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1 – 10 of over 12000Chinwe Isiadinso, Steve Goodhew, Julian Marsh and Mike Hoxley
The purpose of this paper is to report research conducted in the UK's East Midlands region which explores optimising practice for low carbon building through an architectural…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report research conducted in the UK's East Midlands region which explores optimising practice for low carbon building through an architectural award system.
Design/methodology/approach
To explore the complexity of the contexts, philosophies and demonstrations involved in best practice for low carbon buildings, a mixed research approach was adopted through an online survey and interviews with 13 experts.
Findings
The research provides practical means to evaluate low carbon buildings and suggests an approach where aesthetic design and technical compliance are given similar weightings. It also presents the opinions of construction professional practitioners and academics on best practice for low carbon buildings.
Research limitations/implications
The research focuses on investigating the judging criteria and opinions of construction professionals who have, in the past, strongly identified with sustainable building design practice.
Practical implications
As this research and other studies show, there is a need for a simple methodology and the use of existing tools to evaluate best practice for low carbon buildings.
Originality/value
The value of the paper lies in its purpose to establish a precedent for judging low carbon buildings through an architectural award system. Although there is a plethora of literature, tools and environmental assessment systems that point towards best practice, this research aims to highlight the underlying principles and combine these with practical methods that can enable the construction industry to achieve low carbon buildings.
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The UK aims to reduce the carbon emissions in the building sector so as to achieve nearly zero-carbon new buildings by 2020. In 2010, a 25 per cent reduction of carbon emissions…
Abstract
Purpose
The UK aims to reduce the carbon emissions in the building sector so as to achieve nearly zero-carbon new buildings by 2020. In 2010, a 25 per cent reduction of carbon emissions was mandated in England and Wales. The aim of this paper is to reveal how the design teams were coping with the energy regulation changes in 2010 in England and Wales.
Design/methodology/approach
An ethnographic methodology was selected to investigate in-depth the real-time design process in four architecture practices. The study was analysed in detail and compared the design process of six non-domestic buildings in England and Wales. The data collection methods included interviews, non-participant observation and document analysis and were conducted for a period of 12-21 months per case study.
Findings
The field findings suggest the disconnections between the project driver and the policy agenda and reveal what the design teams do to embed energy performance in routine project design.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the in-depth nature of the data, no claims for generalisation or representativeness are made. However, the detailed analysis of the real-time design process reveals the designers’ enactment of the policy agenda, which is in essence a timeless phenomenon about policy intervention and performance-based regulations.
Originality/value
The designers’ enactment of and responses to the policy changes become an analytical tool to infer lessons that can be learned from the process and lead to the achievement of expected carbon reductions and the success of the policy intentions.
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Brit Anak Kayan, Deanne Seanuau Kely Jitilon and Mohammad Nazmi Mohd Azaman
Low carbon repair epitomises sustainable maintenance management for heritage buildings. However, there is little recognition of this aspect, coupled with impractical assessment of…
Abstract
Purpose
Low carbon repair epitomises sustainable maintenance management for heritage buildings. However, there is little recognition of this aspect, coupled with impractical assessment of repair impact strategies. This paper aims to present a decision-making process based on life cycle assessment (LCA) approach of lime plaster repair options for heritage buildings.
Design/methodology/approach
Calculation procedures of LCA were carried out to enable sustainable maintenance management appraisal for heritage buildings upon embodied carbon expenditure expended from lime plaster repair during the maintenance phase.
Findings
Calculation procedures could be understood as a carbon LCA of lime plaster repair and recognised in reducing CO2 emissions. This underpins low carbon of lime plaster repair in achieving sustainable maintenance management of heritage buildings.
Practical implications
It must be emphasised that the LCA approach is not limited to heritage buildings and can be applied to any repair types, materials used and building forms. This supports environmentally focused economies and promotes sustainable maintenance management solutions.
Social implications
The LCA approach highlights the efficiency of repair impact strategies through evaluation of low carbon repairs options.
Originality/value
The LCA approach results show that low carbon repair, contextualised within maintenance management, relays the “true” embodied carbon expenditure and stimulates sustainable development of heritage buildings.
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Bindhu Kumari Sreekandan Nair Nidhin, Niluka Domingo, Thao Thi Phuong Bui and Suzanne Wilkinson
In light of climate change, the design and construction of buildings needs to shift from conventional to lower-carbon practices to maximise carbon reduction. Over the past few…
Abstract
Purpose
In light of climate change, the design and construction of buildings needs to shift from conventional to lower-carbon practices to maximise carbon reduction. Over the past few years, the zero carbon buildings (ZCBs) approach has been promoted worldwide as an effective way to reduce environmental impacts and mitigate climate change. Although zero-carbon policies, technologies, processes and products are widely available in the construction market, construction stakeholders play an important part in adopting relevant strategies to implement ZCBs successfully. This study investigates the knowledge of construction stakeholders involved in the design and construction of buildings regarding zero carbon initiatives in New Zealand.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was conducted using a literature review and an online questionnaire survey with various New Zealand's construction stakeholders.
