bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Highly stable petroleum pitches provide access to the deep glassy state
Authors: Yoon Heedong , Heinzman James , Smith Stuart E. , Gopinadhan Manesh , Edmond Kazem V. , Clingenpeel Amy C. , Alvarez Nicolas J.
Published: December 2023

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to study the fast aging behavior of two petroleum pitch materials despite being only three to five years old.
Stimuli-responsive and self-healing supramolecular Zn(ii)–guanosine metal–organic gel for Schottky barrier diode application
Authors: Singh Surbhi , Sharma Atul Kumar , Gade Hrushikesh M. , Agarwal Vidhi , Nasani Rajendar , Verma Nisha , Sharma Bhagwati
Published: December 2023

The interaction of Zn2+ ions with pristine guanosine under alkaline conditions results in the formation of stimuli-responsive and self-healing supramolecular hydrogel that can be used for fabricating a thin film device based on a Schottky diode interface between a metal and a semiconductor.
Eutectic solvents and low molecular weight gelators for next-generation supramolecular eutectogels: a sustainable chemistry perspective
Authors: de Araujo Lima e Souza Giselle , Di Pietro Maria Enrica , Mele Andrea
Published: December 2023

Immobilization of eutectic mixtures in supramolecular gels formed using low molecular weight gelators is a smart strategy to expand their design space. Advances in the last five years are reviewed from the viewpoint of sustainability.
Designing a 3D MXene microsphere encapsulating MOF-derived ZnSe nanoparticles as an anode for highly stable potassium-ion batteries
Authors: Na Jeong Ho , Oh Hong Geun , Lee Seunghwa , Park Seung-Keun
Published: December 2023

3D MXene-based microspheres encapsulating metal–organic framework-derived ZnSe@N-doped carbon nanoparticles are successfully fabricated by spray drying. Owing to the unique structural features, they exhibited excellent K-ion storage performance.
Modelling and predicting liquid chromatography retention time for PFAS with no-code machine learning
Authors: Fan Yunwu , Deng Yu , Yang Yi , Deng Xin , Li Qianhui , Xu Boqi , Pan Jianyu , Liu Sisi , Kong Yan , Chen Chang-Er
Published: December 2023

Machine learning is increasingly popular and promising in environmental science due to its potential in solving various environmental problems, particularly with simple code-free tools.
Using a Social Model to Guide Individualized Education Program Development and Change Educational Paradigms to Be Critically Inclusive
Authors: Murza Kimberly A. , Buckley P. Charlie
Published: December 2023

Purpose:

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act explicitly acknowledges disability as a natural part of the human experience. However, special education services, including speech-language services, often focus on remediating the characteristics of the individual with the disability rather than addressing the disabling conditions of the school environment or leveraging the supports and resources available or potentially available to the student. The purpose of this article is to provide a social model of disability framework to guide Individualized Education Program (IEP) development and change educational paradigms around language and communication.

Method:

A discussion of a new theoretical framework, critical inclusion, is situated within the speech-language pathologist's role in the IEP process. An argument for adopting an integrative approach to service delivery through the social model of disability is provided. The Social Communication and Engagement Triad framework is then used to illustrate a social model of disability approach to assessment, IEP goal development, and service delivery case examples.

Conclusions:

Speech-language pathologists and all educators have a responsibility for creating a space where all learners belong and diversity in all aspects is celebrated. Embracing a social model of disability approach to the IEP process can support practitioners in their work toward creating a more equitable and inclusive education system.
Contextual evaluation of suicide-related posts
Authors: Rezapour Mahdi
Published: December 2023

Suicide is a leading cause of death in the US. Online posts on social media can reveal valuable information about individuals with suicidal ideation and help prevent tragic outcomes. However, studying suicidality through online posts is challenging, as people may not be willing to share their thoughts directly due to various psychological and social barriers. Moreover, most of the previous studies focused on evaluating machine learning techniques to detect suicidal posts, rather than exploring the contextual features that are present in them. This study aimed to not only classify the posts based on sentiment analysis, but also to identify suicide-related psychiatric stressors, e.g., family problems or school stress, and examine the contextual features of the posts, especially those that are misclassified. We used two techniques of random forest and Lasso generalized linear models and found that they performed similarly. Our findings suggest that while machine learning algorithms can identify most of the potentially harmful posts, they can also introduce bias, and human intervention is needed to minimize that bias. We argue that some posts may be very difficult or impossible to tag correctly by algorithms alone, and they require human understanding and empathy.
3D bioprinting platform offers realistic cardiac tissue model for drug testing
Authors: Thompson Avery
Published: December 2023

FRESH bioprinting produces uniform, complex, and physiologically relevant cardiac tissue with the potential to accelerate drug development.
New simulations improves interpretation of high-resolution satellite imagery of surface water
Authors: Lim Alane
Published: December 2023

