Influence of Adaptive Comfort Models in Execution Cost Improvements for Housing Thermal Environment in Concepción, Chile

Most of the operational energy needed by the housing sector is used to compensate energy losses or thermal gains through the building’s envelope. As a result, any improvement in the thermal behavior will provide important opportunities to reduce energy consumption. This research analyzes improvements in the thermal envelope in social housing in the Greater Concepción area in Chile using adaptive thermal comfort models and thermal insulation investments. The objective set out is to evaluate the economic reduction of thermal envelope improvement costs for dwellings, which entails using the adaptive thermal comfort model obtained through monitoring and the surveys applied to the users of social housing in Concepción (CAS), against the international adaptive thermal comfort models established by the EN 15251:2007 and ASHRAE 55-2017 standards. Finally, it is concluded that, on having applied the social housing adaptive thermal comfort model (CAS), execution costs are reduced by between 28.8% and 58.2%, reaching a time of comfort in free oscillation similar to that obtained from applying the models of the EN 15251:2007 (74.2%) and ASHRAE 55-2017 standards (59.9%)CONICYT FONDECYT 3160806VI PPIT-U

Rutting prediction of a granular material for base layers of low-traffic roads

[Abstract:] This paper analyses the permanent deformation performance of an unbound granular material for base layers of low-traffic roads. The material has been subjected to repeated triaxial loads. The shakedown theory was used to classify the structural response of the unbound granular material to the applications of load cycles. Three models were fitted to express the cumulative permanent strain as a function of the number of load cycles. In general, the predictions of two models previously studied by other researchers proved to be good but in the long-term, they tended to underestimate the measured values. In contrast, a third new model – the sum of two well known models – offered excellent predictions, which in the long-term did not tend to either underestimate or overestimate the measured values

Are Socially Responsible Behaviors Paid Off Equally? A Cross‐cultural Analysis

Based on the strong influence that national culture has on corporate social and responsibility (CSR) actions (institutional theory), it is necessary to study how the financial outcomes of CSR actions could be affected by these cultural characteristics. This fact is particularly interesting for managers whose companies operate in different cultures given that they have to deal with this aspect. The aim of this paper is to analyze the moderator role that national culture could have on the CSR and firm performance (CSR‐FP) relationship through a meta‐analysis, hence helping to clarify the debate existing about this relationship in the literature. The results show that this relationship is greatly affected by national culture. In this sense, countries with a high assertiveness and gender egalitarianism show a very negative relationship. Nevertheless, those with a higher future orientation, institutional collectivism, and a humane orientation reveal a positive correlation which reaches its maximum value in those countries with a high uncertainty avoidance

Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance: A Cross-Cultural Analysis

Based on the geographic limitations of previous meta-analysis made about Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Financial Performance (FP) and on the evidence found in previous work on the country's influence in this relationship, the aim of this paper is to analyze the relationship between these two variables studying the possible moderating effect that the country variable may have on it. By the use of the cultural dimensions of GLOBE (2004), we classify the countries, and test the hypothesis through the statistical technique of meta-analysis. The results show that the country where the companies are home-based moderates the relationship between CSR and FP. In particular from the results, we can conclude that while in Australia, Canada, USA and the United Kingdom the relationship is stronger and larger, in some countries, such as Japan, there is no relationship

The impact of the economic crisis on the environmental responsibility of the companies

The severe economic crisis is affecting significantly to the environment in which companies have to continue with their business. Consequently, academicians and managers are worried about what is going to happen with the Social Responsibility and particularly with the Environmental Responsibility, due to the decrease in the financial performance of the companies. The aim of this paper is to study the effect of the crisis on the environmental behavior of the Spanish companies through an explicative study, deepening in the comparison between the years 2006 and 2010. As a result, Spanish companies continue carrying out behaving in an environmentally friendly way because their Environmental Scores are growing, despite the decline of the Financial Performance. Moreover, it is identified a change in the factors that affect to the environmental behavior due to the identification of less dependence on corporate financial performance

Mezclas asfálticas dosificadas con RCD para carreteras de bajo tráfico

[Resumen:] En este artículo se estudia la viabilidad técnica de utilizar áridos procedentes de residuos de construcción y demolición en mezclas asfálticas en caliente. Se eligió una mezcla gruesa con diferentes porcentajes de áridos reciclados. Los parámetros Marshall cumplen lo estipulado en el PG-3 para tráficos T3. Las mezclas asfálticas en caliente fabricadas con diferentes porcentajes de áridos reciclados tienen una mala adhesividad. Con áridos calizos se obtiene una mejor adhesividad. La adhesividad mejora notablemente al eliminar el mortero de cemento adherido a los áridos reciclados

Construction and demolition debris in hot mix asphalt

This work evaluates the resistance to fatigue cracking of hot asphalt mixtures made with aggregates from construction and demolition debris. The mixtures were fabricated with 50% recycled aggregates to be used as road bases and binder courses in roads with low traffic volumes. For each mixture studied the fatigue law constants in deformation were obtained as well as the dynamic modulus. These results were compared to those obtained in hot asphalt mixtures elaborated with only virgin aggregates from quarries

Ensayos de resistencia de las mezclas asfálticas al ataque de carburantes. Recomendaciones sobre el tiempo de inmersión en baño

Este congreso tivo lugar na Coruña do 2 ao 4 de xullo de 2008.[Resumen:] Una de las limitaciones que tienen las mezclas asfálticas como material para pavimentación es su falta de resistencia al ataque de los carburantes derivados del petróleo. Existen diversos procedimientos para determinar la resistencia de los materiales asfálticos a la acción de los carburantes. En el caso de selladores y tratamientos superficiales pueden encontrarse diversas normas de ensayo, tanto en la series europeas como americanas. Sin embargo, en lo referido a la evaluación de mezclas asfálticas propiamente dichas, existe una notable falta de normalización. Esta ponencia estudia en laboratorio algunos aspectos fundamentales de los procedimientos para evaluar la resistencia de las mezclas asfálticas respecto a la acción de los carburantes. Como resultado de la investigación se hacen algunas recomendaciones de buena práctica para los procedimientos de pérdida de peso tras inmersión en carburante, con o sin cepillado posterior, y respecto a la estabilidad Marshall conservada tras inmersión. En particular, respecto al período de inmersión, uno de los factores con más influencia, a la vista de los resultados de laboratorio y su tratamiento estadístico, se recomienda que sea de 24 horas, excepto en el ensayo de pérdida de peso tras inmersión sin cepillado posterior, en el que los datos obtenidos resultan más significativos si el período de inmersión es de 7 días