Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
5.8
3.9
Journals
Sustainability
Special Issues
Application of Solar Technologies for Energy Performance in Built Environment
sustainability-logo
Submit to Sustainability Review for Sustainability Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Application of Solar Technologies for Energy Performance in Built Environment

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 10482

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Maatouk Khoukhi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Architectural Engineering Department, College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain 15551, United Arab Emirates
Interests: energy conservation in buildings; solar thermal systems; desiccant cooling systems; bio-insulation materials; sustainable buildings; combined heat and mass transfer in building envelopes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Said Diaf

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre de Developpement des Energies Renouvelables BP. 62 Route de l'Observatoire Bouzareah 16340, Alger, Algeria
Interests: Renewable energy; solar photovoltaic; Wind Energy; hybrid system
Ms. Shaimaa Abdelbaqi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain 15551, UAE
Interests: Renewable Energy Systems; Cooling Technology; Building Energy Efficiency; Bio-insulation Materials.

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The term “built environment” refers to aspects of our surroundings that are built by humans, that is, distinguished from the natural environment. It includes not only buildings, but also the human-made spaces between buildings, such as parks, and the infrastructure that supports human activity such as transportation networks, utility networks, flood defenses, and telecommunications.

This Special Issue focuses on solar energy conversion systems that can be implemented in the built environment at the building or the community level. In the quest for developing a sustainable built environment, there is a need for specific solutions to provide clean energy based on renewable sources, and solar energy is considered one of the cleanest available energy sources on Earth.

The exploitation of solar energy in the built environment can significantly contribute to reducing dependency on fossil fuels. Therefore, promoting innovative solar applications will contribute to preserving the ecosystem by reducing emissions at local and global levels. This will also contribute to the amelioration of environmental conditions, through a reduction in air pollution and greenhouse gases, by the replacement of conventional fuels with solar energy.

The issue will be also focused on reducing building energy consumption and the choice of the best-performing solar energy technology for heating, cooling, ventilation, and hot water supply.

Dr. Maatouk Khoukhi
Dr. Said Diaf
Ms. Shaimaa Abdelbaqi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Photovoltaic technology
  • Concentrated solar power
  • Advanced solar technologies applied in the built environment
  • Solar energy applications in the built environment
  • Sustainable built environment
  • Future solar technologies that can be implemented in the built environment
  • Solar cooling technology
  • Green buildings
  • Passive solar design
  • Energy-saving strategies in buildings
  • Impact of the environment on the energy performance of buildings
  • Methods for monitoring of building energy performance
  • Building simulation tools for assessing the sustainability in buildings

