published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis (M.Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Bibliography: p. 199-203. / by James E. Rosen. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1979. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Includes bibliographical references. / The electric utilities in the United States are faced with continued rapid growth in electrical demand. The traditional response to growth in demand has been the expansion of generating capacity. However, economic, environmental, and scheduling constraints will combine to make adequate expansion difficult, if not impossible, in the 1980's. This thesis examines load management as an alternative to the proliferation of generating plants. This path is illustrated by the development of an air conditioning system designed to displace power consumption in commercial buildings from peak to off-peak periods. The urban domestic utilities face their peak loads during the summer air conditioning season. The displacement of daytime air conditioning will therefore reduce the utilities' annual peak load. The proposed air conditioning system uses off-peak power, and conventional mechanical equipment, to recharge a thermal energy storage system. The thermal storage medium is a sodium sulfate-based phase change material (PCM) enclosed in small thin bags. These bags are distributed throughout the ceiling plane of the building; supported by special ceiling tiles. At night, the PCM is charged by chilling the plenum space; during the day, the PCM, in direct contact with the occupied space, removes sensible heat gains by melting. System components are described by their programmatic requirements. The performance of the proposed off-peak cooling system was simulated under a variety of conditions involving interior zone commercial office spaces. It was found, using thermal comfort criteria, that the system performed well using a PCM set point temperature of 67°F. Under the operating parameters established, the simulations indicated that the energy flow rates were adequate for successful system performance. Finally, it was determined that the system can provide immediate savings through customer demand leveling and increased chiller efficiency. However, the major potential for savings will relate to anticipated utility incentives for off-peak electrical use. / Charles C. Benton / M.Arch.

The motivation for the research described in this thesis is the imperative to minimise energy consumption of buildings in the urban environment. A comprehensive approach to analysing energy usage involves the whole life cycle of buildings and infrastructure including embodied energy consumption. Embodied energy represents all of the energy consumed in the production of building materials and components, as well as the energy used to assemble them into the built form. This thesis describes the development and application of a model which spatially depicts embodied energy as a basis for undertaking more holistic analyses of urban energy consumption. The need for comprehensive analyses of energy consumption is initially explored. Such analyses would enable more favourable energy outcomes to be achieved when making decisions about urban planning and development. Research on the value of representing energy usage in a spatial format is reviewed and the case is made for modelling the embodied energy as a contribution to the broader understanding of urban energy consumption. This thesis concentrates on residential areas of the urban environment. The model for spatially representing the embodied energy consumption of residential areas has three components which are embodied energy theory, property register data and geographical information software. A methodology is described which commences with hybrid embodied energy coefficients, integrates these with property register data for a metropolitan area and displays the results using GIS techniques in the form of maps. The model is general but developed using information pertaining to the Adelaide metropolitan area and tested using data from both Adelaide and Sydney. To show that the model can usefully contribute to life cycle energy analyses in the urban environment, it is applied to three case studies involving current urban planning issues involving the densification of dwellings in cities and the redevelopment of older residential areas. These show that such analyses can represent embodied energy spatially and with sufficient accuracy to inform urban planning and development decisions aimed at reducing overall energy usage. In summary, the research has extended knowledge on the embodied energy of the built form by focusing on residential areas which include urban infrastructure rather than just individual buildings. It has provided new insights into the significance of embodied energy of the existing built form by considering it as a ‘sunk cost’ which may be partially recovered and form part of the energy flows in the urban environment. The mapping of embodied energy of the existing built form also offers the potential for quantifying resources which can be re-used to modify total energy consumption of new developments. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1311795 / Thesis(Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Design, 2008

This paper combines two research publications working toward the development of an integrated framework for commercial sustainable building design. Current methodologies utilize a traditional architectural top-down approach to sustainable building design practices that consumes financial and temporal resources early in the design process. By identifying the array mechanical subsystems required to meet modern building standards such as net-zero energy and water, and recognizing the importance of these interactions, designers can mitigate this resource consumption. The first paper presents an anthropological case study of the schematic design process of the Oregon Sustainability Center, a net-zero building slated for construction in Portland, Oregon. This research outlines the complexity of mechanical subsystems required to achieve net-zero standards and how project stakeholders affect the design process. The second paper further explores this concept by analyzing building subsystems in the context of a traditional complex system (airplane, automobile, etc.), and uses optimization techniques to understand significant system interactions. A computer model is created that optimizes lighting availability for a commercial workspace incorporating cost, building standards, and user environment. By considering post construction building usage, each subsystem can be designed for maximum user productivity, reducing costs associated with sustainable design practices. / Graduation date: 2012

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