic reactions.

Alternative: Try to make cosmetic repairs to the room at least once every five years by replacing wallpaper and baseboards. Aerosols of heavy metals have the unpleasant property of accumulating over time. Therefore, the more often you change wallpaper and baseboards, the cleaner the air in the room will be. Just before starting repairs, carefully remove old materials (wallpaper, plaster). Some builders prefer to glue new wallpaper over old ones, explaining that this way they will stick better. In fact, they are driven by ordinary laziness, and not by the desire to make quality repairs. Well-prepared walls will not only provide cleaner air in the room, but also the wallpaper on them will adhere well.

In a child's room, it is not advisable to place carpet under the baseboard. You should always be able to mop the floor underneath.

Danger No. 6. PVC
PVC products are made from polyvinyl chloride, a dangerous poison that can destroy the nervous system and cause cancer. The release of vinyl chloride into the environment increases even with slight heating.

Unfortunately, PVC is a very common plastic. You can find it everywhere. In apartments, it is most often found in the form of linoleum (excluding some expensive brands), vinyl wallpaper, plastic window frames, plastic toys (from dolls to children's teething rings). Various types of packaging are also made from PVC, including for food products: bottles, bags, etc.

When buying anything made of PVC, remember:
— To make PVC elastic, so-called plasticizers are often added to it - phthalates or phthalate esters, the entry of which into the body can cause liver and kidney damage, a decrease in the protective properties of the body, infertility, and cancer. PVC may contain other hazardous substances: cadmium, chromium, lead, formaldehyde.

— PVC is especially dangerous when burned. It is known that when burning 1 kilogram of PVC, up to 50 milligrams of dioxins are formed. This is quite enough for the development of cancerous tumors in 50,000 laboratory animals.

— There are no safe technologies for processing PVC. It is practically not recyclable and goes into waste incineration plants (WIP) or landfills. Dioxins, tirelessly produced by the MSZ, spread over hundreds and thousands of kilometers.

— The production of one PVC window results in the generation of about 20 grams of toxic waste. And renovating an entire apartment using materials made from PVC entails the generation of 1 kg (!) of toxic waste.

— In one year, factories producing PVC emit several thousand tons of vinyl chloride into the atmosphere, endangering the health of workers and residents of nearby communities.

— Chlorine is also used in the production of PVC, so during its production and disposal a large amount of dioxins are released into the environment - highly toxic substances that cause cancer and undermine the immune system.

How to identify a PVC product?
In civilized countries, PVC products are usually marked with a special marking - the number “3” surrounded by arrows. Some manufacturers simply write PVC or Vinyl. In Russia, unfortunately, plastic goods are practically not labeled. However, PVC can be distinguished by a number of characteristics:
when the package is folded, a white stripe appears on the bend line;
PVC bottles have a bluish or blue color;
Another distinctive feature of PVC containers is the seam on the bottom of the bottle with two symmetrical beads.
Control and certification.
The average consumer can only be protected from environmentally hazardous and low-quality construction products by a system of hygienic and environmental certification, which in our country has become fully operational only in recent years. Now in Russia it is legally prohibited to use materials in construction that do not have a special hygienic certificate. Such materials include facing slabs made of natural stone, ceramic granite, slag concrete, crushed stone, sand, cement, brick and many others.
Hygienic assessment of products includes:
determination of possible adverse effects of products on human health;
establishing acceptable areas and conditions for use of products;
formation of requirements for the processes of production, storage, transportation, and utilization of products that ensure safety for humans.

The hygiene certificate is issued by the State Sanitary and Epidemiological Surveillance Service.
When purchasing any construction or finishing material, the buyer should inquire whether the seller has a hygienic certificate for the product. Two, at first glance, completely identical rolls of linoleum or wallpaper, made by different manufacturers with minor changes in technology, can differ in the level of toxic substances released by several tens of times. And only competent organizations are able to resolve the issue of their environmental safety.

Biopositivity of materials
Building materials have a great influence on the quality of the immediate living environment. The concept of environmental friendliness of building materials is broader than their environmental friendliness.

