Society is dependent processes that emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The accumulation of these gases in the atmosphere prevents sunlight reflected from earth’s surface to get to space thereby warming the earth and causing climate change. To prevent the effects of adverse climate change, the voluntary carbon market was designed to help buyers, individuals or organizations that cannot avoid emission in their process, purchase carbon credits from sellers, entities whose process prevent or avoid carbon emissions. The voluntary carbon market faces challenges like market fragmentation, opacity of records, and delayed processes due to layers of intermediation and double counting. In an attempt to solve these challenges, blockchain, a ledger technology, has been applied by innovative organizations. This thesis researches the possible roles of trading carbon credits using blockchain based platforms in the voluntary carbon market. Furthermore, this thesis focuses secondarily on how the application could increase supply of carbon credits, influence commitment to net-zero, contribute to production of high-quality carbon credits, and promote fairness in carbon trading. A conceptual framework based upon the Oxford Principles for Carbon Offsetting, Taskforce for Scaling the Voluntary Carbon Market (TSVCM), and the Sustainability Principles was used in this study. Seven organizations were investigated in this study through a first phase of interview and a second phase of survey.The findings suggest that blockchain-enabled carbon trading has the potential to enable market growth, foster systems interactions and transition via information technology, and support opportunities for sustainability in the socio-ecological system. Blockchain also inherits the unsustainability of the overall tech and energy sectors wherein it operates. Weak governance systems off-chain from non-disclosures by market players also risk the market system on-chain to vulnerabilities. The authors conclude that trading carbon credit on blockchain-enabled platforms is a step in the right direction in terms of amplifying the contributions the voluntary carbon markets hold for cutting down carbon emissions. They also acknowledge that the blockchain-carbon credit application does not directly address upstream issues of carbon emission but serves as a mechanism to accelerate decarbonization.

This study evaluates energy performance and economic analysis of variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems in U.S. climate locations using widelyepted whole building energy modeling software, EnergyPlus. VRF systems are known for their high energy performance and thus can improve energy efficiency in buildings. To evaluate the energy performance of a VRF system, energy simulation modeling and calibration of a VRF heat pump (HP) type system is performed using the EnergyPlus program based on measured data collected from an experimental facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). In the calibration procedures, the energy simulation model is calibrated, according to the ASHRAE Guideline 14-2014, under cooling and heating seasons. After a proper calibration of the simulation model, the VRF HP system is placed in U.S. climate locations to evaluate the performance variations in different weather conditions. An office prototype building model, developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is used with the VRF HP system in this study. This study also considers net-zero energy building (NZEB) design of VRF systems with a distributed photovoltaic (PV) system. The NZEB concept has been considered as one of the remedies to reduce electric energy usages and achieve high energy efficiency in buildings. Both the VRF HP and VRF heat recovery (HR) system types are considered in the NZEB design, and a solar PV system is utilized to enable NZEB balances in U.S. climate locations by assuming that net-metering available within the electrical grid-level. In addition, this study conducts life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) of NZEBs with VRF HP and HR systems. LCCA provides present values at a given study period, discounted payback period, and net-savings between VRF HP and HR systems in U.S. climate locations. Preliminary results indicate that the simulated VRF HP system can reasonably predict the energy performance of the actual VRF HP system and reduce between 15-45% for HVAC site energy uses when compared to a VAV system in U.S. climate locations. The VRF HR system can be used to lower building energy demand and thus achieve NZEB performance effectively in some hot and mild U.S. climate locations.

The need to transition the global economy to net zero greenhouse gas emissions is clear. Commitments made by the majority of the world’s governments declare that a global net zero economy should be achieved by the middle of the century. What is less clear is how this transition should take place, or how these commitments impact companies. This paper explores senior management perspectives on a net zero transition, identifying drivers, enablers, and barriers to transitioning effectively. In line with Kurt Lewin’s work, we collectively refer to these as forces. Through 11 in-depth interviews and a quantitative survey to managers across several industries and geographies, we identify, rank, and visually conceptualise 26 forces that act on companies in the context of a net zero transition. The strongest driving force is ‘Societal awareness of climate change and net zero targets’, while the biggest current constraining force is ’Business priorities’. The force considered to have the single biggest potential impact is ‘government disincentives and bans’. Based on the collective analysis of our findings, there are possible policy implications that could be explored further in order to successfully manage a transition to net zero.

