Sustainable architecture
Sustainable architecture is
The idea of sustainability, or ecological design, is to ensure that use of currently available resources does not end up having detrimental effects to a future society's well-being or making it impossible to obtain resources for other applications in the long run.[2]
Background
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Shift from narrow to broader approach
The term "sustainability" in relation to architecture has so far been mostly considered through the lens of building technology and its transformations. Going beyond the technical sphere of "
Operational carbon vs Embodied carbon
Global construction accounts for 38% of total global emissions. [4] While sustainable architecture and construction standards have traditionally focused on reducing operational carbon emissions, there are to date few standards or systems in place to track and reduce embodied carbon. [5] While steel and other materials are responsible for large-scale emissions, cement alone is responsible for 8% of all emissions. [6]
Changing pedagogues
Critics of the reductionism of modernism often noted the abandonment of the teaching of architectural history as a causal factor. The fact that a number of the major players in the deviation from modernism were trained at Princeton University's School of Architecture, where recourse to history continued to be a part of design training in the 1940s and 1950s, was significant. The increasing rise of interest in history had a profound impact on architectural education. History courses became more typical and regularized. With the demand for professors knowledgeable in the history of architecture, several PhD programs in schools of architecture arose in order to differentiate themselves from art history PhD programs, where architectural historians had previously trained. In the US,
Sustainable energy use
Energy efficiency over the entire life cycle of a building is the most important goal of sustainable architecture. Architects use many different passive and active techniques to reduce the energy needs of buildings and increase their ability to capture or generate their own energy.[8] To minimize cost and complexity, sustainable architecture prioritizes passive systems to take advantage of building location with incorporated architectural elements, supplementing with renewable energy sources and then fossil fuel resources only as needed.[9] Site analysis can be employed to optimize use of local environmental resources such as daylight and ambient wind for heating and ventilation.
Energy use very often depends on whether the building gets its energy on-grid, or off-grid.[10] Off-grid buildings do not use energy provided by utility services and instead have their own independent energy production. They use on-site electricity storage while on-grid sites feed in excessive electricity back to the grid.
Heating, ventilation and cooling system efficiency
Numerous passive architectural strategies have been developed over time. Examples of such strategies include the arrangement of rooms or the sizing and orientation of windows in a building,[8] and the orientation of facades and streets or the ratio between building heights and street widths for urban planning.[11]
An important and
Significant amounts of energy are flushed out of buildings in the water, air and compost streams. Off the shelf, on-site energy recycling technologies can effectively recapture energy from waste hot water and stale air and transfer that energy into incoming fresh cold water or fresh air. Recapture of energy for uses other than gardening from compost leaving buildings requires centralized anaerobic digesters.
HVAC systems are powered by motors. Copper, versus other metal conductors, helps to improve the electrical energy efficiencies of motors, thereby enhancing the sustainability of electrical building components.
Site and building orientation have some major effects on a building's HVAC efficiency.
Windows are placed to maximize the input of heat-creating light while minimizing the loss of heat through glass, a poor insulator. In the
In colder climates, heating systems are a primary focus for sustainable architecture because they are typically one of the largest single energy drains in buildings.
In warmer climates where cooling is a primary concern, passive solar designs can also be very effective. Masonry
In climates with four seasons, an integrated energy system will increase in efficiency: when the building is well insulated, when it is sited to work with the forces of nature, when heat is recaptured (to be used immediately or stored), when the heat plant relying on fossil fuels or electricity is greater than 100% efficient, and when renewable energy is used.
Renewable energy generation
Solar panels
Roofs are often angled toward the sun to allow photovoltaic panels to collect at maximum efficiency. In the northern hemisphere, a true-south facing orientation maximizes yield for solar panels. If true-south is not possible, solar panels can produce adequate energy if aligned within 30° of south. However, at higher latitudes, winter energy yield will be significantly reduced for non-south orientation.
