THEMATIC TRENDS OF SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL PAPERS …
Transcript of THEMATIC TRENDS OF SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL PAPERS …
THEMATIC TRENDS OF SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL PAPERS WITHIN NOCMAT 1984-2014 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES
OHAYON Pierre1, a, SHARAFI RAD Ali2b, GHAVAMI Khosrow3c
1Faculdade de Administração e Ciências Contábeis/Universidade Federal do Rio de
Janeiro - FACC/UFRJ, Brazil
2Departamento de Engenharia Industrial/ Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (DEI/PUC-Rio), Brazil
3Departamento de Engenharia Civil/ Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro
(CIV/PUC-Rio), Brazil
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Keywords: NOCMAT, International Conferences, Papers, Trends
ABSTRACT
The last International Conference on Non-Conventional Materials and Technologies held in Brazil
in 2014 has coincided with 30th
anniversary of NOCMAT, after the first one held in Rio de
Janeiro/Brazil in 1984. The series of NOCMAT have proven to be a leading forum where scholars,
governmental and non-governmental agencies, practitioners exchange innovations of low energy
cement technologies, new ecological materials and systems such as bamboo and natural fibers. The
accelerated rhythm in which the results of the research on NOCMAT are applied in practice is not
at a desired speed. This is principally due to the conventional materials and technologies imported
from industrialized countries which are dominating the economy, financial, administrative, and
human resources in developing countries. NOCMAT projects which benefited from an
unconditional enthusiasm by researchers are seen by the community as suspicious not because of
their “few” results but of their “any” results obtained. To show the reliability and durability of the
newly developed materials and technologies, in addition to the results obtained in the laboratories,
large scale constructions should be built and permanently monitored, requiring higher and
continued investments from sponsoring agencies and private organizations. The general objective of
this article is mapping the papers presented within all the thematic areas of NOCMAT Conferences.
Four different data and analysis are presented related to mapping papers: (1) by the participating
authors; (2) by involved Institutions; (3) by participating Countries and Year; and, (4) by NOCMAT
Themes, along 30 years.
1. INTRODUCTION – NOCMAT RESEARCH CONTEXT
The understanding of sustainability in building construction has undergone changes over the years.
First attention of specialists was directed towards the topic of limited resources, especially energy,
and its impact on the natural environment. Now emphasis is placed on technical issues such as
materials, building components, construction technologies and energy-related design concepts as
well as on non-technical issues such as economic and social sustainability.
The pursuit of sustainable development as defined in the Gro Harlem Brundtland Report [1] as
“development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs” has become a major issue when trying to meet the challenge
of providing proper housing for an increasing world population. Recently, Pierre Papon emphasized
the necessity to take time because progress is not so fast as we think and also developments are
becoming heavier [2].
To increase understanding of sustainable materials, also known as Nonconventional Materials and
Technologies (NOCMAT) using organic materials, which are used either alone or as reinforcement
in different types of matrices such as soil, cement and polymers, many research programs have been
carried out all over the globe. In recent years, there has been an increase in research into the use of
natural and non-conventional construction materials, which have suitable physical and mechanical
properties for structural applications, and are desirable as ecological alternatives to more commonly
used industrialized materials.
The study of non-conventional materials and technologies (NOCMAT) for construction began in
the 1970’s. This field of research has continued to grow in the decades since. The increased use of
locally available natural and waste materials in construction can promote environmental
sustainability and aid in the eradication of extreme poverty.
Many of the world’s most poverty-stricken people live in remote locations, typically rich in natural
resources. In many of these areas, the use of steel and reinforced concrete in construction has
become a symbol of economic status. These materials are imported for use when local, natural
materials can also be used to create structures that can successfully meet the intended need at a
lower cost and environmental impact (considering precautions are taken to prevent deforestation or
depletion of other resources).
Organizations like ABMTENC - Brazilian Association of Non-Conventional Materials and
Technologies [3] at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro and the INBAR -
International Network for Bamboo and Rattan strive to achieve sustainable development and
poverty alleviation by promoting the use of these two natural resources Bamboo and Rattan [4].
Since the development of industrialized materials, including steel and concrete, natural materials
have been abandoned for their structural use. While the mechanical properties of natural materials
are less predictable than those of the industrial materials, the natural materials are readily available
in many rural locations and can be used with significantly less processing. The availability of steel
and cement, on the other hand, depend on the presence of factories and an abundant feedstock
supply to create these materials, as well as adequate infrastructure to permit transportation to the
locations for their use.
