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Sustainable Building Design for Tropical Climates
Abstract
In 2010 the worldwide building sector was responsible for 24% of the total GHG emissions deriving from fossil fuel combustion, second only to the industrial sector; but, if the embodied energy of construction materials is included, the share is far higher and the building sector becomes the prime CHG emitter. Thus,building design and construction have a significant effect on the chances of meeting the 2 °C target (keeping global temperature increase to 2 °C ).
Developing countries are going to play a decisive role in the future world energy scenario, as a consequence of their economic development. Industrial energy consumption will grow, and a dramatic increase in energy consumption for transport can be expected, with the growth in the number of vehicles on the roads – if the currently accepted worldwide approach to mobility does not change.
The increase in energy consumption in the building sector can be expected to be even more dramatic, not only because air conditioning will spread and the number of domestic electric and electronic appliances will grow, but also because of the increase in the number of buildings.
... However, climatic zoning (CZ) methods are diverse and there is no "standard" technique for CZB, although some are widely acknowledged and implemented [22][23][24]. It is also known that not all existing CZB approaches are directly related to building energy consumption [25][26][27]. ...
Understanding the link between the energy-efficiency of buildings and climatic conditions can improve the design of energy-efficient housing. Due to global climate change and growing requirements for building energy-efficiency, the number of publications on climate zoning for buildings has grown over the last 20 years. This review attempted to give the reader an up-to-date assessment of the scientific literature in the field of climate mapping for buildings on a global and national scale, filling in the gaps of previous works and focusing on details that were not presented before. There were 105 scientific sources examined. The most dominant climate zoning variables were thoroughly analyzed. A clear categorization of climate zoning methods with specific criteria was shown. The most used methods were evaluated, emphasizing their similarities and differences, as well as their essential components and advantages. The main literature review was supported with bibliometric and bibliographic analysis. The existence of many climate zoning methods can be an indicator of the lack of agreement on the most effective strategy. A tendency has been established for the popularization among scientists of methods based on machine learning and building energy simulations, which are relatively easy to use and have proven to be the most reliable climate zoning methods. A transformation is emerging by shifting from a climate-based to a building performance-based climate zoning approach.
... The considerations reported are based on studies recently carried out by the Politecnico di Milano in collaboration with UN-Habitat to identify the most adequate and effective strategies for sustainable buildings in tropical climates, with particular reference to the African context [34]. ...
Today, the main issue of providing adequate and affordable housing is to go beyond the mere offer of basic shelters, intending to create sustainable and durable settlements. Due to the fragile and uncertain nature of its social, political and economic context, characterized by the lack of common shared legislative references and business strategies in the housing sector, Somalia is a challenging reality to be explored and improved. This paper describes the outcomes of the BECOMe project, intending to propose sustainable solutions for mass-housing design for new sustainable settlements in Mogadishu, involving local entrepreneurs, social organizations and renewable energy. In detail, social, environmental and economic key sustainability requirements (KSRs) for mass-housing are identified first. Then, the most appropriate climate-responsive design and construction technologies at the building level, tailored to the Mogadishu context, are selected; the outcomes are applied to a specific case-study building, assessing energy and cost performances to pave the way for implementation projects in Somalia.
Under the lens of climate change, buildings are
expected to increase their energy consumption for cooling,
especially if standard configurations and settings continue to
be used. Simultaneously, the integration of renewables,
mainly solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, for on-site electricity
generation is one of the most promising mitigation strategies
against climate change. However, the design and the
performance evaluation of these buildings and their energy
systems are strongly dependent on the climatic conditions of
the site and must also take into account climate change
effects. On that premise, the aim of this study is to assess the
impact of climate change on the cooling energy consumption
and photovoltaic energy production of a representative
classroom building in Mogadishu, Somalia. To conduct such
analysis, the reference building has been modeled at different
indoor conditions, for present (TMY) and future climates
(Shared Socio-Economic Pathways of the IPCC AR6).
Results indicated that higher indoor temperature/humidity
setpoint combined with ceiling fans reduce the energy
consumption for cooling by 19% compared to standard
conditions in the present climate and will be able to mitigate
the effects of warmer future climate even in the worst-case
scenario. On the other hand, higher indoor conditions also
proved to increase the renewable energy ratio of the building
compared to standard conditions in present climate and will
reduce the need for increasing the PV power output in future
climatic conditions.
