Download or read book Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Real Estate written by Sara Wilkinson and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-03-21 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the built environment contributing almost half of global greenhouse emissions, there is a pressing need for the property and real estate discipline to thoroughly investigate sustainability concerns. The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Real Estate brings together the latest research of leading academics globally, demonstrating the nature and extent of the impact as well as suggesting means of mitigating humankind's impact and building resilience. Four sections examine the different aspects of sustainable real estate: governance and policy valuation, investment and finance management redevelopment and adaptation. Covering all land uses from residential to commercial, retail and industrial, the Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Real Estate is an exciting mixture of received wisdom and emerging ideas and approaches from both the developed and developing world. Academics, upper-level students and researchers will find this book an essential guide to the very best of sustainable real estate research.

Download or read book Proven Performance of Seven Cold Climate Deep Retrofit Homes written by Roselin Emily Osser and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seven test homes located in Massachusetts are examined within this report. The retrofit strategies of each home are presented along with a comparison of the pre- and post-retrofit airtightness achieved by the group. Pre- and post-retrofit utility bills were collected; energy models were used to estimate pre-retrofit energy use when bills were unavailable.

Download or read book Cost Effective Energy Efficient Building Retrofitting written by F. Pacheco-Torgal and published by Woodhead Publishing. This book was released on 2017-01-03 with total page 633 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cost-Effective Energy Efficient Building Retrofitting:Materials, Technologies, Optimization and Case Studies provides essential knowledge for civil engineers, architects, and other professionals working in the field of cost-effective energy efficient building retrofitting. The building sector is responsible for high energy consumption and its global demand is expected to grow as each day there are approximately 200,000 new inhabitants on planet Earth. The majority of electric energy will continue to be generated from the combustion of fossil fuels releasing not only carbon dioxide, but also methane and nitrous oxide. Energy efficiency measures are therefore crucial to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of the building sector. Energy efficient building retrofitting needs to not only be technically feasible, but also economically viable. New building materials and advanced technologies already exist, but the knowledge to integrate all active components is still scarce and far from being widespread among building industry stakeholders. - Emphasizes cost-effective methods for the refurbishment of existing buildings, presenting state-of-the-art technologies - Includes detailed case studies that explain various methods and Net Zero Energy - Explains optimal analysis and prioritization of cost effective strategies

Download or read book Measured Home Performance written by Lew Harriman and published by . This book was released on 2011-11-01 with total page 138 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report to the California Energy Commission's Public Interest Energy Research Program (PIER) helps Home Performance Contractors train their crews to achieve superior results in home energy retrofits. The book was updated and expanded in December of 2012 to include the impressive measured results from 15 home energy retrofits in Redding, California that were accomplished using the principles and practices outlined in this report. Homeowners may also find this information useful, when they want to understand the techniques that regularly achieve utility bill savings of 40 to 70% on an annual basis. This approach-called Measured Home Performance-is different from other means of saving energy. Most importantly, all of the home's energy features are redesigned and improved at the same time, so the synergies take effect immediately. Next, measurements are taken all the way through the process, to ensure that both the redesign and the installation are excellent. Improved comfort and energy savings are assured by high-tech field measurements, taken by the craftspeople themselves rather than by 3rd-party auditors. This process provides real-time feedback to the real decision makers-the technicians who do the work. Measurements of critical parameters like duct air leakage, while-house air leakage, supply air flow at each grill, CO concentration & draft pressure of combustion appliances and superheat and subcooling of the AC equipment make the installation quality-good or poor-are instantly clear to the crews. They can fix any shortcomings on the spot, rather than waiting days or weeks for 3rd-party testing results. Craftspeople measuring key parameters as they work transforms the workplace. Measured quality not only ensures successful results for the homeowners, it self-trains crew members in the field, where they learn more quickly than in the classroom. At the end of every day, workers know when they have achieved excellent results-a powerful motivator that works to everybody's benefit.

Download or read book Pretty Good House written by Michael Maines and published by Taunton Press. This book was released on 2022-05-24 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pretty Good House provides a framework and set of guidelines for building or renovating a high-performance home that focus on its inhabitants and the environment--but keeps in mind that few people have pockets deep enough to achieve a "perfect" solution. The essential idea is for homeowners to work within their financial and practical constraints both to meet their own needs and do as much for the planet as possible. A Pretty Good House is: * A house that's as small as possible * Simple and durable, but also well designed * Insulated and air-sealed * Above all, it is affordable, healthy, responsible, and resilient.