Now, with energy consumption and sustainability becoming increasingly important issues in the
construction industry, industrialized materials are not always optimal when there are many natural
materials that have excellent structural properties, are renewable, and require minimal energy input
to be construction-ready. Therefore, as the progress of the civil engineering industry relies on the
continued development of different materials in construction, non-conventional materials
(NOCMAT) should be considered in the search for the low-energy structural materials of the future.
2. ABMTENC´S CONTRIBUTIONS TO NOCMAT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES
The Brazilian Association of Non-Conventional Materials and Technologies – ABMTENC was
founded on 29th of March 1996, at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro – PUC-Rio,
by professor Ghavami and the rector of the University, the Vice Rector Jesus Hortal Sanches S.J.,
the previous Rector - Father Laércio Moura S.J., and the deans and scientists, engineers, architects
and many other professionals, who are interested to the study and development of the science of
non-conventional materials and technologies.
Once professionals, organizations and institutions in Brazil have been brought together to share
their common goals of assisting science and developing non-conventional materials and
technologies, ABMTENC intends to develop research and the expand the knowledge of this field,
as well as encouraging communication between scientist and universities, institutions and non-
governmental organizations throughout the inside of country and abroad, also. ABMTENC intent to
share knowledge of these sciences through the publication of books and magazines, as well as
promoting meetings, congresses, conferences, courses and techno-scientific reunions.
ABMTENC’s success depends fundamentally on the interest and participation of its members,
individuals and enterprises that want to share advances in research into non-conventional
technologies and materials in many different fields of application such as: Bamboo, environment,
sanitation, bau-biologie, composites materials with vegetal fibers, earth architecture [3].
3. NOCMAT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES
The former International Conference on Non-Conventional Materials and Technologies (IC-
NOCMAT) has been realized in Pirassununga, State of São Paulo/Brazil in November 2014,
coinciding with the 30th
anniversary of NOCMAT.
This IC-NOCMAT follows previous successful events in João Pessoa/Paraíba-Brazil (2013),
Changsha, Hunan/China (2011), Cairo/ Egypt (2010), Bath/England (2009), Cali/Colombia (2008),
Maceió/Alagoas-Brazil (2007), Salvador/Bahia-Brazil (2006), Rio de Janeiro/RJ-Brazil (2005),
Pirassununga/ São Paulo-Brazil (2004), João Pessoa/Paraíba-Brazil (2003), Hanoi/Vietnam (2002),
Bhubanewar/India (1997) after the first NOCMAT 1984 held in Rio de Janeiro/Brazil.
3.1 Study Objetive and Methodology
The aim of this study is to map and analyze thematic trends of scientific and technical production
within the NOCMAT conferences systematizing 1267 papers published in them. Since its first
edition in 1984 to his last in 2014 are highlighted: (1) the production of published articles and
authorship; (2) the chronology of the thematic areas; (3) the geographical distribution by country;
(4) the institutional origin; (5) axes and thematic trends. The technical themes of knowledge
application considering the thematic areas identified in each NOCMAT conference were pointed
out for trend analysis.
It is included in the field of studies on State of the Art1 [5] that aims to understand the evolution and
trends of scientific and technological knowledge produced on certain topics or areas of expertise.
Articles published in conferences and magazines coming from dissertations, doctoral theses or even
activities of research and development (R&D) are one of the main forms of scientific
communication for knowledge in construction. This field permits to examine national policies,
programs and strategies that aim to foster notably open access (OA) and discuss how OA policies
are monitored and enforced [6]. This knowledge capital oriented to practical applications has been
studied by many intellectuals in order to assess high quality processes concerning research and
1“The term ‘state of the art’ refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific
field achieved at a particular time. It also refers to the level of development (as of a device, procedure, process,
technique, or science) reached at any particular time as a result of the common methodologies employed” [5].
technological development such as accountability, productivity and measurement, absorptive
capacity, intellectual property, among many others [7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12].
4. DATA AND ANALYSIS
In this topic are presented the level of production covering all the 14 NOCMAT conferences
realized in different countries since 1984 to 2014, this one being its last edition. All the data were
extracted from CD-ROMs and Books of abstracts/full papers and made available by ABMTENC
Association.
