Zachariah, J-A L (2003) Towards sustainable homes through optimization: An approach to balancing life cycle environmental impacts and life cycle costs in residential buildings. PhD thesis, University of Toronto, Canada.
Abstract
In this study an optimisation model that is intended to minimise life cycle cost, subject to a set of environmental impact constraints, was put forward as a design support tool that embraces the principles of both inter-generational and intra-generational equity and has the potential to move the residential building industry towards sustainability. A literature review, which laid the foundation for the research, revealed eight key foci of current attempts at sustainable architecture: (i) site selection and building orientation; (ii) material selection; (iii) construction methodology; (iv) energy consumption; (v) water consumption; (vi) waste management; (vii) indoor environmental quality; and (viii) cost. With the aid of a case study, two of the structural components (walls and floors) and three of the envelope components (insulation, windows and cladding) were compared on the basis of six environmental indicators to demonstrate the mechanics of the model. The indicators used were embodied energy, solid waste generated, an air pollution index, a water pollution index, global warming potential and ecologically weighted raw resource use. The life cycle cost for each of the alternatives was also compared. It was found that the structural changes had an overall negative environmental impact at an increased cost and thus were not considered feasible alternatives. Changes to the envelope components produced more interesting results. There were two main conclusions from the case study results: (i) more innovative components are needed in order to improve upon the base house and (ii) operational energy is the main issue that needs to be addressed if lower life cycle environmental impacts are to be achieved at lower costs under prevailing conditions. Thus, energy efficiency in the use phase and the quest for low cost energy sources that have lower environmental impacts become critical. The main strengths of the model are its flexibility and ease of use. The greatest limitation is lack of environmental impact data on (i) more innovative component options and (ii) mechanical systems choices. With the improvements outlined, the full potential of the model as an effective design tool geared towards increased sustainability in the residential building industry may be realised.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Kennedy, C |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | flexibility; optimisation; optimization; residential; sustainability; building industry; homes; environmental impact; life cycle; pollution; energy efficiency; life cycle cost; case study |
| Index terms: | water consumption, environmental impact, waste management, site selection, energy source, methodology, window, life cycle cost, global warming, literature review, sustainable architecture, air pollution, option, insulation, mechanical system, cladding, embodied energy, indoor environmental quality, design support tool, building industry, energy consumption, low cost, life cycle, pollution, case study, energy efficiency, residential building |
| Subjects: | industry analysis, environmental health, decision analysis, cognitive psychology, design process, design practice, architectural elements, research methods, energy systems, data analysis and analytics, bidding, sustainability and energy, environmental resource management, building materials, environmental impact, waste management, value management, climate science, construction type, data collection methods, mechanical systems |
| Topics: | Construction Technology, Research Practice, Design Practice, Sustainability, Procurement, Risk Management, Engineering Principles, Project Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here