Cross Laminated Timber: A Sustainable Option in the World of Construction
Open Access
Author:
Searles, Laura Kathryn Winifred
Area of Honors:
Civil Engineering
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Ali M Memari, Thesis Supervisor Eric Todd Donnell, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
wood sustainable American Wood Council environmental impacts of wood cross laminated timber clt nlt glulam glued laminated timber wood vs concrete wood vs steel Laura Searles Stadthaus Crossroads Earth Sciences Building forte renewable wood in construction high-rise high-rise timber seismic performance of CLT fire codes seismic loads economics of clt mass timber timber engineered timber carbon sequestration FEMA P695 ASCE
Abstract:
The construction industry uses many energy-intensive, non-sustainable products like concrete and steel to construct high-rise buildings. While there are three main types of timber that can be used in modern construction, there is only one type that can be used to build high-rise buildings comparably to steel and concrete because of its high axial load and high dimensional stability. That type is cross laminated timber (CLT). There are many advantages to CLT because it is a sustainable material that requires less manual labor and time. However, it is not well known yet in the construction world and has some design drawbacks as well. Recent developments with seismic analyses by the American Wood Council, Jeena Jayamon, and Dr. Finley Charney led to a study done over the summer of 2016 in which CLT was compared to other wood-based designs. With more testing and reliably designed buildings, this sustainable, efficient material could be one of the forerunners in construction in years to come.