Download or read book Indoor Air Quality in Commercial and Institutional Buildings written by U. S. Labor and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2012-06-28 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a major concern to businesses, schools, building managers, tenants, and workers because it can impact the health, comfort, well-being, and productivity of the building occupants. OSHA recognizes that poor IAQ can be hazardous to workers' health and that it is in the best interest of everyone that building owners, managers, and employers take a proactive approach to address IAQ concerns. This OSHA guidance document on IAQ, OSHA 3430-04 - Indoor Air Quality in Commercial and Institutional Buildings, provides practical recommendations that will help prevent or minimize IAQ problems in commercial and institutional buildings, and help resolve such problems quickly if they do arise. It provides flexible guidance to employers to help them keep their buildings free of pollutants or conditions that lead to poor IAQ. It also provides information on good IAQ management, including control of airborne pollutants, introduction and distribution of adequate make-up air, and maintenance of an acceptable temperature and relative humidity. Temperature and humidity are important because thermal comfort underlies many complaints about "poor air quality." Some of the information presented here has been derived from the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) report, "An Office Building Occupant's Guide to IAQ" (1)1 and other documents listed in Appendix E, Selected Resources. The issue of environmental tobacco smoke will only be addressed in Appendix F, or indirectly in discussions of air quality relative to some possible components of tobacco smoke, e.g., carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, particulates, etc. In 1998, OSHA conducted a series of three workshops on this issue and the proceedings of these workshops were published in 1999. See Appendix F for more information. This document is directed primarily at employers, building owners and managers, and others responsible for building maintenance, but may also be used as a basic reference for all those involved in IAQ issues. Furthermore, information presented here can help with the decision of whether or not the services of an outside professional may be needed. The advice of a medical professional should always be sought if there are any immediate health issues. Contractors and other professionals (e.g., industrial hygienists or other environmental health and safety professionals) who respond to IAQ concerns, as well as members of the general public, may also find this information helpful.

Download or read book Real Prospects for Energy Efficiency in the United States written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2010-06-10 with total page 349 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: America's economy and lifestyles have been shaped by the low prices and availability of energy. In the last decade, however, the prices of oil, natural gas, and coal have increased dramatically, leaving consumers and the industrial and service sectors looking for ways to reduce energy use. To achieve greater energy efficiency, we need technology, more informed consumers and producers, and investments in more energy-efficient industrial processes, businesses, residences, and transportation. As part of the America's Energy Future project, Real Prospects for Energy Efficiency in the United States examines the potential for reducing energy demand through improving efficiency by using existing technologies, technologies developed but not yet utilized widely, and prospective technologies. The book evaluates technologies based on their estimated times to initial commercial deployment, and provides an analysis of costs, barriers, and research needs. This quantitative characterization of technologies will guide policy makers toward planning the future of energy use in America. This book will also have much to offer to industry leaders, investors, environmentalists, and others looking for a practical diagnosis of energy efficiency possibilities.

Download or read book Bioclimatic Housing written by Richard Hyde and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-04-27 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the search for sustainable architecture, there is growing interest in the relationship between nature and design. In this vital new book, the termbioclimatic relating to the dynamic between climate and living organisms, is applied by the authors in focusing on countries where housing requires cooling for a significant part of the year. In this context, Bioclimatic Housing covers creative, vernacular architecture to present both the theory and practice of innovative, low-energy architecture. The book interweaves the themes of social progress, technological fixes and industry transformation within a discussion of global and country trends, climate types, solutions and technologies. Prepared under the auspices of a 5-year International Energy Agency (IEA) project, and with case studies from Iran, Malaysia, Australia, Japan, Sri Lanka and Italy, this is a truly international and authoritative work, providing an essential primer for building designers, builders, developers and advanced students in architecture and engineering.

