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Utilizing Natural Illuminance through Indoor Daylighting Systems for Green Buildings
Get PDFThis study explores energy-efficient passive tubular daylighting systems which utilizes natural lighting, reduce energy consumption and improve occupant well-being in buildings. For this, three passive daylighting collectors configuration of flat plate, circular dome and circular Fresnel lens were modelled using AutoCAD and SolidWorks and analysed using ray tracing software TracePro 7.3.4. The light transportation was done using a highly reflective light pipe with a reflectivity of 95%. The collectors were made from Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) with refractive index of 1.49 because of highly transmission efficiency, weather resistance, shock resistance, blocks UV, lightweight and cost-effective alternative to glass. The Monte Carlo ray tracing method was employed to assess the optical performance within the photometric range of 380 nm to 720 nm. The results demonstrated that circular Fresnel lens achieved better illuminance and efficiency compared to conventional systems, highlighting their potential for enhancing indoor environmental quality in green buildings
Optimisation of occupant comfort and energy consumption in Indoor environments: Responsive homes through Digital Twin and building automation integration
Get PDFPurpose: Building Automation System (BAS) presents encouraging opportunities to optimise energy consumption while elevating occupants’ thermal comfort. BAS ranges from regular thermostatic valves to home automation systems (HAS), in residential buildings. Well-designed HAS advantage in occupant spaces, providing optimum occupant comfort and energy efficiency. However, not accompanying essential parameters such as real-time climate conditions and occupancy thermal behaviour prevent real-time responsive HAS developments. Existing studies demonstrate an elevated need for efficient HAS, which can potentially consider these significant influencing factors with real-time responses. A developed approach that considers these dynamic changes provides an accurate HAS that addresses the current performance gap.
Research Design: Digital Twin (DT) serves as a core platform for real-time monitoring and control of the building, it enables automated controls to adjust Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems and other services to enhance occupants’ comforts by integrating with the BAS. Therefore, this study explores the opportunities for integrating Digital Twin technology into the HAS to create more human-centric indoor environment conditions while reducing the energy performance gap in home energy management systems. Therefore, this study aims to develop a Home Automation System using AI (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Digital Twin (DT).
Outcome: High-responsive home automation system using AI, ML, and DT.
Contribution: The findings of this study contribute to developing high responsive BAS through AI, ML, and DT
Prioritising Critical Barriers to Digital Twins Implementation for Sustainable Smart Facility Management in the Built Environment: A Global Study
Get PDFDigital twins (DT) is a potent technology that could revolutionise the built environment towards sustainable smart facility management (FM). However, there are critical barriers that prior studies have not paid much attention to. Thus, this paper investigates the barriers to effective DT implementation for sustainable smart FM by exploring and prioritising them. This is achieved via a quantitative design comprising a literature review and a global expert survey. The design is further integrated with critical analysis and Pareto analysis. The study revealed an adequate level of agreement on the notion that DT if implemented effectively could achieve sustainable smart FM in the built environment. Further analysis revealed 30 critical barriers, of which 23 need to be prioritised, with the top four including “high cost of procuring hard digital technologies”, lack of technical know-how”, “lack of a systematic and comprehensive DT reference mode”, and “data safety and security”. Prioritising these critical barriers, professionals can become efficient decision-makers and policymakers in implementing DT for sustainable smart FM, realising the United Nations sustainable development goals 9, 11, 12, and 13. The study creates awareness of the critical barriers, generating an avenue for future researchers in the built environment to enhance the effective implementation of DT for sustainable smart FM. This could create a positive cost-benefit balance and unlock a future of operational excellence by carefully analysing DT’s unique needs and adopting a strategic measure to achieve sustainability in F
Building Maintenance Strategy Selection Using Z-numbers and the Delphi Method Enhanced Choosing by Advantages
No full textEffective maintenance strategies are essential for prolonging the service life of buildings and ensuring seamless business operations. However, selecting the best maintenance strategy can be challenging due to the uncertain nature of building maintenance activities, which often depend on subjective human judgment. Traditional decision-making methods may not fully address these challenges, especially when dealing with conflicting criteria. Subsequently, decision-making methods such as Choosing by Advantages (CBA) received attention in the literature and were utilized in building maintenance decision-making due to their practical and user-friendly structure. This paper proposes a novel approach that integrates Z-numbers and the Delphi method to address a previous limitation of the CBA method: subjectivity in the Importance of Advantage (IoA) scale. The presented integration aids in reducing subjectivity and supports the establishment of a consensus-driven multi-criteria decision-making framework. The proposed approach is demonstrated in a hypothetical scenario where maintenance options are evaluated based on several factors. The results show that Z-Delphi has the potential to improve CBA, marking an initial step toward addressing subjectivity in the IoA. While promising, this study relies on a hypothetical scenario to demonstrate the proposed framework, and real-world validation is required to fully evaluate its applicability. Furthermore, it sets the stage for future research by investigating alternative approaches for developing IoA scales in CBA and incorporating web-based platforms and AI. This study enhances the existing body of knowledge by introducing a novel framework that addresses a challenge within a well-established decision-making method
