Construction Engineering Commons^™

Diffusion Of Energy Efficient Technology In Commercial Buildings: An Analysis Of The Commercial Building Partnerships Program, Chrissi Argyro Antonopoulos

Dissertations and Theses

This study presents findings from survey and interview data investigating replication of green building measures by Commercial Building Partnership (CBP) partners that worked directly with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). PNNL partnered directly with 12 organizations on new and retrofit construction projects, which represented approximately 28 percent of the entire U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) CBP program. Through a feedback survey mechanism, along with personal interviews, quantitative and qualitative data were gathered relating to replication efforts by each organization. These data were analyzed to provide insight into two primary research areas: 1) CBP partners' replication efforts of green building …

Compression Testing And Failure Modes Of Steel-Concrete Composite (Sc) Structures For Nuclear Containment, Patrick Michael Wanamaker, Amit H. Varma

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Although being able to provide much cleaner power than burning coal and other fossil fuels, nuclear power plants are still a tough sell to the general public due to their history of being spontaneously dangerous. The containment structures surrounding these nuclear plants, however, can play a huge role in reducing the risks associated with them. Relatively new designs for these containment assemblies, known as SC (steel-concrete composite) structures, aim to increase the strength and durability of the containment facilities while keeping costs down. By varying the spacing between shear studs, the ratio of concrete to steel, and the ratio of …

Predicting Building Energy Performance: Leveraging Bim Content For Energy Efficient Buildings, Eddie Villanueva Aquino

Master's Theses

Reducing and managing the environmental impacts of building structures has become a priority of building stakeholders and within the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) community; although, conflicting approaches and methods to combat the issues are present. For example, green building standards are widespread throughout the world; however each one has its own characteristics and consequently its own specific requirements. While all have proven to be effective rating systems and have similar requirements, the distinguishing characteristic that separates them is their treatment of performance and prescriptive metrics. The feature they all severely lack or currently limit is the inclusion of strict …

Validation Of The Adaptive Reuse Potential (Arp) Model Using Iconcur, Craig Langston

Craig Langston

This paper aims to focus on the adaptive reuse of existing buildings that have become obsolete, an important strategy for sustainable development and a pertinent response to excessive resource usage resulting from typical destruction and redevelopment.

Bim Collaboration In Student Architectural Technologist Learning, Malachy Mathews

Articles

This paper is the result of a qualitative case study which investigated the influence of building information modelling (BIM) collaboration on the learning of student architectural technologists based around a studio group project. The purpose of the paper is to disseminate knowledge gained into a new learning environment facilitated by the collaborative properties of a BIM application. A qualitative case study approach has been used to undertake the examination of the learners’ experiences during the project. This approach allowed the author to map the complex interaction between the participants during the stages of the collaborative design project. The paper provides …

Seismic Performance Comparison Of A Fixed-Base Versus A Base-Isolated Office Building, Nicholas Reidar Marrs

Master's Theses

The topic of this thesis is base isolation. The purpose of this thesis is to offer a relative understanding of the seismic performance enhancements that a typical 12-story steel office building can achieve through the implementation of base isolation technology. To reach this understanding, the structures of a fixed-base office building and a base-isolated office building of similar size and layout are designed, their seismic performance is compared, and a cost-benefit analysis is completed. The base isolation system that is utilized is composed of Triple Friction Pendulum (TFP) bearings.

The work of this thesis is divided into four phases. First, …

Survey Of Suitable Plants For Cal Poly's Green Wall, Katrina Burritt

Horticulture and Crop Science

Green wall technology is a growing industry in the United States and has been very successful for a several years throughout Europe. The objective of this survey was to study the success of several different species of plants on a vertical wall facing south at Cal Poly’s Horticultural Department Unit. At first the focus was aimed at using California native species, because it was thought that natives would be better acclimated to the exposure in this specific location. It became apparent that plants should not be selected for the wall based just on the fact that they are California natives. …

Umass Amherst Green Building Guidelines 2013, Ludmilla Pavlova-Gillham, Ted Mendoza, Ezra Small, Patricia O'Flaherty, Nariman Mostafavi, Mohamed Farzinmoghadam, Somayeh Tabatabaee Pozveh

Campus Planning Reports and Plans

Facilities & Campus Services, Sustainable UMass and Campus Planning support sustainability and energy conservation initiatives by providing in-house resources to campus staff as well as designers and contractors working with the University. The UMass Amherst Green Building Guidelines provide a framework for approaching new construction and major renovation projects at UMass Amherst that are undergoing LEED certification by focusing the conversation on green building aspects that are most important to the campus. They are intended to be the beginning of a dynamic conversation between designers, environmental consultants and constructors, university stakeholders, and users of new high performance buildings.

Wind Loading On Trees Integrated With A Building Envelope, Aly Mousaad Aly, Alberto Zasso, Girma Bitsuamlak, Alberto Nicola Longarini, Arindam Gam Chowdhury

Faculty Publications

With the sustainability movement, vegetated building envelopes are gaining more popularity. This requires special wind effect investigations, both from sustainability and resiliency perspectives. The current paper focuses on wind load estimation on small- and full-scale trees used as part of green roofs and balconies. Small-scale wind load assessment was carried out using wind tunnel testing in a global-effect study to understand the interference effects from surrounding structures. Full-scale trees were investigated at a large open-jet facility in a local-effect study to investigate the wind-tree interaction. The effect of Reynolds number combined with shape change on the overall loads measured at …