Environmental Design of Urban Buildings


Book Description

The importance of an integrated approach in urban design is becoming increasingly apparent. This book explains how to overcome related challenges in environmental design of urban buildings and offers guidance on the use of new materials and techniques and the integration of new philosophies. Supported by the EC's SAVE 13 programme, Environmental Design of Urban Buildings includes contributions from experts at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece, the Hellenic Open University, Greece, Cambridge Architectural Research, UK and REHVA/University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. A free CD-ROM containing multi-media software tools and climatic data accompanies the book. CONTENTS Environmental Urban Design * Architectural Design, Passive Environmental and Building Engineering Systems * Environmental Issues of Building Design * Sustainable Design, Construction and Operation * Intelligent Controls and Advanced Building Management Systems * Urban Building Climatology * Heat and Mass Transfer Phenomena in Urban Buildings * Applied Lighting Technologies for Urban Buildings * Case Studies * Guidelines to Integrate Energy Conservation * Indoor Air Quality * Applied Energy and Resources Management in the Urban Environment * Economic Methodologies * Integrated Building Design * Bibliography, Index Published with SAVE




Bio-Climatology for Built Environment


Book Description

Indoor climate is determined by rational lighting, heating, cooling and ventilating systems. For occupants' well-being it should be consistent with how regional outdoor climate works in the flow of radiation via four paths of heat transfer: radiation; convection; conduction; and evaporation. This book starts with the relationship between the human body and its immediate environmental space followed by a brief introduction of passive and active systems for indoor climate conditioning. The nature of light and heat is discussed with a focus on building envelope systems such as walls and windows, and then examined from the viewpoint of thermodynamics and human-biology. Some examples are given to enable a better understanding of luminous and thermal characteristics of our most immediate environment particularly for those professionally involved in environmental planning, designing, and engineering to know about bio-climatic design principle.




Urban Climates


Book Description

Urban Climates is the first full synthesis of modern scientific and applied research on urban climates. The book begins with an outline of what constitutes an urban ecosystem. It develops a comprehensive terminology for the subject using scale and surface classification as key constructs. It explains the physical principles governing the creation of distinct urban climates, such as airflow around buildings, the heat island, precipitation modification and air pollution, and it then illustrates how this knowledge can be applied to moderate the undesirable consequences of urban development and help create more sustainable and resilient cities. With urban climate science now a fully-fledged field, this timely book fulfills the need to bring together the disparate parts of climate research on cities into a coherent framework. It is an ideal resource for students and researchers in fields such as climatology, urban hydrology, air quality, environmental engineering and urban design.




Modern Architecture and Climate


Book Description

How climate influenced the design strategies of modernist architects Modern Architecture and Climate explores how leading architects of the twentieth century incorporated climate-mediating strategies into their designs, and shows how regional approaches to climate adaptability were essential to the development of modern architecture. Focusing on the period surrounding World War II—before fossil-fuel powered air-conditioning became widely available—Daniel Barber brings to light a vibrant and dynamic architectural discussion involving design, materials, and shading systems as means of interior climate control. He looks at projects by well-known architects such as Richard Neutra, Le Corbusier, Lúcio Costa, Mies van der Rohe, and Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, and the work of climate-focused architects such as MMM Roberto, Olgyay and Olgyay, and Cliff May. Drawing on the editorial projects of James Marston Fitch, Elizabeth Gordon, and others, he demonstrates how images and diagrams produced by architects helped conceptualize climate knowledge, alongside the work of meteorologists, physicists, engineers, and social scientists. Barber describes how this novel type of environmental media catalyzed new ways of thinking about climate and architectural design. Extensively illustrated with archival material, Modern Architecture and Climate provides global perspectives on modern architecture and its evolving relationship with a changing climate, showcasing designs from Latin America, Europe, the United States, the Middle East, and Africa. This timely and important book reconciles the cultural dynamism of architecture with the material realities of ever-increasing carbon emissions from the mechanical cooling systems of buildings and offers a historical foundation for today’s zero-carbon design.