The road to energy-efficient housing is not without cracks and potholes. Many building stakeholders have pointed to the discrepancies that exist between simulated and measured efficiency results, where some have called it a post-occupancy gap, others have called it an energy efficiency information gap. The research presented in this thesis addresses that gap by detailing the results of two exploratory case studies of affordable housing projects in Virginia across three manuscripts. The data utilized in the first manuscript includes measured data collected at the second level through the NEXI energy monitoring and feedback device, wherein we used descriptive statistics to investigate the impact of temperature on energy use over different timeframes. We had anticipated our findings may not all be consistent with previously existing studies. We found this to be true in many cases, but we also discovered interesting contradictions to our assumptions. This study thereby investigates the gap in energy performance within net-zero buildings and contributes to the existing body of literature by presenting the findings of this unique study. The data utilized in Manuscript 2 and Manuscript 3 was utility data, which was reported as end-of-use monthly consumption values. We were able to investigate the impact of 3 different HVAC systems energy use by evaluating the energy and cost performance before and after the installation of newer, more efficient systems. We found that although all systems were performing below anticipated standards, the one-stage system outperformed in terms of efficiency, and the second-stage system outperformed in terms of cost. The findings in these studies emphasize the importance of energy education for residents to achieve greater efficiency gains. / Master of Science / Humans are complex beings; hence the buildings they inhabit are complex systems. While breakthroughs in simulating, designing, and constructing high-performance buildings as well as advanced energy use technologies have been promising, many have fallen short of their ambitious goals primarily due to the complexity of building occupant behavior. Achieving energy efficiency requires thorough research before design and construction, the use of advanced technologies, and the incorporation of behavior-driven energy use dynamics. Furthermore, with the breadth of literature to support the delivery of individualized energy information in real-time to residents comes the opportunity to investigate further the impact of advanced technologies in high performing buildings that have fallen short of their optimistic design goals. This thesis consists of three manuscripts, which describe two exploratory case studies of high-performance residential homes in Virginia's affordable housing sector. The first manuscript, a journal paper, investigates the individual HVAC energy use of six senior residents, wherein we explore the interplay between temperature, energy use, and age across different timeframes. We find that, across different timeframes, energy use for senior citizens remains relatively consistent in high-performance homes. The second and third manuscripts are conference papers, which have been presented on and published in the respective conference proceedings. We quantitively investigated the energy performance of energy-efficient HVAC systems and compared predicted results and measured results. In conclusion, we hope to contribute to the body of literature, which investigates shortcomings in achieving energy-efficiency within high-performance homes.