4.1 Mapping papers by the participating authors
NOCMAT 1984 - the first of the series held in Rio de Janeiro/Brazil, began with a single overall
theme entitled "Low-Cost and Energy Saving construction Materials". Since the second NOCMAT
held in Bhubaneswar/India in 1997 until now, emerged the term "Non-Conventional" in the
Conference’s title.
Table 1, Graphs 1 and 2 present the distribution of all the papers by year (NOCMAT Conference
serie), country of the authors, and number of authors per paper (1 to 11).
Table 1: Number of Papers per Participating Authors
Participating Authors
Year City Country 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Total
papers %
1984 Rio de Janeiro Brazil 31 16 11 4 1 - - - 1 - - 64 5.1%
1997 Bhubaneswar India 8 5 7 3 - 1 - - - - - 24 1.9%
2002 Hanoi Vietnam 8 22 16 10 4 2 1 - - - - 63 5.0%
2003 João Pessoa Brazil 3 13 24 11 6 1 - - 1 - - 59 4.7%
2004 Pirassununga Brazil 3 13 18 13 3 5 2 - - - - 57 4.5%
2005 Rio de Janeiro Brazil 6 21 17 18 6 4 1 - - - - 73 5.8%
2006 Salvador Brazil 5 23 34 7 12 3 2 - - - - 86 6.8%
2007 Maceió Brazil 4 23 18 16 12 4 - 1 - - - 78 6.2%
2008 Cali Colombia 9 35 24 16 19 9 1 - - - - 113 8.9%
2009 Bath UK 19 30 23 27 13 6 - - - - - 118 9.3%
2010 Cairo Egipt 16 26 34 23 14 5 - 1 - - - 119 9.4%
2011 Hunan China 6 28 44 39 13 6 2 1 - - - 139 11.0%
2013 João Pessoa Brazil 18 27 43 20 10 13 4 3 - - - 138 10.9%
2014 Pirassununga Brazil 2 30 33 26 18 18 6 1 1 - 1 136 10.7%
138 312 346 233 131 77 19 7 3 - 1 1267 100%
Graph 1: Number of Papers per Participating Authors Graph 2: Number of Papers per Year
The data collected totalize 1267 papers for all the NOCMAT Conferences serie. Graph 1 shows that
52% of the papers (658 papers) are published by 2 or 3 authors and, 89% of the papers (1129
papers) are published by more than one author. Graph 2 indicates a significant growth of the
number of papers presented from 1984 to 2014.
4.2 Mapping papers by the involved centers of NOCMAT knowledge (Institutions)
Tables 2 and Graph 3 present the distribution of all the papers by involved Institution in all
NOCMAT Conferences serie from 1984 to 2014.
Table 2: Number of Papers per Institutions
Institutions
Year City Location 1 2 3 4 5 6 Total p.
1984 Rio de Janeiro Brazil 49 11 3 1 - - 64
1997 Bhubaneswar India 17 7 - - - - 24
2002 Hanoi Vietnam 41 17 5 - - - 63
2003 João Pessoa/ Paraíba Brazil 36 18 2 2 1 - 59
2004 Pirassununga/ Brasil Brazil 36 20 1 - - - 57
2005 Rio de Janeiro/ Brasil Brazil 46 21 4 1 1 - 73
2006 Salvador/ Brasil Brazil 62 21 2 - 1 - 86
2007 Maceió Brazil 46 26 5 - 1 - 78
2008 Cali Colombia 61 43 8 1 - - 113
2009 Bath UK 64 38 14 2 - - 118
2010 Cairo Egito 70 28 20 1 - - 119
2011 Hunan Changsha China 88 40 10 1 - - 139
2013 João Pessoa Brazil 84 33 16 5 - - 138
2014 Pirassununga Brazil 78 39 12 6 - 1 136
Total papers
778 362 102 20 4 1 1267
Percentage
61.4% 28.6% 8.1% 1.6% 0.3% 0.1% 100.0%
Graph 3: Number of Papers per Participating Institutions
The data from Table 2 and Graph 3 show that about 37% of the papers (464 papers among a total of
1267) are published by 2 and 3 institutions and about 39% of the papers (489 papers) are published
by more than one institution in all NOCMAT Conferences serie. The level of multiple authorship
increased indicating a greater integration of human resources and institutions.
Table 3 and Graph 4 show the number of Institutions which participated in all NOCMAT
Conferences serie.
Table 3: Number of Institutions per Year and Higher Number of Papers Presented by an Institution
Year Institution Institution with highest no of papers Country n
o
1984 67 LEHIGH Lehigh University USA 4
1997 21 PUC-Rio Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro Brazil 5
2002 55 Hanyang Hanyang University Korea 6
2003 46 PUC-Rio Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro Brazil 9
2004 38 USP Universidade de São Paulo Brazil 8
2005 57 CEFET Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica Brazil 9
2006 53 UFPB Universidade Federal da Paraíba Brazil 14
2007 54 UFAL Universidade Federal de Alagoas Brazil 8
2008 81 UNIVALLE Universidad del Valle Colombia 16
2009 122 BATH University of Bath UK 19
2010 69 HBRC Housing and Building National Center Egypt 16
2011 87 HNU Hunan University China 17
2013 116 UFPB Universidade Federal da Paraíba Brazil 14
2014 92 USP Universidade de São Paulo Brazil 22
Graph 4: Number of Institutions per Year
Table 3 shows that the number of institutions participating in NOCMAT Conferences serie
increased, in a very significant growth, from 21, its lowest level (in 1997/India) to 122, its highest
level (in 2009/UK).
Graph 4 shows an increasing number of institutions participating to the NOCMAT Conferences
from 1984 to 2014. Table 3 shows that the highest number of papers by institutions is increasing
from 1984 (4 papers from LEHIGH) to 2014 (22 papers from USP). In average 4.5 institutions are
added in each next NOCMAT Conferences serie.
The data collected reveals that 566 Institutions have participated in all NOCMAT Conferences
serie. In average, 40 Institutions have participated in all of them.
Table 4: Number of Institutions Participating in all NOCMAT Conferences Serie by each Country
Item Countries No of Countries
No of
Institutions %
1 Brazil 1 128 22.6%
2 UK 1 53 9.3%
3 China 1 46 8.1%
4 USA 1 39 6.9%
5 Colombia 1 31 5.5%
6 India 1 26 4.6%
7 Mexico 1 19 3.4%
8 Argentina 1 17 3.0%
9 Egypt 1 16 2.8%
10 Japan 1 15 2.6%
11 France 1 13 2.3%
12 Spain 1 12 2.1%
13 Algeria, Canada 2 10 3.5%
14 Australia, Iran, Italy 3 9 4.8%
15 Portugal 1 8 1.4%
16 Germany 1 7 1.2%
17 Korea, Romania 2 6 2.1%
18 Cuba, New Zealand, Nigeria, Peru, Poland, Thailand, Vietnam 7 4 4.9%
19 Ghana, Libya, Malaysia, South Africa, Venezuela 5 3 2.6%
20 Belgium, Chile, Ecuador, Greece, Nepal, Pakistan, Sweden, The Netherlands 8 2 2.8%
21 Bolivia, Botswana, Chili, Cypre, Denmark, Jordan, Kuwait, Mozambique,
Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, Singapore, Switzerland,
Taiwan, Tanzania, Turkey, UN
19 1 3.4%
Total 60 567* 100%
* One of the institutions (INBAR) is an international institution located in two countries (China and also Nepal). For
this reason in this Table the number of institutions is 567 and not 566.
Table 4 shows that among all institutions that participated in all the NOCMAT Conferences serie,
Brazil is in first position with 128 participating institutions. One of its important impact is the
increasing number of call for R&D projects sponsored by the Brazilian Ministry of Science,
Technology and Innovation [13].
4.3 Mapping papers within NOCMAT Conferences by participating Countries and Year
Table 5, Table 6, Graphs 5 and 6 present the distribution of all the papers by participating country
and year of NOCMAT Conferences serie.
The data from Table 5 show that 130 papers are published by authors from 2 countries and 148
papers among 1267 are published by more than one country in all NOCMAT Conferences serie.
602 countries have participated in all NOCMAT Conferences serie.
2 (1) Algeria, (2) Argentina, (3) Australia, (4) Belgium, (5) Bolivia, (6) Botswana, (7) Brazil, (8) Canada, (9) Chile, (10)
Chili, (11) China, (12) Colombia, (13) Cuba, (14) Cypre, (15) Denmark, (16) Ecuador, (17) Egypt, (18) France, (19)
Germany, (20) Ghana, (21) Greece, (22) India, (23) Iran, (24) Italy, (25) Japan, (26) Jordan, (27) Korea, (28) Kuwait,
(29) Libya, (30) Malaysia, (31) Mexico, (32) Mozambique, (33) Nepal, (34) New Zealand, (35) Nigeria, (36) Pakistan,
(37) Paraguay, (38) Peru, (39) Philippines, (40) Poland, (41) Portugal, (42) Qatar, (43) Romania, (44) Russia, (45)
Senegal, (46) Singapore, (47) South Africa, (48) Spain, (49) Sweden, (50) Switzerland, (51) Taiwan, (52) Tanzania,
(53) Thailand, (54) The Netherlands, (55) Turkey, (56) UK, (57) UN, (58) USA, (59) Venezuela, (60) Vietnam.
