Passive Design of Buildings for Extreme Weather Environment

Buildings account for nearly 40% of the end-use energy consumption and carbon emissions globally. Buildings, once built, are used at least for several decades. The building sector therefore holds a significant responsibility for implementing strategies to increase energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions and thus contribute to global efforts directed toward mitigating the adverse effects of climate change. The work presented in this paper is a part of continuing efforts to identify, analyze and promote the design of low energy, sustainable buildings with special reference to the Kazakhstan locality. Demonstration of improved environmental conditions and impact on energy savings will be outlined through a case study incorporating a passive design approach and detailed computational fluid dynamics analysis for an existing building complex. The influence of orientation and configuration is discussed with reference to energy efficiency and associated wind comfort and safety. The effect of these aspects on energy consumption and comfortable wind environment has been assessed using CFD analysis and proved to be affective. Single building and multiple building configurations have been analyzed and compared. According to the findings, multiple building configurations have better wind conditions when compared with a single standing building. With respect to orientation the former one should be modeled with the fully surrounded side of a “box” opposite to the predominant wind direction whereas the latter one should be located with the rear side opposite to the wind direction. Thus, results indicated that there is a considerable influence of passive design and orientation on energy efficiency, wind comfort and safety. Careful consideration and application of the findings can potentially lead to considerable decrease of energy consumption and, therefore, allow saving money and the environment at the same time

Shareholder voting in mergers and acquisitions: evidence from the UK

This paper examines the determinants and consequences of shareholder voting on mergers and acquisitions using a sample of resolutions approved by shareholders of UK publicly listed firms from 1997 to 2015. We find that dissent on M&A resolutions is negatively related to bidder announcement returns and positively related to shareholders’ general dissatisfaction towards the management. Shareholder dissent is an important predictor of the announcement returns of subsequent M&A deals. We also report an increase in shareholder dissent after the 2007-2008 financial crisis

Passive Design of Buildings for Extreme Weather Environment

Buildings account for nearly 40% of the end-use energy consumption and carbonemissions globally. Buildings, once built, are used at least for several decades. The building sectortherefore holds a significant responsibility for implementing strategies to increase energyefficiency and reduce carbon emissions and thus contribute to global efforts directed towardmitigating the adverse effects of climate change. The work presented in this paper is a part ofcontinuing efforts to identify, analyze and promote the design of low energy, sustainable buildingswith special reference to the Kazakhstan locality. Demonstration of improved environmentalconditions and impact on energy savings will be outlined through a case study incorporating apassive design approach and detailed computational fluid dynamics analysis for an existingbuilding complex. The influence of orientation and configuration is discussed with reference toenergy efficiency and associated wind comfort and safety. The effect of these aspects on energyconsumption and comfortable wind environment has been assessed using CFD analysis and provedto be affective. Single building and multiple building configurations have been analyzed andcompared. According to the findings, multiple building configurations have better wind conditionswhen compared with a single standing building. With respect to orientation the former one shouldbe modeled with the fully surrounded side of a “box” opposite to the predominant wind directionwhereas the latter one should be located with the rear side opposite to the wind direction. Thus,results indicated that there is a considerable influence of passive design and orientation on energyefficiency, wind comfort and safety. Careful consideration and application of the findings canpotentially lead to considerable decrease of energy consumption and, therefore, allow savingmoney and the environment at the same time

The impacts of different façade types on energy use in residential buildings

Globally, buildings are responsible for a significant share in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions profiles. Various attempts are undertaken to increase the energy efficiency of buildings and reduce their environmental impact. In semi-continental climate conditions with very hot summers and extremely cold winters, buildings should be carefully designed to ensure efficient harnessing of solar energy and reducing energy loss due to poor insulation and inappropriate use of materials. Amidst the fast development of the construction industry, different façade systems are used in Kazakhstan. In several cases, the choice of the façade materials is defined not by performance but rather by economic aspects and physical appearance. This project aimed to investigate various types of façades adopted in the construction of residential buildings and assess their performance in terms of their impact on buildings’ energy consumption. The preliminary results indicate that there are five main types of façades widely used. Five different models were therefore built using energy simulation software and the respective energy consumption data were estimated. The results testify that buildings with brickwork (clay bricks) and stonework (travertine) façades were more energy efficient than those with brickwork (silica bricks), aluminum composite panels and decorated plaster façades

Residential construction sustainability in the UK and prospects of knowledge transfer to Kazakhstan

This paper aimed to investigate the up-to-date levels of sustainability in the UK construction with special interest to sustainable housing. It also aims to examine the justification behind construction and housing sustainability, and to look at the practicality of transferring current expertise within the UK as well as to an emerging Central Asian country such as Kazakhstan. A synergy of case studies, survey and numerical simulation research methodologies were applied to undertake a wide-spectrum analysis of the topic. Regardless of difficulties related to applying sustainable practices the considered housing developments are found to be satisfactory in terms of environmental and socio-economic effects. Technical evaluation of the case studies compared to standard housing parameters has shown encouraging outcomes and confirmed the claimed energy and water efficiency. Findings of the survey indicated that construction companies of the UK and Kazakhstan are at different stages of application of sustainability measures. It was also established that companies and public are mainly optimistic about sustainability if suitable economical and legal conditions are ensured. Finally, numerical simulations have shown that selected sustainability measures made the studied housing projects competitive on the sustainability market

Design and energy performance analysis of a hotel building in a hot and dry climate: a case study

