Green Building in the Arctic Region: State-of-the-Art and Future Research Opportunities

The concept of Green Building refers to environmentally friendly constructions with the target of minimizing the impact on the natural environment through sustainable and efficient use of resources over their life cycle. Since modern buildings are large contributors to global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, policies and international strategies intended to reduce the carbon footprint of conventional buildings are highlighting the role of this recently introduced building concept. This study provides a systematic literature review of existing research related to Green Buildings in the Arctic. Despite numerous studies and projects developed during the last decades, a study describing the current research status for this region is still missing. The review first examines the role that national and international policies developed by the arctic countries have on the development process of Green Buildings. Second, it provides an overview of the most commonly used and promoted Green Building rating systems used by the same countries in the region. The analysis highlights benefits and critical issues of Green Buildings located in the Arctic in comparison with conventional buildings, focusing on environmental, economic, and social dimensions. Finally, future research opportunities are presented and discussed

An experimental study on thermophysical properties of nano‑TiO2‑enhanced phase change materials for cold climate applications

© 2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/In high-energy-demand regions, such as the Arctic, the building sector is focused on reducing the carbon footprint and mitigating environmental impact. To achieve this, phase change materials (PCMs) are being investigated for thermal energy storage due to their high latent heat of fusion. However, their limited applications arise from poor thermal conductivity. In addressing this issue, the research delves into the preparation and characterization of nano-PCMs. These materials, synthesized in a laboratory setting, exhibit enhanced thermal performance compared to pure PCMs, attributed to the incorporation of nanoparticles in the material composition. Therefore, in the study, three paraffins with different melting temperatures (10, 15 and 18 °C) are modified by incorporating titanium oxide at various concentrations (0.05, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.5 mass%). Thermal conductivity and latent heat capacity measurements were undertaken using a thermal conductivity measuring apparatus and differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. The aim was to evaluate the enhanced performance of the modified PCMs in comparison with pure PCMs and to assess their suitability for cold climate regions. Results showed that nanoparticle incorporation increased thermal conductivity by up to 37%, albeit with a slight reduction in latent heat capacity of up to 12%. Among the samples, RT18 exhibited the most significant improvement in thermal conductivity, while RT10 experienced a minor decrease in enthalpy values. Ultimately, RT10 was identified as the optimal PCM option for cold climates, as its phase change temperature range aligns with the outdoor temperatures in the Arctic.Peer reviewe

Feasibility study for utilization of solar energy in the arctic areas

This research investigates a solar thermal system and a solar photovoltaic system which produces local energy, by incoming solar radiation, to meet the energy consumption demand of a residential building in the arctic region. The study on the use of the solar systems in the arctic areas is rare and often doubted. So, to analyze the potential of solar energy, a study case of an existing building block in Narvik, Norway was selected. The performance and function of both the systems were studied and achieved by calculation and simulation models of the thermal system and the PV system separately. The solar systems met the energy demand of DHW and space heating during summer due to the availability of the sun for long hours. However, in winter, especially in December and January, the energy production was zero due to snow accumulation and minimum sunlight. The results showed that the solar thermal collector produced about 14315 kWh throughout a year, whereas, the PV system generated an annual energy output of 18640 kWh. Thus, the results suggest considerable potential for solar utilization, however in the current context cost can be a limitation

Green Buildings in the Arctic region: a literature review

Green Buildings are defined as environmental-friendly buildings aimed at minimizing the impact on the natural environment through a sustainable and efficient use of resources over their life-cycle. This is, perhaps, a recently-introduced building concept that is increasingly gaining attention due to the policies and strategies intended to reduce the carbon footprint of conventional buildings, which nowadays represent a large portion of the global energy consumption and C02 emissions. This study provides a systematic literature review of the existing body of knowledge of research related to Green Buildings in the arctic region. Despite numerous studies and projects developed during the last decades, a study describing the current research for this specific region is still missing. Starting from the definition of Green Building and Arctic Region, an examination is made of research approaches developed to achieve the required green building standards, for which rating tools currently in use for their evaluation are also identified. The result is a critical analysis highlighting benefits and critical issues of Green Buildings located in the Arctic in comparison with conventional buildings, focusing on the environmental, economic and social dimensions. Finally, future research opportunities are presented and discussed

Simplified Thermal Performance Evaluation of a PCM-Filled Triple-Glazed Window under Arctic Climate Conditions

This paper evaluates the thermal performance of a triple-glazed glass window filled with a phase-change material (PCM) compared to the performance of a traditional triple-glazed window with air gaps. The chosen PCM was paraffin wax. A mathematical model to simulate heat transfer within the system was presented. A commercially available software, COMSOL Multiphysics, was used to numerically solve the governing equations. The analysis was carried out for the representative days of different seasons using three types of paraffin wax (5, 10, and 15) that have different melting-temperature ranges. Particularly, the study considers the unique climatic conditions of the Arctic region. Results showed that by integrating a PCM into the cavity of triple-glazing, thermal performance during summer season of the window was enhanced, while for spring and autumn thermal performance was affected by the type of paraffin selected. The thermal performance of glass windows during winter did not change with PCM integration

A Comparative Study of Actuator Configurations for Satellite Attitude Control

In this paper a controllability study of different actuator configurations consisting of magnetic torquers, reaction wheels and a gravity boom is presented. The theoretical analysis is performed with use of controllability gramians, and simulation results with the different configurations are presented and compared regarding settling time and power consumption to substantiate the theoretical analysis. A reference model is also introduced to show how the power consumption can he lowered to the same magnitude as when magnetic torquers are used, without degrading the satellite response significantly

The effect of lake browning and respiration mode on the burial and fate of carbon and mercury in the sediment of two boreal lakes

In many northern temperate regions, the water color of lakes has increased over the past decades (lake browning), probably caused by an increased export of dissolved organic matter from soils. We investigated if the increase in water color in two lakes in Norway has resulted in increased burial of organic carbon (OC) and mercury (Hg) in the sediments and if the Hg was prone to methylation. Lake Solbergvann experienced a threefold water color increase, and OC burial increased approximately twofold concomitant to the water color increase. This lake had prolonged periods of anoxic bottom water, and anoxic OC mineralization rates were only about half of the oxic OC mineralization rates (7.7 and 17.5g C m(-2)yr(-1), respectively), contributing to an efficient OC burial. In Lake Elvaga, where water color increase was only approximately twofold and bottom water was oxygenated, no recent increase in OC burial could be observed. Hg burial increased strongly in both lakes (threefold and 1.6-fold in Lake Solbergvann and Lake Elvaga, respectively), again concomitant to the recent water color increase. The proportion of methylated Hg (MeHg) in surficial sediment was 1 order of magnitude higher in Lake Elvaga (up to 6% MeHg) than in Lake Solbergvann (0.2-0.6% MeHg), probably related to the different oxygenation regimes. We conclude that lake browning can result in increased OC and Hg burial in lake sediments, but the extent of browning and the dominating mode of sediment respiration (aerobic or anaerobic) strongly affect burial and fate of OC and Hg in sediments