Rainwater Harvest with Desert-Sand Bricks: An Adaptive Water Resources Management Strategy for Climate Change

Urbanization causes many changes to the hydrological cycle, affecting radiation flux, precipitation amount, water evaporation and evapotranspiration, and soil infiltration. This study presents an adaptive strategy to efficiently use rainwater and promote sustainable urban development: using desert sand to construct a permeable brick with intensive compressive strength, high water permeability, and low fabrication costs. Two water-permeable holes are included in the brick to allow rainwater infiltration and maintenance of the permeable pavement. Experimental results show that the mean compressive strength of the desert-sand bricks is 69.6 MPa (2.3 times the strength required by the industry standard JC/T 945–2005) and the maximum compressive strength is 102.8 MPa (3.4 times the industry standard). The fabrication cost of the water-permeable brick designed by the authors is only 12 US dollars/m2, a lower cost than the existing sand-based permeable bricks on the market. This kind of permeable brick may render substantial economic benefits and ecological improvements. The results of this study are used to present an adaptive management approach to climate change that highlights innovation, cost-efficiency, and sustainability.