Findings
The findings indicate a low level of knowledge regarding the design and construction of ZCBs. To successfully deliver ZCBs, the study suggests that construction stakeholders must have their self-awareness increased, especially in improving knowledge of whole-of-life embodied carbon reduction. The governments and construction sectors should devote more effort to establishing training programmes and knowledge-sharing platforms to improve stakeholder knowledge in carbon literacy, building assessment methods, energy modelling and life cycle assessment.
Originality/value
The research implications may assist the real-world uptake of the ZCBs approach by offering academics and practitioners an insight into the ZCBs knowledge gaps.
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Tian Feng, Yiru Huang and Bo Zhou
Current policies and research on carbon emissions focus on operational emission but overlook the importance of embodied and user-transport emissions in residential buildings. This…
Abstract
Purpose
Current policies and research on carbon emissions focus on operational emission but overlook the importance of embodied and user-transport emissions in residential buildings. This study built a comprehensive framework to assess the impact of life-cycle carbon emissions on different in-building open public spaces (open roof, open vertical garden, and open ground floor) in affordable housing.
Design/methodology/approach
A parametric model of a typical affordable housing building in Shanghai, China was constructed and 36 variations of open public spaces studied. Embodied, operational, and user-transport carbon emissions were quantified over 50 years.
Findings
The results show that the life-cycle carbon emissions decrease with the application of the open public space. In addition, the paper found that the carbon reduction due to user transport is seven times higher than the carbon increment due to construction and over long-term operation.
Originality/value
This paper provides quantitative evidence for carbon emissions and in-building open public spaces, and the authors suggest taking multiple aspects into account in addition to the structure of the building is crucial to sustainable building development.
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Zaid Alwan and Paul Jones
The construction industry has focused on operational and embodied energy of buildings as a way of becoming more sustainable, however, with more emphasis on the former. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
The construction industry has focused on operational and embodied energy of buildings as a way of becoming more sustainable, however, with more emphasis on the former. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the impact that embodied energy of construction materials can have on the decision making when designing buildings, and ultimately on the environment. This is an important aspect that has often been overlooked when calculating a building's carbon footprint; and its inclusion this approach presents a more holistic life cycle assessment.
Design/methodology/approach
A building project was chosen that is currently being designed; the design team for the project have been tasked by the client to make the facility exemplary in terms of its sustainability. This building has a limited construction palette; therefore the embodied energy component can be accurately calculated. The authors of this paper are also part of the design team for the building so they have full access to Building Information Modelling (BIM) models and production information. An inventory of materials was obtained for the building and embodied energy coefficients applied to assess the key building components. The total operational energy was identified using benchmarking to produce a carbon footprint for the facility.
Findings
The results indicate that while operational energy is more significant over the long term, the embodied energy of key materials should not be ignored, and is likely to be a bigger proportion of the total carbon in a low carbon building. The components with high embodied energy have also been identified. The design team have responded to this by altering the design to significantly reduce the embodied energy within these key components – and thus make the building far more sustainable in this regard.
Research limitations/implications
It may be is a challenge to create components inventories for whole buildings or for refurbishments. However, a potential future approach for is application may be to use a BIM model to simplify this process by imbedding embodied energy inventories within the software, as part of the BIM menus.
Originality/value
This case study identifies the importance of considering carbon use during the whole-life cycle of buildings, as well as highlighting the use of carbon offsetting. The paper presents an original approach to the research by using a “live” building as a case study with a focus on the embodied energy of each component of the scheme. The operational energy is also being calculated, the combined data are currently informing the design approach for the building. As part of the analysis, the building was modelled in BIM software.
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Brit Anak Kayan, Alan M. Forster and Phillip F.G. Banfill
Sustainability is well understood to encapsulate economic, environmental and societal parameters. The efficiency of maintenance interventions for historic buildings is no…
Abstract
Purpose
Sustainability is well understood to encapsulate economic, environmental and societal parameters. The efficiency of maintenance interventions for historic buildings is no exception and also conforms to these broad factors. Recently, environmental considerations for masonry repair have become increasingly important and this work supports this growing area. The purpose of this paper is to give insight on how an option appraisal approach of “Green Maintenance” modelling for historic masonry buildings repair practically determine and ultimately substantiate the decision-making process using a calculation procedures of life cycle assessment, within delineated boundaries.
Design/methodology/approach
Calculation procedures of the model enables an assessment of embodied carbon that is expended from different stone masonry wall repair techniques and scenarios for historic masonry buildings during the maintenance phase.
Findings
It recognises the importance roles Green Maintenance model can play in reducing carbon emissions and underpins rational decision making for repair selection.
Practical implications
It must be emphasised that the calculation procedures presented here, is not confined to historic masonry buildings and can be applied to any repair types and building form. The decisions made as a result of the utilisation of this model practically support environmentally focused conservation decisions.