Impact of Modeling Simplification on Energy Simulation Speed and Accuracy Considering Climate Change: A Case Study of a Dormitory Building
No full textThis study explores the impact of various weather files on the simulation accuracy of building energy model simplifications, focusing on thermal zone abstraction, HVAC system simplification, and material definition. Using a Canadian dormitory building as a case study, a detailed model is progressively simplified into four scenarios, ranging from individual to single-zone models. After calibration with real-world data, both detailed and simplified models are used to evaluate sixteen retrofit scenarios under current and future weather conditions, incorporating various present and future Typical Meteorological Year (TMY) and Canadian Weather Year for Energy Calculation (CWEC) files to account for climate change impacts.
Results reveal that all pre-calibrated simplification scenarios demonstrate deviations in total energy demand, approximately below 25%. Moreover, after implementing Energy Efficiency Measures (EEMs), calibrated simplified models exhibit an error of less than 10% compared to the detailed model. Furthermore, the simulations using various weather files reveal trends associated with climate change. As temperatures are projected to rise in the following decades, the simulated models using future weather files show approximately a 30% reduction in heating demand. However, simulations using TMY weather files indicate an average of 8.7% higher natural gas demand compared to those using CWEC weather files. This discrepancy underscores the critical importance of selecting appropriate weather datasets in energy modeling, as varying climatic assumptions influenced by climate change can significantly impact the results
Exploring the Nexus Between Sustainability and User Satisfaction in LEED-certified Hotels
Get PDFAs sustainability is becoming crucial in the hospitality industry, understanding its influence on guest satisfaction is crucial for fostering competitive advantage. This study investigates the relationship between LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification criteria and guest satisfaction in LEED-certified hotels. Using data from 259 LEED NC-v3 projects and aggregated guest reviews from multiple travel platforms, regression analyses were conducted to identify the most influential sustainability factors. The findings reveal that Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ) and Energy and Atmosphere (EA) are the strongest predictors of guest satisfaction, demonstrating that targeted sustainability measures significantly enhance the guest experience. Mediation analysis further highlights the critical role of EQ and EA in translating overall sustainability scores into satisfaction outcomes. These results emphasize the need for hotels to prioritize features that directly impact guest comfort, such as air quality, thermal comfort, and energy efficiency. This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the specific aspects of sustainability that matter most to guests, offering actionable insights for improving satisfaction through sustainable practices in the hospitality sector
Reimagining Community Engagement: A Social Network Driven Approach to Flood Resilience
Get PDFCommunity Engagement (CE) is crucial for building flood resilience and empowering communities to participate actively in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. However, many existing CE approaches neglect key social dimensions, such as inclusivity, social vulnerabilities, and community-driven strategies. This oversight often limits community ownership and reduces effectiveness. This research critically examines the social drivers of community engagement in flood resilience, emphasising the need for a Social Network approach to strengthen social connections, enhance participation, and foster sustained resilience. A review and synthesis of existing literature, spanning disaster risk management, flood resilience, social networks, behavioural science, and community engagement, identifies key internal and external drivers. The main internal drivers include social cohesion, leadership, education and local knowledge. Key external drivers include government support, partnerships, and technological resources. The findings highlight the importance of integrating internal and external drivers through Social Network Analysis (SNA) to foster foster cohesion, adaptability, and sustainability in community engagement. The research provides valuable theoretical insights for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers to improve collaboration, resource allocation, and community-led engagement. It advances knowledge by analysing key social drivers and introducing SNA as a framework to integrate these drivers for more effective community engagement. Future research will develop a theoretical framework and test the applicability of SNA in various contexts
A Theoretical Exploration of Digital Technologies for Transitioning Towards A Circular Built Environment.