Download or read book Energy renovation of multi family buildings in Sweden written by Lina La Fleur and published by Linköping University Electronic Press. This book was released on 2019-09-18 with total page 101 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Residential buildings account for 27% of the final energy use in the European Union. In cold climates, space heating represents the largest proportion of the energy demand in residential buildings. By implementing energy efficiency measures (EEMs) in existing buildings, energy use can be significantly reduced. The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive states that renovations of buildings offer an opportunity to improve energy efficiency. Renovations that include measures implemented with the specific purpose of reducing energy use are referred to as energy renovations. In addition to improving energy efficiency, an energy renovation can also improve the indoor environment. Sweden, like many other European countries, faces the challenge of renovating an ageing building stock with poor energy performance. Improving energy efficiency and performing energy renovations in a cost-effective manner is central, and optimization approaches are often used to identify suitable EEMs and energy renovation approaches. New buildings usually feature better energy performance compared to older buildings, and one approach for reducing energy use in the building sector could be to demolish old buildings with poor thermal performance and build new buildings with better thermal performance. The aim of this thesis is to evaluate energy renovations of multi-family buildings with regard to space heating demand, life cycle costs, indoor environment and primary energy use. The choice between energy renovation of a multi-family building and the demolition and construction of a new one is also investigated with regard to life cycle costs (LCCs). A Swedish multi-family building in which energy renovation has been carried out is used as a case study. The building was originally constructed in 1961 and has a lightweight concrete construction. The renovation included improving the thermal performance of the building envelope and replacing the exhaust air ventilation system with a mechanical supply and exhaust air ventilation system with heat recovery. The methods used in the studies include dynamic whole building energy simulation, life cycle cost analysis and optimizations, and a questionnaire on indoor environment perception. Extensive field measurements have been performed in the building prior to and after renovation to provide input data and to validate numerical predictions. In addition to the studied building, the analysis of the choice between energy renovation and the demolition and construction of a new building includes three other building construction types, representing common Swedish building types from the 1940s, 1950s and 1970s. The analysis shows that the energy renovation led to a 44% reduction in space heating demand and an improved indoor environment. The indoor temperature was higher after the renovation and the perception of the indoor temperature, air quality and noise in the building improved. The EEMs implemented as part of the energy renovation have a slightly higher LCC than the optimal combinations of EEMs identified in the LCC optimization. It is not cost-optimal to implement any EEMs in the building if the lowest possible LCC is the objective function. Attic insulation has a low cost of implementation but has limited potential in the studied building with its relatively good thermal properties. Insulation of the façade is an expensive measure, but has a great potential to reduce heat demand because of the large façade area. Façade insulation is thus required to achieve significant energy savings. Heat recovery in the ventilation system is cost-effective with an energy saving target above 40% in the studied building. The primary energy factors in the Swedish Building Code favor ground source heat pumps as a heat supply system in the studied building. The LCC of renovation is lower compared to demolishing and constructing a new building. A large proportion of the LCC of demolition and new construction relates to the demolition of the existing building. In a building with a high internal volume to floor area ratio, it is not always possible to renovate to the same energy performance level as when constructing a new building. A more ambitious renovation approach is also needed compared to a building with a smaller volume to floor area ratio. Nära 27 % av den totala energianvändningen i den Europeiska Unionen sker i bostäder. I länder med kallt klimat används den största delen till uppvärmning. Genom att implementera energieffektiviseringsåtgärder i befintliga byggnaden kan energiprestandan signifikant förbättras. Europeiska Unionens direktiv om byggnaders energiprestanda framhåller att ett tillfälle att förbättra byggnaders energieffektivitet finns då byggnader ska renoveras. Byggnadsrenoveringar som innehåller åtgärder som implementeras med det primära syftet att minska energianvändningen kallas ofta energirenoveringar. Utöver energieffektivisering kan energirenoveringar ofta förbättra inomhusmiljön i byggnaden. Som många andra Europeiska länder står Sverige inför utmaningen att renovera ett åldrande byggnadsbestånd med låg energiprestanda. Kostnadseffektivitet är centralt vid energirenoveringar och energieffektivisering och optimeringsansatser är vanliga för att identifiera vilka energieffektiviseringsåtgärder som bör implementeras. Nya byggnader har som regel bättre energiprestanda jämfört med äldre byggnader, och en ansats till ett minska energianvändningen i byggnadssektorn överlag är således att riva äldre byggnader med låg energiprestanda och konstruera nya byggnader med bättre energiprestanda. Syftet med denna avhandling är att utvärdera energirenoveringar av flerfamiljshus avseende effekterna på uppvärmningsbehov, livscykelkostnader, inomhusmiljö och primärenergianvändning. Valet mellan energirenovering kontra att riva och bygga en ny byggnad analyseras också utifrån ett livscykelkostnadsperspektiv. För att studera detta har en svensk flerfamiljsbyggnad som genomgått energirenovering studerats. Byggnaden konstruerades 1961 och har en lättbetongstomme. När byggnaden renoverades förbättrades prestandan hos byggnadens klimatskal och frånluftsventilationssystemet byttes ut mot ett balanserat mekanisk ventilationssystem med värmeåtervinning. Metoderna som använts i studierna i denna avhandling är dynamisk byggandssimulering, beräkning och optimering av livscykelkostnader, samt en enkätstudie om hur de boende uppfattar sin inomhusmiljö. Omfattande mätningar har utförts i byggnaden och har använts som indata och för att validera resultaten. Utöver den studerade byggnaden har tre andra byggnadstyper inkluderats i analysen av valet mellan energirenovering och att riva och konstruera en ny byggnads. Dessa byggnadstyper representerar vanliga svenska byggnadstyper från 1940-, 1950- och 1970-talet. Analyserna visar att den renovering som genomfördes i byggnaden ledde till en minskning av uppvärmningsbehovet med 44 % och en förbättring av inomhusmiljön. Inomhustemperaturen var högre efter renoveringen, och de boende uppfattade temperaturförhållanden, luftkvalitet och bullersituationen som bättre efter renoveringen. De energieffektiviserande åtgärder som implementerades vid renoveringen gav en något högre livscykelkostnad än de åtgärder som identifierades som optimala genom livscykelkostnadsoptimering. Det är inte kostnadseffektivt att implementera några energieffektiviseringsåtgärder som del av renoveringen om den lägsta livscykelkostnaden är målsättningen. Vindsisolering är en förhållandevis billigt åtgärd att genomföra, men har begränsad potential i den studerade byggnaden vars vind redan har relativt god termisk prestanda. Fasadisolering kräver en större investering, men har större potential att minska energianvändning på grund av den stora fasadytan. Detta innebär att det är nödvändigt att isolera fasaden för att uppnå hög energibesparing. Värmeåtervinning i ventilationssystemet är kostnadsoptimalt om ett energisbesparingsmål på mer än 40 % ställs på energirenoveringen. Primärenergifaktorerna i den svenska byggnadskoden gynnar bergvärmepump som energitillförselsystem i de studerade byggnaden. Kostnaden för att energirenovera är lägre än att riva och bygga en ny byggnad. En stor andel av kostnaderna vid rivning och nybyggnation är kopplad till rivning och bortforsling av rivningsmassa. I byggnadstyper med stor inre volym i förhållande till uppvärmd golvyta är det inte alltid möjlig att energirenovera till en energiprestanda som är lika god som en ny byggnad. Det krävs också en mer ambitiös renovering för att uppnå samma energiprestanda som en byggnad med mindre inre volym i förhållande till uppvärmd golvyta.