Completely environmentally friendly (biopositive) include building materials made from renewable natural resources that do not have a negative effect on humans (and even have a positive effect on human health), do not pollute the natural environment during their production, require minimal energy consumption during the manufacturing process, and are completely recyclable or decompose after performing functions like living materials. Very few natural materials meet all these requirements: wood (and other plant materials - bamboo, reed, straw, etc.), wool, felt, leather, cork, coral sand and stones, natural silk and cotton, natural drying oil, natural rubber, natural adhesives, etc.

Conditionally environmentally friendly building materials can be considered materials obtained from minerals widely present in the earth's crust, or almost completely recycled materials (hence, experiencing a slight loss and, moreover, allowing saving up to 80...90% of energy for their production). These include products made of clay, glass, and aluminum. The remaining materials are not environmentally friendly, although they are used in construction (this includes artificial materials based on plastics, products that require significant energy consumption in their manufacture, etc.).

Eco-friendly materials mean those materials that satisfy the principles of environmental friendliness: they are manufactured using renewable resources, they are self-degradable after performing functions without polluting the environment; Fully recyclable materials made from minerals widely present in the earth’s crust (aluminum, silicon) can be considered partially biopositive. The improvement of materials in the direction of their biopositivity will apparently be carried out both in accordance with modern trends (the use of recycled materials, reducing material consumption, increasing their durability, etc.), and in the direction of more complete use of natural reproducible materials, the creation of new materials with specified properties and biosimilar materials that could be powered by energy.

Factors influencing the environmental safety of a person’s home include the quality of building materials - what the house is made of. The functional purpose of a residential building is to satisfy human housing needs. Depending on the type of material from which the main load-bearing elements of residential buildings are made and their structural design, buildings are grouped into the following groups:

Stone, especially solid, brick walls 2.5-3.5 bricks thick or brick with a reinforced concrete or metal frame, reinforced concrete and concrete floors;
The walls are large-block, the floors are reinforced concrete;
The walls are brick, 1.5-2.5 bricks thick. Floors made of reinforced concrete, concrete or wood;
The walls are large-panel, the floors are reinforced concrete;
Lightweight masonry walls made of brick, monolithic concrete, slag concrete, reinforced concrete or concrete floors;
The walls are large-block or lightweight masonry made of brick, monolithic concrete, cinder concrete, small cinder blocks, shell rock, wooden floors;
The walls and ceilings are mixed, wooden chopped or cobblestones;
Raw materials, prefabricated panels, frame-fill, etc.

It has been established that metals are the least desirable as structural materials; the next group includes concrete, stones with crystalline components, glass, various plastics; clay bricks and soft stones of sedimentary origin are more preferable. The best materials are considered to be of biogenic origin - wood, straw and other plant materials, unfired soil blocks, etc.

Now in urban construction, the most widely used houses are made from a set of reinforced concrete products with brick-monolithic enclosing structures, with “wide steps”, with open-plan apartments and increased comfort, improved heat and sound insulation, fire resistance and architectural and construction solutions that meet modern requirements.

Concrete, one of the oldest building materials, is the most used building material of our time. Research and development by scientists gives reason to believe that concrete and reinforced concrete will not give up their leading positions in the near future.

The building materials market is huge. New materials and technologies are constantly appearing, but often a person, before buying one or another, has no idea about the quality, composition and safety for his health.

Hazardous building materials include:
plywood, particle boards (chipboards), fibreboards (fiberboards) produced using phenol, formaldehyde and urea, decorative sheets and boards made from polymer compositions;
vinyl and other types of self-adhesive wallpaper (synthetic-based films - isoplene, devilon, seynex, baseless polyvinyl chloride decorative films);
continuous carpets made of synthetic fibers with an adhesive composition, linoleums based on polyvinyl chloride, synthetic tiles;
vinyl chloride, epoxy and other synthetic varnishes and paints;
plastic windows.

