Maximizing reader insights into the strategic value of mass retrofits in the residential property sector through a detailed case study analysis of the ‘Hackbridge project’, this book uses this development to broaden understanding of how planners may perform urban regeneration in accordance with a centralized plan.This book demonstrates how urban morphology matters, not only with respect to either the geometry of design and construction systems, or occupational behaviours, but with ...

Our energy use and its consequences (including climate change) motivate some of the most contentious and complex public debates of our time. Although these issues are often cast in terms of renewable versus non-renewable energy, in reality both depend on finite Earth resources. The evolution of the Earth itself therefore offers a uniquely illuminating perspective from which to evaluate alternative pathways toward energy and environmental sustainability. Geofuels: Energy and the Earth syste...

With rapidly declining costs and seemingly unlimited sunshine, the choice of solar in Australia seems obvious. Yet despite its many advantages, homes with solar remain completely dependent on the electricity grid for reliable supply, which in Australia implies mostly coal-fired generation. Indeed, even countries that have invested heavily in solar, such as Spain and Germany, have been unable to deflect the trajectory of fossil fuel dependence.The reasons for this apparent paradox a...

This book provides a single-source reference for whole life embodied impacts of buildings. The comprehensive and persuasive text, written by over 50 invited experts from across the world, offers an indispensable resource both to newcomers and to established practitioners in the field. Ultimately it provides a persuasive argument as to why embodied impacts are an essential aspect of sustainable built environments.The book is divided into four sections: measurement, includin...

The recast of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) was adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union on 19 May 2010. For new buildings, the recast fixes 2020 as the deadline for all new buildings to be “nearly zero energy” (and even sooner for public buildings – by the end of 2018). This book gives practitioner an important tool to tackle the challenges of building refurbishment towards nearly zero energy.This book is welcome at this time ...

Cost optimal and nearly zero energy performance levels are principles initiated by the European Union’s (EU) Energy Performance of Buildings Directive which was recast in 2010. These will be major drivers in the construction sector in the next few years, because all new buildings in the EU from 2021 onwards are expected to be nearly zero energy buildings (nZEB).This book introduces the technical definitions, system boundaries, energy calculation methodology and input data needed to...

Optimization techniques offer immense potential for the improvement of performance-driven design, since they allow the adoption of an holistic approach. This can lead to great advantages: optimal design solutions can be properly identified only if all criteria are considered at the same time, rather than separately. There are two barriers which obstruct optimization from being applied to building design: a technological barrier (applying the algorithms is not easy and can be quite time-con...

This book presents a series of significant methods and examples for the design of sustainable intelligent facades in a variety of contexts. Emphasis is placed on how intelligence has been applied for successful energy-saving efforts in the planning of building envelopes.Readers will find essential information on the core principles involved in designing, calculating and organizing intelligent facades according to the need for a new or retrofitted building. Not only are different ma...

The book explores advanced building-facade daylighting design practices based on diverse energy and human-factor performance metrics. It also defines effective daylighting by rethinking the simplified approach to glazing and facade systems to incorporate the local climate and the needs of building occupants as critical drivers of building performance, design solutions and technological innovation. It discusses state-of-the-art approaches in the context of simulation-based design workflows,...

As energy is becoming one of the crucial concerns in the EU, this volume provides an in-depth analysis and interdisciplinary perspective on European energy security. Given the multidimensional nature of energy security in terms of physical availability, affordability and geopolitical security, it brings together authors from different backgrounds pursuing a distinctly multidisciplinary approach. The authors' different perspectives correspond to the three sections of the book: international...

This book shares the latest developments and advances in materials and processes involved in the energy generation, transmission, distribution and storage. Chapters are written by researchers in the energy and materials field.Topics include, but are not limited to, energy from biomass, bio-gas and bio-fuels; solar, wind, geothermal, hydro power, wave energy; energy-transmission, distribution and storage; energy-efficient lighting buildings; energy sustainability; hydrogen and fuel ...

Handbook of Energy, Volume I: Diagrams, Charts, and Tables provides comprehensive, organized coverage on all phases of energy and its role in society, including its social, economic, political, historical, and environmental aspects. While there is a wealth of information about energy available, it is spread across many books, journals, and websites and it tends to target either a particular form of energy or a specific audience. Handbook of Energy provides a central repository of informati...