Get PDFCircular Economy and Digital Technologies are emerging models recently identified as potential fields for achieving sustainable practice in various industries, including the built environment. Circular Economy has emerged as an alternative to the conventional linear take-make-use-dispose system of production and consumption to design out waste, reduce CO2 emission, and regenerate nature through principles of circularity. While digital technologies have been identified as critical enablers of the circular economy across sectors, their implementation in the built environment remains fragmented. This paper presents a theoretical exploration of how digital technologies, such as Building Information Modeling, Digital Twins, the Internet of Things, Material Passport, and Blockchain, can facilitate the implementation of circular strategies across the construction value chain. Through conceptual mapping, this paper highlights how digital technologies can be leveraged to facilitate circular strategies such as narrowing, slowing, and closing the loops in the built environment. In addition, the paper also draws on two prominent innovation models: the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) frameworks underpinning an acceptance or rejection of digital innovation within organizations to propose a pathway for transitioning toward a circular economy. A hybrid TAM-TEO model is proposed to investigate the potential of digital technologies to transition to a circular-oriented business model in an organization. The proposed model provides insights into how internal (perceived usefulness and ease of use) and external (economic, technological, environmental, and organizational) factors influence circular adoption in an organization. The paper lays the groundwork for future empirical research on implementing circular economy practice in the built environment using digital technologies
Public Space Is More than Architecture: A Critique to an Urban Renewal Project in Shenzhen, China
Get PDFUrban regeneration is a multifaceted process that encompasses both the physical change of locations and the social and cultural reimagining of communities. This study analyzes an industrial heritage renewal project in Shenzhen, China, utilizing urban planning theories including Jacobs\u27 Great Streets and Lydon’s Tactical Urbanism. The study emphasizes the disparity between architecture design implementation and the problems and the way of improvement in urban regeneration initiatives. It underscores the significance of public space design and management for sustained success, providing insights into how urban design may enhance community engagement and elevate quality of life. This study seeks to offer pragmatic recommendations for future urban rejuvenation programs in cities of China by combining essential theories and examining real-world situations
Transition from a linear information model to a circular information model - A deep dive into the state of the art for circular data models in public parts of the construction industry in Norway
Get PDFTransforming from linear society to circular society is fundamental to solve the climat chrisis. To make construction sector circulare, we first need to develop circular data models for built asset. Circular asset data will need to be updated through the life cycle to become a digital twin. Replacement of physical components serves as “triggers” for updating digital twins. But who are the actors in the updating process, and how do they cooperate? The paper present two Norwegian cases of “level 3 digital twin” (Elyasi et al, 2023), and the roles and actors that contribute to update the twinned data. Research shows that circulare data-models are envolving, but there is still a gap relating to the understanding of FM’s needs among the actors in the construction process. Building owners project managers are delivering projects models (PIM) to the operating organizations existing asset model (AIM) without a profound understanding of the daily tasks in the operating organization that needs data support