Graph 5 shows significant growth of the number of papers engaging authors of two countries. For
NOCMAT Conferences held in Brazil and India, respectively in 1984 and 1997, just 3 papers were
presented by authors from 2 countries. In 2014, the number increased to 16. Researchers of different
countries are being involved in common projects and engaging resources from multiple sponsor
agencies, increasing engagements at the international level.
Table 6 (which indicates more specifically the location of each NOCMAT Conference) and Graph 6
show that NOCMAT Conference 2009 held in United Kingdom (University of Bath) integrated 30
countries, the highest registrated in all NOCMAT Conferences serie. In average, 17 countries have
participated in all NOCMAT Conferences serie.
Table 5: Number of Papers per Participating Countries
Participating Countries
Year City Location 1 2 3
Total
papers %
1984 Rio de Janeiro Brazil 61 3 - 64 5.1%
1997 Bhubaneswar India 21 3 - 24 1.9%
2002 Hanoi Vietnam 54 7 2 63 5.0%
2003 João Pessoa Brazil 52 6 1 59 4.7%
2004 Pirassununga Brazil 52 5 - 57 4.5%
2005 Rio de Janeiro Brazil 66 6 1 73 5.8%
2006 Salvador Brazil 81 5 - 86 6.8%
2007 Maceió Brazil 64 12 2 78 6.2%
2008 Cali Colombia 96 12 5 113 8.9%
2009 Bath UK 101 15 2 118 9.3%
2010 Cairo Egypt 104 14 1 119 9.4%
2011 Hunan Changsha China 126 12 1 139 11.0%
2013 João Pessoa Brazil 123 14 1 138 10.9%
2014 Pirassununga Brazil 118 16 2 136 10.7%
Total papers 1119 130 18 1267 100.0%
Graph 5: Number of Papers for two Participating Countries per Year
Table 6: Number of Countries per Year
Year Location City Number of Countries
1984 Brazil Rio de Janerio 17
1997 India Bhubaneswar 9
2002 Vietnam Hanoi 21
2003 Brazil João Pessoa 17
2004 Brazil Pirassununga 11
2005 Brazil Rio de Janeiro 17
2006 Brazil Salvador 12
2007 Brazil Maceió 16
2008 Colombia Cali 17
2009 UK Bath 30
2010 Egypt Cairo 15
2011 China Hunan Changsha 16
2013 Brazil João Pessoa 27
2014 Brazil Pirassununga 19
Graph 6: Number of Countries per Year
4.4 Mapping papers within NOCMAT Conferences by Themes
Tables 7, 8, 9 and 10, Graphs 7, 8 and 9 present the distribution of all the papers included in
different Themes.
Table 7 shows the number of papers presented by each NOCMAT Conference and by different
themes. It can be observed in this Table that NOCMAT Conferences of 1997, 2003, 2004, 2005 and
2006 were not included. The reason is that the proceedings of these one didn´t associated papers to
themes.
Table 8 shows the number of Themes increased from 1 (in 1984/Rio de Janeiro-Brazil) to 14 (in
2014/Cairo-Egypt) and average is 7 Themes for all NOCMAT Conferences serie. It is observed that
the numbers of knowledge areas are increasing and being included in new Themes along the
NOCMATs.
Regarding the number of papers presented in each Theme, Tables 7 and 9 show those being most
focused by the authors in each NOCMATs. For instance “Inorganic Matrix Composites” with 44
papers is the most focused Theme in NOCMAT Conference 2008/Cali-Colombia.