Bygg- och fastighetssektorn står idag för en femtedel av koldioxidutsläppen och en dryg tredjedel av energianvändningen inom Sveriges gränser, vilket pekar på en stor utvecklingspotential. Miljöcertifieringen NollCO2 ska på ett mer holistiskt sätt driva på klimatarbetet i byggprojekt genom att ställa krav på att växthusgasutsläppen under bygg- och driftskedet reduceras, men också att kvarvarande klimatpåverkan balanseras med klimatåtgärder mot ”netto noll”. Forskningen lyfter fram att det i hållbara byggprojekt är svårare att hålla tidplanen och kostnadsbudgeten, där detta bland annat beror på långsamt beslutsfattande, kommunikationssvårigheter och projekteringsomtag. Dessa problem har nämnts i projekt med lägre ställda hållbarhetsambitioner än de som NollCO2 har. NollCO2-certifieringen har dessutom ett annat upplägg än dess förlagor. Dessa anledningar gör det intressant att undersöka vad som gör ett NollCO2-certifierat projekt genomförbart och framgångsrikt. Examensarbetets mål har varit att genom en litteraturstudie och en fallstudie av ett NollCO2-certifierat byggprojekt (1) identifiera vilka projektledningsrelaterade nyckelfaktorer som är viktiga ur ett tids- och kostnadsperspektiv i projekteringsskedet av ett byggprojekt med hög hållbarhetsprofil och (2) analysera de identifierade nyckelfaktorerna genom att ta reda på: ·       Vad varje nyckelfaktor innebär ·       Varför nyckelfaktorn är viktig för byggprojekt med hög hållbarhetsprofil ·       Hur projektgruppen i praktiken får nyckelfaktorn att fungera. Litteraturen som studerades handlade bland annat om grunderna i olika miljöcertifieringar och byggprocessen, som sedan ledde till att studera de fyra termerna tydliga målsättningar, kommunikation, tidig samverkan och upparbetade relationer. De personer som intervjuades var beställarens Projektchef, projektledaren, byggentreprenörens projektchef, platschefen, projekteringsledaren, hållbarhetssamordnaren och arkitekten. De fyra projektledningsrelaterade nyckelfaktorerna identifierades som tydliga målsättningar, kommunikation, tidig samverkan och upparbetade relationer, vilka visades inbördes relaterade varandra. En tydlig målsättning definieras som förståeligt, gemensamt och etablerat i tidigt skede. Där är det även viktigt att ett syfte med uppgiften finns för att förstå målet. Det kan uppnås genom bland annat ett bra och tydligt måldokument. Bra kommunikation i ett byggprojekt handlar om att ha bra informationsdelning mellan de olika aktörerna i ett byggprojekt; både muntligt genom att ge rätt information till rätt person vid rätt tid, och skriftligt/digitalt genom att ha uttalade sätt för hur handlingar, styrdokument och annat inom byggprojektets ramar ska kommuniceras ut. Tidig samverkan är när en byggentreprenör och rätt konsulter blir anlitade i ett tidigt skede. Som en gemensam organisation, likt ett fiktivt bolag sätts all nödvändig kompetens in i början av projekteringen för att minska risken för fel och ändringar. Upparbetade relationer är relationer som på ett eller annat sätt finns med andra inom branschen. Det underlättar att arbeta i en grupp där relationer är etablerade och styrkor och svagheter kända. Ingen av de fyra identifierade nyckelfaktorerna är i sig nya eller unika för CO2-certifierade projekt. Däremot pekar resultaten från studien på att dessa nyckelfaktorer är extra viktiga att beakta i projekteringsskedet av ett projekt där NollCO2-certifieringens krav ska uppfyllas eftersom det ställer krav på en högre grad av samordning mellan medverkande i projektet. / The Swedish construction- and real estate sector today account for a fifth of carbon dioxide emissions, a third of the energy consumption and two fifths of waste in Sweden, which points at a large development potential. The environmental-certification NollCO2 aims to involve sustainability in a more holistic way by establishing an emission limit for the specific construction project, and then undercut that limit by 30%. Research shows that it is harder to keep schedule and budget in sustainable construction projects, where some of the reasons is slow decision-making, communication-difficulties, and design-retakes. These problems have been mentioned in construction projects with less ambitious sustainability-goals than NollCO2 has. The NollCO2-certification is also set up in a different way than its predecessors. These reasons makes it intriguing to research what makes a NollCO2-certified construction project feasible and successful.  The goal of the thesis project has been to (1) identify what project management related key-factors is important from a time- and cost perspective in the design-stage of a construction project with high a sustainability-profile and (2) analyze the identified key-factors by answering; ·       What each key-factor implies ·       Why the key-factor is important for construction projects with a high sustainability-profile ·       How the project-organization get the key-factor to work practically  The studied literature brought up the basics of different environmental-certifications and the construction process, which led to studying the four terms clear goalsetting, communication, early partnering and worked up relationships. The different roles that were interviewed was the clients projectchief, project manager, the contractors projectchief, site manager, design manager, sustainability coordinator, and architect.  The four project management related key-factors were identified (1) as clear goalsetting, communication, early partnering and worked up relationships.  These four key-factors were analyzed (2) with the help of the questions stated earlier. A clear goal is defined as understandable, common, and established in an early stage. It’s also important to understand the intention of the assignment to understand the goal. The clear goals can for instance be achieved using a good and clear goalsetting-document. Good communication in a construction project is all about sharing information with one another correctly. Verbally by giving the right information to the right information at the right time. Written by using certain ways or systems of sharing plans, control documents and other things within the project framework. Early partnering is when a contractor along with the right consultants gets involved at an early stage to contribute with their expertise. By working as a joint organization, almost as a fictive company you can put all the necessary competence in the design stage and therefore minimize the number of errors and changes. Worked up relationships is relations that exists in some way with other people in the construction industry. It’s easier to work in a group that you already have a relationship with, where you know each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