Researchers investigate dynamics of surface ocean turbulence at the submesoscale.
Design of high-temperature superconductors at moderate pressures by alloying AlH3 or GaH3
Authors: Liang Xiaowei , Wei Xudong , Zurek Eva , Bergara Aitor , Li Peifang , Gao Guoying , Tian Yongjun
Published: December 2023

Since the discovery of hydride superconductors, a significant challenge has been to reduce the pressure required for their stabilization. In this context, we propose that alloying could be an effective strategy to achieve this. We focus on a series of alloyed hydrides with the AMH6 composition, which can be made via alloying A15 AH3 (A = Al or Ga) with M (M = a group ⅢB or IVB metal), and study their behavior under pressure. Seven of them are predicted to maintain the A15-type structure, similar to AH3 under pressure, providing a platform for studying the effects of alloying on the stability and superconductivity of AH3. Among these, the A15-type phases of AlZrH6 and AlHfH6 are found to be thermodynamically stable in the pressure ranges of 40–150 and 30–181 GPa, respectively. Furthermore, they remain dynamically stable at even lower pressures, as low as 13 GPa for AlZrH6 and 6 GPa for AlHfH6. These pressures are significantly lower than that required for stabilizing A15 AlH3. Additionally, the introduction of Zr or Hf increases the electronic density of states at the Fermi level compared with AlH3. This enhancement leads to higher critical temperatures (Tc) of 75 and 76 K for AlZrH6 and AlHfH6 at 20 and 10 GPa, respectively. In the case of GaMH6 alloys, where M represents Sc, Ti, Zr, or Hf, these metals reinforce the stability of the A15-type structure and reduce the lowest thermodynamically stable pressure for GaH3 from 160 GPa to 116, 95, 80, and 85 GPa, respectively. Particularly noteworthy are the A15-type GaMH6 alloys, which remain dynamically stable at low pressures of 97, 28, 5, and 6 GPa, simultaneously exhibiting high Tc of 88, 39, 70, and 49 K at 100, 35, 10, and 10 GPa, respectively. Overall, these findings enrich the family of A15-type superconductors and provide insights for the future exploration of high-temperature hydride superconductors that can be stabilized at lower pressures.
The elements of scientific style
Authors: Reddy Christopher
Published: December 2023

Sharing Our Science: How to Write and Speak STEM, Brandon R. Brown
How a translation impacts its translator
Authors: Guo Huarui
Published: December 2023

The present article is a function-oriented case study within the framework of Descriptive Translation Studies, as developed by Gideon Toury, which posits translations as facts in the target culture where they interact with other works and influence them. The present article argues that a translation can have an impact on its translator whose relationship with the target culture is ambivalent. The British missionary Timothy Richard and his Chinese translation of Looking Backward is the case under investigation. Richard played multiple roles in late Qing China. He was a reformer as well as a missionary. His translation of Looking Backward influenced his own reform ideas, which in turn influenced the reformists in late Qing China.
Effects of drive imbalance on the particle emission from a Bose–Einstein condensate in a one-dimensional lattice
Authors: Lai 赖 Long-Quan 龙泉 , Li 李 Zhao 照
Published: December 2023

Time-periodic driving has been an effective tool in the field of nonequilibrium quantum dynamics, which enables precise control of the particle interactions. We investigate the collective emission of particles from a Bose–Einstein condensate in a one-dimensional lattice with periodic drives that are separate in modulation amplitudes and relative phases. In addition to the enhancement of particle emission, we find that amplitude imbalances lead to energy shift and band broadening, while typical relative phases may give rise to similar gaps. These results offer insights into the specific manipulations of nonequilibrium quantum systems with tone-varying drives.
An extended social force model on unidirectional flow considering psychological and behavioral impacts of hazard source
Authors: Deng 邓 Kaifeng 凯丰 , Li 李 Meng 梦 , Hu 胡 Xiangmin 祥敏 , Chen 陈 Tao 涛
Published: December 2023

An accurate assessment of the evacuation efficiency in case of disasters is of vital importance to the safety design of buildings and street blocks. Hazard sources not only physically but psychologically affect the pedestrians, which may further alter their behavioral patterns. This effect is especially significant in narrow spaces, such as corridors and alleys. This study aims to integrate a non-spreading hazard source into the social force model following the results from a previous experiment and simulation, and to simulate unidirectional pedestrian flows over various crowd densities and clarity–intensity properties of the hazard source. The integration include a virtual repulsion force from the hazard source and a decay on the social force term. The simulations reveal (i) that the hazard source creates virtual bottlenecks that suppress the flow, (ii) that the inter-pedestrian push forms a stabilisation phase on the flow-density curve within medium-to-high densities, and (iii) that the pedestrians are prone to a less orderly and stable pattern of movement in low clarity–intensity scenarios, possibly with lateral collisions passing the hazard source.
Physical mechanism of secondary-electron emission in Si wafers
Authors: Zhao 赵 Yanan 亚楠 , Meng 孟 Xiangzhao 祥兆 , Peng 彭 Shuting 淑婷 , Miao 苗 Guanghui 光辉 , Gao 高 Yuqiang 玉强 , Peng 彭 Bin 斌 , Cui 崔 Wanzhao 万照 , Hu 胡 Zhongqiang 忠强
Published: December 2023