Download or read book Drawdown written by Paul Hawken and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2017-04-18 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: • New York Times bestseller • The 100 most substantive solutions to reverse global warming, based on meticulous research by leading scientists and policymakers around the world “At this point in time, the Drawdown book is exactly what is needed; a credible, conservative solution-by-solution narrative that we can do it. Reading it is an effective inoculation against the widespread perception of doom that humanity cannot and will not solve the climate crisis. Reported by-effects include increased determination and a sense of grounded hope.” —Per Espen Stoknes, Author, What We Think About When We Try Not To Think About Global Warming “There’s been no real way for ordinary people to get an understanding of what they can do and what impact it can have. There remains no single, comprehensive, reliable compendium of carbon-reduction solutions across sectors. At least until now. . . . The public is hungry for this kind of practical wisdom.” —David Roberts, Vox “This is the ideal environmental sciences textbook—only it is too interesting and inspiring to be called a textbook.” —Peter Kareiva, Director of the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, UCLA In the face of widespread fear and apathy, an international coalition of researchers, professionals, and scientists have come together to offer a set of realistic and bold solutions to climate change. One hundred techniques and practices are described here—some are well known; some you may have never heard of. They range from clean energy to educating girls in lower-income countries to land use practices that pull carbon out of the air. The solutions exist, are economically viable, and communities throughout the world are currently enacting them with skill and determination. If deployed collectively on a global scale over the next thirty years, they represent a credible path forward, not just to slow the earth’s warming but to reach drawdown, that point in time when greenhouse gases in the atmosphere peak and begin to decline. These measures promise cascading benefits to human health, security, prosperity, and well-being—giving us every reason to see this planetary crisis as an opportunity to create a just and livable world.