Buildings have a significant impact on energy usage and the environment. Much of the research in architectural sustainability has centered on economically advanced countries because they consume the most energy and have the most resources. However, sustainable architecture is important in developing countries, where the energy consumption of the building sector is increasing significantly. Currently, developing countries struggle with vaccine storage because vaccines are typically warehoused in old buildings that are poorly designed and wasteful of energy. This thesis created and studied a decision support tool that can be used to aid in the design of economically feasible Net Zero Energy vaccine warehouses for the developing world. The decision support tool used a simulation-optimization approach to combine an optimization technique with two simulation softwares in order to determine the cost-optimal design solution. To test its effectiveness, a new national vaccine storage facility located in Tunis, Tunisia was used. Nine building parameters were investigated to see which have the most significant effect on the annual energy usage and initial construction cost of the building. First, tests were conducted for two construction techniques, five different climates in the developing world, and three photovoltaic system prices to gain insight on the design space of the optimal solution. The results showed the difference between an economically efficient and economically inefficient Net Zero Energy building and the results were used to provide generalized climatic recommendations for all the building parameters studied. The final test showed the benefits of combining two optimization techniques, a design of experiments and a genetic algorithm, to form a two-step process to aid in the building design in the early stages and final stages of the design process. The proposed decision support tool can efficiently and effectively aid in the design of an economically feasible Net Zero Energy vaccine warehouse for the developing world.

abstract: Schools all around the country are improving the performance of their buildings by adopting high performance design principles. Higher levels of energy efficiency can pave the way for K-12 Schools to achieve net zero energy (NZE) conditions, a state where the energy generated by on-site renewable sources are sufficient to meet the cumulative annual energy demands of the facility. A key capability for the proliferation of Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB) is the need for a design methodology that identifies the optimum mix of energy efficient design features to be incorporated into the building. The design methodology should take into account the interaction effects of various energy efficiency measures as well as their associated costs so that life cycle cost can be minimized for the entire life span of the building. This research aims at developing such a methodology for generating cost effective net zero energy solutions for school buildings. The Department of Energy (DOE) prototype primary school, meant to serve as the starting baseline, was modeled in the building energy simulation software eQUEST and made compliant with the requirement of ASHRAE 90.1-2007. Commonly used efficiency measures, for which credible initial cost and maintenance data were available, were selected as the parametric design set. An initial sensitivity analysis was conducted by using the Morris Method to rank the efficiency measures in terms of their importance and interaction strengths. A sequential search technique was adopted to search the solution space and identify combinations that lie near the Pareto-optimal front; this allowed various minimum cost design solutions to be identified corresponding to different energy savings levels. Based on the results of this study, it was found that the cost optimal combination of measures over the 30 year analysis span resulted in an annual energy cost reduction of 47%, while net zero site energy conditions were achieved by the addition of a 435 kW photovoltaic generation system that covered 73% of the roof area. The simple payback period for the additional technology required to achieve NZE conditions was calculated to be 26.3 years and carried a 37.4% premium over the initial building construction cost. The study identifies future work in how to automate this computationally conservative search technique so that it can provide practical feedback to the building designer during all stages of the design process. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Built Environment 2016

