Author Archives: admin
Double-skin façade exhaustive simulation throughout combined thermal and daylight modelling. Application to optimal control
To optimize the comfort (visual and thermal) and energy savings, the topics related to solar protection are getting more and more important. Indeed it is necessary to use the maximum of the sun in winter (avoiding the glare) and to minimize transmitted … Continue reading
High Density, Low Energy: Achieving useful solar access for Dublin’s Multi-storey Apartment Developments
Solar energy has quantitative and qualitative benefits in the city, from reducing energy consumption to improving both indoor and outdoor amenity. However, gaining access to solar energy becomes increasingly difficult in high density developments, where orientation may not be optimal and … Continue reading
Public “Living Room” Outdoor Comfort in Hot and Humid Climate
The proposed open space “living-room” is conceived as an extension of a private living space. As one of Asia’s most dense and developed cities, Hong Kong’s high-rise urban dwellings place constraints on activity within the home thus bringing a new … Continue reading
Life Cycle Inventory of Extremely Low Energy Dwellings
A global methodology is developed to optimize concepts for extremely low energy dwellings, taking into account energy use, environmental impact, and financial costs over the life cycle of the buildings. Energy simulations are executed with TRNSYS. The ecological impact is … Continue reading
Sorption Behaviour of Lime-Hemp Concrete and its Relation to Indoor Comfort and Energy Demand
Recent investigations on heat and mass flows through building materials in dynamical conditions show the importance of considering moisture transport and storage when analyzing the global performance of the building envelope. Lime-Hemp Concrete (LHC) is an insulation material made out … Continue reading
Air Ventilation Assessment System for High Density Planning and Design
In 2003, Hong Kong was hit by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) from which many people died. The Hong Kong Government subsequently set up a Team Clean Committee to investigate possible infectious disease prevention measures and policies. One of the … Continue reading
Integration and Formal Development of Solar Thermal Collectors
The paper presents selected results of an investigation over possible ways to improve Building Integrated Solar Thermal systems (BIST) on the formal level. It shows the results of a European survey intended to help defining quality in the architectural integration … Continue reading
Shadum Evaporatis, An Autonomous and Eco-friendly Tree
The urban microclimatic conditions in the Mediterranean can become very harsh during the summer because of the intense solar radiation and the elevated air temperatures. Athens, Greece is characterised by very hot days, with temperatures, which may reach up to … Continue reading
Transforming a low value coastal area into a high value natural and recreational area
The coastal zone in the Netherlands takes a very peculiar place in the discussion about sustainability in the Netherlands. Large areas are left unused and they remain low cost value areas due to the lack of progressive decision-making. These areas … Continue reading
Theory and Practice of Natural Ventilation in a Theatre
We report on a detailed monitoring exercise and an analogue experimental study of a naturally ventilated theatre in operation in the UK which can take audiences up to 300 people. The theatre has a raked seating area, and two outflow … Continue reading