Double skin façades may help combine a high degree of transparency with high thermal and solar performance. Advanced façades serve as filters and may be responsive to changes in environmental conditions and occupant requirements. Since the strategies for
The present paper aims to present a distant learning educational module that concerns the energy efficient integrated building design in the urban environment. The educational material of the module includes a handbook, computerized tools, examples of urban buildings, libraries on energy efficient products and materials and climatic documentation of climatic data measured in various European urban areas.
A condensing device allows to avoid condensation on cooling ceilings in rooms with humid air. It uses thermoelectric modules in contact with the cooling panels. The pumped heat is transferred into the cooling ceiling to keep its temperature above the dew point. Tests have been performed in a full-scale chamber. A set of condensing units was mounted on a standard hydraulic cooling ceiling. The control of temperature is achieved by regulating the mass flow of the water. By this method the loss of efficiency of the cooling panels is fully compensated.
This paper outlines the Europrosper project whose objectives are to :1. Consolidate and where appropriate harmonise methodologies for energy certification of existing office buildings across 6 European countries whilst allowing customisation in each country to accomodate existing techniques and national contexts2. Develop training courses to instruct practitioners on how to use the certification methods, to include self-certification procedures3. Conduct a demonstration phase and4.
Constructional aspects and the use of school building had led to moisture and mold damages confirmed by microbiological analysis from material, surface and air samples. Cultivation methods were used to assess mesophilic fungi and actinobacteria. High concentrations of microbes (10 5 -10 6 cfu/g in different materials) were recovered from the samples. Microbes included great variety of moisture indicating species (e.g. Aspergillus versicolor, Trichoderma, Fusarium, Stachybotrys, Chaetomium, Streptomyces).
This paper presents an approach to evaluate the sensitivity of a roof design to condensation problems, given the uncertainty to achieve continuity of airtightness in practice. The approach consists of a repeated number of simulations with a 2D heat, air and vapour transfer model to predict the variation in roof moisture performance due to various discontinuities in roof geometry. The set of discontinuities is calibrated by comparing measuring data of roof airtightness to simulation results.
Swedish dwellings often have mechanical ventilation with an almost constant air flow independent of variations in loads. The performance of these ventilation systems is often not satisfying. The occupant habits have changed e.g. increased moisture load. Therefore a technical procurement for energy efficient demand controlled ventilation systems was initiated. First the building regulations were analysed, then the parameters relevant for indoor air quality in dwellings and the energy efficiency potential were determined.
Within an Italian Experimental Programme an interdisciplinary research for the retrofitting of some residential buildings in the surrounding of Florence has been carried out. The activity of the experimental research concerns the methodological and scientific support to the technical solutions for the restoration of two buildings.
The transformation of the Conservatorio San Giuseppe , into the Cospicua Residential Home for the Elderly has become a landmark in the neighbourhood. It brings past and present together with its old church and stepped new development incorporating a colourful orange windbreak. It is an example of how an old building, originally an orphanage for girls, with limitations of location and orientation could be rehabilitated to incorporate energy efficient features. Both the original structure and the new construction are load bearing with a high thermal mass to utilise a direct gain system.
The Portuguese National Museum for Archaeology is undergoing an expansion and retrofitting. It is currently housed in one of the most important ancient monuments in Portugal: the Monastery of Jernimos. The authorities responsible for the museum, taking advantage of this retrofitting, decided to promote a modern and integrated design of the future archaeological museum. The architectural design aims to combine, aesthetically, the old and the new building, promoting sustainable architecture and energy efficiency (concerning, essentially, indoor climate, lighting and acoustical requirements).