Thermal mass is a common concept applied in vernacular architecture to keep internal temperatures comfortable by damping and delaying heat transfer through the building envelope. However, despite the widespread presence of large mass buildings in tropical regions, it has been argued in the literature that thermal mass is not efficient in tropical climates due to the minimal difference between night and daytime air temperatures. This study aimed at evaluating the thermal performance of heavyweight buildings to determine whether the use of thermal mass is effective in maintaining internal temperatures within acceptable limits. Six adobe and bahareque buildings with large mass earthen walls were monitored in two tropical climate zones recording internal and external temperatures in both rainy and dry seasons. Three performance indicators were used: general temperature damping, peak temperature reduction, and the proportion of time within 80% thermal acceptability limits. The results showed that the buildings were able to dampen peak high and low temperatures by an average of 5 \(^\circ \)C (2.7–9.7 \(^\circ \)C), reducing peak outdoor temperatures by up to 5 \(^\circ \)C, and increasing the time within thermally acceptable limits. This chapter demonstrates the viability of using thermal mass in tropical buildings as a technique for mitigating global climate change.KeywordsTropicsThermal massBuilding envelopeAdobeThermal comfort
This chapter analyses the complex issue of housing and the related needs of East African countries marked by the need to move from shelter to home. The chapter introduces and investigates the concept of accessible and sustainable housing in the specific context of East Africa, presenting the characterizations of the climatic context, the related climate-sensitive design solutions, as well as the housing needs of the rapidly growing local population.KeywordsEast AfricaHousing demandAffordable and sustainable housingClimate contextClimate zone
The design of sustainable buildings is a process that involves the three dimensions of sustainability: economic, environmental and social. However, due to the massive urban development underway in Africa, one of the main objectives for designers is to reduce the energy consumption of the constructions to consequently avoid a dramatic increase in GHG emissions. For this reason, in this chapter, the attention will be focused more on the energy issue, but also considering the economic and social aspects. In fact, a transformation is needed in the building design procedure, which must include a careful analysis of the climatic context and of the economic and social constraints.KeywordsClimate contextSite planningBuilding shapeTechnical systemCurrent energyWater supply
This study aimed to determine the initial data and develop a technology for creating air conditioning systems under the complicated climatic conditions of East Africa. A technique for processing the observational materials is proposed and the corresponding results are stated, which are subsequently used to determine the temperature and humidity of the outdoor and indoor air on the premises of the College of Marine Science and Technology located in the most complicated climatic region of Eritrea. The choice was substantiated, and the calculation and selection of equipment for a special combined environmentally-friendly air conditioning system were performed.
The global demand for energy is booming day by day and yet the energy is required to be clean due to the strict environmental regulations. The current carbon-based economy primarily relies on energy extracted from fossil fuels. However, burning fossil fuels results in the emission of greenhouse gases and other pollutants that are deadly to the environment. The hydrogen economy is proposed as an alternative to fossil fuels, considering the high energy density by weight of hydrogen as well as its environmentally friendly nature. This modern economy depends on green hydrogen as commercial fuel and it is considered the vital energy conversion and storage strategy to fully exploit the benefits of renewable and sustainable energy resources, for example, solar and wind energies. Hydrogen energy-related technologies (production, storage, conversion, etc.) present new research frontiers. Moreover, hydrogen combined with fuel cells provides essential energy solutions for the 21st century. Fuel cells utilize hydrogen gaseous fuel to generate electricity via an electrochemical process that provides much higher efficiencies and zero pollutant output than the conventional energy conversion technologies, for example, an internal combustion engine. In addition, the reversible fuel cells utilizing renewable energies provide the most efficient water electrolysis and they are being rapidly developed for green hydrogen production. Thus, hydrogen and fuel cells present promising potential for replacing conventional energy conversion systems with clean energy systems. This chapter briefly reviews the current research status of the hydrogen and fuel cell technologies for a viable supply and storage of clean and economical energy. The various challenges hampering the massive commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies are also identified and discussed. In addition, the market and policy trends regarding hydrogen and fuel cells are discussed.
Water scarcity results to socio-economic problems and health complications. Attempts at solving water scarcity problems, such as groundwater extraction and stream damming, are not easily attainable in some locations due to geological formations and hydrologic features. The aim of this study is to investigate health and socioeconomic effects, causes and remedy of water scarcity in rural communities with difficult geological terrains. Water demand, water usage, population, and consequences of water scarcity were investigated through structured questionnaires. Data on water related diseases, topography, geology, rainfall and runoff were obtained and analysed. Malaria remained the highest occurring water related diseases in the study area and these were prevalent during wet seasons. The viable option to curb water scarcity in such environment is runoff harvesting and treatments.
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