Building Climatology


Book Description




Passive Low Energy Cooling of Buildings


Book Description

A practical sourcebook for building designers, providing comprehensive discussion of the impact of basic architectural choices on cooling efficiency, including the layout and orientation of the structure, window size and shading, exterior color, and even the use of plantings around the site. All major varieties of passive cooling systems are presented, with extensive analysis of performance in different types of buildings and in different climates: ventilation; radiant cooling; evaporative cooling; soil cooling; and cooling of outdoor spaces.




Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design


Book Description

Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design Baruch Givoni Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design is the most comprehensive, up-to-date reference available on building and urban climatology. Written in clear, common-sense language by Baruch Givoni, the leading authority in the field, this book is a far-reaching look at a variety of climatic influences and their effects on individuals, buildings, and communities. Aimed at architecture and urban planning professionals and students alike, Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design offers real-life solutions to climatological site planning and design issues, helping to settle disputes about site orientation, site organization, and the assembly of building materials. Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design is organized into three parts. The first, Building Climatology, analyzes human thermal comfort and the effect of architectural and structural design features including layout, window orientation, and shading, and ventilation conditions on the indoor climate. Then, Urban Climatology explores the ways in which the climate in densely built areas can differ from surrounding regional climactic conditions, for example, in temperature, wind speed, and humidity. This part further explores the effects of urban design elements, such as urban density and building height, on a city's outdoor climate. Finally, Building and Urban Design Guidelines applies the body of available research on building climatology and the effects of physical planning on the urban and indoor climates to suggest design guidelines for different regions--for example, hot-dry and hot-humid climates. Filled with lists, tables, and graphs for easy cross-referencing, as well as hundreds of visuals, Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design offers readers the ability to perform a quick check of a proposed scheme against authoritative criteria. Mr. Givoni's latest volume is a unique, indispensable guide to the relationship between building design, urban planning, and climate.




Encyclopedia of World Climatology


Book Description

Today, given the well-publicized impacts of events such as El Niño, there is an unequaled public awareness of how climate affects the quality of life and environment. Such awareness has created an increasing demand for accurate climatological information. This information is now available in one convenient, accessible source, the Encyclopedia of World Climatology. This comprehensive volume covers all the main subfields of climatology, supplies information on climates in major continental areas, and explains the intricacies of climatic processes. The level of presentation will meet the needs of specialists, university students, and educated laypersons. A successor to the 1986 Encyclopedia of Climatology, this compendium provides a clear explanation of current knowledge and research directions in modern climatology. This new encyclopedia emphasizes climatological developments that have evolved over the past twenty years. It offers more than 200 informative articles prepared by 150 experts on numerous subjects, ranging from standard areas of study to the latest research studies. The relationship between climatology and both physical and social science is fully explored, as is the significance of climate for our future well-being. The information is organized for speedy access. Entries are conveniently arranged in alphabetical order, thoroughly indexed, and cross-referenced. Every entry contains useful citations to additional source materials. The Editor John E. Oliver is Professor Emeritus at Indiana State University. He holds a B.Sc. from London University, and a MA and Ph.D from Columbia University. He taught at Columbia University and then at Indiana State where he was formerly Chair of the Geography-Geology Department, and Assoc iate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences. He has written many books and journal articles in Climatology, Applied Climatology and Physical Geography.




Applied Climatology


Book Description

'Big freeze' conditions, storms, severe flooding, droughts, and heatwaves - recent extremes in weather, with their resultant physical, economic and human losses, highlight the vulnerability of society to changes in the atmosphere. Atmospheric pollution, urbanization, natural atmospheric disasters are causing dramatic changes in climatic environments. Applied Climatology examines the effects of climate on physical, biological and cultural environments. Specialist contributors from Europe, North America and Australasia examine the impacts of changing climates on the functioning and development of physical biological environments including glaciers, water resources, landforms, soils, vegetation and animals. Weather and climate effects day-to-day activities and lifestyles from the clothes we wear to the buildings we design, and the food and energy we produce. This book focusses on the relationship between climate and a wide range of human activities and responses relating to health and comfort, building design, transport systems, agriculture and fisheries, tourism and social, industrial and legal issues. Climate-environment relationships and impacts on human activities are predicted to change dramatically if global warming accelerates at the rates currently proposed. Applied Climatology examines the characteristics and consequences of the changing global climate and considers the future for both natural and human environments.