To maximize efficiency in winter, the collector can be angled above horizontal Latitude +15°. To maximize efficiency in summer, the angle should be Latitude -15°. However, for an annual maximum production, the angle of the panel above horizontal should be equal to its latitude.[14]
Wind turbines
The use of undersized wind turbines in energy production in sustainable structures requires the consideration of many factors. In considering costs, small wind systems are generally more expensive than larger wind turbines relative to the amount of energy they produce. For small wind turbines, maintenance costs can be a deciding factor at sites with marginal wind-harnessing capabilities. At low-wind sites, maintenance can consume much of a small wind turbine's revenue.[15] Wind turbines begin operating when winds reach 8 mph, achieve energy production capacity at speeds of 32-37 mph, and shut off to avoid damage at speeds exceeding 55 mph.[15] The energy potential of a wind turbine is proportional to the square of the length of its blades and to the cube of the speed at which its blades spin. Though wind turbines are available that can supplement power for a single building, because of these factors, the efficiency of the wind turbine depends much upon the wind conditions at the building site. For these reasons, for wind turbines to be at all efficient, they must be installed at locations that are known to receive a constant amount of wind (with average wind speeds of more than 15 mph), rather than locations that receive wind sporadically.[16] A small wind turbine can be installed on a roof. Installation issues then include the strength of the roof, vibration, and the turbulence caused by the roof ledge. Small-scale rooftop wind turbines have been known to be able to generate power from 10% to up to 25% of the electricity required of a regular domestic household dwelling.[17] Turbines for residential scale use are usually between 7 feet (2 m) to 25 feet (8 m) in diameter and produce electricity at a rate of 900 watts to 10,000 watts at their tested wind speed.[18]
The reliability of wind turbine systems is important to the success of a wind energy project. Unanticipated breakdowns can have a significant impact on a project's profitability due to the logistical and practical difficulties of replacing critical components in a wind turbine. Uncertainty with the long-term component reliability has a direct impact on the amount of confidence associated with cost of energy (COE) estimates. [19]
Solar water heating
There are two types of solar water systems: active and passive. An active solar collector system can produce about 80 to 100 gallons of hot water per day. A passive system will have a lower capacity.[21] Active solar water system's efficiency is 35-80% while a passive system is 30-50%, making active solar systems more powerful.[22]
There are also two types of circulation, direct circulation systems and indirect circulation systems. Direct circulation systems loop the domestic water through the panels. They should not be used in climates with temperatures below freezing. Indirect circulation loops glycol or some other fluid through the solar panels and uses a heat exchanger to heat up the domestic water.
The two most common types of collector panels are flat-plate and evacuated-tube. The two work similarly except that evacuated tubes do not convectively lose heat, which greatly improves their efficiency (5%–25% more efficient). With these higher efficiencies, Evacuated-tube solar collectors can also produce higher-temperature space heating, and even higher temperatures for absorption cooling systems.[23]
Electric-resistance water heaters that are common in homes today have an electrical demand around 4500 kW·h/year. With the use of solar collectors, the energy use is cut in half. The up-front cost of installing solar collectors is high, but with the annual energy savings, payback periods are relatively short.[23]
Heat pumps
Air source heat pumps (ASHP) can be thought of as reversible air conditioners. Like an air conditioner, an ASHP can take heat from a relatively cool space (e.g. a house at 70 °F) and dump it into a hot place (e.g. outside at 85 °F). However, unlike an air conditioner, the condenser and evaporator of an ASHP can switch roles and absorb heat from the cool outside air and dump it into a warm house.
Air-source heat pumps are inexpensive relative to other heat pump systems. As the efficiency of air-source heat pumps decline when the outdoor temperature is very cold or very hot; therefore, they are most efficiently used in temperate climates.[23] However, contrary to earlier expectations, they have proven to be also well suited for regions with cold outdoor temperatures, such as Scandinavia or Alaska.[24][25] In Norway, Finland and Sweden, the use of heat pumps has grown strongly over the last two decades: in 2019, there were 15–25 heat pumps per 100 inhabitants in these countries, with ASHP the dominant heat pump technology.[25] Similarly, earlier assumptions that ASHP would only work well in fully insulated buildings have proven wrong—even old, partially insulated buildings can be retrofitted with ASHPs and thereby strongly reduce their energy demand.[26]
Effects of EAHPs (
Ground-source (or geothermal) heat pumps provide an efficient alternative. The difference between the two heat pumps is that the ground-source has one of its heat exchangers placed underground—usually in a horizontal or vertical arrangement. Ground-source takes advantage of the relatively constant, mild temperatures underground, which means their efficiencies can be much greater than that of an air-source heat pump. The in-ground heat exchanger generally needs a considerable amount of area. Designers have placed them in an open area next to the building or underneath a parking lot.
Energy Star ground-source heat pumps can be 40% to 60% more efficient than their air-source counterparts. They are also quieter and can also be applied to other functions like domestic hot water heating.[23]
In terms of initial cost, the ground-source heat pump system costs about twice as much as a standard air-source heat pump to be installed. However, the up-front costs can be more than offset by the decrease in energy costs. The reduction in energy costs is especially apparent in areas with typically hot summers and cold winters.[23]
Other types of heat pumps are water-source and air-earth. If the building is located near a body of water, the pond or lake could be used as a heat source or sink. Air-earth heat pumps circulate the building's air through underground ducts. With higher fan power requirements and inefficient heat transfer, Air-earth heat pumps are generally not practical for major construction.