Wood and its derivatives are the most widespread biopositive building material, which makes it possible to obtain light, durable, fireproof, non-rotting structures (using special processing). During the growth period, a tree is also a natural filter for pollution, releases substances beneficial to humans into the air, enriches the atmosphere with oxygen and the soil with humus, and creates niches for the existence of various animals. The forest used for the production of building materials is completely restored, and the natural environment “does not notice” the removal of a small part of the forest. Modified wood is an excellent and fairly high-strength material that can be reinforced. Walls made of wood “breathe” and provide a favorable microclimate indoors. Therefore, wood can be considered one of the most promising biopositive building materials.

The next most environmentally friendly are building materials and clay products: fired ceramic products (bricks, large-sized hollow stones for walls and ceilings, tiles, tiles, unfired clay bricks mixed with straw and fishing line, etc.) - The least energy-intensive bricks made of dried clay in a mixture with reinforcing straw, they have been used for many centuries in the construction of buildings of different heights in dry climates or with reliable protection from moisture. A quarter of all the world's inhabitants live in houses built from sun-dried clay bricks, and these buildings in countries with dry climates stand for hundreds of years.

The undoubted advantage of this building material is its complete recyclability, and the disassembled material can also be used as a soil additive for growing plants. It is interesting that two- or three-story residential buildings made of dried clay have been successfully used for many centuries in highly developed countries, for example in France. The main problem of ensuring the durability of such buildings is protection from moisture using a reliable roof and waterproofing from groundwater.

Among non-renewable materials, aluminum and glass can be distinguished as almost completely (90%) recyclable materials, and their re-production requires significantly less energy. Reducing energy consumption in the production of biopositive building materials is a very important task, as it allows not only to reduce their cost and reduce energy consumption, but also to pollute the environment less. Thus, the initial production of 1 m3 of aluminum requires a very high energy consumption - 7250 kW. h (for comparison, to produce 1 m3 of cement it takes 1700 kWh, fiberboard - 800, brick - 500, aerated concrete - 450, wood - 180 kWh).

Such a high energy consumption would seem to make aluminum a non-ecological material, however, when re-manufactured from scrap, the energy consumption would be about 600 kW. h, which allows aluminum to be considered an environmentally friendly material. It is necessary to gradually limit the use of building materials from non-renewable resources (cement, steel, concrete, reinforced concrete, plastics, etc.), which also require significant energy costs, are poorly recyclable, do not allow creating a favorable indoor microclimate, and significantly pollute the environment when manufacturing. Whenever choosing a building material, you need to compare options based on the environmental friendliness of the materials and local experience.

The concept of environmental friendliness (biopositivity) of building materials also includes the impossibility of releasing harmful substances during operation: for example, some natural stone materials (granite, syenite, porphyry) have an increased radioactive background; plastics or building materials using them (fibreboards, linoleum, synthetic paints, synthetic tiles for floors and cladding, various synthetic additives in concrete, mortar, synthetic adhesives, synthetic-based insulation, etc.) emit dangerous gases into the indoor air for a long time ; Products containing asbestos, especially those that are susceptible to weathering with the release of asbestos fibers into the air, are considered unacceptable in a number of countries. All this can be very harmful for people in the premises, especially children.

It is impossible to select completely environmentally friendly materials for all building structures and finishes, with the exception of small houses. Therefore, when choosing materials and comparing options, preference is given to more environmentally friendly materials (for example, clay bricks and ceramic products, gypsum-based materials, organic-based linoleum, paper or foam concrete-based insulation, wooden windows and doors, organic paints, etc. ).

Health effects of electric and magnetic fields:
Exposure to fields occurs everywhere: at home, at work, at school, and in electrically powered vehicles. Wherever there are electrical wires, electric motors and electronic equipment, electric and magnetic fields are created.

Many people are exposed to similar higher-level fields, albeit for shorter periods of time, in their homes (through electric radiators, shavers, hair dryers and other household appliances, or stray currents resulting from imbalances in the building's electrical grounding system), at work (in certain industries and offices that require proximity to electrical and electronic equipment) or even while traveling on trains and other forms of electrically powered transport.