Download or read book Energy Performance of Residential Buildings written by Mat Santamouris and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2010-09-23 with total page 151 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Energy Rating is a crucial consideration in modern building design, affirmed by the new EC Directive on the energy performance of buildings. Energy represents a high percentage of the running costs of a building, and has a significant impact on the comfort of the occupants. This book represents detailed information on energy rating of residential buildings, covering: * Theoretical and experimental energy rating techniques: reviewing the state of the art and offering guidance on the in situ identification of the UA and gA values of buildings. * New experimental protocols to evaluate energy performance: detailing a flexible new approach based on actual energy consumption. Data are collected using the Billed Energy Protocol (BEP) and Monitored Energy Protocol (MEP) * Energy Normalization techniques: describing established methods plus a new Climate Severity Index, which offers significant benefits to the user. Also included in this book are audit forms and a CD-ROM for applying the new rating methodology. The software, prepared in Excel, is easy to use, can be widely applied using both deterministic and experimental methods, and can be adapted to national peculiarities and energy policy criteria. Energy Performance of Residential Buildings offers full and clear treatment of the key issues and will be an invaluable source of information for energy experts, building engineers, architects, physicists, project managers and local authorities. The book stems from the EC-funded SAVE project entitled EUROCLASS. Participating institutes included: * University of Athens, Greece * Belgium Building Research Institute, Belgium * University of Seville, Spain * Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden

Download or read book Procedures for Commercial Building Energy Audits written by John Cowan and published by American Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers. This book was released on 2004 with total page 62 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Procedures for Commercial Building Energy Audits provides purchasers and providers of energy audit services with a complete definition of good procedures for an energy survey and analysis. It also provides a format for defining buildings and their energy use that will allow data to be shared in meaningful ways. This publication specifically avoids a "cookbook" approach, recognizing that all buildings are different and each analyst needs to exercise a substantial amount of judgment. Instead, Procedures sets out generalized procedures to guide the analyst and the building owner, and provides a uniform method of reporting basic information. Different levels of analysis are organized into the following categories:Preliminary Energy Use Analysis Level I Analysis "Walk-Through Analysis Level II Analysis"Energy Survey and Analysis Level III Analysis"Detailed Analysis of Capital-Intensive Modifications The book comes with a CD that provides more than 25 guideline forms, with explanatory material, to illustrate the content and arrangement of a complete, effective energy analysis report. The CD provides these forms in both PDF and Word format, enabling you to customize and print each form. For the downloadable version, the PDF of the book and the guideline forms are included in a single .zip file. You will need WinZip or an equivalent program to open the file. ASHRAE Research Project 669 and ASHRAE Special Project 56.

Download or read book Deep Energy Retrofit written by Alexander Zhivov and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-07-13 with total page 588 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides detailed information on how to set up Deep Energy Retrofits (DERs) in public buildings, and shares in-depth insights into the current status of the major technologies, strategies and best practice examples of how to cost-effectively combine them. Case studies from the U.S.A. and Europe show that that Deep Energy Retrofit can be achieved with a limited core technologies bundle readily available on the market. Characteristics of some of these core technology measures depend on the technologies available on an individual nation’s market, on the minimum requirements of national standards, and on economics (as determined by a life cycle cost analysis). Also, requirements to building envelope-related technologies (e.g., insulation levels, windows, vapor and water barriers, and requirements for building airtightness) depend on specific climate conditions. This Guide provides best practice examples of how to apply these technologies in different construction situations. High levels of energy use reduction using core technology bundles along with improvements in indoor climate and thermal comfort can be only achieved when a Deep Energy Retrofit adopts a quality assurance process. In addition to design, construction, commissioning, and post-occupancy phases of the quality assurance process, the Guide emphasizes the importance of clearly and concisely formulating and documenting the Owner’s goals, expectations, and requirements for the renovated building during development of the statement of work. Another important component of the quality assurance process is a procurement phase, during which bidders’ qualifications, their understanding of the scope of work and its requirements, and their previous experience are analyzed. The building sector holds the potential for tremendous improvements in terms of energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions, and energy retrofits to the existing building stock represent a significant opportunity in the transition to a low-carbon future. Moreover, investing in highly efficient building materials and systems can replace long-term energy imports, contribute to cost cutting, and create a wealth of new jobs. Yet, while the technologies needed in order to improve energy efficiency are readily available, significant progress has not yet been made, and “best practices” for implementing building technologies and renewable energy sources are still relegated to small “niche” applications. Offering essential information on Deep Energy Retrofits, the book offers a valuable asset for architects, public authorities, project developers, and engineers alike.