Passive daytime radiative cooling
A passive daytime radiative cooling roof application can double the energy savings of a white roof,[33] and when applied as a multilayer surface to 10% of a building's roof, it can replace 35% of air conditioning used during the hottest hours of daytime.[34] Daytime radiative cooling applications for indoor space cooling is growing with an estimated "market size of ~$27 billion in 2025."[35]
Sustainable building materials
Some examples of sustainable building materials include recycled
Natural products
The use of natural building materials for their sustainable qualities is a practice seen in vernacular architecture. Regional architectural styles develop over generations, utilizing local materials. This practice reduces transportation and production emissions.[40] Regenerative sources, use of waste material, and the ability to reuse are sustainable qualities of timber, thatching, and stone and clay. Laminated timber products, straw, and stone are low carbon construction materials with major potential for scalability. Timber products can sequester carbon, while stone has a low extraction energy. Straw, including straw-bale construction, sequesters carbon while providing a high level of insulation. High thermal performance of natural materials contribute to regulating interior conditions without the use of modern technologies.[40]
The uses of timber, straw, and stone in sustainable architecture were the subject of a major exhibit at the UK's Design Museum. [41]
Recycled materials
Sustainable architecture often incorporates the use of recycled or second hand materials, such as
Lower volatile organic compounds
Low-impact building materials are used wherever feasible: for example, insulation may be made from low VOC (
Green products are usually considered to contain fewer VOCs and be better for human and environmental health. A case study conducted by the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at the University of Miami that compared three green products and their non-green counterparts found that even though both the green products and the non-green counterparts both emitted levels of VOCs, the amount and intensity of the VOCs emitted from the green products were much safer and comfortable for human exposure.[45]
Lab-grown organic materials
Commonly used building materials such as wood require deforestation that is, without proper care, unsustainable. As of October 2022, researchers at MIT have made developments on lab-grown Zinnia elegans cells growing into specific characteristics under conditions within their control. These characteristics include the “shape, thickness, [and] stiffness,” as well as mechanical properties that can mimic wood.[46] David N. Bengston from the USDA suggests that this alternative would be more efficient than traditional wood harvesting, with future developments potentially saving on transportation energy and conserve forests. However, Bengston notes that this breakthrough would change paradigms and raises new economic and environmental questions, such as timber-dependent communities′ jobs or how conservation would impact wildfires.[47]
Materials sustainability standards
Despite the importance of materials to overall building sustainability, quantifying and evaluating the sustainability of building materials has proven difficult. There is little coherence in the measurement and assessment of materials sustainability attributes, resulting in a landscape today that is littered with hundreds of competing, inconsistent and often imprecise eco-labels,
Sustainable design and plan
Building
Building information modelling
Building information modelling (BIM) is used to help enable sustainable design by allowing architects and engineers to integrate and analyze building performance.[5]. BIM services, including conceptual and topographic modelling, offer a new channel to green building with successive and immediate availability of internally coherent, and trustworthy project information. BIM enables designers to quantify the environmental impacts of systems and materials to support the decisions needed to design sustainable buildings.
Consulting
A sustainable building consultant may be engaged early in the design process, to forecast the sustainability implications of
Norms and standards have been formalized by performance-based rating systems e.g.
As sustainable building consulting is often associated with cost premium, organisations such as Architects Assist aim for equity of access to sustainable and resident design.[51]
Building placement
One central and often ignored aspect of sustainable architecture is building placement.
Water Usage
Sustainable buildings look for ways to conserve water. One strategic water saving design green buildings incorporate are green roofs. Green roofs have rooftop vegetation which captures storm drainage water. This function not only collects the water for further uses but also serves as a good insulator that can aid in the urban heat island effect.[38] Another strategic water efficient design is treating wastewater so it can be reused again.[54]
Urban design
Sustainable urbanism takes actions beyond sustainable architecture, and makes a broader view for sustainability. Typical solutions includes eco-industrial park (EIP), urban agriculture, etc. International program that are being supported includes Sustainable Urban Development Network,[55] supported by UN-HABITAT, and Eco2 Cities,[56] supported by the World Bank.
Concurrently, the recent movements of
Waste management
Waste takes the form of spent or useless materials generated from households and businesses, construction and demolition processes, and manufacturing and agricultural industries. These materials are loosely categorized as municipal solid waste, construction and demolition (C&D) debris, and industrial or agricultural by-products.
See also
- Alternative natural materials
- BREEAM
- BrightBuilt Barn
- Complementary architecture
- Cross-laminated timber (CLT)
- Deconstruction (building)
- Earth embassy
- Earthship
- Ecological design
- Ecological footprint
- Energy-plus-house
- Fab Tree Hab: 100% Ecological Home
- Haute qualité environnementaleFrench standard for green building - HQE
- Land recycling
- Low-energy house
- Organic architecture
- Passive house
- Renewable heat
- Solar architecture
- Solar chimney
- Straw-bale construction
- Superinsulation
- Sustainable city
- Sustainable design
- Sustainable development
- Sustainable flooring
- Sustainable landscape architecture
- Sustainable preservation
- Sustainable refurbishment
- Windcatcher
- World Green Building Council
- Yakhchāl
- Zero-energy building
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Radiative cooling is a renewable technology that is promising to meet this goal. It is a passive cooling strategy that dissipates heat through the atmosphere to the universe. Radiative cooling does not consume external energy but rather harvests coldness from outer space as a new renewable energy source.
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Accordingly, designing and fabricating efficient PDRC with sufficiently high solar reflectance (𝜌¯solar) (λ ~ 0.3–2.5 μm) to minimize solar heat gain and simultaneously strong LWIR thermal emittance (ε¯LWIR) to maximize radiative heat loss is highly desirable. When the incoming radiative heat from the Sun is balanced by the outgoing radiative heat emission, the temperature of the Earth can reach its steady state.
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External links
- World Green Building Council
- Passivhaus Institut German institute for passive buildings