The fields cause physiological changes such as slowing of heart rate and electroencephalogram (EEG) readings, as well as a wide variety of symptoms and ailments, mainly related to the skin and nervous system. There may be scattered damage to the facial skin, such as redness, pinkness, roughness, fever, warmth, tingling sensations, dull pain and "tightness". Symptoms related to the nervous system may occur, such as headache, dizziness, fatigue and lightheadedness, tingling and tingling sensations in the extremities, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, profuse sweating, depression and memory problems.

There are two possible mechanisms that may somehow be involved in cancer activation and therefore deserve special attention. One is associated with a magnetic field-induced reduction in nocturnal melatonin levels, and the other is associated with the discovery of magnetite crystals in human tissue.

From studies conducted on animals, it is known that melatonin, through its effect on the level of circulation of sex hormones, has an indirect oncostatic effect. Animal studies have also found that magnetic fields suppress pineal melatonin production. This finding suggests a theoretical mechanism for the reported increase in (for example) breast cancer that may be due to exposure to such fields. Recently, an alternative explanation for the increased risk of cancer has been proposed. Melatonin has been found to be one of the most powerful hydroxyl radical scavengers and therefore the amount of damage that can be caused to RNA by free radicals is markedly reduced by melatonin. If melatonin levels are suppressed, for example by a magnetic field, then the RNA remains more vulnerable to oxidative attack. This theory explains how the inhibition of melatonin by magnetic fields can lead to a higher incidence of cancer in any tissue.

But do melatonin levels in human blood decrease when a person is exposed to weak magnetic fields? There are some indications that this may be the case, but the issue still requires further research. It has been known for some time that the ability of birds to navigate during seasonal migrations is mediated by the presence of magnetite crystals in their cells that react to the Earth's magnetic field. Now, as discussed above, magnetite crystals have also been found in human cells in concentrations theoretically high enough to respond to weak magnetic fields. Thus, the role of magnetic iron ore crystals must be taken into account in all discussions about possible mechanisms that may be proposed to explain the potentially harmful effects of exposure to electric and magnetic fields on the human body.

General tips:
The first thing you should pay attention to is how to avoid the influence of electromagnetic fields. The basic rule here is: protect, switch off and keep your distance!

An experienced professional, such as an electrician or building biologist, can take the measurements. Such specialists can give instructions on whether something needs to be changed or will do it themselves.

Keep your distance!
Electric and magnetic fields are released very quickly from the current source. The distance from the bed to electrical appliances and wires should be approximately 1-1.5 m. Electric fields also emanate from the wall near which the cable is located (even hidden) or the socket, even if no devices are working.
If possible, do not place your head near heat-conducting or water pipes.
TV/computer
Televisions, receivers, video equipment and computers should not be in the bedroom.
Stay away from electrical appliances.
Remove the plug from the socket when the device is not in use.

Lamps
When the current alternating current is very high, huge magnetic fields are created, which can affect people on another floor.
Transformers and dimmers must be completely disconnected from the network when they are not in use. So-called electronic transformers produce a frequency of 40 KHz and it is advisable not to use them at all.
Home electrical appliances
Use as few electrical appliances and cables as possible.
Do not locate the bedroom near wiring risers and protective panels.
There should be no wires running near the wall where the bed is located, and there shouldn’t be any on the other side in the next room.
Discard the extension cord or, if necessary, use the shortest cord possible.
Do not place electrical appliances near a wall if there is a bed on the other side of the same wall.

There is a rule for all electrical appliances: after using them, the plug must be removed from the socket, because... This is the only way to stop the flow of current.

Use only regular telephones with a cable attached. Cordless telephones can generate strong high frequency fields.
Cell phones should not be in the bedroom.

Space planning.
Bedrooms and living rooms should be located as far as possible from the kitchen, laundry and boiler room.
Wiring risers and distribution devices should not be located on the walls of living rooms or bedrooms.

When carrying out electrical installations, take care of grounding.
When running the cable, leave free spaces where you sleep or sit.
Do not place a boiler, washing machine, electric stove or other similar electrical appliances in close proximity to residential premises.

Besides:
Remove heating pads from your bed before going to bed.
If possible, avoid electric floor heating.