Social implications
The implementation of the model highlights the efficacy of repairs that may be adopted.
Originality/value
The paper is a rigorous application and testing of the Green Maintenance model. The model relays the “true” carbon cost of repairs contextualised within the longevity of the materials and its embodied carbon that consequently allows rational appraisal of repair and maintenance options.
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Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to marshal the carbon sources, and explore a computational model to calculate the buildings’ carbon emissions by using building information modeling (BIM) techniques. The study aims to integrate the BIM techniques with the carbon emission and energy analysis tools, which can provide a more exact quantification result.
Design/methodology/approach
To define the scope of this study, several standards or regulations have been comparatively analyzed. The BIM technique has also been used to establish the computational model of carbon emissions, including the calculation principle, the basic database, and each process of modeling. Finally, a case study is given to test the theoretical study.
Findings
The paper provides a quantitative calculation method for the carbon emissions of buildings, and suggests an approach to integrate the BIM techniques with the low carbon research. This allows the quantity of material consumption and carbon emission to be calculated in real time during the whole construction process.
Research limitations/implications
Because of the chosen American database, the calculation results may lack generalizability. Therefore, the approach of establishing a universal database of carbon emission coefficients will be the next key point.
Practical implications
As this research shows, there is a need for an advanced calculation method to evaluate the buildings’ carbon emission exactly by BIM techniques, which also provides a basis to establish the regulation of carbon transaction tax in the future.
Originality/value
This paper fulfils an identified need to calculate the carbon emission during the buildings’ construction stage, so that better decisions can be made to optimize the construction plan and choose the low emission materials properly.
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Constructing a low-carbon agriculture (LCA) park is considered an effective means to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing countries. This study aims to explore the…
Abstract
Purpose
Constructing a low-carbon agriculture (LCA) park is considered an effective means to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing countries. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of integrated low-carbon agricultural technologies based on evidence from a pilot LCA experiment in Shanghai, China, from 2008 to 2011.
Design/methodology/approach
Integrated low-carbon technologies in an agricultural park were adopted to reduce GHG emissions. Reduced emissions and net economic benefits were calculated by comparing emissions before and after the implementation of the experiment.
Findings
Results show that the low-carbon agricultural park experiment markedly reduced GHG emissions. This outcome can be attributed to the integrated technologies adopted in the experiment, including the reuse and recycle of resources, control of environmental pollution and GHG emissions and improvement of economic efficiency and social benefit. All the technologies adopted are already available and mature, thus indicating the great potential of LCA to reduce GHG emissions despite the lack of advanced technologies. However, supporting policies may be necessary to motivate private interests in LCA because of the considerable starting investments.
Originality/value
Previous macro-level and policy studies on LCA are based on knowledge from experimental studies, which typically specify environmental conditions to explore solely the effects of one low-carbon technology. Practically, integrating several low-carbon technologies in one experiment may be more effective, particularly for extensive agriculture, in developing countries. The effectiveness of integrated technologies is insufficiently discussed in the literature. Therefore, this study explores how effective integrated feasible LCA technologies can be in terms of both emission reduction and economic benefits based on the data obtained from an experiment in Shanghai, China.
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Wei Lu, Vivian W.Y. Tam, Heng Chen and Lei Du
Addressing global warming challenge, carbon emissions reduction potential of the construction industry has received additional attentions. The decoupling of construction industry…
Abstract
Purpose
Addressing global warming challenge, carbon emissions reduction potential of the construction industry has received additional attentions. The decoupling of construction industry and carbon emissions through policies, technologies and model innovations is an effective way for reducing environmental pollution and achieve eco-urban target. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
Within the scope of green building carbon emissions (GB-CO2) research, a large number of scientific literature has been published in construction discipline over the past few decades. However, it seems that a systematic summary of strategies, techniques, models and scientific discussion of future direction of GB-CO2 is lacking. Therefore, this paper carries out data mining on authoritative journals, identified the key research topics, active research areas and further research trends through visualization studies.
Findings
This study contributes to the body of knowledge in GB-CO2 by critically reviewing and summarizing: professional high-quality journals have a greater influence in the scope of research, developed countries and developing countries are all very concerned about sustainable buildings, and the current hot topics of research focus on the application of the life cycle models, energy efficiency, environmental performance of concrete material, etc. Moreover, further research areas that could expand the knowledge of cross-national long-term carbon mechanisms, develop comprehensive life cycle carbon emissions assessment models, build technical standards and tests for the sustainable building material and systems, and exploit multi-objective decision models considering decarbonizing design and renewable energy.
Originality/value
This study is of value in systematic insight the state-of-the-art of GB-CO2 research in the more recent decade. A more vividly and effectively method is documented in extending the traditional bibliometric review to a deeper discussion. This study can also benefit construction practitioners by providing them a focused perspective of strategy and technologies innovations for emerging practices in green building projects.
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