Table 7: Themes per NOCMAT Conferences Serie
Themes List No of Papers
1984 64
Low Cost and Energy Saving Construction Materials
64
2002 63
Bamboo, Soil and Waste Materials 30
Concrete and Composite Materials 33
2007 78
Bamboo as construction material 10
Composites materials 21
Durability aspects of non-conventional materials
3
Environmentally friendly, energy efficient construction
3
Non-conventional materials and technologies management
2
Other topics of interest 3
Technology applied for low costing houses 7
Vegetable fibers and soil construction 7
Waste materials in building construction 22
2008 113
Bamboo, Guadua and Others 14
Inorganic Matrix Composites 44
Organic Matrix Composites 15
Residues and Subproducts Valorization 8
Sustainable Technologies 16
Techniques and Characterization 16
2009 118
Bamboo 8
Case studies 18
Cement, lime and concrete materials 20
Earth building 21
Innovative masonry 11
Natural fibres and fibre composites 11
Recycled materials 6
Straw bale 7
Timber 16
2010 119
Advances in research methodologies and materials testing
15
Applications in improving building safety through materials and constructional development
7
Construction materials and technologies to deliver affordable housing
13
Construction materials and technologies to reduce climate change
2
Durability and performance of construction materials
12
Environmentally friendly, energy efficient construction
16
Infrastructures systems and materials 6
Innovations in development of low carbon 8
materials and technologies
Life cycle assessment of materials 3
Low cost housing concepts, prototypes and applications
5
Miscellaneous 1
Recycling of industrial, agricultural and urban waste stream materials
21
Seismic engineering resistance, flood mitigation and disaster prevention
5
Standards and guidelines 5
2011 139
Bamboo materials 17
Bamboo structures 19
Case study of non-conventional buildings 7
Cements and concretes 16
Low carbon, energy saving design and practice
39
Natural fibers and materials 8
Non conventional mortars, renders and earth building
4
Recycled materials 21
Timber and masonry 8
2013 138
Advances in research methodologies and material testing
8
Bamboo and wood 22
Cement, mortar and concrete 31
Construction materials and technologies to deliver affordable housing and low energy
15
Earthen Materials and Constructions 19
Life-cycle assessment of materials and durability
3
Natural fibers and materials 20
Recycling of industrial, agricultural, and urban waste stream materials
13
Standards, guidelines and policy issues 7
2014 136
Advances in research methodologies and material testing
15
Applications in improving welfare and comfort
8
Construction materials and technologies for sustainability, energy, efficiency, affordable housing
16
Durability, life cycles and performance of building materials
9
Earth architecture and construction 11
Natural fibers and plant-based materials (bamboo, straw, plant fiber)
22
Non conventional and innovating research and technology
16
Non-conventional structures 6
Recycling of industrial materials, agricultural and urban waste
33
Table 8: Number of Themes per Year
Year 1984 2002 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013 2014
No of themes 1 2 9 6 9 14 9 9 9
Table 9: Themes with most focused in each NOCMAT Conference
Year Theme
1984 Low Cost and Energy Saving Construction Materials
2002 Concrete and Composite Materials
2007 Waste materials in building construction
2008 Inorganic Matrix Composites
2009 Earth building
2010 Recycling of industrial, agricultural and urban waste stream materials
2011 Low carbon, energy saving design and practice
2013 Cement, mortar and concrete
2014 Recycling of industrial materials, agricultural and urban waste
Table 10: Number of Papers per Main and Sub-Groups of Themes
Main and Sub-groups No of Papers
Bamboo and Natural fibers 188
Bamboo 120
Natural fibers 61
Vegetable fibers 7
Cement, Composite and Concrete Materials 180
Cement, Composite and Concrete Materials 180
Construction Material 321
Building 30
Climate 2
Earth 51
Housing 159
Masonry 11
Straw bale 7
Technologies 16
Timber 24
Durability 21
Energy 19
Energy 19
General 51
Case Study 18
Miscellaneous 4
Residues 8
Seismic 5
Technologies 16
Material and Testing 58
Infrastructures 6
Life cycle 6
Low carbon material 8
Testing 38
Non-conventional materials 38
Building 4
Case Study 7
Technology 16
Structures 6
Durability 3
Management 2
Recycling 94
Recycling 94
Safety 7
Safety 7
Standards 12
Standards 12
Grand Total 968
Table 10 and Graphs 7, 8 and 9 were created by the authors of this paper. Data collected were
categorized in Main and Sub-groups of Themes.
Table 10 and Graph 7 show a strong presence of papers related to the Sub-themes “Construction
Materials” with 321 papers, “Bamboo and Natural Fibers” with 188 papers, and “Cement,
Composite and Concrete Materials” with 180 papers among a total of 968 papers.