Download or read book Transition to Sustainable Buildings written by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and published by Organization for Economic Co-Operation & Developme. This book was released on 2013 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Buildings are the largest energy consuming sector in the world, and account for over one-third of total final energy consumption and an equally important source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Achieving significant energy and emissions reduction in the buildings sector is a challenging but achievable policy goal. Transition to Sustainable Buildings presents detailed scenarios and strategies to 2050, and demonstrates how to reach deep energy and emissions reduction through a combination of best available technologies and intelligent public policy. This IEA study is an indispensible guide for decision makers, providing informative insights on: cost-effective options, key technologies and opportunities in the buildings sector; solutions for reducing electricity demand growth and flattening peak demand; effective energy efficiency policies and lessons learned from different countries; future trends and priorities for ASEAN, Brazil, China, the European Union, India, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and the United States; implementing a systems approach using innovative products in a cost effective manner; and pursuing whole-building (e.g. zero energy buildings) and advanced-component policies to initiate a fundamental shift in the way energy is consumed.

Download or read book The Passivhaus Handbook written by Janet Cotterell and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-30 with total page 2 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'As we move towards the 2016 zero carbon target in house building, Passivhaus construction looks like becoming not just popular in the UK, but commonplace. This is a no-nonsense and engaging introduction on how to do it.' KEVIN MCCLOUD - The Passivhaus Handbook is an essential guide for anyone wanting to realise a supremely comfortable, healthy and durable home with exceptionally low energy costs. Passivhaus design focuses on getting the building fabric right, to achieve ultra-low energy consumption cost-effectively. The approach is relevant to a wide range of building types and climates. Its methodology can be combined with elements of other building standards, such as the UK's Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH), or with other sustainable building goals, such as a commitment to using low-impact or natural building materials. Whether you are building an extension, retrofitting your house or starting from scratch, and whether you are new to low-energy design or already have some experience, this book will help you navigate around the potential pitfalls and misconceptions. It brings together current thinking and best practice. The book includes a clear explanation of the underlying building physics and terminology, as well as detailed information on key elements of Passivhaus: avoiding air leakage, designing thermal (cold) bridges, moisture management and ventilation strategy. There is also lots of practical advice on setting up a project, including developing a motivated project team, and a discussion of economic considerations and the policy context in the UK. As pressure on global resources increases and energy prices continue to rise, the Passivhaus approach, proven over 20 years, meets the challenge of ultra-low-energy building for the future.

Download or read book Global Energy Assessment written by GEA Writing Team and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-08-27 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Global Energy Assessment (GEA) brings together over 300 international researchers to provide an independent, scientifically based, integrated and policy-relevant analysis of current and emerging energy issues and options. It has been peer-reviewed anonymously by an additional 200 international experts. The GEA assesses the major global challenges for sustainable development and their linkages to energy; the technologies and resources available for providing energy services; future energy systems that address the major challenges; and the policies and other measures that are needed to realize transformational change toward sustainable energy futures. The GEA goes beyond existing studies on energy issues by presenting a comprehensive and integrated analysis of energy challenges, opportunities and strategies, for developing, industrialized and emerging economies. This volume is an invaluable resource for energy specialists and technologists in all sectors (academia, industry and government) as well as policymakers, development economists and practitioners in international organizations and national governments.

Download or read book Popular Mechanics written by and published by . This book was released on 1999-09 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Popular Mechanics inspires, instructs and influences readers to help them master the modern world. Whether it’s practical DIY home-improvement tips, gadgets and digital technology, information on the newest cars or the latest breakthroughs in science -- PM is the ultimate guide to our high-tech lifestyle.