abstract: The building sector is responsible for consuming the largest proportional share of global material and energy resources. Some observers assert that buildings are the problem and the solution to climate change. It appears that in the United States a coherent national energy policy to encourage rapid building performance improvements is not imminent. In this environment, where many climate and ecological scientists believe we are running out of time to reverse the effects of anthropogenic climate change, a local grass-roots effort to create demonstration net zero-energy buildings (ZEB) appears necessary. This paper documents the process of designing a ZEB in a community with no existing documented ZEB precedent. The project will establish a framework for collecting design, performance, and financial data for use by architects, building scientists, and the community at large. This type of information may prove critical in order to foster a near-term local demand for net zero-energy buildings. / Dissertation/Thesis / Appendix M - Simulation and Weather Data / M.S. Built Environment 2014

The Swedish government set a climate goal until the year 2045, to not produce any greenhouse gases until 2045. This study is based on the problems surrounding the climate impact from the construction and real estate sector in Sweden. The construction company Skanska has made a major contribution with the recently new project Juvelen, which today is Sweden's most sustainable building. The demand for constructing buildings with lesser environmental impacts is increasing and constructions as Juvelen may be an important factor to achieve climate goals. Purpose: This study was done to determine the carbon dioxide emissions during the construction phase of Juvelen, which includes the production phase and transports to the construction site, as well as the operational phase. Method: This study is based on a literature study, case study, and a reference object. During the case study, interviews were conducted with various people who have participated in the production of Juvelen. The carbon dioxide calculations consisted of EPD reports obtained from Strängbetong and VSAB. The carbon dioxide calculations for the operational phase were performed through different scenarios with three different scenarios types of energy. Results: The result for Juvelen's carbon dioxide emissions during the construction phase, based on the quantitative data that had obtained from Strängbetong and VSAB, was approximately 3,568 tonnes of CO2e. Renewable High had an emission of 96,472.61 kg CO2e during the 50-year analysis period. Renewable Medium received a sum of 2,519,339.7 kg CO2e and Renewable Low 11,961,913.29 kg CO2e. The 100-year analysis period for the operational phase showed the double value of the 50-year analysis period. Based on the current study and an interview with Ambjörn Gille, it appears that Skanska is making efforts to achieve climate goals by 2045. Conclusions: The conclusion that the work came to was that to achieve the climate goal of net-zero emissions, its necessary that the entire construction and real estate sector needs to adapt, apply new and innovative technology. The differences that emerged from the comparison of the production, operating phase for Juvelen were the choice of material, construction process, and method for construction of Juvelen and the choice of energy scenario.

Industries have faced challenges trying to lower carbon emissions and reach climate goals solely with energy efficiency and renewable energy sources but there are still some emissions that will not be mitigated by this. The purpose of this work has been to evaluate bio-energy with carbon capture and storage with co-combustion in a current study as a way to breach the gap and achieve net zero emissions on AstraZenecas production site Snäckviken. A carbon audit based on GHG Protocol has been performed to evaluate the total emissions at the site. Energy calculations were performed based on the possibilities of co-combustion with waste solvent and biofuel to produce process steam. With the flue gas characteristics for the combustion, calculations for a post combustion carbon capture plant using MEA solvent was made. An economic evaluation has been performed based on a reference plant and carbon captured for the current study. The results showed that the carbon capture lowered the emissions for the production site from 1 020 tons CO2 per year to - 2 400 tons CO2 at a cost of 1 360 SEK/tons CO2. The CO2 avoidance cost was high compared to other studies due to lower capacity. However, great savings could be m ade from handling the waste solvent on site instead of paying for the destruction of the waste. Therefore, a carbon capture plant could still be feasible for the current study.