CMOS-compatible RF/microwave devices, such as filters and amplifiers, have been widely used in wireless communication systems. However, secondary-electron emission phenomena often occur in RF/microwave devices based on silicon (Si) wafers, especially in the high-frequency range. In this paper, we have studied the major factors that influence the secondary-electron yield (SEY) in commercial Si wafers with different doping concentrations. We show that the SEY is suppressed as the doping concentration increases, corresponding to a relatively short effective escape depth λ. Meanwhile, the reduced narrow band gap is beneficial in suppressing the SEY, in which the absence of a shallow energy band below the conduction band will easily capture electrons, as revealed by first-principles calculations. Thus, the new physical mechanism combined with the effective escape depth and band gap can provide useful guidance for the design of integrated RF/microwave devices based on Si wafers.
Dynamics of information diffusion and disease transmission in time-varying multiplex networks with asymmetric activity levels
Authors: Xie 谢 Xiao-Xiao 笑笑 , Huo 霍 Liang-An 良安 , Dong 董 Ya-Fang 雅芳 , Cheng 程 Ying-Ying 英英
Published: December 2023

While the interaction between information and disease in static networks has been extensively investigated, many studies have ignored the characteristics of network evolution. In this study, we construct a new two-layer coupling model to explore the interactions between information and disease. The upper layer describes the diffusion of disease-related information, and the lower layer represents the disease transmission. We then use power-law distributions to examine the influence of asymmetric activity levels on dynamic propagation, revealing a mapping relationship characterizing the interconnected propagation of information and diseases among partial nodes within the network. Subsequently, we derive the disease outbreak threshold by using the microscopic Markov-chain approach (MMCA). Finally, we perform extensive Monte Carlo (MC) numerical simulations to verify the accuracy of our theoretical results. Our findings indicate that the activity levels of individuals in the disease transmission layer have a more significant influence on disease transmission compared with the individual activity levels in the information diffusion layer. Moreover, reducing the damping factor can delay disease outbreaks and suppress disease transmission, while improving individual quarantine measures can contribute positively to disease control. This study provides valuable insights into policymakers for developing outbreak prevention and control strategies.
Dynamical nonlinear excitations induced by interaction quench in a two-dimensional box-trapped Bose–Einstein condensate
Authors: Niu 牛 Zhen-Xia 真霞 , Gao 高 Chao 超
Published: December 2023

Manipulating nonlinear excitations, including solitons and vortices, is an essential topic in quantum many-body physics. A new progress in this direction is a protocol proposed in [Phys. Rev. Res.
2 043256 (2020)] to produce dark solitons in a one-dimensional atomic Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC) by quenching inter-atomic interaction. Motivated by this work, we generalize the protocol to a two-dimensional BEC and investigate the generic scenario of its post-quench dynamics. For an isotropic disk trap with a hard-wall boundary, we find that successive inward-moving ring dark solitons (RDSs) can be induced from the edge, and the number of RDSs can be controlled by tuning the ratio of the after- and before-quench interaction strength across different critical values. The role of the quench played on the profiles of the density, phase, and sound velocity is also investigated. Due to the snake instability, the RDSs then become vortex–antivortex pairs with peculiar dynamics managed by the initial density and the after-quench interaction. By tuning the geometry of the box traps, demonstrated as polygonal ones, more subtle dynamics of solitons and vortices are enabled. Our proposed protocol and the discovered rich dynamical effects on nonlinear excitations can be realized in near future cold-atom experiments.
Numerical simulation for the initial state of avalanche in polydisperse particle systems
Authors: Han 韩 Ren 韧 , Li 李 Ting 亭 , Chi 迟 Zhipeng 志鹏 , Yang 杨 Hui 晖 , Li 李 Ran 然
Published: December 2023

Numerical simulation is employed to investigate the initial state of avalanche in polydisperse particle systems. Nucleation and propagation processes are illustrated for pentadisperse and triadisperse particle systems, respectively. In these processes, particles involved in the avalanche grow slowly in the early stage and explosively in the later stage, which is clearly different from the continuous and steady growth trend in the monodisperse system. By examining the avalanche propagation, the number growth of particles involved in the avalanche and the slope of the number growth, the initial state can be divided into three stages: T1 (nucleation stage), T2 (propagation stage), T3 (overall avalanche stage). We focus on the characteristics of the avalanche in the T2 stage, and find that propagation distances increase almost linearly in both axial and radial directions in polydisperse systems. We also consider the distribution characteristics of the average coordination number and average velocity for the moving particles. The results support that the polydisperse particle systems are more stable in the T2 stage.
The benefit of kitchen exhaust fan uses after cooking - A CFD assessment
Authors: Chen Shou-Wang , Chang Chao-Yen , Lee Wan-Chen , Chan Ying-Chieh
Published: December 2023

Cooking is one of the most common activities in our daily life. Studies have shown that cooking may generate substances with hazardous particles or gases, which influence indoor air quality and cause a detriment to health. Although using a kitchen hood or an exhaust fan is an efficient way to remove harmful substances, entirely removing the hazard is still challenging. Our study aims to explore if leaving the fans on is an efficient way to remove the particles in kitchens by 3D Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. If so, how long should we leave the fans on? The 3D geometry of the CFD model of a kitchen was built using a real kitchen with windows as a reference to represent Taiwan’s typical kitchen style in real life. The simulation results were also compared and calibrated from experimental results. The validations agreed with the experimental results after adjusting the boundary conditions. Moreover, we used the validated model to conduct transient simulations for the four cases, including the case leaving the exhaust fan on and the case turning off the fan immediately. Results showed that leaving the hood on could remove more pollutants, but it still takes a while. Opening the window could speed up the removal of pollutants even without wind. Findings from this study could provide important implications for the benefit of kitchen exhaust fans and what to do when cooking is finished to protect residents from exposure to cooking emissions.
Gravity ventilation for interior bathrooms
Authors: Hall Monika , Gerber Vincent , Geissler Achim
Published: December 2023

Based on the extensive experience of a building cooperative with interior bathroom gravity (shaft) ventilation in existing apartment buildings, the replacement buildings constructed at the same location are also equipped with gravity ventilation. The aim of the project described here is to demonstrate the possibilities and limitations of gravity ventilation in one of the new replacement buildings by means of monitoring. Detailed monitoring over a complete year recorded the behaviour and effectiveness of the gravity ventilation in all seasons. In winter, gravity ventilation leads to higher air change rates in interior bathrooms than in summer. In general, humidity can be removed with gravity ventilation except in summer, when after a shower the bathroom door stays closed for 24 h. In summer when the indoor and ambient temperature is the same the gravity ventilation does not work. In this case, the interior bathroom should be ventilated by the main apartment ventilation, e.g., while the bathroom door and other room doors and windows are open at the same time. In summer, doors and windows are often open and the gravity ventilation summer problem can be viewed as negligible. Therefore, gravity ventilation is a good alternative to other ventilation systems in interior bathrooms.
Low-cost sensor for particulate matter concentration: an evaluation of its measurement performance in the field by direct comparison with a calibrated reference system
Authors: Salamone Francesco , Ciervo Antonio , Sibilio Sergio , Masullo Massimiliano
Published: December 2023

The WHO defines threshold values of PMs. Different studies where wearables are used also to monitor PMs. With the main goal of developing a new wearable monitoring system for research purposes based on low-cost sensors and open-source hardware and considering the wide variety of low-cost sensors available on the market today, we focused on evaluating the measurement performance of a particular type of low-cost PMS, the Plantower PMS A003I. It was connected to an Arduino Micro, which served as the microcontroller and data logger. The low-cost system was used in a direct comparison with a calibrated DustTrak DRX as the reference instrument. The test was conducted in a real office in four different sections of monitoring activity on four different days. The result of the proposed method suggests that it is possible to use low-cost sensors to evaluate indoor air quality in terms of PM levels.
The potential of the height-to-width ratio as an indicator to characterize the ventilation performance of a canyon in the urban context
Authors: Li Jiaying , You Wei , Ding Wowo
Published: December 2023

The height-to-width ratio (H/W) of canyons has been proven to be a significant indicator related to ventilation performance (airflow status and ventilation efficiency), which can help designers assess urban ventilation performance and guide the design quickly. However, previous research focused on the canyons in ideal geometric settings rather than in the urban context. This study explores whether the relationships between H/W, airflow status, and ventilation efficiency of ideal form studies apply to canyons in the urban context. Firstly, the relationship between the three in ideal geometric settings is sorted out by literature reviews. Then, the validity of the findings of ideal form studies in in the urban context is verified, using a typical residential area, Nanjing, China, as a case. This study found that H/W can affect the ventilation performance to a certain extent in in the urban context. However, most canyons’ airflows are affected by complex environmental factors, turning into different flow types (Deviation Type, Crossing Type, and Multivortex Type), which reduces the correlation between H/W, airflow status, and ventilation efficiency of canyons in the urban context.
Selecting roller shade optical properties for glare protection
Authors: Lu Sichen , Tzempelikos Athanasios
Published: December 2023

This paper presents a revised method for choosing roller shade properties that can significantly reduce the risk of glare when closed. State-of-the-art daylight modeling is employed to compute direct and diffuse light transmission through shading fabrics using BSDF datasets with the 5 Phase Method plus a peak extraction algorithm for the specular component. The analysis is parameterized by properties listed by manufacturers: openness factor, visible transmittance, and visible reflectance. In this way, we provide recommendations for the upper bounds of properties based on annual discomfort frequency (annual time percentage when daylight Glare Probability <5.5%). We discuss the impact of Radiance-aBSDF and related uncertainties, and the comparison with glare control classes proposed in Standard EN 14501.
Do the customers remember? The fade-out effect from the demand response applied in the district heating system in Denmark
Authors: Marszal-Pomianowska A , Jensen O M , Wittchen K B , Jokubauskis B , Melgaard S P
Published: December 2023

Buildings can deliver short-term thermal energy storage to energy systems. In district heating (DH) systems, it is mainly desk studies and simulations that reveal a large thermal flexibility potential. Knowledge from real-life case studies on how residents participate in demand management campaigns is crucial for the successful utilisation of buildings’ flexibility potential for minimizing bottlenecks in the daily operation of DH systems. In the field study including 72 single-family houses connected to the 3GDH network in southern Denmark, the demand response (DR) strategy “night setback” was applied for two heating periods. The houses were equipped with control and monitoring equipment, which allowed the deactivation of the heating system while monitoring the indoor temperature, so it does not drop below the defined value. The occupants controlled the DR events settings and could at any time stop utilisation of the night setback strategy (implicit participation in the DR). All 72 houses applied the night setback during both heating periods. Yet, the participation time decreased from 89% to 81%. The lowest participation rate was noted for the farm house, 60% and 9% of heating periods 1 and 2, respectively. In around 60% of the DR events, the night setback strategy was activated at 20:00.
Influence of Temporal- and Spatial Resolutions on Building Performance Simulation Models: A Danish Residential Building Case Study
Authors: Andersen Kamilla Heimar , Marszal-Pomianowska Anna , Jokubauskis Benas , Heiselberg Per Kvols
Published: December 2023

This study aims to assess the accuracy of a building performance simulation (BPS) model developed in IDA ICE software, focusing on heating energy use and indoor air temperatures in a low-energy multi-story residential building located in Northern Denmark. Six apartments were analyzed, and a comparative analysis was conducted between the measured parameters and the results obtained from BPS models with different spatial and temporal resolutions. The findings indicate that while the BPS models can provide reasonably accurate estimates of heating energy use, they may not fully capture the nuanced response to factors such as indoor air temperature This highlights the importance of incorporating qualitative inputs and environmental variables into these BPS models, including heating and/or cooling setpoints, internal gains, and weather conditions. Overall, this study provides insights into the limitations and opportunities of BPS models for accurately estimating heating energy use and indoor air temperatures in low-energy residential buildings.
Leveraging campus-scale Wi-Fi data for activity-based occupant modeling in urban energy applications
Authors: Mosteiro-Romero Martín , Miller Clayton , Quintana Matias , Chong Adrian , Stouffs Rudi
Published: December 2023

The widespread availability of open datasets in urban areas is transforming how urban energy systems are planned, simulated, and visualized. Urban energy models, however, require an understanding of urban dwellers, as their activities create the demands for energy in buildings. In this paper, we explore using campus-scale Wi-Fi data to identify typical occupant activity patterns as an input to an agent-based model of building occupants at the district scale. The data is taken from a Singaporean university’s Wi-Fi network at high resolution. Each record comprises a timestamp, a device identifier, the location of the device within the campus, and the access point to which it is connected. The Wi-Fi dataset contains 120 different buildings on campus and 10,300 anonymized individual devices. Activities are then assigned to each location on campus according to the building use type. In order to test the methodology, the activity plans of 27,604 undergraduate students, 8,304 graduate students, and 12,018 employees were simulated over a workweek. The results show the model’s ability to produce plausible activity plans but could be improved by implementing sampling rules and expanding the source dataset to include off-peak dates. Nevertheless, using such an agent-based modeling approach at the district scale appears to be a promising methodology to assess the impacts of different planning strategies on occupant behavior and district energy demand.
Indoor monitoring and long-term survey to identify the risks of Energy Poverty: the case of social housing in Northern Italy
Authors: Pittana Ilaria , Mercusa Andrea , Gasparella Andrea , Romagnoni Piercarlo , Cappelletti Francesca
Published: December 2023

Low-income families often live in poorly heated houses belonging to social housing programs. Tenants’ wellbeing and health in social housing is typically threatened by problems associated with energy inefficiency and poor Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ). These conditions are among the symptoms of a social issue known as Energy Poverty (EP), which occurs when residents face difficulty in paying energy bills. In 2020 about 2.1 million households (8% of the total) were suffering from energy poverty in Italy. The risk of EP is mainly favored by three factors: the low income of the family, the high final price of energy and the poor technical construction characteristics of the building which can lead to poor IEQ. Four indicators have been proposed by the European Commission and some others developed in the scientific literature, but often neither the thresholds to assess the status of EP nor the methodology to collect data have been defined. This study aims to assess some of the recommended European indicators on a case study. The risks of EP have been investigated in social housing located in Northern Italy by means of an integrated methodology based on a site inspection, a survey, and the continuous monitoring of the indoor environmental parameters during the winter season. The proposed method allowed detecting the presence of EP in 5 dwellings out of 8.
Exploration of the relationships between perceived and observed parameters of IEQ using Bayesian analysis
Authors: Crosby S , Manu S , Rysanek A
Published: December 2023

Seeking to bridge the gap between observations and predictions of thermal comfort, recent work has explored novel predictive frameworks to improve the prediction accuracy of occupants’ thermal satisfaction in office spaces. Recent contributions include the development of a Bayesian framework to estimate the probability of an occupant feeling thermally satisfied as a function of not only psychrometric IEQ parameters but also non-thermal metrics of IEQ. A predictive relationship between indoor CO2 concentrations and thermal satisfaction was found, though the underlying causal relationship is not yet clear. An occupant unhappy about air quality is more likely than not found to be unhappy with other parameters, including indoor air temperature. To quantify these relationships, further analysis with new modelling methods and data is required. This paper presents a new formulation of prior work, using a new Bayesian logistic regression model and counterfactual inference to assess the combined relationships between many subjective and objective IEQ factors. This work sets out to provide the first-known Bayesian analysis of the underlying causality of observed statistical relationships between divergent parameters of subjective and objective IEQ.
Examining respiratory comfort in vernacular and conventional buildings
Authors: Priyadarshani S , Mani M , Maskell D
Published: December 2023

The study examines the role of air temperature and humidity on heat and moisture exchanges in the human respiratory tract. A human respiratory tract model was built to solve for heat and mass balance under varying indoor temperature (Ti) and relative humidity (RHi) values. Ti and RHi from on-field measurements from Vernacular (Adobe) and Conventional (Brick/RCC) buildings were used as input parameters to this model for computation of temperature (Ta in °C) water vapor concentration (Ca
in mg/l) at different segments of the respiratory tract. Results indicate that at the same temperature, relative humidity has a significant bearing on respiratory air conditioning. Also, at a given length of the respiratory tract, the percentage of heating and humidification achieved was higher in vernacular room conditions compared to the conventional room. Excess water vapor loss from the mucus layer in the deeper airway conduits restricts mucociliary clearance causing respiratory difficulties, predominantly in cold regions. Comfortable respiration is an important indicator of health and productivity; however, it is not presently incorporated for indoor comfort evaluation. Insights from the study can lead to recommendations for material selection for the design of comfortable, healthy indoor environments.
Influence of building geometry on the environmental impact of building structures
Authors: Auburtin P Navaro , Saadé M , Manthey M , Louërat M , Martin J-L , Baverel O
Published: December 2023

In France, embodied carbon represents 35% of the total green house gases emissions from the construction sector. This proportion can reach up to 70% when considering recent buildings. In particular, structural elements for a large portion of the material quantities hence environmental impacts. There is a large panel of options for designing structure and the early stage choices have the biggest impact on the final product. In order to help designers, understanding the influence of structure parameters such as material, span, grid choices or the number of level is essential. To do so, the article uses a methodology coupling structural analysis and environmental assesment. Wood, steel and concrete structures are considered with various span based on a 3 meters by 3 meters grid. The life cycle analysis uses french based scenarios and indicators from the european norm EN15804+A2. Results show that there is no material which is better on every indicators. Also the increase of span or the decrease of the number of level leads to higher impacts no matter the indicator. Finally slabs and beams represent the largest part of the impacts.
A design stage, multi-objective assessment: material selection with environmental life-cycle analysis, labor, and material health considerations for building structure
Authors: Wang Z , Yu X , Houde K , Aviv D
Published: December 2023

During the schematic design stage of a building, assessing trade-offs of lifecycle impact of building elements and materials is crucial for the decision-making process when aiming to reduce negative impacts holistically. A multi-objective assessment is proposed, for environmental, labour exploitation risk (LER), and material health lifecycle impact of the structure and foundation elements in the schematic design stage. Using a real, mid-size, mass timber, educational building in Philadelphia, United States as a case study, we deployed multi-objective optimization (MOO) to consider the range of global warming potential (GWP), LER rating, and material health impact of nine product types over 1602 structure and foundation elements. The parametric workflow paired with Building Information Modelling (BIM) objects aims to provide designers a holistic overview on the cumulative, per material, and per building element impact upstream in the supply chain. The Pareto front solutions reveal that concrete floor with metal deck, hollow structural section framing, and concrete foundation slab, footing, and column pose the greatest risk overall for the case study building, and warrant design consideration to substitute with less impactful alternatives.
Office to housing conversion: estimating life cycle environmental and financial performance
Authors: Stiernon D , Böhlke A , Stephan A , Bos M , Marino G
Published: December 2023

Renovating existing building is often touted as having an improved environmental performance as compared to demolition and construction. However, very few studies have quantified the life cycle environmental benefits resulting from such renovations. The aim of this research is to provide a benchmark based on a real and representative case study building to estimate life cycle greenhouse gas emissions and financial costs of redeveloping an office building by considering different scenarios: (1) renovation as an office building; (2) conversion as a residential building; (3) demolition and construction of an office building and (4): demolition and construction of a residential building. Results show that the demolition-construction scenarios are undoubtedly the most environmentally impactful, but the difference between offices and housing is less significant and depends greatly on the assumptions made. On the other hand, from a tax point of view, the demolition-construction scenario is favoured by the real estate industry because it allows for the recovery of VAT in the operation and thus maximizes the value of the real estate asset as well as the financial return. There is also a significant difference between the profitability of a housing and an office project. The latter is favoured by market values. The tendency to favour offices in the European district could be reversed in the current post covid situation and solutions exist to encourage the development of housing projects through office conversion.
Public buildings: Life-cycle GHG emission scenarios and reduction trajectories by 2050
Authors: Alaux N , Truger B , Lackner T , Nabernegg S , Röck M , Steininger K W , Passer A
Published: December 2023

Responsible for 37% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the construction and operation of buildings involves substantial potential to mitigate climate change. Although they represent only a small part of the building stock, publicly-owned buildings can lead by example and stimulate emission reductions through public procurement processes that are aligned with existing climate goals. In this paper, possible GHG emission reduction pathways for public office buildings in Austria are explored. A building stock model for Austria’s publicly-owned office buildings is developed, which projects operational and embodied GHG emissions from new construction, renovation and demolition until 2050. Findings show that phasing out fossil fuel use in building operations by 2050 enables GHG emission pathways that are compatible with the Carbon Law but still exceed Austria’s available carbon budget for public office buildings. A higher renovation rate can facilitate the fossil fuel phase-out by reducing energy demand. Embodied GHG emissions are becoming increasingly important and the main source of GHG emissions when phasing out fossil fuels in space heating. More research and policies are therefore needed to accelerate reductions of embodied GHG emissions towards net zero.
A Community-based Whole Life Carbon Assessment: Case study of a London estate community plan
Authors: Nava S , Chalabi Z , Bell S , Burman E
Published: December 2023

In the attempt to adhere to the UK’s 2050 Net-Zero Strategy, more attention has been given to energy-centric decision-making over the regeneration of housing estates. Whole Life Carbon Assessment (WLCA) is the methodology used for the evaluation of the overall carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions of building projects over their lifecycle. The WLCA studies are mostly not understood by different stakeholders and are less effective in reducing the Global Warming Potential (GWP) impacts in the development of regeneration scenarios. This paper is part of a larger study on a multistakeholder lifecycle-based sustainability assessment framework and aims to further explore whether retrofitting can outperform the existing and new build scenarios for lower GWP impacts, and intends to examine the use of WLCA for the development of a regeneration scenario. The research consists of a single-case case study employing co-design workshops, surveys, and WLCA experiments. The community’s preferred regeneration scenario has been developed through knowledge mobility and co-design workshops with the members of the community and a UCL team of designers and researchers. The WLCA of different regeneration scenarios (existing building, different refurbishment scenarios, and a previously approved redevelopment scheme) has been conducted using the data from desk-based research, site surveys, building regulations, retrofit case studies and guidelines, and the planning documents of the council’s previously approved new build scheme. The results of the WLCA support the current studies in favour of the refurbishment scenarios over the demolition and rebuilding of the estate, and make a case for the necessity of understanding the GWP in design development to reduce the GWP of regeneration scenarios.
Geospatial assessment of water footprints for hyperscale data centers in the United States
Authors: Lei Nuoa , Lu Jun , Cheng Zhu , Cao Zhi , Shehabi Arman , Masanet Eric
Published: December 2023

The sustainability of water usage in data centers is of growing importance considering rapid digitalization and environmental constraints on freshwater resources. However, the water footprint of data centers remains understudied, posing challenges to achieving sustainable data center operations. In this study, we assessed the water footprint of hyperscale data centers in the U.S. and identified major drivers of water use in data centers. Our findings offer valuable insights for designing water-efficient data centers, implementing sustainable practices, and formulating effective policies and technology incentives.
Blockchain for regenerative built environment governance
Authors: Wang Hongyang , Hunhevicz Jens , Hall Daniel , Meier Gregor , Wolf Catherine De
Published: December 2023

Regenerative approaches have gained attention in the built environment, but remain highly conceptual. This position paper argues for new regenerative governance structures that consider data governance, reassess complex stakeholder interactions, and ensure the inclusivity of diverse values and ownership. It then presents early ideas on how blockchain technology could facilitate scalable socio-economic-ecologic interactions along three inquiries, giving practical examples. Overall, the paper aims to inspire and guide further research into the development of modern digital governance tools fostering a regenerative built environment.
Closing the gap to sufficiency-based absolute climate targets for wood buildings
Authors: Hansen R N , Hoxha E , Andersen C E , Rasmussen F N , Ryberg M W , Birgisdottir H
Published: December 2023

This research investigated the distribution of the global climate planetary boundary (PB) on a national scale. Then it was distributed to a sector-specific carrying capacity by the principles of acquired rights (grandfathering) and sufficientarianism. Then, four wood dwellings were compared against these carrying capacities using the life cycle assessment methodology. The climate safe operating space for new dwellings is about three times larger when using the principle of sufficiency compared to acquired rights. The rationale for the sufficiency perspective is that it considers the fundamentals of a society leading to a fulfilling life. The concept disregards the current surplus elements in society, which gives more space for emissions for the remaining elements in a fulfilling society. The acquired rights reflect the current society as optimal but require systemic changes in the different sectors to reduce their total impacts to remain within climate PB while keeping the sector’s current share of impacts. However, building with wood cannot alone contribute to society staying within the climate target. The end of life contributes most to the impact due to biogenic carbon release, and energy consumption follows next. Reduction of the average yearly built area shows considerable potential to close the target gap. In addition, improving and implementing circularity, carbon capture, and material efficiency would reduce biogenic carbon’s end of life impacts. Combined with energy-positive buildings and low-carbon materials, this could be a viable mitigation pathway to explore further.
Case Study K.118 – The Reuse of Building Components in Winterthur, Switzerland
Authors: Stricker E , Angst M , Brandi G , Buser B , Sonderegger A
Published: December 2023

The K.118 building on Winterthur’s Lagerplatz, completed in March 2021, has been widely recognised and awarded as an outstanding example for applying the principles of the circular economy to architecture. Commissioned by the Swiss pension fund Stiftung Abendrot, the architects Baubüro in situ planned and constructed a building using reclaimed components wherever possible. The planning and construction process was analysed by the Institute of Constructive Design (IKE) at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) in cooperation with the architects. The study shows that the reuse of building components has great potential for saving resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions during the construction phase of buildings. In order to use this potential, economic and procedural obstacles created by the framework conditions of today’s construction industry must be tackled.
A Shingled Glass Envelope System Constructed from Reclaimed Insulated Glass
Authors: Marshall D , Kennedy S
Published: December 2023

This paper presents a new approach to the design and construction of glazed building envelopes using salvaged insulated glazing units from demolition sites or surplus supply. Typically, Insulated Glazing Units (IGUs) are sent to landfill. Contemporary Architectural glazing is floated using virgin sand melted at 1700°C, a high energy extractive process. Obsolete architectural glass sent to recycling plants is not fed back into new float glass, rather it is downcycled to products such as glass bottles. This paper introduces a pathway for reusing obsolete and irregular Insulated Glazing Units into new curtainwalls; a pathway that currently does not exist. We demonstrate that the carbon footprint of glazed curtainwall could be halved by utilizing reclaimed IGUs. The system is a high-performance enclosure with weather tight compression gaskets and overlapping IGUs for thermal insulation and operational energy advantages over typical curtainwall systems. The system involves a computational configuration process for determining the best fit assembly of salvaged glass from a digitized inventory. The shingled glass façade system could be used in various applications, ranging from corporate offices to storefronts. This paper presents a one-to-one proof of concept, made from reclaimed IGUs of irregular size, collected in Lewes (UK).
Digital information management to increase the reuse of building materials
Authors: Foyn Thomas Berge , Fahlstedt Oskar , Bohne Rolf André
Published: December 2023

The construction industry contributes significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions and extraction of primary resources. The linear economy models used in building development projects are unsustainable. Hence, implementing circular economy models in the building development process is necessary. This paper aims to increase reuse in building projects. The study utilized a literature study, 18 interviews with construction industry professionals, and two case studies. The focus of the study was the role of digital information management in achieving a circular economy and a narrowed scope on the reuse of building materials and components. The results show six challenges for increasing the reuse of building materials in construction projects. The most central challenges are profitability, human willingness to action and change, and storage of reusable building materials. Based on the findings in this paper, a framework is developed for how digital information of construction resources can be utilized and managed throughout the lifetime of buildings. The suggested solutions will enhance the ability of property owners and developers to achieve circularity in their building projects and existing building stocks. In this respect, this paper contributes to the emergence of new profitable business models and markets within a circular value chain for building materials in the construction industry.