The reality of global warming must have been settled by now while the incidence of same has in very recent times adopted unprecedented dimensions. The global community continues to look for ways to combat the impact of climate change and technology is looked upon to deliver the innovations that would ensure a better tomorrow today. Rapid advancement of Information Technology (IT), is now transforming the way we create and interact with the built environment with the notion of Intelligent Buildings (IBs) underscoring its main features. However, these IBs utilize systems that require energy, and fossil fuels are currently the world's primary energy sources; they can also irreparably harm the environment, exacerbating climate change. What then is the true essence of IBs? This paper, through review of existing literature, attempts to explore some issues associated with the conceptualization of IBs, highlighting how they are similar with other notional options that deliver the same benefits but without the needed IT systems or the energy required in running them. It also discusses the need to focus on less energy demanding and management approaches at design or occupancy of buildings as a way to reduce the demand and thus consumption of fossil fuels across the world.
The fundamental notion of ‘smart’ in building materials discourse is responsiveness—the ability of materials to react to environmental stimuli by manifesting a noticeable physical change when there is a difference in the conditions of their immediate surroundings. This notion, however, is also interchanged with ‘intelligence’, which involves an array of control protocols. Notwithstanding, both notions are used synonymously and as occupant comfort and energy efficiency strategies in buildings. The current study aimed to underscore the fundamental issues in the conceptualization of both notions in building materials colloquy by systematic review of published literature following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 checklist. The review revealed that while smart responses are direct, predictable and reversible, requiring no external control system, computer systems and networks which require a constant supply of energy are essential for intelligence. In fact, the relationship between intelligent systems, energy efficiency and occupant comfort depends on external computer control and machine components of learning, resulting in complex systems with longer payback times, whereas smart materials and systems respond directly and immediately without additional energy or occupant control. The discussions present an attempt towards promoting zero additional energy demand for buildings using smart materials.
Given the perennial incidence of thermal discomfort, health issues, as well as energy costs associated with naturally ventilated classrooms in Yola, the study aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of classroom designs for natural ventilation comfort by examining the effects of six architectural design variables-size and position of openings, form of buildings, orientation of buildings, site planning, topography, and physical features, on the ventilation coefficients of 61 classrooms selected from nine stratified clusters in Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria. Data were analyzed using percentages, ratios, means as well as standard deviation, and then sorted in groups using tables. The study revealed that the form and orientation of the classroom-buildings, as well as topography, site planning and other physical features, have no significant effect on ventilation coefficient. In addition, a new mean ventilation coefficient was obtained in ten classrooms against an earlier claim that ventilation coefficient cannot exceed a fixed average regardless of the ratio of wall opening to floor area.Defined as the supply of outside air indoor and the replacement of vitiated air, ventilation provides sufficient air from which oxygen for respiration by humans is extracted, while maintaining concentration of carbon dioxide within safe limits [1]. Ventilation could be achieved by natural or (and) artificial (mechanical) means. Natural ventilation can be induced by wind pressure, temperature difference (stack-effect), or humidity difference (cool-tower effect), wind towers, wind scoop, cool tubes, venturi tubes, solar chimney, air vents, etc., or a combination of any of these [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]. Natural ventilation can also be achieved by ordering of building forms and fenestration, orientation with respect to wind direction and the specification of appropriate materials for the building components or enclosure system [7]. While form deals with the size and shape of a building with its roof, fenestration involves the sizing and placement of openings like windows and doors on the enclosure system of the walls and roofs [8] [9]. The choice of (building) form, fenestration and materials are normally derived from a careful examination of relevant climatic information and data including air temperature, relative humidity, precipitation and wind. With any given space, as a product of the architectural design process, ventilation is a fundamental requirement [8] [9] [10]. Indeed, effective and productive human activities require a conducive space [11] [12], which in turn depends partly, on adequate ventilation [13].Architecture, as an activity that produces a classroom-design (and indeed any shelter in the built environment), has been described in different ways by different theorists at different times. Notwithstanding, a designed space must provide a decent and conducive environment for desired activities. Indeed, the fundamental function of a building is to protect its occupants from the harsh external environment. The architectural approac...
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.