Sustainable Building Design: Challenges and Opportunities

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Green Sustainable Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2024) | Viewed by 2781

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
School of Architecture and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29630, USA
Interests: sustainability; systems integration in buildings; energy systems; life cycle analysis; smart materials and systems; design methods and optimization

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The building design and construction sector plays a significant role in addressing climate change, with a growing number of buildings around the world being recognized as sustainable, green, or environmentally conscious. These buildings typically incorporate technologies that significantly minimize their environmental footprint while maintaining a high standard of architectural aesthetics, community relevance, health, comfort, and affordability. However, constructing high-performance buildings requires an unwavering commitment to a shared global vision, collaboration across multiple disciplines, and technical expertise. This Special Issue offers a platform for individuals committed to sustainable building design to share their experiences, research endeavors, and technological advancements. Our goal for this Special Issue is to facilitate the rapid deployment of the next generation of sustainable buildings by providing readers with critical insights into current challenges and opportunities.

Some of the topics of interest for this Special Issue are energy efficiency, material selection, life cycle analysis, space efficiency, policies and regulations, community involvement and acceptance, cost and affordability, measures of sustainability, education and training, and holistic approaches. We invite submissions exploring cutting-edge research and recent advances in sustainable building design across many fields. Both theoretical and experimental studies, case studies, and comprehensive literature reviews are welcome for submission.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Vincent Y. Blouin
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • high-performance buildings
  • environmental impact
  • carbon neutral
  • net-zero
  • carbon footprint
  • energy efficiency
  • codes and regulations
  • material selection
  • smart systems and controls
  • life cycle analysis
  • embodied energy
  • space efficiency
  • measures of sustainability
  • modeling and simulation

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 3511 KiB  
Article
Adaptive HVAC System Based on Fuzzy Controller Approach
by Mohammed Awad Abuhussain, Badr Saad Alotaibi, Muhammad Saidu Aliero, Muhammad Asif, Mohammad Abdullah Alshenaifi and Yakubu Aminu Dodo
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(20), 11354; https://doi.org/10.3390/app132011354 - 16 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1335
Abstract
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system performance research has received much attention in recent years. Many researchers suggest a set of appropriate fuzzy inputs that can be used to design fuzzy rules-based smart thermostats or controllers that can respond to demand-controlled ventilation, [...] Read more.
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system performance research has received much attention in recent years. Many researchers suggest a set of appropriate fuzzy inputs that can be used to design fuzzy rules-based smart thermostats or controllers that can respond to demand-controlled ventilation, which in turn optimizes HVAC energy usage and provides satisfactory indoor temperatures. Previous research has focused on limited input parameters, such as indoor occupancy status, ambient temperature, and humidity constraints, which cannot efficiently and precisely manage thermal comfort. Hence, this study proposes a novel fuzzy controller with additional input parameters to keep indoor thermal comfort consistent with the corresponding number of occupants. The process employs an automatic fuzzy rule generation method to simplify the task of generating rules in the fuzzy inference system (FIS) using Mamdani FIS. A design-builder is used for modeling the HVAC systems. Local weather data were used to conduct simulations via EnergyPlus. The thermal comfort analysis using the Fanger model for three different scenarios shows that the proposed FIS controller can successfully respond to the indoor comfort variation in all possible scenarios and ensure a satisfactory comfort level. The proposed method demonstrates up to 50% energy savings if occupants do not worry about comfort. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Building Design: Challenges and Opportunities)
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13 pages, 2785 KiB  
Article
From Poor Buildings to High Performance Buildings: The Spontaneous Green Evolution of Vernacular Architecture
by Lihua Liang, Baohua Wen, Feng Xu and Qingxin Yang
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(18), 10162; https://doi.org/10.3390/app131810162 - 09 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1009
Abstract
The spontaneous evolution of vernacular architecture mainly relies on the inheritance of architectural traditions and the innovative decisions of occupants, rather than the professional guidance of architects and the promotion of government agencies. This study introduces a new and rapidly developing phenomenon of [...] Read more.
The spontaneous evolution of vernacular architecture mainly relies on the inheritance of architectural traditions and the innovative decisions of occupants, rather than the professional guidance of architects and the promotion of government agencies. This study introduces a new and rapidly developing phenomenon of spontaneous green evolution of vernacular architecture into the professional field, and conducts scientific research on its technical characteristics, system effects, and optimization methods. Based on the phenomenon of roofing of courtyards (CBR) in southern Hebei, we intervene from the professional point of view of architects, make the best use of the situation, and moderately intervene in its scientific development. By re-examining the adaptability of the open and closed attributes of courtyard buildings to specific climatic conditions and living patterns, the performance improvement and potential risks brought by CBR to local vernacular buildings are systematically analyzed, and the improvement strategies and promotion paths of CBR are explored. The research aims to form a relay and interaction between the professional intervention of architects and the spontaneous evolution of folk wisdom, and to explore the sustainable development of vernacular architecture. The findings help to improve the health and comfort of existing vernacular buildings, as well as to contribute to the improvement of rural human settlements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Building Design: Challenges and Opportunities)
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