Architectural heritage, building materials and interior space are highly susceptible to temperature and relative humidity. A better knowledge of the hygrothermal dynamics inside buildings allows an adequate conservation of heritage. This work compares three non-destructive techniques (NDT), such as temperature and relative humidity sensors, finite element simulations (CFD) and thermographic pictures (IRT). The work has made it possible to carry out an assessment of the risk of condensation over a year and to identify affected periods and areas of the building. Sensors and IRT pictures provide real data to validate CFD simulations, facilitating a global analysis of the building. The results provided reflect a great concordance between the NDTs used.

The use of green roofs entails environmental, economic and social benefits as sustainable tools of architecture. They present proven benefits in the path towards carbon neutrality and the reduction of the consumption of energy resources, especially in the field of renovation and improvement of the thermal envelope. In Spain, the current climate crisis also implies a problem of water stress, so it is necessary to analyse in more detail the behaviour of self-sustaining green roofs in the different climatic and rainfall zones into which the territory is divided. Evapotranspiration is the main mechanism of heat dissipation in green roofs, but in this study, it is observed that in the case of self-sustaining roofs with limited water content, the greatest losses through evapotranspiration occur in climates with high temperatures and solar radiation, above cities with higher rainfall and colder climates. On the contrary, the greatest energy savings are obtained in this type of cold climate. Evapotranspiration in self-sustaining roofs is not the most determining factor for achieving energy savings. The design of the roof, the geometry and orientation of the building, as well as the cooling energy consumption, play a more determining role.

This research defines diagnosis criteria in RC one-way slabs with severe corrosion at the lower prestressed reinforcement of the joists and proposes specific actuation criteria and constructive recommendations to increase safety. The corrosion of this reinforcement is the most common damage in building structures, and the use of aluminous cement in the precast joists can aggravate the corrosion. The usual cases of entire residential buildings with different degrees of damage and with a few or all joists affected in a slab have been simulated. American Concrete Institute load test for existing structures is used as an acceptance criterion in the simulations, and a ratio between the ultimate load and the service load is defined as a valuation coefficient. In this way, the residual safety for a damaged structure is known. Results are in accordance with extensive experience in real intervention cases, which often still have high safety reserves.

Despite the great progress made in the last few years in the manufacturing of ceramic bricks and their fitting technology, brick façades still suffer from a series of critical problems and in some cases the number of pathologies have even increased. The most common and critical problem of brick façade enclosures is the detachment of pieces from the die, thus the loss of union. This detachment can be associated with three different causes: an inadequate prescription of the griping material, the absence of control joints to make the enclosure compatible, and the incidence of sun and rain on the façades. While the first two factors are directly related to the design process, the fitting techniques, training of the work force, and quality control efficiency, the third factor is related to environmental factors that generate a different microclimate in each façade depending on its orientation. This paper describes some examples of detachments in brick façade enclosures and the main causes that originated from ...