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

23 pages, 7309 KiB  
Article
Parametric Design Structures in Low Rise Buildings in Relation to the Urban Context in UAE
by Lindita Bande, Abeer Alshamsi, Anoud Alhefeiti, Sarah Alderei, Sebah Shaban, Mohammed Albattah and Martin D. Scoppa
Sustainability 2021, 13(15), 8595; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158595 - 1 Aug 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3981
Abstract
The city of Al Ain (Abu Dhabi, UAE) has a mainly low rise residential buildings. Villas as part of a compound or separate units represent the majority of the residential areas in the city. Due to the harsh hot arid climate of Al [...] Read more.
The city of Al Ain (Abu Dhabi, UAE) has a mainly low rise residential buildings. Villas as part of a compound or separate units represent the majority of the residential areas in the city. Due to the harsh hot arid climate of Al Ain, the energy demand for the cooling load is quite high. Therefore, it is relevant finding new retrofit strategies that are efficient in reducing the cooling load of the villas. The aim of this study is to analyze one particular strategy (parametric shading structure) in terms of design, construction, cost, energy impact on the selected villa. The main data for this study is taken from the local sources. There are six steps followed in this analysis: case study analysis; climate analysis; parametric structure and PV panels; building energy consumption and outdoor thermal comfort; modelling, simulation, and validation; materials, construction, and cost evaluation. The model of the villa was validated for the full year 2020 based on the electricity bills obtained. After adding the parametric design structure, the reduction after shading is approximately 10%. Meanwhile the UTCI (Universal Thermal Climate Index) dropped from extreme heat stress to strong heat stress (average for the month of March and September). These findings are promising in the retrofit industry due to the advanced calculations used to optimize the parametric design structure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Solar Technologies for Energy Performance in Built Environment)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 17688 KiB  
Article
Integrated Design Process for High-Performance Buildings; a Case Study from Dubai
by Amna Shibeika, Maatouk Khoukhi, Omar Al Khatib, Nouf Alzahmi, Shamma Tahnoon, Maryam Al Dhahri and Nouf Alshamsi
Sustainability 2021, 13(15), 8529; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158529 - 30 Jul 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2517
Abstract
Due to the scarcity of water and the harsh desert climate of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), water and energy are two of the main challenges for the design of sustainable buildings in the UAE. Relevant literature calls for the consideration of building [...] Read more.
Due to the scarcity of water and the harsh desert climate of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), water and energy are two of the main challenges for the design of sustainable buildings in the UAE. Relevant literature calls for the consideration of building systems and materials at the design stage to achieve high-performing buildings and to save on the operational costs of the building. The aim of this research was to design a high-performance building that meets the environmental sustainability requirements for water and energy, in the city of Dubai to reflect the technological advancements of the UAE Mars mission. This has been achieved through following an integrated design process, which was mainly focused on the evaluation and specification of the building engineering systems based on performance, besides the goal of achieving visually appealing building with advanced structural design. The performance verification of the final building design, which considered engineering systems design from conception and through the design and detailed design stages, revealed a 15% reduction in water consumption and a 60% reduction in energy consumption. This provides a valuable contribution to architectural engineering practice, by demonstrating a case study for enhancing energy and water efficiency via building design, which consequently contributes to the environmental sustainability of the built environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Solar Technologies for Energy Performance in Built Environment)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 1551 KiB  
Article
A Quantitative Investigation on Awareness of Renewable Energy Building Technology in the United Arab Emirates
by Mohammed Albattah and Daniel Efurosibina Attoye
Sustainability 2021, 13(12), 6665; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13126665 - 11 Jun 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3244
Abstract
Sustainability in architecture engages a wide range of considerations in the light of the significant negative impact of buildings on the environment. One aspect of research in this parlance engages the technological and the social dimensions of building innovation, which promote the use [...] Read more.
Sustainability in architecture engages a wide range of considerations in the light of the significant negative impact of buildings on the environment. One aspect of research in this parlance engages the technological and the social dimensions of building innovation, which promote the use of renewable technology as a mitigation strategy. The challenge, however, is that the end-users or building clients do not always have sufficient awareness and information regarding these technologies to guide their decision to accept it. Consequently, the diffusion of said innovations is slow, and the environmental or building problems they were invented to solve persist at the expense of both humanity and the environment. This study, therefore, focuses on a quantitative investigation to ascertain the level of awareness and interest of residents in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) as an example of renewable energy-based building technology. In this study, 289 residents participated, following the distribution of a questionnaire to demographically distinct individuals. This distinction was used in the analysis to highlight different groups such as, gender, generations, and occupational background of the respondents. The findings of the study show, firstly, that there is a high level of awareness of BIPV in the sample. The study also shows that comparing awareness with each of these demographic variables produced a second layer of findings. For example, the statistical analysis showed that there is no significant difference between the level of awareness and any of the demographic characteristics of the study participants. However, there is a significant statistical difference (p = 0.000) between awareness and interest in BIPV. In concluding this study, recommendations for further research that elaborates other statistical variables and tests, as well as a follow-up qualitative investigation are planned and outlined for future studies. The findings of this investigation may be of benefit to researchers, policy makers, as well as energy companies and marketing agencies within and outside the region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Solar Technologies for Energy Performance in Built Environment)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop