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Journals
Atmosphere
Special Issues
Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation
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Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Climatology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (7 October 2022) | Viewed by 11626

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Prashant Anand

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Guest Editor
Architecture & Regional Planning, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 721302, India
Interests: IAQ; thermal comfort; energy efficiency; green building; building systems operation and control; data analytics; human building interaction
Dr. Souradeep Gupta

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Sustainable Technologies, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Karnataka 560012, India
Interests: bio-based materials; air quality; sustainability; building energy efficiency
Dr. Michael Donn

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre of Building Performance Research, School of Architecture, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
Interests: net zero/energy positive buildings; quality assurance in building performance simulation; energy and performance targets
Dr. Meredydd Evans

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Joint Global Change Research Institute, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99354, USA
Interests: energy policy; building energy efficiency; building energy codes; clean energy analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We invite researchers to contribute original research articles, as well as review articles, dealing with building energy codes and how they can help to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Countries around the world are increasingly adopting and implementing comprehensive building energy codes to improve the energy efficiency of buildings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Their reasoning is that buildings account for some 39% of global CO2 emissions and are typically in place for decades, if not centuries. Building codes are seen as key tools for achieving a reduction in this total. We are interested in contributions from multiple disciplines and parts of the world. Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

  • Modeling to assess the impact of building energy codes on greenhouse gas mitigation;
  • Analysis of what makes codes effective in mitigation, including assessments of code impacts post-construction;
  • Implementation and compliance case studies and analysis;
  • Nearly zero carbon and similar aggressive “stretch” codes;
  • Building energy codes for existing buildings;
  • Designing codes to make buildings more resilient to warmer temperatures and extreme weather patterns;
  • Integrating new technologies, such as photovoltaics, electric vehicle charging, and “smart” home/building meters into building energy codes;
  • Building energy codes in the broader context of climate policy and planning, including economic trends such as growing construction and electrification;
  • Implications of more rigorous and innovative building energy codes on training, compliance, and enforcement;
  • Economic implications of building energy codes, such as household expenses, employment, and local economy;
  • Calculating cost optimality in setting new target levels for codes: optimal for the building owner, or for the nation or state setting the target?
  • Performance or prescriptive codes—means of compliance and industry adoption;
  • Role of international collaboration in advancing building energy codes.

Dr. Prashant Anand
Dr. Souradeep Gupta
Dr. Michael Donn
Dr. Meredydd Evans
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Building energy codes
  • Net zero carbon buildings
  • Greenhouse gas mitigation
  • Energy efficiency
  • Building electrification
  • Renewable energy integration
  • Carbon policy
  • New building construction
  • Building energy upgrade

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 11038 KiB  
Article
Experimentation of Mitigation Strategies to Contrast the Urban Heat Island Effect: A Case Study of an Industrial District in Italy to Implement Environmental Codes
by Cecilia Ciacci, Neri Banti, Vincenzo Di Naso, Riccardo Montechiaro and Frida Bazzocchi
Atmosphere 2022, 13(11), 1808; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13111808 - 31 Oct 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1657
Abstract
The European goals to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 40% by 2030 and reach carbon neutrality by 2050 cannot ignore the building sector, that accounts for 27% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In the context of the sustainable development goals, it [...] Read more.
The European goals to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 40% by 2030 and reach carbon neutrality by 2050 cannot ignore the building sector, that accounts for 27% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In the context of the sustainable development goals, it is a key point to consider the reduction of the heat island effect in the urban environment. Considering this background and the proven absence of the clear promotion of urban mitigation measures, the research aims at investigating the influence on several micro-climate parameters of different retrofitting strategies at the building level (green façades) and the cooling strategies at the urban scale (e.g., cool pavements, trees). As a case study, the application of these measures in an industrial district located in Italy is evaluated. ENVI-met software was adopted to perform the outdoor environmental simulations, in order to assess the effectiveness of the mitigation strategies proposed, considering both the whole district and a portion, focusing on urban canyons. Cool pavements proved to be the most promising strategy to both reduce the air temperature and increase the relative humidity. Slighter effects on environmental conditions can be achieved by planting trees and installing green walls that, by contrast, significantly affect the mean radiant temperature and buildings’ surface temperatures, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation)
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29 pages, 5535 KiB  
Article
Mould Growth Risks for a Clay Masonry Veneer External Wall System in a Temperate Climate
by Shruti Nath, Mark Dewsbury, Hartwig Künzel and Phillipa Watson
Atmosphere 2022, 13(11), 1755; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13111755 - 25 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1656
Abstract
To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, nations have introduced energy efficiency regulations for new and existing buildings. This has been considered advantageous as more efficient building envelopes would reduce energy consumed to heat and cool home interiors to within accepted thermal comfort bandwidths. However, [...] Read more.
To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, nations have introduced energy efficiency regulations for new and existing buildings. This has been considered advantageous as more efficient building envelopes would reduce energy consumed to heat and cool home interiors to within accepted thermal comfort bandwidths. However, as these methods have been adopted, many nations have identified an unintended visible presence of surface and interstitial condensation and mould in new code-compliant buildings. In Australia, it has been estimated that up to 50% of Australian houses constructed in the last decade (2006–2016) have a presence of condensation and mould. Australia introduced its first condensation and mould-related building regulations for new homes in 2019. This paper reports on the hygrothermal and mould growth analysis of the most common low-rise residential external wall system, a timber-framed clay masonry veneer wall. A key component of this paper discusses the application of innovative methods in the Australian context. The external wall’s moisture accumulation and mould growth were simulated for a period of ten years using the transient hygrothermal simulation tool, WUFI® Pro, and the mould growth model, WUFI® VTT. This study identified significant risks for this typical external wall system when constructed in a temperate climate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation)
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15 pages, 7379 KiB  
Article
Developing the New Thermal Climate Zones of China for Building Energy Efficiency Using the Cluster Approach
by Lujian Bai, Bing Song and Liu Yang
Atmosphere 2022, 13(9), 1498; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13091498 - 14 Sep 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2877
Abstract
Climate is a key element in building design. The determination of adequate climate zoning is crucial for achieving building energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. In this study, a cluster analysis method was applied to develop new thermal climate zones for building envelope [...] Read more.
Climate is a key element in building design. The determination of adequate climate zoning is crucial for achieving building energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. In this study, a cluster analysis method was applied to develop new thermal climate zones for building envelope thermal design in China. In total, three different cluster analysis methods, including k-means, average-linkage, and Ward’s clustering, were considered. The analysis indicated that the average-linkage clustering was more appropriate for this study, and the elbow method could not accurately determine the best number of categories of average-linkage clustering. Further analysis showed that the unsupervised cluster processes may generate an unavoidable redundancy category and, to obtain precise results, supervision may be necessary in some contexts. Finally, China was classified into 10 climate zones. The North China plain and Qinghai–Tibet plateau are classified into two independent climate zones, and Turpan and Bayanbulak were classified into two newly defined climate zones different from their surrounding area in the new definition. Quantitative analysis indicated that the new zones were more precise when compared to the current ones, which can provide more precise climate information and contribute to formulating more precise standards and policies related to the thermal design of building envelopes in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation)
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Review

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20 pages, 918 KiB  
Review
Energy-Efficiency Requirements for Residential Building Envelopes in Cold-Climate Regions
by Amy Huynh, Regina Dias Barkokebas, Mohamed Al-Hussein, Carlos Cruz-Noguez and Yuxiang Chen
Atmosphere 2021, 12(3), 405; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12030405 - 20 Mar 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3907
Abstract
Due to the energy and environmental impacts attributed to the operational phase of the building sector, efforts have been made to improve building energy performance through the implementation of restrictive energy requirements by regulatory bodies. In this context, the primary objective of this [...] Read more.
Due to the energy and environmental impacts attributed to the operational phase of the building sector, efforts have been made to improve building energy performance through the implementation of restrictive energy requirements by regulatory bodies. In this context, the primary objective of this paper is to investigate and compare regulations that govern the building envelope energy performance of new residential buildings in cold-climate regions, primarily in Canada, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, China, and Russia. The aim is to identify similarities and dissimilarities among the energy regulations of these countries, as well as potentials for development of more effective building codes. This study verifies that the investigated energy requirements diverge considerably—for instance, the required thermal resistance per unit area of above-grade exterior walls in Sweden is almost two times that of a similar climate zone in Canada. Based on the comparisons and case analyses, recommendations for energy requirements pertinent to building envelope of new residential buildings in cold-climate regions are proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Building Energy Codes and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation)
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