In times of unprecedented climate change and energy scarcity, the design and delivery of energy-efficient and sustainable buildings are of utmost importance. This study aimed to design a hotel building for hot and dry climate conditions and perform its energy performance analysis using energy simulation tools. The model of the hotel building was constructed by a graphical tool OpenStudio and EnergyPlus following the ASHRAE Standard 90.1. To reduce the energy demand of the hotel, parametric analysis was conducted and building envelope parameters such as the thickness of insulation layer in the exterior wall and the roof, thermal conductivity of insulation layer, rate of infiltration, U-factor of windows, and thermal resistance of air gap in the interior walls (R-value), window-to-wall ratio, and orientation of the building were tested and the impact on the energy use of the building was analyzed. It was found that most of the design assumptions based on the ASHRAE standard were already optimal for the considered locality, however, were still optimized further to reach the highest efficiency level. Apart from this, three sustainable technologies—thermochromic windows, phase change materials, and solar panels—were incorporated into the building and their energy consumption reduction potential was estimated by energy simulations. Cumulatively, these sustainable technologies were able to reduce the total energy use from 2417 GJ to 1593 GJ (i.e., by 824 GJ or 34%). Calculation of payback period and return on investments showed that thermochromic windows and solar panels have relatively short payback periods and high return on investments, whereas PCM was found to be economically nonviable. The findings of this study are deemed to be useful for designing a sustainable and energy-efficient hotel building in a sub-tropical climate. However, the overall design and energy performance analysis algorithm could be used for various buildings with varying climate conditions

Life cycle assessment of pavement construction: A case study

Road construction is often associated with carbon emissions from direct and indirect sources, primarily due to construction and maintenance activities. Currently, there is a lack of comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) benchmarks to evaluate flexible composite pavement, fully flexible pavement and pavement rehabilitation options under various ground conditions. The objective of this study is to investigate the environmental impact associated with different pavement designs over a 60-year analysis period, comprising a 40-year basic design period with maintenance extended up to 60 years. This research paper encompasses a literature review on pavement LCA and conducts and LCA on various pavement design and construction options, following the ISO 14040 framework and PAS 2080 methodology. The LCA in this study specifically focuses on material production, transportation, construction, maintenance, and end-of-life phases. Using global warming potential as an environmental indicator, the study calculates and compares a range of potential impacts for each component. In terms of carbon emissions, the rehabilitation option was found to be most favourable when compared to other full-depth reconstruction options, while the flexible composite pavement option exhibited the highest carbon emission value compared to other pavement build-ups assessed. Additionally, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify ‘hotspots’ in the study, which increase the confidence level of the results

Construction professionals' perspectives on drivers and barriers of sustainable construction

With the associated environmental challenges and unsustainable patterns of construction, there is also notable awareness and willingness among the state bodies to adopt sustainability measures and practices in Kazakhstan. This study explores the drivers of and barriers inhibiting the adoption of sustainability paradigm in the construction context of Kazakhstan. The drivers and barriers were validated through the survey and structured workshop with the construction professionals to ensure their relevance to the local context, which were then ranked according to their levels of influence through the lens of the industry professionals in Kazakhstan. Delphi technique was the last stage before consolidating the specified lists. Stakeholder opinions were then consolidated to develop a context-oriented decision support system. The findings reveal that addressing environmental issues is vital to increase the level of sustainability leading to the more efficient use of construction materials and resources. Various social aspects are also found to be driving forces for the effective adoption of the SC concept. On the other hand, a great portion of SC barriers is related to economic aspects, which are followed by government as well as awareness and education related barriers. The findings are hoped to contribute to the body of knowledge in terms of drivers of, and barriers to SC in developing countries, particularly in Central Asian countries due to similarities in context. The findings may also be useful for the construction forefront players seeking ways to improve sustainability performance of the construction industry

Design and modeling of an on-site greywater treatment system for a hotel building

As the United States is making a significant move towards rejoining the Paris Agreement on climate change, there is a high demand for sustainable solutions across various industries, including construction and hospitality sectors. The aim of this project was to design and model an on-site greywater treatment system for a hotel building for the effective reuse of sewage water. The study considered Los Angeles, California, as a case study location and referred to respective climate conditions and construction standards. This study considered various options of greywater treatment plants such as Membrane Bioreactor (MBR), Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR), and Reverse Osmosis with Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (RO with UASB) which were carefully reviewed and modeled through the GPS-X software. The design and modeling results were verified by hand calculations and were followed by the estimation of capital and operational expenses required for the implementation of the plants. Having relatively low capital and operational expenditure requirements as well as superior technical performance, the MBR plant proved to be the most effective solution for the considered location and standards and was recommended for use in hotel buildings

Evaluation of the environmental performance of residential building envelope components

The role of buildings in the context of addressing the consequences of climate change and the energy deficit is becoming increasingly important due to their share in the overall amount of green house gas (GHG) emissions and rapidly growing domestic energy consumption worldwide. Adherence to a sustainability agenda requires ever-increasing attention to all stages of a building′s life, as such approach allows for the consideration of environmental impacts of a building, from design, through construction stages, until the final phase of a building′s life—demolition. A life cycle assessment (LCA) is one of the most recognized and adopted models for the evaluation of the environmental performance of materials and processes. This paper aims to perform an LCA of four different types of residential buildings in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. The assessment primarily considered embodied energy and GHG emissions as key assessment indicators. Findings suggest that the operational stage contributed to more than half of the GHG emissions in all the cases. The results of the study indicate that there is a dependence between the comfort levels and the impact of the buildings on the environment. The higher the comfort levels, the higher the impacts in terms of the CO2 equivalent. This conclusion is most likely to be related to the fact that the higher the comfort level, the higher the environmental cost of the materials. A similar correlation can be observed in the case of comparing building comfort levels and life-cycle impacts per user. There are fewer occupants per square meter as the comfort level increases. Furthermore, the obtained results suggest potential ways of reducing the overall environmental impact of the building envelope components