Assessing the impact of building shape on aircraft noise attenuation: Comparison between geometrical acoustics simulation and in-situ measurements

Analyzing the impact of aircraft noise on urban areas requires specific consideration of sound propagation over long distances, which is not typically covered by tools designed for indoor acoustics. Although it is unclear to what extent existing parametric tools that combine 3D modeling and acoustic simulation can accurately replicate these...

Requirements for renovating residential buildings in the Netherlands towards lower temperature supply from district heating.

In the Netherlands, district heating with a lower temperature supply (<70°C) will play a crucial part in accomplishing the energy transition goals of delivering natural gas-free sustainable heating to dwellings. The existing dwellings often require energy renovations to make them suitable for lower temperature heating. However, choosing...

Circular and Flexible Infill Concepts: Integration of the Residential User Perspective

Circular building has gained considerable attention in the Netherlands during the past decade. It is rooted in concepts such as circular economy (CE) and Cradle-to-Cradle (C2C®), accentuating the closing and coupling of material loops to establish effective and efficient resource flows. Moreover, those concepts adhere to a systemic, holistic...

Natural summer ventilation strategies for energy-saving in high-rise buildings: a case study in the Netherlands

This paper investigates the potential use of natural ventilation strategies to reduce the energy demand for cooling and mechanical ventilation for high-rise buildings in summer. A 21-storey office building was selected to represent a mechanically ventilated high-rise design in temperate climates. Six natural ventilation scenarios were developed...

Human Health and Well-Being in Relation to Circular and Flexible Infill Design: Assessment Criteria on the Operational Level

This paper addresses the connection between circular building design and residential health and well-being. The general research objective is to determine assessment criteria for the performance of indoor partitioning products in a circular model. The overarching aim is to establish a more integrated and inclusive approach to the transition from...

Circular and Flexible Indoor Partitioning: A Design Conceptualization of Innovative Materials and Value Chains

This article sheds light on the materialization and operation of residential partitioning wall components in relation to circular and flexible performance. The hypothesis is twofold: (1) A stronger integration of materialization and operation aspects is indispensable in establishing sustainable value-models, and (2) recent innovations,...

Early-Stage Design Considerations for the Energy-Efficiency of High-Rise Office Buildings

Decisions made at early stages of the design are of the utmost importance for the energy-efficiency of buildings. Wrong decisions and design failures related to a building’s general layout, shape, façade transparency or orientation can increase the operational energy tremendously. These failures can be avoided in advance through simple changes...

Integrating technical performances within design exploration: The case of an innovative Trombe wall

The Double Face 2.0 research project aims at developing a novel type of an adaptive translucent Trombe wall. The novelty of the proposed system is based on the integration of new lightweight and translucent materials, used both for<br/>latent heat storage and insulation, advanced computational design processes, used to identify the relationship...

A comparative study: Design strategies for energy-efficiency of high-rise office buildings

Tall buildings are being designed and built across a wide range of cities. A poorly designed tall building can tremendously increase the building’s appetite for energy. Therefore, this paper aims to determine the design strategies that help a high-rise office building to be more energy efficient. For this purpose, a comparative study on...

An assessment of energy-saving solutions for the envelope design of high-rise buildings in temperate climates: A case study in the Netherlands

The building envelope is the interface between the interior of the building and the outdoor environment. A building's energy consumption to a large extent depends on certain envelope design elements. As a consequence, for achieving high levels of energy-saving in buildings, design measures with high impact should be firstly defined and then...

Engineering Performance Simulations in Architectural Design Conception: Atrium in Shenyang: a case study on thermal mass

The paper tackles the integration of engineering performance simulations in the conceptual phase of architectural design, with specific focus on parametric design processes. A general framework is exemplified, in which the use of performance simulations and the learning process of the designer are discussed in relation to the parameterization...

Continuing the building's material cycle: A literature review and analysis of current systems theories in comparison with the theory of cradle to cradle

Recently, the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) theory set ground in the Netherlands, propounding that environmental impact reduction can provide a positive economical impulse to stakeholders. The building industry has warmly received this approach and considers it to be a solution to the above-mentioned burden. However, if the building sector wants to...

The effect of different transitional spaces on thermal comfort and energy consumption of residential buildings

Purpose- This paper focuses on the effect of courtyards, atria and sunspaces on indoor thermal comfort and energy consumption for heating and cooling. One of the most important purposes is to understand if certain transitional spaces can reduce the energy consumption of and improve thermal comfort in houses. Method of Research- To conduct this...

Vacuum Insulation Panels Applied in Building Constructions

Due to sustainability and due to international treaties, it is desired and required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions drastically. One contributor to these emissions is the burning of fossil fuels for generating power and electricity to be used in and for buildings. Buildings and building-related processes are responsible for about 40% of the...