Graph 7: Number of Papers per Main Group of Themes
Graph 8: Number of Papers for 3 main groups per NOCMAT Conferences Serie
Graph 8 presents the concentration of papers in the 3 main groups of Themes by NOCMAT
Conference serie. For “Construction Material” Theme, the highest number of papers has been
presented in 1984/Brazil (64 papers). For “Bamboo and Natural Fibers” Theme, the highest number
of papers has been presented in 2011/China (44 papers). For “Cement, Composite and Concrete
Materials” Theme, the highest number of papers has been presented in 2008/Colombia (59 papers).
Graph 9: Number of Papers per Sub-groups of Themes
Graph 9 presents all the the papers in each Sub-groups of Themes. Among 28 sub-groups of
Themes, the five more expressive cover 506 papers (ie, 52% of a total of 968 papers). Sub-group
“Management” presents one of the lowest numbers of papers.
FINAL REMARKS
This study mapped 1267 papers along 30 years and 14 NOCMAT Conferences showing regularity
with increasing production in a wide range of NOCMAT sub-groups of Themes. This varied
interest is of great importance, because since the 1st NOCMAT Conference in 1984, they become a
core subject in scientific and technological policies aiming at a more environmentally friendly and
sustainable construction, and also allowing a new "NOCMAT culture" within an increasing number
of countries and public and private institutions notably of education and research. Universities are
creating multidisciplinary courses integrating Engineering with Management, Economy, Biology,
Agriculture Sciences among others traditional knowledge areas. R&D projects integrate more and
more researchers specialized in theses areas.
These transformations sponsored especially by research funding agencies with increasing grants and
scholarships for NOCMAT Themes in civil engineering, led to a greater appreciation of studies and
research results presented in different editions of these NOCMAT Conferences. Thus, guidelines for
studies that integrate different areas of knowledge, such as nanotechnology for civil engineering,
with significant implications for academic backgrounds to be created, gain increased importance.
In turn, thematic application areas identified in this study, negligible as compared to others, permit
to identify thematic gaps that require more attention from now on, notably a greater and deep sense
of accountability.
For the future NOCMAT Conferences some improvements are suggested. Among existing data
structure, it is recommended a database and integrated information system mainly on authors,
academic level and area, countries and institutions, and themes. The database related to each
submitted paper should consider one or more different defined themes. It also should be considered
a defined application area regarding the papers content by the Organizer Committee for each
submitted paper into the database.
Suggestions for future studies in the field of studies on State of Art should map and analyze authors’
network regarding the institutions and countries, and also, themes centrality and closeness. This
mapping should be continued to recognize the new themes and areas trends, their increasing or
stagnation.
A Science and Technology Observatory for “NOCMAT” not yet existing should be created. This
one should have the function of "observing", "tracking", "anticipating" and "monitoring" the
development of knowledge areas with a "keen" eye on critical issues, notably those presented in
NOCMAT Conferences [14]. As a central issue for a transition to create the NOCMAT
Observatory, institutions concerned with these materials and technologies should be initially
involved. Their role and success for the creation of a pertinent NOCMAT Observatory depends
fundamentally on the interest and participation of its members, individuals and enterprises, and
more specifically, in an initial step, the IC-NOCMAT (International Committee). This paper shows
that 566 institutions engaged, 60 countries involved in NOCMAT Conferences serie along 30 years
of experience justify such an integrative initiative.
Finally, for this engagement new fundamental values for NOCMAT Conferences serie should be
considered, those presented by ABMTENC: “The rapidly changing world is facing many threats
and serious challenges. The glory of modern industrialization has been in doubt with ample facts of
environmental deterioration problems. Yet, Development and survival are still the central issues
facing a great portion of mankind. The world needs new role models of development and
industrialization that are characterized by environmentally friendliness and sustainability.
Construction industry is in the forefront facing today's challenges. Providing durable, efficient and
effective infrastructure system, affordable housing, clean water, energy, communication and
sanitation is fundamental to economic prosperity, social justice, political stability and quality of
Life”.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank ABMTENC Association which made available all the NOCMAT
Conferences data and the 16th
Nonconventional Building Materials and Technology International
Conference 2015 “Construction for Sustainability – Green Materials & Technologies”, August 10-
13, 2015, Winnipeg, Canada organizers for their valuable effort and proceedings for the
discussions, which form the basis of the meeting. Also, financial support given by FAPERJ and
FACC/UFRJ are appreciated.
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