Construction and demolition waste (CDW) accounts for at least 30% of the total solid waste produced around the world. At around 924 million tons in the European Union in 2016 and 2.36 billion tons in China in 2018, the amount is expected to increase over the next few years. Dumping these wastes in sanitary landfills has always been the traditional approach to waste management but this will not be feasible in the years to come. To significantly reduce or eliminate the amount of CDW being dumped, circular economy is a possible solution to the increasing amounts of CDW. Circular economy is an economic system based on business models which replaces the end-of-life concept with reducing, reusing, recycling, and recovering materials. This paper discusses circular economy (CE) frameworks—specifically material recovery and production highlighting the reuse and recycling of CDW and reprocessing into new construction applications. Likewise, a literature review into recent studies of reuse and recycling of CDW and its feasibility is also discussed to possibly prove the effectivity of CE in reducing CDW. Findings such as effectivity of recycling CDW into new construction applications and its limitations in effective usage are discussed and research gaps such as reuse of construction materials are also undertaken. CE and recycling were also found to be emerging topics. Observed trends in published articles as well as the use of latent Dirichlet allocation in creating topic models have shown a rising awareness and increasing research in CE which focuses on recycling and reusing CDW.

Bamboo is the building material of the past and future. It offers numerous properties that make it versatile for various applications, including construction. Its impressive strength-to-weight ratio enables it to bear substantial loads and stresses, while its good elasticity allows efficient energy absorption. However, its mechanical properties can vary based on factors such as species, age, locations, methods, and treatment. Treating bamboo is essential to enhance its properties and durability. The literature provides various natural and chemical treatments that enhance some of the properties but also reported drawbacks regarding higher temperature, content, and duration. This paper reviewed 57 articles from the Scopus database, specifically focusing on article–document-type publications from the years 2003 to 2023. Additional references were also incorporated to address concerns in properties, treatment, and standards to provide systematic understanding. With extensive assessment of the articles, the following gaps and concerns were observed, and recommendations for further study and assessment were made: the bamboo’s properties, the development of centralized guidelines and procedures for the preparation and processing; the exploration of alternative materials to reinforce bamboo without compromising its ductility; and the development of joint connections, and testing of mechanical properties considering seismic, wind and vibration. For treatment methods, the standardization of procedures using natural, chemical, or a combination. Lastly, for bamboo codes and standards, the assessment of existing codes and standards for testing the mechanical properties of bamboo, highlighting the potential limitations and areas, uniformity, and differences with all existing similar standards. By filling these gaps, it can support the reliability and robustness of bamboo as a sustainable material, fostering its promotion and adoption in the construction industry.

A building faces several challenges across its lifecycle stages. Challenges such as production inefficiency and inadequate waste management hinder advancement in the construction industry. Furthermore, the sector has emerged as one of the largest producers of waste in the world, which can lead to detrimental impacts on the economy and the environment. Conventional approaches are insufficient to eradicate these concerns. Thus, practitioners have sought to implement novel methods to ameliorate the construction process. In this regard, design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA) and design for deconstruction (DfD) have gained prominence, as studies have elucidated the methods’ unprecedented potential to wholly transform the construction process and mitigate the unwanted impacts brought about by the industry. This study identified the applications and benefits of DfMA and DfD in construction, as well as recent developments and research gaps, through a literature review, using Scopus as the primary database and MATLAB for conducting data text analytics. The current body of knowledge necessitates a further assessment of the following research gaps: (1) development of standard construction-oriented DfMA guidelines; (2) corroboration of the developed DfMA tools through practical application; (3) integration of these holistic design approaches with emerging technologies, such as additive manufacturing and digital fabrication; (4) comparison of structures constructed using DfMA and DfD with structures built with conventional approaches; (5) comprehensive application of DfD guidelines to structural systems; (6) integration of DfMA and DfD; (7) execution of sustainability assessment studies to evaluate the impact of DfMA and DfD; and (8) identification of solutions to the barriers to DfMA and DfD uptake in construction.

One of the major causes of an increase in the consumption of resources is the progress of the construction industry. Although it leads to new technologies, it heavily contributes to global warming. In this study, the use of sustainable construction materials from waste in brick production with mycelium as a binder is investigated. The ability of mycelium, the root fibers of fungi, obtained from microorganisms is used as stabilizing and binding material on bricks. Forty-eight brick specimens from six design mixes were produced with a size of 200 mm length × 90 mm width × 60 mm height. The mechanical tests conducted were compressive and flexural strength. The changes in weight were recorded against its age to monitor the progress of mycelium growth inside the brick specimens. From the test, bricks made from sawdust and rice bran with mycelium had an increase of 31.0% to 38.5% in average compressive strength compared to the non-mycelium bricks, respectively. Furthermore, the bricks with mycelium experienced an increase in both flexural strength and midpoint displacement for all types of bricks (rice bran, sawdust, and clay). These mycelium-induced bricks can reduce the use and consumption of traditional construction materials with enhanced mechanical properties.

The micro-cracks in concrete structures are inevitable due to deterioration throughout their service life through various load combination factors. For that reason, there is a need to repair and maintain the concrete in order to prevent the cracks from propagating, which can decrease the service life of the structure. Using bacteria is one of the possible solutions to repair and heal the cracks. Recent research has shown that, in order to achieve the extended service life of a concrete material, a bio-influenced material, such as bacteria, can be used in order to induce the autonomous self-healing of cracks in concrete. Many researchers are still exploring the potential of bacteria for improving the durability and strength of concrete. However, an inclusive literature review revealed that a self-healing mechanism using bacteria can still be improved. There is an imperative need to conduct a comprehensive review about the recent development of and studies into the self-healing mechanism of concrete, in particular with the behavior of bacteria and its effect on the macro, micro and nanostructure of the concrete matrix. This review article can reveal the potential research gap, predict the emerging research topics and define all existing problems or challenges about the bio-influenced self-healing mechanism in concrete. The latest articles are summarized and analyzed using the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) in Matlab software in order to come up with a possible area of development and future research into bio-concrete. Microencapsulated technology and acoustic emission could be the emerging methods for evaluating the performance of the bacteria and detecting real time cracks inside the concrete matrix in the future. However, there are still existing problems and challenges regarding the adoption of bacteria in the field of construction industry.